Tears filled Helen's eyes as she collapsed on the bed and sobbed. "Oh God. We were so careful. How could I be pregnant? I'm not married. I'm not ready for this Lindsay."

Lindsay sat on the bed next to her friend and wrapped her arms around her, trying to offer comfort. "Sh. It's okay sweetie. You're going to be fine. Sh. It's okay."

Helen continued to cry and, feeling helpless, Lindsay rubbed her back and stroked her hair, anything to help her calm down. After a few minutes, Lindsay pulled away. "I'll be right back, okay?"

Helen nodded, still crying, and Lindsay hurried out of the room to the hall closet. She stood on a chair and dug around on the top shelf until she found the box. She opened it up and grabbed its contents before hurrying back to her friend. "Hey," she whispered. "Look who I found."

Helen raised red tear-filled eyes and smiled when she saw what was in Lindsay's hands. She reached out and accepted the ancient, threadbare, floppy stuffed rabbit with a watery smile. "Hoppy."

Lindsay nodded. Helen had had Hoppy since childhood and still dug him out when she really needed comfort. To Lindsay's knowledge, the last time Hoppy had seen daylight was after Richard Bay's funeral over three years ago. He'd stayed out for almost a month then. Helen cuddled him close now and looked up. "I'm scared Linds. Really scared."

"I know you are." Lindsay rubbed her back comfortingly. "You need to try to calm down though, okay? Think of all the good things."

"Good things?!"

Lindsay nodded. "You get to eat ice cream any time you want and people give up taxis for you."

Helen slanted a look at her friend. "I think I remember you complaining that they didn't care if you were pregnant when they went for the cabs."

Lindsay laughed. "You'll make them though, giving them hell about pregnant women and manners. They won't stand a chance. And in a few months, you're going to have a little baby who loves you no matter what, simply because you're its mother."

Helen nodded, still not sure she was happy about this, but no longer as terrified. "How am I going to tell Mike?"

Lindsay shrugged. "That's the fun part. But don't worry about that. He'll be happy Helen."

"I just thought of something."

"What?"

"I don't have a doctor."

"Of course you do. I know you have a gyno. That's the place you get birth control, remember?" Lindsay obviously thought that Helen had lost it.

"I mean I don't have an OB."

"Oh. Do you want to call mine?"

Helen nodded. "You like him, right?"

"Yeah. He's great."

"Is he open on Saturdays?"

"Yep."

Helen nodded again, resigned. "I guess I'll call tomorrow. Linds? Could you maybe not tell anyone yet? Especially Lucy."

Lindsay laughed. "If I told Lucy, the entire city of Boston would know. But I'll keep it a secret. It won't be easy..."

"Thank you."

"Come on." Lindsay stood and pulled Helen to her feet. "Let's go eat ice cream and celebrate."

"How about we eat ice cream to drown our sorrows since neither of us can drink now."

"Whatever. As long as I get ice cream. The babies are craving it."

They walked into the kitchen, grabbed the pints and spoons along with Bobby's brownies and the videos before going back to Helen's room to watch them on her TV. Both women changed into their pajamas before climbing into bed, turning on the video, and digging into the ice cream. Neither paid much attention to the movies though. Helen pumped Lindsay dry for information about being pregnant. They had just finished watching the first video of SATC when Helen gave Lindsay a terrified look.

"What am I going to tell my parents? They'll kill me!"

"Helen, you're an adult," Lindsay soothed. "Besides, they raised you. Surely you can't shock them anymore than you already have."

"I can't tell them. They always told me that if I ever got pregnant without being married, not to bother to come home or tell them."

"Honey, I'm sure they meant when you were in school."

"No, they didn't." Helen was crying again. "They'll disown me."

"Sh." Lindsay wrapped her arms around her friend again, remembering how happy she'd been to be pregnant, both times, and wishing that her best friend could have that too instead of fear and doubt. "If they do, then they're narrow-minded and mean. Look at me Helen." Helen raised her eyes to meet her friends. Lindsay had never lied to her. "You're a grown-up successful DA with financial means to raise a child. You love babies and you're great with them. Zoe and Robby adore you. If your parents can't see what a wonderful mother you'll make then they don't deserve you as a daughter."

Helen nodded, still sniffing. "I really want my baby to have a family though."

"He will. We'll be his family." Lindsay promised.

"Really?"

"Really. Hey, when I told my mother I was pregnant with Robby, she told me to end it. She said that she wished she'd never had children because it ruined her figure."

"Your mom's a bitch." Helen stated. She'd never liked Gwen Dole and had no problem telling Lindsay as much.

"I haven't spoken to her since. But Robby has me and Bobby and Steven. And you and everyone at the office. And your baby will have us too."

Helen hugged her best friend tightly. "Thank you. I love you, you know."

Lindsay returned the embrace with a smile. "I love you too, babe. You'll be a great mom."

Ellenor returned early the next morning to find her roommate and colleague sound asleep in Helen's room with two cartons of ice cream, a pizza box from the stuffed crust sausage and mushroom they'd ordered, and a plate of brownies strewn through the room. Ellenor shrugged and climbed into her own bed, only to be awaken a few hours later by Zoe jumping on her bed.

"Up Mommy! It's morning!"

Ellenor obediently climbed out of bed and told Zoe to go wake Helen up. The little girl raced into Helen's room and smiled when she saw Lindsay was there too. She jumped on the bed and bounced up and down.

"Hewen! Windsay! Wake up!"

Lindsay moaned and rolled over. They hadn't gotten to bed until two in the morning and being pregnant, she needed more than four hours of sleep. Helen didn't move. Zoe saw this and bent down so her face was right in front of Helen's.

"WAKE UP!"

Helen's eyes flew open and she screamed. "ARGH!"

Zoe smiled and bounced on the bed. "Morning Hewen!"

"Morning Zoe," Helen mumbled. "Is your mommy up?"

"Yeah! She's making oatmeal an' toas an' eggies!"

Lindsay's stomach rolled dangerously. She hadn't gotten over morning sickness yet and hurried into Helen's bathroom before she got sick. Zoe watched, wide eyed.

"What's wong with Windsay? Is she sick?"

Helen, not quite ready to wake up, closed her eyes again. "She'll be fine honey. Why don't you go eat breakfast?"

"K." Zoe climbed down and bounced in the doorway. "You come too."

Helen groaned and climbed out of bed, shoved her feet into a pair of fuzzy blue slippers, and followed Zoe into the kitchen.

Ellenor looked up from the stove and smiled. "Morning."

Helen glared daggers at her roommate. "Was waking us up your idea?"

Ellenor shrugged innocently. "Lindsay still sleeping?"

"No, she's dealing with morning sickness."

"I remember those days."

Helen laughed. "So do I. I was amazed you made it out of the bathroom some days."

"And you were a big help standing outside the door asking if I wanted coffee or breakfast sandwiches."

Helen winced, realizing that she was likely going to be paid back in full now for teasing Ellenor during her pregnancy. Luckily, her morning sickness was in the evening so she could always hide out at work until after it was over. Or see if she could get Ellenor to go out with Matt every night.

"Hey, you want coffee," Ellenor asked as she pulled out Helen's favorite mug in anticipation of her answer.

"No, I'll have...um..." Helen trailed off. She had no idea what she should have, she just knew that it couldn't be coffee.

"Orange juice," Lindsay finished for her as she came out of the bathroom, still looking a little green. "And I'll have some too, thanks."

Helen shot her a grateful look. "I'll get it for you."

Lindsay nodded. "Thanks. Can I use the phone?"

Ellenor nodded and Lindsay grabbed her palm pilot, looking up the number of her OB. She called and made an appointment under her name for later that day.

"Hey, you want breakfast," Ellenor offered.

Lindsay shook her head, still not sure that food would make her stomach feel better. "No thanks."

"Windsay, bweakfast is the most 'portant meal of the day." Zoe lectured, obviously something she'd heard from her mother. "I have oatmeal an' toas."

Lindsay smiled weakly and stroked a hand over Zoe's hair as she sat on a stool. "Maybe dry toast would be okay."

Helen placed the juice in front of her friend and took a sip of her own. Ellenor watched her friends curiously. Lindsay drank coffee all the time, unless she was pregnant. Usually so did Helen. But both had shied away from caffeine that morning.

"Helen, are you okay?"

"Yeah, why," Helen asked, smiling brightly.

"I've never seen you make it through the morning without coffee."

Helen's stomach dropped, not from sickness but from fear. She'd have to think of a good excuse, but the only one that came to mind sounded a little weak. "I feel bad that Lindsay can't drink coffee so I told her I'd stay off it too."

Ellenor raised a brow. "You didn't do that when either of us were pregnant before."

"I...didn't think of it then."

"Riiiiight."

Helen quickly finished her juice before hurrying into through her shower and quickly dressed.

Lindsay stayed in the kitchen, trying to nibble on the toast that Ellenor placed in front of her.

"Linds," Ellenor's voice was little more than a whisper. "Did she tell you what's bothering her?"

Lindsay looked down at her plate, knowing that her friend would likely sense a lie. "No. But she seemed fine. I better go get ready for my OB appointment."

Ellenor raised a brow. "I thought your OB was next week."

Lindsay's eyes flashed with something unintelligible, but it looked like guilt. Every Friday, Lucy went over everyone's schedules for the coming week. She'd read off Lindsay's OB appointment on Thursday, then asked if Bobby would be gone then too. He'd smiled tenderly at his wife and said of course he would. Lucy had nodded, then made gagging noises behind her hand. Lindsay knew Ellenor remembered because she'd been the one to snap that Lucy was jealous. "I, uh, need more prenatal vitamins."

With that, Lindsay stood up quickly and hurried into the bedroom. She came in while Helen was drying her hair and jumped in the shower. When she got out, Helen was impatiently pacing the room.

"Would you hurry up, please?!"

Lindsay sighed as she turned the dryer on her head, shouting over it. "The appointment isn't for an hour and a half. Relax."

"You relax," Helen snapped before she could stop herself. "I'm about to find out for certain if I'm pregnant."

Lindsay rolled her eyes. "You took three tests Helen. Do you really think all three gave false positives?"

Helen shook her head and sank to the bed with her right hand pressed to her stomach. "No."

Done with her hair, Lindsay turned and sat on the bed next to her friend. "How're you doing," she asked earnestly.

"I think I'm in denial," Helen responded with a self-depreciating laugh.

"You're allowed that."

"I don't know though. I don't think I'm as scared as I was. Maybe I'm getting used to it. Or I'm numb."

"You'll get used to it."

Helen nodded, then looked at her watch again. "Can we go now? I really want to know."

Lindsay sighed and stood.. "Sure."

As they drove through downtown Boston, Lindsay glanced at the woman who'd been her best friend for sixteen years, since their freshman year at Harvard. Even with midterms, finals, the bar exam, and guys who she'd liked but for some reason hadn't called her back, she had never seen Helen this nervous. She bounced her leg in time some tune in her head and glanced at her watch every sixty seconds. She stared out the window, chattered about anything and everything that came to her mind, and generally drove Lindsay nuts. She would normally have snapped at her to stop for the love of all things holy before she pulled the car off to the side of the road. But the look in Helen's eyes was something different than she'd ever seen. Worry, fear, and excitement flew through her eyes, none staying long enough for Lindsay to figure out which one Helen was really feeling, though she figured it was all three. They finally pulled up to the doctor's office and Helen barely waited for it to stop before she opened the door.

"Jesus, Helen!" Lindsay reached over and grabbed her friend's arm, keeping her in the car until it was stopped and turned off. They both walked into the doctor's office and Lindsay walked to the counter to check in, even though they were still half an hour early. They waited, Lindsay reading an issue of Entertainment Weekly detailing the winter movies from the year before while Helen paced in front of her, pretending to look at the aquarium on one end of the room, then the picture of sheep on the other end. After fifteen minutes of this, Lindsay finally huffed out a breath.

"Helen, please, sit down. You're making me motion sick."

The dark haired woman shot her friend a withering look. "I think they call it something else in your condition."

Lindsay raised an eyebrow, indicating that Helen was on thin ice. Realizing that the one more favor she had to ask might not get granted if she didn't listen, she sat down, pressing her lips together and rocking back and forth a little. Lindsay took pity on her friend then and grabbed her hand.

"Calm down," she whispered. There were already people looking at her like she was nuts. "Being stressed and worried isn't good for the baby."

That made Helen laugh. "Oh yeah. No stress in our jobs."

"All the more reason to take it easy on the weekends."

They were saved by further argument when a nurse opened the door. "Lindsay Donnell?"

Helen turned then and pleading asked her last favor. "Come with me?"

Lindsay smiled. "Of course. I've come this far." Both women stood, following the nurse to a room with pale blue walls and green carpet. Lindsay sat down in a chair while Helen examined the pictures of the stages of fetal development on the walls.

"Linds." Lindsay looked up to see her friend pointing at the diagram of a woman, nine months pregnant. "Doesn't that hurt? Look at your organs!"

She laughed. "You don't need to tell me, I've been through it!"

"How do you eat?"

"A little at a time, all day long is the only way it works."

"Is that what's going to happen to me?"

"Yep! But hey, I have two of those in me."

"That is true," Helen laughed.

They were both surprised by a knock on the door. Dr. Klein entered and looked at the two women. "Lindsay?"

Lindsay smiled. "Hi doctor. This is my friend Helen Gamble. She thinks she's pregnant. She took three tests yesterday, all positive."

"All right then, Ms. Gamble hop up on the table and we'll have a look."

Helen got herself situated on the table and the doctor pushed her shirt up before squeezing cold jelly on to her stomach. She sucked her stomach in and gasped. "That's cold."

Lindsay laughed. "Yeah."

Dr. Klein then took the thing off the ultra sound machine that Helen thought looked like a microphone from a CB radio and moved it over her stomach.

Helen looked at the screen, watching when the doctor stopped and pointed to the screen. "See that line?" Helen nodded, tears of wonder pooling in her eyes as she reached for Lindsay's hand. "That's the baby's heartbeat. And right there?" He pointed to a spot of the picture. "There's your baby's head, there's his arm, his legs."

"A boy?" Helen asked, immediately thinking of Mike's son wearing a little Red Sox outfit.

"You're only ten weeks along, that's not far enough to know. All of my babies are boys until I know otherwise. Do you want to know the sex?"

Helen shook her head. "I want to be surprised."

"Okay then." Dr. Klein wiped the gel off of Helen's stomach. "We got a due date for you, December 17th. Which means that the baby was most likely conceived on March 17th."

"St. Pat's." Helen said, grinning at Lindsay who nodded. They both remembered the whole firm, plus Helen and Mike going out to McCall's. Helen and Mike had left early and it had been obvious to everyone why.

"You need to cut out caffeine and alcohol," Dr. Klein continued. "Don't take any over the counter drugs until you run it by me, make sure to get lots of rest and avoid stress. Make sure you get plenty of calcium and folic acid, so drink lots of milk and orange juice. I'm going to write you a prescription for prenatal vitamins, take one every morning. I'd like to see you again in a month, okay?"

Helen nodded, feeling a little overwhelmed. "I'll call Monday for an appointment."

"Good." Dr. Klein shook her hand. "Good to have you as a patient, Ms. Gamble."

Helen nodded and exited the office in a daze. Lindsay followed and waited until they were in the car before turning to her friend.

"Well," she asked gently.

Helen turned to her and smiled. "I'm going to have a baby, Linds. I'm going to be a mommy."

"Yeah," Lindsay smiled back. "You are."

Helen pressed a hand to her stomach. "There's a little baby Mike and I made growing inside of me. It's wonderful!" She leaned over and caught her friend in a hug. Lindsay relaxed then and hugged her back.

"You're happy then."

Helen sighed deeply. "It's kinda scary, but overall, yeah. I'm happy." I'm going to have a baby, Helen thought and slowly moved her hand to rest protectively on her stomach.