A short update for you. Things have been nuts, but getting better. Hopefully it wont be to long before the next chapter.

Thanks, as ever for your lovely reviews, they make me very happy!

Also, I had to guestimate how long Cameron's existed. Forgive errors. In my first big departure from the show, Sam is not being tracked down for killing her mother. Oh, sorry, for her brother killing her mother. Or something. Frankly, that plot is such that I've done my best to ignore it when I watch the show, let alone when I write about it. Also, the secret has not, at this time, been revealed.

Chapter Four

"Jason!" he turned to see Liz waving at him, half walking, half jogging down the street to meet him.

"Elizabeth, how are you?" He smiled, hugging her briefly.

"I'm good. What are you doing here? Shopping?" They had run into each other at the downtown mall.

"I have to pick-up some things, for, uh- Elizabeth?"

"Oh." She was waving back and forth on her feet, her skin very pale. He grabbed her arms and propelled her backwards onto a bench in the shade.

"Elizabeth?" He crouched in front of her, looking at her with concern.

"I'm fine. I just haven't had enough to eat, and then jogging over to see you, eeck." She punched him lightly in the shoulder, then laughed as he scrambled to keep his balance. "I'm fine. Don't worry!"

He sat next to her, "Are you sure?" His voice remained anxious.

"Yes! It must be 100 degree's out today, YOU would probably pass out if you hadn't eaten more than a banana all day."

"I guess." Jason was doubtful, but the look in her eyes said she wanted him to drop it, so he did. "So you've been busy then?"

"Uh! You can say that again. Between working and Cameron I've hardly had a chance to inhale, let alone relax."

Jason cleared his throat. "So.. uh.. how long has Cameron been around?"

She looked at him oddly. "That's a weird way to put it. Four months."

"Great. I'm happy for you." Jason panicked when he saw Elizabeth looking at him strangely. God, had he given himself away? He rushed on, "So I guess it serious then?"

"As serious as it gets." Her brows drew together, "Listen,. Jason, I don't know what you think, but Cameron is-"

"Jason." They looked up to see a petite brunette hovering over them.

"Sam." Jason stood up. "Uh, hi." He looked at Elizabeth, who also stood. "Sam, this is my friend Elizabeth."

"Hi, it's nice to meet you." Elizabeth extended her hand.

Sam shook it and said briefly, "Right, you too," before ignoring Elizabeth completely. "Jason, I need you to go to the hospital with me for the pre-natal checkup." Elizabeth uttered a small, choking noise. "Oh, sorry." Sam said, not sounding particularly bothered. Jason gave her an irritated look.

"Elizabeth, I was going to tell you, I just had-" She flung her arms around him.

"Congratulations Jase!" Her voice sounded a little funny, but before he could ask, she pulled away and said, "Well, I really have to run. I'll see you later, alright?" Clearly the question was rhetorical because she was walking rapidly away as she posed it.

"Yeah." He said it softly to himself.

ÔJason!" Sam's voice was impatient.

"What?" He turned to her, deeply annoyed that she had interrupted him, and then proceeded to spill the beans in as untactful a fashion as possible.

She sighed. "Look, I'm sorry I told your friend before you had a chance, but we have to go. How would it look if you weren't there? People might begin to suspect something was wrong.

"Yeah." As he walked her to the car, he grimly wondered if he could care less.

O O O

Elizabeth managed to hold back her tears until she reached her room at her Grams house, but then they came flooding out. She felt so stupid, because why shouldn't Jason be having a baby. She did. Why should she care? They were barely even friends again, what right had she to be upset. She couldn't stop herself from screaming into a pillow though. Such an idiot, she berated herself. When would she realize that she and Jason would never happen? She thought of all the idle, insane fantasies she had woven of Jason, Cameron and her as a family. It served her right.

When she had gotten herself under control, she went into the nursery and gazed down at her son, asleep in his crib. "Hey, beautiful baby." She whispered. "Don't worry. Mommy's a silly woman, but she'll be okay. And it's good that Jason will be a father, because he'll be wonderful. He'll always take care of his children, the way I'll always take care of you." She blew him a kiss, not wanting to risk waking him up. "See you later baby.

She waved goodbye to her gram as she left. She had been working as a bartender at night, so she could be with Cameron during the days. Luckily he had start sleeping through the night almost immediately, and Gram was always on hand in case he woke up. She tried to psych herself up for work, because it would be busy at the bar tonight, and she got better tips when she was cheerful, and "fun, " as the regulars put it. It was hard though, she was so tired these days. She wondered sometimes if she had made the right decision in leaving Ric, because he could have provided a very nice life for her and her son. But she always reminded herself that whether Ric had changed or not, she no longer trusted him, and it was more important that Cameron grow up in a loving environment than a wealthy one.

TBC

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