Parental Guidance
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While Darwin carried most of the bags down the hallway, Georgia insisted on helping, struggling with paper grocery bags full of snacks and finger food. She quietly regretted it as she hefted them along, wishing she’d just asked her husband to carry them, but didn’t want to back down from her word.
“You think we have enough food?” Georgia groaned sarcastically, re-adjusting her grip on a bag of four cups of salsa and three bags of tortilla chips.
“It’s a party, you’re supposed to over-prepare,” Darwin said, glancing back. “...Do you want me to get those?”
“You’re the one that ran us out of the house today,” Georgia complained. “What are we doing with all this if the party is this weekend?”
“Do you want to be running around an hour before people get here trying to get everything together?” Darwin shook his head. “I’d rather get everything a week early than cut it close.”
“I don’t know, it’s just a weird occasion,” Georgia said, flicking her tail to retain balance. “Why didn’t we just have a New Year’s party?”
“Because everyone has a New Year’s party. You’re always so obligated to go to so many, that it would just be a waste of time to try and get everyone together.” Darwin shrugged. “I just really wanted to see our friends before Lilly is born. We aren’t going to have much time once she is.”

“And you said Daph’s going to be gone?” Georgia asked, concerned.
“Yeah, she had things to work out at her place this week.” Darwin said. “Yknow. ‘Thtuff.’”
“Don’t make fun of her lisp,” Georgia said, standing on one leg and kicking Darwin in the thigh. “She hates that.”
“Sorry.”
“I just hate that she won’t be around. What if something happens and we’re distracted by the party?”
“Then she knows to call us. Just keep your phone on if you want, but I think everything will be fine.”
“Ugh, fine,” Georgia conceded. She quietly huffed along a few feet behind Darwin, doing her best to keep up with his long, effortless strides. She wondered whether Lilly would inherit any of her father’s natural size. He was certainly the only tall squirrel she’d ever known.

The two of them lumbered up to the apartment door. Georgia groaned and set the bags down, taking the opportunity to stretch out her back. Darwin set down a bag and knocked on the door with his knuckle four times in a pattern. Georgia glanced up at him.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“Checking for burglars?” he said, grinning cheekily. Georgia rolled her eyes.
“I’m probably going to get in the bath,” she grumbled, picking up the grocery bags. “I feel gross and my paws are about to fall off. Maybe I should be like Daph and stop wearing shoes. Seems to work out well for her.”
She grunted and hefted the bags up and followed Darwin inside, only noting for a moment that he had somehow opened the door without his keys.

Georgia was nearly blown off her feet with a cacophony of cheers and applause from inside her apartment. She had to blink away the shock from the unexpectedly bright lights and wait for her vision to fade back in so she could see more than a blur of colors and shapes. The apartment was packed with familiar faces, from college friends, high school buddies she’d lost contact with, to more recent work-friends. Even some distant cousins and a few of Darwin’s friends filled out the rest of the apartment.
Her wide eyes traveled up the walls, following the lines of decorations, streamers running along the walls, balloons littering the floor, and even a few helium ones bumping up against the ceiling all in a bright, pastel pink. The centerpiece of the decorations was a wide, paper banner that hung from a light fixture with bold, cursive letters reading out “IT’S A GIRL!”
In the center of the room, planted on the couch, sat Daphodille, grinning toothily with her hands over her belly. With the help of the women sitting beside her, she grunted to her paws and threw out her hands in a grand display.

“Thurpri- oh, fuck-” Daph swore, her heavy body teetering in place as she lost her balance, kept on her feet by the worried intervention of other party guests there to catch her. She took a deep breath, re-composed herself, then smiled and started over. “Thurprise! We fuckin lied! The party wath today and it wath for you!”

Darwin leaned over and took the grocery bags from his stunned wife, kissed her wordlessly on the top of the head, and strode off into the kitchen with her friends patting him on the back and congratulating him as he did. Georgia fielded a couple friendly hugs and greetings from old friends herself, but was still too stunned to think straight.
“Daph...did...did you do this?” she asked, breathlessly.
“Darwin, too. We had the idea a couple weekth ago. He got in contact with the guethth and I did a lot of the idea thtuff.” Daph braced her hands against her back and lumbered around the coffee table. “Alright, alright, wide load, move your pawth,” she said as she shuffled past the other couch occupants. “C’mon! Sit down!” Daph said, gesturing to the empty seat in the center of the room and grinning.
Georgia approached the couch, but stopped in front of Daph after noticing her outfit. Daph wore a pair of loose, white slacks with frills near the bottom and a green, flowing maternity blouse with short sleeves. Her hair was brushed and styled, with even a little bit of gel or product in it to keep its shape, likely put there by someone other than her. When she peered closer, it even seemed like Daph was wearing eyeliner and makeup. Daph grinned and gestured to her outfit.
“Is thith good?” she asked, seemingly more self conscious than usual. “You theemed to really like it when we went shopping that one time...”

“You look amazing, Daph,” Georgia said, swallowing a happy lump in her throat as she pulled on and felt the fabric around Daph’s belly. “I love it.”
“I figured I should at leatht wear thith kinda thing once, yknow?” Daph shrugged. She tugged the bottom of the blouse down instinctively, but found she didn’t need to. “It’s cool to finally wear thomethin’ that coverth up my fat ass, though.”
“You’re not fat,” Georgia said, smiling. “For once you actually look...pregnant.”
“That ain’t much better, dude,” Daph said, rolling her eyes. She grabbed Georgia by the shoulder and pushed her gently toward the couch. “Sit down! Relax! It’th a party!”
Georgia stumbled forward and flopped down on the couch, taking a moment to greet her two friends beside her, each of them gripping cocktails. Before Georgia could get up to go make herself one, Daph stood up in the middle of the room and began clapping her hands to get everyone’s attention.
“Okay! Listen up for a sec!” She waited for the room to quiet and all eyes to turn to her, her hands on her hips and her tail twitching impatiently. She sniffed, as if to test that the room was as quiet as she wanted it and continued.

“Cool. There’th some thtuff I wanted to make clear before we got into the swing of it, alright?” Daph nodded. “Some of you don’t know me. My name’s Daphodille, call me Daph, I’m an old friend of Georgia’th since elementary thchool. I am also the gestational thurrogate for her and Darwin’th daughter, though as you can probably tell,” Daph turned to the side to show off her full-term belly, “I probably won’t be for much longer.” A spattering of laughter followed. Daph cleared her throat and turned forward, wrapping her hands around her belly to frame it.
“Thith right here is Lilly,” Daph said. She looked down and shifted her stomach, adding, “Thay hi, Lilly.” Daph suddenly coughed, then patted her belly, muttering, “Don’t get too eager...” She shook her head and continued. “So yeah. Thith ith Lilly, Georgia’th daughter. She’th right here, she loveth attention, if you wanna come cop a feel, I don’t mind. But. Thith is not my party. Thith ith not my baby. It’th Georgia’th. She’s gonna be a mom, not me. I’m gettin’ paid for thith, so don’t congratulate me for shit, alright? Is all that clear?”

The silence of nodding followed. Daph raised an eyebrow, then cupped a hand around her ear.
“Oh, thorry, I guess I must not have heard, Ith all that clear?”
A chorus of ‘YES’ rung out around the apartment. Daph nodded, pleased.
“Alright. Cool.” Daph winced and stretched her back out as best she could, the red fur of her underbelly just barely poking out beneath the blouse. “Now thomebody get me a god damn chair before I break my fuckin’ thpine.”

Once another party guest gave up his seat for Daph, the party commenced. Georgia fielded congratulations, well wishes, and catching up with friends she hadn’t seen in a while. Daph sat by quietly, adding to the conversations when she could, but was simply content to let Georgia have her day. Daph mostly piped in to aggressively remind people that, though she was carrying the baby, it was Georgia who was the mother. Most of her female friends and even a few of her male friends made a pilgrimage over to Daph’s chair to feel the baby. She was happy to guide their fingers over her belly to more clearly feel Lilly’s hard kicks and punches, noting that they were slowing down the closer she got to her due date. While managing to keep most of the conversation about Georgia, Daph was enjoying all the attention, despite herself.

“Now, I don’t want to seem too eager,” Georgia said, some time after her second cocktail had loosened her tongue a bit. “But...aren’t there gifts at a baby shower?” As a few of her friends stood up and moved to the bedroom, Daph held up a hand and called after them.
“Whoa whoa, hold up,” Daph said. “We thtill got a couple guests comin’ and I don’t wanna get thtarted ‘til they get here.”
“Hey, it’s my party, Daph,” Georgia teased.
“And you’re the only mom who can get fuckin’ trashed at her own baby shower,” Daph shot back. “Don’t complain.” A few of Georgia’s friends glanced nervously at one another, unsure of how to treat the joke, before Georgia herself burst into laughter.
“For real, though,” Daph continued, “I wanna wait ‘til they’re here. Trust me, you’ll be glad.”
After a few more minutes of chatter, there was a series of sharp knocks on the front door, just barely loud enough to cut through the conversation. Darwin, who had set down a refreshed plate of finger-foods he’d made, stood up and wiped his wet hands off on his pants.

“I’ll get it,” he said, heading to the door. Daph smirked and checked the time on her phone.
“If that’th who I think it ith,” she said, “then she’th exactly as late as I thought she would be.”
As Darwin opened the door, a high-pitched, delighted noise came from the woman standing the doorway.
“Dahwin! How are yah, sweetie!? It’s been fuckin’ ages since I seen yah!”
Georgia leaned around her friends to catch none other than Daph’s mother, Donna Westinfold, pulling Darwin into an awkward, one armed hug around his waist, her other hand gripping a white Starbucks cup.
“Hi Mrs. Westinfold,” he said, awkwardly patting her on the back without mentioning that they had only met once before.
“You invited your mom?” Georgia breathed, surprised.
“She woulda beat my ass if I didn’t, you know that,” Daph sniffed. “Plus...I mean...she’th kinda got a granddaughter comin’, right?” Daph gestured to her belly and shrugged.
“Oh my gawd, the traffic on the way heah was awful,” Donna moaned, the gray squirrel padding inside. The long, floral dress she wore and the big sunglasses did little to hide the age evidenced by the white fur along her muzzle, but she was elegant as ever. She caught sight of Georgia on the couch and gasped like she’d just seen a ghost. “Oh my Gawd, Georgiah! Oh, you look so good!”

Donna quickly scurried around the coffee table, setting her Starbucks cup down on the surface, and bending over to embrace Georgia in a rare two-armed hug that she only used on special occasions.
“It’s good to see you, Mrs. Westinfold,” Georgia said, smiling.
“Didn’t I tell ya ta call me Donna, sweetie?”
“I know but...it’s too weird. I can’t call you anything else.”
“Oh nonsense, you’re a gawd damn beautiful young woman now,” Donna said, squeezing Georgia more tightly for a few seconds before letting go. She pinched her cheek like she used to do decades ago, and smiled. “I’m so happy for you, sweetie.”
“Party thtarted at six, mom,” Daph said, smirking. Donna tucked her glasses into the collar of her dress and rolled her eyes.

“Well hello to you too, young lady,” Donna sighed, without turning around. She adjusted the gift bag slung over her shoulder. “I was gettin’ some gifts togethah before the party, so excuse me if I can’t make it exactly when-” Donna froze as she glanced over her shoulder and caught sight of her daughter, smiling bashfully in the chair with a hand over her heavily pregnant belly.
“Hey mom,” Daph nodded.
Donna stared at her silently for a moment, as if it was the first time they had met.
“Daphodille...” she finally said, her voice soft. She took a deep breath and put her hand over her chest. “Oh my gawd...look at you...”
“Shit mom, c’mon...” Daph mumbled, scratching the back of her head. “There’th people around.”
“I’m sorry, you’re just...” Donna took a shaky breath and let it out, smiling at her daughter. “Ya look good, Daphy.”
“Thankth,” Daph said. “Do ya have to call me ‘Daphy?’”
“Yes I do,” Donna said adamantly. Daph rolled her eyes, letting her mom have that small victory. She braced against the arms of the chair she sat in and hefted herself up to her paws. Donna stepped back away from Daph’s unexpected size, her eyes wide. Daph re-adjusted her maternity blouse and pulled her mother into a sideways hug.
“It’th good to see you,” Daph said, burying her face into her mother’s fur. She wondered to herself it Lilly would have that same feeling with Georgia when she was born. Would she feel that same warmth, that same familiar sensation with her, even though they weren’t related by blood?

“You too, nutmeg,” Donna said, using an old nickname. She pulled back and looked proudly into Daph’s eyes, then her view migrated down to the round mass of her belly. Donna sniffed and wiped one of her eyes dry before laying a hand on her daughter’s belly and rubbing a small circle over its surface. “I just wish I coulda seen you before you were so...”
“Far along?” Daph suggested.
“Huge,” Donna exclaimed, glancing up with alarm at Daph’s face. “I mean, my gawd, what have they been feeding you?!”
“Moooom...” Daph groaned, her tail drooping in embarrassment.
“I mean it! You look the size of my sistah Josephine right befoah she had the twins. Are ya sure there’s only one of ‘em in there?” Donna boldly held her hands out and measured the circumference of Daph’s gravid stomach. “You’re a damn sight biggah than I was with you or any of your brothahs.”

“We’re sure, it’th jutht one...” Daph muttered as her mother stretched her hands over her belly, catching glimpses of Georgia and her friends giggling. “Cut it out, thith ith embarrassing...”
“Embarrasin’?” Donna repeated, cocking her head and raising her eyebrow. “You invited me heah, sweetie, so forgive me if I want some time to look at you befoah...befoah you...” Donna held her hard expression, but her lip began to quiver despite herself and her eyes welled up with tears. Dropping the gift bag on the coffee table, she threw her arms around Daph, leaning over her protruding stomach, and squeezed far harder than she seemed capable of.
“My little girl is havin’ a baby,” Donna wailed, her gray tail flapping wildly behind her and nearly batting other party guests in the face. Daph glanced to Georgia, terrified, her hands held out to the side helplessly. Georgia only smiled warmly and shook her head. Glancing around, she awkwardly patted her mother on the back, who responded with another hard squeeze. Only after a few minutes did she let go, wiping her eyes dry with her palm.

“I’m sorry,” Donna said, smiling proudly.
“It’th okay.”
“I’m a very emotional woman, you know that.”
“Yeah, I know. It’th fine.”
“I just nevah thought...” Donna sniffed, another wave of emotion cresting the surface. “I nevah thought I’d see the day you’d be...” She shook her head and finished her sentence with a gentle, three-finger touch to Daph’s belly.
“Yknow...mom...” Daph said, taking her mother’s hand and looking her in the eye. “Thith ithn’t my baby, remember? I’m not gonna keep it. It’th Georgia’th.” She nodded toward the blonde squirrel on the couch. “Her and Darwin’th baby.”
“I know...I know...” Donna said, nodding. “I gotta admit, I didn’t really undahstand it at first. Havin somebody else’s baby... But...when I was able to sit down and think about it...talk to Fathah Mulligan about it all...” She leaned forward and kissed Daph between the eyes, instinctively running her fingers through her hair. “It’s a wondahful thing you’re doin’, nutmeg. I’m proud of you.”

“Shit...” Daph said, bashfully glancing away. “It’th not that big a deal.”
“I love ya, Daphy, and I want you ta live the life you wanna live,” Donna continued. “But ya know...every mothah wants ta see some grandchildren. But if this is the closest I’m gonna get, then I can live with that.” She took a deep breath and sighed before composing herself. She patted Daph on the stomach one last time before finishing with, “There. That’s my speech for ya.” She cleared her throat and stepped back to address the room. “Now can one of you kids pull up a chair for an old broad like me?”

Darwin found an extra, unoccupied seat in the bedroom and quickly scurried into the living room with it, setting it beside Daph’s chair. The two of them sat in it simultaneously, Donna helping her pregnant daughter sink gingerly into the cushion.
“We can make room here,” Georgia said, sliding to the side of the couch to free up a seat before Donna waved away the suggestion.
“If it’s all the same ta you, sweetie,” she said, leaning over to place a hand atop Daph’s belly, “I’ll be fine just right heah.”
Daph sighed, rolling her eyes but ultimately conceding defeat to her mother’s fawning. She jumped in her seat with a hiccup as Lilly kicked hard, her entire belly bouncing slightly with the impact. Donna gasped, pulling her hand away to stare wide-eyed at Daph.
“Oh my gawd, was that the baby?” Donna squealed, leaning over to put an ear to Daph’s stomach. “It’s a little girl, ya say?”

“Don’t athk me about it,” Daph grumbled, gesturing to Georgia and Darwin. “Talk to them.”
“And why can’t I talk to you about it?” Donna asked, defensively.
“’Cauthe it ain’t my baby! Talk to them about it!”
“Ugh...fine...” Donna flipped her hair over her shoulder and slowly turned to face Georgia. “So it’s gonna be a little girl, then?”
“It is,” Georgia said, happily squirming in her seat. “We’ve decided to name her ‘Lilly.’”
“Oh gawd, that is just precious,” Donna sighed, putting a hand to her chest. “I love her already.”
“She’s due February 24th, or sometime that week,” Georgia continued. “Not much longer now.”
“I figured we’d better have the shower pretty thoon,” Daph added, chuckling. “Otherwithe it’d jutht turn into a birthday party. I dunno how much longer I can hold her in.”

“A word of advice, sweeties,” Donna said knowingly, pointing between both Daph and Georgia. “That baby is gonna come outta there when she’s good and ready, not when you want her to. I sweah to gawd, Daphodille and every one of her brothahs was at least a week ovahdue, every one of ‘em.” Donna nodded to herself and patted Daph’s belly. “If you’re anything like me, expect that little girl to be a little too comfortable.” She continued to rub Daph’s tight stomach before glancing down pinching the fabric on her maternity blouse. Donna slid it between her fingers and glanced up to Georgia. “This is nice...how’d you manage to get my daughtah into this?”

Before either Daph or Georgia could answer, they were interrupted by another knock on the door, this time soft and polite. However, instead of Darwin quickly approaching the door, he instead and turned to nod to Daph, then glance to Georgia. Daph looked stared her down with a serious look in her eye and gestured toward the door. Confused, she stood and walked around her chatting party guests, padding softly over the coffee table. As she passed Daph’s chair, the red squirrel held out an arm to stop her.
“...Look,” Daph muttered, after pulling Georgia down to her level to speak quietly. “I...wathn’t actually sure if he wath gonna come. If you don’t wanna see him, jutht thay it wath a delivery guy or thomethin’ with the wrong address. We won’t blame you.”
She squeezed Georgia’s hand compassionately, nodded, then let her go without a word, turning back to her mother to finish the conversation. Darwin, however, watched his wife intently as she approached the door, his tail flicking with quiet agitation.

Georgia turned the knob quietly and opened the front door. On the doorstep stood an older, black-furred squirrel with specks of white dotted throughout. He clutched a worn baseball cap in his hands, wringing it anxiously. While his clothes seemed new, he wore them beneath a tattered, faded jacket that he seemed to be hiding inside of like a shell. He stood slumped over, as if he couldn’t support his full weight on just his legs, his tail drooping heavily and was nearly parallel with the floor. His face seemed far older than his age, with eyes large and wet as he stared at Georgia like he was looking into the sun.
“...Georgia...” he breathed in almost religious reverence.
“...Dad,” she responded, her voice low and dry.

“I...I wasn’t...” he swallowed, gripping the hat harder in his palms. “...I wasn’t sure that this...that this was the right place.” He tried to smile, the corners of his mouth seeming to crack like stone. “It was...it’s so nice...”
“Well,” Georgia said, her arm still holding the door open and barring entrance. “You found it.” Her voice was quiet, yet solid. Her father swallowed again, smoothing down his dark hair with a hand. He paused, expecting Georgia to speak. She didn’t. She was waiting.

“...I...Last week...he called...I mean, Darwin. Your husband, I mean.” He took a shaky breath. “He told me that...you were...going to have a baby, that...I mean, your surrogate was...”
“I’m surprised you knew who he was,” Georgia said, coldly. “After all, you weren’t at the wedding.”
“…I know...”
“...If you’re going to ask for anything, you can just-”
“No, no, I’m not...” he shook his head furiously. “I swear, I’m not. I...I don’t want anything.”
“We both know that’s not true,” Georgia said, chuckling cynically. Her father down looked at his paws, twisting the hat in his hands. He opened his mouth to speak, then silently closed it. He repeated the motion a few times, like a dying fish.

“I...I’ve been...going to meetings,” he said, quietly. “G-Group meetings about...well, how I was hurting myself...and other people. I haven’t had a drink in...in four months and s-seven days. I’ve been seeing a doctor, once a week, to help me sort of...c-count the days back and find out where...where everything went wrong. Where I stopped...being able to take care of myself.” He looked up at Georgia. Her face was a solid, unreadable mask, but she was still listening.
“You...Georgia...you were...” he gulped, then breathed the words like he could only get them out in a single breath. “You were the only good thing I ever did. And I was barely ever there for it. I don’t...think about you used to be the only thing that made me happy, but now it just hurts because now I know what I did in the past and the only thing I want now is to make things good again.” He panted, as if exhausted, then added. “Good...like it was before Savannah died...before your mom...” He slumped over, his eyes glued to the floor.

Georgia blinked down at her father, her arm still gripping the door frame. Behind her, she heard the gentle, padding footsteps she recognized so well from countless days and nights by their side. He rested his hand on her shoulder, gently squeezing it to let her know he was there. Georgia imagined she could feel her husband’s soothing touch much deeper than her skin. It calmed her, steadied her waters, and made her stronger than she could have been. With his help, she was strong enough to let go of the door and push it aside, strong enough to step forward and lift her father to his paws, and strong enough to look him in the eye and smile.

“I think it’s too late for you to try and be a good father,” Georgia said, “...but maybe you can still be a good grandfather.”
His eyes widened, a wave of shock passing through him. A weak smile began to blossom on his face as he took Georgia’s arm in his hand and eagerly nodded.
“I...I’ll...I’ll try,” he said, swallowing.

Taking Darwin’s hand in her own, Georgia stepped aside, letting her father cross through the doorway. He gazed in awe at the decorations and his eyes began to quietly tear up at the sight of the banner hanging along the ceiling. A few of the party guests, the friends unfamiliar with Georgia’s family, glanced to her with raised eyebrows at the out-of-place guest. Georgia took a deep breath and smiled, Darwin’s arm wrapped around her shoulder.
Georgia’s father shuffled forward, glancing around the room like he was in a grand palace, before his eyes fell on the yellow chair across from the couch and he came face-to-face with Daph.
“D-Daphodille?” he said, his eyes widening at the sight of her pregnant belly. She grinned back at him and gave a little wave.
“Hey Mr. Macintire,” Daph said. “Glad you could make it.”
“You’re the surrogate?” he said, pointing in shock.
“Nine monthth in and goin’ thtrong, dude,” she said, winking while she patted a drum beat against her belly. Donna reached over and stopped her daughter’s hands.
“Don’t be rough,” she scolded before turning around and gasping at the man standing above her. “Roland Macintire? Oh my gawd, I haven’t seen ya in years! How’ve you been?”

“Oh...uh...well,” Roland wrung his hat in his hands and shrugged. “Ups and downs. You know how it is.”
“Sure, sure,” Donna nodded. She stood up out of her chair and shook his hand. “Can I get ya somethin’ ta drink?”
“Um...sure,” he stammered. “But...just...some water. Or a soda. I don’t really...anymore...”
Donna glanced him up and down, well aware of his reputation, then grinned and slapped him happily on the shoulder.
“Glad ta heah it, Roland,” she said, winking as she turned and sauntered off into the kitchen. Roland found a chair in the corner of the room and sat next to the couch, seeming uncomfortably out of place yet with a happy twinkle in his eye. Georgia sat on an empty space on the couch closer to Daph and sighed.

“You okay, dude?” Daph asked, leaning as far over her belly as she could.
“Yeah, yeah,” Georgia nodded. “Just...it got heavy for a few minutes.”
“Yeah?” Daph nodded, then smirked. “I know how to change that.”
“What?” Georgia asked. She blinked dimly at Daph before her eyes widened in realization. “Presents?” She sat up and found Darwin across the room talking to a few of his college friends. She motioned wildly for his attention. “Presents? Is it time for presents?”
Darwin rolled his eyes, smiled, then nodded wordlessly. Georgia gasped and hopped up and down on the couch like a little kid.

“Yo!” Daph shouted, cupping her hand around her mouth. She never missed an opportunity to yell when she had the chance. “We’re doin’ presentth[i]! Gather ‘round, fuckerth!”
Within a few minutes, the eager crowd of party guests had gathered around the couch, most of them carrying pink-wrapped boxes and gift bags, each taking their seat around Georgia and Darwin. Over the next half hour, they happily tore open box after box of baby items, from diapers and toys to packs of baby bottles and pacifiers. Those that were already parents gifted bags full of hand-me-down clothes and promises of parenting advice when they needed it.
Donna’s bag included a collection of baby toys, clothes, and other trinkets from Daph’s infancy. The only thing out of place was a lone block of wood, which Georgia pulled out of the bag with a confused expression.

“Trust me,” Donna said, leaning over and rubbing a circle over her daughter’s belly. “With a squirrel baby, they’re gonna need somethin’ [i]tough ta chew on.”
As more gifts were opened, more guests had to say their goodbyes, congratulating the two expecting parents and wishing Daph the best of luck with the impending birth. Toward the end of the stack, Daph presented them with a gift of her own.
“You didn’t need to get us anything,” Georgia said, the huge box on her lap nearly eclipsing her face from view. “You’re already giving us the baby.”
“Well, y’know,” Daph waved her hand dismissively, “I’d have felt left out otherwise.”

Georgia tore open the wrapping paper, revealing enough of the box for her to gasp in shock and flip it over to hide it. Those that saw gave a simultaneous ‘Ooooooohhh,’ and burst into fits of giggles. Georgia chuckled and shook her head at Daph, blushing furiously beneath her blonde fur. Daph, totally unapologetic, smirked, then winked and flashed finger-guns at the couple.
“That’th a little thomethin’ for after the baby goeth to thleep...” Daph said, slyly.

After finishing up the gifts, Darwin emerged from the kitchen with a huge cake in the shape of a tree, which the remaining guests quickly devoured most of in a matter of minutes. As the sun began to set, more and more guests left with tearful goodbyes and congratulations. By ten o’clock, those that were left piled comfortably around the couch in sleepy conversation.
“I always knew you two would be the best parents,” said Veronica, a white husky from Georgia’s college graduating class.“You just...I don’t know, you just always clicked so well. You’re like...the kind of couple I could see being married for, like, the rest of your lives.” She sighed, kicking her paws up on the coffee table. “When I get married, I’m gonna be like ‘I want a marriage like Georgia and Darwin have. They’re perfect for each other.’ That’s what I want.” She was nearly finished with her third cocktail, but the alcohol didn’t make a difference. That was how she always talked.

“I’m just so excited to see the baby,” said Stephanie, a petite cow in a yellow sun dress that had been Georgia’s roommate once upon a time. “Squirrel babies are just so cute. I love the way they have those giant tails that they can just wrap up in like a blanket.”
“It’s all in tha fur, sweetie,” Donna added. “All my kids were full-breed squirrels and lemme tell ya, they grow into bein’ cute. They don’t start out that way.”
“Great story, mom,” Daph said, rolling her eyes. “Juttht tell ‘em all how freaky Lilly’th gonna look once she’th born.”
“I’m bein’ honest, Daphy!” Donna said, shaking her head. “I’m tellin’ ya all the things I wish I’d been told when I had you and your brothahs.” She tapped Daph on the shoulder and leaned over into her ear. “By the way, nutmeg, if you get a chance, try to use the toilet before you go into labah.”

“...Why would I need...” Daph quickly gasped and stared at her mother in horror. Donna shrugged.
“Childbirth’s a miracle,” she said, “...but it ain’t a pretty one.”
“Yknow, I just thought of something,” said Christie, the orange feline from Daph and Georgia’s high school class. “Have you picked out godparents yet?”
“...Did we need to?” Georgia asked, glancing at Darwin and shrugging.
“I guess not, but it’s something special. Like having a ‘best man’ and a ‘bridesmaid,’ but for your baby. Sort of.” Christie shrugged. “I’m my niece’s godmother, technically.”

“Well...I can’t think of who I’d...Oh. Wait.” Georgia turned and glanced to Daph, who was continuing to bicker quietly with her mother. “Hey. Daph.”
“Yeah?”
“Wanna be Lilly’s godmother?”
“Thure,” Daph shrugged. She sat up and asked, “Wait, doeth that mean she can call me ‘Aunt Daph?’”
“I think so.”
“Oh, then fuck yeah!” Daph nodded, patting her belly. “You hear that, thquirt? I get to be your Aunt Daph now!”

“Now hold on a minute,” Donna said, holding out her hand, “...would this make me a grand-godmothah?”
“Probably,” Georgia shrugged.
“Can I play with the baby whenevah I feel like it?” Donna said, raising an eyebrow.
“Yes.”
“Done,” Donna said, sitting back and snapping her fingers. Daph glanced at her mom incredulously.
“Who thaid it wath your decision?”

As Daph and Donna continued another round of bickering, Roland quietly crept behind the couch and leaned over toward Georgia’s ear.
“Could you...come with me to the door? I have something for you.”
Georgia glanced at Darwin, then stood and followed her father quietly to the front door. Once they were out of earshot, he reached into the pocket of his jacket and pulled out a brown paper bag, tied together with twine.
“I wanted to wait until you were alone to give you this,” he said. “But I have a night shift starting soon and...I have to go. But...well...I...” Roland cleared his throat and handed the parcel over to Georgia. She eyed him suspiciously, then quietly undid the string and opened the bag. Inside was a small bundle of Polaroids, a few pairs of earrings, blue ring box, and a pendant on a thin silver chain. Out of all of these, Georgia recognized the necklace most clearly, having seen it constantly around her mother’s neck when she was younger.

“These were things of Savannah’s that I...kept, over the years. Mostly things I didn’t...um...sell when I was out of...when I was low.” He swallowed and glanced down at his paws again. “I don’t know if...they’re such a good gift, but I didn’t feel right having them. I think...I think they’re better off with you.”
Georgia swallowed a lump in her throat. It seemed like she’d opened a bag full of ghosts, trapped behind a bow of twine for decades. She felt her mother, long dead, on every mote of dust, on every color faded with age, on every glint in the light from her jewelry. Georgia had been too young to remember her mother as a memory, but she existed as an emotion. A collection of feelings she’d discover waking up from a dream or thinking she heard a strangely familiar voice in a crowd.
“I...I have to go,” Roland said, quietly. He finally stopped wringing the hat in his hands and actually placed it on his head, between his ears. He looked pleadingly into Georgia’s eyes with a weak smile. “...Did I do okay?”

Georgia, a well of emotion surging up inside of her, looked up at her father and, without another thought, leaned into him and kissed him on the cheek. He wrapped his arms around her in the way she imagined he did once upon a time. She pulled away, sniffing tears from her eyes, and smiled.
“It’s a start,” she said. “Take care of yourself.”
“I will,” Roland said, for once sounding like he meant it. They gave one another one last hug before he let himself out.
Georgia stood for a moment before the closed door, then padded back to her seat on the couch. She flopped beside Darwin and leaned her head into his shoulder, wiping the wetness from her eyes.

“Georgia?” Stephanie asked, leaning over with a concerned expression. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah...yeah, I’m good,” Georgia said. She sniffed and rubbed her eyes clear before sighing. “What’d I miss?”
“We were, like, talking about how weird it is to think that, like, Daph is like pregnant right now,” Veronica said, lolling over the back of the couch as she spoke.
“She’s about the last girl I’d ever expect to see knocked up,” Christie said, shaking her head.
“Nine monthth ago, I’d have agreed with ya,” Daph nodded. “But, yknow, shit changeth.”
“Yknow, my sister actually thought about using a surrogate when they were having problems conceiving,” Christie said. “What agency did you use?”
Georgia blinked dimly at the orange cat, then glanced at her husband, who looked equally dumbfounded at the question.

“Hearbeats,” Daph said, without missing a beat. “It’th up on 51st and 8th. Real professional and clean. We were in and out in like an afternoon.”
“How were you able to become a surrogate if you’ve never carried before?”
“Well, they didn’t like it, but they had, like, liability waivers you could sign and they’d help you out with a private thurrogacy. We didn’t think there wath gonna be any difficulty, so we jutht went for it.” Daph shrugged, nonchalantly. She caught Georgia’s stunned gaze from across the room and shot her a quick, confident wink.
“So, like, Daph...Like, I have to know...” Veronica said, sitting up and setting her empty glass on the table. “...What’s it like? Being, like...pregnant and all that?”
“I can’t wait until I can have a baby,” Stephanie sighed. “You’re lucky to get to try it out before having one of your own.”
“Yeah, what’s it been like?” Christie said, crossing her legs. “I’m curious.”
Daph blinked dimly, her hand slowly rubbing her belly. She glanced down at herself, lost in thought.
“...It’th been...”
Daph fell quiet, still watching her own body. The group glanced awkwardly at one another.
“...Daph, sweetie?” Donna said, nudging her. Daph snapped back into herself and looked around.

“Huh...Huh? Oh! Yeah! Right,” Daph sighed, and looked down at herself. “It’th been...fuck man, I can’t even dethcribe it. It’th like, you’re kinda sore a lot and you...like your body doeth thingth that you don’t expect it to do and it’th like...you feel like you’re a part of thomething, yknow? Like, you’ve got thith person inside of you and they count on you. And...and...fuck, dude.” Daph sighed, giving up on her attempts to explain it.
“Was it hard?” Christie asked.
“Yeah, thometimeth,” Daph said. “But yknow what helped? Whenever thingth would get really hard, like real shitty, I’d just thtop and think to mythelf...” She glanced up at Georgia and Darwin, “… ‘Do it for Them.’ And that made it a lot eathier. Jutht thinking about how it wathn’t about me, yknow?” Daph groaned and threw back her head. “Man, shit, I don’t know! I don’t know how to dethcribe all thith feeling shit!”
“That’s so sweet though...” Stephanie said, smiling warmly.

“Yeah, I guess,” Daph shrugged. “Whatever. Y’know what elthe ith thweet though?” She glanced at Georgia and licked her lips. “Fuckin’ cake. Georgia, come help me get another piece.”
Donna helped Daph push herself to her feet, who then waved away her mother’s attempt to help her walk. She waddled heavily beside Georgia into the small kitchen, cradling her hands under her belly.
After Georgia helped pull the leftover cake out of the refrigerator, Daph glanced around and made sure she wasn’t in earshot of the others before she began to whisper.
“Hey,” she said. “Tho...like...I kinda realized thomethin’ and it’th kinda...kinda weird, but I...I kinda wanted to get it off my chest, yknow?”
“Um...okay...” Georgia said, continuing to cut a slice of cake.

“The thing ith...” Daph said, pausing to rest her hand atop her round stomach. “...I think I fuckin’ love thith...”
“What, the party?”
“No, dude,” Daph hissed, then rubbed her hands down her gravid middle. “Thith. I...I think I love...bein’ pregnant.”
Georgia stopped cutting the cake, glancing blankly to her friend. She slowly dragged her gaze down to Daph’s pendulous belly, then scrolled back up to her face.

“What.” Georgia said, flatly.
“No, I...I think I mean it,” Daph continued. She wrapped her hands around her stomach and squeezed it with a quiet, contented sigh. “I jutht...like, it sucked at firtht when it wath just throwin’ up all the time but ever since I really thtarted to get big...I jutht...I feel good. Like really good, all the time! I feel the thame kinda way I do when I work out, but like every day.” Daph ran her fingers through her head and exhaled, taking a deep breath before continuing. “I just feel really healthy, food tasteth better, my body feelth thtronger, and god damn, sex ith outta thith fuckin’ world, dude.”
“Really?” Georgia responded, more interested than anything else. She put her hand against Daph’s belly, feeling her tight body beneath the smooth fabric of the blouse. “Even now?”

“Oh my god, ethpecially now!” Daph exclaimed before dropping her voice down to a whisper. “I feel, like, slow and big and thore a lot, yeah, but I also feel...I don’t know...powerful.” She clenched her fists in the air, her arm muscles still as toned as ever beneath the baby weight. “I feel Lilly inthide me and how thtrong she ith and think ‘fuck, I did that, that wath me!’
“Yknow, when I got pregnant, the only thing I wath really afraid of wath the way it might change me. And not like thith,” she added, gesturing to her bump. “I mean like...my brain, my personality. I look up a lotta baby thtuff, y’know. Stuff for like expecting momth and shit. But all of it ith jutht...I don't know. It doethn't feel right. It'th so...soft. So delicate and so weak. I wath so afraid that being pregnant wath gonna take away my thtrength, to make me less than I wath before.”
She grinned.

“But yknow what happened?” Daph said, leaning forward a little. “Nothin’. Nothin’ happened. I thought about it more, and I got mad becauthe, fuck, who'th gonna tell me that bein' pregnant maketh me weak? In fact, I feel thtronger!” Daph punched her hand into her fist, the impact making her belly shake just slightly below her. “Who the fuck sayth I gotta be a fuckin' wimp if I'm gonna have a baby? I feel thronger and more powerful than I ever have before becauthe I’m gonna have a goddamn baby.”
She fell silent, panting as she caught her breath.
“...Wow,” Georgia said. “You’ve...thought about this a lot.”

“That’th how I knew about Heartbeats,” Daph said, lowering her voice to a mumble. “I…I think I wanna do it again.”
“What, be a surrogate?”
“Yeah! The doc, your friend, thaid I had, like, no complicationth at all, I’ve got a good body for it, and I jutht...I jutht fuckin’ love the feeling of it. I feel like I’m the betht version of mythelf, yknow? As good as I feel after I run or I exercise.” She swished her tail enthusiastically, grinning brightly. “I think...I think I’m gonna have Lilly, get back into shape and...and do it again!”

“And to think,” Georgia snorted, “after twenty years, I thought I had you totally figured out, Daph.”
“I can’t thay I ain’t surprithed, myself,” Daph nodded, feeling her belly and smirking. “Though...don’t tell anybody elthe, okay? They might think it’th a kinda weird sex-thing, yknow?”
“Is it not?” Georgia asked with a smirk. Daph rubbed the back of her neck and glanced aside.
“...No...I mean...not all of it...”
“How about you finish up this pregnancy before you think about any others,” Georgia said, shuffling past Daph and rubbing her stomach once more.
“No problem,” Daph said, drumming against her round belly. “She’th about done in there, anyway.”

Georgia followed closely behind Daph, who waddled back into the living room, her arms holding her baby belly and her face beaming. As the conversation began to wind down, Veronica, Stephanie, and Christie all left one after another, leaving Donna as the only guest left.
“Try ta use that cream I toldja about, nutmeg,” Donna continued to chatter as her daughter sleepily dragged her to the front door.
“Thure, mom.”
“Thankfully, ya inherited ya fathah’s thick fur, so ya won’t have the stretch mark trouble I did after I had ya brothahs.”
“Okay.”
“And don’t forget to call me after the birth, I’ll come right away, and make a reservation at the hospital as soon as ya can.”
“We already did that, mom.”

“And don’t forget, you can argue and scream all ya want ‘til the doctahs put you in a private suite. I won’t have you givin’ birth to my grand-dauh- I’m sorry, my ‘grand-god-daughtah,’ in the back of a god damn taxi cab.”
“Goodnight, mom,” Daph said, dropping her mother next to the door and blinking at her with sleepy eyes.
“Oh, and remind me to let Georgia know of a fantastic orthodontist I know who can help if the baby comes out with...” Donna waved her hand vaguely and gestured to Daph’s overbite, “...a little ‘extra’ to her smile.”
“I will, mom.”
“He specializes in squirrels, ya know. They didn’t even have those kinda procedures when you were born, nutmeg.”
“Goodnight, mom.”
“And don’t forget now...” Donna said, slyly. “Think about havin’ a few kids of your own, now that ya got ta try it out.”
“Okay, mom.”
“I’m serious! I’m sure there’s a nice young man out there who’d...” she paused at the grimace on Daph’s face before backtracking, “...or a nice young lady who would love to start a family with you.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Daph blinked. “Goodnight, mom.”
“Oh, and one more thing...”

As Daph unsuccessfully tried to usher her mother out the door at a timely pace, and Darwin busied himself with washing dishes in the kitchen, Georgia sat quietly in the bedroom. In the light of the cracked bathroom door, she looked over her mother’s pendant in her hand, trailing the thin chain between her fingers. It was a tear-drop shaped stone set into silver, a teal color with veins of navy streaked across its surface. The metal was tarnished in places, but the stone seemed ageless.

As she turned the pendant in her hand, Georgia noticed a small tab on one side of the necklace. She blinked at it, running her finger against it. After all those years, what she’d remembered as a pendant or a simple charm was actually a locket. Gingerly, as if she was afraid she’d break it, she thumbed open.

There was no picture behind the stone. Instead, pinned to the back of the locket, was a tiny clipping of familiar, blonde fur.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Index