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Chapter Twenty

The words "You're pregnant" hung in the air, then seemed to drop on Michonne like a ton of bricks, shocking and baffling her. Surely she'd hadn't heard the doctor correctly. She tried to reason with herself, but the looks on the doctor and Mike's faces destroyed her reasoning. Michonne suddenly felt sick and scared, then a flush of heat, nearly overwhelming her with lightheadedness. She lay back on the bed, closing her eyes, swallowing back the nausea, willing the faint feeling to fade, before she finally managed to speak, asking Mike to leave, confusing the doctor. Mike was reluctant to go, but Michonne strongly made her request again, staring him down, stopping short of ordering him to leave when he complied, leaving the room.

"What do you mean I'm pregnant?" Michonne asked the doctor, after the door closed behind Mike. "That can't be right."

"We ran the test twice to be sure Ms. Mitchell. You're about 5-6 weeks pregnant."

"That's not possible." She disputed. "I'm on the pill."

"Were you taking it consistently?"

"Yes." Michonne contended without hesitation. Though her schedule was busy, she always took her birth control religiously. "I take it like clockwork, every morning before my shower. I never skip a day."

"Have you had any surgeries over the past few weeks?" The doctor then asked.

"No."

"Have you recently taken any ant-viral medications or treatments for an infection?"

"I was on antibiotics about a month ago for a sinus infection."

"Then that's your culprit." The doctor declared. "Many antibiotics have been known to interfere with the effectiveness of birth control." He revealed, reminding Michonne of something she'd read years ago, unknowingly upsetting her more. She'd been finishing up her antibiotics when Rick was visiting. She'd been taking her last dose that first day, and that day was the only time they'd made love without protection.

"That still can't be right." She continued to deny. "I'm…on my period."

"Many women have some bleeding during their first trimester of pregnancy..."

"But not like this." She interjected, still not wanting to believe that she was pregnant.

"You're right." The doctor confirmed. "We did an ultrasound and found that you have a subchorionic hemorrhage, which is what's causing the pain and bleeding."

"What's that?" Michonne inaudible asked, still in shock about what she was learning, reluctantly starting accept her diagnosis.

"It's the accumulation of blood within the folds between the uterus andthe placenta that attaches the egg to the uterine wall. It can cause light to heavy spotting." He disclosed. "Most subchorionic bleeds resolve on their own, and women go on to have perfectly healthy pregnancies.However, the one we detected in your uterus is slightly more severe than what we usually see, which will account for the intense pain and bleeding you're having. As a result, I'm going to recommend you take bed rest for at least the next three weeks, to start off …"

"Three weeks?!" Michonne exclaimed, now thinking of the ramifications of being out of work for such a long period of time.

"This will provide your body with the time needed for the placenta to hopefully he…"

"I can't be on bed rest for three weeks." She rejected. "I have a life, work responsibilities, clients, projects…"

"Well you're going to have to put that on hold." The doctor sternly instructed. "Otherwise, you could lose this baby." He said. "Do you have an OBGYN?"

"I do." Michonne quietly replied, dropping her eyes, finding this all so unbelievable, then provided her OBGYN's name.

"Okay. I'll send your ultrasound over to her." He said as he wrote down her doctor's name. "I recommend you do a follow up appointment with her immediately. Also, if you continue to encounter pain while on bedrest, you can take Tylenol. And of course, if the bleeding and pain gets worse, go to the emergency room." He advised. "Do you have any more questions for me?" When Michonne didn't answer the doctor continued. "There's two Tylenol on the stand next to your bed that you should take. It'll help with the pain." He directed. "I'll get your discharge papers and you'll be on your way home within the hour." The man said, then left the room.

Michonne did as the man instructed and took the Tylenol, while replaying those amazing three days with Rick in her mind. How one of those days, the one day they'd not used a condom, there had been a perfect storm within her body that had created…this situation. She emotionally thought, feeling terribly conflicted about having what someday she wanted, a child with the man that she loved, but not ready for this, not wanting it in this moment. With everything that was going on with work, the opportunity she had with the firm in New York and with her and Rick being broken up, the last thing she needed in her life right now was to be pregnant. Furthermore, it was too soon for this, even if she and Rick were together. It was too soon for them to be embarking on the huge commitment that was a child. They'd just started dating and were now, already broken up due to his wife being in the way.

"Fuck." Michonne silently sighed in frustration, angry at herself for not being more diligent in understanding the risks of the antibiotics she was taking, how the medicine would affect her birth control, but when she'd started the antibiotics she wasn't sleeping with anyone. So there was no concern about how it would affect the contraceptive she used. She mused in disbelief, when she heard the door to her room open, prompting her to look up just as Mike entered.

"Chonne, you okay?" He asked after coming to stand at the end of the bed.

"Yeah." She uttered, no longer looking his way.

"The doctor said you should be released within the hour." He cautiously stated, but she still remained quiet, her eyes ahead. "Chonne, I know this is all a shock. I can see it on your face." He said. "I'm shocked, and I know that you're still trying to process this news, but I have to ask…is the baby mine?"

Rick and Shane collided with an intense violence, struggling against the feral in each other, driven by vengeance and ire, until Shane got the upper hand, shoving Rick into the nearby police car, punching him in the face, briefly incapacitating him, before he came at him again. However, Rick quickly regained his faculties and rolled away, just in enough time to miss another assault. Propelling himself off the car, he then came back at Shane, smashing him in the face, then in the stomach while pushing him against the side of the car, pinning him there, when his former friend fiercely struck back. Shane kneed him in the stomach while driving him away, then again slugged him in the face, nearly knocking him to the ground and moved to come for him once more, but Rick managed his pain and was ready, meeting Shane head on, forcing him back, before throwing another punch, that was weak due to the agony in his gut.

Nonetheless, it did the job, slowing Shane down and giving Rick a chance to fleetingly recover, before he pounced again, going on the offensive, pummeling Shane, relentlessly smashing him with his fist, until the man somehow regained a hint of his bearings and fought back, managing to land and unsuspecting blow on Rick, which in turn leveled the fight, heightened their fury and incited a ferocious battle of wills between them, that for an instant Shane won. Restraining Rick against a cruiser, he managed to clench his hands around Rick's throat, attempting to choke the breath from his lungs. His eyes were malevolent with rage, devastating and terrifyingly to Rick, whose furor and fortitude fueled his strength, granting him the ability to lift his knee and ram it into Shane's groin. The man instantly let go, groaning in anguish and wrath, giving Rick the opportunity to catch his breath when he just happened to turn his eyes to his former friend, watching and ready for him to attempt to resume the fight and was stunned to find him struggling to do the unthinkable. But by then, their colleagues and friends - other officers, had arrived on the scene and fiercely ordered Shane to stand down.

"What?!" Michonne uttered in shock, turning her eyes to Mike, frowning at his absurd question. "Why would you think…it's yours?" She asked. "We haven't been together in months."

"You're not answering my question." Mike declared with a hint of exasperation. "Chonne I know that you don't want children right now, but if this is my child…"

"Stop! Just stop!" She angrily interjected. "It's not yours!"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes!" Michonne exclaimed with irritation.

"Is it his?" Mike then asked with frustration and hurt.

"I won't discuss this with you." Michonne severely replied.

"Chonne…"

"You should go."

"You'll be released at anytime. I'm not leaving you here alone to try and figure out how to get home." Mike firmly spurned her request.

"I'll manage." She stated then slowly moved to exit the bed.

"Chonne."

"Mike. You have to stop." She sighed as she now sat on the side of the bed, still feeling a bit weak and nauseous, but at least the Tylenol was kicking in which was reducing the pain.

"I know." He sadly concurred, drawing her to turn surprised eyes to him, his words calming her irritation. "But I still love you, and I want to help." He then softly added.

"There's nothing you can do." Michonne rejected.

"There's plenty I can do." He earnestly countered. "But for now, let me at least take you home. Please Chonne." Michonne remained quiet, pondering his request, weighing her options. Her car was still at his office building. Uber wasn't an option, and she was not going to call one of her friends to pick her up. She couldn't deal with all of the questions they'd undoubtedly have. She just needed to get out of there. To get home where she could be alone and sort this all out in her head, and Mike was the simplest option for doing that.

"Ok." She tiredly conceded, even though she really just wanted to decline his assistance, not wanting to encourage his feelings. "But can you also do something else for me?"

"Anything."

"Don't tell anyone what you've learned here today." She stated, holding his gaze. "No one can know my situation."

"Chonne, what are you going to do?" Mike asked with concern.

"Are you going to keep it secret or not?"

"You know I will." He vowed. "But I'm worried for you."

"Don't be." She said.

"You can't do this alone."

"I didn't say I was."

"I don't see…him, anywhere." He challenged, his tone bitter, revealing the anger he'd so skillfully hidden up until that point.

"Mike"

"I'm sorry." He then quickly, gently apologized upon hearing Michonne's displeased response. For a moment she didn't reply to his remorse, for she was observing the turmoil within him that he was trying now so hard to press down, knowing that she shouldn't get him involved, but right now she needed him, at the very least, to help her keep this situation quiet.

"If anyone asks…" She then slowly began reminding him of what was most important to her right now. What she needed him to do without fail. "what happened today, just tell them I have a severe case of the flu."

"Whatever you want me to say, I'll say it." He agreed.

"Thank you."