After Ever After

3. Bump

You stood at the foot of your bed, wearing nothing but a bra and undies, glaring at the dresses before you, hoping vainly that some miracle would happen.

"Y/N, are you ready?" Tom asked, walking out of the bathroom. He was resplendent in a classic black tuxedo, his curls perfectly groomed; a picture perfect gentleman. "You're still not dressed?!"

You turned your glare onto him, tears welling in your eyes.

"Nothing fits" you replied testily, your voice wavering.

Tom groaned softly, doing his best to not look agitated. This had become a recurring issue of late.

"How can none of them fit? Didn't you buy a whole new wardrobe the other day?" he asked, picking up a black dress with a jewelled halter neck.

"Because I'm enormous, that's how!" you wailed, bursting into tears.

Tom groaned, dropping the dress to hurriedly pull you into his arms.

"You're not enormous" he murmured kindly, though his arms were tense around you.

"Yes - I am" you hiccuped, "You can't even - hug me - properly"

He huffed, leading you to sit on the bed, producing a tissue for you to dry your eyes. He sat next to you, waiting until the worst of your tears had passed before speaking.

"Y/N, you're pregnant. This", he gestured to your engorged abdomen, "is normal"

"I'm enormous and disgusting" you replied petulantly, sniffling.

"No, you're not" Tom snapped, his jaw working mechanically as he took a deep breath, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Y/N, all I see when I look at you is you. Beautiful and pregnant with my child". He sighed for a moment, glancing at his watch and weighing up what he wanted to say, calculating if it was worth it when you were in this state. "Darling, I know that your hormones are all over the place and you're tired and uncomfortable, but I did say that you didn't have to come tonight"

He miscalculated. Badly.

"Then go" you muttered icily, mood shifting instantly. "Wouldn't want you to miss your big night"

Tom bit his lip, deciding to try a different tact. "What's wrong with the green one? I thought you liked it" he said, standing to hold up a velvet green dress with a sweetheart neckline.

"Too short. Everyone will see my cankles" you replied sullenly, unwilling to yield just because he was being sweet.

"Cankles?"

"My feet are so swollen that I don't have ankles anymore. See?" you said, gesturing to your legs, "Just ugly swollen stumps"

"What about the black? It's long" he suggested desperately. You didn't reply, staring at the offending bump. "Y/N, can you try it on for me? Please?"

You wanted nothing more than to crawl underneath the covers and have a good sulk. Ever since you'd entered the third, and thankfully final, trimester, your fragile self-confidence had plummeted dramatically, not aided by unflattering pap shots of you which seemed to only highlight just how attractive Tom was and how unattractive you were by comparison. You were ungainly and awkward, unable to do much beyond being pregnant. Tom had been ever patient with your hormonal mood swings, bearing the brunt of your highs and lows, calmly assuring you that he still loved you despite your histrionics. And yet you had insisted that you wanted to go to the event tonight. It was the final event you could attend before you gave birth and your lives were even more upturned.

"Fine" you huffed, taking the dress and pulling it over your head, not bothering to be careful with your hair and makeup. You pulled the material into place, stretching it over your belly, turning to look at him. "Well?" you asked unenthusiastically.