Friday 2nd January 2015, 3am

Sam opened her eyes to a familiar feeling that she had grown accustomed to in the past week: nausea. She was 7 weeks pregnant, but oddly she kind of liked the queasy feeling in the pit of her stomach because it was reassuring her that she was still pregnant every morning. However, she never usually felt that cold under the thick duvet even though it was the middle of winter.

"Typical." She muttered as she rolled her eyes; she had asked Tom to put the heating on the previous night, but obviously she wouldn't be that cold if he had. So, she reluctantly slid out of bed in her black batman onesie with the hood up and went to the utility cupboard only to find that there were two red lights, indicated that the hot water and the heating were switched on. "What?" Sam whispered confusedly. She closed the cupboard and walked over to the radiator in the living room where she found that it was - as assumed - ice cold. "Brilliant." Sam sighed sarcastically before she grabbed the phone book and the house phone. She was absolutely freezing as she quickly flicked through the phone book to find the British Gas number, only to find that unless it was an emergency gas leak, their phone lines were only open from 8am to 8pm - that was 5 hours away.

"Hey." Tom croaked as he came into the room in his blue superman onesie. "Can't you sleep?"

"The boiler has packed up." Sam huffed as Shadow padded into the room and had a good stretch.

"Really? So that's why it's so-"

"Cold, yeah." Sam nodded. "And I can't call the company to come and fix it, until 8am." Sam stated grumpily.

"Well, there's nothing we can do. C'mon, I'll fill up your hot water bottle, and you can go and get back into bed. Oh and I'll get a sleeping bag that we can put on top of the duvet too." Tom suggested as he flicked the kettle on and then retrieved Sam's blue hot water bottle from the living room. He watched his wife slowly pad back to the bedroom and whilst he waited for the kettle to boil, he looked outside into the darkness. Ever since christmas, it had been snowing on and off. But because some of it had melted, whenever more snow fell, it just turned into ice the next morning as it was so freezing cold. It had been described as one of the worst winters that Britain had experienced in decades.

He filled up her hot water bottle, and then went back into the bedroom where he found Sam cuddling Shadow.

"Sam. I don't mind her being on the bed, but don't you think under the duvet is a bit too much?" Tom smirked.

"What? She's cold." Sam said innocently as Tom switched all of the lights off and then climbed into bed.

"Where do you want the hot water bottle?" He asked curiously.

"Put it on my upper back, and then if you put your arms around me, you can have it on your chest to keep you warm too." Sam said quietly and Tom did so. "At least the shower is electric so we've got a hot shower to look forward to in the morning."

"I'll look forward to it even more if I know we're sharing one." Tom whispered into her ear.

"We'll see." Sam mumbled.

8:10am

Sam was sat in the ED staffroom on with her phone to her ear because she was being put on hold as the lines were clearly very busy. She knew she was meant to be working, but it was important that they got their boiler fixed as she hadn't slept very well that morning due to the coldness. And without hot water, they had to boil the kettle to wash up and to have a wash. Though thankfully, the nausea had passed.

"Sam." Sam jumped as her boss entered the room but she kept the phone to her ear because she didn't want to miss her chance to speak to someone. "What're you doing? You're supposed to be working." Zoe stated.

"I know but... It's a really important call, I'm being put on hold." Sam said pleadingly.

"What's so important that means you can't be treating patients?" Zoe remarked as she put her hands on her hips.

"The boiler's broken in our house and we've got no heating. I'm just waiting to get through to British Gas to get them to fix it."

"Sam, you really should be working."

"I know but..." She trailed off.

"But what Sam?"

"I really need the heating at night because... I'm pregnant." Sam stated quietly. "It's supposed to be -4° tonight and I'm worried." Sam admitted timidly.

"Oh right... Well congratulations. I take it that's why Tom's been in such a good mood recently." Zoe smiled and Sam couldn't help but return the expression. "How many weeks?"

"Seven." Sam stated.

"Okay, well we'll have to have a chat soon about maternity leave and for now, you can take that call but you'll have to make up the number of patients you treat in the next couple of days. Okay?" Zoe said reasonably.

"Yeah, thanks Zoe." Sam nodded.

"Alright. I want you out here by half past though." Zoe warned before she left the room and Sam let out a sigh of relief that she had been let off of the hook.

8:15am

"Hello British Gas services, how can I help?" Sam almost jumped for joy when someone picked up the phone and the stupid background music stopped.

"Hello there, um our boiler isn't working so we've got no hot water or heating and we need to get it fixed as soon as possible." Sam explained.

"Okay, what is your address please madam?"

"6a Wolsey Road, Holby."

"Alright. And can I have a name?"

"Er it'll be under Mr and Mrs Kent, or Miss Nicholls, I can remember if I changed it after I got married." Sam stated.

"First name?"

"Samantha." Sam huffed.

"Samantha and Tom Kent?"

"Yeah, that's it."

"Okay. Well all of our workers are currently out on calls at the moment, and there is an eight day waiting list."

"Eight days?! We can't wait eight days." Sam argued.

"Well there are a number of things that could increase your priority to get your boiler seen to faster. Do you have any young children in the house?"

"No." Sam sighed impatiently.

"Are there any elderly men or women in the house?"

"No." Sam huffed.

"Are there any pregnant women-"

"Yes, yes I'm pregnant." Sam blurted out before she quickly glanced around her to check that the staff room was still empty. "Seven weeks." She added once the coast was clear.

"Well I'm afraid that the waiting list is still two or three working days."

"Well if that's the best you can do, then it'll have to do." Sam sighed.

"Okay the plumber will ring you around 30 minutes before he will go to your home. In the meantime, maybe you could stay at a friends?" She suggested.

"No, I'll manage. Thank you- hang on did you say working days?" Sam demanded as it was only a Friday.

"Yes, Monday to Saturday are working days for our company."

"So I might not have my boiler fixed until next Tuesday?"

"I'm afraid not but we're running at full capacity Mrs Kent."

"Brilliant." Sam muttered under her breath. "Right, good bye."

"Bye."

Sam put her phone back in her pocket and then grabbed a bottle of water from her locker. She seemed to be constantly thirsty, and needing a wee at the same time but she didn't restrict her fluid intake - if anything she had increased it for the health of her baby. After quenching her thirst, she made her way out through reception into cubicles to inform Tom.

"Did you get through?" Tom asked curiously.

"Yeah. They said we're a priority because of... That." Sam trailed off as she looked down at her abdomen because she didn't want anyone else knowing about her baby yet. "But they can't fix it for around two or three working days, and Sunday doesn't count as a working day so we could be waiting until next Tuesday." Sam explained.

"What!? That's ridiculous! It's like -20 degrees outside and we have no heating and no hot water!" Tom protested.

"Well what do you want me to do about it?" Sam moaned.

"Sorry, no, I wasn't shouting at you." Tom apologised sincerely before he pecked Sam on the forehead.

"It's alright." Sam mumbled. "Right, I'd better actually get on with some work today. I'll meet you in the canteen for lunch yeah?"

"Yeah sure." Tom nodded before Sam disappeared to collect her first patient from reception.

"Be careful." Tom warned as he and Sam exited the ED where the roads and pavement were covered in ice and slush, despite being gritted - though it was a poor job considering it was on the NHS budget.

"I'm not a child." Sam stated.

"No but you are with child, and if you slip on this ice you'll be without child." Tom said sternly as he put his arm around her shoulders. "I still don't see why you won't stay over at Fletch's for a few days. He's more than happy to have you over so you won't be in our freezing cold apartment."

"I don't want to stay at Fletch's because one: I'll be in a house of four screaming kids that aren't mine and I really don't have a lot of patience right now, two: I'll be sleeping in a single bed belonging to one of his kids, and three: you and Shadow won't be there." Sam explained.

"And who would you miss more? Me or Shadow?" Tom asked curiously.

"Ooh, now that's a toughie." Sam smirked.

"Tadaa!" Tom announced as he uncovered Sam's eyes to reveal their bath tub filled with steaming, foamy water that he had filled using the cold tap and boiling the kettle so that Sam could keep warm, after they had had hot tomato soup for dinner, and a hot chocolate to warm their hands.

"Thank you." Sam smiled. "Aren't you going to get in with me?"

"No because if I get in, then you'll be on top of me, and that'll mean that you'll be partly out of the water and then you'll get cold. Go on, I'm gonna sit on the bath mat."

"Can you gimme a minute because I need a wee before I get in there." Sam admitted.

"I'll go and get you your pyjamas then." He chuckled as he left the room to give Sam some privacy.

"Jesus Christ the toilet seat is freezing!" Sam shrieked.

"And that's why I'm lucky that I'm a bloke because I can stand." Tom said through the door.

"That and the fact that you can have a child but you don't actually have to carry them or give birth to them." Sam retorted.

"You wait until you feel our child move inside of you and then I'm sure that you'll be glad you're carrying him or her, not me." Tom stated as he sorted out a white base layer, and her thick fluffy socks. "You finished?" He queried to be polite as he heard her washing her hands in the sink after the toilet had flushed.

"Yep." She replied so Tom entered and closed the door behind him. She quickly got undressed out of all of her layers and then slid into the warm water which hadn't been as hot as Tom had hoped. But it was probably for the best for her unborn child anyway. After a while of chatting, Sam pulled out the plug and stepped out of the bath into a towel that Tom had been sitting on on the floor and that had made it a little bit warm for her as he wrapped it around her frame. "Thank you."

"How about I dry your hair for you?" Tom suggested.

"You? Dry my hair?"

"Yeah. Cmon, I can't imagine that it's that hard to use a hair dryer."

"Fine, but let me get dressed first, yeah?" Sam said as she took her onesie and white base layer from him whilst she clutched the towel tightly around her body with her other hand.

"You don't need to hide from me, it's okay. I've-"

"Tom please." Sam said simply. "Just go." She added quietly. Tom reluctantly nodded before he slipped out of the room to respect her decision.

Sam sat cross legged in her blue and white Aztec jumpsuit onesie on, on the edge of their double bed, facing inwards whilst Tom lovingly blow dried her hair for her. He stopped every now and then to give her long thick hair a decent brush and when he did stop because her hair was thoroughly dried, she decided to pipe up.

"It's not you y'know... When I wanted to get changed by myself... And I will let you see your baby but I just want to wait a few weeks, okay?" Sam said softly. She wasn't entirely comfortable with her body just yet because she had put a little bit of weight on, on her abdomen and that had made her look a little chubbier rather than looking like a bump so she wanted to wait until her bump was properly established before she allowed Tom to look. He looked down from her hair, over her shoulder to see that she was indeed sitting there with her two hands resting on her abdomen.

"Yeah. Of course, that's fine." Tom nodded reassuringly. "Oh no." He sighed.

"What?"

"It's snowing again." Tom stated and Sam twisted her neck to see out of the window that he was correct. Usually, she wouldn't mind a bit of snow, but they had had such terrible weather, they had no heating, and even though she moaned at Tom for worrying about her, she too was a little concerned about the risks of taking Shadow for a walk on on the icy, slippery pavements to her unborn child. Come to think of it, she hadn't seen Shadow for a while and she fancied making a fuss of her puppy.

"Shadow!" Sam called and they both heard a thump of her jumping off of the sofa in the living room, before she came trotting into the bedroom, jumped on the bed and laid down in front of Sam with her head on Sam's knee. "What's wrong with you?" Sam asked as the dog began sniffing her legs which made her feel a little uncomfortable. "Stop-"

"Just see what she does." Tom ordered curiously as he grabbed Sam's hand to stop her from swatting Shadow away. Slowly the dog sniffed up Sam's thigh and then went to her lower abdomen before she licked Sam's onesie right in the centre of her stomach. "I think you might be right about her knowing that you're pregnant." Tom admitted as she licked that spot several times.

"I know, I'm always right." Sam said smugly. "Oi, no." Sam said sternly yet softly as she nudged Shadow to stop her from licking her even further. "Aww! Tom she's so cold that she's shaking!" Sam cooed in a high pitched voice.

"Well the more you pay attention to her and squeal at her, the more she's going to shake, look at her!" Tom laughed but Sam ignored him as she frantically rubbed her hands up and down the dog's back to warm her up. "Why don't we get into bed and settle down huh?" Tom suggested. "We could look online at baby things." He added.

"Or we could just go to sleep." Sam stated bluntly. Tom wanted to protest that it wasn't even 10pm yet, but he knew that pregnancy could certainly run her down - especially during the first and third trimesters - so he wanted to be supportive of her.

"Go on then." He replied as he began to change into a pair of tracksuit bottoms and a hoodie, which wasn't his usual attire for nightwear but it was needed with the extreme temperatures. Whilst he got changed, Sam pulled back the duvet and let Shadow get comfortable on her side of the mattress before Sam climbed into the middle of the bed and waited for him. "And where am I supposed to sleep?" Tom joked as he climbed into bed and wrapped his arms around Sam, and inevitably, Shadow too.

"The more the merrier, Shadow needs keeping warm and she'll help keep us warm too." Sam said sleepily.

"Just this once."

"You say that all the time but she always ends up sleeping with us." Sam smiled.

"Oi, be careful with your wording." Tom warned jokily and Sam laughed softly before she felt Tom's hands go lower on here abdomen and he gently rubbed his hands over her onesie from side to side. "Sorry, are you alright with this?" Tom asked quietly as he wondered if she was okay with being touched seeing as she didn't like being looked at.

"Yeah, it's nice." Sam whispered.

"Wake me up in the night if you're cold yeah?" Tom said kindly. "I'll make you a hot drink or something."

"And then I'll be up all night peeing." Sam concluded.

"You haven't actually been to the toilet that much more frequently than usual."

"Mm." Sam mumbled. Tom lifted his head up and looked over to see that Sam had her eyes closed and she was clearly exhausted so he reached behind him and turned the light off before he settled down for the night.

Coming up: Sam is faced with more morning sickness. But this time, at work.

Thanks for reading, please review :)