How could she keep this from him?

This was the only question that ran through Max's mind over and over again as he made his way back to the apartment. It was understandable that she was worried and scared but to keep this kind of information away from Jude just seemed ridiculous if not selfish.

Max kept his hands deep in his coat pockets as he replied the conversation with Lucy in his mind. In a sense, he was jumping up and down inside with happiness.

An Uncle! His mind shouted through all of the confusion. I'm going to be an Uncle! If it's a boy I can teach him all the things I did to annoy his mother.

On the other hand, he knew Lucy should not have this baby on her own. She did not agree or disagree that this was her intent. Max was afraid it would be. Of course they are both young and he knew their mother was going to have a heart attack when she found out. Lucy was only nineteen years old.

It was going to be a kid raising a kid. She needed help. Max promised her that he would always be there for her but pleaded her to let Jude know. It was his kid just as much as it would be hers.

Walking into the dim apartment, it seemed almost surreal. The paintings on the walls were beginning to fade just like Jude's spirit. "Jude, you home?" Max called out and it seemed to have echoed through the dead silence. Max took off his coat and laid it across the chair before venturing further into the apartment.

There was a noise coming from Jude's studio. It almost sounded like a slurred argument. Inching closer, Max paid close attention to the voice on the other side of the door. It was Jude's deep accented voice complaining about a painting. Complaining to himself.

"No.. no! You hadn't got her eyes right, ye' twit." Max opened the door enough to peek inside. Jude was standing in front of a canvas. There he had painted a portrait of Lucy. So were the other three around him. Each painting that represented Lucy had the eyes covered with a thick line of black paint. Max frowned as he watched Jude do the same with the painting in front of him. With a quick strike of his brush, her piercing blue eyes became nothing but a censor bar.

"Jude?" Max said calmly. Jude's movements stopped but he did not turn in his direction. He stood there as his body waved back and forth on his heels. It wasn't till then that Max realized Jude had snatched down nearly all of the sketches of Lucy that hung on the walls.

"I. . you know, I'll just talk to you tomorrow." Max pulled himself from the doorway and took a few steps back. "When you feel better."

The next morning was cold enough to keep them clammed inside of their apartments with no will or motivation to enter into the frost. Though it was not snowing it was definitely cold enough that the possibility was believable. It was nearly three in the evening and Sadie and JoJo still hadn't emerged from their bedroom. Max sat in the main room and watched the T.V. with little interest. His mind still was stuck on the news Lucy gave him and how bad he wanted to enlighten Jude with it.

Jude came into the room quietly as he tucked his thick jacket tightly against his body. Crossing his arms over his chest, he took a seat beside Max. It was obvious that he was hung over though he did not appear as if he had been drinking. Wither it showed or not, this pleased Max.

"Rise and shine, my fellow ray of sunshine." Max said with a smile. Jude huffed up a fake, thin smile but not once looked at Max. "You sleep okay?" He continued.

"I didn't sleep at all, really." His voice was quiet and weak. Jude's eyes stayed glued to the T.V. even when it was obvious that he wasn't watching a single thing on the screen. Max nodded and stayed quiet after that.

"Sorry 'bout yesterday." Jude apologized. Max shrugged and leaned more against the cushions of the couch. "Don't worry about it, man. You're going through a rough time – it's understandable. Although we all hate seeing you like this." Max fessed up. Jude nodded in a sad agreement.

"I know. It's just --" Jude's explanation was cut off by several knocks at the front door of the flat. Max and Jude glanced to each other for a split moment before Max stood to his feet and made his way for the door.

Max wasn't too surprised to see Lucy on the other side of the door. Proof that his guilt trip he had given to his younger sister had possible worked it's magic for the best. She wore a thick coat that hung down to her knees with a scarf wrapped around her neck to protect it from the frost-bit wind. "Mind if I come in?" Her teeth clattered the whole time she spoke.

"Yeah! Sure." Max backed away to let Lucy slip inside. Before anyone in the apartment could say one word, Jude and Lucy automatically made eye contact with each other. Both of their faces drained with color and hurt and guilt replaced the once content expressions.

"It's about time ye' made your way to me neck of the woods." Jude's voice was harsh yet still gentle as it always was with Lucy. The cognitive accent of the former Liverpudlian was still enough to send shivers down her spine like a string pulled too tight. Max excused himself from the room and into the den to avoid the climax of this estranged meeting.

"I needed some time away." Lucy cut eye contact and kept her eyes busy as she removed her mesh hat and scarf. "Sorry to upset you." She said. Her words were flat and this only rustled Jude's anger that had been simmering beneath enough alcohol to kill most men and tubes and tubes of paint. His eyes narrowed as he stood to his feet, dark eyes cutting into Lucy's fidgeting frame. "Sorry to upset me?" Jude laughed in disgust. "Bollocks. Ye' have no sympathy about just disappearing into thin air and you know it." Lucy followed Jude into the bedroom that once belonged to both of them to continue their dispute. "Did you think just leaving like that was hard on me as well?" Lucy spatted.

Jude turned to face her, his nose only inches from her own. "At least you knew you were leaving." In all reality, Jude wanted to grab each of her cheeks and pull her into a kiss. He wanted to wrap his arms around her with pure glee since now he knew she was doing alright and had finally showed back up to the apartment though his hurt would not allow it.

"I had a reason, you know." Lucy defended herself as Jude took a seat at his desk. It was littered with papers and clustered with empty and half-empty bottles of various liquors. Lucy propped herself in the doorway and watched as Jude idly began drawing swirls on the paper with a small piece of charcoal. Anything he could do to keep from looking into her eyes.

"What reason is a good enough to leave without saying one word? You could of at least jotted down on paper you were leavin'."

Lucy's mind went elsewhere as she examined Jude's sorry excuse for a head of hair. The back appeared to be exploding into some sort of rat's nest. A thin smile hid behind Lucy's eyes at the thought of Jude – happy that is.

"I didn't know how to tell you." Lucy tugged herself back onto the conversation.

"That's why I said you could have wrote it down." Sarcasm overflowed his mouth only when he was upset. This triggered Lucy to suck up all her fears and worries and tell Jude the truth.

"Writing it down would have been just as hard as saying it. Anyways, I wasn't even talking about that." Lucy pushed herself away from the doorway and sat down in the empty seat beside Jude. Nervously, she reached out and placed her hand on his leg so cautiously as if his body temperature would burn the tips of her fingers. Jude felt a wave of heat flush his body that was not the familiar warmth of whiskey but the fevered feeling of a lover's touch. His eyes danced about the room before finally settling on Lucy's hand.

"The reason I left was more complicated than just cold feet about a new lover. I have come to turns with Daniel's death so it had nothing to with my sudden leave." Tears hung heavy on her eyelids as she gripped Jude's leg that caused him to place his hand on top of hers without a second thought. No matter how angry he may be with her there was no way he could keep himself from not comforting her when she began to cry.

"I believe it shouldn't be complicated enough to not tell me." Jude spoke in a whisper. Lucy sniffled and wiped her redden nose with the back of her hand.

"I'm scared that you're going to leave me." Her voice cracked. Jude raised his brows at her ridiculous suggestion and reached over to place both of his hands on her soft cheeks. The inside of his palms were rough from the years of working out in the Ship yards. "Lu, listen to me. I'm here until you're done with me. I'm not gonna' leave ye'." With one finger he gently pushed back a stray hair behind her ear.

"So tell me."

Lucy starred hard into Jude's anxious eyes, debating with herself wither she should tell him the news right now or not. Now or never, a small voice inside of Lucy told herself. With a deep breath, she spoke those words that made Jude limply fall from his seat to only collapse onto the hardwood floor.

"I'm pregnant."