"Zaria? What are you doing here?" Zella asked as she came down the stairs. "Are you okay?"
"Yes, just fleeing for my life," Zaria said chuckling. "I'm borrowing your Guard for a few minutes."
Zella laughed. "Surely Muin's not that bad."
Just then the phone started to ring. "Don't say a word that he's here," Zeph said protectively as he handed her the phone.
Zella picked up the phone.. "Hello? Oh hey Muin." Zella's face turned serious. "What's wrong?"
Zaria edged off the couch slowly. What would his next move be?
"He what? You think what?" Zella glared at Zaria. "He takes off at a moment's notice? Not reliable at all? No, no. No Muiny, no," Zella said over and over. "No. No. No, no. No. Muin I'm telling you, Zaria doesn't have someone else."
Zaria's mouth just dropped open.
"No. No, no. No, he still loves you. Maybe he just needed to get away? No I'm sure he doesn't think your fat." Zella glared even more at Zaria. "He doesn't even help around the house anymore?"
Zaria literally sank into the couch, the power of Zella's glare almost burning him. Eh, figured she'd take Muin's side.
"No, I'm sure there's a reason," Zella reasoned with Muin. "I think maybe he went out for a few minutes. Okay?" She looked at Zaria suspiciously. "Don't worry, I'm sure he'll be back any second with a great reason for being gone. It's okay, call me back in a few minutes if he doesn't return. Alright? Okay, goodbye." Zella hung up the phone. "What did you do? She's crying her eyes out thinking you love someone else."
"I just got away for a few minutes, I had to," Zaria said as he handed Zeph the Sensitive Daddy book. "Can you just take this and hide it somewhere?"
Zeph shook his head. "If she can't find it, she'll get the fully extended edition."
"Damn." Zaria felt his forehead. "She's gone nuts, I can't believe she is thinking I'm cheating on her. What can I say, I can't say I came over here with the book."
"Calm down, it's easy. Run downtown and buy her or your future kid something," Zeph said in a simplistic fashion. "You took off because it was a surprise."
"Something to show I appreciate her?" Zaria grinned, "Zeph, you're a genius."
"Guard Zeph," Zeph corrected him again. "Yeah, I can't disagree there."
Zaria rushed out the door while Zella frowned at Zeph.
"What? Trust me, the guy needed to hide," Zeph answered her disapproving expression. "She was going nuts."
"Yes, well now she's crying. You're lucky you came up with that." Zella crossed her arms, displeased with his actions. "Otherwise I would have to tell her he was seeing someone. You."
"Ha ha." Zeph laughed bitterly. "Trust me, I didn't want to deal with him, but what choice did I have? Muin on a rampage is hard to deal with."
"Mmm, true." Zella gave him a half quirky smile. She sashayed over by Zeph on the couch and sat down. "He'll probably get her something really nice, then they'll go home and..." She sighed dreamily. "Make each other feel better."
"What?" Zeph watched Zella suspiciously.
"I miss that," Zella said as he rubbed her shoulders up and down. "Someone to hold me and touch me." She glanced over at Zeph's leg.
"What?" Zeph started to think about her words. Oh damn that's right! Pregnancy makes hormones go crazy. Being around me all the time... He caught her off kilter smile toward him. "Yeah, what? Oh, no, oooh…" He stuttered. "You know, I uh, this is temporary. Don't worry about never feeling...umm...touch."
"Maybe one day I'll find the one." Zella scooted over closer to Zeph. Zeph in turn, scooted further away. "Do you think so?" Her breathing was more heavy that usual, even seductive. "Zephyr?"
"Uh." Zeph stood up. "Whatever's going through you right now, it's not permanent. That's hormones, your pregnant and changing. You become turned on at times, inexplicably."
Zella touched his pant leg softly. "Are you sure it's hormones?" She let go and cracked up laughing. "You should have seen the look on your face."
What? Zeph's mouth dropped as he realized the truth. "You were playing with me? Zellaponia Cattral, I'm gonna get you for that."
Zella's eyes widened and she headed up the stairs. Zeph ran close behind her, no way was she getting away with that. "Hey, you can't do that, you're supposed to be protecting me."
"Yeah which is exactly what I'll tell the law enforcement when they drop by," Zeph yelled as he pursued her to her room.
It didn't take long before Zeph had her cornered? The punishment? A never ending tickle.
Zella laughed as Zeph tickled her tummy, "Zeph, stop it, I can't take it!"
"Then say stop it Zephyr Zuffel Zinfan Smilliat in the name of your really great Uncle," Zeph demanded, not giving into her petty pleas.
"Stop it." Zella tried to get out. "Zephuc-Vich-Zuffel-quit! I am pregnant, remember?"
Oh yeah. Zeph stopped, forgetting that important fact. Too much tickling could lead to a disastrous position with her bladder.
Zella rubbed her belly. "I am having a little girl." She smiled in a better-than-you fashion.
Zeph put his hand on his chin. He couldn't just topple her onto the bed and he couldn't try to force her up. He didn't know what to do this time, she won. He looked down at Zella's belly as she rubbed it. "You're getting bigger."
Zella looked down at her tummy. "A little bit."
"When's it going to start to kick?" Zeph asked curiously.
"When it's ready." Zella shrugged her shoulders and gave a soft chuckle.
"What?" Zeph asked, curious about her reaction to his words.
"I didn't think you'd be so interested in my baby all the time," Zella said.
"Well, I'm protecting you both," Zeph reminded her.
"Yes, but she won't have suitors as soon as she leaves the womb," Zella teased him.
"You never know," Zeph said. "Your pheromones went nuts when you were smaller." He looked at her knowingly. "I should have known then and there you were pure warno lineage. No one's scent should have done that these days."
"Yes, but it did stop," Zella reminded him. "I still have my pills for the next ten decades. It's a good thing you authorized it for so long."
"Heck yeah," Zeph agreed. "When I lost track of you guys, there's no way I could approve of a prescription anymore. Smartest thing I ever did. Without that you'd be…umm…" He stopped talking.
"I don't understand what went wrong that night," Zella said, dwelling on the past again. Damn, he didn't mean to make her feel bad again.
"Doesn't matter," Zeph quickly replied, "nothing matters except…" He looked at his wristwatch. "That it's bedtime and I'm tired. Nighty night."
Zella watched Zeph quickly leave to his own room. …nighty night.