A/N: Lol...Kristen, you are forever the one who'll pick out the random medical crap i get wrong! I guess I'll never be a Canadian EMT. Darnit! HAHAHA. All of your reviews have been much appreciated thus far, as well as everyone else's. Not much longer to go...debating over epilogue chapter as we speak, so, yeah.

Seeing Allison there in that terribly humble position, sprawled out on the bed all drenched in sweat and looking like she was ready to give up made Bender almost cringe. It pissed him off all the more that Andy had never made it to the hospital. Hell, he was probably halfway to Kenosha by now. Usually Andy giving his own flesh and blood up to someone like Bender was the absolute LAST thing he thought Andy would do. But then again, everyone had changed lately. Or maybe Sporto was trying to get some pity-friends out of it. Who knew, really? Bender knew that Andy had had enough of all this baby stuff. If Sporto really wanted to give the baby up to Bender legally, and if Allison agreed, he wouldn't hesitate to sign all the legal papers making him the father.

But he knew Allison wouldn't agree to it. Even if it made things better, Allison would fight it. That's what Bender loved about Allison more than anything. She never looked for the easy way out. She made sure everyone had a say and that everyone got what they needed in the end. No matter their looks, social status or background.

Hopefully her baby would inherit that from her. If he got anything from Andy, the kid was going to be in deep trouble.

"So, why were you at a police station?" asked Allison. Her breath was weak and helpless.

"Why did you go into labor a month early?" Bender smirked back.

"I couldn't help it!" Allison said back, her hands flying over her head in surrender.

"Well, neither could I," Bender replied. Allison smiled and slipped her hands into Bender's. Bender curled his fingers in the spaces between hers. It sent chills up Bender's spine. Her hand was so cold and dry. Allison felt chills too. His hand was so warm.

"Is your father okay?" asked Allison with a sly smile. Bender's eyes almost bugged out. How could she possibly have known it was jack's fault he was in the precinct?

"How the hell did you know?" Bender asked, raising a curious eyebrow.

Allison rolled her eyes. "Come on, John! What else COULD it be for? Holding? Murder? Tax withholding?"

Bender nodded. "Damnit all, I forgot to pay my asshole tax!" he declared sarcastically. The nurse monitoring Allison gave Bender a strange look, making him snort back a laugh. Allison gave him a serious look. Bender sighed and nodded at Allison "Yeah, my old man's fine for now. Jack's in a holding cell on the other side of town right now. I didn't rat on him."

Allison licked her upper lip and smacked it against her lower lip. "Interesting," she remarked. Bender was about to ask why, when suddenly, she lurched forward as a contraction hit her. The grip on Bender's hand tightened by about ten times. Allison contorted his hand around in several painful ways as she let out a small, delicate scream. It all came so suddenly that Bender yelped a little bit in surprise himself.

"Aren't you supposed to breath in a rhythm or something?" asked Bender. It occurred to him just then that Allison hadn't taken those childbirth classes that Brian had suggested when he'd come to town over Christmas break. They'd just never gotten around to taking them.

"Gah!" was all Allison said, trying to swallow while managing the pain. Her breaths were shallow, even thought she was trying to breath as deeply as she could. Bender felt his hand go numb as Allison twisted it every way it wasn't supposed to go, and he tried hard not to holler out, especially after she bent it back too far. The nurse sitting at the end of the bed tried to urge Allison to use the Lamaze breathing. She wasn't following. Allison cried out several times before she leaned back against the bed and sighed.

"Does it hurt THAT much?" asked Bender, raising an eyebrow.

"Does your hand hurt?" asked Allison in reply. Bender looked down at his red hand and realized it was throbbing in pain. She didn't BREAK it…did she?

"NURSE!" Bender yelled out. The nurse rushed to Bender's side and looked at his hand. She nodded at him.

"You've got a strong grip, Miss Reynolds! You broke his hand!" exclaimed the nurse.

Allison shook her head. "I might have twisted it a little too far," she said sheepishly. Bender gave her a look.

"We'll have to get you down to x-ray and have that cast up before you can do anything else," said the nurse. She pulled out her walkie-talkie and talked into it. Bender shook his head.

"John, don't leave me!" she moaned. Bender nodded.

"I won't."

"It'll be an hour at most," assured the nurse. "Someone's bringing a wheelchair up now."

"Hold up, lady," said Bender. "If I have to leave to get an x-ray done on me, one, I'm not going in a wheelchair like some retard, and two, will I be back in time for the delivery?" Bender asked.

"I just said you'll be down and back in an hour, Allison won't deliver for at least another 5-6 hours at this rate…"

"ARGH!" sighed Allison desperately, clutching her stomach and whining. Bender, using his non-broken hand, took a wet washcloth from the table next to the bed and patted it on Allison's forehead. It seemed to relieve her a little,

"But and you have to sit in the chair, it's hospital policy," finished the nurse.

"Yeah, because if I don't, my hand will fall off," Bender muttered sarcastically.

"I don't want to be alone now," Allison moaned softly.

"You won't be," said a voice from the doorway. Andy, soaked to the bone and out of breath, was standing in the door to Allison's room. Allison was silent, with wide eyes. Bender gave him a look of death.

"Look who decided to play hero," he muttered with a bitter tone. A male nurse just then wheeled a chair into the room. Bender looked at it as if he'd wheeled in a 4-time amputee. Great, now he had to leave Allison in the care of the Ultimate Scumbag who had more mood changes lately than a PMSing drama queen. But what choice did he have?

"Fine, I'll go," Bender said. He looked at Andy, who flinched. But all Bender said was "Take care of her for me."

Andy nodded. Bender sat down in the wheelchair and was taken out of the room. Allison could see his head turned towards her as he was driven away. He gave her a subtle wink. Allison smiled.

Meanwhile, Andy sighed and sat by Allison where Bender just was.

"What happened?" he asked.

"I broke his hand during the last pain," Allison said, almost laughing. Andy laughed.

"Same thing happened to my old man when I was born," Andy nodded. "Or so my mom told me."

"Andy, I thought you'd gone home," said Allison. "I thought you said John and I could have—"

"—Al, I'm sorry," said Andy. "I really am. I guess I was just being chicken shit. I've been like that a lot lately. With the bet against my father that started this whole thing, and then leaving and coming back, and then leaving again," said Andy.

"I know what you did, you don't need to read me the whole novel of what happened the past nine months, Andy," Allison said. "I'm glad you did finally come back, though."

"But what about Bend…John?" asked Andy.

"I love him more than anyone I've ever loved before. But no matter how much we have each other, my kid will always share your blood. He'll need you here to answer any questions he has, because even if John has me, he won't be able to answer those questions like a father can," she said. Andy smiled That felt good to hear.

"I don't think John's being nice because of what Claire did to him," said Allison. "He thinks you betrayed me the same way she betrayed him."

"I swear I didn't betray you."

"You actually kind of did. But what sets you apart is the fact that Claire didn't look back. I want us to be like brother and sister, Andy. We still need to be friends, and I think we can do it."

Andy thought a moment. After all that they'd been through, it was only right that they thought of themselves as having a brother/sister bond. "I know we can do it."

Andy nodded. Allison, while red in the face and ready to cry, looked somehow radiant too. He went to take her hand, but hesitated. Friend or not, she was Bender's territory now.

But a contraction paralyzed Allison, and she instinctively grabbed for Andy's hand anyways. Andy rubbed her back as she leaned forward, clutching her belly with her free hand and grunting for it to end. He leaned in closer and put his arm around her shoulder in a meager attempt to comfort her. Allison looked ready to fall into unconsciousness, so Andy grabbed the washcloth and pressed it against her head and wiped away some sweat with the cold water. Allison looked relieved by it.

The contraction seemed to take forever to pass for Andy. Watching Allison squirm and moan out was more than Andy could bear to watch. He couldn't imagine what it was like for Allison, who actually had to deal with the pain part.

But what was more, was that within 24 hours, he was going to be a father. As child was going to be born sharing his DNA with Allison's, and he was going to be legally responsibly for his life. A whole life in Andy's hands! One wrong move on his part, and the baby could grow up to be a really fucked up person. What worried him even more than that he very well could evolve into HIS father if he wasn't careful.

"I don't think you'll turn into George Clark," Allison had said the previous summer (of course, they were only hypothetically talking about having babies together at that time). "You have to have no heart to turn into him."

But did Andy still have his heart? Or did it die with his childhood?

Bender took a little longer than an hour in coming back, but when he did, he not only wasn't in the wheelchair, but he had a big white cast wrapped around his hand and part of his lower arm. He came back just as Allison passed another contraction.

"I seriously broke you hand?" Allison, said, laughing lightly. Bender nodded.

"The bastards made me take a shitload of x-rays and then gave me a long-ass needle in my wrist and slapped this 30-pound rock on my arm," Bender explained. He looked at Andy, who let go of Allison's hand as soon as they made eye contact.

"Sounds like you had fun down in the ER," said Allison.

"Loads. How is she?" he asked, turning his head in Andy's direction.

"She's doing alright," Andy said, standing up. "As good as she can be right now."

"Can we be alone a while?" asked Allison. Andy nodded with a slight smile and went to leave the room.

"Sporto?"

Andy turned back on his heel and looked at Bender. He put his hand on Allison's shoulder.

"Thanks, man," he said, nodding sincerely. Andy nodded back.

"Anytime."

Andy walked down the hall once outside. Maybe he could find a nurse's lounge and wait there. He wasn't going home now. Not yet. Not now.

Andy saw a vaguely familiar face on a vaguely familiar body leaning against the nurse's desk, talking with a receptionist about hair color.

"Red is very in right now. All the Parisian models are using henna on their hair. I've been thinking of dying my hair red myself," said the blonde girl. "It's exotic. You should also think about crimping…"

"Liz Lembo," Andy said, nodding. Liz turned her head and looked at Andy.

"Do I know you?" she said coldly.

"Didn't you used to be in my chemistry class?" asked Andy, walking over to Liz.

Liz shook her head and smiled. "Independent study," she said.

Andy bit his lip and thought a moment. She was right. Liz looked down at her feet. "I thought you weren't gonna show your face," she said, putting her hand on her hip.

"I thought you hated Allison. I thought you hated her ever since she took that kiddy-pageant title away from you," Andy retorted. Liz contorted her slight smile and expanded it a little more.

"That's jealousy, not hatred, Andrew," said Liz. Andy nodded and looked at his feet.

"Call me Andy," insisted Andy.