(Love Thy Neighbor)
Those Baby Blues
jmhenderson
Chapter One
It had been three months since the c-store killer case had been closed. Three months for everyone to begin moving on with their lives again. Three months for routines to get back to normal, and three months for Gabby and Starsky to ‘test the waters’. They were happy with each other. Not living together yet, but might as well have been considering how much time they were spending together. Every spare moment they had, they were inseparable. Hutch and Dee were becoming comfortable with each other as well, and they, too, were very, very close. They made a great foursome when it came to going out; everyone got along well with each other and they had become a very tight-knit group.
Starsky and Hutch were ready to call it a day at the precinct. People smiled as they walked into the squad room. The two detectives had become quite a comical sight, inspiring laughter throughout the precinct as they giddily created mayhem with their constant pranks and joking. It was driving their captain crazy.
“You two get in my office now!” Dobey growled at the two officers. Reluctantly looking at each other, Starsky and Hutch walked in, closing the door behind them. “Sit down.” Dobey began. “Now then, what can you two tell me about a certain painting job going on downstairs in the lobby?” he asked suspiciously.
“Well Cap,” Hutch began, “From what I’ve seen so far, it’s looking really good.” He said, as Starsky tried his best to suppress the laughter that came to him. Fire became evident in Dobeys’ eyes.
“You know exactly what I’m talking about!” Dobey yelled.
“What’s the matter, Captain?” Starsky asked innocently. Dobey was fuming.
“You know damned well what’s the matter! Someone called those contractors in here and it wasn’t authorized! Now someone’s going to have to pay for that peach colored paint job being billed to the city!!!” He said, his anger so severe he stood up. Starsky and Hutch looked at each other.
“Wow, cap.” Starsky began, standing up as Hutch followed his lead. “We’ll get right on the case.” He said enthusiastically, backing out towards the door.
“Yeah captain.” Hutch began, “We’ll get to the bottom of this.” He said with as much authority in his voice that he could muster. They quickly left the captains’ office, grabbing their jackets and heading out from the squad room before Dobey could come out and fuss any further.
Making their way through the lobby, (peach was such a lovely spring color), they walked out through the entrance doors and began laughing almost hysterically; Hutch was doubling over as Starsky tried to keep him walking towards the car, having a hard time doing so himself. Almost in tears, they got into the Torino.
“I can’t believe you did that, Starsk!” Hutch said, wiping his face with his sleeve, still laughing.
“Hey!” Starsky laughed, “You picked the color!” he said, trying to control himself as he started the car.
They giggled and smirked as they pulled out, both in good spirits, looking forward to a weekend off. Hutch and Dee would be going camping, just over night, and Starsky and Gabby would be spending time together at home. Hutch looked downright disappointed when they had turned down his and Dees’ invitation to go camping, but Gabby wasn’t into that sort of thing. (Another reason Starsky was so fond of her, he was sure.)
He pulled the car in front of Hutch’s house, and Hutch wished him a good evening as he got out from the car.
“Same to you, pal.” Starsky began, “See you Saturday night at Huggys’” he said, then headed for home.
Gabby had been sick
on her stomach, and feared the worst as she looked at her pale face in
the mirror. There was a stomach virus going around, and she was sure
she was getting it. Dee had had it, and she must’ve ‘shared’.
It was hard to hide anything from David, he could read her like a book,
but she had no intentions of ruining this weekend. She began applying
her make-up, a little heavier on the rouge than usual, and drank from a
bottle of Pepto Bismol. It seemed to help, and when Starsky arrived,
he didn’t notice. They were entranced with each other, and she kept
the lights down low, just in case. She fed him dinner after midnight.
And sleep came in the wee hours of the morning.
Chapter Two
It was late Saturday afternoon when Dee and Hutch made their way towards Hutch’s home. Deanna was the sparkle in Hutches’ eye, there were no doubts. She was as upbeat and happy as when they left for their camping trip to the mountains, only now they were dusty from walking the trails and stiff from their attempts to rest in sleeping bags. She never seemed to be in anything less than good spirits. Her invitation for him to join her in the shower only pleased him. In fact, he thought, he was sure she could read his mind. In a couple of hours, they were dressed and ready for their evening out on the town, ready to meet up with Gabby and Starsky at Huggys’.
‘The Pits’ was less crowded than usual for a Saturday night, and Huggy was blaming it on ball games in the area, expecting a much larger crowd after the games were over.
“You don’t think you’re losing your touch around here, do ya Hug?” Starsky asked, teasing his friend. Huggy looked at the foursome sitting in the booth and laughed. Dressed in cowboy attire, he was quite the spectacle.
“My friend, them thar’ is fightin’ words.” He said in a deep western drawl, tipping his cowboy hat to them. The ladies laughed at his gesture.
“Thank goodness he’s not wearing his spurs.” Hutch said, and they all laughed.
“And I hope his horse isn’t in the kitchen.” Dee added. The evening was as fun as the ones before. Huggy was ecstatic to see his friends so happy, not remembering when they had ever had this kind of peace of mind before. He hoped it wasn’t too good to be true.
“Anybody want to play some pinball?” Starsky asked as he put a handful of change on the table.
“I do!” Gabby answered immediately. Dee and Hutch were leaning arm in arm into the wall of the booth, feeling quite comfortable and declining the offer. Starsky and Gabby got up, giving them a little more privacy.
“This feels so good.” Dee said, leaning back into Hutch as he turned sideways, enabling him to put both arms around her and squeeze her.
“Yep. Here we are, you, me, and the kids.” He said with a sigh, then they both laughed, then kissed.
They watched as Starsky and Gabby tried tilting the machine on each other’s plays; Gabby even laying herself across the machine so that Starsky couldn’t see. Starsky attacked her as she lay there, tickling her until he was able to get her off from it. Then as Gabby began a turn, Starsky was up against her from behind, blowing in her ear and kissing her neck, knowing it would distract her.
“David.” Gabby said as she tried to win the game, “Your efforts to distract me are useless!” She nailed the ball and her score became higher than his.
“I don’t think so.” He said as he held her waist, kissing her down her neck. She closed her eyes, feeling the warmth of him take over her body. Then she slumped in his arms, passing out.
Hutch and Dee were watching the playful duo when Starsky set Gabby down on the floor. They yanked themselves up from the booth, running over towards them.
“What happened?” Dee asked, the concern evident in her voice.
“She just went limp.” Starsky replied, shocked by the sight of his girlfriend lying in the floor unconscious. Hutch felt for her pulse, then felt her face and her neck, feeling her cold and clammy skin.
“I think she just fainted.” He said, looking up at Starsky. A crowd was forming around them, and Huggy broke through it, bringing a pitcher of water with him. Hutch grabbed the water and Starsky grabbed the bar towel that hung over Huggys’ arm, dampening it with the ice cold water in the pitcher. He took the towel and started putting it on Gabby’s face, then neck. In what seemed like an eternity to him, Gabby began coming around. She looked around, confused by the crowd that was looking down at her, feeling embarrassed. She tried to sit up, and Hutch put his hand around her shoulder to help. She sat there with her hand in Starskys’, looking at all the people who were surrounding her. Huggy instinctively turned around, putting his arms in the air telling everyone to ‘give the lady a little room to breathe.’
“Hey, are you okay?” Starsky asked, kneeling down beside her.
“Yeah, I think I just got a little over-heated.” She said as she tried to stand up. With Hutch on one side and Starsky on the other, they helped her walk back over to the booth. She was sitting there, then noticed everyone was staring at her.
“Awe, c’mon! I’m fine yall.” She told them.
“I love that southern accent,” Huggy said as he approached their table, bringing Gabby a tall glass of iced tea.
“Thanks Hug.” Starsky said, grabbing the glass and handing it to Gabby. She looked at him, laughing.
“Stop worrying about me, will ya?” she said, smiling at him. “I am fine.” She emphasized. The gang all seemed to sigh at the same time, then laughed along with Gabby as she laughed at them.
“I think it’s time to call it a night.” Starsky said, and Hutch looked at his watch and agreed.
Outside, Dee hugged Gabby then Starsky, and Gabby hugged Hutch. They said their goodnights and departed. Starsky drove cautiously back to where they lived, keeping his eyes on Gabby, who would catch him peeking at her and fuss. She scooted over beside him as he drove, snuggling into his chest. Starsky parked the car in his usual spot, then walked her up to his apartment.
Gabby walked into his kitchen, looking through the cabinets, then into the fridge.
“We need to go to the store tomorrow.” She said, looking at Starsky over the refrigerator door. Starsky gave her a look, which told her he wasn’t too keen on the idea. She closed the door and walked over to him, and a grin came to his face. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him.
“I guess I can call Dee and see if she wants to go to the store with me.” She told him, placing one hand on her hip. He looked up at her, raising his eyebrows and grinning.
“What am I gonna do with you?” she asked him sweetly.
“Well,” Starsky began,
tilting his head, “I have a few ideas….”
Chapter Three
Gabby had called Dee, and they arranged to meet at a local grocery store that was almost in between the two detectives homes. Scheming to get the groceries stocked since the ‘boys’ were so unwilling, they had agreed to meet for breakfast first at the Coral Diner. Invoking the ‘no guys rule’, this was their opportunity to talk about everything, and they did so enjoy those rare occasions. They met at the diner at 9:30am and were grocery shopping by 10:30, still talking about things as they shopped. Gabby was looking a little confused in the canned foods aisle. Dee looked at her expression with concern.
“Are you alright?” she asked her friend.
“Too much to chose from.” Gabby answered, looking at all the items on the shelves.
“I know what you mean,” Dee began as she scooted her cart down a little further, “They keep making new things, then new and improved things, and sometimes they have improved something before I can even try the original.” She said laughing. She looked back at Gabby, wondering why she wasn’t responding to what she’d said. Gabby was lying in the floor.
“Gabby!” Dee said, running to her. Gabby’s eyes were closed; she was motionless. A couple of people were gathering around her, and Dee was gently tapping Gabby on her cheeks. She began coming to.
“Dee? What happened?” she asked, looking around the store, confused.
“You just passed out again.” Dee said with concern in her voice.
“Oh Jesus, Dee, please don’t tell Dave. I knew the other night I was coming down with that stomach virus that you had, and so I haven’t been eating too much because it makes me queasy. That’s why I didn’t eat any breakfast this morning at the diner.” She said, babbling, letting Dee help her stand up.
“I don’t know Gabby, don’t you think he should know?” she asked, watching as her friend regain herself.
“You know how he is, he’d be taking off work just to look after me, and you see how I am, it’s not a real bad case of it.” She said.
“Oh really? Then how come you just passed out in the grocery store?” she asked. Gabby smiled.
“Because I haven’t been eating, that’s all.” She answered. “Promise me?” she pleaded. They started walking the aisles again, Dee watching her friend cautiously.
“Alright.” she answered with some resign.
“Here.” Dee said, grabbing a bottle of juice from the shelf beside them. “You need to drink this and get your strength back up. Not eating will only make that virus worse.” She said, and Gabby smiled at her.
“You’re sounding more and more like Hutch, you know that?” she said, laughing.
“And you’re getting
more and more stubborn like Starsky.” Dee told her. They both laughed
as they went towards the checkout counter.
Chapter Four
Gabby drove back to Starsky’s place, and Dee followed her, just to be sure that she got back home without any problems. Starsky had been watching out the window, waiting for Gabby to return so he could help bring in the groceries. He saw Dee driving behind her, waving, then driving off. He went outside with her and began grabbing bags from her trunk.
“Wasn’t that Dee I saw driving behind you?” he asked.
“Yes, detective, it was.” She answered, smirking, grabbing the remaining bags, closing the trunk and walking with him inside. They set the bags on the kitchen table, and Gabby began unpacking them. Starsky was looking at her curiously.
“Gab, why did Dee follow you all the way over here from the store?” he asked.
‘Damn.’ She thought.
“I had to put some air in my back tire when we left the diner to go to the store, and uh, she wanted to make sure I got home okay with that tire being so low before.” She answered, a proud look on her face for thinking up an excuse so quickly. Unfortunately, he could read her too well, and knew by her tone and slight stutter that she was trying to hide something.
“Oh. Okay then. Maybe I should go take a look at it.” He answered cautiously.
“You don’t need to do that.” She answered quickly. “I looked at it when we were getting the groceries out. I think it was just low. I don’t think it’s leaking or anything.” She told him, placing the last item in the fridge, then folding the empty bags. He just watched her, wondering.
Dee arrived at Hutch’s place at 12:45pm. Hutch was outside picking up leaves and branches, and waved as she pulled in. He walked over to the car, kissing her as she got out. She smiled, but he could see the concern on her face. He decided to wait until they had finished bringing in the groceries before asking what was troubling her. Once inside, he watched her as they pulled items from the bags and put them where they belonged.
“Dee? What’s bothering you?” he asked sweetly. She looked at him, touched by the concern in his eyes, and made her way into the living room, sitting down as he followed, sitting down beside her.
“Well, I promised Gabby I wouldn’t tell David,” she hesitated, “but I didn’t say anything about telling you.” The look of concern intensified on Hutch’s face.
“What’s wrong, Deanna?” he asked. She took a deep breath.
“You remember last night when Gabby passed out over at Huggy’s?” she asked.
“Yeah, really put a scare in Starsky. Me too for that matter.” He said.
“Well, we were at the
store this morning, and she passed out again right in the middle of a grocery
aisle!” she said, looking worried. Hutch’s’ face scowled.
“She said she’s caught that stomach virus I had; said she hadn’t been
eating because it makes her queasy, and she didn’t want David to get upset
and smother her like he does when he’s worried about her.” Dee looked
at Hutch. “That’s when she made me promise not to tell David about
today. But she didn’t say anything about telling you.” she said,
taking her index finger and pointing it towards him, running it down his
chest. He took her finger and held her hand in his, kissing it.
“I’m calling Starsk.” He said, raising his eyebrows. She smiled.
“I figured you would.”
She said, leaning towards him and kissing him gently on his lips.
Chapter Five
Starsky was sitting on his couch, reading the Sunday paper. The phone rang and startled him. He picked up the phone, grinning.
“Missed me already?” he said, not bothering with a ‘hello’.
“Not really.” Hutch’s voice said, surprising Starsky.
“Oh. Sorry. I thought you were Gabby, heh heh. What’s up?” he asked his partner.
“Where’s Gabby?” Hutch asked.
“She went back home for a little while to get a few things done. She’ll be back later this evening. Why?” Starsky asked. Hutch told his partner what had happened with Gabby at the store. Starsky’s face was a mix of surprise and worry.
“Thank Deanna for telling you about it for me, will ya?” Starsky said.
“Sure thing.” Hutch said, and Starsky hung up. He picked up the phone again, looking in his black address book, placed a call, then walked over to Gabby’s.
Starsky tried the door and, finding it locked, used his key to go inside. He didn’t want to knock, wanting to see for himself if she was really straightening up the apartment or what. He walked inside. It was quiet. He walked towards the kitchen, then saw her silhouette laying across the bed. He walked into the bedroom, sitting gently on the side of the bed as she slept, undisturbed. He felt her forehead; it wasn’t hot. For that he was grateful.
“Gabby?” he said gently. She shook at the realization that he was in there with her, and sat up, looking at him.
“I only laid down for a minute, uh, what time is it?” she asked, rubbing her face.
“It’s a little after 4.” He answered, looking at the alarm clock beside her bed.
“4am?” she asked, slightly confused and groggy from being awakened.
“No silly, 4pm.” He said, grinning. She looked at him, gathering herself and her thoughts.
“Okay. I told you I’d be back after 6. What are you doing here? Is something wrong?” she asked.
“Hutch called me. Deanna told him what happened at the store.” He told her.
“Damn.” She said. “I made her promise.” She told him, then thought for a moment. “Oh, crap. I made her promise not to tell you, I didn’t say anything about telling Hutch.” She said, half grinning.
“Don’t be mad at her, she’s just worried about you.” Starsky told her gently.
“I’m not.” She smiled.
“Now then.” Starsky began, “I’m taking you to the doctor in the morning.” Gabby began to protest, but he stopped her, putting his finger to her lips. “I’ve already called my doctor, and he’s willing to see you first thing in the morning. If he says you’re okay, then I wont smother you and stay home with you. If, on the other hand, you refuse to go, then I will have no choice but to stay home from work and be your constant nagging companion.” He smiled at her, and she grinned back.
“Okay, okay.” She said, “I give up!”
“I like it when you
talk that way.” Starsky told her, leaning her back onto the bed, kissing
her along the way.
Chapter Six
The doctors’ office was quiet and smelled of disinfectant. Starsky was fidgety, flipping through magazines and getting up now and then to walk around, listening. They had arrived at 8am, and now it was 8:20. Starsky had gotten up to walk over to the receptionists’ desk when he heard the office door open behind him, and Gabby and Dr. Morton came out. The doctor was smiling, reassuring as they walked into the lobby.
“Hey there.” Starsky said sweetly.
“Hey there yourself.” Gabby said, smiling. “I told you I was fine.” She said, and Starsky looked up at the doctor.
“Yes, she’s pretty much in good health, other than that smoking habit she keeps holding onto.” He told him.
“What about that virus?” Starsky asked.
“I think it’s pretty much run its’ course already. She’s okay.” The doctor answered.
“Yeah, but what about those fainting spells?” Starsky asked.
“I’m thinking she has a vitamin deficiency. I’ve taken some blood to run a few tests, and we’ll know for sure in probably three or four days. We’ll set up another appointment on Friday to go over the blood work, but I’m not expecting anything to turn up. In the meantime, she needs to eat regularly and take vitamins. She’s fine, David.” He told him, putting a hand on Starskys’ shoulder. “Really.” Starsky looked at Gabrielle and smiled. The receptionist made her follow-up appointment for 12:30 Friday afternoon.
“Why do you worry so much?” Gabby asked as Starsky held the car door open for her.
“Because I can.” He answered, closing the door. She smiled.
Starsky dropped Gabby off at her place, walking her to the door, getting himself one more kiss before leaving and heading to work. He got to work a little after 9am, whistling as he walked into the lobby, then smiling as he looked around at the paint job. ‘Nice.’ He said to himself, grinning. He went straight up to the squad room, and walked in, seeing Hutch sitting there, looking at a rather large file.
“Hello and good morning.” He said, heading straight for the coffeepot.
“Good morning. How’s Gabby?” Hutch asked.
“Almost over that stomach virus and needing to take vitamins.” Starsky answered, smiling.
“Glad to hear it, I was getting a little worried.” Hutch told him.
“Yeah, me too.” Starsky answered. He sat down behind his desk and motioned towards the file in Hutch’s hand.
“Whatcha got there?” he asked.
“Our new case.” Hutch answered, handing him the file. “We got us a couple of two-bit hustlers who think they’re untouchable. They’ve been knocking down a few unguarded warehouses and stores, getting whatever they can grab then hauling ass out of there just before people start arriving in the mornings.” Starsky looked briefly through the file, then looked up at Hutch over the top of it.
“Anyone get hurt?” he asked.
“Not yet.” Hutch began, “But the patrolmen can’t seem to be able to snag any leads, and they just hit a furniture store this morning, so now it’s our case.” Hutch told him. Starsky drank from his coffee cup, then put the file down on his desk.
“I guess we’d better start checking things out then.” He said, rising from his chair.
“Yep, let’s do it.” Hutch answered. “We can get out of here before Dobey gets back from his meeting.” He added.
“Good idea.” Starsky
replied, grinning.
Chapter Seven
The next four days had been pretty much routine, talking to warehouse managers and taking inventories of items that had been stolen. These thieves, if nothing else, had balls. After all, they were playing a game, waiting until the very last minute as they left the scenes, grabbing everything they could. It must have been part of the thrill, because they had surprised more than one worker, coming in just as they were going out. They weren’t hurting anyone; the only good thing that could be seen out of all this. There were a couple of vague clues, but nothing sturdy enough to begin making any arrests. It was frustrating more than anything else.
They headed back to
the station after leaving the last crime scene. Both men stopped
as they walked in the lobby of the station, looking at the walls.
“ahhhhh.” They said in unison, laughing, then headed upstairs.
Starsky picked up the phone, calling Gabby. As he dialed the phone, he held it sideways to his ear, looking at Hutch.
“We still on for bowling tonight?” he asked.
“Is it Friday already?” Hutch asked, smiling. Starsky pulled the phone back up to his mouth, smiling.
“Hey Baby,” he said, listening into the phone. “Yeah. I’m just fine. You still want to go bowling? Okay, good. Love you too.” He hung up the phone, looking a little puzzled.
“We still going out tonight?” Hutch asked, writing down something in a file he had sitting on his desk.
“Uh, yeah.” Starsky said.
“So what’s wrong?” Hutch asked him.
“I dunno. She just kinda sounded distant.” He shrugged. “She had to go back to the doctors today to get the results that came back on her blood work…” He paused, “You don’t think…”
“Starsk.” Hutch began, grinning at him. “If something was wrong, she would tell you, and she certainly wouldn’t want to go bowling.” He said.
“Yeah, uh huh.” Starsky said, pulling out his address book. Hutch got up to put the file away and Starsky began talking on the phone. Millie came in, talking with Hutch by the file cabinet briefly before taking paperwork into Dobeys’ office. Hutch walked back over as Starsky hung up the phone. Hutch looked at him, a questioning look across his face.
“I just called my doctor. He said he saw Gabby and she is fine, not to worry, they got the blood work back and she’d tell me all about it.”
“That’s good. Quit worrying!” Hutch said, teasing his partner.
“Yeah, okay, let’s get outta here then.” Starsky said, smiling.
Their night of bowling was fun, yet Gabby did seem distracted. Starsky kept an eye on her, feeling a knot in his belly, like something just wasn’t right. He watched her as she changed from the bowling shoes back into her own. She looked up and caught him as he stared at her. He scooted over beside her, bowling shoes in one hand, his other wrapping around her shoulders.
“God I love you.” He said, giving her a big smooch on her cheek. She smiled, pulling herself into his hold, her head on his shoulder.
“God, I hope so.” She said. His look turned serious.
“What does that mean?” he asked her sincerely.
Hutch and Dee walked over to them, arm and arm, laughing as they tried walking foot over foot, tripping, and Hutch ending up dipping her in front of Gabby and Starsky.
“Bravo!” Gabby said as she stood and applauded them. “You got some smooth moves there, Hutch.” She complimented, distracting Starskys’ serious train of thought. Starsky began to smile and tease his partner. All four of them laughed as they made their way into the parking lot. Gabby seemed in better spirits, which lightened Starskys’ mood somewhat. They said their good-byes, and Dee and Hutch drove away in Hutch’s car, as Gabby and Starsky left in the Torino. Starsky sat quietly as he watched Gabby, who watched the traffic and buildings as they passed them by.
“Where are you?” He asked her sweetly.
“I’m here.” She said smiling, looking out the window. He let a few minutes pass.
“I talked to Dr. Morton this afternoon.” He said sweetly.
“You what!?” she said, turning her head sharply to face him, anger fired in her eyes. Starsky was taken aback by her reaction, but thought he understood.
“I just wanted to find out if your tests were okay.” He said gently.
“And what did Dr. Morton tell you?” She asked a little coldly, looking out through the windshield.
“He said your blood work was fine and for me not to worry.” Starsky told her, watching her. She seemed to sigh in relief, which upset him.
Starsky abruptly pulled the car off to the side of the road, putting it in park and cutting off the engine. He turned to face her.
“Is there something he should have told me?” Starsky asked, a cold chill climbing up his spine. Gabby grabbed at her cigarettes. She hadn’t smoked one the whole evening, but her nerves begged her for one now.
“Gabby?” he asked, becoming impatient. He watched as she lit her cigarette, her hands trembling. He was becoming scared.
“Oh God Gabby. Please tell me what’s wrong?” he pleaded. She looked at him, a single tear falling from her face.
“I can honestly tell you David that there is nothing wrong with me. I swear it.” She said, taking a drag from the cigarette. He put his hand on her.
“Then why are you so scared?” he asked. She took another drag from her cigarette, then threw it out on the sidewalk from her window. She turned to him.
“I, I don’t want to discuss this here. Will you take me home? We’ll discuss everything, I promise. Okay?” she asked, her eyes pleading with his. He was scared to death. The memories of Terri were flooding him; her decision; her life, all flashing before him. Then her death. He took a deep breath.
“Alright.” He said,
giving in to waiting a little while longer so that he could know the truth.
He turned the ignition and pulled the car back into gear. Gabby pulled
herself over to him and held him tightly as he drove. He could feel
her body tremble. He put his arm around her as he drove, holding
her, kissing her on her head.
Chapter Eight
They walked up to Starsky’s place hand in hand. Neither spoke a word as Starsky unlocked his door, opening it for her to walk in. Everything felt like it was in slow motion to him. He helped her take off her jacket, then took off his own, hanging them on the coat rack beside the door. Gabby went out into the kitchen, getting them something to drink. She pulled out a soda pop bottle, then reached in the cupboard for glasses. Starsky watched as her hand shook, tapping the bottle to the glasses as she tried to pour. He went to sit at the table, but she motioned for him to go in the living room. They sat down together, Gabby setting the glasses on the coffee table. Starsky stayed quiet, giving her time to settle herself. She looked at him. His eyes were genuine with concern. He grinned at her, and she reached out her hand to his, holding it tightly.
“It cant be that bad, can it?” Starsky asked, his tone quiet and concerned.
“That kinda depends…” she said, looking down.
“Depends on what, Gabby?” he held her hand, tightly, making her look at him.
“On you.” She said, looking at him, tears welling in her eyes. His look was confused.
“I’m so sorry David.” She said, crying. She pulled her hand from his and stood up, turning her back to him while she wiped her tears. He jumped up behind her.
“God Gabby, ya gotta tell me what’s wrong.” He pleaded, turning her abruptly towards him. She looked at him, fear evident in her eyes. “Whatever it is, we can get through it, together.” He told her. She took a deep breath and sat down, watching him as he knelt down in front of her. He grabbed both of her hands and held them tightly in his own.
“I’m pregnant.” She told him.
He stared at her, stunned; shocked by those two little words he’d just heard her say. His face was blank and his mouth dropped open.
“David?” she asked, looking at him as he froze. “David?” she said again.
After a minute, the glaze seemed to fall from his eyes, and he looked at her; a look she couldn’t decipher. A broad smile immerged on his face, and he stood up, bringing her to her feet with him.
“A baby???” he asked, laughing and hugging her, relieved that she was alright; ecstatic at the prospect of having a child. She looked shocked from his reaction, not expecting him to take it this way. She smiled, and tears of happiness flowed freely.
“We’re gonna have a baby!” he hollered.
“Yes, we are.” She answered, then fainted in his arms.
He carried her to his bed, admiring this woman who lay before him. Her eyes opened and she turned her face to him. She saw him smiling down at her. She looked around, noticing her surroundings.
“Don’t tell me I did it again.” She said, rolling her eyes. Starsky laughed at her.
“You’re beautiful.” He said. “What I wanna know is why you were so scared to tell me.” He said sweetly. She looked up at him, then watched as he laid down beside her, facing her on the bed, propping an arm up to rest his head on.
“Well, this is a pretty big step, and I certainly wasn’t planning on this. I was afraid you’d be mad at me.” She told him.
“How could I be mad? The woman I love is having my baby.” He told her sweetly, putting his hand on her stomach. “When did you find out?” he asked.
“Today. I went to Dr. Morton’s’ office and he told me that it showed up in my routine blood exams, then he sent me over to meet with a friend of his who’s an obstetrician. I just had my first OBGYN visit.” She said, grinning. Starsky just smiled.
“Did they tell you anything?” he asked.
“Yes. Dr. Blake, my new doctor, said this is a perfectly normal and natural event and that my boyfriend could relax and not hover over me all the time.” She teased, pushing his shoulder and knocking him on his back, then crawled on top of him. They laughed with each other.
“Did he tell you how far along you are?” he asked.
“Looks like eight and a half weeks. The further along we get, the better they’ll know.”
“You’re beautiful.”
He told her, then pulled her down to him and kissed her.