Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter for ya. This one's pretty fun.

Enjoy!

Skye smiles to herself as she stands on the sidewalk outside of her new home, staring up at the building, thinking to herself how happy she is to be at this point in her life.

"Hi there."

She jumps slightly and turns her head to see a woman with strawberry blonde hair standing near her. "Oh, hi," she says back and turns fully towards her.

"Sorry for startling you. I'm Carol," the woman says, holding her hand out to her.

"Skye," she replies, accepting the woman's hand.

"Are you moving in?" Carol asks her, nodding towards the house behind Skye.

Skye nods and glances back at the house. "Yeah." She looks back to Carol. "My boyfriend and I just bought it."

Carol smiles. "Oh that's so great. I live right next door with my husband Nick and our kids."

"And you guys like it here?" Skye asks her.

Carol nods. "Definitely. We've been here for about five years now. It's a really great neighborhood; everyone around here is so friendly."

"So I've heard," Skye says. "I think that's one of the reasons why I fell in love with this house."

"Well it's a really great house," Carol tells her.

Skye nods. "That it is."

"So how long have you and your boyfriend been together?" Carol asks her.

"A little over a year," Skye responds.

"Wow, that's great."

Skye smiles. "Thanks. We're really happy together."

"As you should be." Carol takes a deep breath. "And where is this boyfriend of yours? I'm dying to meet him."

"Oh, I uh, I think he's inside the house somewhere. I just needed to get out and get some fresh air for a little bit."

Carol nods. "Right. And how far along are you?"

Skye's breath catches in her throat. "What?"

Carol gives her a knowing smile. "Sweetie, I've been pregnant five times already. I know most of the signs and symptoms like the back of my hand. You've had your hand on your stomach almost the entire time we've been standing out here talking."

Skye looks down at her stomach where her hand is resting. "Oh, right." She looks back up at Carol. "Well we just recently found out. I was already about a month along when a friend of mine helped me put all the pieces together."

"Well congratulations. Is this your first?"

Skye smile and nods. "Mm-hmm. Completely unexpected and unplanned, but we're both really happy about it; we can't wait to be parents."

Carol smiles. "That's always great to hear. And I just want you to know that I'm here for whatever you need, anytime of day. I've been through it five times so I know quite a lot and have plenty of tips and tricks to help it go as smoothly as possible."

"That would be really great," Skye says. "Obviously I have no idea what I'm doing and my parents are in California and they aren't coming until a bit later in the pregnancy, so it's great to know I have someone nearby who can help me out. And I'm sure they'll be happy to know that too."

Carol smiles. "It's my pleasure. You seem like a really great person."

"Thanks. So do you."

"And I'm sure I can coax my husband into spending some time with your boyfriend and telling him all about what he can expect as a guy during this pregnancy and then afterwards once the baby arrives."

"Grant will probably really appreciate that. He's been reading a lot of those baby books lately. I'm not sure if he knows that I know, but I think it's actually kind of cute. He's so excited to be a dad. I know he's going to be great, and I really can't wait until the ba—"

"Skye? Honey, do you know where the—oh, hello." Grant makes his way down off of the porch and over to where Skye and Carol are standing. He stops beside Skye and wraps an arm around her waist.

"Grant, this is our next door neighbor Carol. Carol, this is my boyfriend Grant."

Grant smiles kindly at her. "Nice to meet you, Carol."

Carol gives him a small nod and smile. "You as well. Skye tells me that you're expecting."

Grant's smile grows bigger and he nods. "We are. Sometime early next year, I think is what the doctor said for when she's due. That's one of the reasons for us buying a house right now; we both want our baby to grow up in an actual house instead of Skye's tiny apartment."

"Hey, it's not that tiny," Skye defends her old place.

"Maybe not, but this house is definitely plenty big enough for our family."

Skye smiles up at him. "Yes it is."

"I'm sorry," Carol speaks up, getting their attention, "but are you Grant Ward?"

Grant looks back at her. "Uh, yeah, I am. You know who I am?"

Carol gives him a look. "Everyone knows who you are, even if Hydra never actually ventures down into this neck of the woods."

Grant nods. "Ah, I see. Well, I'm not like any of those other guys. I'm not going to cause harm to anyone here."

"I believe you," Carol says with a nod. "I mean, after all, you are moving way out here with your girlfriend who's carrying your baby. I'd definitely say you're nothing like those other guys."

"He's also a giant teddy bear," Skye tells Carol with a smile. "He's very protective and actually loves to cuddle whenever he gets the chance."

Grant groans. "Skye, why do you have to go and tell people things like that?"

"Because it's adorable the way you get all shy and embarrassed when people find out," she says to him.

"I'm not embarrassed or shy," he tells her. "I'm just not a big fan of people I don't know yet knowing all the intimate details about my life." He looks at Carol. "No offense or anything."

Carol shakes her head. "None taken. I get it. There is absolutely nothing wrong with being cautious."

"No there isn't," Skye says. "I was actually pretty cautious of him when we first met. But I quickly learned to love him and realize he's not at all like what everybody was always saying about him."

"Moooommmmyyy!"

Carol sighs. "That would be my youngest. I should probably go before she decides to come out here. She's in a phase where she doesn't want to wear any clothes for any length of time."

Skye laughs quietly. "Sounds like fun."

"Oh it is," Carol says sarcastically. "Just wait; you're both in for times like these when your little one gets here. I'll see you both around. Don't hesitate in stopping by any time, either. I'm usually always at home with at least one of the kids." She turns and begins making her way back towards her house.

"Thanks," Skye calls after her retreating form. "See you later." She lets out a breath and looks up at her boyfriend. "She's nice, I like her."

Grant nods slowly. "She does seem pretty nice."

"So what did you want earlier?" Skye asks him.

He looks down at her. "What?"

"You came out here to ask me something before you saw Carol," she reminds him.

He nods. "Oh, right. Come with me." He grabs her shoulders and gently guides her back up to the house as he starts speaking.

"I know we just barely started and still have a little ways to go before it's completely done, but I have to say it, this place is really coming along nicely," Grant says as he stands in the living room of his and Skye's new home, admiring how things are coming together within it.

"Yes it is," Skye replies, carrying a cardboard box into the room from the hallway and stopping next to her boyfriend. "And it's going to look so great when it's finally all done."

"It definitely will," Grant says with a nod. "We should probably get out to the store later to get some more—what are you doing?"

"What?" she asks innocently, still holding the box in her hands.

"Skye, you shouldn't be lifting heavy things right now."

Skye sighs and rolls her eyes, shifting the box in her arms. "I'm pregnant, Grant, not an invalid. And I'm barely even pregnant, at that. So relax, please. It's not going to hurt me or the baby if I lift a few cardboard boxes that hardly even weigh anything."

"But I—"

Skye nods. "I know. You're just looking out for us, and I really appreciate it. But you need to relax just a little bit, okay? I don't need you getting all stressed out over things like this when I myself am going to get very stressed out simply for the fact that I'm carrying and growing a human being and have to pee every five minutes."

Grant nods. "Right, sorry. I guess I may have overreacted a little."

Skye gives him a small smile. "Thank you. Now take this," she says, shoving the box into his arms. "I really have to pee." She doesn't wait for a response from him, simply turns around and makes her way down the hall towards the bathroom.

Grant chuckles quietly and shakes his head, turning and leaning down to set the box on the hardwood floor.

He moves towards another box when his phone going off in his pocket stops him. He pulls the device out and looks at the screen, seeing Andrew's name on it.

Hitting the answer call button, he holds the phone up to his ear and speaks, "Andrew, hey."

"Hey, Grant. What's up?"

Grant shrugs. "Not a lot. Skye and I are just working on moving things inside the house and starting to get things set up."

"Ah. Cool, cool. And are you guys good just by yourself? You've got it all covered?"

Grant rolls his eyes. "Andrew, would you like to come over and help us?"

"Yes! Please. I'm so bored right now and Joey's being just as aggravating as usual."

"I get it, I've been there before. You're more than welcome to come on by. I'll text you the address."

"You're the best, big brother."

"Yeah, whatever. See you soon."

"See ya."

Pulling the phone down away from his ear, he hangs up the call and slides the phone back into his pocket.

"Okay, I think I should be good now for maybe ten or so minutes," Skye says with a small laugh as she makes her way back into the room.

"Andrew's coming by," Grant tells her.

"He is?"

Grant nods his head. "Yeah. He just called and hinted at the fact that he wanted to come over. So he's going to come by and help us finish getting the house together."

Skye smiles. "That'll be nice. I haven't spent a lot of time with your brother. I need to get to know my baby's uncle."

Grant smiles. "And I'm sure he wants to get to know his niece or nephew's mom just as much."

"So what time is he coming over?" she asks.

"He should be on his way. I think he's taking the bus."

"He doesn't drive?"

Grant shrugs. "Just never happened for him."

"Well that's too bad. We should help him get a license so he can drive himself places."

"He doesn't exactly have a car."

"Well we can help him get one of those too."

Grant sighs. "Skye, please do not go all mother hen on my brother, okay? Besides, we don't really have the funds to help out my brother and provide for our baby. It's one or the other here and I really hope you pick the right one."

Skye smiles. "Don't worry. The baby will always come first. I just think maybe we should try and help Andrew out a bit, that's all."

Grant nods. "That's fine. I don't mind helping him out. But there has to be a limit, okay?"

"I promise I won't go overboard."

Grant smiles and drops a kiss to the top of her head. "Good."

.

.

.

A knock on the door pulls Grant's attention away from where he's setting some of Skye's framed photos on the mantel above the fireplace. "It's open," he calls out, turning around.

The door swings open and Andrew steps through into the house, closing the door behind him. "Hey," he says.

Grant gives him a small smile. "Hey. Welcome to our home," he says, holding his arms out to the side. "What do you think?"

"It's nice," Andrew says with a small nod. "Your baby is definitely very lucky that it gets to grow up in an actual house."

"That's exactly what we were saying when we decided to buy the house," Skye pipes in, making her way into the room. She smiles at Andrew. "Hey, it's great to see you again."

"You too. How are you feeling?"

Skye takes a deep breath, resting one hand on her stomach. "As well as I can be. Thankfully I haven't had very much morning sickness, which I'm very glad about."

"Well you look great," he tells her.

She smiles. "Thanks, Andrew. You're sweet."

Andrew just smiles.

"Alright," Grant speaks up, "I think now is the perfect time for Andrew to jump in and help us get the house together. Then in a little while we can stop for lunch."

"Sounds perfect to me," Skye says. "Can we order some pizza from Marcel's? I don't know if they deliver it but the baby really wants some."

Grant smiles. "If they don't deliver I will go and pick it up."

Skye grins. "You are the best." She leans up on her toes to give him a kiss on the lips. She looks between the two Ward brothers. "I will leave you two here so you can do whatever needs to be done out here while I go and finish setting up my home office." She turns and makes her way out of the room, leaving the two brothers alone.

Grant turns to his brother. "So, you ready to help out?"

Andrew nods. "Absolutely. Just let me know what I need to do and I'll do it."

"Great. You can help me move some of the large stuff inside."

"Let's do it, then." He reaches out to set a hand on Grant's arm, stopping him from going out the front door. "But first," he says, "answer this for me. Exactly how strange is it for you to be in this whole situation, considering how we grew up?"

"It's very strange," Grant tells him honestly. "But I wouldn't give any of it up. I'm finally happy, Andrew. Like, genuinely happy."

Andrew smiles. "Glad to hear it." He drops his hand from Grant's arm and nods curtly. "And now we can bring stuff inside."

Grant laughs quietly and shakes his head. "Come on." He gestures with his head towards the door and then makes his way towards it, Andrew following right behind him.

So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

They've met one of their neighbors now and are getting all moved in. Exciting times are up ahead.

Also, I'm working on something and I'd love your guys' help with it. When you leave a review, just let me know a reason or two why you love Skyeward. I know why I love them, but I wanna know why you guys do too. Thanks. :)

Until next time,
Jellybean96 out!