A Difficult Decision to Make

They could have heard even a pin drop in the dead silence that followed after the warning alarm stopped.

They both stared at the message written in vibrant crimson that appeared on the interface creating the weird illusion that they could grab the letters making up the words and smash them to pieces to make them non-existent. But sadly, that was only an illusion as the message was still there urging them to take action. Any kind of action.

PATIENT SAITO FUYUKI HAS A 99.999899% PROBABILITY OF BEING PREGNANT.

ACCORDING TO THE AVAILABLE DATA, PATIENT SAITO FUYUKI IS CURRENTLY IN THE FIRST TRIMESTER OF PREGNANCY AND IS NOW

5 WEEKS, 3 DAYS, 14 HOURS AND 36 MINUTES PREGNANT.

THERE IS A 0.000001% PROBABILITY OF A SYSTEM MALFUNCTION.

PLEASE INVESTIGATE FURTHER BEFORE CONFIRMING TO GO ON WITH THE REQUIRED PROCEDURES!

„Maybe there’s a mistake,” Fuyuki said with an embarrassed laugh, trying to ignore how tense he became all of a sudden.

"Even if there is, the probability of it is so low that it’s basically zero,” Liwei said seriously while pointing at the number in question. "While the probability of the other possibility is so high that its accuracy is almost 100%. Not to mention that if you count backward from today then the date overlaps with...”

"So, what can we do now?” Fuyuki interrupted in a hurry before he could finish what Liwei was about to say. He already did that calculation and even thinking about it made him embarrassed and uneasy not to mention hearing someone else say it. Especially if that someone else is him.

"I think we still should look into that extremely small chance that you aren’t just to make sure.”

"And what if I am?” Fuyuki asked nervously and felt his eyes tearing up as he tried to avoid looking into his eyes.

A few seconds passed, making Fuyuki think that Liwei was probably considering what to say. He only realized that this was not the case when he heard Liwei approaching him and was pulled into his embrace.

"I don’t mind it,” he said in a low voice. "But I’m worried about you. One option is for you to have an abortion but if you decide to keep it...”

"It might not be such a bad idea. You would have an heir, so your parents no longer would’ve to worry about that. And a grandchild might soften them in a way that would be favourable to us. I don’t know. Maybe it’s just... Now that I know there’s a life inside me, I just loathe to part with it.”

Fuyuki felt Liwei’s arms tighten around his shoulders as if he could protect him from harm this way.

"Whoever did this made sure not to turn you into a woman completely, so I think this is probably directed against you and perhaps me,” he said. "This way natural birth is out of the question. But even if we go with the other option and you get a C-section, there’s no telling how your body will react to the pregnancy and if your stomach can stretch enough as the child grows just like a woman’s. But it could be doable if we find a surrogate...”

"I don’t want that!” he objected discarding the idea immediately.

“There’s also a fourth option. We get your DNA modified and turn you into a woman completely for the duration of the pregnancy and the delivery and turn you back after you give birth,” he said slowly and let go of Fuyuki so he could look into his eyes.

“But that’s even more dangerous than me going through the pregnancy the way I am now. Even if I somehow survive turning into a woman without becoming one of those monsters, I might not survive the second time when I turn back to a man.”

“Unless it’s not the present you, whose DNA gets modified,” Liwei said seriously making Fuyuki confused. “You know, I wondered how you could survive all that without any consequences even though all the available research data proves the opposite. This, of course, is a good sign since this probably means that your body could adapt to those changes. Still, you should’ve felt something at least,” he said and turned toward the interface observing all the data projected on it. “That’s why I believe that someone went back in time, probably to the time when you were still in your mother’s womb and that’s when those modifications took place.

“They basically changed something in my past,” Fuyuki said and his eyes widened in shock.

“Something like that. This modification must have happened pretty recently. You wouldn’t have survived until now with well-functioning female organs and ovulation with no way to menstruate if it was done in your original timeline. Not to mention being in a relationship with someone. Even if you’re an extremely healthy person and don’t ever need to see a doctor in your life, sooner or later you would’ve found out after getting together with someone. Just like you did with me.”

“So, what you mean is you want to go back in time and change the sex when I’m still an embryo so that the present me will change as well? But won’t that rewrite my past? What if I no longer know you or don’t like you or... Never mind. I just got anxious. I still think that me going through the pregnancy and getting a C-section is still the easiest option.”

“No, the easiest is surrogacy. I know... you don’t want that,” he said raising his palm in a sign of surrender. “If you agree to let me go back and manipulate your past, I’ll do it. I don’t want to because there’s no telling what the outcome will be. But whatever option you choose, I’ll go with that. I hate the idea of risking your life but I will do it for you. And for our child,” he said in a low, hoarse voice as he stepped closer. If they were exactly the same height, their noses probably would’ve touched at this point.

“You know, I was wondering since the summit meeting whether changing someone’s sex is possible. Now I’ll have first-hand experience to prove if it works,” Fuyuki said bitterly but changed back to a professional tone right after that. “Let’s call back the doctor and talk to her first.

It took a matter of seconds for Liwei to contact Dr. Rostensky, who was standing outside the room, and for her to come in hurriedly.

“We have a problem,” Liwei told her the moment she stepped in and the door shut behind her.

“I see that,” she said in utter shock, walking closer to the interface in disbelief.

“Is there any chance that the system made a mistake?” Fuyuki asked already suspecting the answer.

“There could have been a few hundred years ago but not now. It scanned you right down to your last tissue. If it says you are pregnant then you are. Who is the...?” she asked but after looking at them she already guessed the answer. “Forget I asked anything. So I presume now is the time for you to choose what to modify according to what characteristics you want your ideal child to have,” she said in a tone making it obvious that she must have told the exact same thing many parents-to-be throughout her career.

“I just want it to be healthy,” Fuyuki told her resolutely.

“That’s rare to only wish for that,” she said meaningfully and turned back to the interface.

Fuyuki looked at Liwei thinking that they actually had many things to wish for but right now everything they were planning to achieve just a day ago seemed less significant and less urgent than the issue they had right now.

“Alright, I’ll go with the usual procedure. You don’t have to worry about anything. Except for how you will break the news to your father,” she said looking at Liwei.

“Oh, I so want to see when that happens,” they heard a carefree voice from behind making them turn around in shock.

“How could you get in here?” Dr. Rostensky asked making the intruder laugh into her face.

“Anything is possible if someone is crafty enough,” he said sneering, and took a few steps forward as if he were walking around looking at the exhibits in a museum.

There surely was something to see, except it was something none of them wanted him to see. Sure enough, he was quick to realize that as he looked at the data projected on the interface above the huge table before him. Those crimson words now seemed like they were written in blood.