Eddie and Rachel arrived home from the hospital in the highest of spirits. They smiled at Philip, who was waiting in the hallway for them, eager to see the ultrasound photo and to know if his new cousin was ok. Rachel was relieved by his enthusiasm. She had been a little nervous about telling him she was pregnant. But he seemed to be just as excited as she and Eddie were.

"So, how did it go?" Philip asked

"The baby is fine. My due date is the 28th of July next year" Rachel answered, passing him the ultrasound photo

Philip examined the photo carefully. He smiled when he saw the blob-shaped baby. It felt a little surreal that soon he would have a little cousin running around. He couldn't wait! He'd always wanted a sibling. His Mum had never paid him any attention growing up, so he'd always hoped to have a younger sibling. It seemed that now, his little cousin was the closest thing he was going to get to a brother or sister, and he was ok with that.

He was so happy for Rachel and Eddie. They had both been through so much recently, Rachel especially. They deserved more than anything to be happy.

Rachel watched tentatively as Philip examined the photo, his eyes lighting up with excitement. He looked up, smiling at her as he handed the photo back to her.

"Congratulations" he said, pulling her into a hug

It took Rachel a few moments to get over her surprise before she hugged him back. Philip didn't do hugs. In the time she had known him, he had only hugged her once. This was the second time. She wasn't complaining. It wasn't easy for Philip to express his feelings and emotions, he didn't handle physical contact well either. She was grateful he felt comfortable enough around her to give her a hug.

"Are you sure you're ok with this?" she asked him when they pulled apart

"Yeah, of course! I'm excited!" he nodded, his smile still lingering

"So are we!" Eddie chuckled

The three of them shared a smile.

"What happened to Bolton? Is he ok? Everyone on the coach was saying Mr Cleaver has been suspended" Philip asked

Rachel and Eddie looked at one another, wondering whether to tell Philip the truth, or to skirt around the details and tell him all was fine. They were both sure that when they returned, rumours about Mr Cleaver's absence would be spreading like wildfire. And when the Boxing Authorities had completed their investigation, the news and verdict would get out too.

"Bolton is fine. And -uhm- Mr Cleaver has been suspended" Rachel explained

"What? Why?" Philip questioned

"It's not for us to say right now. We're waiting for the Boxing Authorities to complete their investigation" Eddie told him

Philip nodded, knowing not to ask any more questions on the subject.

"Right, I don't know about you two, but I'm starving! So can we please order the Chinese?" Rachel huffed with a giggle

"Yes, Miss Mason" Eddie teased, kissing her cheek gently

"I'll go and get the menu" she decided

She frowned as Eddie grabbed her arm, turning her back around to face him.

"You are going to sit down. I will get the menu" he told her

"Can you get me a glass of orange juice while you're at it, please?" she requested, a cheeky grin growing on her face

Eddie rolled his eyes playfully.

"What do I look like? Your personal assistant?" he joked

Rachel laughed.

"No, you look like Eddie Lawson. A man who loves his pregnant girlfriend so much that he will get her a glass of orange juice" she quipped, wrapping her arms around his waist

He chuckled. It was true, he couldn't deny her anything. He'd give her the world if she asked for it.

"Go and sit down" he whispered, kissing her forehead gently as a way of saying 'yes' to her request

"Can I go and get changed first?" she asked

"Fine, but then you sit down, ok?" he bargained

She placed a gentle kiss to his lips, smiling at him before heading up the stairs.

Once she was changed, she headed into the living room, sighing in relief as she crashed on the sofa, her legs coming to rest on Eddie's lap. As promised, he had placed a glass of orange juice on the table next to her. She smiled at him gratefully.

"What do you want to eat, Rach?" he asked, handing her the menu

"My usual please, with chips and rice" she told him

"You never have chips with your chicken curry?" Eddie frowned

Rachel smirked, a hand moving to rest on her stomach.

"Blame the baby for my change in appetite" she laughed

"The list of cravings is building by the minute!" he chuckled

Once the three of them had chosen what they wanted, Eddie made the phone call and placed the order. He then settled back down on the sofa with Rachel's legs resting on his lap as they chose a film to watch. As they were on the run up to Christmas, they settled on watching The Grinch.

Rachel felt herself relaxing further and further into the cushions as Eddie massaged her feet gently. She sighed contentedly. A wave of gratitude washed over her. She had everything she'd ever wanted. A job that she loved, a loving partner (who she was sure was her soul mate), a wonderful nephew, and a baby growing healthily inside her.

Everything was perfect.

...

Three hours later...

It was 10pm. The film had finished and the takeaway had been eaten. Eddie was washing the dishes whilst Rachel and Philip chatted away in the living room. He was almost done, but he was dragging it out a little. He wanted Rachel and Philip to have some one- on- one time to talk. It was very rare they were able to. The sound of them both laughing and talking away made him smile.

As he dried one of the plates on the draining board, his mind wandered back over the events of the day. He couldn't deny it, he was overwhelmed with happiness. He was over the moon and still couldn't believe this was all happening, but it was and he was just filled with excitement. He was going to be a Father. Rachel was going to be a Mother. They were going to be parents for the very first time! He couldn't wait!

He hadn't wanted the ultrasound scan to end, and he was sure Rachel had felt the same. He could have stared at the image of their baby on that screen forever. He could have listened to their heartbeat echoing on a loop. The entire experience had just been magical. It was a relief to know that their little one was growing properly, even after Rachel being so unwell.

The capabilities of a woman's body amazed him. The fact that they were able to grow a healthy baby inside them, and how their bodies worked so hard to keep that baby safe until they were ready to enter the world just fascinated him.

He was so proud of Rachel. The last couple of weeks since she had found out she was pregnant hadn't been easy for her at all. With the severe morning sickness, iron deficiency and everything else going on, she was handling everything so well.

The scan today had been an exciting but scary experience for her. But, as she did with everything else in her life, she had taken it all in her stride. She was the strongest person he had ever met, and he loved her all the more for it. Their baby was going to be the luckiest child to have a Mother like her. He'd seen the way her eyes had lit up and sparkled as she'd stared at the blob-shaped baby on the screen. She was going to love their baby with everything she had.

As he put the last of the dishes away, his mind wandered to the Christmas holidays. It was going to be his first Christmas with Rachel, and he couldn't wait! Eddie loved Christmas and had been fortunate enough to spend nearly all of his Christmases surrounded by his family, up until six years ago when his Mother (the last of his family) had passed away. He'd spent his Christmases alone the last few years, doing the traditions by himself whilst watching the classic movies and humming along to the best Christmas songs.

Rachel hadn't had the same fortunate upbringing that Eddie had, had. She hadn't celebrated Christmas since she was at least four years old. Even in her adult years she hadn't bothered, having been on her own.

This year was going to be different for both of them. Eddie was looking forward to sharing his Christmas traditions with her and having someone to watch the classic movies with and to dance along to the Christmas songs with him. He was determined to make their first Christmas together special and one they would never forget.

"Night, Eddie!" Philip called from the hallway

"Night, mate!" he called back, drying his hands

Once he'd sorted out the rest of the kitchen, he switched the light off and made his way into the living room. The sight in front of him threatened to melt his heart.

Rachel was lying on the sofa, eyes glued to the ultrasound photo in her hand. She was smiling, eyes sparkling with tears.

This had to be one of the happiest days of her life. She couldn't take her eyes off the little blob on the photo. In three weeks time, when they went back for their twelve week scan, they'd have grown even more. She couldn't wait to see how they would change and develop over the weeks and months to come. She couldn't wait to find out if they were a boy or a girl (as long as the baby was healthy, she didn't mind either way), to feel them moving and wriggling around inside her. She couldn't wait to hold them in her arms for the first time, to examine their features and to discover subtle traits of their personality. She was excited for everything.

Eddie sat down beside her on the sofa, placing a hand on her knee gently. She smiled as she shifted over to him, curling into his side as he draped an arm over her shoulder. He placed a soft kiss in her hair, breathing in the scent of vanilla shampoo. He felt two tears dampening his shirt.

"Are those happy tears?" he asked her

She nodded, sniffling quietly.

"Good, because if they were sad tears, we'd be in trouble!" he chuckled

Rachel giggled, wrapping her hand around his as she gazed up at him.

"I just can't believe it, we're having a baby!" she whispered, placing a hand on her stomach

"Thirty one weeks to go" he smiled

Rachel hummed contentedly.

"We'll have two birthdays to celebrate in July. Yours and our little one's" he pointed out

"I forgot about that" she said with a small laugh

"It would be the best gift ever if they were born on your birthday"

Rachel grimaced.

"I don't fancy being in excruciating pain on my birthday, thank you!" she chuckled

"The day after then?" he joked

"That's a bit better, but I'd rather they wait until we break up for the summer holidays" she admitted

"We'll have to see, won't we?" he whispered, kissing her forehead gently

"Have you heard anything from Candeece about Bolton?" he added

"Yeah, he's fine. No harm done, thankfully. They don't know what the drugs were though, so we have to wait for the results of the urine sample the medic took at the Boxing Match" she explained

Eddie sighed in relief. He was still angry at Rob for what he'd done, and he knew Rachel was too, nothing would change that. But Bolton was ok and that was what mattered.

"What about the Kelly's?" he asked

"Marley managed to sort something apparently. How, I don't know, but they have somewhere to stay now"

"That's something at least" Eddie pointed out

Rachel nodded.

"I'm sorry about the way I reacted to the internal scan" she blurted

Eddie frowned at her.

"You know you don't need to apologise for that, Rach" he told her

"I know, but I feel like I should. I just... I think everything that happened with Stuart is still hanging over me in some ways" she admitted

Eddie took her hand into his.

"Rachel, what Stuart did to you was beyond vile and horrific. It would haunt anyone. You did so well today. If I'd been through what you'd been through and had to have an internal ultrasound, I'd have walked out and never looked back" he reassured

"I know, but I don't want what he did to me to taint this pregnancy. When the sonographer said about doing an internal scan, my mind just went straight back to that night after he... raped me... my mind just started spiralling out of control and I couldn't cope with it. I have to have internal exams done throughout the pregnancy, especially when I'm in labour. I can't have a panic attack every time I need to have one. But I don't know how to stop my mind going back to that place"

"Then we'll find ways to help you, yeah? You're not on your own with this, darling, I promise you. I'll be with you at every scan and appointment. We can find our way through this together, alright?" he reassured

"You have your first counselling session on Monday, maybe, if you can, talking about it will help?" he suggested

She nodded. The thought of talking about it all made her feel sick. But she knew she needed to do this, for the sake of herself, Eddie and their baby. She wanted to enjoy this pregnancy without anything hanging over her. It would be hard, and there would be no miracle cure, but with Eddie by her side, she knew she could do this. She would get there, slowly.

"Thank you for being here for me" she whispered, settling into him

Eddie smiled, placing a gentle kiss to the top of her head.

"Come on, take your anti-sickness tablet and we'll go to bed" he told her

She nodded, pecking him gently on the lips as she stood up.