Lex
We returned from our honeymoon, and I saw someone Maverick recommended to me about my issues. He diagnosed me with PTSD and explained it's reasonable to experience it after being through what I went through with the accident. I could make sense of everything, and it didn't seem so frightening.
That helped me as I settled into married life with Piper. We continued to work at the bakery, and her pregnancy was coming along nicely. Lyric and Piper, we're moving along nicely.
Although I was a little worried about her and the baby, okay, scratch that, it worried me a lot.
"Lex, will you relax? I'm fine. The doctor said everything was progressing nicely," Piper assured me as she waddled away.
"Do you think you should be on your feet like that?" I inquired.
Piper gave me an annoyed look and rolled her eyes. "I'm not defenseless or incapable of doing things for myself. You make me sound like a toddler," she exclaimed.
"I'm trying to be a good father," I said across the kitchen in the bakery.
"No, you're annoying. Now stop it!" She yelled at me.
I gave her an annoyed look as Dad came into the bakery's kitchen to see our standoff. He chuckled. "Problems?"
"No," Piper said.
"Yes," I said.
"Piper, can you help Mags our front?" Dad asked her.
"Gladly," she huffed as I became irritated. She walked by me but not before slugging me in the arm.
"Quit it, you brute!" I yelled at her.
"Bite me, you tool!" She yelled back as she left the kitchen.
"Women," I sighed.
"Son, let me give you a piece of friendly advice. You married a woman and made her a Gray. Grays are a whole different breed. They are the only ones who put up with our shit. Count your blessings," Dad advised me.
"I worry about her and the baby," I said anxiously.
"I hear you, but imagine dealing with someone who houses five babies at once," Dad reminded me.
"Good point," I agreed.
The door to the kitchen opened, and Nixon walked in. "What's up with Pied Piper? She whipped a loaf of bread at me." He thumbed at the door.
"Lex is driving her nuts with his anxiousness of fatherhood," Dad told him as Nixon started laughing a lot.
I looked at him incredulously.
"If you're anxious about the possibility of one, imagine having multiples. Kat was freaking insane with frick and frack. I swear I was happy she only had them. Word of advice, the Gray women are nuts, hide," he advises me.
"That isn't helping," I groaned.
"It's not to help you. What part of the Gray women are freaking nuts, didn't you get?" He questioned me. "Damn, I think you got your tool genes from your old man. Scratch that, I know you did," Nixon remarked as Dad shook his head, rolling his eyes.
These two were no help, and I'm pretty sure if I go out front, Piper will whip a pastry at me. All I wanted to do is to be a good father. I have this little human coming into the world, and I didn't have a clue about how to be a father. It was disheartening.
We left the bakery, and every time I opened my mouth, I got the death glare from Piper. That was great and reinforced the fact; I was clueless about parenthood and marriage. I kept my mouth shut.
We arrived home and got out of the car. Piper shot me a glare, and I sighed in defeat as we went into the house. While she took care of things at home, I went upstairs.
I went to the nursery, which I didn't complete yet. I stared at it, failing as a father. My kid didn't even have a place to sleep.
I walked into it, and my temper flared. I started throwing things and let it ripped as Piper came up to see what was happening. She found me in a fit of rage.
"Lex! Stop!" Piper screamed.
I stopped and tossed a piece of the crib down. I turned and looked at Piper. "I'm failing."
"What?" She furrowed her brows at me.
"I'm failing as a husband, father, and person. No matter what I do, I will fail. I can't even put a crib together," I yelled as I kicked a piece.
She stood there and watched me. I felt an absolute failure, and there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it.
I walked over to a chair and took a seat as I looked at what I did. If Piper divorced me, I wouldn't blame her. I acted like a child. She walked away as I sat there and ran my hand through my hair in frustration.
A little while later, I heard someone say, "I'm pretty sure a baby doesn't sleep on the floor."
I looked up to see Grampa and Nana standing there along with Dad and Ma.
"I screwed up. I let my temper get the best of me while giving in to my frustrations," I sighed as I explained my actions.
"Okay, but now it's time to fix it. Lex, the Gray men, have a habit of letting their temper get the best of them. It takes the women in their life to show them the error of their ways," Grampa told me.
"I feel that I will be a horrible father and husband. Piper probably hates me," I told them.
"Oh honey, she doesn't hate you, she's just hormonal," Nana reasoned as she chuckled.
"Great, that's what I need," I huffed.
"You do. Son, you need to lighten up. It's making you wound tight," Dad told me.
"It's a known fact all men worry that they will be terrible fathers, but that doesn't mean they will. You got to have a little faith that you raise them not to turn out to be complete tools. Isn't that right, Nashville?" Grampa said to Dad, who gave him a look.
I have a strange family.
"Look, Maggie, and I will talk to Piper while you boys clean up this mess," Nana announced to us.
"How did I get roped into this?" Grampa asked her.
"Because you passed your temper down to the others. Good luck, babe," she smiled before leaving with Ma, who laughed.
"Fantastic, call your brothers, Nash. I want this done tonight," Grampa ordered Dad, who called my uncles. That should be fun.
"I got to hand it to you kid, you got your dad and our dad's temper," Nixon commented on the mess, I created.
"How about less flapping with the gums and more work, Nixon?" Grampa asked him with a slight annoyance.
"It never fails," Nixon huffed as they got to work.
Nathan and Noah worked on the crib. Nolan and Grampa worked on the furniture. Dad and I cleaned and straightened things up.
"Sonofabitch," Nathan exclaimed as he threw an Allen wrench at Noah.
"Do you mind?" Noah yelled.
"You should have ducked." Nathan shrugged.
"I give them five minutes before there's a throw-down," Nolan mentioned to Grampa, who rolled his eyes at Nolan.
"How about less talk and more work, you twits?" Nixon asked everyone as he folded baby clothes.
"Okay, Nanny McPhee," Noah retorted as Nixon picked up a book and threw at him. Noah ducked, and it hit Nathan in the forehead. Then all hell broke loose as Grampa and Dad tried to break it up.
Then we heard someone whistle. We all stopped and turned to see Nana, Ma, and Piper standing there, looking none too, please.
"How about you boys get your shit together and get this done before I'm too old to give a shit?" Nana asked them.
"Damn, Ma, you're starting to sound like Grammy," Nixon remarked.
"Nixon Richard Gray, language!" We all looked at her. "Oh, who am I kidding? You boys are old men."
While Nana and Ma walked into the nursery, ordering everyone. I walked over to Piper. "I'm sorry."
"Lex, you will be a good father. I know you're worried but don't. I'm hormonal," Piper reasoned as I looked at her.
I placed my hands on her face and kissed her; then I felt something hit me. I pulled back. "Did you hit me?"
"Nope, that would be the baby," she smiled as I looked down. I placed my hand on her belly as I felt a kick. I started chuckling as she smiled while the others stopped and watched us. There was nothing better than feeling your baby kick. I couldn't wait to meet the baby. Hopefully, it's one. I'm not sure if I could handle over one at the moment.