So a few people wanted me to continue this story, and since I have some free time, I figured, why not (4 months later). So, to make things more convenient for myself, we'll pretend that Chain Reaction never happened, and that Alex's mom and Luis moved back to Illinois (for later chapters…maybe…if I ever get around to actually including them). Kay? Alrighty! By the way, this is definitely a chapter sprinkled with some lemon zest, so prudes beware. ;)

PS – Sorry 'bout the random POV switch right in the middle of the story. There are some things I couldn't write from a guys perspective even if I wanted to, so bare with me if it feels a wee bit awkward lol :) Enjoy! X0

Mood Songs – 'After Tonight' by Justin Nozuka and 'Shimmer' cover by Boyce Avenue and Tyler Ward.

-Aud

-ALEX-

"UGH!" comes a shout from the closet, an indirect warning to move out of the way of the pair of jeans flying directly at me, "Nothing fits me anymore!" A few more harrumphs, moans, and articles of clothing come bursting out soon after.

"Aleeex," I hear a muffled Brittany groan, "am I fat?" she asks, stepping out of the closet in nothing but a T-shirt and some underwear on.

I hate this question. There's no winning. "Uhmm…no?"

"You're lying!" See? I told you. "You had to think about that, Alex. You think I'm getting fat, don't you? That is so like you, you know? Gah, now I'm crying. Thanks a lot!"

Uh-oh. I stand up, and walk the few steps to our closet to hold her, "Brit…you're the skinniest person I know. You're not fat. And…I mean, you're pregnant. Naturally, your stomach is bound to get a little bigger, but that's okay. You're still going to be sexy as ever," I smile that smile that I know she can't resist.

"You're impossible!" she shrieks before yanking a pair of Soffe shorts off the ground and stomping off to our bathroom. The Hell? What did I do? Ay caramba.

Ever since Brittany revealed to me on our wedding day, just a little over a month ago, that she was pregnant, her hormones have been on rampage. The smallest things drive her up the wall or irritate her. She gets so angry and feisty so easily now. It's kind of a turn on. Just sayin'.

"Querida?" I ask with a knock on the door, before I walk in. "You okay? ¿Qué pasa? Hmm?" I slide down next to her, where she leans against the tub.

"Ugh," she scoffs, leaning her head on my shoulder, "I don't know what that means, Alex." As wrong as this sounds, she looks so beautiful when she cries. She hates it. Says it makes her face and her nose all red and blotchy, but there's just something about it that makes her even cuter and more adorable. If that's even possible.

"We need to start those Spanish lessons, again, tonight," I mumble, "It means, 'what's wrong', mujer," I say, intertwining our fingers together, and resting them in my lap. I kiss the top of her head, and smooth out her hair. She smells like sugar cookies. I've come to associate this smell with her over the years.

"Nothing's wrong. I'm just being…pregnant, I guess. I'm sorry I'm such a baby, Alex." She says, looking into my eyes. I can't help but chuckle at her. I love her, too much.

"You're not a baby, Brit. You're hormonal, yeah. But not a baby." She gives me a pressing look, "Okay, maybe just a little bit. But you're my baby. And, no, you're not fat. Te prometo, cariña."

She laughs, before kissing me lightly on the lips, "Thanks, Alex." Her kisses soon become deeper and before I know it, we're sprawled out on the bathroom floor, half naked, making out. "Don't you have work, today?" She asks, as she comes up for air.

"Yeah…but I think I'm calling in sick."

"Mmm…I like that idea," and there she is, kissing me again. Let's just say that the rest of this morning is kind of a blur.

"Perro."

"Dog."

"Gato."

"…Cat."

"Galleta."

"Uhmmm…fish?"

"No, Brit. That would be pez. Galleta is cookie," I say to her, as we sit on the couch, in front of the TV, while some movie we stopped paying attention to a while ago plays in the background. I'm trying to teach Brit some Spanish 101, since we agreed that when the baby comes, we want to raise him or her to be bilingual. I thought that the best way to do this was to try and teach Brittany some Spanish first, since she only got by one year of it in college by having me there to practically do her homework for her. This is proving to be a much harder feat that I'd expected. "Brit, how in the world did you pick up and conquer four years of French in high school, and yet you can't even sustain what most people probably learned their first week of Spanish one, in middle school?" I ask, laughing.

"I don't know, Alex," she moans, leaning her head back on the arm of the couch, while her feet rest in my lap, "Ughh, my back hurts."

"Brit, you're, like, three months pregnant and you're barely even showin'. How is your back already hurtin'?"

"I don't know, Alex," she says again, "you try being pregnant." She teases, sticking her tongue out.

"No, thank you, chica. And stop changin' the subject. Little Alex Jr. is never going to learn Spanish this way." I say, rubbing her belly.

"Oh, no, you don't. His name is not going to be Little Alex Jr. If it is a boy. Which I don't think it will be. I can feel it. I bet we're having a girl."

"Oh, you wanna bet, now, chica? I say we're having a boy!"

"Alex…what are we? Sixteen? We're not betting on this, that's stupid."

"Is it, Brit? Or are you just afraid of losin'? If I'm right, and it's a boy, we get to paint the room green."

"Eww, no, Alex, I hate green!"

"Well, then you better hope for a girl, cariña."

"Fine. And if I'm right, and it is a girl, which it will be, we're painting the room pink."

My eyebrows shoot up. "No, Brit. No, I refuse. No pink."

"Too bad, it's my favorite color, and it's going to be hers, too. You'll see." She smiles that sly smile of hers, before turning to the TV. How did we go from learning Spanish, to betting on our unborn child's sex?

I would retort with some witty, smart ass remark, but mi'ama warned me never to challenge a pregnant woman. Gracias a dios she and Carlos moved back here. I could use all of the advice I can get. And Brit…well she could use all of the support that she can get. Especially after all of this controversy with her and her parents. All I know is that they haven't spoken since the weddin'. It's kind of sad.

"Alex…" Brit says, snapping me out of my thoughts, "I'm hungry."

"¿Qué?" I smile.

She rolls her eyes, "Yo tayn-goe home-bray?" she blushes, stumbling over the words. Close enough, though. At least she's kind of been paying attention to my lesson.

"Chica, you just ate," I chuckle, "a lot."

"Well yeah, but that was for me. This is for the baby. She's hungry."

Scoffing, "I bet. What does he have in mind?" I tease.

"Something sweet. And cold, maybe. Like…butter pecan ice cream."

"You hate pecans."

"Tssst, I don't know, Alex, I could really go for some butter pecan ice cream." She says, batting her eye lashes at me, licking her lips. She knows I can't resist that. And I mean, I really can't. Dios mío. Within seconds, I'm on her side of the couch, attacking her with my lips. We're breathless before I know it, both gasping for air. "I'm not hungry anymore," she breathes.

"You sure about that, mujer?" I ask, unbuttoning her shirt.

"Okay, maybe I am, but only for you."

-BRITTANY-

As I'm about to unzip his pants, he scoops me off the couch and carries me into our bedroom, kicking the door closed with his foot, and flipping on the lamp's switch to give the room a dim, warm, romantic glow. Placing me gently on the bed, he pulls his t-shirt off, displaying an array of tattoos, scars, and muscle. Even though we've been together for years, he's still a little self conscious without his shirt off around me, ever since he was jumped out of the blood, so he diverts my attention by kissing me square on the lips.

"Te amo," I say as I run my hand down his chest and around to his back.

He smiles widely, "Ahh, bueno. Good girl," he kisses me, "Yo también, te quiero," he whispers huskily, kissing me again, this time with more passion. He lips move across my face and on to my neck, before he finds the one spot that he knows drives me crazy.

"Alex, that tickles," I giggle, playfully pushing him off, and taking off my shirt before I reach around and unhook my bra.

"Eres tan hermosa," he says. He kisses my neck. My ear. My cheek. My lips, "Very beautiful, Brit."

"Tú…eres… muy guapo," I say, repeating something that I heard on some soap opera his mom was watching, once.

"There you go, girly," he chuckles, shimmying out of his jeans.

I unbutton my shorts, doing away with them too, as he begins kissing me gently all over, holding me as though I might fall and break if he let go. So delicate, but so strong. As we continue to strip whatever clothing is left, the kisses grow more passionate.

Alex grips my hips and slowly slides into me, shuddering. "Brit," he moans.

"Mmm?" I hum, cupping his face with one hand and running the other through his hair, as he pulls back out and pushes in, again, finding a comfortable, slow rhythm. My lips run up his chest and onto his neck as he levels his body down to me. Our breaths and moans mingle together to make sweet music, as I flip us over so I'm on top.

"You're killin' me, chica," he groans, "te amo." I kiss him again, pinning his hands above his head and interlocking our fingers together, swaying. His large hands, so rough and yet so smooth, grip mine, squeezing and massaging. As he lets go, he runs his hands down my arms and grips my waist, again. I guess I never realized how tiny I am in comparison to Alex. His fingers practically wrap all the way around my body (or they did before I started showing a little). But still, even at three and a half months, he makes me feel so small. So protected. So…insignificant, but still significant at the same time. I guess none of this really makes much sense, but Alex sort of does that to me. Especially when he holds me like I'm made of glass, like he is now.

"Mmm, oh, Alex," I utter, rubbing my hands up his firm, masculine arms, mocking the movements that my body is making on his. Our chests are penetrating each other, as my hips gyrate and grind against his hips, resulting in an unspeakable pleasure. As I feel our bodies getting closer to reaching that climactic point, my movements become more focused. More determined. More sensual and lustful. I'm so lost in thought, so caught up in this moment, that I almost don't feel it. I almost miss the little butterflies that flutter in my stomach, and almost pass it off for something else. Until Alex stops moving.

"Mujer." He pants, "Did you feel that, or am I going crazy?"

That's when my heart starts beating, overtime, "Feel what?" I know I felt it, but I thought I was going crazy, too.

"C'mere." He whispers, hugging me tightly against him, pressing my stomach into his, searching for that sensation again. There it is. That unmistakable flutter that the doctor had told us about a couple of weeks ago, "Dios mío," he whispers, "Oh, my God, Brit! He's moving! The baby, I can feel it."

"Me, too! My goodness, she's tossing and turning in there!" I climb off of Alex and sit up. He follows in suit, resting his hand on my stomach, "I knew it'd feel amazing, but…I never imagined it'd feel like this." I say, unable to take the huge smile off my face, as I place my hand over Alex and interlock our fingers.

"What does it feel like to you?" he giggles. Alex actually giggles. Oh my.

"It's…bubbly. Like…" I sigh, with content, trying to find the words, "like someone released a field of butterflies and bubbles into my belly. It kind of tickles," I bite my lip, "I-I can't even describe it, Alex. It's amazing." I gush, as his thumb caresses my cheek, wiping off the tears that are beginning to fall, "This is really happening! There's…there's something…someone…in there."

With happiness I collapse into Alex's arms, and we embrace, holding each other so tightly, as though we'll slip away into an abyss if one of us lets go. "Querida…That's one of the most amazing things I've ever felt in my life," his husky voice whispers in my ear. He kisses my lips, "You know, I used to think that there was no way in the world that you could ever get any sexier than you already were…but you've proven me wrong, ever since you started carrying my baby, mamacita. You're even sexier, now."

I pull back from our embrace and look at him. He has this goofy, googly eyed look on his face. So hot.

"Oh, Alex," I purr, kissing him with so much passion, our tongues tangling and untangling, "I love you, so much."

"I love you, too." He kisses me again, settling on top of me, "Now…where were we?"

Zee end. Hope you enjoyed. Sorry if all of this steam is forcing you to open up all of your doors and windows. I tried not to make it too hot. In case you didn't notice. ;) Remember, children, it's just a story.

Alright kids, that's all for now. I should probably be studying for finals and planning things in my personal life, but I figured I could take a break and write a wee bit. Next break I have, I'll probably write some more. If, you know, you're feeling up to it. But I'll only know if you comment, or something. You know the drill. (: Reviews make the world go 'round!

Anywho, thanks for reading!

Kisses, Audrey XO