Told You So

Chapter 1

"Horatio! Come here Horatio!" Zoë shouted from the en-suite one early morning. Horatio jumped out of bed and accidentally dragged the duvet with him that tangled under his feet, causing him to trip. His heart rate had more than doubled in the few seconds he was awake for. The fall had properly woken him up and he looked up and over to the en-suite where Zoë's calls had come from, the bedroom was full of darkness, but a slither of light came from the en-suite where the door was slightly ajar. "Horatio?" Zoë questioned loudly after she heard the loud thump on the bedroom floor.

"I'm coming Zoë." Horatio called as he kicked the duvet from his feet and got up. He kicked the duvet away and over to the bed to make sure the path was clear for him and pushed the en-suite door open quickly and rushed over to her as she stood in front of the loo with her shorts and underwear around her ankles. The light flooded his sensitive eyes and he squinted at her while she looked up at him with a panicked, yet innocently sweet expression.

"I think my waters have broken!" She panicked as she looked up at him and studied his panicked face as she furrowed her eyebrows deeply. Horatio's eyes adjusted to the light as he looked down but saw nothing but her underwear and shorts around her ankles.

"Where?" Horatio questioned with his panicked expression slowly disappearing as he furrowed his brow and placed a hand on his hip.

"My underwear is soaking and I've not peed myself." She said as she looked up at him and tilted her head. "I think they've broken, haven't they?" Zoë questioned and Horatio closed his eyes briefly and then rubbed his forehead as he exhaled a small chuckle in slight disbelief and amusement. He lightly smiled at her as he shook his head.

"That's not your waters breaking sweetheart, that's just increased discharge, remember Val mentioning it?" Horatio questioned after he took a deep breath and calmed himself right down as he placed both hands on his hips and tilted his head at her. He felt the beat of his heart slow and become lighter while the adrenaline slowly decreased.

"Is it?" Zoë asked as she looked down at herself before looking back up at Horatio who nodded at her. He lightly chuckled again as he pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head again in slight amusement. 'Only Zoë could panic me that much over nothing. What goes through her head?' Horatio asked himself as he looked up at her and placed his hand back on his hip with a half-smile.

"You're 15 weeks, Zoë… your waters are far off from breaking." Horatio said softly and she sighed and bit her lip with a nod. 'I guess that was a little extreme…' Zoë thought to herself as she pulled a sweeter expression which amused Horatio more.

"I'm really sorry Horatio, I panicked." She said as she kicked the underwear and shorts into the washing bin. He smiled at her again and nodded as he glanced down at the floor.

"Not to worry, just try and remain calm if that happens again, it's perfectly normal." Horatio said softly as he looked back up to Zoë who pressed her lips together and furrowed her brow again.

"But I didn't get it with Maya." She said softly before she pulled her top off and slung it in the washing bin.

"It's a different pregnancy, sweetheart, you've got more hormones rushing around your body than you did with Maya." Horatio said softly and Zoë nodded as she looked down and began to feel guilty for waking him.

"I'm sorry Kitten, I didn't mean to worry you at all. I'm such a dipstick." She said softly as she looked up at him.

"Don't worry Zo." Horatio said softly as he moved closer and placed a kiss on her lips while he placed both hands either side of her head. She pulled back and looked down before looking back up to Horatio with a slightly unpleasant expression.

"That's disgusting though, I'm going to get some tenna-ladies or something from the shop after my shower." She said softly and Horatio stifled a small chuckle. 'Zoë and her hygiene…' Horatio thought to himself. "Alexx didn't say anything about it." Zoë said as she tied her hair up and then took her bra off as she looked up at Horatio.

"Maybe Alexx didn't have it with her children." Horatio said softly and she nodded as she opened the shower door.

"Okay, sorry for waking and startling you. Are you okay? Did you fall over?" She asked softly as she turned to Horatio and he nodded with a slightly embarrassed smile.

"I tripped on the duvet as I got up so fast I didn't even have time to push it from me." Horatio said softly before he lightly chuckled as he found it amusing as he thought back to it.

"Oh I'm so sorry handsome, you're not hurt are you?" She asked and Horatio shook his head.

"Call if you need anything, I'll be in the main bathroom." Horatio said softly and she nodded with a smile before she closed the shower door and turned it on.

XX

"Do we have pineapple?" Zoë questioned 5 minutes later as she walked into the main bathroom still dripping wet and completely naked.

"Yes sweetheart." Horatio said softly as he turned to her whilst still in the shower and she nodded and then walked away after thanking him. She quickly walked downstairs after taking his towel and wrapping it around herself. He got out of the shower and realised she'd taken his towel so he went to get another. He quickly dried himself before changing into jogging bottoms and a t-shirt and then walking downstairs to see what Zoë was up to.

"What are you making?" Horatio asked as he strolled into the kitchen to see her wrapped in his towel and making something at the counter.

"Pineapple and cheese sandwiches with BBQ sauce, want one?" She asked as she looked over to Horatio and saw the disgusted look across his face once again. He swallowed and shook his head as his eyes wandered back up to hers after he studied the ill-looking sandwich.

"I think I'll pass, but thank you." Horatio said softly and she nodded sweetly and then picked up the sandwich and took a few bites. Horatio stood there and watched her eat it and remained silent while he continued to watch her.

"Any good?" Horatio asked a few moments later while he winced each time she took a bite. 'That must taste revolting…' He thought to himself as he blinked a few times and couldn't help but let his jaw sit open with his lips set apart slightly.

"It's satisfying a craving." She said once she finished her mouthful and he nodded as he looked back down to the sandwich in her hands.

"You really do have some weird cravings." He said as he watched her put the sandwich down and then throw the bread away and then ate the pineapple, cheese and BBQ sauce filling. She looked back up at him with a sweet expression as she shrugged before she looked back down at the sandwich filling.

"I'm disgusted at myself, but I can't help myself at the same time." She said as she looked back up at him. "I think you should eat it as well just so you know what I'm putting myself through, after all, they're the ones making me eat it and they're half you." She said with a cheeky grin as she held a bit out to him. He looked down at it and his look of disgust multiplied. He swallowed and pressed his lips together as he thought about it.

"I guess I should try it if you're craving it…" Horatio said as he took it from her and then studied the cheese topped pineapple chunk drizzled in BBQ sauce. He swallowed and winced again and he hadn't even tried it yet.

"Go on." Zoë urged with a smile as she watched him intensely. He bravely put it in his mouth and then tried to swallow after a few chews. She smiled sweetly as he finished chewing and swallowed it, it was very clear that he didn't enjoy it at all.

"I'm never eating that again." He mumbled as he wiped the side of his mouth with his thumb as he could feel a little BBQ sauce on his lip. She quickly walked over to him and took hold of his hand before she licked the sauce off his thumb with a cheeky smile. He raised his eyebrows at her as she walked back to the plate of pineapple, cheese and BBQ sauce. 'Well, that's one way to get rid of it I suppose.' Horatio thought to himself and felt his loins stirring.

"Yeah, it's not exactly nice." Zoë said as she finished what she had made and then had a glass of water. "Well done for trying it though." She smiled sweetly and he nodded, he could feel the taste lingering on his taste buds and got himself a glass of water too. "I'm going to get changed." She said softly and Horatio nodded again. She came downstairs in a pair of plane black leggings and a long loose tank top with a dark green and black pattern on.

"These clothes fit perfectly well, thank you for them Horatio. They should also fit me when I'm massive and then when I'm small again, they're stretchy." She smiled softly as she looked down at herself.

"My best birthday present was definitely seeing you in that new underwear though." Horatio smiled softly as he put the glass in the dishwasher and she giggled as she ran a hand over her stomach.

"My best birthday present was seeing your face when I wore the underwear." She grinned and he chuckled with a bright smile.

"We're quite lucky to have our birthdays in the same week… I want it to be our birthdays again this week." She smiled softly as Horatio walked over to her and smiled down at her as he tucked her hair behind her ears.

"I'm going to the shop, are you coming?" Zoë asked softly as she looked up at him and he nodded as she stepped away.

"I'll wait in the car though." Horatio said softly and she nodded.

XXXXXXXX

Thursday of the next week arrived and Zoë was relaxing on the sofa with her feet up, enjoying a herbal tea while she read a book about babies. "I wonder if you're boys or girls, or one of each." Zoë said softly as she rubbed her stomach when she put the herbal tea down when she could feel her mouth-watering once again as a craving began to sink it's claws into her.

"You are both driving me insane; you really want me to eat more apple and peanut butter?" She asked with a smile as she got up and walked into the kitchen to prepare the snack.

"You know your Daddy doesn't like the things you two make me eat. I bet you're both boys and I bet you're both going to have your Daddy's cheeky streak, that's why you're making me eat these things. I don't even like peanut butter either, I only ever ate it when I was at University when I was drunk. Shh, I didn't say that, Mummy was always a very good girl. Who am I kidding? I was a terror. Neither of you are going to be wild like me, I hope you both have your Daddy's sensible side. I bet he never went out all night at University." She chuckled to herself as she cut up two apples and then smeared peanut butter over the slices and then went to sit down again as she got a call from Kaitlin.

Meanwhile, at work Horatio was working hard on a case, he was in the lab working with some evidence with Eric close by.