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Previously in "Distracting," the characters of Once and Again shared some warm and fuzzies the morning after.
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Part 4: "Everything's Fine"Manning Bathroom, the next morning (Monday)
Lily clutched the toilet, trying to support herself. Her morning sickness had definitely gotten worse. She had spent all Sunday alternating between worrying about the Jessie situation and repairing Judy's ego. While her sister was excited about the baby news, Lily knew Judy had also been a tad hurt that she had kept the pregnancy from her. And, Lily's reward for all her extra worrying was extra nausea—she was probably developing an ulcer. That would be fitting.
Rick entered the bathroom as Lily was finishing up. "Geez, you look awful," he told her, concerned.
"What a coincidence. I feel awful." Lily splashed some water on her face and sloshed some mouthwash around for a moment. "You're all dressed up," she mentioned after spitting.
"Sam and I are meeting with Colin today." Rick handed Lily a towel. She lowered the toilet seat and sat down, exhausted. "Are you sure you're Ok? Do you want me to drop Zoë at school on my way?"
"I'm fine. It'll pass in a few minutes."
"Lil—you're sweating," Rick said, looking at his wife's paled skin.
"I'm fine," she insisted. Rick looked skeptical. "Remember morning sickness?"
"Lil—"
"I'm fine."
"All right. I just—" Rick dropped the subject after seeing the look on Lily's face. Instead, he leaned over and kissed her. "Wish me luck."
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Downstairs the kids were making last minute preps and gathering a last minute breakfast before school—that is, except Eli, who was still asleep.
"What's wrong with your hair?" Grace asked Zoë.
"Nothing. I braided it."
"I can see that, but the braid isn't straight." Grace walked over to inspect more thoroughly. "And you have ribbon stuck in it."
"I like it." Zoë stepped away from Grace, not wanting her sister meddling with her hair.
"Jessie, do you see this?" The squabbling sisters turned to appeal to Jessie, who rolled her eyes at the scene.
"It looks fine," Jessie offered.
Lily made her way into the kitchen, hoping that some milk might calm her stomach. "What looks fine?" she asked.
Zoë spotted her mother and immediately made her appeal, "Mom, tell Grace my hair looks fine."
"If by fine you mean unbelievably crooked and ridiculous, then yes your hair looks fine," Grace shot back.
"Grace, leave your sister and her hair alone," Lily half-heartedly commanded. She opened the fridge and found the milk.
"Fine," Grace huffed. "Jessie, let's go. I don't want to be late again."
"Alright, alright." Jessie rinsed her glass out in the sink, exchanging a look with Lily, who was getting a glass from a cupboard nearby. Jessie leaned over and said under her breath, "And you're having another one?" Lily smirked.
With that Jessie and Grace left for school, and Zoë came over to the sink to rinse off her plate, which allowed Lily to get a good look at the offensive braid. It appeared that Zoë tried to braid a ribbon into her hair, but just ended up with a funny looking braid with a ribbon jammed in it. Lily smiled.
"What?" Zoë asked.
"Nothing," Lily answered, giving Zoë a quick hug and kiss on her head. "You ready to go?"
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Grace and Jessie rode in silence, which wasn't odd in itself considering Grace's incredibly sweet morning disposition and Jessie's low tolerance for Grace in general. However, Jessie did consider Grace's manner over the past few days odd—she had become especially surly. It was obvious that something was bothering her. But no matter how curious Jessie was about Grace's preoccupation, there was no way Jessie would ever ask Grace about it. More than likely, Jessie's inquiry would just spark a fight, something Jessie really didn't feel like dealing with at the moment. And since Jessie considered the easiest way to not fight with Grace was not to talk to her, Jessie kept quiet.
In fact, Jessie didn't say a word the entire ride until Grace's attention drifted off at the next stoplight. "It's green," Jessie stated, bringing Grace out of her daze. Grace didn't say a word, but simply resumed their trip and her internal conversation.
Grace wasn't sure why she cared. After all, it wasn't her problem if her mother and Judy had somehow discovered Jessie's "secret." Perhaps she was a bit jealous of Jessie and Katie, but she had every right to be. After all, Jessie and Katie didn't have to make everything so hard on themselves. All they had to do was just be honest about it and eventually no one would even care. Grace was the one with the love problem—the last two guys Grace had fallen for (first, her step-brother and then her English teacher) were both completely off-limits. Just thinking about it made Grace grow more and more angry until eventually she couldn't hold back any longer.
"You should just tell everyone about you and Katie," Grace commanded in a tone of voice that hid none of her annoyance and anger.
"Thanks for the advice," Jessie answered curtly. The last thing she wanted was another heart-to-heart with Grace concerning her relationship with Katie. It was truly becoming annoying. Her relationship with Katie was none of Grace's business and Jessie was sick of hearing Grace's opinions on it.
"Besides, Lily already knows," Grace added. Jessie froze, wondering if she heard right. "I overheard her and Judy talking. It wouldn't seem so bad if you would just tell them instead of sneaking around like a couple of cowards."
"We're not sneaking around."
"Please," Grace countered. The car pulled into the school parking lot. Jessie couldn't wait to set foot on solid ground again, because it meant she could make a more expedient escape from the conversation.
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WIXP
"You don't look so good." Les mentioned as he passed Lily's desk.
"I feel fine." Lily retorted, starting to become annoyed at the seemingly endless commentary on her health. Since she had arrived at work that morning everyone short of the janitorial staff had mentioned how she 'didn't look so good.'
"Fine," Les answered totally unconcerned. "The—"
"Really, I feel great," Lily interrupted. "I feel fine." Les, who was of course completely uninterested, waited for Lily to finish.
"We done here?"
At that moment, the syndicators arrived in the office for their meeting with Lily. Les went to greet them. Lily stood, but remained near her desk. Truthfully, she was feeling a bit dizzy, so instead of meeting them at the door, she waited for Les to escort them over. As the execs approached her desk, Lily attempted to put the "everything's fine" smile on her face.
"Good morning," Lily managed, extending her hand for a handshake. Pleasantries were exchanged before the suggestion was made that they move to the conference room to discuss the promos Lily was to record in the afternoon. Lily felt horrid, and the more she stood, the more she understood that she either needed to get to the bathroom soon, or the radio execs' shoes would need a new shine and she'd need a new career.
"Could you just excuse me for a moment? I'll be right behind you," Lily said plotting her escape to the restroom. She barely reached the stall in time, and once she began, it seemed as though she would never stop vomiting. She had spent so much time convincing everyone (including herself) that she felt fine, that it wasn't until that moment that Lily realized exactly how dehydrated and exhausted her body felt. She began to wonder if it was only morning sickness plaguing her.
And, that's when she noticed the blood.
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Next time in "Distracting," Lily visits the doctor, Rick and Sam meet with Colin, and the Sammlers have a family meeting.
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