A/N: Hey guys! Thanks so much for all your reviews, follows, favorites, EVERYTHING. Hope you all have a Merry Christmas!

"No. Absolutely not."
"Why not? C'mon...it'll be fun!"
"Singing outside people's doorsteps in the freezing cold does not sound like fun."
Rapunzel tsked her tongue. To Eugene, it seemed, caroling was a capitol offense that should be met with the utmost stubbornness.
"They're going to the orphanage to carol, Eugene, wouldn't you want to give those kids something to smile about?"
"The other carolers will do that," he said indifferently, though he knew he was being selfish at this point.
Huffing, Rapunzel stood in front of him with her hands on her hips, a determined look pasted firmly across her face. "Eugene. C'mon. You know that's not true."

"I just think we should be with our own daughter for..you know...the day before Christmas Eve." Eugene gulped. That was a really bad excuse.
"She's in bed, it's eight o'clock, and they'll be here in fifteen minutes."

It had been six months since their decision that they wanted more children, and the couple had yet to become parents to another child. They were actually trying to have one of their own, but had recently given up and were planning to adopt sometime. Rapunzel had tried her best, downing packet after packet of herbs that would keep her healthy and aid in pregnancy, but their efforts were met with disappointment. Since their decision to give up on the idea, Eugene had been pretty down in the dumps. Secretly, Rapunzel was grasping at straws and hoping for some Christmas miracle - not that she minded adoption; no, she loved the idea of giving another needy child a home, but...she also had kind of wanted to know what it would feel like to have a baby - plus, she'd always been curious as to what Eugene's child would be like.

"Come on, Eugene. Please? If not, I guess I'll go by myself. But it'd be fun to go caroling together," she gave him a convincing pout that she knew he couldn't resist.
He stood from his chair and crossed his arms over his chest, regarding Rapunzel's expression. "Trying to manipulate your spouse via facial expressions isn't nice, Rapunzel."
She half laughed, half groaned. "Oh, come on. I'm not going to give up 'til you're out of this funk you're in."
Squeezing past her, he headed for their bedroom door. "What funk?"

Huh-uh. No way was he getting out of this conversation again. Sprinting to beat him to the bedroom door and slipping neatly between him and the door handle, she blocked it successfully. "You and I both know what, Eugene."
Shaking his head, he met her gaze evenly. "Well, if you want to go caroling, nobody's stopping you. But singing songs on repeat in the cold isn't going to get me out of a funk, so I'll be reading in the library. Okay?"

She huffed with frustration, but let him slip past him. "Fine. I'll be back later." She would go caroling, yes, but she was doing it to try to curb her sudden urge to cry. It was her fault he was so disappointed. She was a disappointment, and she couldn't stand herself, let alone seeing him being so down in the dumps.

When she came back home before midnight, she was cold, but satisfied with the children's happiness from the carolers' visit to the orphanage. Everyone else was asleep, it seemed, so she popped her head into Aisling's room to check up on her and watch her sleep for a few minutes before heading to bed herself. Eugene had his back to the door, luckily, so she was able to use a candle's light to see in order to dress in her nightgown. When she slipped into bed, she turned on her side with her face to the door, curling into a ball. She wanted to talk with Eugene, but he was making it so...so hard! He evaded the conversation every single time she tried to talk with him. Maybe she could catch him bright and early in the morning, if she was feeling well enough to, considering her recent odd dizziness in the mornings, which brought nausea. Sighing, she decided she wasn't going to sleep anytime soon.
"Eugene?" she breathed. When there was no immediate response, only a slight shift of the mattress, she bit her lip. Darn it. "Eugene, I'm sorry. You were so looking forward to the possibility of a baby, and I screwed it up. I hate that I can't give you that. I'm so sorry, it's all my fault and I-I wish I could do something for you to make you feel better. I wish I could talk to you, but every time I try, you avoid it like the plague and I understand why you wouldn't want to talk, but...it's so complicated! And I don't even see the use in talking right now, because you're asleep!" she curled into a tighter ball and buried her face into her pillow, allowing hot tears to drip onto its case.

She felt the mattress bounce, and Eugene's strong arm slipped around her waist and pulled her up against him. "I'm awake. Don't cry, sweetheart, please don't. Don't beat yourself up about it. I shouldn't have been so sure that you'd conceive, anyway. I'm sorry I haven't talked to you about it - it's selfish of me. I didn't want to talk because I was afraid I'd start crying, and how manly is that, exactly? I didn't stop to think that maybe you'd need to talk, too. I'm sorry. I'm more at fault than you are, it's my own fault for being in a mood."
She pulled away from him to sit up and look at him. "But I'm the reason why you can't even have a kid of your own! I'm the reason why-"
He sat up as well, shoving a hand through his messy hair in frustration before putting the same hand on the back of her head, pushing his lips against hers just long enough to shut her up. "I should have seen the logical side of things, Rapunzel, so don't worry about me and my attitude, okay? I'll fix myself. You don't have to fix me. Aren't you even upset?"
Her eyes teared. "More upset than I let on," she admitted. "But I know it was foolish of me to hope to begin with. So I want to help you feel better."
Eugene slid his arms around her. "C'mere. You don't have to help me, okay? I'll figure things out for myself. Just focus on you. Okay? It is not your fault."
"Yes it-"
"Is not."
Rapunzel bit her lips to stop her tears. "I'm sorry anyway."
Chuckling, he shook his head and pulled her closer. "I'm sorry for being a bullheaded moron. Next time, just clock me upside the head with a frying pan."
She couldn't help but grin. "I won't hit you...with a frying pan. I might throw a book or two at you, though."
Eugene laughed in surprise. "Dually noted."
She buried her face into his chest and slipped her skinny arms around him for a few minutes before pulling away again. "So..we're in better agreement now?"
"Yes. It's not your fault and my attitude is my own issue, but we need to learn that if one wants to talk, the other will set down whatever they're doing and listen."
She agreed, nodding. "It feels good to get that untangled and discussed."
"I'm glad," he rubbed his eyes. "But why don't we get to sleep? Morning comes early, and our Rose will be off the walls excited for Christmas Eve."
"After Christmas, will we go to the orphanage to discuss adoption, perhaps?"
"If you want, yes," he nodded.
She nodded again, lying down and burrowing underneath the blankets. She'd talk to the doctor before they went to the orphanage, just to rid herself of that last straw of hope, but she would look forward to adoption again, she decided.