Middletown

"Let's go get an Ice cream." He said to Scarlet knowing that might make her feel better, and that he wanted to do everything in his power to do so. He held his hand out for her and called up to Andy, "We're going for an ice cream, you want anything?" Andy called down to them what he wanted and he smiled, "Another crisis averted!" He teased Scarlet grabbing his keys. They went to the ice cream shop and sat together, talking quietly about the rest of their week. Steven had to work tomorrow but he gave her his credit card for the baby's room and for Andy's and said, "Get whatever you want, please." He smiled. "I'm sorry I cant be there."

He headed back to scarlet's house and dropped her off kissing her goodnight, "I love you Scar..." He smiled and headed home himself. The next day Andy was surprisingly excited and up early to go shopping, waiting downstairs when Scarlet got up.

Scarlet enjoyed going to get ice cream with Steven and just being able to sit and talk quietly with him. When he offered her his credit card she first shook her head a little but as he insisted she was reluctantly took the card from him and promised to use it. She appreciated the help, especially since setting up a a babies room could be expensive. Heading home she gave Andy his ice cream and then headed to bed.

Thankfully she slept through the night and woke up the next morning with a groan. Scarlet was beginning to realise how much she hated waking up without Steven being there next to her. Quickly she got up and headed to the bathroom where she showered and got herself ready for a day of shopping. She dressed in a simple pair of jeans and a pink top before adding a pair of flip flops to her outfit and heading towards Andy's room. When she knocked she got no response and oepned the door, noticing he wasnt there. Scarlet then headed downstairs, anxious to see if her son was in a good mood or not.

"Hey, you are up early..." Scarlet said a little cautiously as she spotted Andy sitting in the kitchen finishing off what looked like a bowl of cereal. "Are you ready to head out shopping? I thought that maybe we could go to one of the baby stores in town and look for a cot set or something and then head to the shop across the road from that and order you a bed? And since you are getting more grown up maybe we could look at double beds?" She offered really trying to make this day work. Scarlet missed the happy Andy that had been present these last few weeks and really did want a positive relationship with her son. Scarlet wanted to make sure that he knew that she still loved him even if there would be a new member to their family.

"What do you think?" Scarlet asked as she poured herself a cup of coffee and sat down at the table opposite him.

Steven woke up early the next morning exhausted and headed over to the restaurant working hard for the day and dealing with the day-to-day of his business. He really wished that he was able to go with Scarlet and Andy. He really felt like he'd been included in their little family more and more lately and this was something that was important to them and he was missing it. He thought about hiring someone to manage the restaurant but he could barely keep waitresses on, he knew that wouldn't work. He shrugged to himself and got back to the day talking with some customers.

________

Meanwhile, Andy sat at the table and said, "That sounds good, I was looking at some stuff online." He finished up his breakfast and took his dishes to the sink then put it into the dishwasher and said, "I'll go get dressed and we can go, mom." He smiled and headed upstairs coming back down. He hadn't talked to Rachel since last night and that was bothering him a little bit but he wasn't going to ruin his mom's day. They went to the store for the baby and Andy actually seemed a little excited. They picked out a crib/changing table set, some bedding and a few decorations. They could always get more further down the road.

Next was Andy's turn, they went over to the store looking around. The bed that Andy had wanted happened to be on sale, including a dresser and desk but was still a little over what Scarlet had wanted to spend and he begged Scarlet to get it. "Please Mom, It will be awesome in my room." He pleaded.

The baby shopping had gone great. Andy had been involved and really did help her pick out some nice things. Scarlet had wished that Steven could have been there to help her decide on what to get but the lady at the store had told her if there was something wrong with it then they could return it. It also made Scarlet a little more positive about having the baby since it meant that finally they were able to start planning. Obviously she couldn't buy things for a specific sex since they didn't know that yet so she just went for neutral things.

Next was the shop for Andy and it didnt take long for him to pick out something he liked. Scarlet looked over the items which Andy wanted, which she had to agree were very nice. It was more than she had wanted to spend on any of these things though, since she would still need to get new bedding for him along with the fact that she would also need to buy paint for both his room and the babies. It was all adding up very quickly especially since she was still yet to find a job. However with Andy begging her and the fact that she knew the kind of mood that he would be in if she didn't get it for him, she finally agreed.

"Alright then, we can get them on the condition that you need to help around the house a little more. Maybe cook dinner once a week or do the lawns or something?" Scarlet said still not completely convinced that she was going to buy this bed. It would mean that things would be tough for a week or two until her next payment from Tony came through but if it was what Andy wanted then she would make it work. Scarlet just wanted to make her son happy and if this was what was going to make him happy then she would do anything to get it for him.

"Yes, I swear Mom. I'll make dinner or something. So we can get it? Please?" He offered pleading with her looking over at the stuff again, "I will use my old blankets and stuff, pleaaaase And I wont fight with you anymore.. or I'll try!" He said still begging softly. Once he'd had the chance to decorate his room he didn't want it taken away. At that moment it was like Steven had been there he text Scarlet and said, "Don't forget whatever you guys want! I love you."

Steven had plenty of savings from driving an old car and making pretty decent money at the restaurant, all he wanted to do was make them happy for the moment.

Scarlet felt a little overwhelmed as Andy continued to beg and promise in order to get the bed. This made her even more determined to get it for him since it appeared that he really wanted it. Before she could respond though she felt her phone go off in her pocket and took it out as she saw Steven's message. She smiled a little as she texted him back. "You are sweet. I got a baby set and things but I'll pay for Andy's. He is my son and I dont want you feeling you have to buy for him as well xx" Her attention then turned back to Andy who was still begging and promising not to fight with her.

"Alright alright... Now can I have a hug?" Scarlet asked with a smile. She wasn't going to take Steven's money for Andy. He was her responsibility and she didn't want him feeling obligated to look after either her or her son. Scarlet wasn't about to stop him from spending money on the baby but she wanted to do this for Andy. She opened her arms for a hug and hoped beyond anything that Andy would give her a hug like he had used to when he was little and that maybe he wouldn't be angry with her any longer.

Andy hugged her tightly and squeezed her even a little bit, "Thank you mom.. you're the best!" He waited patiently while they got things settled and she paid and then they scheduled delivery for the next day. Now Scarlet and Andy would have to go home and clean up so there was room for his new things. Andy and Scarlet headed back to the house and Andy cleaned his room, to the cleanest it's ever been since they moved. He took apart his bed on his own and got it all into the basement. Scarlet thought they were doing great but really Andy's mood and work was because he was trying to keep Rachel off his mind.

Steven headed over after work right away with dinner for the three of them and headed inside, he called out, "Scarlet? Andy?" They'd both been cleaning up when he'd come in and they hadn't heard him.

The day had been one of the best days she'd had in about three years with Andy. He had been polite and well behaved as well as helpful and even had struck up a conversation or two with her. This was the kind of relationship she had always wanted with her son and it had certainly put her in a better mood. Scarlet had even managed to distract herself from the thought of the price of the bed set. She would deal with that tomorrow.

Scarlet hadn't heard Steven arrive as she was still upstair's in Andy's room cleaning. At the moment she was in the middle of hanging up the curtains again, standing on a chair in front of the window. She had decided to give them a wash so that everything in the room would be clean for when the bed arrived. Scarlet was exhausted though and had found herself tiring easliy. She had considered going and lying down a few times during the afternoon but she hadn't wanted to leave Andy. Things had been going so well so she had pushed through, stretching up on the chair to hang the curtains wearing simply a pair of shorts and an old jumper.

Andy was finishing off cleaning the walls with some soapy waters since they had decided that he didn't want the walls painted since the paint in his room wasn't that bad. He also didn't hear Steven call out to them as he had also turned on some music to play in the background. It was some rock/metal music that Scarlet kept having to tell him to turn down but it was loud enough to drown out Steven's voice.

He headed upstairs to the bedroom knocking softly on the door and speaking up again, "Helloooo what is going on? Who is this and what have you done with Andy?" He joked with Scarlet's son who seemed to be in a great mood and continuing on. Andy smiled and said hi to Steven. He walked inside and over to Scarlet who was hanging up the shorts and picked her up playfully swinging her around kissing her softly, "How was shopping? Tell me what you got! I have dinner downstairs. And a surprise for Andy."

Steven prayed that his plan wasn't going to backfire and that the day that had been so perfect wasn't going to be ruined for Scarlet. When they all headed downstairs Rachel was standing in the Kitchen. She looked up at Andy and bit her lip, "I wanted to apologize, I'm sorry." Andy stopped in his tracks and sighed softly. He knew he was in the wrong with Rachel and didn't want to ruin things, and was happy that he didn't have to be the first to say he was sorry. "Me too." He said walking over hugging her tight. Rachel seemed to be good for Andy and that would just improve things.

Steven got dinner out and they all sat down and ate, talking about the rooms.

Scarlet laughed as Steven came over and picked her up. She kissed him back enthusiastically as her arms remained around him even after he put her feet back on the ground. The news of a surprise caused a confused expression to land on her face but she trusted Steven and followed him downstairs.
Scarlet was surprised to see Rachel standing there and she turned to look at Andy, seeing that he also despite being nervous was glad to see her. She smiled at Steven and mouthed to him a thank you. She really did appreciate everything that he was doing for both her and Andy. Settling down for dinner it was as if all the old problems had been set aside and they could finally act as one big, although complicated family.

As dinner finished Andy and Rachel went upstairs talking about the new bed set that was coming tomorrow and Scarlet began to clear the table. "Thank you for that, dinner was amazing" She said with a smile as she put the plates in the sink and began to wash them up. She was visibly exhausted from the big day of shopping and cleaning but was determined to clean up before going to relax on either the couch or in bed. "Oh and before I forget your credit card is in my purse if you want to get it out" Scarlet said remembering that it was in there. "I just put the cot on it and managed to get the rest of the stuff on mine" She explained to him as she continued to wash up.

"Scarlet... I wish you'd just let me help you." He pleaded somewhat. "I have a savings for a reason babe, I wish you'd let me help." He wrapped his arms around her as she cleaned up. He took a deep breath and hoped he wouldn't upset her, "I am here for you, you're not alone anymore. You don't have to do everything by yourself. You can accept my help and nothing is wrong with that. I'm not going to hold it against you and neither is anyone else." He said softly wanting Scarlet to truely know that he is there for her and Andy, regardless if Andy was his son or not. He was now a part of his family.

Scarlet sighed as she turned around to look at him with her back against the counter but still with his arms around her. "Steven I appreciate the offer, I really do..." She said before taking a deep breath of her own. "I just dont want you to feel like you have to start paying for me just because I got pregnant with our child. I mean it's my job to look after Andy and to provide for him and myself" Scarlet said as she shook her head. "We have only just sort of got back together and I dont want to rush things between us or for us to skip steps just because of the baby" What was really worrying Scarlet was that he would simply feel obligated to pay for her or that somewhere in the mix of things they would loose themselves.

"I mean it's not like we are married or anything... we are just dating" She said as she looked into his eyes. "I just dont want you to feel like you have to do all of this and that I expect you to"

Steven almost felt hurt by her words, Steven had felt that they were more than 'just dating' but apparently Scarlet hadn't felt that way like he said. Steven nodded, "I know.. I'm sorry." He apologized for making Scarlet feel like he was rushing things and skipping steps in their relationship. "I just.. I want this to be as normal as possible. I wanted to help you like I am offering to do before you got pregnant and that's not why I want to help you. I want to help you because you deserve it." He said trying to make her understand.

"I don't want your pride to let you stop me from helping you either." He said looking into her eyes. "I should probably drive Rachel home and get home too, you look exhausted." He said. He figured maybe if Scarlet thought they were moving too fast he'd just stay at his place until she felt more comfortable.

When he said that she deserved the help, Scarlet just shook her head. She didn't believe in people getting help just because they deserved it. That just didn't happen from her experience, even those that were meant to help didn't and Tony had proved that. Scarlet wasn't putting the two of them in the same group but she did have trust issues. She was scared that if things became so serious between her and Steven so quickly, like them moving in together or even getting married because of the baby then it would ruin their relationship. Steven beginning to pay for everything just seemed like the first step towards that and it scared her.

Before she could say anything in response it appeared that Steven was already starting to back away from her. "Wait... you are just going to go?" Scarlet asked, surprised that he was going to go home so quickly. She had thought that he would be spending the night here with her tonight since it was a saturday night but it appeared that he had other plans. Or maybe what she had said, had upset him. "I guess if you think you should get home then that is okay" She said although it was very clear that she didn't like the idea from the way her face had fallen and she didn't quite look at him.

Steven was torn on what to do. He didn't want to upset Scarlet which he was doing since he'd seen her face fall but he also was a little upset himself. He hugged and kissed her cheek softly and said, "I'll come over tomorrow for breakfast." He called up to Rachel and she came down a few minutes later. Steven grabbed his keys and took Rachel home and then to his own house. He cracked a beer and sat on the couch stressed out.

Meanwhile Andy came downstairs and said, "Hey Steven the Capi-" He noticed Steven wasn't there and looked at his mom. "Where'd he go? I thought he was staying over? The Caps game is on..." He looked a little let down.

"Okay..." Was all Scarlet said when Steven decided that he was actually going to leave. She was disapointed and honestly felt as if she was about to burst into tears. She watched him leave with Rachel and continued to finish cleaning up the dishes and the table. As she finished up and was about to head up stairs to lay in bed and watch a movie or something Andy came down looking for Steven. Scarlet turned to look at her son and could see that he was disapointed that Steven was no longer here. She knew that the two of them were getting close and she didn't like seeing Andy upset.

"I dont know... apparently he had to go home" Scarlet said shrugging her shoulders. "Im sorry. I'll watch it with you if you want and if you can stand explaining it to me again?" She offered knowing that Andy probably wouldn't go for it. She felt guilty because she was the reason that Steven left. It seemed by trying to make sure that things were going to be okay between them she had ruined it.

'No it's fine." Andy said sighing a little bit and turning the tv on sitting on the couch and turning the game on. He watched but definitely looked a little disappointed.

Steven wanted to call Scarlet and apologize yet he didn't want to start a fight with her and didn't want anything to stress her out since she had already looked exhausted after the day she had so he let it go. He decided to call it an early night and headed to bed, watching the game in bed, that's when it dawned on him he'd promised Andy they'd watch the game together. He felt horrible letting Andy down and text him, "Sorry for missing the game Bud, crazy day. It's a 2 hour drive but Let's go to the game on Tuesday, I'll get tickets. check with your mom first. Ill b over for breakfast."

Andy got the text and said, "Oh my god... Steven's taking me to the game Tuesday night!! Can I please go? Mom... please you have to let me."

Nodding her head Scarlet let Andy go into the living room and watch the game in peace. After about ten minutes Scarlet was about to head upstairs when she heard Andy's voice coming from the living room. She wondered in and looked at him. "I have to let you do I?" She said shaking her head a little bit. "It's a school night but if you can show me you have done all of your homework then yes you can go" She said knowing that there was no way she could say no. Andy was right, she had to let him or else he would turn against her like he was becoming so good at doing. "I'm going to head to bed after I take a shower so I will see you in the morning" She said to Andy as she walked over and gave him a small hug before heading upstairs.

It was only once she reached the isolating comfort of the shower that she let the tears fall down her cheeks. She was sobbing as the water ran down her body and one hand clutched at her stomach. At the moment things all just seemed too much for her. Scarlet was struggling to do the right thing by everyone, by Steven and by Andy that it felt as if she was losing herself. She stayed in the shower for about half an hour until she could no longer cry. Getting out she got dressed in her pjs and headed straight to bed, hearing the sound of the game on the tv downstairs. Without even bothering to turn on the tv in her room, Scarlet simply turned off the lights and tried to get to sleep. However it would be many hours before her brain calmed down enough for her to be able to relax enough to get to sleep.

Andy text Steven back and said, "She said it was ok see you in the morning!!"

When the game ended she heard the TV click off and headed upstairs to go to sleep. He had to get up early the next morning and he had to put his room back together once all of the stuff was delivered and Steven would be coming over for breakfast.

Steven ordered the tickets, 100 level center ice for the game and was excited. He knew Andy had never really had a father in his life to do cool things like that so he would be able to do that. Then he went to bed quickly, somewhat feeling better.

The next morning he woke up getting dressed and headed over to Scarlet's house. He wanted to talk before Andy woke up and they had to deal with the movers and what not. He went inside and up to her room sitting on the edge of the bed waking her up gently. "We need to talk." He said softly. "Look... I know leaving last night was the wrong thing to do, but I didn't want to fight with you. I'm sorry. I just... I like being a part of yours and Andy's lives and when you said we were 'just dating' it kind of hurt. You're having my child Scar.. we're more than just dating."

In the end Scarlet only ended up getting a few hours sleep. The next morning though she was being woken up by Steven who had obviously let himself in the back door and she groaned a little at the fact she was being woken up early, and especially by Steven. When he had left last night he had really hurt her and it just reinforced how easily he could just up and leave. This was her biggest fear even though she wasn't about to let him in on this.

"Well we did fight, it just didn't involve words..." Scarlet said shaking her head as she forced herself into a sitting position. "If we are not just dating then what are we doing Steven? I know I am having your child but that doesn't mean that we need to rush into making this into something really serious and then for it to just die out and for us to fall out of love and hate each other but be forced to spend the rest of our lives together because we have a child" She said sighing. "I love you and I want this to work but I dont want to rush it and end up stuffing things up" Scarlet admitted as she ran her fingers through her hair in an exhausted and stressed out fashion.

"I don't know..." He sighed when she asked what they were doing. "I'm not trying to make you rush into anything and I'm not trying to act like we're married or we should be or whatever but you know what? I love you and I care about you and Andy immensely and I don't know what else to say." He sighed "I want this to work so much." He pleaded with her standing up. "I'm sorry for waking you up, you look exhausted." He said feeling horrible after looking down at her and sighed again running his hand through his hair.

"I'm just trying here Scarlet." He said softly not wanting to fight with her anymore. "I don't want us to fight either. Tell me what you want from me." He asked her.

When Steven spoke about waking her up she shook her head. Scarlet was exhausted but she would rather have this conversation with Steven sooner rather than later. Who was he to know that she had only got a few hours sleep the night before? However even if he left now she knew that she wouldn't be getting back to sleep any time soon.

"And you think I'm not trying? I dont want to fight either..." She said as tears began to form in her eyes and she instantly wiped them away with the back of her hand. Scarlet was positive it was just her being over emotional and didn't want to seem like this was affecting her as much as it was. Although how well she was doing at hiding that was up for debate since her emotions were generally written right across her face.

"I dont know what I want from you" She said running her fingers through her hair once more as she tried to calm down and to think. Her brain however for the moment was a complete mess and Scarlet couldn't figure out her own emotions. "I just... I dont know" Scarlet said desperatly trying to come up with an answer. She had told him that she loved him and that she was just afraid of them rushing into things and ruining it and to be honest she didn't know what else to say. There had to be a way of fixing this....

"Well... " he thought for a moment and fought with himself in his head, "Maybe we did rush into this and are just going too fast. Maybe we just both wanted to pick up from where we left off." He sighed. "Scarlet when you came back I instantly thought of every part of your life I had missed and how our lives were supposed to be right now and I wanted that so badly. I do want that so badly... I wish that you'd never been married, hell I wish you never left, but maybe I need to accept that you did." He looked at her and wondered what more he could do.

"I don't know what more I could say right now." He said trying to think of a better solution.

His words hit her like a tone of bricks as he spoke about how he had been trying to create the life that they had once planned together and how he wished that she had never left in the first place. Scarlet knew that she had made the biggest mistake of her life when she had left that day and that she should have stayed with Steven but there wasn't anything she could do to change that. Scarlet had thought that they had moved past this.

"Do you hate me for leaving? For going off and falling in love, getting married and pregnant with Andy?" It was the one thing that Scarlet had always wondered about. She had gone off and lived life while Steven seemed to focus all of his efforts on the resturant. He hadn't moved on like she had and maybe that was the problem. Maybe they were both searching for that life that the two of them had once planned with each other before she had left him.

"Would it have been better if I never came back?" Scarlet asked in a whisper as if she was afraid of the answer. Scarlet wasn't afraid of the answer she was terrified. Despite this she wanted and needed to know the answer. As she sat there looking up at him the tears finally began to fall down her cheeks but this time she made no move to stop them and instead waited for Steven's answer.

He listened to her and heard her out and instantly felt like the worst guy in the entire world for making her feel like he hated her, that he ever could hate her. He shook his head and looked into her eyes, wiping away her tears. "Scarlet, Are you Crazy?" He asked her. "I.. I could never hate you even if I tried." He said to her sitting back on the edge of the bed.

"Yes Scarlet, I hate the fact that you went off and fell in love with someone, that you were able to leave me and leave everything we'd planned behind but I could never hate you, and I could never resent you for that." He explained to her taking her hand into his. "And no.. it wouldn't have been better." He said resassuring her.

"Scarlet... I finally have a chance at a life outside of that restaraunt, with you and with Andy and our baby.. I just want the chance to make all of thing things that Tony did to you go away and make you trust me and fall in love with me."