A/N: Quick warning! There's some mild medical talk in this chapter (as there will be in some future chapters). Nothing extreme, just general stuff that comes with a trip to the obstetrician.

Three

In the week prior to her Friday appointment, Rory spent much of her time in a sort of daze. She went through the motions, getting her belongings together and preparing to move back to New Haven that weekend. She and Jess had decided together it would be best for her to return sooner than originally planned in order to get established with her doctor and to settle in before school started. Jess would join her for two weeks, then would come the day they had both been dreading for three months – the day Jess would return to Philadelphia, and they would go back to being in a long-distance relationship.

Rory's pregnancy symptoms continued to hit her hard. She was sick every night, she was more tired than she ever thought possible, she was having random dizzy spells that were often accompanied by vicious headaches, and she cried at everything. The symptoms were especially difficult to manage under the additional emotional pain of the new rift with Lorelai.

She wished to feel happier about the pregnancy. Sure, she was excited, but that excitement was often drowned out by fear and worry. So many women wanted to be in her position, and she'd stumbled into it on accident. But her heart ached; she was so deeply terrified of how her life was changing and all she wanted was her mommy.

Jess was as attentive as ever, becoming even more so with every passing day. He felt bad that Rory was suffering and there was nothing he could do about it but sit by her side. Thus, he was there to hold back her hair every time she threw up, he was at the store every time she had a craving – grape-related or otherwise – and he was there to hold her and comfort her every time she was in bed with either a headache or a fresh wave of heartache.

Jess and Lorelai had, of course, had their differences over the years. But Jess had never been more furious with her as he'd become since Rory cried into his shoulder on the bridge. It would have been so easy to be scared but supportive – Luke had done it just fine, despite years of drilling the words "don't screw up Rory's life" into Jess's brain. But instead, she lashed out and caused the second falling out between herself and Rory in a year, making the pregnancy even harder on Rory than it needed to be. Every time Jess found Rory in tears again, he had half a mind to call Lorelai himself. But, he resisted, knowing it would probably cause more problems than it would solve.

Outside of Luke and Lorelai, Jess and Rory decided their various roommates deserved to know what was going on. Paris basically already knew, considering she was the person that helped Rory understand her mysterious illness and was there when she bought the pregnancy tests. After the disastrous day in Stars Hollow, Rory had called Paris to iron out their living situation and confirmed her suspicions about Rory's symptoms. Paris was, in her own way, supportive of Rory, jumping in to offer medical and parenting advise that was altogether unnecessary but definitely came out of a place love and care. Rory appreciated that Paris wasn't judging her – she'd be getting enough of that from family and strangers alike and was thankful she didn't have to get it from her roommate, and she was thankful to have another person on her team.

Matt and Chris had grown suspicious of Rory's illness and Jess's obviously high levels of stress. Though they didn't know exactly what was going on until they were told, they knew something was up. The night they returned from Stars Hollow, Rory had gone to bed early and Jess had sat down his two roommates to explain. He wasn't sure what to expect from the two of them – they were genuine, kind people that he knew cared about both himself and Rory, but they could be a little oblivious and awkward at times. When Jess finally told them, they were initially surprised and a little speechless. But their shock quickly transformed to excitement as they proudly claimed their titles of adopted uncles to Jess's future child. Jess simply shook his head and smirked at their glee, thankful for any and all support he and Rory got.

Friday morning arrived and Rory said her farewells to Matt and Chris, both of whom were a little heartbroken to see her go. Sure, she'd make her way to Philadelphia when she could, and they would do their best to make it to New Haven for occasional visits, but between Rory's classes and the work that had to be done at Truncheon, everyone's visits would be few and far between.

Jess and Rory had to hit the road early in order to make it to New Haven in time for the appointment, and Rory couldn't help but let the tears flow as she hugged the guys goodbye. Jess finished putting their things in the car and waited for Rory to come outside, leaning against the passenger side door. Eventually, she exited the building and his heart seized yet again at the sight of her watery, puffy eyes. He opened her door for her, and she climbed into the car without a word. Jess rounded the car and sat in the driver's seat, starting the car and driving towards New Haven in silence.

Rory sniffed loudly. "Ugh, I'm so tired of crying," she chuckled weakly.

Jess reached over and took Rory's hand in his own, squeezing it gently. "I know," he said quietly, for lack of anything else.

Rory squeezed his hand back and sat up a little straighter, as if she had been given a little strength. "That's it, I'm done crying for now."

Jess frowned. "As much as I hate how upset you've been, I'm not sure you have much say over the tears."

Rory shook her head vehemently. "I know, I know, hormones. But seriously, I'm over it. I've spent the whole week crying over—" Her voice broke and she cleared her throat. "Over Mom. But I'm done now. She can get over herself and talk to me when she's ready. For now, I just want to look ahead." She turned to look at Jess. "Is that okay with you?" she asked nervously.

Jess glanced in her direction. "Yeah, that's okay with me," he nodded.

"Okay. Good. Looking forward."

"Forward."

"First off, the appointment today," Rory said, a soft smile forming on her face.

Jess's stomach did a little flip as he remembered their plan for the day. "Remind me what's happening there again?"

"Blood work, ironing out the due date, and possibly an ultrasound," she said, counting each thing off on her fingers.

Jess's breath caught. "So, we might see the… baby."

Rory smiled widely. "Yep."

"Wow…" Jess whispered. "Okay."

Rory squeezed Jess's hand once more and then released it, reaching to turn on the radio and find some music to listen to for their drive. The rest of the way to her apartment, Rory seemed to be in higher spirits, which Jess was simultaneously thankful for and wary of. He knew Rory, knew she needed to feel what she was feeling and not push it away, letting it build until it was too big to handle. He didn't want it all to come crashing down on her. But as Rory sang along with the Radiohead song coming through the speakers with the window down, her hair flowing in the breeze, Jess couldn't help but breathe a small sigh of relief at the sight of the joyful Rory he'd missed so much lately.

Their drive was smooth, pausing just a couple times to use the restroom or get snacks. Both Rory and Jess were thankful that Rory's newly dubbed "evening sickness" was just that and didn't bother her on their morning drive. In just over three hours, they were back in New Haven and carrying luggage up to the dingy apartment that Rory would be sharing with Paris and Doyle for one final year. The apprehension seemed to settle back into Rory the tiniest bit as she approached the front door bearing many locks, but she huffed out a breath and unlocked each one, kicking the door twice before opening it and entering the apartment. Thankful that Paris and Doyle were both at work, Jess and Rory settled into the apartment. After a quick lunch, they were back out the door and on the way to the appointment.

Rory and Jess sat in the waiting room at the obstetrician's office, surrounded by women in varying stages of pregnancy. The couple sat in silence, their eyes transfixed on various examples of their future. Rory did her best not to gawk at the women who appeared to be in the late stages of pregnancy, their stomachs large and round and peeking through their shirts. Jess, on the other hand, couldn't tear his eyes away from the mother holding a very small infant in a kind of wrap that held against it against its mother's chest. How could they be so small? Was their baby going to be that small? It seemed so… pretend, for lack of a better word. It looked like a doll, and it was oh so quiet. Babies weren't supposed to be quiet, babies were supposed to be loud and messy, crying all the time. Perhaps unaware of his gaping, Jess continued to stare and ponder until the infant in question let out a yell that pierced the silence in the room.

"Ow," Rory muttered, gaze still on the very pregnant woman across the room.

Jess looked at Rory, who was wincing slightly. Jess had apparently squeezed Rory's hand in surprise at the sudden sound.

"Sorry," he whispered. "Startled me."

"It's okay," she whispered back distractedly.

Jess noticed the slightly terrified look on Rory's face.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm gonna be huge!" she hissed, turning to look at him.

"What?" he asked, suppressed laughter shaking his voice.

"My stomach is gonna be huge! And my ankles will get fat and my boobs will be ginormous…"

Jess smirked. "I don't see a problem with that last one…" he mumbled, earning a smack on the arm. "Ow, it was a joke!"

"Stop it, I'm being serious! There's not much room here," she said, gesturing to her abdomen. "There's nowhere for a baby to go but out! And, oh my God, what if it's twins. Jess, what if we're having two babies?" she cried quietly.

That sobered Jess.

"Rory, it's not twins."

"How do you know?" she demanded.

Jess blinked. "Well…"

"See? What are we gonna do?" she demanded.

"Rory…" Jess started.

"Lorelai Gilmore?" the nurse called, interrupting Jess.

Both of their heads spun to the open door.

"Are you Lorelai?" she asked Rory.

"Yes. No. Um, both yes and no, I'm Lorelai. But I'm also Rory. Jeez, normally I explain this so much better…"

"She's Lorelai, but she goes by Rory," Jess explained, standing up.

"Ah, okay then…" the nurse said, looking confused but making note of it in Rory's chart, nonetheless. "Dr. Gunderson's ready for you, come on back," she added with a smile that helped put Rory at ease.

The two followed the nurse down the hall and into the small room, Rory sitting up on the exam table and Jess sitting awkwardly in the chair across the room.

"So, you already confirmed the pregnancy with a blood test, correct?" the nurse asked Rory.

"Yes, yep, that's right." Rory inwardly winced at her sudden and complete lack of ability to put a normal sentence together.

"Okay, perfect. So today we're just going to do some basic checks – weight, urine, blood, hormone levels, things like that. We'll also go over your medical history and answer any questions you might have."

"Yeah, that sounds great, um…" Rory paused. "Will the doctor do an ultrasound?" she asked quietly.

The nurse smiled. "Yes, she'll do that at the end. Confirm the gestational age, help iron out a due date, make sure everything is looking normal so far."

Rory and Jess stiffened.

"And what if it doesn't look normal?" Rory asked, her voice small.

"If, and that's a big if, something doesn't look normal, we'll go from there. But there's no reason to worry."

That didn't ease Rory's nerves in the least, but she nodded all the same.

The nurse drew Rory's blood, asked her some general questions about her medical history, had her step on the scale, and left her and Jess alone in the room to wait for the doctor.

"This is so surreal," Rory said quietly.

"No kidding," Jess muttered, staring at the array of sharp-looking metal tools on the tray next to the bed. "Do I want to know what any of those are for?" he asked, wincing.

Rory chuckled. "No, you really don't."

Jess reached over and held Rory's hand.

"Everything's gonna be fine," he said quietly.

"I'm gonna need to hear that a lot in the next few months," Rory said, smiling softly.

"Then I'll say it a lot."

Rory squeezed his hand in appreciation. "Jess, how are you doing with all this? I feel like I've been in a constant state of just pure freak out since we found out, and I really appreciate that you've been there for me, but we haven't really had a chance to talk."

Jess sighed heavily, opening his mouth to speak just as a knock sounded at the door.

"Hi, Rory?" Dr. Gunderson asked, stepping into the room. Dr. Gunderson was a tall, curvy woman with olive skin and wild, curly black hair pulled into a hasty bun on the top of her head and kind, dark eyes framed by smile lines. She wore khakis and a deep mauve blouse under her white coat and had little enamel uterus-shaped pins on her lapel. Rory immediately took a liking to her, deeply appreciating the relaxing atmosphere that seemed to follow her around.

"Hi, I'm Dr. Sofia Gunderson. Call me Sofia, call me Dr. Gunderson, whatever makes you most comfortable. I'm assuming you're the boyfriend?" she asked, looking at Jess.

"Yeah, hi, Jess," he said in greeting, standing to shake the doctor's hand.

"Nice to meet both of you. So, we made a baby. Congrats! How far along do you think you are?"

Rory blushed a little at the doctor's blunt phrasing. "Um, I'm not really sure."

Dr. Gunderson nodded understandingly. "That's alright. Do you two use protection?" she asked, sitting down on her stool and beginning to type notes into the database.

Rory went bright red. "Um…"

"Rory, there's nothing to be embarrassed about here. I know how babies are made, otherwise I'd really suck at my job."

Rory smiled slightly. "Yes, we do."

"Alright, and when was your last period?"

"The middle of May sometime… It was finals, I'm sorry, I don't remember exactly," Rory admitted, feeling a little ashamed. She was normally so organized, it drove her crazy that she hadn't tracked anything in two months, hadn't even realized it was missing until Paris asked her.

"Okay, so…" Sofia said, typing some notes into the computer. "I'm going to guess that you probably ovulated and therefore conceived sometime around the end of May or beginning of June. We'll measure the baby during the ultrasound to get a better idea of how far along you are, but I'm estimating around seven weeks."

Something about that time frame itched Rory's brain, but she didn't know why. Brushing it aside, she forced a smile and nodded.

"Okay, how are we feeling? Morning sickness? Fatigue? Other thrilling symptoms?"

"Well, for me it tends to be evening sickness. Lots of that. Some cravings, headaches, dizziness, and I'm super emotional."

Jess remained silent as the conversation continued, feeling altogether useless and entirely awkward as Rory and the doctor talked about all the generally sucky but ultimately normal things Rory was experiencing as a result of the pregnancy.

"And how are we feeling about the pregnancy?"

The question took Rory by surprise a little bit.

"Um… kind of terrified, to be honest," she said in a small voice.

Sofia nodded understandingly. "That's alright," she said softly. "Anything in particular?"

"It's just… huge. Life-changing. Not supposed to happen right now." She laughed sadly. "I'm a senior at Yale this year and it's just freaky to think I'm going to have a baby to take care of by the time I get my diploma."

"Totally normal. I have to ask, are you sure you want to proceed with the pregnancy?" she asked gently.

Rory nodded. "Yeah," she said in a hushed tone, a soft smile spreading across her face. "That's the craziest part of all. Even though I'm scared to death, I'm also happy."

Dr. Gunderson smiled and turned to face Jess. "How are you doing with the news, Dad?"

Jess felt his heart stop briefly and his eyes went wide. "U-um," he stuttered hoarsely. Dad. And she was talking to him. He was Dad. He had been rendered immobile. His brain had ceased to process thought. He just stared at the doctor, his mouth slightly open in shock.

Dr. Gunderson laughed lightly. "Okay, that tells me everything I need to know there." She moved to face both of them. "So. It's totally normal and basically expected to feel scared out of your mind right now, you guys. You're young, this was unexpected, you're still figuring it out. Just know it's important to lean on each other as you continue to process the news." She stood up, pulled a machine on a small cart over towards her. "Now, how do we feel about seeing your baby?" she asked brightly.

Rory grinned a little shyly and nodded. She leaned back on the table and adjusted her pants and shirt to allow Dr. Gunderson to squirt the transparent blueish gel on her lower stomach.

"Okay, so the screen is there. Jess, why don't you come around by Rory's head so you can see?"

Jess followed the directions blindly, standing slightly behind the exam table. He was suddenly terrified. They were about to see their baby. It hadn't really set in yet that there was a real baby to see. It was all theoretical until now. But, he'd just gotten called "Dad" for the first time, the gel was on Rory's stomach, and the weird little probe was primed and ready to give them a glimpse at their kid.

This was real.

Rory looked back at Jess who suddenly looked a little pale and reached to grab his hand. The contact shook Jess from his stupor and he looked down at Rory, offering her a small smile and squeezing her hand affectionately.

"Ready?" Dr. Gunderson asked.

Rory nodded, bracing herself. For what, she wasn't exactly sure.

Dr. Gunderson pressed the probe onto Rory's stomach and moved it around, smearing the gel. A strange whooshing sound emitted from the speakers of the ultrasound machine as Dr. Gunderson searched for what she was looking for. It felt like hours had passed when she finally found it.

"Ah, there we go. They were hiding," she said quietly.

"They?!" Rory cried.

"As in more than one?" Jess uttered hoarsely.

"Oh, no! There's just one! I tend to use 'they' until we know the sex, sorry for the scare!"

The parents-to-be each sighed a breath of relief.

"And…" Dr. Gunderson pointed to a little whiteish blob on the screen. "There they are. Mom, Dad, meet your baby."

Rory suddenly felt overcome by emotion. That was her baby. Her baby. There was a tiny little life inside her, growing every day.

She was going to be a mom.

Dr. Gunderson pressed a couple of buttons and suddenly a rapid, whooshing, thumping noise filled the room.

Rory's breath caught in her throat. "Is that…?" she asked, eyes wide.

Dr. Gunderson smiled and nodded. "That's the heartbeat." She pointed to a small fluttering on the screen. "And that's their heart."

"Whoa…" Jess breathed.

He hadn't expected to feel so… overcome. But looking at the tiny shape on the screen, he suddenly knew he would do anything to protect that blob. He felt a little bad calling it a blob, but it didn't really have any features yet, and the ultrasound made everything a little blurry. But that was his blob. His and Rory's. That blob might eventually have her stunning blue eyes and his crooked smile. A perfect combination of the two of them. A grin broke out across his face. Nothing would get him to tear his eyes away from the screen.

"Yep, baby's measuring at about seven weeks and I'm going to put your due date around March tenth next year."

"Okay," Rory said wistfully, not truly paying attention.

Sofia grinned. "Everything looks great. I'll print out some pictures for you guys to take home and share with friends and family."

Rory glanced up at Jess while the pictures printed and her eyes only welled further at the look on Jess's face. He appeared totally full of awe at the image on the screen, a perfect combination of thrill and amazement. She squeezed his hand and he looked down at her with a soft expression.

"That's our kid," he whispered, returning his attention to the screen.

"Yeah, it is," Rory giggled.

"That's so cool…"

Rory laughed. "You can say that again."

Dr. Gunderson wiped Rory's tummy clean of gel and handed them the strip of ultrasound photos. They went through the motions of scheduling her next checkup for the following month and then were sent on their way, walking dazedly out to the car. Once inside, they sat in the quiet, just admiring their little blob in the photos.

Still ruminating on how far along she was, on when the baby happened, something clicked in her mind.

"Oh my God!" she shouted, scaring Jess.

"What?" he asked with wide eyes.

"Beginning of June. Jess, the wedding. The wedding and the whiskey, getting drunk and waking up hungover and…" She trailed off, shaking her head.

Realization show itself on Jess's face. It all made sense.

The protection hadn't failed. He'd gotten drunk and not even used protection.

And now look where they were.

A myriad of emotions ran through Jess at the thought, and as he was trying to process his thoughts, Rory started laughing.

"What's so funny?" Jess asked quietly.

"You got me pregnant the day your uncle married my mom," she said through her laughter.

"Why did you have to put it like that?" Jess groaned.

"Our family is so weird!" Rory laughed.

It was all so absurd that Jess had to laugh, too. Never had he imagined himself where he was at that moment.

As they sobered, returning their attention to the ultrasound photos in Rory's hand, they became pensive.

"I wonder who they're gonna be…" Rory said absentmindedly before blushing. "Does that sound weird?"

Jess smirked. "No, not at all."

Rory put her hand on her still-flat stomach and looked down at it. "There's a tiny person in there!" she exclaimed with glee.

Jess laughed. "Whoever they are, I hope they have your eyes," he said quietly.

Rory looked up at him. "I hope they have your crazy hair," she said with a grin.

"Hey, my hair's not that crazy anymore!"

Rory snorted. "Oh my God, the baby's gonna come out with spiky, perfectly gelled hair."

Jess rolled his eyes and began to pull out of the parking lot. "And it's gonna have a junk food addiction from birth, probably."

"Or be obsessed with grapes if my cravings mean anything at all."

"As long as it's not coffee."

Rory pouted. "I'm still upset with you for switching my grounds out with decaf!"

"Hey, everything I've seen says caffeine can cause serious issues! You can have up to twelve ounces a day, but that's all," Jess said with an air of finality. He glanced over at Rory who was gazing at him with shiny eyes and a soft smile. "What?"

"You looked it up," she said quietly.

"Oh, not this again…" he said, smirking. "Yes, I looked up some stuff about pregnancy. No biggie."

Rory smiled and leaned over the center console to kiss Jess on the cheek. "I love you."

Jess smiled. "Love you, too."

Rory returned her attention to the ultrasound photos, her eyes tearing up and spilling over the smile on her face.

"So much for not crying," Jess teased.

"Shut up," Rory mumbled through her happy tears.

A/N: Yay, some lighter story! Finally they get to be excited about being parents! Ugh, this baby has my heart.