aint it fun

Silas was shaking his head before Cash had even finished his sentence, already not liking the idea. “I don’t know man, it’s been almost four years since I’ve played. Might not have it in me anymore,” he told him, despite the fact that he’d been playing while locked up with whatever make shift drum sticks he could find. He definitely wasn’t as rusty as he made it sound. But it was still scary - he’d been on stage in a while, hadn’t performed for anyone or sat in front of a real drum set in a long time. He shrugged his shoulders then, still thinking on it. “It would be nice to get the old band back together though,” he said with a small laugh, even though it was just the two of them. 

Cash nodded and shrugged his shoulders when Silas spoke, understanding what he was saying and was ready to quickly change the topic when he spoke again. Cassius only smiled knowingly at his friend, thinking that it might be possible to have the two of them playing together again. “It would be,” he said, leaning forward slightly. “If anything, just come by anyways. The place is pretty cool and who knows, you might be able to find it in you when you see me killing it on stage, wishing it were you,” he said with a smirk. No matter what, he wasn’t going to push his friend if he really didn’t want too, and he really wanted Silas to meet Tally. It would be a win either way if he went. 

Tally felt herself tear up with Cash’s words, getting overwhelmed with emotion. He was so good to her, she didn’t deserve it. “You have no idea how much better you’ve made our lives, Cash,” she told him, her voice a little watery. There was so much more she wanted to say, so many things she wanted to tell him, but this wasn’t the way she wanted to do it. She had to do something first. Slowly she stood up, pushing herself off of Cash’s lap, and stood beside his chair, just looking at him for a moment. She took a breath before speaking. “I have spent my whole life planning out every moment. It’s been full of 5 year and 10 year plans. But you, and Ingrid, and this new baby were never part of any of those plans. And you’re the best things to ever happen to me.” Slowly, Tally lowered herself down onto one knee, reaching over to take hold of Cash’s hands. “I love you, Cash. I love that you show Ingrid what a real father should be like. And you show me what a real partner should be like. There’s nothing I want more than to be your wife. So, Cassius Vale, will you marry me?” She was nervous, her hands visibly shaking, but she knew that she had to do this. She hadn’t reacted the way she should have when he asked her, and it was up to her to make it up to him. 

Cash had watched her as she stood up from the chair, listening to her words. The way that she was going and what she was saying made his heart thump hard in his chest. He sat up a little taller, his own eyes starting to water as she kept talking. He couldn’t believe that he was so lucky. His gaze followed her as she knelt in front of him, laughing slightly, but only out of shock. Ever since he had proposed, the two of them hadn’t talked about it. It was something that had stung, but it hadn’t changed anything between them, so he never brought it up or pushed it again. But now, she was the one proposing to him and he couldn’t believe it. When his hand was taken into hers, he scooted to the edge of the seat and leaned forward, letting his elbows rest on his knees as he placed his other hand on top of hers, bringing it close to his lips while he tried to sniff and will away the tears and snot, his eyes never leaving hers now that they were level. But everything that Tally was saying to him made him more emotional. He brought his forehead to hers and he smiled. “Is that even a question, Tal? Of course I wanna marry you,” he said just before he brought his lips to hers. He stood up then, keep his hands in hers and pulled her up so they were both standing, his arms wrapping around her as he buried his head into her hair. “You have no idea how much I want to spend the rest of my life with you,” he said quietly. 

Silas nodded with his eyebrows raised when Cash said he met a girl, and it really made him realize how long he was away. He should be grateful that he got let out a lot earlier than he should have, but he still felt like he missed so much. He said down across from Cash at the table. At his next add on, Silas’s jaw dropped slightly. “Shit dude, no way,” he said, having not expected that. In his head they were still teenagers getting into shit, but now his best friend was sitting across from him and telling him that he was gonna be a dad. He could see how happy Cash was about it all though, and he couldn’t help but smile. “Congrats man, Jesus. I had no idea I’d be getting out of there an uncle,” he teased, letting out a laugh. “You gonna introduce me to this girl that’s made an honest man of you?” 

Cash could see the surprise on Silas’s face and he couldn’t help but laugh also. Time had moved so fast since he’s been gone, it really was a lot that has changed. “Yeah, of course I want you to meet her. In fact, she’s been telling me that I need to start performing more and I’ve got a set up coming this weekend.” He looked up at him when he paused, an idea forming in his thoughts that made his smile widen. “You should join me. For old times sakes,” he suggested, wiggling his brows as if that’ll entice his best friend more to join him. The thought of the two of them doing something like what they’ve done since they were kids made him practically bounce in excitement in his chair. 

Tally sat down her glass after taking a sip, and then folded her hands in front of her. She knew that she would have to initiate this conversation, but she was scared. She didn’t know what to say or how to articulate her feelings. She looked at her boyfriend across the table, seeing the knowing smile, the love in his gaze, and she smiled back at him. “Cash..” She started, adjusting in her chair, her gaze falling down to the table. “Do you.. want to have a baby with me?” She laughed - that wasn’t how she meant to word things. Deciding that this was going poorly, she stood up and walked around the table, sitting down on Cash’s lap, her legs crossed where they dangled off the side of his chair. “I’m not easy to love, but you make it look easy. You’re kind, generous, endlessly patient.. I would be crazy to not want to have your baby. You’re the best man I’ve ever met.” She was looking at his chest as she spoke, but she flickered her gaze up to try to find his. She wanted him to know that she was trying to be as vulnerable as she knew how. “I love you. You and Ingrid are everything to me. I want to grow our family.” 

Before Cassius could respond to Tally’s question, he watched her get up from her seat and he laughed along with her until she placed herself in his lap. His arms had moved around her, holding her close as she talked to him. He heard her words and the love he had felt coming from her was overwhelming. They were going to have a kid together. He was going to be a father. “I love you. And I love Ingrid. Of course I want this,” he finally said after he could clear his throat from the emotions that were threatening to fall out. None of this was planned, but Cassius was forever all in when it came to Tally. That’s just how he was and with Tally, it was easy to be like that. “And now I get to love another part of you,” he said, leaning down and kissing her on the cheek. “Thank you for allowing me into your daughter’s and your life, Tally.” He was forever grateful of it. 

Silas gave a closed lip smile and a nod of his head at Cash’s question. He didn’t really want to talk about prison, or answer questions, or any of that. It was the worst three years of his life, and he’d do anything to keep himself from going back there. “Yeah, one of the few things they do have,” he said with a snort, shoving his hands in his pockets. He felt a little awkward, thinking back to that awful night and Silas going to prison and lying through his teeth to keep Cash from joining him. He was glad that his best friend didn’t have his whole life fucked up, but was pissed that his own got fucked up. The dude wasn’t worth it, but he’d do it all again if it meant protecting Thea. “Yeah, it’s been a long fucking time,” he replied, looking around the house. “What have you got going on in your life these days?” 

It had been a long time and Cassius couldn’t be any more grateful for his friend than anything. He let out a long breathe at the thoughts of what has happened in the past few years. A long time meant a lot of things has happened. He sat down to get himself comfortable. “Well, I met this girl that we used to go to high school with at a bar where I was performing,” he started, a smile growing on his face as he remembered the night him and Tally had met and talked. “We’ve been together ever since,” he said, but then grew a little nervous at what had come next after that, not knowing what Silas would think, but he still couldn’t help his smile widening as he said, “I’m gonna be a dad, man.” He laughed quietly, still not being able to believe it. Ever since Tally had told him that she wanted to have a family with him, he’s been the happiest he’s ever been. Now his best friend is back, too. Life has been amazing, yet the guilt when looking at his friend was eating him up. 

Tally loosely wrapped her arms around Cash’s neck when he leaned down to kiss her, smiling against his lips for a moment. “Noted,” she replied jokingly at his jersey comment. She couldn’t help but just smile up at him. Ever since he had proposed, Tally couldn’t stop thinking about their future together. “Yes, of course - you don’t remember?” Tally asked in reply, raising her eyebrows with confusion on her face. She couldn’t pretend for too long though, and her face cracked into a smile. “I’m kidding. I just wanted to do something nice.” She pulled away from him to take his hand, pulling him over to the dining room table. With her hands on his shoulders, she playfully pushed him down into one of the chairs, before grabbing the bottle of wine and pouring some into both of their glasses. Tally was a perfectionist, there was no way she couldn’t be with the need for perfection being driven into her brain since the day she was born, and she needed this night to be especially perfect. She wasn’t good at being emotional, at saying how she feels, so she needed to make sure she could make sure at least everything else was perfect, if she messed up the words. After she removed her apron and sat down across from her boyfriend, she raised her wine glass to her lips. “It’s non-alcoholic,” she offered, referencing being pregnant for really the first time since he had found out. She was scared, she didn’t know what to do, and she needed the time to herself to process it - especially when she didn’t have it at the beginning - so she would try to change the conversation whenever it was brought up. But she was ready now, and she just hoped she hadn’t waited too long to get on the same page as him. 

A wave of fear washed over him as she looked at him with confusion. Cassius ran through his mind, trying to remember if today was something special to celebrate, but when she quickly told him she was kidding, he felt relief immediately and laughed in response. “Well, it is,” he responded as he followed her to the table and sat down where she placed him. He kept his eyes on her as she poured the drinks then sat down. Cassius took his own drink and was about to sip it when she spoke up about it. Pausing, he looked at her with a small raise of his brows before finishing his sip. He knew that her telling him that was significant, but he didn’t want to once again assume anything. He didn’t want to pressure anything. He was here to support her with any decision she made. Placing his glass down, he moved his chair so that he was sitting better at the table. Usually, he would know what to say, but right now, he didn’t. Cash couldn’t help but think maybe that comment was her telling him something. All he could do what smile knowingly in response to it. 

When Silas got out of prison, he had absolutely no idea what he was supposed to do. He had still been anticipating being locked up for another couple of years, but with overpopulation and his good behaviour, everything worked out in his favour and he was let out with only half of his time served. The first person he called was the only person he kept in contact with while he was locked up - his sister. It was shocking, at first. To be able to leave with her - to be able to get in her car. He watched out the window as the place he had lived the last 3 and a half years faded out of view, feeling more mixed feelings that he had anticipated. He was glad to be out, to be able to see his sister again, to be able to do whatever he wanted to do - but what the hell was he supposed to do now? And for the first few days, he did absolutely nothing. The view the town had of him now was that of a violent criminal - as if he had done what he had done for no reason. As if he had attacked an innocent man. There were only a few who knew the real story, and he couldn’t get his best friend out of his head. The thing was though, he was scared. He didn’t know how Cash would react to him being out - he hadn’t kept in touch, hadn’t put him on his visitors list, hadn’t called him. He knew that regardless of how Cash would react to seeing him, his mom would be happy. And that’s why he did the easy thing - went to visit her instead. It felt like being a teenager again, talking to Cash’s mom. Hell, she was more of a mom to him than he’d ever had before. He was caught up in conversation with her, not even realizing that the front door opened until he heard a familiar voice. He looked up to see his best friend, his face neutral as he waited for a reaction, but once he got one, he finally smiled. He hugged Cash back freely, slapping him on the back a couple of times. God, it was good to be home. “Dude. You get uglier while I was away?” He joked as he broke away, elbowing his friend. 

When Cash stepped back from their hug, his smile never left his face. He just rolled his eyes at the comment his friend made. “Nah, but you sure as hell did, do they have any mirrors in prison?” he asked. It was when he said the word prison that it finally hit him. Something that had eaten away at him for months, years almost of how his friend had ended up behind bars. He tried not letting his guilt show, knowing that it wouldn’t do any good for him to keep dwelling on things. He was always afraid that Silas would turn to hate him for taking all the blame. Him showing up to see him showed him that he didn’t. Hopefully. He bit his lip in anticipation, hoping that the topic wouldn’t be a sore spot for Silas. “I’m really glad you’re here, man,” he said after a moment. His mom had left the room by now and it was just the two of them. He had so many questions to ask, so many things to catch his friend up on... he didn’t know how to start. 

With the stress of not having Ingrid and being pregnant, Tally didn’t know what to do with herself lately. She was sick, exhausted, and couldn’t even fathom going another day without her daughter. But the one thing that was making it all easier was having Cash. He had been so steady and unwavering in his love for her, and she never wanted to take that for granted. After he had proposed to her, she had done a lot of thinking about everything - and realized that if everything hadn’t happened with Ingrid’s father that day, she would have said yes. She would have been ecstatic. And although Cash hadn’t said anything, hadn’t acted any differently - she knew that she had hurt him by saying no, and by telling him that she didn’t want this baby. But the thing was, she really did want this baby - that was just really scary to admit. Especially when she didn’t have Ingrid right now, and a part of her felt like she was just replacing her. But having a baby with Cash, having the rest of her life with him.. that honestly sounded like a dream. Which is why she knew she had to make it up to him. She had to be honest about everything she was feeling, and make sure that he knew that she was on the same page with him when it came to their future. She just needed a little bit of time to get there. She had asked Cash to come over when he was done work, and in the mean time she had set up a dinner for the two of them. Like the one Cash had set up when he proposed. He did so many things for her to make her feel loved, and while Tally wasn’t good with her emotions, she wanted to make sure that Cash knew how much she loved him, too. She smiled to herself in the kitchen when she heard the front door open and Cash was here earlier than she expected. She walked out of the kitchen, still clad in an apron that her mother had gotten her for Christmas one year and looked like it was right out of a 94 year old woman’s closet. “You’re early,” she greeted with a smile, feeling happier and more like herself than she had in a while. “I meant to change into something a little less sexy for dinner first,” she teased as she stepped toward her boyfriend. 

Cash’s face had immediately lit up when he saw Tally walk towards him. He took the few steps towards her to close the distance between them as she spoke, looking down at her and the outfit she was wearing. “Less sexy? I don’t think that there’s anything possible.” She could wear a garbage bag and he’d still find her the most beautiful woman in the world. He leaned down and kissed her as a greeting, finally, before pulling away and looking at her. He moved his hand and brushed a piece of her hair out of her face, admiring her new hair once again. “Well, maybe if you were wearing a Montreal jersey it would be a problem. But I think I can push past it,” he teased. His nose then noticed a smell coming from the kitchen and he glanced up and saw the food set up on the table. “This looks amazing,” he stated just as he looked back at her. “Any special occasion?”

Tally tried to listen to Cash’s words, tried to take it to heart, to believe what he was saying, but she couldn’t. She was so mad at this whole situation, but the person she was the most upset with wasn’t her ex, it was herself. She was the stupid one in this situation, she had fucked up. She looked down at her hand in Cash’s, frowning. “I’m not having this baby, Cash. I’m not doing this again.” She was tired, she wasn’t good at this to begin with, and she didn’t want a second baby daddy that was probably just going to leave her and the kid like the first one did. She wasn’t going to be a single mom to two children. She wasn’t going to get even more attached to Cash than she already was. This whole thing was already way too difficult, and she knew this wasn’t right. How could it be, when things were a complete disaster right now? It was like a sign from the universe to not have this baby. 

Cassius couldn’t argue with that statement. In the end, it wasn’t up to him to have her keep a baby that she didn’t want. It hurt, how much he grew excited to be able to have something that was the both of theirs, to be a dad but he couldn’t be mad. Not when he jumped quickly to the conclusions he had without talking to her. He was quiet a moment before a shy, embarrassed smile formed on his face. He looked down at the ground a moment to hide what he was feeling. “I feel like an asshole, doing this tonight. I didn’t mean to make you feel the way that I had. I should’ve talked to you first.” He stood up from his spot. He didn’t want to leave yet, but he started backing away to give themselves both the space. “I’m going to go finish cleaning up.” He turned and walked towards the kitchen. He couldn’t deny the disappointment he was feeling, but he just believed that it wasn’t the right time, if there was any moment that the time would be right. Maybe Tally just didn’t want that with him and he could be okay with that. He was also feeling angered towards Ingrid’s father, afraid that what was going on was also because of him, remembering the first time they had met and how he responded to Ingrid and him. He didn’t want that for Tally. He wanted to be able to do what’s right for her and if being with her was making Tally’s ex make her life worse, he was feeling like he might not be able to stay so close to the situation, even if it pained him. He felt like he was spiraling with these thoughts and he was afraid of what the outcome was going to be. 

Tally raised her head to look at Cash after he knelt in front of her, a frown on her face as she listened to his words. She didn’t have a lot of faith that things were going to go back to normal anytime soon, that she was going to be able to see her daughter anytime soon, and the thought was crushing her. She swallowed hard, realizing all of the things she had done wrong and feeling like this was all her fault and could have been avoided if she tried harder. “I’m an awful mother, Cash. I was never cut out for any of this,” she said. She didn’t even mean to be self deprecating - it was just how she felt. She had never been able to give Ingrid the best, and maybe this was all happening because of that. She had messed up. “I want my kid back and that’s it. I don’t want to ruin another one.” 

Cassius’s head was shaking as soon as Tally started speaking. He didn’t believe any of those words of her being awful. Not one bit. “Don’t say any of that, Tally. You’re not ruining Ingrid or anything else. You’ve been an amazing mom- you are an amazing mother.” He wouldn’t be able to begin to really understand where she was coming from, having your child taken from you. Cassius was upset himself hearing the words she said of what Ingrid’s father was doing. He had grown to love Ingrid more than anything, but she wasn’t his and hasn’t raised her. But he knew for sure that he believed everything he was telling Tally. “You’ve been doing the best you can with what you have and that’s more than enough.” He reached out and took her hand, softly running his thumb over her skin soothingly. 

Tally would have felt bad if she was able to regulate her emotions right now, if she could feel anything other than anger at this situation. She moved over to sit on the couch, her face falling into her hands as she heard Cash clean up the dinner he had made behind her. At his question she didn’t answer for a few long moments, before lifting her head, propping her chin on her fists. Her back was to the kitchen, the way they were having this conversation clearly strained and uncomfortable. “We don’t have a custody agreement, he doesn’t have to give her back. And he doesn’t want to,” she spat out, gritting her teeth together. “I’m such a fucking idiot.” She was for more than one reason, treating Cash the way she was tonight, but that wasn’t at the forefront of her mind right now. There was just so much fear, so much concern with having another baby, having Cash in her life permanently like this, even though he already was. The commitment of having another baby with someone else was an overwhelming thought, especially when it all was so hard the first time. 

He started grabbing containers to put the food away as she spoke, but he stopped when he finished. Cassius turned and looked at the back of her head, hearing the anger, frustration, and sadness. Placing the items on the counter, he quietly stepped over towards her until he was standing in front of her. Not reaching out, wanting to keep his distance, he shook his head. “You’re not an idiot, Tally,” he stated calmly. After a moment, he knelt in front of her to be eye level and looked at her. “We’ll figure this out, all of it. We’ll get your daughter back,” he promised. He felt his own anger towards the man that pretended to be Ingrid’s father, never liking him since the moment they met. If she asked, Cassius knew that he’d go over there right now, knowing the outcome wouldn’t be pretty. But he would fight for the both of them. “There’s no way that this is going to be allowed, not when your her parent and he never was.” 

Tally was so overwhelmed and taken aback by this whole thing, not being able to believe that Cash just did this. She didn’t intend for him to even know about this, let alone have this kind of reaction that she didn’t know how to take. Especially not after the events of the day she just had. “This isn’t 1950, Cash. You don’t marry someone just because you got them pregnant,” she told him, her tone cold. She could tell that he was hurt, that this wasn’t the reaction he had expected from her. “And I don’t - I don’t want this kid. I want my kid, and her dad won’t - he won’t give her back and this legal battle is going to take months and I don’t want to fucking replace her with a kid I didn’t ask for. I want Ingrid. That’s it.” Her hands were in her hair, yanking at the roots, feeling panicked and frantic. Her eyes went to the romantic dinner that Cash had set up for them, and back at her boyfriend. “You weren’t even supposed to know.” 

“I don’t want to do this just be-” He cut himself off just in time for her to keep talking, saying how much she didn’t want the kid and only her own. Cash listened to her, hearing the other words she was speaking about Ingrid and her father, but despite that, he still felt the sting. He nodded his head. “Okay, forget it,” he said as he backed even more away from her. Cassius turned towards the table, quiet, as he started picking up the food on the table. He didn’t want to see it anymore, to have this conversation anymore. He took a deep breathe, doing what he could to calm himself down. “What happened with Ingrid?” he asked after a moment, far away from her and not able to look at the blonde. He didn’t want to make tonight a thing, to fight with her. 

Tally couldn’t even speak as Cash stepped toward her and took her hand. She just stared, even when he mentioned her pregnancy, something that she definitely didn’t want to think about right now. When she had first found out, she didn’t know how to feel. She loved Ingrid more than anything, being a mom was never something that she particularly wanted, but she loved being Ingrid’s mom. She was going to tell Cash eventually, once she gave herself the chance to think about it in the way she did, made a pros and cons list and that. But now he knew, and she didn’t get the opportunity to think about it herself. And after everything that happened today, and the knowledge that she would be without her daughter for god knows how long, she couldn’t do all this. And then he was down on one knee, and asking her a question that did not want to hear right now. “Get off the floor,” she told him, her voice serious, her tone a little panicked. “Cash, get up right now.” This wasn’t right. This wasn’t how this was supposed to go, and she couldn’t do this with him right now. She pulled her hand away from him, letting her arm fall to her side. “What,” she started, her tone clearly upset, “makes you think that I want this? That I want another baby?” 

The words that came out of Tally’s mouth didn’t register in time, his smile slowly fading until she repeated herself. When her hand left his, he instantly felt his chest ache. Cassius quietly got up, feeling awkward and vulnerable in a way he never liked. He felt embarrassed and heartbroken by the tone of her voice. “I-” He stopped himself, not knowing how to answer her question. In the end, all he could say was, “I’m sorry.” He dropped his head and turned to set the flower down, seeing the food and the set up, it made everything worse. “I just thought-” He couldn’t even end what he wanted to say, feeling like an idiot. He definitely was feeling confused, thinking that she was on the same page as him. “You’re right, I shouldn’t have done this.” Cassius backed away from her, feeling the rejection hit him as he admitted it out loud. He didn’t know what to do with himself in this moment. By how she seemed, it was as if the two of them were never on the same page of where they were in their relationship. 

It was just supposed to be a visit. A couple hours. That’s all. Tally never wanted to keep Ingrid from her father, never wanted to get in the way of them having a relationship, but he wasn’t always on the same page with that. Especially not now that he had a new girlfriend, and was a lot more focused on her kids than his own. It broke Tally’s heart to see Ingrid want her dad, and he not want anything to do with her. She deserved a million times better, and Tally wished she could save her from her own father breaking her heart. But that was up until her ex had saw her with Cash, had seen Ingrid get affection from another man, and had gotten possessive. It was a sick game that he was playing where there were going to be no winners. 

He had called and asked to see Ingrid tonight, which surprised Tally, but she wasn’t going to question it too much. She wanted them to have a relationship. She agreed to bring her over, to drop her off for a few hours while she ran errands, and then pick her back up. But when Tally showed up again to pick up her daughter, she was told she couldn’t. She was hit with the law, reminded of when he had convinced her that they didn’t need an official custody agreement, and told her that he would see her in court. Until then, he had custody of Ingrid. Tally was slack jawed, wanted to rip the little girl out of that house and take her home, but there was nothing she could do. She left there feeling every emotion - fury, pain, sadness, hopelessness. She didn’t know what she could do aside from wait until they could get a court date to work out a custody agreement. The worst part was she knew this was just him trying to control her - he didn’t have any interest in Ingrid, he just didn’t want her to allow another man into Ingrid’s life. 

The way Tally processed emotions wasn’t exactly healthy. She wasn’t a crier, had never been one to feel her sadness - it only came out of her in anger, and sometimes she took that out on everyone around her. As she was driving home, stuck in traffic, a scream ripped out of her, slamming her hands against the steering wheel. She was so angry. So upset, devastated that she didn’t have her daughter right now, in disbelief that someone she once thought she loved could act this way. By the time she got home, she just wanted to be alone, to scream into a pillow, punch a wall, but instead when she walked in she was met with her boyfriend standing in front of her, holding a flower. The look on her face was definitely not a pleased expression, as she looked at the flower and back up at his face. She smelled that food, assuming that he had cooked her dinner, and the fact that he was here and did this for her was making her even more upset. “What are you doing?”

Cassius saw the look on Tally’s face, but tried not to let that determine what he was feeling right now. He noticed that Ingrid wasn’t with her, thinking that maybe the two of them decided that she was going to stay a little longer with the dad. The question caught him by surprise, he even awkwardly shifted his stance a little by the tone. He cleared his throat, all of a sudden feeling as nervous as he could be. He stepped forward, his smile turning small, but now it was shy. “i heard the news,” he told her, walking over to her. He reached out and took hold of one of her hands. While time had passed, he thought about it, that she must’ve known that she was pregnant. This was Tally, always on top of everything. “I love you, Tally. And this only just proved even more of how much I am in love with you, more than I’ve ever thought I could feel. Both you and Ingrid.” He paused and he could feel his heart racing in his chest. “I never thought that I would have this in my life, to be a dad, it just seemed like a thought that I could never comprehend until I heard that we’re going to have a baby. And I wanted to do this right, but then I realized that there could never be the perfect right way when it comes to you.” He looked at her before kneeling on the ground. He didn’t have a ring, but he held out the flower to her as he said shyly, his eyes watering slightly, “Tally, will you marry me?” 

The first thing he did was call his mom and talk to her about it. He paced as he talked between the living room and the kitchen, his eyes falling on Ingrid every time. Cash smiled at her just as his mom mentioned the little girl. He loved Ingrid and he loved Tally. They were already his family, why not make it bigger? At the end of the call, the fear and anxiety he had for having a baby turned into happiness and excitement. He was going to be a dad. His feelings of being a father were bittersweet, having never have met his own, there was a part of him that never thought he’d given himself the opportunity to become one. 

That night, Tally had taken Ingrid over to her father’s house. Cassius took this time by himself to go to the store and get a few things. He wanted to make tonight special. He wasn’t sure if she knew for sure or not about the pregnancy yet, but he wanted to make sure that she knew he was all in. He was all in with her and Ingrid from the start. Cash made dinner, once again calling his mom for getting a recipe exactly right, wanting everything to be perfect. He lit the candles, placed the flowers in the middle of the table, and had the food set out for them. He even put on some music in the background. At the moment he heard keys dangling outside the door, Cassius quickly grabbed one of the flowers and held it in his hand, facing the door. He realized he couldn’t stop smiling and even as she walked through the door, it never stopped.

Tally laughed at his words, nodding her head. “Oh trust me, me too.” She couldn’t help but notice the differences between the two men - Travis hadn’t cared about what he said in front of his own daughter, but Cash was careful around her. She was upset by Travis - his behaviour wasn’t anything new, she could take it, but not when it came to Ingrid and Cash. Tally wrapped her arm around Cash’s waist as they walked out to the parking lot. “Hmm, we could do that,” she said, thoughtfully. “But I had different plans for what we could do after bedtime tonight.” She feigned a look of innocence, moving away from Cash as they got to his car to put Ingrid into her car seat. 

Grinning at her, he gave her a look of approval of her words. “I wouldn’t mind the night ending like so,” he responded. Once Tally got Ingrid in the car and the door was shut, he was waiting at the passenger door and he opened it for her but before she could get in, he took her gently by the waist a placed a kiss on her lips. Without another word, he moved on to the other side of his car to get inside the driver’s seat. 

Tally nodded her head before he even finished asking if she was sure. She might have a breakdown if she stayed here and tried to focus on law. “Yeah, take me home, Cash,” She told him, squeezing his hand gently. She picked up the food he had brought her, and frowned slightly. “And hey, thank you for this. You’re more than welcome here any time, I hope you know that,” she told him, and then leaned up on her toes to kiss him on the cheek. Even though he told her it wasn’t his fault, she couldn’t help but feel awful that Travis had acted that way toward him. She had been dealing with him acting that way toward her, but he used to want to be in Ingrid’s life more than he had recently. The whole situation was so complicated. 

He was about to start walking with her in his hand when she spoke up again. Cassius smiled in response. “Of course, any time,” responded, more than appreciative to hear that from her. “I do have a few words that I need to say once the little one is out of hearing,” he said with some laughter, letting her know that he wasn’t upset. Taking his hand out from her hand, he instead placed his arms around her shoulder and started walking towards the school parking lot. “I’ll make sure we’ll get some extra study time in for you later tonight,” he said with a teasing wink.