Author's Note: Finally right? Tom and Jac have an adventure at the hospital.

"Man, I hate doctors. Bedside manner is a myth they like to tell you to make you feel better, and their hands are always like damn ice," Tom practically whined, standing in front of the door.

"So? Your hands aren't exactly warm either, and I've never complained all that much have I?"

"I know, but…they all think they're better than you just because they went to school for-fucking-ever. Stupid assholes," he grumbled, sticking his hands in his pockets.

"Tom."

"And another thing-"

"Tom!"

"What, Jac?"

"You don't have to come you know," Jackie smiled, shaking her head as she walked up to Tom who still looked just as pissy as he had been. She gently pressed her hand against the man's chest, and he backed up accordingly, away from the door. "There really isn't anything you can do there. I mean…it's not like there's anything an OB/GYN can do with you either. You're rather unfortunately endowed with a dick."

"Unfortunately?" Tom frowned. "What do you…"

"That's not what I meant. You know that."

"Yeah, yeah…but anyway, I just…I'm kinda responsible for this any all you know? This is just as much my probl…thing as it is yours."

Jac crossed her arms, and Tom looked down as she gave him a stern look. "It's just an appointment to confirm things…maybe even deny. There's really nothing that can be done for a while…I mean, I had to do a bit of talking to get an appointment so quickly."

"But…can I at least tag along?" He looked less frustrated now, but he wasn't whining any less than he was before.

"Fine, fine…just don't make a scene okay? You promise?"

"Yeah, I promise."

Tom kept silent on the way to the hospital, watching the other people on the subway and internally plotting out all the possible things that could happen, what could be revealed on this trip. Horrible monsters were somewhere on his list, and he almost told Jackie, but the more he thought on it the less funny it became. This was serious, and all he could think of was the plot to numerous horror films. Perhaps, he wasn't dealing with the stress as well as he thought he was.

"Aren't there…I dunno…specific offices and stuff for this?" he asked, voice low so as not to bother anyone else. It was so strange. No one was even talking today, caught up in his or her personal bubbles. There was usually at least some sort of hum of chatter in these places. They probably didn't even hear him, but he couldn't get his voice to go any louder.

"Yeah, but I prefer to go to the hospital. My insurance covers it if I go there, and I mean, they've got a department and all," Jac shrugged. "Just makes it easier, ya know?"

"I guess so," he replied, turning his head to see what she was staring at. "What're you lookin' at?"

"Just the ads. Just at stuff…"

"Trying not to think about it?"

"I don't quite know what I'm trying to do," the woman said as she gave Tom an uncomfortably indifferent look. Tom was sure he at least looked stressed out, but up until now Jackie's face had been clear. Not vacant, but an eerie calm like early morning lakes or some metaphor or that nature.

"You're going to get a professional to confirm or deny pregnancy," Tom offered, using his best 'helpful tone'. "See if we're in as deep of shit as we think."

"Thanks, I had no idea," Jac frowned.

"Sorry…"

"Nah, don't worry about it. I guess I'm just tense."

"Well, I am too."

"Yeah, but I'm being nasty about it. I should be sorry, okay? I'm sorry."

Tom leaned back and shrugged. "Alright, fine."

Silence settled over the pair again until they reached their stop. Getting off people gave Tom plenty of room and in turn Jac as well since she appeared to be with the slightly lumbering beast that was trying to pass itself off as a man. Anyone or anything that could walk with a mildly scruffy, one-eyed, guy must have been pretty tough themselves, right?

Tom had long since gotten used to the stares, but they started to bother him yet again. These people even if they didn't know what he had done still saw him as strange and peculiar. If this kid were to be a real thing what would people say of it? Of him or her? Tom had assured himself the other day that it wasn't so bad. That there were worse people out in the world, and yet, in that moment with those stranger eyes on him he felt worry, felt concern, for what this potential figment would have to grow up with. It wasn't fair, and he suddenly felt rather indignant. How dare they judge him and thus his child in such a way? A swift and inflexible way that took no time to get to know facts or truths. All based on what that believed to be "bad blood". A surprising protectiveness welled up in Tom's chest the more he thought about it. Protectiveness for something that at this point might have not even been real. For something that for all intents and purposes was part of him, and belonged to him.

"You're making your 'kill face'. What is it now?"

"Did you see those people? How they moved away?"

"Yeah, so? They always do that."

"And they always will," Tom frowned. "No matter what I do they'll always step to the side. With this kid won't they…won't they do the same?"

Jac's mouth became a line on her face as she thought. Lips pressed inward as if it would deliver a quicker answer. "If they do, I say fuck 'em. Our kid would, possibly will, be a million times smarter than any of theirs, so yeah. Fuck 'em." She reached over and gave Tom's hand a reassuring squeeze and even added a smile.

Tom smiled back and shook his head. "And Sebs asks me why I like you…"

"Does he?"

"Nah, I just made it up, but it sounded good."

"Fair enough," Jackie shrugged as they made their way back up the stairs to the surface world. Tom squinted as the sun met his face, and before he could fully adjust he was making his way through automatic sliding doors into a place he dreaded.

Hospitals. Sterile. Unfeeling. Cold.

The man rubbed his nose, still cold from the outdoors. He did not like hospitals. Not one little bit. This one tried to look friendly. A strange sort of modern look that made for less white. Looked more blue really. Tom knew better though. The lobbies were just there to lull you into a false sense of security. The rest was all an unclean white. Even if it was fucking green the place would always be a horrible unclean white. A color that stank of sickness. Just the thought made his stomach tighten uncomfortably with unfortunate memories.

Quietly Tom followed after Jackie who appeared to know the place far better than he did, keeping close behind, almost at her heels like a child until they reached the proper part of the seemingly giant building. He didn't trust the place a bit, and it showed.

"Are you going to be doing that all day?"

"Huh? Doing what?"

"Never mind. Look, I have to wait around for a bit, and I don't know if there's really anything you can do to be useful," Jackie said, running her finger over a small stack of papers Tom hadn't noticed she'd gotten. He'd hardly noticed them arriving in the department. Seemed his thoughts had consumed yet another irreplaceable chunk of time.

"This is the part where I tell you I should be there every step of the way," Tom replied, face devoid of emotion save for the very smallest hint of a smile the upturned the corners of his mouth.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Jac laughed giving him a small shove. "But this isn't some movie. Look, I'll give you a buzz when it's all said and done, okay? You do have your phone on you don't you?"

"Of course. I mean…I can hardly work the damn thing, but I can answer it."

"Good enough."

"I hate hospitals…"

"I know. Why don't you go eat something? I hear this place's cafeteria isn't half bad."

"I hate institutionalized food…"

"You hate everything. Now, get a move on before I change my mind and make you sit around here like an ass," the woman teased. Tom shook his head but soon found himself heading down a hall out of the "lady department" of the hospital. The lobby was strangely empty, which was far worse than if it were to have been busy. Fewer distractions to take attention off of the strange man wandering around and looking lost.

"Can I help you with anything? Do you need directions?" came a friendly, too friendly, voice from behind the front desk. Tom didn't take the time to register gender before he started shaking his head, not even looking over at the person. Not fully anyway. Brief eye contact and then straight ahead once more.

"No, I'm fine. Just wandering. Thanks. I'm good," Tom rambled as he delivered all answers he could think of. Still faking a smile he shuffled off into the gift shop, pausing to flair his nostrils at the smell of the place. It wasn't the smell of too clean or sickness, but it certainly had something going for it that made Tom's skin prickle with goosebumps. Then again, it might have very well just been the air conditioning, but somehow the man couldn't seem to convince himself of it.

Overpriced snacks, stuffed animals, and other whatnot. There were even balloons, the ones in the front full and shiny, but Tom could see the neglected ones in the back that were losing their bounce. Deflating balloons with deflated words of encouragement and congratulations. He almost knocked over the canister of helium as he went to get a better look and decided to head back over to the stuffed animals. Maybe there would be less things to potentially knock over and destroy over there.

It was so claustrophobic and everything either looked breakable or was on something Tom knew he'd have no trouble accidentally toppling over. The stuffed animals were sitting on what looked to be glass shelves, and carefully he tapped the shelving. Definitely glass, but at least it didn't look like it would suddenly shatter, which was a plus for his nerves. He grabbed one of the animals that looked soft; a plush "almost rabbit" whose nose was too big and whose eyes were so small they almost disappeared under the not quite silky "fur" on its face. He supposed it was cute, but its little, beady, eyes were strange, so he placed it back on the shelf, knocking his hand against the glass, accidentally this time. It made a louder sound than he expected, and he pulled his hand away quickly, face reddening nervously.

He looked around for witnesses, but he was the only one in the store besides the cashier, and he hadn't heard anything from that direction. Well, seemed that crisis had been averted for the time being, and he turned his attention back the animals.

The numerous bears were less unsettling, with larger eyes and more easily identified smiles. Tom grabbed a blue one with "get well soon" sewn into its perfectly white belly. He quickly looked over at the cashier whose face was buried in a gossip magazine and paying him no mind, which was fine by him. He turned his attention back onto the bear and pressed his fingers into it, enjoying the feeling of the material giving beneath his fingers.

Teddy bears didn't look much like bears. He remembered hearing that somewhere. Snouts too short. Eyes too big. Proportioned more like small children that small forest dwelling creatures. Teddy bears were made to look cute by human standards. Tom held the creature out at arms length. Was that really what people found cute? Well, it was something all right. The bear found its way back to the shelf as Tom heard the shuffling of feet. He wasn't the only customer anymore, and that unnerved him something terrible. It was time to get out of dodge.

Heading for the door Tom spied a cooler type thing with various drinks in it and grabbed a no-name brand cola and a similarly unfamiliar can of ginger ale, which he stuffed in his pocket after paying for both. He drank the cola thing as he walked, ignoring the thud of the other can full of liquid against his leg. It wasn't bad. Perhaps a bit too sweet with a funky after taste, but Tom had tasted worse things.

His mind was still on the teddy bear, and he began following signs until he caught sight of it. A big window to the inside. A little human zoo. Tom squeezed the empty can in his hand feeling almost defensive. A nurse passed by him with a friendly smile, and he pulled himself away from the opposite wall not having noticed he'd leaned up against it. He shoved the empty can in his other pocket, too lazy to bother finding a recycling bin. He took a hesitant step toward the glass and then another, legs feeling stiff and being a pain to move.

What were they going to do? Attack him? Not likely.

Up to the glass, Tom moved he face closer, palms flat on the surface and nose pressed up slightly, leaving marks he was sure.

"Couldn't tell the damn things apart with those nametags I bet. And people say they're cute? They look so…weird," he muttered to himself as he scanned the room. Little boys in blue and little girls in pink. How typical. Some sleeping soundly and others squirming. Happy for reasons they couldn't express. "Well, maybe that is kind of cute…" Tom admitted as he focused on a small girl at the front who seemed captivated by her own fingers.

"She yours?"

"Huh? What?" Tom replied, moving his face away from the glass of the human exhibit.

"The little girl," the owner of the voice clarified. A young man, tall and sharp-featured.

"Oh, no…no, none of them actually," Tom shrugged turning back.

"Same."

Tom picked up his head. "Oh?"

"Well, sorta," the man laughed. He indicated another little girl who was sleeping soundly. Tom shifted to get a better look. "Moira. She's my sister's kid. My niece."

"Moira…" Tom repeated. "Nice name."

"This is my first time…you know. Being an uncle. It's kinda neat. Sort of like dad training you know? My fiancée and I were talking about kids. We both like them and all. Want to start a family."

The guy continued to rattle on, and Tom nodded his head idly, but his attention was back on the other little girl. Kerry. He tilted his head slightly. He probably was someone's uncle. Knowing his family he was probably the uncle to a fair number of kids he didn't know. Maybe some he did and he couldn't even remember them anymore.

Still, he knew he was no one's father. Well, maybe. Today's findings would either confirm or deny that.

"So, what're you doing here anyway?"

"Window shopping," Tom replied with a wannabe laugh. "Nah…I don't know what I'm doing really."

The guy was silent for a few minutes as he followed Tom's stare. "You want kids?"

"I couldn't tell you," he replied coolly. He really didn't want to discuss such things with some talkative stranger.

"Fair enough. Well, look…I'm not trying to be nosey, but…whatever you're doing, good luck with that."

"Yeah, thanks."

Tom watched the guy leave and hunched his shoulders. Tom didn't want luck. He wanted to know what the hell was going on and whether or not the end of the world was in fact coming. Luck was cheap and easy and you couldn't claim responsibility for it. Made one's hard work seem useless when chocked up to merely luck. Tom leaned his forehead against the glass, enjoying the coolness. Kerry had fallen asleep, and Tom felt his own mind lulling itself into a stupor. He hovered in oblivion for a while until he felt the buzzing in his pocket.

It surprised him at first until he remembered where he was and why. Pulling the phone device from his pocket Tom stared at it for a moment before remembering. Green button. That answers the phone. Always the green button. Always.

"Hello."

"Thought you'd lost your phone or something."

"I'm not that careless."

"Yeah, okay. Anyway, so…wanna meet me back where you left? I'm all done, for now anyway."

"I'll be there in a few," Tom nodded even though Jac couldn't see him. He couldn't tell why, but he was happy to hear her voice, and as he hung up he noticed he even felt a bit better. He took a few steps and glanced back at the sleeping child in the window. "Wish me luck."

"You get lost?"

"Eh, only a little," Tom grinned, reaching in his pocket for the soda he'd stowed there having rid himself of the empty can on the walk over. "Got this for you," he added.

Jackie took it and shook her head. "Thanks…it's warm."

"Well, it's been in my pocket most of this time."

"I figured. See anything interesting?" the woman asked fingers still wrapped around the can, looking almost hesitant to open it. Tom figured it was pretty well shook up at this point, and he didn't think anything of it.

"Nah, not really. Too used to hospitals to notice anything I guess," Tom replied, almost laughing. Jackie nodded and smiled, but she still didn't say anything. "So…"

"So?"

"Isn't there something you want to tell me? Need to confirm or deny…you know…"

Jackie narrowed her eyes for a second or two before shrugging. "Yeah, I do."

"That didn't take too long."

"Lab's got a good turn over time here."

"I see…so?"

"Yep."

"Huh?"

"I am."

"Seriously?"

"God's honest truth."

"Woah…" Tom sunk into one of the chairs. Confirmations on top of confirmations on top of confirmations. He thought the weightiness had passed, but as he sat there Tom's mind once more attacked him with anxiety. "So you and me and…yes?"

"Uh-huh."

"How long until the thing?" Tom asked, making a point of eye contact. He was calm. He was definitely calm. He was faking it very well.

"Probably some time in August. Late-ish about. Doctor and I figured we…some time in later October. The week of Halloween I think. Remember that?" Jac replied sounding her own version of practiced calm. She even sounded like she was trying to joke, though poorly.

"Werewolf sex," Tom grinned, sticking his tongue out happily at the memory. Jackie rolled her eyes but couldn't hide a laugh. "Better than candy…well, almost."

"Oh great…I'm going to have a puppy," she teased, reaching down and patting Tom's head.

"I wouldn't mind that at all," the man insisted as he shifted forward in his seat. "I like puppies."

"Well, hopefully you like kids," Jac said with a sigh.

Tom's face fell, all levity ebbing away. "Kids are awesome," he stated, sounding as reassuring as he could. "This kid is awesome. I'm more worried about us than this kid."

"You really think we can do this?"

"Yeah, I think we can."

There was a brief pause as Jac looked to be searching her mind for words.

"We're seeing my family for Thanksgiving this Thursday…think we should tell them then?"

"It'll liven things up I bet. Besides, of all the things you can lie to your family about, I don't think this is one of them. It'd be an interesting surprise."

"A surprise they may actually be thankful for. My parents anyway," Jackie said, taking the seat next to Tom. "I'll give them a grandkid to complete their collection. Maybe two. I have no idea at this point." The more she spoke the more her voice wavered, and Tom leaned over, resting his head on her shoulder.

"Hell, fucking, yeah. Most valuable collectable right here," he laughed as he lightly poked Jac's stomach.

"Cut it out," she grinned.

"No," Tom replied, defiant and almost childlike. "You gotta make me."

"I think if I can handle you I can handle this," Jac said, shaking her head and practically shoving Tom off of her. She couldn't hide the grin now, and Tom had one of his own as well. "Thanks…"

"No problem. It's what I'm here for."

"Heya, Sebs."

"Huh? Oh, hey…when'd you get here?"

"Just now."

"My door was locked."

"So?"

Sebs furrowed his brow, but he knew better than to be surprised. Tom's skill set was best suited to being either a burglar or an invasive friend. When it came to the contents left in the other man's fridge it would appear that Tom played the role of both of these things. He dropped the frown and eased his expression into a calm one.

"What's the verdict?" he asked, leaning against the wall and watching Tom as he took a seat on the couch, pulling his legs up close to his chest. Sebs cringed out of reflex as Tom's shoes scraped across the nice material, and the other quickly removed his shoes before placing his feet on the couch again covered with socks that were starting to pill up.

"Verdict?" Tom replied as he tilted his head to the side like the dog that he was. "This is my life. Not some lawyer case."

"Forgive me," Sebs said with an overtly dramatic rolling of his eyes. "You know I'm a lawyer 24/7."

"Maybe…" Tom smirked. "Still interested in knowing?" he added his grin stretching a bit more at his guessing game.

"I wouldn't have asked otherwise."

"Well…" Tom began, slowly as he gathered his thoughts, smile dimming so that he actually seemed serious. "I'm going…I'm going to be a dad. I'm going to be someone's father, and holy shit…I'm surprisingly okay with that. Sebs…"

"You're sure this time?" Sebs asked, leaning forward as if he hadn't heard properly the first time.

"Yeah, doctor tests and everything…I'm gonna have a tiny human. My own. It's fucking madness."

Sebs scanned his friend's face, wary of the possibility of one of the man's manic episodes. However, Tom didn't look manic. A bit excited, but Sebs would grant him that one given the circumstances. Tom was sitting up straight, which was something Sebs hadn't seen him doing in a while. He seemed almost too poised. Too ready.

"Do you know about how far along Jac is?"

"Couple weeks…maybe a month," Tom shrugged.

"You guys got freaky on Halloween didn't you?" Sebs said, managing a joke, but Tom's mouth formed an almost devious grin.

"Mischief night too," he quipped with humorous arch of his brows. "Don't under estimate me."

"Oh, I don't. Trust me on that. You used to live here, remember? I'm not deaf."

"I told you I was sorry about that."

"Yeah, yeah, I know."

Tom finally allowed himself to slouch, sinking into the couch with a strange, little, sigh.

"You seem almost…entertained," Sebs observed.

"I am, Sebs. I am," the other answered, staring up at the ceiling. His tone shifted to disbelief as he continued. "I'm gonna be someone's dad, Sebs. I'm gonna…I'm gonna be a dad to some kid, and…I'm so scared that I'm excited. Shit, I'm even smiling. I think I've cracked again." Sebs had to stifle a laugh. Tom seemed so serious as he turned to stare the other man right in the eye. "I'm going to be a dad…and I'm excited."