Notes: I have been wanting to do something like this for the longest time, but I have never gotten around to it until now. I think this is going to be quite a fun storyline to work with even though poor Angela is going to end up going through so much. I really hope that you all like this!

(I know that times changed and more people started having babies in hospitals, but because I always wanted to see Angela in the same sort of setting as CTM, I suppose I am taking a bit of creative liberty and just having things stay the same in her career aspect. Hope that is okay!)

"A textbook heartbeat for a textbook baby, Mrs Reynolds. It shouldn't be too long now."

"Same can be said for you. How much longer do you have to go?"

Bringing the elder woman's blouse back down over her bump, Angela took a step back from the bed and ran a hand tenderly across her stomach through her uniform. "Nine weeks, give or take," She told her, smiling when her baby stretched and she felt it push a tiny hand or foot against her palm. "Although, given how much this little one has been acting up for the past couple months, it actually wouldn't surprise me if it came tomorrow."

"Is that husband of yours getting excited yet?" Mrs Reynolds asked.

Angela hummed. "He's actually at the house now, doing the last of the painting so we can start putting the cot together in the morning. Neither of us are outstanding at that kind of thing though, so Dad might be needed."

Mrs Reynolds chuckled. "And are they taking it all right, your mum and dad? Becoming grandparents?"

"Dad complains every time I use the word 'grandad' around him. He says it makes him sound ancient when he's far from it in his opinion," Angela laughed. "I think he's coming around to the idea of being called 'papa' though or something along those lines which is good. Mum has been a star though, honestly, and she's just so excited. She hasn't put her knitting needles down since we told her we were expecting and we don't have a lot of room left, but I haven't got the heart to ask her to stop. It keeps her busy and we'll probably need all of it."

Mrs Reynolds nodded. "Well, love, I wish you luck with the rest of the pregnancy."

"Much appreciated, thank you," Angela helped her sit up and watched her get down from the bed before both of them walked out of the cubicle. She laid a hand on her arm and gave her a smile before she waddled away and, out of the corner of her eye, she spotted her mother watching her from the kitchen. Rolling her eyes, she smirked and made her way into the little room before putting her hands on her hips. "Honestly, you and Dad are both acting like my waters are going to break any minute! Can I at least have my baby shower before we start thinking about the labour and things? I mean, knowing my luck he'll end up coming in the middle of it."

"I see you're still certain there's a little boy in there." Shelagh teased while pulling out the chair beside her at the table, gesturing with her head for her to sit down as she set about pouring both of them a fresh cup of tea.

"Of course," Angela chuckled as she sat down at the table, the ache in her feet subsiding slightly and bringing her some relief. "Only a boy could be this much of a troublemaker and he must get it from that daddy of his."

Shelagh pushed the mug towards her. "Mmm…"

"I am a delight, I'll have you know." Angela put her nose in the air, taking a sip of the warm liquid.

"Of course, angel girl," Shelagh touched a hand to her cheek. "But you were a right little monkey growing up."

Even if she wanted to, Angela couldn't argue with that. "All right, so he takes after both of us then."

Shelagh laughed. "Is Arthur doing all right? We haven't seen much of him lately."

"Oh, yeah, he's okay," Angela told her, running her thumb around the rim of the cup. "He just has a lot on."

"He got that promotion last month, didn't he? I remember he was hoping for it." Shelagh smiled.

"He did and I'm so pleased for him, I really am, but he…he's not home much these days." Angela sighed.

Shelagh hummed gently in acknowledgment, sensing her daughter's upset, and moved her chair closer to hers before placing a hand on her stomach through her uniform and giving it a stroke with her thumb. "Well, just remember that'll all be changing soon. He'll be around a lot more once this wee one is born." She pointed out.

"You're right, Mum," Angela laid a hand over hers on her stomach and gave it a warm squeeze. "Thank you."

"Any time, sweetheart," Shelagh reached up to stroke her cheek, smiling as she did so. "Any time…"

It was the early evening when she eventually made it home, the matter of cleaning up after clinic taking much longer than anyone anticipated, and after killing the engine she remained seated in her car for a time. She was exhausted. Her back was aching and her feet were killing and, really, the only thing she wanted to do was take a bath and go to bed, but her parents had invited her and Arthur to join them for dinner and she didn't want to turn them down. It would give her a chance to see May too, something that – which was stupid really since they lived in such close proximity to one another – she hadn't managed to make time to do for rather a while.

No, she would just go inside and have a quick bath and then put some makeup on to look a bit more alive.

Reaching for her handbag which was sat on the seat next to her, she opened the door and got out of the car before heading for the front door and using her key to unlock it. Inside, the house was silent and she frowned as she closed the door behind her and removed her shoes. It was the second Wednesday which meant that her husband didn't have work, so she was fully expecting to walk in to see him reclined on the sofa with a beer in hand. Making her way further into the house, she walked into the kitchen to see a small sheet of paper on the dining table and wandered over to it before picking it up and beginning to read what her husband had written.

Ange,

Emergency at work, so been called in last minute. Sorry about dinner. Will make it up to you.

Arthur.

She returned the piece of paper to the table then and shook her head, reaching up to push a hand through her hair. In all honesty, she probably should have expected this seeing as though he'd done this four times before. Something always seemed to conveniently come up whenever they planned to do something with her family. It was never like this, funnily enough, when it was the other way around though and they were doing something with his family. No, she was expected to drop everything – even last minute sometimes – and get ready to go out even when she didn't particularly feel like doing so. She adored his family, really she did, but it was unfair.

It made her feel as though he had an issue with her family, but she had no idea why.

Her parents and siblings had never shown him anything but love and acceptance since she introduced him.

She would have to sit him down and have a talk with him about it at some point. It couldn't go on like this.

Pulled from her thoughts when her baby shifted its weight inside her and got a little more comfortable, all her annoyance melted away and she smoothed a hand across her growing bump. "Looks like it's just going to be you and me visiting Nanna and Grandad for dinner tonight, my love," She sighed. "Daddy has to work again."

She left the kitchen once again after standing there for a couple more minutes, making her way upstairs so she could start getting ready for her bath, and when she reached the landing she decided to poke her head into the nursery. She was hit by the smell of fresh paint the second she opened the door, so at least he'd done what he said he was going to do and gotten the painting done. It was a simple cream colour because even though she was relatively certain they were going to have a boy, it wasn't lost on her that she could be mistaken and they were having a girl. Of course, she cared little about what they ended up with since she would love it regardless.

A little boy or a little girl, it didn't matter as long as her baby was healthy when it came into the world.

Walking into the bedroom once she was done in the nursery, she quickly found something to wear and laid it out on the bed so she could change quickly into it once she was bathed. She then left the room a second time and headed down to the bathroom, putting the plug in the bath and starting the water running while she shed her uniform. It was getting tight again. She would take it with her to her parents' and get her mother to let it out a little more at the seams while they waited for dinner. She would do it herself, but her mother had always been ten times better at that sort of thing than her and she could really do without the added hassle of all that.

As soon as the bath was at the perfect temperature, she removed her underthings and climbed in before easing herself into the water and letting her head fall back against the rolled up towel. It was seconds later when her baby began kicking and she chuckled under her breath, tracing little circles onto her belly with her palm under the water. Her little one just loved the water and she took such pleasure in watching it move around and kick. Of course, it would likely be a whole other story when it was born and the time to bathe it came around. She had no doubt it would scream the house down, so she was doing her best to make the most of these moments.

It took her little time to bathe, to scrub away the grime from the day, and once she was out and her long hair was up in a towel she left the bathroom and returned to her bedroom to start getting ready. It was starting to warm up now, thank goodness, so she'd chosen to wear her favourite white dress which had been hiding away in the wardrobe since her honeymoon last summer. It was nothing spectacular, just a plain white colour with a little lacy trim, but it was comfortable and that was honestly all she cared about at this point in her pregnancy.

After seeking out some underthings and pulling them on, she put the dress on over her head and then turned to her vanity to start sorting her hair. She decided not to put it up, choosing instead to just brush it out, and once she was ready she got up and left the room before closing the door behind her. Not having any idea as to when her husband would be home, she thought it best to write him a note to let him know he would still be welcome to come for dinner if he wanted. She doubted he would, but at least she would have put the offer out.

She scrawled it quickly on the back of the note he left for her, leaving it in the exact same place on the dining table, and once she'd gotten her coat on she left the house and locked the door before walking back to her car. Setting her handbag and uniform down in the other seat once she had gotten in, she started the engine again and muttered to herself as she pulled out of the drive. She was looking forward to dinner with her family, of course she was, but part of her longed to have Arthur attend too. It felt like she hardly ever saw him anymore.

He was a grown man though and if he didn't want to do something then she couldn't make him.

No matter how desperately she might want to.

Curled up on the sofa with a cup of tea in hand, Angela allowed her thumb to run around the rim of the mug and sighed. She needed to think about heading home soon. She and her mother had their rounds to do in the morning and she needed to let her and her dad get to bed, but she just didn't feel like going home to a silent house. It made it a challenge to sleep, the silence, and she would lie awake staring at the ceiling for hours with only her thoughts for company until the need to go to sleep became too intense that she practically passed out. It had been a common occurrence since Arthur got that stupid promotion and she was really getting tired of it.

She was pulled from her thoughts when she felt someone smooth a hand over her hair, her lips curling up into the slightest smile when she looked up to see that it was her dad. He moved around from the back of the sofa, cup of coffee in hand, and when he sat down next to her and put an arm around her shoulders she cuddled up to him almost instinctively. Letting her head fall against his shoulder, she breathed in the smell of his cologne and it calmed her. He had worn the same one since she was a girl – undoubtedly because her mum loved it – and there was something just so comforting about it. "You were quiet tonight." She heard him mumble quietly.

"I was? Sorry, I didn't mean to be." She replied, tilting her head back to look at him.

He shook his head, placing a kiss on her forehead. "No need to be. Something on your mind? I can help."

"I think I'm just tired more than anything to be honest," She lifted her mug and had a slow sip of tea, nestling into him. "I…I mean, I'm also getting tired of never having Arthur home. He worked a lot before and I put up with it, but ever since he got that promotion it's genuinely like he's never home. My hours don't help matters, I know, but sometimes it just feels…it feels like he doesn't even want to be around me and I don't know why."

"He loves you."

"Oh, I know he does. I'm not worried about that. I'm just worried that I might have upset him in some way."

"I doubt that very much." His brows knitted together.

"My hormones have been everywhere recently, Dad, I barely have any patience with anyone and I admit I have been a little touchy with him," She confessed. "You know what he's like, always making jokes, and I normally love his sense of humour, but I think I might have been taking them a little too personally because of all this."

He gave her a tender squeeze. "Sweetheart, if anyone is allowed to be touchy right now then it's you."

She smiled at that. No matter what she did, he was always on her side. "Maybe, but I need to talk to him."

"Communication is always good," He hummed. "But maybe you need to do that after a night of proper sleep."

"Proper sleep," She scoffed. "What's that when it's at home? I can never sleep when Arthur's away."

He thought for a moment. "You could always spend the night here. We could make up a bed on the sofa."

"I love you for that, I really do, but I couldn't ask that of you." She shook her head.

"You haven't asked. I've offered. You may be getting on a bit, but you're still our little girl to us." He smirked.

She swatted his chest. "Dad! I'm only twenty two! You're the one who's going to be a grandad soon."

He grimaced at that, groaning under his breath. "You make me sound so old."

"Yeah, these grey hairs don't really help your case." She jested, reaching up to stroke his hair lightly.

"I have just opened my home to you," He reminded her. "You could at least show me a little more respect."

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry," She laughed. "If you really don't mind, I think spending the night would be nice."

He brushed a curl from her face, tucking it behind her ear. "I don't mind at all."

She heard her mother close her bedroom door from where she laid on the sofa and tucked a hand beneath the cushion, settling down beneath the blanket and running a hand over her bump. She called the house phone a short while ago with the intention of leaving a message and, much to her surprise, Arthur actually answered it. He was less than pleased that she was spending the night away from home and he made that clear when they spoke, but she didn't care and it didn't change anything. She was worn out and there was no chance she was driving home like this, so he was going to have to wait until he got in from work tomorrow to speak with her.

Her gratitude towards her parents was so deep she could hardly put it into words.

Of course, she knew they would always open their home to her if she needed it because she was – as her dad said – still their daughter and they loved her, but it was still touching. Both of them were always there for her when Arthur couldn't be and that made her feel so much better about this entire situation. Arthur would have to return to work some time after the baby was born, so knowing that her parents would be there to help with things while he was gone really helped to sooth her fears. She worried about so many things and it was likely doing her no good, but she just wanted to prove to everyone and to herself that she was capable of doing this.

She never imagined she would get pregnant so quickly, but she wanted her baby more than she could put into words and a burden was the last thing she thought of it as. Considering it happened on their wedding night, she always said to Arthur that she felt as though it was some sort of wedding present and the greatest one she could have received. Her baby, already, was the most important thing in the world to her and giving it the best life she could was her sole purpose in life. She would give up everything for it if she had to, though she hoped it never actually came down to that and she could go on working on her occupation while also being a mother.

Her mum proved that it was doable as long as one put their mind to it.

She had three kids under the age of ten and still managed to balance everything she had to balance.

How on earth she did it half the time, she genuinely had no idea, but she was such an inspiration to her.

She was going to rely on her so much over the coming months and even more so when she gave birth to her baby, she knew that, and there was no doubt in her mind that it was going to bring them so much closer. She was her best friend and having her there with her while she went through this experience only made it sweeter.

Smiling in the dark when she felt her baby give her palm a swift kick, she pulled the blanket down a little and felt warmth pool in the pit of her chest as she looked at her bump. "On the home stretch now, my sweet one," She said in the softest voice, tracing the curve of her stomach tenderly with her hand. "On the home stretch…"

Notes: Thank you so much for taking the time to read this chapter. I really hope that you liked it and I would love to know what you thought if you have the time to leave a comment. We will be seeing more of the whole Turner family as time passes, I promise! Thank you again and I will see you all soon.