"Ciel." a gentle voice woke me from my sleep.

What time is it?

I feel like a haven't slept for more than an hour.

"Ciel, you have to be at work in half an hour. I made breakfast." soft lips pressed against my forehead and I opened my eyes to come face to face with my lover.

His crimson eyes stared down at me lovingly and I felt a small, tired smile stretch across my face.

"Good morning." Sebastian mumbled, placing a feather light kiss on my lips.

I pulled him closer to me for a proper kiss, making him chuckle quietly.

His lips molded against mine perfectly, it was slow and passionate, though slightly sloppy on my part because of my sleep dazed mind.

"G'morning." I whispered when we pulled away from each other.

"Did my alarm go off? I usually have it set for an hour and a half before I need to leave, I didn't hear it though." I asked, pushing myself into a sitting position.

"It went off, you seemed pretty knocked out though." he replied, tossing his sleep shirt aside and pulling on a black t-shirt in it's place.

I nodded and slung my legs over the side of the bed, stretching my arms above my head while I watched Sebastian change clothes.

I rubbed at my eyes to wake myself more and brushed a hand through my hair to untangle a few pieces, before letting my arms rest on my legs again.

I sat on the edge of the mattress for a few seconds, preparing to stand up when my stomach ached in protest.

I groaned quietly and wrapped my arms tightly around my middle, quickly drawing my fiance's attention.

He was leaned over me in seconds, eyes wide with concern, "are you okay?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but was quickly cut off by my stomach twisting.

I pushed Sebastian away weakly and rushed to the bathroom, collapsing in front of the toilet seconds before I lurched foward, emptying the contents of my stomach.

Sebastian was quick to follow me, sighing sadly as he knelt beside me.

A hand made it's way to my back to rub slow circles on it, "You didn't tell me you felt sick last night."

"I didn't feel sick yesterday." I mumbled, taking a few shaky breaths before I was once again hunched over the porcelain bowl in front of me.

"I didn't think I could get ill..."

"Perhaps it's a stomach bug?"

"Do demons get stomach bugs?" I quirked an eyebrow.

"No, I suppose we don't. I was thinking out loud more than anything, not many things can cause us to fall ill."

I simply shrugged and leaned my head back against his shoulder, eyes falling half shut in exhaustion.

I shouldn't even be tired, I slept for over ten hours!

Sebastian pressed the back of his hand against my forehead, I flinched slightly at the coldness of his fingers.

"Sorry, I know my hand's a little cold. You don't feel like you have a fever though." he furrowed his eyebrows.

"I'm sure whatever it is will pass soon." I shrugged, failing to suppress a yawn.

"What time is it?" I asked, remembering I should be getting ready for work soon.

"Eight forty-five, I hope you're not planning to go to work." he replied, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me flush against his chest.

"I didn't give even an hour's notice, it would be unfair to call in last minute and have my shift pushed off on someone else who didn't want it."

"They've done it to you before. Besides, what if you get sick while you're there? You'd have to come back home early anyways. Not to mention, if you're contagious, you would expose your co-workers too." his hands sat at the top of my abdomen and for a moment I had the urge to move them down a few inches to rest over my bellybutton.

How odd.

Perhaps some part of my sleepy mind thinks it would help cure my nausea?

"Mm, I suppose you're right. I need to at least call though." I sighed, about to push myself off of the ground when Sebastian stood up quickly and gathered me in his arms instead.

"I can walk." I rolled my eyes, but laid my head between his neck and shoulder anyways.

Despite how much I complain when he picks me up at random times, I love being held by him.

He's so warm.

And he smells so good.

He always smells good.

I nuzzled my nose against his neck, earning a deep purr.

I smiled happily and kissed the small scar on his neck where I had marked him, "I love you."

"I love you too, my Ciel."

He set me on the bed, careful to not jostle me and upset my stomach any further, and handed me my phone, "I'll be right back, I need to put your breakfast in the fridge."

I tried to call my manager, but it went straight to voicemail so I sent a quick text to Alois instead, 'I won't be at work today, will you tell the manager please?'

The reply was quick, 'I'll tell her. Are you okay?'

'I'm a little sick, I should be better by Monday' I replied, hearing Sebastian talking to someone in the living room.

He must be on his phone.

My phone dinged, 'Aww no! :( Get well soon!'

'Thanks! Try not to overwork yourself.'

'I'll try not to.'

I set my phone on the bed stand, and laid back into the pillows, pulling the blankets up to my chin.

Sebastian walked back in not long after, removing his skinny jeans and changing into sweatpants before climbing into bed with me.

"Don't you need to be at work in ten minutes?" I asked confused.

"I called in, I have no work today." he smiled, pulling me against him.

"You didn't have to, I would've been fine." I whispered, but wrapped my arms around him anyways and buried my nose against his neck, inhaling his scent with every breath.

He kissed the top of my head and smiled against my hair, "I wanted to though, besides I wouldn't be one hell of a mate if I left my sick lover when he needs me."

"Ugh, it's been over a century, Sebastian. Will you ever stop using that joke?" I rolled my eyes fondly.

"Never." he grinned cheekily, running his long fingers through my grey-blue hair.

I chucked tiredly and nuzzled his neck with my nose lightly.

"Rest, Ciel. You can barely keep your eyes opened." he brushed his fingers through my hair slowly.

"You'll be here when I wake up?" I whispered, chewing on my lip in mild worry.

Why am I so anxious lately?

"Of course I will. I would never leave you alone, especially when you're unwell."

"Thank you." I smiled slightly, allowing my eyes to flutter shut.

"Sleep well, darling." a soft kiss was pressed to my lips just before I fell into oblivion.

If only I had known that the illness wasn't something that wouldn't stop over the course of a day.

Nothing in my life has ever been quite that simple.

"Ugh... Sebastian?"

"Yes, love?"

"Did your sister ever call back?"

"I'm afraid not... She was on contract last time I spoke to her, but I had assumed she would be finished by now." the raven haired man sighed, raking a hand through his hair in frustration.

"Is there anyone else you can a-" I tried to say, but was cut off by another wave of nausea.

Sebastian was quick to hand me the small trashcan beside the bed to keep me from getting sick on the bed again, which had already happened twice in the last four days much to my distress.

He rubbed my back and pushed my hair away from my face to stop it from sticking to my sweating forehead, waiting patiently for the bout of sickness to be over.

When I finally pulled away from the trashcan he took it to the bathroom to clean it while I covered my eyes with my arm and tried to calm my breathing.

It had been two weeks since the first time this happened and it had only gotten worse as days went on.

The scent of certain foods I used to love made me gag and I couldn't hold down much, at this point even souls made my stomach churn.

To say it was frustrating was an understatement.

It terrified me.

What if it was fatal?

What if I died?

I would never get to see Sebastian again.

The thought alone made my eyes cloud with tears that I tried to blink away, but all it did was make them fall, more replacing them as soon as they had dripped down my cheeks.

I wiped them away shakily and bit my lip to muffle the sounds threatening to break free from my lips, tasting the metallic flavour of blood as one of my fangs pierced my lip.

I tried to still my trembling body as I heard footsteps walking towards the bedroom, it must have been successful because Sebastian didn't say anything until he noticed the red liquid dripping off of my lip.

"You made yourself bleed." my mate mumbled, despite my arm covering my eyes, I could tell that he was frowning my his voice.

His footsteps faded as he left the room, returning a few seconds later with something that he pressed against my, already healing, lip.

A wet towel.

I felt my eyes sting more pressed my arm against them tighter to keep them from slipping underneath where they could be seen, but I could still feel them working their way under it.

Not now, not now.

My hands trembled pitifully and my breaths grew more irregular.

Not with Sebastian here, I don't want him to worry more than he already does.

"Why are you covering your eyes? Does your head hurt?" as soon as his concerned voice reached my ears, I broke.

I shook uncontrollably as a loud sob slipped through my lips and the cloth he was using froze before disappearing completely.

"Ciel!? What's wrong!?" he gently pried my arm away from my face, revealing my tear-filled, bloodshot eyes and red cheeks.

"W-what's happening to m-me?" I choked out between short, sharp breaths.

His eyes widened, "I don't know yet, my darling. But I'll figure it out, I'll make sure you're well again, I promise you."

"I'm s-scared."

"I know, but it's okay, love. Everything will be okay." he brushed the droplets of water away from my face where more continued to fall.

"Please don't cry." he whispered as I was pulled into his arms where he held me tightly, resting his chin on top of my head protectively.

"B-but what if there is no c-ure?"

"There is, I swear to you."

"But-" I tried to say, but couldn't force any more words out.

Panic welled up in my chest when I found it harder to draw a breath, despite the fact that demons didn't necessarily need to breathe, it's not a good feeling when you're so used to doing it.

"S-Sebastian, I can't- I can't b-reathe!" I clutched my fiance's shirt tightly, panting desperately.

"I need you to listen to me, okay?" he asked, waiting for me to reply.

"I can't I-"

"Ciel, listen to me." his voice was sterner now, but still gentle as he guided my head away from his neck to rest against the left side of his chest, "Focus on my heartbeat, count the beats in your head, and try to slow your breathing."

I nodded slowly, knowing that despite the tight feeling in my chest, Sebastian knew what he was doing.

He would never do anything that would put my life at risk.

I closed my eyes, listening to the familiar sound coming from his chest, letting all other thoughts be pushed to the back of my mind.

Thump thump, thump thump, thump thump.

I breathed deeply, feeling the lump in my throat and the pain in my lungs start to subside.

His fingers carded through my ash blue hair delicately.

When I could breathe normally I took notice of the soothing scent that surrounded me.

I smiled weakly, just like a demon's scent changes when their mate is in heat, it changes when their mate is in distress, whether emotional or physical, to a more comforting one to help calm them.

My tears stopped after a few minutes, only small hiccups left after the sobs had disappeared.

We sat in comfortable silence for a while longer, enjoying the peace that being so close to each other brought us.

His scent mixed with his warmth and steady heartbeat was enough to make my eyes droop, "It worked."

The raven demon chucked quietly, leaning down to press his lips to my forehead, "I noticed, I'm glad it did."

He moved back on the bed, not releasing me from his hold as he laid us down on our sides, still hugging me close to him.

"I'll ask Hannah tomorrow if she knows what could be happening to you. She knows more than I do about things like this." he whispered, pulling the blankets over us.

"Okay." I mumbled, drawing random patterns on his chest with my fingers while he hummed an unfamiliar song quietly.

His voice is beautiful even when he's just humming.

After a few minutes he stopped humming and furrowed his eyebrows, I looked up at him confused and already half asleep.

"Is something wrong?"

"I just thought of something. It's a long shot, but that sound... Turn over on your back." he said, pushing himself into a sitting position suddenly.

I turned over despite my confusion.

He leaned over me, pressing his right hand and the side of his face against my stomach.

I couldn't help but laugh at that, "What on Earth are you doing?"

He laughed too, "As odd as this may look, I swear I'm not just doing it to be weird."

"Fair enough."

He closed his eyes for a few seconds, focusing intently on...

Well, whatever it was he was doing.

He stayed that way for a little while longer before gasping loudly.

"What is it?"

He sat up and stared at me blankly for a few seconds.

Worried, I sat up too, "What did you hear?"

"I can't believe I didn't realize this sooner." he mumbled.

He looked back down at my stomach in... Wonder?

"Well, I noticed over the last month you've smelt sweeter and have developed a few strange habits."

"Strange habits?" I arched an eyebrow.

"You've been taking the shirts I wear and curling up with them on the couch like when you nested before your heat."

"They smell good!"

"But did you ever do that outside of heat before?"

"No, I didn't..."

"There are a few other things like your fatigue and your emotions have been a little... Unruly. But I had assumed that was just because you were ill."

"Unruly, eh?" I narrowed my eyes slightly, "Where are you going with this?"

He bit his lip and it trembled under his teeth before a huge grin spread across his lips, fangs clearly visible.

The only word I could think to describe him at the moment is 'adorable'.

"Well?" I feigned annoyance, but couldn't keep the smile off of my lips at his expression.

"You're pregnant."

"Wait. I-I'm what?"

"Pregnant. I should have thought about the possibility sooner! Your heat was a little over a month ago, and yet it never occurred to me."

"How do you know?"

"I can hear two heartbeats, unless you have two hearts like a time lord, it's all I can think of."

I stared at him in shock, stuck between excitement and nervousness.

"I'm pregnant?"

He nodded, eyes sparkling with tears of joy.

I'm pregnant!

I felt so many different emotions stirring within me.

Fear, nervousness, excitement, happiness, and above all else, love.

I laughed quietly, before breaking off into a full laughing fit, "this explains why I've been dying for chocolate cake with mashed potatoes on top."

Sebastian laughed as well, shaking his head fondly.

"I can't believe this." he whispered when he calmed down enough to catch his breath, "I can't believe we're having a baby."

I grinned at him, brushing my hand through his black, silk-like hair, "Neither can I, my love."

He pushed my shirt up slightly, placing a feather light kiss on my, still flat, stomach, "Hi baby."

I stared down at him in awe and before I even realized what was happening, I was crying again.

He looked up with concern present in his eyes, "My dear, what's wrong!?"

"I just love you so much." I whispered, rubbing a thumb across his fair cheek slowly.

He smiled, "I love you too, Ciel."

He moved back up the bed to lay beside me, resting his head on top of mine after kissing the tears off of my cheeks.

He wrapped one arm around my waist and put one hand against my stomach lightly while I laid my head against his chest.

I set a hand on top of his on my stomach, looking up at him when he spoke, "What do you think it'll be?"

"Well, I'm guessing a demon." I chuckled.

"Smartass." he chuckled, "I'm being serious though, do you think it'll be a boy or a girl?"

"I'm not sure, I don't care though as long as they're healthy."

"I agree with you on that."

"Who knows, maybe we'll have one of each." I teased with a smirk.

"I took care of a stubborn, human earl who couldn't even tie his shoes, two demon children will be a piece of cake."

I ignored the first part of his comment in favour of the second part, "Speaking of cake..."

"This will be an interesting nine months." he laughed and promised to bake me a cake in a few hours, before we settled down in each other's arms for a well-needed nap.

PLEASE READ
I'm finally back with a new story after like two months! I tried to come back sooner, but a lot was going on and I didn't have any inspiration to write. But that aside, I'm making a pregnancy series from this and I need help from all of you! I will be making short fics for every stage of Ciel's pregnancy, but I would really like if y'all could send me ideas on what to write about (cravings, nursery decorating, ect.) :D