Part Seven – A new day

I open the curtains in the bedroom, bathing my new fiancée in the new day's light. I found it hard to believe that she only moved in here a few months ago, after a week of living here. I smile to myself as I see her pull the covers over her head as she moans out, "It's Saturday Jack, why do ya need to get up so early?"

I laugh as I say to her, "Well, I thought you'd want to open this package that was on our doorstep this morning, addressed to this address, but no contact name on i-"

She jumped out of bed so fast, ignoring the fact that she hadn't bothered putting anything on last night after we had made love to celebrate our engagement. But that was only a blur as she tackled me to the ground, grabbing the package as she said, "Don't ya dare open it!"

The box went flying into the hall behind us and she got off of me so fast, following it into the hallway. I push myself off of the ground and go out into the hall to see that she has the box tucked under an arm, but a letter in one hand, the envelope is on the ground, on it I can see the crest of the Naval Health Research Center along with the letters NHRC. I tilt my head to the side just as the box sips out from under her arm and she turns to lean against the wall, a stunned look on her face. I could sense that this was news she wasn't expecting and I was curious as to why the NHRC would be sending her a letter, so I asked, "Carol, is everything okay?"

She looks at me before walking up to me, locking her arms around my neck and resting her forehead against my chest as she whispers, "I'm pregnant."

Those words hit me like a truck.

We'd been using condoms, but well they are not one hundred percent effective. I knew that, but this was still a shock. I slip my hands around her and just hold her and she asks, "That's okay, right?"

I knew that my mom wanted grandkids, and I had thought about kids someday, I just hadn't expected that day to come so soon. I rest my cheek on the top of her head as I ask her, "The better question is, how do you feel about it?"

"Since it's yours, I'm happy. But I-" she started to say before I lifted her chin and kissed her to stop her from going down that road.

Once the kiss breaks, I run a hand through her hair before I say to her, "I love you Carol, so I'm happy with this news, if you are."

She smiles at me and nods as she says, "I am, and I guess this means we can stop usin' condoms now, not like I could get more pregnant."

I can't help but laugh at the joke she made there and I stroke her back as I say to her, "You're right. Speaking of that, how far along are you?"

She brings around her hand with the letter, looking at the date on it, before she starts counting on the other hand and says, "Well, takin' in the date on this, what this says, an' today's date, about six weeks."

That was when she started to laugh, I titled my head to the side and asked, "What's so funny?"

She waves her hands back and forth while getting herself under control enough to say, "It likely happened on my launch day, the one time we didn't use one."

I laugh and lean in to kiss her again as I say, "Well, happy launch day then." Once it breaks I add, "If I recall correctly, it was your idea not to use one that night."

She pouts for a second before letting it break into a smile and she nuzzles my neck and says, "It was, but I don't mind the outcome. I love ya, Jack."

I squeeze her tightly in my arms as my eyes fall on the package and I ask, "No to change the subject or anything, but what's in the box?"

She sighs and says, "Wait downstairs for a bit, an' I'll show ya."

XXXX

From downstairs, I could hear her cursing away upstairs and bouncing around in the bedroom and all I could do was raise an eyebrow and sip more coffee. As did that, I started scrolling through information on pregnancy and what to expect, I wanted to know since, well, I was too young when my mom was pregnant with my sister to remember what she went through.

When I hear her on the stairs, I look up just as she comes into the kitchen, my eyes going wide as I take in NC dressed in a playboy bunny girl outfit, my mouth hangs open as she asks, "Jack, do ya like bunny girls?"

After I regain my wits I say to her, "I like you as a bunny girl."

She gives a shy smile and comes over to me, taking my coffee cup from me and sipping from it as she says, "I ordered this in for Halloween this year, on the chance we hadn't gotten together by then I was going to try and tempt you with this outfit."

My head tilted to the side and I think back to how this got started and I ask, "Was this what the request form was for?"

She turns bright red before nodding shyly and sighs out, "Yeah."

A moment later she puts down the mug and says, "Oh sugha honey iced tea! I probably won't fit this come then!"

It takes me a moment to pick up what she's talking about and I ask, "You think you'll be showing by then?"

NC nods and bends at her hips, leaning over the island in the kitchen, a pout on her face as she says, "It was hard enough squeezin' into this now!"

I move around behind her and start to kiss her exposed back while I rub her hips and say, "Well, we'll find something else this year. But I think I'm going to have fun getting you out of this."

She laughs and rocks her hips against me and asks, "Yeah?"

"Yeah." I say back to her as I start to pull the zipper down the small of her back.

Whatever I had hoped was going to happen, came to a screeching halt as my laptop started to let me know that my mother was trying to call us. NC laughed before saying to me, "Better get that, I'll get changed an' come back down an' then we can tell her."

I sigh inwardly before I say to her, "Carol, generally, humans don't share that info for at least the first eleven weeks, so much can go wrong in that ti-"

She stopped me from saying more by kissing me before she said, much more firmly, "I'm tellin' her."

"Bu-" I try to say and she gives me this look that stops me cold and she adds, "Don' try talkin' me out of this."

I sigh, but kiss her chest before I say "Fine."

After she ducks upstairs to get dressed I open my laptop to see my mom, grinning at me and she asks, "So? Did ya finally ask her?"

I nod and sit back on the couch as I say that southern drawl coming out a little, "Yes mama, an' I already knew what she'd say."

Her grin grows broader as she teases me, "That drawl's comin' out again."

I roll my eyes, truth is it's been coming out more lately. After she watches me roll my eyes I add, "But she said yes, as I'm guessing you want to hear the word."

"Well 'course I do! But speakin' of Carol, where is my daughter-in-law?" my mom asks.

I was about to answer when I hear NC on the stairs again, I'll admit I was curious as to how she managed to get out of that outfit so fast. That question would have to wait for later, as I saw her in a tank top and lounge pants, but I had to bite my tongue to keep myself from laughing at the bunny ears she still had on. As she came around the side of the laptop she said, "I'm here, I'm here."

My mom's head titled to side as she said in an amused tone, "Carol, sweetie… that's a mighty interestin' headband ya got on."

NC flushed bright red as she slowly took off the bunny ears as she mumbled, "I forgot."

"Besides that, how'd he ask ya?" my mom asked her.

NC smiled and held my hand as she said, "He had Enty, Reno, Phoenix, and Bremerton host game night, complete with a game of twister. After a round of it, he took me out back of the Eagle Union dorms to the porch swing back there, and as we sat on it, he asked."

I shrugged and added, "I wanted to recreate the night where we first got together."

My mom nodded and had a smile on her face, and that was when NC chose to drop the bomb apparently. Her left hand went to her belly as she said, "We also got some news this mornin'."

My mom must've caught the movement as she squealed out, "I'm goin' to be a granny?" I cleared my throat as NC nodded before my mother added, "How far along are ya'll?"

"About six weeks." NC told her.

My mom nodded before asking, "Seems a bit early for tellin' anyone."

I sigh out, "That's what I sai-"

"Hush now." NC said to me with a squeeze of my hand before adding, "I wanted to say it since I'm excited."

My mom runs a hand through her hair as she asks, "I know it's still early an' all, but I'd really like you to come home this year for thanks givin', but it's comin' up fast."

I smile at my mom as I say to her, "I already put the paperwork in, it just needs to go through approval, and ONI needs to sign off on it too."

She nods at us before smiling with a knowing wink as she says, "Well, I best let ya'll go so you can, be all excited about the news together."

I laugh as I say, "Bye mama, I'll let you know if we get approval or not."

NC grins as she gives her goodbye as well, once she's disconnected I close the laptop and ask, "So how did you get changed so fast?"

NC leans a little forward and tugs down her top, letting me see the bunny suit under it as she says with a suggestive tone, "I need help gettin' out of it."

"I should really lend you that hand then." I say with a wink as I stand up and start heading to our bedroom.

XXXX

XXXX

The End.

A/N: I'm ending this one here, I'm happy with how this one has ended and I'm leaving it open enough to come back to later.