| PART 11 I wake up to the smell of something good. I smile and shake my head. Ever since I told Michael I was pregnant, he waits on me making sure I don’t overexert myself. I’m not even allowed to enter the Crashdown unless I want to eat, but even then he has to carry me down the stairs. I roll out of bed and walk out to the kitchen. “What are you doing?” He smirks as he approaches me to wrap his arms around me and says, “You should be sleeping.” I roll my eyes. My emotions have been like a roller coaster these last two weeks. “I’m not tired.” I head for the stairs to check on the new manager Michael hired. “Where do you think you’re going?” I sigh and say, “I’m going to check to see if everything is going smoothly downstairs.” He gently grabs my arm and says, “Liz, you don’t have to worry about it. I don’t want you to entail any unwarranted stress. Anthony can handle it. Have a little faith in him.” I shake my head and say, “But Michael, the Crashdown is all I have left of my parents and it’s our responsibility, not Anthony’s.” He cups my face and sighs. “Listen, I’m concerned about you and the baby. You’ve been looking weak.” “It’s not a look of weakness you’re seeing, it’s annoyance. I’m capable of doing everything I did before I became pregnant. I’m not an invalid and I wish you’d stop treating me like one,” I snap turning away from him. “I’m just worried about you.” He turns me around so that I’m facing him. “You know that I’m an alien,” he whispers. He strokes my back. “I don’t want anything to happen to you. You mean everything to me. I don’t know if you’re even able to carry my child.” I meet his eyes and say, “I know, baby, but you can’t keep treating me like this. I’m used to doing everything for myself.” He bows his head. “I know. If you’d just let Max ...” “Don’t even finish that. Max is not coming anywhere near me.” My eyes start to water and I furiously wipe them away. He takes my hand leads me to a chair and kneels in front of me. “I don’t mean to make you upset, but I love you so much, Liz. If anything happens to you, I don’t know what I’ll do.” He swallows. “I haven’t had much luck with people I care about staying alive.” I smile at him as tears flow down my face. I reach up and caress his cheek with my thumb. “It’s funny how several months ago I said the same thing to you and what did you tell me?” He shrugs. “You told me that nothing’s going to happen to you.” “That’s because nothing is going to happen to me, but you--” I place my index finger over his lips. “Don’t. I love you too, Michael, and I see this child as a miracle, and a blessing. Maybe God and fate are giving us a second chance. Maybe we finally followed the path we were supposed to take and this is where we ended up. Just love me, Michael.” He pulls me in his arms and whispers, “That’s all I’ve been doing. I just want Max to make sure everything is running smoothly with you. He knows more about an Antarian birth then we do.” I sigh debating if it’s a good idea or not. “He doesn’t have to touch you. Just inform us if everything looks normal.” I grip onto Michael tightly knowing he’s right. I don’t know if I can handle seeing my past yet. “Okay,” I softly say. He hugs me tighter and then lets go. He walks to the phone and starts to dial. I stand and head for the bedroom I suddenly feel a pain in my side. I exhale slowly trying to will it away, but it only intensifies. My knees hit the floor as I hold my stomach. I feel Michael come to me, but before he can say anything, the room spins and then goes black. I slowly open my eyes and look around. I try to sit up, but it feels like something is restraining me. I turn my head and see Michael lying besides me with his hand over my belly. He opens his eyes and smiles. “Where do you think you’re going?” I’m too tired to argue. His eyes turned from teasing to concern. “I’m okay, just tired.” He nods and says, “I know. I also know you’ll appreciate this but we don’t have to involve Max.” I try to read his eyes and say, “But what about the pain?” He looks down, but his whole face lights up. “Our baby connected with me. I saw this tiny little handprint and I placed my hand over it…” I put my hands over my ears and say, “You can tell me what happened, but can you please not spoil the surprise? I don’t want to know what the sex is until it’s born.” He sits up and removes my hands from my ears. “I promise I won’t tell you.” I nod waiting for him to continue. “Your body is just adjusting to our baby.” “But does that mean our baby won’t be able to survive? Isn’t that why you guys left in the first place? Oh God, Michael, is our baby going to die?” He pulls me to him and rocks me. “No, since you’re carrying our baby and not an alien our baby is able to adjust.” I crawl up into his lap and whisper, “Are you sure you want this?” He lifts my chin and says, “I’ve never wanted anything so much.” I lean into him and close my eyes. “Um, there is one other thing,” he hesitantly says. I raise my head and stare at him intently. “Well you see...” He takes a deep breath and I start to get nervous. “Since this is a half alien baby the gestation period is a little shorter then a normal human birth.” I narrow my eyes and say, “How much shorter?” He clears his throat and whispers, "Six months shorter.” My mouth drops open and I shake my head. “But that’s too soon. How are we going to have everything ready?” I attempt to hop out of bed, but Michael stops me. “Whoa, slow down. Two and a half months will be enough time. Why don’t you go to the bathroom and I’ll fix us something to eat.” I nod and walk into the bathroom. I touch the small bulge of my tummy and smile. “Mommy and Daddy love you so much.” |