Chapter 3

I promise it gets a little happier after this chapter! I wasn't sure how to go about this particular revelation so I hope its okay although some parts are a little far-fetched. :D

It's a couple of hours later and Sophia is still sat at Dr Hanna's desk surrounded by paper work and empty takeaway cups of coffee. Her head rests on her folded arms as Max quietly walks through the door and leans on the frame, crossing one leg over the other and folding his arms across his chest.

"I thought you didn't like the coffee from this place." He laughs. Sophia's head lifts suddenly with a slight gasp as if she had been caught out, stares at Max for a few seconds with her hands pressing against her cheeks before attempting to talk through her squished lips.

"They're from across the road," she whispers sitting more upright and slightly smirking at Max, "Louise and Noel have been taking it in turns to fetch me them."

"That bad is it?" he begins to move over towards her and picks up one of the folders from the designated "FINISHED" pile.

Sophia quickly snatches the file from Max and places it back on the pile with her hand firmly on top, "Do…not…touch." She half sarcastically demands. Max giggles in response and relaxes back onto the sofa interlocking his hands behind his head.

"I'm serious Max," continues Sophia, "it's taken me two and a half hours to get this far and I've almost finished this last one."

"Alright, alright," starts Max, "you know I never really thought filing would be your thing."

Sophia rolls her eyes and laughs "It's not!"

"So…remind me again why you're doing this?"

"Well I'm here aren't I? May as well be of some use – besides, I'm not getting up at half seven in the morning to just sit around all day and do nothing."

"Well I'm sure Zoe will be very impressed," Max jokes as he stands up and heads towards the door just as Zoe walks through from Resus.

"Shouldn't you be somewhere else?" she asks, clearly exhausted and desperate for Max to leave.

"Well I should but…come here you." He grabs Zoe around her waist and pulls her into him with a little giggle and an attempt to kiss her.

"Nah-ah." She shakes her head while pulling away from Max's hold but places her index finger over his lips, "Not now," she starts and, while Max looks on at her totally confused, she raises her eyebrows towards Sophia's direction and whispers "teenager present."

"Later then." Max smiles at Sophia and winks towards Zoe before leaving the office allowing Zoe to shut the door behind him.

Zoe takes a deep breath before turning around to face Sophia who still has her head in the paperwork; neither of them wanting to start a conversation in the obviously awkward atmosphere.

"Hey." Sophia softly smiles after finally plucking up the courage to break the silence. Zoe, who's hands have been clenched together, smiles back at her before opening up her hands and indicating towards the files on her desk.

"You've – er… you've really done a great job," she tries diffusing the tension while taking the same spot on the sofa that Max took.

"Yeah? This is the last one," Sophia looks for further encouragement from Zoe before continuing, "I didn't know where you wanted them so I've separated them into three piles: finished ones are over there, files with things you need to sign off are in the middle and the ones that have some documents missing are at this end here. All alphabetised."

"Right, I see," nods Zoe, "look Soph, I'm sorry about before."

Sophia shakes her head, "No, I'm sorry Zoe. I shouldn't have gone off at you like that – I don't know what came over me. I'm sorry."

Zoe shakes her head. Sophia can see her deep brown eyes filling with tears and moves next to her placing an arm around Zoe's back as she has now leaned forward to put her head in her hands.

"Hey…hey…hey, what is it Zo?"

"You're right. There's something I'm not telling you and I suppose, seeing as how I can't really control my emotions anymore, I have to tell you. But you CAN'T tell Max – not yet. I was going to tell you both tomorrow at dinner but I just…" Zoe, wrapped in Sophia's arms, begins to cry.

"Tell us what? Is it something to do with the needle I found this morning?" she asks gently and Zoe nods.

"I've been using them for the past six months – before Max and I were even married," she takes a huge breath and says, "they're meant to help supposedly infertile women get pregnant." She looks up into Sophia's eyes, her mouth slightly covered with the tips of her fingers.

"But –"

"I know, I know," interrupts Zoe, "I know what you're going to say: I've been here before and look what happened that time."

"Well yeah," agrees Sophia, "I mean this is probably why you've been feeling so under the weather lately. Although I suppose I'm grateful that these haven't made you collapse this time. But Zoe, come on…what were you thinking?"

"Soph, these drugs are different."

"How?" asks Sophia, desperately trying to figure out the maths between the amount of time between when Zoe started this treatment and when she began to become ill.

"For best results, these drugs are to be continued throughout the first trimester," says Zoe as if she were reading from an instruction manual as she can't stop the grin that is expanding across her face.

It takes a couple of seconds for Sophia to catch up but, as it clicks, her eyes widen and she jumps up from the sofa. "Wait. What?" she asks excitedly.

"This is what I was going to tell you and Max tomorrow night but now I've told you…he can't know that I told you first okay?"

Sophia takes her thumb and finger and twists them around the middle of her lips as a promise to keep Zoe's secret while running on the spot and jumping up and down.

"YOU'RE PREGNANT!" she yells before Zoe shoots up and covers her mouth, terrified that someone would hear.

"SSSSHHHH!" she laughs with the biggest smile Sophia had ever seen and begins jumping up and down alongside of her.

"Sorry," whispers Sophia after which she mouths the words "You're pregnant" and covers her own mouth in disbelief. Zoe, who had never been so happy, begins to laugh harder than she ever had before and while she knows the risks that are still possible, she allows herself this moment to be as excited as any other pregnant woman.