Chapter 3: Sugar and Spice

"Hey, Toni!" Gilbert called from where he stood by the window. "Was Francis supposed to come over? Did you forget to tell me again?"

"Si, I forgot, he and his boyfriend said that they'd be dropping by today," Antonio replied, walking into the living room with a plate full of churros.

Gilbert snorted, snatching one of the treats. "Woulda been nice to know before they were pulling in the driveway." He gestured to the window with his churro.

"Lo siento, Gilbert. I didn't know they would be here so soon," the Spaniard apologized, setting the plate down and opening the door.

Though still slightly shaken from the last visit, Francis managed a smile when he saw his friend. "Ah... bonjour. May we come in? We have some news."

"Si, of course! Come in, I made churros!" Antonio grinned, ushering them inside with a warm hug for both of them.

"Thank you, Antonio," Matthew smiled, still watching his boyfriend with the tiniest hint of concern.

Gilbert grinned. "Come on, sit down." He practically shoved them both onto the couch. "So? What's the news?"

Francis glanced at Matthew, hoping his boyfriend would deliver the news for him. He didn't think he'd be able to do so without his voice shaking.

Luckily, the Canadian understood the unspoken plea, and offered his boyfriend a reassuring smile before turning to the others. "Francis is pregnant. We're going to have a baby."

"Really? Oh, wow, that's fantastico!" Antonio squealed, grinning widely.

"Seriously, man?" Gilbert clapped him on the shoulder. "That's awesome! How far along?"

"About two months," Francis finally spoke up, touching his stomach with a shaky hand as he began to relax.

Antonio gave Francis a big hug. "Congratulations, amigo! I'm so happy for you!"

The Canadian laced his fingers neatly through his boyfriend's, hoping that whatever was causing him to be nervous would fade with this excited reaction.

"Merci, mes amis," Francis managed with his face in Antonio's shoulder (against his will). "I am sorry for not telling you sooner."

"Don't worry about it," the Spaniard assured, letting Francis go. He offered him the plate. "Celebration churro?"

Francis laughed, taking a churro. Antonio and Gilbert were surprisingly good at helping him forget his troubles. "Merci."

"I've been thinking, Antonio, Gilbert," Matthew spoke up. "I know that none of us are particularly religious, but I really want our baby to have a godfather... or two. Would you two be interested in that, eh?"

"I would be honored to be a godfather to your bebé!" Antonio gushed.

Gilbert sputtered. "Huh? You serious? Of course I would! The little guy needs an awesome godfather, after all!"

"Or girl," Francis reminded him.

"Yeah, whatever."

After a lengthy visit with Antonio and Gilbert, Francis and Matthew were finally pulling into the driveway of their shared home. Without the pleasantly distracting voices of his best friends, Arthur's words echoed freely in the Frenchman's mind once again.

"Hey Franny?" Matthew asked softly, turning the car off. "Are you really okay? You've been acting strangely ever since you came back from talking with Arthur. Did he say something, eh? Do I need to go talk to him?"

"I am fine, Matthieu," he assured him. "Nothing happened between me and Arthur. Let's go inside. I am just tired."

"If you say so..."

That evening, Francis spent an exceptionally long time in the bathroom. He had dug out his package of razor blades, and searched long and hard for a sharp one.

He didn't use it on his stubble.

Meanwhile, in the bedroom, Matthew was growing concerned. Francis had been in the bathroom for far longer than usual, even for the fashion-conscious Frenchman. He knocked gently on the door. "Franny? Are you okay in there, eh?"

Francis jumped, nearly dropping the blade. He swallowed to keep the tears out of his voice as he called back, "Oui, I will be out in a moment."

"Okay... I made hot chocolate. It's waiting for you on the bed," the Canadian called quietly, lingering a second in front of the door before turning and heading back to their bed.

Francis didn't emerge until his wrists were bandaged and hidden well with the sleeves of a nightshirt. Smiling at Matthew, he climbed into bed beside him. "Je t'aime..."

"Je t'aime aussi, Francis," Matthew murmured, wrapping his arms around the Frenchman's middle.

Francis sighed contentedly, his smile real this time. Matthew somehow always managed to lift his spirits, no matter how low they were. With a kiss to the Canadian's head, he closed his eyes.

(A/n)

(Long note after short chapter, but please hold your pitchforks and torches.)

Hello again, dear readers.

As we apologize again for the length of time between updates, there are some things we feel we need to say about this story.

This story, unlike most of the stories we have and will put up here, is NOT a work in progress. It, barring all of the editing, is complete. This is important to bear in mind when considering the next thing we want to say.

This is not a happy story. There are parts that made us cry and rage while writing them. However, we feel that it is a well-written example of a slice-of-life tale. What this means to you readers (the ones that will read this note, anyway) is that there will be characters you won't like at all times. We urge you to stick with the story, however, as we try our absolute hardest to wrap up all loose ends by the end.

With those things said, please enjoy as we continue to (slowly) update Quiet Uptown. Although nothing plot-wise will be changed at this point, we utterly ADORE reviews. They let Paris and I know what parts of our writing you enjoy, and what parts make you feel, and what parts you don't like. This aids us in picking new things to write or to decide to put up on this site.

(Between you and me, there is another long fanfiction in the works. It is nearly completely written, and will begin editing as soon as we can. It contains a few not-so-popular pairings that are completely adorable and not mentioned in this story. Feel free to guess the pairings via PMs and reviews, and if you are the first to get one right, we will write you a one-or-two-shot with the plot of your choice. But good luck, because we're weird. XD)

Wow, I am a long-winded Moose. Sorry about that.

See you soon(ish),

Paris and Moose