Zoe stood in the middle of Max's living room trying and failing to stop the tears that fell from her eyes. Aside from the occasional hiccup when a supressed sob caught in her throat, the room was quiet.

"Whose is it?"

Zoe had anticipated the question, but the words still cut through her. She'd expected it from Max and not from his sister, but Max was sat in silence staring at the floor.

"I don't know." Zoe finally managed to get out, followed by a soft sob.

Robyn shook her head and stood up from the arm of the couch where she'd sat protectively next to Max after letting Zoe inside minutes earlier. "Until you take a paternity test, we don't want anything to do with you."

"I can't." Zoe whispered.

"Why not? Too scared it will be a bastard from your one night stand? You-"

"Robyn, go upstairs and leave us for a minute." Max finally spoke softy without raising his head.

"Max, have you forgotten what she did? She can't come here in tears a month after she cheated on you and expect all to be forgiven just because she may or may not be carrying your baby. She-"

"Robyn! Leave!" Max snapped at her.

Robyn looked between them and then finally made her way upstairs.

Zoe's eyes stayed fixed on Max, silently willing him to at least glance at her, but he kept his eyes firmly glued to the floor. She tried to calm herself once more, but every time she thought of the situation she'd put herself and Max in, her tears would start in earnest. "Max-"

"Do you want a cup of tea?"

"…What?"

"I'll make you a cup of tea." Max pushed himself to his feet without looking towards Zoe and walked into the kitchen.

After a short hesitation, Zoe followed him in and watched in silence as he made two cups of tea. Once he'd finished, he pushed one cup towards her and carried the other one to the table, sitting down with it. Zoe studied him nervously before she took her cup to sit opposite him.

Neither was sure how long they sat there, but by the time Max spoke, their tea was cold.

"Did you drive here?"

Zoe's head shot up and she studied the top of Max's head. "…I walked here. I wanted to clear my head. It didn't work obviously."

"I'll drive you home." Max pushed his chair back and stood up.

"Max, I-"

"We can't talk here, it's not private enough."

"…Okay." Zoe stood up slowly and followed Max from the house nervously.

"When did you last eat?"

It was the first thing Max asked Zoe when they arrived at her flat, having spent the whole drive in fraught silence.

"…I don't remember." Zoe admitted.

"I'll make you something." Max walked towards the kitchen.

"Max, please." Zoe begged softly.

"You haven't got a lot. What about a cheese sandwich? I'll do a toasted cheese sandwich."

Zoe sighed and sank once more onto a kitchen chair, watching Max as he made her something to eat as she'd watched him make her a cup of tea half an hour earlier.

"Here." Max said softly as he placed the sandwich in front of her a short time later.

When Zoe looked up at him, she found he was finally looking at her, and her tears began again. "Max, I-"

"Eat. Please." Max pushed the plate a little closer, and after a seconds hesitation he reached out to wipe away some of her tears with his thumb.

Zoe shut her eyes and drew in a shaking breath before she began eating. Though she hadn't felt hungry, she realised after one bite that she was ravenous, and Max made her another 2 sandwiches without asking, the room still silent but for the sound of distant traffic and the occasional stiff from Zoe as she cried into her food.

When Max reached out for her empty plate, their hands brushed and while Zoe shivered, Max frowned. "You're freezing."

"…I can't seem to keep warm at the moment." Zoe admitted, though she didn't admit to the fact she hadn't been able to face her mail, worried that divorce papers would come through, so her heating bill had been overdue and the heating had been shut off.

"…You have a shower and I'll warm up some clothes for you, then you can get into bed." Max decided.

No one had looked after Zoe since she was little, but now all she could do was nod. She would do whatever Max wanted her to do.

A short time later she found herself standing under a stream of tepid water, letting it flow over her and mingle with her tears before pooling at her feel in a cold puddle.

In the bedroom, his thoughts racing, Max changed the bed sheets and put a warm duvet on the bed before putting a hot water bottle inside. He didn't want to think, he didn't want to consider what Zoe had told him. He couldn't. Not yet. All he could think about was how much a baby would mean to Zoe. Something she'd wanted for so long.

Zoe was standing stark naked in the middle of the bathroom shaking. She couldn't seem to make her body do what it usually did.

"Zoe."

His voice seemed almost muffled to her, and she felt it was more a dreamed thought that a real voice until warm hands suddenly began rubbing a towel gently over her, drying the droplets of water the covered her.

Slowly, she focused on Max in the mirror as he dried her and then pulled a warm jumper over her head. Then she allowed him to take her hand and lead her to the bed, where she noted the fresh sheets as she slipped into them.

Though her eyes flickered shut immediately, she was still awake to feel Max put one hot water bottle to her feet and another to her back before he pulled the blankets over her and tucked her in. She still felt the gentle kiss he dropping to her forehead, and she still heard the whispered words, "It's okay. Sleep now."

So she did.

When Zoe woke the next day, a glance at the clock and the coldness that had once more set into her bones alerted her to the fact she'd slept for over 12 hours.

"Max?" She called tentatively. Hopefully.

When there was no reply, Zoe slowly pulled herself from the bed, her body still feeling tired and heavy. She pulled on her dressing gown and inched into the rest of the house.

There, she found everything had been tided; the fridge and cupboards had been restocked, and on the counter lay prenatal vitamins with a letter propped against them. Hands shaking a little, Zoe picked up the letter.

I've organised for you to have the next week off work, I told Connie you've caught that bug that's going around- Max.

Zoe wasn't sure what she'd expected, but she was still disappointed. Aside from the vitamins, there was still no acknowledgement of what she'd told him, still no indication of what he wanted or what he felt. Or what he was going to do.

Zoe picked up the vitamins and shuffled towards the couch, her body feeling as though the atmosphere was so heavy and full that she had to physically push her way through it to get anywhere. Sitting down, she turned the TV on to cut through the deafening silence. Her heavy eyelids shut once more.

"Zoe."

She was sure she'd dreamt it the first time and barely moved.

"Zoe."

She was sure she heard it the second time, because a warm hand touched her arm.

When her eyes opened, startled, she found the room was now lit by lamps and the blinds were drawn to ward off the darkness that crawled in from outside. Still on the couch, blankets covered her and another hot water bottle was pressed to her feet.

In front of her sat Max.

"I've made you something to eat."

Zoe's eyes moved from him the table, where a large plate of dinner awaited. She noted silently that this time there was another plateful next to it, already partly consumed. He was eating dinner with her.

Max watched Zoe take everything in before he finally spoke nervously. "I've booked you an appointment to see the midwife tomorrow to-"

"No. No Max, I can't. I want to see if the baby is yours more than anything, but I can't have a paternity test. It's invasive, and I'm-"

"Zoe." Max finally reached out to silence her by putting a finger gently to her lips. "Just for a scan. Nothing else, I promise." As Max moved his finger away, he noticed Zoe's arms wrapped tightly, protectively around her middle. She'd done the same thing last night in the bathroom and again after she'd fallen asleep. He'd watched her toss and turned for a long time last night. "Have your dinner, or it will go cold."

Zoe looked up at Max and then down at the food before she reached out hesitantly with one arm, the other still wrapped around her middle.

When Max's hand suddenly rested over hers, warmth began to thaw her bones. He didn't speak, neither of them did as Zoe ate her dinner, but his hand stayed on her middle offering protection until long after she'd finished and her own hands returned there once more.