"Does it eat?" Gaara asked, distracted from his paperwork.
"Not directly," Hinata answered. "It's given nutrients through that tube I told you goes into the stomach."
"Oh." Gaara's mind drifted from his work to the baby more and more as the night went on. His questions becoming more frequent. "Does it breathe?"
"No, its lungs will be filled with the fluid around it until it's out. It receives all the oxygen it needs from me." Hinata explained.
Hinata closed her book. "Can it hear?"
Hinata giggled. "Yes, and it will remember you and I's voices as familiar, and it will remember my heartbeat." She got up. "I think we should head to bed. I don't think you are getting anything done."
Kankuro's eyes narrowed. Hinata felt examined. "You do something new?"
"No…" Hinata hoped she wasn't showing enough to tell.
"No extra makeup or something?" Hinata shook her head. "Then you just look nice today." What on earth prompted that? She chalked it up to 'pregnancy glow.'
Hinata was going to cry. She couldn't hold it. She rushed through her meeting and excused herself, rushing through the hall. She bumped into someone on the way but didn't look up, only mumbled a sorry and an 'excuse me.'
Hinata let herself break down as she got through to the bedroom door. She hadn't even made it to bed. She pressed her forehead to the wall and covered her mouth as she balled. She dropped to her knees and let out a rush of emotions.
She wiped her face and sniffed, feeling the wave lighten enough to clear her head. Just as soon, she was startled by a knock on the door.
"Hinata?" Gaara asked in a worried tone. Hinata wiped her face before opening the door. "A nin reported you looked sick and were running through the hall. Are you alright?" Hinata nodded. "You're crying." Gaara closed the door behind him.
Hinata waved her hand. "It's hormone-induced."
"… Is that common," Gaara asked cautiously.
"Yes, sudden anger, sadness, or joy over small things, or even with little to no cause, can happen. It's hard to control the sudden heavy emotions even if you know what's happening." Hinata tried to breathe and calm herself, but she felt another wave of tears streaming down her face. She felt her face scrunch back up.
Gaara panicked.
"I'm sorry for worrying you." Hinata whimpered.
"I don't know what to do…" Gaara held his arms out.
Hinata curled into him and let him hold her. He was doing enough already. "I'm sorry." Was all that came out as she sobbed again.
Hinata felt so silly. She was in a meeting where a nin had off-hand mentioned that his sister was getting married, and she was too busy with it. It reminded her that her sister complained in her letters that her replies were less frequent. There was a wave of disappointment from Hanabi hit her so quickly that she didn't know what to do. She accepted that having less to tell her sister would lead to fewer replies and an annoyed sister. She hadn't felt anything other than a little annoyed that she had to keep her in the dark, but pregnancy emotions never were rational.
Hinata sniffed, wiping her face as it finally passed. "I think I am okay."
Gaara gave her a mixture of bewilderment and caution. "Are you sure?"
Hinata nodded. "Sorry, there isn't much to be done about this other than to understand it's not your fault and let it pass."
"You are sure this is because of the pregnancy?" Gaara seemed ready to pin the blame on himself. She hated it when he did that.
"This time." Hinata got up to wash her face. "Thank you for being here."