It's been forever and a day since I last updated! Here's a new chapter! A little bit of a darker topic in this chapter, guys.

Evie spent the better part of the remainder of the day in thought. The pregnancy was causing problems for everyone now. It was even worse than she had imagined. Sure, she had expected it to affect Chad and herself; that was a given. But Doug and Audrey were both being hurt by it now too. And Chad was suffering in a different way. Evie had never met Chad's father, and now she wasn't sure she ever wanted to. What kind of man would give his son the choice of marriage or being disowned? And what kind of man demanded that she marry a boy she didn't love and threaten to sue for custody of her child if she didn't comply? All to keep the honor of the family name. It made her ill to think about it, but part of her wondered if it just wasn't more morning sickness making a second round that day.

She went to sleep for the night before Mal returned. When she woke up early the next morning, Mal was fast asleep in her bed. For this, Evie was grateful. She had made her decision, and if Mal had been awake, she wasn't sure she would be able to go through with it. Part of her thought process the previous day had involved internet searches for somewhere to get an abortion. The search had instead turned up many articles dated more than a decade previous, stating that it was Auradon law that abortions were illegal and no longer practiced in the realm. But that was okay; Evie knew where she could get an abortion for sure. And she knew how she could get there.

"Evie, do you know what time it is?" Ben asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and yawning. He had just opened his dorm room door in answer to her series of rapid knocks.

"Early," Evie stated blandly. "I couldn't sleep."

Ben just grunted and ran a hand through his hair. "Do you need something?" He yawned again.

"Yes," Evie said, and her lungs squeezed themselves together. She forced herself to take a deep breath before continuing. "Have you talked to Mal...about me? I don't know if she told you, but I've been...sick." She watched him and caught the half-second that his gaze flitted to her stomach before immediately returning to her eyes. She felt relief flood through her. This would make it easier if he already knew. "So, she told you."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Ben said, but he was obviously feigning his ignorance.

Evie rolled her eyes and pulled him out into the corridor. She leaned forward to shut his door behind them so they were alone in the hall. "I know that you know. It's fine. I'm not mad. I actually...I came to ask a favor regarding it."

Ben raised an eyebrow and casually crossed his arms over his chest. He seemed to be waking up fully now that he had been on his feet for a few minutes. "Ok...?" he prompted her, uncertainty obvious in his voice.

She took another breath, her heart hammering. She had to play this right. He had to believe her. "I'm scared..." Ok, that part was true. So, this was only going to be a half-lie when she was done. "I...I can't do this, and I just...I want my mom." She swallowed. "I just need to talk to her. Hug her. Sit in our kitchen over brunch again. Like old times." Yes, she had to add more than just talking. He had to believe a video call wouldn't suffice. He had to believe going in person was the only way.

"Oh. You...want to go back to the Isle?" He frowned.

"Just for a few hours," Evie assured him.

"There's no one here you can talk to?" he asked. "I'm sure my mom would sit down with you and chat."

She shook her head. "It's not the same. I grew up with my mom. I need her for this. And I think she'd like to know in person about her grandchild. Don't you think?"

Ben slowly nodded. "Right. Of course. Look, you know that the coronation was televised. It...might be dangerous for you to go back. Are you sure?"

Evie nodded. "I'm sure. It won't be long. People don't even have to know I'm there."

"Alright," Ben said slowly as if he were trying to work out a piece he was missing as to why she shouldn't go. "When were you hoping to go?"

"Today."

Ben blinked.

Evie continued hurriedly. "It's Sunday. I don't want to miss school, and I don't want to wait another whole week."

Ben nodded. "Right, that makes sense. Ok, you can go. But! I'm having my driver escort you to and from your mother's home, ok?"

Evie grinned and nodded. "That's fine. Perfectly fine. Thank you."

"I'll call the driver, and you can meet him out front. Might take him a bit. He's usually off Sundays," Ben explained. He turned back to his door, but he paused and looked over his shoulder to smile at her. "I think it's good you're going to go talk to your mom. Hopefully, she can help. I know you must be terrified of what a baby is going to change, but I think it'll be a good one. Hang in there, ok?"

Evie nodded, feeling a pang of guilt shoot through her at his words. She waited until he had closed the door behind him and then turned to walk down the hallway. She wrapped her arms around her abdomen, thinking. How could Ben know it would be a good change? What if it was Mal who was pregnant and he was the one who had to deal with a baby born out of wedlock? Would he be telling her the same thing then? Plus, there was no way he knew about Chad's father's threats and forceful proposal of marriage. Ben was wrong; this baby was a curse, not a blessing. But, she was going to fix that. She had to. She couldn't let Doug and Audrey suffer for a mistake she and Chad had made together. And neither she nor Chad deserved to be forced into a marriage when they didn't love each other. But, if there was no pregnancy to worry about, Charming would drop all his threats, and everything could go back to normal. Right?

"I see you two are being productive," Ben said with a laugh as he strode into Mal's room a few hours later. He was referring to Jay and Carlos, both of whom were locked in a videogame match against each other. He walked over to Mal where she sat on her bed flicking through a magazine and occasionally glancing up to watch Jay and Carlos play their game.

Ben dropped a kiss onto the crown of Mal's head and sat beside her. "I bring gifts," he said and lifted the bag of takeout food to show her.

Mal laughed and took it from him. "From Tiana's?"

"Of course," Ben said. He smiled and leaned forward, pressing his lips to hers for a brief moment. Then he leaned back on the bed while she took the takeout containers from the bag. There was one for each of them. He sat up again when she handed him his container. He opened it and inhaled the scent of sweet cajun cooking. Ah, heaven. "So, are you anxious to hear about Evie's trip when she returns? Ask her how things have changed at home?"

Mal, who had just stuffed two shrimp in her mouth, frowned. She chewed and swallowed. "Trip? What trip?"

Ben blinked. "Oh, I thought she would have told you. She came to me this morning and asked to go see her mom on the Isle. Said she wanted to talk to her and tell her about the baby in person. I think it's to help her nerves too. A mother-daughter chat, I guess." He shrugged.

Jay and Carlos, who had just finished their current level on their game, had wandered over to inspect the delicious food. Mal smacked Jay's hand away when he tried to swipe a peppered shrimp from her box.

"Evie went home?" Carlos asked, leaning against the post of the bed. "Just to talk about the pregnancy? Couldn't she do that over the phone?"

Ben shrugged. "She said she wanted to do it in person."

"Are you sure she's safe going there? Did anyone go with her?" Mal asked.

"I sent her with my driver. He called me an hour ago to tell me they had arrived on the Isle at her mother's house. Though, it's odd," Ben said as he thoughtfully prodded a piece of chicken with his plastic fork. "He said there was a fence made of human bones and that it was more of a shack. I would have thought Evil Queen would have a mansion or something a little more spectacular."

"She does," Mal said. "It's a mansion in the woods, and...wait...a fence of bones? A shack? Whoa. Wait. Are you sure they stopped there? How did the driver call you from the Isle? There's no way to get through the barrier with a phone."

"There is if you have the right phone. Or, in this case, walkie-talkies," Ben said. "But, yeah, he said that's where they stopped. He called me as soon as she got out of the car."

Mal's blood was like ice. She looked at Jay and then to Carlos. They all had the same expression on their faces: terror. What was Evie doing visiting the voodoo man, Dr. Facilier?

"But..." Mal frowned, pressing her eyebrows together in confusion. "That's..." And then it clicked. She stood so fast that her box of takeout slid to the flood, spilling rice and shrimp across the carpet. "Oh my gosh," she breathed in horror. "She's going to get rid of the baby."

Did you guys enjoy this update? Tell me your thoughts in a review! Don't be a ghost reader!

Foarrin