Stained Red Chapter Thirty-Two
Natalie sat outside on the porch of Diana and Walker's house. It was now Thanksgiving and Isaac and the kids had been back since the end of August and things between her and Ike, well they just were. They were friends who were now co-parenting three children and they had yet to even talk about the one big issue between them. If they would tell Theo the truth about Taylor or not.
It was at the thought of Taylor that she frowned because she knew deep down that maybe she had lead him on. She had slept with him a second time and gotten pregnant again, though she knew she wasn't what had caused him to turn to drugs. She was certain that had been Nikki and him finding out how Nikki had screwed him over, though it seemed he was past that now because when he had returned from Florida he had returned with her and now tonight during Thanksgiving festivities she sat in the house at his side.
Natalie wasn't sure if things would ever be okay between her and Nikki because of the fact that Nikki had done some awful shit but if Taylor could get past it maybe she could too, hell Kate seemed to be getting past things she had done but then again Kate had been her friend for longer than Natalie had ever known Nikki and Kate was with Isaac now or Natalie assumed she was. They were always doing things together or she was at his house.
Zac didn't really seemed bothered by it, had even commented once before that Kate and Isaac seemed nice together and maybe it should have always been that way. Natalie had to agree and she felt almost guilty, like maybe her pregnancy lie had caused fate from putting them together when they should have been but then again if she hadn't lied she wouldn't have Henry and Audrey and she loved both of them more than life itself.
Hearing a door open Natalie turned and smiled seeing Isaac come outside, a cigarette between his lips, "I thought you stopped smoking," she said knowing he had given it up when she had been pregnant with Audrey.
"I only smoke when stressed," Isaac shrugged as he walked to sit down beside Natalie. "The family driving you crazy?" he asked her curiously as he lit his cigarette and soon took a drag off of it. "Is that why you had to retreat out here."
"Maybe," Natalie laughed as she shook her head and rested her hand on her belly. She was due next month and she almost wished it would hurry and get here. "Or maybe I just needed to escape Nikki for a bit."
Isaac made a face when she mentioned Nikki, "Taylor says they are doing better now. Says that they reconnected while he was in Florida and they seem stronger."
"Do you believe him?" Natalie asked as she looked down some. "Or do you think he is lying?"
"I think I believe him," Isaac nodded before taking another drag off his cigarette and he and Natalie almost fell into a comfortable silence. "I..I don't think we should tell Theo the truth," he finally spoke after some time. "I've been wanting to tell you that for awhile but I don't know if it makes me selfish."
Natalie shook her head, "I don't think it makes you selfish," she said as she smiled some. "By law you'll be considered his father anyway. We were married when I had him and your name is on the birth certificate. Taylor said it was up to us anyway."
"Then we won't tell him," Isaac said sounding confident. "If when he gets older and he has questions then maybe but for now I think we should just let him go on believing what he wants. I'm his father."
"You're his father anyway," Natalie told him as she looked up and locked eyes with him. "You raised him since birth and you'll always be his father. Always."
Isaac smiled at Natalie's words, "What are you going to do about the baby you're pregnant with now? Taylor told me he gave his parental rights."
"Zac's agreed to adopt the baby...be the father," Natalie said as she smiled more. "He's been in love with this baby for so long and I think he'll be a good daddy. He's wonderful with Shepherd and Junia too and I see that all the time when they come over to stay on weekends."
"Kate hates when they come back because she knows Zac spoils them," Isaac laughed knowing Kate always complained about how much Zac spoiled the children. "She's a wonderful mom though."
"She is," Natalie agreed knowing Kate was a good mom. "Maybe you'll get to have kids with her one day."
Isaac chuckled at Natalie's words, "She's already pregnant," he confessed before taking another drag from his cigarette. "That's why I've been smoking."
At Isaac's confession Natalie just made a face, "You didn't want this baby?" she asked him not sure why that would cause him to smoke or be stressed.
"No I did," Isaac admitted. "Just wondering how everyone else will take the news."
"I'm sure they will be thrilled," Natalie told him as she nodded. "You love her and she seems to love you and you're having a baby together."
Isaac just sighed and eventually he finished his cigarette, "I hope you are right," he said knowing he wanted everyone to be okay with this news but he wasn't sure they would be.
"I'm always right," Natalie teased him as she stuck her tongue out playfully. "You need to realize that by now."
"And I think you've been spending too much time with Zac," Isaac teased back. "Starting to get his big head and all," he laughed as he shook his head. "You know I never saw us here," he admitted as he looked away from her and out at the neighborhood where his parents lived. "After we got married, every time I thought about the future I always saw us together forever."
"But plans change," Natalie spoke knowing you couldn't always go by what you saw happening. "Futures change sometimes."
Isaac went silent again knowing Natalie was right but he wouldn't tell her, he didn't want to encourage her ego to get any bigger. "You know I did love you," he said as he kept looking out at the neighborhood. "I just..I don't think I was ever in love with you and I always wanted to be but it was never going to happen."
"I know you loved me and I loved you too but like you said we weren't in love with each other and it was never going to happen. It was better we got out now then stay in and ruin any chance for finding true happiness," Natalie smiled as she too eventually looked out at the neighborhood. "You did good finding Kate."
"And you did good finding Zac," Isaac smiled as he reached over for Natalie's hand. As much as he was happy with Kate he still wouldn't change the years he had shared with her. He had gotten three children from it and in the end maybe he had learned a few lessons he wouldn't have learned otherwise.
Natalie squeezed Isaac's hand and she just sat beside him, enjoying the silence that had fallen between them now. She was at least glad that after everything they could still be civil, they could still be friends and maybe deep down they still loved each other though it was and never would be the right kind of love and that was why in the end they hadn't worked out. It hadn't been because of her secret about Theo or her getting pregnant by Taylor again. They just were never in the right kind of love with each other.
As they sat there Natalie smiled more as she heard Isaac began to hum an old Elvis song and she had to blink a few times to stop the tears. "Don't make me cry Ike," she warned him under her breath.
"Still weepy while pregnant I see?" Isaac asked as he raised an eyebrow and stood up, pulling Natalie to her feet as well. "Dance with me lady?" he asked though it sounded more like a statement.
Natalie laughed but agreed, letting him lead the way on the dance they were sharing on his parents front porch while he sang a really good rendition of Always On My Mind. He was always better at singing Elvis songs than Taylor was but of course Natalie wouldn't mention that in fear of hurting Taylor's ego.
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Maybe I didn't treat you
Quite as good as I should have
Maybe I didn't love you
Quite as often as I could have
Little things I should have said and done
I just never took the time
Natalie sat outside on the porch of Diana and Walker's house. It was now Thanksgiving and Isaac and the kids had been back since the end of August and things between her and Ike, well they just were. They were friends who were now co-parenting three children and they had yet to even talk about the one big issue between them. If they would tell Theo the truth about Taylor or not.
It was at the thought of Taylor that she frowned because she knew deep down that maybe she had lead him on. She had slept with him a second time and gotten pregnant again, though she knew she wasn't what had caused him to turn to drugs. She was certain that had been Nikki and him finding out how Nikki had screwed him over, though it seemed he was past that now because when he had returned from Florida he had returned with her and now tonight during Thanksgiving festivities she sat in the house at his side.
Natalie wasn't sure if things would ever be okay between her and Nikki because of the fact that Nikki had done some awful shit but if Taylor could get past it maybe she could too, hell Kate seemed to be getting past things she had done but then again Kate had been her friend for longer than Natalie had ever known Nikki and Kate was with Isaac now or Natalie assumed she was. They were always doing things together or she was at his house.
Zac didn't really seemed bothered by it, had even commented once before that Kate and Isaac seemed nice together and maybe it should have always been that way. Natalie had to agree and she felt almost guilty, like maybe her pregnancy lie had caused fate from putting them together when they should have been but then again if she hadn't lied she wouldn't have Henry and Audrey and she loved both of them more than life itself.
Hearing a door open Natalie turned and smiled seeing Isaac come outside, a cigarette between his lips, "I thought you stopped smoking," she said knowing he had given it up when she had been pregnant with Audrey.
"I only smoke when stressed," Isaac shrugged as he walked to sit down beside Natalie. "The family driving you crazy?" he asked her curiously as he lit his cigarette and soon took a drag off of it. "Is that why you had to retreat out here."
"Maybe," Natalie laughed as she shook her head and rested her hand on her belly. She was due next month and she almost wished it would hurry and get here. "Or maybe I just needed to escape Nikki for a bit."
Isaac made a face when she mentioned Nikki, "Taylor says they are doing better now. Says that they reconnected while he was in Florida and they seem stronger."
"Do you believe him?" Natalie asked as she looked down some. "Or do you think he is lying?"
"I think I believe him," Isaac nodded before taking another drag off his cigarette and he and Natalie almost fell into a comfortable silence. "I..I don't think we should tell Theo the truth," he finally spoke after some time. "I've been wanting to tell you that for awhile but I don't know if it makes me selfish."
Natalie shook her head, "I don't think it makes you selfish," she said as she smiled some. "By law you'll be considered his father anyway. We were married when I had him and your name is on the birth certificate. Taylor said it was up to us anyway."
"Then we won't tell him," Isaac said sounding confident. "If when he gets older and he has questions then maybe but for now I think we should just let him go on believing what he wants. I'm his father."
"You're his father anyway," Natalie told him as she looked up and locked eyes with him. "You raised him since birth and you'll always be his father. Always."
Isaac smiled at Natalie's words, "What are you going to do about the baby you're pregnant with now? Taylor told me he gave his parental rights."
"Zac's agreed to adopt the baby...be the father," Natalie said as she smiled more. "He's been in love with this baby for so long and I think he'll be a good daddy. He's wonderful with Shepherd and Junia too and I see that all the time when they come over to stay on weekends."
"Kate hates when they come back because she knows Zac spoils them," Isaac laughed knowing Kate always complained about how much Zac spoiled the children. "She's a wonderful mom though."
"She is," Natalie agreed knowing Kate was a good mom. "Maybe you'll get to have kids with her one day."
Isaac chuckled at Natalie's words, "She's already pregnant," he confessed before taking another drag from his cigarette. "That's why I've been smoking."
At Isaac's confession Natalie just made a face, "You didn't want this baby?" she asked him not sure why that would cause him to smoke or be stressed.
"No I did," Isaac admitted. "Just wondering how everyone else will take the news."
"I'm sure they will be thrilled," Natalie told him as she nodded. "You love her and she seems to love you and you're having a baby together."
Isaac just sighed and eventually he finished his cigarette, "I hope you are right," he said knowing he wanted everyone to be okay with this news but he wasn't sure they would be.
"I'm always right," Natalie teased him as she stuck her tongue out playfully. "You need to realize that by now."
"And I think you've been spending too much time with Zac," Isaac teased back. "Starting to get his big head and all," he laughed as he shook his head. "You know I never saw us here," he admitted as he looked away from her and out at the neighborhood where his parents lived. "After we got married, every time I thought about the future I always saw us together forever."
"But plans change," Natalie spoke knowing you couldn't always go by what you saw happening. "Futures change sometimes."
Isaac went silent again knowing Natalie was right but he wouldn't tell her, he didn't want to encourage her ego to get any bigger. "You know I did love you," he said as he kept looking out at the neighborhood. "I just..I don't think I was ever in love with you and I always wanted to be but it was never going to happen."
"I know you loved me and I loved you too but like you said we weren't in love with each other and it was never going to happen. It was better we got out now then stay in and ruin any chance for finding true happiness," Natalie smiled as she too eventually looked out at the neighborhood. "You did good finding Kate."
"And you did good finding Zac," Isaac smiled as he reached over for Natalie's hand. As much as he was happy with Kate he still wouldn't change the years he had shared with her. He had gotten three children from it and in the end maybe he had learned a few lessons he wouldn't have learned otherwise.
Natalie squeezed Isaac's hand and she just sat beside him, enjoying the silence that had fallen between them now. She was at least glad that after everything they could still be civil, they could still be friends and maybe deep down they still loved each other though it was and never would be the right kind of love and that was why in the end they hadn't worked out. It hadn't been because of her secret about Theo or her getting pregnant by Taylor again. They just were never in the right kind of love with each other.
As they sat there Natalie smiled more as she heard Isaac began to hum an old Elvis song and she had to blink a few times to stop the tears. "Don't make me cry Ike," she warned him under her breath.
"Still weepy while pregnant I see?" Isaac asked as he raised an eyebrow and stood up, pulling Natalie to her feet as well. "Dance with me lady?" he asked though it sounded more like a statement.
Natalie laughed but agreed, letting him lead the way on the dance they were sharing on his parents front porch while he sang a really good rendition of Always On My Mind. He was always better at singing Elvis songs than Taylor was but of course Natalie wouldn't mention that in fear of hurting Taylor's ego.
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Maybe I didn't treat you
Quite as good as I should have
Maybe I didn't love you
Quite as often as I could have
Little things I should have said and done
I just never took the time