More Than Words

Practice is running a little later than usual since Coach has us putting in more ice time. We’re pretty much a lock for the playoffs, so he says it’s essential.

When I do finally arrive home, the house is quiet.

That’s weird. Where’s Chloe?

“Sweetheart,” I call out, concerned since she should be back from the vet’s office by now. “Are you home?”

From the kitchen, she softly replies, “I’m in here, Dylan.”

Relieved, I head that way, only to find her seated at the kitchen table biting her nails.

Uh-oh, this isn’t like her at all. Something’s not right.

“Chloe…” I rush over and pull up a chair. “What’s wrong?”

My head is everywhere.

Does she regret moving in with me?

Does she no longer love me?

Fuck, does she think this was all a massive mistake?

Since we’re committed to always being honest and upfront, I man up and ask her if any of those things are true.

“Of course not,” she answers.

So why’s she swiping away a tear?

“Why are you crying?” I ask. “You’re obviously sad about something.”

“No, no,” she insists. “I’m actually happy. Truly, these are tears of joy, Dylan.”

“Are they really, Chloe?”

Sighing, she says, “Yes. I swear I love living here. And I love you more than words.”

That fills me with relief. But why are there still tears in her eyes? I need to think of something to whisk them away.

I think back to our beginning, to one of our best nights.

“‘More than words,”’ eh,” I begin with a smile. “I know that one. It’s one of your nineties one-hit wonders, isn’t it? The title of an Extreme song, I believe.”

She looks at me all confused, but hey, there are no more tears.

So I go on…

“Wait, I got it. You’re crying because this is the start of another epic eighties-versus-nineties music battle and you know you’re going down.”

“Dylan,” she says, laughing now. “You’re impossible.”

I need to keep her smiling, this is good, and the music references seem to be working.

So I say, “Hmm, ‘Impossible’, huh? Let me think. That’s a Shontelle song, but it’s too recent, babe, so I’m going to have to disqualify you.”

This is all silliness, but who cares? Chloe is full-on laughing now.

Pushing a strand of blonde hair from her face and tucking it behind her ear, I say, “In all seriousness, though, why were you crying? It looked like there was more behind those tears. You looked… I don’t know, sweetheart, confused, maybe?”

She glances away. “Uh, you know I took the rabbit to the vet today, right?”

Ah, she’s deflecting, but that’s okay. We’ll get to the bottom of this.

For now, I just say, “Yes, I was going to ask you about that.”

“Well, we finally have an answer to our burning balls question.”

“Ouch.” I wince. “Do you have to phrase it like that?”

That gets me another laugh, and then she informs me that Jack is no longer Jack. “She is officially named Jackie,” Chloe states.

“Ah, so she is a girl.”

“Yes, and there’s more.”

“What?”

“She’s also definitely preggers.”

“Wow, I wonder who the baby daddy is.”

Huffing, she informs me, “Oh, I have an answer to that. The baby daddy is some crime scene rabbit that was down at the police station with our baby girl.”

“You’re kidding.”

“Nope, Officer Willet filled me in on the whole sordid tale.”

Chloe brings me up to speed on the rabbit loving that went down, and I conclude, “Guess our girl likes bad boys.”

“It would seem so. We’re definitely going to have to keep an eye on what kind of rogue rabbits she associates with from this point on.”

Chloe comes over then to sit in my lap. She wraps me up in a hug and murmurs, “Maybe she’ll find herself a nice hockey player rabbit down the road.”

Leaning back, and with our foreheads touching, I whisper, “Like you did?”

“Yes, like I did.”

“Chloe, seriously, what else is going on? I know there’s more.”

Sitting up straight, though still in my lap, she informs me, “There is, but I’m kind of scared to say what’s weighing on me.”

“Why? You know you can tell me anything.”

“I know. But this is huge…and unexpected.”

“Uh-oh, now I’m worried. What is it?”

She takes a deep breath, and then says, “Dylan, I’m pregnant.”

“What?” I almost pass out.

But then the impact of what Chloe has just told me begins to sink in. And you know what? I’m okay with it. In fact, I’m better than okay with it.

I share this with her, and she says, “Are you sure you’re not mad?”

“Are you kidding? I feel blessed.”

“Oh, Dylan, thank God, because I do too. Those tears you saw earlier really were tears of joy. But still, I was worried about how you’d feel.”

“Well, I’m happy,” I assure her as I kiss her nose, her cheeks, and her lips.

We linger for a minute, and then I lean back. “Chloe, I have something to tell you too. And like your news, it’s all good.”

“So what is it, Dylan?”

“I want to tell you how I feel about you, like deep inside. You’re my new beginning, sweetheart. You have been since the day we met. And as we got to know each other you became my salvation. You quieted all the internal demons I was battling. You put them to rest. So it really is time to turn the page and look to the future. I once thought I was saving you, but it’s you who saved me. It’s always been you, Chloe, and I suspect it always will be.”

“That’s beautiful, Dylan, and I appreciate it so much. But maybe we saved each other.” Chloe’s hands are in my hair, her lips on my neck. “So the only question left is what do we do now?”

“Oh, babe, that’s an easy one. We have a baby.”