The morning after they returned to Arlen, Boomhauer stood happily in the alley, not even bothering to try to suppress his smile.

"You're looking much better today, Boomhauer," Hank noticed.

"Did you get her back?" asked Bill.

"Yep."

Dale cheered, "Hooray!" and raised his beer high in the air.

"Peggy saw her today, and she said Leah looked awfully happy. I'm glad you two got things worked out."

"Thanks, Hank. And thank you, Bill, for uh, motivating me."

Bill patted him on the back.

"You'd do the same for me. Hell, you have done the same for me."

Boomhauer was incredibly relieved to have Leah back in his life. Even though she was only gone for a couple of days, it felt like a painful eternity. He never wanted to go through that again, and he never wanted to put her through that again, either.

As the weeks went by, he doted on her, even more than he always had. She had begun feeling very nauseous and fatigued from morning sickness, and he did everything he could to comfort her and care for her.

"I'm sorry you have to see me like this," she sighed. She had just gotten done throwing up after a dizzying bout of nausea, as she had done every day for the past week.

"Like what? All I see is the beautiful mother of my child."

That brought a small smile to her face before she collapsed in an exhausted heap onto the couch.

She was beginning to wonder if she would ever feel normal again. She couldn't run, she couldn't do Tai Chi or yoga, everything was too tiring and she felt too ill. But there were only a couple of weeks to go until her second trimester, and then apparently the morning sickness would drop off. She wished she could sleep until then.

They were still waiting to tell everyone the news. Neither of them were in any rush. Leah suspected her co-workers might have had some idea, as she was having rough mornings every day at work, but they didn't mention it to her.

Boomhauer was still nervous about the entire thing. It was almost absurd to imagine that he was going to be a father in the spring. That was only a few months away. He wasn't ready, not at all, but he was trying. He was trying for Leah. But if it were anyone else, absolutely not.

But she was worth it, as difficult as it was…

Finally Leah reached her second trimester, and was beginning to feel much better. Her energy was back, and she was able to run again. She was feeling rusty, but hoped to reach her old stamina in due time.

One evening they sat together after work, discussing their days over dinner.

"I was thinking," she began, "We should announce it in some big way. Maybe have a party and tell them all at once."

Impassive, he responded, "Alright."

"Did you want to do something else?"

"No, that's fine."

She gave him a discouraged look.

"I want you to be part of this, too."

"I am part of it. I liked your idea, so I agreed to it."

She sighed.

"Alright. But it's your baby too, you know."

"I know."

"So it's okay to be interested in things regarding the baby."

"Leah, I am interested."

She shrugged and looked morosely down at her plate. "You still don't act like it."

He knew that to be true, because he wasn't entirely interested. He was still more nervous than anything else. But he didn't want her to be upset, or to feel like he wasn't fully present.

"How do you want me to act?" he asked, genuinely wanting to change.

"Like I haven't handed you a death sentence."

He didn't feel as though he treated the situation that badly, but must be he did. He resolved to try and act a little more positive, if that were even possible.

The following weekend, Leah arranged a typical pool party with food and friends. She invited all of the neighbors to the party, including Luanne and her family, and, of course, Mia. She was excited to be announcing the news to everyone, and was looking forward to everybody's reactions.

She had told her family a few days beforehand, and Boomhauer had told his. His mother screamed and started sobbing, causing his father to wrench the phone from her hand and ask who died.

"No one. Just… having a baby," mumbled Boomhauer.

He could hear his mother crying "I'm so happy!" in the background.

When the day of the pool party came, Mia came over to Leah's house to help her set things up. They both wore short, flowy cover ups over their swimsuits, and their hair was pulled up off from their shoulders.

"I bought this little kiddie pool for Gracie," Leah showed Mia. She put it under the shade of a tree and filled it with fresh water.

Mia helped her bring out tables and chairs and fill a cooler with ice.

"Hank is bringing the grill," Leah said. "I'm glad he likes grilling so much. I'm hardly asking a favor of him when I put him on grill duty."

Mia stood at the pool's edge, watching as the clear water glittered under the sun. "I can't wait to swim!"

"Me too. It's going to be so much fun!"

Leah thought about the big announcement she would be making later. Her stomach fluttered with both excitement and nerves. She was excited to share her news with everybody, but also a little nervous about how Boomhauer was still feeling about it all. He was making a true effort to be supportive, but she could tell he still wasn't fully invested in the actual baby itself.

"Mia, you're my best friend."

Mia looked surprised at that, but soon her face broke into a smile.

"You're mine, too."

Leah was happy to hear that. She was so thankful Mia had come into her life, bringing in laughter and harmony.

"I'm going to be sharing some big news at the party today, but because you're my best friend, I wanted to tell you first."

Mia nodded for her to go on.

"I'm pregnant!"

And, as a true friend would, Mia jumped up with joy and cheered in delight.

"That's great! Are you excited?"

"I am, and as time goes on I'm getting more excited. But Jeffrey, well- He never wanted kids. I fucked up my birth control and then this happened. He's still getting used to it, but he's not, you know, happy about it."

Leah looked distantly out across the gentle waves.

Mia tried to comfort her. "Well, it's a lot to take in. It's a big adjustment. I think some men take longer to be happy about it because they're not the ones experiencing it."

"That's true."

"Don't worry. I know he'll come around. Especially after the baby comes, and then he can actually see it and hold it."

That thought reassured Leah better than anything else had by that point.

"Thank you. You're right," she smiled.

Everybody soon began arriving. Most of them wore swimsuits and carried towels under their arms.

Boomhauer walked in. He immediately went straight to Leah and kissed her right there in front of everyone. She really appreciated how unafraid he was to show affection to her in public, especially now more than ever.

"Glad you could make it," she joked.

"I'd never miss a chance to see you in a bikini."

Leah looked at him suggestively, and he pulled her closer by her waist. She giggled when he began whispering in her ear, but pushed him away when Peggy and Luanne, who was holding Gracie, came over to talk to her. Mia broke away from Bill and went to visit with them, too.

Hank had followed in with his grill and began setting it up on Leah's patio. Boomhauer, Dale, and Bill joined him, and they all broke into the cooler of Alamo beer.

"Yep."

Boomhauer heard Bill groan under his breath. He turned to see what the trouble was, only to look at the entrance of both Octavio and John fucking Redcorn. Why has he been sniffing around Rainey Street so often lately?

"Dale," grumbled Bill, his glare pointed dead on Octavio, "Why the hell is he here?"

"He and I have a promising business venture to discuss."

"And John Redcorn?" Boomhauer asked, annoyed.

Dale shrugged. "He's my friend."

"It's not your party to invite people to," Bill pointed out.

"Oh, Leah doesn't mind." He raised his voice and called, "Do you, Leah?"

Across the yard, she turned away from Peggy and Luanne, and began walking with Mia over to Dale and the others.

Before they could reach the guys, however, John Redcorn slid in front of them.

"Leah," he addressed, gracefully and respectably, "I hope you don't mind I'm here. Dale invited me, and he said you wouldn't mind."

A gruff voice chimed in. "Yeah, Dale invited me too."

Octavio came over to them, and stood a little too close to Mia for Bill's liking.

"The more the merrier," Leah smiled, "But you have to swim!"

"I plan to," John Redcorn nodded seriously.

Octavio was offering Mia a joint before Bill intervened.

"Come on, Mia," Bill muttered, and led her away elsewhere. Octavio looked steadily behind them.

Leah swept away to greet the rest of her guests, while Boomhauer kept a watchful eye on John Redcorn.

Boomhauer wasn't a jealous person, really, but considering John Redcorn had tried dating Leah in the past, and the fact that he had no qualms against pursuing taken women… well, it couldn't hurt to be careful.

Leah and Mia ended back over to where Luanne and Gracie were playing. Leah looked like a natural when it came to Gracie. She seemed to know exactly how to interact with her, even getting her to laugh and clap her hands. Boomhauer liked the sight of it… the sight of Leah being a mother.

He wasn't sure how he could ever be a father. He couldn't picture himself holding a baby, or doing the right things to make one laugh. He couldn't picture a baby in his life at all, it was still too irrational a thought.

Hank called them all to eat, and Boomhauer's stomach dropped. Leah was going to tell everybody soon.

When he and Leah went to make their plates, she bumped playfully against him, and grinned up at him with sparkling, hopeful eyes. It was an exciting day for her. If only he could share her feelings. He mostly felt a sense of dread where any excitement should be.

Everyone sat down at the picnic tables and Hank said grace. He gave thanks for neighbors, family, and togetherness, and before finishing he added "thank you for the propane that helped facilitate these incredible burgers."

Once Hank was done, Leah stood at the head of the table and brightly looked out at them all.

"Boomhauer and I have something we'd like to announce!"

She looked at him expectantly, so he stood up beside her, and tried his best to look contented.

"We are both very excited to have all of our friends and neighbors here today. When I moved here over a year ago, I didn't know anybody, I didn't have anybody. But right away you all stepped up to welcome me and be there for me. Even though my family are all in a different state, I still have you all as my Texas family, and I'm so thankful for that. That's why we're both very excited to share some news with you all...we're having a baby!"

The entire yard was silent. Leah was beaming as the news began sinking in. Suddenly, everyone began cheering.

"Oh, Leah, that's wonderful!" Peggy clapped.

Nancy leapt up and threw her arms around Leah while Minh whooped in delight.

"Well, all right," Hank grinned.

Bill looked surprised, yet pleased. "Congratulations!"

"I'm so happy for you!" Mia smiled.

"Having a baby is so much fun!" squealed Luanne. "Well, not having a baby, but the part that comes after. The motherhood part."

Dale's voice carried over the excited murmurs and congratulations. "I can't believe you impregnated somebody!"

John Redcorn looked firmly at Leah, but didn't say anything.

After the commotion began to subside, Leah spoke again. "Thank you, everyone! Now let's eat!"

Leah joined her place at the table beside Mia while everyone else broke off into excited conversations. Leah was pleased the announcement went over so well, and that Boomhauer wasn't quite so stiff and wooden about it as she had feared he was going to be.

Nancy asked, "When are you due?"

"April!"

"My sister is having a baby in March!" Mia told her. "I'm so excited to become an aunt."

Leah remembered how excited she was to become an aunt, too, when Michael and Angela announced their first pregnancy with Warren. Her excitement for their subsequent announcement with Easton was just delighted.

Dale, Hank, Lucky, and Kahn mostly just congratulated Boomhauer and occasionally threw in some playful jabs about him finally settling down into parenthood. He took it all in stride, mostly by ignoring them behind dignified sips of beer.

Nancy, Peggy, Luanne, and Minh all talked with Leah about pregnancy and birth. They each gave her tips and advice, and described their own personal experiences with their own pregnancies.

John Redcorn sat quietly amongst them, stony faced and impassive. Leah noticed this and apologized. "I'm sorry for all the pregnancy talk, John Redcorn." She gave him a shy yet playful smile.

"There is nothing to apologize for," he assured her, "My people always looked to women and mothers as our wisest and most powerful beings."

Dale snickered. "And here we have Boomhauer on the other hand who always found motherhood to be disgusting."

It shocked Leah to hear that, and quickly she turned to look at Boomhauer for his response. He was staring daggers at Dale, seething.

"I could never find such a wonderful and beautiful thing to be 'disgusting,'" John Redcorn told Leah, his hardened gaze never wavering from her face.

Boomhauer was thoroughly pissed at Dale for saying anything. Sure, he typically stayed away from single mothers during his romantic exploits, but not because he looked down on them. He just preferred not having to worry about any little rugrats getting in the way of...bedroom things. And it was easier to go out with somebody who didn't need to hurry home and tuck their kids into bed. But none of that mattered now, not when it was his girlfriend, and his child.

Leah was insecure about his views on becoming a parent already, and now Dale had to try and be funny which was making it worse, and to top it off it was giving John Redcorn a way to wedge himself in there any way he could.

Hank scolded Dale and Boomhauer tried to smooth things over with Leah while he whispered into her ear.

"Don't listen to him," he murmured to her, "He's just being an idiot. You've never been more beautiful to me than you are right now." He placed a gentle hand on her stomach.

Leah smiled at his words. She could feel how sincerely he meant them.

"I love you," she said, and kissed him.

Soon after everyone had finished eating, Leah and Mia decided to get into the pool where Bobby, Joseph, and Connie were already swimming.

"Coming?" Leah asked Boomhauer. She pulled off her swimsuit coverup to reveal a floral print bikini, which made him consider his answer, but he still shook his head no.

"Maybe later."

However, right after she and Mia dropped into the water, John Redcorn tugged off his shirt in one smooth motion, revealing his hard six pack abs. He joined beside Leah on her end of the pool, ready to face off against Mia's team in a volleyball game.

Boomhauer was certain John Redcorn didn't care much about volleyball at all. And surely Leah's team could use an extra player…

She smiled at him when he joined her, happy that he changed his mind about swimming. John Redcorn stood expressionless, looking elsewhere.

It was Leah, Boomhauer, John Redcorn, and Joseph on one end, and at the other end waited Mia, Bobby, and Connie. A large, colorful beach ball floated between the two teams.

Before the game could start, Octavio decided to even out the teams by jumping in near Mia. He smirked at her and said something in Spanish which made her giggle. Boomhauer could see Bill glaring from his place at the picnic table.

"Ready?" Leah called across the pool. She tossed the beach ball high into the air and spiked it across to the other side.

The game stayed relatively even, both teams doing well to keep the ball from touching the water. Eventually Lucky joined in on Leah's side, and Dale plunged in over on Mia's. Dale and Octavio had gotten rather obnoxious with each other, seeming to mostly just shove each other out of the way rather than actually play the game properly.

After a particularly sharp spike of the ball by Leah, Dale jumped dramatically backwards in an attempt to intercept it. He ended up slamming into Mia, who fell into Octavio. Octavio quickly put his hands against her back to hold her up.

"Get your hands off of her!" Bill bellowed from the edge of the pool.

Octavio scoffed. "Settle down, man."

"Mia," Bill called, concerned, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Bill. It's going to take more than Dale's bony ass to bring me down."

Octavio laughed while Dale shrugged and served the ball over to the other side.

Leah had sharply brought her arm behind her to send the ball back when she felt her hand collide with something hard.

"Ah!" grunted John Redcorn. His hand clasped over his nose.

Leah looked him over in alarm. "Oh, no! I'm so sorry!" She hovered nervously around him, trying to assess the damage. "Are you okay?"

John Redcorn nodded his head quickly. "I'm fine. Doesn't hurt at all."

He removed his hand and a gush of blood fell down his face. Leah shrieked, horrified.

"I'm so sorry!" she said frantically again, eyes wide at the sight.

John Redcorn began to dismiss her concerns, but she pushed him towards the ladder, insisting she get him cleaned up. Together the two of them went inside her house, alone.

Boomhauer was feeling rather conflicted as he looked at the sliding glass doors they disappeared through. Should he follow them to keep an eye on John Redcorn, and risk looking jealous and weird, or should he anxiously stay out here and hope John Redcorn isn't going to try anything?

Ultimately he bit his tongue and waited at the picnic table, staring intently at the back door, knee jiggling with nerves. He hoped the tender reassurances he whispered in Leah's ear were enough to assuage any doubts she had about his devotion to her and the baby. And hopefully John Redcorn wasn't in there insisting he was good with kids.

"Are you okay, Boomhauer?" Hank asked.

"I'm fine."

Kahn tisked dubiously. "Don't tell me you're jealous. You, of all people."

Boomhauer ignored him.

After several minutes of agonizing, he flicked his head towards the sound of the sliding glass doors pulling apart. Leah and John Redcorn had emerged back outside. John Redcorn looked as good as new, face wiped clean, though his expression was still impassive. Leah went straight to Boomhauer at the picnic table and sat beside him, smiling at him as she always did. Immediately he felt better, with any nervousness completely dissolving away just by that one look.

Later that night Boomhauer and Leah were getting settled for bed, this time at Leah's house. Boomhauer watched her as she went through her typical night routine. She had hardly finished changing into her pajamas when Boomhauer drew her close to him.

She smiled up at him, as he would often pull her against him, and she never grew tired of it. He looked steadily down at her, into her eyes, into those brilliant green windows to her soul.

"What?" she asked, under the intensity of his gaze.

"I love you."

Her smile widened. "I love you, too."

He paused a moment, finding what he wanted to say, finding how he wanted to express himself.

"I'm sorry for how I first reacted to the baby. I wish I could take that back."

She saw his eyes looked a little sad.

"I know you do," she said quietly, "But I know you feel different now."

"I do." His response was firm, hoping to convey how true it was.

She smiled again. "Then that's what matters."

He took one last look at her beautiful face before hugging her closely against him.

"Nothing matters more to me than you."