From the moment Ethan broke the news of the pregnancy, his anticipation took over, causing him not to blink for a while. Since he didn't care about Natalie's reaction, he fixed his gaze on his mother and her expression was that of great disapproval.
Unlike Ethan, Olivia was still relaxed with her natural resting face and it was because it didn't matter to her what Ms Hudson's reaction would be. Instead, she focused on Natalie, who gaped at her with her head tilted.
It had been so long of a wait that Ethan got up from his seat, sat with his mother and held her hands as he begged her to say something since he had just announced that he was having a baby with Olivia and couldn't take the suspense any longer.
With a heavy grunt, Ms Hudson pulled her hands away from Ethan and her loud and heavy breathing was all everyone present could hear. When she heard Ethan's voice, as he attempted to speak to her again, without looking at him but directly at Olivia, she held out the palm of her hand in front of his face as a sign for him not to speak.
"Always good for nothing!" she yelled, her sharp gaze still on Olivia. "What will it take to get rid of you? Is this your new plan to get back into my son's life?"
In a calm tone, Olivia reminded Ms Hudson of the countless times she had mentioned how she wanted nothing to do with any of them. She then admitted that she shouldn't have gotten pregnant because it stood in the way of her new life, but it already happened.
"The nerve you have to .....to....ugh!" Ms Hudson grunted with her hands still clenched into fists and got up but stood in place. Her frustration led her to speak no further and her heavy breathing intensified. She heard Ethan ask if she was alright as he stood next to her, but paid no attention to him and only glared at Olivia.
Suddenly, Natalie, who had been awfully silent, rose to her feet, placed a hand on her hip and raised the corner of her mouth and spoke with confidence as she looked around.
"So what if Olivia's pregnant?" she asked.
Her question grabbed everyone's attention and they looked at her as she walked towards Ethan, wrapped her hand around his arm and rested her head on his shoulder with a smile.
"Olivia's pregnant and we can't change that but so what?" She gently rubbed her hand along his arm as she looked up at his face but he didn't look back at her. Even with that, it didn't take away her confidence. "We have a wedding to prepare for and this news won't disrupt that in any way."
"Oh," said Olivia in a low tone as she looked over at Ethan. "I didn't know the wedding preparations were underway."
Natalie looked back and forth between the two of them and just when it seemed that Ethan would respond to Olivia, Natalie spoke first. "I thought Ethan told you about it. Anyway, you're welcome to the wedding."
Olivia declined the invitation with an unsteady smile and tone and when Ethan noticed, his gaze softened for a second.
Since the pregnancy announcement was out of the way, Olivia was about to leave but just when she started walking out, Ethan's eyes widened as he stared at her and without giving it a second thought, he pushed Natalie's hand off of him and rushed to Olivia.
"Wait, where do you think you're going?" he asked.
"I have no business being here right now," replied Olivia.
"Why would you just leave like this?"
"What else is there to do when I'm done here? The wedding you need to prepare for requires your attention."
He sighed. "Olivia..."
Not interested in whatever he had to say to her, she repeated that she was leaving and had no desire to spend another second in that house.
Right when Ethan was about to go after her, Natalie held onto his arm and warned him.
"Don't you dare walk out on me. I excused the fact that your ex-wife is pregnant but that's it."
She then mentioned how Ms Hudson hadn't said anything more because she was devastated and that was enough to grab Ethan's attention. He looked back at his mother and noticed how she just stood still with clenched fists and the same expression from before. Just like that, going after Olivia no longer became a priority.
He walked back to his mother, and placed his hand on top of hers and that was when she sighed with her lips tightly pressed together. He asked her to understand that he and Olivia didn't plan for that to happen but it did and all they could do at that moment was move forward and adjust with the baby in the picture.
Ms Hudson finally had more to say and because she couldn't say it to Olivia, she yelled as loud as she could in Ethan's face and he just stood there and listened to it all, even when she belittled his pregnant ex-wife.
Once she let it all out, she placed a hand on her chest as she breathed faster but scrunched up her face in agony. She walked past him but he held onto her hand to calm her down and make her stay, but she pushed his hand away and yelled as she walked up the stairs, that if Olivia thought she won, she had another thing coming.
When he was left alone with Natalie, she stood right in front of him and placed her hands on the lapels of his jacket and cleared her throat before speaking. "So .. we need to talk about this."
"We just did." He didn't hide the irritation in his tone.
"Did we really talk about it? Listen carefully, Olivia being pregnant means she's still in our lives but make no mistake. I'm going to be your wife, not her. It doesn't matter if she's pregnant. She shouldn't be a priority."
She then expressed her concern on how he would most likely check up on Olivia and she wasn't comfortable with that but said she would allow it.
Ethan chuckled and looked at her with disbelief and spoke with his finger pointed at her forehead. "We might be getting married but let's get something straight. I don't need permission from you to see anyone, not even Olivia."
He then went on to brag about how much he was worth compared to her and she was worth much less. Even with that, his mother wished to work with her father and to make his mother happy, he would do anything for her. It was the only reason he was marrying her.
The finger pointed at her forehead and all he said was enough to intimidate her and she didn't dare to utter another word. She could only stand in place and watch as he made his way up the stairs.
~
When Ethan went up to his mother's bedroom in an attempt to calm her down, it was more difficult than he thought. It was only when he assured her several times that expecting a baby with Olivia would change nothing and he would still marry Natalie.
Once he was able to get through to her, she gave him an unenthusiastic nod, but it was enough for him to feel a form of relief. His mother's reaction to the news was all he cared about at that moment. The last thing he wanted was for her to completely be against it.
Once he had it under control with her, she sat down on the bed with him and despite the bitterness she still had, she asked what he would do next.
"Olivia's pregnant with my child and as of now, that's my responsibility," he said.
"Meaning?!" she yelled.
"I plan to take good care of her and my baby."
It was as if his words triggered a headache because as soon as he mentioned that, she held onto the sides of her head as she belittled Olivia based on how a good for nothing like her still had a way of benefiting from them. She then warned him to keep Olivia out of her sight or she would lose a leg.
As serious as the warning was, he only chuckled, then wrapped his arms around her as she rested her head on his chest.
Once again, she expressed how disappointed she was when she heard the pregnancy news and it was only because she wanted the best for him that she reacted the way did.
He thanked her for wanting the best for him and apologized for getting Olivia pregnant.
He then dropped his hands and excused himself so he could go to Pete.
~
Natalie had been sitting down with her legs crossed and a suspended foot which she swung from left to right as she waited for Ethan to come back down the stairs. She pursed her lips with a stare that was focused on nothing.
Once she heard his footsteps and voice, she rose to her feet and folded her arms as she waited for him to make it down the stairs.
As he got closer, she noticed he was talking on the phone with Olivia and despite it being an argument between the two of them, it was enough for Natalie to grit her teeth with a chuckle. Even with the harsh tone he spoke with and how much he seemed to disrespect Olivia during their exchange, all Natalie understood was how he needed to take care of her during the pregnancy whenever he wanted to do so.
As she impatiently waited for him to hang up, she tapped her foot as she tried to tolerate how an ex-husband was still so concerned about his ex-wife.
Just when it seemed that the call would end and she would have his attention, he continued with it as he headed out of the house and that was when she rushed to him, snatched his phone and pressed the button to end the call with extreme pressure.
After a few seconds of looking down at the phone in Natalie's hands and processing what she did, he looked up at her face and spoke with a raging tone.
"I was still talking to Olivia!"
"That's why I ended the call! Enough of this!" she retorted.
As he snatched his phone back, he pointed at her with a glare. "You had no right to do that."
"I had every right because I'm going to be your wife."
"Which is the same as you're not yet my wife."
"Ethan....." Her words failed her and she could only shake her head with a scoff.
As soon as she saw him look down at his phone to dial a number, she grew wide-eyed as she attempted to snatch his phone again but he had already noticed so he instantly raised his arm and glared at her as warned her to know her boundaries. He then showed her the screen and she saw Pete's name.
"You might be calling Pete right now, but it doesn't change the fact that you just called Olivia a-"
"So what if I did? Again, know your boundaries. A few minutes ago, when I mentioned the pregnancy, you didn't care that she was pregnant because the wedding would still take place. Focus on your wedding and concern yourself with nothing else."
As soon as she started to speak, to express how she felt, he turned around, leaving her with only the view of his back as he started to walk away and when she asked why he was walking out on her, he responded without looking back, telling her to focus on her wedding.
"My wedding? Isn't it our wedding?" she asked with wide eyes.
Without responding, he walked out on her, leaving her standing still like she didn't matter and it made her wonder if that was all she would experience in the future. Not wanting that to be the case, her forehead creased when she thought of what she needed to do to not lose to Olivia.