Disclaimer: Not mine; never will be. I'm just borrowing it.

Life and Other Things That Never go as Planned.

Chapter Five — Points Along the Path.

Gwen's back ached, she hadn't seen her feet for the last two weeks and it felt like she had to go to the toilet every five minutes. Most of all, Gwen was bored. Bored, bored, bored, bored, bored.
She'd finished all the UNIT reports, had selected her temporary replacement; who'd been Okayed on the conditions that Gwen started her maternity leave three weeks early and she had to convince Owen that Martha wasn't going to be replacing him. And there was still a month before her maternity leave began.
"Now," the niggling voice of her consciousness, told her "would be a good time to make a few phone calls."
Gwen ignored the voice; which sounded surprisingly like Julie Andrews and for the 7th time, checked her emails.
"4 or 5 months ago" the voice continued smugly "would have been a better time to make these calls. Calls you know Owen will do himself tomorrow, if you haven't"
Gwen groaned, squeezing her eyes shot, trying to block out the image of Owen calling her parents.
"Hello, Mr/Mrs Cooper. We haven't met, but I knocked up your youngest daughter."
When Gwen had told Owen that the only people she'd told had been her doctor and Martha Jones, she'd meant it.
Gwen groaned again, wished for an extremely alcoholic drink and picked up the phone.
"Mam, it's Gwen…"

"How can you look so calm?"
Gwen raised an eyebrow.
"I don't know what you mean?"
"We are about to have dinner with your parents" Owen sipped his drink; water in deference to Gwen's non-alcoholic status "One of who has interrogated me and the other despises me"
"Whom. And my mother does not despise you"
"Gwen I care about you, a lot" Owen took her hand, gently caressing the palm with his thumb "but she asked you why you didn't try and convince Jack or Ianto that the baby was theirs"
"She just-"
"The three witches made Jack blush"
"Will you stop calling my grandmother and my great aunts witches"
"And your uncle seemed to think-"
"Stop it" Gwen sighed "They're all going home tomorrow. Can we just get through tonight without the snide comments, weevils or the need for an ambulance?"

Gwen smiled without showing her teeth.
"Rhys. How are you?"
"Err, good" Rhys tried to look every thing except Gwen "And you?"
"Busy. Work and every thing" Gwen raised her eyebrows questioningly, peering at the blonde woman at Rhys' right.
"Err, um yes. Gwen Cooper. Alicia Doran. Alicia, Gwen."
His eyes skitter nervously between his current girlfriend and his ex.
"Sorry, been on my feet all day" Gwen leaned forward, holding her hand out "How long have you been seeing each other?"
"Oh, only about seven months" Alicia's accent was from somewhere in the south of England "I've never been to Cardiff before. We're meeting Rhys' parents for lunch tomorrow"
Gwen glanced around the pair, frowning slightly.
"Any pointers?" Alicia continued, clearly realising, exactly who Gwen had been.
Gwen fixed the smile back on her face.
"His mother's allergic to strawberries and likes to taste what other people have ordered"
"So, no strawberries?" Alicia smiled.
"No strawberr-"
"Listen mate" Owen placed a hand on Rhys' shoulder "Why don't you leave Gwen alone. Hmm?"
"Owen!"
"We were just talking-"
"What's going on?"
Owen glanced at Alicia.
"Just settling an old disagreement"
"Owen, let Rhys go"
"Gwen" Owen's grip tightened "We talked about this"
Gwen smiled apologetically at Alicia and sighed.
"No Owen, you lectured. I ignored you"
"You don't need this kind of stress-"
"Owen Harper" Gwen stood "I'm pregnant. Not an invalid"

"Jack's a good name"
"It's not even your real name"
"Still a good name"
"I'm not calling my child Jack or Ianto or Toshiko or Owen or Martha. And don't even think about Mary, Diane, Eugene, Rhys, Alicia or Suzy, or Max. Or anything else that sounds like you're naming a dog, a cat or a horse"
"What about Rose?"
Jack ducked as Gwen and Martha threw things at him.

Gwen wouldn't share these moments for the world. Everything else was a group effort; Gwen's private doctor, Martha, Owen, Tosh, Jack, Ianto. Is anything else happened, they found out. But these were a few moments that belonged to her and her alone. From the first slight almost not there flutters to the guaranteed career with Manchester United strength kicks. They belonged to Gwen Cooper. And she didn't have to share them with any one.

To be continued.