Minor spoilers for John Carpenter's classic The Thing. If you haven't seen it, you really should.
There's no one to blame.
We didn't know it at the time, but it was this particular group's very last movie night at Mary's place. It was my turn to choose the movie and because it fit my mood, I picked John Carpenter's
The Thing
. If you haven't seen it, the thing is an alien monster that can look like any living thing--dogs, people, whatever. The characters are trapped in a base in the Antarctic and everyone is looking askance at everyone else: any one of them could be the thing!
Sitting there waiting to watch the movie, I felt the same thing. All of the women there (with the exception of Cindy McGill, who is too old) are pregnant. All of the women there (with the exception of my wife Susan) are pregnant with my child. And all of the women there (with the exception of Belinda) are currently keeping that secret from everyone else.
In the movie Kurt Russell's character is able to unmask the Thing in a jump scare scene that surprises me every time. He has everyone tied up on a couch, so his unmasking produces some unexpected results. Unfortunately, in Mary's living room, the monster appears to be me. All my infidelities and indiscretions live within our single block of townhomes. I could be in the picture (if not the actual father) for five kids with five different mothers in just a few months. Assuming, of course, the none of them have twins. And I feel like it's all about to be revealed.
But I'm jumping ahead.
On Monday, I notice that Peter and Belinda are home after visiting her folks. She's starting to look a bit like an inverted question mark, as her belly is starting to show. They both have dour expressions.
"How are you guys doing? I haven't seen you in a while," I inquire.
Peter replies with "Just back from the in-laws. Your baby is doing fine, by the way." Belle looks at him somewhere between tears and anger.
"Let's step inside, Peter. I think I know how to fix this," I reply. "You guys were thrilled to be having a baby. You still should be. This is going to be your child, no matter how the DNA got matched up. So why now the jealousy?"
"
He's
off doing his own thing.
He's
made some extramarital commitment to that harpy, Cindy McGill. I'm mad because he won't touch me," Belle said, spitting the words out.
"So you'd be happy if he just stayed home and took care of your needs?" She nods. I look at Peter.
"What about you, Peter? You love her, right?" He nods. "So what's the problem?"
"Cindy has rules."
"Hmm... isn't one of those rules that you have to obey everything I order you to do?" There's a wary glint in his eye. Belinda looks at me funny, wondering what I'm going to do.
"There's a simple fix here. Peter, I'm ordering you to take all future orders only from your wife, no exceptions, not even for Cindy. Not even if she says pretty please." Petey is a bit thick, I think. He doesn't respond. "Got it? I need to hear that you understand."
"Got... it..." he finally croaks out, and then: "To hear is to obey." This has some conviction behind it. Belle is looking at me like I should win the Nobel Peace Prize. She comes over and gives me a big kiss... on the cheek.
"Daddy," she says, in her little girl voice, "Peter and I are having a son. I hope he turns out just like you."
Having achieved world peace, I go on to see another future baby mother, Mary. It's her day off, so I'm late in seeing her.
"Where have you been?" she greets me. She has on the pink scrubs with miniature white baby-delivering storks today. Her face is rictus of unhappiness, her beady eyes measuring me carefully for a casket if I respond unfavorably.
"I fixed up Pete and Belinda's relationship, so they won't be a distraction to us anymore." The
us
in there is pretty suppositional.
"Did it involve you boning her?"
"Nope. My bone is pristine and has your name on it."
"Then quit standing on the porch. Get in here and give it to me."
Tuesday after work I visit Levon and Lakeisha. Levon's watching a Disney film with the kids, so I join Lakeisha in their den. She's playing Fortnite.
"Mom needs a break," she says. "Man, you really knocked me up and that's knocking me for a loop."
"You sure you're not mad?"
"I'll certainly be cursing your name when I'm in the delivery room. Just now, though? Nah. You should see how turned on Levon is as a result too. It's wild."
"Nice move," I comment on the game. "Too bad, in some ways, that it was only that once."
She hits pause on the game and looks me in the eye. "Never has to be just once. You working your other problems out?"
"I think so. Come to movie night."
"In the meantime, let's go upstairs. Levon will join us when the kids are in bed. I can hear him getting them ready now."