Driving back to Maryann's house, I was sleepy in her car. Rain was pattering on the glass of the windows and she was playing Christmas music even though Christmas was a month away. I closed my eyes, once, then Maryann said, how far along are you again?

Two weeks, I replied.

Then if she said anything, I don't know, because I closed my eyes again, and then let them stay that way for the rest of the way.

*

Maryann's town is a cold one. And it rains a lot. She tells me accidents are pretty common here. Cold, rainy, prone to accidents. Just the place for a pregnant woman to be. Maryann laughs, says, I hope the kid doesn't get your shit humor. Then she doubles back, asks me in a rush, am I keeping it?

I'm unfurling my muffler from around my neck and handing it to her as I walk into the living room of her house. It's warm here. Yes, I tell Maryann, as I plop down on an armchair that has a fuzzy white wrap lying over the head of it. I exhale, feeling a pressure I didn't know was there slowly relax.

Maryann nods, exhaling audibly through her nose. She asks me if I want any tea, coffee? She has a lot of different flavors of jam, too.

"Coffee, black, no nothing. Thank you." I tell her, as I'm pulling my feet up under me on the armchair. I'm still so sleepy.

*

Maryann calls over a guy to carry my suitcase up the stairs. "I would do it but my spine would literally cave in", she tells me, "and you can't do it because you're ... with child" and she touches my belly romantically and we both burst out laughing.

The guy comes back down. He's a big one. With a nice-looking beard and happy eyes.

"All done, babe." He says to Maryann. Smiles between the both of us.

"Thank you, babe." Maryann says. She offers him the jams she offered me earlier.

"Oh, no, thanks, I have plenty myself at home." He says, shaking his head jovially.

Maryann nods, also smiling. I don't get the joke. I tell her that.

"Stick around here long enough, and you'll find out soon." The guy says to me enigmatically.

"Okay, that doesn't sound threatening at all" I say.

"She's so cute, isn't she?" Maryann says as she puts her arm around my shoulders.

"Perfectly adorable." The guy answers. I smile like a child. Who doesn't like compliments? Then he leaves out the front door, with a "See you, babe!"

"Mm, yeah, okay." Maryann says as she closes the door behind him.

"You guys a thing?" I ask as we walk back in.

"Occasionally." She says.

*

Maryann and I are watching Seinfeld on her TV. She has brought down a big, raggedy blanket, that actually smells very comforting, from somewhere, and we have it wrapped around us as we stay curled up on the couch next to each other.

Maryann has fixed up a sandwich with strawberry jam and butter for me. It's very good. What's the deal with the jam, I ask her. She explains that there's a dude who recently learnt how to make jams, so he's been making a lot of it, and distributing it amongst his friends. I chuckle. That's cute.

The doorbell rings. I look to Maryann, who looks to me. "Who could it be?" She wonders out loud. Then she jumps up, throwing the blanket off of her shoulders. "Oh, it's Aristo! Aristo-ooo!" She runs for the door. I hear it open. A loud meow. Lots of cooing on behalf of Maryann. Then, "Come in, come in for a while, it's so cold out."

Maryann walks back into the living room, cuddling a big white thing in her arms. She lets the beast down, and it dawdles over to the armchair, gracefully jumping up and then immediately curling into a ball there.

"Tea for you, Hughes?" Maryann calls out.

"Sure, Maryann." A voice replies from the darkness of the corridor leading up to the living room.

I look up. Then our eyes meet.