Nora slowly ran her fingers over the barely noticable bulge in her stomach. She had thought she must have been sick or something. There was no way.
Of course, all the other wastelanders were skinny and starved, but she had been growing bigger. She denied it at first. She had no time to think about anything else.
The political turmoil and the pain that everyone endured. The loss of her husband and the pain of losing Shaun.
Her mind raced and she clutched the edge of the sink, her fingers trembling. She shouldn't be cold, despite being in only her underwear, but she was shivering anyway.
The door creaked and she quickly snapped her head up, looking in the mirror to see Cait stepping through the door, a sideways grin on her face.
"You've been in here for a while, love," Cait scolded, placing a warm, gentle hand on Nora's hip. "Y'know, some of us want to shower too, yer not the only slob here." She ran her other hand through Nora's damp hair.
When Nora had found out, she'd run into the shower, not knowing what to do or say. How could she face Cait?
"Hon?" Nora whispered, not meeting Cait's eyes in the mirror.
"You alright?" She moved so both of her hands were on Nora's hips, her chin resting on her shoulder.
Nora finally looked up, tears brimming at the corners of her eyes.
Concern passed over Cait's face. "What the hell's goin' on?"
Nora shook her head and took Cait's hands in her own and placed them over her bare stomach. "Cait..." She took a deep breath. "I'm pregnant."
Anger flared in her lover's eyes and she jerked away from Nora. "You've been cheatin' on me then?" She shouted, hands balling into fists at her sides.
"No!" Nora returned, not having considered this reaction. But she should have. "It's not like that!"
"Then how the hell are you gonna get pregnant? I don't actually have a real dick, just the strap on. It wasn't me that did this." She jabbed a finger towards Nora accusingly.
"Hon," Nora tried again. "I'm about four months along."
Cait continued to glare until the realization hit her. Four months. Nora had only left the vault three months ago.
"Oh," Cait whispered, not releasing her fists and not meeting Nora's eyes. "So it's his then? From your husband?"
Nora nodded, but Cait didn't see it. "Yeah, it is."
Cait didn't say anything. Didn't know what to say. She had been sober for about a month now, but she still had a hard time controlling her rage, and her heart was still racing.
"Cait, I don't want this to change things between us," Nora whispered, stepping towards Cait. "I still love you. I just..." She placed her hands on Cait's strong biceps. "I still want to be with you. I want... I want you to be here with me... and the baby."
Cait jerked her head back up, finally meeting Nora's eyes again. "You want ME to be a parent? Are you bloody out of yer mind? Look, I like ye and all, but I had no idea you were so fuckin' stupid."
"Cait, I can't do this alone... I need you."
"You know what happened to me. My parent's didn't like me. Not even me mum. You think I got a maternal bone in my body?"
"Yes, I do," Nora whispered, holding Cait's glare like a champ. "You get angry, you yell, but you love fiercer than anyone else. You hold on and never let go. You've saved me so many times..."
"Tha's different," Cait muttered. "Just would be colder at night, y'know?" She looked away again, hiding her blush. "So what? I still think yer a dumb one if you would trust me with a kid."
"Cait," Nora pressed her lips gently to her neck. "I'm asking you to stay with me. Please. I want to have a family with you." She lifted her head and met her lover's eyes.
Cait grabbed a fistful of Nora's hair and pushed her back against the wall, smashing her lips against hers and roughly sliding a hand down her bare hip.
"Yer a bloody idiot..." Cait hissed. But she's always had a hard time saying no to the woman she loved. And she could feel Nora smile through the kiss as she wrapped her own arms around Cait and returned the kiss just as fiercely.