Becoming the Donaghys [30 Rock; Jack/Liz]
TITLE: Becoming the Donaghys
CHAPTER 2: Under Pressure
FANDOM: 30 Rock
PAIRING: Jack/Liz
SPOILERS: My own fic, Being a Donaghy
RATING: PG
SUMMARY:
*****
"Lutz, seriously. We are not doing any more sketches about hobos. Or bums. Or beggars. And I'm not saying that to be a -- that thing you called me that one time. I'm saying it because you need to bring some different ideas to the table. You need to... hold on a second, I'll be right back."
Before any of her writers could respond, Liz had jumped up from the table and run off to the bathroom. Ever since Jack had the flu last week she'd been feeling crappy. And she wasn't like her husband, who could become infected by a virus or bacteria and still bounce around as if nothing had changed. Even when he spiked a fever of a hundred and three he did a presentation to Don Geiss -- and apparently did very well at it.
"I thrive under pressure, Lemon. I'd do very well in a hostage situation," he'd told her (with his head in the toilet while she rubbed his back).
Liz? Liz did not fare so well under the same kind of "pressure." When she felt like crap, everybody knew it. And as she flushed the toilet, picked herself up off the floor and went to the sink to rinse out her mouth, she longed for the moment she could hole up in her office and hide under blankets. She just had to make it through the topical meeting.
When she came out of the bathroom, Pete was waiting for her with a cup of water and a sympathetic smile. She took the cup gratefully and gulped down the water. Pete rubbed her back comfortingly. "How ya doin' there, champ?"
She chuckled hoarsely, throat stinging from throwing up. "I've been blorching like this for a week, Pete. I'm not doin' great."
"Yeah, y'know I remember when Paula used to go through that."
"Really? How long did hers usually last?"
"Oh, like the normal amount. Nine or ten weeks I think each time."
"What?!" Liz stopped mid-way back to the writer's room and grabbed Pete's arm. "I can't have the flu for ten weeks!"
"Flu?" Pete made a face. "What are you talking about?"
"I have the flu." She made a similar face right back at him. "What are you talking about?"
"You're pregnant. Aren't you?"
"What? No!"
"You've been puking every morning for the past week."
"So?"
Pete tilted his head at her in that 'come on, Liz' way that she absolutely hated. "And you always feel better by the afternoon, don't you?"
"Yeah..."
"Running a fever?" He reached his hand up to her forehead.
She whacked his arm away. "Shut up, Pete. I am not pregnant." As they resumed their walk back to the writer's room, she threw a hand up. "Plus Jack just had the flu all of last week! You're not asking him if he's pregnant, are you?"
"I was planning on it, but I haven't had a chance yet."
She rolled her eyes. "Trust me. That's all this is. It's just a flu."
She totally missed the way Pete rolled his eyes at her, "Okay..." on her way back into the writer's room.
*****
"Pete! Oh my God!" A week later she ran into her friend's office and slammed the door.
Pete jumped, having been sitting at his desk staring avidly at his computer screen with his headphones on. "What? What? I wasn't doing anything."
Liz paused. "Mu shu pork?"
He set down his chopsticks. "Yeah..."
"Lesbian scene from Mulholland Drive?"
Pete looked downright sheepish now. "Yeah..."
Liz nodded. "Aha. Okay. 'Gentleman's lunch,' I got it. We'll just move past this."
"What's goin' on?" He set his headphones down and gave her his undivided attention.
Liz bit her lip. "I think I might be pregnant."
"Really. What gave it away?" Pete sounded awfully sarcastic and not at all surprised by this. That kinda irked Liz.
"Well, the fact that I've been barfing every morning for two weeks, for one thing. And the other thing... I, um... had a monthly... appointment, let's just say... last week. And I missed it."
"Ah. And by appointment you mean... the punctuation mark?"
"Yeah."
"Uh-huh. Okay, so... what do you wanna do?"
Liz shrugged her shoulders and made a noise that sounded vaguely like 'I dunno.'
"Does Jack know?"
"No. I haven't told him I've been throwing up all this week either. I think he just thinks I've gotten over my flu." Then it started to hit her. "Oh God... oh God... oh God, I'm pregnant." She started to pace with her hand against her stomach. "I'm gonna have a baby. I've gotta pick a good college for it to go to, and start building up a college fund. I'm gonna have to take time off from work, and buy baby monitors and diapers and... oh God, I have to use a breast pump don't I? Oh gross. Oh God, this is... this--"
"Whoa, whoa." Pete whistled and made the time out gesture before he got up from his desk and went over to her. He grabbed her shoulders and made her sit down on his couch. "Liz. You've gotta relax."
"How can I relax, Pete? I don't even have a 401K plan for myself and suddenly I have to pay for a college tuition? Oh God, what if Jack wants our kid to go to an Ivy League school? He might have to bribe someone if the baby isn't smart enough..."
Pete couldn't help but laugh. "Okay, wow. Liz, you are worrying about stuff that's like a million years away right now. Lie down."
"Okay. Okay, yeah, I'll lie down." She laid down on Pete's couch and put her hand over her eyes, groaning. "Oh God, and we're never going to agree on a name. I'm gonna want to give it a nice, normal name, and Jack's gonna want to name it, like... Don Geiss or something. Even if it's a girl."
"Stop worrying about all of that stuff. It doesn't matter right now. Right now, you need to take a test to find out if you actually are pregnant. I mean, who knows? Maybe you have just had the flu for the past couple weeks. And maybe that threw off your monthly... punctuation mark. You won't know until you take a pregnancy test."
"Okay. You're right."
"I can run out and get one for you before my lunch break is over if you want."
"Really?" She took her hand away from her eyes and stared up at Pete. Maybe he was her best friend. For some reason, she could not see Jenna doing this. "You'd do that for me?"
Pete chuckled. "Yeah, if it'll stop you from freaking out in my office again."
"How the hell can you stay so calm about this?"
"Hey, I've been through this four times. I thrive under this kind of pressure."
Liz couldn't help but laugh a little at that, immediately thinking of her husband. "You and Jack should hang out sometime."
Pete chuckled back, "Yeah," then made a confused face. "I don't get it."
Another laugh bubbled up and she waved dismissively. "Nevermind, it's not important."
"Alright. I'll run out and get you a test. I'll be back in ten minutes, okay?" Pete grabbed his coat and ran out the door.
"Okay, thanks Pete!" Liz called after him.
It was nice having at least one sane friend.
TBC
{x-posted to jack_liz and 30_rock}
CHAPTER 2: Under Pressure
FANDOM: 30 Rock
PAIRING: Jack/Liz
SPOILERS: My own fic, Being a Donaghy
RATING: PG
SUMMARY:
*****
"Lutz, seriously. We are not doing any more sketches about hobos. Or bums. Or beggars. And I'm not saying that to be a -- that thing you called me that one time. I'm saying it because you need to bring some different ideas to the table. You need to... hold on a second, I'll be right back."
Before any of her writers could respond, Liz had jumped up from the table and run off to the bathroom. Ever since Jack had the flu last week she'd been feeling crappy. And she wasn't like her husband, who could become infected by a virus or bacteria and still bounce around as if nothing had changed. Even when he spiked a fever of a hundred and three he did a presentation to Don Geiss -- and apparently did very well at it.
"I thrive under pressure, Lemon. I'd do very well in a hostage situation," he'd told her (with his head in the toilet while she rubbed his back).
Liz? Liz did not fare so well under the same kind of "pressure." When she felt like crap, everybody knew it. And as she flushed the toilet, picked herself up off the floor and went to the sink to rinse out her mouth, she longed for the moment she could hole up in her office and hide under blankets. She just had to make it through the topical meeting.
When she came out of the bathroom, Pete was waiting for her with a cup of water and a sympathetic smile. She took the cup gratefully and gulped down the water. Pete rubbed her back comfortingly. "How ya doin' there, champ?"
She chuckled hoarsely, throat stinging from throwing up. "I've been blorching like this for a week, Pete. I'm not doin' great."
"Yeah, y'know I remember when Paula used to go through that."
"Really? How long did hers usually last?"
"Oh, like the normal amount. Nine or ten weeks I think each time."
"What?!" Liz stopped mid-way back to the writer's room and grabbed Pete's arm. "I can't have the flu for ten weeks!"
"Flu?" Pete made a face. "What are you talking about?"
"I have the flu." She made a similar face right back at him. "What are you talking about?"
"You're pregnant. Aren't you?"
"What? No!"
"You've been puking every morning for the past week."
"So?"
Pete tilted his head at her in that 'come on, Liz' way that she absolutely hated. "And you always feel better by the afternoon, don't you?"
"Yeah..."
"Running a fever?" He reached his hand up to her forehead.
She whacked his arm away. "Shut up, Pete. I am not pregnant." As they resumed their walk back to the writer's room, she threw a hand up. "Plus Jack just had the flu all of last week! You're not asking him if he's pregnant, are you?"
"I was planning on it, but I haven't had a chance yet."
She rolled her eyes. "Trust me. That's all this is. It's just a flu."
She totally missed the way Pete rolled his eyes at her, "Okay..." on her way back into the writer's room.
*****
"Pete! Oh my God!" A week later she ran into her friend's office and slammed the door.
Pete jumped, having been sitting at his desk staring avidly at his computer screen with his headphones on. "What? What? I wasn't doing anything."
Liz paused. "Mu shu pork?"
He set down his chopsticks. "Yeah..."
"Lesbian scene from Mulholland Drive?"
Pete looked downright sheepish now. "Yeah..."
Liz nodded. "Aha. Okay. 'Gentleman's lunch,' I got it. We'll just move past this."
"What's goin' on?" He set his headphones down and gave her his undivided attention.
Liz bit her lip. "I think I might be pregnant."
"Really. What gave it away?" Pete sounded awfully sarcastic and not at all surprised by this. That kinda irked Liz.
"Well, the fact that I've been barfing every morning for two weeks, for one thing. And the other thing... I, um... had a monthly... appointment, let's just say... last week. And I missed it."
"Ah. And by appointment you mean... the punctuation mark?"
"Yeah."
"Uh-huh. Okay, so... what do you wanna do?"
Liz shrugged her shoulders and made a noise that sounded vaguely like 'I dunno.'
"Does Jack know?"
"No. I haven't told him I've been throwing up all this week either. I think he just thinks I've gotten over my flu." Then it started to hit her. "Oh God... oh God... oh God, I'm pregnant." She started to pace with her hand against her stomach. "I'm gonna have a baby. I've gotta pick a good college for it to go to, and start building up a college fund. I'm gonna have to take time off from work, and buy baby monitors and diapers and... oh God, I have to use a breast pump don't I? Oh gross. Oh God, this is... this--"
"Whoa, whoa." Pete whistled and made the time out gesture before he got up from his desk and went over to her. He grabbed her shoulders and made her sit down on his couch. "Liz. You've gotta relax."
"How can I relax, Pete? I don't even have a 401K plan for myself and suddenly I have to pay for a college tuition? Oh God, what if Jack wants our kid to go to an Ivy League school? He might have to bribe someone if the baby isn't smart enough..."
Pete couldn't help but laugh. "Okay, wow. Liz, you are worrying about stuff that's like a million years away right now. Lie down."
"Okay. Okay, yeah, I'll lie down." She laid down on Pete's couch and put her hand over her eyes, groaning. "Oh God, and we're never going to agree on a name. I'm gonna want to give it a nice, normal name, and Jack's gonna want to name it, like... Don Geiss or something. Even if it's a girl."
"Stop worrying about all of that stuff. It doesn't matter right now. Right now, you need to take a test to find out if you actually are pregnant. I mean, who knows? Maybe you have just had the flu for the past couple weeks. And maybe that threw off your monthly... punctuation mark. You won't know until you take a pregnancy test."
"Okay. You're right."
"I can run out and get one for you before my lunch break is over if you want."
"Really?" She took her hand away from her eyes and stared up at Pete. Maybe he was her best friend. For some reason, she could not see Jenna doing this. "You'd do that for me?"
Pete chuckled. "Yeah, if it'll stop you from freaking out in my office again."
"How the hell can you stay so calm about this?"
"Hey, I've been through this four times. I thrive under this kind of pressure."
Liz couldn't help but laugh a little at that, immediately thinking of her husband. "You and Jack should hang out sometime."
Pete chuckled back, "Yeah," then made a confused face. "I don't get it."
Another laugh bubbled up and she waved dismissively. "Nevermind, it's not important."
"Alright. I'll run out and get you a test. I'll be back in ten minutes, okay?" Pete grabbed his coat and ran out the door.
"Okay, thanks Pete!" Liz called after him.
It was nice having at least one sane friend.
TBC
{x-posted to jack_liz and 30_rock}