First Comes Love, Then Comes Marriage, Then...

[Dr. Nik Kenjutsushi]

Getting out wasn't something that Nakia did very often. Granted, working long hours at the school, studying, and temporarily being a single parent to two teenage girls impacted the idea of a social life quite a bit. Still, she had friends... even if they were all doctors.

Okay, not all doctors, but she did have a hefty number of letters at the end of most of her contacts' names. Neville, Tilford, Terrall... All with a slew of letters denoting their studies.

Amusingly enough, it was now (after her husband had returned) that she was able to go out for a nice chat with one of them. Tsukiko Aoki, resident pediatrician to Maddock and fellow married woman, had invited her out to tea last fall, and it had gotten pushed around and around and around for about six months. Now, finally, the albino woman had the time and energy to actually commit. So here she sat, fresh pot of oolong tea on the table, reading her latest medical journal.

Some people could not leave work at home.

Still, when one was studying for another specialty, it was useful to get every spare minute out of it. And hospital doctors could be notoriously late, depending on the day, their specialty, or previous patients. It was best to be prepared with something to do when meeting up.

Thanking Ari warmly when he brought over her scone, the pale woman looked to the door when he walked away and saw her friend enter. "Tsukiko!" she stated brightly, standing and waving her over.

[Tsukiko Aoki]

Kiko had taken somewhat longer to finish up her shift at the hospital than she had anticipated, because one of her children (and she did think of them as hers in a way) had needed a little bit of comforting before being taken back into surgery.

Kiko had done her best to show gentleness and care to the little boy before he drowsed off and was wheeled away. Then she'd signed herself out and swept into the bathroom to change out of her scrubs; as much as she enjoyed her work she didn't want to bring it with her.

And besides, she tried to keep her scrubs relatively clean; eating while wearing them would hardly do.

She pushed open the door to Ari's, scanning the room for a moment before her eyes fell upon Dr. Kenjutsushi. That they were both of Japanese heritage (even if Kiko had been born and raised in Vermont and was somewhat distant from Japanese culture as a result) she still felt that this gave them a sort of kinship, particularly given that Vermont was, overall, extremely white.

And, of course, the fact that they both had medical degrees and worked with children (sometimes even the same children) was another degree of kinship.

She waved to the other woman, expression apologetic. "I'm sorry I'm late. Have you been here long?"

[Dr. Nik Kenjutsushi]

For most doctors, their patients started to feel like family after working with them for do long. Especially children. Even veterinarians weren't immune to it (and were sometimes worse, in her experience). Nik certainly wasn't an exception herself, and did not begrudge the younger woman her time with little ones. They needed all the help they could get; hospitals could be very scary.

Therefore, she was neither put-off nor surprised when Dr. Aoki walked in late. In fact, she was more surprised with how long it didn't take; she'd only had time to read one article so far, which given the content meant about twenty minutes of follow-up analysis on something she'd read in-depth earlier in the day. So, really, Tsukiko was on time.

Still, she beamed at the consideration in the pediatrician's voice. "Not at all. I was just catching up on some reading." She gestured to the seat next to her with a pale hand. "Please, sit - you must be tired."

Once settled, Nakia poured her friend a cup of the still-piping hot tea and gestured at the sweeteners on the table, inviting Tsukiko to help herself. While the albino woman wasn't above using sweeteners in her tea, she preferred oolong's more complex flavor by itself. Still, it could be strong and off-putting to most, so she understood the need sometimes.

"So, how's Roman? Did your Valentine's Day plans go over smoothly?" Her smile became slightly more in line with a smirk. "Or did he forget?"

Roman was somewhat notorious for being clueless with women. Amazing doctor; just oblivious.

[Tsukiko Aoki]

Kiko accepted the tea with a grateful murmur before answering her friend's questions. "Oh, I didn't let him forget this year! I'm sure I texted him twenty times during work to remind him!"

Although his tendency to be caught up in the moment was one of the things that had initially drawn her to him, she had to admit that it also had its drawbacks. Specifically, the fact that he could forget things like carefully made plans.

"It's more important this year that he remember," She explained before taking a sip of her tea. "We're trying to get pregnant."

Which for some people was more information than they cared to know, but Kiko saw no reason not to be frank about it. Particularly since she wanted to ask the other woman's advice on certain aspects of this, given that she had experience there.

[Dr. Nik Kenjutsushi]

Nik laughed. That would be pretty much what it would take. Roman was a wonderful man, and a loving husband. Focus was possibly too strong a trait in him, though.

The older woman could barely get out a questioning "oh?" before the reason for the necessity was explained. Blue eyes went wide, and pale hands fluttered to her face in a rare expression of sheer joy and excitement for the other doctor. "Tsukiko, that's wonderful! I wish you all the best, truly. Children are such a joy."

Even when they were teenagers and keeping secrets, or in the dead of night when sleep was already low on the priority list, children were wonderful. Literally, full of wonder and love.

If it weren't for her age, she might have wanted to try for another herself, but she was well into her forties and out of reasonable age for bearing children. She'd honestly wanted to see if they would have yet another girl after Cassi was born, but the idea at the time was an idle curiosity more than anything else. Now, it was a bit too late. But happy for someone else wanting to begin a family? Perfectly within the realm of possibility.

[Tsukiko Aoki]

"Thank you!"

And another reminder of why she loved to spend time with Nakia; she was capable of pronouncing the Tsu in Tsukiko. She was so used to everyone else shortening it and truly she didn't mind, but it felt so nice to have someone actually pronounce her full given name who wasn't related to her.

"I feel a little old, though," She admitted as she sipped at her tea. "Every month that goes by without missing a period I wonder if maybe I missed the boat."

[Dr. Nik Kenjutsushi]

Nik knew the joy of having someone who could pronounce her full name perfectly as well - even back in Japan, her hospital was one that catered to many international visitors, and the number of people who could pronounce her ridiculously antiquated surname was... small.

"You're still young," she assured the other woman, touching the side of her cup to see if it was cool enough to drink. Hm, nope, not yet. "It just takes some time. I've known women younger than you who try for years before they succeed. You'll do just fine. Have you been trying long?"

A few months, no results would be normal. A couple years might signal something wrong, but it simply could be a timing thing rather than fertility. After all, the reverse was often true with people as well. Tsukiko, as a pediatrician, would understand some of that well. Her OB could explain it even better, but mostly it boiled down to 'sometimes these things take time'.

[Tsukiko Aoki]

"We've been trying since October," Kiko answered, stirring a spoon idly in her tea. "I know it's not immediate but at the same time..."

She shrugged. She was no longer a young woman, although she didn't consider herself old, either. But she was closer to forty than to thirty these days, and despite her medical school training she wasn't immune to cultural forces that whispered that anyone over the age of thirty was too old to bear children.

"I don't regret not putting my career on hold, but I'll still be disappointed if we can't conceive."