People rushed in and out of Haverford's Diner in a frenzy as Danny and I sat alone in a booth toward the back, in a dimly lit corner.

            Danny barely spoke a word to me, but continued to watch me as I sipped on my ice cream soda.

            Finally, I had had enough of the awkward silence and grabbed onto his jacket sleeve from across the table.

            "I never loved him the way I love you," I whispered intensely, staring deep into his pained eyes. "You have to know that. I just thought that if you saw me moving on, from wherever you were, you'd think I was happy and be at peace. He was more of a friend than anything else, and never as good of a friend as you."

            "You've hardly ever mentioned him," he muttered, looking away at the wall. "It's like you don't want me to know about him."

            "Jack was a good man. Respectable. And he idolized you and Rafe to no end. Had you come back while he and I were married I can guarantee you that he would've told me to leave him and go back to you."

            "I understand that he was a good person, Suze. I just can't help bein' a little bit…jealous…you can sympathize with me on that, right?"

            I nodded, smiling tenderly at him as he blushed.

            "It's just that, I don't know…" he paused thoughtfully. "I guess I just wish that it had been me who was there with you all that time instead of him. I feel like I missed out on whatever he had."

            "We have our whole lives ahead of us now," I murmured with a wink. "And now we can be married and start everything over again."

            "I know, and I can't wait…but there are certain things that I don't wanna lose when we 'start over'," he said, grinning impishly.

            Before I knew it, there was a kick under the table to my shin and I had no choice but to fight back. Within minutes, we were laughing and yelping, our legs darting under the table with sneak attacks from every angle.

            Mr. Haverford walked over with the bill.

            "Seems you two are the same as you were 'bout a decade ago," he laughed, patting Danny's back. "It's good too see that the best things in life never change."

~*~*~*~*~*~

            Danny and I pushed through the front door into our living room, and heard Rafe talking excitedly on the phone in the kitchen.

            "Rafe?" I called, slowly making my way to where he was, "What's goin' on?"

            Evelyn rushed through the hallway to my side and tackled me with a hug.

            "Oh Susie!" she exclaimed, a tear rolling down her cheek. "I'm pregnant! After all this time, pregnant again!"

            She and Rafe had been trying to have a child for ages, and with Danny being four, it seemed only appropriate that they should have been blessed by a baby by now.

            "Ev, I'm so happy for you!" I shouted dancing around the room with her as Danny shook Rafe's hand and embraced him.

            "Oh and Danny and Suze have to be the godparents, Rafe, they just have to be!" Evelyn gasped with a giggle.

            "Why, I'd be honored," Danny chuckled, hugging her and taking my hand in his.

            "How far along are you?" I asked.

            "Why, three months in fact," she responded shyly. "My morning sickness wasn't so bad this time around, and I really had no clue."

            I smiled at Rafe, who at that moment couldn't have looked any prouder.

            Little Danny rushed into the room, all smiles and chubby cheeks.

            "What's goin on?" He questioned, confused.

            Rafe scooped him up into his strong arms and beamed.

            "You're gonna have a little brother or sister."

~*~*~*~*~*~

            …Six months later we experienced the biggest shock in all of our lives. At around one in the morning on September 23rd, bloodcurdling screams echoed through the halls of the house. Danny bolted upright beside me and pulled me up and out the door, towards Rafe and Evelyn's room. What we found will haunt me forever…

            Rafe stood by the bed, tears streaming down his face as the doctor from town loomed over Evelyn's writhing form.

            "Push, Mrs. McCawley, push!" he urged, pressing a cold towel to her forehead.

            "Is she gonna be alright, sir?" Rafe asked nervously, fists clenched.

            "She's losing far too much blood," the doctor responded, sweat dripping down his brow.  "I don't know what is going to happen."

            I rushed to Rafe's side and grabed his arm.

            "What's going on?" I shouted above the screams.

            "She-she went into labor, so I called the doctor in. But then something went wrong, and she might...she might…" he broke down and sobbed into my shoulder, enveloping me in his arms.

            Danny stood in the doorway, flinching with every cry. He looked scared, afraid to even look.

            Suddenly, a high-pitched wail, obviously not one of Evelyn's, broke through the anguish and the doctor let out a sigh. In his arms he held a tiny, red baby. A girl.

            "I will tend to the baby now and clean her," he said, approaching Rafe and I. He shook his head. "Your wife though…I'm sorry Mr. McCawley. She's lost too much blood. She's not going to make it for more than a few minutes. There's nothing I can do."

            Rafe's lip trembled and he walked over to his dying wife.

            "Oh Evelyn," he cried, clutching her hand to his cheek as she gasped and tried to focus on his face. "Don't leave me now, not now that we have this baby. It's ours Ev, ours. I love you so much, you can't leave me."

            She looked into his eyes, her own glazing over in pain and desperation.

            "Rafe," she whispered hoarsely, "I-I love you, and I w-will forever. T-take care of the baby, tell h-h-her that her momma loved her so ver-r-ry much."

            And with that she breathed in deeply and a slow hiss escaped her mouth as she sunk down into the mattress and he hand dropped from Rafe's. Her vacant eyes seemed to stare at me, a look that I had seen once before.

            Rafe cried out once and then stood up, wiping a tear from his cheek and walking over to Danny and I.

            The doctor approached him again and handed him the little girl.

            "I'll call the coroner," he whispered tenderly, patting him on the shoulder with sympathy. "But right now you need to concentrate on the child. She needs your love and your care."

            Rafe nodded, and smiled gently down at the baby, kissing her softly on the forehead.

            "You look like your Momma," he cooed sadly. "But don't be sad; we can't be sad. Mommy wants me and you to be happy, me and you and your big brother. And that's what we'll do."

            "What will you name her?" I asked, trying not to look at the body on the bed.

            "I suppose I'll name her Eve, for her mother. Eve Susanna." He used his free arm to pull me to him and kissed me strongly on the top of my head. He didn't need to use words.

            "Hey there little Evie," he announced, sadness in his voice. "Meet your godparents, Danny and Susie. They're gonna help me take great care of you."

            Danny put his arm around Rafe and led him out of the room to wait for the coroner.

            I walked over to the bed and pushed the bloodstained sheets aside.

            Evelyn lay there, pale and cold but beautiful as ever. Her blue-green eyes stare into nothingness as I pushed her hair gently behind her ear.

            "Oh Evelyn," I whispered, crying softly. "How could you leave us now? You were my best companion all these years, my best friend. Who will I share my secrets with now?"

            A tear fell onto her porcelain cheek, sparkling until I wiped it away with a sigh.

            "I'm going to miss you more than you'll ever know. You taught me to learn acceptance, even when first impressions are horrible. I'll never stop missing you, Ev. I'll always love you."

            I stood up and stumbled into the hallway. Danny was there waiting for me and caught me in his arms as I collapsed onto the floor, sobbing.

A/N: I personally loved this whole idea…and the suddenness of it all. I mean, who would have suspected?? Please tell me what you think; I have soo many ideas for the plot now!! Next chapter: THE WEDDING!!!!!!! Please Review! And thanks to everyone who reviewed so far!!