Chapter 3: Figuring it Out

Andros was in the lab working when a girl walked in. She had shoulder-length brown wavy hair, brown eyes, wearing her lab clothes. "Morning, captain," she greeted, Andros.

"Morning, Lorna," he answered.

Lorna smiled as she grabbed her data pad, checking on her experiments. "I'm going to head over to the other lab to check on our samples from Groyla," he told her. Lorna nodded.

"I'll be here," she answered.

Andros left the lab and Lorna watched him with a small, warm smile.

Andros walked back into Zhane's lab, checking the samples. "When are you going to stop avoiding the new girl?" Zhane asked.

"I'm not avoiding her, I have a lot of work to do," Andros replied.

"She's been trying to talk to you with some sort of small talk since she started. The General assigned her to you," Zhane told him.

"As my partner, not for me to have sex with," Andros answered.

"Who said anything about sex?" Zhane asked.

Andros looked over at Zhane. "Knowing you, that's exactly what you are trying to get to happen," he replied.

"At least it'll keep you from acting like the world is ending," Zhane told him, "By the way, not cool last night."

"What?" Andros asked.

"Walking in on mine and Karone's conversation," Zhane replied, "We were trying to have a private conversation."

"What could you two be possibly talking about that's so private?" Andros asked.

Zhane tapped his fingers on the desk. "Well, we were talking about wedding traditions," Zhane replied, "And one of them being I have to go to the father or some sort of male authority figure in her life and kind of…sort of…ask for their permission." Andros turned to look at him. Zhane cleared his throat nervously.

"You want to marry my sister?" he asked.

"And she wants to marry me…I already asked…the last time I went to visit Terra Venture, I asked and she said 'yes'," Zhane babbled.

Andros cleared his throat, writing down in his notes. "She's too young," he answered.

"She's ten minutes younger than you," Zhane told him.

Andros looked at him. "I just got her back, Zhane, you want to take her away," he answered.

"See it as gaining a brother, since we're practically there already," Zhane answered, gripping his best friend's shoulder.

Andros stared at him. "I can't deal with this right now," he told Zhane, shoving his hand off and leaving the lab.

Andros walked back into his own lab. "He wants to marry my sister, my best friend wants to marry my sister," he ranted under his breath, "Ashley's having my baby, probably going to take it across the ocean to go to school and my best friend wants to live happily ever after with my sister."

"Captain?" Lorna asked slowly.

"What?" he asked, making her jump.

Andros let out a deep breath. "Sorry, what is it?" he asked.

"I wanted to show you the data has changed for one of our samples," She replied.

"Okay," he said with a sigh.

He walked over and stood beside Lorna as she showed him some of the test results. "Okay, we have been dancing this weird dance for a while now," She told him.

"What?" he asked confused.

"I obviously make you uncomfortable for some strange reason, when all I did the first day was say 'hi' and brought you coffee as a peace offering but instead I am ignored like I am the black plague," she replied.

"The what?" Andros asked.

Lorna cleared her throat. "Never mind, the point is, I'm trying to be nice. If I did something to offend you I would like to know what it is," She replied.

"It's not you, Lorna, I'm sorry," he said with a sigh, "My life is just…complicated."

Lorna nodded her head slowly. "I know a little bit about complicated," She commented.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Well, I was engaged at seventeen, went off to Vegas and got married, came back my dad annulled said marriage because I was underage. He left and married some other woman and now, here I am eighteen, graduated high school a year early because I am the good girl and working here at NASADA because it's what my dad wants," she ranted.

Lorna leaned against the desk, her arms crossed. Andros let out a deep breath, rubbing the back of his neck. "My ex-girlfriend broke up with me during a mission only for three and a half months later to tell me she's pregnant with our baby. She was accepted into one of the best fashion schools in London so she is taking my unborn child and going across the ocean and to top it off my best friend just asked for my blessing to marry my sister that I had just found after she was kidnapped over 11 years ago," Andros explained.

"Wow, seems like both of our lives suck," She commented, making him scoff.

Lorna sat up on the desk. "Do you still love her?" she asked. Andros was silent for a moment, contemplating his answer.

"It doesn't matter," he replied finally, "She doesn't love me."

Lorna frowned with a sigh. "I can say I know how that feels," She murmured. Andros rubbed the back of his neck. "You want to go have a coffee or something?" she asked. He looked over at her. Andros looked over at her.

"Sure," he replied.

"Great, my treat so that way you don't have to think this is a date," she told him smiling.

Andros smiled as they left the lab.

Ashley was sitting in the doctor's office anxiously, twisting her bracelet around on her wrist. "You okay?" Carlos asked, resting his hand over hers. Ashley looked at her friend with a small smile.

"Yeah, just…this isn't what I pictured how my life would be at eighteen," she answered.

Carlos nodded his head slowly an Ashley held onto his hand. "I thought we were going to be together forever," she murmured.

"You guys are young, and a baby is on the way now so you two have to put aside your own issues and concentrate on this baby, because it didn't choose this situation it's being born in," he pointed out.

Ashley nodded her head slowly. Her hand rubbed her still flat stomach. "It's still weird to think that there's a life inside me," she commented.

"It's weird to think that there's a life in you," he answered.

Ashley smiled, resting her head on Carlos's shoulder with a sigh. The doors to the hospital opened and Carlos's girlfriend, Sarah, rushed in. "Sorry, sorry," she told them as she rushed up, "Did I miss anything?"

"Nope, just waiting for Andros," Ashley replied, letting Carlos's hand go.

Sarah walked over to her boyfriend. "Hey," she said smiling.

"Hey," he answered.

Ashley let out a deep breath as she waited for either the doctor or Andros to show up. The doors slid open again and Ashley looked over to see Andros walking in. The two of them stared at each other uncomfortably. Ashley stood up, walking over to her. "Listen, Andros," she told him. Andros stared at her silently. "I know what's going on now is far from ideal, but…we have to figure things out," she told him.

Andros nodded his head slowly, telling her that he was listening. "We have a baby on the way…a baby that needs both of us to at least get along. My parents had a messy divorce and I had promised myself that I would never put my baby through what I went through with all the fighting and hate," she answered.

"You think I hate you?" he asked.

Ashley shrugged her shoulders. "The one thing I don't feel…it's hate. You are a big part of my life, Ashley. I…I didn't know how to live, feel even until you guys showed up…when you showed up," he told her, "I owe you a lot and even if you don't want me anymore, I will always care about you." Ashely smiled as he reached over, his hand resting on her stomach. "And this is my baby too, I want to be there in every way I can," he added. Ashley rested her hand over his.

"Ashley Hammond?" the doctor called out.

"Well, ready to see our baby?" she asked.

"Yep," he replied as they went into the room.

Ashley lied back on the medical table, her arm behind her head as the doctor lifted her shirt up. "How are you two doing today?" she asked.

"Just another Thursday," she replied with a smile.

"As we all feel," the doctor said smiling.

Ashley looked at Andros with a nervous smile as the doctor put the gel on her stomach. "Let's take a look at your baby here," she told them. They looked at the screen as the doctor found their baby. "There it is," She told them. Ashley stared.

"Oh my God," she whispered with tears in her eyes, getting emotional.

Andros stared at the picture. "That's our baby, Andros," she said softly.

"Wow," he answered.

Ashley reached up, holding his hand. Andros smiled as he held her hand and they stared at the screen. They suddenly heard a sound that reminded Ashely of horses running. "What's that?" Andros asked. Ashley wiped a tear from the corner of her eye.

"That's our baby's heartbeat," she replied.

She saw his face light up as he listened. "That's amazing…" he murmured. Ashley smiled as they just stared in a comfortable silence.

After the appointment, Ashley handed Andros a copy of the ultrasound and a disk of the baby's heartbeat. "You actually want to keep that?" she asked.

"Yeah," he replied, "Why not?"

Ashley smiled as she glanced over her shoulder at Carlos and Sarah. "So what are you doing now?" she asked.

"I actually have to get back to the lab, we are keeping an eye on some samples from another galaxy Zhane and I visited a few months ago," he replied.

"How is Zhane?" she asked.

"He's good, he and Karone want to get married," he replied.

Ashley's eyes went wide. "What did you tell them?" she asked.

"I don't know, I haven't figured that out yet," he replied with a sigh, "But I have to get back."

Ashley nodded. "Bye," she murmured. Andros waved before leaving to go back to work. Ashley watched him leave and let out a deep breath, her hand resting on her stomach as she walked with Carlos and Sarah back to his car.