Asmara could tell by the way everyone was staring expectantly at her that they wanted to hear the news. She stared back at them, her eyes widened worriedly. She smiled vaguely at the ironic thought: she was more worried about her friend's reaction than her own future. She was fine with what she was about to say, but her friends most likely—no, definitely, she decided—wouldn't.

"Mara!" Dominay said. "Tell us already; you're killing us here."

Asmara sighed. "Promise me you won't kill me?"

"Don't be stupid," Axel replied. "It can't be that bad. What is it—drugs, alcohol, a boyfriend?"

"No, no," Asmara shook her head. "It's not any of that."

"ASMARA!" Dominay screamed. "Just spit it out!"

"Okay, okay," Asmara sighed again. "I…I'm pregnant, okay? I've done a couple tests, and it's legit—I'm a baby momma."

Of course, everyone gasped, which seemed to intimidate Asmara even more. At first, only silence filled the air.

"It was on one of those weeklong business trips I take for the magazine every few months. I was staying at a town for to cover a photo shoot story, and when I was there, I ran into one of my ex boyfriends from high school. He and I have a bad history, and I meant to avoid him. But we got talking, he invited me for drinks, I got totally wasted, and you know what happened next."

Once everyone'd left, Axel closed the apartment door and collapsed back onto the sofa, deep in thought. He hadn't paid much attention to the movie; he was too preoccupied by Asmara's unexpected pregnancy. He fathomed what having a baby around would be like. Asmara, as a mother. It seemed so…odd—but not in a negative way. Just because Asmara was having a baby—if she chose to have it—didn't mean the world was ending. The way Axel looked at it, it was good news. Extremely unexpected, but still good. He chuckled at the thought of him or any of his friends attempting to babysit a baby, especially Dominay.

Roxas watched Axel from his spot on the easy chair, an unopened book in his lap. He was surprised at the redhead's unusual quietness, and he could tell Axel was deep in thought by the way he curiously arched his eyebrows, his gaze focused on nothing in particular.

So, for the first time in awhile, Roxas spoke up first. "Are you thinking about Asmara?"

"Yeah, I guess," Axel replied, suddenly distracted from his train of thought. "It really surprised me, that's for sure."

"Same," Roxas said. "I don't think anyone was expecting something like that." When Axel didn't immediately respond, Roxas new something was wrong. He dropped his book and climbed over onto Axel's lap. "Everything okay?"

"I'm just wondering what'll happen. If Asmara will keep the baby or not. Not that it's really any of my business. I wouldn't mind if she had a baby, but I can't help thinking she doesn't want a kid."

"You're just concerned," Roxas added in, leaning his head on Axel's shoulder. "And you're not the only one whose wondering about that kind of thing, so don't worry."

Axel smiled gently at Roxas and cuddled him closer. "Well, whatever happens, know that I love you, okay?"

"Of course I know, stupid," responded Roxas. He yawned and draped a blanket over both of them. Just as Roxas slowly dozed off in Axel's arms, he lightly nudged him and said, "I love you too."

Dominay poured the hot chocolate packets and boiling water into two mugs. She stirred each drink, then handed one to Asmara. The two girls had gone back to Asmara's place, to talk, while the boys headed off to their own apartment for the night.

"So?" Dominay blurted. When Asmara sighed and remained silent, she sighed too. "Mara, we hate to see you so upset about this? Sure, it's a huge change, but it's not the end of the world. Think about it; a lot of people would consider this a miracle, not a burden."

"I don't think it's a burden," Asmara retorted suddenly, brows furrowed. She realized the ferocity of her answer, and her countenance softened. "I mean, I'm not dreading having a baby, I'm dreading how it'd change my life. My relationships with my friends, my job—stuff like that, you know?"

"We'll all be there to help you out," Dominay offered. "We're not going to shun you. I, for one, adore babies…well before they start talking and pooping and stuff. I like them when they're real young and all they do is gawk at stuff and sleep." Dominay hesitated in the middle of her statement, trying to come up with a resolution. Asmara chuckled, which made Dominay giggle.

"Me too…I love babies, and…I wouldn't mind being a mommy, especially knowing that my friends will be there to back me up."

"Hmm, well I dunno if I'd trust any of the guys with babysitting…Zexy'd probably like dress it all emo-ish and put eyeliner on it; Demy would probably like just forget about it all together…"

Asmara laughed, which made Dominay even happier. "And Axel and Roxas…I don't even wanna know what they'd do to it…so let's entrust me with the babysitting duties, okay?"

"Hmm, I'm not sure on that one, Min. You're not a total pacifist yourself, you know," Asmara laughed again, while her companion frowned in dismay. Choosing to ignore the remark, Dominay smiled, and said, "So, got any names in mind?"