Beck's movie, Seventh Platoon, that he had filmed the previous fall is set to be released the week of Thanksgiving. Holiday releases usually mean that the movie is expected to be popular both at the box office and with critics, so the studio has him off doing a lot of press for the few weeks leading up to the release. He does interviews and press junkets not just in New York, but in LA and Paris as well. Jade is home with Georgia by herself again for a few weeks, but she's busy enough with her own filming schedule that it's manageable. He's home in time for the New York premiere of the movie, which is ten days before its actual release.

"Action!"

"You're driving me insane..." Jade sighs, shaking her head at her co-star Debra, who plays her on-screen mother "It's like you're not even listen-"

"I am listening!" Debra fires back "I am, Lindsey, I am. And what I hear? Is that my daughter who worked so hard to climb the ladder and shatter the glass ceiling is going to throw it all away! And for what? Her boyfriend?"

"Fiancé, remember?" Jade scoffs, holding up the costume ring on her hand "The father of my child. The father of your grandchild, mind you. And I'm not throwing anything away! I can work and still be a mother, it's not impossible. Just because you couldn't make it work, doesn't mean the rest of us can't."

"Don't take that tone with me."

"You took it first!" Jade exclaims "I don't understand why this is so hard for you to grasp!"

"Now you're the one who isn't listening."

"I hear you, Mom." Jade says calmly "Loud and clear. You think I'm making a whole...multitude of mistakes. The same ones that you made...but I'm not. This baby is coming in a few months, and we can't change that. I refuse to give up my career once he's born, I'm going to keep working. I'm going to marry Aaron next year, and the three of us are going to be a family. I really, really want you to be a part of it, but if all you're going to do is lecture me every time that we-"

"Are you sure you really know Aaron?" Debra cuts her off "His true intentions with the firm?"

"He's here to help us rebuild and do some good." Jade nods "Same as me. Are we done here? I have a client meeting in twenty minutes."

"I suppose we are." Debra sighs, picking up her prop purse and slinging it over her shoulder "Goodbye, Lindsey."

"Bye..." Jade rolls her eyes

"Debra, exit this way!" The director calls "Good! Jade, watch her go. Keep that annoyed expression. Good, good, and...cut! Great work, everyone! That's a wrap on this scene."

Jade relaxes her expression, allowing herself to fall out of character as she leans against the desk in her office set. The baby has been rather active all day, and it was hard not to let it show during that scene. She's been on her feet all day too, so her back is killing her. It's been a long day, and she has an even longer night ahead of her.

"Always a pleasure to spar with you, m'dear." Debra smiles as she walks back onto the set

"Back at ya." Jade smiles, sitting down in the prop office chair and taking a deep breath

"How's that little one doing?"

"Practicing their gymnastics routine..." Jade sighs with a smile, rubbing her bump gently "That's typical these days."

"I know it sounds mundane but, try to enjoy it." Debra winks "You might just find yourself missing it one day."

"I'll try my best."

"Alright, ladies." The director appears beside them "We are good for the day. I'll see you both back here tomorrow. Jade, enjoy your evening."

"Thanks..." Jade sighs "We'll see if this kid will let me."

Debra offers her a hand and helps her stand up out of the chair, a feat that is becoming harder to accomplish on her own. It's not entirely impossible yet, but Jade appreciates the help. The two women walk back to their trailers on the adjacent soundstage and say their goodbyes, then Jade quickly changes out of her wardrobe outfit and into her street clothes so she can return home as quickly as possible.

When she enters the penthouse, it has very clearly been transformed into wardrobe central. There is a rack of clothes in the middle of the living room, all options for her and Beck to choose from, and a makeshift hair and makeup table set up off to the side. Three stylists are already busy at work setting up her makeup station and comparing different outfit combinations for them both. Jade feels overwhelmed already, but knows that she has no other option but to take it all in stride.

"Hey!" Beck greets her with a kiss on the cheek as he places a bowl of something in her hands "Pasta with alfredo. I figured you two would need something to eat before we left and that you wouldn't want to eat in your dress."

"You figured correctly." Jade chuckles "Thank you."

"Of course."

They have to leave for the Seventh Platoon premiere in just under ninety minutes. Jade knew she would be cutting it close by staying on set as long as she did, but she felt that she needed to fulfill her obligations for the day before she ran out on her entire cast. As a principle player in the show's plot now, she didn't want to leave anyone hanging. Of course, Beck understood completely.

Jade talks to one of the stylists and chooses the red dress hanging on the rack of clothes, the one she had been eyeing from the moment she walked in. She eats her dinner while she gets her hair done, leaves to brush her teeth, then returns to get her makeup done as well before she gets dressed. This dress isn't nearly as form-fitting as the one she wore to the Emmy's and is much brighter in color, but it's still obvious that she's pregnant. At seven and a half months, it's impossible to disguise that fact now.

"You look amazing." Beck grins as his eyes land on her in the dress for the first time "I love you in red."

"Thanks." Jade smiles "You look pretty handsome yourself."

"Ready to go?"

"I guess so." Jade shrugs "Are you?"

"As I'll ever be." He nods, extending a hand to her "Let's go."

The weather has turned quite cold, but thankfully the outdoor carpet has heaters to keep all of the guests warm. Beck and Jade are more than used to the standard red carpet routine by now: get out of the car, smile and pose for the photographers, talk to a few reporters, and then go inside. Again, everyone wants pictures of Beck holding or kissing Jade's baby bump, or her cradling it herself. They oblige for a while, but otherwise stick to their standard poses that they always do. When they reach the end of the photo line, they each split off to talk to reporters. Of course this is Beck's movie premiere, so most of them want to talk to him, but Jade isn't a bad second choice for most of them.

"Are you staying warm?" Jade asks the reporter that she speaks to first "God, whose idea was it to do this in New York at this time of year?"

"Yes, we have heated vests on under these coats." The reporter laughs "Are you staying warm?"

"I'm a bit colder now that I'm away from the heaters, but it's not too bad." Jade shrugs "It can always be worse, right?"

"Right." The reporter laughs "Are you excited to see the movie?"

"Of course I am." Jade assures her "I've seen a few clips here and there, but I'm really looking forward to seeing the final product. I know they all worked so hard on this film and that they're all really proud of it."

"Good to hear." The reporter smiles "And of course I have to ask, how's the baby doing?"

"The baby is great." Jade can't stop herself from grinning "Trying to rearrange my insides, but doing great."

"You're due soon, aren't you?"

"We still have some time left..." Jade shrugs, vague on purpose "But this will probably be my last public engagement for a while."

"Are your families excited?"

"They're ecstatic." Jade laughs "I think my dad has a countdown running."

"Do you think your mom would too, if she were here?"

The question takes Jade by surprise. It's not exactly a secret that her mother is gone, she usually posts some kind of tribute for her on social media on Mother's Day and her birthday every year, but it's not something she has really ever discussed publicly, let alone with reporters. She feels it was quite bold of the interviewer to ask her such a personal question like that almost out of nowhere, and it was a bit upsetting. Jade tries her best to hide her sadness as she dances around the answer.

"I, uh..." She hesitates "I'm sure she would, yeah. She was a fantastic mom, so I have no doubt she would have been a fantastic grandma too. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to be getting inside. Thanks for taking the time to talk, enjoy the movie."

"Thank you, Jade!" The reporters calls after her as she turns to go "Stay warm!"

Beck notices his wife retreating into the theater without him, and wants more than anything to follow after her. She would never go inside without him if something wasn't wrong. He has to stay outside though, at least for a few more minutes, as one of the stars of the movie, there are certain obligations that he has to fulfill.

When he finally catches up to her inside, she's collected herself a bit...but Beck can still tell that something is wrong.

"Are you okay?" He asks her "Is the baby? Do we need to-"

"We're both fine, Beck." Jade assures him as she loops her arm around his "Just got a little too cold out there is all. Let's go find our seats."

Jade has never really been one for war movies, but she will admit she enjoyed this one. Not just because her husband was in it either, the film was very moving. It got a standing ovation from the audience at the premiere.

The movie had been a nice distraction from all of the thoughts swirling around in her head, but once they arrive home from the theater...there aren't any distractions anymore. Jade is quiet and distant as she takes her hair down and removes her makeup, something that concerns her husband. When he emerges from their bathroom after getting ready for bed himself, he finds her sitting on the edge of their bed, staring out the window. There are streaks of tears staining her face, and while it breaks his heart to see...Beck has no idea what could have brought this emotional response on so suddenly.

"Hey..." He says quietly as he moves to sit next to her "What...what's goin' on, babe?"

"The reporter I talked to tonight asked me about my mom..." Jade sniffs "It, uh...it made me realize how much I miss her right now."

Of course, she misses her always. Not a day goes by where Jade doesn't think of her mother in some way. Lately though, the thoughts have been more frequent, and much heavier. She wishes that her mother were here to help her enter motherhood as effortlessly as possible, that she were there to offer her advice and hug her when things become overwhelming. She wishes she were there to guide her, help her pick out nursery bedding, or to even experience being a grandmother at all.

"What?" Beck is confused "Why would someone-"

"Why do they ever? Probably thought it would make for a good headline or something, I don't know." Jade sighs "Beck, I don't know the first thing about being a mom...and I really want mine right now."

He wraps an arm around her and she leans into his chest, starting to cry into his shirt as he hugs her tightly. This is the most emotional Beck has ever seen his wife become over the mention of her mother. It has never been uncommon for her to tear up, or even let a few fall, when they talk about her or visit her at the cemetery...but Jade is sobbing now, and it breaks his heart. He knows some of it has to do with hormones, but he also knows that a lot of it probably has to do with pent up emotions as well.

"Shhh..." He presses a kiss to the top of her head and rubs her back gently "I know, I know. I get it."

He regrets his choice of words immediately, knowing they hadn't been the correct ones or the most sensitive.

"No, no you don't get it!" She cries "When you miss your mom, you can pick up the phone and call her! Or you can get on a plane and go see her! You can still hug her, you can still hear her laugh, she's going to get to meet the baby. I don't have any of that anymore, Beck!"

"You're right, I'm sorry." He apologizes, still rubbing her back "I am very lucky to still be able to do all of those things, and I'm sorry that you can't. If there were a way for me to change things, I promise you that I would."

"I thought I was finally doing an okay job of dealing with this..." Jade admits "I mean, it's been almost eighteen years...I should be able to control my emotions by now."

"Grief isn't something that just goes away, babe." Beck reminds her "And I think your grief is amplified right now because of what you're going through. It's natural to want your own mother when you're becoming one yourself, I'm sorry that you can't have that."

"I think I need to go see her..." Jade admits, finally starting to calm down "Be close to her or something, I don't know. Anything to feel less...sad, I guess."

"Okay..." Beck nods "This weekend, we'll rent a car and we'll go to the cemetery to visit."

"No, I think just I need to go." Jade tells him "I want to go by myself."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"No." She shrugs "But...I know it's what I need to do."

"Okay, if that's what you want." He nods "Hey. I love you, okay? I know it's not the same thing as having your mom, but you and I are in this thing together. I'll always be here for you."

"I know." Jade nods sadly "I love you too."

It's three days before Jade has a day off from filming and is able to drive out to the suburbs. Rather than renting a car, she asks John if she can borrow his. Of course he had handed over the keys without a second thought, but he did ask her where she was going. Jade had told her father the truth and just like Beck had, he offers to go with her. Again, she tells him that it's something she wants to do alone, and he respects that.

Her mother had grown up in Summit, New Jersey, and her grandparents had lived there until they retired to North Carolina when Jade was in high school. Jade has many memories of making the just over an hour drive with her parents, and then eventually just her father, probably hundreds of times over the course of her life. John and Kaitlyn used to bring her to her grandparents' house in the winter to play in the snow and go sledding, something that wasn't as easy to do in the heart of the city where they lived. She would spend weeks at their house in the summer, just to give her parents a break.

Of course now that her grandparents have moved out of state, the only reason Jade ever finds herself making the journey back to her mother's hometown is to visit the cemetery. It made the most sense at the time of her death to bury her close to her parents, even though it was far from Jade and John. Now as an adult, Jade doesn't really mind the drive. It gives her time to herself to think, and to relax. The seatbelt doesn't reach across her as comfortably as it once did now, and she's had to move the seat further away from the steering wheel in order to fit behind it, but otherwise every aspect of the drive is familiar.

Jade parks the car in the same spot that she always does, climbing out with a slight grunt before closing the door behind her and starting down the gravel path. She holds the key FOB over her shoulder as she walks away, locking the car before venturing off too far.

She brought flowers, even though she knows they won't last long in the cold weather. The florist had told her that these specifically, English primroses, would do the best in the lower temperature, so that's what Jade had purchased.

"Hey, Mom..." She sighs when she arrives at the headstone "Broughtcha something..."

A metal vase had been built into the side of the headstone, something common for this cemetery specifically. Jade takes it out of the stand and dumps out the rainwater that had collected inside of it before returning it to its original place and resting the flowers inside of it. She reaches into her purse and pulls out her water bottle, removing the lid to pour clean water into the vase.

"There you go..." She smiles a bit, putting the water bottle back into her purse again "Thought they might liven the place up a little bit."

She shrugs the purse off of her shoulder, allowing it to fall to the ground as she kneels down in the grass. It's cold, but thankfully not wet.

"Happy Thanksgiving." Jade says "I know I'm a few days early, but...that's okay, right? I'm sorry that I don't come see you more often. Life is just so busy these days, and I know that's no excuse but it's the one that I'm making...I...I really miss you, Mom. I've been missing you more than I normally do these past few months because, well...I'm going to be a mom soon, and I don't know the first thing about that so I really wish that you were here to offer some advice."

She stops, brushing a tear away from her eye and letting her words hang in the air a bit before she continues.

"I think it's a girl." Jade admits "I haven't told anyone that yet, and I don't think that I will. We...we're waiting until the baby is born to find out for real...but I just have this gut feeling. Maybe it's because my character on the show is having a boy and I feel like real life needs to be the opposite...or maybe it's legitimate mother's intuition, I don't know. Regardless of the gender though, I promise to bring them here to visit you, and to tell them stories about you. About how we used to go sledding at Grandma and Grandpa's, or how we used to count sidewalk panels when you would walk me to school. They'll know you, I promise."

A gentle breeze blows across the cemetery. It hadn't been windy at all when she arrived, and the air remains calm afterwards, so Jade takes it as a sign that her mother had heard her every word and is attempting to respond.

"Thanks, Mom..." She says quietly "I love you too."

For those of you who have been asking, this story is going to have 38 chapters. So we're almost to the end, but there's still quite a bit in store for Beck and Jade before then :)