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Chapter Text

With the raucous shrieks and laughter of his Year 3 students echoing down the hallway, Nick gratefully lowered his aching back into his chair and let out a deep sigh. His kids were great this year, they really were, but they were particularly unruly today, for no discernable reason. That’s just the way it goes in teaching. As he took his lunch out of his bag, lovingly made by his beloved husband, he pulled out his phone to mindlessly scroll through cute animal videos to give his brain a much-needed break. He was surprised to see a solo text from Darcy, not in the group chat, and clicked into it.

CaptChaos: hey nicky my fave bi boi could you stop by our house on your way home from work I want to run something by you should only take a few min thx xxxxxxx

Why Darcy refused to use any punctuation, he couldn’t say, but he’s used to it after all these years. He shot a quick text to Charlie to make sure he didn’t need to be home straight away and got an immediate answer that he didn’t. Charlie almost always answered instantly, but if he didn’t ask any follow up questions or continue the conversation, Nick knew he was in a good flow with his latest manuscript and was ignoring the rest of the world. He let Darcy know he would see her in a few hours and dove into his latest obsession, silly bunny videos on TikTok, until he heard the kids making their way back to his room. He took some deep breaths as he put away his bento box and shifted mental gears back to teacher mode for the second half of his day.

Three hours and 18 minutes later, he pulled up at Tara and Darcy’s cute little terraced house, just a few blocks away from his and Charlie’s similar starter home. Their car was missing from the driveway, so Tara must not be home. It was rare that Nick and Darcy hung out on their own, so he was curious about what Darcy was up to.

The whirlwind of chaos herself opened the door on the second knock and Nick barely had time to brace himself before she launched at him for a tight hug. Darcy seemed to take his “big rugby oaf” physique as a personal challenge to topple, but this was another thing he was used to, after all these years of friendship, and kept his balance.

“My tasty s-Nicker-doodle! It’s so good to see you!” was muttered into his neck before Darcy let go and stepped back. She shooed him into the house, talking a mile a minute. “Thanks for coming over! I have this idea for a project for my glorious and perfect wife and I’m hoping you can help me. I want to surprise her which is why I asked you to come over before she gets home from work.”

Nick was patiently waiting for the inevitable break for a breath, and jumped in when he saw it. “OK, slow down. Can you say that again at a slower speed so I can understand you?”, he said with a chuckle. She repeated herself more slowly while Nick toed off his slightly too tight work shoes in the entryway.

Darcy turned and started walking down the hall, so Nick assumed he should follow. The Paris Squad were at each others’ houses often, especially he and Charlie and Tara and Darcy, since they were the closest neighbors. Darcy was heading down to the hall to the bedrooms and Nick correctly guessed they were heading to what used to be the guest room. Nick hadn’t seen this room in quite a while and wasn’t emotionally prepared for the changes that had been made. His eyes instantly teared up when he saw a beautiful mural, most likely painted by Elle, along the opposite wall and a beautiful white crib and rocking chair arranged in the room.

“Oh Darcy! This is amazing! Did Elle paint the mural? It’s gorgeous.” he said with a slightly choked up voice.

“She did! Isn’t it amazing?!” was the enthusiastic reply, Darcy bouncing up and down on her toes. The mural was a riot of color, showing rolling green hills and a bright blue sky. There was, of course, a large rainbow as part of the scene, but everything from the trees to the woodland animals to the clouds in the sky were bright, colorful and full of life. It was the coolest thing Nick had ever seen.

“How is Tara doing? I haven’t talked to her properly in a few weeks,” Nick asked, mentally making a note to take her out for milkshakes in the next week or two.

“She’s doing so well! She’s 32 weeks tomorrow, which is when the baby would likely be OK if they came really early, so that’s a relief.” Darcy’s face went totally heart-eyed and she continued, “She just gets more beautiful and glow-y every day. I still don’t know what I did to deserve that perfect angel……”

Nick smiled knowingly, as he had the same thought about Charlie at least three times a day. It was pretty remarkable that three couples that had met in secondary school were still going strong more than a decade later. It hadn’t been perfect for any of them, by any means, but there was something to be said for supportive, caring, ride-or-die friends that were there for them for any and all bumps in the road. Before he turned into a total sentimental sap, he broached the subject for his visit.

“So Darce,” he said with a clap of his hands, “what’s this idea you have that you want my help with?” he asked.

Darcy darted over to the corner of the room kitty corner from the crib and threw her arms out. “The other night, I had a dream that Tara was reading bedtime stories to our darling offspring, and I thought that this corner would be perfect for a little reading bench! I was thinking that it could be an L shape and have bookshelves all along the bottom and then a soft cushion on top, with lots of pillows and stuffies, yeah? I thought a hanging lamp over the corner would be awesome, especially if we can get one of those dimmer switches?”

Nick walked around the room, looking at the corner from several angles, trying to see Darcy’s vision in his mind’s eye. It really would be the perfect spot for a reading nook.

While he was making his inspection, Darcy added, “I already talked to Elle about making the cushions and some pillows, but Tao is useless with tools of any sort, so I thought maybe you could help with the building part?”

“Yeah, yeah, I'd be happy to help you with it! I think it’s a great idea and I can totally see what you’re going for.”, he answered. “You know, this wall with the door is long enough that if you made it twice as long on that side, you could even lay down flat. That could be really useful for nights when you want to be close by, after they outgrow their cot. More room for you all to snuggle together too!”

Darcy was hopping back and forth on her feet, standing next to Nick and staring at the corner with him. “That’s a genius idea, my man! I knew there was a reason we keep you around.” Nick turned to her in mock outrage to find her grinning up at him, with a warm expression.

They spent the next 20 minutes talking about design ideas and measuring the space, with Nick making notes on his phone.

Darcy looked at her phone and yelped. “You have to get out of here! Tara will be home in 10 minutes!”

They made the way quickly to the front door, agreeing to continue planning via text. Nick gave Darcy one of his trademarked hugs and hurried to his car for his getaway.

Chapter Text

Over the next few days, Nick and Darcy sent messages back and forth about the final design and plans to get the building materials. Charlie had helped with the calculations on the quantity and size of lumber for what they were building, but bowed out of any other involvement, citing band practice keeping him busy. (Their bassist was currently on a three-week holiday in Barcelona, so Charlie didn’t actually have band practice, but Nick let it slide.)

Darcy had insisted on using random and inexplicable code in their back and forth, which Nick only interpreted about half the time. He had to admit it added to the fun and surprise of it all. They had plans to go to the hardware store after school in a few days, on Darcy’s afternoon off.

On Thursday afternoon, Nick pulled up to Tara and Darcy’s house and Darcy hopped out the front door as soon as she saw his car.

“Nick knack, paddy wack! So good to see you, my man. I’m so excited about this!” was said in an excited rush.

“I can tell”, he responded with a chuckle. As he pulled away from the curb, he said, “I feel like there should be a joke in there about a bi boi and a lesbian walking into a lumber store, but I can’t come up with any at the moment.”

Darcy sighed dramatically. “I feel a bit like I’m letting down lesbiankind by not being able to do this project all myself, but I suppose actual talents mean more than stereotypes, right?”

They chatted over the 10 minute drive to the store. Nick had Darcy decipher a few of her more cryptic coded texts and Nick told Darcy about one of his students who had accidentally stapled his pant leg to the carpet today. Twice. (Glenn, it was always Glenn)

As they entered the hardware store, Nick was hit with the smell of sawdust, which automatically brought up a childhood memory with his dad. Stephane was anything but handy, but in a supposed demonstration of manliness, had decided to build a bench for the garden and expected the boys to help. Stephane had no idea how to work the expensive power tools he had purchased for this project, David was unenthusiastic and petulant, and Nick was five and didn’t have a good attention span at the best of times. It had been a disaster, ending with Stephane yelling at David, David picking on Nick, Nick crying to Sarah and Sarah yelling at Stephane.

Luckily, he and Charlie had undertaken several successful building projects for their previous flats and current house. The unpleasant memory with Stephane had been replaced with memories of laughter, playful bickering and “breaking in” a few of their creations. Like the bench in their garden that Nick had a hard time looking at without blushing when they had people over. Nick steered his mind to those fond moments now and took in another whiff of what Charlie now jokingly called “man glitter.”

“Alright, Charlie helped me figure out what wood we need. And made a detailed list, by aisle, after looking up the store layout online. God,” he sighed happily, “I love that nerd.”

They were making quick work of the list, when they got to a large piece that they were going to have to have cut in the store, because it wouldn’t fit in the car, even with the back hatch door open. They picked out the very long piece of wood, making a big show about checking for straightness.

“Like you’d know straightness, if it bit you in the arse!” Nick giggled to Darcy, who puffed up her chest in exaggerated indignance.

“I’d think you’d be more adept at handling wood, Nick.” she replied in a haughty voice. “I’ll have to send a condolence card to Charlie.”

They both dissolved into laughter so hard, their mouths were hanging open in silent guffaws and a tear or two ran down their cheeks. After a few deep breaths while leaning on each other, they finally picked out a straight(ish) piece and made their way over to the service desk in the back.

An older man with a receding hairline but a truly impressive mustache looked up at Nick and asked how he could help. As Nick was giving his request and helping Chester (as his name tag indicated) get the lumber over to the saw, the man asked, “So, what are you and the little lady making?”

It took Nick a second to process what the gentleman had said, and inelegantly said, “Wot?”

“You and the wife,” as he nodded his head back at Darcy, “what project are you up to?”

“Uh,” Nick said slowly, shaking his head. “That’s not my wife.”

The man finished the first cut and looked a little confused. “My apologies. I saw you laughing and leaning into each other and you’re both wearing wedding rings. It was a reasonable assumption.”

Nick, ever the people pleaser, tried to smooth things over. “Oh, no. She’s one of my best friends. We’re building a reading bench for her wife.”

Nick was looking at Darcy, playing with some gadget at the service desk, and didn’t see the man stiffen up. “Her wife?” he said with a slight edge to his voice.

“Yes, they’re expecting a baby in just a few weeks!” Nick explained in a happy, excited voice.

“Oh. That’s nice.” the man replied, in a tone that clearly meant he didn’t think it was nice at all.

This was when Nick finally clocked Chester’s obvious discomfort. His first instinct was to smooth things over, but then the quiet, simmering resentment of constantly being marginalized and sneered at kicked in. It put his hackles up, much like David’s very existence did. Nick took the cut pieces of wood and headed for their trolley, then turned to the man.

“Yes, it’s absolutely brilliant.” he said with exaggerated cheerfulness. “They’re the best people you can imagine and their baby is extremely lucky to have two such loving, caring parents.” The bite in his tone was clear now. “My husband and I are thrilled for them.”

At this, Nick pushed the cart away from the desk without another glance. Darcy could smell homophobia from a hundred kilometers away and was instantly on alert. She clocked the man, looked him up and down with a sneer, turned on her Crocs and followed Nick with her head held high.

They were both quiet as they checked out and paid for their materials. They loaded the lumber into the car, playing a bit of Tetris to get it all in and still be able to sit in the seats. Once they were both buckled up and heading away from the store, Darcy broke the silence.

“I’m assuming homophobic old arsehole?” she said with an eye roll.

“Yup,” Nick answered, popping the ‘p’’. “He was asking what we were making, but as soon as I mentioned your wife, his arshole-ness started showing. You know, the usual old fart with antiquated ideas.”

Darcy nodded sagely, but sadly. “I always think it’s going to get better, and I suppose it is. The kids really give me hope for the future. My kids at the community center are the best baby queers and allies you could imagine. But there’s always going to be these dinosaurs and holdouts in douche-baggery.”

Nick was quiet a moment and let that sad truth sink in, before shaking off the negative emotions. “Fuck that guy!” he declared.

“Yeah, fuck that guy! All the way back to the dark ages!” Darcy enthusiastically agreed. “He’s a Dickosaurus!”

The mood was lifting and then Nick remembered the first part of his conversation with the jerk. “Oh, get this, he asked me what me and “the little lady” were building.”

Darcy’s nose scrunched up. “The little lady? What?”

Nick paused for dramatic effect, knowing this was going to delight Darcy, and announced, “He thought you were my wife.”

One, two, three…….ah, there it is! Darcy started laughing loudly, just like Nick knew she would.

“What the fuck?” she asked, shaking her head. “Jesus Christ, I guess I need to ramp up my lesbian-ness. I mean, you’d think the rainbow hair, rainbow tie dye hoodie, rainbow Crocs and socks with boobs all over them would give me away. I’m really not sure what else I can do besides tattoo “LESBIAN” on my forehead?!”

Now they were both giggling uncontrollably and Nick actually pulled the car over to the curb, so he didn’t crash. The best palate cleanser after encountering homophobia out in the wild was always laughter with queer friends.

After dropping Darcy off at home, minutes before Tara was due home, Nick spent the short drive to his own house thinking of t-shirt designs for Pride this year. Maybe a dinosaur with a dick for a head, with one of those red circles with the slash. He rather liked the idea of the slogan “Queers against Dickosauruses” (or is it Dickosauri?) in bold writing around the image. He’d have to see if Elle could mock it up for him.

Chapter Text

Nick and Darcy had decided to keep the materials and construct the bench at Nick and Charlie’s, both for the surprise factor and because they had more room. Their covered back porch would be good for sawing and such.

Darcy was supposed to come over a few days ago, but Tara wasn’t feeling well and she couldn't leave without causing suspicion. Not that she would leave her very pregnant wife alone while feeling poorly, regardless. Darcy really wanted to be involved in the whole process, but seeing as Tara was almost 35 weeks pregnant, expediency won over involvement.

Nick had carefully measured and marked each piece of lumber twice, then had Charlie check his measurements, before he started the cutting. He had borrowed an electric chop saw from his uncle after Charlie had absolutely vetoed the handheld circular saw Nick was planning to buy. He said his anxiety couldn’t handle something that could so easily maim or kill his beloved husband. Nick had to admit to himself that he was relieved. That thing bloody terrified him. The chop saw was stable and accurate and made quick work of the cutting.

The next step was arranging the pieces, which Charlie again helped with. After moving two pieces in a row and forgetting what he was supposed to do with them, Charlie recommended writing on the drawing and the corresponding piece, to save time and aggravation. Everything was laid out, but Nick decided to wait until Darcy could come over to actually start building it.

A few days later, Nick again picked Darcy up at her house and drove to his own house. He asked her a bunch of questions with lots of enthusiasm so she could get some of her sillies out on the way there. He knew Charlie was working on an important deadline and couldn’t be disturbed, but more so, he thought it would be safer for himself and Darcy that way.

Nick offered her a drink and they surveyed the lay of the land on the covered back porch. Nick went through all the parts and what they needed to get done today.

“OK, are you ready to start building?” Nick asked with an excited air.

“Yes, but if you start singing the Bob the Builder theme song (again), I might have to nail your lips together!” was Darcy’s threatening reply.

“Touch my man and I’ll get Tori to help me bury your body.”

Darcy jumped when Charlie suddenly and silently appeared behind her. She put her hand over her heart and squeaked out, “Christ, Charlie! Don’t give me a heart attack and leave my poor unborn child an orphan!”

Nick walked over to give his beloved a soft kiss and then chuckled. “Have you been taking wraith lessons from your sister? That was impressive!”

“Spring family secrets. I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you. And you know Tori could hide bodies where no one will ever find them.” Nick knew Charlie was kidding, but a cold shiver went down his spine regardless.

He wrapped his arms around Charlie from behind and gave him a warm snuggle. “I thought you were working, Char. I hope we didn’t disturb you.”

Charlie put his hands on top of Nick’s and squeezed himself deeper into the embrace. “No, you didn’t. I just wanted a snack, and to say hi to Darcy.”

As his favorite menace and chaos goblin hugged and caught up for a minute, Nick took a second to really feel how proud he was of Charlie. Coming down for a snack because he was hungry would be no big deal for anyone else, but it was big for Charlie and they both knew it. There had been some very hard years with Charlie’s eating disorder, especially when they were long distance at uni, but in the last year or two, something had shifted. Maybe being settled down and married, or maturity that comes with age, or how the stars had aligned, but Charlie’s relationship with food was so much better now than it had been in his entire life. And Nick was so fucking proud of him, he could hardly stand it. He didn’t say anything to Charlie, not wanting to bring attention to something that was mostly conquered, but he was pretty sure Charlie could feel it.

His attention was brought back to the present by Charlie’s kiss on his cheek before he went to the kitchen and got back to work.

Considering who he was working with, the actual construction went smoothly and without incident. They made good progress and the bench was taking shape. Darcy was hoping they would finish, but ran out of time before Darcy had to sneak home before Tara arrived.

“Well, I wish we could have gotten it done today, but I’m glad I got to help at least. I won’t be able to sneak over for another week and I’m getting nervous about the timing, so are you OK finishing it without me?” Darcy asked as she was cleaning off her rainbow coveralls and making sure she had everything.

Nick looked over what was left and nodded. “Yeah, I don’t think there’s actually much more to do. I think another hour or two tomorrow, after school, should do the trick.”

On the drive back to Darcy’s, Nick was running through the list of what needed to get finished when he thought of something.

“Darcy, you don’t want the bench to be raw wood, right? I’m guessing we need to paint it?” he asked. “Are you thinking white, like the crib, or colorful like the mural?”

Darcy thought about it for a moment and answered, “As you know, I would never vote for plain white over color, but Elle is making the cushion colorful, so probably white so we don’t overwhelm the baby’s eyeballs.”

“Good plan. Don’t want the kid to need sunglasses to spend time in their own room,” he joked. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow and let you know if I finish it up!” he said as Darcy jumped out of the car. She even waited until the car was at a complete stop this time. Maybe impending parenthood was maturing her!

~~~

Nick did finish the bench the next night and had to fend off Charlie wanting to christen another building project. “This is for a baby, Charles!!!” he said with a scrunched face and shiver of revulsion. “I can’t help it if seeing you do manly things with tools turns me on!” was Charlie’s cheeky retort.

The plan was to paint the bench over the weekend, but unfortunately Nick took a poorly aimed hit in his local league rugby game and his right shoulder was too sore to use for a day or two. He asked Charlie to help, who agreed, but then turned around and invited Tao and Isaac over to share the work.

It ended up being a fun day, Nick hanging out on the (naughty) garden bench with his shoulder wrapped in ice while the three childhood friends talked, bickered and painted. At the end of the day, no one could figure out how Charlie only had paint on his hands, Tao only had paint on his pants and Isaac had no trace of paint anywhere.

“Thanks for helping out guys,” Nick said when they all lounged on the sofa with beers, after the work was done.

Isaac smiled and said it was no problem. Nick believed him. He hadn’t even had a book in front of his face for several hours. “Actually, I’m really happy you called, Charlie. Now every single one of the Paris Squad has worked on this surprise for Tara and the first baby in the group!” he shared with a satisfied smile on his face.

“I hadn’t thought of that,” Nick remarked, getting a little choked up. “That’s really cool.”

The whole Paris Squad had been absolutely thrilled when Tara and Darcy announced their pregnancy, after three unsuccessful attempts. They were all grown up, with jobs and houses and marriages (Isaac, happily withstanding). But there was something about a baby coming to their merry little group that really made adult life feel…..real.

Nick was beyond delighted for Tara and Darcy, was so excited to be an uncle, but couldn’t help being just a teeny, tiny, micro-bit jealous. He and Charlie loved kids, wanted kids and planned on kids….eventually. Nick was just feeling a little impatient about it with the imminent arrival of Baby Jones, but he kept it to himself. He would never pressure Charlie and he knew it would happen when it was meant to happen. He and Charlie just operated that way and it had never steered them wrong.

Tao and Isaac took off soon after and Charlie snuggled into Nick’s side on the sofa. “How’s the shoulder?” Charlie asked softly. “I really don’t like seeing you in pain, my love.”

“It’s alright” he said, with a shrug. Then immediately proved that was a lie as he winced in pain. “Well, it will be alright soon.” was the concession. Snuggling his beautiful husband while watching a new gay rom-com on Netflix about a British prince was just the healing treatment he needed.

Chapter Text

By the next weekend, the second coat of paint had been added to the bench, Elle had finished the cushion and pillows, and thankfully the baby hadn’t arrived. Darcy conspired with Nick, Elle and eventually the whole Squad to get Tara out of the house for two or so hours, so that the bench could be installed in the nursery for the big reveal.

Nick had borrowed a pickup truck from a colleague at work to take the bench to Tara and Darcy’s house. The original plan was to build it all in one piece, but Charlie had wisely pointed out that it wouldn’t fit through either their front or back door, much less the nursery’s door. Nick glowed with pride at Charlie’s brilliance, once again, and once Charlie had smacked his arm and declared him a total sap, the bench was built in two pieces.

The bench parts were loaded up, so Nick and Charlie made out on their sofa while waiting for the signal. It amazed Nick that even after a decade, kissing Charlie Spring still made his insides melt and his heart grow two sizes, every single time. He hoped that was still the case when they were old and grey and living in a quaint, quiet retirement home, making heart eyes at each other while making flower crowns. Eventually, his phone pinged with a text.

CaptChaos: the train has left the station the chimney is clear for santa over

Shaking his head at Darcy’s strange mishmash of code, Nick hauled Charlie off the sofa and they started the journey a few streets over.

Every household of the Paris Squad had keys to each others’ houses, so Charlie opened the front door when they arrived. They had loaded the heavy wooden structures into the truck on their own, but Nick’s shoulder was still a little sore, so Nick agreed to wait for more muscle to unload. The two were sitting on the tailgate of the pickup truck, holding hands and swinging their feet, when Isaac arrived 10 minutes later, followed shortly by Tao and Elle. The four men made short work of carrying the pieces into the house. Charlie and Isaac came back out to help Elle carry in the cushions and pillows, while Nick and Tao got the base settled into place. All in all, once everyone had arrived, it took less than 20 minutes to get everything set up.

A quiet hush settled over the group of friends as they gazed around the room. Since Nick had been here last, small touches had been added, like a lamp with a fat sheep for the base, a framed photo of Tara and Darcy looking down at her bare, pregnant belly, and a pile of teeny tiny baby clothes on top of the dresser. Charlie and Isaac had not seen Elle’s mural and were looking at every colorful detail with reverence. The cushions were bright and colorful, but somehow went well with the mural without being overpowering. With the soft, comfy pillows, the bench was gorgeous and so inviting.

Darcy had left a small pile of books they’d already purchased on the floor of the wardrobe, so Nick got those out and slipped them into the open boxes under the bench, along with a stuffy or two. They all poked around for a few more minutes before they heard Nick’s phone ping.

CaptChaos: target acquired delivery truck is 15 minutes down the road clear the deck xxx

Nick and Elle took one more look at the bench, making sure every detail was perfect. Meanwhile, Tao was setting up a micro spy camera on the dresser, hidden somewhat behind the sheep lamp. After checking the placement and the connection to his phone, they all exited the house, locking the door behind them. They drove their cars around the corner so they wouldn’t be visible from the house or the path Darcy was intending to drive.

Everyone was excited, smiling and whispering and giggling, even though there was no way Tara would see or hear them once they got home. The minutes ticked by and the excitement and nerves were building. A few minutes later, Tao gasped and jumped up from the curb.

“Darcy’s in the room! We’ve got the perfect shot!” he said excitedly and clicked a few things on his phone to start recording. He put it on speakerphone so everyone could hear.

“Tara!” Darcy called. “Can you come into the baby’s room for a minute, my love?” Darcy shuffled over to the far corner of the room, next to the rocking chair, so there would be a straight shot of the bench and Tara’s back. Only a minute later, they both saw and heard Tara enter the room.

“Oh my god! Oh….oh, my god!” she exclaimed. “Darcy, baby, how….how did you do this? This wasn’t here when we left!” She sounded very surprised and a little confused.

Darcy wrapped her arms around Tara, as best she could with Tara’s very large belly, and swayed her back and forth. “I had a dream a few weeks ago. You were sitting with our gorgeous baby and reading books to them in this corner. So I asked our friends to help me make that dream come true.”

“Darcy….I love it. I love it so much.” Tara said into Darcy’s shoulder and they could hear the emotion in her voice, even over the slightly tinny speaker. “I love YOU so much.”

The group let them have a few minutes of privacy, gathered their gift bags and walked around the corner to the front door. Elle rang the bell and the whole Paris Squad stood fanned out on Tara’s front step. It had been long enough that Elle was about to ring the bell again, when the door swung open and everyone yelled “Surprise!” to Tara’s startled face. Seconds later, her face broke out into a big smile, then crumpled into tears.

“Oh no! Tara, no, honey, don’t cry” Elle jumped in with, but Darcy was hugging Tara from the back and didn’t seem concerned at all.

“No worries, mates, this is just what she does now,” she reassured them and walked Tara back so they could file in. She still looked tearful and no one was quite sure what to do until Nick stepped forward and pulled Tara into a gentle but firm hug. Tara hugged back and kissed him on the cheek before he stepped back and they took turns hugging Tara, then Darcy.

Tara finally seemed to be recovering from her shock and flood of hormonal emotions. “What are you all doing here?!” she sniffed.

“Well, my dearest Jonesy, the project started with Nick and Elle but eventually everyone chipped in to help!” Darcy explained proudly. “They put it all together while we were out at brunch!”

Elle chimed in, “We thought this would be the perfect time for a mini baby shower, just us friends, so we come bearing gifts!” At this, everyone held out a pastel gift bag or box in Tara’s direction.

“How about we go into the nursery and you can sit on your new bench while you open your prezzies!” Darcy suggested.

Tara waddled into the nursery (not that anyone would call it waddling to her face) and settled down in the corner of her very comfy reading bench, relaxing back into the pillows with a contented sigh.

Darcy sat next to her on the short side of the bench, with Elle and Charlie on the long side. Isaac took the rocking chair while Nick sat on the floor, leaning into Charlie’s legs, and Tao stayed standing near the crib. It was a cozy fit with all of them, but it added to the general feeling of togetherness.

Darcy took charge and told the group, “Since Nick did most of the heavy lifting, including fending off a homophobic dickosaurus, he can go first.”

Tara didn’t know quite what to make of that comment, but she was well used to Darcy’s oddball ways and happily accepted a rather heavy box. It was white with a simple lavender bow. Inside was a pile of baby and children’s books. “These are some of my student’s very favorite books. I even asked them for a list for a ‘very special friend of mine' who is having a baby soon.” he explained with a warm smile.

“Oh Nick, thank you so much! This is so sweet,” she continued, tearing up again. Nick suspected this would happen with every gift, seeing how emotional she was today. “Please thank your students for us. I’m sure Baby Jones will love them too!”

Elle went next, gifting the softest throw blanket any of them had ever felt. “The mural was for baby, but this is just for you. You deserve all the comfort when you’re up in the middle of the night feeding them.” Tara leaned as far forward as she could (it wasn’t far) to hug Elle and murmur thank you.

Charlie gave them 3 pairs of tiny socks that looked like Converse sneakers in different colors, garnering laughs from everyone. There was also a miniature band t-shirt of a band that Charlie and Darcy particularly liked, with a promise of free drum lessons when the kiddo was old enough.

Tao gave them two gift certificates, one for newborn photos whenever they were up for it and another to create a montage video of photos of the pregnancy and birth. This got tears from both Tara and Darcy and Darcy jumped up to do the hugging honors.

Finally, Isaac handed over his gift bag. Everyone was expecting books, and there was one, but the other gift was unexpected. It was a small, very soft knitted blanket. When Tara cocked her head to look at it, Isaac explained that he had asked his nana to teach him to knit so that he could make a blanket especially for the baby. Tara was overwhelmed with emotion and there wasn’t a dry eye in the house. Isaac was so quiet and unassuming most of the time, but when he made a big gesture, it meant the world.

The friends spent a little while chatting, mostly catching up with Tara, who was the only one that hadn’t seen them much lately. Eventually Nick revealed that there were a box of scones and biscuits in the kitchen if anyone wanted any. They all made their way to the lounge. Tara settled heavily in the corner of the couch that was apparently “hers”. There were tissues, throat lozenges, heartburn tablets and a gigantic water bottle on the table next to her. Everyone settled in while Nick plated up the treats and Charlie made tea.

All in all, it was a delightful afternoon and Tara was glowing with happiness. She admitted that the last week or two had been hard, physically, and that she was really looking forward to having a baby instead of a giant stomach, acid reflux and terrible sciatica. Any time Tara made to move, someone was there with whatever she needed before she even asked. Isaac quietly started rubbing her feet from the sofa next to her. When Nick brought over another cup of tea, he kneaded her shoulders for a few minutes. It was a cocoon of caring and tenderness for their friend and everyone was feeling the love.

Isaac and Tao and Elle drifted out and onto the rest of the weekend, while Nick and Charlie stayed to clean up. They refused to let Tara get up, so hugged her on the couch. Nick promised to bring over some soup and baked treats in the next week before kissing her softly on the top of the head and heading to the front door.

Charlie, ever attuned of Nick’s moods and needs, offered to go get the truck from around the corner to give Nick and Darcy a few minutes to say goodbye.

Darcy accepted a trademarked Nick Nelson hug. As they separated, Darcy looked down at her feet and said sincerely , “I can’t thank you enough, Nick. It turned out perfect and I have you to thank. I couldn't have done it without you.”

“Darce….” Nick said, waiting for her to look up. “It was my pleasure. Both to help with the surprise but also just to spend time with you. I had a blast. We should hang out again, yeah?”

Darcy’s face lit up and she nodded happily. “Yeah, I’d really like that! Maybe we can go dickosaurus hunting,” she said with a conspiratorial wink. When Tara asked what Nick was laughing so hard about, Darcy just smiled and said, “Nothing, really.”

Nick climbed in the truck and relaxed into the seat, resting his hand on Charlie’s knee. In the comfortable silence of the truck, going home with the love of his life, Nick reflected on the last few weeks. The biggest surprise might be how happy he was to have Darcy in his life.