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Chapter Twelve: Shopping?

"Nick, for the last time, get your ass away from that display case!" Kevin groaned, pulling the collar of Nick's t-shirt and steering him away from the glass case which held chains and pendants encrusted with jewels and diamonds. It was apparent that bringing AJ, Nick and Brian along while he and Howie shopped for an engagement ring was becoming a bad idea. The youngest of the group always seemed to cause trouble, especially in public.

"But I want one!" Nick whined, keeping his eyes locked on the jewelry.

"Then save money and get it!" Kevin retorted, releasing his collar.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Nick huffed with betrayal, immediately reaching to rub the back of his neck as a frown fixed on his usually cheurbic face.

"It means I ain't getting it for you, so stop bitching about it!"

"Damn, are his hormones changing along with Tier's? Talk about PMS," AJ whispered to Brian, snickering.

Nick immediately linked his arms playfully on Kevin's shoulders like a young child, uninterested in the rest of the group. "How is it going to save me money if I buy it instead of you? Even I can subtract money, Kevin--"

"It saves me money, dumbass," Kevin pulled away from Nick's grasp with a scowl. He turned to AJ and Brian, who were sill laughing at the predicament. "And you two, don't even start. Why did I let you come with, anyway?"

"Because we would have bugged you until you gave in," AJ shrugged his shoulders.

"Can't you three... just... look around while I find a ring? And not break anything?"

"Is this how you're going to act when your kid is born?" AJ mused with a wicked grin. "Because, I would suggested anger management classes along with some parenting classes. I think Miss AJ would know about some of those classes happening at the local hospital--"

"I don't need anger management!" Kevin shouted, startling the other customers walking through the quaint store. Employees were craning their necks to seek out the problem, their thin eyebrows raised.

"I rest my case--"

"Guys..." Howie chuckled, interupting what Howie knew would be a royal blood bath. And knowing the importance of selecting an engagement ring, Howie understood that Kevin was probably about to have a severe heart attack. So, quickly, he pulled a few crisp bills from his wallet, handing them over to Brian, AJ, and Nick. "There's a small arcade across from this store. Why don't you go have some fun while us adults do this boring stuff."

"Damn, I can't wait for you to be a Dad!" Nick whooped, planting a sloppy kiss on Howie's cheek before wrestling AJ for the money.

"Thank God," Kevin sighed as the three men ran out of the store and to the arcade.

"Yeah, you're not the one who got kissed by Nick and lost about twenty bucks," Howie groaned, wiping away Nick's saliva with the sleeve of his jean jacket. "It looked like you were going to go on a murdering spree or something and I didn't feel like seeing any bloodshed today. I get enough from Ana's paramedic stories."

"If I can't even handle them after so many years... What makes me think that I'm going to be able to handle a screaming infant at all hours of the night in a few months?" Kevin murmured with a dejected sigh, leaning on the glass counter to stare at all the beautifully expensive rings below him. "Maybe you and Ana should have gotten pregnant first..."

"Okay, for one. Those three idiots know how to push your buttons and that's why it's more difficult. Two, you're being too hard on yourself. Three, you're going to be a great dad, and I don't care what you're thinking. Tierja got pregnant before Ana, and now there's nothing you can do to change that," Howie placed a hand on the older man's shoulder. "Don't be so hard on yourself."

"But you two could still get pregnant... And Ana's active and wild enough that she'd send herself into early labor... Then I wouldn't have to worry about getting Tier pregnant before you got Ana pregnant?" Kevin suggested with a meek smile, almost sounding as if he had taken his logic from Nick.

"That... made absolutely no sense. Are you that desperate for me to be a father first?" Howie chuckled in amusement.

"You've had experience with kids your whole damn life. Tons of nieces, nephews, and cousins springing out of every Dorough household... I've had...Brian... And, we all know those stories..."

"Will you stop rambling and pick out an engagement ring for your girlfriend?"

"Howie--"

"You and Tierja are going to be great parents. End of story."

"Are you sure I couldn't bribe you into--"

"Don't even try."

"What are you so afraid of?" Kevin challenged toward Howie, obviously looking to pick a small squabble to get rid of his own insecurities.

"Me? Afraid? You're the one trying to bribe me into having a kid before you and Tierja, which by the way isn't possible since she's a month along. Besides, Ana is still healing from the tornado--"

"She could still carry a baby with a broken leg," Kevin defended, pushing himself off the counter to crouch down to get better look at the various rings.

"We haven't talked about it."

"What are you afraid of?"

"Nothing! Just pick out a ring."

"Little quick to answer that question, D," Kevin sung softly, trying to remember what Tierja wanted. She had been quite coy tucking various pictures of engagement rings around the house. Most clever had been the one in his wallet where his condom used to reside...

"You're something else, you know that?" Howie groaned, looking down at the same case Kevin was. "Do you know what kind she wants?"

"Nothing that looks like a red condom hopefully..."

"A what?!"

"She kept giving me clipping of rings and placing them in my wallet where I used to put my condom."

"Sneaky one, isn't she?"

"Far too clever," Kevin agreed with a small grimace, pulling out the latest clipping. He unfolded it carefully to reveal a brilliant diamond that caught perfectly within the lighting of the photograph. She had wanted to go classic with the engagement, deciding on a clear diamond in white gold. Kevin had been somewhat thankful for that feature, knowing he didn't have to hunt all over the world practically to locate a jewel as Howie had for the purple sapphire in Ana's ring.

"Makes married life interesting."

"Sure, this coming from the man who took three years to propose and will take another three years to actually physically tie the knot," Kevin murmured, glancing from the picture to the display case. Jumping up slightly, he motioned to the well dressed man behind the counter to bring out the last tray of rings before glancing back to Howie. "Not to mention the fact that he won't even consider having children because he's scared out of his mind..."

"I am not scared about anything. Ana and I are already married, you guys are just pissed that we didn't let you know until a week later," Howie retorted as Kevin scanned through the tray to find the perfect ring. "Need I remind you who bribed who to have kids first because they're scared?"

"Technically, it's he's scared, but I won't embarrass you and correct your grammar in front of this gentleman," Kevin answered, glancing out of the corner of his eye to see Howie fuming. "Besides, we could stop this conversation if you'd just admit your scared to have kids with Ana..."

"But I'm not!"

"You know, lying is just as bad as using improper grammar," Kevin sang softly with a smirk.

"Goddamnit, Kev--"

"That one please," Kevin suddenly announced with a bright smile, plucking the perfect ring from its bed amongst the others. Sure enough, it was a white gold ring of metal with the rounded diamond nestled in a small pronged basket a top the ring which was detailed delicately with tiny rosebuds that danced around the band. "Nature brought us together, nature might as well keep us together."

"Excellent choice, sir. How are you paying for this?" the lanky employee replied, taking the ring into his hand.

"Credit," Kevin pulled out the card and handed it to the man, who immediately went to the back room.

"You complained the whole way here, just to find it in a heartbeat?" Howie questioned incredously.

"Didn't you say that you searched high and low for the perfect purple sapphire ring and knew in an instant that's what you wanted when you saw it?" Kevin retorted smoothly, acting as if nothing were wrong as he leaned back against the counter.

"Well yeah, but--"

"Instinct, D. It's called instinct."

"No shit, I know what that is--"

"Here you are, sir. All boxed and ready for the lucky lady," the man came back from the room with the ring and reciept for Kevin to sign.

"Thank ya much," Kevin answered with a lopsided grin, scribbling his name to the reciept and taking the tiny bag. He then glanced to Howie as he motioned toward the glass door. "But you still have no instinct when it comes to lying."

"I'm not lying," Howie frowned as he and Kevin walked out of the prestige store.

"I'm calling bullshit."

"You know what? I no longer like you--"

"D! KEV! Whatever they tell you, I didn't do it! The machine fell on accident!" Nick yelped as he ran out of the arcade with Brian and AJ on his heels.

~*~*~*~

"So what kind of colors are you looking for in baby clothes, Tier? White, yellow, green... orange? Neutral colors are best when you don't know the baby's sex," Leighanne replied, walking towards the newborn section. "At least, that's what everyone always tells me."

"I'll tell you one thing. If you have a girl and you buy her a bunch of pink, I'll resign as godmother," Ana chirped as she crutched her way to the blues of boy clothes.

"No, I promise I'll save all the varities of pinks for your first little girl," Tierja threw back toward her best friend, rolling her eyes in true annoyance. She didn't understand why Ana was so against any ounce of feminism, especially when they were doing the ultimate girly thing during the afternoon while the boys played - baby shopping. If anything, Ana should have worshipped her control of the female whiles, though she'd never admit to it.

"Trust me, I'm not having kids," Ana promised, slipping one earbud of her MP3 player into her right ear to keep herself entertained while the chaos of baby shopping ensued. She really didn't see the point of shopping so early when the baby was eight months from being born. But, she understood that Tierja was excited. So, she somewhat tolerated the situation, glancing through the soft blues and greens with a faint amusement.

"You're not having kids? Please, I rememeber you saying how you were going to have all boys who would learn how to play football when we were kids," Tierja shook her head, picking up a white onesie with green stripes. "You love kids and I don't care what you say."

"Besides, doesn't Howie want them someday?" Leighanne interjected, picking up an orange outfit for Tierja's approval.

"It's not that I don't love them," Ana exhaled, wrinkling her nose at both of the outfits the women had selected. "And, it's not Howie's choice anyway. I'm the one that has to pass them like a giant kidney stone."

"You have to put it like that?" Tierja groaned, placing the outfit back. She put a hand against her slim stomach, almost imaging the pain of childbirth.

"Well, that's how it is when you think about it--"

"You're not being very helpful."

"Yes I am! These are medical facts that you should know," Ana continued, bopping her head to the music as she settled on an outfit she actually liked.

"It's called an epidural," Leighanne tried to console, glancing toward Tierja with what she hoped was an encouraging smile. She hadn't exactly given birth or delivered children in the back of an ambulance, but she had seen those birthing shows on TV. And, the mothers-to-be weren't exactly the most comforting as they howled with pain.

"An epidural that involves a big ass needle getting shoved in between the discs of your back just to thread a little tube that delivers pain killers for a few hours..." Ana clarified, offering Tierja a light yellow terry cloth sleeper with a monkey on the left chest.

"Do you just say those things so I have a nervous breakdown?" Tierja gaped in disbelief before looking down at the sleeper.

"Just letting you know what they are."

"I ain't having no needle shoved into my back--"

"Will you stop worrying and just look at this kick-ass outfit I found for your kid?" Ana interrupted with a groan, pushing the sleeper into Tierja's arms. "It's terry cloth; which is feels nice, it's yellow and there's a monkey on it."

"Those are the criteria? Terry cloth, yellow, and a monkey?" Leighanne laughed.

"Better than a pink scratchy piece of junk that feels like the inside of a crappy sleeping bag and a big frilly bow stitched to the butt?" Ana mused, waiting for Tierja to answer as she attempted to balance herself carefully on her good leg.

"It's perfect," Tierja finally smiled, kissing Ana's cheek.

"What was that for?" Ana groaned, attempting to wipe away the kiss as Tierja placed the outfit into her basket already filled with booties and onesies.

"What do you think it's for?"

Ana glanced toward her friend for a moment of confusion, actually looking if she were contemplating such an action. Finally, she released a soft sigh with a shrug of her shoulders. Turning from the clothing, she moved toward nursery items. "...I'm still not having kids..."

"What's wrong with having kids?" Leighanne questioned with a raise of a thin eyebrow.

"Besides the fact that you get swelled ankles, back pains, weird cravings, false contractions--"

"Anastacia Grace!" Tierja growled with contempt, following her down the nursery isle. She and Kevin had already decided that the baby would move into the room beside their master bedroom. Kevin was even planning on doing some construction to link the two rooms, then when the baby was older, Tierja could create it into an office or whatever her heart desired.

"What?" Ana yawned with a soft grimace of pain. Shifting her hand to her back pocket, she shuffled through some songs, thinking that she had gotten away from the gaggle.

"You know you want kids. Howie wants kids. What are you so afraid of?"

"I'm not afraid," Ana scoffed in surprise, settling on a Meatloaf song.

"Yep, you're afraid. But why are you afraid?" Tierja continued, stopping in front of a scene of the nightsky speckled with stars and moons. She and Kevin both loved the nighttime and thought it would be a good theme for the nursery.

"Would you just go back to spending Kevin's money like a good little woman?" Ana tried to dissuade, having no heart to confront her own life journey at the moment. She was just happy being married and Howie hadn't even touched the subject of children. Like always, she just wanted to let potentially vicious sleeping dogs lie.

"Anastacia--"

"Tierj, seriously. This is your time for the baby, now find things that you want for it," Ana interrupted, kissing the older woman's cheek to dissuade the argument.

"We're going to talk about this later."

"Right, but for the moment let's turn your attention to nursery shit--"

"Maybe she shouldn't have kids..." Leighanne giggled. "They'd come out more like AJ cursing up a storm than Howie."

"That would be a nightmare child," Tierja shook her head with a laugh, picking up some wallpaper.

"The fact that it had my genes or my genes combined with AJ?" Ana murmured in slight confusion.

"The fact they combined with AJ," they replied in unison.

"I think AJ is freaking kickass--"

"YOU'RE MARRIED TO HOWIE!"

Ana offered a purely innocent look as she pouted slightly. "So?"

"Good Lord, you are something else!" Tierja rolled her eyes, picking up a different kind of wallpaper. She cocked her head to the side and studied it before putting it back on the shelf. "You're supposed to have kids with the man you marry, not his best friend."

"Hey, at least it's not Nick--"

"ANA!"

"C'mon, you had to admit they'd at least be adorable. Two blonde blue-eyed parents? That's perfection," Ana tempted, knowing exactly what buttons to press on her friends. It seemed so easy and kept them away from her original thoughts.

"Yeah, and then Howie finds out one day when you're all at my house. He'll freak out, kill Nick, leave bloodshood all over and then I'll have to clean it up!" Tierja shook her head with a groan.

"I doubt Howie would ever go that far."

"Were you not there when Nick put anchovies in Howie's ice cream last week?"

"That's because Nick was messing with Howie's food. That's sacred."

"Ana--"

"Did you find anything good for the nursery?"

Leighanne glanced to Tierja in surprise, never expecting Ana to claim Howie's food was more important than his wife. But, Tierja simply shrugged her shoulders as if it were typical Ana behavior. Swallowing a sigh of contempt, Tierja reached for a wallpaper decorated with a celestial theme. "Kevin and I love to lay outside just watching the sky when it's not too cold... I want to do the baby's room in--"

"The same light as when he or she was concieved?" Leighanne guessed.

"Yes," Tierja answered with a grin.

"Why don't you paint the walls and go for a nice border instead?" Ana suggested after a few moments, motioning toward the border that matched the wallpaper Tierja had picked. She never had liked wallpaper and knew Kevin would burst an anneurysm trying to mount it.

"What color would look good with the border?"

"Anything that's on there would work," Ana shrugged, picking out a medium blue shade that was covered in stars. "Something like that, maybe?"

"Blue can work for girls and boys?"

"It didn't stop you as a kid, did it? You were obsessed with blue," Ana teased with a smirk as Tierja picked up a few more rolls of the border.

"Yeah, but..."

"You're not going to screw the kid up as bad as I would, so don't start. Just get what you like. If anything, you can add some pink into the room to match the blue if you find out she's a she."

"I know..."

"What's wrong, Tierj?"

"I don't know. Must be one of those mood swings--"

"Bullshit."

"I'm just scared, alright?"

"You're going to be a great Mom, Tierja," Leighanne promised.

"I'm not scared of that."

"Then what the Hell are you scared about?" Ana asked, actually chuckling in disbelief. It was like Tierja to worry about the oddest things.

"What if I have this kid and Kevin decides he can't take it? What if I drive him crazy and he leaves me to take care of the baby alone--"

"First off, Kevin's not going to leave, because I'll break his legs so he has to stay. And, second, you're never going to have to raise the baby alone," Ana quickly interrupted, squashing her fears.

"But--"

"Ana's right, Tier. That man loves you too much to leave, even if the baby does stress you both out. If he tries, he's got Ana, me and the other guys to go through," Leighanne added.

"But--"

"Besides, you already raised me and look how I turned out?" Ana prided with a boastful smile. "Nothing could possibly go wrong."

"Ana..." Tierja trailed off with a small laugh, causing the two other women to smile.

~*~*~*~

"So, what's the damn emergency? When you called me I had been so close to getting this hot chicks phone number!" Nick groaned as he sulked on the living room couch. Kevin had called everyone and asked them to come to his house as soon as possible, a tone of urgency in his voice.

"Nick, the mannequin at Victoria's Secret doesn't count as a hot chick," AJ snickered, collapsing onto one of the lazy boy recliners with a smirk on his face.

"FUCK YOU--"

"Shh! Tierja's sleeping upstairs!" Kevin hushed the youngest two with a hard glare as the rest settled onto the couches and loveseat. "I've got to something to ask y'all."

"You already know you have a bun in the oven, right?" AJ mused, arching his dark brows with a wicked grin.

"AJ, I swear to God--"

"Cuz, what did you want to tell us?" Brian spoke up. He knew that if AJ and Nick continued, the poor man in front of them would either have an anneurysm or heart attack.

"I didn't want to tell you anything... I wanted a little bit of help..." Kevin exhaled with disgust, glaring at AJ and Brian before falling onto his spot on the large couch.

"Isn't that an understatement..." AJ laughed, causing Nick to grin impishly.

"Will you two idiots just shut up for two minutes?" Howie groaned, trying not to laugh as Ana placed her head against his shoulder on the loveseat they had claimed. "What do you need help for, Kev?"

"Obviously mental instablities..." Ana trailed when she noticed Kevin's sharp gaze narrow on her. AJ and Nick whooped softly in agreement, but Kevin raised his hand. Both men gulped and fell backward as Ana offered a tired, impish smile, continuing to pick at the padding along her crutches. "Sorry, just trying to be one of the boys..."

"Just tell us," Leighanne spoke up.

"I need help figuring out a way to propose to Tier. I've been thinking about this for the past few days since I got the ring and I don't know how I'm going to do it," Kevin admitted, lowering his hand.

"So you're asking the peanut gallery for help?" Howie finally chuckled, unable to maintain a serious nature any longer.

"Well, yeah--"

"STRIP CLUB!" Nick suddenly burst. "Take her to a strip club! That's never been done before! Hell, I'll go with you!"

"No, not a strip club!" Kevin groaned, immediately throwing a pillow at Nick's head. "And keep your voice down! Didn't I just say that Tierja's upstairs taking a nap? She's been really drained lately."

"Well, I'm not the one that filled her with a baby like topping a whip cream sundae," Nick snorted.

"God..." Ana trailed, looking as if she were horrified with Nick's statement. But her large eyes instantly brightened as a grin crossed her beautiful face. "...That's a beautiful analogy!"

"Not a strip club and that was just... wrong," Brian shook his head with a chuckle, turning to his frustrated cousin as Ana and Nick slapped each others hands together with a hoot. "Do you have any ideas that we can go off of?"

"I did until these yahoo's started babbling..." Kevin growled.

"Maybe these 'yahoos' should go play outside?" Ana suggested, glancing toward AJ and Nick hopefully. She wasn't exactly one for romantic notions, especially when they involved Tierja.

"Ana, you're not one of them--"

"I'm not too good at romance to begin with and if it involves Tierj... I won't be much help," Ana shook her head with a smile, launching herself up on her crutches. "C'mon, Boys."

"No, no, no, allow me!" AJ instantly announced, sweeping down to poke his head between Ana's legs and boost her into a seat position on his shoulders.

"Holy shit, AJ!" Ana laughed in shock as Nick caught her crutches and she clasped her hands underneath his chin.

"Oh, sweet Lord. You three be careful!" Howie warned as the trio ran outside with Ana on AJ's shoulders.

"Ana's going to give us a hand's on demonstration of the birds and the bees... You want a doubled chance of a blonde haired baby, right?" Nick cackled excitedly, dancing with the crutches.

"Oh Hell--"

"Bee, I love you!" Ana called, turning back to offer a sweet smile towards Howie to let him know no such thing was happening.

"She loves me more!" AJ finished, sliding the glass doors closed to encase the three youngest in total privacy.

"And you think they drive you crazy?" Howie muttered towards Kevin in annoyance.

"Don't tell me you're jealous," Brian laughed.

"I'm not--"

"HELLO, remember me? The one who needs help proposing to his girlfriend!" Kevin interrupted, beginning to pace around the loveseat that was now just occupied with Howie.

"I seem to remember you giving me shit about pregnancy issues, so why should I help you?" Howie questioned, glancing up to the oldest with interest.

"Because you're the godfather and... and... because I said so!"

"Because you said so? That didn't even work when we were younger, Kev."

"Damnit, Howie--"

"Do you guys always fight this much?" Leighanne asked with a raised eyebrow, glancing to her husband and then his friends.

"Only because he accused me of being afraid to have kids with Ana--"

"Because he is chicken about having kids with Ana," Brian interupted with a wild grin.

"I am not!"

"Are too!" Brian and Kevin chorused, causing Leighanne to cover her mouth to muffle her laughter as Howie's face grew red.

"I am not!"

"Are too!"

"I am not--"

"Okay, okay. Reschedule that fight, because that's not why we're here," Leighanne spoke again.

"Yes, again, it's about me this time!" Kevin immediately switched, moving away from torturing Howie to his own problems.

"What were your ideas before we came over?"

"I... Roses?"

"Roses? That's it?"

"Why do you think I called you guys over to help?!"

"You're pathetic, you know that?" Howie groaned softly.

"When I have to call my friends and cousins for help... of course I'm pathetic," Kevin muttered, collapsing onto the couch. He leaned forward and rest his head in his hands.

"Well, you've done other special things for her, can't you combine some of the stuff she really loved into a really neat proposal?" Brian suggested.

"Mr. Big-Shot-I'm-Going-To-Be-A-Great-Father can't top me tying a sapphire engagement ring to a rose and giving her a kitten for a proposal," Howie scoffed, easing back onto the loveseat, obviously trying to compensate for his fears.

"Howie, I swear to God--"

"Both of you stop this right now. It's getting irritating!" Leighanne snapped gently, glaring at both Kevin and Howie. "Put aside your issues right now."

"As I was saying," Brian continued, giving his wife a sweet kiss on the cheek as a thank you. "Why don't you just make one of her favorite dishes, get things set up on the roof and propose to her under the stars?"

"She won't think it's cliched to do the roof thing twice?" Kevin finally spoke.

"Sometimes recreating a special moment is far more important than reinventing a new one," Leighanne agreed.

"Do what Brian suggested. She'll like that a lot," Howie replied softly, looking down at his hands.

"Alright... thanks, guys. Now I just need to gather the nerve to do this."

"You love her right?" Howie spoke again.

"Of course--"

"And you want to be with her? Raise your child together?"

"Yes--"

"Then you'll be just fine."