geeky_agent | (no subject)

Current Mood: sleepy

(no subject)

Chris rolls over in bed, trying to hide from the creeping sun. Suddenly she's sitting up in bed looking for the clock, certain that she's slept through the alarm because it's so sunny out and it must be later in the morning than...

Then she finds the clock, realizes she still has a good while before she has to get up and sighs with relief. Collapsing onto the bed, she pulls the covers over her head and goes back to sleep.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"You did?" And suddenly she's more alert and things make more sense. With a wave to the couch she says, "Take a seat. I'm going to put on a pot of coffee, do you want some?"

"Yes, I did," she's unable to say more, afraid she'll start crying again.

One cup should be okay. Can you drink coffee during the first trimester? How do I not know this. I have so much research I need to do.

"That would be great, thank you." Michelle sits down, leaning forward slightly and clasping her hands together.

Chris goes to the kitchen, putting the coffee and refilling Coco's dish, hoping the food would distract her for now.

That done, she returns to the living room and takes a seat next to Michelle on the couch. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Michelle glances at Chris, feeling tears sting her eyes, so looks away. She presses her lips together, her neck muscles tensing and jaw tightening. "He wasn't there," she swallows a sob. "He wasn't."

"I know," Chris whispers, touching Michelle's shoulder. All that time waiting, hoping, she couldn't imagine the sadness Michelle felt when she realized Tony wasn't waiting for her at the bar.

"I should have realized that you - you told me not to get my hopes up, but I thought when I got to the bar that -- " she closes her eyes, tries to regain control. "I wanted to see him again so badly."

It's tempting to tell her that maybe he would show up, maybe it would just take a little more time but she couldn't give her that kind of empty hope.

"I know, I'm sorry," Chris says, voice soft. "Did you stay there long?"

She nods, "I was going to leave when I couldn't find him but I felt dizzy and then when I opened my eyes, I was in a room. Jack was there so I - I knew I wasn't in danger." She takes another breath.

"Chris -- I -- the Healer said that I'm pregnant. I'm...pregnant."

"Y-you are?" There's a hint of a smile on her face, a reflex, till she remembers this might not be good news.

"How do you feel about it?"

"I don't know," she says honestly. "Tony - he would - he would be so happy and I'd wanted to have his children so badly, and now I'm carrying his child but he'll never -- and I'm -- " She looks down.

If one thing had turn out differently, if they had waited before going into the mine, if she had waited to get more people, anything, maybe things would be different.

It shouldn't be this way.

Glancing over, Chris asks, "Do you know what you're going to do?"

"What do you mean?" Michelle doesn't look up at her.

Chris still looks at her, almost afraid to say it but she's come this far. "About the pregnancy."

"About...? Oh." Michelle realizes what she means.

"I want this baby. It's...not even a question."

Which is true, she can't imagine losing her last chance to fulfill their dream.

"All right. Just thought I'd ask." After everything she'd been through, raising a child alone might be too much.

Touching her arm she adds, "You know whatever you need, anything, I'll be there.

Michelle gives her a shaky barely there smile, "That's the same thing Jack said." She takes another breath.

"I don't know what I'd do if you weren't here."

"So Jack knows too?" She had mentioned him being there but Chris wasn't sure what that meant.

"He does, he was there when I found out and we...talked later on," Michelle hesitates a little at the end, hoping Chris doesn't ask questions.

She nods, feeling a tinge of relief at that. With their friendship on such rocky ground, she was glad that they were still talking.

"Tony was his brother," Chris says, voice catching at the last word, "he do anything for the both of you."

God, she had to get back to talk to him soon to see how he was doing.

Michelle almost winces as she pictures Jack's expression last night.

"More his brother than Alex," she whispers. "Jack never - he didn't - he never felt pity for him. He didn't try to change him." She touches Chris's hand after a moment.

Chris' smile at this is wry and bittersweet. "I don't think he could have if he wanted to. Tony wasn't someone who would let anyone push him around."

At Chris's words, Michelle remembers watching him descend after prison and how he slipped away from her, refusing to get help or even acknowledge the problem.

"He was just...my Tony," she presses her lips together. "I think you're dating the only man more stubborn than him."

"I think you might be right," she says with a dry laugh.

Then, remembering, she cranes her neck and looks into the kitchen. "I think the coffee's ready. Do you want something to eat?"

"Just the thought of food makes me ill. At least now I know why," Michelle gives her a very weak smile which threatens to give way to tears.

"Do you have any saltines?"

"I... don't know." She looks towards the cupboards. "Let me check."

A few minutes of searching later, she produced a ziplock bag filled with oyter crackers. "Would these work? I also have plain graham crackers."