Topsy Turvy Kinda Love
I got your attention, didn’t I?”“Guess so.”
“Uh, oh. What’d you do this time?”
I put both hands on the bar top and blow out the breath I’ve been holding. “Ugh. Yep, I opened my mouth and stuck my fucking foot right in it.”
“Been there, done that, son.”
“I highly doubt it. It was… bad. She didn’t even tell me goodbye. She left me a note with no mention of when she’d be back or if she’d be back. I fucked up really good.”
I’ve been replaying every single line of our conversation on continuous repeat for the last two days, and every time I try to get home early or get her to talk to me, she disappears.
I should’ve kept my mouth shut. Hell, maybe I should’ve asked her to marry me just so I wouldn’t be in this situation. Now she seems to think that I don’t want her, which is an absolute lie. I should’ve wrapped her in my arms and told her how lucky I am that she’s carrying my child. That she means more to me than anything I’ve ever wanted, but I didn’t, and now she’s gone.
“I’m sure she’ll be back, kid.”
“Oh, you don’t know that.”
“I have a feeling about these things. So, ya gonna tell me what happened or not?”
I question whether it’s really a good idea to share all the shit that happened, but it’s eating me up. I need to talk to someone, and my family isn’t a viable option. They basically disowned me when I left, never looking back. I could try talking to Donatello, but I don’t want to drop all my problems on the guy that just walked back into my life. Willie’s always been here for me. “She’s having my kid.”
Willie hoots. “You knocked her up? Damn, son, that was quick. Definite way to get her to stick around. You sure took rocking the boat to a new level. Congrats.”
I nod slowly. “Didn’t plan on it. Just sorta happened.”
“I’m sure you’re probably not the first guy who stuck his foot in his mouth after his woman told him she was pregnant with his child. How do ya feel about it?”
“I love her. I’m so happy, but I didn’t even tell her how I felt. I just went on and told her that I wouldn’t ask her to marry me because that wasn’t a reason to get married,” I admit.
“Ouch… I imagine that wasn’t a great idea.”
I clear my throat, emotion clogging my throat. “Exactly. I messed up, Willie. I’m going to be a father, and I have zero idea where I stand with my baby mama. She owns my heart and soul, has since the first time I laid eyes on her in this bar. She is everything to me.”
“You got it bad. You think about trying to call her or send her a text?”
“No, I was trying to give her some space, and it sucks. For the first time in my life I finally felt complete, whole. Like she’d closed up the part of my heart that was still cut open, but now she’s gone.”
“Well, this ain’t the end. Last thing you need her to think is that you don’t care. Just because she said she needs space doesn’t mean you stop fighting for her. You fight like hell. You don’t run.”
“Yeah, maybe that’s a good idea. It’s just… I wanna raise the baby with her. Hell, if I knew she’d say yes to a marriage proposal I’d have already been down on one knee, ring in hand, but she’s still closed off from me. I want her to be happy, but after that night, I’m not even sure if she’s going to keep me. You want another? Your glass is empty.”
He chuckles. “You know, I do.”
I reach over, grabbing the whiskey, ice, and another glass. “Here you go, friend. It’s on me, say it’s for good advice.”
“You know you could grab her some flowers and do something nice for her. She got any big events coming up or things happening that you can make her feel special over?”
“The gallery that’s showing her artwork is doing a big opening night for her event, but I don’t know when it’s scheduled.”
“There ya go. Pretty sure you could do some snooping and find out when it is. I happen to know she’s friends with Zara. I’m also sure you can come up with a little something to celebrate with her. Can’t have champagne on account of the kid and all that, but flowers and sparkling juice may be nice, Brooks.”
“So you do know my name?”
“Of course, I do.”
“Why do you always call me son?”
“Cause you remind me of my own son.”
My eyebrow raises. “I didn’t know you had kids…”
“Now you do, but I don’t need to get into all that. You need to talk it out more?” His admission shocks me. Hell, maybe he does understand a thing or two about women and what I’m going through.
“Nah, I think I’m good. I appreciate you listening to me.”
“Anytime, now I’m gonna head on over and harass Charlie. It ain’t fun if I can’t get a rise out of him at least once a day. Good luck with your girl. Remember, listening is helpful. Take little clues from her on how to act. She’ll tell you what she wants from you, ya just gotta know what to look for… You’ve got this. I think you’ll be just fine.” I shake my head and chuckle as he walks away. A few minutes later, I hear hoop and hollering from where Charlie and Willie sit in the back corner of the bar.
The next couple of hours go smoothly. A bachelorette party came in for a little while, but it’s mostly college kids coming in to shoot pool or play darts. I mess around with some new drink ideas.
It’s up to us to keep up with drink changes, and I’ve been trying to make something specific for Topsy Turvy. I’m thinking something green that would happily turn