VALERIE DIDN'T WANT to admit it, but she loved to be fussed over by Freddie and Brian. Brian would come around often to talk with Valerie, and Freddie would come over to songwrite with John and sing songs for Valerie and the baby. Roger would way lunch with John and Valerie lunch a few days out of the week to spend time with them, but Brian and Freddie worried over Valerie the most.

"They can't hear you yet, Freddie." Valerie said, rubbing the slightly larger bump on her stomach. She was closer to being four months along now, so her stomach had grown just a bit bigger.

"Ah, we can just say I'm singing for you, though. When the baby can hear, I'll be over here faster than the speed of light, darling." Freddie said, finishing the song he was playing on the piano and turning around on the bench to face Valerie.

John was resting his hip against the doorframe, standing to the side of Valerie and Freddie's bonding moment.

"I know you will. I expect nothing slower." Valerie said, giggling. "Do you want something to drink, Freddie?" She asked him, and Freddie shrugged.

      "Sure, what do you have?" Freddie asked, getting up from the piano bench and joining Valerie on the couch.

      "Some beer,  gin, lemonade, bourbon, wine. Anything, really. John has quite a collection of alcoholic drinks." Valerie said, glancing at John who wore an amused expression.

     "You can never have too much alcohol, my love."

"I can recall quite a few times where you've had too much, John. Might I remind you of Christmas, 1974? You got so drunk that you smashed a few of my nice wine glasses?" Valerie recalled. She'd been so angry with John, but he'd bought her a whole new set the next week,  and he'd taken her out to dinner to make it up to her.

       "You're still on about that? I bought you some new ones." John groaned. Valerie often brought up the topic of her wine glasses just to tease him, or when she was particularly angry with him.

       "I know, I'm just teasing you, darling."  Valerie apologized, standing on her tip toes to kiss his cheek. Turning back to Freddie,  she still wore a smile. "What'll it be?" She asked him.

     "Just a beer is fine," Freddie replied, and Valerie nodded, heading off into the kitchen and returning with an open beer bottle. She'd brought one for John.

      "So, your mum is coming to visit,  right?" Freddie asked,  thanking Valerie when she handed him the cold bottle.

     "Yes, in about two weeks. It's almost the end of the school year, and I get summers off, so she probably thinks it's just to visit." Valerie said, messing with one of the loose threads on the couch that Bowie had scratched up. John and Valerie had yet to go shopping to replace it.

       "Hm. You should be more excited, Val. Your mum is going to be a grandmother!"  Freddie said, nudging Valerie's shoulder got get a smile out of her.

    "Hopefully. She's gotten much more fundamentally religious ever since dad passed. You've noticed, haven't you? I mean,  you saw her reaction to John and I living together." Valerie reminded Freddie, who shook his head of feathery black hair.

"She's going to be happy. I promise you. I'm sure you and John have discussed this as well," Freddie said, turning to his younger friend.

John nodded his head as he fully came into the living room and kneeled in front of Valerie, taking her hands in his.

"Freddie's right. Like I've said, once the anger subsides, she will be so happy to have a granddaughter." John promised Valerie, giving her hands a squeeze and leaning down to brush a kiss upon her knuckles.

      "Ugh, you two." Freddie groaned, laughing when Valerie nudged him in his side.

"John is right though, darling. And so am I, but are we really surprised?" Freddie joked, making both Valerie and John laugh.

Valerie nodded her head, meeting John's eyes and then turning to Freddie. "Okay, okay. You're both right." She admitted, running a hand through her hair anxiously.

"I know my mom would be happy when I tell her you're pregnant. She loves you," John said, standing up from the floor and taking a sip from his beer that was resting on the coffee table.

Valerie had only met John's mom four times in total: once when the band had first started, again when the band went on tour in America and his mother had made some casserole for her and Mary, again after her and John started dating, and at Christmas when they had driven to Leicester to visit her. She was a lovely woman that adored Valerie, and Valerie didn't doubt that she'd be overjoyed to have a grandchild.

"She probably would. I would say let's tell my mom and yours at the same time, but that might be a shit-show." Valerie said, though it probably wouldn't happen, and she was just being exaggerated again.

       "I highly doubt that, dear. You just need some tea and a good rest tonight to get those anxiety levels down." Freddie said, patting Valerie's hand as he took another sip of his beer.

     "He's right. Tea cures everything." John said with a light laugh, making Valerie smile, too.

     "Indeed it does. Since I make the best tea, I'll make you some before I leave tonight." Freddie responded, and John raised his eyebrows at him.

     "I care to disagree with you on that,"

     "Disagree all you want. I'm right," Freddie said, turning to Valerie, the two of them sharing a laugh while John rolled his eyes at them. "As always."
*****

      "It's good, isn't it? I haven't made it in a while. Used to make it with Brian all the time, though." Valerie said as she forked through her chickpea and tofu dish that was seasoned with soy sauce.

"Very good. I remember coming over for Christmas one year and you making this as a side dish." June recalled from back when Valerie had recently moved to her flat with Brian.

    "We couldn't afford a ham, mom, I would've made more of this except you and dad made us traditional food." Valerie reminded her, eating a hefty forkful of food.

      "We were broke college kids; this was probably the meal we had every day for about two years." Valerie continued on, rambling to avoid having to tell her mom anything about the pregnancy.

     John had gone to visit with his sister and one of his friend from university for the time being, as Valerie insisted that she ought to handle her mother alone.

"How've you been? How's Reyna?" Valerie asked, changing the subject as she sipped her water.

       "She's great. Mary had come down with a bad cold right when I was leaving, but I think she's over it now." June said, eating some of the steamed vegetables that Valerie had also prepared.

"That's good. Is Reyna still planning to travel to the states this summer?" Valerie asked, fiddling with her promise ring as she watched her mother add some salt to the vegetables.

"Mhm. Mary is excited to go to the Capital for the first time. And Xavier is excited to see Delaware, for reasons unbeknownst to me." June said, laughing and rolling her eyes.

"You were obsessed with Rhode Island when you were a kid. I think maybe it's just a kid thing." June commented, slightly wistful.

Valerie felt her heart skip a beat, thinking about how soon she'd have a kid of her own. She wondered to herself what state her child would be obsessed with.

And in thinking of this, Valerie was harshly thrown back to the reality that she'd have to tell her mother about her child.

"Are you and John going to travel at all?" June asked, snapping Valerie out of her daydreams.

"I don't think so. John's been songwriting again, so he's been busy doing that. Freddie or Roger will come over from time to time and they'll just spend hours and hours writing. I don't know when they'll start recording their next album, though." Valerie said, recalling how Freddie had started writing a new song the other day when he was visiting.

"Mmm," June said, nodding as she chewed her food, covering her mouth with her hand. "And John? How is he?"

      "Great, actually. I think he's just glad to be back from touring after so long. It'll certainly be a great summer since he won't be on tour, and I won't be working." Valerie said, setting her fork down on her nearly empty plate.

      "We've actually got lots of stuff planned for the summer, even if we're just staying home." Valerie said, preparing herself to tell her mother the news.

      "Yeah? Are you going to try and paint some more?"

      "Well, yes,  I would like to. But we've also got to start buying a lot of new furniture." Valerie said, trying to stall for as long as she possibly could.

     "But everything looks fine. Except for maybe the couch, but having messed up couch is inevitable when you have a cat." June replied with a shrug, eating more of her tofu.

       "That's true. We need more than just a couch, though. I was going to ask you, what's the best place to get a crib?" Valerie asked, almost laughing at herself for asking the question in such a stupid manner.

       June had stopped eating and looked up at Valerie, a forkful of pierced chickpeas and tofu hanging limp in her hand. "What was that?"

      "The best place to get a crib? Y'know. For a baby?" Valerie asked, her voice growing quiet as she stared at her mother, raising her eyebrows questioningly.

       "Certainly not your baby." June said after a moment, a slight laugh following the sentence.

      "But it is. Mom, I'm pregnant." Valerie said, and she was almost afraid for her mother when she went entirely quiet.

      "Well, I'm not surprised," June spoke after eating some of her tofu in silence. Valerie furrowed her eyebrows at her, growing slightly angry.

      "What's that supposed to mean?"

      "I'm only saying. You and John moving in together..... I guess it was inevitable. I do wish you would've waited until you were at least married." June said, though not unkindly, it still came off as condescending.

      "I'm not mad, though. It would be nice to have a little granddaughter or grandson." June said after mulling it over for another minute. Valerie still hadn't said anything yet and was watching her mother carefully, choosing her next words.

       "Valerie," June began, struggling to find the right words. "Are you sure?" She asked, and Valerie finally spoke.

       "About?" She asked, her shoulders stiff, though her leg was shaking anxiously up and down underneath the table.

      "John. Do you want to be with him? Are you happy? Do you want the baby?" June asked, leaning forward, her tone dropping even though no one else was in the house except Bowie.

      "Mom, of course I want the baby. I'm happy. You always talked about how you wish you were able to have more kids. And yes, I want to be with John. I love him, and we're happy together. And he loves me." Valerie said, gaining some of her confidence back as she spoke.

      "I might remind you that you got pregnant with me before you got married." Valerie said, spearing a small piece of broccoli with her fork and popping it into her mouth.

       June gave a dry laugh. "You're right. I'm sorry for being so......" June trailed off, making a gesture with her hands as if it conveyed everything she wanted to say.

       "Guess I shouldn't be the hypocrite. Those were all questions my mother asked me,  though, when I was with your dad. I was younger than you, though. I always forget your an adult now. No eres mí pequeña Valerie." June said with a wistful smile.

      "I'm still your Valerie, mom. It's still me. Just older. John and I are excited to have the baby, mom. He might have a busy schedule, but you should see just how happy he is." Valerie said, taking her mother's hand across the table.

       "Hmm. Dios, I can't believe you're pregnant."

       "You were just saying how you weren't surprised!" Valerie exclaimed, laughing. A tension still hung in the air,  but it was slowly dissipating.

      "Now that I finally thought about it, I am. You really aren't my little Valerie anymore." June said, patting her daughter's hand.

       "Ya te dije. I still am, I just have a steady job and a boyfriend that I love," Valerie replied, smiling slightly.

       "And a baby on the way," June reminded her. "That's why you got a whole new wardrobe, eh?"

       "That obvious?" Valerie asked her, shaking her head with a laugh.

        "Those comments Freddie made on your sweater the other day suddenly make sense. I ought to take you shopping once your further along. I did much the same thing you did. Oversized clothes?" June asked, and Valerie nodded, smiling.

     "You'd ought to bring Freddie along. He won't be happy to be left out of shopping with you."

      "Of course, I'd never leave him out. He's got better fashion sense than the both of us," June concluded, her and Valerie sharing a laugh. It was true,  though.

      "And John? Where's he at?"

      "With his sister and a friend from uni. I didn't want him to face your wrath, though I'm seeing you didn't get nearly as angry as I thought you would." Valerie told her mother, who laughed.

      "A wise, choice, though. I know I didn't raise a nitwit." June said, patting Valerie's hand.

      "Of course not. It's me we're talking about. I might make poor fashion choices, but I ain't no nitwit." Valerie giggled.

     Valerie was glad that her mother wasn't as angry as she thought she would've been. Of course, her anxiety (as well as literally any other emotion) had been heightened by the pregnancy it seemed, so she always made a bigger deal of anything.

    But, of course, Freddie and John had been right about June. And Valerie had a feeling Freddie would be bragging about it for weeks.

um lemme just say that I hATE chemistry rn. love my teacher, but conversions?? man, eff that. and it sucks, because I'm taking chem in spANISH so I can't ask for lots of help because I can't translate problems very well ;-;

I'm going to tutorials tomorrow, but I need to ramble about it for a moment lol

anyway, how've y'all been??

sorry this took me a lil while to update. I've been awfully busy this weekend.
I am, however, planning to pick my Roger Taylor fic back up again! I had massive writers block for it, but I have more motivation to write for it now.

soooo yeah, y'all have a great day/night and I'll see y'all when I see y'all 🤠

cheers!