[Tina's hotel room - afternoon callers: open]

[rn_chapel]

One of the benefits of having people over when you were staying in a hotel was that you didn't have much tidying up to do to make the place presentable. Tina cleaned up the little bit of mess there was in the kitchen, made the bed, picked a couple of books off the floor and she was done. Now she was ready to receive any of the visitors she'd

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[canadianbill]

So, apparently Vulcans didn't approve of fans on easy sale. This was irritating.

Bill hoped him being purple would make up for it. He rang the doorbell.

[rn_chapel]

Tina opened the door. And laughed. After a moment, she choked out: "So... Am I carrying your baby?"

[canadianbill]

Bill laughed, too. "Nah, that must have been the other purple guy."

[rn_chapel]

"Come on in." Tina stepped back and gestured, giving Bill a longer once-over as he passed. "Wow. So purple. You know, this would be even more distinctive than different haircuts, or one you growing a beard or something. I wonder if you could make it permanent?"

[canadianbill]

Bill raised an eyebrow at her as he passed.

"Tina," he said, reasonably, "I am not dying myself purple just so you can tell us apart. I'm the one who's actually physically different, for God's sake." He spread his arms. "Hello. I'm shorter. Jim can dye himself purple."

[rn_chapel]

"I'm not just thinking of myself here, you know. I've got that great question about the baby to ask when I want to tell you all apart, but most people don't have even that edge. A little, uh, purpleousity, would go a long way, is all I'm saying."

She could barely say it. And as soon as she was done, she gave in to the giggles.

[canadianbill]

Bill snorted, too. "I do see your point. You also have the edge of me being the one who doesn't look at you like you're fair game, but how is anyone else to make that kind of judgement?"

Maybe he and Jim could paint each other different colours and then take photographs.

"Supposedly this'll wear off in another couple of days, though. Maybe I should get a tattoo."

[rn_chapel]

She wasn't fair game for either of them, anyway, as she was uncomfortably aware.

"Where would you get it? If it's somewhere that needs to be covered with clothes normally anyway, you could always just flash your appendectomy scar at people."

[canadianbill]

Bill considered. "Maybe I could get B I L L on the knuckles of each hand?"

[rn_chapel]

"I like it," Tina declared. "It'd make you look tough, too."

She picked up the glass she'd been drinking from earlier and moved toward the kitchenette. "Can I get you something to drink or anything?"

[canadianbill]

"I am tough," Bill pointed out, as he sat down. "But I'll have water, if that's okay. I must have walked for at least five minutes. At least. In this heat."

He watched her as she moved to fill the glasses.

"Are you all right doing that? You're not feeling too horrible or anything? I feel like I should insist that you come right back here and sit down the second you're done."

[rn_chapel]

Tina rolled her eyes fondly. "It's not heavy lifting, Bill. Though I'm sure I'll be happy enough to let someone else get up and pour water and all in another couple of months. But Darcy isn't too heavy, yet. Just slightly awkward."

[canadianbill]

"Oh, I know," Bill said, smiling. He reached a (lavender) arm for the glass she held out as she returned. "Don't mind me, I just get like this about pregnant ladies. I think everyone does, really."

He peered at her stomach with almost childlike unconcern.

"She's really starting to show, isn't she?"

[rn_chapel]

"Yep. I've been shopping for new clothes." Tina patted her stomach fondly. "You can sort of feel where the uterus actually is, now, from the outside. I mean, generic you. But specific you can, if you'd like."

[canadianbill]

"Uterus is exciting," Bill said, brightly. "Even if she's not really kicking yet. Where?"

He held out his hand, suddenly conscious, as it hovered three inches away from her stomach, that he wasn't really all that sure where exactly a woman's uterus went.

Uteruses looked liked cows' heads. He knew that much. With the ovaries as the ears. It was just that he wasn't exactly sure where the ears hid themselves when they weren't in a textbook.

[rn_chapel]

Tina folded her shirt up and took Bill's hand. "You kind of start at the bellybutton and feel to where... See?" She was moving his fingers, pressing his hand against the differing textures under her skin. "That's where she is."