Trying her damndest to get John to walk for the first time, an impatient Eve roped Freddy and Frasier into her plans. "You can't keep using his cuteness as a weapon," Freddy pointed out to his best friend (and also the woman he was secretly in love with, even though apparently everyone saw right through him).
"And he'll walk when he's ready. You can't rush him," Frasier told her but Eve ignored him.
Pulling Freddy down to the floor with her, she held her arms out to John, sitting happily on his blanket. "Can you walk to Mama and Uncle Freddy, sweetheart? Take your first steps," Eve encouraged.
The baby stuck his fist in his mouth instead, and Freddy had to stifle a laugh. He could only shrug when Eve glared at him. "He's your kid alright, Eve."
"Shut up," she hissed. "Come on, John. Please?"
"This is utterly ridiculous." But Frasier was curious to see if John would give in and take his first steps so he stayed put.
"You want to come see me?" Freddy didn't think that would work but figured he would at least try. And maybe making the effort would make Eve happy. Fuck, he really needed to stop doing this. Nothing could happen between them for several very obvious reasons. And he definitely was not in love with her. He needed to get that through his head.
John responded with a babble and refusal to move. In fact, he crawled over to one of his toys instead.
"I should just grab the toy. Maybe that'll work." Eve pondered it seriously for a minute even as Freddy rolled his eyes.
"You're just going to make him cry instead," he responded with a laugh, shaking his head in amusement and slight annoyance.
When John wasn't looking, distracted by his foot, Eve grabbed his favorite toy and booked it back to her spot next to Freddy. "Don't even think about saying it," she warned Freddy.
"I wasn't going to!" Freddy just sighed.
John glanced over and finally noticed the missing toy. He started crying for a second before noticing his mother held it in her arms. "You've only made the child furious." Frasier crossed his arms, waiting for Eve to give up and let John walk on his own terms.
But much to their surprise, John pulled himself up using the table. Eve held her breath as she waited to see her son's next move. And then he did it - he tentatively took a step forward. "Holy shit!" Eve couldn't believe this was really happening.
John walked two more steps before he lost his balance and plopped down on the floor. Eve and Freddy, caught up in the moment, turned to each other and cheered. Neither was ever sure what possessed their next move but Frasier watched in amazement as they surged forward and kissed each other on the lips. They sprang apart so fast just a few seconds later that he swore he ended up with whiplash. The two of them stared at each other in shock and amazement for a few seconds before panic caught up to them. Eve picked up John, forgetting his toys completely, and bolted out of the apartment with a rushed good-bye while Freddy's jaw dropped open and stayed there.
"Fuck," Freddy finally muttered before repeating the swear a few more times.
Frasier finally snorted. "Frederick! Pull yourself together!" he ordered.
Freddy turned to stare at him and the perplexed look on his face made Frasier laugh. "I'm sorry, Frederick, but this is ridiculous. I already went through this song and dance once with Niles and Daphne, and I will not let it happen again. You're both head over heels in love with each other and are co-parenting a child together. John is my grandchild!"
"He's my best friend's girlfriend. My dead best friend's girlfriend! There's no way we can ever go there," Freddy reminded him. "Fuck!"
"Yes, I got the picture."
Freddy's eyes widened. "I'm in love with Eve. Fuck me. Fuck, fuck, fuck."
His father rolled his eyes. "There's no so-called bro code that you're breaking here, Frederick. I'm sure he'd want you both to be happy. Eve's not going to be single forever. Go after her," he advocated.
Fear and resolve in his eyes, Freddy decided that his father was right (for once). Taking a deep breath, he gathered his courage and strolled out of the apartment, opening the door to find a clearly panicked Eve watching TV, John sitting next to her. She stood up so fast his head spun. "What are you doing here?" she shrieked then winced.
"We need to talk."
"There's nothing to talk about," she lied.
Freddy blew out a breath. "We just kissed."
She blew him off and tried to still her shaking hands. "That? That was nothing. We just got caught up in the euphoria of John taking his first steps. It meant nothing."
"That's a lie. It felt electric, Eve." Freddy straightened his shoulders. "I'm in love with you."
Dead silence. "What?" Eve choked out.
"You heard me."
She went to deny it, to flee from her feelings again, but Eve realized instantly that would never work. Tears pooled in her eyes and she flashed him a watery smile. "You're in love with me? Well, I'm in love with you too."
He smiled and then surged forward to kiss her. They both felt guilty but there was no reason to feel that way at all. Picking John up, he pressed a kiss to the baby's forehead. "I have a kid," he whispered in awe, finally accepting what everyone else had known for months.
"Welcome to the family," Eve teased, embracing both her boys. God, she loved them with every fiber of her being.
Finally unable to resist his curiosity, Frasier poked his head in. "Is it safe to come in?"
"Are we going to pretend like you haven't been eavesdropping?" Freddy taunted.
"Just let me hold my grandson," Frasier shot back and held his arms out. Eve handed John over to him.
Eve and Freddy had pulled their heads out of their asses way before Niles and Daphne had and for that, those closest to them were more thankful than they realized.