⊱ ────── {⋆⌘⋆} ────── ⊰

STEVIE woke up and softly yawned as the small rays of sunlight illuminated her room. she slowly sat up, sighing as she ran her hand through her hair. upon arriving from mexico, she went straight to bed, as she was feeling carsick on the road.

stevie got out of bed and put her hair up, walking out of her bedroom to find her younger brother rummaging the fridge, looking for breakfast. "good morning kiddo." stevie called out.

"hey, good morning." robby said.

"how'd you sleep?" stevie said.

"pretty good." robby said. "how about you? feeling better?"

"a little, still dizzy but i'll get over it." stevie said, walking over to the fridge. "here, i'll make you some breakfast."

"i was actually just gonna eat some toast." robby said.

"don't worry, i got you." stevie said, grabbing some eggs from the fridge.

"thanks for letting me crash here." robby said.

"you can crash here anytime." stevie said. "you know you're always welcome here."

"thanks." robby said. "you're off today right?"

"yeah." stevie said. "i'm kinda taking it easy today. i need to go pick up lola from my mom's place and i also needed to run some errands. what about you? any plans for today?"

"not really." robby said.

"do you and tory have any plans?" stevie said as she began to fry up some bacon.

"nah, i kinda haven't called her yet." robby said.

"i know things have been kinda off since the tournament but that's over and it's summertime. you guys can hit the beach, go swimming." stevie said, grabbing a plate.

"i don't know. things have been kinda weird." robby said, as stevie handed him a plate.

"i know. you should call her, see how she's doing." stevie said. "you two could use the distraction."

"yeah, i guess i'll call her." robby said.

"yeah, it's summer! go out and have some fun." stevie said, taking a seat next to her brother. as she sat down, she heard her cell phone ring. she got up from her seat and walked over to her bedroom to grab her phone. she smiled as she saw that she was receiving a call from alex.

"good morning honey." stevie said, smiling.

"good morning beautiful." alex said. "how's it going?"

"good, i'm off work today." stevie said.

"how're you feeling? i know you mentioned something about feeling carsick, you okay?" alex said.

"ehh, i'm feeling a little better." stevie said.

"it's a good thing you're off work then." alex said. "just get some rest and relax for the day."

"i will, i just have to go to mom's to pick up lola." stevie said. "that and chris offered to make breakfast."

"alright. i hope you feel better, baby." alex said. "i'll see you soon."

"thank you. i'll see you soon." stevie said, as she sat back down. "i love you."

"i love you too." alex said as he hung up. stevie turned her phone off and placed it down on the table.

"you're back with alex?" robby said.

"yeah, we've been together for a couple of months now." stevie said, with a chuckle.

"how'd dad react?" robby said, laughing.

"let's not go there." stevie said, laughing.

⸻

the music on the radio and the sound of lola's bark were heard through the apartment, waking johnny from his deep sleep. bella had gotten an early start, while johnny slept in after arriving from mexico late.

the blonde groaned as he turned to find the bed empty and the small dog that belonged to his daughter at the doorway, barking. "quit your yappin', i'm up." johnny said as he got out of bed. he walked out of the bedroom and into the living room, followed by lola.

bella sat at the table, looking up from her laptop and laughing as she saw the small dog follow johnny around. "well, good morning to the both of you." she laughed. "looks like you have a shadow."

"does the dog always follow people around?" johnny said.

"nope, just you." bella said, laughing. she walked over to the blonde, wrapping her arms around his neck and softly kissing him. "i missed you."

"yeah, me too." johnny said, as he wrapped his arms around bella's waist and pulled her closer to him.

"i forgot to ask you about your trip, tell me all about it." bella said.

"pretty good. robby and i began to patch things up. we kinda hit a rough spot but it got better." johnny said, as bella listened intently. "then we went to this fight club to find miguel, but we kinda got into some shit with some fighters–"

"what?" bella said.

"it was a misunderstanding, they mistook us for the feds because of that 'fbi' shirt that i bought for myself and for robby at a gift shop." johnny said.

"only you." bella said, with a chuckle. "that sounded like quite a trip. i'm just glad to have you home."

"next time, i'm bringing you with me." johnny said. "i'm taking you with me wherever i go."

"aren't you the sweetest." bella said, as she leaned in to kiss him once again. she softly groaned into the kiss and melted into johnny's embrace. before going any further, chrissy opened the door, snapping them out of their kiss.

"good morning lovebirds!" chrissy said, as she walked in. "sorry to interrupt, but i'm starving."

stevie walked in to the apartment and shut the door behind her. "morning mom, morning dad." she said.

"hey baby! i missed you so much." bella said, embracing her daughter. "oh, how was your trip?"

"it was pretty cool!" stevie said. "you missed out, mexico was so amazing."

"i know, i've been there." bella chuckled. "but i'm glad you enjoyed it."

as stevie sat down and told bella all about the trip, chrissy began to make breakfast. as she made breakfast, chrissy noticed stevie's quiet demeanor. "everything okay, honey?" she said. "you look tired."

"did you sleep okay?" bella said.

"yeah, i just felt carsick last night and i'm still kinda feeling it." stevie said.

"you didn't say anything about being carsick." johnny said. "you sure you're okay?"

"yeah, i just got dizzy." stevie said.

"maybe you just need to eat something." chrissy said as she served an omelet on a plate and handed it to stevie.

"thanks aunt chris." stevie smiled.

"this looks and smells so good, chris." bella said as chrissy placed a plate in front of her and johnny. "so how're robby and miguel doing?"

"they're doing alright. ride home was kinda quiet though." johnny said. "i think things between him and miguel are gonna take some time."

"well, for starters, i'm glad you and robby are getting along." chrissy said as she sat down. "that's a good sign. he and miguel will eventually work their shit out."

as stevie sipped on her glass of orange juice, she felt a strange feeling. she felt her stomach tie up in knots and she also felt the food coming up. she placed her fork down and ran to the bathroom only to throw up.

"okay, maybe breakfast didn't make her feel any better." chrissy said. "maybe it's not car sickness, maybe it was something she ate?"

"john, what did i tell you about stevie and gas station food?" bella said, running a hand through her hair.

"i knew you would say that. look, she had to eat something." johnny said. "she's gonna be fine."

"any time she gets sick from her stomach, it's because she ate something from the gas station. it better not be food poisoning." bella said, sipping on her orange juice.

"ah, she'll be fine." johnny said.

while her parents spoke in the dining room, stevie wiped her mouth and quickly flushed the toilet as she washed her hands. she ran her hands through her long blonde hair as she sighed. stevie rubbed her eyes as she looked at her reflection in the mirror. as she stared intently at her reflection, she noticed her tired eyes and that's when she realized.

this is not car sickness.

⸻

flashback!
— may 1990; los angeles, ca

bella scribbled some notes in her notepad as she sat in a meeting. she ran a hand through her hair as she listened to the different reports from her coworkers. as the meeting progressed, she sipped on her cup of coffee. she placed her half empty cup to the side when she got that feeling again: the coffee and a granola bar she ate earlier today were coming up.

bella excused herself from the meeting and walked hurriedly to the bathroom. jenna caught her and followed her. bella walked into the bathroom and into a stall as she threw up once again; make that four times this week. she groaned as she leaned back onto the stall door running her hands though her hair.

"bella?" jenna called out as she looked for bella. the brunette walked out of the stall, cleaning her lips. "hungover again?"

"what the hell did i eat?" bella groaned as she leaned onto the counter. "this is the fourth time i've puked this week."

"did you drink anything?" jenna said as she leaned back on the counter. "any alcohol?"

"just one of johnny's banquets." bella sighed as she thought back to figure out the cause of her nausea. "jen?"

"yeah?" jenna said.

"when was your last period?" bella said as she bit her lip. "because mine usually starts the day after yours."

"last week." jenna said, widening her eyes at the realization. "no fucking way."

"what?" bella said.

"you're late? aren't you?" jenna said as she locked the door to the ladies bathroom. "your period's late, isn't it?"

"jenna shut up!" bella said as she shushed jenna. "i'm about a week or so late."

there was a moment of silence between the two ladies as bella looked at her reflection in the mirror and then at her stomach, feeling dizzy once it hit her. "jen?"

"yeah?" jenna said as she looked at her friend, who was turning pale.

"call laura." bella sighed as she ran a hand through her hair. "i need some advice. i need her advice."

⸻

"everything okay, hon?" chrissy said as stevie sat back down at the table and handed her a glass of water.

"yeah, i'll be okay." stevie said.

"are you sure you're okay?" bella said. "do you need to go to a doctor?"

"no, i'll be fine." stevie said. "i don't think it's car sickness. i thought it was stress but i don't think that's it either. actually, i just realized that i'm a couple days late."

"late for what?" johnny said, as he walked in with alex. as he was trying to wash the graffiti off of his car, he saw alex arriving to check on stevie. "by the way, you've got company."

"wait - i thought you said you didn't work today." alex said.

"no, that's not what i meant." stevie said, as she took a deep breath. "okay, i didn't expect for you both to be here and i don't know how to say this. i think, maybe, i might be pregnant."

the room fell quiet as both johnny and alex struggled to put their thoughts into words. "alright. definitely not carsickness." bella said, attempting to cut the tension.

"what?" alex said, as he took a deep breath.

"you're what?" johnny said.

"okay, before you both freak out, i'm not a hundred percent sure." stevie said.

"when did this – how did this–" alex said, running his hands nervously through his hair.

"you know damn well how it happened." johnny said, shooting alex a glare.

"okay, dad. before you go all papa don't preach, i'm not sure yet." stevie said. "maybe i'm getting ahead of myself and it's probably nothing."

"yeah, maybe it's nothing, but just to be sure, you should check yourself." bella said.

"oh, true. that pee on a stick thing." alex said. "okay, so let's get you one of those things."

"okay, i guess i'll be back." stevie said as she stood up from her chair, alex going over to help her up. "alex, i'm fine. are you gonna be okay?"

"yeah, totally fine. a hundred percent." alex said, taking stevie's hand and walking towards the door. he grew nervous as he felt johnny staring him down. "we–we'll be right back."

as the young couple walked out, the room was silent again before chrissy spoke up. "well, that happened." she said.

"i'm gonna fucking kill him." johnny said.

"hey, don't freak out. maybe she's not pregnant and maybe it's something else." bella said. "and if she is, they're gonna be fine, i know they are."

"damnit bella, what if she really is pregnant?" johnny said, pacing around the living room. "he could've at least been more careful. what's he gonna do now? he's a fucking kid."

"they're not kids anymore." bella said. "besides, you and i both know that no matter how careful you can be, you never know what might happen."

"bullshit! he's a fucking kid that doesn't know shit about being a dad." johnny said.

"don't look now but you're starting to sound like dad." bella said, with a sigh. "i remember how pissed he was when i told him i was pregnant. he said the same thing about you; that you didn't know shit about being a dad and that you were irresponsible. that didn't stop us from having stevie."

johnny stayed silent as bella intertwined her hand with his. "remember how nervous we were? we were even younger than they are, but we made it work." bella said. "they're gonna make it work as well, but you just need to trust that they'll be okay."

"i just wasn't ready for this, y'know?" johnny said. "just like i wasn't ready when you got pregnant with stevie."

"no one's ever ready for this." bella said. "you just learn as you go."

"i remember when you two were prepping for the baby." chrissy said. "and now to think that your baby might be having a baby of her own."

"time flies, huh?" bella said, with a chuckle. "life was simpler back then."

"speaking of which, we still have to talk about that night." johnny said.

"um, yeah. we really do." bella said.

"well, i think you two have a lot to talk about, so i'm just gonna head out." chrissy said, as she grabbed her purse and walked out of the apartment. after chrissy left, there was an awkward silence in the room.

"so .." bella said, as she began to nervously mess with her bracelets. "about that night."

"look, i meant to tell you sooner, but i just didn't know how." johnny said. "then that night before the tournament, i decided i should say something, but then that whole thing with kreese and silver happened–"

"wait – what thing with kreese and silver?" bella said. "is that what happened that night?"

"yeah." johnny said.

"i'm so sorry." bella said. "i just didn't know how to react. it was so sudden."

"i know and i'm sorry if i freaked you out–"

bella sighed as they were interrupted by the sound of her phone ringing. "fuck, i'm so sorry about that." bella said, reaching over to check her phone. "shit, it's jen. i'm sorry about this."

"it's okay, i get it." johnny said. "i know you've got your hands full with that fashion week thing."

"i know but this is important." bella said. "we can talk over dinner? meet me at sal's?"

"yeah, sounds good." johnny said. "so i'll see you later."

"yeah." bella said, as she softly pecked his lips before walking him out.

⸻

the trip to the pharmacy was a quiet one as the only thing heard was the faint sound of classic rock playing on the radio of alex's car. stevie looked over to her boyfriend, who was nervously running a hand through his hair.

"hey, calm down." stevie said, breaking the silence. "it might not even be what we think."

"but maybe it could be." alex said. "fuck, i-i don't even know how this could've happened."

"i mean, isn't it obvious?" stevie said, with a chuckle.

"i know how it happened, i just didn't think it would." alex said. "i don't get it, we used protection."

"it's not always a hundred percent effective." stevie said. "but, it doesn't hurt to check. we could be wrong about this whole thing."

"i know, but this is the second time." alex said, as he parked the car. "the last time, in college, this exact same thing happened. we had gone to a beach club and a few days later, you were feeling sick and you had missed like two days–"

"but i ended up not being pregnant. i ended up getting a stomach flu." stevie said. "it could be another scare."

"it feels real this time." alex said. "it doesn't just feel like it could be a close call, i feel like this could be it."

"look, before we assume anything, let's just go get a test." stevie said, as she intertwined her hand with his, in hopes to calm him down. "it's gonna be okay."

"okay." alex said, kissing her hand, earning a smile from stevie. the couple walked into the pharmacy and walked over to the cash register.

"hi, good morning." stevie said to the pharmacist.

"pregnancy test or morning-after pill?" the pharmacist said.

"wow, it's that obvious." stevie said.

"um, we'll take a pregnancy test." alex said. "or two, or however many come in a box."

"aisle 2, plenty of options." the pharmacist said.

"thank you." stevie said. "you okay?"

"yeah, of course." alex said.

the couple walked over to aisle 2 and while stevie began to look at and compare different brands, alex began to grow nervous. "is that the best one?" he said as he took the box from stevie. "we can buy the premium version if you want–"

"okay, take a breath." stevie said. "you're panicking again."

"sorry, i know." alex said. "i just-i'm new to this. i don't know what to expect and i don't wanna be that guy that makes things worse, y'know?"

"we're both new to this, but it's gonna be okay." stevie said. "we'll figure this out together."

"yeah." alex said.

as stevie continued to look through her options, alex turned to find a man holding a crying baby. the man grew frustrated and scared as the baby continued to cry. thoughts raced through his head as he began to think about himself in that situation.

"fuck, now i'm gonna be sick." alex said.

"forget it." stevie sighed as she rolled her eyes and walked away from her boyfriend.

"stevie, wait." alex said, as he went after the blonde girl.

"look, this should be simple and you're making me nervous." stevie said. "i'll take the test later. maybe in the meantime, you can figure out how not to be 'that guy'."

⸻

after spending the morning in burbank, johnny was back in his apartment. he sat in his living room, watching television when he heard a knock on his door. when he answered the door, he found alex standing outside.

"what do you want?" johnny said.

"i-i could really use some advice." alex said, nervously fidgeting. "y'know, man to man?"

"where's stevie?" johnny said.

"north hollywood." alex said. "she's okay, but i really need to talk to you."

"alright, come in." johnny said, as alex walked in behind him and took a seat. "so?"

"look, i'm sorry. i know you're probably pissed about this whole thing and i don't blame you." alex said. "stevie's your daughter and i know you want the best for her and you probably didn't expect this either. i-i'm sorry. i just don't know what i'm doing."

"yeah, you're right, but i didn't know either." johnny said. "when bella was pregnant with stevie, i panicked. her dad hated me already so imagine how he reacted when he found out bella was pregnant. it made me freak out even more."

"how'd you handle it?" alex said.

"i don't know. bella and i did it together." johnny said. "but then we split up and i was on my own with stevie. i felt like i had fucked up. then robby came along and i fucked up even more."

"yeah, that's what i'm afraid of." alex said. "i messed it up bad, the first time. i just seem to fuck things up when it comes to stevie."

"i know i might give you a hard time, but it's because i was you." johnny said. "i saw a lot of myself in you and i didn't want that for stevie. i didn't want her to repeat what her mom and i went through."

"i know you guys have been through a lot but i think you're doing a lot better than you give yourself credit for, you and bella." alex said. "stevie's a great girl and i love her so much."

"thanks." johnny said. "whatever happens, you two have each other. i know you two will be okay. and if you need anything, i'm here to help in any way i can. man-to-man, or dad-to-soon to be dad."

"okay, let's not get crazy." alex said, with a laugh."but just know that it really means a lot."

⸻

the sun was now setting as bella looked out to the los angeles skyline, sitting on the hood of her white mercedes. she nervously messed with her bracelets, sighing as she looked at the sunset. after spending the entire afternoon planning for fashion week, she needed some fresh air.

as she continued to admire the skies around her, she heard the sound of a car pulling up next to her mercedes. she turned to find johnny getting out of the dodge caravan. "how'd you find me here?" bella said.

"you think i don't know where you run off to?" johnny said. "that and your mom told me you were here."

"i'm sorry i ran out on you this morning." bella said. "it's just the pressure of everything."

"we don't have to talk about this." johnny said.

"i've been thinking about that night, a lot." bella said. "why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"i didn't say anything because i knew that if i told you, you'd probably freak out and leave again." johnny said. "i didn't wanna risk losing you again. i've lost you so many times and i'm not letting you go."

"i don't wanna lose you either." bella said, as tears streamed down her face.

"look, i know i've screwed a lot of things up, but my biggest regret was letting you walk out of my life. i also regret not going after you and working things out when i had the chance." johnny said as he intertwined his hands with bella's. "and now that you're back, i wanna be better. a better man, a better boyfriend, and a better husband, if you'll give me the chance."

bella smiled as johnny grabbed a small velvet ring box, opening it to reveal a diamond ring. "you can't be serious." she said, chuckling. "is that–"

"yeah." johnny said, smiling. "mom left this for me and she said to give it to the girl i thought was the one. that's you. so, isabella–"

"yes, john?" bella smiled.

"will you marry me?" johnny said.

bella smiled and cleaned her tears, nodding. "yes." she said.

⸻

"hey alex. i need to talk to you." stevie said, walking into her boyfriend's apartment. upon entering alex's apartment, she found her boyfriend and her friends sitting in the living room. "what are you guys doing here?"

"alex called us for help." aiden said. "and we're here to help in anyway we can."

"what's going on?" stevie said, as she looked around the apartment, that was now neat and baby-proofed. "you did all of this today?"

"yeah, just trying to be prepared. the guys helped with everything." alex said. "they helped me baby-proof the apartment. y'know, the table, the sockets. just in case."

"i can't believe you did this." stevie said, smiling.

"oh and also, did you know that babies can hear music while in the womb?" alex said, as he grabbed some headphones. "ash and daisy helped me with that. so i adjusted these headphones to fit around your stomach. i can play whatever you want me to; black sabbath, dokken, metallica–"

"metallica, obviously." stevie said, with a chuckle. "along with black sabbath and dokken."

"i thought about it a lot." alex said. "i didn't think i could be one of those lame dads with the baby carrier, the diapers, all that shit. i didn't think i could be a dad at all, but if it means i'm doing it with you, i'll do whatever it takes. for you and for our kiddo."

"i know you would." stevie said, as she felt her eyes water.

"i know i'm probably not gonna be the perfect dad, but i won't run away and i won't give up." alex said.

"i love you." stevie said.

"i love you too." alex said, smiling.

"so?" ash said. "have you taken a test?"

"i actually haven't." stevie said. "that's why i'm here and i'm actually glad you guys are here, i have the tests with me. i'm gonna go take one."

"good luck, hon." daisy said. "whatever happens, we're here for you both."

stevie went into the bathroom and took a deep breath before opening up the box of pregnancy tests. as stevie was in the bathroom, alex paced back and forth as ash, daisy, and the boys were watching tv.

after waiting a couple of minutes, stevie walked out of the bathroom, holding two pregnancy tests. "okay, moment of truth." stevie said as she closed her eyes and took a deep breath before looking at the tests.

stevie opened her eyes and looked at the result on both tests, the little black words that read pregnant. she softly smiled as she showed alex. "it's positive." stevie said. "both of them."

"oh shit!" mark said.

"i'm here for whatever you decide." alex said. "it's your call, babe."

"thank you." stevie said. "because we're gonna have a baby."

"badass!" alex said, smiling.

"yeah?" stevie said.

"hell yeah." alex said, as he pulled her in for a kiss. after pulling away, their friends went up to the couple and pulled them into a group hug.

"i'm gonna be an auntie!" ash said.

"i'm so happy for you guys!" daisy said. "ah! our first niece or nephew, how exciting!"

"you're gonna be a great dad." stevie said, softly pecking alex's lips.

"and you're gonna be an amazing mom."