A/N: Getting into a little bit of medical/baby stuff, just as a warning. Nothing too weird or gross, I try to be vague.
Also, I barely proofread this so if you see any major mistakes, let me know.
August 10th, 2030, 7:00 PM
Fey-Wright Residence
The house was surprisingly quiet when Phoenix entered it after work. Trucy was back in Khura'in (though she'd promised him she'd be applying to schools and would come home to start college in September) with Apollo and Thalassa, and Pearl wasn't around either. Normally he would find Maya watching TV in the living room, but he didn't hear the sound of the TV at all. The house was quiet.
He figured maybe she had to stay late in Kurain until he glanced down and saw that her sandals were at the door. She was home, but where was she? He took his suit jacket off, revelling in the feeling of the air conditioning after being outside in the heat, and rolled up his sleeves before heading to the kitchen. That was usually the next place he would find her if she wasn't in the living room.
She wasn't there either. He did a quick sweep of the downstairs before heading up to the second floor. Maybe she'd gone to take a nap in their room.
"Maya?" he called as he entered the upstairs hallway. Their bedroom door was closed, but when he opened it all he found was an empty room and a made bed. "Maya?"
He heard a noise from their ensuite bathroom and headed towards the closed door. "Maya? Are you in there?"
"D-Don't come in, Nick! I'm… busy."
"What are you busy with that I can't see?"
She paused. "I'm… I'm doing number two!"
Phoenix stopped. Okay, not exactly something he needed to witness. He took his hand away from the door handle to leave her alone, but stopped when he heard Maya sniffle from inside. "Maya? Are you sure you're okay?"
There was no answer this time, so he wasted no time pushing open the door, glad that it wasn't locked. Maya looked up from her place on the closed toilet lid. "Nick! I told you not to come in."
He stared down at her. "What are you doing? Why are you in here crying? Is Pearls okay?"
Maya nodded, wiping at her face hurriedly to get rid of her tears. "Everyone is fine… sorry for worrying you. I'm okay."
He knelt down in front of her. "Maya, please tell me what's wrong. Do you know how much it scares me finding my wife crying in the bathroom when I come home?"
She pointed towards the counter. He stood up again to find what she was pointing at. He hadn't noticed it before, but there was a small white stick sitting on the counter near the sink. As soon as he set his eyes on it he knew what it was. Another negative pregnancy test. Maya seemed to go through this at least once every few weeks; buying and using a test despite never missing a period or having any other sort of symptoms. It was negative every time. Phoenix was starting to worry that she was obsessing, and it was only making her more stressed out about everything.
He sighed and looked back towards her. "Didn't we agree that you'd stop doing this, Maya? It's only making you feel worse."
Maya shook her head, ignoring his statement. "It's been over a year, Nick," she murmured. "Way more than a year now, almost two years since we started trying."
He nodded. "I know." It was even hard for him to remain positive anymore. He'd been so sure it would happen eventually, so sure that he kept putting off doctor's appointments. It was about time that stopped. This was something Maya really wanted, and it hurt him to see her hurting so much over it.
He knelt down in front of her again, taking her hands in his. "I think it's time we go to the doctor."
She looked at him. "Really?"
"Yeah. I told you a year, and it's been closer to two now. We should get checked out. It'll help to know if there's something wrong."
She nodded. "Okay."
"I'm sorry for putting it off for so long."
"It's okay," she said. "We had a lot of other things going on. And I tried to stay positive like you, but I can't anymore. And…"
"And?"
She sniffed again. "I miss Trucy, and Pearly is so busy in Kurain lately that I don't see her that often anymore either, even when I'm there. This house feels so big and empty with just us here. We got this place because it had so much extra room for when we had kids. And now it's just… empty."
He tucked a stray piece of her hair behind her ear. She wasn't wearing her regular hairstyle, which was just another indication of how bad she was feeling. "I understand. I miss them, too."
"Plus," Maya continued, "I turned 30 this year, Nick. You know the chances of becoming pregnant start to decline once you hit 30?"
"Don't worry about that, Maya. Woman nowadays can still have kids into their forties."
She took a deep breath. "I know. I'm sorry."
"You don't need to apologize. You're the optimistic one in this relationship when it comes to everything else, you know. It's fine if this is the one thing you can't bring yourself to stay upbeat about. It sucks, I know that. Just don't get too hopeless on me, okay? We can't give up until we know for sure what's making it so difficult."
She nodded. "I won't."
He got back to his feet and held a hand out to her. "Come on. I think the couch is probably comfier than the toilet lid."
She managed a laugh as she took his hand and was pulled to her feet. She reached for the pregnancy test and chucked it into the trash bin. He led her into the bedroom, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.
"I'll call for an appointment before I go to work tomorrow morning, okay?"
Maya nodded, stopping in the middle of the room. "Actually, I think I'm going to lie down for a bit."
Phoenix looked at her. Really looked at her. She always looked beautiful in his eyes, but right now she looked downright tired. Her hair was messy, her eyes were still bleary from crying, she was dressed in an old housecoat, and though she didn't wear a lot of makeup to begin with, she wasn't wearing the usual lip gloss or light mascara she usually had on. She had always been good at hiding her emotions, but this wasn't something that was easy for her to pretend was okay.
He came forward to kiss her on the forehead. "Okay. Do you want me to make something for dinner, or do you want take out?"
She shrugged. "Whatever you feel like, Nick."
He tried not to let her half-hearted answer get to him. "Okay. Have a good nap."
She smiled and nodded, already crawling into their bed. "Thanks."
"I love you."
"Mm. Love you, too."
He stood by the door for a few extra moments, watching her settle into her pillow, before he stepped out and closed the door gently behind him.
He headed downstairs. He didn't think he wanted to cook, so he grabbed his phone to call for a pizza. After he'd made the order, he sat on the couch and decided to call up Pearl.
She answered after a few rings. "Hello?"
"Hey Pearls."
"Mr. Nick! Why are you calling so late?"
"Ah, sorry about that—"
"Oh, it's no problem! I was just wondering. Is everything okay over there?"
"Yeah, everything is fine. I was just wondering if you wanted to come over for dinner tomorrow? Maybe you can come home with Maya when she's finished in Kurain for the day, and go back with her in the morning?"
"Sure, that sounds great." She paused. "Are you sure there's nothing wrong, Mr. Nick? You don't usually call me up randomly during the week."
"I know you always spend the weekend here but me and Maya… well, we both miss you. Maya says you're always training in Kurain so she doesn't even get to see you much when she's there. And with Trucy not here either, the house is so quiet. I just think it'd be nice to spend the evening together."
Pearl was quiet for a second, almost as if gauging what he was saying. He was sure he didn't exactly sound super upbeat after what had just gone on with Maya, but there was no way he was going to burden Pearl with that information. "Aaw, Mr. Nick," she finally said. "I miss you guys, too. Sure, I'll come home with her tomorrow after she's done her channeling for the day."
"Great. I'll see you tomorrow, then."
"Alright. Have a good night, Mr. Nick."
"You too, Pearls. Night."
They hung up, and Phoenix set his phone down on the coffee table, feeling a little bit better. Hopefully Maya would feel better too, once she knew Pearl would be visiting. He wished Trucy was around to visit as well, but it would be another month or so before they would see her in person again.
When the pizza arrived half an hour later he took the entire box, some plates, and some napkins upstairs to their room. Maya was still asleep when he walked in, so he set the pizza on his nightstand and ran back downstairs to get some drinks. When he came back, Maya was shifting in bed, and he smiled. She had a nose like a hound when it came to food. He sat down on the bed beside her as she stretched and finally opened her eyes to blink up at him.
"I got food," he said.
"Pizza?" she said hopefully.
"Mhm. I brought it up here. Figured we could eat it in bed."
She smiled and sat up, fluffing her pillow behind her. "Sounds great."
He sat back against the headboard and handed Maya a plate. "I talked to Pearl, by the way," he said, bringing the entire box of pizza onto the bed with them.
"Oh? What did she want?"
"I called her, actually. She's going to come home with you tomorrow for dinner."
Maya looked at him, understanding dawning on her face. Then she smiled at him. "Thank you, Nick."
"What do you mean?" he said, starting to pick the mushrooms off of his slice of pizza.
"You called her because I said I miss her and Trucy. So thank you."
He leaned over to place a kiss on her temple. "You're welcome."
Pearl's visit the next night seemed to be just what Maya had needed. Even if it was only for a night, sitting down and eating dinner, then making some popcorn and watching a movie together on the couch, reminded Phoenix of their time together way back before he and Maya had even become a couple. When Pearl was still a little eight year old girl curled up between he and Maya and falling asleep with her head in his lap, and he and Maya carrying her to bed before finishing the movie themselves. Of course nowadays Pearl rarely fell asleep, and if she did they would simply wake her so she could go to bed herself.
Maya was in a good mood for the rest of the week, even after Pearl had gone home, at least up until the day of their follow-up doctor's appointment.
August 20th, 2030, 1:00 PM
Doctor's Office
Phoenix hated doctors, but as much as he hated them, he knew the tests and samples he had to give were nothing compared to the examinations Maya had to go through during their appointment a few days earlier. They gave him a cup and some magazines and sent him into a room, took some blood, did a physical. It was embarrassing, but it hadn't taken long. Maya on the other hand needed certain invasive examinations, blood tests, urine tests, all other manner of things. Not to mention the questions. There were so many questions.
It had taken a few hours altogether, and they left the office that day not really sure how to feel. The doctor told them it would take a few days for the tests to come back, and now here they were, sitting in his office again and waiting to be called back to hear the results.
Maya hadn't let go of his hand since arriving. They'd given their names to the secretary and Maya had clung to him the entire time.
"I'm nervous," she murmured to him quietly, looking around the office at the other waiting patients.
"Me too," he said. He hoped there would be no issue at all, that it would simply be something unexplainable and that the doctor would tell them to just keep trying. But part of him hoped that if there was some sort of issue, it would be with him. He couldn't bear the thought of this problem being something wrong with Maya. It would devastate her, and he knew she would blame herself. If there had to be something wrong, let it be his fault.
Everyone in the room turned to look when the door into the back of the office opened and a nurse poked her head out. "Mr. and Mrs. Wright?"
Maya squeezed his hand. Normally she would correct someone who called her "Mrs." but in this case, she didn't bother. They stood up together and followed the nurse to the doctor's office. They were only here for results, so no examinations were necessary.
The nurse opened the door and ushered them inside. The doctor was sitting at his desk and stood up to greet them as the nurse closed the door behind them. "Please have a seat," he said, indicating the two armchairs in front of his desk.
Maya sat down, pulling Phoenix by the hand. He lowered himself into the chair beside her and they both waited for the news.
The doctor folded his hands on top of his desk. "Thank you both for coming in today."
Maya nodded. "Please, just get right to it," she said, a little snappily. Phoenix didn't blame her. He'd rather skip the small talk, too.
"Of course," the doctor nodded. He turned to Phoenix. "Mr. Wright, your tests all came back fine—"
"So it's my fault then," Maya interrupted.
Phoenix turned to her. "Maya, it's no one's fault."
The doctor nodded. "Mrs. Wright—"
"Ms. Fey," she corrected. Phoenix could tell she was getting annoyed.
The doctor cleared his throat. "Ms. Fey. The issue we found is with your uterus itself. It appears to be abnormally shaped. It's smaller than normal and one side hasn't developed properly. It's congenital, meaning you were born with it. We also found that because of this abnormality, you only have one functioning fallopian tube. That obviously makes it more difficult to become pregnant."
Maya took a breath as she listened to the news, and Phoenix squeezed her hand. Again he wished this burden had fallen on him instead. Despite being something she was born with, something she couldn't help, he knew Maya would blame herself for it.
"So, what does that mean?" she asked. "Is it impossible to get pregnant? Is there anything I can do?"
"We can do surgery to help with the fertility issues, and if you do end up becoming pregnant we need to take measures to lower the risks of miscarriage or preterm delivery. Those are still risks, of course, so I advise you to think about those before you move on with any plans for surgery."
Maya looked at the floor. "Okay."
The doctor looked to Phoenix. "I'm sorry I don't have better news for you two."
Phoenix shook his head. "We're just glad we finally know. We'll talk it over at home. Thank you, doctor."
He nodded and looked at Maya, though her eyes were still downcast. "If you do decide on surgery, simply call to make another appointment. We can discuss it further at that time."
"Thank you, doctor," Phoenix said, letting go of Maya's hand to shake the doctor's. He stood up and turned to Maya. "Come on, Maya. Let's go home."
She got up, and he could see the look on her face before her fringe covered her eyes. She was trying not to cry. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders protectively and led her out of the office.
Their ride back to the country and their home was quiet, but for once it wasn't a comfortable silence between them. Phoenix wanted to say something, to comfort Maya in some way, but got the feeling that Maya didn't want that, at least not right now. So he sat beside her as she stared out the window, not a word being spoken between them.
August 20th, 2030, 3:30 PM
Fey-Wright Residence
When the taxi finally pulled up outside their home, Maya jumped from the car and headed inside without even waiting for him. Phoenix paid the driver and headed inside after her. By the time he made it in the door, Maya had already shed her shoes and had disappeared from the foyer.
He took his time taking off his own shoes and coat. He wasn't sure whether he should go to her or not, but in the end decided he had to. They couldn't be divided over this, they had to stay strong together.
He headed upstairs, knowing already that Maya would be in their bedroom. When he opened the door into their room, he found Maya lying on the bed, her back to the door. He said nothing as he crawled onto the bed beside her and wrapped his arm around her waist. "Maya… Do you want to talk about it?"
She took a shaky breath. "Not really. I just… want to sleep for now."
"Can you turn around?"
"Why?"
"I want to look at you."
She sighed, but started to shift so she could turn onto her other side. He saw a single tear slide down her face as she turned. He used a thumb to wipe it away. "It'll be okay, Maya. This isn't the end of the world."
"Yeah. I know."
He brushed her hair from her face as fresh tears welled in her eyes, and she shifted closer to him, tucking her head beneath his chin. He tightened his arms around her and let her cry until she finally fell asleep.
When Phoenix woke a few hours later, Maya wasn't with him any longer. He was surprised at how long he slept, apparently the day had been more tiring for him than he thought. He could smell food and got up, deciding to head downstairs to see what Maya was cooking.
When he turned into the kitchen Maya was standing over the stove stirring a pan of rice mixed with chicken and vegetables.
Maya glanced towards him as he entered. "You're awake."
"Mm. How long have you been up?" he said, coming into the kitchen to sit on one of the stools at the island counter.
"Half an hour, maybe. I was hungry."
"Smells good."
"Thanks."
He tapped his fingers against the counter. "Maya."
"What?"
"Are we going to talk about this?"
"I'd rather not."
"We need to."
She set her wooden spoon down on the stove and turned towards him. "Fine. I want to get the surgery," she said. Phoenix swallowed. He was afraid of that. Maya pursed her lips. "You don't approve. I can tell."
"I just hate the idea of you being cut open and then even if the surgery is a success and you do get pregnant it'll still be high risk. You could have a miscarriage or our baby could be born prematurely. If either of those things happened… Maya, do you really think you could handle that? Losing a baby after trying so hard to have one?"
"The doctor said we could take precautions."
"Precautions, Maya. It's not a for sure thing they'll work. I know you really want a baby, but is it worth the risks?"
She turned back to the stove and turned it off. "I don't know, Nick. Maybe."
"Ultimately it's your choice. It's your body. I just think you should think about it a little longer. And remember that there are other ways to have kids. Pearls and Trucy are proof of that, and they're no different than a biological child."
She was beginning to spoon out the stir fry onto some plates. "I know that."
She brought their plates over and set his in front of him, handing him a fork and napkin. She sat down on the stool beside him and began to eat.
In the almost fifteen years he'd known her, the only time he ever felt uncomfortable around Maya was that very first night they met, when he found her crying over her sister's dead body. There was never a moment after that, even when they'd barely known each other, that he'd been uncomfortable around her.
He was uncomfortable now. Maya was eating, shovelling her food into her mouth quickly, and he got the feeling she was trying to finish as fast as possible so she could get away from him and their conversation. He picked up his own fork and began to eat, much more slowly than her.
They said nothing until Maya was finished. She grabbed her plate, set it in the sink, and turned back to him. "Nick, I think I'm going to go to Kurain for the night."
He looked up at her, blinking. "What? Why?"
"To think things over. I just… want to be near my family."
"I am your family."
"You know what I mean, Nick. I want to see Pearly again. You can come if you want to."
He shook his head, not wanting to believe that Maya would simply flee back to Kurain after one bit of bad news. She didn't want to be around him right now, he could tell. "No, I think it's pretty clear you'd rather I didn't."
"It has nothing to do with you," she said. "I'm just tired of this big, empty house. I want to go somewhere where it's more lively, just for the night."
He found himself unable to look her in the eye, so he stared down at the countertop. "Whatever you need, Maya."
"Are you mad?"
"No," he said. It was true, he wasn't mad. He was hurt, though he tried not to show it.
She stepped towards him and leaned in to kiss him on the temple, as if her show of affection would make everything better. She ran her hand over his hair. "I'm gonna go pack a bag."
He nodded. "Alright."
She left the room, and he finished his dinner. Maya was back downstairs a few minutes later with a small duffel bag. She'd called a taxi while she got ready, and they were outside and waiting by the time he was finished eating.
She entered the kitchen again as he was washing their dishes.
"I'm going now, Nick. Are you sure you don't want to come?"
"I'm sure," he said, not even turning around. "When will you be back?"
"Tomorrow night, probably."
"Alright."
"I'll see you tomorrow."
"Mhm."
"I love you," she said.
"Love you, too."
With that she said no more. She left out the front door and he went to the kitchen window to watch the taxi drive away. She hadn't even kissed him goodbye.
He turned from the window and stood there in the silence. Without Maya, the house felt even bigger, and even emptier. He understood Maya's need to go be with Pearl, but he still felt hurt that being here with him wasn't good enough for her.
He finished the dishes and went to the living room to watch TV. Knowing that Maya was going to see Pearl made him want to call Trucy, but it would be early morning in Khura'in, so he couldn't, which hurt almost as much as Maya leaving for night.
If Maya thought she was the only one who hated how empty the house felt without Trucy and Pearl around, she was dead wrong.
A/N: I know, I know, they need to talk to each other like adults. But before anyone accuses me of giving the characters stupid pills (like another kind reviewer did on a certain other fan fic of mine) please try to remember that people in real life react to news like this in different ways, too. It'll be resolved, eventually.
