Temari glides her hand on her lower stomach and breathes slowly, she's caressing the thing that was conceived inside. Her mind was battling if she will abort it or not but her heart screams raising it, yearning for the child that she hasn't met yet. Two options are running through her mind right now, abort it and get married to her fiancé or raise it alone. Temari remembered his last words, Shikamaru's last word.

I give up

He's done with her and she knows it's her fault. She picked up her phone and starts searching for the details about two months pregnancy.

Results:

At 2 months, the baby is about the size of a raspberry. Human features are starting to develop: eyes, a nose, a mouth, and ears are growing on the outside...Your baby's heart is now beating 80 times a minute. Your little one's heart has already started to fully form.

"You've got a heart" she said slowly and in a low voice

"You have a heart now" Temari squeezed her eyes shut and starts breathing heavily "I guess I cannot let you go" Her heart felt relieved, she knows she couldn't do it.

She went to her fiancé and call the marriage off. Temari meets Taku, her fiancé, and told him to cancel the wedding. It was during college when she starts dating him. He's attractive and most of the girls want him in college, and Temari felt lucky that he chose her. What really captured her was his black hair, lazy eyes, his posture, and he was smart, a street-wise smart. Shikamaru was right, she was lying to herself. Taku was heartbroken when she called the marriage off, her brothers backed her up and revealed she was pregnant.

Gaara and Kankuro supported her, she decided to raise it alone. Her brothers swore to love and protect her unborn child. Temari felt relieved once again but there was a guilt in her heart that keeps emerging, someday her child will ask about him, about its father, about Shikamaru.

Temari visited an OB/GYNs clinic but unfortunately there are only a few specialists in Suna, she was advised to try a specialist in Konoha since they have equipment for laboratories and devices for viewing. Temari has no choice but to go there, to Konoha.

She lay in her bed contemplating before going to sleep. Her hands start caressing her stomach.

"Hey fetus, are you listening to mommy?"

"Are you ready to see the world? Mommy promise that she'll do anything for you. No one can hurt you"

"Will you get mad if I kill your father? He did this to us…..But hey, atleast you're here"

"You're the only thing that I can call mine, you're mine fetus"

"I love you even if I haven't met you. Mommy loves you"

"Why do I feel that you will look exactly like your father?"

"I really hope you'll get some of my features you know, how about my eyes? Do you like teal eyes?" She smiled at the idea that was running through her mind, she imagined the image of her future child.

"Goodnight fetus, tomorrow you'll see Konoha. We need to get checked"

She rides the train going to Konoha. It was a four hours ride and most of the time she was sleeping in her cabin. She can feel her breast was a little swollen and felt dizzy which was added due to riding a train, craving weird foods, and the famous morning sickness. When she arrived in Konoha, Temari immediately went to the hospital to find a specialist. She bumps into Sakura in the hospital who was working there, Sakura didn't ask, she knows when she saw Temari walking through the hall of OB/GYNs, she understands and respects the patient's confidentiality. They had a small conversation then Temari went straight to the specialist after.

She had a few laboratory tests, had a physical test, and was given a prescription full of pre-natal medicines. She'll meet the specialist again next month. After her test, she went to Konoha lake and seated on one of the benches there. It was the same bench they seated on five years ago, the one where she gave the knitted green scarf to him.

After a few minutes, she heard someone walking behind her. Temari was startled when she saw Shikamaru, panting and catching his breath like he was running. Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped to the floor, suddenly her throat constricts. Did Sakura?

"Why are you here? You're supposed to marry this week?" Shikamaru said, breathless while holding his knees.

"Ah, uhmm" She mumbled, her head turned around once again to the river she was staring "Did Sakura tell you that I'm here?"

"Yeah, she said you're in the hospital. What are you doing in the hospital here? In Konoha?" He walked towards her, standing in front of the bench she was sitting.

"What else did she say to you?" Her eyes narrowed, fearing that Sakura did spill some information on him

"Nothing, she just said you're here"

Temari felt relieved, she taught they might suspect about her pregnancy. She was avoiding his eyes "Yup, I'm here"

"Why? I thought you were going to marry this week?" His eyes were begging for an answer, there was a part of him that he wanted to know, he wanted to risk.

"How did you know that I'm supposed to be married this week?"

"I know a lot of things about you more than you know yourself Temari"

"I call the wedding off" She said in a low voice, still avoiding his stare. Shikamaru didn't move his gaze at her.

"W-Why?" He smiled and his face was visibly brightened.

There's a sudden silence between them after that. Shikamaru did not pry her anymore, hearing about her calling the wedding off is all he needed to know.

"I thought you gave up on me? Why are you here? Why are you still looking for me?"

"Just like you said, I also lied"

"You're an idiot"

"I know and I hate it. You're the only one who's making me an idiot you know"

"Is this something new about you? Being corny?"

"Shut up. Here, it's for you" Shikamaru hands the white hardcover book with gold paint on the leaves bearing the title Anna Karenina.

"Wait? Is this?"

"Yeah, I've been convincing the bookshop to buy this one for a long time. It's hard to get but it's worth it. I'm supposed to give it to you last time since you returned here three months ago"

Temari gasped as she slides her fingers to the marvelous book. Her eyes wander to the beauty of it while Shikamaru smiled at her, seeing her mesmerized.

"Why did you get this for me?" She looked up from where he was standing, she was surprised and happy about his gift.

"Well, I realized that I wasn't able to get you a gift since you gave me the green-knitted scarf. I felt I need to have something in return"

"You don't have to"

"I want to and look…it's the same bench we seated the last time. Coincidence?"

"Yeah, it's weird"

"Remember the story I said before, in Anna Karenina? Konstantin Levin? That he will do everything just to get the girl that he wanted to marry? He's willing to suffer just to get her Yes?"

"Yeah" She snorted

"I can see myself being a Levin to you, you know that?"

"You're fucking corny" She laughed and moved her gaze to the other side "It's funny cause I can relate to Anna Karenina too"

"What?" He curiously asked while standing in front of her.

"That she left her husband to be with her younger lover, the one she truly loved" Her eyes stared at him, hoping that he understands what her heart was shouting.

Shikamaru grabbed her hands and smiled while he moistens his lips "You- You love me? Did you leave your fiancé for me? Is that what you're saying?"

"I hate to admit but It's always been you, It's you Shikamaru"

His face looked like a kid in a candy store, he was beyond happy hearing those words from her. Shikamaru kneeled on the grass, in front of where she was sitting.

"Temari, I'm sorry I don't have any ring on me now, I promise I'll buy you a ring. But I want to ask you these words, for a long time I've been waiting for this moment, you don't know how long I waited for this. I've been spending sleepless nig-"

"Oh c'mon, spit it out!" She shrieked. The hormonal imbalance she has made her irritation double.

"Oh right, uhm Temari will you marry me?" He said in a low and pleading voice.

"You know I cannot say No to that"

"So, it's a yes?"

"Yes, I don't have any choice dummy"

"What do you mean you don't have any choice?" His eyebrows furrowed as he curiously asked her.

Temari stands up and grabbed his left hand, she placed it in her stomach "You're going to be a father"

"You-You're pregnant? And I'm the father?" He stuttered and his hands began to quiver. It was such a big news to him.

"Yeah Idiot, you forgot to pull out!"

Shikamaru's heart was jumping with happiness. He grabbed her waist gently and pulled her closer and whispered words into her ear.

"I love you Temari, I'm going to protect you and our child. I swear to all heavens I'm going to protect you both. You don't know how happy I am right now"

He placed a gentle kiss on her lips and her forehead, Temari smiled at him.

A/N: Thank you for reading this one :) Yup, 15 chapters it is.

I have a new one shot story btw the My Scarred Knight, its my fave. I'm not promoting it or anything but *cough cough* if you're looking for some Shikatema fluff story i'd recommend that one. I love writing it ;D