"What?" The other three all looked at Karen in shock, while the socialite just closed her eyes and nodded.
"Oh Karen." Grace looked at her worriedly, reaching over to her and taking her hand.
"But are you sure? I mean, a couple years ago you also thought you were pregnant but it turned out to be false alarm."
"I'm sure, Jackie. I went to see Pharmacist yesterday after work, and I told him how bad these new pills make me feel and that I wanted my old ones back. But he just said that it's probably not the pills, and that I should take a pregnancy test because what I had just described sounded like the early stages of pregnancy. And at first I thought he was kidding and I laughed at him, but he insisted that he was being serious. So I bought a test and I took it when I got home, and it was positive." Karen could barely stop her voice from breaking.
Grace gently stroked her arm. "But you must have somehow noticed it before, right? Like, you must have been late?"
"Yeah, I was. But I blamed it all on the stress, you know? The divorce, and then Stan's death. And all the trouble with his children and with Lorraine. I thought that was the reason. It never even crossed my mind that I might be pregnant."
"Now, I don't want to sound insensitive, but do you know who the father is?" You could always leave it up to Will to ask the tough questions, though this time he was seriously concerned about Karen. She was his friend after all.
Karen nodded. "The baby is Stanley's." If the others had been shocked before then there was no word to describe what they felt now.
"Stan?! But- you guys were broken up, you were even divorcing! How did that happen?" Grace was confused and also a little upset, and she made no effort to hide it.
"I know. And I didn't plan for this to happen. About two weeks before Stan died, I went to the manse to get the last of my things. I would have sent Rosario, but this was about my jewelry and I wouldn't let anyone anywhere near that. And I thought he wouldn't be there, cause it was Wednesday and that's when he always went to this all-you-can-eat buffet. But he was there, and when our eyes met, it was just like the old days, you know. Just him and me, and nothing else in the world. And I just- I just wanted to be with him, one last time before it was all over. So we had sex. But it wasn't supposed to mean anything. It was just supposed to be the end. Of everything that was and everything we had. And in a sense, it was. It was the last time that I saw him." Karen couldn't hold back her tears anymore. She tried to turn away from her friends so they wouldn't see her like this, but Grace got up next to her and pulled her into a tight hug, stroking her back and repeatedly saying "I'm sorry, Kare. I'm so sorry."
Will and Jack got up from their seats too, and sooner than she could realize Karen was being hugged from all sides. Normally she wouldn't like this, and she would try to break free from it, but not this time. It just felt nice to know there are people who cared for her, and people she could rely on.
When the dark-haired woman stopped crying about ten minutes later, everyone got back to their chairs, but Grace wouldn't let go of her hand.
"Did you go see a doctor yet? To make sure everything is okay with the baby?"
"No. I'm scared. What if something is wrong? I don't know what to do."
Grace squeezed her assistant's hand. "I could come with you, if you want, so you won't have to do it alone."
"That sounds good. Thanks, Gracie." Karen smiled a little at Grace.
"Of course, Karen. I'm always here for you, and I'll help you no matter what."
"You can count me in too, Kare." Jack reached across the table for Karen's other hand.
"And me too. I know we've had our differences, but your my friend." Will put his hand on top of Grace's, so that all of them were holding hands with Karen.
The socialite was about to cry again. She wasn't used to people actually caring for her, and she knew how lucky she was to have friends like this. To have a family like this.
"Ooh, guys, I have an amazing idea! Why don't we all have a sleepover here at Will's tonight? We haven't done that in a while." Jack was beaming with excitement over his own idea.
"Sure, it would be nice to spend some more time with all of you again. And Karen wouldn't have to be alone tonight." Grace turned to Karen. "What do you say?"
"That's a good idea. It'll be nice to have you all with me."
"I'm okay with that too. But who cares what I think, it's just my apartment we're talking about, right?" No one really paid attention to what Will was saying.
"Great, so it's decided. I'll go and grab the fluffiest pillow!" Jack ran off as if he was chasing some cute guy, and the others just laughed at it.
"So, does anyone want to help me do the dishes? No one? Fine, go to the bedroom, I'll join you when I'm finished here." Will stood up, grabbed the four plates off the table and walked towards the kitchen.
Grace got up and pulled Karen out of her chair too. "Come on, let's go, before Jack takes up the whole bed for himself."
As Will had finished the dishes he went into his bedroom where the others were waiting for him. The three of them were already lying in bed, with Karen in the middle and Grace and Jack snuggled up to her left and right, respectively. Will lay down right next to Grace and even managed to get a little bit of the bedspread for himself before wrapping his arm around both Grace and Karen. It didn't take long for them to fall asleep, and they all enjoyed feeling the closeness and warmth of each other.