Jade West has had a rather complicated relationship with mornings for the majority of her adult life. Her feelings towards them aren't complicated at all, she doesn't like them, and as a teenager and even a bit into college she didn't mind sleeping in as late as she desired. However, now as a working adult with things to get done and places to go, she knows that sleeping late cuts into the limited number of hours she has to get things done during the day. Not to mention that the later she sleeps, the harder is is for her to fall asleep at night. When it's harder for her to sleep at night, she wants to sleep in later the next morning, and it soon becomes a vicious cycle. She has a daily alarm set for 7:30 every weekday morning, and that usually allows her to get enough sleep at night and be up in time to do whatever she has planned for the day.
However, when her alarm goes off one Tuesday morning towards the end of September, 7:30 just doesn't feel late enough. Despite going to bed around eleven the previous night like she normally does during the week, she wakes up still feeling exhausted. As Jade rolls over to shut the alarm off, she suddenly becomes very aware of the shape her abdomen is beginning to take and how different it feels. Her first and only shoot of the day isn't until after lunch, so she decides to set another alarm for 8:30. Hopefully one extra hour will help her feel a bit more human without messing up her sleep schedule too much.
Cat is sitting on the couch in their living room area, watching TV, when Jade emerges from her bedroom about an hour later. She had been a bit confused when she first woke up herself because it wasn't like her roommate to sleep later than she did, at least not during the week. For a slight second she thought that something might be wrong, but decided she wouldn't worry too much unless Jade slept in to the point where she might be late to her photoshoot. After all, everyone needs a day to sleep in every once and a while.
"Good morning, sunshine." Cat greets her from her place on the couch "I see someone slept in today."
"Leave me alone." Jade groans as she wanders into the kitchen, looking a bit disgruntled
"What's gotten into you this morning?" Cat asks her "Are you feeling okay?"
"I feel pregnant."
"Oh really?" Cat chuckles "Man, do I have news for you then..."
"I know, I know." Jade sighs "It's just really hitting me this morning."
"What do you mean?"
"I dunno...I just, I woke up feeling super tired even though I didn't get any less sleep than I normally do. And this-" Jade gestures to her bump, now slightly visible even under the t-shirt she had slept in "is all of a sudden very noticeable."
"It's almost like you're growing a human or something."
"Are you finished?"
"Yes, I'm finished." Cat smirks "I'm sorry."
"It's fine, I know you're just trying to make light of a weird situation." Jade sighs, pouring herself a bowl of cereal "It's just odd to all of a sudden have it be so noticeable, you know? Up until just recently I felt like if I wasn't talking about it or throwing up because of it, I could just sort of ignore the fact that I was pregnant. Like yeah, I was conscious of the fact that I shouldn't drink coffee or alcohol or lift anything super heavy...but I didn't feel pregnant. Now I do."
"I can imagine that's very strange..." Cat nods "Can I help at all?"
"I don't think so." Jade shakes her head "Just...give me a bit of grace when I get cranky, I guess."
"Well, I've been doing that since I met you anyway." Cat jokes
"That's true." Jade laughs in agreement "...thank you, by the way."
"For what?"
"For being a really fucking good friend to me." Jade tells her "Through this and even before. I'm lucky to have you."
"Awww..." Cat smiles, wrapping her arms around Jade to hug her "You do have feelings!"
"Alright, alright..." Jade shrugs her off
"You're welcome." Cat nudges Jade gently "I'm lucky to have you too. And I know it's still a bit scary...but I'm really excited to meet your baby."
"I am too." Jade admits with a small smile "Terrified, but excited too. I just hope he or she is ready for the incredibly weird situation they're coming into."
She finishes her breakfast before retreating to the bathroom for a shower. Once she's dried her hair and gotten dressed for the day, Jade starts packing her camera bag. Cat lingers in the living room for a bit before getting ready herself. On the days that she doesn't have matinee shows she and Robbie usually try to meet up for lunch, seeing as their time together in the evenings is limited due to Cat's work schedule.
"What are you up to today?" Cat pokes her head into Jade's bedroom "Just the one shoot?"
"Yeah, then I'm stopping by Beck's for a little bit before he has to leave for the theater." Jade explains "I don't know if I'll be back before you have to leave."
"That's fine, just trying to make some kind of dinner plan for myself." Cat assures her "How's that going, by the way? With Beck?"
"We're friends, it's fine."
"That's it? That's all you're going to give me?" Cat laughs
"I dunno what it is you want me to say, really." Jade shrugs as she slings her bag over her shoulder "We're friends, we get along great. He's being very supportive and very helpful. I still don't think his parents are that crazy about the whole thing but like...I don't blame them."
"And that's all you are? Friends?"
"Cat..."
"I'm just saying..."
"I'll see you later." Jade rolls her eyes with a slight smirk before turning for the door "Enjoy lunch with Robbie."
Although she's met him outside of his building a few times, Jade has never actually been inside of it or been into Beck's apartment at all. It's actually not that far from her and Cat's apartment in the East Village, only Beck lives on the northeast side while the two women live more in the middle of the neighborhood. She checks the text message he and sent her four or five times on her way into the building, wanting to make sure that she goes to the right door and doesn't end up bothering one of his neighbors on accident.
Beck lives on the third floor, apartment 3-D to be exact, and after knocking on his door a few times Jade takes a step back while he waits for her to answer.
"Hey." He greets her with a smile when he opens the door "Did you find it okay?"
"I mean, I already knew where the building was." Jade shrugs as Beck gestures for her to come inside "From there it wasn't really that hard. Also, this place isn't nearly as bad as you made it sound."
It's a studio apartment shaped like a rectangle, being longer than it is wide. His bed is pushed into the far back corner along the exterior wall, beneath the windows. On the right side of the room a sink, an oven with a stovetop, a refrigerator, and a small length of counter space line the wall, a few cabinets hanging above. Across from the kitchenette is a couch and on the wall next to the door where Jade came in is a TV. The floors are hardwood, but a large rug covers a majority of the space between the couch and the kitchenette, and to Jade's left there's a door that she must assume leads to the bathroom.
"It's still not great." Beck admits as he closes the door behind her "At least compared to yours."
"I have someone to share rent with me though." She reminds him as she walks around the apartment to take a further look "This isn't really a bad deal for living on your own. How much do you pay for it?"
"Thirteen hundred a month, plus utilities."
"Yeah, in this neighborhood that's a steal." Jade assures him "When Cat and I first graduated we lived about four blocks south of here. It was a two bedroom, but the living area was smaller than this room. There were two fifteen by ten foot rooms off of it, and they had lofts built in so you could sleep up above and keep all of your stuff below. And it had one communal bathroom, like...dorm style...for the whole floor. We paid twenty-five hundred a month and split it between the two of us. Trust me when I say this isn't that bad."
"Why the hell did you two live in a place like that?" Beck laughs
"We had just graduated, and we didn't have any money...but we liked the area." Jade explains "We were only there for six months, and then we found the place we're in now, but...those six months were rough."
"Well, at least you're happy where you are now. Right...?"
"Right." Jade nods "So...uh, what was it that you wanted to talk about?"
Not that she doesn't enjoy talking to him, but he had invited her over in the first place because he said he had something he wanted to talk about. As Cat has said many times, Jade is a very forward person...and if there's a conversation that needs to be had she wants to get right to it as soon as possible.
"Oh yeah, right..." Beck takes a seat on the couch and gestures for him to sit next to her "So, I know that we've said we shouldn't be only talking about the baby but we're to a point now where I feel like...we should be talking about it just a little bit. I mean, we're almost to the halfway point here and it's...it's a bit more obvious now."
His eyes flicker downward to her lap, and to the baby bump that now protrudes into it just the tiniest bit from beneath her shirt. He had really noticed it for the first time a few days prior when they last saw each other, but it hadn't registered then. Now it does. That's his baby in there...their baby, growing and developing more and more with each day that passes.
"Are you calling me fat?"
"What?" He exclaims "No! I swear, I...shit, I'm sorry. No that's not what I was trying to say. I meant that-"
"Relax." Jade laughs, touching his arm gently "I was kidding. I...I realize it's more obvious now. Cat and I just had a conversation this morning about how I really can't ignore the fact that I'm pregnant anymore."
"I still should have worded it differently."
"There's no other way to word it, really." Jade shrugs "What about the baby specifically do you want to talk about?"
"I was thinking that maybe we should start...I dunno, making some preparations." Beck suggests "Like not necessarily buying anything yet but...figuring out what we need and such so that when we're ready it's not as hectic. And..."
"And..."
"I was thinking maybe we should work out some kind of custody agreement."
"A custody agreement?" Jade looks surprised
Beck immediately feels a bit guilty because of just how surprised she looks. He hadn't really given her much of a warning as to what it was he wanted to talk about, and he knows this topic in particular is a rather heavy and serious one.
"I know that sounds bad, but it's only precautionary I swear." He assures her "Even if I had known you my entire life, or even if we were a couple, I would still ask for it. I've seen custody battles get real ugly before, and no one ever really wins when they do. I just want to protect us both and protect the kid."
"I understand." Jade nods "It's just...once again it's another situation I never saw myself in. I...I'm sure my dad could either help us or point us in the direction of someone else who could..."
"That would require telling your dad, you know."
"Jeez you and Cat both with the berating today, damn." Jade laughs "I...I'm working on it. I promise. He's coming into town next week for work and he said he wanted to see me. I couldn't say no without raising suspicion and well like we just said...there's no hiding it anymore really."
"I'm sorry if that puts you in a weird spot." Beck apologizes "I know it's tricky. But like I said, it's really only precautionary. I don't really see things going south between us but just in case they do..."
"Right..." Jade nods, her face contorting in an odd way as she shifts in her seat
"Are...are you okay?" Beck asks urgently "Is something wrong?"
Jade isn't sure if something is wrong or not. There's an odd sensation in her abdomen, probably right about where she guesses the baby would be. It feels almost like a mix between anxious butterflies and the rumble of an empty stomach...but a bit stronger. She had felt it on her way over to Beck's apartment and again in the elevator, but she had just attributed it to the nerves of knocking on the wrong door. Now...she thinks it might be something else.
"No...I don't think so..." She admits as she rests a hand against her bump "I...I think it's moving."
"What?" Beck grins "Really?"
"I think so, yeah." She nods "It's weird...almost like butterflies in my stomach but...not the same."
"Can...can I?" Beck asks, his hand hovering close to her's
"I mean, you can try." She shrugs "I don't feel anything on the outside though. I've read some articles that say it happens like that...that the mom can feel it on the inside weeks before other people can feel it on the inside."
"Yeah, I don't feel anything." Beck frowns, moving his hand to a few different places on her abdomen "Shit..."
"It's alright, it's just because they're still really tiny." Jade assures him "I can feel it because it's literally happening inside of me, but the baby isn't strong enough to have it be felt on the outside yet. Give it a little while, it'll get there."
"Yeah, alright..." Beck sighs "You're right..."
"Is there anything else besides a custody agreement that you wanted to talk about...?" Jade asks him
"No, not yet at least." Beck shakes his head "You?"
"No, not yet." She shrugs "I...want you to know that even if something did happen between the two of us to cause us not to get along...I would never keep the baby from you. They're innocent in all of...whatever...this situation is. They deserve to have their dad in their life, and there's nothing that could happen between you and I that would change that. Well...just don't murder anyone, okay? Or commit any kind of felony crime, then I might have to go back on my word."
"I promise not to kill anyone as long as you promise me the same." Beck chuckles "I think kids need their moms probably more than they need their dads, at least when they're young."
"I think both are equally important." Jade admits with another shrug "Which is why...why I'm so glad that you decided to be involved."
"Me too." Beck smiles a bit "I dunno how anyone could just...decide to walk away without thinking twice about it."
"Me either..." Jade agrees "Thanks for not doing that."
"Sure."
There's silence between the two of them, something there hasn't been much of lately. Normally it's very easy for them to converse, either about the baby or about anything else for the most part, but this conversation seems to have taken a bit of a heavy turn. The quiet lingers there for a while before Beck clears his throat, changing his demeanor entirely.
"Have you eaten yet?" He asks Jade "I was just going to grab something on my way to work tonight but we could order a pizza if you want...?"
"Sure." Jade nods with a smile "I could do pizza."
"Alright, pizza it is."