AN: I have a pot of chocolate here with me and I ain't getting up until this and next chapter are done!

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What to Expect When You're Expecting

Chapter Six – Two Steps Back

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"Running away from problems or troubles will make you fall into another problem or trouble." – Unknown

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"You have to tell him." Lisanna said as the blunette closed the door of the Antique Store she worked. Since it was summer, the old lady who owned went on a trip to stay with her son, and left Juvia in charge. Usually Juvia worked half day, but she was in her own vacations and she would work full-time until the old lady was back.

"Juvia will." She sighed and after locking the door, she turned to the white haired girl. "It's just... Juvia doesn't have an idea of what to do."

"I know. That's why you two need to talk. This is not your burden alone, Juvia." Lisanna said as they started to walk down the street to catch the bus to go to Juvia's apartment, and when Juvia didn't reply, Lisanna sighed. "I'm messing with things that it should be you to deal with, but I made an appointment for you at the Woman's Center."

"What?" Juvia stopped and half yelled.

"Look, you have to see a doctor, Juvia. Evaluate all the options you have." Lisanna stopped too. "I know that you seem to think that you and Gray are alright, but you need to face the fact that you are pregnant!"

Juvia felt her eyes burn as tears threatened to fall.

"That has been the best week Juvia had since she can remember." The blunette said, a few tears falling.

She and Gray had been secretly dating for the past ten days. The only ones who knew what was going on were Gajeel, Lisanna and Loki. Gray had agreed with her to not tell everybody just yet. Their 'thing' was too new to be displayed like that.

They had been in one date; Gray had taken her to see a movie and have dinner. It was her dreams coming true. They laughed, ate and even made out a little.

But she knew Lisanna was right. She had to know her options and she had to tell Gray. She was entering her seventh week and she wasn't that into pregnancies, but she knew that at some point, she was going to start showing.

"When is it?" Juvia asked.

"Tomorrow, during lunchtime so you can close the shop and go." Lisanna gave Juvia a hug. "I'll go with you if you want."

"Juvia would like that." The blunette murmured to her friend and hugged back, drying the tears. Hormones, she guessed.

Maybe at the Woman's Center she would finally clear her mind.

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As she was sitting on the bus, in her way to Gray's apartment, Juvia thought about what she was about to do; finally tell Gray about her pregnancy. It had been 4 days since her appointment with the doctor at the Woman's Center and she had used all her spare time to think about the options.

She had three, really. First: have the baby and keep it. Second: have the baby and put it to adoption. Third: terminate the pregnancy.

To options two and three, she learned that it had some rules she had no idea it existed. She didn't know that if she did put her baby to adoption, she had thirty days to decide if that was what she really wanted and within that period of time, she could reclaim the child if she wanted.

And option three, she was only legally allowed to have a termination until the twentieth week. She was now around her eighth week and still had time if she was to do it.

First, she had to talk to Gray and see what he wanted to do and then ponder it all. Maybe things would work it out. Maybe…

Juvia looked down to her covered stomach and even though everyone said that she was pregnant, and she felt the symptoms, like the nausea, tiredness and tender nipples, she didn't feel pregnant. She didn't feel that magic bond she heard of. She felt normal, just a little weaker because she couldn't keep much in her stomach.

Maybe she wasn't supposed to be a mother. Maybe that's why she didn't feel a difference. Maybe if she did have the child she was going to be a terrible mother.

The bus stopped and Juvia got up from her seat to get off of it. She would walk a block and be at Gray's and then, they could decide. He had the right to know and participate of the decision, although she already had a hunch of what they would want to do.

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"Hey, Juvia." Loki opened the door of the apartment with a big smile. He knew about the hidden relationship about Gray and Juvia and was actually enjoying having her around. One night, she had stayed and cooked. Cooked! Neither Gray or himself knew what the hell she put on it, but it was the best soup they ever tasted. "Gray's in his room."

"Thank you, Loki-san." Juvia smiled politely and Loki lost his own smile almost immediately, seeing that she looked very troubled.

"Are you alright?" He asked, concerned. It looked like she hadn't slept in days. And since she hadn't appeared in days, it also concerned him. Loki always thought that at the very moment Gray and Juvia would start dating, he would be kicked from his own apartment and it didn't occur, of course. But since the 'secret dating' started, Juvia and Gray had met every day, only those last four being the exception.

"Yes. Juvia just needs to talk to Gray." She said and he nodded. Loki had a bad feeling about that.

Juvia went to her boyfriend's room and knocked once and when she heard him saying it was okay to come in, she stepped inside.

Gray was sitting on the chair in front of his desk, using his laptop and when he looked up and saw Juvia, he gave her a smile.

"Hey, Juvia!" He didn't have time to get up because before he did, Juvia had wrapped her arms around him and gave him a kiss. Gray was taken by surprise for a minute there, but kissed her back.

"Hi." She said after breaking the kiss. Her hand was caressing the back of his neck.

"Hi." He said it back, a little confused. They hadn't seen each other that much that week and truth be told, they made out a lot during the short time they were dating, but she never threw herself like that to him. Something was up.

"Juvia has to tell you something." She said before losing courage and Gray frowned. She sounded so serious.

"Okay." He pointed to the bed, where she sat and he brought his chair closer so they could talk face to face.

"It's about why Juvia lost the graduation." Gray nodded. Was she finally going to tell him about what happened? Sometimes the girl had a very distant look on her face and he knew that she was thinking about whatever problem she had, but Gray didn't want to push it; he had told her that she could tell him whenever she was ready. And apparently she was. "She had been sick for a week before the party."

Worry replaced his curious expression.

"What?"

"Yes." Juvia nodded. "Juvia thought she was fine to go to the graduation, but during the way, she got sick again and Lisanna-san witnessed. So, she convinced Juvia to go to the hospital..."

"Wait, wait... What? Were you in a hospital that night?" Gray's head was spinning. What the hell was happening?

"…when we got there, Juvia found out why she was sick." She continued like she hadn't been stopped.

"Why? Oh, god. Are you dying?" Gray was afraid to ask, but he did anyway. Was she going to die? That was it. They had just got together and she was going to die. She took one deep breath and Gray prepared himself mentally to what was coming.

"The doctor said that Juvia is pregnant." She continued to talk, but fell to empty ears. Gray frowned. So… no one was dying? That was good. Right? At least she wasn't dying. But a baby would grow inside of her. Hm… "That first night we slept together, that was when Juvia conceived." Hadn't they used protection…? Never mind. They were so drunk that Gray was surprised he had put everything where it was supposed to go. The consequence of one stupid mistake was a baby. Alright. A baby needed a lot of stuff, though. He was going to be a father at the age of 24. No, he was going to be 25 when the kid was born.

"Gray-sama?" Juvia was biting her lower lip in apprehension. Gray had been quiet for quite some time.

"Pregfffnt." He tried to say, but Juvia understood anyway.

"Yes."

Whoah. Wait. Hold on a second! Was he going to be a father?

"Ohmygod." He got up from the chair and started to walk from one side to the other inside his room. "Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god." What she was telling him was finally sinking in. "A baby?" He passed his hand through his hair. "It means that you are having a baby!"

"Yes." Juvia nodded, seeing him panic and she hated that. Gray Fullbuster didn't panic.

"So… I'll be having a baby too." He stopped and turned to look at her. "It's… a baby! We can't take care of a baby." He shook his head. And then something else popped into his mind. "Wait, you have known since my graduation party?"

"It's complicated, Gray-sama." Juvia tried to talk to him, but he interrupted her.

"I was there that night, Juvia! You could've told me!" Now he was getting angry. He hated being lied to or deceived in any way. "You should've told me the moment you knew!"

"Juvia had just found out about it!" The blunette got up from the bed. "Do you have any idea…?"

"You. Should. Have. Told. Me!" He yelled in anger. "You let me believe that everything was fine, when you were hiding this big secret from me!"

"You told Juvia that she could tell you when she was ready…" She reminded him.

"Because I had no idea there was a baby involved in any of this!" He was frustrated.

"But there is a baby involved in this." Juvia said rather harshly. "And regardless of any of our feelings, there's a baby on the way! And we need to decide what to do with it!"

"Give me time to think, okay?" Gray had so much on his mind. How could raise the child? They had been together for what? Less than two weeks and now she was pregnant. "I just learned about this!"

"Juvia went to see a doctor at the Woman's Clinic." She informed Gray. "She informed all the options. Based on all of this, Juvia already made a decision."

"Good." Gray nodded. At least someone had a plan, because so far, he was trying to figure it out where he would put the baby in his apartment. "What is it?"

"Juvia will... terminate the pregnancy."

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"You..." Gray was surprised. "You'll have an..."

"An... abortion, yes." She nodded and Gray stared her in shock. "Juvia was already thinking about it and…"

They stared at each other for a few minutes until Gray's brain finally started to work again.

"Don't I have a say in this?" Gray asked quietly, barely a whisper. "You just decided it on your own."

"What else should I do, Gray-sama?" Juvia's eyes were watering. "I have a scholarship! How can Juvia have a baby? It's the last semester and… this is my future in this college!" Juvia stood up, but Gray grabbed her arm.

"That's a petty reason to end a life!" He brought her closer to him. "Then why did you tell me in the first place? Why didn't you do it? I would never know."

"Because as strong as Juvia is, she is not strong enough to have this burden all for herself." Juvia yelled and untangled her arm from him. "What else can we do? Have the baby and then what? Take it with me to class? I work, I study!"

"And me? What about me?" Gray yelled back at her. He didn't want her to have an abortion, but he wasn't being the most communicative guy of the planet. Things weren't going well. "I'll be there for you!"

"You said it yourself that we couldn't take care of a baby." The tears were flowing at that point. "Juvia wants to think that she won't be alone again, but no one in Juvia's life lasts long enough! So, in the end, I'll be left with a child I can't support, alone and without a diploma!" She sobbed.

"Juvia..." Gray looked at her, like he never saw her before. "Is it that practical for you to end a life?"

"No." Juvia said quietly sobbing. "It would be a lot easier if it was."

Gray could see her suffering, then. The bags under her eyes, the fact that she looked a lot thinner, the lack of the spark in her eyes, the unnatural paleness. She looked like hadn't slept in days

She was suffering.

"Juvia." Gray calmed down. "What's the real reason why you want to have an abortion?"

"The scholarship..." The blunette tried, but Gray interrupted her.

"Don't bullshit me. I know you." He yelled. "You wouldn't even consider this without any good reason!"

"This child was made during a mistake. We both agreed that it was a mistake." Juvia yelled back, still crying. "It feels like it's some twisted way to bound you to me forever. Juvia wants you, but not like this! It doesn't feel right." She untangled herself from his grasp.

"Juvia…" He tried, but in the end, he let her go.

"There's nothing else to talk about right now." The blunette left his room without even look back and Gray didn't stop her. He needed to think. He had to wrap his mind around the fact that he and Juvia had made a baby and that baby might not even be born.

Gray lost track of time as he just stared at the door. He didn't even hear when Loki knocked; only when the orange haired man opened the door that Gray snapped out of it.

"Hey, man." Loki frowned. "What was all that about?"

"Juvia…" Gray said, looking around him. "We had a fight."

"Oh, that I got it." Loki replied. "Hard not to when you were yelling to each other. I never thought I'd live to see the day when Juvia yelled back at you."

"I need to…" Gray was a little out of it with all that happened. Juvia was pregnant, they had been in a fight and now he was… numb. He had to talk to someone. He stared at Loki, who was looking at him warily. No, he couldn't tell Loki, not yet. "I'm gonna go upstate." Gray found his backpack and started to put a few clothes inside it.

"What?" Loki asked, surprised. "Don't you wanna fix things with Juvia? I mean, it's been only a few weeks, but you guys are dating…"

"I know." Gray yelled and Loki raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Sorry. I just… Need to go away, okay? I'll be back tomorrow. I need to clear my head."

"What did you guys fight about?"

"I'll tell you when I get back." He zipped his bag and Loki nodded. "If Juvia…" He sighed. "If Juvia returns, tell her that…"

"You'll call her as soon as you return, gotcha." Gray grabbed his wallet and stood, looking at the wall for a moment. "Hey, are you sure you are fine to go?"

"Yes." Gray snapped out of it. "If Juvia calls…" He repeated.

"Don't worry, man." Loki frowned; his friend seemed too out of it. "Clear your head, or whatever. Maybe you should call her later."

"Yeah." Gray nodded and went to the train station. He had to talk to someone.

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After the four hour train ride, Gray was tired of thinking about what to do with having a pregnant girlfriend and what impact it had in his life. He just wanted to go home and sleep, but he knew that it wasn't going to happen as soon as he opened the door. He got his keys and turned the knob.

"Mom, I'm home." He yelled as soon as he got inside.

"I'm here, kid." He heard from the kitchen and he went after it, where his mother was standing. Her hair was still short and she had a few wrinkled around her eyes. She was, obviously just wearing some shorts and a tank top. She lived up north, but for her it was still too hot of a summer there. She was fonder of winter, just like her children.

"Hi, Mom." Gray said, putting his bag on the ground. "What are you eating?"

"Ice-cream, of course. This heat is killing me." Ur shrugged and offered him a spoon, smiling. "Now, how about you tell me what is troubling you?"

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AN: Oh yeah, people will throw stones at me after this one. ;O It's happening so fast. I promise you we'll know more about the time Gray and Juvia spent together!

Anyways, I told ya it was big. Juvia's terminating the pregnancy AND Ur's alive. How about that?

Thanks to: Guest, superduperizee, YamixTeaLover, MiniKoreanKitty, Darkhope, AliceCullen3, Angel the Neko, SakuraIchigoDark, DanielleFullbuster, NekoMaji, Random Fangirl, , TAEMiNATOR18, Jessicutie, amyskywalker, Summer Eclair, Xeylah, cybercorpsesnake, Uchiha Evangeline, Ushiio, ke23, Chibi Waru-Chan, jennylawson, Yukistar, FairyTailxoLove and Cupcake-Lover-1374, who reviewed! Thank you so much!

I based the things about the Woman's Center with a few USA laws I know. I don't know if they are still the same, but in this story, in Fiore, that's how things are, okay?

BTW, I'd like to highlight xScarletxMoonx, who showed me some of her drawings. They were wonderful, darling. You should really publish it somewhere! I loved it! *3*

01/31/13~ BonneyQ