Chapter 2

Abby and Luka walked up the steps to Abby's apartment. Abby started fumbling with her purse, searching for her keys.

"Thanks for walking me home. I'll see you tomorrow."

Neither of them had said a word since Abby had told Luka that she was pregnant.

Luka cupped Abby's face in his hands, looking sincerely into her eyes.

"I love you." He could see tears starting to well up in her eyes.

"If you need anything, call."

With that, Luka started towards his place, but not before looking back once more.

Abby placed the keys in the door and unlocked it. She walked inside her apartment and flicked on the light. Abby throw her coat and flopped down on the couch. She was exhausted. She buried her head in her hands and let herself cry harder.

Abby was not sure that she had the courage to do it again. When she was married to Richard she had discovered that she was pregnant and he had left her. She decided that she was not ready to be a single mother and had an abortion. Was she strong enough to take care of someone else? Was she strong enough to be a mother? All of these questions raced through Abby's mind. She flipped on the television in hopes of a distraction. After a while, her eyes became heavy. Abby didn't fight the feeling; instead she allowed her eyes to close beneath their lids.

A few hours later, Abby was awoken by a load pounding on the door. She groaned. The light from the television was illuminating her face. She sat up and checked the time on the VCR. It read 2:30 AM. Who the hell wanted her at this hour? The load pounding came again.

"I'm coming!" Abby walked over to the door and undid the lock and swung the door open. There stood Luka.

Abby let out a load yawn. "Luka, what are you doing here?"

"I'm sorry that I woke you. Can I come in?"

"Sure." Abby ushered him inside and took a seat on the couch and turned off the television. Luka joined her. Looking into her eyes, he took her hands in his.

"What's going on? You're scaring me."

"Abby, I'm sorry about the way I acted last night. That wasn't how I wanted this to happen. I never should have run away from you like that. Instead, I should have been there to comfort you."

"Luka…"

"I know that you're scared. I know that you must be feeling insecure and unsure about the whole situation. But I'm here now so please tell me what you're thinking."

Abby sighed. "I don't know if I can do this again."

Luka stroked the side of Abby's cheek.

"What are you so afraid of?"

"I'm afraid that having this baby will complicate our relationship and I'm comfortable where we are…I don't want to lose this Luka."

"Abby…I'm not Richard. Whether you decide to have this baby or not, I will never leave you."

"What if I'm not meant to be a mother? Maggie wasn't exactly the greatest example."

"You're going to make a great mother," Luka told Abby, looking deep into her eyes.

"How can you be sure?"

"It's in your heart Abby. I see you interact with children that come into the ER everyday and you are so gentle. You make them smile and you take care of them like they are your own. It takes someone special to do that."

Abby stared down at her hands. "What if the baby is bipolar?"

"We will cross that bridge when and if we have to. You can't let it bother you."

Luka took hold of Abby's hands. Abby looked up at him.

"We are in this together. I will help you get through this."

"Are you sure I'm the one you want to be with?"

"Not a day goes by that I don't think about my children and my wife. But they are my past Abby. My future is with you. I moved here thinking that I could start over. At first I thought that all I was doing was running away from my problems…and it took me until now to realize that I was wrong. I wasn't running away from anything…I was running to you."

"Are you sure this is what you want? "Are you sure you want to have children again?

"Abby…"

Luka stroked Abby's cheek again. She leaned forward and lightly kissed his arm.

"I want to be with you. I want us to be a family. It has taken us so long to get were we are and I don't want this one decision to ruin everything. I know that it has to be your decision but, baby or no baby, I'm never going to let go of what we have."

Luka leaned in and pressed his lips softly against Abby's.

"I love you," he whispered into her ear.