A/N: Here's the next chapter! We are finally starting to get into the swing of things so that should make it easier for me to write more. I have so many things to write about for these characters but, for some reason, its been hard trying to get it out. I finally know where I'm going with pretty much everyone so I should be able to update more frequently. I hope you like it, keep reviewing!

After high school, Melanie Reed and Jeremy Connors both went to Brown, to study medicine. They had gotten married a year before but until they both graduated, they would be living in Providence. They tried to go back home to Minnesota at least once every few months to visit their family and friends.

"So, apparently you're too busy to call me anymore!" Her best friend, Nora Conway, said to her over the phone.

"I'm sorry!" Melanie said. "I've just been so stressed with finishing school and everything."

"It's okay," Nora laughed. "So, how's everything? How's Jeremy?"

"He's good, he's writing a big research paper so he can't really talk," she shook her head. "How are you? And how's my little goddaughter Emma?"

"Good…" Nora trailed. The truth was that she was miserable; she just didn't know how to say it without sounding like a horrible person. "Good," Nora laughed. "And she's not so little anymore!"

"I know, I still can't believe she's in second grade already," Melanie sighed. "It feels like she was just born yesterday."

"Yeah, I can't believe it either," Nora shook her head.

"Well, have you guys ever thought of giving Emma a little brother or sister?" She asked.

"Um, I'd love that," she nodded. "But I think Ethan would like to be married first."

"Yeah, what's up with that, Nor?" She asked, sitting on her couch. "You guys have been engaged for like… ever."

"I just, I want to make sure that this is right," she said. Melanie raised an eyebrow. "I love Ethan so much but I don't want to rush things… my parents rushed into their relationship and they divorced, I don't want that to happen to us."

"OK, your dad was also gay," Melanie pointed out.

"I know," Nora rolled her eyes. "I just, I want to make sure that we work, you know? I don't want to get married too quickly and then end up divorcing… I don't want Emma or any of my future children to have to go through that."

"Well, if you're not sure that you and Ethan are working after five years then something is wrong, don't you think?" She asked. Nora was quiet. "Does this have anything to do with Jesse?"

"Mel…"

"Nora, I love you and I know when you're not happy," she said. "I also know how much you love your daughter and you would never want to hurt her but that can't be your only reason for staying with Ethan."

"It's not, okay? I love Ethan," Nora said. "I really do, I just… I don't know if I'm in love with him anymore." She shook her head. "Ethan and I are just not working anymore, and I don't know what to do to fix it, but I do know that it has nothing to do with a guy that I dated in high school over five years ago."

"OK," Melanie nodded. "So what are you going to do?"

"I don't know, therapy maybe?" She shrugged. "I'll try anything at this point." She said. "I'm not going to give it a time limit or anything but if I see that it's not working then I have to do what's right for me and my daughter."

Melanie nodded. "Well if you ever need to talk, I'm just a phone call away."

"I know," Nora smiled. "So, anyways… you said you had some good news?"

"Yeah," Melanie smiled. "Well… I'm pregnant," she said. Nora's eyes widened. "Well, I think I am! I haven't taken a test or anything but I'm late and I'm never late so…" she smiled. "We wanted to wait until after graduation but it just happened and it feels right, you know?"

"Oh my God, this is so exciting!" Nora squealed. "Does Jeremy know?"

"Not yet, I'm going to wait until after he finishes this paper," she laughed. "But I couldn't hold it in anymore, I had to tell somebody!"

"Well, I'm happy that somebody was me!" Nora smiled. "Aw, I'm so happy for you guys!"

"Thank-you," She smiled. "I'm just so happy that after everything we've been through… Jeremy and I, you and I… we can still be here for each other."

"Well, of course!" Nora said. "So, I get to be godmother, right? Because, I know you and Jen are close again and everything but she's already gonna be an aunt and-"

"Yes, you're the godmother," Melanie interrupted, laughing.

"Yay!" Nora giggled.

Back in Los Angeles, Jen and Liam were at a restaurant together while she was on her lunch break. They were still in the 'getting-to-know-each-other' stage but Jen was starting to have real feelings for him.

"So, what's been going on at work?" He asked. She looked at him. "Anything new?"

"Oh, yeah…" She trailed. "Nothing to exciting, just Marionne wants to try something different by putting a guy on the cover," she rolled her eyes.

"Really?" He asked. She nodded. "That's… different."

"I know," she rolled her eyes again. She really hated the idea.

"So, who's the guy?" He asked. She looked at him.

"Oh, um… Aidan Banks." She said, quickly.

"Aidan Banks," he repeated and raised an eyebrow. "As in the one that you dated?" He asked. She nodded. "You're interviewing him?"

"No, I haven't quite gotten there yet," she shook her head. "But I have to be there, according to Marionne."

"Huh," He nodded, leaning back.

"Are you OK with that?" She asked nervously.

"Well, yeah, I guess so," he nodded. "I just don't understand why you have to be there."

"It's for 'training'," she shrugged. He looked at her. "I want to be a writer, I want to be the one giving the interviews and to do that, I have to sit in on all the interviews and like, take notes and stuff," she explained. He nodded. "It's not a big deal anyway, I mean, Aidan and I broke up two years ago… this is strictly professional."

"No, I know." He nodded.

"Good," she smiled. "So, I was thinking," she said, rubbing her leg against his under the table. "Lisa's out of town visiting her parents and I have the apartment to myself," she said, smiling mischievously. He looked at her. "Maybe you could spend the weekend?"

"I'd love that." He said. She smiled and they kissed.

Later that day, Nora drove into the parking lot of Emma's school to pick her up. She raised an eyebrow when she saw Ethan's car was also parked. She got out of hers and walked over to him. He rolled down the window.

"What are you doing here?" She asked. "It's my day to pick her up."

"I told you this morning that I would pick her up for you so we can go visit Jade," he said. She raised an eyebrow, knowing that she would have remembered if he did. She didn't want to start a fight in the parking lot so she agreed with him.

"Oh, right, I must have misheard you then," she said, crossing her arms over her chest. "And do you really think that's a good idea?" She asked. Jade's cancer had come back again about a year ago and she was still going through treatments. "I know you love your sister and so does Emma but Jade is going through chemo, do you really think that's something a seven year old should see?"

"Jade could be dying, Nora," Ethan said, morbidly. "If she wants to see her niece then I'm going to make that happen for her."

"She's not going to die Ethan," Nora shook her head. "She's doing a lot better now." She said. "I just don't think that's something Emma should see too often, that stuff scares her."

"She seemed fine last time we went," he shrugged.

"She seemed fine but she wasn't, she came crying to me asking why her aunt's hair was falling off."

"Are you trying to tell me I don't know my own daughter?" He asked.

She closed her eyes. "No, Ethan-"

"I'm getting really sick of you trying to tell me how to be a parent, Nora," he interrupted. "I've been doing this for seven years too, you know?"

"That's not what I'm trying to do Ethan, I just…" She stopped when she spotted Emma walking out of the school. "You know what? It's fine, take her, I have some papers to correct anyways." Nora was a substitute teacher at Blake Academy and the teacher she had taken over for was pregnant so it was likely that Nora would have this job for the rest of the year and maybe even the next one. "I'll see you tonight." She said and got in her car.

That night, Nora lay in her bed, alone, unable to sleep. Ethan hadn't even spoken to her when he and Emma returned home from the hospital, he had barely looked at her, he went straight to the couch and fallen asleep there.

Nora sighed and picked up her cell phone from her bedside table. She looked at it for a moment and then dialed his number.

"Hey," she said, happy that he had answered. "I know it's late but I just wanted to say that I'm sorry we haven't talked lately," she sighed. "I've just been so stressed and I just, I haven't been trying as hard to really make this work and I'm sorry for that, OK?" She said. "I love you and I'm going to do everything I can to make this work… I love you too Jesse, goodnight."

A/N: Weren't expecting that, were you? ;)