A/N: I'm not Catholic. I did not grow up with much religion. Please correct me if I'm wrong about any of the mortal sins or whatnot.
Ch. 7
"He's coming around."
That was the first thing that Matt heard. Slowly, he woke up. Apparently he was on the exam table. How had he gotten there? Last he remembered, he was sitting on a chair.
"What happened?" Matt asked, pushing himself up.
"Hey, just keep lying down," Claire pushed him back. "Just relax. You fainted."
Matt searched his memory in an attempt to recall why he'd passed out. Then it hit him.
"You guys said that I was pregnant, right?" Matt's voice was shaky. "I thought maybe it was a joke but…" He trailed off, suddenly feeling sick again.
Seeing Matt pale, Claire grabbed a trash can while the doctor helped him turn onto his side. For the next few minutes Matt threw up everything in his system. Claire rubbed his back and the doctor applied a cold compress to the back of his neck. Eventually, there was nothing else to come up and Matt pushed the basket away.
"I'm sorry," he muttered, lying on his back once again.
"Don't be. It's… It's a lot to take in," Claire told him.
It was then that Matt realized that Foggy wasn't in the room.
"Where'd Foggy go?"
"He went to use the bathroom."
Matt snorted. Foggy was probably freaking the hell out.
Once he was stabilized, the doctor began to talk again.
"I have to ask you some personal questions, Mr. Murdock."
"Yeah."
Matt felt like the room was spinning. His heart was pounding. He tried to force it to slow.
"I didn't see any reference to it in your medical files, but have you undergone any hormone therapy? I know it's not something many people like to talk about, but more and more people are coming out as transgendered now and there's nothing to be ashamed of."
"No. I was born male."
Right then, Foggy entered the office, looking almost as pale as Matt.
"Sorry about that. I needed to pinch myself and splash some water on my face and bang my head into the wall. You know, had to make sure I wasn't dreaming." He looked at Matt, "I see you're awake."
"Oh, Foggy, you're bleeding!" Claire said. She began gathering some supplies. He wasn't lying about hitting his head against the wall apparently.
While Claire tended to Foggy's cut, Matt spoke.
"I was just telling Dr. Kelly that I was born male."
"There must have been some abnormality, then… though hermaphrodites are sterile." The doctor seemed perplexed.
"I think I know what happened," Matt told her. "But...I need some time. I trust that you'll keep this confidential?"
"I'm bound by law to."
Matt nodded and began to stand up. Foggy escaped Claire's grasp and instantly came to his side to support him.
"Thank you," Matt said, "Thank you both."
"You need medical care, Mr. Murdock," the doctor protested, as Matt started making his way towards the door.
"I know. I'll be in contact with Claire. Thank you again."
Matt and Foggy walked out before the doctor could respond.
00
"How the fuck are you pregnant?!" Foggy asked.
They were sitting in the park, in the shade, far away from anyone else.
"That doctor injected me with those nanobot things. Brent said that he was researching tissue regeneration and was employed by the Japanese government. Japan has a problem with their birth rates. They're very low, the population is decreasing. Women are working, and people are busy caring for their parents. If someone could figure out how to allow males to carry children, it could help solve that problem. The experiments… Nobu… it all makes sense. He was trying to help his country. Admittedly, in a weird and twisted way."
"So you're saying that he injected you with nanobots that gave you a fucking uterus?"
"My guess is nanobots and some other things too. Whatever my body would need to help create another organ, and of course sperm from another parent…" Matt cringed at that thought.
"Christ." Foggy shook his head, "I don't even know what to say. Only you would end up like this."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means that you got yourself into this by stalking everyone connected to Fisk! If you'd just let it go once he was incarcerated, you wouldn't be in this situation!"
Matt didn't respond. He knew that Foggy was probably more concerned and shocked than anything and that it was manifesting as anger.
When he got no reply, Foggy apologized.
"I'm sorry, Matt. I know this is huge. It's just… this is a life changer, man. Are you gonna keep it? Wait, can you even get rid of it? You didn't ask."
"I don't know. About any of it, I mean. If I could get rid of it, I don't know if I would." Matt hadn't really thought that far. He was still processing what was going on.
"You really gotta tell Karen, Matt. I know you don't want to upset her but she needs to know."
"I'll tell her if I have to."
"When? When you look like… I don't know, when you look like you swallowed a beach ball? She's gonna know that something's up and she's going to know soon, unless you get rid of it before she finds out. Fuck, man!"
Matt rubbed the back of his neck. His head was starting to hurt, probably due to stress and low blood sugar.
"Can we get something to eat?" He asked, changing the subject.
"Huh? Well… Yeah, sure I guess you should have something considering you're eating for two, now." Foggy sounded less upset.
"Heh." Matt got up. "Lead the way."
00
After their meal, Foggy left Matt at the church. Matt had said something about needing to see Father Lantom. He'd asked Foggy to cover for him with Karen. Tell her that he was okay and would be back shortly. Foggy had reluctantly agreed.
Now, Matt was sitting in the church's basement. The father had graciously agreed to another meeting over lattes.
"Father, I have an odd question to ask you."
The priest smiled.
"You always have interesting questions, Matthew. What's on your mind?"
"Let's say for argument's sake, a child is born that shouldn't be born. Meaning, the child wasn't asked for."
"You mean like child born out of rape?"
"Sort of. It would be a sin to abort the child, right?"
"Well… Yes, all life is precious, so the mother should keep the child. At least that is the church's perspective."
"Okay. Hypothetically, what if the child was born to a man. Would the same rule apply? Would it be considered a monster, or would the man be considered one? What if the man didn't ask for it?"
Father Lantom stared at Matt for a moment.
"That is an odd question. I can tell you what I personally think, if you'd like."
"Okay."
"I don't think that God considers any of his children to be monsters. He would love the man no matter his condition. I think he would want the child to live, if the father could carry it safely. All things happen for a reason, perhaps the child would be special."
"It would be a mortal sin if it was aborted."
"Yes."
"But God forgives sin if we ask for forgiveness."
"Of course, Matthew." The priest was starting to become concerned. "Are you alright, son? You've come to me with some strange things before but never anything like this."
"No. I'm not alright, and I'm not sure if I ever will be."
00
Matt returned home as the sun began to set. He made a quick call to Karen and informed her that he was alright, that the doctor had given him a prescription and that he wanted to rest. She had offered to come over and take care of him, but he refused. He needed to be alone. Needed to think.
He was feeling tired, so he went to bed early. Yet he was unable to sleep. He lay awake, wondering what he ought to do. He'd have to talk to Claire again, that was for sure. See if she could help him get more information.
Matt wondered how Karen would react if he told her the truth. Would she be disgusted? She might run off. He wouldn't really blame her if she did. At the same time, he wasn't sure if he could stand to lose her right then. Everything was so confusing, so frightening, and she was so kind and loving.
He closed his eyes ran a hand over his stomach. It was still flat. Then he listened for the baby's heart beat. It was fast, but consistent.
For what felt like hours, he laid there and listened, thinking about the spark inside of him, the thing that was dependent on him for everything. He thought about what he or she might look like. Would it look like him? Or the other father? Who was the other father?
There were so many questions. Matt didn't get much rest.