Part Two: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/18145907

Here we go, HERE WE GO AAAAA

This here is the first full story featuring my lovable, rude, sailor-mouthed, pregger squirrel athlete Daphodille! She'll punch you in the face and swear at you! And you might not understand her!

Co-starring  Quib 's red panda gal Chloe!

Comments are my favorite thing. Christmas is coming up. I think I know just what I want.
Your comments.

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Chloe stared down into her steaming cup of green tea. She had taken one sip before setting it down. It was hot, it was in a beautiful and ornate cup, it was fresh, it was from her favorite cafe. But drinking it was going to make her piss like a fountain by the time she was halfway done. Would it even be worth it? It was crowded enough in there that she didn't want to get up anyway. Figures. Her favorite hidden gems never stay hidden for very long.
She twitched her moderately bushy tail, keeping it uncomfortably tucked under her seat to keep it from being stepped on. It was wall-to-wall chatter and talk and drowned out everything but her thoughts. It hadn't gotten cold enough to start wearing jackets, but it was cold enough for everyone to want tea all of a sudden. The sooner the leaves changed colors, the sooner everybody wanted their chai-mocha-vanilla-skim-milk-with-a-little-soy-latte or whatever the fuck.

Chloe sighed, taking another calming sip of tea. She was just being grumpy. Almost for the sake of it. Frowning, she pulled on her uncomfortably tight blazer. This was the last day she would even try to make it work. It fit over her tits like saran wrap. She looked like the stripper version of a businesswoman instead of the high-power trading exec she actually was. Her ass was itchy. The waitress didn't give her any honey. Bitch bitch bitch. Moan moan moan.

Daph was late. That was about the only thing going as expected. Chloe had seen the squirrel girl chase down a city bus before from two blocks away, but getting her to show up anywhere on time was the more impressive feat. About ten minutes ago, she got a text from Daph of a subway arrival sign reading seven minutes, partially blocked by her middle finger. It made her laugh, which was the best anyone had done for her in a long time. Daph and Chloe had a relationship like planets orbiting the same star. They both lives in Manhattan, if on opposite ends, but usually only got together every so often an 'eclipse' occurred. Still, Daph was the only childhood friend to stay close to Chloe into adulthood. She was thankful of that, if nothing else.

Her foot itched in her shoe, but she didn't have room to bend down and scratch it. Someone nearby was talking about a book she hadn't finished yet and she had to try not to pay attention. She wanted a scone, but she heard four people in a row order one and she didn't want to get back in line only to find them all gone. Chloe drank some more tea. Whatever. She'd piss if she had to.
Finally, with yet another dinging from the cafe's rustic, brass bell at the door (likely picked up at World Market), Chloe finally saw a familiar pair of copper-red ears sticking up above the crowd of the to-go line. Just to make sure, she turned her head to listen for the sounds of angry chittering and grumbling. It was with a half-muffled 'FUCK' that she knew Daph had arrived. Without a word, Chloe pushed her tea away from her and raised a hand into the air. Daph's short, skinny arm shot out of the crowd like a periscope and waved. Her head stuck out from the crowd first, pushing through shoulders like a red, fuzzy Porky Pig through a drum. With little more shoving and a lot more swearing, Daphodille finally emerged from the crowded doorway.

Chloe blinked. The unthinkable of had happened. Daphodille had put on weight. A lot of weight. A lot of weight in very strange and specific places. The moment she put a hand to her back and winced, rubbing a hand over her swollen stomach, did Chloe understand what had happened. Daph waddled uncomfortably over to the table. Before sitting down, she reached across the table and picked up Chloe's cup, taking a sip before grimacing and setting in back down.

“No honey?” She asked. “Green tea tathtes like fucking mud without honey in it.” She pulled out the opposite chair and slowly lowered herself into it, cradling an arm underneath her belly before she finally sighed in relaxation and flicked her enormous, fuzzy tail. She still wore one of her trademark athletic tanktops, but it was stretched to its limit trying to cover Daph's new girth. At the very least, her windbreaker sweatpants were doing their share of the heavy lifting.
“Daph...” Chloe breathed, still in shock.

“Chloeeeeeee…” Daph teased back, reaching across the table to take her tea again. Chloe batted her hand away, leading to a quick slap-fight between the two until Chloe simply moved the cup back out of Daph's reach. She had just enough time to snatch the stirrer spoon from the teacup to twiddle with in her hands. “Did you do thomthing with your hair? It lookth fucking good!”

“I didn't do anything with my hair,” Chloe said, shortly.
“Oh...Well I'm thitty at picking up on that kinda thtuff, anyway. I just kinda...assumed you did thomthing different and...Whatever. You thtill look good. Your fur lookth shiny.”
“Um...Thanks. You look...uhhh...”
“Hey! Are you thtill dating that guy? The ugly dog? With the accent?” Daph snorted. “His teeth were fucking nasty! He was nice, though.”
“Well look who the fuck is talkin' about somebody's teeth,” Chloe said, dipping into her natural Brooklyn accent as she pointed to Daph's prominent overbite that gave her such a heavy lisp. “And he wasn't ugly, either!”
“I happen to be the fuckin authority on bad teeth, okay?” Daph countered, flicking her tongue over her two front incisors for emphasis. “And he wath ugly! He wath thoooooo fucking ugly! He looked like his face got thmashed into the floor.”

“You just don't like canines,” Chloe scoffed. “He looked like his breed. He wasn't ugly. You don't know what you're talking about.”
“First off, canines don't like me,” Daph said, bobbing her huge tail behind her head for emphasis. “Thecond, I don't care what breed he wath, looking like you got your god damn face kicked in isn't anyone's idea of 'cute.'”
“He was a BBC anchor!” Chloe said, nearly shouting as she threw her hands in the air. “He's still a BBC anchor!”
“I guess that explainth why I don't watch BBC...” Daph mumbled, leaning back in her chair while scratching the exposed tuft of fur on her underbelly. Chloe watched her quietly for a moment, then shook her head clear.

“You don't watch BBC because you always fall asleep during the news,” she said. Daph simply grinned toothily and shrugged while nodding in agreement. Chloe sighed, taking another huge sip of tea, now that it had cooled down. “Whatever, it doesn't matter. We're not together anymore….Daph, why-”

“Why'd you thplit up?” Daph said, scooching her chair forward. She propped her chin in her hands, expecting a story. Chloe shook her head and groaned.

“It was...Ugh, it was stupid. We hadn't been dating that long and he wanted to get married so he could have a green card in the US and I was weirded out by that. He put a lot of pressure on me about it, even though he told me he wasn't. It's over, now. Daph, please tell me-”

“What a piece of thit, gaslighting mother fucker,” Daph scowled, nodding. “I knew guyth like that. The trick ith to look out for their patternth, yknow? It'th the douchebags that think they're so goddamn thmart they think they can pull bullshit over your eyeth and not expect you to fuckin notice.”

“Daph, hang on a min-”
“Guyth can be fucking pieces of thit, alright? It doesn't matter if they're from Brooklyn or fucking Harvard, thome dudes are jutht assholes.”

“Daphodille-”
“In fact, maybe it'th the thmart assholes who are the most dangerouth! They think they're thmarter than everybody around them and that they can get away with bullthit! Do you remember from high thcool-”

“Daph,” Chloe butted in, slapping her hands against the table for emphasis. “Why. Are. You. Pregnant?”
The squirrel blinked, her mouth half-opened in a puzzled expression.

“Dude...Chloe, I'm not pregnant.”

It was Chloe's turn blink stupidly, her mouth falling open and eyes slowly widening. The two of them sat in silence, the world around them seeming muffled and distant.
Daph snorted and grinned around her buck teeth.

“Nah, I'm fuckin with you. I'm, like, super knocked up right now.”
Chloe groaned an exasperated sigh while Daph chittered with laughter across the table, her belly slightly shaking beneath her as she did.
“Fuck you, Daph,” Chloe said, louder than she probably should have in public, as she balled up her napkin and threw it at her cackling friend.
“Wouldn't that be tho fuckin awkward, though? I should've pretended to cry.” Daph said, still laughing. “But nah, I'm pregnant.” She braced an arm against the table and groaned as she stood up. Pulling her tank top down as far as it would stretch, she framed her belly between her hands, turning and showing it off while softly rubbing her hand along it's curve.

“Well yeah, everybody with fucking eyes can see that,” Chloe said. She blushed beneath her fur, turning away and taking a sip of tea to distract herself. She crossed her legs between herself.
“Probably 'cause I've got twinnerth thith time,” Daph said, drumming her fingers against her stomach. “A boy and a girl. And I bet it'th the boy that'th been kicking around while I've been tryin to talk.” She prodded a finger against the upper left corner of her belly, where a small bump appeared from within her womb, visible beneath her stretched tank top. “Little guy'th gonna need to learn thome goddamn mannerth.”
“But you still haven't answered my question, Daph,” Chloe said. “Why are you pregnant?”
“Well...” Daph said, groaning as she sat back down. “Thingth change, yknow? I kinda wanted to get on with my life, thettle down and find a nice guy. Have a couple kidth for him, yknow? Be a thtay at home mom, like I alwayth wanted.”

Chloe snorted into her cup. Daph's stoic expression broke soon after.

“Wouldn't it be tho weird if I wath like that?” Daph giggled.
“Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice...” Chloe said, trailing off.
“More like fool you eighty thousand timeth, Chlo-Bear,” Daph teased. “Tho yeah, I'm a surrogate now. Thith ith my third job so far. Thecond pair of twins, too.” She nodded, flexing one of the sizable muscles of her arm while the other patted her stomach. “Two outta three ain't bad. Think I've got a talent for baby-making.”

“You're a surrogate...” Chloe said, blinking in surprise. She paused for a moment, a strange expression on her face, before she chuckled to herself. “Thank god, then. That's a hell of a lot better than knowing you'll be somebody's mom,”
“Hey now,” Daph warned wagging a finger. “I'd be mad at that if you weren't right.”
“Either way, surrogacy is probably the last job I'd ever see you doing. How the fuck did you get dragged into getting knocked up for money?”

“I mean, it'th not exactly hard,” Daph said. With a flash of movement, she snatched the teacup from the plate beneath Chloe and drained it before the red panda had a chance to even react. “Buy me a drink and I might tell ya.”
Chloe rolled her eyes and raised an arm to flag down a passing waitress. The gray cat passed by with a tray of cups, nodding toward Chloe to acknowledge that she saw her. Chloe sighed, pushing her cup and tray to the side.
“This place used to be so quiet and relaxing,” she said, frowning mournfully.
“I kinda like busy places like thith. Feelth more alive, yknow?” Daph glanced down at her belly in her hands. “Yknow, at thith point of gestation, babieth start to hear. It'th tho weird. A car horn will honk or something, and I won't jump 'cause I'm used to it, but they will.”

Before Chloe could respond, the waitress had returned, fur tousled and tail bobbing back and forth anxiously. She sighed, pulling out a red notepad and flipping to a blank page.
“You guys ok over here? Need another cup?” the waitress said to Chloe, who simply shook her head as she pushed the empty cup away.
“You've got a lotta low caffine thtuff, right?” Daph said, raising her hand. She rubbed a hand over her stomach for emphasis. “It'th on my litht of 'don'ts'.”
“Absolutely,” the waitress said, pulling a small menu card from her jeans and handing it to Daph. “Every tea marked with a star has low-to-no caffeine content. If you'd like, I could suggest teas suited specifically to expectant mothers.”

“Expectant motherth?” Daph said, looking taken aback. “I'm not pregnant.”
“Daph, shut up!” Chloe barked in. She rolled her eyes, flipping her hair back as she turned to the waitress. “Yes, she's definitely pregnant. What would you recommend?”

“Oh, uhm,” the waitress, taken off guard, glanced between the two, before turning her attention to Daph. “Most herbal teas will be best for your body during pregnancy, so anything like green tea, chamomile, ginger, or mint tea are good options.”
“I had one of thothe big 'Arizona' cans yethterday,” Daph said, glancing to Chloe. “Doeth that count?”
“It counts as pond water, Daph. At best.”
“Hey, that'th all tea is, right? Hot leaf water.”
“Please excuse my friend,” Chloe said to the waitress. “The babies must be restricting blood flow to her brain.”
“Nah dude,” Daph said, grinning cheekily. “That'th all me.” She leaned forward and rested both hands atop her belly as she looked up at the waitress. “But really, what kind of tea should I get? I don't know anything about thith shit.”

“Well...as I was saying, any herbal teas are usually healthy, but the best option is really our own, in-house pre-natal blend with emphasis on nettle leaf and other herbs to promote healthy childbirth.”
“Hold up, lady, I got three more months of thith,” Daph interrupted. “I don't even wanna think about the birth yet.”
“It only makes contractions easier when the time comes if you drink it through your last two trimesters,” the waitress explained.
“Easier, huh?” Daph said, raising an eyebrow. “Soundth cool. Can you put honey in it? Oh, no no no! Put a shot of hazelnut in it!”
“You and your nuts,” Chloe said, rolling her eyes. “You don't put shots in this tea. That's like eating a steak with ketchup.”
“What'th wrong with thteak and ketchup?”

“You are a nightmare.” Chloe turned to the waitress and said, “I'll have a cup of that blend, if you don't mind.”
“Ah, fuck it. Me too,” Daph said, shrugging. Her tank top had begun to ride up her stomach again, exposing some of her copper fur. “With or without hazelnut. It can't hurt.”
“Good choice, ladies,” the waitress said cheerily as she jotted it down on her notepad. “I'll have that out as soon as we can.”

“Why do you make things so difficult, Daph?” Chloe said.
“Because it maketh you laugh,” Daph responded. She groaned and stood, pressing her hands on the small of her back to stretch and pull her shirt back down. Chloe and more than a few men watched her otherwise trim and fit body move, contrasted against almost totally round protrusion of her bump. Daph burped from a meal still digesting and groaned as she sat back down. “Tho I guess I owe you a thtory.”
“Hey, nobody said I'm buying a drink for you,” Chloe said, smirking. It was Daph's turn to roll her eyes.
“Tho anyway, you remember my friend Georgia? The other thquirrel girl I was besties with?”

“Yeah, we hung out a couple times, I think. She was nice.”
“Yeah, she ith. Well, she got married a couple yearth ago to thith nice guy named Darwin, another thquirrel. She and me would meet up every once in a while and hang and go jogging or whatever, but she and Darwin got busy for a while and we didn't thee each other much. About...damn...three yearth ago, Georgia inviteth me over to their apartment out of the blue, which I've never even fuckin' theen before. Turnth out Darwin's thome kinda doctor or thurgeon or whatever and maketh fuckin' loadth of money, so he and Georgia are doin' good. 'Cept...well, you can probably figure it out from here.”

“They want a baby,” Chloe nodded, as if she'd heard it a hundred times before.
“Exactly. You ever hear of...fuck, I don't know if I'm thaying thith right...'Sciuridae prenatal stress disorder?” Daph said, deliberately sounding out each word to avoid her lisp.
“Not a single bit,” Chloe said, stretching in her chair.
“It'th a condition a lotta thquirrel women go through during pregnancy that causes a lotta miscarriages or failed conceptions and shit. Thomething like...three percent? I read a lot about it. They think it'th based on your environment, so it'th a lot more common for thquirrels in the city, yknow?”
“But don't you have, like, three brothers?”
“Fuck yeah I do,” Daph said, flexing again. “That's cause me and my family have been livin' in New York for decadeth. None of the women in our family ever came down with it, tho we can have babieth just fine.” Daph rubbed her belly, jumping at a kick. “Obviouthly...”

“So Georgia can't conceive?”
“Mmhmm,” Daph nodded. She glanced down, frowning, before she leaned in closer over the table and spoke in a low voice. “Don't tell anyone I said thith, but I think they might have had a miscarriage. I didn't wanna ask about it.” She cleared her throat and sat back again, slightly winded from bending over her stomach. “But that wath it! We hung out and thot the thit or whatever before they told me they wanted me to carry their baby.”

“That's...Jesus, that's a hell of a bombshell for them to drop on you.”
“Eh,” Daph shrugged. “We've known each other long enough. And she knowth how my mom didn't have any trouble with me or my brotherth, tho it was a good call.”

The waitress came back carrying a tray with two thick, handle-less mugs of steaming liquid on plates, She delicately seat each one down in front of Chloe and Daph. She then set down a small plate of sugar cubes and a bottle of organic honey.
“Now we're fuckin' talking,” Daph exclaimed, reaching for the honey.
“I was able to add in a couple shots of hazelnut for you,” the waitress said, grinning.
“Oh my Goooood,” Daph breathed in awe. “You are my fucking hero!”
“Well, it simply blends better with the flavors of the tea better than honey does,” she explained.
“Maybe I'll thtart to like goddamn dirty leaf water after all,” Daph said, happily.
“Thanks a lot,” Chloe nodded, stirring a lump of sugar into her own tea.
“My pleasure,” the waitress said, nodding. “And congratulations to the both of you!”

As she walked off, Daph snorted.
“She thought we were together,” she chuckled.
“Like that hasn't happened before,” Chloe said, sipping her tea. She frowned at the taste, not quite sure how to feel about it. It tasted sharp, almost 'prickly', but was very smooth in her mouth. It wasn't something she enjoyed immediately, but could probably grow to love over time. In either case, as much as she hated to admit it, she needed to add some honey.
“I don't know,” Daph shrugged. “You're thingle again, right? And I alwayth thought you were pretty cute, Chlo-Bear.”

Chloe choked on her tea and dropped the bottle of honey on its side with a clatter, where it rolled off the table, clinking off the ground where it very thankfully didn't break.
“I bet I coulda caught that,” Daph said, standing. “Yknow, without the passengerth on board.” She shuffled to the side of the table and gripped its edge. She groaned, squatting straight down with her right hand holding the table and the left holding her belly. Chloe had only a few seconds to calm down before Daph noticed something. She breathed slowly, trying to calm her racing heart and stop her tail from flicking nervously back and forth. She jumped as Daph pushed herself to her feet with a loud grunt, setting the bottle back on the middle of the table.

“Squats, Chloe, squats! Never thkip leg day! Ethpecially when you get knocked up.”
“S-so what-” Chloe cleared her throat as Daph sat down and sipped her tea. “So what happened after going to Georgia's place?”
Daph was still drinking from her cup. She set it down on the dish after taking a sizable sip, mulled it around in her mouth and cheeks, then swallowed.

“Fuck,” She said, making smacking noises with her mouth. “Thith ith good shit. It's like...almost sharp? Hot and cold at the thame time. And the hazelnut ith awesome here. Fuck.” She blew on the top and took another long swig before continuing her story. “Tho yeah, I thought about it for a while. I mean, you were right, I'm like the last girl you're gonna expect getting knocked up. But I kinda wanted to try it, yknow? Thee what it wath like.” She shrugged. “Turnth out I kinda like it?”

“But what about your running?” Chloe asked. “What about 'Urban Acrobats?'” In her free time, Daph ran and was the co-founder of a popular free-running and parkour group on Meetup. Other than general exercising and the occasional night of drinking, it was the only thing Daph reliably went to.
“Who the fuck ever thaid I can't run?” Daph scoffed. “I can keep doin' regular jogging up until the third trimethter, and even after that I could keep going but..” She slid her hands underneath her breasts, at least two cup sizes larger than their normal, modest shape, and bounced them for emphasis. “The girlth tend to get a little...sloshy once the milk cometh in.”

Chloe blushed, crossing her legs under the table and taking another sip of tea, wincing once she remembered she never put honey in it. Daph bounced her boobs a couple more times, forcing her tank top to ride up just a little more. She didn't seem to notice.
“It'th still so weird to have boobth like thith,” Daph said, her hands migrating down to her bump. “And the belly...I don't know how to explain it. It'th just...nice. A good feeling. I jutht kinda feel healthy and full and I like the way the babieth feel as they grow and get bigger. And I like doing thtuff for other people. A lotta thquirrels wanna be moms, but they can't and that isn't fair. We've gotta stick together, yknow?” She shook her head and blinked, like she'd been pulled out of a dream. “Oh, thorry. Got...ramble-y, there. Baby brain, I guess.”

“It's fine. It's...actually really noble of you, Daph. I'm really proud of you,” Chloe said, reaching across the table and patting Daph's hand. The normally confident squirrel flicked her tail awkwardly and looked away, grinning toothily.
“Ah, fuck it. It'th not that big a deal. It'th pretty easy, and I'm getting paid for it, tho that'th pretty kick-ass.”
“Did Georgia and Darwin pay you?” Chloe asked.
“Fuck yeah they did!” Daph exclaimed, excitedly. “Enough to pay off my rent for the retht of that year! I even lived at their place for the last two months so they could make sure I was safe. I went into labor on their couch.” Daph paused, then cleared her throat awkwardly. “They..uh...they had to get a new one, after that.”

“Hold on,” Chloe said, holding up her hand. “Surrogacy companies won't let you carry unless you've already given birth already.” She leaned across the table, raising an eyebrow. “Daph, do you have a kid?”
“What? No fuckin way, of course not. You think you wouldn't know if I had a kid of my own?”
“So how were you a surrogate without having given birth before?”
“Well, uh...” Daph paused, not quite understanding the question. “The regular way, I guess.”
“...The...'regular way?'”
“Yeah. I jutht let Darwin fuck me and...that wath it, I guess.”

Chloe choked on her tea, sending herself into a coughing fit. Bracing against the table, she hacked into the crook of her elbow loudly, inadvertently drawing the attention from the surrounding customers and line to the register. Daph, not quite
sure what to do, was about to flag down a waiter for a glass of water, before Chloe held up a hand and quieted her.
“No...Hgk...I'm...hhhhhgh...I'm fine. I'm fine,” She cleared her throat and continued in a raspy voice. “What do you mean you let Darwin fuck you?”
“I mean….Like...no agency wath gonna let me carry for them, obviouthly. And we were like 'Why don't we jutht do it?' I wath already on my cycle and everything. It was eathy.”
“But...But you...” Chloe shook her head in disbelief. “Georgia was okay with this?”

“Well...hehehe,” Daph shrugged and took another sip of her tea. “I guess you didn't know about it but...” She flicked her tail, likely blushing for the first time Chloe had ever seen since Daph had gotten her first period in fifth grade. “We...kinda had a threesome thing goin' on since college...I mean, since they were in college.”
“With...With Georgia.” Chloe clarified in amazement. “The little squirrel girl from high school who liked trains?”
“She's got a huge model train thet in the bathement,” Daph said, spreading out her arms for emphasis. “Did you know that? It'th fucking awethome. It'th got, like, little towns and bridges and shit and Lily liketh to play with her dinosaur toyth and pretend they're like thmashing up the town and shit. It'th adorable.”

“Lily,” Chloe said. “That's the baby?”
“Yep. They named her after a flower to thank me...Though at leatht they thpelled it right...” Daph mumbled, sipping more tea. “Thankth, mom...I'm her regular babythitter, too. I love her to death, but she's a handful. Real energetic. She was a kicker on the inside, too, so I'm not thurprised.” Daph stood up and stretched her tank top tight over her belly. She pointed to a spot just below her left ribs where a few bumps and nudges were visible from within. “Thith one is, too. I guess I jutht have that effect on em, yknow?” She grunted and jumped as another hard kick came from the second baby occupying a spot on the lower right of her stomach. “Though maybe it'th just the tea...” Daph added, rubbing the spot with her palm and sitting down.

“You've been sleeping with Georgia and her husband?” Chloe said, her voice rising. “You've been fucking them for four years?”
“Chloe, god damn,” Daph said, raising a hand in defense. “Language.”
“You've been sleeping with them long enough to let her husband impregnate you?”
“Yeah!?” Daph said, raising an eyebrow incredulously. “It was fucking private until now, but yeah, we have. What'th the big fuckin deal?”

Chloe was about to shout back, but stopped herself. It was true that she was angry, even hurt, but she couldn't put a finger onto exactly why. Daph was a free spirit and a very reckless girl, so the revelation wasn't exactly surprising. But what Chloe felt wasn't exactly concern for her friend's safety, but something else she couldn't put a finger on.
“I...I don't know,” Chloe admitted. “I'm sorry. I'm just still surprised, I guess. It's shocking enough that you've been...'together,' but that you carried their baby is...” She trailed, off sipping tea to make up for the gap in conversation.
“I mean, it'th not like an all-the-time thing,” Daph said. “It'th been a lot less thince I had Lily, and it wath never a poly-relationship thing. We jutht...” She shrugged. “We jutht kinda like to get together and fuck thometimes, yknow?”

“I get it,” Chloe said, blinking away the images in her head. “It's just a lot to take in.” She suddenly blinked, eyes slightly widening as she felt a pressure descend inside her. The tea was starting to take its effect. She had minutes, at most.
“And they really did want a baby, Chloe. They're good parentth, they deserved Lily. It wath really hot, and a good experience and all, but getting knocked up by Darwin was all for them.”

Chloe nodded wordlessly, clenching her legs together and trying not to think about how crowded the bathroom must be.
“And...well, uh...” Daph mumbled, blushing for the second time that day. “After I actually got pregnant...thothe hormoneth can be killer, yknow? Georgia and Darwin were... really nice to have around toward the end.” She leaned forward and spoke quietly across the table. “...You want in on it? I'm thure they wouldn't mind all that much.”
“No! No, no, no,” Chloe said, breaking her strained silence to protest. “That's okay, I...I don't know them well enough.” She continued, pausing to contemplate that that was the only reason she didn't say yes.
“I get it, that'th cool,” Daph said, nodding. “I wath only cool with it at firtht 'cause I know Georgia woulda picked a good guy. And he ith, I love Darwin to death.” Gaining confidence, Daph smirked and added. “And he fuckth like a demon, too. God damn.”

Chloe nodded, irritated that she now had another, different pressure between her legs to deal with. Glancing disgustedly at the tea, she pushed it away discreetly, hoping Daph wouldn't notice. Of course, she did.
“What, you don't like it?” the squirrel asked, taking her cup and sniffing it with her sensitive nose. “Thmellth okay.” She took a sip, smacked her tongue a couple times in her mouth, before frowning as she set it back down. “That honey doesn't do much, doeth it?” Daph sipped her own tea for comparison, nodding. “The hazelnut ith awethome, though. Maybe that'th why I like it, yknow? I need to get thome of thith shit for the next time I'm carrying.” She blinked, looking down at the cup, visibly putting two and two together in her head.

“Hey, Chloe,” Daph said. “...Why'd you get the thame tea as me?”

Chloe flicked her tail under the table, almost thrashing it in agony. If she didn't get to the bathroom in the next twenty seconds, the bathroom was coming to her. It was agony to resist. Whether she liked it or not, it was now or never.
She braced her hands against the table and pushed herself to her feet, her joints popping from sitting in one space for so long. As she rose, her own seven-month pregnant stomach rubbed against the edge of the table, just barely covered by the straining buttons of her blazer. The baby kicked at the sudden movement of their mother, threatening the tight fabric even more. Her lower back was a lot more sore than it normally was as she put pressure on it, but she didn't care as long as she got to the bathroom in time.

With a sudden, violent intake of breath, Daph squealed at the top of her lungs, scaring the living shit out of everyone in earshot and making a nightmarish sound Chloe had never dreamed could come out of the squirrel's mouth.
“Daph, Jesus H Christ! Calm down...” Chloe said, glancing around in embarrassment as she futilely tugged her jacket around her round middle.
“No!” Daph screamed. “I will not fucking calm down!” Instead of standing, Daph used her still-powerful legs to scooch and thrust her chair across the floor and around the table to where Chloe stood. Daph slid her hands beneath Chloe's undershirt, startling her as she ran her fingers through the thin fur of her belly. She put an ear to her stomach, waited a moment, then squealed again and stomped her feet on the floor like a toddler when the baby kicked against the side of her head.

“Oh my Goooooood!” Daph yelled again, unleashing exactly the kind of scene Chloe had hoped to avoid. Though, the more she thought about it, it would probably have been stranger for Daph not to completely lose her shit.
“Daph...” Chloe said, looking down at her excited friend listen to the gurgles of her full womb. “Daph...I...I really need to pee...”
Daph snapped her head up and gazed up at Chloe with a horrified expression.
“Fuck! Oh shit, I'm thorry!” She let go and gestured to the bathroom. “Go, go go go go go!”

Deeply thankful her friend knew the agony of a full bladder when pregnant, Chloe speed-walked into the bathroom, hoping and praying she hadn't developed a waddle yet.
She was finished in record time, thanks in part to an old woman letting Chloe cut in front of her with a knowing smile and a friendly pat to her belly. She was still drying her hands off as she emerged to find Daph sitting straight up with the biggest buck-toothed smile her face could muster. Her tail twitched and flipped ecstatically behind her chair, her hands cradling her own belly as she waited not-so patiently for Chloe to come back.

“Look how big you are!” Daph shouted excitedly as Chloe sat back down. Daph jerked her chair forward another foot so she could sit perpendicular to Chloe and have unrestricted access to fawning over her baby-filled stomach.
“Oh, I don't need to look,” Chloe said, sardonically. “I already feel it.”
“I believe it, you're about ready to drop any minute now!” Daph herself tried to pull the blazer tails over Chloe's belly, but equally found it impossible. “Thith doeth not leave anything to the imagination, doeth it?”
“No...It...it doesn't...” Chloe mumbled, scanning the room in embarrassment. The baby shifted inside her, uncomfortably jabbing a foot into her lower ribs. She grunted in discomfort while Daph giggled over the movement.
“There it ith, there it ith! Little baby Chlo-Bear, holy fuck! Holy fuck!...Hey, I wonder if thith works,” Daph said, prodding a finger sharply into Chloe's belly to jostle the cub inside into thrashing momentarily against the sensation.

“Gugh...Daph, cut that out,” Chloe said, rubbing her stretched, sore stomach to counteract the bumps of the little one inside.
“Ha! I knew it! Mine alwayth hate that!” Daph looked down at her own belly and began to wiggle one of her fingers against its surface. She jumped and laughed as a series of annoyed kicks struck out against her tank top. Without a word, Daph grabbed Chloe's arm and pressed her hand against her belly, guiding her palm to where the twins were moving. Chloe was struck by how different it was feeling the fetal movements inside someone else, rather than her own body, much less that of her oldest friend. It was a bizarre thought to conceptualize, but the more she thought about it, the more natural it seemed to see Daph as an excited, optimistic expectant mother, even if it was just for a surrogacy.

“Ok, Ok ok ok ok ok ok!” Daph repeated, her hands back to tracing over Chloe's belly. “I talked about me for like a fuckin hour, now it'th your fuckin turn. Who'th the dad, somebody I know? Thomebody from high school? Huh? Wath it your newth anchor creep boyfriend dog guy?” She made a disgusted, horrified face at her own suggestion. “Fuck, it wasn't him, wath it?”

“No! God know, I haven't talked to him in at least two years,” Chloe shook her head. Her eyes fell half-lidded in relaxation and her tail drooped onto the floor as Daph began to work her fingers in concentric circles over her belly.
“Yeahhhh, that'th the good shit, isn't it? Georgia taught me the best goddamn pregger massageth you've ever fuckin felt.” Daph said, moving down to the sore cradle of Chloe's belly, where most of the baby's weight sat. She sighed deeply, trying not to relax out of her chair. Seven months worth of sore muscles and cramps and stretched skin melted away under the squirrel's strong fingers. “Now thtart talkin. Who'th the dad?” Daph hissed, interrogating her friend with pleasure.
“Mmff...ohhhh...you...you don't know him...” Chloe sighed, unbuttoning the strained fastening of her jacket and letting the full weight of her gravid stomach fall into Daph's hands. “It's...a surrogacy.”

Daph stopped, gripping Chloe's belly like a basketball.
“No fucking way,” she hissed in shock.
“It's a lot more complicated than that,” Chloe said, sitting up slightly and fixing her hair as she regained her composure. She tried to sit up straighter, but found it was more comfortable to simply slouch and leave most of her weight in Daph's massaging hands. “I work at TeleGroup, a trading company in the financial district. Right now, I'm a senior analyst. It's good right now, but I'm looking to get promoted, eventually. I'm keeping my work pretty flawless, for the most part, but that's not always enough to get the attention of the right people.” Chloe hissed as Daph ran a thumb over her bellybutton, stimulating the sensitive nerves.

“Good job,” Daph said. “I don't know what the hell a trading company ith, but keep going.”
“Well whatever, you follow me. Basically, the CEO of the company is Lance Burnes, the only openly gay executive on Wall Street, or at least the only one I know of. He and his partner are looking to have a kid.”
“I think I thee where thith is going,” Daph said, finishing the massage on Chloe's lower stomach.
“It's a crazy idea to offer, but he knows me well enough to remember my name. But that's not good enough. I need him to know me personally, intimately enough that he'll remember what I've done for him when promotions get brought up. I had an advantage, though.” Chloe said, pausing for effect. She paused for too long, leaving Daph to blink at the awkward silence.

“...Yeeeaaahh?” Daph probed. “...What was it?”
“Lance Burnes is a red panda, too. The only one I know of in the company. So all I had to do was sit him down and explain that word through the grapevine had spread and I want to carry for him. We'll get special concessions, too, for aiding in the re-population of our species.”
“No kidding?” Daph said. “I'm pretty sure you've never had a baby, though. How'd you get to be his thurrogate?”
“We went through a non-profit that helps get endangered species' re-populated. As long as you pass the health screening, first-time mothers are allowed to carry.” Chloe leaned back, presenting her belly and patting it with a hand. “So here we are. Genuine, full-blooded red panda cub in there.”

“That'th a lot more crap to deal with than our method,” Daph said. “Lot less fun, too.”
“One, Lance is gay-”
“Pfft,” Daph scoffed, interrupting. “Who isn't these dayth, yknow?”
“Two,” Chloe continued, “he's my boss.”
“But you're already knocked up with hith fuckin baby!” Daph said. “He can at leatht bone you a couple timeth to thank you!”
“Not gonna happen. This is a favor for a friend. And a business relationship.” Chloe said. She turned to the side, her tail flicking as she mumbled, “Though it would be nice...” under her breath.

“Bleh,” Daph said, frowning. She went back to fawning over Chloe's belly. “That'th a boring story. All I care about ith that my Chlo-Bear ith having herself a Chlo-Baby.” She quickly pulled up Chloe's undershirt to take a quick peek at the black-furred stomach beneath it, only catching a glimpse before Chloe slapped her hands away and pulled it back down again. Daph giggled. “You're looking cute as hell, tubby. It'th a good look for ya. How far along?”

“Seven months, just about.” Chloe said, looking down at herself. “Feels like more, though...”
“By the time month nine rollth around, you'll be so ready to fire that baby out of your cooch you won't even believe it.” Daph laughed, leaning back and throwing an arm over the back of her chair. “Trutht me.”
“What are you? 'Daphodille: Baby Expert?'”
“I've had three of the little squeakerth already. I'd thay I am.” Daph gestured to Chloe's belly. “Tho what do you think? How doeth being pregnant feel?”
Chloe's tail flicked again, accompanied by the twitching of her ears. She glanced around cautiously, before scooting her chair forward and beckoning Daph closer.

“I...” Chloe said, pausing before dropping her voice even lower. “I. Fucking. Love it.”

“...Uh,” Daph blinked in surprise. “You...you do?”
“Yes,” Chloe breathed desperately, clutching her stomach. “I just can't get enough. I love feeling so big and round and tight and-and-and-and I love it when the baby moves inside of me and I can feel it and other people can see it because I'm so big and my tits are so sensitive and they start to leak and I love milking them every night while I masturbate and...and I...God, I love feeling how much I'm growing and getting bigger and more full and-and-I see Lance at work and I thank about how it's his baby inside of me and that I'm-I'm-I'm-I'm just his breeder and I get so fucking turned on Daph, I swear to God, I'm wet all the fucking time.”

“Chloe!” Daph said, shaking her friend by the shoulder. “Chloe, I get it-”
“And I love it when I'm out in public with tight shirts I can't fit into anymore and everyone can see my belly and how stuffed full I am and-and-and sometimes I ride the subway instead of in cabs so people will give up their seats to me because of how huge I am and-”

“Holy shit, Chloe, I get the pic-”
“And-and-and-and I sit there in my belly shirts that everyone can see through and the cub just kicks me around the whole time and makes my belly shake and I have to pretend I'm not getting turned on when I totally fuckin am and sometimes I leave my nursing bra at home so I can leak through my shirts on purpose and I could just fuckin jump on the next guy to look at me funny and fuck his brains out while my tits and my stomach are bouncing and-”

Daph put a stop to Chloe's steadily-rising volume of rants by jamming her fist into her open mouth. It was this action that drew the confused attention of more than a few other occupants, though Daph was thankful it was this and not Chloe's thrashing tail. Chloe's belly jumped suddenly from a kick from the cub inside. She moaned quietly beneath Daph's fist. Daph blushed beneath her fur, clearing her throat as she flicked her own tail.

“Ok,” Daph said, calmly. “Are you gonna be thivilized?”
Chloe nodded.
“Are you gonna be calm?”
Chloe nodded again.
“Are you gonna remember we're in public right now?”

Chloe nodded a third time. Daph slowly pulled her hand from Chloe's mouth, who coughed once before clearing her throat. She sat up, smoothing her undershirt over her stomach. She tried to re-button her blazer, but found it was nearly impossible to do while sitting down. At least, not with the cub wildly active from its mother's elevated heartbeat. Chloe smiled sheepishly at Daph as she tried to squeeze the button and loop together before abandoning the enterprise altogether.
“...S-Sorry,” Chloe said, looking away. She took a sip of her tea to stall for time, which was quickly cooling into a lukewarm brine. “I don't...I'm not usually...”
“I know, I know,” Daph said, waving away Chloe's apology dismissively. “Thethe hormoneth we're goin through...they drive you crazy. You shoulda theen me when I was full-term with Lily. It wath like heat, but all the time. Thank fuck they were there to help out.”

“Yeah, it's...it's been pretty hard...” Chloe said, still deeply embarrassed. “There's some stuff I can take care of on me own but...” She sighed, idly rubbing the sides of her belly while looking away. “I wish I could be like you, Daph.”
“Hah,” Daph laughed once. “Nobody'th ever told me that before.”
“I'm serious. You're...you can be so open with yourself and how you feel and who you are and...I can't. Not with my job and not with myself. I wish I could be as...as free as you.” Chloe laughed coldly, her eyes starting to well up. “And that's assuming, like, anyone would want to have sex with my fat self.” She wiped her eyes on the back of her sleeve. “Guh...mood swings...those I don't like. Sorry.”

Daph paused, finding herself not knowing what to say for the first time that day. So instead, she scooted her chair closer, far closer, until both of their gravid middles nearly touched. Privately, under the table, she ran her hand down Chloe's stomach, from the top of her sternum, all the way over her rounded curve until her fingers grazed the crevice underneath. Chloe took in a sharp breath, glancing into Daph's brown eyes with shock.

“I know how it ith,” Daph said, grinning. She pressed her fingers onto the spot where Chloe's belly met her hips, lightly teasing everything lower. Daph pushed forward, just barely touching her own stomach against Chloe's. “Trust me...”
Chloe bit her lip, only vaguely aware of the other surrounding customers. Thankfully, as was typical for the average Manhattanite, they minded their own business. Daphodille's face was close to hers, closer than they'd ever been. The squirrel's eyes were half-lidded, her breath hot. Chloe had thoughts she'd never had before about her friend, how earthy and warm she was. Her body was lithe, real, raw, something she had full control over.

“So...” Daph said, her voice smokey and deep, filling in for Chloe's silence. “You've got a place near here...right?”
“Y-y-y-y-y...uh huh,” Chloe nodded.
“You uh...” Daph breathed, blinking slowly. “Wanna get outta here?”
Chloe nodded.

“Cool,” Daph said, smiling one more time. Suddenly, her eyes widened and she jumped to her feet as fast as her belly allowed her too. “But uh...I gotta take a leak...if that'th cool...Like...holy shit, like right now?” Without waiting for an answer, she spun on her heel and waddled off to the bathroom, leaving Chloe breathless. She turned over her shoulder once before entering.

“Tho uh...you're paying, right?”