Tale of Two Hearts

Chapter Thirty

For almost two weeks, she had ignored Seto's calls and texts. The troupe had moved from Tokyo to Russia to Berlin, and were now practicing for the Christmas Eve show they would perform before having a short break until the New Year. They had finally met the director of the troupe, Mr. Libronskivy, in Russia. He had greeted her like an old friend, taking her in a warm embrace and thanked her for being a star in Tokyo.
"Are you ready?" Nikolai asked as they took to the stage together.
"Yes." She nodded.
"And... begin!" The director shouted, the music beginning.
Sophia gracefully lunged past Nikolai, the swan's attempt of escaping the strange prince in the woods. Nikolai took her by the waist and pulled her back. She spun, unentangling herself from his grasp. As she lunged from Nikolai, she heard the counting from the director as she followed the sequences almost mechanically. Slowly, as the routine she had performed six times in front of a live audience already automatically overtook her body, she began to grow dizzier and dizzier.
"Annnnnd spin!" She heard him command. As she began to spin, she felt off-balance, and the next thing she knew the floor rushed up to meet her as she fell forward. "Sophia!" She heard Nikolai shout as blackness clouded her vision.

"Ah good! You're awake!" The doctor said as he looked over her. He had a thick German accent, but his English was perfect. Sophia looked down at herself, seeing she was in a hospital gown, tucked in a white bed. She was hooked up to a heart monitor and had an IV dripping into her arm.
"Why did she collapse Doctor Schmidt? She's perfectly healthy!" Nikolai demanded. He was still wearing his grey sweat pants and a black tank top, and the nurses kept stealing glances at him.
"You shouldn't be exercising so intensely and eating such a low nutrition diet in your condition, Mrs. Kaiba. You are very lucky you didn't hurt yourself or the baby in the fall." He scolded her lightly. Sophia's eyes bulged out of her skull. The baby? The doctor picked up the clipboard, and read it over his half-moon spectacles.
"We did an ultrasound scan as well as numerous blood tests. You're pregnant, about two months along. Congratulations. I take it you are Mr. Kaiba?" He asked Nikolai. Nikolai looked between the doctor and Sophia. "N-no. I am Nikolai Dibrovski. I'm just a friend." He said quietly.
"Ah. Well, I'll give you two some space. Your tests seem fine, I'll come and check your vitals in about an hour and if you're well enough, you can leave." He smiled brightly, placing her clipboard back at the foot of her bed. As he left the private room, Sophia sat up. A baby. She was having... a baby. She thought of Seto back at home. She thought of the text message he'd sent her, and how stubborn she'd been by ignoring his messages and calls.
"You didn't know?" Nikolai asked softly, sitting at the side of her bed.
"No." She let the tears drip down her face. She was terrified. Nineteen, married to someone who blows hot and cold at her, being chased by a psycho ex and his partner in crime. And now, here she was. Pregnant in Germany. Alone.
"You need to call him."
"I can't call him. Not after ignoring him for weeks."
"Sophia you have to. You are carrying his child!" He demanded, scaring her slightly. "Even if he is being an asshole you need to tell him."
"Nik-"
"Sophia. Come on." Nik replied angrily. "Don't do this. He deserves to know. It's his baby, too." She hung her head, knowing he was right and she would have to tell him.

After she was given the all-clear, she walked silently to the car with Nikolai. She hugged herself. It was so cold.
"Sophia... you have to turn your phone back on. He's probably worried sick." He said as he sat in the driving seat.
"Yeah. Right." She rolled her eyes. Taking her phone out of her pocket, she pressed the power button and it flashed to life.
"I don't know what I'm going to say."
"Speak to him at the hotel." He patted her knee. She nodded in agreement.
"Okay," she said quietly. "I will."

Sitting in her robe, she sat on her deluxe bed and called Seto's phone. She knew it was 3AM over there, now Christmas Eve, but she didn't care. He answered on the fifth ring.
"Kaiba." He barked, but his voice was stiff with sleep.
"Seto?"
"Sophia?" The harshness in his voice disappeared. "Sophia I'm so glad you're okay. Why haven't you answered my calls? I called everyone! I called the hotel, I called-"
"I need to tell you something,"
"No Sophia I need to tell you something."
"Please let me-"
"I love you. I mean it. I'm sorry I made it seem like I didn't mean it. I love you so mu-"
"I'm pregnant."
The phone went silent. Sophia heard his breathing hitch in his throat.
"You... what?" He choked out.
"Listen to me, Seto. You need to come to Berlin. We need to talk this out. If you care about me at all-"
"I love you, Sophia."
"Then you'll meet me. Under the bell tower in Alexanderplatz. If you're not there, fine. I'll know where we stand. Remember, Berlin is 8 hours behind Tokyo. Start planning." She said simply.
"Sophia I've got so much to do here, I can just dr-"
"It's Christmas Eve. You'd better not be planning on working through Christmas. You promised Mokuba you'd relax."
"How can I relax? You've kept me in the dark for weeks on end!" He started arguing.
"Just do it, Seto. I'll see you then, hopefully." She hung up. He tried calling her back, but she ignored them. Laying on her bed, she cried. He tried to call her relentlessly, but she rejected each one.
She texted him simply: meet me at Alexanderplatz, the bell tower. You've got until midnight."

She spent the whole day in her bed. She had been excused from dancing, Nikolai and the director did not want her to endanger the baby any further than she already had. She had sent her understudy a supportive text, telling her she knew she could do it. Pottering around her room, she looked at the clock. Not only had she slept all day, she realised it was 8 pm on Christmas Eve. She decided to have a bath before she saw Seto. If he even turned up. She checked her phone, and a message from Mokuba filled her screen.
"Seto just grabbed some stuff in a bag and left without saying a word, is he coming to you?"
"I hope so Mokie, I really do." She replied.

Sophia stood outside the city hall in Alexanderplatz, listening to the sounds of music and caroling around her. She was in Berlin, and snow was falling quickly, the stark whiteness diluted by the pale yellow Christmas lights that hung around the marketplace. He had said to meet here, right in this spot, opposite the clock. She looked up at it. 11:57 pm. He wasn't going to be here. She had come with hope in her heart. But now, it seemed she'd start Christmas alone. She thought of her dear Nonni, at home in Sicily, all alone for the first time this time of year. As strict as she was, Christmas was always celebrated in their little household, near the sea. She'd sing in English to her, and she would make the best food. They went far out to buy turkey in the days coming. She smiled, as a tear slipped down her cheek. It was so cold, the tear stung. Whipping it away, she checked the time. 11:59. He wasn't coming. As the choir started to sing 'Silent Night' in it's traditional German, Sophia heard the clock strike the first chime. She let tears fall down her face. After everything, all of his promises to spend the holidays with her months before and not constantly be working, meant nothing. The second and third chime sounded, and she started thinking about where she would go. At this moment, all she wanted was to go back to the Kaiba mansion in Domino city, sit with Mokuba and Seto and eat and laugh and watch stupid movies. As the fifth chime sounded, a far off shout broke her train of thought. She froze for a second but passed it off as the wind. The sixth chime came. "SOPHIA! SOPHIA KAIBA!" Was it..? Turning, she saw she was mere yards from exactly who she was waiting for. Seto Kaiba, in a grey, woolen overcoat. The snow flurried in thick swirls around them, as her eyes grew bright and her smile was massive. Seto ran towards her, drawing the attention of people around them. Sophia used the snow already piled around her to propel herself forward. Without much success.
"Seto!" she cried, flinging her arms out and tripping forward. He grabbed her, and they both fell backwards. They lay in each other's warm embrace in the snow. People around them pointed and smiled, chattering away happily in German.
"You came! I can't believe you came!" Sophia sobbed. She felt his head move, and he kissed her.
"I love you. And no amount of money or power will keep me away from you." And with those words, she sealed it with a kiss.
"Come on. Let's get you back to the hotel." He smiled widely, a true smile of joy and happiness.

As he ran a bath for her, he smiled over his shoulder as she began sorting through her clothes to find a nice pair of pyjamas.
"Sophia you should get out of those clothes, they're soaked. Why you'd choose not to wear a proper coat is beyond me." He said gruffly, a hint of worry in his voice. She giggled, and he stood, striding towards her. He kissed her forehead.
"I love you." She whispered, and he grinned into her skin.
"And I love you. But we have something important to discuss." He looked down at her stomach, a smile still on his face.
"We do." She said, beginning to fidget. She was nervous. What if he didn't want children? This wasn't something they discussed before.
"Do you want to keep the baby?" He asked, straight to the point as ever.
"Yes, I do." She whispered quietly. His face broke out into another grin.
"I was hoping you'd say that. How far along are you?" He said, gently pressing his hand to her belly.
"About two months, the doctor said." he frowned at this slightly.
"You already went to the doctor? How long have you known?"
"I-I collapsed during rehearsals the day I called you. Nikolai took me to the hospital. They did bloods and an ultrasound, and they told me the day I called you."
"You collapsed? Why?"
"Strenuous activity and a poor diet."
"I told you, you'd make yourself sick."
"Well I know that now."
"Yes. And the only thing that matters is you and the baby are safe and sound, and we're together again." he smiled widely, his eyes filled with love as he planted a kiss on her stomach.
"I love you."
"I love you too, Sophia."