"My feet are swollen, my back is killing me, and if this baby doesn't stop kicking, I think I may very well lose my wits!" Vera threw her hands in the air as she heaved a sigh full of exasperation.

"You know, she'll be here soon enough. " Benjamin leaned his head against his wife's shoulder on their couch as Rosalie watched from the nearby arm chair. Her wedding RSVPs lay scattered around the chair as she attempted to sort them all, tallying plus ones, being four months before the wedding now. Everything had already been accounted for, but Rosalie couldn't help but want to recount and reorganize anything she could.

Vera and Benjamin held hands as they coddled her now sizable belly as they cuddled nestled into their small loveseat. She tilted her head to kiss his unkempt hair and he smiled up at her, his hand never once leaving her swollen stomach. She made a mischievous glance at him before quickly putting her feet on their coffee table, to which he pretended he hadn't seen.

"Next month can't come soon enough," he murmured just loud enough for Rosalie to also hear. She pretended she hadn't though, as the moment felt so private she kept her face angled downwards as she seemingly was lost in her paperwork. She shifted her eyes ever so slightly, however, unable to completely look away from the love radiating between the pair on the small sofa.

"When you say 'she'… Do you really think it'll be a girl?" Vera prompted, her finger twirling near her belly button distracted as she was entirely lost in thought. Her mind was filled with thoughts of her adoring husband soon cradling their newborn.

"A little girl with your lovely brown curls." Benjamin adjusted his position on the couch to look squarely at his wife. "And your sweet little freckles." Vera giggled as he placed a light peck on her nose.

"Have you thought of any names?" Rosalie asked. The pair jumped, having forgotten their friend had been there the whole time. Rosalie pretended not to notice, but smiled to herself. She could have easily been smiling at a name on one of her invitations.

"Well," Vera began, "We were thinking of Abigail, you know if it's a girl."

Rosalie grinned up at them. "That's lovely."

"But I think it's a boy," Vera whispered quietly almost to herself.

Benjamin sat up, looking at her curiously. "Why is that?"

"Supposedly," Vera began, shifting uncomfortably as he face betrayed another wince. Her hand that wasn't holding Benjamin's rubbed at a spot on the underside of her belly. Her voice was strained slightly as she continued to look for a better position on the couch. "I was speaking with our neighbor, Mrs. Hartnull, and she said for both of her boys she carried high. I was until a couple of weeks ago, but he's shifted now."

"My mother carried me low," Rosalie added. "When you were first showing it was a bit low- I think Benjamin's right."

"Hmm, maybe…"

"But if it were a boy, what would his name be?" Rosalie questioned.

Vera thought for a moment before smiling softly to herself.

"Henry." She looked to her husband, searching his face for approval- as if he could ever deny her anything.

"Henry," Benjamin smiled, leaning in to kiss her. Vera's hand tangled into his hair as she deepened the kiss.

Rosalie looked away again. There was that feeling again, deep in the pit of her gut that churned and burned with a nauseating fire that was slowly threatening to consume her. She peeked up again, hidden behind her curtain of long, loose hair, and expected to see her friends still kissing. What she saw was somehow worse- just the two of them gazing into each other's eyes; the look they shared was of pure bliss. Benjamin looked down at his wife's belly, stooping down to place a soft kiss there and Vera sighed as she relaxed into his arms. This was love.

It was also more than Rosalie could bear.

She couldn't seem to look away as she nitpicked the way he held her, or the way that his eyes were wide in fascination as he looked down onto Vera's tired face. As Benjamin kissed Vera again, against her wide smile, Rosalie felt the prickle of tears sting at the outer corner of her eyes. Rosalie shifted in her seat as she hid her face from the pair. What was wrong with her own relationship? Shouldn't she be as happy as her friend?

Royce had promised she would be.

Another quiet laugh came from the couple on the loveseat and Rosalie flinched as if it had been a physical blow. She pressed her lips together into a firm, thin line. A tear dripped down her cheek, but she wiped it away before anyone could notice. She cleared her throat and she abruptly stood from her seat and began collecting her things into her folder of wedding planning.

"You know, I think I really must go before it gets too late. I don't want mother to be left to cook dinner all by herself…" It sounded like a lame excuse, even to Rosalie's ears. She didn't care- she just wanted to get away before anyone noticed how affected she was.

"Are you sure?" Vera began to stand and Rosalie shook her head vehemently.

"I'll walk you home," Benjamin also shifted and immediately made his way to the hat stand by the door. He was already tugging on a thick wool jacket.

Rosalie shook her head, avoiding eye contact.

"No, that's alright. You really don't need to." She tugged on her own fur winter coat and a mink hat to cover her ears. It had been quite cold earlier this morning walk over to Vera's house.

"I insist."

Benjamin's firm tone shut down any further protest from Rosalie. She rolled her eyes, scoffing at the notion of anyone trying to hurt her- the woman soon to be an heiress of Rochester.

"Fine," she mumbled, crossing her arms in a display of just how unimpressed she was. She wanted that walk alone to reflect on her own thoughts; she couldn't very well do that when a source of her malcontent was accompanying her. Sighing, she turned to bid farewell to Vera. Vera smiled, unaware of Rosalie's inner dilemma. She vaguely heard Benjamin promise to be home soon while she was already one foot out the door, allowing him to follow her.

The silence was thick between the pair as Rosalie refused to acknowledge her feelings aloud to Benjamin. When they were less than a block away from Rosalie's house, Benjamin paused. Rosalie had kept walking for another couple of paces before she noticed; she turned around as soon as she did to find him staring at the ground, wringing his hat in his hands.

"Rosalie. There was something I meant to ask you earlier. Something that Vera and I discussed at great lengths, but we weren't quite sure how to bring it up."

Rosalie crossed her arms, pushing her hair behind her ear before shifting her weight awkwardly. She wasn't in the mood for heavy conversations at the moment. She nodded, again without making eye contact.

Taking this as a sign to continue, Benjamin fidgeted as he stammered.

"Well. It's obvious that you're the perfect choice. That is- Well. You know Vera doesn't have very many friends. It's also taking into account how well off you'll be and that makes it even more of an obvious choice. Then again, we understand if you don't want to… I know it's a lot to ask, but really you're the only one that we could even begin to think of being the right choice for it-"

"Benjamin."

He took a steadying breath.

"What I mean to say is… Rosalie would you be the child's godmother?"

She gasped.

Rosalie felt an overwhelming warmth glow through her chest, creeping down through her arms, legs, fingers, and toes. She felt it flush her face in a red blush.

For the second time tonight, Rosalie felt a tear trickle down her cheek, but this time she couldn't be ashamed or move to wipe it away.

"We understand if you need time to think about it- if you want to speak with Royce first…"

Rosalie held up a gloved hand to stop another set of ramblings that were sure to fall out of Benjamin's mouth. He had, of course, mistaken her shocked silence for hesitancy. Which couldn't be further from the case.

Benjamin had mentioned speaking to Royce beforehand, but when had Royce ever reciprocated such curtesy to Rosalie? This entire wedding was planned under Rosalie's every decision with little to no input from Royce. Shouldn't Rosalie be entitled to this one happiness, no matter how large of a decision this was? Besides, Rosalie had already accepted that most of her time as a married woman would still be alone; Royce would always be busy with work- so why would it matter to him?

Rosalie took a few quick steps forward, before collecting Benjamin's sweaty fidgeting hands in her own. She looked into his eyes with a warm smile that displayed the sheer and utter rightness of her acceptance.

"I would love to."

.o.

The next morning, Rosalie awoke to the shrill tone of the rotary phone ringing downstairs. The ringing abruptly stopped and she heard her mother's smooth voice answer. Unable to distinguish the words, she laid back into her mattress and was almost asleep when a sharp knock at the door startled her back awake.

"Rosalie. Get decent."

Rosalie sat up in bed so fast her head swam slightly. She swung her legs up and over the side of the bed, straightening her nightdress hurriedly. Grabbing her robe from the reading nook beside her bed, she wrapped it around herself as she stood and straightened up her bedsheets.

Her mother knocked once more before cracking the door just enough to peek around. A large grin threatened to split her cheeks.

"It's Vera." Rosalie's heart came to a stuttering halt. Her throat felt dry as her palms clammed up, she flexed her fingers as she waited for her mother to continue. "She had the baby early this morning."

Rosalie's eyes bulged as she stifled a gasp into her clammy palm.

"Is she… Is s-she alright?"

"She's fine- both her and the baby are just fine."

Rosalie relaxed so suddenly and so intensely she felt weak. Her calves hit the bed and she sat down to take in the news.

"Actually, that was Benjamin on the phone. He said you're welcome to join them as soon as you're awake."

Noting how early it still was- the sun had barely risen in the sky- Rosalie rubbed at her eyes furiously to wipe the sleep out of them. Her mother sat beside her, grabbing her hands and smiling as she looked anxious to tell her everything.

"Where are they?" Rosalie stifled another yawn as she stumbled her way to her closet for something to wear. If she were going to the hospital, she would need to wear some sort of finer clothing. The future Mrs. King wouldn't be caught dead in public looking anything less than exceptional.

"At home," her mother answered and Rosalie relaxed. "He said that one of the wonderful doctors was able to make a house call last night. And wouldn't you know it- he insisted to take care of the bill. How strange; Benjamin was talking about how he'd been heading to the hospital with Vera and met the doctor coming home from his night shift- isn't that just the most peculiar thing?"

"Oh?" Rosalie was distracted as she picked out a simple frock from her closet, relieved she wouldn't have to go out in public. "Well that was certainly nice of him."

"And what an odd chance of luck. Can you believe it? She went into labor around midnight…" Her mother drone on and on, but Rosalie wasn't listening. She combed her hair hurriedly and twisted it into a bun at the nape of her neck and away from her face.

Her mother followed her around telling her the story of what had happened last night, as Rosalie got ready to leave. Rosalie bustled about in an unidentified stupor, feeling half asleep but not sure what for. Her heart hammered as she collected her walking shoes and they made their way downstairs and out the front door towards Vera's house.

Once Rosalie and her mother arrived at Vera and Benjamin's small cottage, they only needed to knock once before Rosalie heard Benjamin's tired voice call, "Come in! Doors open!"

Quietly making their way into the house, Rosalie crossed the threshold still feeling quite odd. Her numbness from earlier had persisted the entire walk down the couple blocks here. In that moment, she heard a small gurgle of happy baby coos from the house's one bedroom, the first door on the left from the front door. The bedroom door was, again, open to reveal her best friend in a mess of sweat and matted hair, quietly nursing a little bundle in a yellow blanket.

Rosalie hesitated by the door, her mouth open in amazement. Suddenly, a warm hand on her shoulder made her jump.

"Just me," Benjamin mumbled apologetically. "Your mother's making everyone breakfast in the kitchen." Taking Rosalie's hand, he led her into the room keeping a finger to his lips as they crossed the small space. He pulled up Vera's vanity chair from the adjoining washroom, gesturing for Rosalie to sit beside the bed.

Vera smiled up at her weakly, but just as radiant as Rosalie remembered her being on her wedding day. She was positively glowing despite her disheveled state, looking down proudly at her tiny baby. Rosalie looked from her friend to the small bundle cradled at its mother's breast. Rosalie stared with shining eyes at the lovely sight before her, her hands twisting restlessly in her lap.

"Would you like to hold him?" Vera whispered.

Rosalie looked up, startled.

"Him?"

"A boy," Vera nodded, grinning ear to ear. "I was right after all. My little Henry."

Benjamin, still standing behind Rosalie helped tenderly collect the baby from Vera to place it into Rosalie's anxious arms. She waited awkwardly making a cradle with her arms before Benjamin placed him there, shifting his head to support it as he moved slowly.

At once, Rosalie shifted, physically and emotionally, and immediately felt a tremendous wave of peace wash over her.

He fit perfectly into her arms, like they were made to hold a child. Rosalie's thumb reached up to stroke his red cheek. Pushing the blanket away from his face slightly, still keeping him covered and warm, she saw a thick mop of dark spiral curls already adorning his sweet head. He cooed before letting out an enormous yawn, which Rosalie accidentally mimicked. He made a content gurgle before shifting comfortably towards Rosalie, nuzzling into her. The sheer love she instantly felt rendered her speechless.

"My little Henry," Vera murmured.

Suddenly able to find her voice Rosalie looked up to her friends in amazement. "Oh, Vera. He's so beautiful."

Beautiful wasn't the right word, she determined, but it would have to do for now. She couldn't believe such an angelic creature was in her arms. Rosalie's thumb padded over Henry's full little lips, over his thick eyelashes, and made circles in his dark curls once more.

"Isn't he though? He's already slept most of the night," Vera spoke softly as to not startled the baby out of the soft cooing he was making up at Rosalie.

"Ten fingers, ten toes and as healthy as he can be. We were so worried; he's almost a month early, but the doctor insisted his heart rate is strong. He's only cried twice- once when he was born and the other when he was hungry." Benjamin's voice oozed with pride as he looked down at his son.

Henry's breathing had evened out, settling into a soft slumber. Rosalie looked down at him in amazement.

"Oh, Ben, look how taken he already is with his godmother." Vera giggled, her tired eyes bright.

"He sure seems to like you already," Benjamin acknowledged. "That's good."

Rosalie had no words for the bliss she felt as she held her friend's newborn. She could sit there forever, never noticing the passage of time, just so long as she could continue to hold this child.

"I think you're just as taken with him too," Vera snorted softly.

Rosalie simply nodded in agreement, unwilling to look away. She was transfixed by the soft love she found in little Henry's face. His rosy cheeks shifted and little dimples shone as he grinned through shut eyes. He blinked, looking up at Rosalie with large dark eyes that matched his beautiful head of hair. He gurgled again, blowing little bubbles out of his mouth. He was absolutely perfect.

At this moment, she smiled to herself. As soon as she could after the wedding, Rosalie would have her own little boy to love. He would grow up with Vera's son and the two of them would be lifelong friends. Her lips pressed together to hold the tears back as she nodded again, this time to herself.

Her thoughts clouded over as she looked at Vera's beautiful baby boy. His dark curls morphed into golden ones in her mind's eye as she imagined what her future son would look like. His brown eyes would be a deep blue, just like her's. So soon now, she would have her love that she so desired. At the end of the month, she would be Mrs. Royce King II, wanting for nothing as she always had been.