Burned by Shea K.

9: Battered

"This is new," Tegan commented as she opened the door of her condo, letting Donnie come in. The green-eyed chef was dressed in her pajamas, which consisted of a crimson camisole blue roses designed into the material and short crimson mesh shorts.

"Me showing up at your door step in the middle of the night? Yeah, usually it's the other way around and you're stinking drunk," Donnie remarked, forcing out a smile that did not touch the deep sorrow in her eyes.

"This wouldn't be any fun if you're drunk. You wouldn't have your usual wit and charm. So, what happened?" Tegan asked with a sigh as she softly closed the apartment door. Focusing on her best friend, she ignored the anxious tremble gnawing at her stomach. It was not everyday that Donnie showed up at her door at night. Usually, Donnie could hold onto her emotions until the sun was at least up.

Donnie did not respond at first. She slipped off her shoes, as everyone did when entering Tegan's apartment since the carpet was the color of fresh snow. After that, she trudged into the living room, walking like the weight of the world was on her shoulders and crushing her. She then deposited herself on the pale pink leather sofa, dropping like a ton of bricks. She was careful not to bang her leg on the matching coffee table; it was a habit of hers. Tegan sat down on the armchair on the left side of the couch and just stared at her best friend. A long moment of silence reigned over the apartment.

"I told Rae it's over," Donnie reported in a small voice that she was not even sure was her own. She tried her best to ease the acidic burning in her guts and chest. She could feel it rising and wondered how long it would take to eat away at all that was her.

Emerald eyes blinked several times and a cream-colored forehead wrinkled in confusion. "Tonight?" Tegan asked curiously. It was the best thing she could think of while her brain was in shock.

"Not even an hour ago."

"Is it wise to leave the love of your life pregnant with your baby?" the redhead inquired with an arched eyebrow. It sounded stupid to her, but looking at her friend now, she was certain it was stupid for Donnie to stay in that situation. The taller woman looked like she marched through Hell and had to go back. Donnie did not deserve that.

"Wise? No. We both know outside of the kitchen I'm an idiot. After all, I let my wife cultivate a relationship with a woman I knew had a crush on her, but I couldn't do anything about it because I didn't want to hurt my wife's feelings. Rae seemed so happy to have a friend…" Donnie clutched her throat, which was now scorched by the acidic build-up in her body.

"Rae is in love with that Audrey woman? Yeah, I saw that coming," Tegan muttered to herself, shaking her head a little.

"Did you?" Donnie demanded, having the nerve to sound angry with her best friend, as if she expected Tegan to share such information with her.

"Donnie, you said that Rae spent every waking moment with Audrey. Hell, she blew off our kick-ass celebration banquet to stay with Audrey! You stopped wanting to go home because Audrey was there. It didn't seem like Rae cared that you couldn't stand this woman, so I started thinking that Audrey's feelings must matter to her more than yours," Tegan reasoned.

And that was it, the dam broke and tears flooded out of Donnie's eyes. Hard sobs shook the master chef's strong body. The agonized wail that escaped her raw throat ripped right through her best friend.

"How could she do this to me?! I wanted to spend my life with her, give her everything, have a family with her! Instead, she brings this woman into our lives and torments me while I watch them fall in love! Calls me an asshole every time something goes wrong and she won't admit that this bitch is a demon woman! Instead, she just blames me for everything! What the fuck, man!"

Tegan sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Don, you know how I feel about your sweetie. I don't want to kick you while you're down. What're you going to do about the baby?"

Donnie shook her head and sniffled, water still cascading down her face. "I can't…I can't leave my baby with Audrey. I know in my gut that woman's a snake and I can't let her poison my baby."

"Yet you can let her poison your wife?" Tegan craned an eyebrow. That one did not make much sense to her. Not that much of this night was making sense to her right now.

"I don't know if she poisoned Rae. I know she wants to be more than friends with Rae. I don't think Rae realized it yet, but I'm sure she will now that I'm not there."

"Well, at least you don't think they were having an affair," the redhead pointed out, trying to interject some optimism into her friend's depressing life.

"Not a sexual one, but definitely an emotional one, which hurts just as much. How did I get so fucked up that my wife found that she couldn't depend on me? When did I screw up so badly that she lost faith in me?" Donnie begged to know, eyes searching the room desperately for answers. How fucked up am I for Rae to go to Audrey for everything?!

Tegan sighed and rubbed her face with both hands. "Don, sometimes, it's not your fault. Hell, a lot of the time it's not your fault. You know, maybe Rae just wasn't right for you. You've got…" she trailed off, not too sure if she should bring up her friend's issues or Rae's issues for that matter. It would feel like kicking Donnie when she was down.

"I'm wounded, right? Broken? I'm damaged and you think she is too. Rae's not. She's not broken or damaged in any way. Yes, she's had bad relationships in the past, but who hasn't? Other than that, she's pretty normal. She's a normal person, not fucked up like me. You know, her parents didn't even freak when she came out? Her family actually liked me…" Donnie could not help laughing. It sounded like her soul escaped her as soon as the sound did.

Tegan nodded, trying her best not to seem as solemn as she was feeling. "Right, you guys used her brother, right?"

A sniffled came before she could answer. "He was actually excited to do it. They're going to hate me for this. They entrusted Rae to me and I totally screwed up."

Tegan growled and slapped the arm of the chair with her palm. "Don, goddamn it, it wasn't your fault! She drifted from you. There's nothing you can do about that. You didn't drift from her. You were there for her-" she was immediately cut off.

"No, I was there for the fucking restaurant like always!" Donnie roared as she ripped herself from the couch and began pacing the floor. Hot, frustrated tears streamed down her face.

"Don, you have a responsibility to that place just like you do for Rae. She should understand that. Besides, you know what the hell you've been doing there these past few months."

Donnie put her hands on her head and shook her head. "Maybe I should've told her, but I doubt it would've mattered. I still would've been down there all those hours and she would've still had Audrey there. I couldn't win this fight, Tee. Not at the moment, not like I am right now. It won't go to waste, though." For the first time that night, her voice was strong, but only on that last sentence.

Tegan smiled. "Yeah, when my niece or nephew finally shows up, you'll have all the time in the world to spoil that kid."

"Even though I couldn't make it work with lil Donnie's mom, I'm going to do my best to make it work with my kid. I'll be damned if I'm going to turn into my father," Donnie vowed, making a tight fist. No way in Hell I'll be like him!

"You'd have to take a shit-load of bastard pills to turn into him," Tegan remarked and that got the desired laugh out of her friend. The shorter woman smiled. "Well, my friend, I can't say it'll be better in the morning, but the guestroom is all made up if you want to get some sleep."

"I guess whining to you all night about how I fucked up isn't a healthy way to spend the night."

"Not really since I don't think you fucked up, but if it makes you feel any better, I'll uncork one of my better bottles of wine and you can piss and moan all you like," Tegan answered.

"I'd rather you bring out the vodka."

"Vodka and crying coming up!"

Donnie chuckled a bit, but carried on sobbing. Tegan came through with vodka and a shot glass for Donnie, having a feeling that she was going to want hers straight. Tegan took hers with orange juice, but did not really drink anything. She just sat there for the whole night, listening to her best friend-a woman that she knew loved Rae so deeply and desperately-talk about how she had failed at marriage, how she was a screw-up like her mother always told her she was, how she was so close to being like her father that it scared the hell out of her, and how she was going to grow old with nothing to show for her life except the restaurant. Tegan was thankful when Donnie finally passed out drunk because she was ready to cry right along with her best friend by then.

"I knew Rae would break your heart. I just didn't think a five-year relationship, three years of marriage, and a baby would be in the deal," Tegan muttered to herself as she covered Donnie with a thick blanket and left her friend to sleep on the couch. After that, the redhead retired to bed, hoping that somehow tomorrow would find her dear friend in much better spirits.

-----

Tegan was generally a late riser…afternoon late. She never had to do anything until mid-afternoon anyway; great thing about working for her best friend was setting her own hours because Donnie knew when she was most productive. But, something was tugging her out of the bed while it was still morning.

"I smell breakfast…" Tegan muttered into her pillow and then a shot ripped through her. "I'll kill her if she's in my kitchen! I don't give a damn if the Pope dumped her for another woman!" she declared seriously, flinging her covers off of her body and charging out of her room.

She stopped in her tracks when the kitchen came into view. There was something about the way that Donnie was moving while cooking that told Tegan that she needed to leave things be. Just the aura coming from her best friend radiated something better than the vibes from last night. The kitchen was medicine for Donnie right now, so Tegan was going to let her cook her little heart out.

"What's for breakfast?" the redhead asked curiously as she pulled up a chair to the peninsula counter-top that separated the kitchen from the living room.

"French toast-" Donnie started to say, but was cut off.

"Shut up, I don't need to know any more than that. I love your French toast! I don't know what's in that batter you make it with, but just pile them in front of me!" Tegan declared with a giant grin.

Donnie did as ordered and they pigged out on a breakfast that would have easily fed a family of six. They collapsed on the living room afterward. Tegan chuckled a bit and Donnie smiled.

"You know, not counting a couple of days ago, this is the first time I've made breakfast in a regular kitchen in like four years. I gave up my kitchen to Rae…" Donnie said, resting her back against the couch. She was sitting on the floor.

"Wow. Take my heart, my money, my car, but leave me my kitchen!" Tegan mock-cried, playfully throwing her hands out as if she was wounded. But, seriously, to her, her kitchen was the most sacred room in her house and she knew the same could be said for Donnie. The kitchen was their sanctuary, their own little world to get away from the rest of the planet. It said a lot to her that Donnie would give up that holy space.

"She was the first woman that ever cooked for me several days in a row. Other women, they'd cook every once and a while if I went to their homes, but they never really liked that once they found where I lived. I wouldn't let anyone else in my kitchen. God, most of them, I would've rather they use my toothbrush to scrub the toilet than let them in my kitchen, but it wasn't like that with Rae." Donnie smiled brightly, obviously lost in a memory.

Tegan smiled a bit too and chuckled a little. "She just stormed in and took over your kitchen, didn't she? I can see her, being all short and skinny, threatening you with a mixing bowl to stay your ass out of there while she makes you dinner."

"That's almost what happened, but it was a tablespoon! I had it covered in gold and gave it to her on our six-month anniversary. She used it to pop my hand whenever I tried to eat anything while she was making it…" Donnie laughed.

Giggles from Tegan joined in. "I bet you had split knuckles on nights she made chocolate cake."

"Sometimes, it was best to just leave me and the batter in peace…" Tears started to build and flow out of the corners of her eyes. "I love her so much. Why doesn't she want me more, Tee? I gave her my kitchen, my heart, my baby! What does she want from me?!"

Tegan sighed and crawled over to her friend. She pulled Donnie to her and cradled the taller woman against her chest. Donnie wept into her collarbone, bawling as if she was in terrible agony. Tegan rubbed her back, knowing that it was not really helping. Time was going to be the only thing to truly heal Donnie's lacerated soul.

-----

Rae could not get out of bed for a few days, unable to believe that Donnie actually left her. She tried calling Donnie's cell phone, wanting to clear things up, but it went right to voicemail. She tried the restaurant and the café, but apparently Donnie had not been in for days. Rae did not buy it, figuring that Donnie just did not want to talk to her.

Audrey was there, bringing her food and taking care of her. Rae did not talk much at first while Audrey tried convincing Rae that everything would be okay and she was better off without Donnie. She made a point to count off Donnie's flaws almost hourly. Rae listened sometimes and other times just tuned her friend out.

Eventually, Rae had to get up, if only to change the position of her stomach. She cleaned up and made her way downstairs. She found Audrey in the kitchen, working on making sandwiches for lunch. The redhead served the sandwiches with a smile and Rae accepted with an attempt at a smile.

"Thanks for sticking by me through this," Rae said in a quiet tone, eyes focused more on her sandwich than anything else.

"No problem. I like being by your side. I'm happy all of this stress didn't mess up your pregnancy or anything. Can't shocks like that force labor?" Audrey asked, putting a hand on Rae's forearm to offer some comfort.

"Donnie wasn't trying to hurt the baby."

"No, only you. So, did she tell you who her other woman is?" the redhead inquired with some bite in her tone.

Rae appeared baffled for a moment, pulling away from Audrey's touch. "Excuse me?"

"I figured she left you to be with her other woman. What other reason does she have to walk out on someone like you? Unless of course she's just some kind of idiot," Audrey pointed out, throwing her hands up a little. Of course, she did think that Donnie was some kind of idiot. An idiot that did not deserve Rae.

The pregnant woman forced out a half-smile and was tempted to tell Audrey why Donnie left her, but she was not ready to travel down that road. She also did not want to say that she did not think that Donnie had another woman on the side. Audrey would end up scolding her for being naïve and such, which she did not want to put up with.

"Donnie likes to say she's stupid in anything that doesn't involve food or business," Rae commented. I never thought it was true until recently. Donnie had to be stupid to think that she loved her friend instead of her spouse.

"You have to be stupid to leave your wife on her last month of pregnancy. What an inconsiderate jerk!" Audrey huffed, a scowl marring her features.

"Donnie's not a jerk. She just gets ahead of herself sometime." This time at a very bad time.

"So far ahead that she wants a divorce? Fucking bitch, hurting you like this," Audrey pressed.

Rae sighed and decided to eat as an excuse to stop talking. She kept her eyes on the table, not wanting to see this woman who despised her Donnie so much. This woman that her Donnie swore she loved, swore that she was in love with. She might be able to concede that she loved Audrey, but she was certain that she was not in love with Audrey.

"Do you want to do something today?" Audrey asked after several minutes of silence.

"You know, I'm fine by myself now. You don't have to wait on me hand and foot," Rae replied.

"I want to wait on you hand and foot. I want to help you out of all of this. I want to be there for you," Audrey said with a smile.

Rae smiled back. "Thanks. I could use a friend through this."

The redhead's smile tensed ever-so slightly. "Glad I could be here for you."

After eating breakfast, they relaxed in the living room. Everything was calm until the bell rang. Rae was about to get up to get the door, but Audrey smiled at her and waved her off. Audrey climbed to her feet from the sofa and went to the front door.

"Who is it?" Audrey called.

There was a pause for a second. "Tegan," the redheaded chef answered. She wondered who in the world was answering her friend's front door.

"Is there someone you want to see?"

"Yeah, the woman who lives here," Tegan remarked, deciding to let herself in. She had keys to the house, after all, and the okay to use them whenever she wanted.

Audrey backed up as the door swung open and Tegan stepped inside. Green eyes locked with blue ones and glared so hard at Audrey that the shorter woman was frozen in place for a few seconds. Tegan then made her way to the living room while the other redhead was glued to the floor.

"Hey, wait a minute!" Audrey huffed, whipping around to grab Tegan before she was too far away. Unfortunately, she missed on the first attempt.

"Tegan! Oh my god, how is Donnie? Is she all right? She won't answer my calls!" Rae cried as soon as she noticed the tall chef. She wanted to get up and run to Tegan, pull at her to find out information about Donnie, but she could not move quick enough to do that. Her eyes did just fine at conveying those desires, though.

"Calm down, Rae! Donnie told me you're not supposed to be worked up like that," Tegan urged the smaller woman.

"How am I supposed to calm down when my wife leaves me while I'm fucking eight months pregnant?! Who is Donnie fucking, Tegan?! Tell me!" Rae demanded, pushing herself up from the couch to now, wanting to get in Tegan's face as much as possible at the moment. Anger driving her, she stood up and made her way to the chef.

Tegan gasped and gaped at the shorter woman for a second. "You can't possibly tell me that you think Donnie would actually cheat on you. You are as fucking loopy as I thought. You've got a lot of nerve accusing her too while you're shacked up in here with Miss Pit Viper," the chef remarked, nodding toward the other redhead in the room.

Rae snarled. "She's helping me because my wife walked out on while I'm eight months pregnant!"

"I'm sorry for Donnie's bad timing. She's an idiot for that, but she couldn't take it anymore, Rae. Donnie's in serious pain, I'm talking deep-down, can't-move-doesn't-want-to-move pain. The only time she gets off the couch is to use the bathroom. I actually had to force her to eat before I left to come here! Can you believe that?! She wasn't even eating on her own! The reason she's not answering your calls has nothing to do with you. She lost her cell phone a couple of days ago. We know it's somewhere in my house since she hasn't left there, but the battery probably died. If you want to talk to her, just call my house. I promise you, she'll pick up," Tegan explained.

"That's convenient," Audrey snapped, glaring at the chef as if trying to kill Tegan with her gaze.

"Oh, wow, you are a bitch," Tegan quipped, giving the other redhead a glance, but nothing more. She turned her attention back to Rae. "Look, call Donnie. Maybe you can talk her into taking a shower. I've been tempted to just turn a hose on her. I'm going to go upstairs and get her a change of clothes because that girl had mushrooms growing on her now."

Rae practically dived at the phone while Tegan marched upstairs. Audrey watched Tegan go and then watched Rae dial the number that she obviously knew off the top of her head. Audrey was tempted to follow Tegan, but decided to stay there with Rae.

"Baby?" Rae asked with hope in her voice, speaking into the phone.

"Rae? Sweetie, you okay?" Donnie inquired in a groggy voice. It sounded like she had been gargling with granite stones.

"Come home, come home, come home," Rae begged, tears gathering her eyes.

There was a long moment of silence, as if Donnie was contemplating the plea. "Is Audrey there?" she asked.

"She's just my friend!"

"Uh…how's lil Donnie?" the chef inquired, purposely changing the subject. She had no plans to go anywhere if Rae was still around Audrey.

"Fine…but, wanting her momma to come home…"

"I can't. I just…I can't. Now, baby, I'm going to get in contact with my lawyer sometime this week. You don't have to worry about anything. You can have the house and keep your car. I promise I'll give you a good allowance-"

"How can you be so calm about this?! You're throwing away three years of marriage for nothing! God, you're just like every other spoiled brat rich kid I've ever dated! Everything has to go your way and as soon as it doesn't you run away onto your next toy!"

Donnie did not seem to hear any of that because she continued on without missing a beat. "I'll make sure you can live well. But, like I told you before, I will seek custody for Donnie. I need my baby to be close to me."

"She's my baby too!"

"Goodbye, Rae." Donnie did not wait for a response and hung up.

"Donnie!" Rae hollered, even though she knew that her wife was gone. She broke down into sobs, which got Audrey to rush to her side. Audrey wrapped her in a warmth, protective embrace.

"It's okay, it's okay. Donnie's just an idiot. She doesn't know what she's leaving behind," Audrey cooed, gently rubbing Rae's head and shoulders. Rae curled into Audrey's body, hoping to hide from the world.

Tegan wandered downstairs some minutes later with a suitcase and took in the scene on the couch. She frowned tightly, wondering if these were the types of things that Donnie used to come home to. If that was the case, she could see why Donnie left. She cleared her throat as she entered the living room. Rae picked her head up, but did not move from where she was and Audrey remained just as she was.

"I didn't get much of Donnie's stuff, but I got enough to last her for the week, especially if she's just going to stew in her clothes for days on end. If I get her out of the house, I'll call you and let you know. Until we figure out where her cell phone is, just call mine or my house," Tegan said.

"She's serious…isn't she?" Rae asked in a quiet tone.

"She has to be. She doesn't have many choices from what I can tell, Rae," Tegan answered, glancing between the two. She could see how even if they were not involved sexually, they were definitely involved emotionally. And part of her understood how that was so much worse than if they were having sex. There was an intimacy there that was something much more than friends. It was something way beyond physical pleasure.

"She could come home and discuss this like a rational adult!" Rae pointed out.

Tegan shrugged. "There's nothing to discuss if you're not in love with her anymore. All you're doing is making things worse on her."

"Oh, so now you're going to tell me who I'm in love with?" Rae snapped. Her face was turning a bright red as her emotions raged on. "What the fuck do you know about being in love? You go through men like socks!"

"I'm not here for this. I'm sure Donnie will arrange for her stuff to get picked up. Bye, Rae, enjoy living it up on Donnie's expense," Tegan retorted brusquely before storming out of the house.

"Bitch," Audrey spat, referring to the woman that just left. "Who the hell was that anyway?"

"That's Tegan, Donnie's best friend. They've known each other forever as far as I know."

"And Donnie just let's that bitch talk to you any way that she wants?" Audrey huffed.

Rae did not respond, not wanting to think about Donnie right now, but she could not help it. Donnie never would have let Tegan talk to her harshly if she was around. After all of these years, Tegan would not have even thought to say something bad to her if Donnie was around. She sighed and bowed her head, the person that protected her from the cold, cruel world was gone and was lashing out at her worse than the world ever could.

-----

"How the hell did you find an apartment this fast?" Tegan asked in disbelief as she walked into the totally unfurnished apartment that Donnie moved into. It was not that far from her own condo.

"Simple, the rent is ridiculous," Donnie replied with a shrug.

"Can you even afford this considering you're going to give Rae your arm and leg as a monthly allowance?" Tegan asked, walking into the front of the apartment and taking a long look around. The place embodied everything that her friend was now, cold, dark, and empty.

"Don't worry about what I'm doing with Rae…" Donnie unceremoniously dropped down onto the hard tile. Tegan winced when her friend hit the floor, but Donnie did not even make a noise.

There was silence for a moment before Tegan found her voice to start up the conversation again. "Well, at least you're having papers drawn up. You're really going for custody, right?"

Donnie nodded. "I have to. I just…I…"

"You don't need to explain, Don. I think that Audrey bitch is living with Rae. I went to go pick up some more of your stuff and she was there again."

"I know…I've driven by there a few times this week…"

"Donnie! That's not healthy!" Tegan scolded the taller woman.

"I get worried about Rae! It's close to time for the baby to come and she hasn't called me much, so I don't know what to think! I want to be close to her, but every fucking time I go by the house, I see that fucking car! She's there every fucking day, every fucking second! She answers the phone when I call and I know she listens to my conversations with Rae…but, Rae let's her is what hurts the most."

Tegan arched an eyebrow. "That hurts the most? I would think the fact that the bitch stealing Rae hurts the most."

"Before I accepted that Rae was now in love with this woman…when she was just Rae's best friend, Rae would just let Audrey stand there while I wanted to have a serious conversation. She actually expected me to talk in front of Audrey. She cried in this woman's arms in front of me! Ran from me like I was the villain and Audrey was her savior. She needed Audrey then, not me. She still needs Audrey…"

"Don, stop thinking about it or you'll end up crying again," Tegan cautioned her friend. "Hey, let's go out and buy you some furniture, take your mind off of things."

Donnie would usually argue over something like that, but she knew that she needed a distraction. She allowed Tegan to drag her out of the apartment. This would become a become a habit over the next week with Tegan yanking Donnie around to keep her mind off of her soon-to-be ex-wife.

-----

Rae was washing dishes since Audrey had cooked dinner for them. She wanted to feel useful. While she was scrubbing a plate, she suddenly went completely still as the front of her dress, just underneath her stomach was soaked.

"Oh, god…" Rae muttered, not believing that her water just broke. The first thing that her brain wanted to do was scream for Donnie, but she quickly remembered that Donnie was no longer with her. "Audrey!" she cried out and then suddenly a jolt of pain shot through her. She put her hand on her stomach and the other on the counter to help keep herself from falling down.

The redhead charged into the kitchen. "What, what's wrong?"

"The baby's coming and it hurts!" Rae reported with tears building in her eyes. Oh, god, help me if I lose Donnie's baby! Please, don't let me lose my baby!

-----

10: Fracture

The sterile smell of the hospital was enough to send Rae into a panic, but she was there already. Agony rippled through her petite frame, originating in a very precious space-her belly. She was in labor, she knew, but she doubted it was supposed to hurt as much as it did. Fear was the only emotion touching the pain, adding to it. She felt anxious and alone, even though her best friend was at her side. It just did not seem like her best friend was there. Something was missing, causing a hollowness to open in her and start eating away at her. It was like she was losing everything every moment, confusing and frightful, making her want to tear at the bed and flee from the hospital. But, the intense trepidation also kept her anchored in place because she was scared that if she did anything aside for lie there, then she would lose lil Donnie.

Tears came easy, pouring down her shattered chocolate eyes like tragic storms. They fell from sheer distress and the underlying sensation of being abandoned. They fell from passionate desire to have the one person that made her feel safe by her side. They fell because she felt like her baby was being punished along with her for something that she was not even aware of. The whole situation felt like it was strangling her, like being buried alive, causing even more tears.

"Audrey, please call Donnie. Tell her I'm having the baby, tell her…I think something's wrong…" Rae pled from her hospital bed. She held in a growl from another jolt of pain ripped through her. A shaking hand, clutching a cell phone for dear life, shot out at Audrey.

"I will. You'll be okay, though," Audrey firmly promised, taking the cell phone. She stepped out of the room, knowing that she was not supposed to use the phone in the hospital. After a few minutes, she came back into the room. "She's not picking up," the redhead informed her friend.

"What? Try again! She might be in a meeting with her staff!" Rae said, another growl escaping her. Tossing her head back, more agony sliced through her petite form. "Keep trying!" she begged, throwing her arm over her eyes, attempting to halt her weeping.

Audrey was ushered out of the room by a nurse when Rae's condition seemed to get worse. "She's going to be all right?" the redhead begged to know as the nurse put her out of the room.

"She'll be fine, but there are complications with the baby. If you let us work, everything'll be fine," the nurse promised Audrey.

"Just keep calling Donnie!" Rae hollered, voice cracking under the stress and pain of the day. It was clear from her tone that she was still crying. A hacking cough escaped her after her yell.

Audrey nodded to show that she would obey. Rae was wheeled into an operating room, going by a very familiar form that she could not notice because of the stabbing torment tearing through her small body. The form happened to be Spain.

"What the hell…? Rae's here…so, she's probably having the baby. Where's Donnie then?" Spain wondered aloud, scanning the halls for her good friend. Her brow wrinkled when she did not spot the chef. She found it hard to believe that Donnie was not there, no matter what happened between Donnie and Rae.

Spain was painfully aware of the circumstances that Donnie and Rae were going through. It was impossible for her not to be after seeing Donnie a few times in the past month. The sight was so heartbreaking. The restaurant owner was definitely a broken woman, looking like her entire world was destroyed and set aflame right in front of her. Her usually bright hazel eyes had dimmed and it was clear that her soul was splintered, perhaps beyond repair. Donnie was a miserable-looking creature and could not disguise it, did not try to disguise it. The sight alone was enough to make her and French vow to speak to each other about any new people in their lives, so they would not end up like Donnie and Rae had.

Despite everything, Donnie was way too happy to be so close to becoming a parent to miss Rae having the baby. Spain did not even have to take into account that she knew Donnie was hopeless in love with Rae, in spite of everything that happened; that alone would have been enough to drag the hazel-eyed woman to the hospital. So, not seeing Donnie around or close to Rae was beyond weird to the doctor.

Spain walked over to the nurse's station, where French was collecting a chart. "Hey, French, you seen Donnie around here by any chance? I'd figure she'd be climbing the walls and making a scene," the doctor commented, still searching the area with her eyes. She dared to consider that Donnie might be somewhere being calm and collected and that was why she could not find the chef.

French's mouth curled up and she put a thoughtful finger to her chin. "Donnie? She's pretty hard to miss, even without the drama, so no, I haven't seen her. Why'd you ask?" she inquired curiously.

"Because Rae just got wheeled into an OR and I'm pretty sure she's having the baby. Her face didn't make it seem like she was enjoying the experience either. I know Donnie's not looking to start off a relationship with her little clone by missing the big day and I know that no matter what Rae's put her through, she'd be there for Rae in case something went wrong, God forbid," Spain pointed out.

French gasped and put her hand over her mouth for a moment to compose herself. "You don't think Rae didn't tell her, do you?" she asked with a wide-eyed, panicked expression on her face. She grabbed her girlfriend's muscular arm and clung to it for dear life, as if the was the one going through all of the drama.

"No, Rae isn't like that. She's a little confused right now maybe, but she damn sure isn't evil. She knows how much this baby means to Donnie," the tall woman reasoned.

"Then get on the phone and find out where the hell Donnie is!" French huffed, pushing her mate toward the phone at the desk.

"All right, all right, don't push me, woman," Spain joked, grabbing the phone with her free hand. French was not going to be letting go of the other limb until it was absolutely necessary. Spain quickly dialed her friend's cell phone number.

"Bonaventure here," Donnie answered her phone semi-formally since she did recognize the number calling her.

"Donnie, where the hell are you? Your wife was brought into the hospital to give birth to your child and you don't even have the decency to show up?" Spain inquired, pretending to bark on her friend.

"Wai…what?" Donnie asked and the sound of items crashing to the floor echoed through the phone.

Spain's brow creased because of the commotion. "Donnie, what was that noise?" she inquired suspiciously, thinking that Donnie knocked something over or dropped several objects from shock. This was not the reaction she was looking for from her friend.

"Nothing. I tripped a bit because it sounded like you said Rae's in labor," the chef answered in a shaky voice, forcing out a laugh to cover up her anxiety.

Spain gulped, knowing that she just delivered bad news and had to continue on. "She is. And I think she's been here a while."

"Oh, god, oh, god, oh, god. Okay, Spain, if you can, just stay with her until I get there! I'm not that far from the hospital! I'll be there in ten minutes, just stay with her, please!" Donnie begged and she disconnected the call, so it was not like the doctor could argue.

Spain gawked incredulously at the phone. "So, apparently, I'm in charge of watching Rae. Do you think you can keep an eye and ear out for Don? You know she'll come here like a hurricane now that she knows her clone is about to be born into the world."

"No problem. I just need to deliver this chart and I should be free to wander around for a little while," French answered.

Spain nodded and French finally returned her arm to her. They broke apart and went separate ways. Spain was thankful that she did not have anything to do as far as work went because she did not want Rae to go through things alone, even if Donnie was on her way. She made her way into the OR, making sure to stay out of the way. She could tell there were difficulties, but she did not ask about them at the moment. She was going to be as professional as possible, even if the person on the table was a good friend of hers.

The titan doctor watched as a cesarean was performed on Rae and she could not help wondering what happened. As far as she knew, Rae had a fairly normal pregnancy. Donnie never reported anything negative about the baby. So, based on that, Spain assumed that Rae would have a normal labor, but apparently that was not in the cards. After a while, she wondered where Donnie was since ten minutes past a long time ago and then she got a page. She glanced down at the numbers and a code that let her know the page was from French. She guessed it was important since French knew what she was supposed to be doing. She was about to walk off to find out what French wanted, but stayed put when she heard the sound of a baby's cries fill the room.

"Donnie…" Rae whispered as tears flowed down her face.

Donnie, you worthless jackass. I don't give a shit what she did. You should be here for this, you damned bastard, Spain growled to herself, making a fist. The desire to punch something was great, but only for a brief second. She was all too aware that she had better things to do with her time than punch a wall. Besides, she made her living with her hands and made other people thanks to her hands. Damaging her hand would not be a wise move.

The tall doctor decided to stick close to Rae, wanting to give her support. Rae smiled softly when she saw the familiar face, even though she thought that face was someone that sided with Donnie through out their whole mess. Spain took Rae's hand as soon as she could and smiled down at her, quietly assuring her that everything would be all right.

"Sorry about this whole thing," Spain whispered. Her eyes apologized more than her words did.

"Donnie…Donnie never came…" Rae cried, her head swaying a bit. She wanted to run, hide, and curl up into a tight ball. Anything to keep away the knowledge that Donnie totally abandoned her.

"She's on her way," Spain promised.

"She didn't answer…when I called…" Rae's tears flowed harder. Her throat felt dry and her insides felt like they turned to ashes.

Spain growled again, turning away for a moment to hide her anger from the emotionally drained woman. Thankfully, before she tensed to the point that Rae would have noticed something was wrong with her, Rae was taken back to her room. Spain followed, frowning so deeply that it looked like she might split her face open with tension.

I'll kill Donnie when I see her. Simple as that. We're in a hospital, I can just inject her with something and kill her. I don't give a shit what Rae did to her! Rae should not be going through this alone, scared and hurt! Spain screamed in her head.

The giant doctor was so wrapped up in her own head that she almost ran her girlfriend over. She stopped only because French pushed her in the stomach. She cast her gaze downward to see her lover glaring up at her.

"Why didn't you return my page?" French demanded to know.

"Because I was staying by Rae. She's scared and that fucking useless mate of hers is nowhere to be found!" Spain pointed out in a heated tone.

French frowned and reached out, pinching her girlfriend. Spain yelped and quickly put her hand over the injured space on her forearm. She swallowed nervously as she met the narrowed eyes of the small nurse.

"Well, you big idiot, if you returned my page, you'd have found out that Donnie's far from useless and she's causing a huge fuss in the emergency room!" French informed the taller woman.

Spain blinked hard. "Wait, what?"

The petite nurse snorted and folded her arms across her chest. "She got into a car accident on the way here. Some guy hit her," French reported.

"What!" Spain bent down and grabbed her mate by her shoulders. "Is she okay?!" she begged to know, shaking her lover just a little.

French put her hands on her girlfriend's arms and gently massaged her left bicep to calm her down. "Fine enough to be causing grief down there. You're better with her when she's like this than I am and I wanted you down there to help her get through this scary time. So, go down there. She should be done getting stitched up and everything," the small woman explained.

"She only needed stitches?" the doctor asked to be sure.

"Stitches and she'll probably be on a crutch for a few days. She sprained her ankle and knee on her left leg, but other than that, she's just screaming about how she needs to get to her wife and baby, so you need to go save the poor intern dealing with her."

Spain was off to do her next good deed for the day and to find out the story of how Donnie ended up getting hit by a car. She found the woman in question trying to pull away from the intern that was left to deal with "the most difficult woman in the ER." Spain shook her head, watching Donnie scream at the intern while pulling away to avoid getting stitches in her arm. The intern was attempting to gently tug the injured limb back to him, but Donnie was putting up a hell of a resistance to him. Spain figured that she better step in before Donnie actually punched the guy.

"How about you let me do this?" Spain suggested, speaking to the intern while patting him on the shoulder in an encouraging and friendly manner.

"Thank you, Spain! Tell this moron to let me go, so I can get to Rae!" Donnie hollered, glaring at the intern with hatred in her eyes.

"She doesn't have a concession or anything, does she?" Spain asked the young doctor.

"Possibly a mild one, but she hasn't been exactly cooperative to let us really find out," he answered, throwing his hands up in defeat.

"It's probably nothing. She's hardheaded, after all," Spain remarked and she dismissed the intern with a wave of her hand. She took over stitching up her friend and decided to start talking before Donnie started yelling again. "Let me fix you up before you go see your wife and daughter. If Rae sees you all messed up, it'll just panic her more," the doctor pointed out.

Donnie bowed her head and sighed. "You're right."

"What happened?" Spain asked, eyeing the deep gash in her friend's arm.

"Some punk kid had one too many beers. He clipped the back end of my car and sent me skidding. I was able to slow down enough not to get killed, but couldn't regain control of my car until it hit a pole. I got jerked around pretty good. I'm not sure what cut me up," Donnie recounted the tale as if it was nothing. She did not care about her accident. She wanted to get to her wife and child-now.

Spain nodded. "How's that knee feeling?"

A snort came before the response. "Hurts like fuck, but I don't care about that. Rae had the baby already, didn't she?" Her voice cracked and she had swallow down a lump in her throat.

It was Spain's turn to look down and her voice was quiet when she answered. "She did. She had to get a c-section. She was really scared about the baby, but she's fine. Oh, you have a beautiful daughter with a full head of feathery black hair and smooth peanut butter skin."

Tiny water droplets dampened Donnie's bloody shirt. "…She didn't call me…she didn't want me here…?"

Spain's head popped up and she stared her friend dead in the eye. "No, she wants you here. She's been crying for you the whole time. I don't know what happened because she said she called, but you didn't answer."

"My cell never…" Donnie reached into her pocket with her good hand and pulled out her phone. She went through all of her calls. "She didn't call me. Her number's not here. What the hell?" Her mouth twisted up a little, total bewildered from what she was not finding.

"I don't know. This sounds like something you two have to work out. Did you get a crutch and everything?" Spain asked.

"Yeah, I was pretty much done by the time you got here. I've been down here for almost an hour thanks to that idiot kid. You know the little bastard kept driving too until he rammed the back of a truck with the front of his car," Donnie remarked, trying to laugh a bit to lighten the mood.

"I just hope he's in here somewhere and not on a slab in the morgue," Spain commented, looking around the emergency room.

"Nah, they brought him in a little while after me. Little idiot broke his leg from what I heard, but nothing else."

"Hopefully, he learned his lesson. Come on, let's get you up to your family."

My broken family, Donnie thought with a sigh. I'm such a fuck-up at life, just like my dad.

Spain helped walk Donnie upstairs, but did not take her to Rae's room first. Before that, she wanted to get Donnie into another shirt and thankfully she had a spare in her locker. Donnie was able to change into Spain's shirt, which was big on her, but she was still happy with it because she knew that her appearance would not frighten Rae.

"Maybe I shouldn't go in with the crutch…" Donnie muttered, glancing at the prop in question.

"You keep your ass on that crutch. You don't want to seriously mess up your leg," Spain ordered and slapped Donnie in the back of the head to make sure that message sank in.

Donnie's hand went up to hold her now sore dome. "Ow! Should you be hitting me if I might have a concussion?" the chef demanded.

"Do you think I care at this point? All this fucking drama for no reason. God, do you know how much you freaked me out today? First, I think you've abandoned your family and then French makes it sound like you died in a car accident. I'm getting too old for this shit," Spain huffed, folding her arms across her chest in a snit.

"Ah, thirty-two, so over the hill," Donnie scoffed, rolling her eyes.

"Just make sure you stay on that crutch and try to sit down and everything. Take it as easy as you can for a little while," Spain instructed her friend.

Donnie nodded to show that she understood and then they came to Rae's room. The chef paused and took a deep breath. Her stomach flipped and flopped while fear welled up inside of her. The last thing she needed to do was enter the room and see Rae in an embrace with Audrey or find out that she honestly as not wanted around. Her shaking hand gripped the doorknob and she twisted the doorknob. Her heart pounded, feeling like it was going to explode in her chest. At least I'm already in the hospital.

She pushed the door open and waited for her reality to shatter. Instead, a calm overcame her as she took in the sight of the room. Rae was lying in the bed, looking pale and overwrought. French was at her bedside, trying to comfort her, and French was the one that spotted Donnie at the door.

"Rae, check it out. Donnie finally showed up," French said with a smile.

"Donnie?" Rae turned to the door and a bright smile swept over her entire face. Her eyes seemed to sparkle and shine, seeing just her spouse. It did not even register to her that Donnie was using a crutch.

"Hey, sweetie," Donnie greeted the petite woman as she stepped deeper into the room.

French quickly made her exit, wanting to give the pair time alone. She quietly shut the door behind her and then went in search of Audrey. She had encountered Audrey earlier when she was going to Rae's room. She found the redhead trying to comfort Rae, but it obviously was not working, so she shooed Audrey away, making up some excuse about the patient needing rest. She knew that Audrey was "the other woman," so she wanted to make sure Audrey was nowhere around while Donnie was in the room. She decided to enlist the help of other nurses to help in her cause.

-----

"What happened to you, Donnie?" Rae asked curiously as the chef took a seat next to her bedside. Chocolate eyes glanced at the crutch as Donnie propped it against her seat.

"A kid had a disagreement with my car. It's possible that his car was trying to mount mine from the back," Donnie answered with a shrug and a light chuckle, making sure to make it seem like no big deal. "I just have a sprained ankle and knee. It's nothing problematic. What about you? Have you seen our baby girl yet?" she asked with a giddy grin. She even bounced in her seat.

"I didn't get a chance yet. They're making sure she's stable. I don't know what happened, Donnie. I mean, everything seemed fine, but when she's ready to come, everything went wrong…" Rae said, shaking her head as tears welled up in her eyes again.

Donnie pulled up to the bed closer and grabbed Rae's hand, holding it tightly with both of hers. "Hey, everything's okay. Everything turned out fine. You're okay and we've got a baby girl. Hey, Spain said she's got your hair. I don't know what color her eyes are yet, but I hope they're a dark chocolate, just like yours," the chef said in a gentle tone before kissing Rae's fingers.

Rae smiled softly. "I hope she looks like you. I get the feeling she's going to act like you just from the difficult way she came into the world. We've got a wild child on our hands."

"You have to expect that from these kids named 'Donnie.' So, what full name were you planning to go for?" Donnie asked curiously.

"You don't want to repeat 'Donatella,' do you?" Rae countered with a teasing smile.

"Nope. It's not really a fun name to walk around with when you're a kid. I'm good enough with just Donnie. When we were picking names, you said you thought 'Donna' was cute, right?"

Rae nodded and smiled, looking like a cherub. "I like it."

"Donna it is. Donna Rae." Donnie declared.

Rae blinked hard. "Are you sure?"

"Positive. It was your courage that brought her into the world. Later on, when she's older and being crazy, we can tell her that she started out life that way. Plus, she's a part of both of us…it's only fair that her name reflect that."

Rae was ready to burst with joy. Her smile lit up the room. "I'm glad you feel that. I'm sorry you got into a car accident on the way over here. I know how much you wanted to be here when the baby was born."

"Some things can't be helped. I was driving like a maniac anyway. Who's to say if Spain hadn't called me earlier or later that I wouldn't have wrapped my car around that pole and hurt myself a lot more than just a little sprained ankle?" Donnie pointed out.

"Why didn't you answer when I called?" Rae inquired, voice slightly low.

"Rae, you never called me," Donnie answered evenly. "If you had, I would've been here in an instant. Why didn't you call me?" she asked curiously, still making sure to stay calm.

"Wait, you have the nerve to miss our daughter's birth and now you're blaming it on me?" Rae demanded, a frown rapidly conquering her once happy features. She yanked her hand away from the other woman's comforting grip.

"I just want to know why you didn't call me," Donnie stated through gritted teeth, making a fist and then releasing it.

"I asked Audrey to call you several times-" That was enough for Donnie to cut in right there.

"You trusted that bitch to call me?! What the fuck good does it do her to call me?" Donnie demanded, hitting the edge of the mattress with her palm. How the hell can Rae be so stupid to think that Audrey would actually call me for something so important?!

"What good does it do her not to call you? You expect me to believe that Audrey wouldn't call you just to be vindictive?" Rae countered in a harsh tone.

Donnie's entire demeanor froze over and turned to stone. She pushed her chair away from the bed and propped herself up on her crutch, standing as best she could. Her body shook, having nothing to do with the fact that she was using a crutch to stand. Hazel eyes locked onto Rae's petite form, glaring as wrathful tears limited her vision.

"You're going to take her side? Make me sound like the asshole? Make me seem like the bitch?" Donnie rushed over to the bed and put her hand in her pocket.

As she brought her hand up, yanking it upward, Rae flinched, not sure what Donnie was doing. The restaurant owner noticed the move and the tears in her eyes fell when she realized what Rae thought that she was going to do. She put her cell phone down in Rae's lap.

"I won't even touch you since you seem to think I'm capable of such evil as hitting you. Fine, I'm the bad guy. I'm the asshole. Go through the phone and you tell me where the fuck a call from Audrey is!" Donnie ordered with a furious expression. "The top call is Spain telling me you're in labor. There aren't any other unidentified numbers and you can see your fucking number didn't come up. So, you tell me where the fuck a call from Audrey came that my baby was on the way!" she demanded in a heated tone.

Rae flipped through the received calls and there was no sign of the call. "But…why would she…?" her voice trailed off as her wide eyes scanned the phone-and beyond possibly-for something. She was not sure what it was.

"Because she's a manipulative bitch who doesn't know when to fucking quit. I hope you two have a happy fucking life together since you seem to believe every fucking thing she tells you." Donnie snatched her phone back and did her best to storm out of the room on her crutch.

Rae's voice caught in her throat as she wanted to call out to her wife. She reached out, but that did not stop Donnie from fleeing. The chef almost knocked Spain over as she hastily escaped the room. Spain grunted, moving out of the way, knowing that Donnie would have plowed through her if she did not step out of the fleeing woman's path. The doctor noticed the tears oozing down her friend's face. She sighed for what felt like the millionth time that day.

"These two are really screwing up our image of the perfect couple," Spain grumbled to herself, scratching the side of her head. She sighed, wondering what she should do. She gathered her courage and ducked into the room, hoping that Rae was not crying…or screaming.

"Donnie?" Rae said with hope when the door opened again.

"Sorry, just me," Spain replied with a sheepish expression as she came in and shut the door behind him.

Rae sniffled and attempted to straighten herself out to look a little dignified. "Spain, what the hell is wrong with your friend? She keeps screaming at me for standing up for myself," she said, swallowing down a sob.

Spain sighed again and ran her fingers through her hair, forgetting that it was done in a ponytail. "Rae, I don't know the whole story here and I really only got Donnie's side. So, you tell me what happened from your perspective and I can have a better picture. Maybe an outsider to the whole thing might be a bit better for both of you."

"Why? You're just going to side with Donnie. She's the one that's your friend, after all! I don't have any friends anymore. I gave them all up because of Donnie. Just like I gave up my job for Donnie. I gave up everything for Donnie and the one time I get something for myself that makes me feel better she wants me to give it up!" Rae screeched in anger. She winced a bit, pain coursing through her from getting too worked up.

Spain noticed the flinch and decided that the best course of action would be for her to remain calm. "You mean Audrey?" she asked in a cool manner.

"She's the only friend I have and Donnie wants me to send her away just because they don't get along. I don't get along with Tegan, but I don't go around telling Donnie to get rid of her or that Donnie's in love with her just because they spend a lot of time together!"

Spain nodded sagely. "Now, not being a psychologist, but having seen one on TV a time or two, so I'll offer my two cents if you want it."

"Go ahead and tell me how right Donnie is to hate Audrey," Rae huffed, turning her nose up at Spain.

The doctor did not look very impressed. "Now, despite how much I think you still love Donnie, Donnie doesn't see it because you keep defending Audrey to her, picking Audrey over her from her perspective. She's whined about that enough. You don't see it that way. But, that could be because Audrey is more than just a person to you from what I can tell from your screaming. For you, Audrey represents this life you think that Donnie took from you. Audrey is that independence that you let slip away when you got into a serious relationship with Donnie. But, I think you're remembering things wrong if you think Donnie 'took' those things from you, if you think Donnie 'took' your friends from you. At any time in your relationship did Donnie ever ask you to stop doing anything?"

Rae frowned, feeling as though she was being attacked by Spain. She answered anyway, "It was implied that I should be home more often, so I let my job go and my friends slip away because Donnie wanted me around more."

"But, if this example, where Donnie was able to tolerate Audrey's presence for as long as she did even though she clearly hates this woman, doesn't it show that she wants you to have friends?" Spain asked curiously.

"She was probably humoring me…" Rae huffed.

"I don't know where you've gotten this fucked up picture of Donnie from, but you need to get your act together before you let the best thing in your life get away…and the best thing in Donnie's life. You know how much she loves you and I can see it in your eyes how you love her, so why are you dragging this out? Just to prove you can and show you have control over your life? You've always had that," Spain stated.

"Donnie's the one pushing me away. I'm not the one that told her to leave-" Rae did not get to finish that sentence because the start of it made the good doctor lose her cool.

"It's not about telling! You know this bullshit with Audrey is driving Donnie up the wall, but you continue to side with Audrey instead of Donnie, so what the fuck is Donnie supposed to think?" Spain huffed.

Rae glared at Spain and the lecture was brought to an end as Audrey entered the room. The redhead glanced at Spain, taking in her white coat and nametag, so she could see that Spain was a doctor. Audrey walked over to Rae and kissed the side of her head.

"How're you feeling?" Audrey asked the new mother.

"Better than earlier. I'm glad you're back," Rae said, hugging the redhead to her. Spain shook her head and exited the room.

-----

Donnie made her way to the nursery, wanting to see her daughter. She hoped the newborn was there since there were complications with the birth. She smiled when she saw the bassinet with the name "Bonaventure" underneath it. Her little girl-with a full head of black hair like Spain said-was sleeping, looking like such an angel. Donnie leaned against the viewing window.

"Sorry, Donna. I think that I've screwed up with your mommy enough where this divorce is going to be for real. It's okay. We both love you very much. We'll protect you with everything we've got. Still, I'm sorry for this. I wanted you to have a loving family that was together… Instead, I pushed your mommy away somehow. I don't know what I did and I don't know how I would've fixed things, but this was just my screw up. I'm sorry you're in the middle of it…

"…You see, when I married your mommy, I thought it was going to be forever. I was so sure that she was the woman God made just for me, you know. She's got this fire in her that I don't think she's aware of. She walks around like she scared of the world, but in truth, she could and would beat the hell out of the whole world if necessary. I know it's because a lot of women have hurt her in the past, but I thought I could heal her and be with her. But, I guess I've always just been the rebound woman. I want to be happy that she's strong now, to know I helped, but I'm just angry and sad and so many other things that I lost her and that you have a broken family. I really, really screwed…" Donnie's speech trailed off as a nurse came in and took Donna Rae Bonaventure.

Donnie suspected her baby was going to be with Rae. She shamelessly cried as she realized that she was going to miss her child's first feeding, just like she missed the birth of her little girl. Her whole world felt broken, her entire being felt cracked and crushed beyond repair. She did not know what to do about anything.

-----

11: Cry

"Audrey, thank you for all the help these past few days," Rae said with a small, grateful smile as she and Audrey brought Donna home from the hospital. The baby was asleep in her car seat, mouth hanging open like Rae remembered Donnie's did when she was in a heavy sleep. This thought got a bigger smile out of the petite woman.

"Hey, I'm here for you. I told you that," Audrey answered with a warm smile of her own, putting her arm around the slender shoulders of her friend. Her fingers caressed small areas on Rae's arm.

"Thanks anyway," the new mother replied.

"You are just too precious," the redhead commented, still smiling with utter delight. Silently, she reveled in the feel of the small body so close to hers.

The words paused Rae for a second, but she did not say anything. They entered the house and went to the living room. The car seat, with the sleeping baby, was placed carefully on the coffee table. Donna yawned a bit, but remained asleep. Rae left the child where she was, not wanting to disturb her peaceful rest. She smiled down at her baby.

"I can't believe this little girl caused so much trouble," Rae commented, lightly dragging her index finger across the child's tan brow. That finger then traversed gently over thick, raven locks. She could not help making a little cooing noise at the napping child.

"She looks a lot like you," Audrey said, staring down at the child.

"I don't really think so. She looks like her mama, just wearing my hair," Rae remarked, smiling broadly. Images of Donnie's baby pictures sprang to her mind. The chef did not have nearly as much hair as Donna, but they did have the same chipmunk-cheeks, wide eyes, and rounded nose. With that thought in mind, she planned to put baby pictures of Donna next to baby pictures of Donnie when she got a free moment.

Audrey sighed and rolled her eyes. "We should put your bag away and then get something to eat. I'll make lunch for you, okay?"

Rae smiled again and nodded. "Sounds good. I'll put my bag away."

The pair broke away and Audrey went to make lunch, which she had done many times over the past month. She never made anything too extraordinary in the high-tech kitchen, but it never failed to amuse her that she was allowed somewhere that she knew for a fact Rae did not allow Donnie. She smiled as she worked on simple sandwiches, but then suddenly winced as a wail echoed through the entire house. She flinched as the sound shattered the peace and her idea that everything was going to go back to normal. She frowned as the noise persisted for a few seconds more than she liked. Suddenly, the crying was gone and her curiosity was won over. She went to go see what halted the bawling and poked her head out of the kitchen to see Rae sitting on the couch, nursing Donna and cooing to the suckling baby.

The image made her frown deepen. A heated flash in her sky blue eyes was missed by the other occupants of the house, who did not know that they were being watched. The aura of peace and adoration that surrounded the mother and daughter were nearly palpable to Audrey. It was something that she knew never existed between her and Rae, but damn, she wanted that. The detestable thought raced through her mind that Donnie could probably achieve or had achieved that peace and love with Rae, somehow, sometime. In fact, for a moment, the notion came to her that Donnie had that peace right now because Donna was Donnie as far as Rae was concerned. Quickly, she shook those ideas away. Turning around, Audrey retreated back into the kitchen to avoid being tormented by her brain.

Audrey returned to making lunch when a soothing melody reached her eyes. She realized that Rae was singing, suspecting the new mother was crooning to the feeding child. The song was low, but sounded so sweet and touching. A mellow feeling washed over the redhead and relaxed her in a matter of seconds. A smile worked its way back onto her face while she made the sandwiches. By the time she was done with lunch, so was Donna. She gave Rae a plate with a sandwich, pickles, and fries on it. Rae smiled in appreciation.

"You've been a real rock through all of this," Rae said to Audrey before taking a big bite out of her sandwich. A satisfied groan escaped her throat as the simple, but delicious food touched her tongue.

"Well, someone has to take care of you and I'm happy it's me. You don't have to worry about anything. I'm here now and we'll be fine," Audrey proudly declared.

Audrey put her free arm around Rae's shoulders and they ate in silence. Rae did glance at the limb draped over her. She wondered again about what Donnie said, about her being in love with Audrey. She mentally insisted that was not true since she did not feel anything race through her when Audrey touched her, but then she realized how much she allowed Audrey to touch her.

Friends touch, Rae silently reminded herself. She did not think that there was anything wrong with her being comfortable with Audrey touching her, even though she generally disliked being touched so often. But, in the past, when she had close friends, they leaned on her and hugged her and things like that. It did not mean that she was in love with them. It just meant they were not total strangers or just acquaintances. They were friends and friends were supposed to be close. That reasoning helped her relax.

Audrey noticed that Rae settled into her touch. Mentally, she did a happy dance while an almost delirious smile worked it way onto her face. Her emotions clouded up her eyes and she forgot to eat. It was not until Rae moved away to put her plate in the sink that the redhead realized she had been lost in her own head for a while. She quickly finished off her sandwich, hoping to move onto another activity with Rae.

After lunch, they occupied their time with some Scrabble. They did not make it through a full game before Donna woke up, crying again. This time the newborn needed changing. Rae was on it with great haste, obviously diving into her role as a mommy wholeheartedly. Audrey left the room as soon as the game was paused, saying that she wanted something to drink. Blue eyes focused on the baby for a second, her mouth twisted a little in disgust as the diaper came off.

Rae chuckled a bit, guessing that diaper changing was not something that the redhead was going to volunteer for. She was happy to notice that Audrey did not seem to mind the breast-feeding since Audrey did not make up an excuse to leave when Donna got hungry again. Rae did not know what she would do if everything that baby did embarrassed her best friend after all.

The redhead tried her best not to stare while Rae fed the baby. She turned the television on to occupy her eyes while Donna finished her meal. Rae smiled down at the child, who looked very content. The new mother could not help leaning down and kissing her baby. Audrey tried not to turn her head to look at the pair, but she could not help it and for some reason she could not share the smile between mother and child. The blue-eyed woman could only frown.

She's holding Donnie… Audrey thought with a tight scowl that even made her eyes look tense.

Rae did not notice, enjoying being around Donna. The baby did not do much, yawning and blinking mostly now that she was full and clean. That was more than enough for Rae, who acted like Donna moving was the greatest thing that she had ever witnessed. Not wanting to put Donna back down, the new mother rested the baby on her chest, staring down at Donna as if she was more fascinating than anything else in the world.

"Watch her yawn, Audrey. Her mouth curls up in a funny way, almost like Donnie's does when she yawns," Rae announced with a happy smile as the newborn yawned for the second time in a minute. The baby smacked her lips a little, which got a giggle out of her mother too. "Oh, god, her momma does that too right before she falls into a deep, coma-like sleep."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Audrey said, contempt almost finding its way into her voice. The emotion was at home in her eyes, but her friend was not paying her any mind to notice. "What should we have for dinner? You want me to make something?" the redhead offered to get the subject away from the baby.

"If you want."

Audrey got up while Rae continued on cooing over the baby, unaware of the tension coming off of Audrey. The redhead fumed as she stalked around the kitchen to find items to make dinner. When am I going to get my time alone with Rae?! Damn it, I didn't expect the fucking kid to be Donnie junior or something! Shit! Audrey continued to mentally huff while she put together a decent meal.

With dinner made, the adults ate while Donna amused herself by sucking on her pacifier. Rae decided to retire for the night when she was done with her food. She told her guest goodnight and then took the baby upstairs with her. Rae went into her bedroom and placed Donna down in the bassinet that was waiting by the bed. She rocked the bassinet a little and Donna smiled up at her.

"You're such an adorable little creature, Donnie. I guess I'll have to get my fill of you now before your mama decides to up and take you," Rae commented, reaching down to tickle the child. Donna giggled a bit and then sneezed. Rae smiled even from the tiny sneeze.

-----

Audrey growled as she paced downstairs, as if she was trying to wear a path into the living room floor. She knew that she was welcome to stay the night, as she had spent many nights over the house in the past month. She had a lot of clothes in a guestroom as well as a few other knick-knacks from her home. She had informed Rae last month when Donnie left that she could stay over, just in case Rae needed anything. Rae agreed, mostly because she did not like the idea of staying in the huge house by herself.

In that month, Audrey had learned a few things about living in the big house, like there was a huge supply of very choice wine, not just in the kitchen, but in the basement. There was wine and other alcohol that she knew was very expensive and probably belonged to Donnie. She hoped one day that Donnie found out that she was taking everything from Donnie and slowly devouring it, including her stock of liquor. One of the reasons she drank it was because she was sure it belonged to Donnie, this woman whose presence haunted her worse than any ghost. Drowning the phantom seemed logical, but then again, it always seemed logical to her, long before she even met Donnie.

It's like she's here twice now, Audrey thought as she went to go make herself a drink. "God, I need one of these after listening to all that damn crying."

She sighed, downing a glass of cognac and staring at the bottle. The burn did not make anything feel better and did not wash away the aura of the owner of the house. She frowned deeply, pouring herself another drink, almost wanting to empty the bottle in one sitting if only to spite Donnie somehow. She probably would empty to the bottle before the night was out. Things were not going the way that she wanted them to go.

"I did everything…gave her things Donnie never could…and yet…" Audrey snorted and downed that drink just as quickly as she had the first.

She had a couple more rounds before deciding it was time for her to go to bed. She staggered upstairs and turned down the wrong way if she was heading for her room. Instead, she went to master bedroom and peered inside, seeing Rae lying in bed and assuming that she was asleep. She then glanced over at the quiet bassinet by the bed and the tension in her face from before returned. A malicious glare fogged up her vision, narrowing it to one space and causing her to see red. Her top lip curled like an angry cat, promising death to its prey. Suddenly, she turned around and stumbled off back to her room, not noticing the movement in the bed.

Rae waited until she could not hear footsteps anymore and then got up from the bed to shut the door, going so far as to lock it. That was not the first time that she caught Audrey looking into her room since Audrey had been staying there. After first, she shook it off, thinking that Audrey was just being nice and checking on her…even when Audrey lingered out there for long minutes. But, right now, she knew that had not been a casual, friendly check like she thought the others were. The look on Audrey's face, even though it was somewhat veiled by the shadows, was hateful and it was cast toward her baby.

Shudders ran through Rae and a chill captured her spine. Donna started crying, which caught Rae's attention. She took the child into her arms and gently rocked Donna, whispering to the baby that "mommy's here." The child curled into her mother, seeking warmth and security. Donna fell back to sleep almost instantly, soothed by the sound of her mother's heartbeat and warm presence.

Rae held onto Donna that night because the look that Audrey gave the child stayed fresh in her mind. She watched Audrey closely the next day, wondering if she had imagined the expression last night or it was something more. She was almost ready to concede that she did imagine the whole thing, that the shadows from last night made Audrey look so ominous, but then Donna started crying.

While Rae went to comfort the baby, she noticed how Audrey was watching the child. There was no way for her to disguise it. Her sky blue eyes-eyes that Rae thought were cheerful and friendly most of the time-were ablaze with intense hatred directed at the newborn. Rae's heart sped up as she picked Donna up and walked out of the living room.

"What's the matter with the baby?" Rae asked in a pouty tone, bouncing the wailing Donna in her arms. She glanced back at Audrey, seeing that the redhead was looking away with a stone-cold expression on her face.

Rae calmed the child down and fed her, so Donna was happy for the moment. The mother and child returned to the living room. Rae put the baby down in her car seat, which was still on the coffee table. The child smiled, liking the car seat more than any other item her mother had tried to place her since they came home. Rae did not say anything about the look, thinking it might just take a while for Audrey to get used to Donna, but after a few days of such looks, Rae actually started getting scared.

-----

"Audrey, you know, maybe you should go home tonight," Rae suggested as they sat down for dinner one night. It had been a rather long week for her, keeping a close eye on Audrey whenever Donna got a little too noisy, and the week was not even over yet. The glares seemed to get more intense and each one was fouler than the last. Rae felt like she was going to be smothered by the heated dislike her friend was showing her child. She had taken to locking her bedroom door every night now and last night, she heard Audrey trying the doorknob, as if she was attempting to enter the room. The thought had frightened her like a horror movie and she stayed up the rest of the night, holding Donna, praying to God, and silently crying out for Donnie.

Audrey tilted her head, looking at Rae as if she was out of her mind. "What?" she asked as if she did not understand. A perplexed wrinkle creased her forehead as she tried to take in what she had just been told, but it was the hard look in her eyes that kept Rae quiet for a few long seconds.

Rae cleared her throat before continuing. "You don't have to stay here every night. I know that living with a newborn isn't something you signed on for, so you can go home every now and then. You don't need to keep an eye on me," she explained in a gentle, understanding tone, hoping it would get the angry fire out of her friend's gaze.

"What?" Audrey repeated with grit in her tone. Her body was getting tense, her grip around her fork almost turned her fingers the color of milk.

Rae's heart sped up a little, but she pressed on as diplomatically as she could. "I know you don't like that Donna cries so much. I think you'd get a better night's sleep at your own place."

"I'm not going anywhere," Audrey declared, not sounding at all like her usual friendly self. Instead, she sounded incensed and insulted, the nerve of Rae to try to make her leave!

Rae winced a bit and slumped in her seat. "It was just a suggestion." Her voice was quiet as her heart pumped furiously, not sure what to make of her friend's outburst.

"I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to stay by your side," Audrey replied, sounding like her usual self now. A smile worked its way onto her face, but it looked more creepy than anything else.

Rae smiled back, hoping that she did not look as uneasy as she felt. Donna started crying, which saved her from sitting there and fidgeting nervously. She rushed away from the table to get the baby, who was seated on the counter in her now-all-purpose car seat. Rae grabbed her and started shushing her while trying not to notice that she could feel Audrey glaring at the bawling child.

"Come on, baby, hush now," Rae cooed, walking out of the room with the child.

Audrey frowned and went to the cabinet that she knew held the wine. She cracked open a fresh bottle and poured herself a glass. She drank her wine while opening her mouth as little as possible because of how tense her face was. By the time the mother and daughter came back into the room, Audrey was done with her glass of wine and pouring another.

"You're drinking now?" Rae asked curiously.

"What, I can't have a drink every once and a while?" Audrey countered with a huff, stony expression set to conquer her features once again.

An inaudible gulp worked its way down Rae's throat. "It's fine."

"It's not like I'm a drunk or anything," the redhead continued on, sounding haughty and self-righteous for some reason.

"It's fine," Rae repeated with a forced smile. The uneasy feeling was now ever-present in her stomach, churning and whipping things inside of her.

Rae settled in, waiting to finish her food as quickly as possible and go to bedroom for the night. An overwhelming silence blanketed the room and Audrey put down her now empty wine glass. With her hand now unoccupied, she reached across the table and covered Rae's hand with her own. Rae flinched from the surprise contact, but Audrey did not move her hand and Rae did not think to pull away.

"Everything'll be okay. We're going to be okay," Audrey said softly and then she started running her fingers along Rae's knuckles.

"I'm sure we will," Rae said, trying to ease her hand away without making it totally obvious. Audrey caught her before she could completely retreat.

"What's wrong? It's not like you have to worry about your wife coming in. Donnie's gone for good." The smirk on the redhead's face was almost vicious.

Rae sighed and put her hand down. "I know."

"Then it's okay." Audrey tightly clutched Rae's hand.

Rae felt like she was going to throw up and she was not sure why. She chalked it up to being upset over the fact that she knew that Donnie was gone and never coming back, but she knew that was only part of it. She dropped her fork and put her hand over her mouth.

"Sorry, I think I'm going to be sick," Rae muttered as she hopped out of her chair. She wanted to rush off because she was certain that she was going to throw up, but she subconsciously went to Donna first. She took the baby with her to the bathroom.

Audrey poured herself another glass of wine. The liquid did not put out the fire burning in her. Instead, it fueled it and the fire begged for more. She decided to give into that since it took Rae quite a while to return.

"Sorry about that. I hope I'm not getting a cold," Rae said as she sat back down. She knew that she was not getting a virus, but she figured that she might get sick again depending on what caused that sensation the first time.

"I hope not either," Audrey replied. "But, I would take care of you, if you did." She smiled warmly.

"I'm sure you would."

"I bet Donnie never took care of you when you got sick. Someone like her probably just left you in bed and told you to get over it."

"Actually-" Rae tried to interject, but her friend continued on.

"Donnie doesn't even care. I mean, she hasn't even called here about the baby. She's a bitch and you're lucky she's gone. Now you have me," the redhead proudly proclaimed.

Rae swallowed hard and decided against telling Audrey that Donnie actually called several times a day. It was just that Donnie never called the house; she called Rae's cell phone. She also refused to talk until Rae assured her that there was no one in the room with her that could comprehend what they were speaking about. At first, Rae thought it was silly and Donnie was just overreacting to Audrey's presence, but now…she was not so sure.

The deep apprehensive feeling only grew as time went on. Rae was starting to notice that Audrey was drinking much more often and sent a text message to Donnie saying as much because it worried her. Donnie's response had asked if she wanted Donnie to do anything. She sighed while writing back: it's probably nothing; don't worry.

Even though she was trying not to worry Donnie, Rae was worried. She finally noticed her habit of not letting Audrey be alone with Donna and that did not stop her from doing it. Whenever she left the room, Donna went with her, especially since Audrey's dirty looks toward the baby got more open and blatant the more she drank. Sleepless nights were starting to become the norm as she sat up in bed, listening for footsteps or the doorknob moving. Sometimes, when she heard them, she was fearful that Audrey would just break the door down.

-----

"Hey, Rae, let's watch a movie tonight. We never really doing anything with just the two of us anymore, so let's watch one of our favorite movies tonight," Audrey suggested with a dazed smile. Her eyes were a little glassy, giving away the fact that she had already had more than a few drinks.

"Okay. Let me finish with Donna," Rae said.

"Always with the damn baby," Audrey grumbled while going to pick out a movie. After that, she went to get herself another drink.

Rae pretended not to hear Audrey, not wanting to get into an argument since she knew that Audrey was drunk already. Instead, she focused her attention on the baby, who was nursing. After eating, Donna fell right to sleep and Rae put her down in the car seat. She smiled while making sure to cover the baby with a soft, tiny blanket. Once she was sure that the newborn was all right, she flopped down on the couch.

Audrey turned on the movie and then sat down next to Rae while putting her drink on the coffee table, not too far from the baby. Everything seemed fine until the redhead suddenly decided to put her arm around Rae and try to pull the petite woman to her. For the first time, Rae resisted because she was finally realized this was more than just friendly embracing.

"Audrey, stop," Rae said, trying to pull away, but the redhead was not giving up.

"What? Let's cuddle," Audrey insisted with a drunken smile on her face.

"I don't want to cuddle," Rae declared and she attempted move Audrey's arm from her waist.

"Then how about a kiss?" Audrey had the nerve to pucker up.

"No! I'm not kissing you. We're just friends," Rae reminded the redhead.

Audrey growled and suddenly flung Rae away from her. Rae hit the end of the couch with wide eyes while the redhead climbed to her feet in an instant. Sky blue eyes glared down at Rae like some vengeful demon and Rae gulped. Never before had she seen such an intense look; it caused her chest to tighten and it hurt just to breathe. She was scared to breathe, considering that it might rattle her fiendish friend even more.

"What the fuck do I have to do to get beyond being friends with you?! I practically fucking live here! I cook for you! I clean for you! I go every-fucking-where with you, do every-fucking-thing, and you won't even fucking kiss me! Is it because you're waiting for your precious fucking Donnie to come back? Well, she's not! I guaran-fucking-tee that she's licking some other bitch's cunt right this minute! I'm the only thing you have left! I've done everything for you and it's time for you to give back now!" Audrey screamed so loudly her face started to change red. The crimson coloring only made her seem even more like Satan-incarnate to the ebony-haired female.

Rae squealed as Audrey flung herself on top of the smaller woman. Rae screamed and flailed, hoping to get Audrey off of her, but her body was covered by the redhead's form. Audrey started roughly groping Rae, grabbing onto her overly sensitive breasts and squeezing to the point that Rae hollered in pain.

"Stop!" Rae cried, trying to wiggle out of the taller woman's hold.

"No, you owe me! Do you know how long I've been trying to get you to notice me? To like me! To love me! All you see is fucking Donnie, who doesn't give a shit about you! Now, just let me show you how much I love you!" Audrey snarled, clutching another handful of boob.

"Stop!" Rae pled, tears gathering in her eyes because of the harsh treatment of her body.

Audrey did not seem to hear her and leaned down for a kiss, breathing her alcohol-charged breath into Rae. The odor was enough to melt her eyebrows, but Rae honestly did not notice the stench. The ebony-haired woman hollered and turned her head, hoping to dodge those thin lips. Audrey was not deterred, going for her kiss anyway, brutally pressing her lips to the unwilling woman underneath her. She tried to coax Rae's mouth open, but the petite woman made sure to keep her lips shut. Audrey grunted in anger and bite Rae's bottom lip, cutting the flesh open.

Rae yelped loudly as blood poured from her injured lip, but Audrey did not seem to care. She was in another world, taking what she felt was owed to her. One of her hands trailed roughly down Rae's body and she savagely yanked in between Rae's legs. The small woman screamed at the top of her lungs and tried desperately to get Audrey off of her before the redhead tried to take her pants off.

The noise added a forgotten entity into things-the baby. Donna started wailing, loudly. The cry might as well have been eardrum-shattering for Audrey. The redhead viciously snarled as the crying got louder and louder. Growling like a wrathful animal, she turned her attention from Rae to Donna.

"Goddamn, I'm sick of this fucking kid!" Audrey declared, voice acidic and beyond insane. She made a move toward the helpless child.

"No!" Rae screamed and she grabbed onto Audrey. "Leave the baby alone! I'll do anything you want, just leave Donnie alone!" the mother sincerely promised. "I swear, I'll do anything!"

"I'm getting what the fuck I want anyway!" Audrey confidently proclaimed, moving again to go at the wailing child.

Rae shot up and pushed Audrey away from the table, away from Donna. Audrey was not moved far and even though she was intoxicated, she maintained her balance. That allowed her to come back in a manner that shocked Rae despite everything that already happened. Audrey slapped the shorter woman hard across the face, drawing blood from her nose. Rae went down, stumbling to one knee, but she did not stay down. She grabbed the closest thing to her as she got up, which was an empty bottle of alcohol that Audrey had been drinking out. She tossed the bottle, barely missing the redhead and earning a devilish glare from the taller woman.

"Fucking bitch! After everything I did for you!" Audrey roared and launched herself at Rae.

Rae tried to dodge, but also felt compelled to stand her ground because she did not want to go too far from the baby. Audrey twisted and stumbled, but she was able to get Rae. She wrapped her hands around the smaller woman's neck and started squeezing.

"I did every damn thing for you! What the hell do you want from me?! Love me like you love that stupid fuck Donnie!" Audrey shrieked, apparently trying to crush Rae's throat with her bare hands. Her hands slipped, though, and her grip was not as tight as it could have been. She did not seem to know what she was doing. "You're a fucking worthless woman, Rae! You should be happy that I even give a rat's ass! No one else does! No one loves you! You should be glad I give a damn, you fucking bitch!"

Rae gagged, reaching around for something to hit Audrey with, but could only grab the throw pillows on the couch. She settled on scratching the hell out of Audrey, clawing the taller woman's face in ways that a cat would have applauded. Audrey screamed and backed away, putting a hand to her bloody cheek.

Rae shot off, pushing Audrey while she was at it. Audrey staggered and fell to the floor due to her alcoholic imbalance. Rae bolted over to the baby, thankful that Donna was already in a car seat. She grabbed her keys and ran out of the house without another thought. She got into the car and did not even bother to strap Donna in, just placing the car seat on the floor of the passenger seat.

She drove away for a few blocks before stopping to fix Donna up properly. After correctly securing the baby, she continued driving and started sobbing. She did not know where to go; she did not have any friends anymore! There was no place to go because she ruined everything! She pushed everyone away, she screwed everything up! While panicking, she continued driving until she realized that she recognized the neighborhood. She pulled into an apartment complex and got out of the car. She grabbed the baby again and rushed inside, going upstairs to apartment 2D. Her fist was pounding on the door before she even realized it.

"Hold on!" a voice called and moments later the door open. "Babe, what're you…what the fuck happened to you?" Donnie demanded to know as she took in the sight of Rae's bruised, tear-stained face.

"Donnie…can I stay with you?" Rae requested through several sniffles.

"Of course. Come in, come in." Donnie ushered the petite woman in with a gentle motion of her hand. She shut the door right behind her spouse. "Here, gimme the baby," Donnie said.

"Huh? Oh…" Rae glanced down at Donna, who was no longer crying. The child was looking around, as if she was trying to figure out what was going on. Her mother handed the baby, car seat and all, to Donnie.

"Hey, there's my big girl! How's mama's big girl?" Donnie asked with a grin, walking into the living room with the baby. She put the baby down on her sofa; the only piece of furniture in her living room. She then turned her attention back to Rae. "Sweetheart, you can come on in. Can I get you something?" she offered, trying to keep a calm voice, even though she was all too aware something was wrong.

"Donnie!" Rae ran at her wife and flung herself into the taller woman. She wept into Donnie's chest.

Donnie did not say anything. She just held onto Rae and let her cry. She caressed the small of Rae's back, hoping to soothe away any trouble in the ebony-haired woman's body. Once the weeping was over, Rae seemed to be exhausted, so Donnie picked her up and carried her over to the couch. Carefully, she sat down, not wanting to disturb Donna.

"You good now? You want anything?" Donnie asked, continuing to rub Rae's back.

"Just hold me, please," Rae answered, curling into the chef for warmth, love, and protection.

"Okay. I can do that. If you need anything, you just tell me."

Rae nodded to show that she understood. They remained like that for a while. Donnie cradled Rae to her and also paid Donna some mind by rocking her car seat just a little. After a while, Donna did start crying, letting her parents know that she was hungry.

"I'm going to feed her," Rae said as she started sitting up. She reached over for the baby.

"Okay, while you do that, I'm going to run you a bath, so you can relax. Have you eaten anything tonight?" Donnie asked as she stood up. She stretched and rolled her shoulders, trying to keep away tension.

"I had a light dinner a couple of hours ago."

"You have to keep eating to make sure Don gets enough to eat. I'll make you something, not too heavy. I think you should have the bath first, though. I'll handle it."

Rae did not have the strength to argue and knew that Donnie needed something to do in order to keep her emotions in check. As soon as Donna was done eating, Donnie took the baby and led Rae to the bathroom, so that she could have her bath. Rae did not say anything, just shut the door, stripped, and sank into the hot water, sighing as she did so.

"Come on, clone-o-mine. We need to make Mommy something light and yummy," Donnie said, bouncing the baby in her arms. Donna yawned and the proud mother smiled at her. "Okay, maybe we need to put lil Donnie to bed and then make Mommy something light and yummy."

Donnie went to her bedroom and put the baby down to sleep in a playpen that was set up next to an air mattress in the corner. She gently eased Donna down, putting her on her back, and covering her with a soft blanket. She watched the baby for a while, knowing that the moment she took her eyes off of Donna, the child would somehow end up sleeping on her stomach. Apparently, Donna did not know that babies were supposed to sleep on their backs.

Once she was sure that Donna was fine, she went and got Rae something to wear once she was done with her bath. Rae did not stay in for long and had no problem with putting on the clothing that Donnie left, a long tee-shirt with a picture of pancakes on it. She could not help smiling, remembering when she brought the shirt for Donnie. Before leaving the bathroom, she took a moment to put the shirt to her nose and inhaled Donnie's scent all over the article of clothing. A relieved and relaxed sigh escaped her as the calming aroma invaded her nose.

She then shared a plain grilled-cheese sandwich with Donnie before the chef convinced her to go lie down. It really did not take much convincing, but Rae refused to go down on her own. Donnie had to lie down too to keep Rae settled in the bed. The smaller woman cuddled into Donnie, burying her face in familiar cleavage.

"Are you going to tell me what happened?" Donnie asked in a low voice, running her fingers gently through sable locks.

"I'll tell you in the morning," Rae promised. She knew that if she told Donnie what happened now, Donnie would spring into action and all Rae wanted right now was to hold and be held by the taller woman.

"You sure?"

"Uh-huh."

"Okay," Donnie agreed. She kissed the top of Rae's head and held her tight.

Rae sighed in relief, finally able to completely unwind and let her guard down for the first time in a long time. She fell asleep totally at ease, feeling like things were going to be all right. Donnie's sleep was not quite so good, hating to think that she left her beloved in the hands of someone that would harm Rae. It only led her to believe that she was more of a fuck-up than she initially thought.

-----

12: Work

Rae cooed contently as she woke up, embraced by familiar warmth. Warmth that surrounded her completely like a divine halo and promised her that everything was right in the world. Warmth that soothed any wounds inside and out like an omnipotent balm. A gentle, affectionate touch accompanied the brilliant warmth, loving her, assuring her that she was alive and well.

Almond-colored eyes drifted open to see Donnie. The chef was occupying her time and her mind by softly stroking silky ebony locks. Rae sighed and snuggled closer to Donnie. The taller woman pressed her hand to Rae's back, tenderly caressing the small of her back. Rae let loose a pleased mewl and a tiny smile settled on her face. The peace was broken when Donnie decided to share what was on her mind.

"I don't like the red marks on your neck," Donnie commented in a low voice. The hard look in her eye went unnoticed because Rae was trying burrow deeper into her chest, as if attempting to merge with her. The only thing keeping her from returning the gesture was the blaring maroon marks glaring up at her and marring on her lover's fair, beautiful skin.

"Donnie, please," Rae begged with a whimper, not wanting to travel that road yet. She wanted to stay blanketed in the coziness of her fantasy where everything was fine between her and her wife, where Donnie holding her lovingly was still an everyday occurrence, where Donnie still loved her from the bottom of her heart.

"I need you to tell me what happened because looking at these marks is making me crazy. My mind is drawing up a million situations for how they got there and the next one is always worse than the one before it. So, for my own peace of mind, tell me what happened or I'm going over to Audrey's place, waiting for her and stabbing her repeatedly," Donnie requested in a dead serious tone. Instinctively, she knew that Audrey harmed her beloved and a baser part of her wanted to do nothing more than slay that redhead bitch for daring to touch her mate!

Rae nodded, but she could not meet Donnie's eyes. She started talking while trying to make sure she did not cry, keeping her face buried in the safety of her lover's chest. She began her tale, talking about how Audrey was creeping her out by walking by the bedroom late at night and glaring at the baby. It got even worse when she knew Audrey would wander around outside the bedroom at night, just pacing in front of the door and sometimes trying to come in, but the door was always locked. She then went into how Audrey's drinking got out of control and how she tried to take what she wanted from Rae. And then how Audrey turned her fury on the baby, but how she did not let the drunken woman get to Donna. Her voice cracked through out the whole thing and as she got to the part where Audrey attempted to go after Donna, the tears started pouring out and her body started shaking.

"I was so scared!" Rae bawled, her voice barely a broken whisper. She felt like she was about to fall apart, but strong arms held her together.

"So, she choked the shit out of you because you wouldn't let her hurt the baby?" Donnie inquired just to be sure that she got the story right. She began contemplating how she could return the favor to Audrey.

"Uh…" Rae hesitated, not sure if that was what was going to happen.

"You're going to defend her again, aren't you?" the chef asked in a tense, exhausted tone.

Rae vehemently shook her head. "No. I really don't know what she was going to do to the baby, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't anything good. She looks at Donnie with such hatred, so I know she wasn't going to do anything good. I don't know if that's why she came at me either. She was already hurting me when she started squeezing my breasts, so maybe she just wanted to subdue me. I really don't know why she started choking me. I just know she did. I didn't know she was so unstable. She didn't seem so…well, nuts when we were just hanging out!"

Donnie rubbed Rae's back to help keep her calm. "It's okay. You didn't know, I didn't know. We both kinda fucked up here. I mean, I left you with her. I should've known something was fucked up with her. First off, I just didn't like the look in her eyes most of the time and Trisha fired her faster than most of her other assistants."

"I didn't even know she got fired…" Rae muttered. "I guess that explains all of her free time, though."

"Yeah, Trisha fired her after they finished the nursery. She said something about Audrey just wasn't right. She also said Audrey showed up to work drunk sometimes. That's why I asked you if you wanted me to do something when you said she was drinking."

"I didn't think it was going to get that bad. I didn't know her drinking was that bad. I guess she was really frustrated with me. Donnie…Audrey's in love with me, but I think of her as just as a friend. Well, not even that anymore. She really scared me last night," Rae admitted, borrowing deeper into the security of Donnie's body.

Donnie held her as if she was fragile and precious with tender care. "It's okay. First things first, we're going to go to the police and get this on record. Hopefully, we can at least get a restraining order if not press charges against Audrey. Then, we'll go to the house and get whatever you and Donna need and you can stay here for a while, so you're not alone in the house."

"I don't want to be alone in this apartment either!" Rae objected, going tense at the thought of being by herself.

The restaurant owner massaged Rae's back again, which caused her down. "You won't be here alone. I'm going to be here with you. I just don't want to chance you being in the house in case Audrey is really nuts and tries something. At least here, she doesn't know where you are, right?" She was going to kick herself if Rae told the redhead where she lived.

"Right. I never told her where you live. I knew you wouldn't want her to know and I didn't think she'd care anyway. Do we really have to go to the police?" the petite woman inquired curiously.

"Yes! I don't want her to think that she got away with this. She better hope I don't run into her or I'm going to beat the living hell out of her! I can't believe she did this to you," Donnie said, clutching into Rae tightly to keep herself calm now.

"I was surprised myself. It was scary when she jumped at me and for a minute I didn't even realize that she was choking me. Does my neck look really bad?"

Donnie was silent and her body tensed. Rae felt how stiff her spouse was and that let her know just how bad her neck had to look. When they got up to get ready for the day, Rae went into the bathroom and studied the mark. Thick crimson bands wrapped around her neck, bands that were caused by the fingers of someone that claimed to love her. That same person put a deep, nearly-black bruise on her cheek.

"Donnie would never do this to me…" Rae muttered as tears welled up in her eyes. She remembered at the hospital when she flinched because she thought that Donnie was actually going to hit her and she now realized just how stupid she had been. She had allowed Audrey to poison her mind so badly that she suspected the wrong person of possibly hurting her.

She sighed, shoulders slumping and feeling like the lowest of the low. She washed her face, hoping to wipe away the feeling and give herself a fresher start to the day. She put back on her clothes from last night and then walked out of the room, searching for Donnie. She found the chef in the kitchen, holding Donna, and pulling items out of the fridge while talking to the baby about what they were going to make for breakfast. Rae could not help smiling while watching the pair, taking in how much Donnie loved their daughter and how Donna seemed to hang onto her momma's every word, even though they knew she did not have a clue what Donnie was saying.

"Can I help with breakfast?" Rae requested, smile still lingering on her face. She really wished that she had a camera to capture the moment.

Donnie turned a little to see the petite woman. "Sure. Apparently, lil D is going to handle making the eggs while she tells me I just have to cut fruit," she joked, tickling the baby's cheek. Donna giggled, showing off a bright, toothless grin.

Rae laughed a bit too, feeling better. She helped a little bit before Donna started crying, wanting her own breakfast. Donnie was left to handle the adult meal while Donna had her own. After everyone was fed, Donnie put the baby into the car seat and ushered Rae out of the house. They were off to the police station.

Rae's face and neck were photographed, documenting the marks. Her statement was also taken, explaining what happened. She took out a restraining order at Donnie's insistence. Donnie also insisted that the police go to the house to make sure Audrey was not there. Rae was glad for Donnie's forceful personality because the cops really did not want to do it, apparently shy about getting into a domestic dispute as they put it. But, Donnie made them go up to the house, reminding them that what might seem like a simple domestic dispute could always end up as something worse. Besides, Donnie did not think of it as a "domestic dispute."

While the police scanned their home, Donnie considered having Rae press charges against Audrey. She glanced down at Rae as they waited outside in the car and decided against it. The ragged, exhausted look in deep brown eyes and worried lines that were etched into her creamy face were what caused Donnie to let it go. She did not want to drag Rae through anything further right now. Maybe if Audrey tried something else, she would press the issue, but for now, just documenting what happened was good enough for her.

Once the police made sure the house was clear, Donnie and Rae went inside. They grabbed some of their belongings and plenty of the baby's things. Then they returned to Donnie's apartment. The remainder of the day was spent cuddled together and relaxing, trying to forget the stressful ordeal that Audrey put them through.

"Donnie, what're we going to do?" Rae asked curiously, curling into Donnie's solid form. They were lying on the air mattress in the bedroom. Donna was sleeping in the playpen right next to them.

"Let's not think about it right now. Just relax a bit and we'll figure it out later," Donnie answered, resting her head on top of the smaller woman's soft ebony mane.

"Okay…" Rae sighed and nuzzled Donnie's neck. It was hard to resist the temptation of placing a kiss to the wonderful skin she was pressed into, but she managed. "Um…Donnie…?" she said the name with such uncertainty and a little quiver shook the name.

"Yes?"

"Are we still getting a divorce? I still love you and I know you still love me."

Donnie sighed this time and kissed the top of Rae's head. "Babe, let's worry about everything later on. I just want you to relax and heal up. I'm going to be here for you no matter what."

Rae nodded and decided that was enough for her right now. She fell asleep against Donnie, who was not sure what she was going to do. Right now, all she wanted to do was protect Rae, so she suspected that was definitely going to put any divorce proceedings on hold. Once that was out of the way, she would have to take a step back and figure out what was best for her.

It took a couple of weeks before they got around to talking about anything. Rae worked up the courage to bring things up again after she watched Donnie put Donna down for her nap. After that, Donnie flopped down on the bed because she liked watching Donna sleep for a few minutes. Rae ambushed her and dropped down on the taller woman. The master chef grunted on impact, but embraced Rae around the waist.

"I get the feeling you want my attention," Donnie remarked with an amused smile.

Rae was silent for a second. What she really wanted was to lean down and steal a kiss from Donnie's tempting lips, but she did not. She was not sure if Donnie still considered that they had that type of relationship, even though they shared a bed every night, held each other, and touched whenever possible. Sometimes, Donnie even kissed her, but only on the top of the head or the cheek. They had not done anything romantically intimate.

"Donnie, I need you to tell me what're we going to do. I've had a lot of time to think about things and I really think I can explain what happened to me. Are you willing to listen and then we figure out what we're going to do?" Rae asked.

"I'll listen if we can sit up. You've got your elbow in my ribs," Donnie answered.

Rae nodded and moved off of Donnie. The chef eased back on the bed, so that her back was against the wall. Rae sat at her side instead of draping herself on Donnie like she would have done. Donnie glanced to the side and considered grabbing Rae up, but she thought that Rae might need the space to get through what she wanted. Once they were settled into their positions, Rae began speaking.

"You know, when Donna was born after you left the hospital, I had a talk with Spain. She gave me her thoughts on what happened with me and Audrey and I'm starting to agree with her take on things in a way. When Audrey came along, she was my first friend in a long time and she was like everything that I had given up when I started going out with you all rolled up into one person. I opened up to her in ways that I was sort of scared to do with you, scared that I might chase you away. So, I talked with my friend, since you know, you should be able to tell friends things, but Audrey used what I said to mess with my mind. I'm not making excuses, I shouldn't have listened to her. I shouldn't have trusted her, but I wanted a friend, I wanted something so badly. Something that was mine.

Something that let me know I still had a life. I'm guessing her plan somewhere along the line was to get me to leave you and go out with her, so she kept hinting that you were probably cheating on me, that you were just going to leave me anyway, that you're just a spoiled brat and so much bullshit.

"Anyway, really, I clung to Audrey because she was something that was mine. It wasn't that I was in love with her, but she was mine. My friend. The first thing I had had in years that was my own, for me, and wasn't given to me by you. I gave up everything for you, Donnie, and I don't think I really wanted to, but I thought you wanted me to…" Rae cast her eyes downward, feeling shame. A sniffle tore out of her throat, but she held in any tears that might try to fall.

"Why would you think that?" Donnie inquired, very confused. Her face scrunched up as she searched her wife's gaze for something to explain why are would feel such a way. "Okay, yes, I hated you working at that piece of shit café-diner-whatever-the-fuck-it was, but if you liked it, I didn't want you to quit."

"Yet you kept offering me a job at Donnie's. To me, I thought you wanted to keep an eye on me."

Donnie's eyes opened wide with disbelief. "I kept offering you a job because I wanted you some place safer than where you were working and some place with better pay!"

Rae shrugged a little. "I'm just telling you what I thought at the time and why I was open to such ridiculous suggestions from Audrey. When we moved in together, you kept saying how you wished I was around more. To me, after having to deal with other girlfriends that have plenty of money, I figured you wanting me around more often meant I needed to quit my little crappy job."

"Babe, not only were your former girlfriends rich bitches, but they were also control-freaks. You really thought I was a control-freak? Why the hell did you love me in the first place then?" Donnie asked, scratching her head.

Rae frowned for a moment, wrinkling her forehead. She leaned over a little and put her hands around Donnie, wanting to take away the pain that she knew she was causing. Tiny hands caressed a flat abdomen and Donnie sighed. Once the taller woman relaxed, Rae continued the discussion.

"Donnie, whatever notions of you I had in my head, you were still one of the sweetest people I have ever met. You're still the sweetest person I have ever met and you make it so easy to love you with every piece of me. But, I read you wrong, going by what my past girlfriends wanted and reading those things into your little words and gestures."

Donnie nodded and frowned a little, casting her eyes to look at the far wall. "So, basically, what happened to us was really inevitable. Eventually, you were going to… I guess rebel." Hazel eyes then turned sharply to focus on the ebony-haired woman. "But, sweetheart, I really don't mind if you have friends. I'm sorry you gave your friends up before. I didn't know why you did it and I really should've asked, but I was just happy to have you around more," the chef replied, almost as if she was apologizing.

"If you like being around me so much, Donnie, why did you start staying at the restaurant so much more this past year?" Rae asked curiously, eyes begging to know why her lover practically abandoned her for the famous eatery.

Donnie chuckled a little. "Oh, that. Man, I didn't think that would cause this amount of trouble, but I was setting things up to make sure I would have to be there a lot less once Donna was born. You must've notice I haven't gone anywhere in the past two weeks."

"Oh…" Rae's expression dropped and she had that low feeling again. "You know…I thought you were just putting your life on hold because of me. I felt a little bad about it actually," she replied in a small voice.

"Rae, you are my life and you have been for the past five years. Now, you and lil D are my life and you always will be. I'm taking a slightly more hands-off approach to the restaurant because of that. I've worked out how to get things done even with being there less. I want to be with you and Donna. I want to be there when Donna sits up for the first time, takes her first step, says her first word, gets her library card, hits her first homerun on a softball team, wins her first spelling bee, has her first date. I want to be here for her whole life. I want to be here for our next kid and all of that too. I won't let the restaurant or the café stop that," Donnie vowed in a strong, even tone.

"I'm so sorry, Donnie!" Rae cried, burying her face in her hands and she started sobbing. "I should've had faith in you! It's just that I felt like nothing was mine. Even when you said you were going to take the baby, I just kept thinking that you could because you have everything and I have nothing. It was like I was just your possession and you could do whatever you wanted while I had to do everything you wanted."

Donnie wrapped her arms around Rae and held onto her. "I wish you would've said something sooner."

"I know I should've. Please, Donnie, give me another chance. I'm sorry for everything. Just give me another chance," she begged, speaking into the cotton fabric of her love's tee-shirt.

"It's okay. We'll make it through all of this," Donnie promised.

-----

"Damn, Don, it feels like I haven't seen you in ages!" Tegan declared as she, Spain, and French all entered the new house. They were all surprised when Donnie moved out of her apartment a couple of months after Rae and Donna moved in with her. They did know it was a sign that the couple were trying to work things out, though. It eased their minds to know that the relationship was not beyond repair, but Tegan was even more weary of Rae now.

"We've been way too busy around here and lil D is such a handful," Donnie replied, bouncing the three-month old baby in her arms. Donna yawned and then suckled her pacifier, not paying her mama much mind.

"Oh, she has gotten so big," Spain cooed, reaching out for the baby. Donnie handed Donna over while Tegan and French looked at Spain as if she had grown another head. The doctor noticed. "What? The Amazon can't like a baby?" she inquired with an arched eyebrow.

"No! 'Course not!" Tegan and French said, even though they both did think it looked just a little weird for Spain to be holding such a little creature.

"Just be careful with her, Spain. She likes grabbing for things that she shouldn't, like your glasses," Donnie cautioned her friend, noticing just how closely her daughter was eyeing the face of the woman holding her.

Spain nodded. "Good to know since French has been threatening to skin me alive if I ruin another pair," she replied.

French put her hands on her narrow hips. "Hey, no one should go through three pairs of glasses in a year if they're not a ten-year-old child."

Spain glanced away, looking thoroughly scolded for all of two seconds. Tegan and Donnie laughed at the giant's reaction. Once the look passed, the doctor turned her attention back to the baby, who was still watching Spain's face-possibly looking for an opportunity to reach for her specs.

"Come on in. I'll give you guys the nickel tour since we have some time to kill before dinner," Donnie explained, waving her friends deeper into her humble home.

The new house was very different from the old house that Donnie owned. It was a ranch-style house and smaller than the other, but it seemed much more like Donnie than the other one did. It was impressive, but it did not scream "wealth and status" in loud tones like the other one did. It was a more simple, warm style. The furniture were done in light colors and light wood. There was a little artwork up, but definitely not as much as the old house had, and definitely items that Donnie and Rae truly liked, such as woodland scenes.

"Donnie, this place really is way more you," Tegan commented with an approving nod.

"You think so? I didn't have any say in decorating it, but then again, I didn't have any say in the other house either," Donnie pointed out with a little laugh and shrug.

"Your mom did your other house, right?" Spain asked, adjusting the baby in her arms since Donna seemed to be falling asleep now.

"Well, she didn't set foot in there, but she did tell me everything to buy and like an idiot I listened. I thought she might visit or something, but that never happened. Whatever I didn't follow up on, Trisha just filled in based on what I was already doing. It was almost like living with my mother again from the way the place looked. Just a little creepy," Donnie replied.

The friends nodded and decided against saying anything about Donnie's mother since this was supposed to be a pleasant, friendly visit. They went through the house fairly quickly. There were five bedrooms of impressive size in the house, a small office with plenty of books and a desktop computer, two and a half bathrooms, a large basement that they were planning to turn into a game room, and of course, the kitchen was the most breathtaking room in the place. There was a pool out back, but it was too cold to go for a swim. After the tour, the crew settled into the living room and Spain put the baby down on a blanket that was laid out on the carpet just for her.

"So, where's Rae?" Spain asked curiously.

"She's at work. She should be here in a little while. She called just before you lot showed up, looking for you guys," Donnie explained, leaning back into the beige sofa.

"How's she liking her new job?" French inquired with a smile. She remembered how excited Rae had been when she got a job. It was not the most glamorous or high-paying job in the world, but one could not help share in her happiness. Rae always beamed and glowed whenever she talked about the fact that she was working again.

"She's loving it. She's good at it too. I've never brought so many books in under an hour in my life," Donnie remarked with laugh.

"Well, you're her wife, so I think you're obligated to do that," Spain teased.

"That and every time I go in there, she swears there's this book I'd like. Damn it, she's always right!" Donnie pretended to whine.

"Rae's always been like that when it comes to you, so I don't know why you're so surprised," Spain pointed out.

"I'm not. That woman knows everything about me. I'm glad she's liking her job at the bookstore. She seems a lot happier now, even if it's just part-time," Donnie said. Her wife had been more relaxed and smiled much easier now that she was working. Rae even seemed to have more energy and was more open, which Donnie attributed to the job because it gave Rae something to talk about when she came home, which led to them having long conversations about any and everything.

"I can't believe you actually took her back after all of the crap she's put you through. I don't understand how you can forgive her," Tegan said, shaking her head in bewilderment.

"Well, for one, I'm partially to blame by telling her who she loved in the first place. But, mostly, I love her, Tegan. I'm deeply, madly, honestly in love with my wife. I always will be. I'm miserable without her and you know that. And she's in love with me. Why should we break apart if we're in love with each other and want to be together? We both want this badly. We're working through things, which is why she went out and got the job. We're going to do some couples' therapy too once everything is settled," Donnie explained.

"What's this thing with the job have to do with anything anyway?" French asked curiously.

"Rae felt like she didn't have her own life before, like she was just a possession of mine since everything was mine…technically anyway. I mean, for me, I feel like everything was ours, but I did buy it all, so she didn't feel the same. This is a step toward her getting a life of her own instead of being an installment in mine. One of the things we're going to work on in therapy," Donnie answered.

"Has she made any new friends yet?" Spain inquired with an arched eyebrow.

"She's a little trigger shy about that so far. She's still a little freaked about Audrey and everything," Donnie replied. That got a round of understanding nods.

"Well, at least she's okay with being away from you now. Before, you said she was sort of glued to you, right?" Spain asked.

Donnie nodded. "The first few days, she wouldn't let me out of her sight, except to shower. Then, she got really shook up when we saw Audrey outside of the old house not too long ago when we went to make sure we got everything we wanted from there. She's far from okay and the only reason she's good to go to work is because the café isn't too far away, so some of the employees go by every few minutes and check on her for me. We got Rae a new number for her phone and everything, but I think she's going to be okay."

"She's getting therapy for that, right?" Tegan asked, although it was not really a question. Despite the fact that she was never Rae's biggest fan, and that did not change with Rae reconciling with Donnie, she did feel some compassion toward Rae since the woman had gotten beaten up and she put herself in danger to protect Donna. She did not think that Rae deserved the beating and she respected Rae for putting her body out there for the baby.

"Duh. It's also something we're going to have to work on in couples' therapy as soon as we find someone we both like. I never thought Rae would be the picky one about a therapist, but trying to find someone for both of us has been crazy. Thankfully, she's fine with her therapist, even though I don't care for him much," Donnie said.

"Why not? Rae makes him sound like a really good guy and a lot of help," French said.

Donnie shrugged. "I might just be being paranoid at this point and that probably is it. I just don't like the way he looks at me sometimes. It makes me feel like he's blaming me for Rae's problems and I don't mean that in a really bad away. But, it seems like his eyes are saying to me that Rae really shouldn't need therapy and she should be able to talk to me about this stuff. Sitting in on a few sessions, I can see he doesn't blame me and Rae says he never does, but still sometimes when he sees me, I really feel like he's calling me a bad wife in his head."

Tegan scoffed. "That sounds like paranoia all right. No therapist is going to actually say they're not needed," she joked, earning a few light chuckles from her friends.

"So, have you seen Audrey lately or heard from her?" French asked, letting a shudder rip through her. Just thinking about Audrey gave her the creeps now that she knew what the woman was capable of, so she could imagine the horrors that Rae went through.

"Aside for the thing at the old house, she walked past the restaurant one day when I was there, but I'm not paying her any mind. We've got it on record and she hasn't really tried anything. I did call the police and everything. She was drunk outside the restaurant that day, so the cops took her in for public drunkenness. I really think that's her problem. She just drinks too fucking much," Donnie explained with a shrug.

"I think you're simplifying her problem," Spain commented in a dry tone.

"You might be right, but I'm a simple person outside of cooking and management," Donnie reminded them.

They nodded in agreement with that. They decided to let the matter drop since there was nothing that they could do with Audrey, except stay on the watch for her if they were around Rae. Their conversation was interrupted by the sound of the front door opening and closing.

"Babe," Rae called out.

"We're in the living room," Donnie replied.

Rae walked in and joined the sit-down on the living room carpet. She leaned down to kiss the baby before giving Donnie a kiss. They all spoke for a little while longer before Donnie served dinner. They all sat down at the table and joked, and laughed, and felt at ease.

-----

Donnie was at the restaurant for her one day of work that she always tried to get in for the week; lately, she had been up at the restaurant just a few hours a week, mostly because she could. Everything ran smoothly without her having to hover over everyone. Usually when she came up now, it was to work in the kitchen because it was still her passion and she liked cooking for the restaurant just as much as she enjoyed cooking for her family; she was allowed to cook at home more often now.

The restaurant owner was packing up and getting ready to go, wanting to see her wife and child again. She stepped out of the office and was going to go out the front door, but as she walked to the main hall of the restaurant, she spotted a familiar profile; one that she had not seen almost a year.

Audrey was in the restaurant and Donnie was almost ready to call the police, but then she noticed that Audrey was not alone. The redhead was sitting with another woman and they were smiling at each other; hell, Audrey's eyes were practically sparkling and Donnie could see that from a distance. Audrey was paying the other woman complete attention and Donnie decided to leave her be.

She hoped that meant that Audrey had moved on since Rae had been avoiding her for a year. Plus, Rae had gotten on with her life, now having a life to get on with. She and Donnie were also getting on with their life, together, with Donna of course.

-----

The end.

A/N: Thank you to everyone who read the story. I hope you all enjoyed it and I am sorry if the ending feels a bit weak. I just was not sure what else to do.

Holler at this Lunatic: starving.lunatic@gmail.com