May 2020: Seven and a Half Years After the Blackout

"Miles!"

The hand holding his razor slipped and he almost sliced his jaw open at the wail Nora emitted. Something was extremely wrong. He was only in the bathroom. There was no reason to be screaming like that. Yet, he could hear her panicked gasps and cries clearly through the closed door.

A million thoughts ran through his head as he dropped the razor. The only time he had heard her make that noise was when she had gotten hurt. Fear twisted uncomfortably in his stomach as he yanked the bathroom door open and entered their bedroom.

He immediately halted, confused by the scene in front of him. She was standing in front of the full-length mirror, sobbing as she turned left and right. Her dress was unzipped and she made a gallant attempt at pulling it into place.

She noticed him through the mirror and turned with another cry, saying, "I can't get it to zip up."

His first response was going to be "Are you kidding right now?" but he knew she was in a sensitive state and her hormones were all over the place. He had made the mistake a few days ago to challenge her emotions and he was quite sure he had never seen someone become angered so quickly before- minus the Incredible Hulk.

As he wondered if he was going to be living with an emotionally unstable person from now on, he moved to stand next to her. He turned her around without a word and set to work on getting the zipper into place. He got it to raise halfway, then it refused to budge. He frowned slightly, tugged a little on the material of the dress, and tried again.

"Don't you think I tried that!" she snapped.

"Calm down," he tried to sound soothing, though he doubted that was even one of his abilities. The zipper wasn't going anywhere. "You've got plenty of other things to wear."

"If this doesn't fit, none of them are going to fit!"

"I'm sure you have at least one outfit that will work."

"No." she was adamant that she was right and he was stupid and the rest of the conversation was going to be useless.

"I'll look."

"Don't waste your time."

He ignored her remarks as he thumbed through the closet. She sunk down onto their bed, still sniffling, and kept her eyes downcast.

"I don't even get it. I mean, yeah, some of my pants feel more snug than usual but I can still fit into them. I know there's changes happening but I'm not showing. I shouldn't not be able to zip up a dress."

"It may have something to do with the fact your boobs have grown six sizes in a week."

"They have not!"

"Trust me, I'm the expert in that area."

"I think I know my body a little better than you do."

"Then you should know you've definitely gone up a size or two. Believe me, I've noticed. If you weren't complaining about how sore they were or weeping half the day, I'd be taking full advantage of it."

"I'm not weeping!"

"You're crying over a dress." he shot a dry look over his shoulder. She glared back in response.

"And what do you mean you'd take advantage of it? They weren't good enough before?"

"Have I ever complained about any part of your body before? Do I act like I'm not attracted to you?"

"No."

"Then take a chill pill."

"You should be nicer to me."

"My patience can only go so far. I love you any way you look. Do I like the new curves? Hell yeah but you were perfect beforehand too." he rolled his eyes at the closet, unable to believe how ridiculous they both sounded. He pushed a few more outfits to the side, then spotted a light green dress he had always liked. It had been a while since he had seen her wear it. "Here, try this. It doesn't have a zipper."

He turned with the dress in his hands and walked towards their bed. She stood up as he approached, slipped the one she currently wore down over her hips so it pooled at her feet. His eyes trailed down over her frame, noting the subtle changes that had taken effect. When he looked back to her face, she was smiling slightly.

"Are you going to let go?" she asked, giving the dress a tug. He realized he was gripping the material tightly and loosened his fingers. She stared up at him for a moment, smile changing, and she tossed the dress behind her onto the bed. "I know you think I'm crazy."

"I don't believe those words left my mouth."

"But you were thinking it." she stepped forward, looped her arms around his waist, and pressed up against him. "It's okay. I think I'm crazy too."

"I'll give you a pass. You're hormonal."

"And horny."

"And blunt." he snickered in slight surprise. She grinned wickedly as she pushed up on her toes to kiss him.

"You were so sweet with the way you swooped in, thinking I was in danger, and picking out clothes, averting crises, and all that."

"It's what I do."

She hummed in agreement as she stroked her fingers down his back, nails digging in slightly.

"You're wearing too many clothes." she mumbled, slipping one hand around to the front of his pants.

"Not that I don't enjoy this but we have to go soon."

"We can be fast. I don't think it'll take too long."

"Speak for yourself."

"We can be a few minutes late."

"I doubt that will go over well."

"Like you want to sit there and pretend everything is a-okay."

"I don't but I also know that we have to so I don't know that strolling in after the party and wearing the 'I just got laid' look is the best idea."

"So what you're saying is you'd rather sing happy birthday to Bass than make love to me."

"Sometimes I need to take one for the team."

"Mm," she nodded in agreement as she let him go.

"I appreciate your cooperation."

"Always."

"Sure." he smirked and gave her a kiss on the forehead. As he turned back to go to the bathroom, she called out to him.

"Before you go, since you were so good at picking out a new dress, maybe you could help pick out something else."

"What?" he glanced over his shoulder, then did a double take and whipped around. She smiled as she tossed her bra onto their bed, watching as he quickly grew flustered. "What the hell are you doing? That's not cooperating. That's coercing."

"You had a point that they're bigger. Just find a new bra for me. I don't want to be uncomfortable all day. That one didn't fit right."

"You're evil."

"I'm pretty sure the 'just got laid' look is better than 'need to get laid' look. And you definitely need to. It's been ages. It is my fault, I haven't been feeling very… loving lately."

"You're doing this now?"

"Baby,"

"No, no, don't do that pouty face thing. I'm- Nora," he whined slightly and she was sure he was close to stomping his foot, "this is really not fair."

"I'm literally standing here in front of you, in nothing but- well," she stopped herself, grinning again, as she hooked her thumbs in the band of her underwear. She slipped the flimsy material down slightly and he sucked in a sharp breath, "We've got over an hour."

"And it's going to take a while to get there. I'm supposed to be there for introductions. You too, seeing as you're the so called Hostess of the Republic."

"Miles, I've never seen you so concerned over social outings before. You're beginning to make me think you're avoiding me."

"Does this look like I'm avoiding you?" he gestured roughly at his lower half, which only caused her to grin more. She shrugged nonchalantly and shimmied the rest of the way out of her underwear, then kicked it at him for good measure. He jumped into action then, shedding his t-shirt and nearly tripping out of his pants as he closed the short distance between them. She let out a shriek of laughter as they tumbled onto their mattress and he got down to business.

"This is going to be the quickest quickie we've ever had." he stated between kisses.

"I'll consider it a preview for tonight."

"Told you we'd make it." Nora smirked triumphantly as they slipped into place next to Bass in front of the Liberty Bell. Miles tilted his head in agreement, then jolted slightly as he felt her grab his ass. He looked down at her in disbelief, but was unable to keep the grin off his face. Behind them, Jeremy coughed in an attempt to hide his laughter, smirking as Nora caught his gaze with a sly grin. Miles twisted his head as well, glowering at the captain.

"Is there a problem Captain Baker?"

"No sir. Just… enjoying the entertainment sir."

"Perhaps you should keep your eyes peeled for any security breaches, as is your assigned task for this evening."

"Of course General. I apologize for being distracted by your perfect ass. Obviously, Mrs. Matheson has the only rights to it. Forgive me for my inappropriateness."

"Maybe we could all attempt to act our ages." Bass interrupted. "We'll be going in soon."

"If I have permission to speak freely, President Monroe,"

"Make it fast Captain."

"I am well aware that today is your birthday and you are undoubtedly stressed by recent events and feeling your age. That being said, you still have a year before the big 4-0. Life could be worse. I suggest you relax. Possibly take a leaf out of General Matheson's book and get laid."

Nora giggled softly while Miles argued, "I did not get laid", and Bass huffed in irritation, not looking at any of them.

"I disagree sir. You and Mrs. Matheson were clearly behind schedule and rushed in at the last, possible moment. Mrs. Matheson is usually quite well kept, with not a hair out of place, but she seems to have thrown herself together with little care to her appearance. Note how her hair clip is not securely fastened and there are wrinkles on the back of her dress. And sir, you clearly have the look of a satisfied and sated man. You also missed a button dressing, which is why your jacket is uneven."

"Remind us again why you haven't been promoted." Nora teased. She fixed her hair while Miles hastily re-buttoned his jacket. "It's difficult to believe seeing as your skills of deduction are so well honed."

"I seem to lack the discipline and rational decision making skills to handle a troop bigger than twenty men. Also, the last time I was given more than twenty men, they were never seen again."

"Right- the Battle of Dover."

"We can't give Captain Baker more than he can chew, otherwise we would have to sacrifice a good portion of the Militia to his schemes. Who taught you tactical planning?" Miles explained.

"I believe you did sir."

"And I believe you slept through most of my lessons. Otherwise, I have no other logical explanation as to why you do the things you do."

"When Dr. Hannigan and Dr. Johansen conducted my evaluation last fall, they determined I have sadistic tendencies."

"That makes a shitload of sense."

Their joking subsided as they were led to the stairs. The party was taking place in the gallery on the second floor. Everyone who was invited should have been there already and waiting for their arrival. Jeremy, for all his teasing, understood when they were in acting in an official capacity, there were boundaries he could not overstep. Nora straightened her dress, then looped her hand around Miles's arm. Bass stood tall, hands clasped behind his back. If anyone were to observe them, they would have never guessed the tension that lurked below the surface.

Miles had done his best to keep things under control and find a way to rein Bass in again. This had yet to happen, though he had noticed Bass had the decency to keep the interrogations and executions out of the public eye. He knew there had been a slew of citizens carted out of town to the old warehouses. There was nothing out there, which made it the perfect place to continue his terror. Miles had the impression that Bass believed he was unaware of this because he continued to act like nothing was going on- and would get irritated when Miles wasn't as receptive as he should have been. Other times, things were perfectly fine, and it was too easy to forget what had been happening.

Miles glanced at Nora out the corner of his eye, then turned his head completely when he saw she was barely eating. There was a look in her eyes that told him none of the food was particularly appetizing and if she continued to pick at it, she was going to be sick. He leaned in close to her, face turned away so no one could see what he was whispering in her ear.

"You know, you picked out this entire menu."

"Yeah, four months ago when I wasn't pregnant."

He chuckled quietly, kissed the curve of her ear, "Just eat what you want. Don't push yourself."

"I'm not. Maybe you could grab one of the waiters to get another bread basket."

"Anything for you." he leaned back slightly, scanning her face, "The dress was a nice choice."

"You should become a designer."

"Yeah, I'll get right on that."

They exchanged a smile, noses brushing. She squeezed his hand softly, then saw Bass watching them with a guarded look. Her smile faded and she adjusted her posture so they weren't so close to each other. Miles glanced over in Bass's direction but he had turned his attention elsewhere.

"Jon," he grabbed the nearest waiter, who leaned in between them.

"Yes sir?"

"Bring out some more bread and another scotch."

"Of course sir. Mrs. Matheson, can I get you anything else?"

"Just a water."

"Yes ma'am. I'll be right back."

Across the table, Julia was watching the exchange carefully but spoke before the young man could leave.

"Why don't you bring her a glass of that sangria Jonathan? It was absolutely delicious."

"Ma'am?" he looked at Nora, waiting for her response.

"That won't be necessary. I'm fine, thank you though." she smiled kindly, though she gave Julia a look to keep quiet. No one knew- at least not officially- but she could see her friends smiling around the table, knowing something was up.

"What's with you tonight?"

"Nothing. I don't feel like drinking. Is that a crime?"

"Stop picking on her." Leah commented, causing Nora to smile gratefully in her direction. "We're not teenagers."

"If everyone was as interested in the Republic as they were Nora's drinking habits, I think we'd get a lot more done around here." Miles commented quietly.

"All we're saying is we've noticed changes that are… curious."

"No, you're saying that." Jeremy pointed his fork at Julia. "Don't add us in to this mess."

"I wasn't the only one who had suspicions."

"Have you all been talking about us behind our backs?" Nora asked. It was a table of ten- herself, Miles, Bass, Rachel, Jeremy, Jim, Leah, Brad, Julia, and Tom. She raised an eyebrow as Leah, Julia, and Jeremy exchanged a glance. Jim smiled into his glass, averting her gaze.

Bass and Rachel were quiet during the exchange, but this did not surprise her. Rachel had kept a low profile since coming to Philadelphia and neither of Nora's friends had seemed receptive of her anyway. Bass's relationship with Rachel was a sticky situation and no one was brave enough to approach it. This didn't bother Rachel, who often looked at the others in their group as though they were below her.

"Wow."

"We've been worried!" Leah explained. She was sweeter than Julia and had more of a conscience, as evidenced by the guilty smile she gave Nora. "We've hardly seen you since the- the bombing and then when we have, you've been… distant. The past couple weeks, you've been… off."

"Off?"

"You didn't drink last week. When we went for coffee, you didn't get any and not even that weird tea you like. I haven't seen you eat since God knows when."

"You and Miles are off making googly eyes at each other. He's more grouchy than usual and crowding you like he's waiting for someone to just try and put a bullet in you." Julia put in her two cents.

"Your boobs." Jeremy stated matter-of-factly. The table went silent and Miles leaned forward.

"What?" his voice was eerily calm, a tone that Nora often associated with war and interrogations.

"Oh come on. I can talk about your ass but I can't talk about her boobs?"

"She's my wife!"

"Yes, you're right. Sorry. The point is, you're both acting weird and we know something's up. Would you like to share with the class?"

"If we wanted to share, wouldn't we have told you?"

"So something is going on."

"If you all want to think that. Just let me know when you find out the details."

"Oh we have plenty of theories." Jim commented. The rest nodded in agreement. Nora smiled slightly as Miles rolled his eyes and flopped back against the chair. "You're having an affair."

"No."

"I vetoed that one," Leah added, "I didn't think Nora would get weepy and withdrawn. She'd kill the other woman."

"Damn right- and Miles too." Nora replied with a laugh. "Where do the boobs fit in?"

"You had a boob job to gain back his attention."

"Medieval boob job. I'm going to say that definitely didn't happen."

"You guys are planning to run and want to make leaving us easier." Jeremy offered.

"Kind of hard to run a Militia if you're not in it." Miles retorted. He glanced at Bass, who was deep in conversation with Rachel. Neither were paying attention to the rest of them.

"You're pregnant." Julia stated. There was a moment of hesitation, neither knowing how to respond. Nora smiled faintly, turned her head to look at Miles.

"You know they're just going to keep pestering us."

"They're worse than a group of mothers."

"You're lucky you tossed out that theory. If you were wrong again, we wouldn't have said anything ever."

"You're pregnant?" Leah leaned forward, an awed look on her face.

"Yes I'm pregnant. You all are the pushiest people ever. You couldn't even wait for us to announce it ourselves."

"Anyone with two brain cells could have figured it out."

"But they would have had the decency to keep quiet. You set that trap right away." Nora gave Julia a look.

"You're really pregnant? You're not just saying that?" Leah sounded on the verge of hysterics, her excitement building by the moment.

"Yes!"

"About fucking time!" Jeremy exclaimed. "We were beginning to think you guys never had sex."

"Again, if everyone was as concerned with the Republic as they are with gossiping about me and Nora, we'd accomplish a lot more."

"Hey, I told you once that you were like our very own Days of Our Lives." Jeremy grinned. By now, most of their table had gotten up to congratulate them. Rachel was indifferent and Bass was staring at the table with an intense glare. Nora noticed his expression first and looked at Miles worriedly.

"Bass? Did you hear us?" he asked. Just like that, his friend jolted out of his daze and a grin was on his face.

"Yeah. Yeah, that's amazing man. Sorry, that was the last thing I expected. Total shock. Congratulations." he jumped up and pulled Miles into a crushing hug, thumped him hard on the back. "You deserve it brother."

"Thanks."

"Congratulations Nora," he stepped towards her, almost hesitantly, and there was a quick moment of tension before she allowed him to hug her. When she saw he had no other motives and was actually acting like the old Bass, she relaxed a little more.

"Thanks Bass."

"Oh God, this is so exciting!" Leah exclaimed. Julia nodded in agreement, a wide grin on her face.

"I knew it. I knew it. I can't believe you didn't tell us!"

"We were." Nora insisted. "We just needed some time to process it ourselves."

"This is the first baby."

"I'm pretty sure people have had babies before." Miles smirked.

"I mean in our group," Leah rolled her eyes. "We haven't had one before."

Miles glanced back at Bass, who continued to smile, though more forcedly. Leah and Brad had not been part of their group when Bass had lost Shelley.

"And we figured you'd be having one sooner or later." Jeremy added. "Start of the Matheson Dynasty."

"Okay, can I have the baby before we decide to give it a continent to run?" Nora asked.

"Just because we live in a different world doesn't mean you can't have expectations for your children. Before the blackout, people had their babies applying to pre-school before they were even conceived. Don't fail us now. The kid has some big shoes to fill. You've got to have expectations for him."

"Healthy. I'd like him to master talking and walking before we move on to anything serious."

"We'll take it step by step." Jeremy conceded.

"We? I was under the impression this was our baby." she gestured between herself and Miles as Jeremy rolled his eyes.

"Yeah but we'll all have a hand in raising him."

"Jeremy, I wouldn't let you near my kid if you were the last person on earth." Miles said, causing them all to laugh. "I didn't know you liked kids."

"I don't. Neither did you, I thought. What do you even know about them?"

"Not a damn thing."

"Nora, you're going to need help because if you rely on this oaf, you're fucked."

By the time Miles had made it upstairs, Nora was already asleep. He smiled slightly at the sight of her passed out with a book open on her chest. The lamp was still burning bright on the night stand.

He eased onto their bed, trying not to jostle her in any way, and lifted the book off of her. He folded the page, then leaned over her to set in on the night stand and put the light out. She shifted underneath him and he felt her hand move up his stomach to his chest.

"I was reading that." she mumbled tiredly.

"Yeah? Must have been difficult with your eyes shut. Or did your boobs grow a new super power with all those hormones?"

"Jerk." she tried to sound grumpy but there was a smile on her face as he leaned down to brush his lips against hers. "I didn't want to tell them like that."

He frowned in confusion but remembered what had unfolded at dinner. He shrugged one shoulder even though she wasn't looking and slipped down the bed so he was eye level with her stomach.

"I think I should give Julia a position in interrogation. She's smooth at catching people off guard."

"I didn't want Bass knowing like that."

"He'll get over it." he slid her nightgown up and pressed his mouth gently against her. She carded her fingers through his hair, smiling at his whispering. He had done this in secret - talking to the baby - until she had caught him one night. He had been completely embarrassed until he had seen how much she loved it. Now, it was a nightly ritual and she found it completely endearing.

"Will he though?"

"Are you feeling bad for him?" he lifted her left hand and began to lightly kiss her fingertips.

"No. Maybe. I don't know. I - that's a rough subject. It was hard for him losing Shelley and the baby. It must - it must suck for him."

"I know what you're saying but honey we can't feel guilty. It's awful what happened but it was also years ago. Are people supposed to stop living because one person lost someone? A lot of people have lost someone. The human race would have died out by now if that's how it worked."

"I never said I felt guilty. I just think we could have told him differently. Not even with that, but everything. He's so… unstable lately. He looked angry when we said it."

"Yeah because he was probably pissed he didn't find out first. He thinks he's privileged. If he doesn't know something, no one should know it. I'm done babying him Nora."

"I didn't ask you to baby him. I just think we should be careful. I don't think he would ever actually do something but I never know what's going to set him off these days."

"I'll talk to him in the morning." he promised, moving up towards her face again. They exchanged a few kisses and as he moved to pull away, she curled her fingers into his shirt to drag him back.

"I thought you said this afternoon was a preview for tonight."

"You were asleep when I walked in."

"I'm awake now." she grinned, slipping her other hand along his back. He laughed quietly, shaking his head a little.

"I'm really enjoying this side of you."

"Make sure you take your time because in a few months, we won't be touching each other ever."

"No way."

"Babies don't sleep."

"Ours will."

"Doubt that."

"We'll train him."

"And what about when he's older and walks in on us?"

"That's what locks are for."

"You sound so sure of yourself."

"I am not going the next eighteen years abstaining from sex. We'll manage some how."

"We've got a lot to learn."

"Oh yeah."