Lewis stared down at the image in his hands in amazement, his green eyes panning over the details that were visible in the strange bluish photograph. "This is the baby?" he asked, his disbelief evident. Kate perched herself on the arm of his armchair and nodded.

"Yeah, you can see her right there," she said with a smile. "There's her head, and her body comes around like this. You can even see her little fingers and toes if you look close there. This isn't the best picture, Drew has a clearer one."

"This is amazing," Drew said in an awe-struck tone, gazing down at a similar photograph in his hands. "It's hard to believe that these are pictures of what's inside of you. A little baby girl." Kate laughed and nodded in agreement, heaving herself off of the arm of the chair and moving over to sit between Drew and Oswald on the couch. Eugene, who was sitting on the arm of the couch next to Oswald, leaned over slightly to join in looking at the pictures.

Lewis set the photograph he'd been holding on the coffee table and lounged back in his chair once again, watching the scene and feeling oddly detached. For someone who had not wanted to have a child, Kate had truly blossomed throughout her pregnancy and at the moment she seemed almost giddy. She was now six months along and the prominent bulge in her stomach displayed this fact quite clearly. He had often wondered if Kate would ever have children and imagined the way she would look, but as he gazed at her now he felt that the look almost suited her. Something about it just seemed to fit into place. Seeing Kate so happy about something was also a relief, because she so rarely looked as happy as she did in this moment.

"So did you ever find out who the father was?" Oswald asked conversationally. Kate just put on the same guarded expression she did every time and shook her head.

"Any idea what you're going to name her?" Lewis chipped in, easily turning the subject away from the baby's father just like he always did. Kate turned to him with a smile, but there was a familiar look of gratitude in her eyes that he had grown accustomed to seeing over the past few months as he continually covered for her.

"I'm debating over a few names," she admitted. "I can't decide just yet though."

"You should name her Allison, after Drew," Oswald said with a broad smile.

"Oh shut up, Oswald," Drew said as his entire face turned red with embarrassment.

"That was actually one of the names I was thinking about," Kate said with a shy smile.

"There's an idea, give her the middle names of your three best friends," Lewis said, trying to keep the sarcasm out of his voice as he fought his laughter. "You can name her Allison Lee Michelangelo O'Brien."

All of them broke up in laughter at the suggestion. "Right," Kate said. "Maybe if I want her to spend her life as a punching bag social outcast."

"Nah, then you'd have to name her Oswald Lee Harvey," Drew put in.

"Name her after me?" Oswald said with wide eyes before he realized what Drew had meant. "Hey, wait a second."

"Don't worry about it, Oswald," Lewis said, still laughing. "You still get more action than Drew, just remember that. Not that it's hard to get more than Drew." Drew made a face at Lewis but didn't even bother to retort this time. Drew knew that he was probably actually having more sex than either Oswald or Lewis now that he was finally dating another girl. Lewis hadn't been seen with a date since the break up with Sandra, and Oswald hadn't been seen with a girl in probably longer than that.

"Oh, c'mon guys," Kate said, patting both Drew and Oswald on the back lightly. "This is supposed to be a happy occasion, let's not talk about your disturbing sex lives."

"Oh right, Kate doesn't want to be reminded of how she ended up like this," Lewis said with a meaningful nod.

"Lewis, you just shut up," Kate said in exasperation. They all lapsed into laughter again, passing the photographs amongst each other again and marveling at the enormity of what they meant.

"You know what, this is a special occasion and this calls for a celebration," Drew said suddenly, looking around at the others.

"Drew, no Warsaw, you know I'm not suppose to drink," Kate sighed.

"Not the Warsaw," Drew said. "I say we all go out for a nice dinner. It's not every day that one of us is going to be a parent. So we'll all go out to celebrate Allison Lee Michelangelo O'Brien." Laughter followed this statement and everyone eagerly agreed. "So, where does Allison Lee Michelangelo O'Brien say we should go?"

Kate chuckled and her hand unconsciously lifted to rest on her stomach, as she always did whenever the baby was mentioned. "Probably somewhere Italian, that seems to be her favorite," she said. "Or at least she lets me eat it in peace more than other kinds."

"Antonio's it is," Drew concluded, standing up. The other's murmured in agreement and they all filed out and into Drew's car. Lewis was fortunate enough to get the passenger seat because of his long legs, but he was still cramped. Kate, Eugene, and Oswald slid into the back seat with Eugene in the middle. The ride was enjoyable and full of excited chatter, making everyone's spirits even higher by the time they had reached the restaurant.

The dinner passed in a haze of cheerful conversation and excellent food. Kate's excitement was contagious and even Lewis, who had been slightly withdrawn for the last few months, was enjoying himself. Still, as was his nature, he observed his friends inconspicuously while they socialized. Kate was practically bubbling with enthusiasm, a wild reversal from her first panic about being pregnant, and the worries about the baby's parentage seemed to have left her mind. Drew was behaving almost normally, except maybe being a little overly-gentlemanly towards Kate. Lewis knew that Drew was trying to help Kate through this life change, likely with the underlying hope that Kate would come back to him. It was practically common sense that Drew would leave his current girlfriend in a heartbeat if Kate ever wanted him back.

Oswald was behaving just like typical Oswald, with his childish naivety. He seemed completely oblivious to everything beyond their table, wrapped up in the conversation and slurping his spaghetti noodles. Eugene sat close to him and couldn't seem to keep his eyes off of Oswald for very long, smiling at Oswald's youthful antics. Eugene had been getting gradually closer to Oswald as the months had passed, the pair getting along very comfortably. Oswald didn't seem to find anything odd about the situation, but Lewis found it a little strange. He knew Eugene's sexual orientation and he had begun to wonder if perhaps he was attracted to Oswald.

Shaking this thought from his head, mostly because he didn't want to consider the possibility that the man he had lived with for all these years might be gay, Lewis returned to his meal. He found it difficult to keep his attention on anything but Kate as the dinner continued. There was something so stunning about the sheer happiness that she carried and it seemed to make her ten times prettier. Sure, Lewis had always thought that Kate was pretty but now, in her moments of solid pleasure, she looked angelic. He found himself finally understanding what people said about how a pregnant woman 'glowed.'

Finally, nearly two hours after they had arrived, the group decided that it was time to leave. They each paid their parts of the bill, although since it was a celebration for Kate the men split her portion between themselves. Then they all headed for the door in a talkative cluster.

"Uh oh," Lewis breathed suddenly, spotting someone who was waiting to be seated, although too late for the group to avoid being seen by him. The man turned to glance at the noisy group and his eyes widened slightly.

"Well, well, Kate O'Brien," the man said with a small sneer. The entire group froze and turned their attention to the owner of the voice. Kate's broad smile instantly fled.

"Robert," she replied curtly.

Robert approached their group, a narrow woman on his arm surveying them all with a blended look of distaste and pride. Robert's eyes panned Kate up and down, and then his grin twisted wickedly. "Pregnant, huh? I knew your slutty ways would land you in trouble someday," he said.

All four men surrounding Kate stepped forward angrily, fists clenching at their sides. Kate gestured at them to stop and glared at Robert with hatred. "My slutty ways? Does your girlfriend know about all your little escapades with your secretary?" she asked. She grinned triumphantly when the woman glanced up at Robert with confusion and doubt in her gaze.

Robert narrowed his eyes but gave no response to the question. "So did you tell the man-whore that he gave you a child? Or were there just so many men you've slept with that you can't remember which one caused this?" he asked darkly. Then his eyes narrowed even more and he asked, "It's not mine, is it?"

Kate's face blanched slightly and she seemed to be fumbling to find the right words.

"It's mine."

Everyone present gasped and looked up at Lewis in surprise. Lewis kept his expression solid, even though his heart was racing. He ignored the stunned looks on his friends' faces and draped an arm over Kate's shoulder protectively. "The child is mine," he repeated. "And I would really prefer that you not talk to Kate like that. Understood?"

Robert looked angry at the command, but said nothing. He was not fool enough to pick a fight with someone who stood a full head taller than him. The two men glared daggers at each other for several long, tense moments before the host announced Robert's name as next to be seated. Robert gave Lewis and Kate one last look of hatred before he turned away without a word and stalked off, his girlfriend following fearfully in his wake.

Lewis let out a breath of relief and glanced anxiously at his friends. All four of them were staring at him in shock; Kate and Eugene surprised by his lie and Drew and Oswald clearly wondering if what Lewis had said could be true. Still, none of them said anything and Lewis started to feel increasingly awkward under their unwavering stares.

"Maybe we should go," he suggested, and to his relief they all turned and headed for the doors once again. He walked silently at the back of the group, his heart still pounding rapidly in his chest and making him feel a bit queasy. The car ride home was just as awkward, with hardly more than a few words of speech passing between the passengers. Lewis didn't say a thing, staring out of the window silently to avoid everyone's attention. Kate only spoke to answer Drew's question of "Are you okay?"

When they had gotten back to Drew's house everyone hesitated on what exactly to do. Eugene muttered something about needing to get home and the rest of them immediately latched onto the idea, claiming to need sleep before work and other various excuses. Oswald and Lewis headed towards Oswald's van while Kate and Eugene walked to Eugene's little car. Drew called a good-night to everyone before he stepped into his house. Lewis was about to climb into the van when he felt a hand on his arm. Turning, he saw Kate standing there with a nervous smile on her face.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

Lewis simply smiled and gave a small nod in return. Kate hugged him quickly, surprising Lewis, and then hurried over to Eugene's car. Slightly dazed, Lewis climbed into the passenger seat of the van. Oswald glanced at him suspiciously but Lewis was too distracted to notice, and seeing this Oswald pulled the van away from the curb and headed towards the Warsaw, shooting furtive looks at his best friend the entire way. They got back to the bar and walked up to their apartment in silence still. Both went to bed with a brief "good-night" the only thing said between them.