A gasp comes from the doorway.
“Okay then, well we are going to look at her charts… and if we think we need to then we will prep Courtney for an emergency C-section in about an hour” and with that the nurse leaves the room and in walk our friends.

“I’m so sorry!” I cry out again to Duncan. “I had no idea….I haven’t gained any weight or anything….”

“It’s okay honey” he says as he calms me down.

“When were you to going to tell us you guys were sleeping with each other?” asks Bridgette.

“Dude, why didn’t you tell me you guys were going out?” asks Geoff

“Are you guys going out?” asks Trent “Or is it just sex?”

“No of course it is not just sex!” Duncan parks “Courtney means so much more to me than just sex!”

“So how long have you guys been going out?” asks Gwen

“About 10 months” I say quietly.

“Why didn’t you guys tell us?” asks Bridgette angrily. “Did you guys think we wouldn’t like it? That we would be mad?”

“I was afraid you would act like this!” I growl angrily. “Why are you acting like this? Is it because we didn’t tell you or is there another reason?”

“Courtney honey, calm down……you need to stay calm for the baby.” Duncan says soothingly

“I’m sorry…..” Bridgette says softly “It’s just that I don’t understand why you didn’t tell us. Why you didn’t tell me……”

“We didn’t tell you because this was to important to us” Duncan whispers. “It was the best way for us.” they look at him and I confused.

“If we had told you that- UUGHH--” I grunt through the pain “ that we were dating it would had made things different. You wouldn’t have understood the way we act around each other.” they still weren’t understanding. “Duncan may act tough around you guys and everyone else but I have seen his other side….the side that---” I grunt again in pain “UUUGHHH--- the side that”

“The side that no one but Courtney has ever seen. The side I’m only willing to show someone I truly love.”

“We know Duncan is nice” says Geoff.

“That’s just it….you don’t really” he say, “sure I was nice to you buy helping you move furniture out of your moms when she died and you moved in with your grandma, and sure I was nice to you Gwen when I helped her burry her dead cat, but I would never do for you what I have done for Courtney. I’m sorry to say that I don’t care about you guys the way I do Courtney. When she is in pain, even just a little pain, it kills me. When she is sad I want to drown in her tears. When she is happy I’m ecstatic. When she tells me she loves me, or shows me her affection in some little way, even if its just a little smile or wink nothing can hurt me….I’m invincible when I have her love.”

“Duncan is the sweetest man alive.” I say “you all may think that is an odd statement but hopefully you will understand when I tell you this- when Duncan and I first started dating, are very first date…. I got a really bad stomach ach. It was so bad that I threw up and passed out from the pain……he tried to take me to the hospital, but I didn’t want to go….so he took me to his house instead. He laid me down in his bed, took of my damp shirt and skirt, helped me put on one of his t shirts and stayed up all night taking care of me. He never tried to do anything to me…..he didn’t even make any remarks when I threw up on him. He just took care of me.” they all stared at Duncan, none of what I was saying sounded like Duncan to them, but it was the Duncan I know. “ He takes care of me when I’m sick or hurt or scared….he goes above and beyond to make me happy. He kisses me so sweetly……he holds me so closely to him when we slow dance that our bodies fell like one. He raps me in his arms at night and I feel so safe….safer than I have ever felt before. He protects me from anything and everything he can. One night we were driving down the road and a dog ran out in front of us….a puppy. I hit the brakes as hard as I could and prayed that I wouldn’t hurt it. I was to scared to get out and look but Duncan got out for me. He was out there for a long while. When he got back in he told me that I hadn’t hit the puppy and that he had walked it to the address on its coaler, but I say what really happened.” I’m looking at Duncan now, his eyes are resting on our hands tangled up together and resting on my stomach. “I had hit the puppy and it was dead. It didn’t have a coaler so he couldn’t rush it to its owners house. He tried to save it but he couldn’t, so he quickly buried it so I wouldn’t have to see what I had done.”

“I couldn’t let you be sad princess.” he whispered to me…but the others heard as well.

“well,” Geoff says, “I guess we really don’t understand your relationship. But I’m glade that you guys are together….I just wish we new before now.”

“yeah” Trent agrees.

“excuse me…” the nurse says as she pocks her head in the room. “may I come in?”

“Yes of coarse” Duncan says.

“We decided that you don’t need an emergency C- section…..but that baby wants to come out so you are going to have to deliver it the old fashioned way.”