Disclaimer: If it sounds familiar, it belongs to someone else.

BLUES AND TWOS

Trust me, I'm a doctor

Flack had called Angell earlier that morning, knowing that she'd be fed up and suggesting they meet for lunch at the end of his shift. Initially the date was going to be just the two of them but somehow it escalated into lunch with Stella, who in turn invited Mac, and Lindsay, who in turn called Danny, and Hawkes.

The table was full and she was the last to arrive, although Lucy Messer's chatter was keeping everyone suitably entertained. Glancing at his watch, Flack looked towards the door again, sighing with relief when Jess finally waddled towards them, bundled up in thick February layers.

She'd never fully regained the weight she lost after the shooting, and despite eating for two with gusto, the pounds she'd put on during pregnancy were all baby; leaving her tiny with an enormous, but very neat, bump. As she squeezed into the space at the table Danny's eyes widened, oblivious to all the daggers thrown and the elbow dug firmly in his ribs, exclaiming "Jeez Angell! It's like you've got an elephant in there! How can you still be lugging it around?"

Turning, Jess glowered at Flack before darkening her look for Danny. "Four days Messer! Flack's baby was due four days ago. Trust me when I say, I'm not exactly thrilled to still be 'lugging it around'!"

Lindsay nodded sympathetically, shooting Danny a glare of her own, "I know it's not much consolation at the moment but I promise – it's so worth the wait."

She snorted, muttering "Up until my millionth bathroom trip of the morning I might have believed that," but leaned into Flack as he pressed a kiss to her temple and whispered "Hey gorgeous."

:-:

Lindsay squinted at the expectant couple, "You guys seriously don't know what you're having?!

Nope," Flack shook his head, a little tired of having to constantly justify their decision to not want to know if it was a 'Flack' or 'Flackette' that Jess was carrying.

Exchanging an equally bemused look with the Montanan CSI, Stella griped "But I have a whole heap of cute little outfits picked out and I need to know which ones to buy! Pink or blue? Which reminds me – I still haven't quite forgiven you for being so pissy about a shower."

Flack shot the two women a look and opened his mouth to change the subject. Baby showers were a contentious issue in Jess' mind; although she knew they were tradition, she found the whole concept quite bizarre. Before he got a chance to speak, Jess sighed, "I wasn't 'pissy' about a shower, I just think they're weird. Having a party and getting a whole heap of gifts before you actually have the baby is just tempting fate. If people want to buy stuff, then it's way more sensible for them to actually know who they're buying for. And as for not knowing?" She met Don's eyes and they exchanged a private dreamy look, "There aren't many surprises left in this world and so long as this one is healthy - and hurries up - we're more than happy."

:-:

"A bumpy road." Mac suddenly offered after their orders had been taken. Shrugging a little as everyone stared at him in bewilderment, he clarified "Driving along a bumpy road can allegedly bring on labor."

Peering at her belly, Jess dryly noted "Well, the fuc…cabbie that drove me over hit every hole in the road but I'm yet to see any results."

"Spicy food?" Stella suggested.

Flack groaned, "Nuh-uh, tried it; Mexican, Thai, Indian and Mexican again last night. Mother and baby were not impressed, and all it brought on was heartburn...which was obviously my fault."

Snickering, Lindsay confidently pronounced 'Mac and Cheese, in the blue box' to be the answer. Gesticulating to her daughter she nodded, "Worked with her."

The table fell silent again as the old wives tales were considered until Hawkes quietly supplied, "Sex. The female orgasm produces oxytocin which contracts the uterus and stimulates contractions. Plus the prostaglandins in semen both contract the uterus and thin the cervix. All in all, it's possibly a very effective way of inducing labor."

Danny growled, leaning to hold his hands over Lucy's ears, "Hawkes! Do not ever use words like that in my daughter's presence again. Jeez!" While Jess turned to glower at him, "Yeah, sure Sheldon. Like I'm going to repeat the very thing that got me into this predicament? Think again wise guy!"

Winking at Flack, Hawkes nodded, "S-E-X. Trust me, I'm a doctor."

:-:

Much to Jess' amusement, her dark haired Detective took a circuitous route home, traversing the bumpiest roads he could find before stopping at the grocery store to purchase a box of the recommended Mac and Cheese along with a packet of jalapeno kettle chips. Laughing, Flack teased "I liked Hawkes' suggestion, but since I don't want to get you into another 'predicament', I'm helping you give the others a go."

As they stood together in the bathroom later that night, him in sweats slung low on his hips and her in his button down shirt, they both stared expectantly at her belly. "Anything?" he asked, hopefully.

Yawning widely, Jess gave him a tired smile before dropping her head to his shoulder, "Nope, Little Flack still seems quite happy in here."

He cupped her chin and kissed her tenderly before bending to press a kiss to the bump. "Hey little one," Flack crooned, "Your Mommy and I love you, and we're really looking forward to meeting you. She's getting kind of cranky though kiddo, so you might want to think about putting in an appearance soon..." beaming as he was rewarded with a gentle kick.

Letting his hands smooth over her belly, he traced across her stretched scar, before lazily brushing the swell of her breast. Although she'd scorned at the suggestion earlier, Jess moaned in pleasure at his touch, shifting closer. Reaching up, she ran her fingers through his newly buzzed hair and brushed her thumbs along his jaw line, before pulling his lips down to hers.

:-:

The aroma of freshly baked brownies caused his belly to rumble. Rolling over as it rumbled for a second time, Flack inhaled deeply as lasagna blending with brownies. Food dreams were some of the best. His eyes drifted open and when he could still smell food, his brow furrowed as he realized it was the middle of the night and not a normal time for cooking.

"Jess?" He watched her finish turning the brownies from their baking tray and slice them into neat squares, and as she then flicked through a recipe book for inspiration. "Honey? Why you cooking at 4am?"

"This is a first!" she smirked, "Don Flack questioning why I'm making him tasty treats? You feeling okay dude?!"

Making a face at her mockery, Flack pulled her into his arms. In a moment, her smart comments and the laden countertop were forgotten as he rested his forehead against hers and caressed her belly; once again in awe of the miracle she was performing. "I still can't quite believe you're growing our baby in there Jessie. It's amazing! You've got a whole brand new little person inside you!"

Jess pressed her lips to his, "And I still can't quite believe that a little person is going to come out of me. You sure you're okay that we didn't decide to find out?"

The preference of a son or daughter was something Flack truly didn't have. The idea of a son – someone to carry on the family name and take to his first ball game – was mind-blowing. But a daughter – looking just like Jess and destined to become a Daddy's girl – filled him with different feelings. He knew that Jess was convinced she was carrying a boy. And he knew the prospect of a daughter somewhat terrified her. "I don't know anything about girls," she'd panicked, "I had Transformers instead of Barbie dolls, I played shortstop instead of joining Girl Scouts…If we have a daughter, she'll want to take ballet classes and like playing princess and I know damn all about that sort of stuff!" Despite Jess' confidence that she was going to deliver a son, Flack was sure that it was actually a daughter.

Nodding his head, Flack grinned broadly. "I'm more than okay with it. I just want you," he kissed her, "and this baby," he kissed her again, "to be happy and healthy and here with me."

Her fingers stroking through the short hair on the back of his head was so soothing that his eyes began drifting closed again, his mind filling temporarily with thoughts of food and not of their child. "J? Why are you going crazy with the cooking?" Her shrugged reply was a suspiciously quiet response.

"Think we'll be okay at this Donnie? Being a Mommy and Daddy? What happens if we screw our kid up? If it gets covered in tats, or does lousy at school, or becomes a pill popper or joy-rider or…"

His look only briefly halted her words. "But we might! Two cops with a bomb and a shooting between us, and we see more crap in one afternoon than the average person sees in a whole lifetime."

"But you have tats," Flack pointed out automatically, before being silenced by her shoving a square of brownie into his mouth. "Jess, I promise, we'll be fine," he sounded a lot more confident than he felt, "You'll be the greatest Mommy ever – even if you have to learn about tutus and tiaras and stuff – and our baby will turn out 100% smart, well adjusted and crime free."

Jess tugged on her bottom lip nervously before fitting herself the best she could against his body, hiding her face in the crook of his neck. "Donnie?" Her voice was small and tinged with tears, "One of the lab rats was right."

"Huh?" Flack breathed, caught up more in his own thoughts and the feel of her body in his arms, than her words.

"It's started. I know the midwife said I should try to get some sleep but I couldn't, so I cooked and…I can't believe the lab rats were right."

His eyes had been bugging and he'd been bouncing anxiously on his toes since the word 'midwife' left her lips, the only reason he hadn't spoken was because Jess swiftly supplied another square of brownie. "You're in labor? Now! Our baby's coming? Now!"

Nodding apprehensively, she griped his hand and sucked in her breath, before agreeing "Uh-huh. Our baby's coming, now."

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