The twist in the case today had been so unexpected; no one on the team would have ever guest of Courtney's pregnancy had Ryan not spotted the tape at that one particular point. He had clearly caught on to the situation instantly; Walter didn't catch on so quickly, he had referred to her protective demeanor as a "stomachache." But Ryan knew he was wrong, he had his theory, a theory Calleigh happened to agree with. How could Calleigh not recognize the look on the TV show when she had seen it in herself recently? Always at work Calleigh would try to be as subtle as could be about her newly found pregnancy, knowing she'd only be able to conceal it for a limited time.

For now, she was handling keeping it a secret from her friends, especially one very close friend. Calleigh was practically living on Saltines, water and bread in order to degrade the vomiting that came with her morning sickness. But she knew no amount of crackers would be able to hide anything in a few months, especially with people as inquisitive as her fellow CSIs, she was certain she'd only be able to conceal the pregnancy another month, maybe two if she got lucky.

She knew the team finding out was an inevitable event, but she wasn't worried about the team finding out; she was worried about a single member of the team finding out. Eric would know that the child was his, Calleigh had known this truth since she saw that positive test and then the doctor verified the following day. She had gone over the facts and numerous details time and time again in her head. Calleigh had done the math and matched it up with the information that her doctor had given her, she couldn't tell Eric the child belonged to someone else if she wanted to. If the due date was accurate and she was as far along as the doctor had said, then she was certain had been with Eric around the time the baby was conceived. Who else could she have been with, she didn't want to be with anyone else, save for him.

Calleigh was normally too logical to believe in mystical signs being sent to her, rounding most off as coincidence, but this case and Courtney's pregnancy coming along at this moment in time was a coincidence that she felt couldn't be ignored. She needed to tell Eric; he deserved to know about this, despite the fact they had gone their separate ways since the conceiving of their child.

Their child.

The words still sounded strange and may have been easier to comprehend had they still been together, living as one under the same roof. Calleigh knew the factors of shock, fear and a mild excitement that would be overshadowed by her uncertainty of her maternal instincts would still remain even if she and Eric were together, but they were now significantly elevated. Originally, she thought if she ever found herself in the situation her biggest worry would be how she would cope with the newfound responsibility of a child and how to be a mother when she had never truly witnessed a good mothers actions. The problems and concerns had now steered to something past her demons she could have worked through in support and time, now she was faced with the challenges greater than life; there was no greater challenge than creating one.

"Hey, Calleigh," Eric greeted her as he loaded the elevator the same time she did.

She put on a faux smile, hoping it would come across as cheerful when truly it was painstaking to be so close to him. She wanted, she needed to tell him, but she just didn't know how.

"Are you okay?" Eric asked, having noticed her smile, which turned out as more of a grimace.

"Yeah," Calleigh nodded as the elevator slowly declined to the floor that was the locker room. "I've just been thinking."

"About what?" Eric questioned, concerned.

"How about we didn't lose one person today, we lost two," Calleigh sighed, gradually leaning into the conversation and her nerves starting to intensify.

Eric nodded, sadly, in agreement.

"I know, it's awful," Eric breathed, looking at how Calleigh had her hands folded in front of her and it was becoming apparent to him that this case wasn't the only thing on her mind.

"It kind of got me thinking about certain things that are going on right now," she admitted as the elevator doors slid apart before them. "Things that are going on with me…that you should know about."

Eric froze, he hadn't expected Calleigh to say that. Normally, she was very closed about her problems and someone would have to practically pry her open with a crowbar to get her to tell a miniscule amount of information any trouble she was having. But now Calleigh was opting to tell him something and she was being more open than the Calleigh he was used to, he wasn't sure if this should cause him worry or if he should like at it as he simply knowing she could come to him.

"What's on your mind, Cal?" he asked as they opened to door to the locker room.

Calleigh looked around the empty locker room, securing their privacy, before taking Eric's hand and pulling him to sit beside her on the bench along the wall. Eric's heart fluttered a bit at her touch, something he hadn't felt in weeks, and she surprised him even more when she didn't release his hand after they had taken a seat.

"I should have told you this when I first suspected and I'm sorry for that. But I need you to promise me something before I do," Calleigh sighed.

"And what's that?" Eric asked, his thumb gently brushing against the back of her hand.

"That you won't do me any favors, that you won't feel you need to fix anything we have just because I'm pregnant," Calleigh blurted the last part out unthinkingly, giving him the news before he had promised anything.

Eric's thumb froze on the back of her hand; the whole world became surreal. Calleigh was pregnant? With his baby?

In many aspects this was a dream come true, for years he had dreamed of himself and Calleigh creating a family together. But this wasn't the happy family he had pictured, not by a long shot. The two weren't married, they weren't even together anymore and she didn't want him "doing her any favors."

Within five minutes, his world became like the ocean, a place he knew a thing or two about. The ocean with it's mural of coral, shells and colorful fish was beautiful and, for many, was something worth witnessing, just as his dream of seeing himself and Calleigh with a child had been. But the ocean also held sharks, rays and other dangerous shadows that could make the once amazing sight nothing more than dangerous. With the two of them separated at a baby in their midst, they were treading very dangerous waters.

There will be a second chapter! Repeat! There will be a second chapter! Maybe even a third!

I tried to edit, but daylight savings has thrown me off my game and I'm so I apologize for any mistakes. And was it just my area that CBS ran late on and skipped Miami or was I just lucky? Thank the Lord for the Internet.

Please review!