Theon
" So, are you going to Vail together? " Harper asked, looking uncomfortable.
We were sitting in my kitchen eating breakfast together before I went to pick Samantha up at home for the exam. Although she had accepted the situation, I could see that she felt uncomfortable. But what could I do? I wanted to be involved in these details, and I had never seen an ultrasound before!
" Yes, the clinic where Samantha was able to schedule her appointment is in Vail, but it is not that far away. We should be there in an hour at the most," I explained, while she sipped her cup of coffee.
" I see " she started playing with her toast " have you ever seen an ultrasound?”
" No, this will be the first one she will do after she told me " I poured some more coffee for her " I can't wait to see how it is.”
She smiled, accepting the extra coffee. I felt a little bad for that smile, I know Harper has made an effort to be understanding, but I also understand how uncomfortable this situation was for her.
" Will I see you when you get back? " she asked finally.
" Sure," I assured her, getting up, "it shouldn't take long.”
I heard Harper's resigned sigh as I left the room. I'll have to make it up to her later.
It took me a few minutes to change and get her home before I picked up Samantha. When I arrived, I was a few minutes late, but I hoped that this small delay would not matter. I heard her impatient movement as soon as I rang the bell, and the fact that she answered the door immediately confirmed my suspicions.
" Apollo, I thought I had forgotten," she smiled relieved.
"Sorry I'm late, are you ready?" I questioned as I observed her appearance.
Samantha was wearing a cream sweater, jeans, and had let her hair down to frame her face and highlight her blushing lips.
" Let's go," she winked before leaving and locking the door behind her.
I walked silently to the car, setting us in motion toward Vail to see our son. For the first few minutes of the trip, the only sound was the radio, where John Fogerty's voice sang the lyrics to Have You Ever Seen The Rain. I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel, following the melody of the song, receiving an amused look from Samantha.
" What's wrong? " I questioned in front of her gaze.
" Do you know any current music, Apollo? " she teased me, "you know, one that was recorded at least since I was born.”
" This song is a classic, Samantha," I couldn't help but laugh, "how can you not like it?”
" I didn't say I don't like it, I'm just trying to get to know my son's father better. Starting with his prehistoric taste in music " she winked, making me laugh.
" Prehistoric taste in music!”
" Do you like anything that came out after the turn of the millennium, Apollo? " she insisted on her provocation.
" I like good music, regardless of the era," I corrected her, turning the radio down a bit, "but I don't suppose you listen to anything that isn't at least ten years younger than you.”
" That's ridiculous.”
" Come on, I bet you considered yourself a great revolutionary while singing "American Idiot" in your teens," I teased her, receiving a shocked look in return.
" Do you know Green Day? “
I couldn't help but laugh again at that question, Samantha forgetting that I have a sister almost your age? I had to put up with Linny thinking she was a big punk for painting her nails black, liking Green Day and Avril Lavigne, without knowing a single Ramones song. But I couldn't visualize Samantha with that sloppy appearance that my sister retained in her fifteen years. No, she seemed to be the type who always liked to dress up.
" I have a sister almost your age, Sam.”
" Admit it, Apollo, I bet you used to paint your eyes and wear a striped tie pretending to be Billie Joe singing Jesus of Suburbia in your bedroom," she scoffed.
" Can you really imagine something like that, Sam? " I questioned, amused by this ridiculous thought.
Samantha thought for a moment before smiling brightly again when Dangerous started playing on the radio.
" Ohh no, I bet you were the type to dress up as Michael Jackson," she winked back at me, "tell me Apollo, what moves do you know? Crotch grab, Moonwalk, anti-gravity lean?”
This comment caused an almost endless laughing fit in both of us, the image she had formed in her mind was so absurd that it was impossible not to laugh.
" You know a lot of moves, for someone who doesn't like Michael Jackson," I managed to control myself.
" Professional dancer, did you forget? " she looked at me with the corner of her eyes in the middle of a small smile " besides, I never said I don't like Michael Jackson, you were wrong about me. My first dance performance at St. Monica's was a re-reading of What a Feeling, by Irene Cara, and I did very well.”
" I don't doubt it," I brought my right hand up to her belly, stroking it for a moment, "but in any case, I think I'd better watch out for the songs the baby will hear.”
She rolled her eyes, though she didn't answer me, and we spent a few more minutes in silence while I followed the main road that would take us to Vail. Samantha watched the landscape with curiosity as we drove up to the town.
" Enjoying the view? " I decided to break the silence.
" Is this road always covered with snow? " Samantha asked, observing the mountains that surrounded the road partially covered with snow. " Since I arrived in Aspen it hasn't snowed at least, in fact, this week the temperature was even high.”
" Vail is at a higher altitude than Aspen " I explained " From what I heard, there was some snow here last week, and the temperatures this week were not enough to melt it all.”
Samantha sighed, going back to watching the landscape in silence, seeming to have suddenly become a bit melancholic.
" How are you doing in class? " I decided to change the subject.
" Well, those girls are amazing," she smiled, pleased that I could shake the feeling I had noticed on her face earlier, "You have no idea how funny they are, it seems Kim told her mother that her new teacher is pregnant, and decided she should bring me an extra snack every day.”
" That's nice," I assured her.
" It would be even kinder if her family weren't some kind of algae fanatics," Samantha laughed, "yesterday she brought me a seaweed quiche, and earlier it was a weird salad with seaweed in it too.”
" Come on, it can't be that bad," I teased her.
" Do you eat seaweed, Apollo? " she gave me a disbelieving look, and I just turned my attention back to the road, hiding a small smile.
" Anyway, I'm glad you're doing well, I was sure it would be that way," I assured her.
" I'm doing better than I thought. And not just in the matter of being a teacher, but in the city in general," she confided.
" I'm glad it's that way," I assured her, "I hope my first impression of Aspen has been dispelled.”
" Don't worry, everyone is being kind to me," she reported, "your sister visited me at my home yesterday.”
" What? " I frowned at that information " Callie came to visit you?”
I swear that if my sister said anything else to Samantha...
" Oh no, I haven't seen Caliope in days," she assured me, "I'm talking about Lara, she went with your niece, and she brought dinner.”
" Lara brought you dinner? " I found my sister's attitude strange, but Samantha didn't seem to mind.
" I think it's a family custom," she shrugged, starting to play with the hem of her sweater.
" What do you mean? " I frowned, feeling a little stunned by this comment.
" Your grandmother has been visiting me almost every day to make sure I am feeding well," Samantha smiled, "she thinks I am not capable of taking care of a baby on my own, even if it is inside me.”
" You mean my grandmother Delphine? " I stammered a bit disbelievingly.
" Oh, sorry, I didn't know that your other grandmother was also alive," she looked at me, causing my heart to race.
" Since when have you known my grandmother?”
What was Delphine thinking? She met Samantha without telling me? And then she said that she is not capable of taking care of our son!
" It was the day after I arrived in Aspen. She came to my house to visit me and bring me some food," Samantha reported, "and it became a habit for her.
" Samantha I'm sorry, I swear I didn't know " I sighed.
" Hey, it's no big deal, she said that if it were up to you she would never meet me, so she thought it best to take some action, that's all.”
My mind wandered to the conversation I had with Lara a few days ago. Does Samantha really think that I don't introduce my family to her because I don't think she is good enough?
" Did you enjoy meeting them? My grandmother and Lara, I mean," I shot her a quick glance.
" Well, yes. I was expected to meet them at some point, I guess. Lara is kind and your grandmother, well, I don't have the right words to describe her.”
" Sam, I hope you know that I was just giving you a break before introducing you to my family because of what happened with Callie. I thought you'd want to wait a while, it's not like I was hiding you from them or anything.”
" Theon, I'm not blaming you," she hastened to say.
" But I'd rather clear this up," I stated.
She sighed before returning to the view outside the car. This time I allowed the silence to take over for the rest of our trip, concentrating on the tunes on the radio.