Chapter 50
CRYING OVER A ONESIE
LYDIA
Ifucking love hockey.
Calvin won a fight against Marquis, and Grace and Zoey are screaming their heads off as the ref leads him over to the penalty box.
Calvin smirks as he spits blood from his mouth, wiping at his nose.
I don’t think it’s broken since there’s a cut on the bridge, but we’ll have to see.
It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve seen him break it.
The second period ends, and I poke Grace. “Want to run down to the store with me?”
She furrows her eyebrows. “What for?”
“I want to see if there are any cute baby things. I can ask Fletch to pick them up later, but I want to get a look at them in person.”
“Alright, you’ve convinced me. I love baby clothes.” She stands and offers me a hand, so I take it.
“We’re going to the store to look at baby clothes. Does anyone want to come?” I ask the others.
Hattie and Zoey shake their heads, and Dylan is too engrossed in the mascot race that’s about to start to care. Grace and I head downstairs to the big store, where we both begin to browse. They don’t have any Davison gear for Adam yet, but I’m sure it’s only a matter of time.
Zoey was lucky Adam was able to convince them to make an extra jersey for her to wear today, so besides Adam, she’s the only one in the arena to have a Davison Minnesota Blue Herons jersey.
I make a beeline to the back corner of the store where all the children’s and baby items are. There are little Blue Heron stuffed animals, toys, and blankets, but I’m focused on the assortment of clothes.
There are a few different designs: some with the MBH logo, others with cheeky sayings, but one tucked behind all the others catches my eye instantly. It’s a turquoise blue to match the color the boys wear at home games, and it has two hockey sticks crossed on the front.
In block letters, the shirt reads: ‘My favorite hockey player is my Daddy.’
I gasp as I pull it off the rack. The fabric is soft under my fingers as I trace over the printed words.
Grace steps up behind me. “Find anything good?”
I jump, not expecting her to appear behind me, and I hold the onesie to my chest. “Yeah. I did.”
“Let me see.” She extends her hand.
I give her the onesie, also spotting another one out of the corner of my eye. This one is long-sleeved and looks like a jersey. It has Fletcher’s number on the sleeves and the back, along with his last name. So obviously, I need that one, too.
“Aww, Lydia, this is adorable,” Grace coos, running her hand over the words. “It’s perfect.”
I smile as I look at the items, overwhelmed with emotion. Everything locks into place. It feels right. Baby girl kicks the side of my stomach, like she’s telling me I’m making the correct choice for us. I smooth a hand over the spot.
I know, baby. We’ve got a good one.
Grace passes the onesie back to me, and I lay it over my arm with the other one. I grab a baby-sized beanie with the Herons logo and head to the register.
“What are you doing?” Grace asks curiously. “You know you could get one of the guys to get these for you tomorrow.”
“I know, but I need this now.”
I can’t explain it, but if I walk away from this store empty-handed, I’ll feel like I’m leaving a piece of me here.
Grace rubs my shoulder. “Alright, Mama.”
Tears burn behind my eyes as I check out, rolling up the onesies to hide what they say. I need to wrap these up so I can give them to Fletcher.
We head back to the suite, where I tuck the bag under my seat, then I refill my popcorn.
I’ve eaten more popcorn than anything else in the last twenty-four hours, and my stomach may hate me later, but right now, I’m in bliss.
Fletcher brought me home another massive bag of popcorn last night after they picked up Adam from the airport, and I almost cried.
I was so excited. He’s been bringing it home any chance he can.
Last night was a lot of fun, but I’m definitely not made for late nights anymore as this pregnancy progresses.
I was ready for bed by eight o’clock. Fletcher saw how much I was yawning, and we left soon after.
He always notices the little things. I was happy to stay a while longer so he could have fun with our friends, but he was insistent.
The period starts, and we all settle in for one final stretch, hoping we can snatch the win. It’s been a close, tense game, but I think we can do it.
Adam scores with a few minutes left, bringing us up by one, and hopefully clinching the win.
The last thirty seconds of the game fly by as Trigg makes an amazing save.
Dylan cheers, throwing his fist in the air.
He and Hattie both have brand new Aadland jerseys on, courtesy of Trigg.
My Graff jersey doesn’t fit over my bump anymore, so I have on one of my comfy MBH sweatshirts that has Fletcher’s name and number on the back.
Not quite the same, but it works for now.
Maybe I’ll get a bigger one so I can wear a jersey during the playoffs.
In the past, when we’ve made it to the playoffs, Grace, Zoey, and I have gone to every home game, and I’m sure this time won’t be any different, depending on when I deliver. This time, we’ll have to make sure Hattie and Dylan are present as well.
The game ends, and the boys all skate onto the ice, all giving goalie taps to Trigg and celebrating the win. We hang back in the suite while the boys do press, and once the arena is empty, we make our way down.
My phone rings as we show our badges to take the elevator and be let into the tunnel.
My mom.
I don’t know why, but I answer the call. She’s only going to sour my mood, but with the baby shower being this upcoming weekend, I’m sure she has things to discuss with me.
“Hi,” I answer. “What’s up?”
“Are you ready for this weekend?” she asks without preamble.
“Yeah! I’m really excited. I think it will be fun.”
“What are you going to wear?” Her tone shifts slightly.
Where is this going?
“I have a long-sleeved red dress to match the theme.”
Mom sighs through the phone. “I cannot believe it’s a ladybug theme. You don’t expect me to wear something red, do you? Red washes me out.”
“No, you can do whatever you want.” I pinch the bridge of my nose.
“Well, clearly I can’t do whatever I want.” She scoffs. “If I could have whatever I wanted, we would be having a dignified event at Le Chateau Arnaud. Not at a local ice rink’s party room with dollar store decorations.”
I withhold the groan rising in my chest. “We are doing it at the rink because my boss offered to waive the event fee, and it has the most room. Besides, it’s where I wanted it to be. Doesn’t what I want matter?”
“Of course it matters. I simply thought that after how I raised you, you would have more taste. Ladybugs are better for a toddler’s birthday party. We should be decorating in gold and pearl luster.”
“The ladybugs have meaning.” I stop myself from saying more.
She probably wouldn’t care that Ladybug is the nickname Fletcher has given the baby, or that he’s called me Lydi-bug for years. This isn’t worth the fight.
“Did you call me to shit on my baby shower?” I ask. “Because if that’s the case, I’m going to hang up now.”
Mom huffs. “Watch your tone, young lady. No. I will try to find something to wear. My flight lands at four on Friday, so I will see you then.”
I mutter a response, hanging up the phone with a quick goodbye.
Hattie eyes me carefully as I slump against the brick wall of the tunnel.
“Everything okay?” she asks cautiously.
I shrug. “My mom. Has Grace told you about her?”
She winces. “Yeah. I hope that’s okay. She gave me a heads-up about her when I came along.”
“It’s totally fine. I’m glad you know, honestly. Especially before the shower.”
“Hopefully I’m not overstepping by saying this, but… it kind of sounds like you’d be better off without her.”
I sigh, resting a hand over my bump. “Yeah, I agree. It’s hard.
She has such a narcissistic personality, but I keep giving her second chances because she’s my mom.
Now that I’m becoming a mom, I feel like I should give my parents a chance to know their granddaughter.
But at the same time, I want to protect her from the pain I experienced as a kid. ”
“It’s tough,” Hattie laments, rubbing my shoulder. “Whatever happens, I already know you’re going to be an amazing mom. You’re already protecting her.”
I nod as tears spring to my eyes. “Thanks.”
“Anytime. You guys are amazing. I still can’t believe I’m lucky enough that you’re helping me the way you are.”
“You’re such a hard worker, and you deserve every bit of happiness, and so does he.” I point to where Dylan is standing, waiting for the team to exit the locker room.
There’s a look of pure awe written over his young face, and it’s so fun to watch his dreams come true.
“He’s had a hard life,” Hattie says, “but he deserves the world.”
A minute later, all the guys start exiting the locker room, and when Fletcher arrives, he pulls me into his tight embrace, giving me a kiss and a tight hug before resting his palm flat over my rounded stomach. “Hey, Lydi-bug.”
“Hey, you. You had a great game.”
“It was a blast out there. They’re not all like that, but man, was it fun.”
“Is Adam settling in?”
“Think so. We need more than one quick practice and game to know for sure, but the odds are good for this to be a good fit.”
“Awesome.”
“Want to go home?” He pushes my hair out of my face and kisses my lips once more.
“Don’t you want to go out with everyone?” I look around at the rest of the group, who are all smiles and excitement.
Fletcher shakes his head. “Nope. I’m tired and want some alone time with my girl before next weekend.”
“That sounds nice.” I’m ready for some time, just the two of us, before the baby shower and game on Sunday.
“Home?”
“Home.”