Tom was away for the week, his job taking him to London, and Sybil was feeling awful. Why, oh, why did I have to get sick when Tom's away? she thought miserably, as she threw up once again on the third day of her husband's absence. This illness was an odd one – she was terribly ill in the morning and it often suddenly woke her. Then she was fine, often quite ravenous, throughout the rest of the day. By late afternoon, however, she was feeling ill again and threw up whatever she had eaten that day. She hadn't been able to work because of it and she was too miserable to leave the house. Just as she finished one of many bouts of vomiting that afternoon, the door opened and her mother-in-law, May, called out a greeting. Sybil stumbled weakly into the corridor, pale-faced.

Sybil was confused as to the reason for her visit. "Hello, Ma," she had become close with the woman who had insisted that she call her as her own children did, "what's wrong? Has something happened?"

"Happened? Bless you, m'dear. No, nothing's happened," she was bustling about, removing her gloves, coat and hat and hadn't noticed Sybil's bedraggled appearance. "I'm here for tea, like we arranged last week. Had you forg...Sybil! Goodness me!" she had finally taken a proper look at her, "are you ill?" For an answer, Sybil slapped a hand to her mouth and rushed from the room, heading to the kitchen sink. Once she had done throwing up her lunch for the third time that afternoon, she rinsed out her mouth and turned to see that May had followed her.

"How long have you been like this?" she asked, concerned and motherly.

"Um, since Tom left, I think."

"Has it been like this all day, every day since then?"

"No, it's strange," Sybil let May lead her to a seat at the table as she explained her symptoms. May asked her a few more questions – to what end, Sybil couldn't fathom. Despite all her nurse training, she couldn't figure out her odd sickness. May's last question, however, made her realise.

"And when was your last monthly?"

"What do you mean? What relevance-ah," her hand flew to her forehead in her own stupidity then she looked up at May, "pregnant? Really?"

"I should say so," she smiled, "I'm no doctor, but I've had five of my own. I know the signs."

"What a fine nurse I am...couldn't even spot my own pregnancy," Sybil muttered.

"You are a nurse of war-time, not midwifery. It is not a given that you should spot these things," May responded kindly, "your training is about how to mend broken bones and seal open wounds."

"Yes, I suppose you're right," she looked downcast for a moment and May knew that despite all that this wonderful young woman had achieved, she was still looking at her own inconsistencies with disdain. Then she looked up brightly. "I confess, I had forgotten about our tea arrangement but now that you're here, I'm glad of the company. I've rather wallowed in my own gloom. Would you like some tea?" She got up and began arranging some tea.

"You are quite allowed your forgetfulness, considering the state you've been in," May chuckled, "but it is good not to box yourself away."

Suddenly there was a clatter as Sybil dropped the lid of the tea tin. When she made no move to retrieve it, May rushed to her side, concerned.

"Sybil, dear, what is it? Are you alright?"

Sybil looked up at her Irish mother-in-law with a smile. May saw tears in the younger woman's eyes.

"I'm more than alright. It just sunk in. I'm going to have a baby, Ma!" she threw her arms around her neck and placed a kiss on her cheek. When they stepped back, May saw that the tears in her eyes had now fallen down her cheeks. Swiping one away with a thumb, May smiled at her son's pretty wife.

"May I be the first to congratulate you, Mrs Branson?" Sybil squeezed her hand and thanked her. May returned to her seat and Sybil returned to her tea making. The young woman only paused once more in her actions, placing a hand on her abdomen. May could just make out a smile and the smallest of whispers.

"Tom's baby," Sybil rubbed her stomach affectionately for a moment then carried on. May pretended not to notice but held a secret smile of her own.