DISCLAIMER: SeaChange and all its characters are owned by Deb Cox and Andrew Knight. In no way am I profiting from the writing of this story; it is being written for entertainment purposes only.
I'll give you at least an idea of when this is set though. It's about two/three weeks after 'Half Life'. I was planning on having diminutive description in this, but I changed my mind after the first sentence!
Hopes and Fears
By Casey
The warm sea breeze blew gently over the fine sand. Small waves rippled at the shore; the vast ocean was still. The shimmering moonlight cast a glow over the ocean town in which all were asleep, except for the lone figure who stood gazing out into the star-filled night.
"What do we call this? Midnight sickness?" Laura was startled out of her thoughts by two big hands that encircled her waist.
"I think it was that enchilada you insisted I try" she replied sarcastically. Max chuckled, recalling the eventful meal. But seriousness overrode the humour and concern fell into the discussion.
"Are you sure you're all right though? Nothing's bothering you?" Max asked knowingly. He could see through all the jokes. Something was bothering Laura and Max needed to know what it was.
"I'm fine, Max" Laura insisted although her voice wavered slightly. She refused to tell him about her fears about their future and her fears about parenthood again.
"You should know by now that I know when you're lying" Max declared, resting his chin on Laura's shoulder.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There was silence for some time. Max knew that he had to wait in order to hear the problems that Laura was dealing with. It normally didn't take so long though, which was worrying him. Max realised it must've been something quite troubling for him not to know by now.
"Would you rather not talk about it?" he asked, knowing how much Laura hated the question. She picked up on the underlying meaning of the statement, and always replied to the question in the same manner.
"No, Max. I would rather not discus it this time" Laura snapped. Max hadn't expected the sudden change in Laura's mood, but he was becoming quite accustomed to it. He had never known anyone who could change from being so calm to so fierce in mere seconds. Max decided to put on the 'you hurt my feelings' look, because he knew how well it worked. Laura would feel guilty and spill all her worries to make him happy.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Now she just felt downright nasty. Laura hadn't meant to yell at Max in the way she had. Every little problem always seemed to accumulate until there were a bundle of troubles that were all dumped on her at once. And it seemed that when the problems burdened her most she would become very ill tempered at the most inappropriate of times.
"I'm sorry, Max. I didn't mean to yell at you" Laura apologised. "Everything seems to be bothering me at the moment"
"So I see" Max muttered. " I know you have very temperamental emotions, but lately…" Max stated. Through his last words, Max had come to an enormous realisation. "You're scared, aren't you?"
Laura was quite taken aback by Max's assumption. He couldn't have been any closer to the truth and it terrified Laura to know just how in sync they really were.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Max knew that he'd uncovered Laura's anxiety the instant he'd mentioned the word scared. She had gasped silently, and flinched at the word. There was no way he could be wrong.
"Yes, Max. I'm scared," Laura admitted, defeated. "I'm scared of the future. I'm scared about parenthood. I'm scared of the uncertainty and I hate it" Laura choked out. She could feel the tears threatening to fall, and knew that not much would stop them.
It was at that moment that Max realised just how little the pair truly had discussed their future together. And it was then that Max learnt his fears were not alone. There was a long silence as the pair stood, thoughts enveloping them both.
"I'm scared too, Laura"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He sounded like an innocent child that was hopelessly lost, and it made Laura's heart stir to know Max felt the same way she did.
"You are?" Laura asked, looking up at his face. A sheet of fear lay across his face, yet it was visible only to her.
"Let me put it this way, Lau" Max began, taking her freezing hands in his warm grasp. "You've been through this twice before. I, on the other hand, have never done this before. Who's better off here?" Max asked, his wit never ceasing.
"I suppose I'm better off, but I am the one who has to do all the hard work" Laura replied, in an equally witty tone.
"Maybe now, but if I recall 7 weeks ago…" Max whispered in Laura's ear. She smirked, before allowing herself to be held by Max's loving arms.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After returning to the house for a rug, the pair had disappeared down onto the beach. It was well past 2am, but neither was concerned about the time. They were too absorbed with each other to care.
"What would you say if we were to have a holiday. You know, before young Rex decides to greet us" Max suggested.
"I really do wish you'd give up on this whole Rex idea" Laura sighed, tired of hearing the name that she detested. "But a holiday…I don't know. I mean what about the paper?" Laura asked.
"It'd be fine. I'm sure we could entice Miranda to take over for a couple of weeks. And besides, this town is full of budding journalists" Max joked, remembering back to the tunnel fiasco.
"There's no need to bring that up again"
"What do you think of Cairns?" Max asked suddenly, wanting to set a destination.
"Too busy" Laura stated quickly. It was renowned for its rich holidaying families that she knew too many of. "How about Port Douglas?"
"So it's going to be Queensland? I know you'd like Great Keppel Island" Max suggested.
"An island" Laura pondered the suggestion. "Alright then, Great Keppel it is" she agreed. "You really had your heart set on Queensland, didn't you?"
"The water up there's a bit warmer than down here. No need for a wetsuit" Max explained.
"I can show you off better that way" Laura grinned.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"What about Austin for a boy?"
"As a first or a middle name?"
"It doesn't really matter. I think it's a very refined name"
"Well it's better than Rex. But I don't want to use a name that starts with a vowel for a middle name"
"Why not?"
"I had a friend whose initials were SIS"
"What's wrong with that?"
"My friend wasn't a girl"
"Oh. Well I can see your point there"
"Do you like Stephanie for a girl?"
"Hmm…Stephanie Connors. I like it. Steph as a nickname. Cute"
"So the baby is going to have my surname"
"What did you think? That I'd bestow the surname of my ex husband on your child? Max, I'm disgusted"
"Quite honestly I didn't know what you were going to do"
"It's always going to be we. What we are going to do"
"I'm glad to hear you say that, Laura"
"You are going to stick with me, aren't you?"
"Don't question it"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Max noted the yellow glow coming from the east, and glanced at his watch. 5:13am. Just how long had they been outside for? Max hadn't realised that they'd fallen asleep on the beach, and he knew how much he'd regret it later. He could already feel the tension in his muscles. But that was nothing a morning swim wouldn't fix. Max glanced down at the figure that had fallen asleep in his arms. Laura looked so peaceful, and he didn't want to wake her, but knew he had no other option.
"How about that cup of tea?" he asked
Laura stirred, at first disoriented and confused. But she soon remembered of the night that was full of discussions. Laura smiled; knowing that everything was going to be all right. All fears that she had previously had been banished by the night's confessions. She sank back into Max's chest, feeling safe in his arms. Laura heard Max request his usual morning cup of tea, which made her sigh, exhausted from the lack of sleep.
"I'm too tired to make you your tea. Get it yourself" Laura mumbled, snuggling back into Max.
"I won't accept that as an answer" Max stated, scooping Laura up in his arms. "I'll let you sleep, but by the time I'm back I expect a hot cup of tea waiting for me" he stated, before beginning the walk back up to the house. Max watched Laura, who, even though she was lacking a great deal of sleep, looked purely serene. It was something that would take time to adjust to.
Stepping into the house, Max noticed immediately how bright and happy everything under the roof was. There was a certain aura that made Max truly feel at home. With Laura still in his arms, Max walked into the bedroom and gently laid her on the bed.
"I'll be back in an hour" Max stated.
"I love you, Max" Laura said, fatigue ruling her.
"I love you too" Max smiled warmly, before placing a delicate kiss on Laura's forehead. He wondered if he was dreaming. Max didn't think life could get any better from this moment on.
THE END