Chapter 7 – The Pregnancy Test

Aiko Hoshizora had never felt this tired before.

For the third morning in a row, she stood in front of her mirror gripping the edge of the sink. Her stomach twisted, a wave of nausea rising with no warning. She covered her mouth, squeezing her eyes shut.

Not again…

Her father’s voice echoed downstairs, the usual commanding tone drowning out everything else. She didn’t want to face him. She didn’t want to face anyone. She grabbed her phone and texted the only person she truly trusted.

Aiko:

Yuji… can I come over?

The reply came fast.

Yuji:

Always.

She exhaled shakily. She hadn’t told him about the nausea. Or the dizzy spells. Or the way her chest tightened with fear each time her period failed to come.

She just knew she needed him.

---

Yuji Sakamoto opened the dorm door before she knocked. “Aiko? You look pale. Are you sick?”

She tried to smile but couldn’t keep it steady. “Maybe… I don’t know.”

He touched her forehead with the back of his hand. “You’re cold and clammy. Sit down. I’ll get water.”

Aiko sat on the edge of his bed. Her fingers dug into the blanket. Her heart pounded against her ribs. She could hear her own breathing, shallow and shaky.

Yuji handed her the water bottle and sat beside her. “Talk to me. Has this been happening a lot?”

She hesitated.

He watched her with quiet concern. Yuji was warm in ways no one else in her life was. He didn’t push her, but he stayed close so she wouldn’t fall apart alone.

“Aiko,” he said gently, “you’re scaring me.”

She finally whispered, “Yuji… my period is late.”

The air stilled.

Yuji blinked. He didn’t look angry. He didn’t look panicked. He looked stunned, like the ground had shifted under him.

“How late?”

“Two weeks,” she whispered.

Yuji took a slow breath. “Okay. Okay… we should test it.”

She felt the words like a punch. “I’m scared.”

“I know,” he said softly. “But we need to know. And whatever it is… I’m here. I won’t leave you alone.”

Her eyes stung. She nodded weakly.

Yuji quickly grabbed his jacket. “There’s a pharmacy two blocks away. Stay here. I’ll be right back.”

Aiko watched him leave. The moment the door shut, the room felt too quiet, too heavy. She wrapped her arms around herself and sat there trembling, staring at the floor.

She prayed for a negative result.

She prayed for anything but this.

But deep down, she already knew.

---

Yuji returned a few minutes later, hair wet from the light drizzle outside. He held a small pharmacy bag in his hand.

He tried to smile. “It’s alright. Let’s just check. You’re not alone.”

Aiko took the test with shaking hands. Her fingers felt numb.

“I’ll wait here,” Yuji said softly. “Take your time.”

She stepped into the small bathroom. When she closed the door, her legs nearly gave out. She had grown up in a mansion with marble floors and polished gold fixtures, yet she felt safer in this tiny, cramped bathroom than anywhere else.

Her hands trembled as she unwrapped the test. Her breath came out uneven.

Please… please no…

She followed the instructions with numb fingers. Then she placed the test on the counter and sank onto the lid of the toilet, burying her face in her hands.

Seconds crawled by like hours. Her heart pounded in her ears.

When she finally lifted her head and looked—

Her vision blurred.

Two lines.

Two unmistakable lines.

Her breath hitched. Her chest tightened painfully. She felt the world tilt, her knees going weak.

She covered her mouth to stop the sound, but a choked sob slipped through her fingers.

It was real.

It was happening.

She was pregnant.

---

The door opened a crack. Yuji’s voice was soft. “Aiko? Can I come in?”

She couldn’t answer. Another sob escaped her. Yuji stepped inside and froze when he saw her collapsed on the floor, shaking violently.

He immediately knelt in front of her. “Aiko—”

She shook her head, tears streaming down her cheeks. “Yuji… I’m… I’m pregnant…”

She handed him the test with trembling fingers. He looked at it. His breath caught, but his expression didn’t shift into fear or anger.

Instead, he reached for her.

“Aiko,” he whispered, pulling her close.

She buried her face in his chest, crying hard. Tears soaked through his shirt. Her body trembled against him, overwhelmed by fear, guilt, and confusion.

“It’s my fault,” she whispered. “My family… they’ll never forgive me. I… I don’t know what to do…”

Yuji held her tighter. “Hey. Hey. Breathe.”

Aiko shook her head. “I’m scared, Yuji. I’m really scared…”

He pressed his forehead against hers, their breaths mingling. “I am too.”

She blinked through her tears. “You are?”

“Of course,” he whispered. “This is huge. And I don’t know what’s going to happen either.”

Aiko’s lip trembled. “Then what do we do?”

Yuji exhaled slowly, his hands holding her shoulders with steady warmth.

“We face it,” he said. “Together.”

She stared at him, fragile and broken. “But… your future, your goals—”

“You’re my future too,” he replied. “And if there’s a baby now…” He swallowed, but his voice stayed firm. “I’ll take responsibility. I won’t run.”

Her tears flowed harder. “But—”

“No,” he cut in gently. “I’m not leaving you alone in this. I want to protect you. And the baby.”

Something inside Aiko cracked—an ache she didn’t realize she’d been holding back.

She collapsed into his arms again, crying harder but with a different kind of emotion—relief.

Yuji stroked her hair, murmuring softly. “We’ll figure everything out. One step at a time.”

“But my parents—”

“We’ll deal with them too. You’re not facing them alone anymore.”

Aiko clung to him, shaking. “Yuji… thank you…”

He pressed a soft kiss to her forehead. “We made a mistake, yeah. But this baby… is ours. And so is whatever comes next.”

She trembled at his words, but they steadied her.

“I’m not strong like you,” she whispered.

Yuji shook his head. “Aiko… you’re stronger than you think.”

She closed her eyes, letting herself breathe in his warmth, his steadiness, his quiet courage.

And for the first time since the nausea began, the world didn’t feel like it was collapsing around her.

Because Yuji wasn’t letting go.