Faith nodded.
"What's a few?" Xander asked. He was standing beside her, and had been doing most of the talking. Faith was just staring at the little vial of blood that rested on her chart. A small glass jar that held the key, that would predict how her future would go.
The doctor smiled reassuringly, and Faith felt a little better. Which was odd. That stuff didn't usually affect her. What if it was because the pregnancy was starting to mess with her hormones?
"Probably four at the most," the doctor said. "Usually two or three, though. Nervous?"
Faith and Xander nodded in unison.
"Well," Dr. Mendes said, "that's perfectly natural. Every couple is usually nervous about their first. And, you two aren't even the youngest we've had, you're at least old enough to take care of yourselves. I had a girl in here last month, she was fourteen years old. And she didn't know who the father was." He shook his head. "She had a couple of parents who could help her, though. They were pretty loaded. I get the feeling you two aren't that lucky?"
Faith and Xander shook their heads. "My parents… well, they don't know we're here," Xander said. "Not that they'd help if they did. Not like they could if they wanted to."
Dr. Mendes nodded sympathetically, and looked to Faith for her explanation. She looked down at the ground. "Gone," she said. "Better off, too."
Dr. Mendes looked at Xander questioningly. Xander simply shrugged.
"Well," Dr. Mendes said, "there's really no need to plan ahead yet, not until we get these results back." He waved them along behind him, and they followed. "And don't worry. I'm sure everything will turn out just fine."
"Thanks, Doctor," Xander said. Faith felt him move to encircle her waist with his arm, but he pulled away before making contact. The doctor put Faith's chart and her blood sample down on the nurse's desk.
"We'll call you in a few days," Mendes said, before returning to his office. Faith stood idly by as Xander paid the nurse in cash for the visit and the lab work. She allowed Xander to lead her out the door. As they were leaving, a man in a leather coat and a fedora bumped into Faith.
"Sorry," the guy said, in a fairly heavy New York accent, and a tone that didn't sound apologetic at all. "My fault."
Xander nodded, and Faith followed him back to her apartment. She didn't see the man in the fedora whistle his way into the doctor's office, and she certainly didn't see him pull a vial of blood from his shirt pocket and slip quietly and stealthily behind the nurse's desk when nobody was watching.
Willow was pacing. She didn't usually pace, but she was nervous. More nervous than normal. Not that she was normally nervous, it was just that, when she got nervous, she wasn't usually as nervous as this, and sometimes she got pretty nervous, especially when there was a prophecy or a particularly nasty demon.
Or that time at Christmas she had basically thrown herself at Oz. That one probably trumped this. Only just barely, though.
The elevator dinged, and Xander and Faith stepped out into the hallway. Xander looked somewhat relieved to see her. Faith just looked drained.
"How did it go?" Willow asked, wringing her wrists as Faith unlocked her door.
"Fine," Faith said. She opened the door, and Willow and Xander both followed her in.
"What did the doctor say?" Willow asked.
"Your basic stuff," Xander said. "How long has it been since her… you know… and how long since we… and a few other things. He said we should have the results by Friday at the latest."
"Good," Willow said. "That's good. I-I talked to Buffy. Not about this… well, not directly, but… anyway, the point is, she said she misses her period occasionally, too. Sometimes by as much as two months. She just doesn't worry about pregnancy, though, because… no sex. I guess the Slayer thing really does mess with your physiology. Anyway, I just thought… ray of hope."
"How'd you pass it off?" Xander asked. He looked worried about Faith, who looked pale.
"Uh… I said I read about it in a Watcher's Diary, and was wondering if it happened to her," Willow said. "I'm pretty sure she believed me."
Faith nodded, distractedly. "Are you okay?" Willow asked her.
Faith looked up at her, her eyes wide and her skin pale. Her lips had lost almost all of their color. "I could be pregnant," she whispered. "I swore to myself I wasn't gonna be like her, but here I am. Seventeen and knocked up, no education… no job, a lifestyle that's gonna put me in an early grave. And now I might got a kid on the way."
"I think that you—"
"No," Faith said, rising to her feet. She rushed into her room and started throwing some clothes into a bag. "This isn't going to happen."
Willow and Xander followed her into the bedroom. "Where are you going?" Xander asked.
"I – no, this can't happen," Faith said. She continued stuffing things into the bag. "I'm not gonna be like her. I won't." She went to the dresser, pulled one drawer all the way out of its slot and grabbed a wad of cash that was taped to the back of it.
"Wait, you can't leave," Willow said.
"Oh yeah?" Faith asked. "Watch me."
"Where are you going to go?" Xander asked.
"Away," Faith said. "It's not the 'to' that's important, it's the 'from.'"
"Faith," Willow said.
"You can't stop me," she said, as she bolted from the room.
"You can't run from this," Willow called after her, as she left the apartment.
"She seems to be doing a pretty good job," Xander muttered.
"You can't out run something like this," Willow yelled, chasing her down the hall, Xander a step behind her. "And if you leave now, you'll just be dealing with it alone!"
Faith pulled up in her tracks at the elevator.
"What the hell do you think I'm doing now?" she asked, rapidly pressing the call button for the elevator.
"Gee, I don't know, running from the people who are trying to help you?" Willow said. "Yeah, that's a great idea when you're pregnant. Leave behind anybody who wants to help, leave the guy who ate his pride and asked Giles for money, who has been trying to help you since this started. Yeah, leave behind the guy who is the father of your child. Who will still be the father of your child, even if the kid gets born in some back-alley slum."
"This isn't about him!" Faith yelled.
"Of course it's not about him, it's about the baby!" Willow replied. "That baby in you is half Xander, and if you think I'm going to miss a chance to spoil Xander's kid rotten, you've got another think coming! It's going to get the best care money can provide. The Scoobies are going to be here for you on this. We take care of our own. Not always in the best ways, or the smartest, but we sure as heck don't give up. We are going to help you, Faith, and you're just going to have to deal with it. You're not alone in this, and you're not going to be, so quit spazzing out like a scaredy-Slayer and go back to the apartment!"
Willow could see Xander trying to hide a smile, and realized she had inadvertently gone 'resolve face' on Faith. Faith stood there, almost in a state of shock. Willow guessed that girls didn't usually have the courage to stand up to her, partly because she had the 'bad girl' vibe, and partly because of the hotness.
And now Willow had chewed her out twice in as many days. That had to be at least a little impressive.
"Come on," Xander said softly, reaching out to take the bag from Faith. His hand wrapped over hers, and drew her eyes down to the connection. Faith released the bag, and Xander's hand, then looked at Willow. She nodded once, and followed Xander back to the apartment.
"You know," Xander said, "we don't even know for sure that she's pregnant." Faith was lacking energy, and had gone to bed for a quick nap before patrol, leaving Xander and Willow to, presumably, let themselves out. They hadn't, yet.
"Xander," Willow said, "do you know how rare it is for those tests to give a false positive? False negatives, sure, not often, but occasionally. False positives are… they pretty much don't happen."
"Yeah, but this is the Hellmouth," Xander said. "Anything can happen."
"Xander, the Hellmouth doesn't change biology."
"So, being an invisible girl is biologically normal? Or, you know, the swim team turning into fish people? Or lycanthropy?"
"Okay fine," Willow said. "So the Hellmouth does mess with biology. But still, it's really rare! The odds are… astronomical."
Xander shrugged. "I'm just saying… it's not a sure thing."
"I think you're better off assuming that it is," Willow said. "It's not something you want to be caught unprepared for."
Xander sighed. "I know. But, even if she is pregnant, it'll still be, like…"
Willow smiled at him. "Just under eight months. Which means –"
"December," Xander said, his voice full of awe. "I could be a father by December. Faith could be a mother by December. Jesus."
"Jesus?" Willow asked. "Xander, I don't think there was anything immaculate about this conception."
Xander laughed, a smile returning to his face. Willow smiled proudly at him.
"Anyway, don't you think it would make sense to start planning now?"
Xander nodded silently.
"Okay," Willow said, gathering her things. "Well, come on. My mom has a list of local doctors, and ratings based on patient inquiries. We can try to choose at least a few, and then Faith can decide once you're, you know, sure."
"Yeah," Xander said. "But, I'll drop by later. After patrol. If that's okay."
"Why?" Willow asked.
Xander shrugged and looked at the door to Faith's bedroom. "I want to be here when she wakes up."
Willow looked confused. "Why?"
Xander looked up at her very sincerely, and said, "Because it's time that somebody was."
Faith lay in her bed. She wasn't asleep. They thought they were being quiet, but they weren't. Not to a Slayer. With her eyes closed, facing away from the door, she knew exactly where in the apartment they were, what they were saying, what direction they were facing… how hard the soles of their shoes were.
And she would never admit it to anybody, but her eyes were wet. Willow, who had no reason at all to like her – had in fact made it clear that she didn't – was doing everything she could to make sure the child Faith was carrying – and Faith was sure, now, that she was carrying it – would be cared for. Would, in fact, have every possible advantage they could muster.
And Xander… what the hell was his deal? 'Because it's time that somebody was?' People didn't talk like that. People didn't even think like that, but Willow had just accepted it, like that was the way that he was.
And she knew him better than anybody alive or dead, even including his parents. Not that that surprised her, of course. Her mom hadn't known shit about her, and Faith had never met her dad. Some doped up loser with just enough blow to get her mom high, if the old lady wasn't lying.
No reason she should lie, though. She'd never exactly been one for painting pretty pictures out of life, just hanging on long enough to find a guy who'd pay the rent. Faith had been looking after herself since she was seven, and until she'd met Linda, her first watcher. It had taken a while, but she knew Linda had genuinely cared for her.
And then Linda had died. That son-of-a-bitch Kakistos had done… what he'd done, and Faith had just run away. To Sunnydale. Determined not to care about anyone, nor let anybody care about here.
And now here was this guy who said shit like "Because it's time that somebody was." Whose best friend in the entire world just accepted that he thought like that. Same best friend which had very recently claimed that the guy in question was starting to fall for Faith.
For the second time in as many hours, Faith was afraid. And not afraid because of something that was real, but because of something that might be. A what-if. What if she was pregnant? But then, people were going to help her deal with that. The other what-if was truly terrifying.
Here was a guy, a good guy – if such a thing existed – who by the only account that mattered was genuinely attracted to her, and the scary part was… what? She was attracted to him? That wasn't it. Sure, he was pretty nice to look at, and not half-bad in bed – could be a real tiger with some practice – but attracted? To him? Not in any serious way, certainly. So what was so scary?
The possibility, she decided. What if… what if she did become attracted to him? She was trying this new thing of being honest with herself, and the truth was, she wasn't attracted to him. But she could be. If he kept hanging around, if he kept doing that sort of half-smiling thing every time he got her to laugh, if he kept being an honest-to-God nice guy who seemed to genuinely care?
How could she not at least consider it?
"Okay," she heard Xander say. "Well, keep the balcony open. I'll be by after patrol."
"Okay," Willow said as she opened the apartment door. "And listen…"
"Yeah?"
"I just… be careful, okay?"
"On patrol? Come on, I'll be with two Slayers."
"No, I mean… with…"
Faith heard the floor creak as Xander shifted his weight from one foot to the other. He had turned toward her bedroom door.
"Why would you say –" he started to ask.
"Because I know you. And I know… how you work. I'm not saying anything, I'm just saying… be careful. Please?"
"I don't think anything…. Okay, Will. I'll be… careful."
A second later, Willow shut the door behind her, leaving Xander alone in Faith's apartment. He walked over and… Jesus. He was doing her dishes. Faith honestly wasn't sure what to think. After the dishes, he sat on her couch and watched television.
An hour later, after lying on her bed the entire time, practicing her own form of voyeurism and introspection, Faith was once again ready to face the day. Night. Whatever.
"Hey, sleepyhead," Xander greeted her as she left her room. "How was the power nap?"
"Good," she said. "Where's Red?"
"Had to go home," Xander said. "Homework and stuff. She's a brainy one." As if Faith didn't know the truth. He didn't really tell her why Willow was leaving, so why should she tell him she already knew? Right?
Bullshit.
"How come you're still here?"
Xander shrugged, and turned back to the TV. Faith walked over behind him. "Hey," she said, causing him to turn around and look up at her. "How come you're still here?"
Xander looked into her eyes, and she had to stop her self from shivering. "You looked shaken up earlier," he said. When did his voice get so calm and reassuring? "I thought you could use a friend."
Faith looked at him for a moment, before getting a glass of water to wet her suddenly dry throat. "So," she said. "You wanna grab some food before patrol?"
"Sure," Xander said. He hopped up from the couch and turned the TV off. He smiled at her warmly. "Wherever you want to go. My treat."
Faith nodded, grabbed her keys and led him out of the apartment. They were going to get food, she thought. What then?
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End Chapter 9