Chapter 3

The first week of Ken's absence Jun keep herself busy running the snack J he managed to call her on a land line earlier in the week, the call lasted only minutes, since it had been a coin run phone somewhere desolate and the line kept cutting out. She missed her bracelet for making contact. Dr.Nambu had then hand them in to do up grades on them.

Still she couldn't shake the feeling of being constantly tired, and the smell of fish made her feel sick. Jun had begun to worry she'd picked up a tropical bug while she was on holidays with Ken.

So she decided to step out to the pharmacy to see if they had anything for the tiredness at least.

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Walking into the Pharmacy Jun began looking at the various drugs on the shelves. She looked at the pick-me-up drinks in the vitamin section, she'd tried them but they didn't seem to be working very well.

Moving on her eye caught the women's sanitary section. This made her frown and the she haltered. "When was the last time she needed those? She mused. She's had a very short period when she finished the last lot of contraceptive pills, the period had been very light and it only lasted a day. Still it was a cycle she thought. The home pregnancy tests were close by the sanitary items.

Jun's feet seem to automatically go over and she picked up a packet containing two of the tests. She read the blurb on the back-99 guaranteed accurate result in minutes positive or negative. She put it back on the shelf and turned and walked out of the shop. She wouldn't believe that was the reason for her tiredness.

Jun was half way back to the Snack J when an overwhelming nausea took over her; she hurried into a fast food outlets toilet and threw up. Standing in the cubical feeling another wave wash over her of nausea Jun thought about the pregnancy test again. This had been happening since she got back from her holiday with Ken.

After wiping her mouth and rinsing out the vile taste of vomit she made her way back to the Pharmacy, walking quickly to the women's section again she picked up the packet, and headed for the counter. Jun kept telling herself she was only doing the test to rule it out as reason for her illness.

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Racing inside the open door of the Snack J Jun managed to avoid Jinpei caught a glimpse of in the kitchen, she just didn't know if she could handle him until she ruled out the very thing she dared not to even admit to herself.

She followed the instructions and watched as the urine made its way across the test pad of the white stick in front of her.

Nerves began to build up inside of her. She began pacing her bathroom while she waited for the result. Twice she went to go and see what it was, and twice she backed away from it like it could explode if she even glances at the view section.

Finally she found walked over and looked at it, she felt her blood drain from her face she saw two blue lines that indicated positive. Jun collapsed onto the bathroom floor a myriad of emotions ran through her. Her fingers trembled so much she dropped the test onto the floor.

It had to be wrong! She thought so she took out the second test and did it again, a few minutes later she stared at the same result. Positive. She couldn't deny it and her world began to spin around her.

How did this happen? She thought, a lump rising to her throat while she put hand over her mouth back while she fought back numb tears.

A knock on the bathroom door jolted her out of her state of shock.

"Yes." she said trying to keep her voice even.

"Sis, what's taking you so long in there?" Jinpei sighed. "Aniki is on the phone…"

She managed to find her voice. "Ahhh…yeah Jinpei I'll be just a minute." Her heart pounding wildly Jun picked up the tests and the packaging and jammed them into a paper bag to throw it into her room so Jinpei couldn't find it.

She put her hand on the door knob, she wasn't ready to speak to Ken, not yet she had to find the right words. Jun closed her eyes for a moment as she turned the handle to leave the room and take Ken's call.

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Ken pulled in his light rain coat tighter. The drizzling rain didn't really bother him that much, nor did colder climate. But being away from Jun he did long to hear her voice and feel her warm touch. He missed her, and he never felt he could be like that. Total dedication to duty didn't have the same focus for him like it did when they were active as a team.

In the months since they destroyed Galactors headquarters he discovered a side of himself that he thought laid buried under layers of controlled emotions. Jun broke through them in a matter of weeks with her gentle touch and loving eyes, and how easy he found it to be with her.

He put another coin in the pay phone, the past week had been nothing but dead ends, he'd hired a car from funds Dr.Nambu gave him and he'd pulled up to on the side of the road.

"Ken," Jun soft voice came through the line, the rain had been cold, and Jun's voice warmed his heart.

"Jun, how are you." He asked trying not to shout into the static line.

"Fine and you…" She said. Her voice sounded hollow, like she was forcing herself to talk to him.

"Things are going slow- it looks like I'll need another week." He dreaded saying that to her, knowing he promised to be home the phone call in a few days.

"Oh…ahhh." She hesitated. Ken's ears sharpened to her tone. She wasn't happy about something.

"Jun is everything Okay there." He said trying to figure out why she sounded do odd.

"Everything's fine Ken…I've just been working from 5am this morning…" Her voice sounded a bit more cheerful.

"Well, then I understand." He said. Really he didn't understand they ran missions at odd hours for more than a year and she had been always on the ball during those times.

"Ken…will you be home soon." Jun's voice had become distant. He wondered if it was the phone line.

"Soon as I can Jun…" He tried to promise. "Though it could be another week, Dr.Nambu has a meeting in Geneva he wants me to attend it with him…"

"Ken, do what you have to do." Jun said he sensed reluctance in her tone. "I miss you…" she said, she sounded needy. Jun wasn't a needy person that made him more concerned.

The Jun he knew understood what they did for a living, why did he feel at that moment he was talking to a stranger. Ken put it down to the phone line and dismal place he happened to be in.

"Jun…"He started to say again is everything alright but he stopped himself, the coins he had were running out. "I love you…I miss you too." Ken said tenderly instead.

"I love you too Ken…" Jun returned his tenderness at last. Smiling into the hand piece like she could see him and he felt his love for her grow even more. Maybe she missed him just as much, and the time away from him must be getting to her.

The line dropped out and he stood there for a minute listening to the beeping tone like it could be the beating of her heart.

Eventually he hung up the phone, placing it gently into the cradle and he headed back to his rented dodgy car.

Other than the car breaking down twice Ken had been making good progress to the next town. The last few days had been horrendous, torrential rain for most of the journey, along with storms.

The rainforest he was travelling through and the activity of militia groups didn't help his progress.

The small villages he passed through had general two houses and a barn. So finding the payphone on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere had been a welcome relief form him, Ken made sure it wasn't a bomb or bugged before he used it. He still couldn't figure out who would put a satellite coin phone in the middle of a rainforest. But to finally hear Jun's voice through the crackling line warmed him internally.

When he laid in the back seat of the little car trying to get a few hours sleep he spoke to her image in his mind, promising he'd be back soon, and he'd never leave her to go off on a mission like his father did to his mother.

The voice he heard on the phone just under an hour before disturbed him, he couldn't pick why, but she just didn't seem happy to be speaking to him. The warm loving voice he heard for just a few minutes earlier in the week had become wooden and forced.

He hoped Jinpei hadn't done something foolish to upset her.

Ken let out a frustrated breath- he pushed back the temptation to cut short his investigation that Dr.Nambu had sent him on to home.

He needed the answers for his own piece of mind before he could even think of doing that.

Toying with the idea of finding a florist in one of the bigger towns that offered interflora, Ken's sharp eyes caught sight of something in the dark black night just off the side of the dirt road in the trees. Deciding to pull over he figured it could be what was looking for out in this isolated part of Burma.

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Jun slowly put the phone back in its cradle. She loved listening to him talk, she always did. But it was too soon… she needed time to think about what to do, talking to him only made it worse for her for some reason, she knew she should say something, it just stuck in her throat. Ken on a mission, and he had to complete it no matter what was at stake before he came home, that's what it felt like when she heard his voice. She knew he would be like that so why did she suddenly feel very angry with him during their brief conversation? He loved her…

"Sis, are you okay?" Jinpei's concerned voice broke into her thoughts.

"Yes Jinpei, I'm fine…I just miss him that's all." She forced a smile as she turned face her little brother.

"Sis if you want the night off… I understand. I can do it without you, Ryu's downstairs, he can help." Jinpei's earnest tone went straight to her heart.

She walked over and hugged him close. "Thanks Jinpei…I do need a night off."

He pushed away from her his cheeks going red from embarrassment a cheeky grin touched his thin lips." Awe sis…I'm not a little kid any more…"

"I know Jinpei, I know." She said affectionately to the boy that was fast growing into a young man before her eyes.

Jun walked back into her room and she laid down on her bed for a long time, looking out the window she saw the sun slowly sinking and the sky had begun it's journey into darkness. Finally picking up her keys she clutched them tightly in her hand. The need to be close to Ken tonight ached in her heart.

She put a hand over her abdomen, the baby would only be small at this point, too tiny to make it's presence in her life known through any other way than the bouts of tiredness and sudden illness did the baby let her know it had started it's journey into her life…and Ken's life.

She walked down her motorbike and jumped on it starting the engine with a few revs' just to warm it up before she let it take her out into the cool night. The new motorbike was second hand, but since she handed in the civilian G-3 a few months ago she missed riding a bike.

The wind weaving through her hair like Ken's fingers often did felt sensational. She took her time, not going past eth speed limit, taking corners of the road more gradually that she would have normally. Her life from this point on would never be the same, she knew from the moment she saw the positive result on that white stick. Now she had to figure out what she needed to do. She knew where her motor bike was taking her too. But Jun knew she needed to go there, she needed something of his presence tonight to make her feel safe, and she had to think through her options.

Jun pulled up out the front of the Shack Ken called home. She found his spare key just under a brick close to the hanger and opened the door.

She didn't bother to turn on a light; she let the moonlight coming in through the windows guide her to his bedroom.

She took off her shoes and her clothes and pulled back the neatly made bed. From the corner of her eye she spotted Ken's old teddy bear from his childhood walking over to the corner he sat in she picked up the well loved ginger bear and walked back to the bed. The coolness of the bed sheets welcomed her as she snuggled down into them holding Cecil the bear close to her, tears stung her eyes. Jun didn't think it would be this way when the time came for her to have a baby. Wasn't this supposed to be a happy time? Not full of fear and uncertainly like she felt now? "Ken what will we do…?" She asked the bear. Cecil didn't answer her- instead he looked at her with startled amber eyes. She knew Ken wasn't ready to be a father. Motherhood was something she wanted from the time she had been a little girl…

Ken was looking at her with his intense blue gaze.

"Ken…we're having a baby." She told him. Ken's eyes went wide, and then he looked astounded and he turned away from her…"Jun we can't have this baby… you said you took precautions."

"I did," She pleaded with him…"Ken…I won't let the team down…"

"You already have…don't you see? You're off the team forever…now we're down to three…I can't stay on the team if I have family…if Galactor returns…then the world is at its mercy…it'll be down to Ryu and Jinpei… " He left the last words hanging…'because of you' echoed through eternity. Riddled with guilt she burst into tears. "Ken, it didn't want it to be this way…"

Startled by the sunlight streaming through the window's Jun woke up still clutching Cecil in a cold sweat. She knew what she had to do- she just had to find the courage to do it. Pulling back the bed sheets she made her way to the bathroom.