It's official. AteIsa has taken over my account.

A/N: Just a quick one-shot that I absolutely HAD to write! Enjoy!

The moment Washington had read that precious letter from Eliza, he could barely contain his excitement.

Alexander was going to be a father!

But.. He couldn't send Alexander home. Not yet. If he did, Alexander would surely become suspicious, and the surprise could be spoiled for him. No, he had to wait for the perfect time. It wouldn't be too hard to keep it to himself until then, right?

It proved to be much, much harder than he had expected.

The first time he saw Alexander after he read the letter, he all but burst with excitement. He wanted so dearly to tell him the joyous news, but he kept his lips shut and his expression drawn best he could - it would be worth it, he told himself.

Soon, though, Alexander had to be with him almost everyday, and Washington, the honest man that he is, could barely look at him. He was afraid that his face would give it away, so he tried to act as distant as possible, and, thank goodness, it seemed to be working; specifically judging from how he overheard his aide telling his friend, John Laurens, that he had been becoming increasingly "despondent" over the past few weeks.

But oh, he was far from it. The war really was depressing, sure, but this little spark of hope, this miracle of a life in the midst of all the darkness and death was, surprisingly, extremely powerful.

One time, Washington recalled, Lafayette had caught him smiling to himself, and Washington, unable to open his mouth, for fear of somehow bursting the news, kept utterly silent and shook his head, and the French General had walked away with an expression of confusion and worry.

He kept telling himself he was trying too hard, then that he was being too obvious, but he absolutely could not bare ruining this special moment that he knew he and his wife would share, and so he suffered in his silence.

But then, oh joy, Alexander and Laurens disobeyed his orders. Putting the problem of Laurens' disobedience aside for the moment, he called Alexander to his tent and forced himself to scold his aide the best he could. He hadn't intended to keep calling Alexander, "Son" as much as he had, but the thought of Alexander's child was even stronger now that he was so close to sending him away. He barely kept himself from saying "Your son needs you alive!" When he tried to list the people who needed him.

But, thank goodness, he was much too angry to comprehend the clues set before him into fact, and he was able to finally send him home.

Oh, he really hoped this would heal his secretary's wounded heart, and he prayed that the arrival of a child would be enough, and that he'd finally be satisfied.