Rustico’s
 

Whether it is the strength and heaviness of the antique bar, the wafting scents from the crackling wood-burning pizza oven, or the 100-year-old depth of history this structure possesses, the sights and smells you experience at Rustico will take you back. Dine on one of our delectable free-range veal, lamb, or chicken dishes. The handmade sausage will make any course memorable, whether dipped in marinara and surrounded by pasta or resting atop fresh mozzarella and hand-tossed pizza crust. Sit beside the fireplace as playful shadows are cast upon the surrounding stone walls, or relax on our gorgeous, open-air patio where the striking vistas resemble the Alps of northern Italy. Regardless, rely upon Rustico’s hospitality to provide you with a beautiful private party, family dinner, or romantic evening.

It'd been a few rough years for Michaela and her husband, Jeremy. They'd been on and off since Michaela's freshman year and Jeremy his junior year of high school. They barely made it through Jeremy's freshman year of college, and he ultimately broke up with her. Despite the heartbreak, she didn't know how or when, but Michaela knew they were meant for each other. It just hadn't been the right time, and after a few awkward run-ins over the years, Michaela eventually took the jump. She asked Jeremy if he wanted to see a movie and maybe get coffee afterward. Of course, he said yes, but they didn't go for coffee. Instead, they ended up in her bed after the movie. They'd been inseparable ever since.

Things had been challenging because they had been trying for a baby. After several miscarriages, Jeremy and Michaela officially got the news she was unable to get pregnant. If she did conceive, it'd immediately have to be terminated for her safety. It was cliche, but Michaela always wanted to be a mother. She felt that was her destiny and Jeremy was meant to be the father. They talked about foster care and adoption, but it was still an unsettling conversation for Michaela. She was still in denial.

Jeremy was trying to do something nice and take her out on a date, but all Michaela could do was pout. She wanted to go home but didn't want to disappoint Jeremy. Michaela knew it hadn't been easy for either of them, but he wasn't the defective one, and that was the issue. She was the problem. She was the broken one.

After the waiter dropped off her third glass of wine, Michaela heard Jeremy mumble something under his breath. "I'm sorry, what? You're going to have to speak up," she said, looking at him with disgust. "Don't be an asshole because I choose to drown my feelings in alcohol," she added, reaching for her fresh glass of wine. Michaela was much more self-aware than Jeremy knew. "It's not nice to shame your wife."

"It's not like I can get pregnant, so if you think about it, I can drink whenever I want," she chuckled, bringing the wine glass to her lips and taking a drink.

Jeremy loved his wife dearly and he hated seeing her like this. The infertility issues had been rough on the both of them but more so her, for obvious reasons. Had he imagined their future together being filled with memories of the children that they would have had? Sure, but it still didn't mean it couldn't happen for them via other means. Even if they ended up without children, they would adapt one way or another. He just wished she would stop turning to alcohol so much as a way to cope with it all.

Taking a bite of his pizza slice, he lightly tapped the remaining crust on the plate as he looked around the restaurant and tried to think of something to say. The dinner so far had exactly been what he'd been hoping for when he suggested it. Jeremy was trying to be supportive and let her have her grieving period and time to process but he missed all the fun that they used to have together. The waiter bringing his wife more wine brought his attention back to the table. "Because that's going to fix everything." he mumbled and rolled his eyes.

"Can we not?" Jeremy asked, dropping the crust and flipping his palms up in frustration. He was honestly a little annoyed with his wife right now and he was tired of choking down his feeling because he was afraid of upsetting her more. Reminding himself that a restaurant wasn't really the place to discuss their problem, Jeremy exhaled and brushed the crumbs off his hands. Swallowing his anger once more, his wife was already in an emotional plus three glasses of wine deep, it was sure to be a disaster if he didn't. "I'm sorry. If you want another glass, go for it love. I'm driving anyway, I just want us to have a good night, okay?"

"Don't do that," Michaela rolled her eyes when he quickly changed his tune to prevent her from making a scene. "Don't sit here and act like everything is okay when it's not. I can't believe you thought bringing me out when I told you I didn't want to would be a good idea." She wasn't going to be made to feel bad because her husband couldn't understand that she was still trying to process everything. Her emotions were a bit uncontrollable right now.

Michaela quickly downed the rest of her wine before pushing out her chair and getting up from the table. She grabbed her jacket off the back of her chair and walked towards the exit as she faintly heard her husband calling for her. Of course, after that scene, they would be a hot topic at the next town meeting. But that was the last thing Michaela was concerned about.

Once outside, Michaela pulled up her puffy jacket hood before stuffing her hands in her pockets and headed toward her brother's apartment. It was closer than her and Jeremy's house, and Michaela thought she could make it without freezing due to the amount of alcohol she had consumed because she could tell her body was already getting hot.

Michaela didn't get far when she started to hear her husband begin to call out again. She may have overreacted due to the wine, but Michaela didn't care. She could hear his footsteps approaching in the snow as his voice got louder. Finally, Michaela stopped and turned around. "You're not being nice!" She yelled. "You're just judging me all the time!" Michaela yelled at him. "Have you thought at all about how I feel? This is hard for you too, I know," she said the last bit in a slightly sarcastic tone, "But what about me?!" She turned and marched off in the direction she had been.

She yanked her arm out of Jeremy's grasp before finally stopping and looking back at him. "As cliche as it sounds, the two things I always wanted was to be a wife and mother," she took a deep breath, slightly winded from the cold air. "My body is broken, Jeremy!" Not caring who heard her. "You can stand here all day and tell me you understand until you're blue, but you don't! You just don't!"

Jeremy watched helplessly as his wife made a scene anyway. He looked around at the familiar faces, pretending like they were more interested in their tables when in reality they were all hoping to get the latest hot gossip to spread around town. Jeremy could already hear them: 'Did you hear about the Kincaids?' Then all the women staring and wondering what he had done to piss his wife off. Sometimes, he really hated living in such a small town.

His eyes darted back to their own table once he heard her chair scratching on the floor. "Babe?" She grabbed her jacket. "Michaela?" She walked past him. "Michaela!" He called out as he watched her walk out the door. "Shit." He muttered to himself as he tried to avoid all the stares. Grabbing enough cash to cover dinner and a generous tip, Jeremy tossed the money on the table and grabbed his coat. "Hope everyone enjoyed the show," he stated to no one in particular as he walked out of the restaurant.

Looking both directions once outside, it didn't take him long to spot his wife going the opposite direction of their house. "Michaela!" he called out as he headed in her direction. "Stop already, Michaela!" Jeremy stood in silence and looked down at her as she yelled at him. When she tried to storm off again, Jeremy couldn't handle that and grabbed onto her arm. As much as he wanted to be mad and shout at her back, he knew it wasn't going to do any good. Maybe let him get it out of his system, but that was it. She wasn't sober and he was, trying to have this conversation now seemed like a losing battle for him.

Jeremy grabbed onto his wife once more, this time to pull her into an embrace. Michaela put up a little resistance, but he was persistent. "Babe. Stop. Stop it. Can I have a God damn turn to speak?" Once she finally submitted to his wishes and rested her head on his chest, he placed a kiss on the top of her head and stroked her hair. "You're right. I don't understand. I can never truly understand, but I hate seeing you like this. I don't know how to make it better for you and that's all I want to do."

Michaela didn't want her husband to touch her because she knew she'd succumb to his embrace and didn't want to do that right now. When she did, Michaela buried her face into his chest, trying to stop herself from becoming emotional. Michaela held on to him tightly and finally listened to what he had to say. After a few moments, she pulled away, "I'm trying to deal with all this the best I can, and I don't even know what I'm doing," Michaela explained. They wouldn't have had explosive fights if they had just talked to each other in the first place. Instead, they tip-toe around the subject until it becomes too much for both.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you and for wishing you'd slip on black ice," Michaela pouted, looking up at him. It wasn't her proudest moment, but she could've wished worse. "I just don't want to feel like this anymore, and I know drinking isn't the answer, and I know that you're worried, but it numbs the pain for a bit," she admitted shrugging her shoulders, trying to avoid eye contact during the last part. "But then you start nagging, and I just," she sighed heavily, "It becomes a lot with what's already going on in my head." Her husband was protective, and she didn't fault him for that.

"I guess you wouldn't want to go back in there, huh?" She didn't know what happened after she left, but she could assume everyone in the room was looking at Jeremy before he chased after her. "With that look, I'm going to say no. Sorry." She scrunched her nose at him, embarrassed but probably not as much as he was. He begged her not to settle here, but when she told him she didn't want to live elsewhere, he bought them a house in Evergreen. After that, Michaela knew he'd do just about anything for her. "I'm sure something else will happen in the upcoming weeks before the monthly town meeting, babe. I doubt they'll still be talking about us," she tried to be optimistic, but she knew them being the gossip around town was inevitable.

Michaela reached out for Jeremy's hand, "Take me home?" She said as snow began to fall.

"This is new territory for both of us. I have zero clue what I'm doing either," he tried to reassure her, still afraid that he might say the wrong thing and set her off again. He'd just gotten her calmed down and he really hoped to keep it that way in hopes of salvaging some of this night. Tilting his head and looking to the sky as he tried to remember when she wished he'd slip on black ice. "Uhhhh... you know what? Nevermind. I'm sorry for being an insensitive asshole. There are better ways I can show that I care for you than making stupid comments." He hadn't been raised to openly express himself too much and that was something he still needed to work on. Most of their problems wouldn't even be problems, if they would just be open and honest from the get-go rather than bottling it up or drinking it away.

Jeremy let out a sigh and looked down at his wife in horror as he thought about going back into the restaurant. "Yeah, we can only hope. Maybe we'll get lucky and there will be a sex scandal with the mayor." The sad truth was that even if a bigger scandal were to happen, the events of tonight would still be making the rounds no matter what. "I would love to." Jeremy linked his fingers with hers and headed in the direction of their home. As much as he hated the small-town life, he had to admit that it certainly had its perks and a beautiful, late-night stroll in the snow was just one of them. Was it enough to outweigh all the petty gossiping? That was still up for debate but as long as Michaela was happy here, so was he.

They walked in silence for a little while, simply enjoying the quiet. The snow hummed slightly as it fell before being crunched under their shoes. The street lights still lingering onto Christmas with the way they glowed in the night. Not many people were out driving out this hour, it was calm and peaceful and just the reset they needed to turn their night around. Once they neared the park toward the center of town, Jeremy got an idea in his head. "Follow me." was all he said before leading her to the lit gazebo. Stopping and turning to face her, he brought her hand up to his lips and placed a kiss. "May I have this dance?"

"We need to start talking to each other when something bothers us." But, of course, Jeremy wasn't the only problem because Michaela was just as bad. Her parents never communicated when things bothered them, either. Instead, they waited until things erupted or swept the problems under the rug, hoping the issue would disappear. "Your comments aren't stupid," Michaela disagreed. "I just don't like it when you speak the truth," she dropped her head. "That's all," she added with a shrug. Jeremy was the only one Michaela would allow to tell her when she acted like a crazy person.

Michaela didn't want to leave this place because it was her home. She was born and raised in Evergreen. Like any place, it had its pros and cons, and she could see why many things bothered her husband. The town only had a total of twelve blocks, and many locals did know everyone's business. A scene in the middle of a restaurant wasn't needed. Michaela was sure everyone knew she couldn't have children because she already felt like people were staring and whispering before her outburst tonight.

It caught her off guard as Jeremy started pulling her toward the town's gazebo and she began smiling when he kissed the top of her hand like the gentleman he was. "I think I've forced you to watch too many Hallmark movies," Michaela teased as they proceeded to get in position. She jokingly started to rise on the balls of her feet because of their height difference. "See, this is why it's always important for me to wear heels," Michaela pointed out with a grin, and she would've worn heels if they hadn't decided to walk.

"Yes, we do. I think the fact that we both acknowledge that and want to get better at it is a great thing." Jeremy agreed. He hadn't exactly been raised to express his emotions himself either. His father always told him that if he wanted to be happy, he needed to make sure that his wife was happy first. Jeremy didn't want to become like his father, grouchy and resentful, and the way that he and his wife always figured everything out, made him certain that he didn't have to worry about that too much. This wasn't their first relationship hurdle, and it wouldn't be their last, but he was certain that they would always come out on top as a team.

Jeremy chuckled as she brought up her sappy chick flicks. "I figure, those guys must be doing something right to keep you and a zillion other ladies watching the same movie over and over." Jeremy needed brownie points right now and he was going to get them by any means necessary. Leaning down, he gave a kiss on the tip of her nose before started to sway to no music. Feeling a bit awkward, he began humming just so they would have something to move to. Jeremy held one of her hands close between them while the other stayed wrapped around her.

After a few moments of that, he decided to fill the quiet with talking instead. "Did you know that I have the most amazing and perfect wife in the whole world?" He pulled back ever so slightly to look down at her and catch her rolling her eyes. "Well, I do. She took my sorry ass and taught me what it means to be a good man. She always, and I mean always, looks gorgeous. Even when she is snoring she's cute. And have I told you about how incredibly smart and resilient she is?" He was laying it on thick but he didn't care. He meant every word and his wife needed to hear more of this and less judgement from him.

“I don’t want to end up like my parents. They stay married because it’s easy, but they haven’t loved each other for a long time.” For the most part, Michaela's parents only tolerated each other. They’d been sleeping in separate beds for as long as she could remember. She was surprised they up and moved across the country together. She didn’t ask questions, though. Michaela let them live their life while she lived hers.

Michaela dropped her husband's hand and hugged him around his torso as he heavily complimented her. “Thank you, my love. I needed to hear that,” Michaela said, looking up at him. She didn’t want to be someone who constantly needed validation from others, but she needed to hear that from her husband, especially as of late. They didn’t need to be at each other’s throats right now. They needed to be there for one another. “The best thing I ever did was fall in love and marry you.” Michaela couldn’t imagine her life without Jeremy.

When she wasn’t crying, she researched without Jeremy’s knowledge. Michaela preferred carrying her child, but since that couldn’t happen, she knew they had options. She hadn’t said anything to her husband because Michaela didn’t know how to approach the subject. Maybe now wasn’t the right time, but they’d been so honest with each other at this point she didn’t think it’d hurt anything. Except what if he doesn’t respond positively? “I think I want a surrogate,” she admitted. Way to ease into it, Michaela. “Like, I wouldn’t be opposed to adopting, but I want our kid to be a part of me and a part of you,” she told him honestly. She was stubborn and didn’t want it any other way. “We have savings, and the shop is doing alright because of all the annoying tourists.” They did get on her nerves a lot of the time, but she was appreciative of them.

Michaela knew there would be a long road ahead, and she was ready. She felt like she could conquer anything with Jeremy by her side.

"We won't end up like them. I promise." he reassured her. It was something neither of them wanted - to become like their parents - and they both put in the effort to make sure that they didn't. Jeremy hugged her back with one hand and played with her hair with the hand she'd just released. "You're welcome. Thank you for making me the luckiest man in the world by falling in love with me. There is no other woman I would ever want to spend forever with."

Jeremy was a little shocked with Michaela brought up possibly wanting a surrogate. He knew that it was an option, but he'd still been dealing with the news of his wife not being able to get pregnant, he didn't know when she'd be ready to accept them, so he didn't see the point in putting too much thought into it yet. Clearly, she had though and now he was simply trying to play catch up now. "Oh. Well. Yeah." he stumbled over his words. "Sorry, I'm just a little caught off guard. Surrogacy... I love the idea of our kid being equal parts of us, It's... I don't have much knowledge on the subject. Looks like I have some homework to do."

"We will make it work no matter what though. Whatever it takes." Jeremy didn't know how much it was going to cost but he was going to do whatever it took. Michaela's store was killing it and he had been working on achieving his dream of being an author. Jeremy had the perfect idea for a set of books swirling around in his head but getting it out of his head and onto his computer was another story. He loved being a substitute and doing freelance work from home and it brought in enough money that he didn't feel totally emasculated that his wife was the breadwinner currently.

“Well, I’ll make your homework easy,” Michaela said, fiddling with one of his jacket buttons and looking up at him. “There’s a folder on my laptop at home. It has all the information you need,” she informed him. “I’ve known for a while that I probably wasn’t going to be able to have babies after three miscarriages.” It wasn’t rocket science, and Michaela knew her body. Choosing to go to the doctor was just for confirmation. She needed proof before going forward with other plans. “The truth still hurts, though.”

Michaela believed Jeremy when he said they’d make it work. “I know. You never let me down.” She reached up, touching his face, smiling as she did so. After all these years, she was still utterly in awe of her husband, even on their worst days. He’s always been her person.

She moved away from her husband, taking his hands in hers and pulling him out of the gazebo playfully. “You know what else happens in those cheesy romantic movies?” Michaela let go of his hands before scoping up some snow. After packing it into a well-rounded snowball, Michaela threw it at him, hitting him in the chest. “Snowball fights! Bullseye!” She exclaimed, throwing her arms up in the air. Before her husband could react, she disappeared behind the closest tree laughing. “Be nice! I’m smaller than you!” She shouted, peeking out from the tree.

Jeremy should have known that his wife had already done all the necessary research, she was organized like that. She planned nearly everything because not only was she better at it, she seemed to enjoy it. "First chance I get, I'll check it out." He reassured her. He was determined to make things work out for them; as the old saying goes, 'where there's a will, there's a way' and Jeremy lived by that proverb.

Jeremy gleefully smiled as his wife pulled him out of the gazebo and back into the snow. "What?" he asked, knowing this could go one of two ways once she started forming a snowball. Before he knew it the snow blasted him in the chest and he realized they weren't going to be building a snowman. Playfully pretending to be offended by the attack, he bent down and grabbed some snow of his own.

Packing it into a ball, he caught her as she peeked out from behind a tree. "You're in trouble now!" He smirked and ventured closer to the tree. Once she hid behind it again, he snagged some extra snow in his left hand before chucking the ball in his right hand at the tree. Knowing his wife's jumpscare factor, he hoped the spray of the snow after impact would startle her long enough for him to sneak up around the tree.

Quickly latching onto her waist so she couldn't escape, he sprinkled the snow left in his hand down on her. As much as he didn't want anyone else to know, he was just a big softie. Especially when it came to Michaela. With the little show that they put on at the restaurant though, half the town probably thought he was a dick right about now.