"Why can't you just apologize?" Kari shouted from across the table.
Deja vu.
"And why should I have to apologize? What for?" Breann shouted back.
Why exactly are we living together?
"You know exactly what for!"
"I see no reason to apologize to you."
"You're so inconsiderate!"
"You're one to talk! I'm pregnant for Christ's sake! Give me a break!"
And that's all that's changed since then too.
Hiro Cornelius sat at the kitchen table between his girlfriend, Breann Davis, and his other friend Kari Dowers. Once again, just like they had for years, they were arguing over something stupid. And, just like that one summer two years ago, it was over the shower. Chase Randell (Hiro's best friend and Kari's boyfriend) stood at the stove, preparing breakfast for the four of them. He watched the two women argue with slight amusement, slight irritation. The four of them were living together in their small, three bedroom, one bathroom apartment. After their graduation from Emerald Academy, the four of them left their homes (Hiro and Kari from the small Japanese island of Yakusoko and Chase and Breann from the States) and signed a rental agreement for the small apartment. Currently, three of the four of them (Hiro, Chase, and Kari) were studying at a local Prep school, preparing to take their entrance exams for Tokyo University. Breann, who was almost eight months pregnant, worked a part-time job at a nearby diner. Her Japanese was lacking severely when compared to her roommates, but she got by with the help of a few friends who also spoke English. If and when they got into the university Chase was hoping to major in archaeology, Kari in technology and mechanics, and Hiro (who would have to ask for time off in a few weeks) in law. Incidentally, they all got by on their scholarships grants that they had all earned. This made it that much easier for them to live in their overpriced apartment. And Hiro had recently inherited a large sum of money after his father's mysterious death. But...
That didn't change the current situation.
"Just apologize! It doesn't matter if you're pregnant or not! That doesn't give you the right to be selfish!"
"Oh my god, it's only water!"
"Which I pay for!"
"We all pay for it!"
"Some more than others."
"Hiro!" Breann cried, glaring at him. "Say something!"
"Must you bring me into this?" he mumbled
"Just say something to her!"
"Look!" he shouted, standing up with force enough to rattle the table. "This isn't like when we lived in Sapphire! We all live here, we all pay, so for everyone's sake, stop arguing! Breann! Kari! You hear me? Chase and I are both sick of it! Cut it out, you're acting like children! And, dammit, stop coming to me for every little thing, Bre! You're not my respon..."
Both women fell silent. Kari stared back and forth between Hiro and Breann shocked. Breann looked as if she'd been slapped in the face. The air in the room seemed to have frozen. Chase also looked a bit surprised.
"What...did you say?" she asked in barely a whisper.
"Wait, Bre...I didn't--" he said, realizing his mistake and reaching out to her.
"Hiro, I..."
"Bre, really, I didn't mean to--"
With one swing, Hiro toppled back against the wall behind, clutching his face where she had slapped him. With tears streaming down her face, Breann ran out of the kitchen. A moment later, they heard a door slam. Then it was quiet again. Hiro stared at the now empty hallway in disbelief, face reddening, hand still outstretched.
"Breann..."
Kari took a step nearer to Chase, who paid no attention to the the now burning food on the stove.
"Dude," Chase said, setting the spatula down. "Dude, you really screwed up that time."
"..."
"I can't believe you said that to her. And after all that's happened--"
"Oh, shut up, Chase," Kari said, smacking his back. "That's not helping!"
"No," Hiro said, sitting down again. "He's right. I really messed things up this time."
"But, where did that come from? I've never seen you talk that way to anybody. Especially Bre," Chase said, sitting down opposite of him. Kari took her seat beside him.
"Hiro, is something wrong?" Kari asked. "Did something happen between you and Bre?"
"..."
"C'mon, Hiro," Chase said. "We're your best friends. You can tell us. Besides, it's not like we can go running our mouths to anybody. I mean, seriously, how many people do we know around here?"
"Was you scholarship revoked?" Kari asked.
"It's not that," Hiro said firmly.
"Then what happened?"
"Breann getting pregnant is "what happened"."
"What do you mean--Wait, you don't doubt the baby's parentage, do--"
"Of course not!" he interjected, almost yelling. "It's just..." he stared back at his hands, which now had small puncture marks in the forefingers where he had dug with his thumbs. "I'm having doubts about the baby."
"You mean you don't want it?" Kari asked in disbelief. "It's too late for an abortion."
"No--er, I don't know. I love Breann, and I love the baby, but I...I just don't think I'm ready to be a father. I don't know if I can take the responsibility of raising a child. I mean, we're not even in college yet. What do I know about a family? The only family I've had in twelve years is Jeff, Ryuzaka, whom I found out I was cloned from. Oh, and that freak who tried to do me in, my father. All of which are either dead of too far away to do anything about."
"Hiro, it's natural for you to have doubts about this kind of thing," Kari said softly, grabbing his hand and rubbing it trying to comfort him.
"Yeah, and I suppose you know all about what it feels like to have a kid, right?"
"Hiro, why are you being so cold to me? What did I--"
"Kari, really, I'm sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me. I think I just need some time alone. I need some time to think things through."
"Well," Chase said. "If I were you, which God forbid, Kari, you put me into this kind of situation, I'd go and apologize to Bre. You may not realize it, but you've been extremely cold to her lately."
"Yeah, I'll go and talk to her about it. Sorry about the attitude."
"Don't apologize to us. Worry more about Bre."
"Yeah, thanks," Hiro said, smiling warily as he got up. After pushing his chair back in, he walked into the hall and down to Bre's bedroom door. He could hear her crying even without having to listen for it. Being a chire, someone with animal characteristics and traits, he had am enhanced sense of hearing, as well as smell and taste. He knocked twice and waited for an answer.
"W-who is it?" she asked, trying to muffle her sobs.
He didn't answer immediately, instead he waited, trying to gather his thoughts before saying, "Hey, Bre, it's me. Listen, can I come in and talk to you?"
Silence. Not even a sob.
"Bre, look, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to--"
The door opened slightly and Breann peered at him through the small gap with glistening red eyes.
"What do you want?" she asked, wiping her face on her sleeve.
"Look, I just wanna talk. Is that okay? Can we talk?"
She nodded and opened the door wider, allowing him entrance. For the sake of everyone, Breann and Hiro shared their bedroom, while Chase and Kari each had their own. But this didn't stop Bre from locking him out whenever she got angry or upset with him. She sat down on their bed and looked away out the window. The streets below were crowded with vehicles and people. And not even closed windows could block out all the noise. Hiro sat down in the chair at the desk and stared at her. Breann may have been about eight months pregnant, but she really didn't look it. Just from her small size, he knew that the baby was undersized, which complicated things further and meant a probable early birth.
"Bre, I'm sorry. I didn't mean--"
"What do you want, Hiro?" she demanded without glancing up at him. "Why exactly did you come in here?"
"I wanted to apologize. I didn't mean to say all that."
"There was a reason, Hiro. I know you. You don't say things without a reason. So why? What's the matter? Why the hell have you been so mean to me lately?"
"It's just--"
"Does having a pregnant girlfriend shame you that much? Can you really not stand it?"
"No, really, it doesn't bother me at all."
"Liar!" she shouted. "I heard what you said! I'm also a chire, Hiro, remember? I can hear every goddamn word you guys say in there. You don't think I know that your having doubts about the baby? You don't think I know how scary this all is? Well, Hiro, you have no fucking idea how bad it is for me! Who's the pregnant one? Who's carrying the baby inside her, getting fatter and uglier by the day? Who's the one who has to put up with all the bullshit that comes with being pregnant? It sure as hell isn't you, so don't you dare tell me how hard it is on you, because I guarantee I have it worse! The only thing you really are responsible for is helping make it!" (which wasn't entirely true. She had been the one who coaxed him into it. She was the one who wanted to take the chance. Hiro had been against it from the beginning).
"Bre, I...I'm sorry. Really, I'm sorry."
She stared at him angrily for a moment before crying again. She buried her face in her hands and lay back on the bed, covering her face with a pillow.
"Bre, wait--"
"I idn't ean wan eh!" she said in a muffled voice.
"What?"
She pulled the pillow above her mouth, still hiding her face. "I didn't even want it!"
"Want what? The baby?"
"Yes, I never wanted to have it in the first place!"
"Then why did you decide to--"
"Because you..." She sobbed. "I didn't want to upset you. You seemed so happy when you found out." (actually, he was terrified when he first found out, at about 2 a.m. about three weeks after that fateful night...but now wasn't the best time to bring that up) "And I knew you couldn't stand the thought of abortion."
"Bre, that decision was yours! What you do and decide isn't up to me. If you wanted to abort then you should have done so."
"Yeah, thanks for telling me now!"
"Bre, I--"
"I'm a terrible person, aren't I?"
"What--No! Bre, really, it's okay. Listen to me. Sit up and listen to me." He got up and sat down beside her. He pulled the pillow away to reveal her tear-stained, yet beautiful face. He wiped a tear off her cheek with his thumb and stared into her dark brown eyes. "Really, everything will be alrght. I promise you, Bre. I love you, and I love our baby, and nothing will ever change that. I'm sorry I got you into this mess. I'm sorry you're so scared. And I'm sorry I've been so cold to you lately. But I swear, everything will be alright. Just give it some time, and you'll see."
"You promise?" It sounded childish, but it made Hiro smile all the same.
"I promise." He kissed her on the forehead and rubbed her swollen belly. "I love you too."
Breann smiled and cuddled against his leg.
He waited for a few minutes before looking at his watch (a Christmas gift from Breann during their first year at Emerald Academy, before all the major stuff happened). It was almost noon.
"Bre, I have to go. Prep School starts soon and I can't be late."
"Okay," she sniffed.
She sat up and waited as Hiro got dressed for school. Once finished, Breann stood up and followed him out of the room where Kari and Chase were waiting for him in the kitchen.
"Everything okay?" Chase asked, checking his back pocket to make sure his wallet was there.
"Yeah, we're fine," Hiro said, slipping on his shoes. After he got them on, he stood up and kissed Breann again. "Okay, well, we'll see you when you get home from work. Be careful."
"Hold on a second," Breann said reaching up and fumbling with Hiro's collar. "I swear, sometimes you just don't know how to dress yourself."
"Yeah, whatever, it's just a shirt."
"Whatever you say."
"Okay, I'll see you later--Oh, and don't forget to lock up before you leave."
"Hiro, we've lived here for half a year. I know what I'm doing. Now get going or you'll be late."
"Alright, love you." He kissed her again, then he, Chase, and Kari left, leaving Breann alone in the relative quiet of the now empty apartment. She didn't have to be at work until 1:30, so she had some time. She had already showered (spawning her and Kari's earlier argument), so that left very little to do. Do her hair, get ready, and that was about it. Oh, but she hadn't eaten breakfast yet.
"Good thing I've got some extra time. I'm so hungry this morning."
She sifted through Chase's burned attempt at breakfast, trying to salvage any fried egg that might still be edible. Finally, she gave up and settled on some toaster-waffles. She ate five and a half and felt terrible. She hated all the extra food she now ate. It made her feel ugly and fatter than she really was. And aside from that, there were plenty of other problems, because...
"Because I'm still scared," she mused as she got ready for work at 12:45. "I still don't know if I want this baby."