The nausea had been the first sign. Actually, that was an understatement. What she had assumed to be the worst stomach flu ever had been the precursor. At one point, she had thought it would be a good idea to go to the hospital and, to be sure, Scarlett never needed a doctor. Ever. In fact, with this exception, she couldn't remember the last time she had been so sick, with the exception of a cold here and there.

But soon after this, she had eaten a few crackers, never expecting them to stay down and it had calmed a bit. So she ate some more. And drank some Gatorade. To her surprise, she was ready to go to work the next morning.

The nausea never went completely away. But she had never been one to complain just because she didn't "feel" good.

Then there was the fatigue. She was so tired all of the time now. She was sad too, because Rhett was busy still in his new life in Atlanta. So she had flippantly attributed this to her melancholy and forgotten it.

Then the constant peeing...which could have been anything really. And then there had been that one time when she had gotten into a cab and when the driver had asked her where she was headed, she had completely forgotten where she was going.

All these things hadn't seemed too peculiar to Scarlett. But then, she had always needed things to be shoved right into her line of vision for her to notice.

That "shoved" moment came on a Saturday, when she slipped on a pair of jeans...

...and they wouldn't button!

She had tugged and tugged and when they continued to resist, she threw herself on the bed and cried. The tears had come so easy and after a minute of sobbing she had a tiny twinge in her brain. An idea...barely.

Could she...?

No, she immediately dismissed. She was on the pill. Had been for years. Even before Rhett. She never missed a day. But that feeling... Maybe she would buy a test just to ease her mind.

That same morning, she stood over the toilet and, in horror, had watched as not just one but two lines appeared inside the indicator: one bright pink and one, a faint line.

No.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no...

There were two tests in the box and she took the second as well. Two lines.

She was shaking as she made the trip down the elevator of her apartment building to the convenience store on the corner. She bought the most expensive test they had. Maybe the others were just cheap tests and weren't accurate. This one was digital. Much more reliable, surely.

Ten minutes later, a digital happy face smiled up at her. She sunk down on the toilet in utter shock.

Pregnant.

Never had she ever, even in her wildest dreams, considered getting pregnant. Much less actually having a baby. Babies were...time consuming. Messy. They could be cute, if they looked a certain way and if they weren't screaming. However, a baby was something that Scarlett O'Hara had never wanted. And Scarlett had definitely never wanted a child, which is what babies inevitably grew into. And here she was. Pregnant.

A wave of panic overtook her and immediately she thought, I need to take care of this. I can take care of this. While she was a Catholic, she didn't think that she was above making this very necessary decision. Even if it was one that the church would forcifully disagree with. She immediately picked up the phone and began searching for a local clinic. If she could get in to see a doctor today then she could get this process started. It could be all over much sooner than later. It could all be an unspeakable nightmare. She paused as she thought of Rhett. Should she tell him? Shouldn't he know?

She dismissed the idea. This was her body. Her decision. Her life. And anyway, she didn't think that he would be happy to hear it or feel any differently than she did. And she didn't want to put any strain on them right now. They had so little time with each other anymore... Their lives were too new together and too new apart to have to deal with this too.

Really, she was doing them a favor.

She did get an appointment for that morning. The clinic was spotless and smelled clean. The smell made her senstive stomach lurch.

"Good afternoon, Miss," the doctor looked down at the clipboard, "O'Hara." The blonde-haired lady smiled a wide smile and it did nothing to comfort Scarlett.

The clinic did some tests of their own and, for some reason, it felt more official hearing it directly from a doctor. When she was asked if this was a pregnancy she wanted to keep, she simply shook her head. There was no judgment in their gaze. They began to explain what they were going to do. What she could do when she got home.

"Before we do anything else though, we want to see how far along you are. We are just going to do a quick ultrasound." The doctor informed her. Only a few minutes went by before they directed her to a new room. They tried to make her feel more comfortable, angling her away from the screen, so she wouldn't be forced to see the fetus...

But she turned and looked anyway.

She saw the fuzzy picture on the screen. Could see where the had circled the tiny, bean like embryo. Seven weeks along.

All she could think of was Rhett.

She and Rhett had come together and made this tiny thing in their most intimate, glorious moments. She thought of the last weekend they had spent together, locked up in his apartment for most of the day. That had resulted in this.

In an instant, she visualized the tiny bean as a baby, then a toddler, then a child and teenager. It wasn't as repulsive as she had originally thought. The creature she saw wasn't one of those snotty, sniffling babies that she had seen in the past. But a dark skinned, dark haired creation, with eyes so black they seemed translucent.

This was Rhett's baby. This was their baby. They hadn't hooked up or had a fling. They were in a committed relationship. He deserved to know. Deserved to decide.

As she walked out of the clinic, she began to cry...again. This time, they were tears of absolute amazement.

She had found a flight with an App Rhett had installed on her phone while she headed back to her apartment. She only had about thirty minutes to pack before she had to head to the airport.

She couldn't tell Rhett this over the phone. And she could be back in time for work on Monday. If nothing else she would explain to Richard and she was sure that he would understand.

The flight was only two hours long and it was the longest two hours of her life. Once she arrived in Atlanta, she headed to Rhett's apartment and, of course, he wasn't home. It was mid evening so she hadn't expected it. She waited for close to an hour before her impatience won out and she called a cab.

It had taken her a few minutes to find out exactly where he was in the large, high rise office. She spotted him in a glass in-cased conference room before the irritatingly attractive secretary announced Scarlett's arrival. HIs gaze whipped in her direction. His eyes took her in hungrily as a smile stretch those unbeliebably sexy lips. How had it been seven weeks since she had seen his face. God, she had missed him. Had she even told him how much? There were alot of things that she hadn't told him...

But as he exited the room, she watched as his face gave way to his concern. She was certain that he was confused by her presence and, naturally, assumed it wasn't good news that brought her here. Maybe it wasn't...

When he stepped across the threshold, into the large office area and was breathing the same air she was, she seized up. He was so close she could smell him. He reached for her, gripping her face between his hands in that impossibly gentle way he did. She could see that he wanted to kiss her. Ravish her. It was all very plain on his face, along with his delight. But he merely bent down, and kissed her cheek before saying cheerfully, "Scarlett!" He gripped her shoulder and began ushering her away from the conference room towards a hallway of doors.

They passed through the hallway and at the end were two large double doors. Rhett turned around, addressing someone behind them and Scarlett realized it was the same woman that had announced her to him moments before. She must be his secretary. Scarlett burned with jealous. If he weren't being so attentive to her (and if she hadn't seen clear envy in the secretary's eyes) she would have gladly questioned him as to why he had to hire someone who was as trampy as she was. But his eyes hadn't left her face since he had seen her and she didn't wish to have ruffled feathers when he looked so appealing and so close...

He ushered her through the doors, quickly shutting them and locking them, before advancing on her again. "Can't I really kiss you now?" He asked mischievously.

She grinned. "Perhaps on the forehead would be best." She was shaking for wanting to touch him and she was breathless.

His hands were in her hair as he breathed, "Fuck that", just before taking her lips with his own. She responded, wrapping her arms tightly around his shoulders, relishing in the power she could feel in them. Immediately, he gripped her bottom and hoisted her up onto his desk, his mouth continuing it's sensual assault. He was already ready for her, hard as a rock, even through his trousers. She wrapped her legs around his torso, rippling against him. He grunted and pulled away from her, putting some distance between them.

"You overestimate my control, my darling." He said, smoothing her hair back. "It's been seven weeks, baby. If I'm not careful, I'm liable to embarass myself." His voice was soft and husky with laughter. "God, I've missed you." His pulled back and face transformed. He was remembering that she was here and he still didn't know why. "While I am, as you can see, very pleasantly surprised to see you. It is still a surprise." He paused, his face full of concern and his eyes a bit guarded. "Is everything alright, honey?"

She thought about possibly making this more romantic...maybe building it up into more of a declaration than a statement of fact. But, as it usually did, her practicality won out and she simply blurted, "I'm pregnant."

Rhett's position didn't change. She didn't know whether she had expected violence or gentleness, but she hadn't expected this. Nothing. The only reaction she noticed in him from her announcement was in his eyes, suddenly light and flicking over her figure. His silence was baffling until it occured to her: he was waiting. Waiting to see her reaction. Waiting to see how she felt about this. As of yet, she didn't know why this could be. Maybe he didn't want his response to affect hers? Maybe she was totally wrong and he really was in shock? Rhett had probably not expected this anymore than she did, knowing she was on birth control.

A full minute went by before she started to speak, "I-" She stopped. Wow, now she couldn't speak either. Maybe they were both in shock.

The silence had felt so long that Scarlett jumped at the sound of his voice. "When did you find out?"

"Today." She grinned a little, hoping he would be amused by her eagerness. But his face was still imperceptible. "I haven't been feeling well for the past few weeks. And then, all of these strange things started to happen to me and I couldn't fit into my clothes and so I knew something was going on. I took a test just to ease my mind and it was positive. So I made an appointment. They did an ultrasound." She paused, unsure of what else to say. "They gave me pictures."

His eyes flicked over her face again. "Pictures?" She nodded, then reached into her purse and pulled out the little envelope. He flipped through the pictures, staring at each one for a long time. Still, he was a blank slate, even as his eyes snapped over the images. He lingered on the one with the circle around the embryo and the announcement "Congrats! Seven weeks along!" typed along the image. He looked up at her, a hot leaping light in his eyes. "You..." He cleared his throat, "...you are planning to keep it?"

"I am." She took a deep breath. His sudden vulnerablity made her want to be honest with him. "This morning I wasn't so sure. I actually went to a clinic so that I could...fix it. I wasn't even going to tell you." His face darkened but he said nothing. "I realized that would be wrong and when I saw the...the baby. I just couldn't do it." She was going to start crying again. Oh, how foolish pregnancy was going to make her! "It's yours too. So I thought that you should know and have an opportunity to make up your mind about...everything. But I have made up my mind. I am having it. I...want it."

"Why?" He simply stated.

"Because..." she paused, "because we made it."

He released a long breath at her admission, before putting the pictures on the desk and slowly wrapping his arms around her in an almost painful grip. "Is that ok?" she whispered.

He laughed, only tighening his grip. "Yes." He said simply.

With his answer came a memory. That picture of his nieces perched on his shoulders in his old office in New York.

Scarlett grinned widely and kissed his neck before burying her face into his neck.