Just a short chapter... Please let me know what you think. I'm wrestling with a balance between the angst/fluff/smut ratio! I have ideas for the future but I don't want this to turn into a melodrama!

Update: small edit - thanks Ztofan!

Shifting position, Nick felt the creak in his neck get worse. The arm chair he had chosen to sleep in, or at least tried to sleep in, was hard and lumpy. He sighed; since Jess had stormed off to bed earlier, he had felt his mood become lower and lower. She clearly was very upset with him, but more than that, she'd made it clear that she didn't see how this could have a future.

Frankly, he couldn't blame her. The more he thought about it, the more he realised this thing they had was doomed. He was unreliable and he let her down. His own issues were huge – he was insecure, lacking in confidence and still trying to find his way as an adult. He had been kidding himself that this could work and now they were in this situation.

Standing up, he stretched and looked at the clock on the mantelpiece, 5.00am. Outside, the first rays of dawn sunlight were beginning to peek over the horizon. Rubbing his face, he began to think about Jess again. The thought that he had upset her filled him with dread; his love for her still scared him. He racked is brain for a way to make it up to her –he had pretty much decided that this was over but he still needed to try and salvage the situation. Suddenly, he had an idea and went searching for the phone book.

Jess stretched out her arm and felt the bare sheet next to her. Nick hadn't come up to bed. She wasn't' surprised, she felt sick when she considered how they had left things. In the cool light of dawn, she felt remorseful. Yes, he had been foolish, not telling her straight away, but it wasn't his fault they were in this situation. She remembered her harsh words about having a baby, on your salary. Jess knew that was a sensitive issue for Nick Miller. But she also knew he was changing, trying to make his life slowly better and she may have just set things back. Rubbing her hands together as she studied the green linen curtains, she began to consider all the thoughts she had had last night again. It was a scary prospect-having a child in general. But who better to have a child with than someone you loved? And she did love him. She couldn't deny that. All the other issues that came along with this are things that they would need to work out together. But she stopped herself –it was still most possible that she wasn't even pregnant. I mean, what were the chances?

Either way, she decided that she needed to speak to Nick, clear the air. So she slid out of the bed and went to door.

Opening the door, Nick placed Bonnie's car keys back on the wooden bureau in the hallway and grabbing the small paper bag her bounded up the stairs to his room, two at a time. He paused and briefly rapped on the door and waited.

The knocking on the door made Jess pause. Jess cautiously moved forward, twisted the handle and pulled it towards her. Stood in front of her was Nick, wearing the same rumpled clothes from last night, holding a small brown paper bag.

"Nick?"

"Can I come in?" he asked. Jess nodded and he walked into the room and closed the door behind him.

"Nick, about last night…" she began.

"Jess, I'm an idiot. I should have told you straight away. I wasn't thinking. And I'm sorry." Jess gave him a weak smile.

"Nick, I know, I've been thinking about it and I need to say sorry too. I panicked. I didn't mean all those things I said. I was shocked." She placed a hand on his arm and looked up at him. He looked down at her hand and then back into her eyes.

"I wanted to do something to help, so I made a couple of calls this morning and I found a 24 hour pharmacy," he lifted up the brown paper bag package and placed it in her hands, "Here. The pharmacist said it'll be fine to take now. No baby Miller." Jess looked at the package in her hands and paused. Nick had done something responsible for her, for them.

"Thank you Nick," and she walked over and sat on the edge of the bed, taking the small white box out of the package as she went. Nick followed and sat beside her on the bed. She began to study the writing on the box whilst he watched nervously. "So it's just one little pill...then it's over." She turned the box over in her hands and ran her fingers across the coloured writing on side. "Plan B, that's an ironic name. I guess most people don't actually choose the plan A."

"I don't suppose they do Jess," Nick replied.

Opening the box, she popped out the small white pill and washed it down with a gulp of water from the glass on the nightstand. The silence between them was thick with tension. Finally she turned to face him and reached out a hand to stroke his face. "I love you," she said simply, "And I was thinking, even if I was pregnant, maybe it wouldn't have been the worst thing in the word". He hadn't been expecting this.

"But, I thought…I thought you were mad at me. That I was not the kind of guy you wanted to get in this situation with. I have a terrible job Jess, how would I support you?" he reached out and touched her bare shoulder, stroking it with this thumb.

"Nick, I don't know. But I know I love you and I know you are a good person. And I know if you love someone it's simple. We aren't ready for this yet, but maybe we will be one day. I just need you to be honest with me and not try and hide things and protect me," she smiled, "I'm a big girl, I can deal with the consequences of my actions – if I know the action happened." Nick wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her hair.

"I don't deserve you Jess. I keep messing up and you keep forgiving me," he pulled back to look into her eyes, "What about when the time comes when I do something you can't forgive?"

"And why do you think that time will come? I don't think you would ever intentionally hurt me. You've got a good heart," she placed her hand on his chest, "You just sometimes get a little lost along the way. And of all the people I'd like to get a little lost with, you're top of the list." She reached forward and placed a soft kiss on his lips.

"I still maintain I don't deserve you. But I promise I will always be there for you. I may mess up again. Numerous times. And I apologise in advance for that."

"And I forgive you in advance. Who is perfect? God I'm not. Situations do get messy but life would be boring without them." Slowly she placed her arms around his neck and pulled herself into his embrace. He swallowed, before gently bending down and placing a soft kiss on her lips. He could taste the toothpaste she had used last night, still lingering. His arms moved to her waist and he tightened his hands around the soft cotton material of her pyjama bottoms. As their kiss deepened, Jess lay back on the bed as Nick laid over her, slipping his hands under the stretchy material of her pyjama top and moving them over the smooth skin of her stomach.

Jess sighed. His touch comforted her and made her feel safe. He lifted the material and lowered his head to lay a trail of kisses across her stomach, before taking his hand and running it over the trail he had just left. He looked up and locked eyes with Jess.

"This is going to sound crazy. But I thought about it a lot last night, and I want that one day. A child, with you. I think it would be amazing." Jess shifted so she was sitting up on her elbows. Nick's face held a whimsical smile, like he were daydreaming.

"Really? You wouldn't like freak out and run away?" a smile played at Jess's lips.

"Well, I can't guarantee it…." Nick began to laugh a little and she playfully swatted him, "But, some day, in the future, if all this works out, I'm going to put a little Miller baby in here," he placed a kiss on her bare stomach. "And it's going to be the weirdest, quirkiest, big eyed, grumpiest, turtle faced baby ever. Like all the other babies will be either jealous or scared of it. Actually, it'll be so weird we'll have to homeschool it. Which works well for you," Jess joined in with Nick's laugh.

"You clown!" she cried, playfully wrestling him, "C'mere," and she pulled him back into an embrace. The tension between them was broken. They both knew that they were a long way from resolving all the issues in their relationship, but were happy and excited to let those things run their course. "Let's move on and enjoy today, your brothers getting married, I get to see you in a tux, it's exciting!" and she leaned in for another kiss.

Then unexpectedly, there was a rapid and urgent knocking on the door…

So, a short chapter. I was going to wait and make this a longer chapter including the wedding but I felt I'd painted myself into a corner with the last couple of chapters so I wanted to resolve that so I could move onto more light hearted faire later in the week!