Thanks again Ashley for the review. Always appreciated

Chapter ten

"I don't believe this," Jessica moaned irritably, rolling her eyes and leaning back against Todd's BMW. "Jess, I don't think Todd can help it if his car won't start," Liz said calmly, not allowing herself to get annoyed however infuriating her sister was.
"Well, you shouldn't help every waif and stray!" Jessica called out loudly to Mike.
"I hardly think my boyfriend is every waif and stray!" Liz corrected with a forced laugh, fiddling with the strap on her dress.
"No he's lower down than a waif and stray!" Jessica replied snidely, turning her attention to Todd. "Besides why are you even driving a car that breaks down? It's not like your parents can't afford to buy you one that runs properly." Liz looked over at Todd, giving him a pleading look not to rise to the bait.
"Ignore her. It's just hormones," she quickly assured her boyfriend.
"Right!" He responded sarcastically, raising his eyebrows in disbelief. He knew Liz realised Jessica meant every word. Liz groaned in frustration. Did Todd have to encourage Jessica? It was like baby sitting children. If only she could give them dummies to shut them both up!
"Todd don't -," she begged, struggling not to lose her patience.
"No, he's right. She's like this all the time lately," Mike agreed with Todd, unhelpfully in Liz's opinion, as he pulled his head out from under the car and stood up straight. Jessica folded her arms more tightly, her mouth taut. Why was everyone ganging up on her?
"We should have been driving down the road before they even came out of the house," she complained, gesturing with her arms and looking accusingly at Mike. She was starting to feel exhausted and just wanted to get home and climb into her comfortable bed and as far as she was concerned this was preventing her from doing just that.
"Jessica, the only reason we weren't gone was because you went back in to go to the bathroom, despite the fact you've been countless times already!" He reminded her truthfully, mirroring her gesture. "In fact I'd be surprised if there isn't a drought soon the amount of water you must be consuming." She glared at him angrily. Now he was just asking for it!
"I can't help that the baby is weighing down on my bladder," she started ranting, struggling to sound like a sane human being and not a maniac. "Do you want me to get kidney damage? You're the one who got me in this state in the first place remember!" Mike sighed out loud. Was that going to be thrown back in his face for the rest of his life?
"I don't remember you exactly complaining when I was doing it," he shot back defensively. She couldn't help blushing slightly.
"You're not the one who has to deal with the aching feet, the clothes that don't fit anymore, feeling tired all the time -," she said bitterly. Mike looked at her guiltily. She looked so genuinely upset that he started to feel some sympathy for her.
"I know it's hard for you, baby, but it's not like it's forever," he reassured her, wrapping her in his arms. She leaned her head against his chest contentedly. She was tired of arguing no matter how miserable she felt about her parents. "The car should be fine now," Mike told Todd, looking back over his shoulder. He pulled away from Jessica, not quite resisting the temptation to roll his eyes about his emotional wife. Todd nodded and quickly mouthed thank you. He knew it was best to keep quiet when one of the Wakefield twins was on the rampage.
"Besides it's not just me. She probably wants to get home to bed as well," Jessica defended herself, rubbing her stomach. She didn't want everyone to think she was a complete maniac.
"She!" Liz exclaimed with shock. She didn't know Jessica had found out the sex already.
"Obviously it's a girl," Jessica informed her simply.
"It could just as likely be a boy," Mike pointed out honestly.
"It's definitely a girl," she argued sharply, refusing to consider the other possibility. "Me and Lila did the test thing with my wedding ring."
"Well, then that's definitely beyond doubt," he responded sarcastically. Jessica rolled her eyes.
"You only want it to be a boy so you can talk about cars and stuff." She snorted.
"And you only want it to be a girl so you can go shopping and buy makeup together," he told her, mimicking her tone.
"Surely the most important thing is that it's healthy," Liz broke in reasonably, hoping to halt any argument about something that couldn't be changed.
"Liz, you don't half sound self righteous sometimes," Jessica complained, moving her attention from her husband to her sister. Honestly she was the only mature person here and all that responsibility was starting to scare her. That and the fact Lila's pants hadn't fitted her.

Alex examined her outfit in the mirror. She pulled at the hem of her skirt debating with herself whether or not it showed enough leg. She let out a groan. Liz was right that she was starting to think like Jessica. She'd only just realised that she had absolutely no idea where Tom was going to be taking her, so now she'd had to do a little guess work on which outfit
would be suitable and Elizabeth wasn't even around to ask what looked best. Alex pulled a disgruntled face in the mirror. Not only did she need Liz's help, she'd also wanted to talk to her about Tom so she could make sure she wasn't treading on any toes. Not that it should matter to Liz since she was with Todd now but the Wakefield twins did have a habit of
claiming every eligible guy in California as their own property. She jumped at the sudden knock on the door.
"Who is it?" She called in surprise. Why did people always have to bother her at the worse time? It was probably just someone for Liz.
"It's me," a familiar male voice called back. Alex glared at the alarm clock, horrified. How could it be eight o'clock already? She was nowhere near ready. She hadn't even had time to paint her nails or to calm her nerves. She rolled her eyes in frustration. Why on earth had she agreed to this date? She was still emotional after seeing Mark off this morning and now she was going to spend the whole evening worrying what she looked like.
"Just give me a second," she yelled back nervously, her voice squeaking. Thankfully Liz's tidy streak had rubbed off on her and there didn't seem to be any potentially embarrassing items lying around. She ran a brush through her hair and grabbed a bag, stuffing her purse and some make up in it before taking a deep breath and plastering a fake smile on her face.
"Sorry to keep you waiting," she apologised as she opened the door, trying to make her voice sound as relaxed as she could.
"That's ok. Although I did get a few strange looks for staring at a door," Tom joked with an easy smile. Alex laughed back, trying to cover up her nervousness as she stepped out of the doorway.
"So, have you decided where we're going?" Alex questioned as they started to walk down the corridor.
"I thought I should keep it a surprise."
"That sound's in-." She stopped talking as her heal twisted under her, sending her flying face down onto the floor. How was she going to handle this without looking completely undignified? "I'm such a klutz," she muttered under her breath, too scared to make a move up off the floor.
"Lucky for you I like klutzy girls," Tom teased. Alex looked up, surprised to find he had moved in front of her and was offering his hand to help her up. She gratefully took it, letting a little smile play on her lips. They carried on walking down the corridor and he didn't let go of her hand. Her smile grew, becoming more genuine. Maybe she didn't need to worry about whether or not he was over Elizabeth Wakefield.

"The baby is definitely a girl," Jessica stated with certainty, halting in front of the Corvette.
"Ok, it's going to be a girl," Mike agreed quickly, opening the door and placing his hand gently on her back, trying to get her into the car. In his opinion she hadn't been talking much sense since their argument and he didn't see the point in disagreeing.
"It's better that it's a girl. They're always less trouble," she rambled on, still not moving.
"Baby, I don't know what you're talking about but it's getting cold and I thought you wanted to go to bed," Mike reminded her, wishing she'd just get in.
"I don't even really know if this is what you truly want," Jessica told him suddenly, looking up at him, not listening to his previous comment.
"What do you mean? I was fine about it when you told me, wasn't I?" He wondered rhetorically. He was starting to feel irritated. He'd tried his best to be as supportive as he could even though having a baby had been nowhere in his vision of the future until she'd told him she was pregnant and now she was questioning his loyalty.
"But we don't talk about it, we never-." She tried to explain how isolated she felt. She seemed to be the only one trying to deal with the mess they were in. Normally she'd have turned to Liz in this situation but she seemed to have other things on her mind.
"We do talk about it," he interrupted, looking confused.
"No, we don't! Not really." She doubted he could understand, he didn't have another life inside him. "We don't talk about all the things that need sorting out, what we need to buy, what we -."
"Jess, the baby isn't an excuse for you to go on a shopping spree," Mike answered sharply, giving her a stern look.
"I don't mean that," Jessica defended herself. "I mean sensible stuff like cots and prams."
"All that stuff can wait. We're not going to need it for a long time yet," he reassured her.
"We can't leave everything to the last minute. I mean for a start how are we going to fit three people into that tiny apartment?" She asked worriedly.
"I don't know. I guess we'll have to move," Mike admitted with a shrug.
"When are we going to move? Where are we going to move to?" She demanded impatiently.
"Well, not for at least another five months," he told her with another shrug. "We can't stop paying the rent until the contract finishes or someone else takes it over and we can afford to pay for two places."
"Another five months? I'll be ready to drop by then!" She screeched in disbelief.
"Look, Jess, let's not have this out in front of everybody, ok?" Mike hissed, tilting his head pointedly over towards the other end of the driveway.
"Why didn't you do anything about it?" She hissed back, annoyed at her husband's irresponsible attitude. She kept her voice low as possible.
"I didn't think we'd be moving anytime soon," he defended himself. "How was I to know you'd go and get yourself pregnant?" "I didn't 'get myself pregnant'. I had some help." She reminded him sharply.
"Ok, let's not get into that again," he replied calmly, sensing a fight which he knew he'd never win against his hormone-crazed wife. "The point is we have a problem."
"Really it's not that much of a problem. We just need to find someone who'll take it from us," she thought out loud, trying to be reasonable and mature about the situation.
"Easier said than done," he sighed. "The rent keeps going up."
"I thought you guys were going!" Lila's voice interrupted brightly as she came out of the door of the house.
"We were but Todd's car broke down and Mike insisted on helping," Jessica explained, pulling a face. "But it's sorted now so we'll get on our way."
"Actually, Jess, I gotta go to the bathroom quickly," Mike told her. Jessica raised her eyebrows and started laughing. She couldn't believe that after his complaining about her bladder weakness he had to nerve to even think about it let alone actually ask but it was so unbelievable it was kind of amusing.
"So, you're pregnant, too, are you?" She asked smugly. Mike decided it was best not to reply to that comment.
"It's just down the corridor as you get through the door. You might want to try the upstairs one though, Liz just went rushing in as well," Lila explained helpfully. "Jess, Tisiano's agreed to think about moving," she told Jessica excitedly as Mike disappeared.
"That's great, Lila," Jessica replied distractedly.
"What's got you in a mood?" Lila wondered curiously.
"Well other than the fact I'm fat, I'm now going to be homeless!" Jessica informed Lila with a groan.
"What do you mean?" "We can't finish the lease on our apartment for another five months but if we don't we can't afford somewhere bigger."
"Ohh," Lila mouthed, twisting a piece of her long hair thoughtfully.
"You wouldn't be interested would you?" Jessica enquired hopefully.
"Sorry but I think Tisiano will have his sights on something a bit more impressive than a tiny apartment," Lila giggled, too excited at the possibility of staying to really worry about her friend's predicament. Jessica would always land on her feet eventually.
"I just need to find someone gullible enough," she said more to herself than Lila. She glanced around the driveway for some inspiration. The Corvette, Lila's old triumph, the pool house, Todd's BMW, the ... Todd's BMW! "Bingo," she said with a knowing smile coming over her face.
"Good luck," Lila said with a laugh, recognising that look. As Jessica headed off determinedly she jogged back into the house.
"Hi Todd," Jessica called as she got closer.
"Hi Jessica," he called back guardedly, forcing himself to be polite.
"It was nice of you to show me your dorm room the other day," Jessica began airily, finally reaching the BMW. She forced herself to smile and act casual.
"I didn't have much choice you barged in," Todd replied, glancing over at her for the first time and giving her a pointed look.
"I'm sorry about that," she made herself sound apologetic even though she couldn't really care less about Todd's feelings. At that moment she needed him. "But it was still nice of you."
"Well, it's not exactly five star accommodation." Jessica Wakefield was the last person he wanted to be discussing his living arrangements with. "But then I am a disgraced athlete."
"That's what I've always liked about you Todd. You see the humour in everything," she giggled with a forced laugh. She knew the best way to get something out of a man was to stroke their ego a bit.
"Ok, what are you after?" He demanded suspiciously. Jessica pulled her best shocked face at his accusation. All those drama productions in school hadn't gone to waste.
"Todd! I can't believe you would say that!" She exclaimed in a hurt voice. "I'm trying to do you a favour."
"Jessica, I know your favours and the only person who benefits from them is you," he told her disinterestedly. He'd learnt his lesson about trusting Jessica a long time ago. Jessica resisted the strong urge to groan. She knew from years of experience that sometimes you could bluff your way out of a situation and other times you just had to be honest. This was definitely a time for honesty.
"Todd, I'd be the first to admit on a few occasions in the past I could have been more honest with you-," she began swiftly.
"A few?" He interrupted with a snort.
"Ok, lots of occasions," Jessica admitted truthfully. "But I really want to help you now."
"So what is this favour?" He questioned with a sigh. It looked like it would be best to just hear her out or he could be stuck talking for hours.
"Well, although your dorm room has a certain- a certain charm." Jessica treaded carefully, she didn't want to offend him. "It lacked-."
"It's a dump," Todd filled in honestly. "But what's that got to do with you?" She took a deep breath and decided just to take the plunge.
"Mike and I are giving up the lease on our apartment," she started to explain.
"What's that got to do with me?" He asked again, wishing she'd stop dragging out the conversation.
"Well I thought you might like first refusal."
"What's wrong with the place then?" He wondered suspiciously.
"Nothing! Nothing is wrong with it," she assured him quickly. "It's just not going to be big enough for three of us." Todd stared at her in confusion for a second. He sometimes had to remind himself Jessica was pregnant. It was hard to imagine someone so irresponsible was going to be a mother.
"I doubt I could afford it anyway." He didn't see the point in pretending.
"You have rich parents," she reminded him, never one for tact. "I mean if Steven and Billie can afford one I'm sure you can."
"Jessica, I know you don't like taking this for an answer but no!" Todd told her firmly, praying Liz would hurry up.
"You could afford it if Elizabeth moved in with you," she supplied desperately. She silently apologised to Liz in her head, hoping she'd understand her predicament.
"What makes you think she'd want to?" He enquired flatly. He didn't believe that Liz would be interested.
"Well what makes you think she wouldn't?" She replied with a shrug. "I'm sure she can't like living with Enid the drip." She didn't bother to add that living with Todd probably wouldn't be much of an improvement. Todd decided to let that comment go, as much as he liked Alex he wasn't about to waste his breath defending her to snobby Jessica. He knew the reason Jessica really didn't like her was because despite the fact she'd spotted her first Enid preferred spending time with Liz.
"Look, Jessica, my relationship with Liz is my own business," he answered guardedly.
"But she's my twin. I know her and I want her to be happy," Jessica defended herself. Todd wondered if maybe Jessica had a point. She did know Liz better than possibly anyone and if she believed Liz would want to live with him maybe she was right.
"And you think that would make her happy?"
"Absolutely." She nodded enthusiastically. "But then she does seem to have lost the plot lately with that hair!" She still hadn't got over the shock of how different her twin looked.
"How much would it cost?" He asked although he still felt slightly reluctant to express that much interest in any of Jessica's ideas. She explained it to him as quickly as she could, hoping that if she confused him enough he wouldn't realise how much it would actually cost.
"That's a lot," he told her bluntly, not being at all confused.
"It's not! It's what it costs now unless you're still in the ice age!" She screeched sharply. "I mean you'll only end up paying more if you leave it until next year," she pointed out more sweetly.
"I'll discuss it with Liz and we'll see." "No, I don't think you should do that! I think it should be a surprise!"

"I hope this place isn't too corny for you," Tom commented nervously as they took a seat.
"No, during high school I used to go to them all the time," Alex assured him, glancing around the bright lights of the beach disco.
"I guess you must have been out a lot at high school, from what Liz told me it sounded like a proper party school." She wasn't sure she liked the way he casually dropped Liz's name in the conversation. It suggested he thought a bit too often about her, but then on the other hand
maybe it indicated he had nothing to hide.
"Actually no," she answered, knowing it sounded surprising given her new reputation as Theta party girl and then disgraced athlete's girlfriend. "I guess I was a 'good girl' in high school, staying home doing homework and hanging out with Liz. I mean I went to all the school functions but I wasn't out every night." She decided not to explain that she had become that way following a drug addiction at her old school. A first date didn't feel like the right time. Besides she was hoping there would be plenty more opportunities to tell him in the future and she was certain Tom had secrets he wasn't telling her. "I guess I got fed up of not having my own social live when I came to university. At the time I thought it meant that I had to leave my old life completely behind but now I realise I can branch out and still have my old ties."
"That's understandable, university can really screw up people's heads," he agreed, his ego had blown up massive proportions when he'd first arrived. Alex nodded.
"I guess I dated Mark for all the wrong reasons, even though I did really like him. He fitted with the image I wanted to create."
"So, you aren't too upset he's gone?" Tom questioned, hopefulness in his voice. From what he had heard Alex had appeared to be very in love with Mark and he didn't want to be a rebound boyfriend. Alex sighed. This question always brought up conflicting emotions. She wasn't filled with dread that he was gone the way she had been the first time but she wasn't
exactly dancing on the rooftops either. She still hated the way he'd treated her when the scandal was breaking but when he came back he had seemed genuinely remorseful and he had seemed to have matured.
"He represented a time of my life, full of excitement and hope, and I guess I thought I could get those emotions back if I was with Mark, but it's definitely over between us," she explained firmly. "You can't base a relationship on the past can you?"
"No, I guess not," Tom said simply, not wanting to put words in her mouth. There seemed to be such easy communication between them, Alex wondered if now was the right time to ask him about his feelings for Liz but she decided against it. She wasn't prepared for him to tell her the wrong response. She left the question hanging in the air between them.

"So, what exactly did you tell Todd?" Mike questioned, trying to make himself comfortable on the couch, which was extremely difficult with Jessica perched on his lap. She'd jumped on him practically as soon as they'd got through the door. He was starting to find it difficult to deal with her mood swings and her ridiculously increasing sex drive. One minute she irritated with him for just putting his arm around her and the next she was all over him.
"Just how much it would cost and that his dorm room is a dump," Jessica replied distractedly, nuzzling his neck.
"And you're sure he wants it?" He'd been surprised to say the least when Jessica had told him Todd wanted the place. He knew his wife could be persuasive but he couldn't believe she'd convinced the first person she'd spoken to about it and her sister's broke boyfriend at that.
"Of course he does. Who could resist my powers of persuasion?" Jessica whispered in his ear suggestively, sliding down the straps of her dress and letting it fall to her waist. Mike let his eyes wonder down her body, noticing her small bump for the first time. It was the first obvious sign of her pregnancy and he felt like a bucket of cold water had been thrown on him, killing any heat between them.
"How can he afford it?" He wondered as she freed his shirt from his pants, hoping to cool her off.
"Who cares? That's his problem," Jessica replied between kisses before pulling back, finally noticing his strange lack of enthusiasm. She followed his gaze to her stomach.
"Hey, I'm not that fat!" Jessica screeched.
"I didn't say that you were, baby," he defended himself quickly. "You're just, you're just-."
"Fat!" She cried, pulling back from him.
"No, no, pregnant," he spat out, staring back at her in shock. She was only seventeen weeks pregnant. What was she going to be like when she was really showing?
"That's just another word for fat."
"Come on baby," he coaxed gently. "I didn't mean it like that." He held out his arms and she snuggled into them.
"In that case we can carry on where we left off," she suggested, running her fingers gently through his hair.
"Actually I really am kind of tired, Jess." He faked a yawn and stretched his arms up. It wasn't that hard to pretend as he really was exhausted from all the drama of the night. Being dragged out and then dragged home again had drained him.
"I knew it! You're not interested because I'm fat," she accused, pulling back again.
"I am interested. I'm just tired," he protested.
"You were never too tired before!" She complained suspiciously.
"Well, maybe I am a bit concerned about the baby," he admitted, hoping that would placate his wife.
"What?" She questioned, confused by his response.
"Well, what if it's like watching or something?" He cringed. That definitely wasn't a pleasant thought.
"I don't think it would be particularly interested," Jessica answered, looking at him as if he'd grown a second head. "It never bothered you before. Why are you suddenly asking?"
"Well you weren't - it wasn't quite so obvious before," he replied, trying to tread carefully, though he couldn't quite help glancing at her stomach again.
"So, it is because I'm fat?" She demanded. "I'm getting so repulsive even my own husband doesn't want to have sex with me." Mike felt like screaming in disbelief. Not this again! Why was she acting like some sex deprived maniac?
"No!" He jumped in urgently. "I was just concerned, that's all." She stared at him a second, debating whether he was telling the truth.
"The baby won't care, I promise," she assured him, accepting his explanation. She felt relieved that she wasn't a complete turn off. "So, are you really going to turn down your wife just because of something that isn't even going to realise what is going on?" She whispered, her lips against his ear, lowering her hand between his legs and squeezing him though his pants.
"Jess, that's not fair. I have more willpower than that," he complained though he didn't exactly push away her hand. He found himself responding as her lips touched his, part of him had already accepted it would just be easier to make love to her if he ever wanted any peace. It wasn't that terrible if he just focused on the top half of her body he could almost forget about the rest and try to put any thoughts about the baby to the back of his mind. The ring of the phone interrupted them. Jessica groaned before eventually dragging herself off him and picking it up when it wouldn't stop ringing.
"Hello," she snapped, not able to hide her annoyance at being disturbed.
"What do you want, mom?" Jessica questioned uneasily, both surprised and confused. She instinctively pulled up her dress to cover herself even though she knew her mother couldn't see her. "No, I'm sorry I can't talk now. My husband just promised he'd make wild love to me," she said in a disinterested and matter of fact tone voice before hanging up the phone.
"Jessica!" Mike cried in shock, staring at her in disbelief.
"What?" She said innocently though she knew exactly what he meant, crawling back across the couch and moving onto his lap again. "She's got to get used to us as a couple. Besides you did promise."
"I don't remember promising," he responded with a groan, his tone pleading. Any passion he'd felt in the heat of the moment had disappeared. "Can't we just watch television instead?"
"No, I'm way too horny," she told him, grabbing hold of his collar and falling backwards, pulling him on top of her.
"Jess, that's-," Mike started to complain, wishing she'd be more careful. Thankfully there was a knock on the door saving him. "I'd better go answer it," he offered, speedily jumping up.
"Why is someone knocking at this time of night?" Jessica complained irritably, throwing her head back on the couch.
"It might be important. Something could have happened to someone," he pointed out. "I'm going to get something to eat while you answer it," she called after him, still sulking about the situation. "I'm starving since I didn't get any dinner tonight." As she headed towards the kitchen she looked down to the doorway out of curiosity.
"Who is -." The words died in her throat as she saw a tall glamorous women standing there with him.
"Val," Mike cried, looking shocked but pleasantly so. The woman leaned forward giving him a hug, both of them giggling.
"Are you going to introduce us?" The woman questioned with a contented laugh, looking over his shoulder at Jessica. Mike looked confused and followed her gaze. He pulled back slightly having spotted Jessica but the woman kept her arms around his waist.
"Val, this is my girlfriend Jessica. Jessica, this is Val an old friend," he explained hastily.
"His wife actually. It's so recent he forgets," Jessica informed her coldly, throwing Mike an irritated glance. Val moved away from Mike, picking on Jessica's annoyance.
"Wife, girlfriend, it's all the same, isn't it?" Mike joked. "Or maybe not," he added under his breath seeing Jessica's stony face.
"I'm not disturbing anything, am I?" Val wondered nervously, noticing Jessica's very ruffled appearance.
"Actually-," Jessica began, not caring if she made her feel uncomfortable.
"No, of course not, it's great to see you," he assured her, flashing her a smile.
"I'm sorry to drop in on you so late but I had to catch a late flight and now I can't get the key to my new place until tomorrow. I had nowhere else to go."
"Don't worry about it. You can have our guest room for however long," Mike offered quickly. Much too quickly in Jessica's book. "I'll take your stuff through," he suggested, grabbing her bag before she'd even a chance to respond.
"I'm so grateful. I was worried I'd have to spend the night on the streets," Val told Jessica with a sigh of relief.
"Whatever," Jessica muttered. She wasn't about to pretend to be happy at the situation.
"Do you want a coffee?" Mike called as he came back into the hall.
"After all that flying that sounds good," Val said honestly, following him to the kitchen.
"Actually I'm tired," Jessica called, not following them, trying to get some attention. "I'm going to go to bed."
"Sure baby," Mike called back casually, returning to his conversation with Val. Jessica stood in the living room for a few moments, listening to the giggles coming from the kitchen with growing anger before finally heading to bed.

"You're back late," Liz commented casually as Alex came through the door.
"I was just out with Tom. I meant to leave you a note saying I'd be back late but I had to rush," she apologised.
"Out with Tom?" Liz questioned, looking surprised. For some bizarre reason she wasn't sure she liked that very much. Alex nodded nervously, registering Liz's shocked tone.
"We just went to a beach disco thing," she assured her.
"Oh, oh, ok," Liz stuttered. "I haven't been to one of them since high school," she added keeping her tone light.
"It definitely brought back some memories," Alex admitted. There was a slightly uncomfortable silence. "Liz, you're not bothered about me going out with Tom, are you?" She broke into it awkwardly, her tone matter of fact.
"No, it's none of my business," Liz forced herself to lie, sounding false even to her own ears. She wasn't sure why she was bothered. She definitely wasn't interested in Tom herself. "You must have had a good time to come in so late."
"I did! I'm glad you don't mind Liz because I really like him," Alex informed her with a smile, walking over to her bed and starting to empty out her bag in a slightly dreamy state that reminded Liz of how she had acted when she first got together with Todd. She returned to the book she'd been reading before Alex came in.
"Do you not think it's a little soon after Mark to be getting involved with anyone else?" She asked after a few minutes. Alex shrugged. "Not really. It's been over for a long time between us. It was never going to work once the sports scandal broke."
"But you were so excited when he first came back," Liz pointed out.
"I was excited because I'd thought I'd get back the way it felt those first few weeks of college but that was never going to happen," Alex argued back.
"But sometimes it takes a long time to properly get over someone," Liz persisted.
"Maybe," Alex agreed. "But not this time." She squinted her eyes suspiciously. "Why are you so interested?"
"I just don't want you get hurt," Liz defended herself, which was partly true.
"I won't," Alex told her confidently. "So you don't need to worry." She returned to concentrating on her bag.
"Well, ok then," Liz said flatly, hiding her face behind her book. She wished that she could just be happy for her friend.

"You're definitely a nice thing to wake up to," Mike commented as he opened his eyes, ignoring the look of irritation on Jessica's face, hoping to start today better than yesterday.
"Where were you last night?" Jessica demanded, her voice matching her face.
"Here," Mike replied, completely puzzled. He hadn't left the house all evening once they had got back from Lila's.
"I laid awake for hours waiting for you to come to bed," she snapped bitterly.
"I was just in the living room. Why didn't you come in and join us?" He questioned, sitting up, feeling annoyed at her accusations.
"I didn't think I was invited," she snapped again, sitting up as well, refusing to be out done at expressing annoyance.
"Don't be silly, baby. You should have just gone to sleep. You need plenty of rest. You don't need to wait up for me," he tried to persist with his attempt not to bicker.
"I know I don't need to! I wanted to! You ought to have come to bed too considering you've been so tired lately," she told him sarcastically, reminding him of last night, in no mood for reconciliation. Mike couldn't be bothered to point out that her yelling at him about sex every ten seconds was actually tiring him out.
"It's not like I would have been able to get any sleep anyway," he muttered under his breath.
"What do you mean 'It's not like I would have been able to get any sleep anyway'?" She demanded, pulling away from him.
"Well you snore," he admitted, half mumbling.
"I do not snore," she informed him defensively.
"You have the last week or so," he mumbled again, wishing he hadn't said anything.
"I do not snore," she screeched irritably. "Even if I did I can't exactly help it."
"I've got to get ready for work," he told her as he got out of bed, quickly heading to the bathroom before she could moan anymore. Jessica sighed and chucked the sheets to the side in annoyance before going to the kitchen for some breakfast. She was starving since after Val showed up she'd been put off getting any food. She halted in the doorway spotting her pouring a cup of coffee. Refusing to be pushed out in her own home she breezed in.
"Would you like a cup?" Val asked politely.
"No, I can't," she mumbled. The midwife had lectured her about trying to keep her caffeine intake low after Jessica had drunk three cups in a row in front of her. She slouched down in one of the kitchen chairs. They looked at each other a few moments before Val broke into the silence.
"Are you pregnant?" She questioned pleasantly, picking up on the signs. She gestured with her eyes towards Jessica's bump as she joined her at the table. "I hope you don't mind me asking."
"Yes," she grumbled, not hiding her irritation. She was irritated that they'd spent all night talking and yet Mike hadn't bothered to mention that 'insignificant' detail. Had he even mentioned her at all? And annoyed that it was getting so obvious she was. She was also annoyed that Val would probably now assume they'd just got married because she was
pregnant.
"How far along are you?" Val asked with a hint of hesitation following Jessica's previous reaction. "Seventeen weeks," Jessica answered simply, not wanting to encourage any more discussion. "Wow, it's hardly showing considering. A lot of women are much bigger at that stage," Val commented with an easy smile. Despite her dislike for Val she couldn't quite resist a smile at the fact she wasn't looking huge already, even though the fact she was showing at all was upsetting her. However she wasn't about to be pleasant to her husband's 'guest'.
"Well, I'm still too big," she snapped. Val laughed. She actually laughed!
"You've got to be kidding. It hardly shows. You couldn't even see it last night. I only really noticed because there was a pregnancy magazine in the living room and the fact that there was a jar of pickled eggs mixed with peanut butter," she explained, pulling a horrified face. Jessica was about to inform her that it was actually very appetising once you tried it but she carried on talking. "You've chosen exactly the right clothes to flatter it as well," Val assured her with a smile. Jessica pursed her lips. Why was this woman sucking up to her? But then she was never one to ignore being complimented on her fashion sense.
"Really? You think so?"
"Definitely and I should know, I've worked in the fashion industry for years," she informed Jessica with a knowing wink.
"Wow," Jessica breathed, feeling slightly in awe. She'd always wanted to work in fashion. "I figured if I wore mainly black with a bit of colour on the edges it would help slim it slightly," she explained, regaining her composure.
"You're not boring Val with clothes are you, Jess?" A familiar male voice interrupted. "I'm sure she has enough of that at work."
"No, she wasn't boring me. She was actually giving me some helpful tips," Val told him, offering Jessica a smile.
"Like you need tips," he kidded, taking a seat next to Val at the table, much to Jessica's annoyance. She couldn't deny she'd started to think maybe Val wasn't as bad as she'd originally thought but seeing her sitting so close to her husband quickly quashed that notion.
"You'd be surprised, taking advice is the best way to stay head in the fashion industry."
"So, where are you working now?" He questioned casually. Jessica shook her head and got up from the table. Suddenly she felt excluded in her own home.

"Miss Winkler, please take a seat," the doctor said in a professional tone. "How can I help you?"
"Um, Um-." She felt embarrassed having to explain the mess she'd managed to make of her own life. Chas had offered to come with her but she couldn't handle the thought of deceiving Steven anymore. "I had, I had-."
"Miss Winkler, I'm not here to judge if you explain the problem I'll treat it the best I can," the doctor told her picking up on her hesitation.
"I had unprotected sex a while ago and I need to be tested for chlamydia," Billie explained bluntly, deciding just to spit it out before she completely lost her nerve. The doctor gave her what Billie was certain was a disapproving look but he didn't say anything.
"What reason do you have to believe you might have chlamydia?" The doctor continued in a matter of fact tone.
"My-." She stopped her sentence, unsure how to refer to Chas. "The guy I slept with just found out his ex-girlfriend has it."
"I'll refer you to the clinic," he told her, quickly bringing up the details on his computer. "The next available slot is Wednesday next week. Is that suitable for you?"
"Next week?" Billie squealed in disbelief. "I can't wait that long!" The doctor looked shocked at her reaction and glanced at his computer screen again.
"Well, we have a cancellation this afternoon," he offered.
"That's fine," Billie agreed quickly. She would just have to miss class this afternoon. It's not like she would be able to concentrate anyway.
"And of course it would be advisable to inform anyone you've had intercourse with recently to get themselves tested," the doctor advised her bluntly. A horrified look came over her. She'd realised that Steven would have to know but the thought of telling him made her feel physically sick with worry.
"Miss Winkler," the doctor said reassuringly, seeing the look on her face, his attitude softening. "This should be perfectly treatable but obviously you'll want to be more careful in future."
"Of course." Billie agreed. She didn't need to be told, at that moment she felt like her one mistake was going to haunt her for the rest of her life.

Jessica sank back in the tub. She was reading a pregnancy magazine, or at least she had been before a much more interesting fashion magazine caught her eye. Unfortunately it was kind of depressing to look at the thin models with perfectly flat stomachs when hers seemed to be getting less and less perfectly flat each day. She couldn't help herself though. It was kind of like looking at a car crash. She also had the phone cradled between her neck and ear.
"So now he reckons I snore as well," she complained to Lila. "Obviously I don't snore, do I?" She asked rhetorically. She didn't bother to tell Lila about the response on the question page of her magazine explaining that an increase in circulating blood volume can make pregnant women snore when they didn't before.
"You never did when you used to stay over at mine," the voice on the other end assured her confidently. "So, is that Val woman still there?"
"No, she's gone out thankfully!" Jessica said irritably. "I don't know who she thinks she is!"
"Mike's friend," Lila suggested much to Jessica's annoyance. She refused to rise to the bait though. She was a mature married woman now after all.
"Do you think he'll still be attracted to me now I'm fat?" Jessica enquired, worried that he hadn't seemed very enthusiastic last night.
"Well, I wouldn't recommend getting any fatter," Lila responded truthfully, sinking Jessica further into depression. She heard a knock on the front door.
"Sorry I've got to go, Lila." She quickly put down the phone before Lila could respond. She grabbed a towel and headed to the door hoping it would be Liz, she always knew how to cheer someone up. Besides Liz hadn't completely lost all the weight she'd gained when they first got to college which would make her feel better about her own weight gain.
"Mom!" She cried in disbelief pulling the towel closer around her.
"I couldn't leave it like it was yesterday, I just had to see you," Mrs Wakefield explained to Jessica as she returned to the living room of her and Mike's apartment having chucked on some loose clothes. Mrs Wakefield was sitting awkwardly on the couch. Jessica hesitated a moment before responding. She was angry with her mother for letting her father treat her that way but she had more important things to consider.
"I tried to talk to you but you didn't want to know. You didn't want to know about your grandchild or me! You didn't even ask how we were," Jessica replied bitterly. Mrs Wakefield sighed in frustration. She was uncertain of how to say what she wanted to tell her daughter.
"Jessica, it's a bit soon to be talking about my grandchild. You have a lot of things to think about." Her voice was full of meaning.
"Why is it too soon? I'm past the first trimester now. That's the most risky time," she told her simply, refusing to contemplate what she knew her mother was suggesting. Her mother sighed again. She didn't know how to convince her daughter that she was making a mistake.
"Jessica, realistically what do you have to offer this child?" She questioned bluntly.
"We're going to love it and it'll have parents who are in love. That's a lot more than a lot of children get," Jessica informed her.
"You hardly know each other, you can't be in love," her mother corrected, her resolve to reason with her daughter slipping away.
"I love him and he does love me. I know he loves me." "If he cared about you he wouldn't have let you get in this state."
"He didn't let me. It wasn't planned! It's just as much my fault as it is his," she told her mother truthfully.
"If you had to have sex why weren't you taking proper precautions?" Mrs Wakefield was shaking her head as in disbelief at her daughter's stupidity.
"We've just been unlucky," Jessica responded honestly. "Not that it matters anymore. It's my baby no matter how it was conceived."
"But maybe if you would at least consider an abortion you could wait for the right time." She finally put the word out there. Her voice was quiet as if already sensing her daughter wouldn't agree.
"I'm seventeen weeks pregnant now. The procedure gets more complicated the further along you are," Jessica pointed out, not even wanting to consider what her mother was suggesting. She'd made her decision a long time ago.
"It can't be more complicated than bringing up a child," she stated plainly, although she could see how her attached her daughter was to her baby now, she knew she still had to at least try.
"It doesn't matter if it's completely the wrong time. I want mine and Mike's child. I love him." Jessica looked down at the floor, avoiding her mother's eye contact.
"Maybe you think that now but you're too young to really know," Alice told her with certainty.
"I'm not too young to know," Jessica told her touching her bump defensively as if her mother might harm her just by looking at her.
"Are you ok?" Her mother asked neutrally, refusing to feel a connection to her unborn grandchild. Her only concern was her daughter.
"I'm fine."
"Oh," she answered flatly. "You're going to regret this, Jessica. I'm telling you that now. You'll miss your freedom."
"No, I won't," Jessica lied, her mother's words hitting a bit too close to home. "I think you'd better just go." Tears welled up in her eyes.
"Jessica, from what Steven tells me Mike isn't someone to be trusted. He's-," Alice began, trying her last line of argument.
"That's my husband you're talking about!" She interrupted defensively. "I really think you'd better go." She quickly ushered her out the door not saying a word. Jessica stood in the doorway for a few moments, her eyes in the same direction her mother had headed.
"Jess, was mom here? I just noticed her car." Her brother's voice brought her out of her trance. She gave him an annoyed look before turning in the door.
"What was that for?" Steven demanded, sounding shocked.
"You've been talking to mom and dad about Mike," she turned on him.
"Jess, they asked me. I had to say something," he tried to defend himself, although in truth he felt he had spoken out of turn.
"Steven, you know how hard I'm trying to get them to accept him and you just bad mouthed him." Her mother had made that obvious.
"I had to tell them the truth. You know how I feel about Mike."
"I thought you'd always be on my side," she said sarcastically, reminding him of his promise.
"I am on your side but I can't help how I feel about Mike," he blurted out, finally breaking his own personal promise to try and bury those feelings deep down inside of him. He couldn't help it. This man had married his little sister and got her pregnant behind everyone's back and all within a few months of meeting her and he was expected to just accept it.
"So, all that was a lie then?" Jessica spat out. She wanted to yell at him but she was too hurt to find the energy.
"No, of course not, you're twisting it all. The way I feel about Mike doesn't change the way I feel about you."
"I love Mike, you wouldn't spit on him if he was on fire, pretty big sticking point don't you think?" She demanded her voicing raising.
"But I still love you," he argued fruitlessly.
"What about the baby? It's going to be half Mike. Does that mean you'll hate the baby as well?"
"No, of course not!" Steven knew he would do what was right by his nephew or niece. However he couldn't deny that it stuck in his throat that his nephew or niece was going to be Mike McAllery's son or daughter.
"It's a pity I can't believe you," she whispered as she stepped inside and closed the door.

Billie found herself nervously biting her nails as the clinician examined the piece of paper containing her results. She quickly pulled her hand away in shock. She hadn't bit her nails since she was a kid.
"It's good news, Miss Winkler," the clinician explained pleasantly, turning his chair to face her. "All the tests we did came back negative." Billie fought the urge to jump in the air and run around like a lunatic. She couldn't speak. She felt like she'd been pumped full of helium gas. She suddenly didn't feel like she was really in the room anymore.
"Thank you," she said curtly pulling herself together slightly, finally finding her voice.
"I hope in future you'll be more careful otherwise you might be less lucky next time," he commented with a pointed look before giving her a half smile.
"Of course," She agreed quickly, taking her cue to leave. As she went through the door she felt as if she was leaving something behind, she wasn't quite sure exactly what though. Maybe it was a little bit of her innocence or maybe it was the double life she'd been leading. She just
didn't know. She walked quickly out the health centre, almost running, before finally collapsing on a bench outside. She took in a deep breath trying to calm the flurry of emotions that was bubbling up in her stomach. Her elation had passed and now all she felt was a strange sense of relief and exhaustion, mingled with guilt. She couldn't believe everything that had happened to her in the last few months and she couldn't believe how lucky she'd been to avoid everything crashing down around her. She didn't know what had got into her or what had happened to her and Steven's relationship. It didn't seem like that long ago she'd been so
happy with him and she'd thought they were a model couple but that was before his sisters had arrived on campus. For a second she felt anger at Liz and Jessica but she reminded herself that they hadn't forced her to cheat on Steven. That had been all her own doing. She had never believed that she would cheat on him, she'd always thought that if she was attracted to someone else she would do the right thing by Steven and tell him the truth before starting any new relationship. She would treat him the way she would expect him to treat her if he met anyone else. The problem was that she was still in love with Steven and she didn't want
their relationship to come to an end but for some reason she found or at least she had found spending time with Chas appealing. She forced herself to honestly decide whether she loved Chas. It didn't take her long to figure out the truth. She wasn't in love with him. He'd just been there when she'd need him. They had fun together whereas she couldn't remember the last time she had truly had fun with Steven. He always seemed to be more interested in his sister's husband whereas Chas made her feel like the most important person in the world. She couldn't understand Steven's obsession. Mike had his problems but anyone could see he adored Jessica. He hadn't forced Jessica to marrying him and the pregnancy had taken everybody by surprise but Steven seemed determined to lay the blame all at Mike's feet. She might have been able to accept Steven's dislike of Mike, however unfair it was, if he hadn't insisted on spending the majority of his time thinking of ways to split up a relationship that was none of his business and ignoring theirs. She could certainly agree with him that Jessica was immature for an eighteen year old and not really mature enough to be in this situation. However she had to give Jessica credit that she was trying to take this pregnancy in her stride and was at least trying to do what she believed was best, even though of course only time would really tell what was best. She couldn't understand what he hoped to achieve by lecturing her. He would only end up isolating Jessica from her family completely. She couldn't deny that after Jessica's scare at the hospital Steven had seemed to realise just how
fed up she was becoming with the whole situation and he had made much more of an effort ever since. He had tried to talk to her about things other than his sister's predicament but she could sense that his mind was still really else where. She also hadn't been able to throw herself completely into repairing the damage done to their relationship as she'd been consumed with guilt ever since she'd slept with Chas. She didn't really know what could truly repair their relationship and whether she could truly accept that it seemed she would always be lower down on his list of priorities than his family.

"Jess, I'm not ignoring you. I told you when got here that I'm busy. I have to get this done," Mike countered as Jessica complained for the countless time.
"And here I was thinking you would be pleased to see your wife," she moaned grumpily.
"I am pleased. I just don't think a garage is exactly the best place for a pregnant woman," he explained.
"Can't you worry about me instead of the baby for once?" She demanded harshly.
"I'm worried about both of you," he corrected.
"Are you really sure I snore?" Jessica questioned bluntly, changing the conversation.
"I'm at work. I don't need nagging, baby." He figured if he added baby she wouldn't yell quite as loud.
"I'm not nagging," she screamed, disproving his theory. "I just want to know."
"Ok, then if you really want to know lately it's been like sleeping with a train," he answered flatly.
"Well, it's a pity one doesn't come along and run you over," she spat out bitterly, half bursting into tears.
"You wanted to know the truth," he pointed out helplessly.
"I didn't really," she told him, as if he was supposed to have realised that. "Besides it's not even my fault. It's your baby's fault."
"How come it's only 'my' baby when it does something you don't like?" He questioned, finally noticing that it was only 'his' when she'd had morning sickness or was tired or upset in general.
"Ok, our baby." She rolled her eyes at what she saw as his pettiness.
"How exactly is 'our' baby responsible for your snoring?" He wondered although he was only mildly curious. He couldn't honestly say it mattered much to him. At the end of the day she'd still be snoring and he still wouldn't be sleeping.
"It's something to do with an increase in the blood volume circulating during pregnancy." Her voice was full of hormonal misery.
"Jessica, you can't be this upset about snoring," he cried in disbelief. "What's really bothering you?"
"I went to see my mother yesterday," she informed him honestly, deciding not to mention she'd seen her today as well.
"What?" He asked, looking confused.
"I went to see her yesterday," she repeated.
"What? Why?" He stuttered, clearly still shocked.
"I just thought - I just thought she might have changed her mind," she explained nervously, feeling stupid to have even have believed it for even a second.
"Why would she have done that?" Mike demanded, making her feel even more stupid.
"Well I am carrying her grandchild," she defended herself. Obviously she had got her to think twice since she came to see her today.
"No, you're not. You're carrying our child! That's all that matters." "But she wants to be part of the baby's life. I know she does. It's just dad is-," Jessica tried to make him understand. Even though she was still angry with her mother she felt the need to defend her.
"They hate me, Jess, I'm not blind," Mike interrupted.
"They don't hate anyone. They're just surprised," she argued, using her sister's line. "When I saw mom she was ready to accept it but then Dad doesn't approve so she can't."
"Jessica, it's our baby, we don't need their approval."
"I know that," she agreed. "I just want it to have a family."
"It will have a family. Me and you will be it's family!" He replied dismissively.
"It's not the same. That's not a family," Jessica countered. She was used to having an extended family and wasn't confident she could accept her son or daughter missing out on that.
"It's more than I ever had," he responded bitterly.
"I'm sorry," she apologised guiltily. It hadn't occurred to her how her words might make her husband feel. "Maybe it's more about me than the baby. I want my family."
"You've got a family," Mike reassured her.
"I know I have, I know I have," she repeated. "But I miss my parents."
"You can't change your parents' mind." His voice was harsh.
"I know I can't," she whispered.
"Jess, it's not good for you to stress out about things that can't be changed," Mike carried on distractedly.
"I'm lonely. It would help if you kept me company," she said with a pout, hoping he'd knock off work for the afternoon.
"I've got to get on," he said firmly, shaking his head. "I've got things to sort out." "I guess I'll go see if Isabella's in," she responded grumpily. He opened his mouth to reply but the door opened.
"Hi, Val," Mike said pleasantly. "Did you get everything sorted?"
"Finally," Val said with a nod. "I just thought I'd come and see about that car you mentioned." "Sure, I'll just get cleaned up and we can go see it." Jessica stared in disbelief. The woman had only been here a day and she showed up at Mike's work without thinking twice about it. Obviously she'd been invited and that explained why Mike was so eager to get rid of her.
"I's funny how you're too busy for me but you can drop everything for her," Jessica screamed slamming the garage door as she stormed out.