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Ready
The next morning, Katie woke up before the sun.
It was still pitch black outside.
Katie still felt the burning desire to tell Rick about the baby, but she knew that she couldn't.
She hated keeping secrets from him, but she knew that it was for the good of the group.
Rick was still asleep in their bed.
Katie wanted to let him sleep for a few minutes longer.
She was able to slip out of the bed silently without waking him.
She slowly got herself dressed.
As she pulled on her jeans, she looked in the mirror and turned to the side, examining herself, trying to see if she could see a difference that she wasn't noticing before she found out.
She finished getting dressed and pulled on her jacket.
She could still feel the sonogram picture in her inside pocket.
She looked behind her to make sure Rick was still asleep before pulling it out.
She looked at it with soft eyes for a moment.
She gently traced the edges of the picture with her finger, admiring it.
She quickly tucked it into the bottom of one of her drawers.
Katie walked back over to the bed and woke Rick up gently.
Once she knew he was awake, Katie walked into Judith's nursery.
She stood over Judith's crib.
She kissed her first three fingers and gently pressed them to the baby's head, trying not to wake her.
"Be safe out there," a voice said from behind Katie, making her jump.
"God, Carl. You scared me," Katie said quietly, walking out of the nursery.
"Sorry," Carl chuckled.
"And we'll take care of each other out there. We always do. We always will," Katie promised Carl, looking at Rick who had just walked out of the bedroom.
He smiled at her gently from behind Carl.
"We'll see you soon. Take care of your sister while we're gone. And make sure to change your bandage. Be good," Katie said to Carl, pulling him into a tight hug.
He was taller than her now.
She remembered back to the first day that she met Carl. He was just a little kid.
Katie laughed quietly.
"What?" Carl asked.
Katie also hadn't noticed that his voice had gotten deeper.
