2021-02-07 Fernanda's Realization

 2021-02-07 Fernanda's Realization

On Sunday afternoon Fernanda Negron was trying desperately to study. But the waves of nausea were rolling over her concentration like Tsunamis. The anxiety she was feeling didn’t help either. She knew….she just hadn’t told anyone yet. Duncan had been so upset that night about the news of his mother, that one spontaneous night when she just comforted him, and they skipped the condom altogether. They had rationalized it after. She had looked at her calendar and for once in her life she had miscalculated. The queasy feeling had just started but she was already aware she was late. Her mother had been shopping and bestowed her and Laia with a stockpile of pads and tampons because there was a good deal on at the pharmacy. Fernanda had smiled and thanked her mother, but a week after, she had no need for the supplies. Surely Laia suspected. Surely Duncan did. She hoped to god her parents did not...not yet. Give her time to find the words. I mean really only two needed to be spoken, before all hell would break loose. “I’m pregnant.” She whispered to the stillness between her face and her laptop. “I’m pregnant…”

He couldn’t study.  Duncan Rogers was more distracted than he could ever remember being.  The memory of New Year’s Day kept coming back to him.  It had started out miserable, with his mind full of reports about his mother and her rejection of all of them.  He’d tried to keep up appearances and not ruin Angel Negron’s wedding day, but in the end, he and Fernanda had snuck off so he could talk about his feelings.  She was always patient with him and he loved her for it.  They had made love and after they remembered what they had forgotten.  A condom.  Fernanda hadn’t said anything to him about it, but he had a feeling that she was late.  More than just late.  Pregnant.  He already knew his feelings on the matter and he wondered if she was afraid of his reaction.  Or her parents and family.  Blowing out a breath, he shut his book and pulled out his phone, sending Fernanda a text.

How are you feeling, love?  We need to talk, don’t we?  I love you

He sent it and sat back on his bed, closing his eyes and taking in a deep sigh.

Fernanda was still staring at her screen absently when her phone buzzed and vibrated on the desk. She looked at it and read Duncan’s words as they came across the screen. She sighed in acceptance and relief. He knew, and he was still telling her he loved her. Duncan was a good man. She picked up the phone and texted back:

Meet me for a walk? Halfway point by the road to the forest?

She shoved the phone in the back pocket of her dark blue jeans as she stood. She needed a walk regardless. Fresh air would help the nausea too. Her parents were rattling around in the kitchen and she dodged them as she grabbed her jacket and slung it around her shoulders “Going for a walk…” She called absently. She and Laia both took walks for exercise so it wasn’t an abnormal exit. Fernanda yanked on her boots without tying them up and shoved the laces down the sides. Her jacket was black leather but fleece lined. Her boots were black too. She wound a red scarf around her as she made her way. Red was her favourite colour and she wore red somewhere everyday even if it was something small. Fashion was the least of her concerns now though. Life was about to change. She was a fast walker and walked and waited for Duncan’s reply, finding herself in sight of the service road in no time.

Duncan opened his eyes, read the text and went downstairs to get into his boots and coat.  His coat was a bomber jacket and he loved it.  “I’m gonna take a walk.”  he told the air.  Miranda and Romeo were home … possibly.  It was hard to tell.  That was how distracted he had been.  It was Sunday, so he was sure his father and Levi were at Levi’s place.  No one answered him by the time the door closed behind him and he walked towards the meeting place, spying Fernanda and smiling, despite everything.  If she doesn’t protest, he will take her in his arms and kiss her deeply, then start walking into the forest.  “You’re pregnant, aren’t you?”  he decided not to waste time beating around the bush.  “I mean … have you taken a test yet?”  he squeezes her hand as they walk.

Fernanda felt immediately lighter at the sight of Duncan, despite how many worries were buzzing around in her overactive brain. When he took her in his arms and kissed her she kissed him back and held onto him like a lifeline until they eased back and walked holding hands. She nodded slowly and then gave a little shrug “Not yet…..but I’m pretty sure. I’m queasy now. Not continually but off and on. And I’m late...if that wasn’t the give away already.” Duncan knew her very well now and she was open with him about everything, even womanly things. She sighed “I love you too...I didn’t text it but I’m glad you did. I guess I should get an official test.” Fernanda squeezes Duncan’s hand back.

Duncan nods as she speaks.  It did seem obvious.  He stops and nods in the direction of the town.  “We can go now.”  he offers.  “My Dad has the day off, but you might be happier seeing Dr McKinney?”  he arches his brows.  He isn’t worried about his father’s reaction so much.  There would be disappointment but … Duncan realized he half hoped she was pregnant.  “Nan …”  he paused.  “You already know that, no matter what the results are, I still want to marry you…”  he told her.  Her being pregnant might speed that up a little, but not change it by any means.

Fernanda halts with Duncan and follows his gaze when he mentions that they could go now. She knows they should. Especially for telling their parents. Duncan’s father is a doctor after all. She has no idea what kind of reaction to expect from the Roger’s family. They’re kind for sure, but this is new territory. As for her own family….well she was honestly afraid of breaking her mother’s heart making her watch Fernanda do exactly what she did. She can’t imagine her mother becoming a  hypocrite and treating her the way she was treated when she had Angel though. Still too many big conversations to comprehend. Duncan’s words ring in her ears though and she gives him a melting look “I know….I still want that too...no matter the results.” She flung herself back into his arms for a long embrace before taking his hand again and steering her steps in the direction of the Alexandra Clinic to confirm what she already knew.

Duncan held onto Fernanda’s hand as they walked towards the clinic.  He wanted to be by her side through it all.  They were in this together.  He opened the door when they got there and held it as Fernanda did the talking.  No one else was in the waiting room, but he took his mask out of his pocket and put it on anyway.  Seemed it was a slow Sunday in the clinic.

Fernanda also slipped on a mask and spoke to the front desk “Is Doctor McKinney taking walk ins today? I’d like to get in if I can.”

It wasn’t Shelly Newcastle behind the desk on Sundays but a weekend part timer who doubled as a health care aide. He was a small slight man of obvious Middle Eastern descent with brown skin, shorn to his head jet black hair and black eyes that seemed large for his small face that darted around between blinks over his own medical grade face mask. He wore light green scrubs and navy grey slip on sneakers. Tarek Nadir nodded “Yes she has time now. Can I get your name please?” He gave the young woman a smile but looked harder at the young man who bore such a striking resemblance to Dr. Rogers. This must be the oldest son. He was curious as to why they weren’t seeing the doctor in the family but he knew it was best not to ask these things, especially with a  young woman.

“Fernanda Negron.”

Tarek typed away at his computer and put in the info. Then he called out “Dr. McKinney?” The clinic was small and she was likely nearby.

Fernanda rocked on her feet a bit nervously as they waited, steadying herself with the feeling of Duncan’s hand around her own.

Susan McKinney was enjoying the quiet day.  Times like this, she felt they didn’t really need the hospital extension, but … when things in ALexandra went wrong the hospital got slammed.  Maybe the extension would be one of those ‘have it and not need it’ scenarios.  She heard Tarek calling her name and stepped out of Exam 1 to see Duncan and Fernanda masked up and waiting.  “Hi.”  she smiled, looking between them.  “Come on in .. Exam 1.”  she motioned for them to follow.  Duncan usually saw his father, so she was assuming that Fernanda wanted a word.  They were an established couple, as far as she knew, so the ruled out a test for an STD and put her money on a pregnancy test.  Sliding the accordion door closed, she smiled at them both.  “How can I help you?”

Duncan moved into the exam room.  They were so small, but he was with Fernanda.  He kept his mouth shut, letting Fernanda handle it.

Fernanda stepped in and just bluntly stated their purpose “I need a pregnancy test. I’m pretty sure I know the answer but we need an official result.” She exhaled audibly into her mask after she said it, looked at Duncan for reassurance, and unzipped her jacket, assuming Dr. McKinney would be asking her for an arm to take blood. Or maybe it was urine? She had never had a pregnancy test before. She knew the drugstore ones were pee on a stick but she has skipped that step. 

Susan listens and nods, completely relaxed.  “Alright…”  she speaks as she gets a small plastic jar with a screw on lid and a small label.  “Put your name on this label, then pee into this, cap it and leave it in the bathroom.  And I will be back with the results.”  she smiles.  Easy as pie.

Duncan unzips his jacket as well and stands quietly as out of the way as he can, but within easy reach of Fernanda.

Fernanda nods resolutely and takes the cup “Let’s get it over with then. Thank you.” She slides the accordion door open and walks to the bathroom to do as instructed. When she comes back in, it’s just Duncan in the room and she walks to him and hugs him “And now we wait.” She exhales again, working to stay level, even though this part of it feels very stressful to her.

Duncan waited alone in the exam room and when Fernanda returns, he hugs her back.  Blowing out a breath, he nods.  “It’s fine, no matter what.”  he tries to reassure her.  He considers his job with Levi and the money he has saved up.  Preparing for a baby.

Susan ordered Colleen Reinhardt to run the test, then went down to her office to pull up Fernanda’s chart.  She downloaded it onto her tablet and went back upstairs.  Colleen gave her the test result and Susan noted it in the chart as she returned to Exam 1.  Closing the accordion door, she moves over to Fernanda.  “The results are positive.”  she tells her.  Them.  “You’re pregnant.”  she pauses.  “There are, of course, several options from here…”  but she lets the sentence drop as Fernanda and Duncan absorb the news.

Fernanda knew she was pregnant. But hearing it from Dr. McKinney makes it even more real. Duncan said it was fine no matter what. They both wanted children one day. It was just sooner than they imagined it would be. But she knew it was still a lot at the age and stage of life they were at. She looked at Doctor McKinney and nodded and then looked at Duncan “I want to have it...and keep it.” She knew this about herself. She could never make any other choice. She prayed Duncan felt the same.

Duncan hears the results and takes in a deep breath, even as Fernanda says she wants to keep it.  Her words make him smile and he nods.  “Then we’ll keep it.”  he says in agreement.  Pausing, he looks at Fernanda.  “I love you.”  he tells her.  “We’ll have to tell our families … together …”  he is thinking not only should he be by her side as always, but maybe even only give the information to the parents once.

Susan watches her reaction and keeps her own face neutral.  “Alright then …”  she looks at the chart and then turns to get the Due Date chart out of her pocket.  “If you can remember the date of your last period, I can give a due date …”  she heard Duncan and is glad he is sticking around … not that she’d expect less from Jasper’s son.

Fernanda’s eyes tear up as Duncan responds to her with a  smile. It was the reaction she had hoped for and she gives him a small but lingering peck and nods “Maybe we can bring our parents together for ….dinner? I’m not ready to extend to the siblings yet.” With her siblings it would be a cacophony of chatter and questions she was sure. Fernanda  looks at the due date chart Susan has out and sighs “What if we just know when the conception was? It was the night of my brother’s wedding. New Year’s Day eve. It’s the only time we didn’t use a condom. I had a period in the range of two weeks before probably.”

Duncan nods.  “Maybe at Levi’s … neutral ground and no siblings.”  he chuckles.  “He isn’t sure how his sister and brother would react.  He pulls out his phone and very carefully segregates Levi, his father, Mateo and Maria into a text message.  The memory of the message his father sent to half the island when he caught her and Gene would never fade from his mind.

Hey Levi, can I treat you guys to dinner at your place tonight?

As he sends it, he wonders what they will think, but decides not to dwell on that.  He hears the chat about due dates and grins, murmuring.  “October 1st.”

Susan nods.  “Then it sounds like the due date would be …”  and she says it at the same time Duncan does.  “October 1st.”  she chuckles.  “Alright then.  Make an appointment with Tarek for a complete exam and start thinking how you’d like to give birth .. we have an excellent midwife if you want a home birth, although that doesn’t always work out.”  the story of Cedar Brate’s birth was, of course, all over the island.

Normally Fernanda was on the ball with numbers but both Duncan and Dr. McKinney said the date before she could even count the months in her head. She was just too overwhelmed by it all. She had noticed Duncan texting and pulled out her phone, seeing the message and waiting almost on baited breath for her mother to spontaneously call her. “October 1st…” She repeated. “I could do it by then.” She didn’t specify what she meant and they might assume just taking on parenting...but she meant school. Fernanda was well ahead in most subjects already. She could accelerate that, take summer school and some correspondence classes. She blinked at Susan “Home birth…..good god not in MY house! There’s way too many people around. In theory that sounds lovely.” She laughs “And I guess like the mayor and his wife’s baby, they can just be born anywhere in town too. I’ll make another appointment, yes.”

Jasper was just finishing a cup of coffee and taking his cup to Levi’s kitchen sink when he heard the ping indicating a  text. It was Duncan asking to treat him and Levi, as well as Fernanda’s parents to dinner? He frowned at the text and looked up to see if Levi was reading it too “Should we be worried?” He wondered out loud. “Are you ok having everyone here?” He didn’t want to assume Levi wanted a sudden dinner party without consultation.

Mateo had just hung up a painting, a birthday gift from Ziggy and now he was standing back to ponder whether it was crooked. It was a scenic portrait of the Alexandra harbour and he quite liked it. “I used a level….” He muttered. “Maybe the house is crooked…..” He squinted at it and heard his phone chirp but didn’t check immediately.

Susan chuckles at Fernanda’s reaction to the concept of a home birth.  “Well, you still have plenty of time to consider it.” she tells them.  Then she takes her tablet and heads for the door.  “Congratulations.  And yes, Duncan you can come to any of the appointments Fernanda lets you.”  she winks and heads out of the door and down to her basement office.

Levi was halfway to the kitchen when his phone vibrated.  He looked at the message with raised brows.  “I can’t think of a reason to worry.  I’d love to have them over.”  he lifts up his phone and replies.

Can’t wait!  Let me treat.  Pizza?

Maria looks at the painting and giggles at Mateo.  “I don’t think artists use levels, Mateo.  But it’s very pretty and face it .. the natural ground is never level, right?”  She was still giggling a little when her phone chirped with a text message.  Reading it, she frowned and then tightened her jaw.  “Duncan wants to talk to us …”  she told her husband.  “ALL of us.”  she tightened her jaw again.  “If those two ran off and got married ....”  she tells her phone as she replies.

If you two ran off and got married before you even graduate!!  Pizza sounds good, Levi.  We’re on our way now for this pizza and news!

She sends the message and looks at Mateo.  “Get your coat and hold your temper.”  she orders moving to get her own coat.  Like hell she was going to just sit back and wait until dinnertime for whatever these two were plotting now.

Duncan heads for the receptionists desk with Fernanda, looking at his phone.  “Levi says he’s paying .. which is good since I have to save as much as I can.”  he reports.  Then he pauses.  “And your mother .. is on her way to Levi’s now …”  he looks out of the clinic window and then towards the back of the building … the other exit.  “She thinks we got .. married?”  he can’t help but laugh a little bit.  “Maybe we should…”  he ponders his savings.  “I actually saw a ring in the thrift store I think might fit you…”  he half murmurs to himself … and half to Fernanda.

Mateo naturally helps Maria on with her coat while frowning but then has to retort “MY temper?” He almost ducks after he asks and grabs his own coat while yelling to the household in Spanish “Mama and I are out for dinner. Eat from the fridge!” They always had leftovers. The kids would figure it out. “Duncan would never marry Fern without asking for my hand...we’re compadres...amigos….” Their mutual love of Louis Guzman had bonded Mateo to his daughter’s beloved. He was a little worried though and he jogged to keep up with Maria as soon as they hit the street.

Jasper conceded to Levi’s optimism and planted a kiss on his cheek as he made his way back from the kitchen “Thank you.” He glanced at his phone and saw the reply and smiled “Well that was easy.” Then he blinked as he saw Maria’s “And here they come….she doesn’t waste any time.” He laughs “And she thinks the kids eloped? Oh this will be a fun night.”

Fernanda gives Duncan an affectionate shove “Don’t waste money on jewelry. We’ll need it for diapers later.” She laughs “You know we still need their permission to marry under 18? If you’re serious we can call that redheaded priest. But maybe let’s take things one topic at a time, even if it isn’t the order everyone has in mind.” She can only imagine what Dr. McKinney must think “We’ll see you soon Doctor. Thank you for everything.” And they head down the hall. Fernanda does check in with the desk “I need to make another appointment. Whatever’s open in the next few weeks, preferable an afternoon on a weekday. I have more spares in the afternoon.”

Tarak nods and clicks away at the computer “OK…..” He gets out an appointment card and writes in the date and passes it over “That good.”

“Yes thanks you.” Fernanda pockets it and sighs at Duncan “Are you ready for this?”

Duncan smiles at her and takes her hand.  “As ready as I’ll ever be.”  he replies and tugs her towards the back, where he exits with her.  They’re unlikely to be seen from the street by her parents.  He pauses at the back and pulls her close.  “You alright?”  he asks her with an almost carefree smile.

Levi grins into the kiss on his cheek and then blinks.  “Eloped?”  he can’t help but laugh.  Then the smile fades and he looks pensive.  “They’re too young.”

Maria hurries down the street, taking the corners at speed.  As short and plump as she is, she can still move fast when she wants to.  She looks along the street as she goes, especially in the Municipal Buildings big windows and the clinic, but she doesn’t see them.  Finally she stops by the law office and enters the door from the street looking at the mailboxes and nods.  “Second floor .. come on Mateo.”  she marches up the stairs and stops at the door, then knocks.

Mateo is panting by the time they reach the top of the stairs and she knocks “Dios mio…..Maria. You know I can lift things but I’m no Speedy Gonzalez.” He leans his back into the wall while they wait for Levi to answer.

Jasper hears the knock and blinks again “Did the Negrons get a car? That’s really fast. And yes they are too young.” He can’t help but chuckle as he looks at the door, still unsure if he should be answering for Levi given it’s his space. Although he would be fine with Levi answering the door of his house.

Fernanda gets pulled to Duncan and can’t fight her own smile back at him “Strangely i am. I’m happy about the baby,,,,your baby…..our baby. Telling the families is the stressful part. If we could run away somewhere and just do this without having to do that I’d be over the moon. But what can they say right? Mama had Angel young. And didn’t your Dad tell you guys you were all unplanned. The ball...so to speak...is in our court.” She cracks up “Maybe I’m just repressing my hysteria.”

Duncan nods.  “Our baby.”  he loves the sound of those words.  “They don’t have much ground to stand on.  And … “  he takes her hand.  “I’m staying with you.  Your mother might not be so upset knowing that, right?”  he chuckles as she cracks up and then leans in to kiss her.  “I love you … even if we never get married.  Come on … let’s go face the music.”

Levi arches his brows when the knock sounds.  “I have no idea…”  he heads for the door and opens it.  “Hello.  Come on in.”  he motions into the living room.  “Can I get you anything?”  he notices Mateo is panting and guesses that Maria power walked.

Maria moves in the second she’s invited, toeing off her shoes.  “Thank you Mister Levi.  Doctor Jasper.”  she stops in the living room and looks around.  “Where are they?  I want to know what they have to say.  I hate secrets.”

Jasper half leans on the back edge of the couch “Hello Maria. Mateo. They’re not here yet. I’m curious as well. Mateo you look like you need to sit down. Are you ok?”

Mateo nods briefly and gives a wave as he toes off his shoes. Mateo only wore boots for work, steel toed, not winter boots. Otherwise it was loafers and sandals as soon as the spring came. He does go to the couch and sinks into it, staying quiet until they have more information, lest the loafer go into his mouth as they have done before.

Jasper bites his lip trying not to chuckle and looks at Levi, already feeling sorry for Duncan and Fernanda even though they don’t know what it’s about.

“I hope not.” Fernanda says earnestly. “And I love you too.” In no time they're next at Levi’s door and waiting. Fernanda can smell her father’s cologne “They’re in there already. Did they get super powers and fly here? Maybe Mama carried him on her back and leapt the buildings.” She jokes.

Duncan chuckles as they reach Levi’s door.  “She’s super, your mother.”  he keeps his hand in hers, raises his hand and knocks, taking in a deep breath and squeezing Fernanda’s hand.

Levi looks at Jasper.  He’s pretty curious himself.  But then comes another knock at the door and he goes to open it.  “Come on in, you two.” he motions inside again and adds.  “I haven’t rendered any pizza yet.  Maybe talk first and eat later?”  he suggests, in his calm way.

Maria sees them enter and looks them both up and down as if she hasn’t seen either of them in years.  Searching.  “What is it?  What’s wrong?”  She can see that Duncan has Fernanda’s hand, but that doesn’t tell her anything she didn’t already know.

Fernanda had always been the type of person to just rip the bandaid off so she met her mother’s gaze without greetings or chit chat and squeezed Duncan’s hand as she sat evenly “We’re pregnant. It’s not wrong Mama...it just is.”

Mateo had turned around on the couch as the kids came in but now he froze and stared at Fernanda with wide eyes not knowing what to say.

Jasper had still looked amused by Maria to a degree and was gesturing at Duncan as he began to say hello when Fernanda came out with their big news. He was a little stunned for a moment and then his face broke into a grin “Wow you two...ok…..um...that’s big...but we’re here for you.” He moved from his sit lean on the couch and approached Duncan and Fernanda, hugging Duncan first if he could and suspecting Maria or Mateo might want a moment with their girl before he could hug her as well.

Duncan again smiled as Fernanda announced that they were pregnant.  He noticed that Mateo was staring, but then his father grinned and gave them his support.  As he hugged his father, he was grateful that he had a supportive parent.

Levi arched his brows when Fernanda announced that she was pregnant.  He could tell by looking at them that they were not ashamed or unhappy.  That was a good sign, as far as he was concerned.  He watched Duncan and Jasper hug and smiled.  "Mazel Tov."  he congratulated them, but waited a but longer.  This was only the beginning.  There was much more to discuss, he suspected.

Maria stared when Fernanda explained that she was pregnant .. that they were pregnant.  She looked between Duncan and her Fernanda - from their faces to their clasped hands.  Then she thought about her first pregnancy ... how Angel's father had reacted ... how she had to tell her parents ... alone.  Fernanda would not be alone ... Duncan loved her ... and they looked ... happy.  She sniffed and began to nod slowly.  "Just is ..."  she sniffed again, trying not to cry, because she didn't want anyone to mistake her tears for sadness or disappointment when she was happy her daughter was happy.  She leaned into Mateo.  "Oh, she is not like me, Mateo.  She's strong, this one.  Like her father." she sniffed a third time.

Fernanda let go of Duncan’s hand at the tail end of his hug with his father because he seemed determined to hold onto hers. She loved him for it but she needed to connect with her parents too. She started to walk in and then stopped herself and kicked off her boots a bit roughly and kept walking in after. She leaned down and wrapped her arms around her mother’s shoulders “No Mama, I’m strong because you raised me with your strength. Papa is strong too but I get it from you. I love you. Duncan and I can do this. We can be good parents. We’ve had great role models after all.”

Mateo had been comforting Maria, stoking her hair and nodding. He knew her strength even if she didn’t take credit for it. But when Fernanda came over and hugged her and spoke his emotions got triggered and he let out a little unexpected sob “Oh Fern. We know you can. Especially with this boy….he’s a good boy...a good man.” He wiped at his face “Look at me like a baby. I’m gonna be an Abuelo…..” He looked to Jasper and Levi “Three Abuelos and an Abuela….and many uncles and aunties. This baby will be so loved.”

Jasper eased off his hug with Duncan and grinned at him, Levi and then watched Fernanda with her parents and his hand went to his heart as he gave them all a sweet look. Then he laughed “Three Abuelos yes. We’ll help you a lot, whatever you need.”

Duncan finally ended the hug with his father and let go of Fernada's hand as she went to her parents.  How had they been worried about them?  That was the way of kids being afraid of parent's reactions and imagining the worst, he supposed.  Mateo mentioned Abuelo and he grinned at his father's reaction.

Levi watched the scene, but when Mateo mentioned being an abuelo, he blinked.  He'd been included in that.  After all he and Jasper were in love as well.  He would be an abuelo as well.  "A grandfather ... oh just wait until I tell MY grandmother."  he smiled, especially at Jasper.  Then he turned his attention to the expectant parents.  "When?"  he suddenly asked.  "When is the baby due?"

Maria sniffled and accepted the love from her daughter and husband.  Mateo's tears made her forget her own and she hugged him.  We can't spoil the baby, Mateo."  she warns him.  Then she looks at Fernanda and Duncan.  "And no Luis." she shot her husband a warning look.  Part of it was Mateo's love of Luis Guzman, but also Luis was the name of Angel's father and she just never mentioned that to anyone.  Only Mateo knew and she had not mentioned that for years.  Then Levi brings up the due date and she looks curious.

Fernanda hugged and kissed both her parents and then stood back, her hand going instinctively to her abdomen “October 1st. No Luis….believe me.” She shot Duncan a look briefly and then laughed. Then she declared “I’m going to try to finish high school before this kid pops out.”

Jasper knew of Duncan and Mateo’s Luis Guzman connection and laughed about the forbidding of the name as well as laughing even harder about what Esther might think of Levi as a grandpa. He looked impressed by Fernanada’s ambition “You can continue after though….you have babysitters galore. But I know you work very hard. Duncan will be graduated in the spring.” He looked at Levi as if asking permission for something and then said “Although his job might involve a ferry commute if certain things get decided.” He had let half a cat out of the bag about something but then looked at Levi again “Should we tell them?”

Levi grinned and nodded.  "You don't have to rush graduation, that's for sure."  he tries to assure Fernanda.  Then Jasper mentions the job and he nods.  "My father's opening another satellite office."  he explains.  "Even smaller than this one.  On an island called Zuri.  I'll be heading that one up and I'll need my clerk."  he looks at Duncan.  "It's about half an hour away by the ferry, so ...  I'm moving at least.  Natalie's made partner ...the first woman in our firm to do so .. and she'll handle the cases here.  The island is small enough for just one lawyer and Zuri is even smaller.  They had a rough time of it, but are coming back strong..."  he stops, aware that he was rambling a bit.  "And I think a raise would help you with the commute."  and more he thinks.

Duncan smiles at the support that Fernanda is getting.  He listens to Levi and nods slowly.  "A raise would come in handy, that's for sure."  he admits.  "So you don't have to aim for graduating before October.  We'll be busy but not THAT busy."

Maria nods at the date and listens to the new job location.  "You have a million babysitters, so no pressure."  she listens to this new job on an even smaller island.  "More money is always a good thing."  she replies.  "You work hard to support your family, Duncan."

Fernanda throws up her hands “I want to see how much I can get done before I have to take time off. But I’ll be healthy for the baby. I’ll sleep properly, take vitamins, keep taking walks. I finished most of the grade 11 textbooks. If they’d let me sit exams I could just move on. But I appreciate it all.” She looks around and then her eyes settle on Duncan “Just don’t miss the ferry home to us.” She’s already thinking of her body as a vessel for both her and the baby. They exist together.

Jasper nods along with Levi “I’m glad they’re recovering from their outbreak. Such a small place would see a spread fast. And they’re smaller than us?” He’s never been to Zuri but now he’s curious. He smiles at Maria and then looks between Duncan and Fernanda “However it goes, wer’re here.”

Mateo keeps quiet and rubs Maria’s arm beside him, taking it all in. It’s big news after all.

Levi nods.  "If worst comes to worst, you can also take your equivalency."  he reminds her.  "It means the same."  he looks at Jasper and then around.  "Their population was around 90 ... before Covid, which took twenty-six of them, including their doctor."  he blows out a breath.  "They've been clean of Covid and almost everyone on the island has been vaccinated.  So my dad feels it is safe.  He bought a small office building and I'm refreshing my memory on Indiginous law."  he looks over all of them.  "It's Covid-free."  he reassures them of not only his safety but of Duncan's as well.

Duncan smiles at Fernanda.  "I wouldn't dream of it.  And my boss wouldn't make me stay past the last ferry anyway."  he hears about the Covid on the island and winces.  "Damn..."  that was a lot of people dead of Covid.

Maria bites her lip as Levi explains the Covid situation, but nods slowly.  "These days it is always a risk."  she murmurs.  "Duncan will always come home to you, just as your father has always come home to me."

Mateo smirks “Where else would I go mi amore?” His eyes twinkle at Maria and then he looks intently at Duncan “I know you will be good to our girl, and the baby.”

Jasper shakes his head at the devastation Zuri experienced and then gasps “They lost their doctor? Maybe Susan and I can find a way to offer some support…..damn.” The wheels are m turning and it’s obvious in his facial expression. The idea of becoming a grandfather is a pretty big idea rolling around in his head too.

At her mother’s words, Fernanada steps away from her parents and walks back to Duncan with a loving smile “I know he will Mama.” And she takes both Duncan’s hands and then puts one of them on her abdomen “Because he’s a good man and he has a lot of love to come home to.”