Running away from home. Just like kids.

[neverwrongagent]

Briefings with Saul were getting more and more tense. Carrie could feel the strain on all of them as a real, palpable thing. Beside her, no one had ever had much faith in Brody, which was largely her fault. How could she explain her change of heart without explaining it was exactly that. What was harder was not telling him about how bad it was. Every time she was vague it was a physical pain.

The final straw was a heated conversation about what they would do if he were found out, revealed to be on a mission. They had escape plans, but it was clear very few people in that room gave a damn if they worked. Or if they even existed. She'd been through hell for the man they were dismissing like so much dross and all because... She wasn't that sure why because at this point. It was about Saul, really, and she knew that. That's why when he made a passing comment that made it sound damn like he'd made his decision and Brody didn't figure into it at all, she felt her stomach lurch so badly she almost had to leave the room.

She didn't go to him that night, that would be stupid. She waited a day, all of which was spent wondering when she would throw up. She got there late, just before dark, and sat back to watch the men finish up before meal break. He looked good. Better than when she saw him last, even.

Comments

[neverwrongagent]

She nodded even though she wasn't really ready to let go. After a long moment, she pulled back. She did keep hold of him, though, clasping his hand as they walked back out into the main living space, which had an even better view of the lake than the bedroom did. Which made sense, she guessed, but it almost disappointed her.

She led him over to the big sliding doors and sighed softly. "It's nice." She didn't sound enthused.

[posterboymarine]

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "But you don't love it." Truth was, he couldn't love it if she didn't. "Let's go see the next one."

[neverwrongagent]

She gave him a look as she realized what he was thinking. Then she nodded slightly. "Maybe it will be outstanding where this one is only....okay." She went up on her toes to kiss him. Then she took his hand and led him back to where Mel waited for them.

She could tell in one look that they weren't thrilled. "Okay, in as few words as possible, what don't you like?"

[posterboymarine]

He gave Mel a gentle smile. "The kitchen is kind of cramped and the view from the living room is 10 times better than the view from the master bedroom."

[neverwrongagent]

Carrie nodded at his assessment. Then she added, "And much as I like all the bedrooms being close, that hall is cramped. If we had to pass each other with anything bigger than a kitten in our hands, we couldn't do it."

Mel drank in the comments, quickly adjusting the order of showings. They were giving excellent feedback, which helped immensely and she liked them better already. "Okay, then. Load up, kids, and we'll see the next place." She smiled brightly and guided them out of the house.

[posterboymarine]

Brody laughed as he climbed into the back seat. "Kids. I wish." Still, he reached up and touched Carrie's shoulder.

[neverwrongagent]

She put her hand over his, squeezing gently. "Young at heart." She groaned. "Or something. I'm turning into a greeting card or something." She knew it was part him and part hormones, which didn't make her like it anymore. Of course it clearly played well, given the look on Mel's face.

Mel glanced back at Brody. "Views are a little better at the next place and I think you'll like the fireplace."

[posterboymarine]

"Fireplace? Sounds better already." He grinned as he sat back. A fireplace was a good selling point.

[neverwrongagent]

She was with him on that. She could already picturing a big sofa, deep enough for both of them, and long periods in each other's arms. The house was only a couple miles away, on the same lake but in a different development. Carrie liked the feel of the area a little more, more old growth trees. She sighed happily as she gout out and looked around.

[posterboymarine]

He climbed out and looked around. "Same drill, I take it?" He wanted to see the inside. The outside was nice. He liked the view from the driveway.

[neverwrongagent]

Mel laughed and went to open the door. "Same drill. Take a nice long look. I'll be here, probably on my phone looking annoyed." She ushered them in, then stepped aside.

Carrie went in first and headed straight for the fireplace. She stood in front of it, arms around her middle, trying to imagine it on a cold night. She even shivered a little.

[posterboymarine]

With a wink to Mel, he followed Carrie in. He watched her for a moment, then wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. "It is a nice fireplace. We should look around."

[neverwrongagent]

She leaned hard into him, not ready to move. This place already felt better to her. "We couldn't just live in this room?" She looked back at him hopefully.

[posterboymarine]

He gave her a kiss, then shook his head. "It would only last for a few months. Then you would need a bed. Then, another bedroom. So we should look at those things."

[neverwrongagent]

She groaned softly, but she went with him to find the bedrooms. There was another tight hall, but it wasn't as bad. And the master had a few things going for it-a huge walk in, and even bigger bathroom, and french doors that faced the lake. "Well....okay."

[posterboymarine]

He wandered into the bathroom and smirked. Separate tub and shower. He stepped into the shower and stretched his arms. This one was also big enough. But there was a different problem. "Babe... only 2 bedrooms and no den."

[neverwrongagent]

She shook her head at him in the shower. It was just adorable. And he was still standing there, in the shower. "This is true. We won't need the extra space right away, but we'll need it." That made her shiver a little, the idea of being somewhere with him for that long. It wasn't a bad thing, just a big thing.

[posterboymarine]

"I don't want to move again, especially not with you being a whale or us having a baby in tow. We need to do this right once." He stepped out of the shower and came to her, kissing her gently. "Maybe if we mentioned children, she'd show us something with the right view and the right number of rooms?"

[neverwrongagent]

She shuddered hard and pressed against him. He was right, they should. No one in their previous life knew about the baby. It would make them more invisible if people knew. That didn't make it any easier. She nodded slowly. "Might help. But you have to--" She stopped and shuddered. "Too real."

[posterboymarine]

He kissed the top of her head and nodded. "I'll handle it." He shifted, dragging her along with him. "Come on. Let's end the pain."

He lead her back out to the front room, then out the door in search of Mel. He stopped in front of her with a frown. "We need three bedrooms. Or two bedrooms and a den or office."

[neverwrongagent]

Carrie shrugged apologetically. "I keep forgetting we're going to need that extra room." She put a hand low on her belly. "It hasn't really sunk in yet." She was actually proud of how she delivered the news, with out even a shiver of fear. Just slight embarrassment at being silly about it.

Mel took a second to get it, then beamed. "Of course! Room to grow." She thought for a second. "I know where to show you. Just came on the market. Not ten minutes from here."

[posterboymarine]

Brody smiled. "Alright. Let's go see it." He took Carrie's hand and walked her back to the truck, then took his position in the back seat. He figured this was going to change the conversation up front and he was interested in seeing how it goes.

[neverwrongagent]

Thankfully, Mel wasn't too intrusive. She sensed that Carrie wasn't quite ready to spill about certain things. But she was honest about one thing. "It was all very unexpected. It's why we moved, really. If we were going to do one radical, crazy thing, we might as well do the other one we'd been talking about. And if we didn't do it now, we might not get the chance after." All of which was true enough, sort of.

Mel nodded her understanding. "Well, it's a great place for families. Ridiculously safe, people are friendly, schools are good. You chose well."

[posterboymarine]

Brody decided to sit forward a little and keep his hand on Carrie's shoulder. Mel was the first person, outside of them, who knew and that had to be having an effect on Carrie. So he did the dutiful husband thing, because it was important.

[neverwrongagent]

Carried didn't realize that she had her hand on his until the seat belt pulled because she'd turned. She squeezed his hand lightly. "It seems like it. Even staying at the motel we've been comfortable so far." And she meant that. It wasn't cozy, but it felt safe.

They pulled up in front of another house, not far from the last one, but this one sat much further back from the road than the others had. Mel parked and turned to look at them. "This one has a boat launch pad and an office. They call it a third bedroom, but I wouldn't." She handed Brody the key. "Happy hunting."