And I can see how people look down

 

"Just don't let Liv get to you," Tristan winced about the matter. All he wanted to do was lay in bed and sleep, but Dale gave him a scare when she came downstairs. Of course, it might have been the warmest room in the house. It was bitter cold outside and he was glad to have found him a spot to cooperate. He did have a bit of a cough, and he still felt weak in the legs, but he was getting better.

Still, he knew she was upset. She'd been blubbering how she was doing this all wrong. No wonder his family hated her.

"They just don't know you like I do, besides, my sister has never liked me, anyway." He shrugged. "It's just," he sighed wishing he'd been ready to take that facetime. He was certain she would have said some mean things to him. "What did she say?"

"Well," Dale sat down on the edge of the bed. He thought that was too close. He shook his head, for her not to get any closer.

"I know, she thinks I don't care about you, like I didn't know what was even going on."

Dale sniffed back tears, She wiped away a fat tear with the back of her thumb. Tristan winced, worried she might get sick, jut doing that. Of course, he coughed as if he was really sick. It made his back hurt. Maybe it was he flu.

"It's OK. You..you should eat," he knew she hadn't had dinner. He reached for the phone and texted in a pizza from Mel's. Diago would be delivering a cheese pizza within the hour. "She's just getting into mommie mode that's all it is." Tristan shook his head.

"That's just it, she doesn't think we'll..you know, have kids." She crumbled into more tears. At this rate she was really going to make herself sick.

"But..but you said you didn't want kids," he guessed that didn't sound like the bright side, of anything.

"They don't think we'll even get married," Dale sank into more tears. He knew she was getting choked up, it was just a matter.

"We'll get married." 

Now he knew his voice carried. It was hard to talk when he was so stuffed up and had a cough.

They already had couple's rings. Of course, he wasn't wearing his, but she was. He was certain he should ask AI what to do, but he wouldn't.

"What if we do try to  have a baby?"

"Well, we're not in a race, here," Tristan shook his head, no. He tried to smile. "Yes, I'm a late bloomer in a lot of ways." He still wasn't sure what his degree was in, exactly. He was more of a hands-on kind of guy. And he knew they trusted him at the zoo with lots of research, but he wasn't exactly an animal doctor like Holden.

There was still a lot to think about. He didn't think Dale was going anywhere. But what if she was one of those who had to go where the money was in TV reporting? He guessed he'd decide if it did happen. He would do whatever she wanted.

But having a baby? He'd never heard her talk that way. He could hear her stomach grumbling from here. He was still managing Gatorade and crackers. 

"Go on upstairs," he told her as he coughed into his arm. She needed to stay out of here. He told her to take a shower and put her clothes in the laundry. He didn't want to get sick again if she got what he had.