Disclaimer: I wish I did, but I don't own Hairspray or the characters. It's all John's fault! And that's why we have fanfic. This is my first Hairspray story, so please be gentle. Constructive criticism is very welcome. Enjoy!

Baby Makes Three

Tracy was the happiest teenager in all of Baltimore. Her family was strongly cemented and stable now that her daddy had abundantly reassured her ma just how much he loved her and would never even think of looking at another woman. Tracy was a regular on The Corny Collins Show. The show was finally officially fully integrated, just as she had always dreamed it should be. She had the best friends any girl could ask for, but most of all, she had the coolest, sweetest, most gorgeous boyfriend any red-blooded American teeny-bopper girl could only dream of having: Link Larkin. The boy with the most piercing, sparkling blue eyes she had ever seen was completely and hopelessly in love with her.

What more could she ask for? One might think she had it all. Everything was as it should be.

After the earth-shattering kiss they shared at the end of the Miss Hairspray pageant, Link and Tracy just figured it was a fact. It was a silent agreement on both parts that they were together, they were now a couple. That display of affection a week ago on live television had proved no further explanation was needed.

All of Baltimore (at least all the young kids) had seen the infamous lip-lock, including…Brenda.

She had been confined to the four walls of her bedroom for a month. Her parents had found out about the pregnancy and took all the necessary measures to hide the shame she had brought upon the whole family. That included being seen on public television, even if it was just a local teen show.

She missed being a part of the Corny Collins show, but most of all, she missed…him. Even though her best friend, Amber, kept shoving it in her face that he belonged to her, Brenda still had a soft spot for Link. All the girls swooned over the cutest boy in Corny's council. She was no exception.

She had never missed an episode since she was forced to quit. Watching Link in black and white was not enough for her (she painfully missed his mischievously playful, radiant, bright blue eyes), but she had had to make due. Her parents had placed a small TV set in her bedroom to give her something to do for the remainder of the pregnancy. There was no way they were going to let her out of the room, much less the house, when she would begin to show. They appeased her hormonal outbursts by allowing her that tiny bit of enjoyment every day at 4 pm for an hour.

The shock of having been replaced by a short, chubby, plain Jane outcast from her homeroom class a month ago was nothing compared to the blow she had received as she watched the poster boy sucking face with…her.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!" She had screamed at the top of her lungs when the camera zoomed in on Tracy and Link kissing in celebration of all the wonderful events that had taken place that day. Brenda could not believe her eyes.

"How can my Link be kissing that…that…cow?!" She asked to no one in particular. After all, she was alone in her room. Her parents made only quick appearances at every meal.

After the initial shock wore off, her sobs began, equal in intensity to her repetitive 'NO!' exclamations.

"Link Larkin is mine, Tracy Turnblad! He's mine and no one else's!" She barked at the small TV screen.

Now that she wasn't on the show, she didn't need Amber's friendship. Brenda knew how furious her former co-star must have been after witnessing that spectacle. She had caught a glimpse of Amber's rage as the camera panned across the whole stage. But Brenda didn't care about her anymore. She was going to get Link for herself and she knew exactly how she was going to do it.

For a whole week she thought of a way to persuade her parents to let her out of the house. She finally convinced them that she still wasn't showing very much and that people were not going to be able to tell yet.

She set out to WYZT studios determined to take Link from Tracy and have him all to herself. She truly believed her plan was going to work. She was positively sure of it.

"Good afternoon Frank." She flirtatiously greeted the security guard at the front desk. She knew he had been sweet on her since she first set foot in the building two years ago to audition for the show.

"Afternoon, Miss Brenda." He replied nervously. "I thought you'd be out for a while longer. It's…it's good to see you're back." He smiled shyly at her.

"I'm not back yet, cutie." Oh she knew how to work her charm. "I'm just here to visit my friends. I was beginning to miss them, so I decided to drop by. I promise I won't stay long." She sealed the deal with a devastatingly cute wink.

"Take your time, miss. They still have half an hour before the taping begins." He motioned her to proceed into the set as he smiled longingly at her.

"Thank you. See you later." She walked past waving at him and flashing him another one of her sugary smiles.

As soon as Brenda opened the door, she heard Miss Maybelle tell the council, "All right everyone! That was groovy! Great rehearsal! Time for a break, but I want to see you back here in 30, alright?"

The crowd dispersed and everyone went their respective ways.

Brenda scanned the whole room for any sign of Link or Tracy. She finally saw them on the opposite side of where she was. They were walking hand in hand towards an empty space no one else had claimed.

'Of course,' she thought, seething as she glared, 'The new lovebirds can't keep their hands off each other. How romantic.' She rolled her eyes when she saw Link cupping Tracy's chin and leaning down to place a sweet, lingering kiss on her pouty lips as she played with his tie. He said something to her, smiled and winked then walked away, leaving Tracy smiling, sighing and staring dreamily after him.

Brenda saw Link go into the boys' restroom. She knew he was going to take a while, so she took her chance and walked toward Tracy. It was the perfect time to execute her plan.

"Hi. It's Tracy, right?" She called as she approached her rival.

"Yes." Tracy smiled, if only a bit startled out of her daydream. "You're…Brenda. Are you coming back to the show? I was sad to see you go. You were one of my favorite dancers."

"Oh…um…thank you, but no. I'm not back yet. I'm just here to…um…well, to talk to Link. Have you seen him around? I really need to talk to him."

"Yeah, he was just with me." She said, as she looked suspiciously at Brenda. "He shouldn't be too long. He just went to the restroom."

"Okay. I'll wait for him here."

The short, awkward silence was broken when Brenda let out a sniffle. Tracy turned to see her bottom lip quivering and her eyes glistening with unshed tears.

"Is…is everything okay?" She asked, concern apparent in her voice.

Brenda turned to face Tracy, but hesitated before answering, as if trying to decide whether or not to confide in her. She looked down and hugged her stomach and began to cry uncontrollably.

"It's his."

Tracy let out a gasp and she immediately covered her mouth to stop herself from screaming. Her eyes became clouded and watery. She was trying to make sense out of the revelation she had just heard.

Brenda was giddy with triumph at seeing Tracy's reaction.

"Oh God!" She pretended to have just realized something. "Are you two…? Did I…? I shouldn't have come here. I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have said anything. Please, Tracy. Don't tell Link anything. I didn't know you two were…Oh God!! I don't want to come between you. Please promise me you won't tell him." She let two more fake tears run down her cheeks to let the poor gullible girl know how horrible she felt.

"But it's what's right." Tracy said between silent sobs. "He has the right to know."

"I…can't. I will not do this to him. My life is already a mess. I won't be able to live with myself if I know I ruined his as well. He deserves so much more. I don't know what I was thinking. I shouldn't have come. Please Tracy," She begged, "Please promise me you won't tell Link."

Tracy couldn't believe she was asking her this, but she respected Brenda's wishes. She nodded and walked away. She needed some fresh air to clear her mind and try to assimilate everything that had just occurred.

'How am I going to keep this from him?' She asked herself as soon as she felt the air caress her tear-stained cheeks. 'There's no other way,' she decided, finally letting out all the tears she had been holding in, 'I have to let him go.'

Tracy just stood there, trying to calm herself down before she had to go back in to the set. Taping was about to start, so she had to put on a happy, smiling face for the cameras. How she was going to do this she didn't know, but she knew she had to. She had no right to keep a father away from his baby. She had been happily raised by both her parents, so she wasn't going to deprive Link's baby of that bliss, even if it meant she would have to give up the love of her life.

She felt a hand gently squeezing her shoulder. She turned to see Penny looking at her questioningly.

"Tracy? Are you alright? I saw you talking to Brenda and then come out here. You looked sad. What's wrong?"

"Oh Penny," Tracy confided in her best friend, "I have to let Link go." She sniffled.

"What? Why? Did he say something mean to you? I thought he liked you. Wait till I tell Seaweed."

"No, no, Penny. It's not like that." Her voice was shaky now that she was about to tell Penny the story. "He and Brenda…The baby…Oh Penny!" She covered her face with both hands and her sobs returned with full force.

Penny instinctively embraced her best friend to comfort her. She knew immediately what Tracy was talking about.

"Oh Tracy, I'm so sorry." She didn't know what else to say, but then a curious thought crossed her mind and she released Tracy from the hug to look her in the eye. "Wait! What if all that is a plot to take him away from you? You know how she would always try to stand next to him on the show. She didn't even care that Amber was his girlfriend."

Tracy hadn't thought about that possibility and, for a second, her hope had returned, but then she remembered.

"She doesn't want Link to know, Penny. She begged me not to tell him. She didn't know we were together, but when she saw my reaction, she made me promise not to tell him."

"Oh Tracy," Her friend sounded more concerned now, "I'm here for you if you need me." Penny hugged Tracy again knowing that, right then, there was nothing she could say or do to make her best friend cheer up.

"I know, Penny. Thank you for being such a fantastic friend." She gave her friend a half hearted smile before they walked back into the building.

Tracy braced herself to face Link and pretend that everything was okay.