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Disclaimer - Emmerdale & its characters do not belong to me, they belong to ITV
At first Jackson wasn't sure what it was that had woke him up and as he adjusted to the light in the room, or rather the lack of light in the room he heard voices, hushed voices that if it hadn't been so quiet in the house he would never have heard. He couldn't quite make them out but it sounded as if one of the voices belonged to Lucy.
The clock, well the alarm was Aaron side of the bed and carefully so he didn't wake his sleeping lover Jackson leaned over him to get a better look. 03:35 was flashing on the display. With a groan Jackson's head fell back against the pillow as he tried to fall asleep once more.
After ten minutes of trying Jackson knew he wasn't going to get back to sleep. Not when the voices he could clear were becoming so much clearer to him. He had to get up; he had to see who was talking.
Opening his bedroom door and stepping out onto the landing Jackson took one last look behind him, to make sure Aaron was still fast asleep, he was.
He could make the voices out now, they were hushed but they were two voices he would know anywhere. They belonged to Lucy and Harry. Now all he had to do was figure what room they were coming from.
He took a step and the floorboard underneath him creaked and the voices stopped immediately, the next thing Jackson knew Lucy's room door was being opened.
"Jackson!" she says, relief flooding her face "Thank god it was you" she lets out a breath she had been holding "what are you doing up?"
Jackson shrugs and walks towards her, peering over her should he looks at his son "Interrupting something am i?" he asks and the two of them quickly shake their heads.
Jackson licks his lips and looks between the two of them "gonna invite me in or do I wake Aaron"
Lucy stands aside and allows Jackson into her room. Jackson steps inside and she closes the door behind him "Looks like we have some things to talk about" Jackson says "doesn't it?"
Lucy and Harry share a quick, worried look then say "No"
Jackson laughs "Thanks" he says "For just confirming my suspicions"
"What are you on about?" Harry asks his eyebrows pull together as he tries to act dumb.
"The fact that I'm going to be a Grandad and not just because Aaron's daughter is pregnant and I'm seeing him" he tells them.
"I don't know what you think…" Harry starts to say but Jackson glares at him and says "do not try to insult my intelligence alright? It was obvious by her reaction this afternoon and now? Finding you two having a cosy chat at 4 in the morning just confirms it"
"Dad can't find out" Lucy says "He just can't"
Harry nods, agreeing with her "Well" Jackson says "if you intend on keeping the baby he's going to have to find out sooner or later"
Lucy walks back to the bed and sits beside Harry "We haven't decided yet" she admits "It's still early"
Jackson nods and before he can say anything Lucy speaks again.
"Jackson. Dad can't find out"
Jackson shakes his head "I can't not tell him Lucy"
She looks at the floor "He'll flip"
"He'll get used to it" Jackson assures her but she's shaking her head and Harry says "not with you two still intact"
Jackson looks at him "You what?"
"You two will split up because of this. Dad will flip, probably try to kill Harry which will cause you two to fight and we don't want you to split up. That's what we've been sitting up talking about"
"Don't worry about us" Jackson tells them "You two come first"
Lucy shakes her head disagreeing with him "I split you two up once. I don't want to do that again. My Dad loves you. I don't want to do anything to hurt that"
"We don't keep secrets from each other" Jackson reminds them "That's how we work"
"This is pretty big secret. Please don't tell him. Not yet? Leave it until I've decided what I'm going to do"
Jackson takes a deep breath then exhales. He doesn't know what to do. Lucy is right. Aaron would flip and try to kill Harry which would be the end of their relationship but on the other hand, if he told him, maybe they could avoid that? He didn't know what to do for the best. It was late and he just wanted to get back to sleep, he wanted to sleep on it.
"I'll sleep on it" he tells them "see how I feel in the morning"
They nod
"In the mean time, you" he says looking at Harry "Get back to your own room, if Aaron wakes up and finds you in here he'll work it out" Harry nods and stands up, making for the door
"Night" he says, as he walks out "no sneaking back in or I will tell him"
"Alright!" Harry says over his shoulder as he walks into his own room.
Jackson walks to Lucy and pulls her into his arms "It'll be alright" he promises her and she wraps her arms around his waist. Hugging him as tight as she can "I hope so"
Jackson kisses the top of her head "You do what you want. Don't listen to anybody else, alright?"
"Yeah" she agrees, offering a weak smile too.
Jackson quietly made his way back into the bedroom; he was being as quiet as possible so he didn't wake up Aaron. That was the last thing he needed or the kids needed. It would be one hell of a morning if he woke up and found out what Jackson had just found out. He still couldn't quite get his head around it. Lucy was pregnant; he could deal with that but Harry being the Dad? That was a different situation altogether.
He slipped back into his side of the bed, his back to Aaron but it didn't take long before he felt an arm slip over his waist, a hand at his stomach and Aaron's body pressed against his back. Despite the situation and how he was feeling Jackson smiled "what you doing awake?" he asks quietly.
He feels Aaron press a kiss to the back of his neck "realised you weren't in bed, been drifting in and out. Where were you?" he mumbles quietly.
Jackson links his fingers through Aaron's with the hand that was currently on his stomach "bathroom" he whispers and in reply he hears a soft "mmmm" coming from his lover and before he knows it both of them have succumbed to sleep once again.
It's 6am when the alarm goes off in the bedroom, wakening both of the sleeping men. Aaron groans as he reaches out an arm from the warm bed to shut off the alarm "that should really be on your side" he mumbles "then it won't wake me up"
Jackson turns around so he's facing him "It would, you just hate moving to turn it off"
"Too right" Aaron replies without opening his eyes and Jackson can't help but press a kiss to his lips. Before he can pull away though Aaron has deepened the kiss and his hands are moving all over Jackson's body.
It takes all of Jackson's will power to pull away. "I've got to go to work. I've got a meeting at half seven"
Aaron sighs and his whole body falls on top of Jackson because during their rather heated kiss he had managed to get him onto his back and he was on top of him. With his head at Jackson's shoulder Aaron begins to kiss it softly, soft, wet open mouthed kisses that leave Jackson struggling to tell him to move.
"Aaron!" he hisses, hoping it will stop him because Jackson isn't sure he can push him away.
"We didn't get to do this last night" Aaron tells him, pulling back so he can stare into his deep brown eyes "I shared my feelings" he says scrunching his face up and Jackson can't help but laugh
"Don't you feel better now that you did?"
Aaron shrugs and pulls a face, that's his way of saying "yes" without actually saying a word.
"Gonna let me up?" Jackson asks, his own hands finding their way onto Aaron's back, running his short nails up and down in a way he knows Aaron loves.
"Not if you keep that up" he's informed "I'll make you late for your meeting"
Jackson smirks "You couldn't last that long"
Aaron's eyes widen in shock "Take that back" he demands but Jackson shakes his head "Nope"
"Well" Aaron starts as he rolls off of his lover "just for that. I'm not going to keep you"
It's a Saturday which means no school, no work no nothing. Lucy's pregnancy had seldom been talked about in the house. Jackson had mentioned to anyone about what he had learned on Friday morning, not even Harry and Lucy. He was still trying to decide what to do about it.
Aaron had noticed an atmosphere in the house. He had noticed Jackson, Lucy and Harry exchanging weird looks and he was beginning to get worried or suspicious even. Did they know something he didn't? Surely not, because Jackson wouldn't keep anything from him, would he?
Jackson was in the kitchen when Aaron cornered him "Do you know something I don't?" he asks bluntly, just as Lucy is walking into the kitchen. She stops dead at the door, eyes wide and worried.
"You what?" Jackson asks playing dumb and managing to keep his face neutral. Aaron either hasn't noticed that Lucy is behind him or doesn't care because he doesn't look at her, he stays focused on Jackson.
"You and Lucy, you keep sharing funny looks. Did you think I wouldn't notice?"
Jackson tuts and says "You're being paranoid"
"No I'm not" he's informed "don't try to turn this on me. You know something"
"I don't know anything"
Lucy doesn't know what to do. She was witnessing what was bound to become a full scale argument because her Dad and Jackson knew each other inside out. Of course Aaron would notice that Jackson was keeping something from him. Silently she stepped backwards out of the kitchen and went in search of Harry. They had to own up, Harry had to man up and face her Dad. With Jackson and her in the same room they'd be able to stop Aaron doing anything, surely.
After what seemed like a life time of trying to convince Harry to come downstairs with her and face her Dad she finally managed to convince him. He was terrified that was clear to see. Aaron had a temper, everyone knew it.
As their feet landed on the hallway just outside the kitchen they both took a deep breath. They could hear the raised voices of their Fathers and they know they had to do something to stop it.
"Don't lie to me Jackson!" Aaron is almost yelling now and they're both in each other's faces. Neither one of them willing to back down first.
"Dad" Lucy tries but she is ignored by both men until Jackson's gaze flicks to her. His eyes widen and his head shakes. In front of him stood Harry and Lucy, holding hands. This wasn't going to go down well.
Jackson's reaction confused Aaron and he turned around. At first he couldn't see anything wrong with the scene in front of him, that was until his eyes dropped down a little to the hands that were currently entwined.
Aaron stumbled back a few steps hitting the kitchen counter. He can't believe what he's seeing. He suspected it but for it to be right there, in front of him he wasn't sure what he was going to do.
Looking at the faces of Lucy and Harry he could tell they were scared, he looked at Jackson and he just looked worried and uncertain.
"Dad…" Lucy's voice snaps him out of him own little world "Is it him?" Aaron says through clenched teeth and he's answered by a small nod from both Lucy and Harry.
Aaron turns his attention to Jackson and is amused to notice that Jackson has moved his position so he's in-between him and the kids. What did he think he was going to do?
"You knew?" he says, in a quiet voice. Jackson just looks at him and Aaron can read that look. "You didn't tell me?" he says "we promised not to keep secrets"
"Aaron…"
"Don't Aaron me!" he exclaims "Your son gets my daughter pregnant and you don't tell me?"
"I just…I was waiting"
"For what? Her to have it?"
"Dad I asked him not to tell you" Lucy says. She moves away from Harry, leaving him at the door because that's a safe distance and she makes her way closer to Aaron, to her Dad "He was trying to protect me"
"From me?" Aaron asks, slightly hurt by that comment "No, well yes, from how you'd react. I don't even know what I'm doing and you finding out and blowing up wasn't going to help anyone."
Aaron is staring at Harry. Harry has yet to say anything "You forgot how to speak?" Aaron asks him and his head snaps up, looking at him and he shakes his head.
"Speak then"
"Aaron don't start" Jackson warns him. He's not about to let Aaron go off on his son. "Oh so it's alright that he got her pregnant?"
"It takes two to make a baby" Jackson reminds him and Aaron's eyebrows raise, he gives Jackson a look "is that right? Are you saying this is Lucy's fault"
"He's not saying that" Lucy butts in
"I'm saying it was an accident and instead of you, trying to sort things out the way you usually do why don't we all just calm down?"
"I'm calm" Aaron says, which is clearly a lie "don't I look calm to you?" he asks his voice rising "Why wouldn't I be calm? Finding my boyfriend knew his son knocked my daughter up and didn't tell me, WHY THE HELL WOULDN'T I BE CALM!"
That was it. The dam was burst and the only thing that could be heard from inside or outside of the house was raised, angry voices. They mostly belonged to Aaron and Jackson. They were yelling at each other. Mostly about keeping secrets and lying to each other. Lucy and Harry were trying to calm it down but they weren't being listened to and Lucy was trying to keep Harry away from her Dad, just in case.
Everything was going wrong. She knew that he wouldn't be pleased she was pregnant or pleased that Harry was the Father but she never, not for a minute expected this. The argument between the two men was getting worse. Lucy was worried.
"Dad, stop it" she begs pulling on his arm. He doesn't even react.
"Dad!" this time it's Harry talking to Jackson "Leave it. Come on"
Jackson tears his eyes away from Aaron and looks at Lucy and Harry "It's alright" he assures them "Well it's not but it will be"
With that said Jackson takes a step back and walks out of the kitchen. Lucy looks at her Dad but he just looks stunned.
"What did you do?" she whispers "What did I do?" he asks "he lied to me"
Lucy shook her head "He was protecting me. He loves me just like you do. He would have told you. Now you just told him you don't want him?"
"I didn't…Didn't…Did i?" he asks. He's not clear about what exactly he said during their argument moments earlier. Words just seemed to roll off his tongue.
Lucy nods "You both said things. This was meant to be about me and my baby and you turn it around to everyone being against you?"
Harry has followed his Dad out of the kitchen and ends up in his bedroom, Jackson and Aaron's bedroom "what you doing Dad?" he asks
"Nothing" Jackson replies as he opens and closes doors
"We're not leaving are we? He didn't mean that"
Jackson stops. He turns to face Harry and says "Of course not" he laughs "I'm just taking some space" he tells him "before we kill each other"
"You took the heat off me for a little while. He'll rant at me sooner or later"
Jackson and Harry soon hear shouting coming from downstairs. It's coming from Aaron and Lucy "Should we?" Harry asks but Jackson shakes his head.
"They need to have this out" he tells him "it's between the two of them now"
In the kitchen Lucy and Aaron are standing at an arm's length from each other. Shouting "I can't believe how much of an idiot you are!" Lucy informs her Father.
"Pushing Jackson away just to make yourself feel better when you know that in one or two hour's time you're gonna regret it. He's the best thing that ever happened to you Dad. I know it, you know it and everybody knows it! "
"You and Harry should have stayed away from each other then huh? Instead of having sex"
Lucy sighs and rolls her eyes "We're seventeen, we have sex!" she announces "if it wasn't him it would have been someone else!"
"Oh so you're a slut then are you?" he asks and before he has time to regret those words Lucy has stepped forward and slapped him across the face. They both stand there, stunned into silence. Lucy by her actions and Aaron by his words.
Lucy moves out of the kitchen and into the back garden. Aaron walks away too, he walks out into the hall and out of the house. Jackson watches him get into his car from their bedroom window. He doesn't know what's gone on but he knows it must have been bad.
"I'm gonna…" Harry says, making a move towards the door but Jackson shakes his head "Get in your room" he tells him "stay there"
Jackson walks into the back garden and before he's had a chance to say anything Lucy turns around and launches herself into his arms as she cries on his shoulder.
"It's alright" he promises her "it'll be alright"
A/N - LIKE IT? LOVE IT? HATE IT? LET ME KNOW & I'LL WORK ON THE NEXT CHAPTER!