Chapter Nine: Tell the Truth
Sitting against the headboard beside his slumbering roommate, Greg suddenly got bored of waiting for him to wake up so he resorted to desperate measures, shaking him before he started shouting his name, "Nick! Nick! Nick!" Finally Nick opened his eyes, glancing up at Greg beside him. "Finally, I was going to resort to throwing things in a minute."
"Whatsup?" Rubbing his eyes open, Nick struggled to a sitting position on the bed, looking round at the angry pregnant man sat beside him.
"You've been sleeping forever and I don't have any clothes that fit."
"They fit." Nick looked at the sweatpants and t-shirt Greg was wearing, realising they did look a little too tight. "Greg, maybe you shouldn't go into work anymore." He suggested as he scrambled off the bed, heading over to one of his draws to retrieve a larger pair of sweatpants for him. Nick watched as Greg grumpily climbed off the bed, walking off into the other room. He slumped back against the counter, tugging the t-shirt he was wearing down as far as it would go.
Rubbing a hand through his hair, Nick made his way off into the kitchen after Greg, handing over the sweatpants to him. "Thanks."
"You should stay home G, you're nearly six months pregnant now, and people at the lab are beginning to talk."
"I know. Ecklie recommended me to a dieting specialist and Mandy suggested I go to her spinning class with her." Greg sighed softly as he dropped into one of the chairs around the kitchen counter, holding the sweatpants in his hands. "Am I fat?" He suddenly asked, looking up at Nick.
"You're pregnant, you're bound to get a little bit fat, there's another human bein' growin' inside of you." Nick carefully leant on his knees, looking up into Greg's eyes. "Greg, you can stay here for the last few months. People are gonna start to figure it out. You can go away for a while on sick leave then go back a few weeks or so after our baby is born."
"That's the first time you said our baby and meant it." Greg smiled softly as he looked down at him.
"Greg, I haven't been with anyone since you broke it off with me. I'm tryin' to change. I'm thirty years old now, I think it's time to stop the college boy behaviour and look after you and our baby."
"I don't want your money."
"Okay." Nick nodded to him. "But do you agree to stay here?" He looked into Nick's eyes then gave him a slight nod. "And I'll getcha some more clothes, because I'm not that much fatter than you."
"I'm sorry about that." Greg apologised. "I'm still mad at you for knocking me up."
"And I'm still really, really sorry about that." Nick apologised again, gently lifting Greg's hands for his lap to hold in his own. "I'm sorry I broke your heart too. I've missed you Greg."
"You can't have sex with me." Greg quickly warned him, pulling his hands away from him. "Even if I beg you, please don't."
"I promise." Nick nodded up at him. "Do you wonna sit on the couch? It's more comfortable."
"Afraid my fat arse is gonna break the chair?" Greg grinned down at him, showing that personality Nick had missed so much.
"You're not that fat Greg. Your stomachs not stickin' out that much, it's gonna get way bigger than this. You're only noticin' now because you wear such tight jeans. Not that I don't like them, but they're not very effective when you start to put on a little weight." He grinned as he helped him to his feet, leading him off towards the couch.
"Wait; if I sit down there I'll fall right to sleep." He warned him.
"Okay, but you do need to sleep. You didn't sleep at all last night." Nick led him off towards the bedroom, pulling back the sheets on the bed for him. Greg dropped to the edge flipping his sneakers off then crawled under the covers.
"You know what kinda weird hankering I've had all week?" Greg asked him as he tucked him in.
"What?" Nick asked as he helped him take his sweatpants off so he was comfier.
"Sex." Greg simply answered. Nick looked at him shocked. "Seriously, I've been craving sex all week. I've never wanted sex this much." Nick laughed softly, shaking his head at him. "This baby is definitely yours; I've been craving sex like crazy."
"Yeah, I think I'll take that as a compliment." Nick snickered. "But I'm not gonna do it. I promised you I wouldn't have sex with you, even if you begged me."
"Oh but Nicky, I want it." He complained, making Nick wonder if he was testing him or if he really did want it.
"You only just told me that rule five seconds ago, I'm not gonna break it now." Nick assured him, tucking the covers around Greg. "Go to sleep Greg."
"I'd sleep a lot better after a little sex."
"No." Nick shook his head, struggling not to smile. "Just go to sleep. I'll see yah when I get back from my shift, okay?"
Greg grumpily nodded to him, repositioning the pillow under his head. "I'll always remember this Nick." He warned him as Nick head off towards the bathroom.
"Remember what?" Nick looked round at him confused.
"That you denied me sex when I was needy and pregnant."
"Greg, you'd hate me more if I actually did it." Nick pointed out to him. "I'm not gonna have sex with you until you're thinkin' rationally."
"It's because I'm disgusting and fat isn't it?"
"No, it's not Greg. You're not disgustin' or fat, you're adorable and I love you, which is why I'm not gonna do it. Believe me; this urge for sex will pass soon enough. In women their libido increases, but you bein' a man... it's probably increased even more."
Greg sighed heavily in defeat then nodded over at him. "Okay, you're right. Oh and Nicky, will you come with me tomorrow to the doctors? I'm having my anomaly scan."
"Yeah." Nick smiled over at him. "That'd be great. I'll be right out."
"Okay... and did you really just say you love me?" He suddenly asked him as he realised what Nick had just said.
"Shit, I really said that out loud didn't I?"
"Yeah you did." Greg chuckled, watching the Texan's face flushing bright red.
"Okay, I have to go." Gulping the large lump in his throat, Nick quickly rushed off into the bathroom to get ready. When he returned Greg was still wide awake, smiling at him as he got changed for work. "I'll see yah later G, and I'll tell Grissom you're off sick or somethin' today before you come up with a better lie." Greg nodded after him then rolled onto his side under the warm covers of his bed, curling up beneath them so he could go to sleep while Nick head off to work.
"Hey man, you've been spending a lot of time with Sanders lately." Warrick commented as he took a seat opposite Nick at the break room table with coffee cup in one hand and a bear claw in the other. He watched Nick writing out a report on the table in front of him a moment who seemed to be completely oblivious to his friends presence. "Hey! Dude!" He shouted to snap him out of it, waving his hand in front of his face.
Nick glanced up from his work, looking Warrick in the eye with a confused expression on his face. "Huh?"
"I said, you've been spending a lot of time with Sanders lately, do you know what's wrong with him? He's had so many sick days in the past few months." Nick shook his head before he returned to filling out his report. "I just heard from Mandy that he's got cancer."
"He doesn't have cancer." Nick quickly protested, shivering at the horrible thought.
"He's been off sick for months, that boy never misses a day of work." Warrick pointed out to him. "You know, he was gaining a lot of weight the last time I saw him. You think he has a thyroid condition or something?"
"No!" Nick snapped, climbing to his feet to pour himself another coffee, starting to miss Greg by the familiar scent of the blue Hawaiian coffee blend wafting up his nostrils.
"Maybe he has diabetes?" Warrick suddenly suggested.
"Would you please shut up!" Nick suddenly shouted at him angrily, completely surprising his friend by his outburst. "There's nothin' wrong with Greg. He's perfectly fine." He insisted.
"Then how do you explain him being on sick leave?" Warrick looked at Nick a moment, waiting to hear his answer, but he couldn't think of a decent one so he just shrugged. "So you don't know either? We should all go round there and see him..."
"Bad idea." Nick stopped him there. "He might be contagious." Nick told him to stop him from going round there and seeing Greg.
Warrick frowned at him then watched Nick storm off out of the break room with his head hung low. Catherine watched him go then walked into the break room with Warrick, giving him a smile before she head over to the coffee pot. "Hey Cath, you heard from Greg lately?"
"Nope," Shaking her head, Catherine turned round to face him. "You heard the rumours too huh?"
"Yeah, what have you heard?" He asked her curiously.
"Well, from some of the more dim witted lab techs I heard Greg's in drug rehab or fat camp. Mandy thinks he has cancer and he's going away to the hospital all the time, but I recon he's pregnant." Warrick furrowed his brows together as he looked up at her in confusion. "C'mon, it's not that crazy. A couple of months ago he was rushing off to the toilets every few minutes to throw up, now he's started to put on a few pounds in the belly area, and him and Nick have never seemed closer. I recon Nick and him were sleeping together and he's got knocked up."
"Where do you get your imagination?" Warrick laughed at her. "First of all, there's no way Greg can be pregnant because I've seen him in the showers..."
"You were looking!" She giggled.
"No, no I was not looking!" He protested, folding his arms across his chest. "The little monsters always commenting that he has an anaconda down there, so I had to look once." He defended himself, blushing ruby red. "You wouldn't know, you're a girl! You probably just boast about breast sizes or something."
"No." Catherine shook her head, not recalling one time she had ever done that.
"Anyway, there's no way a guy can get pregnant. And yes, Nick and Greg were sleeping together, but Greg broke up with him." Catherine looked at him wide eyed. "Nick told me, okay? Don't make a big deal about it."
"He told you! He told you and not me!" Catherine widened her eyes even more surprised. "And how can you not believe that a man can get pregnant? We're scientists. It is physically possible for men to get pregnant, not all men of course, and it doesn't exactly happen every day." She pointed out to him. "I'm gonna go talk to Nicky." She decided, setting her coffee down on the side. "It's time for these rumours to stop spreading about Greg having cancer. That's a horrible thought." She shivered then head off out the break room to go look for Nick.
Nick leant on his elbow against the layout room table, studying a fingerprint he had collected from his crime scene. He glanced up as he spotted Catherine in the doorway, wondering how long she had been standing there staring at him. "What?"
"So, you've been sleeping with Greg for nearly a year and you neglected to mention that?"
Nick choked on the air in his throat, patting his chest as he struggled to breathe. "What? Warrick told you didn't he?" He immediately assumed once he caught his breath.
"Yeah." Catherine closed the door, leaning on the other side of the layout room table. "Is Greg pregnant?"
"Who the hell told you that?" Nick snapped at her.
"I'm not stupid Nicky. I put all the evidence together for myself." She smiled over at him. "So he is pregnant?"
"Can you not say it so loud?" He hissed at her, making sure no one outside the lab could hear them. "He doesn't want anyone to know, and we haven't been sleepin' together for a year. He's five months pregnant and we were only sleepin' together six months before that."
"Technically..."
"Shut up." He snapped as Grissom and Ecklie walked by. He watched them go then turned back to Catherine. "Okay, but we haven't slept together since he got pregnant. And you can't go around tellin' anyone." He sternly warned her, shaking his finger at her.
"I wouldn't do that to you Nicky, or Greg." She assured him with a soft smile. "I can't believe you didn't tell me before. I know it's a huge deal, but we're your friends Nicky." She guilt tripped him, making him shamefully look down at his hands on the table in front of him. "So he's five months pregnant already? You must know if it's a boy or girl by now right?" She changed the subject.
"No actually, we don't wonna know until they're born."
"Have you seen your baby on the ultrasound yet?" She queried next, watching Nick's eyes lightly up as he pulled something out of his back pocket. He opened up his wallet then handed over a small black square to Catherine. "Aww, it makes it more real when you see it moving on the monitor doesn't it?" Nick nodded to her as he had felt that too. "Can I see him?"
"Huh?"
"Greg Nicky, can I see Greg?" She shook her head at him as he was completely out of it. "You're going home in a few minutes right? I heard from Judy that you're not living at Tanya's place anymore, so you must be at Greg's right?" Nick nodded to her, hating that she knew so much about him. "So, can I come see him?"
"Greg's kinda, well he's kinda feelin' a little vulnerable right now. I don't think he really wants to see anyone right now."
"Oh c'mon, I've been pregnant. I know how it feels to have no control over your body. Please." She begged him, flashing one of her wide smiles to him. "Why doncha call Greg and ask him if it's okay then? I'm talking ten minutes here Nicky." She pleaded.
"Okay, I'll call him. But don't be surprised if he says no." Nick warned her then pulled out his cell phone to give Greg a call. He looked up at Catherine as it went straight through to his voicemail. "Hi Greg, its Nick. Catherine... kinda wants to see you, so when you get this message give me a call to let me know if that's okay." Nick snapped his phone shut then stuffed it into his back pocket. "What?" He asked as she gave him a funny look.
"No I love you Greg before you hang up?"
"Nope, we're not... exactly to that stage yet." He explained, re-pocketing the picture of his baby into his wallet before he got back to work.
"You're not at that stage yet?" She asked surprised. "He's carrying your baby, you don't have much longer to get used to the idea of you and Greg together."
"No, I'm used to Greg and bein' intimate with him. The love stuff is just a little delayed since he doesn't exactly trust me." Catherine gave him a look that meant she needed to know more. "Well, when I first heard about the pregnancy, I was a little shocked. I kinda told him that he had to get rid of it, and bein'... well seriously shocked, I said some things to him that I didn't mean, and he still gives me this look every so often like he thinks I'm gonna murder this baby. I think he still kinda hates me for gettin' him pregnant too."
"Oh."
"Exactly, and I've told him that I love him, but I think he's gonna take a little longer. And really I just said it in passin' when I was tryin' to assure him that the reason I wasn't goin' to sleep with him wasn't because he was fat."
"Oh." She nodded again, beginning to make Nick feel as though he was in a counselling session. "So when you said 'I love you' to Greg, were you disappointed when he didn't say it back?"
"Okay enough, I don't talk about my feelin's with anyone. You don't really need to know any of this, and it's time to go home." Nick was about to pack his things up when his phone started ringing. He glanced up at Catherine before he pulled it out and snapped it open. "Stokes."
"Nicky I got your message and no way." Greg's voice immediately answered him.
"Are you sure? She just wants to see how you're doin' Greg."
"Nicky! You promised. This stupid baby of yours is making me fatter and fatter by the hour; I can't even see my penis anymore."
"Oh," Nick struggled not to laugh. "Okay Greg, I'll tell her."
"Thank you, and hurry home. I'm starving!"
"Okay." Nick snapped his phone shut then looked up at Catherine. "I'm sorry; he doesn't want anyone to see him right now." He told her as he began to pack away his evidence. "I'll try and talk him into it though and let you know."
"Thanks Nicky, send him my love." Nick nodded to her then watched her walking away. Once she was gone he leant against the edge of the table, thinking about Greg. He had wished that Greg would have said it back to him, but he wasn't too bothered about it. He was finally in love with someone and he wanted it to last forever.
"Your baked potato with chilli my love." Nick announced as he handed it over to Greg from behind the sofa, pressing a kiss to the top of his head.
"Thank you." Greg reached for the knife and fork then set it down on his lap, taking his first bite. "I could really get used to you coming home from work and making me dinner every day."
"Oh you could?" Nick laughed, leaning on the back of the sofa. "Greg, people at the lab are beginnin' to think you've come down with some serious illness. Warrick was grillin' me in the break room about it and Mandy's spreadin' rumours that you have cancer."
"You can't... tell them... the truth." He said between bites.
"How are we supposed to explain the baby after he or she's been born?" Nick asked him. "Your dead ex-girlfriend story isn't gonna work for very long, and it's not gonna be fair on our kid either. I think we should tell people, they're not strangers that are gonna judge us Greg... they're our friends." Nick tried to reason with him.
"If Grissom found out about this he'd probably wonna put me in a glass tank and do all sorts of experiments on me. People will never look at me the same again." He started to panic. "You can't do this for me Nicky. It's alright for you; you're not the one with the baby growing inside of you."
"Greg, these people have seen gloves on your head, women's bras against your chest and show girl hats on your head... this, this isn't that weird to them." Nick tried to reassure him with a wide smile. "You know what; you don't have to think about it right now. Hurry up and eat that, we've got an hour to find parkin' at the hospital and make it to our appointment on time." He pressed a kiss to the top of his head again then head off towards the bathroom to freshen up.
Greg watched him go then set his finished plate down on the coffee table, quickly climbing to his feet to follow Nick off towards the bathroom. He watched him shaving his jaw line in front of the mirror, admiring the way the older man gently slid the razor across his handsome jaw line before Nick noticed him out of the corner of his eye. "What?" Nick asked as he caught him staring. "You're not still sex crazy are you?" He smirked.
"No." He giggled, shaking his head at him. "I was thinking... you don't have to agree with me, but I was thinking... that maybe I should quit my job at the lab then people wouldn't ask so many questions." Nick looked round at him surprised. "I know we're not the richest of people. But, I can't go back to the lab pregnant . . . and they're all gonna ask too many questions if I stay off sick all this time, like they already are. I won't depend on you for cash though; my parents can help us out if we really need it. At least until after the babies born then I can get my job back... or another one. But there's no way I'm going back like this. And I'm only gonna get bigger."
"Okay." Nick nodded over at him. "And you are allowed to depend on me for cash and stuff. I'm... well, I'm the father of your child. Strictly speakin', that means we're bound together for life Greg." Nick gave him a smile as he took a step closer to him. "And personally, I'm kinda lookin' forward to that part." Gently brushing his fingertip across Greg's jaw line, he gave him a wide smile as he gazed into his eyes. "I meant what I said earlier G."
"That you love me?"
"Yep, more and more every day." Nick nodded to him, cupping his chin in his hand as he continued to gaze into his eyes.
"You're gonna make us late for our appointment." Greg pointed out to him, trying not to give into the Texan's thrall as that would make them really late.
"Okay." Nick half smiled at him. "But you can stay in here." Nick flipped the lid of the toilet seat shut so Greg could sit down. He head back to the sink to continue shaving then brushed his teeth before he undressed and climbed into the shower.
"Were you serious about wanting to date me?" Greg asked while he was in the shower.
"Yeah." Nick poked his head out of the shower, smiling over at him. "I would love to go out on a real date with you Greg Sanders." He winked at him then moved back under the shower water, washing his hair.
"Mind if we hold off the dating until after our baby is born? I'm kinda a little self conscious about dating a really hot guy when I'm going through this complete metamorphosis of my body."
"Sure." Nick called from the shower then stuck his head out the door of the shower again. "I like you no matter what you look like though, because I fell for the Greg Sanders personality. But, that's totally okay. I can hold off a few more months."
"Seriously?" Greg looked at him surprised. "You're willing to be completely abstinent for another... four or so months?" Nick answered with a nod then got back in the shower before the water got too cold. "I love you too Nicky." Greg whispered too quietly for Nick to hear as his voice was drowned out by the trickling water of the shower.
Nick eventually climbed out of the shower, wrapping a warm towel around his hips in full view of Greg. "Whatsup?" He asked as Greg had a look of deep thought on his face.
"Did you mean all that stuff you said about two guys not meant to be together and playing happy families?"
"Well, maybe a little." Nick shrugged to him. "Name one gay guy you know that been pregnant and has a baby with his boyfriend."
"Okay none, but guys can raise kids together Nick. Even single guys can."
"I don't doubt that. I just don't think... or I didn't anyway. I didn't think that we could do it. But now, I kinda see things differently. I mean look at me, I was more like a hired nanny around Tanya's house. I know how to bath, feed and talk to kids. I can even put em to bed with no fuss. Now, I think guys can do just as gooda job as women, and we are gonna be the best." He winked at him then made his way into the bedroom to get dressed. Greg steadily climbed up from the toilet seat, following in Nick's tracks to his room. He took a seat on the bed as he watched Nick pulling up some tight jeans followed by a shirt before he grabbed the hairdryer to dry his hair.
Greg watched Nick just being Nick, grazing his eyes across his handsome features, his beautifully soft hair, his broad manly shoulders, his firm upper body, down towards his toned legs and the very tight jeans that hugged him in all the right places. "Nick, how long we got?" He suddenly asked him.
"Huh?" Nick shut off the hairdryer, looking round at him.
"I said, how long we got until our appointment?"
"Why?"
"I'm starting to crave that sex again." Greg leant back on the bed, licking his lips as his eyes ran across Nick's perfectly toned figure again.
"Greg! I'm not a piece of meat."
"I'm sorry... it's your fault though. Can't we just quickly..."
"No." He protested, grabbing his jacket. "Four months of abstinence from you too Greg. This thing works both ways. We have to prove that we're not together just because of this baby or the sex. You know some of the books say that you shouldn't give into every cravin' you have."
"Those books weren't written by horny pregnant men." Greg complained as he climbed to his feet, grabbing a large hooded sweatshirt and some sneakers. "I on the other hand am craving sex... like you crave air."
"You'll survive without sex." Nick gave him a smile then led him off towards the front door, grabbing his keys before they both slipped out the door, ready to head off to the hospital to see how their baby was doing towards the halfway mark of Greg's pregnancy.
Greg climbed onto the examination table once they were in the doctor's office, leaning back against the uncomfortable plastic while the doctor set up the machinery beside him. Nick stood the other side of Greg, watching the younger man pulling up his clothing to reveal the steadily increasing bump on his stomach.
Nick reached for Greg's hand to hold as the doctor squeezed on the cold goo and started up the ultrasound. Both men smiled as they immediately heard their baby's heartbeat. "Ready?" Doctor Simpson asked the two of them, watching their smiles increasing. "Okay."
Doctor Simpson turned to the monitor, slowly moving the device around on Greg's stomach to reveal their baby to them. Nick held Greg's hand tighter as they saw the head like shape of their baby. This time they could make out the eyes and a little nose, along with their baby's thumb in its mouth.
"I'm pretty sure you can make them out, but there's arms . . . legs . . . fingers and toes. Do you wonna know the sex yet?"
"No." Greg immediately shook his head, looking up at Nick who gave him a smile in agreement.
Doctor Simpson smiled at the two of them. "Okay, do you feel it moving?" Greg nodded to him. "Your baby still has room to move at this stage, and if you're experiencing mood swings, they're completely normal." Nick smiled down at Greg as he gently poked him in the side as he had definitely been experiencing some mood swings. "You see this long string of pearls here." The Doctor pointed on the monitor. The two of them nodded as they took a closer look. "That's your baby's spine. Your baby's gonna fill out more in the next month, which means you're gonna get bigger. You may get some shortness of breath because the little one be pressing against your ribcage, but it's nothing to worry about. Unless anything big changes, I'll see you for your next appointment in a couple of weeks." He turned the machine off, handing the printed picture over to Greg before he wiped the goo from his stomach. "Any questions?"
Greg shook his head then looked up at Nick to see if he had any questions. "Nope," He shook his head. "I'm good." Nick smiled as he looked at the picture of his baby sucking its thumb. He pecked a kiss to Greg's forehead while the doctor filled in some paper work for some prenatal vitamins for Greg.
As soon as Nick drove them back to Greg's place they both crawled into bed. Nick spooned the younger man tightly, listening to his soft wheezing before he finally dozed off to sleep himself with the one he loved wrapped in his arms.
Thanks for all your comments on the last chapter. I posted it at 3am right before I went to bed so I'm glad you enjoyed it!
They're starting to get along better and Greg has reached the halfway mark of his pregnancy. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thanks so much for all of your reviews and favouriting on this story so far, according to my stats its the most popular story this month. Please Review and have a GREAT weekend guys, whatever you have planned! :D
~ Holly
