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"Are you feeling okay?" Regulus asked for the hundredth time, as he left her to the couch and nudged her down into a seated position. "You know you should be resting." He murmured mildly, gesturing at her stomach vaguely. He seemed to find the word 'pregnancy' forbidding, having only said it about twice; it seemed he still hadn't come to terms with her pregnancy. Though he made quite the show of being rather controlling and alert, completely determined to keep her and the baby out of harms way.
He disappeared into the kitchen with rapidness, before returning with a glass of cold water with ice cubes bobbing in it. "Answer me." He insisted, holding out the water and kneeling in front of her. He looked concerned at her lack of response.
She took the water from him and graciously took a few sips before she spoke. "I'm pregnant, not dying." A little laugh followed her words as she leaned back against the couch cushions.
"Do not laugh when I am concerned." He snapped, his tone sharper than usual, though he wasn't sure if it was because he was feeling overly protective or because he was irritated that she wasn't even taking this seriously.
"Besides, I wasn't treating you like you were dying." He muttered, as he stood up and moved away from her, sitting on the other end of the couch, on the arm. His body language was much stiffer than usual, almost as if he was trying to distance himself from her, or perhaps it was because he was irritated with her.
She couldn't help but frown as she watched him move away from her. "What is up with you lately?" She asked. "You've been distant. You rarely come near me anymore, Merlin you haven't even been sleeping in the same bed as me these last few weeks."
Regulus didn't reply straight away, instead he sighed and shook his head. "I've been stressed." He muttered, keeping his eyes on her. She would've noticed that he was acting differently, and he knew that his behavior was rather odd; he was cold yet overly protective. "Let me rephrase that." He started, leaning back slightly. "I have been beyond stressed out."
She ran her finger around the rim of her glass, her frown staying put. When she spoke again, her voice was only a whisper with a hint of sadness hidden within. "Is there someone else?"
Her words hit Regulus like a brick to the face. His eyes went wide, before quickly narrowing as he stared at her intensely. "No." He hissed. "There is absolutely, without a doubt, no one else." He paused before continuing. "Why are you asking me such a horrid question?" He snapped once more, though his tone was laced with hurt.
She motioned between the two of them, more like the space between them. "Could you really blame me for asking such a thing?" She took a quick deep breath. "You act like this pregnancy is such a burden in our relationship."
He crossed his arms and his frown had returned. "A burden? I don't consider the pregnancy a burden." He answered honestly. "What I do consider a burden, is the way you are acting and neglecting yourself."
Regulus stared at her, and though he was acting harsh, he was rather hurt and his frown was genuine. "You are carrying my child. Isn't that important enough to take proper care of yourself?" He asked genuinely, as he had been constantly nagging her to do.
"Proper care of myself isn't letting this relationship fall apart." She snapped back, her voice raising slightly. Her grip around her glass was tight, her fingertips turning white.
"This relationship is not falling apart, do not be so absurd." He said sharply, though he knew how hypocritical that sounded when he was avoiding her like the plague and acting so distant.
"I'm literally giving myself a migraine everyday to make sure you are okay." He gestured wildly. "Are you seriously going to sit here and tell me that I am causing our relationship to fall apart because I am merely just being a little extra protective?"
"You won't even sit beside me!" She practically yelled. "You don't dare to come near me as if I'm carrying some deadly disease!"
Regulus' eyebrows rose slightly as if she'd just slapped him. "You are blowing this out of proportion." He said, and as she yelled his eyebrows raised even more. "I just don't want to be within arms length because what if I accidentally hurt you or cause you too much stress? I can't risk anything."
He seemed frustrated by her constant need to blow things out of proportion, and he sighed as he looked away from her. "Stop being so dramatic." He muttered.
"You're not going to hurt me!" She breathed out, running her free hand through her hair roughly. "I'm not being dramatic, I'm just craving attention from my boyfriend!"
He remained silent, his eyes narrowing as he kept avoiding her gaze. He remained still in his place, and as his mind slowly began to process what'd she said, he realized that he was the one who was being dramatic.
Finally, he turned to look at her. His jaw moved slightly, as if he was trying to figure out how to respond to what she'd said. For a good moment, he just stared at her, before finally deciding to speak up. "Do you really feel I've been neglecting you?"
"I do, yes." Her voice had lowered, but it was still harsh. "I'm not fragile. I'm not going to break from a simple touch."
Regulus stayed still for a bit, as his eyes remained fixed on her before narrowing once more. He cleared his throat, deciding to switch topics. "I am doing everything I can to keep us happy..." He stopped mid sentence, as he remembered the part of him not sleeping in bed with her anymore. The realization only set him off even more; he was just making so many stupid choices. He opened his mouth, but he wasn't sure what to say so he stayed silent.
She just gave him a simple nod, as if she knew exactly what he was thinking. "I'm sorry for yelling, but I don't think you realize how suspicious you look from my perspective."
Regulus continued to stay still, before he finally opened his mouth. "If you knew how much this whole pregnancy situation is stressing me out, you wouldn't think I was suspicious."
"I could lose you over this... I could lose the baby..." His brow pinched as the realization settled in once more. "Any mistake on my part, and I'd regret it for life."
She moved towards the other end of the couch once she set her drink down, towards him and rested her head upon his lap. "I'm fine, the baby is fine." She reassured him softly as she placed a hand softly on her belly. "I just want my boyfriend back."
He seemed stiff at first, but soon he gave in and gently began to stroke her hair. As he did so, his expression softened slightly, and he breathed out, a slight sigh leaving his lips, before turning to look down at her head. "And I want my girlfriend back." He murmured softly, as he gently ruffled her head. "Can you forgive me for being so distant? I honestly didn't realize how awful I've been acting."
She hummed softly at his touch. "I forgive you... just please, don't worry unless there is something to worry about. It isn't good for you."
Regulus smiled, as his hand continued to stroke her hair. He had a tendency to worry, and to him, the pregnancy was something worth worrying about. She was carrying his child, and the idea of anything going wrong scared him beyond anything else. However it was true that he probably worried more than he really should have.
He continued to stroke her hair, and when she finally spoke it was the quietest his voice had been their entire conversation. "Okay."
"Come to bed with me, please, and stay." She pleased with him as she ran her hand up his arm, her sight never leaving his eyes.
He eventually let out a small sigh. It was clear that she really wanted him to, and at this point, so did he. So without another word, he stood up before helping her up to head to their shared bedroom.
