Page 131 of Clinically Bewitched
“Of course it matters to me,” he said. “You matter to me. This baby matters to me.”
“See?” I said. “You’re going to be a great dad.”
“I’m going to be a neurotic dad,” he corrected.
“Also true,” Hayden said.
“But a great one,” Gabriel added.
“The greatest,” Winnie agreed.
Julien looked around at his colleagues, his friends, and something in his expression shifted again. “Thank you,” he said quietly. “For... all of this.”
“For mocking you relentlessly?” Fitz asked.
“For being here,” Julien said. “For caring. Even if you show it by being terrible.”
“We’re not terrible,” Nathan protested. “We’resupportive.”
“You took pictures of me unconscious.”
“Supportivepictures,” Hayden said.
“That’s not a thing.”
“It is now.”
Julien shook his head, but he was smiling, and I realized, watching him, watching all of them, that this was what family looked like. Not just blood relatives. Not just the people you were born to, but the people who showed up. The people who laughed with you and at you and loved you anyway. The people who caught you when you fell.
Literally, in Julien’s case.
“So,” Fitz said, breaking the moment. “We should probably discuss the new betting pool.”
“There’s a new betting pool?” I asked.
“There’salwaysa betting pool,” Quinton quickly added.
“What are you betting on this time?” Julien asked warily.
“How long before you create a spreadsheet for the baby,” Hayden said.
“I’m saying tonight,” Nathan said.
“I’m saying within the hour,” Fitz said.
“I’m saying he’s already started one mentally,” Quinton said.
When Julien said nothing, I smirked. “You’ve already started one, haven’t you?”
“Maybe…”
“Julien!”
“What? I need to organize my thoughts!”
“The baby isn’t even born yet!”
“Which means I have time to prepare properly!”
