A/N Thank you to everybody who is still reading this! And especially to those of you who have left comments - you are so good at keeping me motivated to write! I hope I've replied to most reviews.
Guest and Katnibellamione - I'm glad you're happy that the baby's sex remains a surprise - I've already written some baby scenes and I can't wait to share them!
Revisora - I totally agree - I absolutely LOVE that name, in fact, it was on my list of names for my own baby!
Anyway, this chapter is mainly just a whole lot of "Mother Issues". I'm actually really enjoying writing more domestic stuff and trying to capture the voices of different characters, so I hope I'm not becoming too self-indulgent with it and I'm sorry if I'm boring the pants off you all! I do take a little hop forward in the timeline here though, and I promise I'll try not to drag it all out for too long.
"You OK?" Joey checked as he reached down a hand to assist Monica, hoisting her from the seat of the cab that was in the process of dropping the pair outside of the restaurant where Chandler's mother had arranged a celebratory dinner for her son and his friends, in honor of his impending fatherhood.
Monica thanked their driver and watched in fond amusement as Joey surveyed their route to the restaurant door, exhibiting all of the vigilance that one might more commonly observe in a professional bodyguard. His dark eyes were grave and alert as he identified potential hazards and raised a protective arm to shepherd her across the sidewalk.
Despite being renowned for his womanizing ways, there was no doubting that Joey possessed an innate sense of chivalry, and Monica could tell that he was taking more than a degree of pride in being tasked with accompanying his pregnant friend across town.
She smiled appreciatively as he held open the restaurant door and gestured for her to pass.
Monica inspected her appearance a little anxiously in a mirror that hung in the lobby, smoothing out a crease in the crimson dress that hugged her perceptible baby bump, and fluffing her hair to reinvigorate the loose waves that tumbled around her shoulders.
Despite having been assured repeatedly by Chandler that worry was completely unnecessary, she was still feeling moderately nervous about tonight.
Chandler's experience of informing his parents about their baby had been vastly different to the drama and angst that Monica had gone through with her own family. She could not help but feel a little envious that he had felt able to simply contact them, one at a time, by telephone, and that neither one of them had apparently manifested anything but joy and excitement upon hearing their son's news.
Chandler had laughed out loud when Monica had decreed that their families' contrasting reactions provided conclusive proof that the Gellers were officially weirder than the Bings. Whilst there was no way he could ever agree with this assertion, he was incredibly relieved that on this occasion, his parents would not be bringing any further familial anguish to their door.
But even though Nora was apparently delighted about the baby, and despite having met her a number of times over the years, Monica felt a nerve-wracking sense of occasion about being formally introduced as Chandler's pregnant girlfriend. Their previous meetings had always been perfectly pleasant and amicable, and Chandler was adamant that Nora thought highly of her; but whilst Monica was sure she had made a good impression as Chandler's friend, she had no real idea whether or not Nora would deem her decent girlfriend-material, much less an adequate mother to her grandchild.
She realized that she had never actually heard Nora speak about any of Chandler's previous girlfriends (in fact, she had no idea if he had even told his mother about any of them), so whilst it seemed unlikely, for all Monica really knew, Nora could turn out to be as woman-wary and coddling over her son as her own mother was with Ross, which was a terrifyingly daunting prospect.
"I think we're the first here" Monica told Joey as she scanned the dining area for familiar faces.
Chandler and Rachel had arranged to meet at his office, and the two of them were going to pick Nora up on route.
Rachel made no secret of the fact that she was a great admirer of Nora's particular brand of romantic fiction, and Monica privately suspected that her friend had engineered her apparently coincidental proximity to Chandler's building this afternoon so that she might spend a little more time with his mother, and glean exclusive nuggets of information about the brand new novel Nora was in New York to promote.
The restaurant was busy and there were a few people waiting to be seated ahead of Joey and Monica so the pair shuffled into position behind them to form a queue.
A passing waitress noticed Monica's prominent bump and checked "Would you like me to fetch you a seat while you wait?"
"I'm OK, thank you" Monica grinned widely at the young woman, her hand instinctively moving to cradle her swollen belly.
A deliciously warm glow of pride enveloped her every time a stranger acknowledged her pregnancy: She could not remember ever having been made to feel so universally special in her whole life.
"How many weeks pregnant are you?" the waitress asked genially.
Before Monica could open her mouth to respond, Joey placed an affectionate palm on her bump and interjected excitedly "Almost 28 weeks! The baby's the size of a cauliflower!"
Monica chuckled inwardly as the waitress rewarded what she reasonably assumed to be paternal glee with an indulgent smile.
The further her pregnancy progressed, the more Monica felt like she was growing this child on behalf of their entire friendship group, such was their collective enthusiasm.
She and Joey turned to greet Phoebe as she swept through the door; resplendent in a flowing yellow dress; just as a waiter arrived to show them to their table. By the time the three of them were seated Monica felt a familiar warm flurry of butterflies in her rib-cage when she spotted Chandler making his way across the dining room, accompanied by Rachel.
His eyes sought her out immediately, his face melting into a fond smile, and when he took the seat next to hers, he leaned across to greet her with a lingering kiss and gave her bump a tender rub.
When Monica looked up she was amused to see the waitress who had welcomed her and Joey to the restaurant watching Chandler's affectionate display with startled bafflement, her confused eyes flitting between the two men as she struggled to make sense of the group dynamic.
"Hey, where's your mom?" Monica questioned.
"She's outside, she had to take a call from her publisher" Chandler explained "Sorry we're a bit late, we had to swing by her hotel because she had forgotten the gift she has for you."
"She got me a gift?" Monica looked touched.
"It's a signed copy of her new book!" Rachel trilled excitedly.
"So apologies in advance..." Chandler told her sardonically.
"Hey, erotica is a great gift for a pregnant woman!" Phoebe defended Nora's logic, "Those hormones send you wild, you need all the help you can get!"
Chandler raised his eyebrows.
Rachel sniggered as she recalled Phoebe's own pregnancy frustrations "Oh yeah! The hormones! I remember your Evander Holyfield phase!"
"Yeah, you were so hard up, you practically came on to me!" Monica remembered with a laugh.
"You wish!" Phoebe retorted with a scoff, causing Monica to arch a mildly offended eyebrow.
"Hey, I could have had you if I wanted you" she asserted with a slow nod that was at once self-assured and combative.
"Oh yeah?" Phoebe challenged, as she eyed her friend daringly "Well I bet I could have you, right here, right now..."
"Oh my!" Joey remarked with a lewd grin, his eyes dancing with delight.
Chandler's bottom lip had dropped open slightly as he absorbed Monica and Phoebe's exchange with interest, but when Joey began to gleefully jab at him with a conspiratorial elbow, it snapped him out of his reverie.
"O-kay!" Chandler placed what he hoped would prove to be a calming hand on his girlfriend's knee. "Listen ladies, my mom will be here any second, so if we could all refrain from having anybody right here right now, that would be great! And Pheebs? I think Monica and I have all the hormonal stuff covered."
"Don't we?" he leaned towards Monica to confirm with a concerned whisper.
She leaned over to brush his cheek with a kiss.
"You know it" she whispered back with a sultry grin.
Given that her second trimester had coincided precisely with the beginning of her relationship with Chandler, it was impossible for Monica to ascertain how much of her voracious sexual appetite had been driven by hormones, and how much was simply down to her blossoming romance, but either way, she had no complaints.
"Chandler!" Joey chastised, unhappy that his friend had cut short such a promising conversation between the two women. "For the love of God, let them speak!"
Chandler rolled his eyes.
"Sorry Joe! But my mom's supposed to be here on grandparent business, not picking up ideas for story-lines..."
"Well I'd read that... " Joey grumbled.
"Ooh, here she is now" Rachel told them, her eyes wide and admiring as she gestured towards the entrance to the restaurant where the diminutive yet eye-catching frame of Nora Tyler Bing had come into view.
Nora sashayed through the dining room, straight-backed and heavy-lidded, a pout of self-satisfaction on her face as she enjoyed the feeling of multiple gazes being drawn to her as she passed.
She was the kind of woman that exuded confidence from every pore: It mattered not a jot to her whether the eyes that raked over her designer clothed curves, expensive blonde hair and lavish makeup were appreciative, disparaging or contemptuous; as long as they were trained upon her, Nora felt powerful.
She greeted the entire table with enthusiasm, but made a particular beeline for Monica.
"Here she is! The main event!" she drew her son's girlfriend into a joyful hug before cupping her face adoringly in her hands and then standing back to admire her pregnant form.
"Oh just look at you, Monica! Congratulations honey, you're absolutely glowing! Completely stunning! And that bump! It's the most beautiful one I ever saw! My first grandchild! I can hardly believe it!"
She pressed her perfectly manicured fingers against Monica's abdomen "Chandler said the baby is kicking now?"
"Yeah" Monica grinned, "Not right now, but he or she usually wakes up when I eat, so I'll let you know" she promised.
Nora set a small gift bag down on the table next to Monica "Just a copy of the latest book and some perfume I picked up for you from the airport" she told her "I hope it's the right one, Chandler said you liked Chanel."
Monica took a peek in the bag and grinned "That's really sweet of you Mrs Bing, thank you so much"
"Call me Nora! Please! We're family now!" She rebuked with a dazzling smile.
Nora's avid attention and effusiveness stood in stark contrast with the lukewarm response Monica had thus far received from her own mother, and the glowing adulation swathed her heart like a warm blanket.
However, she could not help but feel a little annoyed with herself that Chandler's mother was able to beguile her so easily.
Monica knew only too well that Chandler's childhood had been far from stable, and as charming as Nora undoubtedly was, her tendency towards self-absorption had left her son woefully and inappropriately exposed to the toxicity of her relationship with his father and then with her subsequent lovers.
The fact that the chaos of his formative years continued to impact upon Chandler's self-confidence and sense of security throughout his adult life led Monica to feel fiercely protective of him; and of the emotionally neglected little boy he once was; and she wished in some ways, that she was able to air her disapprobation by greeting Nora with the cool aloofness that Chandler had fostered towards Judy.
But Nora was a very different beast.
The woman possessed an inherent magnetism and likeability that made her streak of narcissism frustratingly forgivable, and Monica knew that despite deep-rooted feelings of disappointment and resentment, even Chandler himself struggled to stay angry with his mother: Despite his frequent criticism of her parenting skills, his acute fondness for her was always apparent when he was in her presence.
Monica knew that despite her shortcomings, Nora loved her son dearly; just as she knew that underneath it all, her own mother loved her.
She thought perhaps, that if she could find a way to combine Nora's warmth and easy affection with Judy's sense and stability, she might just achieve something close to maternal perfection.
"No Ross tonight?" Nora glanced around the table as she shimmied into the vacant seat beside Monica.
"He has his son tonight and couldn't get a babysitter" Monica explained, casting an empathetic glance towards Chandler who was staring down at his menu.
The last time the group had dined with Chandler's mother, Ross had drunkenly kissed Nora, and whilst Chandler had robustly challenged and subsequently forgiven both parties for the indiscretion, Monica got the distinct impression that it was a lingering sense of embarrassment that had prevented her brother from joining the group this evening, rather than any genuine childcare issue.
"Ah that's a shame" Nora lamented lightly before suggesting with a smile "Shall we start with cocktails? I could murder a margarita. Anybody else?"
She reached over to take Monica's hand in her own "I'm sure they'll find something delicious and virgin for my beautiful daughter-in-law!"
Chandler cringed. Monica had been annoyed enough by her own family's expectations that she and Chandler should marry on account of her pregnancy; now his own mother had gone one step further and decided that no actual proposal or ceremony were necessary at all, simply marrying them off in her head.
He braved a glance towards her, and was relieved to see that far from appearing aggrieved, a wide grin was plastered across Monica's face.
"So let's talk names..." Nora suggested, as she unfolded her napkin with a flourish.
"Oh they won't listen to any of my suggestions" Phoebe shot an accusatory look towards Chandler. "They're determined to name it something incredibly boring".
"Oh no, I meant for me, not for the baby" Nora clarified "I just don't see myself as a "Grandma" you know? "
Chandler rolled his eyes as he took a long swig of the margarita that a waitress had just set down in front of him.
"I've been doing a little research, and apparently in the Philippines they say "Lola", which I quite like" Nora began, "...and in Swahili it's "Bibi" which is another strong contender... But then I was chatting with a gorgeous young man on the plane and he thought "Glamma" might suit me better..." she purred with a smile.
"Oh, I love that!" Rachel concurred delightedly, clasping her hands together as she listened intently to Nora with an enraptured look on her face.
Chandler grimaced.
"Maybe you could wait to see what the baby comes up with" he suggested dryly.
"Oh, it's gonna need to be something special, Honey" Nora informed him, "No doubt your father will choose something exotic, and I'll be damned if I'm gonna be upstaged by him."
Chandler felt Monica's hand find his beneath the table, her fingers weaving intimately between his.
"And what about your mom, Monica?" Nora continued in earnest "Has she decided what she would like to be called?"
"Uh... I don't think she's thought too much about it" Monica replied softly, smiling at Nora before moving her eyes awkwardly towards her lap.
It was a source of great pain for Monica that her pregnancy was rarely even mentioned by Judy, only ever being used as a vehicle for criticism or fault finding.
Chandler squeezed her fingers beneath the table and she turned towards him with a grateful smile.
Nora's perceptive gaze lingered upon her for a moment, before she reached to stroke Monica's arm affectionately with her light fingertips.
Chandler's eyes fluttered open and slowly adjusted to the darkness in the room, eventually coming to focus on a clearly wakeful Monica. A shaft of bright moonlight illuminated her cobalt irises as she gazed towards the bedroom window, her expression calm but pensive.
Chandler dragged himself up to rest on his elbow in order to observe her more closely "Are you OK? What time is it? " he asked groggily, his mind still addled by his deep, margarita-fuelled sleep.
She turned and smiled gently "It's 3.30. I can't sleep, that's all. And the baby's thrashing around like a fish in a bucket. Look..."
She pulled up her vest so that he could observe her belly: The surface of her bump undulated mesmerically, her skin apparently straining to contain the restless infant within.
Chandler's eyes widened in alarm "Oh my God! It's like a scene from Alien!"
"I know!" Monica laughed, "I think it's all of the sugar in those virgin daiquiris. Me and the baby are both completely wired!"
Chandler wrapped his arms around her and she rolled onto her side so that he could spoon his body around hers: Face-to-face cuddling was becoming increasingly difficult, thanks to her distended abdomen.
"Oh honey, I'm so sorry. I can't believe you had to endure an entire evening of my mom, completely sober. I don't think I've attempted that since about 1985." he told her apologetically, pressing his lips against her neck.
"I actually really enjoyed it." Monica mused with a rueful smile "It was nice to have somebody be so happy for us, for a change. I think your mom might have been the first person who wasn't shocked, or weirded out, or angry, or disappointed. It felt really good to just have somebody react... normally..."
"My mother? The most "normal"? That's gotta be a first!" Chandler remarked, "I don't think she's so fond of "normal". In fact, she'd probably be offended to hear that her new favorite had said such a thing."
"Well, don't tell her I said it then!" Monica replied reproachfully "I kinda like being somebody's favorite!"
"Hey! You're always my favorite." he told her, squeezing her tighter against his chest and burrowing his face into her hair.
She clasped her hands around his and brought his fingers to her lips for a kiss.
"You know what I mean" she replied with more than a hint of sorrow. "My own mom has barely even acknowledged that the baby exists since we told her. I really thought she would have come around to the idea by now, you know? I thought she'd be at least a little excited..."
"I'm sorry honey" Chandler told her genuinely.
He could not help but feel partially culpable, strongly suspecting that Judy would have proven far more enthusiastic about a grandchild that had been sired by a man she deemed more suitable; or maybe even if his own relationship with Monica had simply taken a more conventional path.
He took a deep breath before musing tentatively "Do you think she'd find it easier to get on board with it all if we were married?"
"I'm not getting married for the sake of my mother, Chandler!" she dismissed sharply.
"I know! I wasn't suggesting that!" he refuted, giving her a placating squeeze, "I don't want that either."
He paused for a moment before telling her in a voice that was low and sincere "But that doesn't mean I don't want to marry you, you know... one day..."
Monica pressed her eyelids closed and sighed deeply as Chandler's hands drifted to caress her bump.
His eyes glazed over in awe as he marveled at the sensation of their infant rolling inside of her, and the occasional sharp jabs of tiny elbows and knees as its limbs continued to fidget wildly.
"Have you told your mom how she's making you feel?" he asked her hesitantly.
"I'm pretty sure I'm feeling exactly how she wants me to feel. That's the problem." she whispered dejectedly, her voice beginning to quaver with emotion as her hands joined his on her tummy
"I just don't want to turn into her, Chandler. I don't ever want our child to feel like a disappointment."
He frowned painfully when he realized she was suddenly close to tears.
"Promise me you'll tell me? If I ever make them feel that way?" she implored.
"You won't, Mon," he assured her "That's not who you are. You're going to be the most wonderful mom. Everybody knows it."
He placed a lingering kiss against her shoulder and enveloped her in his arms, feeling suddenly desperate to restore some lightness to her heart.
"Anyway, you're the least of our problems. Who knows? Maybe I'll be the one to turn into my dad? You might find me standing at school gates dressed as Carmen Miranda" He felt relieved to hear her quietly chuckle as he winced at the image that formed in his mind "Ew. That wouldn't be pretty"
"Oh I don't know..." Monica teased as she rolled over to face him, groaning softly at the effort required to shift the weight of her bump. She cupped his face in her hands, examining his features adoringly, before bringing her lips to his for a sensual kiss.
Chandler pulled away briefly and regarded her with skepticism as he quipped "My God Honey, your hormones must be running wild if even the idea of me in Carmen Miranda drag gets you fired up."
"Nothing to do with hormones. You always fire me up." she smirked between kisses "And anyway, I happen to think you'd make a very pretty lady."
"Oh my God, what has gotten into you today?" he gave a playful grin, as his mind drifted back to the conversation that had so delighted Joey back at the restaurant "So how pretty do you think I'd be? As pretty as Phoebe?" he asked hopefully.
She drew back from him and eyed him with mock appraisal "Well let's not get carried away..." she told him wryly, before threading her fingers through his hair and dragging his lips back towards hers "But you'll do".
Chandler could not decide whether to laugh or scold when he arrived home from work to find Monica; now in her 31st week of pregnancy; crouched on her elbows and knees, surrounded by tools with her rear facing skyward. As Chandler approached he could see her sinewy bicep flexing hard and a frown of intense determination on her face as she tightened a bolt on what appeared to be a partially constructed crib.
He walked up behind her and could not resist giving her elevated backside a light slap as he queried "What the hell are you doing Geller? You do know you're 7 months pregnant right?"
She pushed up onto her wrists and grinned delightedly over her shoulder at him. "Your mom sent the baby a crib for Christmas! Isn't it beautiful?"
"It's great! But why didn't you wait for me to come home? I would have put it together."
He narrowed his eyes sardonically as he noted the look of doubt on her face.
She reached for his hand to haul herself to her feet and mopped her brow with the back of her arm "Well, I've nearly finished it now" she said, standing back to appraise her work "There's just this one side left . It has a mechanism so you can drop it down, and I can't figure it out. My dad's going to come round to help me with it tomorrow."
Chandler's mouth dropped open in offended disbelief "Your dad? What, you don't think I could do it?"
"Well, of course I think you could do it!" she assuaged with a smile that was a little too wide to be believable "I just asked Dad because... Well... You know how bored he gets when he doesn't have a project..."
Chandler arched a skeptical eyebrow, but as he examined the offending piece of crib he could not help but inwardly acknowledge that he had been provided with a lucky escape.
"OK. Well if you think Jack'll enjoy doing it..." he conceded mildly.
"Where the hell are we going to put this thing anyway?" he suddenly questioned, as he contemplated the generous dimensions of the crib and remembered that Monica's room already housed a smaller bassinet that the baby would be sleeping in until it was big enough to move into its own bedroom, as well as various other nursery items.
"I'm pretty sure I can squeeze it into our room until next week. We could always sleep over at yours until moving day, if it's too cramped" she told him, throwing him an excited grin which he returned eagerly.
Chandler and Monica had not spent a night apart in longer than either could remember, but next week Chandler would be officially taking residence in Apartment 20. After a frank discussion with Rachel and Joey, it had been mutually agreed that the obvious solution to the problems that that baby posed to their living arrangements, was that Chandler and Rachel should simply swap homes, meaning that nobody would have to go through that trauma of searching for a new place to live, finding a new roommate, or having to move their belongings miles across town.
As the big day loomed, all four residents were feeling a degree of sadness and trepidation about the imminent change, but Monica and Chandler were tremendously excited to be able to ready their home for the tiny occupant that would be requiring a lot more space from February.
Monica's face suddenly clouded with guilt as she took his hand and looked up at him through her eyelashes "Speaking of my parents... I have a little confession to make.."
Chandler eyed her nervously.
"I kind of said that we would spend Christmas with them this year..."
There was no way Chandler could even attempt to disguise the level of disappointment this news made him feel, and he threw back his head as he let out a loud groan of displeasure.
He had been so looking forward to spending the holidays in domestic bliss with Monica, even secretly hoping that their friends might have made alternative plans so the two of them could have the apartment completely to themselves. Instead, he would be forced to spend the day making futile attempts at polite small-talk whilst dodging Judy Geller's hostile daggers.
"I'm sorry!" she told him mournfully "Mom took me by surprise! I wasn't expecting her to ask us. They don't usually make a huge deal of Christmas but Ross is going to be there with Ben - he has him for 3 whole days over the holidays this year, which has never happened before... "
Chandler gave a resigned sigh as she slipped her arms around his waist." I can get us out of it if you really can't face it" she promised quietly.
He hugged her back, slightly placated by the news that Ross and Ben would be there too, and knowing that he should really be encouraging any apparent thawing of relations with Judy.
"No it's fine. I'm happy to go as long as you are. I just don't want anything to upset you.." he told her honestly.
"Thank you" she tiptoed to place a chaste kiss against his lips "I'm hoping that they will be so wrapped up in Ben they'll be on their best behavior"
Chandler just hoped that for Monica's sake, Judy Geller would find it within herself to wrap herself up in her newest grandchild at some point too.
"Dad did a great job with the crib. Do you want to see?" Monica called to her mother from her bedroom.
"Oh, yes. I'll take a look before I leave". Judy replied, sounding exhausted from the long day she had spent shopping for Christmas presents for her grandson.
Monica rolled her eyes at her mother's perceived indifference but as she cast her eyes around the cramped room, she was a little unsure if there would have been enough space for Judy to have entered to view the crib, even if she had wanted too.
The ever increasing pile of baby-related paraphernalia that she and Chandler had accumulated now took up almost every inch of floor space in her bedroom, and whilst she knew she would miss Rachel terribly, Monica could not wait for her friend to vacate the room that was to be swiftly transformed into her baby's nursery.
She carefully navigated her way back towards the kitchen, where her mother was seated, an abundance of shopping bags piled at her feet.
"Do you know when you kids are coming home for Christmas yet? So I can get your rooms ready?" Judy asked, as she sipped at her tea demurely.
"Oh, I spoke with Ross and I think it will be the evening of the 23rd" Monica confirmed "Chandler usually works until 6.00pm but he should be able to get out a little early; so Ross, Ben and I will wait here for him and then we'll head straight off."
"Oh I didn't realize Chandler was coming.."
Monica balked at the poorly disguised distaste in her mother's tone and felt the muscles in her jaw contract involuntarily.
"Of course Chandler's coming." she replied stiffly.
"Well you never mentioned it!" Judy reprimanded lightly "It's a good job I asked or I might not have bought enough food!"
"I'm sorry Mom" Monica replied in a tone that was anything but apologetic "I guess I assumed it would be implicit that I would be spending Christmas with the father of my child. Remember last year? When I asked if you would be spending Thanksgiving here? I didn't bother to check whether Dad would be coming too, because it was just obvious that he would be. It's kind of a package deal!"
Judy managed not to roll her eyes but could not prevent a small scoff "That's not quite the same thing, dear."
"Actually it is." Monica told her firmly, looking directly into her eyes "It's exactly the same thing. Because whether you like it or not, Chandler and I are starting a family, and our baby is due in two months time. So from now on, you can assume that we will be spending any future holiday, or vacation, or family event together, unless I tell you otherwise."
Judy met Monica's steely glare, and raised her eyebrows before giving a pensive nod.
"Well you'll have to let me know what he likes to eat" she eventually continued, her expression neutral "I remember he had a few issues when it came to Thanksgiving food. Is he the same at Christmas?"
"Don't worry about that. I'll bring mac and cheese. I know he always likes that, and I've been craving cheese recently anyway..." Monica muttered dejectedly, pursing her lips and staring down at her lap as she awaited a barbed response from her mother.
But Judy looked wistfully into her daughter's face and told her "You don't have to bring your own food Monica, you'll be almost 8 months pregnant by then, and I'm looking forward to taking care of you for a few days. I'm more than happy to make mac and cheese. For all three of you... "
She reached forward a little hesitantly and placed a tender hand on the swell of her daughter's bump before moving it to brush a lock of hair from her face.
The gesture was as loving as it was unexpected and Monica felt tears of astonishment prickling at the back of her eyes.
"Thank you Mom" she managed to reply hoarsely, as she leaned forward to wrap her arms around Judy's neck.
Judy returned her embrace before patting her daughter's back and pulling away with a gentle smile.
"Well, I suppose I should take a look at this crib" she proposed, "I'm sure your father will be expecting me to admire his handiwork".
That Judy had allowed herself to reveal even the scantest shred of interest in her treasured baby caused Monica's heart to swell immeasurably. She smiled with gratitude, her watery cobalt eyes bright with emotion as she led her mother towards the bedroom, hoping beyond all hopes, that this small act was a genuine sign that the two of them had finally turned a corner.