Chapter Three
Carlos
A knock on the door. I opened it to find Maddie.
She looked a little worn out, though that was to be expected. "Alfred called me." She stated.
I nodded, letting her in. She sat and once the door was closed, she asked the question I'd been hoping she would ask, but also the one I was dreading.
"Carlos, do you want to be part of this baby's life?"
Sitting down, I spoke. "I've been thinking about that since you told me you were pregnant, and honestly, Madeline, I don't know. I want you to be happy, and if you would rather I just pay child support, I'll do that."
She shook her head. "No, Carlos, this is our child. You have as much right to spend time with them as I do, so I need to know what you want."
I sat in silence, and then spoke. "I want to raise this child with you, Maddie, every step of the way. I... I think I love you in more than a friendship sort of way."
Maddie nodded, sitting down next to me. "I love you mainly in a friendship sort of way, but maybe we can try for something more? For the baby? If that doesn't work out, then we can figure it out from there."
I felt her wrap her arms around me, comforting me, when I should have been the one comforting her. I got her into this mess, after all.
"I'm sorry, Madeline."
She looked at me. "For what?"
"I screwed up, got you into this mess. I did this to you."
She suddenly glared. "No you didn't, Carlos. We were both too drunk to give consent, and you promised to support me, whatever my decision was. I was the one who decided to keep this baby, to carry it to term. I was the one who made the commitment to raise this child, either with you, or alone. You didn't get me into this mess, because it isn't a mess. I'm choosing this path, Carlos. All I need to know is if you're going to join me or not."
I looked up at her and nodded. "I'm going to stay with you for this child."
She leaned into me, giving a soft sigh of relief. "Thank you, Carlos."
"You're welcome, Maddie."

Madeline
The birthday party was awkward. Sofia and I sat on one side of the table with Carlos and Ivan. Across the table sat my brother, sending death glares at Carlos, and our fathers, trying not to complicate the situation.
Despite Al's hopes for a barbecue, papa had prepared a meal worthy of kings, though we did eat outside to appease Al. The pork roast was delicious, and papa toasted us all.
The veggies and fruit was delicious, and a small chocolate cake was brought out, along with a plate of scones. (Luckily, no one besides dad ate the scones, though we all shoved the customary one or two into our pockets or purses in order to avoid hurting his feelings on the one dish he had made especially for his children.)
Once the cake was done, presents were opened. Alfred had a new book series, which he seemed happy with. I found a nice quilt that dad had probably spent hours making. The embroidery was unmistakeable.
Going back inside, I was happy visiting while Carlos went out to help papa move the Bonnefoy family bassinet into the backseat of my car. Ivan was showing me drawings of possible room designs, and Sofia was criticizing them. I had to stifle a laugh. Ivan had always had a knack for art, and to see him so wrapped up in a project was really nice. Of course, that could be a byproduct of him and Alfred planning to adopt in the near future.
Dad finally came in and looked around. "Where's Alfred?"
We all looked around, none of us having realized Al had slipped away. I quickly stood up, wondering if my suspicions might be true.
I walked down the hallway into the garage and saw a sight that pissed me off more than anything Al had done before.
Al was towering over Carlos, and from the bloody lip and broken nose he had, and Carlos's quickly swelling face, I knew they had exchanged blows. They had brawled before, but it had always been in public. Now they were in private and surrounded by plenty of weapons of opportunity.
Both men turned as I crossed my arms. Carlos didn't even bother to look ashamed. He was too pissed. Alfred, however, tried to shake it off.
"Hey Maddie, we were just talking." He stated, smiling, and setting a hand on Carlos's shoulder like they were old friends. Carlos quickly shoved it off.
At that moment, I felt a large hand on my shoulder, and knew my backup had arrived. "Fredka, diplomacy does not require fists." Ivan said, and his tone was enough to make Al look ashamed at being caught. I walked over to Carlos.
"Let's get something cool on that bruise." I stated, taking his hand and guiding him into the kitchen.
Papa and dad were startled, as was Sofia. "Your son is a wonderful man." I stated, soaking a washcloth and handing it to Carlos. "Don't go into the garage right now. I believe his husband is yelling at him."
We sat back down on the couch, playing pretend ignorance as dad, well meaning dad, asked about the baby.
"It's only been a few days dad, there's no new worries."
"But have you chosen a hospital? Signed up for Lamaze? Are you watching your diet?"
"Arthur, our fille has always made good diet choices. I am sure she is handling this fine." Papa chided, noticing how uncomfortable both Carlos and I looked. "Besides, right now is the time she needs to make other decisions, such as moving ."
This was something I could talk about. Carlos and I had already begun the process of moving all my things from my shared apartment with Sofia into his house, and trying to decide on what room would be the nursery. We discussed arrangements in housing, and dad was actually able to suggest some excellent ideas without making us uncomfortable.
There was a noise down the hall, and we turned. Ivan and Alfred were coming up, Ivan glowering, Al keeping his head low. Carlos glared at him as well as one can when one of your eyes is swollen.
Ivan prompted him. "Alfred would like to say something."
We all looked at Al, knowing what was coming. Ivan was going to make an excellent dad one of these days, but before then, he had plenty of chances to practice with Alfred.
"I'm sorry."
Ivan lightly tapped Al's calves with his foot. "And?"
"I'm sorry Maddie, for upsetting you, sorry dad and papa, for fighting in your house, and sorry, Carlos."
"And why are we sorry to Carlos?" Ivan added, sounding like an annoyed parent once again.
"I'm sorry I punched you in the face..." Al looked back to see Ivan's face, still angry. "And sorry I called you a sorry excuse for a parent."
Carlos turned to me, and I whispered. "Accept the apology. I think Ivan's given him enough hell."
Carlos nodded. "I accept your apology."
Once that was over, Al went to the bathroom to wash the blood off his face and dad followed to reset his nose, something he'd done quite often after basketball games. Ivan made small chat with us for a while, and Carlos and I finally slipped away.
We reached the house, and went inside. I sat down on the bed and looked around my bedroom. "I'm sorry about Alfred."
Carlos shrugged as he stood in the doorway, but he was still upset. I sighed. "What exactly did he say?"
"Told me I might as well leave now rather than later, so you wouldn't have to deal with a deadbeat dad."
I felt my hands curl into fists. "Bâtard."
Carlos went over to the window, leaning up against the wall. Alfred had hit a raw spot. Carlos's dad had left when he was eight, and Carlos had always promised he'd be a better father than him. For Al to say what he did...
I went over and hugged him. "I love you."
He nodded. "I love you too."
I gave him a quick kiss, and then asked him to leave. I changed into my pajamas and went downstairs. He had turned on the radio, writing down something.
"Whatcha doing?" I asked, sitting down next to him.
"Filling out my reports for my boss. He needs them in two days."
I nodded. I was working from the house most of the time now, my little laptop screen glowing as I checked on dams while looking online for things I needed. Cuddling up against Carlos, I spoke. "We should start thinking about names."
Carlos looked a little surprised, but then he nodded. "Any suggestions?"
"Matthew. But as a middle name, so he won't go by Mattie. Might make it too confusing."
Carlos paused for a moment. "Juan? It's my grandfather's name."
I thought it over for a bit. "So, Juan Matthew as a possibility for a boy?"
He nodded, returning to his papers for a while.
Once he was done, he spoke. "Alejandra for a girl?"
His mother's name. He missed his family. Both his mother and grandparents gone, his father nowhere to be found. I nodded. "That's a good name. Now a middle name..."
"Madeline."
I stared at him. "You want to name her Alejandra Madeline Muchado? Do you have any idea how long that is?"
Carlos shrugged. "Not nearly as long as Madeline Williams Bonnefoy-Kirkland."
I crossed my arms, trying to be upset, but a smile crept across my face. "Well fine, Mr. Muchado. Neh to you too."
He laughed, and I hugged him, holding back my giggles.

Carlos
Standing in a hospital while Madeline drank the second bottle of water was miserable to watch, especially the longer the doctor made her wait. Soon she was tapping her foot on the floor. "Come on, people. Some of us can't wait all day..."
Finally the nurse came out to see us. This was going to be my first look at our baby, and I was tense. Madeline knew the nurse from her first exam to confirm the pregnancy.
"And is this the father?" She asked as we followed her back to the exam room.
Madeline nodded. The nurse smiled at me. "You don't have to worry about a thing, sir. The doctor and I have been doing this for years."
In truth, I was tense, because I knew from research that most miscarriages were discovered at ten weeks, where Maddie was right now. I was desperately praying we would see something on that screen.
Once on the table, gel smeared across her stomach, Maddie grabbed my hand and squeezed it. "It's going to be okay, Carlos."
Soon, the nurse was guiding the scanner across her belly, and I saw the first glimpse of a tiny human.
Madeline smiled at my gasp, though I probably blushed. The tiny little shape was obviously human, nestled up into the placenta, which almost looked like a cocoon around it. Maddie gripped my hand tightly, and I looked at her.
She was so happy, and from the look on her face, reassured. The baby was still there, and growing well.
Once the exam was done, and Maddie had used the bathroom, we went out and bought some ice cream. She happily licked the Maple Nut while I ate my chocolate. We held hands, almost like two teenagers out on a date. Suddenly, Madeline pointed at something. "Look at that!"
There was a tiny mobile in a shop window, with little animals hanging from the strands. "I used to have something like that when Al and I were little. It had a tiny music box in the top, played a really beautiful little melody."
I smiled, tucking that information away in my mind.

A few weeks later, after another exam, we went crib shopping, only to have two tag alongs.
Francis came with checkbook in hand, claiming that the crib was on him and Arthur. Ivan came with more sketches of the final designs for the nursery art. Maddie and I had not invited either of them, but begrudgingly accepted their presence as we looked around.
Ivan, at least, just suggested things. "That would look nice with the forest theme."
Maddie would look and shake her head. "The sides aren't high enough." And with that said, Ivan would drop the matter.
Francis was a different story. We could hardly go down an aisle without him pestering the clerks to show us the best cribs, with different safety and mechanisms, and lord knew what else. Both Maddie and I were almost out of patience when she spotted a nice wooden crib, a light shade of brown. One side had a little headboard with solid wood,the others had the tradition bars.
"I could paint some flowers on this, or cut out a little sun decoration up high..." She began. I looked at the price tag. It was a decent price. And it was built well enough I trusted it would be safe.
Ivan nodded, and Francis, seeing Maddie's smile, nodded. "That one, dear?"
She nodded, and Francis put the kit for building it in the cart. After that was done, Maddie told him to go looking at bed sheets for the mattress, and Francis and Ivan happily took off to do her bidding while she sat down.
"Are they driving you as crazy as they're driving me?"
She nodded. "Ivan just wants to be helpful, but both he and papa are being far too overbearing about this. I'm just glad Al and dad didn't decide to tag along as well."
I laughed. "Oh wouldn't that be fun!"

Translations
French
Fille-daughter
Bâtard-bastard