*This one's kind of short. But here have nervous Leanne, adorable Ethan, and over-the-moon Noa.

**P.S. There's only a few more chapters left :(

They had arrived at the doctor's office with five minutes to spare and Ethan had watched as Leanne had signed in with trembling hands. He knew he wasn't the only one nervous for this appointment, in fact, he was pretty sure that he had no right to be nervous at this point. It was Leanne's body that was about to go through a shock, not his. And while he knew that women went decade's between having children, he also knew that twelve years was a stretch that her body might not be able to handle. She had also confided in him about how her injuries from her accident might have hindered her ability to get pregnant in the first place, so he could only imagine what that might mean for her in terms of carrying a child. He just wanted her to be safe, a healthy baby at the end of nine months was the bonus, but he had already prepared his heart for the worst. And he knew she had too.

She had held his hand tightly while they waited for her name to be called and he had done his best to offer her the support he knew she needed. He felt like he was failing though when she stood and started to pace, her face doing nothing to hide her fears. He wished he knew how to help her. He wished he knew just what to say to make it all better, but he unfortunately didn't, so he resorted to folding his hands in his lap and dropping his head down, saying a silent prayer to whoever might be up there that this appointment wouldn't leave them hurting.

"Leanne Rorish." A soft voice called through the waiting room and he snapped his eyes up to see an older looking woman with a clipboard eyeing them softly. He imagined that she was probably used to this type of greeting.

Rising from his seat he gently took Leanne's hand in his and walked her toward the door. "That's us." He replied quietly, squeezing her trembling hand as he did his best to offer the nurse a smile.

"I'm Rebecca." She extended her hand toward them, but Ethan was the only one who took it. He prayed she didn't think that Leanne was being rude. "It's nice to meet you."

"Hi Rebecca." He shook her hand gently as he tugged Leanne through the door. "I'm Ethan. This is Leanne." He nodded his head to the side, toward his quiet partner, and he was thankful when Rebecca offered her a simple head nod, the small smile on her face never leaving.

"Come on back." She gestured behind her slowly, escorting them toward a room with a soft sigh. Once inside she instructed Leanne to follow her, claiming that she needed to get a few vitals before the doctor arrived. Ethan had just offered them both a soft smile before sinking into the chair by the door.

You guys make it to the doctor yet? He let out a sigh at Noa's words as they stared back at him. They had confided in the young resident about their situation over the weekend, feeling that someone needed to know just in case something happened. He was surprised that Leanne hadn't suggested Jesse, but then again, he figured that Noa was probably easier to keep quiet than the nurse.

Waiting to see her now. He typed back, his head falling back against the wall with a sigh. His whole body was shaking. He couldn't even fathom being in this position right now. He was unsure how men did this multiple times.

Let me know what they say? He let out a soft chuckle at the girl's words. Of course they weren't going to be able to keep her in the dark about anything from here on it. He was silently thankful for that. It felt good to have someone to confide in about his worries.

In fact, he had talked the poor girl's ear off Sunday night about all of his concerns and worries. He had laid it all out for her. The trickiness of getting pregnant, the fear of Leanne not being able to handle it, both physically and emotionally. The fear of telling Ellie, of rocking her poor little world once again. His worries of not being able to be the man that Leanne needed, the father that his children deserved. Noa had listened intently and then had soothed all his woes with comforting words about knowing that everything happened for a reason. He had never been more thankful to have the girl in his life than he had in that very moment.

The sound of the door opening brought him out of his thoughts and he watched with a soft smile as Rebecca returned, Leanne trailing behind her quietly. He noticed some of the sadness in Leanne's eyes was gone, and he was thankful that maybe the nurse had gotten through to her some. She instructed Leanne to change into a gown and that she and the doctor would be back soon. He watched with gentle eyes as Leanne did just that, folding her clothes and placing them in the chair beside his once she was done.

"Hey." He reached out for her then, standing so that he could be next to her. "I love you." He whispered, dropping a kiss to her head softly. "More than anything."

"I know." She whispered back, the first words she had spoken since they had left Ellie at school almost thirty minutes ago. "I love you too." Her voice was soft and he could hear her fighting back every emotion that was running through her body. He just wanted to scoop her up in his arms and hold her tight and never let go. But then the door opened behind them and Rebecca entered the room, followed by a younger woman with long red hair, and Ethan was forced to keep his hands at bay, choosing to hold onto Leanne's softly as they began the process.

—

The appointment had gone off without a hitch and Leanne had excitedly called Noa as they made their way back across town toward Ellie's school, her free hand holding onto Ethan's tightly as they drove.

"Soooo…" The girl's voice was elevated and Ethan let out a chuckle as Leanne moved to put the call on speaker. "How did it go?" She asked excitedly.

"Great." Leanne's voice was soft and Ethan was thankful for the fact that the doctor had been able to calm her woes during their somewhat quick appointment.

"So everything's okay?" He could hear the hesitation in the red head's voice and he knew that she was just as worried as they were.

"Everything's fine." He said back softly, hoping to calm her woes quickly.

"Oh thank God." She let out a breath on the other end of the phone and they both let out a chuckle at her words. He knew that Noa had been waiting on pins and needles for those words. Just like they had. "What did they say?"

"Well…" Leanne's voice was quiet and Ethan watched as she shifted her eyes toward him, silently asking for his permission to go further. He nodded his head slowly, bringing her hand up to his lips and pressing a kiss against the smooth skin. "I'm a little further along than we thought."

"By how much?" The girl's tone was reflective of the feelings that Ethan had had when the doctor had said those same words to them.

"Turns out it's more like fifteen weeks, not nine." Leanne replied back, her eyes sparkling in the mid-morning sun. He still couldn't believe that they had gone so long without knowing. He had expressed his concern to the doctor immediately, knowing that Leanne hadn't started pre-natal vitamins until the day after the home tests came back positive. But she assured them that everything looked fine and that Leanne was healthy, so there was nothing to worry about. That they just had to be more careful from this point forward.

"Oh my God," She whispered, and Ethan could only imagine her face right now, "how did we not know?" He let out a chuckle at her question, she always prided herself on being so observant after all.

"Don't feel bad Noa." He answered, his eyes shifting to Leanne's as they pulled into a parking space in the school's lot. He could see the buses pulling in behind them and he said a silent prayer that they had beat them there. "We didn't know either."

She let out a soft sigh on the other end and he undid his seat belt as he offered Leanne a smile. "Guys that's great!" She said after a minute of silence. "When do you go back? It's soon right?"

"Yeah." Leanne's voice was barely a whisper. He guessed that she was going to leave out the rest of their exciting news for a later date. "We go back Friday for a full appointment."

"Thank God." Noa said with a soft laugh. "I want full details, every last one of them, understand?"

Chuckling, he reached forward and squeezed Leanne's shoulder as he spoke. "No worries kid, we'll fill you in this weekend." He said softly and he watched as Leanne's eyes went wide at what he meant. "But we have to go now. There's an anxious six year old inside who wants to show us the monkeys at the zoo more than she's ever wanted anything in her life."

Noa let out a laugh on the other end and he could hear the smile in her voice. "Okay guys. Go. Have fun!" She said lightly and Ethan smiled as Leanne's face lit up at her words. "Take tons of pictures for me!"

"We will." Leanne said softly, her hand stilling against her stomach as she eyed him quietly from her seat. "Bye Noa."

"Bye!" And then the young girl was gone and it was just the two of them.

Leaning over, Ethan pressed a kiss to her shoulder with a soft sigh. "Come on love." He pulled back and opened his door, stopping when he felt her hand on his arm.

"I love you." She whispered, her fingers curling gently around his wrist as she spoke. He felt his heart tighten in his chest at her words.

"I love you too." He whispered back, his eyes glistening as he fought off tears. He was so madly in love with her right now, right here in this very moment, that he couldn't possibly stand it. He couldn't imagine how much more he was going to love her when she was fully pregnant, her belly round, his child growing inside her. He was the luckiest man alive and he would do whatever it took to make sure that his girl's stayed safe and by his side for the rest of their lives.

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