We did nine more shows in California before moving on to Las Vegas, Nevada. By then I was three and a half months pregnant. It was also the end of October, so more people would be at the casinos. Due to Eric, Tobias, Aunt Sofiya and Anton’s persistence, I let them demote me to two dances a week. I had just barely started showing, which would make dancing harder now, especially in Vegas. But that won’t stop me from doing what I love.
Tobias and I grew closer, too. We were practically inseparable to the point where he took over Eric’s spot for some time. But I fixed that. I still need my Eric. But otherwise, I was hardly ever alone. I didn’t mind it that much, I liked it. I had Tobias, my best friend, he’s my everything. Tobias was waiting for me outside of the hotel, a smile on his face as I came near. I wrapped my arms around his neck and smiled faintly as I leaned in and kissed him. He kissed me back before resting his hands on my hips and pulled back slightly.
“Come on, I have some people I’d like you to meet.” He murmured. I sighed and rested my head under his chin, my arms wrapped securely around his waist. “Ana, what’s wrong? Are you not feeling well? Is the little guy bothering you or something?” He murmured.
“No, I'm fine. It’s just… this isn’t a ‘meet the parents’ thing?” I asked. He nodded and wrapped his arms around my waist. “Tobias… I don’t do well with parents. Most people don’t like how I am raised. And your parents sure as hell won’t like that I’m pregnant and it’s not yours.” I whispered. He let out a sigh and pressed his lips to my forehead.
“Ana, the only thing that matters is that I love you. I don’t care if my parents love you or not, just as long as they respect you.” He said, tipping my chin up and pressing his warm lips to mine. “Come on, my parents are going to pick us up.” He murmured.
“Do they have to?” I whined. A shiny black car pulled up to the side and honked twice. He kissed my forehead gently and waved to the people in the car.
“Ana, I’d like you to meet my parents.” He murmured as two sets of doors slammed shut. I nuzzled his neck, not wanting to turn around. My sweatshirt was already stretched over my tiny stomach and I didn’t want his parents to notice. Tobias let go of me and took his jacket off, wrapping it around my shoulders. I looked up at him, a smirk resting on his lips. “I already thought of the little guy.” He whispered. I leaned in and kissed him, my arms securely around his waist. He grinned and touched my stomach softly.
“Tobias,” A woman said, making Tobias pull back abruptly. I pushed my arms through the sleeves and pulled the sides of the jacket over my stomach. He turned me around and wrapped his arms around my waist.
“Mom, dad, your early,” He said, pulling me against his chest.
“We wanted to surprise you and your little friend.” She said. Tobias stilled behind me, assuming I’d get upset at the words ‘little friend’.
I turned my head and looked at him. “Little friend?” I asked, getting a little mad.
“I said girlfriend, those are her words, not mine.” He said quickly, kissing my cheek. I grumbled and crossed my arms over my chest, glaring at the ground instead of his mother. He cupped my chin and turned my head so he could kiss my temple. “You know you’re more than a friend.” He murmured. I sighed and nodded, smiling at him. He leaned in and kissed me softly, ignoring the fact that his parents were right in front of us.
“Son, I’m sorry to interrupt, but we have lunch plans.” His father said impatiently. I pulled back with a sigh, taking Tobias’ hand. He led me to the car and let me slide in first. He went over to his mother and talked to her quickly before coming back to the car and sliding in next to me. His parents got in after us and pulling into the road, sitting in a line of traffic.
“So where would you like to eat, dear?” his mother asked. Tobias looked at me, kneading my fingers. The look he gave me was like asking if I was okay with seafood or Chinese. I shook my head slightly, knowing I couldn’t stomach either of them.
“How about a steak house,” He suggested, looking at his parents.
“Oh, sweetheart, how about we go to a seafood place? I heard of a great seafood place in Caesars Palace.” His mother said happily. I shot Tobias a look; I really couldn’t handle seafood at all. He leaned over and kissed my forehead quickly.
“Mom, let’s go to a steak house, okay?” He said, looking at his father through the rear view mirror. She sighed and obliged to go to a menial place of food for her above human son and his average, ho-hum girlfriend. Tobias slid over and wrapped his arm around my shoulder and I leaned into him, closing my eyes and breathing him in. He slid his hand under the jacket and touched my stomach and whispered; “We’ll tell them once they’ve ate.” I nodded and kissed his nose gently.
Tobias’ mother turned around, interrupting our little moment. “My name is Karen. I know Tobias told me what your name was, but I can’t seem to remember it correctly. Is it Sally, Sara, Sadie?” She guessed.
“Ana,” I mumbled. “Ana Barkov.” I said again. She nodded and touched my knee.
“I’m so glad my little Toby met you. He had always been a lonely little boy, he never brought anyone home” She said to me. Tobias scratched the back of his neck, like he was hiding something. I touched his cheek, making him look at me. He leaned in and kissed my eyelids.
“I’ll tell you later, baby.” He murmured, squeezing my hip gently. I nodded as I wrapped my arms around his waist. He pulled me into his lap and turned me so I faced his mother. She had started talking about Tobias as a boy, how awkward he had been growing up and somehow turning into a handsome young man. Well, I couldn’t disagree with her on that.
Karen’s husband pulled into a parking lot and turned the car off. He turned around and stretched his hand out to me. “Hello Ana, I’m Rich.” He said smoothly. I smiled and shook his hand.
I turned my head and looked at Tobias. “I like your dad,” I whispered to him.
He smiled at me and whispered, “I like him, too.”
We got out and walked into the restaurant together. Tobias kept an arm around me as Karen had her hand perched on her husband’s forearm. I looked at Tobias, an eyebrow raised as a silent question. He kissed my temple and murmured that she always did it. He held me closer and slipped his hand under the jacket.
“How are you feeling?” He whispered into my hair.
“Not sick, for once.” I whispered. He smiled faintly and kissed my lips quickly.
“Good,” He whispered.
The four of us walked into the restaurant and were seated quickly. Once we ordered our drinks and were handed menus, the waiter left. Karen leaned over the table with a mischievous grin playing on her lips.
“So, Ana, where are you from?” She asked softly.
I looked at Tobias before answering her. “I’m from the USSR.” I said, smiling at her. She stilled and looked at Tobias.
“You knew this girl is from Russia?” She snapped at him. “Is she even a legal citizen? How do you know she’s not using you to get a green card or something?”
“I would never use Tobias like that!” I snapped at her. Tobias squeezed my hand under the table as he glared at his mother.
“Mother, enough, we came for a nice outing together. If you plan on being like this, we’re leaving.” He said in an adult like manner. She huffed and sat back, saying nothing to her son. I looked at Tobias as I squeezed his hand gently, lacing our fingers together. He looked at me and smiled, squeezing me hand back. The waiter came back and took our orders and left us again. Tobias pulled me closer to him, taking a deep breath to keep himself calm. I looked at his mother, attempting not to glare. Mrs. Mallock and I will never get along, I know that. I hope Tobias will realize that too. Rich looked at me and smiled faintly.
“Please, Ana, continue what you were saying.” He murmured. I nodded and looked at Tobias, wondering if I should tell them about my family. As if he read my mind, he nodded slowly, looking me in the eye. I looked at his parents and took a deep breath before continuing.
“After I was born, my mother, her sister and family friend left the country,” I started, thinking back to what Aunt Sofiya had told me years ago. “We took two orphans my mother found on the street, they were there before I was born. The first two years after we left, we lived all around Eastern Europe, picking up more orphan boys. I’ve been told my mother never turned a blind eye, since she thought it was a sin to not love what God put on the Earth.” I stopped and smiled in spite of myself. “By then, in our little band of misfits, we had about fifteen or so people; five women, ten men.
“We had moved on to Western Europe when I was three. By that time, my mother’s health started taking a turn for the worst. A doctor in Paris diagnosed her with Tuberculosis. But that never stopped her. She continued to take in new people, mainly boys now. She wanted me to feel safe, protected maybe.
“When I was four, we stayed in the British Iles, seeing as my mother was too sick to travel anymore. She died in a hospital in the middle of London when I was four in a half.” I murmured, stopping to collect my thoughts. “A month after her death, my aunt and legal guardian had moved the remaining fifteen people back and forth from the United Stated and the British Isles until about six years ago.
“My aunt and legal guardian had put everyone through the legal system and we became United States Citizens within a year. We started up the company right near the school we are at about three months of the year; we go around the country, only staying in each state about two weeks at the most.” I said, looking at his parents.
“So this is the girl your son has fallen for,” I murmured, looking at Tobias again. He cupped the back of my neck and pulled me close, kissing my forehead gently. I closed my eyes and rested my head against his. “I’ve fallen for you, Tobias. Don’t worry,” I whispered. He kissed my lips, cupping my cheeks in his hands as his parents murmured to each other. I gripped his wrists as he pulled back, his lanky fingers stroking my cheeks softly.
“I want to tell them,” He whispered against my cheek. I nodded and pulled back enough for him to look at his parents. He opened his mouth and started to say that I was pregnant, but his mother shot up, a delighted look on her face.
“Richard, it’s our song!” She said happily, grabbing her husband’s hand and pulling him onto the dance floor. They wrapped their arms around each other and danced with slowly, looking into their eyes. Tobias stood and took my hands, pulling me to my feet and leading me onto the dance floor. He wrapped one arm around my waist and took my hand with the other. I rested a hand on his shoulder and started dancing with him. We had started off with a Fox Trot, and let it slow down to one of those prom dances where his arms were around my waist and my arms were around his neck. The song changed and his parents left to take their seat, but we stayed dancing.
He leaned down and closed the large gap between us, leaving enough room that our lips were brushing each other’s. We talked about the baby, murmuring potential names. Mainly last names, I didn’t know if it’d be just Barkov or Peterson or Barkov-Peterson or Mallock-Peterson or Barkov-Peterson-Mallock. We decided to leave it up to William, seeing as he was the biological father. As the song ended, he gathered me closer to him, my stomach fitting into the curve between of his stomach and solar-plexus. He closed the gap and kissed me, his fingers pressing into the small of my back. He gently coaxed my mouth open and found my tongue with his. I sighed into his mouth, smiling against his lips.
I pulled back when it changed songs, a grin on both our lips. He leaned in and kissed me again, this time a little less passionate, but it still gave me the same heart stopping effect it always has. He pulled back this time and led me over to his parents; my cheeks flushed from the lack of… well, lack of air.
Mrs. Mallock smiled at us, her hand entwined with her husbands. The food came before Tobias had a chance to tell them about my little guy. So we went back to our original plan; to tell them after lunch. I ate slowly, letting my heart slowdown from dancing and for the baby as well. Tobias held my hand in his lap, playing with my fingers as he ate. I tried not to laugh when he tickled my hand; but it was futile. I pressed my napkin to my mouth to smother my giggles.
We all finished relatively quickly, Mr. Mallock pulled his wallet out as the waiter came back and gave us the check. He paid and waited for the waiter to come back. Tobias looked at me and I nodded, knowing that he was anxious to tell his parents. He cleared his throat as he turned to his parents, taking my hand in both of his.
“Mom, dad,” He started, getting nervous. I squeezed his hand reassuringly. “There’s something I asked Ana not to tell you guys. Ana is…um… she’s pregnant.” He managed to get out. His parents stilled, looking at him with a mortified expressions.
“Don’t look at him like that, he’s not the father,” I thought out loud. Their expression changed to anger and shock.
“Tobias, get away from her at once. She’s a no good, lying little thief!” His mother snapped; her face red with anger. Tears fell from my eyes as the next words fell from her mouth. “I want you and your bastard child away from my son,” She spat at me. Tobias wrapped his arms around me and held me close to him, wiping me tears away. “Tobias!” She growled. I clung to his shirt, pressing my face into his neck.
“Son,” His father said calmly. “Get Ana out of here. I don’t know what your mother will do if she can get her hands on Ana.” He said with a grunt. Tobias stood and pulled me up with him, keeping his arms around me the whole time. “And good luck to you two.” He said before Tobias pulled me out of the restaurant.
He pulled me around a corner before pressing me into a wall. Mrs. Mallock’s words rang in my head loud and clear. Bastard child, she called my baby. In some ways, she's right; my baby is a bastard. Tears ran harder down my cheeks, blurring my vision immensely. Tobias tipped my chin up and wiped my tears away, again.
He leaned in and kissed me on the lips, attempting to cloud my thoughts like he always did. It worked enough to calm me down, just a little. “Ana,” He whispered. “Don’t listen to my mother; the baby’s not a bastard.” He squatted down and probed his lips over my stomach, whispering; “She's just mad, and crazy, and insane. She doesn’t know what it’s like to really love someone and make a mistake in the process.” He mumbled against the fabric of my sweatshirt. I wiped my eyes and pulled Tobias to his feet.
He looked at me, his arms firmly around my waist. “I love you, Tobias. I don’t know how you came from a woman like that.” I whispered with a faint smile on my lips. He laughed and kissed me again, taking away my worries.