Back To the Grind
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She'd been there dozens of times. Maybe hundreds. Maybe even thousands, for all she knew. It was her second home, her watering hole, her gathering hall. She spent more time there than her apartment, to be sure. She didn't watch many movies, she didn't go to many shows. Instead, this was her entertainment, her therapy, her daily vacation.
But why was she so afraid to actually go inside the gym?

Daph stood across the street, sharing her space on the New York sidewalk with only a pile of trash bags twice her height. Her gym bag was tightly clutched in her first, as if she was about to throw it over the passing cars. She bit her lip nervously as she gazed through the windows into her Iron Wonderland, unable to tell if there was anyone she recognized or, more importantly, who would recognize her. Daph swallowed, the taste of the fruit & nut bar still clinging to her tongue. There was nothing knew about shaky nerves or the jittery anticipation that came with going to the gym. Daph knew that, nine times out of ten, she would just be able to work out and exercise through the anxiety. But this was different. A new kind of worry.

She slid her hand down to her stomach, hidden beneath a baggy shirt a couple sizes too big. In the month or two since she'd gone to the gym, she'd gotten pregnant. And, inevitably, it was starting to show. What only a few weeks ago had been a little bulge barely visible beneath her clothing had become a more defined, fuller bean-shape to her lower torso. It wasn't much, but to someone like Daph, who prided herself at keeping in the best shape possible, she might as well have painted a target on her belly.

Daph tapped her paw against the sidewalk, taking out her water bottle and squirting a stream into her mouth. Most of it fell down her chin and darkened her shirt, but she didn't notice. Frowning, she crammed the water bottle back into her bag, hiked it up her shoulder, and took a deep breath. What no one other than her close friends knew was that Daph loved urban exploration. What this mostly consisted of was trips over the connected rooftops and crammed together brownstones in SoHo and Hell's Kitchen. More than once, Daph leapt over alleyways and between gaps in buildings in the middle of the night, one slip-up sending her careening toward the ground sixty feet below. But on occasions like those, Daph knew that there was no good in sitting still and agonizing over the fear. The only way to move forward was to suck it up, trust her instincts, and just go.
“Alright,” Daph said to herself, swallowing her anxiety. “Fuck it. Let'th do thith.”

Taking a determined step over the curb, she marched across the street toward the gym door, glaring at it like it was going to attack her. She felt her new, growing belly rubbing against the inside of her shirt as she walked, but she ignored it and simply concentrated on getting across the street. Before she knew it, she'd flung open the door with far more power than was necessary and marched inside.

“Yo!” Daph shouted as she stepped over the doormat. Everyone within earshot glanced toward her, with some gym-goers taking out their earbuds to listen. She planted her paws far apart from each other and cupped her hands around her mouth. “Who'th ready to get swole tonight?!”

A throaty, deep chorus of roars and shouts came from the rest of the gym. Daph raised her arms in the air, cupping them to her ears and encouraging more until the entire gym cheered in unison.
She grinned, lowering her arms. If she was going to be the center of attention, she might as well own it.

“Yo! Daph!” Shouted a voice to her left. Behind the registration counter sat a thin doberman with glasses and curly hair. Setting down his magazine, he sat up in the chair and reached over the counter toward her. She approached and they clasped arms, each squeezing as hard as they could flex.
“Jathon! What the fuck ith up, dude?”
“Same shit, different day,” he said. “Not anymore, though. Where the fuck you been? We missed your cute little ass shakin around here.”
“Good thing you were here to cover for me, yeah?” Daph said, playfully grabbing Jason's muzzle and holding it closed until he shook her off. “But yknow, I jutht wanted to get out more, yknow? Work had me fuckin exhauthted, so I just thtuck to running in the park on weekendth for a bit.”

“We just thought you'd finally given up on us,” Jason said, sliding her a pen and clipboard from across the desk.
“Trutht me, I'd drop you fuckboyth in a second if I thought that'd keep you away,” Daph said, signing her name on the registration board and sliding it back. She made sure to stand close enough to the table that Jason couldn't see below her chest. “Hey, does my card expire thoon? Look me up in the thystem.”
“Sure,” Jason nodded. He turned his attention to the computer and, after a few silent seconds of typing, shook his head. “Nah, you auto-renewed. Your membership won't expire for another six months.”
“Cool, cool,” Daph nodded. She swallowed, feeling her stomach graze against the desk beneath her. Would she still be able to fit through the front door in six months? Maybe she'd just be laughed out of the building, if she were lucky.
“What's up?” Jason asked, eyeing Daph's far away expression. She looked up and shook her head.
“Nah, it'th nothin’. Just thtuff on my mind.” She shrugged. “I got into a weird situation lately. I wanted thome iron therapy to work through it, yknow?”

“I gotcha,” Jason nodded. “You're all set, by the way.”
“Rad. Hey, who'th here?”
“Couple guys,” Jason nodded toward the back. “Frankie was here when I came in. I think Renard is doing some training with a client tonight, but he's here. Uhh...Rick was in here earlier, but he might have left. I think I saw Melinda around, too.”
“Rad. I'll keep an eye out for em,” Daph nodded. She knocked on the counter a couple of times, then pointed at Jason as she walked toward the locker rooms. “Don't work too hard, you're thupposed to be the eye candy around here.”
“Yeah yeah yeah,” Jason waved dismissively, picking up his magazine.

Daph crossed past the line of treadmills near the window and into the women's locker room. Finding it empty, she sighed in relief, having a moment to herself. Flicking her tail idly, she kicked off her signature toe-shoes as she padded across the tile floor, fishing in the outside pocket of her gym bag for her keys as she reached her locker. Once she wrenched off the old, hand-me-down padlock she'd found in her mother's storage room a few years ago, she crammed her bag and shoes inside. For whatever reason, Daph liked to work out in her bare paws. She wasn't sure why, but it just felt more natural, giving her an ease of movement not even her toe-shoes could provide.
Lastly, she pulled off her extra large, baggy t-shirt and threw it into the locker before closing it. She contemplated keeping it on, but that just would have raised even more questions. Her best bet was to act natural and keep her friends too distracted to notice her bump.

Daph groaned, stretching out her neck as she backpedaled away from the locker into the middle of the room. Hopping from paw-to-paw, she breathed steadily while shadow-boxing the air as fast as she could, working to get her blood pumping. She hopped in place, shaking out her arms to limber them up and holding her breath at the very top of her lungs to absorb oxygen.

“Alright...Alright alright alright alright...” she hissed under her breath. “Yeah yeah fuck yeah...let'th go, let'th go...” She accidentally turned to the side while she stretched and caught sight of herself in the mirror, stopping momentarily to examine her reflection. Daph was the same short, stocky, copper-red squirrel as before with the gigantic mass of her tail taking up most of her frame. But looking herself over in her tight work-out shirt, her hint of a baby belly seemed just a bit more noticeable than it had the day before. Turning to the side, she lifted her shirt to get a better look at it, her navel just barely starting to poke out beyond the waist of her pants. So far, it looked more like a chubby stomach than a pregnant one, but she wasn't sure if this was a good thing or not.
“Nah, you're good, you're good,” Daph nodded to her reflection, trying to boost her own confidence. She lowered her shirt and patted a quick drumbeat against her stomach. “It'th not that bad, you can barely fuckin tell...you're all good...we're all good...”
She was thankful that the baby was still so small, but she couldn't help but imagine what it would be like when it wasn't so small…

“Hey!” called out a deep, booming voice from the bathroom door, making Daph suddenly jump and a shiver visibly travel up her tail. A thick hand, nearly six feet off the ground, entered around the corner of the doorway and knocked on the brick wall. “Yo Daph! You in there?”
“Yeah, Frankie, I am,” Daph shouted, taking a deep breath as her heart pounded in fear. “Now give a girl thome fuckin privacy, alright?”
“What the fuck you doin in there?” Frankie's voice continued, with his thick Jersey accent.
“I'm powderin my fuckin nose, man, get the fuck outta here!”
“What, you didn't even wanna say hi ta me?”
“'Cauthe I had to piss, Frankie! What are you, my fuckin mom?”
“Alright, alright!” he said. “You just coulda said somethin, is all.”
“Good to see you, too,” Daph said, with finality. She pulled up her shirt again, ran a hand through her belly fur, and sighed, pulling it down.

Do it for her, Daph thought.

Taking one last deep breath, she picked up her water bottle and hand towel and left the bathroom with a practiced swagger in her step. Standing outside the women's room, against the wall, was an enormous draft stallion nearly seven feet tall and wearing a tank top above thick muscles. He beamed at the sight of Daph, holding out his arms. She shot a glance at him and rolled her eyes as she walked past.
“What do you want, a fuckin hug?” Daph snarked, batting his face with her tail.
“Yeah, maybe I do,” Frankie said. Daph was suddenly lifted off the ground by a pair of huge arms around her torso and squeezed. “Where the fuck you been? I missed ya!”

“Gagh, fuck,” Daph shouted. She kicked her legs impotently as Frankie dangled her almost two feet off the ground. She reached down as far as she could and balled up a fist to punch him in the side, aiming for one of his kidneys. She slapped against him like striking a punching bag full of meat. “Put me down you fuckin athhole!”
With one of her powerful legs, she kicked backward, one of her paws striking the inside of Frankie's thigh. He dropped her, wincing in pain but simultaneously laughing as he clenched his legs together and fell against the back wall. Panting, Daph put her hands to her stomach, suddenly worried that something could have happened to the baby. Fortunately, much of the force had been put on Daph's ribs and, at the very least, Frankie knew how to handle his own strength.

“Chritht, Frankie! Don't fuckin do that!” She shouted, throwing her water bottle and hitting him in the chest with it.
“Alright, alright!” He wheezed, holding up a hand. “Just watch out for the 'family jewels' next time, will ya?”
“They're about the only brainth you got left, anyway,” Daph said. She walked forward and picked up her water bottle next to one of his hooves, then stood and patted the side of his face with a force just below an open-hand slap. “How you been, you big fuckin meathead?” She quickly punched him in the stomach, but not hard enough to actually hurt him. “But for real, don't do that. I've been thick.”

“I'll say,” Frankie nodded, grinning. He reached forward and poked one of his fingers into Daph's belly. “You gotta lay off those peanuts, girlie.”
“I thaid thick,” Daph said, slapping away his hand and trying to hide her alarm at possibly being found out. “Like I've been throwin up. That'th why I've been gone, ya dumbass.”
“Oh, for real?” Frankie said, standing up, concern crossing his face. “Aw shit, nobody told me that.”
“It'th cool, I forgot to thay anything about it,” she shrugged. “I'm jutht...tryin to take it easy, yknow?”
“I gotcha,” Frankie nodded. He suddenly clapped his hands together and pointed toward the back of the gym. “Yo, Renard's here. He's been wonderin’ where you was.”
“I wath planning on sayin’ hi,” Daph nodded, glancing around the room. She spotted a short, gray rabbit stepping off one of the treadmills, her ears tied behind her head. They locked eyes and waved wordlessly at each other as the rabbit headed into the bathroom.

“You theen Rick?” Daph asked.
“Yeah, but he left bout an hour ago,” Frankie said. He thumbed over his shoulder toward the men's locker room. “I was about to head out myself, actually.”
“Good, you better hit the fuckin’ showerth,” Daph teased. “You thmell like a goddamn barn.”
“Hey hey, I don't hear the ladies complain about it,” Frankie said, flexing his arms above his head.
“Yeah, but I don't thee any ladieth around here, either,” Daph said, raising an eyebrow. She punched him one more time in the stomach and walked off, waving over her shoulder. “Later, big guy.”

“Later, Daph!” He called out. Before entering the bathroom, he stepped out again and cried, “Oh, wait! I had my competition!”
“Yeah?” Daph called back, still walking backwards. “How'd you do?”
“I got second!”
“Fuckin rad!” Daph said, flashing a thumbs-up. “But if you got thecond, I'd hate to thee the fucker that got firtht!”
“Yeah...he was a fuckin beast, for real.”
“You're gonna beat hith fuckin ass next time, right?” Daph pointed.
“Oh, no doubt!”
“That'th my boy!” Daph said before turning around and heading into the back room.

The small, padded room in the back, as opposed to the strength training focus of the rest of the gym, was home to the aerobic equipment, like the elliptical machines and yoga balls. Usually, Daph only went in for the free-weights along the back wall, but in her...'condition'...she knew that she'd be spending a lot more time in there. It was nearly empty aside from a couple of lions near the back doing some training with a medicine ball and a gray-striped, lithe cat helping one of his clients. Glancing up, his expression lightened at the sight of the squirrel standing awkwardly in the doorway.
“Yes, just like that, cheri,” he said softly to the opossum he was helping stretch out on one of the benches. “Good, good...Hold that for thirty seconds...Don't forget to breathe...”

Daph nodded to him, not wanting to interrupt his personal training session, and instead padded across the floor to the free weights across the room. Standing over the rack, she hesitated, staring down at them while drumming her fingers against her stomach. Her eyes ran over the sixty-pound weights, the limit she hoped to one day break. They stared back at her, black metal menacing her, daring her to pick them up, mocking her. Taking a deep breath, she sighed. It wasn't good for her to go that hard right at the beginning, especially now she wasn't alone inside her body. So Daph slid her finger down the rack, hovering over the twenty-pound weights and remembering how the doctor had told her to take it easy when exercising at first.
“Ptthhhbbt,” Daph said, blowing a raspberry through her teeth, and picked up the thirty-pound weights.

She squatted down on the bench next to the wall, trying hard to ignore the new extra shape to her stomach as she bent over to pick up the weights. Taking a few deep breaths, Daph sat up and started an easy, warm-up set of curls. Every strain and curl brought her muscles to life with an exquisite pain, a warmth spreading through her arm. Daph grit her teeth and continued her set, her nerves finally soothed by physical strain. It felt fantastic, the way her arms moved, the weight she fought against, the burning in her muscles that reminded her vividly that she was so, so alive in that moment.
After she finished the set, Daph let go of the breath she held, dropping the weights onto the padded floor and stretching out her arms. Glancing up, she spied the tall, lanky form of the gray cat standing above her, hands on his hips and tail swaying behind him playfully. Daph grinned, reaching up to clasp arms with him.

“Renard,” Daph said, grinning. The cat smiled back, his sharp teeth flashing beneath his exotic eyes.
“Mon petit amie d'écureuil,” he responded, his words gliding between his lips in a voice like silk.
“Oohhh, wow, I'm tho wet, Renard. I can't believe how hot you are.” Daph mocked. “Pleathe, tell me more, Frenchie.”
He bent at the waist and kissed the back of her hand, his tail just barely touching the ground.
“Je dois utiliser la salle de bain,” he whispered, trailing a finger down Daph's face. “Je souhaite que vous ne préfériez les femmes.”
“What doeth that all mean?” Daph asked.
“It means, 'I wish you did not prefer women,' Daphodille,” Renard added with a wink.
“Well, you never know,” Daph teased. “Sometimeth I get into...moods, yknow?” She winked.
“Then we can only hope I'm around to see them,” Renard said, crouching down to his haunches to look Daph face-to-face while he sat. “How are you, Daphodille? It's been too long since you've been here. It is unlike you to be away.”

“It'th been a...” Daph frowned and scratched the back of her neck anxiously. Of all her friends, Renard was one she felt the worst lying to, so she tried to think of a way around it. “I've...there'th a lot I've had goin' on the patht couple months. I don't...I can't really go into it. I'm thorry.”
“Don't apologize,” Renard shrugged, smiling. “Your life is your own, and things happen. I'm just glad you are well, mon amie.”
“Thankth, man,” Daph said, nodding. “I'm okay, thith is jutht...gonna be a big year for me.” In more ways than one, Daph thought to herself, thinking of her developing belly.
“Well, Daphodille, I can only hope that I can be there to help you through it,” Renard said, clasping her shoulder and squeezing it. Daph smiled and did the same thing with her free arm.
“A lot of it'th gonna be me on my own but...that'th cool of you,” she grinned. Taking her hands off his shoulders, she planted them on her knees and flicked her tail excitedly before changing the subject. “Hey, I've been really outta the loop, what'th been goin' on with Urban Acrobats?”

“Ohhh ho ho ho,” Renard laughed, excitedly, his face lighting up. He nimbly hopped up and dropped onto the bench next to Daph, crossing his legs while effortlessly balancing on the thin seat. Between his personal training career and Daph's waitressing, the two of them had set up an online parkour and free-running group over every social media site they could think of. Over the course of a few years, they'd amassed nearly a hundred members across the city, including most of the regulars at the gym. Some were enthusiastic and active participants, like Melinda and Daphodille herself, while others just came to meet people, like Frankie.

“We have three new members since the last meeting, and videos of the last exhibition are...er...'going viral?'” He said, unsure of the phrasing. Daph nodded approvingly.
“Wath I there for that last one?”
“I...don't think so. At least, you are not on camera.”
“I'd love to get a video of my moves thometime...” Daph mused, scratching her chin. “Maybe we could tape one of our rooftop runs.”
“Eh...I'm...I believe those are illegal...”
“So?” Daph shrugged. “There'th about a bajillion thquirrels in New York. Who'th gonna recognize me?”
“Well...eh...I suppose,” Renard shrugged, curling his tail, obviously still unsure about the idea. He blinked, his gaze roaming around the room. It took a long time for Daph not to be offended by this habit, that it was simply a feline trait. She quietly waited for him to finish, flicking her tail and drumming her fingers on the seat. When Renard glanced back, his expression lit up again.

“But! I have not yet told you of my new plan!” he continued. “Over time, I have gotten so many messages of people that want to join our group, but don't know anything about parkour. I think that we are finally big enough that I think we should offer classes!” He nearly shouted the last word, as if he was too excited to let it leave his mouth without a fanfare.
“Classeth...” Daph repeated, tapping her paw against the ground in thought. After a moment, she nodded to herself, then turned to Renard with renewed energy. “Yeah...yeah! Classeth! Shit, that'th a good fuckin' idea!” She gasped, bringing a hand to her open mouth as the gears began turning in her head. “Oh shit...you think we could charge for it?”
“I don't know, maybe!” Renard shrugged. “Maybe if we ask for donations, instead, then people might be more willing.”
“Or...” Daph added, pointing. “Or...we charge the people who actually take the classeth, but everybody else is jutht encouraged to donate! We can use the money to rent out a gym or a rec center or thomething!” She looked away, nodding to herself as she tapped both her paws against the padded floor, like she was building up energy to sprint. “Fuck...thith could really work...” Daph glanced up at Renard. “Are you gonna be the one to teach 'em?”

“Some of them, of course,” Renard nodded. Before moving to New York, he had spent much of his adolescence and young adulthood in Paris, very active in the traditional parkour scene there. While not quite as daring and athletic as Daph, his control over his body was mesmerizing to watch. He was an acrobat, in every sense of the word. “But Urban Acrobats belongs to both of us, so I think you should teach some as well.”
“Wh-” Daph stammered. She pointed to her own chest, as if there was a different Daphodille Renard could have been speaking to. “Me?”
“Yes, you,” he repeated, chuckling.
“But...like...I don't know enough of my shit to teach it!” Daph shouted. “I jutht kinda...do it!”
“But you're dedicated, you're fearless, and you're very talented,” Renard said, nodding. “There's a lot people can learn from you.”
“Heheheh, fuck, man,” Daph chittered, blushing and flicking her tail nervously. “You're gonna make me all embarathed and shit...”
“I have a little money saved up, so I want to start lessons as soon as possible,” Renard continued excitedly. “In a few months, I can rent out a space I found in Brooklyn and we-”

“Whoa, hey,” Daph interrupted, putting a hand on his chest. “...Be more specific. What'th a 'few months'?”
“Oh, I don't really know,” Renard shrugged. “I could say...maybe five? Six months?”
“...And you uh...want me to thtart teaching people...around then?” Daph said, nervously.
“I do...But...only if you want to...” Renard raised an eyebrow, but said nothing else.
“Oh...uh...” Daph shifted in her seat, instinctively clasping her hands over her stomach. “...Renard, I don't think I'm gonna be able to do that...I mean...not that thoon.”
“Eh...if...if you are sure, but...” he looked concerned, but mostly just confused. “...You seemed so excited for the idea and...I don't want to just do it all by myself...”

“No, no! I am excited! It'th a great plan!” Daph looked down. While it looked like she stared at the floor between her legs, she was actually staring at her hint of a baby bump that Renard didn't even know was there. “But...Look...I told you thith wath gonna be a big year for me, yeah?” She glanced up at her friend, who gazed back at her with concern. He had no idea what was going on and didn't deserve to be so worried about her. Daph swallowed, opening her mouth to tell him I'm pregnant, but the words just couldn't come out. It wasn't her secret to tell, even if it was her body. She'd just have to leave him in the dark for a little longer.

“I jutht can't, man,” Daph shook her head. “Maybe in like...a year? It'th...I've got shit going on right now and I...” she sighed, feeling sick in her chest that she couldn't just tell him the truth.
“Daphodille,” he said, quietly, leaning closer. “...Are you ill? Is...something wrong? Are you sick?”
“No! No way, I'm fine. Or...I'll be fine,” Daph groaned, running her fingers through her hair and shaking her head. “Uuugh...I'm thorry man, I jutht...I can't be open about it right now, yknow? It'th hard for me, too.” She sighed, then reached over and took Renard by the shoulder, shaking him good-naturedly. “Look, thith idea is too good to wait on. I wanna do it with you, but I'll have to be there in thpirit, okay? At leatht at first.”

“I understand,” Renard said, smiling, but without his heart in it. “I'd like to keep going, even if it's by myself but...well, we'll see.” He shrugged, then looked around the room for a moment of silence. Catching sight of the clock on the wall, he hopped off the bench onto his feet. “I have another client coming in soon and I'll need to set up with them. Keep me informed, oui?”
“No doubt, dude,” Daph said.

Renard nodded, pausing like he was about to speak again, but simply shook his head and wandered off, his delicate paws lightly padding against the ground in total silence.
“...God damn it,” Daph said to an empty room after he left. She stood up and glanced at the wall-mirror next to her. Lifting her shirt, she looked at the belly settling just above her hips and pointed at it. “You're already thtarting to be a pain in my ass.”

Sitting back down on the bench, Daph channeled her frustration into more free-weight exercises, working the anxiety out through her muscles. She huffed and groaned and gritted her teeth through at least twenty minutes of different workouts, finding herself frustrated that she was growing so tired so quickly. She figured much of her energy was going to the baby, but she didn't realize how much until she was too worn out to even lift her arms.
“Fuh...fuck...” Daph breathed, dropping the weights to the floor. She stood, arms dangling weakly at her sides. It took all of her remaining strength to put the weights back on the rack, but she did it anyway because she was the kind of girl who screamed at douchebags who didn't pick up after themselves.
Staggering across the room, Daph slumped over the water fountain against the wall and drank her fill, drowning the burning heat in her chest. After what felt like nearly a minute beneath the water, she stood up and gasped, drinking in the air just as desperately.

“God fuckin...shit...” she breathed, stomping her paw on the floor with what little energy she had left. “I jutht...I jutht fuckin got here man...fuck...”

She stepped to the side of the fountain, gazing quietly at her reflection. Would it be possible to work with Renard anyway? She hated disappointing him like she did. She could probably do something to help. Daph began to picture herself trying to hop over a railing with her swollen gut, barely making it over before panting and needing to sit down. She imagined trying to teach a room full of young athletes complex acrobatics while she was too fat and huge to walk across a room without panting. The thought mortified her, so she shook her head violently as if to physically throw off the idea.

“Hey,” came a flat voice from her left, followed by movement to the water fountain. The light gray rabbit from earlier had stepped up to the water fountain and busied herself with filling her bottle, her ears still tied together behind her head.
“Hey, Melinda,” Daph said, nonchalantly, taken by surprise that she wasn't the only one in the room. “What'th up?”
“Not much,” she said leaning over to drink from the fountain. “You haven't been around much.”
“Nah, I wath busy. I couldn't get the time,” Daph nodded. “I wath altho kinda thick for a little while.”
“Mm-hmm,” Melinda mumbled, still drinking the water. After a moment, she sat up and wiped her mouth off on her arm. “Well, you're looking good.” She said, flatly. “Healthy.”
“Yeah...” Daph responded. “I'm feelin better.”

“I could almost say you're...glowing...” Melinda added.
Daph's breath caught in her throat.

“...I mean...if you want to, I guess...”
The two stood in awkward silence for a moment while Melinda quietly screwed on the lid of her water bottle.
“So,” she asked, “when are you due?”

Daph choked on nothing at all, snapping her head to Melinda. The rabbit glanced back at her with a lazy smile.
“C'mon,” she chuckled. “I've got five older sisters, and I knew every single time before they told me. Sometimes, I noticed before they did.”
“Mother fucker,” Daph breathed. “Is it that obviouth?”
“I mean,” Melinda shrugged and pointed at Daph's middle. “It is when you keep doing that.”
Daph glanced down and noticed that her right hand had been gently rubbing her bump without her even noticing it. She quickly folded her arms over her chest, feeling more exposed than ever before.
“God damn it...I don't even know why I keep doing it! It jutht happenth.” She sighed, then buried her face in her hands.

“Who's the lucky guy?” Melinda said, leaning against the water fountain.
“It'th...Ok, I can't thay anything yet,” Daph said, dropping her voice to a mumble. “It'th thuppothed to be a secret, ethpecially from the guyth around here.”
“Trust me, Daph. I've watched my sisters go down that road,” Melinda nodded, gesturing toward her belly. “From the look of you, I'd say you've got maybe two, three weeks before people start asking questions. This isn't a secret you can keep for long.”
“I know...” Daph sighed, turning back to the mirror and pressing her hand to her stomach. “I jutht don't know what they're gonna thay, yknow? It'th gonna be tho weird to tell em...”

“But will it?” Melinda shrugged. “This isn't like high school, you know. People tend to react in ways you don't expect.” She paused to take a drag on her water bottle before adding. “And it's never as bad as you think it'll be.”
“What, the pregnancy or the reactionth?”
“Both.”

Melinda took another sip on her water bottle before slapping the cap closed.
“I've got a movie in about an hour and I want to finish my reps beforehand,” Melinda said. She reached over and gave Daph's stomach a quick rub, then smirked. “I hope it's a girl. You'd have a cute one.”
The rabbit winked, then bounded off, plugging her earbuds back in and leaving Daph alone in the room.

She glanced at her reflection once again, cupping her bump in her palms.
It's never as bad as you think it'll be, Daph repeated in her head.
Either way, it was going to a very long year.
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Index