AN: After video chatting with my BFF, my small block is finally gone, so here's the next chapter!
#
What to Expect When You're Expecting
Chapter Eight – In Need of a Hug
#
"Because, if you don't believe in even the possibility of magic you'll never ever find it." – Richard Castle
#
As Juvia was trying to find something eligible to put on, she found herself beginning to get more and more anxious with the why Gray was going to her place. Of course, she knew what they were going to talk about, but she was concerned about the end of it. The last conversation they had wasn't all that great.
The blunette stared at herself only in her underwear on the big mirror that was hanged on her closet door and she frowned lightly. She, then, turned sideways and she couldn't see herself pregnant. Of course that she knew that she wasn't going to wake up with a stomach the size of a watermelon, but she didn't feel any different.
She put a hand over her flat stomach and tilted her head to the side. It was hard to believe that there was a life there. Really hard to believe, actually. A piece of her and a piece of Gray, mixed together. What could that possibly result? Maybe a boy that looked exactly like him; or a girl who would have only Juvia's hair color. Or maybe, whichever child they had, would have a mix of them. Maybe…
Shaking her head, Juvia quickly returned to her task of finding something to put on before Gray arrives in a few minutes. She found one sleeveless summer dress and put it on, leaving her hair loose. It looked good enough. After looking herself in the mirror again to check on her looks, she grabbed her phone and exited her room.
"Gajeel-kun?" Juvia knocked on his bedroom door and when she heard him telling it was okay to come in, she stepped inside his room. "Hi." She smiled to him; he was reading a comic book she couldn't identify. She decided to let him know about Gray's visit before he saw the guy in their apartment. It was safest that way. "Hm... Just want to let you know that Gray-sama's coming over."
"What?" Gajeel was surprised. "Didn't you two have a fight?"
"Yes. That's why he's coming, you know, to figure things out." She told him, sitting on the bed next to him. "But Juvia doesn't know if it's gonna work out. She just wants you to know that he's coming. Last time we... kinda started yelling, so don't worry if it's what happens."
"You two start yelling and I am barging in." Gajeel shook his head. As if he was going to just let Gray Fullbuster of whoever else yell at Juvia. Gajeel didn't like that many people to have one of them getting harassed right next to him without him stepping in.
"Thank you, Gajeel-kun, but it won't be necessary." She shook her head lightly that time. "Don't worry. Gray-sama would never, ever hurt Juvia. Especially now." Gajeel frowned in confusion. What was happening that was so special? "Just... Let us talk, alright? Besides, Juvia can take care of herself." She smiled with confidence and then stared at him softly. "Juvia will tell everything later on, okay?"
"Do you promise?" Gajeel said after some time eyeing her. He knew that Juvia kept her promises.
"Yes." The blunette nodded.
Gajeel sighed. "Fine." He lied back on his back. "But if my gut tells me to just knock your door down, I will. Get it?"
"Yes." Juvia nodded. "Thanks, Gajeel-kun." She leaned and kissed his cheek while he rolled his eyes and returned his attention to the comic book.
"Whatever." He shrugged and looked to her lap, where her cellphone started to ring. She looked down and both of them saw Gray's picture. "Your stripper is calling."
"Don't call him that." Juvia hit him lightly in the arm before answering the phone. It was a little bit true that Gray was often found with less than recommended clothes, but it was just because he had a faster metabolism than others so he was hotter than other people. "Hello?" She sighed, hearing him. "Okay, Juvia will open the door for you. Bye." She looked and pointed to Gajeel. "You: behave."
"When don't I?" He grinned as he saw Juvia get up from his bed to get the door for Gray and he also got up, following her. As if Gajeel was going to let that Stripper just think that he was fine with whatever was happening, even though he had no idea of what was going on.
When Juvia opened the door, he saw her lean on the doorway and frowned. "Whatcha ya doing?"
"Gray-sama said that he was coming up. Juvia's waiting." She shrugged.
"You're desperate, that's what you are." Gajeel said under his breath and when he saw her body tense, he knew that Gray had arrived. So, Gajeel went to stand next to Juvia, just in time to see the elevator door closing. Gray was standing in the middle of the hallway, awkwardly.
"Hi, Juvia." Gray said, looking to Juvia and then to Gajeel. "Hey, Gajeel." The older man just grunted in response, making Gray frown. 'Did Gajeel know?' his eyes asked Juvia and then she shook her head 'no' the guy visibly relaxed. He had no idea of how Gajeel would react with the fact that Juvia was pregnant. He could beat the crap out of Gray or he could cry a fucking rainbow. The guy was not exactly mentally stable.
"Come on in, Gray-sama." Juvia pushed Gajeel away from the door –which he was blocking with his body– and Gray did exactly that, still receiving a funny look from Gajeel. "Let's go to Juvia's room so we can talk with privacy."
"Sure." Gray nodded and when he was about to pass by Gajeel, the man grabbed his arm and made him spin, they were facing each other. Gray was suddenly very aware that he could end up fighting Gajeel in the next minute.
"Listen to me, Fullbuster." Gajeel narrowed his eyes. "There are not many people that I like in this world. I tolerate many, you included, but there are very few that I actually care about." Juvia was trying to push them away from each other, with horror explicit in her face. "Don't forget that if you give Juvia any more shit, I'll end ya."
"I'd like to see you try." Gray retorted. He knew that the other man was just protecting Juvia, but his male pride was demanding him not to back off.
"Stop, both of you!" Juvia was saying, but fell into deaf ears.
"You think you can handle me, boy?" Gajeel snarled.
"I sure can." Gray retorted and Juvia was sure that they would actually get to it right there and she couldn't have that, so, only a thing came to her mind to make at least Gray to stop the upcoming fight.
"Oh, I'm not feeling well." She put a hand over her stomach and stumbled back, as if she was about to faint.
The effect was immediate: both men looked at her with concern and run towards her and when Juvia saw that they were no longer fighting, she straightened herself and grabbed Gajeel's ear and then Gray's, but not too strong, just enough to keep them on their toes.
"Okay, you two! Stop fighting!" As the two grown men complained and tried to get free, Juvia kept talking. "Gajeel-kun, Gray-sama won't do anything, so stop trying to pick a fight." She looked to her boyfriend. "And you Gray-sama, you can't just accept a fight like that! Juvia cannot go under a lot of stress right now." She let them go.
"Ouch." Gray said, grabbing his ear.
"You little son of a bitch!" Gajeel was rubbing his ear. "I was trying to be nice!"
"Thank you, but there's no need to worry, Gajeel-kun." Juvia said and grabbed Gray's hand, so he would follow her to her bedroom. And before they disappear into the room, Gray turned around and showed Gajeel his tongue.
"One day I'll kill ya, Stripper!" Gajeel yelled, still rubbing his ear.
#
"Sorry about that." Juvia mumbled, looking down to the floor ashamed of Gajeel's behavior. "He's just worried."
"It's fine. He's just looking out for you." Gray shrugged and they fell into silence for a minute, before Gray spoke again. "How are you feeling?"
"Morning sickness' kicking in hard." Juvia murmured. "And it doesn't happen only during the morning, I can tell you that."
"So that's why you went to the bathroom all the time." Gray realized it, feeling really dumb for not making the connection sooner. "I just thought you were retouching your make-up or something."
"Juvia was. After throwing up like she does, no make-up can really stick on her face." She shrugged and went to sit on her bed. Gray hesitated, but sat beside her. The uncomfortable silence returning.
"I had some time to think, Juvia." Gray said, looking to his girlfriend. "But before we can really settle this down, I have to know why you hid it from me for so much time." The woman tensed and her gaze didn't shift from the floor for a while and didn't answer. "Juvia, this is a valid question and you know it." Gray said, trying his best to not get impatient with her. She was under a lot of stress.
"Because Juvia couldn't handle the truth just yet." She mumbled after a minute. "All her dreams were coming true and… she couldn't face it."
Gray nodded, he didn't fully understand her, but he knew how it felt to have a pregnancy thrown on your face like a fast ball and having a hard time believing and coping with the fact that the baby in question was conceived during a night of drunken sex.
"Okay. But I'm your boyfriend now, Juvia. Remember?" Gray said calmly. His goal that night was to talk to her like an adult, not like an 'infant', like his mother said he was. "You can't keep me in the dark about something big like that anymore."
The blunette finally stared at Gray with a frown on her face. "You are not breaking up with Juvia?"
"I don't quit when things get tough." He said with kindness and then as if a bulb of light suddenly appeared on top of his head, Gray realized that she was indeed expecting him to end things with her. "Wait. You thought that I would break up with you for getting pregnant?" She offered him a shy shrug and Gray was genuinely surprised. Did she think that low of him? "Juvia!"
"Sorry." She apologized, turning her body to face him better. "It's just… everyone knows about how Juvia feels about Gray-sama and Juvia heard people saying that… that Juvia would do anything to keep you with her. And what better reason than to get pregnant?" Gray was just looking at her like she was crazy, the things that passed through the woman's mind… "Juvia got scared that she… might… lose… you…" She murmured the last words. "And after having you, losing you would've been…"
"Okay." Gray said after some thinking. "We have to work on your self-confidence and your trust on me."
"Juvia trusts Gray-sama!" She said in a heartbeat.
"Not with something this big, you don't." He shook his head lightly. "You have abandonment issues, I get it. We'll figure something out later." Gray sighed. "We need to talk about the baby, Juvia."
"I know." She murmured. "You are probably wondering why Juvia wants the abortion."
"Yes, I am." He nodded.
"The thing is..." Juvia said, returning her gaze back to the floor. "Juvia doesn't know how to be a mother. She wants kids, of course, but… Juvia's twenty three. What does she know about having a baby? All her experiences with a child are with Asuka. Plus, there's college and the scholarship. And money. Juvia doesn't have enough money to have a baby right now. And, and, and…" She stuttered. "And… It's not the best timing in our relationship."
Gray let the words sink in in his mind and then nodded. "I see. I understand that, Juvia and those are good points. But what is missing in you plan is me." He pointed to himself with his thumb. "First, I don't know how to be a father either. Always thought I would be at least thirty before knocking someone up, but here we are. You could help me to be a good dad and I can help you being a good mom." Juvia looked up to him. "Second, there's not a rule in the rulebook of the University that says that you can't be pregnant and neither has your scholarship. They can't take it away because of a pregnancy." He continued. "And you would be what? Seven months along when the semester's over. You could go to your classes without a problem until then, I think. I've seen some pregnant girls in my classes." Juvia thought about that. It was possible. "Third, money. You forgot that I am here and I'll support you. I have most of the money my parents left for me in their will still on my account. It's not like I'm rich, but it's quite enough for some time. Besides, you have your job and no one can fire you because you got pregnant. And about the timing in our relationship… at least we have one. It's early, but nothing we can't handle."
"You really thought this through." Juvia sighed and Gray nodded. He had thought much about it. "Gray-sama… May Juvia ask… why are you fighting so hard for Juvia to keep the baby?"
"When I talked to my mom, she told me to consider all the options and I am telling them to you so you and I can make a decision with all the facts in hand, so later we won't regret." Gray sighed and took her hand. "I am just telling you that it is possible to have the baby, that we can make it word if we decide to have it."
"What about our jobs?" Juvia asked him, giving his hand a tiny squeeze. "You'll start working crazy hours for a long time, now that you have a new job and Juvia has a job too. With a baby, the stress will be much worse. And what will we do with it while we are working?" Juvia asked.
Gray actually chuckled with that. "I had only a night, Juvia. I can't have all the answers with just one night." He sighed. "I am just letting you know that there's always a way."
"It's…" Juvia gulped. "It's everything beautiful when said like this, but reality is different, Gray-sama."
"I know, Juvia." Gray said. "It won't be a fairy tale, but we can do this. All I want is for you to do like me and just consider the possibility of having it."
"Juvia has an appointment at the clinic Monday morning before work." Juvia said and Gray was quickly alarmed. "No, not for it. It's not that fast. Just a consultation they make the woman have, to tell here about the procedure and make sure it is what she wants and that she considered all the other alternatives." Gray relaxed. "If we need to learn about all the possibilities…"
"Fair enough." Gray nodded in agreement. Deep down, he understood her fears because he feared the same things. Maybe that consult would be an eye opener for him and they could make the final decision together.
Juvia stared at his face for a minute and then asked: "Do you want the baby? Really want?" She mumbled.
He hesitated to answer. "I thought about it a lot tonight. Yes, I do want it. But only if you want it." Gray said. "Juvia, we didn't communicate yesterday. I got surprised and angry. I wasn't thinking and I went to my mom's so I could do it and I did. I do want this kid, but I don't want you to have it just because I want it. We both have to want whatever child we may have now or in the future. One of the worst things in the world is to have a parent that doesn't want you. So, we have to want the baby. And I meant it when I said that I would help you, that you wouldn't be alone."
He stopped. "Monday morning I'll go with you so we can learn our options better. But whatever we decide to do, whatever you decide to do" He looked deeply into her eyes. "I have your back. I'll back you up to whatever you decide to do." Gray quoted his mother and it seemed right to do so at that moment. "Before anything else, I have your back."
Juvia let her tears fall and put a hand over her mouth to try to hide her sobbing. Gray, seeing that she was feeling relieved that he was with her, wrapped his arms around her and held her as tightly as he could. Juvia hid her face on the crook of his neck and they stayed together for a few minutes, while she cried.
"Everything's gonna be fine." He said over and over again and kissed the top of her head. He remembered someone saying some time ago that pregnant women cried a lot.
"Thank you." Juvia said after she calmed down. "Thank you."
Gray sighed. He had made the right choice in supporting her decision. If they could surpass that, they could surpass anything. Sure, he wanted her to have the baby but he was speaking from the heart when he said that he was going to support her decision, whichever it was. Maybe it wasn't supposed to be. Maybe they were supposed to have a child 5 years from then. Or ten. Or maybe never.
"Don't worry, I'll go with you on Monday. We started it, we'll finish it. One way or another." She hesitated, but nodded in agreement anyway as he dried away her face with his thumb. "We'll make it work, okay?"
"Okay." The blunette murmured and she kissed him lightly on the lips. "Juvia's glad you are here, Gray-sama."
"Me too." Juvia couldn't start to explain how relieved she was. Maybe she didn't have to lose him. She tried to suppress a yawn but couldn't. She had absolutely no sleep that night and had barely slept since she found out she was pregnant.
Seeing her yawn, Gray said gently. "Maybe I should go. You need your sleep." He pointed to her bed behind him.
"Stay?" Juvia looked up, her eyes big and pleading all of a sudden. "Juvia doesn't want to be alone."
He thought about it for a moment and realized that he didn't want to be alone either. And they were sharing a moment there and he had just promised her that he wasn't going to leave when she needed him; and at that moment, she did need him.
Gray nodded and Juvia suddenly sighed in contempt. She got up from the bed and he did the same. They didn't talk while she was changing her dress for an old shirt, Gray took his clothes off –ironically with his back towards her, which was kind of not needed: they had seen each other naked more than enough times–, remaining only in his underwear and waited for her to grab his hand, and followed her to lie underneath the covers.
Once they were settled -Juvia resting her head over his chest while he had his arms around her torso-, Gray knew that it was about eight thirty p.m. or so, but he was tired and having her on her arms was the most normal thing that happened to him for the past forty eight hours.
Even if he didn't sleep right away, having her in his arms eased his mind in a way he didn't think it was possible. At that moment, they just needed to be in each other's presence, in each other's arms and pretend the world was normal again.
Of course, after five minutes, their breathing was steady and easy as they fell asleep absolutely tired from all the drama their lives provided them. Sometimes some human contact, just a hug, could make wonders. It couldn't heal all wounds, but it certainly could bring some comfort for two tired people.
#
AN: Oh, I'm tired. Wrote this one in one move. I had a small block, but it's gone now. I hope you guys don't think it's too OOC. Next chapter: Monday's appointment will bring many feelings up to the surface!
Thanks to: Guest, Guest, YamixTeaLover, yagami rin, amyskywalker, Seyrin, Chibi Waru-Chan, Jun'Hee Hyoma Hayagriva, Tjzoom21, TAEMiNATOR18, NekoMaji, cybercorpsesnake, Jessicutie, Guest, Shoma, Essence97, Yuki Brunestud, Ushiio, Tamniin, AngelBaby5643, Darkhope, Rochi-Chan, Yukistar, XxPIPxX, Charliesmuffinxx, SandmanCircus, Katy-Joanne209, Uchiha Evangeline, SakuraIchigoDark, AliceCullen3, Cupcake-Lover-1374, Angel the Neko and goNxH, who reviewed! Right now it's past midnight and I am falling asleep on my keyboard, so I'll try and answer your reviews before I trave in the morningl, okay? I loved every word you guys said to me!
02/09/2013 ~ BonneyQ