Post by RMT-Mod-Kara on Sept 17, 2016 19:47:32 GMT -5
Kristen Buchanan didn't utter a word when she breezed out of the doctor's examination room and made a bee-line for the door. She did say 'Let's go, kate' or 'I'm done' or 'Are you ready?' or anything else to let the person who'd accompanied her to her appointment over their shared lunch hour know that she was leaving. Kristen just swept through the waiting room and out the door and was well on her way down the sidewalk by the time the other blonde came bursting out the door behind her shouting out Kristen's name and calling for her to wait. Rather than heading for the parking garage where they'd left the car, Kristen speed-walked to the opposite corner and across the crosswalk as she headed to the small park on the other side.
She needed some air, some space. She didn't want to climb into the close confines of a car only to drive back to work and spend the rest of her day in the confines of the store having to deal with picky, never-going-to-be-happy customers. Not now. Not when work was the last thing she could even bring herself to think about right now. It'd just leave her with a headache.
She wiped her eyes violently, brushing away the tears before they could trickle down her cheeks as she made her way to an empty bench and plopped herself down onto it and buried her face in her hands.
The last thing she remembered was mentally taking the quiz in the back of her Cosmopolitan magazine when Kristen came bursting through the door and marched past her, heading outside. "Kris?" She jumped to her feet, grabbing her purse and keeping ahold of her magazine as she tried to rush after her friend.
Kate pushed through the exit door to the building and continued to call out to Kristen as she power-walked ahead of her. "Kristen!" she screamed out now before now jogging to catch up. She finally ended her run when she came to a park bench, with an apparently upset Kristen sitting with her face in the palms of her hands. She quietly took the empty spot next to her and began rubbing her back, "Sweetie, what's wrong?"
"I can't...I can't do this," Kristen replied, shaking her head with her face still hidden in her hands. It was impossible to tell if she was actually crying of if she was just trying to block out the world in the hope that whatever the doctor had told her in the examination room would just undo itself and go away and not be true.
"Come on, hun. Whatever it is... I'm sure you can handle it." Kate encouraged as she continued to rub her back and do her best to soothe her. "You're an amazing woman. Look at you. You have twins for cryin' out loud. Whatever that doctor found... I am sure it's not as bad as it seems."
She then let out a small laugh, "I mean... it's not like you're pregnant again. I mean... that would be a disaster."
Kristen didn't answer. She didn't say a word as she lifted her had from her hands and just stared up at Kate. She didn't have to say anything. It was written across her face, plain as day.
Kate let out a gasp, her hand moving to cover her mouth as realization hit her. Kristen looked... well, exactly like someone in her situation would. She had infant twins at home and was pregnant again. She really didn't even know what to say to that. "Awww... Kristen....I....how did that happen? I mean, Tyler acted like you'd gone celibate on him..."
"I did, kind of. At least, for a while anyway," she answered, raking her fingers through her golden hair. Her hand lingered on the back of her neck for a few moments before falling into her lap. "Let's just say he's been really, really happy lately," she added, making it clear that the sexual dry-spell between Kristen and Tyler had ended at some point.
Kate let out a sigh, "Gosh... I wish there was something I could do or say...." she started, not sure where the conversation was going, "But ya know what? You can do this, Kris. It would be nearly impossible for someone else but... I think you got this."
"Oh really?"
She cast Kate an incredulous look.
"Two minutes ago you said it was a disaster. Now, suddenly, it's okay and something I can do? Your inconsistency is NOT MAKING ME FEEL BETTER!!!" Kristen shot up off the bench and walked a few paces away and stood, with her arms folded across her chest as she tried to steady her breathing and calm down.
"Eli and Jake aren't even six-months-old yet, Kate," she said, a little calmer after her freaky outburst. "And Tyler's got school. He's already running himself into the ground as it is trying to help take care of the twins and keep up with his studies at the same time. And it's only going to get worse once graduates and starts his internship. He's going to have a lot of hours to put in before he can establish his residency. And the store! I mean, my God, how am I supposed to find time to work with three under two-year-olds to take care of?"
Kate stood up and walked to where Kristen moved, "Yea, I said it would be a disaster but hey, that was just me being silly." she explained, "I was trying to make you feel better. But listen... it won't be easy but I think you guys will be fine. It's just gonna take some extra work. Ya know you have me to help any way I can."
"Oh, right, because time is something you're going to have loads of after Wes runs off to England with Dean. You, alone, taking care of two kids and you're going to help me with three?" Kristen said. How? How, how, how, how, how? How could this happen to her? Okay, she knew how it happened. She was there. She knew damn well how it happened. But, still how could it happen. This wasn't what she'd planned, not this soon anyway. She'd expected the boys to be at least a few years old before she and Tyler had another baby. But this wasn't a few years! Right now, there was less time from the day they were born than there was to their first birthday. They weren't even six months old!
"This just isn't how I planned it," she admitted. "It's not how I planned it at all."
"You're telling me? The Queen of unplanned pregnancies?" Kate asked, trying to lighten the mood.
She didn't want to laugh. Really, she didn't. She even pursed her lips tight in an attempt to hold it in. But, she failed. With snort, Kristen started to chuckle. She should laugh. Her life had been turned upside down and it scared the crap out of her but she still laughed. She needed to laugh. She threw her arm around Kate's neck and let her friend guide her back to the bench they'd vacated only moments before.
"Oh, my god, Kate, what am I going to do?" she said as her chuckling started to subside. "Tyler is thrilled. I mean, he is literally thrilled. You should have seen him. We were arguing about the possibility that I was pregnant and, of course, while I was freaking out, he was standing there in his boxer shorts with this stupid, irresistible grin on his face. You'd think he just planted his flag on the moon."
Kate felt a sense of relief as she led Kristen back to the bench, where they both sat down. "Oh, I can imagine." she replied, shaking her head, "That boy is nuts about you. Why wouldn't he be thrilled about having more babies with you?" She kept her arm around her friend, "And about the shop... who even said you had to keep working? You know you're loaded. Who the hell you foolin'?" she chuckled, "I'll get a couple more girls in and you just stay home with the kids. I'd do it if I could."
"Oh, right. Just what Tyler needs, me at home and completely available," Kristen joked. She then shook her head and let out a loud groan. "Ugggh. I don't want to get fat again," she whined, dropping her head onto Kate's shoulder. "I'm gonna be huuuuuge. I just lost most of my pregnancy weight and now I'm just going to go and gain it all back again."
"Wanna hit up at that chili dog stand over there?" she asked, nodding in the direction of the vender in the middle of the park.
As great as a chili dog sounded, the memory of the horrific heartburn she'd suffered while she was pregnant with Jake immediately turned her off. "No. The last thing I have any desire to do is to be puking up chili dog."
"Ok...well then's let's go find a pizza shop because I am starving." she said, getting to her feet and helping Kristen up as well.
"Oh! Great! Pepperoni! Because that's loads better," she replied, letting herself be pulled to her feet and tugged down the sidewalk. "If I miss the toilet, you are sooo cleaning it up."
Wrapping her arm around Kristen's shoulder as they walked, Kate just grinned, "Well, sweetie, that's what friends are for."
She needed some air, some space. She didn't want to climb into the close confines of a car only to drive back to work and spend the rest of her day in the confines of the store having to deal with picky, never-going-to-be-happy customers. Not now. Not when work was the last thing she could even bring herself to think about right now. It'd just leave her with a headache.
She wiped her eyes violently, brushing away the tears before they could trickle down her cheeks as she made her way to an empty bench and plopped herself down onto it and buried her face in her hands.
The last thing she remembered was mentally taking the quiz in the back of her Cosmopolitan magazine when Kristen came bursting through the door and marched past her, heading outside. "Kris?" She jumped to her feet, grabbing her purse and keeping ahold of her magazine as she tried to rush after her friend.
Kate pushed through the exit door to the building and continued to call out to Kristen as she power-walked ahead of her. "Kristen!" she screamed out now before now jogging to catch up. She finally ended her run when she came to a park bench, with an apparently upset Kristen sitting with her face in the palms of her hands. She quietly took the empty spot next to her and began rubbing her back, "Sweetie, what's wrong?"
"I can't...I can't do this," Kristen replied, shaking her head with her face still hidden in her hands. It was impossible to tell if she was actually crying of if she was just trying to block out the world in the hope that whatever the doctor had told her in the examination room would just undo itself and go away and not be true.
"Come on, hun. Whatever it is... I'm sure you can handle it." Kate encouraged as she continued to rub her back and do her best to soothe her. "You're an amazing woman. Look at you. You have twins for cryin' out loud. Whatever that doctor found... I am sure it's not as bad as it seems."
She then let out a small laugh, "I mean... it's not like you're pregnant again. I mean... that would be a disaster."
Kristen didn't answer. She didn't say a word as she lifted her had from her hands and just stared up at Kate. She didn't have to say anything. It was written across her face, plain as day.
Kate let out a gasp, her hand moving to cover her mouth as realization hit her. Kristen looked... well, exactly like someone in her situation would. She had infant twins at home and was pregnant again. She really didn't even know what to say to that. "Awww... Kristen....I....how did that happen? I mean, Tyler acted like you'd gone celibate on him..."
"I did, kind of. At least, for a while anyway," she answered, raking her fingers through her golden hair. Her hand lingered on the back of her neck for a few moments before falling into her lap. "Let's just say he's been really, really happy lately," she added, making it clear that the sexual dry-spell between Kristen and Tyler had ended at some point.
Kate let out a sigh, "Gosh... I wish there was something I could do or say...." she started, not sure where the conversation was going, "But ya know what? You can do this, Kris. It would be nearly impossible for someone else but... I think you got this."
"Oh really?"
She cast Kate an incredulous look.
"Two minutes ago you said it was a disaster. Now, suddenly, it's okay and something I can do? Your inconsistency is NOT MAKING ME FEEL BETTER!!!" Kristen shot up off the bench and walked a few paces away and stood, with her arms folded across her chest as she tried to steady her breathing and calm down.
"Eli and Jake aren't even six-months-old yet, Kate," she said, a little calmer after her freaky outburst. "And Tyler's got school. He's already running himself into the ground as it is trying to help take care of the twins and keep up with his studies at the same time. And it's only going to get worse once graduates and starts his internship. He's going to have a lot of hours to put in before he can establish his residency. And the store! I mean, my God, how am I supposed to find time to work with three under two-year-olds to take care of?"
Kate stood up and walked to where Kristen moved, "Yea, I said it would be a disaster but hey, that was just me being silly." she explained, "I was trying to make you feel better. But listen... it won't be easy but I think you guys will be fine. It's just gonna take some extra work. Ya know you have me to help any way I can."
"Oh, right, because time is something you're going to have loads of after Wes runs off to England with Dean. You, alone, taking care of two kids and you're going to help me with three?" Kristen said. How? How, how, how, how, how? How could this happen to her? Okay, she knew how it happened. She was there. She knew damn well how it happened. But, still how could it happen. This wasn't what she'd planned, not this soon anyway. She'd expected the boys to be at least a few years old before she and Tyler had another baby. But this wasn't a few years! Right now, there was less time from the day they were born than there was to their first birthday. They weren't even six months old!
"This just isn't how I planned it," she admitted. "It's not how I planned it at all."
"You're telling me? The Queen of unplanned pregnancies?" Kate asked, trying to lighten the mood.
She didn't want to laugh. Really, she didn't. She even pursed her lips tight in an attempt to hold it in. But, she failed. With snort, Kristen started to chuckle. She should laugh. Her life had been turned upside down and it scared the crap out of her but she still laughed. She needed to laugh. She threw her arm around Kate's neck and let her friend guide her back to the bench they'd vacated only moments before.
"Oh, my god, Kate, what am I going to do?" she said as her chuckling started to subside. "Tyler is thrilled. I mean, he is literally thrilled. You should have seen him. We were arguing about the possibility that I was pregnant and, of course, while I was freaking out, he was standing there in his boxer shorts with this stupid, irresistible grin on his face. You'd think he just planted his flag on the moon."
Kate felt a sense of relief as she led Kristen back to the bench, where they both sat down. "Oh, I can imagine." she replied, shaking her head, "That boy is nuts about you. Why wouldn't he be thrilled about having more babies with you?" She kept her arm around her friend, "And about the shop... who even said you had to keep working? You know you're loaded. Who the hell you foolin'?" she chuckled, "I'll get a couple more girls in and you just stay home with the kids. I'd do it if I could."
"Oh, right. Just what Tyler needs, me at home and completely available," Kristen joked. She then shook her head and let out a loud groan. "Ugggh. I don't want to get fat again," she whined, dropping her head onto Kate's shoulder. "I'm gonna be huuuuuge. I just lost most of my pregnancy weight and now I'm just going to go and gain it all back again."
"Wanna hit up at that chili dog stand over there?" she asked, nodding in the direction of the vender in the middle of the park.
As great as a chili dog sounded, the memory of the horrific heartburn she'd suffered while she was pregnant with Jake immediately turned her off. "No. The last thing I have any desire to do is to be puking up chili dog."
"Ok...well then's let's go find a pizza shop because I am starving." she said, getting to her feet and helping Kristen up as well.
"Oh! Great! Pepperoni! Because that's loads better," she replied, letting herself be pulled to her feet and tugged down the sidewalk. "If I miss the toilet, you are sooo cleaning it up."
Wrapping her arm around Kristen's shoulder as they walked, Kate just grinned, "Well, sweetie, that's what friends are for."