I walked back into class and sat in my usual seat next to Soul. He raised his eyebrow at me, asking where I'd been, but I just waved him off.

"I was feeling a little under the weather, so I went to get my temperature checked. I'm feeling much better now." I smiled, but I knew Soul could see through it. I didn't feel any better. If anything, I felt worse. I clasped my hands in my lap as Professor Stein walked in, trying to avoid looking at me. I knew he was mad at me. He knew just as well as I did what the result of that test was going to be. It was going to be the same result as the three home tests I'd taken. I felt a warm hand grip mine under the table and smiled. I squeezed Soul's hand back, letting him know I appreciated the gesture.

Class was a nightmare. I swear Stein chose to do a dissection just to make me sick; a horrible punishment for what I'd done. I didn't even bother taking notes, preferring to glare at him instead. Every time Stein looked at me, he smiled. It made me want to punch him in the face. Stupid hormones.

Eventually I gave up on the glaring contest to stare out the window, obviously not listening now. I let my mind wander, thinking about how much I hated these stupid hormones. Not only was I pissed at Stein, but at the same time, I was hyper-aware of Soul beside me. His hand was still holding mine, and the feeling of his skin was almost too much to handle. I could just imagine running my free hand across his chest, feeling his muscles ripple underneath…

I shook my head. Mind out of the gutter, Albarn. That kind of thinking is what got you into this mess. Something clicked. Why should I be mad at Stein, or even Soul? It was my own damn fault. It was my hormones that made me kiss Soul, my hormones that didn't tell him to stop when I should have. My hormones that wanted more…

Ugh! Why couldn't I get my mind out of the gutter? I sighed for the umpteenth time that day (what, did I have oxygen deprivation or something?) and tried to think of something, anything, else. That's when the biggest roadblock crossed my mind.

How the hell am I going to tell Soul? I thought to myself. I turned to look at him. He'd fallen asleep, my hand still clasped tightly in his. I smiled as I watched him, reaching over to move a strand of hair from his face. He really was adorable when he slept. He almost looked like a child, so peaceful and at ease. I wondered if our child would look like…

Stop right there. Did I just think our child? I wasn't even sure if I was even pregnant with our child, much less keeping it. But what else would I do? I refused to get an abortion. I wouldn't take a life that couldn't even defend itself. Tears began to form in my eyes at the thought of never meeting the little parasite.

Damn hormones again. I quickly wiped the tears away from my eyes, hoping no one had noticed them. Too bad I never get what I hope for.

"Maka, are you okay?" I heard Kim whisper to me. I looked at her and smiled.

"Yeah, I just feel bad for the poor little animal Professor Stein has mutilated this time." We both chuckled and she turned around. My smile faded. I just couldn't seem to keep them nowadays.

When Stein ended class, I woke Soul up and told him to go home without me. I had a few errands to run. He yawned and agreed, saying he didn't feel like shopping today. I rolled my eyes. If I was going to survive tonight, I needed a book. Bad.

"Welcome back, Maka!" The shop owner called as I walked through the door.

"Thanks, Ted. Got anything new?" I asked, welcoming the greeting. It made everything feel a little more normal.

"Ah, sorry, Maka. I don't. Feel free to browse around for as long as you like, though."

"Thanks, Ted!" I called from a few shelves away. Without realizing where I was going, my feet carried me to the pregnancy and childbirth section. I walked along the shelf until I reached the book every mother and their dog owned. What to Expect When You're Expecting. I swallowed, feeling a knot form in my throat. I knew I had to buy it, but I also knew that if I took it up to Ted to pay for it, he'd be really upset. What if he never let me back into the store? I had to think up an excuse, fast.

I walked back up to the register as slowly as possible, picking up a few miscellaneous books on the way. When I got up to the front desk, I had four books, with What to Expect When You're Expecting on the bottom. Ted rang them up quickly, and I felt a bead of sweat roll down the back of my neck when he reached the pregnancy book. He paused.

"What to Expect When You're Expecting?" he asked, holding up the book for me to see. "Did you pick up the wrong book, Maka?" His eyes searched mine. I knew if I looked away, the jig was up. I held his gaze, coaxing a smile onto my face.

"No, I'm writing a story. In the story, the girl gets drunk at a party, accidentally sleeps with her best friend, and ends up pregnant. I need the book so I know, well, not to play on words, but what to expect." I added in a chuckle for good measure. Ted read my face for a moment, making me feel very uncomfortable. Then a huge grin spread across his face.

"I knew you'd try your hand at writing one day, with how much you read. Sounds like an interesting story. How does it end?" That stumped me. Technically, I'd been telling the truth so far. I had gotten drunk at a party and slept with my best friend. But how would my story end?

"They end up together," I say after a few moments' hesitation. Ted's grin grew wider, if possible.

"I love a good happy ending. I want to be the first to read the manuscript when you're done, okay?"

"Of course," I promised, tacking a smile to my face. Walking out of the store, my smile fell. There would be no manuscript. And if I kept the little parasite, Ted would find out the truth. I spent the entire trip home thinking of nothing else but the look on Ted's face when I walked into his store, a bulging belly leading the way.

"I'm home!" I called as I walked in the door. Blair was the first to greet me.

"Hey, Maka. Did you bring Bu-tan anything?" she asked, excited. I smiled and shook my head.

"No, I only ran by the book store." Suddenly, I was happy Soul hadn't gone with me. If he'd seen me buy that book, he'd have called bullshit the moment I opened my mouth to explain it. I quickly placed the bag on my bed, shutting the door behind me. I tried to act normal, but suddenly I couldn't remember what "normal" was. I twitched every time the phone rang, reaching for it before Soul could answer. I knew it was stupid, Stein said he'd call tomorrow, but I just couldn't help it. I didn't want Soul or Blair to answer when he did. I didn't want to have to lie to them right before telling the truth, seeing as how they'd be the first to know (other than Tsubaki, of course).

I couldn't get a wink of sleep that night. I spent the whole night studying the pregnancy book. All of the symptoms seemed about right. I should've only been three weeks along. My parasite (I just couldn't call it a baby yet. I just couldn't) wouldn't be any bigger than my fingertip. I looked at it thoughtfully. I amused myself by imagining I was balancing a miniature baby on my finger. When the baby began to fall off, I stopped. I was not about to upset myself and have Soul barrel into my room. I was not ready to tell him yet, and the sight of the pregnancy book would have him connecting the dots. I put the book down and turned off the lamp, trying to get some rest, but my entire night was filled with dreams of me being nine months pregnant and water. Lots of water. In a couple of my dreams, I almost drowned. I sighed, eventually giving up. Tomorrow was going to be a long day.

I woke up the next morning to the phone ringing. I didn't remember falling asleep again, but then again, I fell asleep a lot without realizing it nowadays. I got out of bed and picked up the old rotary phone Soul and I owned. Soul had said that it was "cool" when we went furniture shopping all those years ago, so I bought it. I thought it was cool, too.

"Albarn and Evans residence," I mumbled into the phone sleepily. The voice on the other end of the line woke me up in seconds.

"Maka, it's Professor Stein. I have the results of the test. Would you like to hear them over the phone, or do you want to come see me?" I thought that over.

"I'll come see you," I decided. I knew I was going to cry, and I wanted to get it out of my system before anyone else found out. Stein told me he'd see me when I got there and we hung up. I pulled on a pair of shorts, a tank top, a pullover, my boots, and walked out the door. I was half way down the stairs when I decided I'd better leave a note. I walked back into the apartment, found a sticky note and a pen, and wrote a quick note:

Soul-

Went to Stein's. I'll explain when I get home.

Make you and Blair breakfast.

-M

I walked out the door again, this time not looking back. When I arrived at Stein's stitch-covered house, I was wringing the hem of my pullover in my hands. Maybe I should have brought Tsubaki. Oh well, no turning back now. I knocked on the door with a shaky hand. Stein opened it and welcomed me in, but he didn't smile. I didn't smile back, so it was okay.

I walked over to his living room, situating myself on his couch. I refused his offer of tea. He didn't offer me coffee. Stein sat down on the chair across from me and clasped his hands together; his knees spread apart, elbows resting on them. He leaned forward a bit, his eyes deep in thought. He was thinking about how to break the news to me. Eventually, he looked me in the eyes for the first time since I sat in the nurse's office the day before.

"Maka, I'm not going to beat around the bush. The test came back positive. You're pregnant." My breath caught in my throat. That was the first time I'd heard the word out load in reference to me. Tears began to well up in my eyes.

"I'm sorry. I—I just… I don't even have any excuses. We were at a party, and I didn't know that the punch was spiked, and—and Soul and I were toasting…" Sobs began to rack my body. Stein walked over and patted my back awkwardly. I noticed for the first time that his cigarette wasn't lit. It hung limply from his lips, useless. He'd done that for me. I started to cry harder.

"I'm just so freaking sorry!" I cried. "Neither of us meant for it to happen! Please—please don't be mad at Soul! He didn't do anything wrong! I kissed him first! God, I don't even remember what happened!"

"Ouch, that must have hurt his ego," Stein muttered. He must not have meant for me to hear, but I glared at him anyway. Stein gave me an apologetic look. "Sorry, not the time for bad humor. Now, it's time to get serious. Have you told anyone yet?"

"Only Tsubaki, and that's because she went with me to get the first tests I took."

"Tests?"

"Yeah, I took three before I came to see you. I just wanted to be sure."

"Wait, you took three?"

"I wanted to be sure," I mumbled, embarrassment making me frustrated.

"Sorry. Okay, so the first thing you need to figure out is not who you're going to tell. It's whether you're keeping your baby or not."

That's right. This was my parasite. I sighed, and gave Stein the decision I'd made the night before.

"I'm keeping it."

Ok, so I have quiet a few note for this chapter. I have to say, I am pretty happy with this chapter. Originally, I was going to add in exerts from What to Expect When You're Expecting, but when I went looking for the copy we owned (first it was my mom's, then she gave it to my sister when she got pregnant), my mama told me that my sister gave it to one of her pregnant friends (seriously, teen pregnancy is in the freaking WATER where I live). So, I decided to just go off of what I know from experience.

Now, for the multiple notes I have for this chapter:

1. Even if Maka wasn't really pregnant and they hadn't slept together, you KNOW Soul would hold Maka's hand like that if she was going through a tough time. THAT display of affection I did not create.

2. Stein would totally dissect something JUST to get back at Maka. Don't deny it.

3. If any one of you complain about Maka's mind being in the gutter, I WILL come after you. I'm pure and that was HARD to write without giggling. But you gotta admit, it turned out good.

4. When I stated that Maka might not keep the parasite, I meant she might put it up for adoption. But deep down, I think she loves it already.

5. In regards to me referring to the parasite as an "it": I will not tell you the gender of their baby. You will find out when they do. Don't be impatient.

6. Ted the Store Owner: Why isn't he a woman? Wouldn't Maka feel more comfortable with a woman? Yes, Maka might feel more comfortable with a woman store owner, but a woman store owner would've known Maka was pregnant instantly. I'll let you guys in on a little spoiler: Blair already knows. Tsubaki went with Maka to get the home pregnancy tests because she COULD TELL MAKA WAS PREGNANT. It's a woman thing. I think Maka even knew before she took the first test. Women have this weird intuition about babies. Don't ask me why, I think even I knew my sister was pregnant before my mom told me, on account of the fact that I didn't freak out.

7. Soul totally would come barralling into Maka's room if he felt a disturbance in the force. In his boxers. Blair sitting on his head, holding on for dear life.

8. I had to mention the kick ass rotary phone in Soul and Maka's apartment. It made it's debut in chapter 83. I also freaking LOVE the shirt Soul's wearing in that chapter. Just saying.

9. Stein would totally put out his cigarette if a pregnant woman was in his presence. He wouldn't be a douche. He's a doctor, remember?

10. I couldn't help but have Stein point out the punch to Soul's ego. He just would.

11. Having Stein emphasize THREE pregnancy tests was a reference to Juno. I had to point that out because you guys never seem to get my references. Sad day. :(

That's about it. Also, no one's surprised she's keeping the baby. Don't even pretend to be. You saw it coming.

I'm going to go at least start (and most likely finish) chapter 4, so bysies!