A group of friends streams their gaming on Wednesday nights. But not all the action is on the dining room table.

-==-

Chapter 20 – From Here to There

“Ugh,” I grumbled as I shifted in my seat, trying to find a comfortable position.

“It’s not that bad,” Brian said, humor in his voice even though his eyes and attention were on the road and not my squirming.

“Says you,” I mumped with another grumble. “The seat belt is twisted, the seat adjuster is broken, and the pleather is cracked and keeps pinching my ass.”

“Shoulda worn thicker pants,” he said happily, shimmying a bit in his own seat. “Or any pants at all.”

“I’ve got basically two pairs of p… undies on, and the skirt is lined, and I’m still pretty sure I’m gonna have blisters on both cheeks by the time we get to the hotel!”

Brian rolled his eyes but still didn’t look at me. “It’s a rental car. That’s how rental cars are. I’m just glad we got one that doesn’t smell like week-old farts.”

“Ew.”

Brian nodded.

I wanted to complain more, but instead, I turned and looked out the window, adjusting my seat belt to find a position where it didn’t press uncomfortably on either my… chest, or my artificially extended midsection. It made me wonder how I hadn’t noticed the seat belts in either my car or Brian’s truck doing this kind of thing. Then again, we’d long ago gotten the belts in both adjusted mostly to our liking, so maybe I just wasn’t aware of it anymore?

I was certainly aware of it now, and the views beyond the window, pretty as the pastures and hills were, weren’t doing anywhere near enough to distract me from it.

“Two more hours.”

“Hmm?”

“’Til we get to the hotel.”

“I didn’t--”

“But you were going to.”

“Was not!”

Brian gave me a disbelieving side-eye.

“I mean, not yet.”

“Mm-hmm.”

Rather than acknowledging Brian’s smug response, I looked back at the uninspiring scenery yet again.

Marisol itself had been interesting, if not particularly alluring. A mixture of warehouses and old, somewhat run-down shops, the place had clearly seen better days, and all the cheery old-timey set decoration on the warehouses and businesses along the dock couldn’t hide the underlying sense of listlessness places like that developed when their heyday was gone, but the buildings themselves remained.

Maria had been sure to get shots of us checking out the handful of touristy places that had taken root near the docks, and even of us waving to the crew of the Golden Goose as it pulled away, most of whom were probably smiling so much because they didn’t have to deal with the pain-in-the-ass film crew anymore.

Or maybe I was still just a little on edge.

We said our good-byes to the ATG film crew there at the docks, since our own crew would be handling the staging and filming of the con events, but not before Maria collected a whole stack of business cards and promises to be in contact about the final editing on the film.

With that done, there was a sense of relief as we wandered down what passed for a boardwalk toward the building where our rental cars were supposed to be parked.

I’d taken one look at them and decided that next convention, I’d be springing for the upgrade. When I’d e-signed the paperwork for two compact cars and a minivan, I’d expected at least one of them to be from this century. Nevertheless, Brian had nabbed us the one with a working tape deck and a copy of Styx’s greatest hits, and we’d set off.

“Coffee?”

“Hmm?” I looked back at Brian, who spared a hand from the wheel long enough to point at a familiar fast-food logo on the horizon. “Oh! Sure, that sounds good. Maybe a bathroom break?”

“Sure thing,” he agreed, activating the turn signal while I fired off a text to the others, letting them know about our stop.

We pulled in and parked, and I let Brian take the duty of fetching our coffees while I went in search of the restrooms, finding them in the typical little hallway to the side of the kitchens. I hesitated only a moment before pushing open the door of the one marked “women:” even with Texas’ current slate of laws, something told me it was a safer option than risking my luck in the men’s room. Thankfully what lay beyond the doors was a neat and clean-ish little room with two sinks, two stalls, and a mirror that was still half-decent at its job.

I’d finished my business and was washing my hands when, of course, the door creaked open and another person entered the room, stepping up next to me and using the adjoining sink.

“Just washing my hands ‘fore eating,” she told me with a smile that, to her credit, barely faltered at my somewhat off-the-wall ensemble. At least, that was until she saw my belly. “Oh, how far along are you?”

I blushed. “Umm, four months?” I said, trying to remember how far along my character was. Was that right?

“Oh, wow! I’m only about three, I think,” she said, stepping back and spreading her arms. Sure enough, I could see just the hints of a belly like mine through the fabric of her sweater. Not as big, yet….

“Congratulations?” I hazarded, shutting off the water but keeping my hands over the sink since she stood between me and the towel dispenser.

“Thanks,” she said sweetly, then sighed, her shoulders sagging.

“Is something wrong?” I asked her, then instantly regretted it when the girl started sobbing and rushed me, wrapping me in a hug.

“Guh,” she said, gasping for air as she squeezed mine out through my ears, even as I tried to give her a comforting back pat while also trying not to drip water on her from my still-wet hands. “S-sorry, just… men fucking suck, y’know?”

I blushed even more. “Umm, yeah,” I agreed, thinking of Jonah. Then Brian and Aaron came to mind, too. “I mean, some of them.”

She sighed again and let me go, wiping her eyes and nose with the back of the sleeve of her sweater. “Oh geez, I didn’t mean to… that other guy’s your husband, I guess? The one in the armor?”

“No, he’s just…” I trailed off, realizing with horror that I had no idea how to describe our relationship at the moment. “It’s complicated?” I finally settled on, more to shut down my own runaway thoughts than to really answer the question.

“Oh, but he’s the daddy, right?”

“That’s… also complicated,” I said. Then seeing the confusion on her face, I added, “But yeah?”

She laughed at that. “I getcha. Wanted to do the deed, but doesn’t want the responsibility?” I started to open my mouth to answer, but she waved me off with a bitter puff. “Sorry, that’s harsh. He’s here, and that’s something, right?”

I nodded, not sure what else to say.

She seemed to deflate again, leaning back against the sinks but still not giving me a route to the paper towels. “I guess I really can’t blame anyone but myself. I knew he was a piece of shit, and I shoulda never trusted him when he said he couldn’t have kids. I’m still gonna be laughing all the way to the bank soon as I can get a paternity test done, though. I just wish things weren’t so rough, y’know? Like, the morning sickness passes, but the swelling and the cravings….”

“Support hose,” I said, the information from my research into pregnancy popping into my head unbidden. “It can help with the swollen ankles.”

“Really?” She said, surprised, then looked down at my legs. “Are you wearing them?”

“Umm, no,” I admitted. Why did that make me feel a little embarrassed?

“Huh. Well, worth a shot,” she said, smiling again. “Hey, I’m sorry about this, it’s just--”

“No, it’s all right,” I said, cutting her off. I gave her my best smile and, figuring it was my best option, another small hand-less hug. “I hope things get better for you.”

“They will, just… thanks,” she said, giving me a finger wave and heading back out the door.

Alone in the room again, I looked down at myself, and at my still drippy hands. Then, I looked further down, at my bare legs and my boots.

Should I be wearing support hose?

I shook the stray thought away, rinsed my hands again, and finally dried them, checking my appearance in the mirror before heading back out into the lobby.

Brian was waiting for me near the doors, two coffees and a small bag in his hands. I looked around the sitting area and spotted my bathroom companion sitting at a table by herself on the other side of the room. She caught me looking at her and gave me a small smile and a wave, so I smiled and waved back before opening the doors for Brian.

“Who was that?” He asked me on the way to the car.

“Just a lady I met in the bathroom,” I told him, not sure how much I wanted to reveal about our conversation.

“Well, I hope everything came out okay,” he said, chuckling when he saw my scowl. “Hey, it’s all good. We got coffee, and I got us a couple of apple pies too.”

“Really?” I said, the little bag in his hands suddenly seeming a lot more interesting.

“Yep. But let’s get back on the road first, pinch-y pleather seats and all.”

“...Those apple pies better be amazing.”

“Aren’t they always?”

“Fair.”

###

NOTES:

We're FINALLY AT THE CON as of 21! Woo!