Again she snapped at me, but I tried to remain patient.
"I get it if you want to take your time with Ethan. But keeping it all to yourself and not bringing him around the family just seems silly if you ask me."
"Payton always has the answers to everything, doesn't she?" Rebecca murmured.
"What has gotten into you?" I could tell Abby's switch had been flipped.
"Nothing. I'm sorry. It's me. I probably should've passed on lunch today. I'm just not feeling like myself,” Rebecca said.
She put on her jacket and left a hundred dollar bill on the table.
"Here, lunch is on me. Maybe we can reschedule for another day. Payton, I'd really like to help you with wedding planning. I pulled a few ideas for you to look through in this folder."
Rebecca passed me the folder and proceeded to get up.
"I'm going to head home. I'll give you guys a call later on."
She pushed her chair in and made it about six feet away from the table before passing out on the floor.
"Rebecca!" I yelled.
We ran to her aid and stayed by her side while the staff cleared the area. Abby dialed 911. By the time the paramedics arrived and placed her on a gurney, she had regained total consciousness.
"What happened?" She tried to talk.
"You fell out in the middle of the restaurant and nearly scared me to death," I said.
She looked horrified. "I wonder what that was about?"
"Girl, you can't scare us like that." Abby held Rebecca's hand.
"I promise I wasn't trying to,” she said.
"I know. Listen, Payton will ride with you in the ambulance, and I'll follow behind you in the car. Everything will be alright."
"Thanks, Abby," Rebecca said.
We were at the hospital for hours. When my parents and Ethan arrived, Abby went home to be with the kids. I stuck around to hear the results from Rebecca's blood work.
"Ms. Matthews, can I come in?" The doctor knocked on the door.
"Sure, come on in, Doc. I hope you don't mind the extra company." She introduced us briefly and then waited to hear what the doctor had to say.
"Well, I stopped by to give you good news."
"Oh, that's a sigh of relief. I can handle good news." Rebecca's demeanor immediately shifted to a more relaxed state.
"Yes, congratulations are in order to you and the family,” the doctor said.
"What do you mean?" Rebecca propped herself up, looking clueless as the doctor spoke.
"According to my calendar, you're about eight weeks pregnant."
It's a wonder Rebecca didn't pass out in the bed right where she was lying.
"You have got to be kidding me,” she said.
"I don't kid about these things, Ms. Matthews." She continued to sit there, looking stunned by the news.
Everyone's reaction was priceless. Mom sat with her mouth wide open. So much till I thought her odds for catching a fly were extremely high. Dad kept repeatedly asking mom, "You alright, dear?." And then there was Ethan who finally broke his silence and started crying and hugging Rebecca.
"I'm going to be a father!"
"Unbelievable… Un… believable," Rebecca said. She was still in phase one of total shock.
"How did this happen?" Mom finally spoke out, but we all just looked at her. This was no time to get into life lessons about the birds and the bees.
Later that evening, we saw to it that Rebecca had everything she needed at home to be comfortable. Mom and I agreed to give Rebecca and Ethan some time together but not before mom shared a few parting words.
"My youngest is having a baby." She hugged Rebecca and nestled her close as only a mom could.
"If I know right, you're probably afraid, aren't you?"
"Yes. I knew that I haven't been feeling good, but I thought maybe it was the flu or a stomach bug of some sort. I don't know if I'm fit to be a mother,” she said.
I sat on the other side of the bed and listened as mom provided words of comfort to Rebecca.
"I felt the same exact way when I was pregnant with Abby. It was my first time, and I had no idea what I was doing. And do you know what my mother told me?"
"What?"
"She said, 'As long as you love her and take care of her needs, what could possibly go wrong?' And when I truly stopped to think about it, she was right. So I did just as mom advised. When Abby was born, your father and I took care of her needs and loved her unconditionally. Did we make mistakes along the way? Absolutely. We did with all of our children. But in the end, you all turned out just fine."
"All of us? I don't know, Mom. Rebecca is kind of special." I teased.
"Be quiet, Payton." She cracked a smile while wiping away her tears.
"Here's what I want to know. You know how much I adore Ethan. I've always wanted the two of you to become an item. Why wasn't I aware the two of you were together?"
Rebecca looked over at me, but I pretended to be looking up at the ceiling.
"There was no real reason other than I wanted to make sure this time was for real. I figured if I started bringing him to our weekly family dinners and to every event, then you all would assume we were on a serious path again. I needed to confirm what path we were on for myself first. "Imagine the embarrassment of being let down by the same guy twice?"
"Ohh, Rebecca. Honey, you have to let the past go. The past is exactly where it belongs. In the past! Did you see how excited that man was to learn he's about to be a father?"
"Yeah, after he stood frozen in a two-minute
