Author's Note: Is it too late to be posting this thing? Eh, whatever, I do what I want. Next chapter, and it's chapter 5. Yeah! Productivity! Well, sorta. There's still so much more to do. Oh well, enjoy and such.

The room smelled heavily of food and there was a strange hum to the chatter. Everyone talking back and forth, competing with the sound of the game in the other room. Though Tom was eying the ham his mind was elsewhere, sifting through the day's events for clues, foreshadowing for what would happen next. During the parade everyone had been focusing on the screen, Jac's mom commenting on her favorite floats and asking when certain singers had become popular. Her questions were a start contrast to the rest of the family's more subdued observation, though occasionally one of the kids would sing along with a song they knew. Even the dogs seemed caught up in the spectacle.

After that it was football, both on the screen and in the yard. Somehow Todd and Ray, Jackie's brothers, had convinced Tom to play a rather loosely ruled game with them, two on one, which ended up with some bruises and friendly cursing. To be fair, Tom had given them fair warning. The kids had made hand-turkeys and snuck brightly colored feathers into everyone's pockets.

Nothing out of the ordinary to note. A wet nose to the back of his hand reminded Tom of where he was as he looked down at the mutt creature that whined softly at his side.

"Sorry, Charlie. I'm not in charge of food today." The large dog whined again, making big, sad, brown, eyes at the man and laying his large muzzle on the man's leg. "Ah, shit…that's cheating. Fine, fine…if you quit begging I'll sneak you some turkey, okay? Until then, you're in the way. Find someplace where you're not under foot," Tom said, tapping the dog's nose. "You got all that?" Charlie whimpered again, but lumbered away to sit with the other dog, Roxy, until further instruction was given.

"That old thing always listens to you," Jac commented from her seat beside him. Tom had almost forgotten she was there, so lost was he in his thinking and worry.

"All dogs do."

"They can smell their own."

"Very funny. I've never heard that one before," he said, smiling a bit and leaning back in his seat. "Say…when're we going to eat anyway?"

"In a minute. Jeez…you act like you haven't eaten all day," Jac teased. "Don't you ever stop being hungry?"

"Stupid question."

"Yeah, I know. So…want me to tell them?"

"Huh?" he replied, caught off guard for a moment or two. "Oh, right…yeah, could you? That's actually what I was thinking about…"

"I figured. I could almost hear you thinking. I think I'll mention it when we're going around the table, you know…filling each other in on the goings on of life. I mean, it's not like it's something that doesn't fit into that category."

Tom nodded his head, though the gesture was empty. Whether it fit into a category or not did not change the fact that he was scared shitless. "It fits, but I'd imagine what we've got to say is bigger than most everyone else's. Don't want to upstage anyone do we?"

"What? Are you chicken?" Jackie grinned, briefly making a quiet clucking noise.

"I am not. What about you? How're you so calm? I'm practically shitting bricks right now."

"Because I know my family. They'll be surprised, but they'll get over themselves. I promise," the woman assured his, patting his shoulder affectionately. "Besides, I'm doing the talking. You just sit and be pretty okay?"

"I can't guarantee the pretty bit," he said nervously, but kept his face straight.

More food came out and thankful things were said. Typical family togetherness, but Tom knew…knew that some time soon the ice would have to be broken. News given. He kept glancing over at Jackie, looking for a sign, but she was caught up in a conversation with Todd, quietly declining drinks that were offered, and driving Tom absolutely insane. She was going to say it some time, but he was convinced that he'd die of anticipation before any of that happened. Maybe it would even be for the best if that was what happened. Wouldn't have to deal with all this anxiety anymore.

He poked and sculpted cold potatoes, and still nothing happened. Wherever the axe was he was getting a bad feeling that it was bigger than anything he could possibly recover from. He had to take some action or else…or else it would just keep getting bigger and bigger and crush him. Tom nudged Jac's leg with his own, causing her to turn and look at him.

"What is it?" she asked.

"You said you were going to tell them," Tom said quickly under his breath.

"Yeah, I am going to. What's the problem?"

"I was hoping for some time before the kid is born," he said with a frustrated frown.

"You have a good point," Jac nodded, and Tom felt his stomach drop down into his feet, overcome with a sudden wash of "oh god no" as he saw her face succumb to a look that Tom knew all to well. She had a plan, and if past experience told him anything he was going to end up red in the face and horrifically uncomfortable.

"Oh jeez…Jac don't…" he whined, but it was too late as he watched her stand up. He turned his face to stare intently at the table, gripping his knees until they hurt and his knuckles were white. Well, whiter.

"Hey, everyone, I need to tell you something." Tom bit his tongue and tried to create a hole in the floor with his feet to hide in. Having found no trap door he started to slowly slide down in his chair. Maybe he could just hide under the table and stay there. "I haven't been feeling too good recently, but that's alright because there's a good reason for it." Halfway there. Maybe, if he was stealthy and fast enough, he could even get to the door. Even with all these eyes watching there was still a chance. "I'm pregnant." Well, never mind then.

Tom closed his eyes and waited for it. Torches and pitchforks. Cries to "kill the beast" that had "defiled" their daughter. But no, nothing happened. Not a word. Just silence. That only made it easier to hear the judging.

"Well, I never thought I'd see the day." Tom jumped as the voice broke the silence. "I was starting to think it was impossible." Tom lifted his head, caught off guard by the joking tone. Jackie's dad was grinning for ear to ear and giving him a look he'd only seen on TV sitcoms. "I'd give you a trophy if I knew ahead of time. I'll get it to ya by Christmas."

Tom stared back at the older man and fought to keep from having his mouth hang open. "Are…are you making fun of me?"

"Not a bit. Also, looks like you're done. Want some pie or something?"

"Oh…uh, yeah. Sure."

"Your family took that surprisingly well."

"I told you they would."

"Yeah, I know, but…I just wasn't expecting them to be so…okay with all of this," Tom said as he stared up at the ceiling in the guest room. Jackie hadn't felt like driving back, which Tom wouldn't have minded in any other circumstance, but given the context of the evening staying over seemed surreal. Like an even greater invasion of the space to which he didn't truly belong. "I know I'm not going anywhere or anything, but this whole thing is sorta…out of order. Get what I'm saying?"

"That you're horribly old fashioned and scared to death?"

"Exactly. There are history books filled with my morals."

"Knights, princesses, and chivalry…oh, and you must be Prince Charming."

"Shut up. I'm serious."

"Sometimes I swear you have to be…like eighty or something." Jac teased, sitting up and staring down at him. "You sure you're not a vampire? You're not gonna drain me of my life force are you?"

"That's still up for debate," Tom shrugged, but he really wasn't in the mood to joke. He rolled onto his side to look out the window, staring more at the somewhat tacky drapes than what was actually outside. "Look, this was more of a 'you and me' thing before, but now it's a 'you, me, and them' thing, and I know it's stupid, but it's got me all bothered again. Not irritated or anything. Just bothered."

The bed moved as Jackie shifted so that she could reach his back, rubbing it, careful of spots she knew to be more sensitive than others, working out spots that never seemed to relax or loosen on their own. No words exchanged, but it was an answer in a way, a reaction. Trying to work away the strain. And on top of that, she knew. Knew where to go and what to be careful around, what felt good and what didn't. Jac only wanted him to feel better, not worse.

He would have felt guiltier if it didn't make him feel so good.

"It could be worse," she said as she kissed between his shoulder blades, resting the tips of her fingers just below them.

"You could hate me," Tom sighed.

"Yeah, but I don't." She said it with such conviction that Tom picked his head up like he could turn it enough to see her, which of course he couldn't. She didn't hate him. Well, he would have certainly hated him.

"Your dad said he wanted to talk with me tomorrow…you're sure he's not going to castrate me with his table saw?"

"No promises, but I doubt it."

"I'm going to die."

"You're not going to die. Now, please, shut up and sleep. My dad likes his talks in the morning."

"No one's awake to hear you scream."

"Same goes for nighttime. Be quiet."

"I'm gonna have nightmares…"

"I'm going to sleep."

"Nightmares, Jac."

"I'm give you until the count of three…"

"He's going to remove my dick with a table saw."

"Goodnight, Tom."

"Goodnight."

Jackie felt cold, no longer satisfied with her own body heat. She moved toward the other dip in the bed, eyes still closed in the hopes of falling back asleep for at least another five minutes. She reached out her hand and touched something warm and furry, both could describe Tom on any given day, but he certainly wasn't this furry, nor did have a snout and a wet nose. His nose was cold, but it certainly wasn't wet. She opened her eyes and was not met with blue eyes but brown and the all too recognizable smell of dog breath.

"Oh…good morning, Charlie. You're not the furry creature I'm used to waking up next to." The dog thumped his tail against the bed and opened his mouth in what could be perceived as a smile. Jac rubbed the dog's head as her eyes adjusted to the morning light. "Do you know where Tom went?" Charlie's tail ceased wagging, and he sneezed. "Guess not."

Rolling out of bed, Jackie decided her best option was to follow the sounds of plates and talking. In the dining room she saw her mother and Tom talking away about whatever it was the two of them went on about. Usually TV shows and domestic things since Tom was usually more like a woman in her mid-sixties rather than a man in his early-thirties.

"Good morning, ladies," she greeted, taking the seat next to her mom and across from Tom. Tom picked up his head, ceasing what he was doing, which was apparently spreading mashed potatoes on waffles.

"Mornin' sunshine," he replied, and her mother just smiled. "Want a waffle?"

"Sure…what're you doing?"

"Making an 'after Thanksgiving' breakfast sandwich with waffles for bread," Tom answered, still looking at her as he added a slice of turkey on top on the mashed potatoes, pressing it down while still making eye contact. "Can't you tell?"

"Interesting idea…"

"We figure it's something like chicken and waffles," her mother added.

"I hadn't realized I'd been transported to the south. Hot damn."

"You're hilarious," Tom said before he pushed his chair away from the table and disappearing into the kitchen.

"You're the one who's pregnant, and he's the one with weird food cravings," her mother laughed once Tom was out of the room.

"I don't think I could crave food like Tom no matter how pregnant I am. I could be pregnant with a litter, and I'm convinced it wouldn't make a difference."

"The way you talk about him I wouldn't be surprised if you were," her mother teased.

"If I was what?" Jac countered, having a creeping suspicion of just what her mom meant.

"A litter," the older woman explained, smiling and Jackie rolled her eyes. "A little fleet of children."

"Mom…"

"Come now, you know I'm just teasing."

"I know."

"You okay, dear? You seemed a bit…unnerved yesterday after you told us."

Jackie looked over at the kitchen door before looking back at her mom. "Don't tell Tom this, but I was pretty nervous about what you all were going to say. I guess I was just waiting for you to lose your cool."

Her mother leaned back in her chair and thought before finally shrugging. "It was a bit surprising, but not completely out of left field. You didn't seem overtly upset by the news yourself, so we figured it wouldn't be right to get up in arms. Besides, Tom is such a nice boy. More than his fair share of weird, but I hear that weird is the new charming…or something."

And you must be Prince Charming.

"I guess…"

"You guess?"

"No, I didn't mean it like that…forget it. I'm just…not worried, just nervous."

"What about?"

Jackie picked up her head to see Tom sliding a waffle onto her plate and eating another, looming over her, which was pretty much his default action around people. Either looming or cowering. "About the amount of food you consume."

"I couldn't gain weight if I tried."

"Goddamn twig. That's what you are."

"I see you two are bonding," her mother cut in, pushing her chair away from the table. "I'm done eating anyway. Maybe we can all go into town later, hm?"

"Sounds good to me," Tom replied before Jac could. Her mother nodded and left, taking her plate with her.

"So," Jac began, turning her attention back to Tom. "I can't help but notice that you're still breathing. Guess dad didn't castrate you. That's a shock."

Tom paused, taking his seat. "He just wanted to talk. It was kinda freaky…"

"Just wanted to talk? What? Stuff about protecting my honor or threats of death by shotgun?"

"No, just…talking. He seemed really interested in me. Scared me to death though." He finished the waffle he'd been working on, and continued piling post-Thanksgiving fixings on the first. "I was convinced he was going to…you know, kill me. Just spring an ax on me or something, but he didn't. Asked me about how things were going, about home…"

Jac couldn't disguise a smile. She nodded, listening quietly as Tom went on and on as she drizzled syrup on her waffle. He was so animated, seemingly excited, and all because someone had talked to him, asked him about his life and his feelings. It was all rather endearing.

"Fancy that," she replied, looking up at him. "I think he may actually like you."

"Yeah…fancy that. Your parents like me."

"Told you so."

"Forgive me for having a constant, nagging, doubt about people's opinions of me," Tom frowned, previous excitement seemingly pulled out from under him like a rug. The sudden deflated look sucked any desire to tease him further into the vacuum of guilt.

"Well, you know I like you just fine. Can't you tell?"

"Yeah," he nodded, picking up his unholy waffle sandwich. "I can tell. I like you too." Satisfied with this he took a bite out of the creation, making a mess in the process. Jac shook her head, fairly confident in the idea that if she could put up with Tom antics that she could put up with those of anything that came from him, including this kid. Still, it was nice to know that it was more than just the two of them in this venture.

"It got really bright out," Tom said dully as he stepped out the door, following after Jackie and carrying his backpack over one shoulder, laundry folded neatly within it courtesy of Jac's mom.

"Kinda funny how the sun does that."

"Well, I mean…it was grayer before. Colder…weather can't seem to make up it's mind."

Jackie shrugged and adjusted her hands around her own bag, looking down the street. Just as she remembered it. There was something about fall that always made her think of frozen time and time capsules. Would she mind it? To be frozen in this little space of time? Tom seemingly at ease, her parents heading for the door to send them off, and a great unknown stretching ahead…it would have been nice. This would be where the movie would cut off; leaving the audience to assume things went well or as well as possible. So very nice to stay here while the rest of the world moved forward so that the "what ifs" that had been mulling around in her mind would not become fulfilled.

What if something went wrong? What if her parents were only humoring her? What if she'd made a mistake in deciding to keep the kid? Of saying anything at all? Was it worth it for all the trouble that could potentially happen?

She turned to see Tom heading over to her car, having managed to remove her keys from her pocket without her noticing, and throwing his bag in the back.

What if he changed his mind?

He came back, extending his hand out to her but said nothing. She stared back at him for a moment or two before he pointed to her bag.

"Huh? Oh…yeah, thanks," she replied, handing over her bag to him. "Sorry, spaced out." She expected a reply, but Tom on shrugged, heading back to the car wordlessly. Jac couldn't tell if that was comforting or disconcerting.

"You two have everything?"

Jac turned her head to see her dad standing in the door.

"Yeah, we've got everything. Checked twice…where's mom?"

"Fixing you all some leftovers to take back," the man replied. "What? Am I not the one you wanted to see?" he added with a faint smirk. If you didn't know what to look for you could easily miss it, but Jackie had plenty experience in seeking it out.

"Nah, just wondering," she shrugged. "Speaking of which-"

"All loaded up." Jackie jumped at how close Tom's voice was. He really needed to stop sneaking up on her like that. Goddamn ninja.

"Good thing you've got him around or you'd get nothing done," her dad laughed, and Tom grinned. Jackie looked between the two of them. She couldn't quite tell whether or not they were actually smiling or bearing their teeth like dogs fighting for dominance. It was all a lot more dramatic in her head.

"Hey, I have to be good at something," Tom shrugged, and that bothered Jac even more. He had been a mess only the night before, and now, he was joking with the source of his anxiety attack. What the hell had those two talked about? She was going to attempt to ask when she felt a sudden wave of nausea.

Oh, right…pregnant. She closed her eyes and lightly touched her fingers to her forehead. That had been sudden, and the feeling had come with light-headedness.

"Jac? You ok?"

"Yeah, sorry. I'm gonna do a quick sweep inside. Just to be safe."

Tom stared for a little too long, and she knew he didn't buy it, but he didn't say anything. Simply shifted his attention back to her father and started up a conversation she didn't bother to listen to as she walked past the older man and situated herself on the couch. The world was starting to spin a bit, and there was a party going on in her guts. She figured it only made sense that this kid would be a pain in the ass already. Had its father's genes after all.

"Oh!" Jackie picked up her head at the startled sound. "Goodness gracious, Jackie. I wasn't expecting to see someone in here. You scared me half to death."

"Sorry, Mom," she mumbled. "Stomach decided to rebel and needed to sit down."

"It's not going to get better you know."

"I know…"

"I didn't mean it like that. Do you want something?"

"Nah, sun was just getting to me, I think."

She watched her mother walk over and sit on the couch, feeling the couch given under her weight. Somewhere between that and the smell of stuffing Jackie found herself resting her head on her mother's shoulder, eyes closed as she listened to the murmured sounds of the conversation outside. It sounded calm and enjoyable. Nothing to worry about. No one was going to chop anyone's dick off.

"I don't know if I can do this," she sighed. Despite all of the things that could have been so much worse about this situation she was still so nervous. Wasn't she lucky as far as these things went? Wasn't she so fucking lucky?

She couldn't say anything else as she felt her mother's hand on her head, stroking her hair like she'd done so many times before when Jac had been sick as a child. Stroking her hair and telling her that she'd be fine. This time her mother said nothing, but she knew that there was no need for it. She remembered. Her mother remembered. Jac sighed and smiled. "Sorry, my hormones are already going haywire. I don't know what that was," she laughed as she sat up. Her mother nodded, seemingly more than happy to not push the matter any further. "Come on. I know Tom's going to want all that food you've packed for him."

"I packed some for you too."

"I'm sure you did."

There was a pause before a laugh, and the two of them got up and headed for the door.

"What are you men-folk talking about?" Jac asked, smile remaining, and thank goodness for that.

"Manly things," her father replied, making his voice even lower than usual. "What else would we talk about?"

"Yeah, we're all manly and…aw, did you bring me the leftover waffles too?"

Jac stifled a laugh as her mother nodded and Tom attempted some eloquent appreciation, but nothing came out so her opted to hug the woman (careful of the food of course) and gave her an appreciative kiss on the cheek.

"Watch it, Sparky. You've got my daughter for that."

Tom laughed and took the matching Tupperware, shrugging at the other man. "Alright, alright…" Just as before, he deposited the containers in the back and returned. Jac figured she shouldn't have been surprised by Tom's ability to go from anxious one moment and perfectly happy the next, but it always sparked surprise from somewhere deep in the recesses of her mind. It never got old, and she loved him for it.

Yeah, she did, didn't she?

Hugs were exchanged and even more words. Tom seemed in his element for the first time in a while. Jac was happy for that, but still, doubts lingered just below the surface even if they had been foiled for the time being. They were about to resurface when suddenly she felt something take her hand. Another hand. She glanced down to see Tom was the culprit, long, cold, fingers pushing between her own lightly, so she allowed it.

"I think we're done here," he announced, and you'd think it was the funniest thing that had ever left his mouth the way her parents laughed. It was infectious, and she gave in as well.

"Yeah," Jac nodded, giving the man's hand a reassuring squeeze, some of it for him and some of it for herself. "Let's go home."