Sitting up to roll out of bed, Lindsey kind of looked at his messages between himself and Stevie unsure of what to do now that Christine was aware. But frankly, that changed Stevie's thoughts and actions as well.
"Do you have any plans today?" his wife's vocals filled the room subtly.
Barely looking over his shoulder, "Not as of now---you?" he asked.
"I was planning on maybe taking the kids out..." she shrugged. "We have a lunch date next week, but I wanna have some one-on-one time with them..."
"Sounds good," he agreed. "I was merely going to suggest the same... Will told me last night that he wanted that, but I know you don't love my advice," he added.
"Because you're in no position to tell me how I should raise our kids, not when you had an affair and pretended like everything was alright."
"Is this really going to be the first conversation of the day?" he stated calmly.
"How do you and Stevie start your conversations, then?"
"Excuse me?" he scoffed. "I don't know what you're talking about, so please..." he stood up, heading over to the bathroom so he could get his morning started.
"Oh, stop acting like you're so innocent. I know what's going on, once again," she popped out of bed, still across the room as her voice rose in volume.
"And what exactly is it that you know?" he let the door swing open, his voice going as loud as he could take it.
"That you made our kids lie, you lied about last night... You're a genius for not thinking I didn't see a car," she rose a brow. "So where were you, if not locked in your studio?"
"I was at the hospital, visiting a friend, thank you---" he stated, not necessarily lying---though, indeed, covering his messy tracks.
Kristen softened, feeling guilty for assuming even if she didn't know she was right. "I'm sorry..." she paused, swallowing right after.
"Don't be," he shook his head---grabbing his fresh clothes to change and make a quick getaway. Kristen's onto us, she called us out, but she doesn't know she's right, he typed as he headed out of the room.
—
Scanning over the message, Stevie creased her brow.
"Something the matter?" Christine asked her.
"Um," she looked back at her friend. "Sort of, Lindsey is just never clear..." she paused---trying to understand why his wife would think she was wrong. What?
Left a chunk out, on my way.
Okay... she responded, unsure of what to think. "He's coming over," she assured.
"Well, what did he say?" she asked, coming over to lay in bed with her once again.
"See," she showed her the phone.
"Hm... Think he fooled her?"
"I mean, it wouldn't be the first time. But at the same time, I need to yell at him," she added, shoving Christine to get the IV line out from under her once again.
"Why do you need to yell at him?" she paused. "Why wouldn't you?" she dusted off the comment.
"'Cause I can..." she pursed her lips, chuckling right after. "No, I need to mention something that he probably already has started in a sense."
"Can I stay to watch the show?" she smirked, wanting to learn way more about the relationship.
"If you must, my friend," she shook her head with a light laugh.
...
Making his way through the hall and straight to her room, Lindsey actually bumped into Karen who was carrying Lily.
"Fancy seeing you here in the daylight," Karen rose a brow.
"I'm not exactly a vampire," he smirked.
"Mm, but you are having an affair so that makes you..." she tisked. "Possible bait for your wife, would you say?"
"No, smart ass, but yes in some ways," he had to allude.
She rolled her eyes, allowing him in first.
Stevie turned her head, looking to everybody who had entered, though reaching for her dog. "Well, since this seems to be a group encounter; Karen, Chris? Could you give us a moment?" she asked.
Karen nodded and went willingly while Christine cursed the fact that everybody had showed up in her moment of truth.
"Thanks," she gave a smile and put her attention to Lindsey.
"What's up?" he pecked her cheek, before sitting down in the plastic chair.
"Two things," she put fingers up. "First; start with your message," she gestured.
"Alright," he rubbed his hands together. "Kristen may have, kind of put two and two together and she called me out this morning in the midst of giving her parenting advice... And no, didn't get to even give the advice."
"How did she find out?" she asked, pretty into wanting to learn.
"I was here, obviously and she started going off on me as to how I am terrible parent for lying to the kids about our past and then she asked me where I was, telling me that I made our kids lie."
"Lindsey, that pretty much sums up the truth---how could you even get out of that?" she asked, stress starting to eat at her easily.
"Told her she was crazy," he shrugged, okay with that.
She actually scoffed. "You're doing it again..."
"Doing what?"
"Your constant lying," she kind of rose her voice. "How are we, as a unit, supposed to move forward when you can't even tell her the truth? It's like you don't want this and you'd rather live with me on the side."
"That's not true," he shook his head. "I want you, Stevie, but we agreed that we would wait. Even with Chris knowing, that puts us in a bad place."
"The bad place, is where you stick your wife and me. This could have been okay; her knowing ahead of time. Hell, Leelee knows and that changed my mind. With Christine knowing, I feel like it was meant to be if the cat was being let out of the bag so early on. And the other bad place, is where you let Kristen stand mentally."
"So, what are you saying? What do you want?" he asked bluntly.
"I want you to be honest about me to your wife and to your children before we make the same mistakes. You promised me this time would be different, a new way for us."
"And I intend on seeking that promise out," he nodded. "If what you want, is for me to tell her, then I will. I didn't lie to her about where I was when she called me out," he added.
"What are you saying?" she asked, her voice lowering with the hint of confusion.
"I'm saying, she doesn't know who I was here with..."
"Perfect," she rolled her eyes. "That doesn't make this better," she shook her head.
"I did what you asked me to do in the beginning when this started. You told me to stall so I did and now, I'm wrong?" he questioned. "This is what happened when I got fired from the band, right?
She turned her head immediately to glare at him.
"We lost our communication to chat humanely... It's my fault because you can't make up your damned mind," he stood getting ready to leave since he set himself off, by inflicting a past battle on the current situation.
That's all they seemed to do their whole existence of being lovers and friends.
She let off a huff and she put her head back into the pillows. Bringing a hand to her head, she pinched the bridge of her nose, unsure of herself; this not being the way things were supposed to go.
Storming through the doorway, Lindsey walked out without another word, or even a farewell to the women just outside.
Karen eagerly made her way through with Christine on her trail.
Putting her hand up to silence the two, "I'm not going to talk about this," Stevie assured. "I need to be alone..." she let her tongue press to her cheek, so many things flowing through her head.
Her assistant nodded, kind of gesturing that she and Christine needed to go.
The tall blonde agreed, of course, and guided the younger woman out so they could maybe chat in the cafeteria.
Stevie then went on to petting her dog, trying to keep herself distracted.
She never really had intended on getting so angry at Lindsey again for the simple and plain fact that they were boiling a messy pot. Sure, her patience may have dropped in the moment, but out loud; she heard profound facts leave her mouth.
Throughout the years, she had known how Lindsey kept his wife tame and passive. Despite Kristen's constant knowing, he seemed to turn whatever it was she was seeing into something else. For instance, this morning---he wasn't out with Stevie the night before, but he was with a friend in the hospital. He always created her emotions; easily able to embarrass her for thinking she was imagining his affair. So many times, did he do that and now, it was getting to her.
Processing it now, she was seeing a whole other light being shone upon a closed door. She couldn't help but feel she was that closed door. And in any case, she knew Kristen was his other darkened room where he could play music, but she just couldn't see how. For whatever reason, she was feeling for the woman and she really just wanted Lindsey to be honest about what was going on so they could move on smoothly.
—
So sorry it has been a hundred years since I updated this ~ my communication teacher is really kicking my ass, running me into my grave so... yep. I should, however, be updating this more since I only have this as a main at the moment.
~Raine🌙