AN: I feel like these two chapters have kind of been like an after school special, but I also think they're wildly important for Sam and Andy. And Traci and Jerry. Pregnancy is scary, especially if you're not ready to be a parent. It's no joke. But I've had a really good time writing this chapter, even though it was hard and took longer than usual. I'm very happy with the turnout. I hope you are too!

I've been saying this a lot, but THANK YOU MARYS! Seriously, she's been a huge help and, at this point, I kind of rely on her for bouncing ideas back and forth and a fresh pair of eyes. Thanks to everyone else, too- for reading and reviewing and being all around great. (Except for the haters, eff them).

Waiting for the results of the pregnancy test made one weekend feel like three years. And it wasn't even her pregnancy test. Andy and Sam spent the weekend together, as planned, even Sunday since they were both caught up on work and Sam insisted he needed the company and Boo needed the attention. She was happy to stay with him a third night, even if they continued not having sex.

It wasn't something they discussed. After they talked about Traci and Jerry and what would happen if they were ever in their shoes, they tried like hell to have a normal dinner together. Andy went on and on, talking just to talk, and Sam listened, nodding along with a small ghost of a smile on his face. He knew exactly what she was doing and so did she, she just couldn't stop. If she stopped, she'd go back to thinking and worrying and imagining things and she didn't want to do that.

By the time they headed to bed, she'd exhausted even herself and finally put a cork in it. But it had worked, because as soon as they got into bed, Sam pulled her against his chest and kissed her and neither of them seemed to be thinking about anything but each other. They got a little more comfortable and a lot more kissy. By the time Sam retracted his lips from hers, he was settled between her legs with his hands in her hair. She smiled up at him and tried to catch his lips again, but he tickled her until she wrestled him onto his back and straddled him.

"No one tickles Andy McNally," she told him, trying to keep from laughing again.

"Weird, I think I just did," he said before his tongue ran along the inside of his cheek and his hands ran up her thighs. That's when the moment settled and the two of them just looked at each other while his hands continued to move higher.

On any other night, she had no doubt they'd be naked in under a minute, but not that night. Or the next two nights. She smiled and rolled off of him, they both turned onto their sides, and she fell asleep with her back against his chest. No discussion, no pressure, no expectations.

And when she woke up on Monday morning to take Boo out for a run, Sam was already up making them breakfast. It was early and he never woke up early before class. He always got up with just enough time to take Boo out if she hadn't already and take his famously fast and efficient showers. She actually smiled to herself when she found him there, cooking bacon.

"What are you doing?" She asked, walking faster into the kitchen. He looked over his shoulder and smiled at her before turning back to the task at hand. She walked up behind him, circled her arms around his waist, and put her cheek against his shoulder. She noticed his hair was wet and his skin smelled clean. "You showered already?"

"Yeah," he laughed and she felt it through her own body. "After I got back from walking Boo."

"Why so early?" She asked, standing taller to put her chin on his shoulder. She watched as he plated the bacon to let it cool and stepped back so he could turn toward her.

"No reason," he said, walking her back so she was against the opposite counter. He put his hands against it, on either side of her body, and slowly kissed her neck and she sighed contentedly as she grabbed at his belt loops to pull his body closer. He didn't budge, though, just kissed a line up her neck and over her jaw until his lips were hovering above hers.

He was breathing heavily and his eyes were glued to her lips before they started trailing down her body and he shuffled his feet like he was going to step closer. He didn't, he just swallowed and kissed her quickly before stepping back and rubbing his hand over his face. Andy watched his back while he divided the bacon on two separate plates already piled with eggs.

"For you," he said, turning toward her with a plate. She looked at it and then at his tight smile and took it from him.

"Thanks," she said. She was about to ask him if he was okay or if he wanted to talk about anything, but she thought she might know why he had acted so strange a minute before. It was the same reason she was planning on going for a run on what was normally one of her off days, it's why she had done yoga three times that weekend.

Her body wanted to have sex, badly. But her mind was still on Traci who was still freaking out about the possible baby forming inside of her. She was still imagining herself being in the same position and she could not be in that position. And now she knew that as much as she was feeling the need to have sex with Sam, so was he. And maybe he didn't feel the same fears as Andy did, but he knew that she had them and wasn't ready for them to be intimate again just yet. He was either respecting her or freaking out on his own, but either way he couldn't get too close to her without combusting and Andy was starting to feel the same.

Sam was walking around campus, killing time between his last two classes of the day, when he turned a corner into the quad. Since it was really starting to warm up, more and more people were outside than he was used to. The quad was packed with groups of people hanging out or doing work at the picnic table set up near the dining hall.

He saw Andy headed in the same direction as he was, about 20 yards ahead of him, and he started to quicken his pace and call her name before he saw Traci coming toward her. He stopped in his tracks and watched as she told Andy something excitedly and from where he was he could hear Andy's excited squeal before they hugged. He wasn't sure what news they were celebrating, but he could only hope Jerry had something equally as exciting to tell him.

"Hey, brother," Oliver said, coming up behind him. When he got to Sam's side he patted his back in greeting and it made Sam's skin crawl as he continued to watch Andy from across the quad. "Whoa. What's going on with you?" Oliver asked when Sam bucked his hand away.

"Nothing," he lied, shaking his head while his eyes remained on Andy. She and Traci were finally pulling out of their hug and the smile on Traci's face was the biggest Sam had ever seen. It could only mean she wasn't pregnant.

"How was your weekend with McNally?" Oliver asked as they started walking toward the dining hall. "Three whole nights of tantric love making, I'm sure, but keep the details to yourself, please."

"I wish I had details," Sam said and Oliver's eyebrows knit together. "Actually, I don't."

"What the hell are you talking about, Sammy?"

Sam looked at him and saw the look of confusion all over his face. He couldn't tell Oliver about why he and Andy weren't having sex—to be fair, he wasn't sure there was a reason. He still wanted to hear back from Jerry about whether or not he was going to be a father. Even though his body was starting to betray him every time he looked at Andy, he wanted them both to be comfortable. Their two best friends were going through something huge and it could just as easily be them. It was scary. Neither of them were ready to be in Jerry and Traci's shoes, let alone actual parents in nine months. No way. So, despite what his body craved, he was doing his best to keep his head in the game and a baby out of Andy's uterus.

"We're taking a break from… Tantric love making," he explained, unable to keep the smile off his face at the term Oliver had used. "Just a little experiment."

"That sounds like the least fun experiment in the history of science," Oliver laughed and Sam nodded. "It was one weekend, though, I'm sure it wasn't that bad."

"It was one weekend after a week and a half of not seeing each other once," Sam reminded him. "Whatever, it's fine."

"Whatever you say," he laughed again and Sam let out a deep, cleansing breath. It did nothing to quell the feeling he got when he saw Andy again as he and Oliver got inside the dining hall.

She started toward him slowly when she noticed him and Oliver laughed loudly before walking away for the pizza line. Before Andy got to him, he saw one of his students from Boyko's class coming up to him from off to his side.

"Hey, Sam," she said, her hand on his shoulder. He nodded at her, surreptitiously backing awy from her touch, and she smiled. "Can I ask you a question about that paper assignment we got this morning?"

"Sure," he said and she nodded before looking through her bag for the assignment. As she was looking for it, Andy finally reached him and he stopped himself from reaching out for her. "Hey, McNally."

"Hey, you," she smiled, glancing quickly at Kennedy who was now looking between them with the paper in her hands. "Have you talked-"

"Sorry, Andy, real quick," Kennedy said, looking at her with a nervous smile while holding up her paper. "I need to run to class."

"Sorry, I interrupted," Andy smiled back before looking at Sam. "Find me later."

"Yup," he told her and she squeezed his bicep as she walked past him. "Sorry, go ahead."

Sam listened to Kennedy's question, nodding along, and answered it for her. The directions were unclear on the topic, so he told her in person and promised to send out an email when he got a chance to clear it up for the rest of the class. She left him with a pleased smile and he got in line to get food.

As he was walking to find Andy, he saw Jerry enter the dining hall. He looked the same until he saw Traci running toward him. Before he knew what was happening, she was in his arms and Sam watched them from across the room. When they finally pulled apart Jerry looked like an actual weight was lifted from his shoulders and he found Sam looking at him and he smiled with a subtle nod.

Sam felt the same weight—albeit, smaller—lifted from his own shoulders and he walked the rest of the way to the table where Andy was sitting with Oliver and Dov. "What the hell is going on with them?" Oliver asked, nodding to Traci and Jerry who were still celebrating in what little privacy they could afford while standing in the middle of the only dining hall on campus.

"No idea," Sam and Andy said at the same time and she laughed, leaning into him with her hand on his thigh. Jerry and Traci were in the clear, so Sam felt a little less inclined to keep his distance. But, at the same time, he couldn't shake the picture of Andy—pregnant and miserable at nineteen.

Traci and Jerry asked everyone to go to the Penny with them. They didn't say why, but Andy knew they were celebrating the results of the doctor's pregnancy test. Of course, Andy was the first to agree and Sam followed thereafter, but eventually the whole group of them had plans to meet up later that night. To hell with classes the next day if they got too drunk. This, according to Jerry, was the plan.

Andy could see the pure joy on their faces every time she looked at the two of them. They were so pleased to have each other to themselves for as long as they wanted. No baby meant that they could go back to the way things were—just safer in the sex department. Traci made an appointment to get an IUD consultation the day after Andy's was scheduled. Plus, Andy had tipped both her and Gail off to the enormous box of condoms she was stashing under her bed. The safer everyone was the better.

When she got to the bar, everyone else was already there, scattered across the whole room. Sam and Oliver were playing pool with two girls, Jerry and Traci were sitting at the bar with their heads close and their arms wrapped around each other while they talked, Chris and Dov were playing ping pong against Gail and Chloe, so that's where Andy headed. As she passed him, Sam reached for her wrist and pulled her toward him while Oliver set up his shot.

"You two sure are spending a lot of time together," she said, nodding to Kennedy as she spoke to her partner at the table.

"Huh?" He asked and she shook her head, kissing him quickly.

"Nothing," she said, smiling tightly and he narrowed his eyes at her. She used the pad of her thumb to wipe off the chapstick she left behind on his lip and ran her fingers through his hair, scratching lightly. His breathing hitched and his eyes closed and she felt empowered enough to step closer until someone called his name. They both stepped away from the other and dropped their hands, turning to look at Kennedy.

"You're up," she said and Sam nodded. He looked at Andy—as if for permission—and she smiled at him before walking away, clenching her fists in the process.

She wasn't jealous. Andy didn't get jealous. But when she looked over her shoulder, Sam was standing next to Kennedy while they both laughed and she suddenly felt very left out. Kennedy was a freshman and she and Andy took CJ 101 together. Now, she was in another one of Boyko's classes that Sam assisted. He'd mentioned her a couple of times—apparently, she was the least annoying person in the class—and it never once bothered her. There was no reason for it to. Sam loved her and had made that clear time and time again.

The week and a half without seeing each other on top of the sexless weekend they spent together was playing dirty, dirty tricks on her mind, though. She wanted him in a way she wasn't all that familiar with. Nothing had ever truly stopped them from sleeping together, but something like their closest friends going through a pregnancy scare really had an effect on them. It was over, though, so was she ready to abstain from abstaining?

As she rounded the ping pong table to sit on a stool off to the side, she realized she had the perfect view of Sam—bent over the pool table in that one pair of jeans that were criminally tight. Yes, she was done with abstaining. And if Sam was at all interested in moving past it as well—so long as they were safe and truly understood why it had happened in the first place—then, she was ready to pack up and head home as soon as humanly possible.

But, she could pretend to watch her friends face off in ping pong while actually watching Sam and his ass playing pool. That was fine, too. It would do until he was ready to go. If he was ready to go. Andy tore her eyes away from him finally to look for Traci and Jerry. They weren't at the bar anymore and their jackets weren't hanging off the stools either, so they must have left—together. If the two of them were leaving together after their own pregnancy scare, then Sam and Andy were surely ready to do the same.

When she saw Sam and Oliver put their pool sticks away, she slid off her stool while cheering on Gail and Chloe, so she could buy him a beer and make her desires clear in the most subtle of ways. So, to say, not so subtle. Andy had a hard time with subtlety. When she got to the bar, there was a bit of a wait, which was fine—it meant she could think about her words and her moves. As terrible as she was at being subtle through her words, her moves were just as obvious.

She finally got to the bar, opted for two glasses of scotch instead of beer, and turned back to find Sam. He wasn't at the pool tables anymore and she didn't see him with the rest of her friends at the ping pong table. She searched the bar stools and found nothing, but then glanced at the back corner of the bar where the two dart boards were set up. He was there, his arm poised to throw, and she walked toward him without a care in the world.

By the time she reached him, he was at a tall table leaning on his forearms, talking to Kennedy. She sidled up behind him, sliding the drink around him and he looked back, surprised. It was then she noticed the drink in his hand and a matching one in Kennedy's.

"Was that for me?" He asked, glancing at the scotch she brought him. She swallowed and stepped back before nodding. "Thanks, Kennedy just got me this one-"

"I see," she interrupted and he stood taller, blocking Kennedy out of their conversation. That, at least, made Andy feel a little less crazy.

"What's going on with you?" He asked her quietly and Andy squeezed her eyes shut before shaking her head. "McNally."

"Nothing," she promised, running her hand up and down his arm. She could feel his hard muscles under the softness of his sweater and the knot that had been in her gut since Friday got tighter. "Keep this for later," she said, pushing the drink toward him again.

"I will definitely take care of that," he said and she smiled, pushing onto her toes to kiss him. It was a quick kiss, too quick for him, she could tell. His lips remained parted and his eyes slightly hooded. He pulled himself together and let out a deep, shaky breath. "Oliver and I are going to win our money back from the girls, but don't go too far, okay?"

"I'm actually going to head back to my dorm," she said, an idea forming in her head in that instant. "But I have something for you. Can you come over before you go home?"

"Yeah, of course," he said like it was no big deal and she wanted to maul his face right then and there. He kissed her on the forehead and she gripped his forearm as he started to pull away so she could bring him back for a proper kiss. That one not only left him reeling, but also her. "You sure you need to leave?"

"I swear, it'll be worth it," she promised and he nodded. She smiled at him one last time, took her drink, and walked back to the ping pong table.

For her plan to work, she needed to cover all of her bases. Thankfully, Dov and Chris were at the bar getting drinks, so Gail was left alone with Chloe—not talking. She was doing her a favor, really, not interrupting her or anything. So, she didn't feel bad when she pulled on the end of Gail's ponytail to get her attention.

"Ow," she whined, slapping Andy's hand away. "What?"

"Can we talk?" She asked, a hopeful smile plastered on her face. Gail made a face that was basically telling her to get on with it. "Over there?" She asked, nodding to the empty corner.

"Fine," Gail said, rolling her eyes. They walked over together and Gail leaned her shoulders against the wall. "What's up?"

"Can you stay with Chris tonight?" Andy asked and Gail's eyes narrowed. "Please?"

"Why?" She asked and Andy bit her lip and looked down at her feet. "What's wrong?" She asked—more concerned than annoyed.

"No," Andy insisted, holding onto her wrist for emphasis. "Nothing. I have a crazy idea and I need the room. And, I don't know, maybe it's not crazy, but it is. It's dumb. You know what? Never mind. Sleep wherever you want."

"Andy," Gail said, holding onto her shoulders to stop her from rambling. "It's fine. The room is yours. Tell me about your dirty dorm sex after the fact."

"How did you-"

"Just because I'm blonde, doesn't mean I'm dumb."

Sam watched Andy cross the bar toward the door and let out a deep breath. "How long have the two of you been together?" Kennedy asked and he turned to look at her.

"Since Halloween," he answered and she looked shocked. "What?"

"I just always thought you've been together a lot longer than that," she said, shaking her head. "Like years."

"No, we just met on the first day of classes last semester," he laughed, scratching the back of his neck. "And our first date was Oliver's Halloween party."

"No," she insisted and he nodded, looking for Oliver to back up his story. He was off talking to Celery, though, since she'd just shown up. "I saw you two making out—hardcore —in the quad way before then."

Sam nodded, remembering exactly what she was talking about. "And directly following that incident, we decided to be friends and did that for about a month and a half," he explained and she nodded. "Why are so curious about me and Andy, though?"

"I've never seen two people look at each other the way you two do," she shrugged, smiling softly and he knit his eyebrows together. "I mean, I guess that's why I assumed you've been together a while. That's, like, the most love I've ever seen in someone's eyes. It's actually kind of disgusting."

"Yeah," he laughed. "We're pretty gross."

"Well, you're lucky."

"I am," he agreed with a smile. And he looked back at the door for a second. "You know what? Keep your money. I'm going to go after her."

"Good for you," Kennedy laughed, patting him on the shoulder. "Go get your girl."

"Thanks," he laughed.

As he left the bar, he didn't even get into his truck. He just walked across the street for the dorms and waited for someone to walk out so he could sneak in. He didn't know what she had for him upstairs, but after the few days they'd had he still wanted to be with her. Even if they weren't having sex. Though, to be honest, he was more than willing to move past that now that Jerry and Traci were in the clear. They knew what they were doing and how to prevent their own pregnancy. They'd both spent a good deal of time, per Andy's request, looking at all the pamphlets she brought home. They were armed with all the information they needed. It was just up to them to make the next move.

He knocked on her door quietly. It was late on a Monday night, after all, and he didn't want to make a scene. When she opened it, she was wearing one of his zip-ups over a pair of her shortest shorts. He raked his eyes down her body, taking in her toned legs, and finally looked her in the face. She was smiling at him softly and the only light behind her was a string of Christmas lights against the back wall.

"Hi," she breathed and he nodded, unable to form words as he noticed she wasn't wearing a shirt underneath his sweatshirt. "Are you… Coming inside?"

"Yeah," he sputtered, putting one foot in front of the other until the door was shut behind him. By the time he was inside, she was sitting on her bed with her legs crossed and he slowly took off his jacket and laid it over the top of her dresser. "So, what's going on?" He asked, eyes drifting down her body again. He felt like a teenager—like he was going to lose any semblance of control any minute.

She let out a shaky—nervous—breath and stood up. Her hands landed on his chest and his eyes drifted close at the touch. Like that morning, he had the guilty urge to back away from her, but he really didn't want to. He wanted to get closer. So he did. He pulled himself closer to her, with his hands on her hips, and opened his eyes again.

"It's weird that I miss you, right?" She asked and he shook his head. "We spent every waking moment together this weekend."

"Sleeping moment, too," he reminded her and she nodded, running her hands up to his shoulders and down his arms to grasp his biceps. "But I know what you mean."

"I know I wasn't really ready to sleep with you this weekend, not with everything going on with Traci on my mind, but I'm kind of over that now. I mean, my body's been over it for… Days," she laughed and he nodded. "I miss you."

"I'm right here," he said quietly, leaning down enough to kiss her below the ear. "Always."

"I got so jealous today," she admitted quietly and he stepped back to look her in the face. She was focusing on the ground, though, and he couldn't get a look in her eyes. "Kennedy and her perfect pool game. Her perfect blonde hair."

"I don't care about her or her pool game, Andy," he told her with a small smile and she nodded, but still wouldn't look up. He bent his knees to get his face as close to hers as possible and put a comforting hand on her cheek, guiding her eyes to his finally.

"I know that," she admitted. "But I've been going crazy, trying to do the right thing—the safe thing—and my body betrayed me and now my mind is."

"I only want you," he insisted and she let out a slow, smooth breath before nodding. "And so does my body," he laughed. "I know why we weren't sleeping together this weekend. We were both freaked and it makes complete sense, but I think we know what we're doing."

"I really, really love you," she laughed and he nodded, kissing her slowly. "But not yet. Sit down."

"What?" He asked, trying to grab at her waist. She turned out of his reach and put her hands on his shoulders, turning him around—looking pointedly at the edge of the bed. "Fine," he said, sitting down without taking his eyes off of her. "But please note, I may not make it much longer."

"Oh, no?" She asked, slowly unzipping his sweatshirt she was wearing. His breathing stopped the lower the zipper got—past her (bare chest), past her abdominal muscles, past her belly button—until it hung open loosely and he bit his lip and held himself back from grabbing for her. "You're doing pretty well for someone who can't take much longer," she teased, sliding the sweatshirt off her shoulders until it fell back onto the floor.

It took a few long moments for him to look from her body to her eyes, but he managed. "I'm apparently stronger than I thought I was," he lied and she laughed.

She walked toward him, pushing him to lie back on her bed—his head just barely missing the wall behind him—and she put a knee on either side of his hips and a hand on either side of his chest. "Okay," he laughed, the sound more of a choke as it came from the back of his throat. "I think you're actually killing me, McNally."

"I bet you're glad I got that box of condoms for my dorm," she whispered in his ear and he shuttered a breath against her neck before gathering enough strength to get himself on top of her.

As he looked down at her and her wide, white smile, he felt sense of calm wash over him. "You know?" He said between kissing a line down her neck and chest before moving back up to hover above her lips. "I really am."

He felt one hand in his hair at the back of his head as the other curled around his back—both pulling him down hard as their mouths finally connected again. At that moment, all sense of worry and terror left both of their minds. Because they were in it together.