Della looked down at the pink tipped stick in her hands. A faded blue plus sign became opaque in the little window of the pregnancy test.
"Shit." Della slammed her back into the door of the bathroom and slid to the floor, her bottom lip quivering as she stared up into the fluorescent lights, trying not to cry.
"What the hell am I gonna do?" She said to herself. She shut her eyes tightly, keeping the tears in as hard as she could. Her chest was tight and hot; she could practically feel the tension in her heart as she tried to keep it together.
It had been three months since she left him.
Della was always the adventurous kind. Always out looking for danger, trouble, or the occasional good time. She was a risk taker, and he loved that about her. She could get herself out of any situation. And that uncanny ability to just swerve right before crashing was what drew him to her.
Launchpad was the same, but not in the sense of looking for danger. He just fell into it…much like how he literally fell into her arms when they first met. He was kind and accepting. He had this child-like innocence to him that was refreshing and sweet to her. Sure, he wasn't the best at landing, but she was in awe of how often he made it out unscathed. How he got so lucky, Della would never know.
It started off small: he would ask her for help with repairs at the hangar and she would help him. He would call her pretty and she would be caught off guard and accidentally break what she was supposed to be fixing. She would stare at him when he was focused and working on an engine, and he would bring her a burrito from the food truck down the street. They got closer to one another, until she was the one who couldn't stand the waiting anymore.
Della asked him to keep it secret. That if her family knew, it would become complicated for the both of them. She liked that he didn't ask questions. He just nodded and went along with it. As long as he could be with her, he was happy.
Weeks turned into months. Months turned into a year. He finally told her that he loved her, and asked her to move in with him. Della didn't handle it well. She began to panic. She loved him so much, but she couldn't commit. She was scared. Every little insecurity popped up in her mind like a whack-a-mole and Della struggled to beat each one down.
She wanted to see the world, travel, be free. But part of her wanted to stay put in Duckburg, safely in his arms. It was a foreign concept to her, having been a traveler for so long. It would've been a totally different adventure for Della. She had bargained with herself many times that she could do both. She could travel and have her own home, with him...and maybe a kid or two...or three...
3 months ago
A tall, muscular man in a brown leather aviator jacket was leaning into the opened hood of a large and heavily used jeep. Dents from bullets and arrowheads were sprinkled on the exterior of the vehicle, dirt and mud slathered along the sides of the doors and mud flaps.
"So I was thinking Dells, we could build like a self sustaining mobile air home. I read it once in this book about this evil count- well he wasn't a count, just called himself that- but he was chasing these orphans for their money and-"
"Launchpad, we need to talk." Della said from the undercarriage of the jeep. She rolled out from underneath, smudges of grime and oil on her face and shirt.
"Go ahead babe, talk away-""I think we need a break." Her voice was crisp and cold, the air nearly rushing out of her chest as she pushed out her words."Already? We've only been working on this for an hour-""No L.P. We need a break." Della stood up and looked at him, her eyes stern and glassy. "All this…us…its too fast. I cant-"You…want a break? Or do you…want to break up?"
Della looked away from him, her chest tight. Launchpad rushed to her, slamming his chest into her face and enveloping her in his arms. The smell of sweat and various car fluids surrounded Della.
"Did I do something wrong? Was it the crash the other week? Or the one the week before?""It's not you…its just…" Della pushed back against him, looking up at his tear stained face. She reached up on her tippy toes and wiped his tears from his cheek. It turned grey from the dirt on his face. "You want this house. This…family thing…and I can't, I don't know how to…"
Della looked into Launchpad's red, watery eyes. She blinked and felt a cool stream run down her cheek. "I can't commit to that. I can't…I want to, but I'm…I'm not ready for that. What you want, what you see with me…I can't give you that."
Launchpad's bottom lip quivered. He took Della's hand and pressed it to his beak. "Do you…do you think one day you'd change your mind? I could wait…"
Della's chest began trembling. "I…I don't know…I just…" She took her other hand and wiped her eye. "I couldn't let you wait. If I'm not ready for what you want, and you want that now…I wouldn't want you to wait for me. If you wanted all that with someone else-"
"I don't want that with anyone else but you, Dells."
Della leaped into his arms and kissed him for the last time, their salty tears running down their cheeks.
Present day
Della could still feel every last touch they shared that night. Every stroke of his hand, every brush of his fluffy hair, every kiss he left on her cheek- she felt it vividly as she looked down at the little blue plus sign on the stick. She left him because she couldn't commit. And now commitment was coming, whether she liked it or not. She had to decide now. Della stood up and rubbed her leaking eyes. She wrapped the test in toilet paper and stuffed it in the trash, hiding it. She opened the bathroom door and saw her brother standing outside, doing a little potty dance.
"Geez, Della! What took you so long?" Donald whined.
"Shut up, I'm out!" Della scoffed at him. She stomped across the hall and down into her room. She shut the door behind her and plopped into her bed, exasperated. She looked at her stomach and lifted up her shirt. She could tell her body was prepping to lay. It was only a matter of time when she would have to.
Della tugged down her shirt and took in a deep breath. She reached into her pillowcase and pulled out a photo. A tall and buff pilot was in the shot, his muscular arms flexed. Della was sitting on his left shoulder, her hands filled with his fluffy red hair as she planted a kiss on his forehead.
"Should I even tell you?" She smiled, her chest heavy. "I don't…I don't need you. I don't need to bring you back after what I did to you."
She put the photo back and sat up. She took in a deep breath.
"I can do this. I don't need him. I've gone on so many adventures...I can do this on my own." She looked at her dresser at a photo of her and her brother on their birthday, his face slammed into their birthday cake. "No…I won't be alone."
Della got up and smacked her face a bit, to get herself pumping. She put on a smile and went out the door.
"Donald! Uncle Scrooge! I've got something to tell you!"
A/N: Hey Guys!
So usually I don't write angsty Delpad, but for Delpad Day I decided to change it up from the usual fluff. I figured a LaunchDad theory fic would be a fun change of pace too. I hope you like this different take on Delpad :) Now onto a more serious note for my followers...
Lately my job has given me more hours and I have been hard at work trying to keep my new management position. I have been extremely exhausted the past few months and have hardly had time to edit and rework through the already planned chapters for my other fics such as The Other Vanderquack and Afternoon Tea. And during this indefinite hiatus of sorts, I have received a multitude of reviews/comments saying "updateeeee" or "when are you updating the next chapter if there is one anyways..."
Listen: Hiatuses are hard for you as they are for me. I have been hard at work behind the document screen reworking the plot of both stories to have a great ending, and to fully incorporate the entirety of the DT characters in their respective fics. It would be appreciated very much for all of you asking for updates to not resort to spamming the comments. Spamming like this makes me feel like I am incompetent in my speed as a writer and kicks in my anxiety. And when that happens I do not write at all. My inbox is always open for PM's and my twitter penguwrites129 is available to you as well. I update my writing on Ao3 now too, but mostly my lemons, completed works, and one shots will be posted there. Thank you for your understanding during this small little rant. If this didn't apply to you, I am sorry. Please to stay updated on my fics, FOLLOW the fic you like. FAVORITE the fic you like. FOLLOW me as an author here if you wish to receive updates on any new content I produce.
Thank You all for being supportive during this time. I hope you have had a wonderful start to 2019, and I'll be sure to post an update soon on the main fics.
Love you all!
~Alex