The weeks passed smoothly, Rita was surprised to find that, the almost constant vomiting that had given away her pregnancy with Jack, had, this time, been replaced by a nauseous feeling in the pit of her stomach that she was managing to keep on top of.
It had been 3 weeks since she'd taken the test and Iain was still struggling to wipe the stupid smile off his face, he still couldn't believe Rita was pregnant, that they were going to have another child, that Jack was going to be a big brother.
Rita had noticed the change in Iain, she knew her pregnancy had bought out the protective side of him but at the same time she knew he was trying not to suffocate her, he trusted her to look after herself and the baby, but at the same time he wanted to be the one to look after them both. Things weren't too bad at work, they'd told both Connie and Charlie their news and Iain knew she'd never do anything to deliberately put herself at risk, but it was at home where Rita really noticed the change in Iain. He was quick to get her settled once they were home from work, insisting on her resting for a while, she frequently found herself being the one to sit at the table, helping Jack with his homework as Iain made dinner and did some housework, and she'd never complain about the, almost nightly, bubble baths he ran for her once Jack was in bed.
They'd talked about how they were going to tell him, a 'best big brother' tshirt, and an 'I love my big brother' babygrow stored safely in their wardrobe to give to him after her first scan that was booked for less than a month's time, but right now, there were more important things to focus on.
"Come on" Jack tugged on Rita and Iain's arms as they walked home from school one Friday afternoon, the three of them bundled up warmly, "you walk so slowly, come on, faster please."
Rita couldn't help but laugh as Iain passed her Jack's small school bag and scooped the boy into his arms before sprinting down the road with him, Jack's giggles echoing in the frosty winter air, "fast enough?" he asked, laughing as Jack giggled again and shook his head.
"Still slow" he poked his tongue out.
"I'm faster than you" Iain teased.
"Only because I'm little" Jack said as Iain lifted him up to his shoulders, "once I get bigger then I'll be faster than you."
"Will you now" Iain laughed, "we'll have to see about that" he smiled, holding out a hand to Rita as she finally caught up with them.
Jack kicked off his shoes and dropped his coat on the floor as soon as he walked through the door, but was called back by Rita just seconds before he walked into the living room, "hang your coat up please, shoes on the rack and go and get changed first, your clothes are on your bed."
"Mummy please" Jack pouted as he made his way over to where he'd dumped his coat.
"Do it quickly and I might forget all about your homework til the morning."
Jack gasped and quickly hung up his coat and put his shoes away before racing to the stairs, pausing on the third step and turning to face his parents, "you won't start without me?"
"We won't start without you" Iain promised.
Rita nodded in agreement, "We'll go into the kitchen and make hot chocolate while you get changed, we won't go into the living room until you come down."
Jack nodded, "okay, I'll be super quick" he said before sighing as Rita went to speak again, "I promise I'll put my uniform in the basket" he nodded before she had chance to say a word.
"Thank you" Rita rolled her eyes as Jack raced off up the stairs, gently hitting Iain's arm once Jack was out of sight, "I blame you" she said, walking down the hall to the kitchen.
"For what?" Iain frowned.
"For Jack being cheeky, he's getting it from you."
"Oh really" Iain laughed as he got the milk out of the fridge and passed it to Rita who'd already got out the mugs and hot chocolate powder, "I'll have you know, the only thing that kid gets from me is his awsome-ness."
"Nope, he gets that all from me" Rita smirked, pouring milk into the pan and adding the powder.
"Really?" Iain asked as he wrapped his arms around Rita from behind, his hands resting on her still flat stomach, his chin on her shoulder.
"Really" Rita laughed, smiling as she felt Iain's lips brush her cheek.
"Maybe the next one will be awesome like me" he said softly, his hand gently stroking her stomach.
Rita smiled and turned her head to kiss him properly, "Maybe."
They were still stood at the oven when Jack came into the room, "have you been kissing?" he asked suspiciously.
"Yep" Iain smiled, "lots and lots of kisses."
Jack screwed his face up in disgust, "that's gross... Can I have cream and marshmallows on my hot chocolate please?"
"Of course you can" Iain laughed and stole a final kiss from Rita's lips before making his way over to the fridge, stopping only to blow a kiss to Jack who laughed and pretended to waft the blown kiss away from his face.
Drinks made, the family made their way through to the living room, Jack's face lighting up as he saw the undecorated Christmas tree in the corner of the room, the floor in front of the tv covered in boxes of decorations that Iain had brought down from the loft earlier that afternoon, "can we start, please, can we?" Jack was almost bouncing with excitement.
Rita nodded as she put the mugs on the coffee table, "why don't you get the ornaments out while Daddy puts the lights on the tree, then we can decorate the tree once the lights are on."
Jack nodded enthusiastically, "okay Mummy, I'll be really careful" he said, already digging into the boxes.
Rita put on a CD of Christmas music before settling on the floor, helping Jack get out all the ornaments as Iain wrapped a seemingly endless string of lights around the tree.
An hour or so later and Rita's sides were aching, she couldn't remember the last time she'd laughed so much, she'd started of helping to decorate the tree before realising that it was much more fun to simply watch Iain and Jack. Iain had been right, Jack had picked up a lot of his little traits, but, as she sat on the floor, watching the two of them argue about where to place one of the ornaments on the tree, she couldn't help but wonder if they were so alike because, mentally, they were almost the same age.
Her smile grew as she thought to the future, as she realised that, this time next year there'd be another member of their family, she'd be sat here feeding their child, watching Iain trying to get the infant to let go of whatever tree ornament they'd be clutching, listening to Jack tell his brother or sister all about Santa, they'd be a family of four and she couldn't wait.
"Mummy, are you watching?" Jack's question bought Rita back to the present.
Rita smiled and nodded, "I'm watching Darling" she said as Iain lifted Jack up so he could place the star on top of the tree, "that looks perfect" she told him, "let me turn the big light off and you can turn on the lights on the tree."
"Okay" Jack beamed, kneeling down by the plug, Rita thanking Iain as he helped her to her feet. Jack waited for Rita to turn off the light before grinning proudly, "do the countdown" he beamed.
Rita smiled as she felt Iain's fingers slip between her own, "5...4...3...2...1" they counted down together and, once they reached 1, Jack flicked the switch, the lights on the tree spreading a golden glow around the room, "it's so pretty" Jack grinned, "do you like it Mummy?"
Rita nodded and held out her hands to Jack, lifting him to her hip when he walked over, "I love it, you and Daddy have done a great job. Now, why don't I order us all pizza as a treat?"
Jack's eyes lit up, "really?"
"Really" Rita nodded, "you and Daddy can make a start on unpacking the other decorations while I order it."
Jack nodded and hugged Rita tightly before pecking her cheek, a surprising move for the boy who'd recently decided he hated kisses, "thank you Mummy, you're the bestest".
Rita smiled and kissed his head, "I love you."
"You love me a really, really lot don't you?" Jack asked.
"I do" Rita nodded.
"So can I have ice cream after my pizza?"
Rita laughed, "I don't know, what does Daddy think?" Rita asked, looking up at Iain.
"I don't know" Iain bit his lip to try and hide his smirk, "I mean he was very helpful when we were putting the tree up, and his teacher did say he'd been good this week."
"I got a sticker yesterday" Jack reminded them.
"You did" Rita nodded as she pretended to think, "I suppose you have been quite good…"
"Can I have ice cream then?" Jack begged, "pleeeease?"
Rita laughed and kissed his head again, "of course you can, I'll go and order it now, you and Daddy try not to get into too much trouble while I'm in the kitchen" she joked, winking at Iain and blowing him a kiss as she left the room, Jack already diving into the box of ornaments to find the Christmas train he loved so much.