Author's Note: The ending of the last chapter just didn't sit right with me. I've been thinking about it for the past fourteen hours. I've decided to rewrite the second half. I was anxious to update and that reason alone clouded my judgement.

Feel free to skip through or re-read this chapter. It begins roughly after Shizuru's father reprimanded her for neglecting her duties.

Hope this one's better.

"Good girls are just bad girls that haven't been caught."

"Bad Girls,"~ A.N

"Live fast, die young bad girls do it well."

"Bad Girls," ~ MIA

"Get back, get down, pull me closer if you think you can hang. Hands up, hands down, don't go screaming if I blow you with a bang."

"Bad Girls," ~ MIA

CHAPTER 4 RE-WRITE

Natsuki looks up from her game as something clanks against her window. She blinks, wondering if it was just her imagination. Apparently not because soon after she returns her attention to the television it happens again.

She's a little freaked out because it's dark and she's been playing Dead Space for the last three and a half hours. She sets her controller on the nightstand and removes her headset. She keeps her game volume relatively low when she uses her headset, the result of a natural fear of not being able to hear and distinguish sounds around her.

She's had too many episodes of her childish father and a mischievous Nao sneaking up on her when she was at her most vulnerable.

Another object clanks against her window and she begins to suspect that it isn't just some random branch at the mercy of the midnight breeze. She reaches under a pile of clothes and extracts a steel baseball bat, swinging around for good measure and warily striding over to the window.

What would a bat do to a necromorph? She thinks bitterly as she presses her face against the glass and peers out of the window. Probably not a goddamn thing.

A lone figure sporting a familiar head of pale, strawberry-blonde locks stands in the shadow of the cherry blossom tree near her window.

Shizuru? What's she doing here this late?

Natsuki tosses the bat off to the side and yanks open the window. She sticks her head out, leaning over the edge of the window seal. "Shizuru?"

The figure emerges from the shadows in a motion that reminds Natsuki of a serpent. Her crimson eyes seem to twinkle even in the darkness of night. "Ara, hello Natsuki."

A smile tugs at the corners of Natsuki's lips. "What are you doing here so late? Isn't it past your bedtime, princess?"

"Ara, Natsuki made an offer the other night. Did Natsuki forget?" Shizuru replies in that alluring, silken accent of hers.

"Oh, I remember. I just didn't peg you for the sneaky type. Guess I should stop pegging you, huh?"

"Does Natsuki plan on sneaking me inside? It is rather cold..."

Natsuki smirks and lays her chin on her palm. She tilts her head to the side, allowing long strands of onyx hair fall over her shoulder. She combs her fingers through it. "I don't think my hair's long enough for that. Just meet me at the front door. It's the less cool way but hey."

"Ara? Won't Natsuki's parents be angry that she is sneaking girls inside their home so late?" Shizuru raises an eyebrow.

"Please, my dad would probably throw me a party if she found out. She thinks I'm a prude. Besides, it's just you."

"Ara, what I am secretly a vampire waiting for you to open the door so that I may sink my teeth into your neck?" Shizuru says playfully.

Natsuki snorts. "With eyes like that it wouldn't be hard to believe. But I'm pretty sure I can take you. Hold on a sec."

Natsuki disappears from the window in a flash of dark hair and agile limbs. Shizuru half expects her to come vaulting from the window, but fortunately she doesn't. It only takes a moment for the front door to unlocked and swung open.

However, it isn't Natsuki who answers the door. It's the petite red-head with the sweet-tooth from the convenience store. She smirks and looks Shizuru up and down.

"What's the Kaichou doing at a troublemaker's house so late at night?" She taps her finger against her chin, feigning thought. Shizuru doesn't answer but she doesn't need to because the girl eventually steps aside and beckons the girl inside. "Watch your feet, we have a dog."

"Damn it, Nao," Natsuki's voice wafts from the top of the staircase, "I thought I told you to kick rocks."

Nao rolls her eyes and sticks out her hand. "Zhang Nao."

"Viola Shizuru." Shizuru is about to shake the younger girl's hand but Natsuki practically leaps over the railing of the staircase and slaps Nao's hand away.

"Don't do it, Shiz, she's a thief." Natsuki growls as she takes Shizuru's wrist and makes sure the golden bracelet she always wears is still in place.

Nao rolls her eyes and backs away. She opens her mouth to say something but is interrupted by the sound of someone running through the hallway. Natsuki's father appears on the top of the balcony.

"Is that my pizza?" she asks, her voice hopeful.

"Who the hell orders pizza at twelve o'clock in the morning?" Nao asks.

Regan sighs as she begins her walk of shame down the staircase and comes to a stop in front of her daughter and her friends. She eyes Shizuru weirdly. "Have we met before?"

Shizuru studies the woman before her. She certainly is Natsuki's father. Those eyes don't lie. Her hair is just as long and gorgeous as Natsuki's. "Ara, I don't think we have."

"Hm." Regan slaps her daughter upside her head. "It's common courtesy to introduce house guests to the owner of the house. Especially when you try to sneak them in."

Natsuki rubs the back of her head with an irritated glare. "Yeah, I tried to sneak her in through the front door. Seriously dad, how stupid do you think I am?"

"Very stupid." Nao interjects.

Shizuru clears her throat and offers the older woman a finely manicured hand. "Viola Shizuru. It is a pleasure to meet you. I apologize for such a late intrusion."

The woman takes her hand and flashes her dazzling dimpled grin. "Regan. Finally Natsuki brings home a girl with manners. Don't even worry about it, sweetheart, make yourself at home like this one has." She finishes with a nod in Nao's direction.

"Ara, does Natsuki bring girls home often?" Shizuru teases, watching as Natsuki's head whips back and forth.

Regan snorts. "I wish. She never introduces me to anyone. I was beginning to think she didn't even like girls."

"As if the mutt could pull a man." Nao says.

"I doubt that. Isn't there a fanclub dedicated to her led by that prickly motherfucker with the scar on his face?" Regan asks her daughter.

Ara?

"NO! We are NOT having this conversation right now!" Natsuki shouts as she grabs Shizuru's hand and begins to lead her up the familiar staircase.

Regan pouts as she rests her elbow on Nao's head, using her as a makeshift resting post. "Hey Shizuru, why don't you stay for dinner sometime? I would love to get to know you."

"Dinner? You say that like you actually cook dinner…" Nao yelps as Regan pinches her cheek.

Shizuru smiles and nods much to Natsuki's dismay. "I would love to."

A bat might not work on a necromorph but it will certainly work on people…

Natsuki leads her to the bedroom and shuts the door behind her, making sure to lock it, and even going as far as to barricade it with shoes boxes to prevent her pesky family from interrupting them. She flops on the bed and beckons Shizuru over.

"Trouble in paradise?" Natsuki asks after a moment. Shizuru doesn't reply but the answer is evident in her troubled gaze. "Wanna talk about it?"

"No. I came here to escape it." Shizuru replies softly.

Natsuki rolls her eyes playfully. "And here I thought it was to keep little old me company."

The usually impassive and stoic young woman leans over to brush her lips across Shizuru's, who is caught completely off-guard and blushes furiously, a wonderful sight to the younger girl.

"Is this okay?" Natsuki asks as she tries not to tuck errant locks of golden hair behind Shizuru's ear, unwilling to believe she would do such a cliche thing.

"Yes." is her breathless reply.

Natsuki's lips glide softly across hers as they resume their intimate dance. Shizuru can't help but lose herself in their kiss, tangling her hands in Natsuki's too-die-for dark locks.

Natsuki pulls back slightly, gazing deep into her eyes. "I meant it when I said you could come over whenever you want. It doesn't matter how early or late it is. We can do whatever you want. Within reason."

Shizuru swallows down the rush of emotions she feels trying to break loose and nods. "Ara, within reason?"

"Yeah, there's a few things that I will absolutely not do." Natsuki says as she leans back against her pillows and picks up her controller.

Shizuru cuddles up beside her. "Like?"

"I will not watch corny romances or chick-flicks. I won't be nice to Nao. I won't, I mean I absolutely won't allow Suzushiro anywhere near my house, nor will I stop calling Kanzaki fruity in my head." Natsuki replies as she unpauses the game.

Ara, she knows?

"Fruity?"

Natsuki nods. "Yep, no straight man is that obsessed with big sweaty men running and jumping on each other. And they slap each other on the ass after games? Oh yeah, hella fruity. But don't worry, I won't say anything." she winks.

"Ara, and why does everyone dislike Haruka-san. She's not that bad." Shizuru lamely tries to defend her fellow Student Council member.

"Are you kidding me? She's worse than Tomoe when it comes to sticks up their asses. She gave me a thirty minute detention for walking too slow in the hallway, claiming I was disturbing the peace." Natsuki snorts as she furiously tries to assassinate a necromorph demon baby.

Shizuru winces as she stares at the screen, wondering how someone could design such a horrible video game. "Ara, maybe Natsuki should walk faster."

"And be a nerd by being early to class? No thanks, that'll ruin my image."

Shizuru playfully slaps her on the arm. "I'm early to class everyday. Is Natsuki trying to say I'm a nerd?"

Natsuki flashes her a wide, wolfish grin. "Hell yeah."

Natsuki suddenly finds herself on her back with a smug looking brunette pinning her down.

"Ara, maybe I should teach Natsuki a thing or two." She whispers.

Natsuki bites her lip. "I'm open to new things." They ignore Isaac's shrieks as the necromorph demon baby and its homies shred him to pieces.

Just as Natsuki's hands disappear under Shizuru's sweater, there's a hard knock on the door.

"Hey, keep it PG!" Her father shouts from the other side. "I want her back over here!"

Natsuki groans as Shizuru giggles and rolls of to the side. She lays her head on Natsuki's chest, happy for the opportunity to be this close to Fuuka High's resident Ice Princess.

"We can watch a movie instead." Shizuru suggests.

"Okay, but remember the rules. No corny romances or chick-flicks." Natsuki says as she dashboards her game and selects Netflix.

They end up watching the White Haired Witch of the Lunar Kingdom.

...

Over the next few days Shizuru and Natsuki grow closer and closer. Shizuru sneaks out every night to meet the younger girl, who sits on the edge of the window seal waiting for her arrival. Reito, overjoyed about his closest friend's opportunity to live a little, makes it his mission to make sure that Shizuru and Natsuki are together as much as possible.

He frequently takes Shizuru on 'dates,' much to her father's pleasure. Although these 'dates' are actually visits to Natsuki's house or just hanging out around the town. It also helps that Tate has taken quite a liking to the dark-haired man.

It's been about a week and a half since the party and Shizuru along with Natsuki, Reito, and Tate are sitting in one of the local diners about a block and a half from the school. Tate is blabbering on and on about American football while Reito listens intently.

Or rather stares at his lips.

"You guys make a wonderful couple," Reito breaks his gaze away from his future husband's lips to coo at the girls sitting across from them.

Shizuru is cuddled beneath Natsuki's arm, sipping a milkshake and listening to the story about the time Natsuki's father had forgotten her in a parking lot. She flashes him a shy smile. "Ara, we do don't we?"

Natsuki feels her cheeks involuntarily heat up.

"Hell yeah!" Tate says around a mouthful of pancakes. "It's like something out of a fairy tale, yo. The beautiful princess and the no good dirty rotten pig-stealing two-bit hustler."

Natsuki's eye twitches. "How touching."

Shizuru sits up suddenly, her gentle features morphing into a pained grimace. Natsuki glances at her. "You okay?"

"I need to use the restroom, pardon me." Shizuru replies rather quickly as Natsuki shuffles out of the booth to allow her to leave. When Shizuru disappears into the Ladies' room, Natsuki fixes Tate with a mocking glare.

"Damn Tate, look at what looking at your ugly mug has gone and done."

Someone kicks her under the table and she growls at Tate, who raises his hands up in denial and shakes his head. Reito sips his tea.

In the restroom, Shizuru leans over the toilet, vomiting up everything she's just eaten.

"Hey, you alright, hon?" A concerned individual's voice calls over the harsh retching.

Catching her breath and trying not to gag at the horrid taste in her mouth, Shizuru grabs a piece of tissue and dabs at her lips. "Yes, thank you for your concern."

"Alright then." The woman's footsteps disappear after a few seconds.

Feeling slightly better after one more heave, Shizuru flushes the toilet with her heel and walks over to the sink to wash her hands and rinse out her mouth. Surprisingly, the diner has a small, half-empty tube of mouthwash located in the center of the sink.

She swishes it around in her mouth for an entire minute trying to rid herself of that god awful taste and spits in the nearby trashcan. She looks at herself in the mirror trying to asses the damage. The only indication of her heartfull vomiting is a pair of watery eyes and a subtle flush on her cheeks.

Ara, that was… unpleasant. Perhaps I overindulged a little.

She washes her hands and dries them before exiting the restroom and making her way back over to the table where her friends are arguing with each other. "Ara, I can't even leave for a moment without you all going at each other's throats."

"He started it," Natsuki grumbles childishly, pointing an accusing finger in Tate's direction.

"Me? You're the one who keeps trying to play footsie with me under the table!"

Reito continues to sip his tea as Shizuru cuddles back into Natsuki's side.

"As if I would ever play footsie with you! Well, your face maybe, not other than that hell no!" Natsuki replies as she wraps her arm back around Shizuru's shoulder. As Tate struggles to find a suitable comeback, Natsuki leans over to whisper, "Is everything alright? Does your chest hurt?"

"Ara, my chest?" Shizuru asks with a raised brow.

"Yeah, you've been rubbing your chest all morning." Natsuki informs her, hoping Shizuru won't ask her why she's been paying so much attention to her chest.

"I have?"

Natsuki nods.

"Hm, I hadn't even been aware I'd been doing so. Perhaps Natsuki was too rough with me last night…" Shizuru teases.

Natsuki coughs and chokes on her own milkshake, drawing concerned looks from employees and other customers. "I didn't- we didn't- you- me- cuddled- GAH!"

Tate nearly does a spit take. "Whoa no way, Natsuki, you cuddle?"

"Natsuki is the best cuddler."

"Wow, I'd have never guessed that!"

Natsuki slams her head against the table with a groan. Shizuru giggles and rubs her back soothingly.

...

Over the next few days, Shizuru begins to feel worse and worse. If Natsuki had thought she'd been rubbing her chest alot before, she was certainly doing it now. She's at Natsuki's house once more and she's just returned to the bedroom after her fifth trip to the restroom.

"Damn girl," Natsuki teases as Shizuru lays back on her chest, "You need to seriously lay off the liquids. Save some for the children."

"Ara, I'm sorry Natsuki, I don't know what's wrong with me." Shizuru admits tiredly. That's another thing that's been plaguing her. Fatigue seems to stick to her no matter what she does or how long she sleeps. She always ends up tired one way or another.

"It's cool, just try not to drool on me, okay?" Natsuki says as she brushes her lips across the crown of Shizuru's head. "Shizuru?" she questions when the older girl doesn't reply.

She chuckles when she realizes the brunette has fallen asleep against her chest, her fingers clutching the fabric of her shirt for dear life.

...

Shizuru frowns as she checks her calendar for what seemed like the thousandth time. She must've done the math wrong because it says that she should've gotten her period eight days ago.

Something isn't right, she thinks as she sucks on a popsicle stick, a rare occurrence for her. She tends to stay away from sweets, but she's been craving one for sometime now. She made Reito go out and buy an entire box of the things, and is responsible for the sudden disappearance of them in the Kruger household.

"Watcha doin', Shiz?" Reito says as he barges into her room unannounced and flings himself onto her king-sized bed. "Oh, can I have one?"

Shizuru absentmindedly hands him the one she'd been eating. He sighs as he takes it, wishing it were from his future husband instead.

"Do you remember the last time I had my period?" Shizuru asks him without turning around. She cocks her hand on her hip, which by way, has seemingly grown in size.

Reito removes the popsicle from his mouth with an exaggerated 'pop'. "October 10th." He's her best-friend, he knows these kinds of things.

Shizuru's heart freezes. October tenth was a month ago. Today is November eighteenth. She should've gotten her period around November ninth. She rubs her over sensitive breasts without realizing it. Reito does, however.

"You've been doing that a lot." Reito says as he tosses the popsicle stick in the trashcan.

Shizuru doesn't acknowledge him as fear and anxiety begin to creep in. She runs a hand through her long, pale hair as she begins to pace, weighing possibilities.

No… no… this can't be, she thinks. There has to be some mistake! I can't be… I…

"Reito." she whispers.

"Hmm?" the boy answers, his brows rising when he notices the lack of 'ara' in her dialogue.

"I need to ask a favor of you, but I need you to stay as calm as you can." Shizuru whispers as she crosses the room and takes his larger hand in hers.

"Of course."

Shizuru takes a deep breath and stares deep into her best-friend's dazzling golden eyes. "I need you to buy me a pregnancy test."

...

Reito pulls into the first available parking space he sees and leaps out of the convertible. The convenient store is still open and crawling with lowlifes, individuals who work the graveyard shifts, bums, weirdos, and potential rapists.

With his heart thundering in his chest and his palms sweating profusely, he barges into the store, drawing weird looks from its workers and occupants. He scurries over to the isle labeled 'self care'. His golden eyes dart back and forth, to and fro as he searches for the object of his desire.

Which one do I get? He whines when he finally locates them. There are at least four different kinds!

Not bothering to waste anymore time deciding, he shoves all of them into the crook of his arm and sprints back to the counter. Shizuru's father will be home soon and it isn't in his best interest to be caught carrying a boatload of pregnancy tests.

The cashier looks at him sympathetically and opens his mouth to offer his opinion, but Reito silences him with a glare. "Don't. Say. A. Word."

"S-sorry!"

He hurriedly shoves the tests into a bag and practically shoves them into Reito's waiting arms. Reito flashes him one more menacing glare and jogs back to his Lexis.

When he gets back to the mansion, Shizuru is completely flustered. She sighs in relief when he comes back through the door and closes it behind him.

"Hey, I couldn't decide which one to get so I just got all four." Reito says as he locks the door and gives the items to the flustered young woman.

"Arigato," Shizuru replies with a small smile and disappears into the bathroom.

She takes out the first one and reads the directions carefully.

All I have to do is pee on it?

She sighs as she crosses over to the toilet and pulls down her underwear. It takes a few moments to do so because she's scared and shaking and praying that this is all just some twisted misunderstanding. She can't be pregnant.

Her entire life as well as her possible child's would be put on the line. And her father, oh god, she doesn't even want to think of what he might do if he ever found out that she was pregnant and not by Reito.

The cursed thing beeps, startling her from her thoughts, and her eyes fill with tears.

No, no, no please!

She tries all four, convincing herself that it's just a fluke, a cruel fluke. She does every single one and glares at each result as if doing so will change the outcome.

She falls to her knees with a strangled sob, tears pouring from her horrified crimson depths. No matter how much she denied it, no matter how she wished it weren't true, Shizuru Viola is pregnant and there is no going back.

She's gathered into familiar arms and she buries her face into Reito's chest. He doesn't need to ask for the results. It's written all over her face.

"Shizuru," he whispers, pushing her back so that he may see that beautiful, tear-stained face of hers. "Do you know who the father is?"

Shizuru nods, gasping for the breath she'd lost when the shock hit her. She knows who the father is. She knew the second she found out she was pregnant. She's only slept with one person in her lifetime.

"Natsuki," she chokes out, "The baby is Natsuki's."

...

Hope this one is better!