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For the past week, Sue has been feeling nauseated… incredibly nauseated. It's fortunate that everyone else sleeps in later that the lady of the house, meaning that when she's been sick, she's been left incredibly alone. Of course, at least one of the household had been awake early every day this week.
Sue emerges from the shared bathroom, dressed in a pair of baggy pants and one of Reed's t-shirts. Her eyes flit to the man at the table, and she forces a smile despite her paled and glistening face.
"Hi…" she offers hesitantly before getting a whiff of the coffee that has already been made. A hand clamps over her lips and she runs to the sink where she tosses her cookies all over again.
*
Yes, Ben has gotten an early start today. It's partly a throw back to his days in the military, but also due to him wanting to get an early start on a project. The Thing has his normal giant bowl of coffee and a newspaper in front of him. "Delaware has the largest turkey in America? That's what constitutes news these days?" He murmurs to himself. "Although, I suppose that is the most interesting thing to come out of Delaware for a while."
He glances up at Sue as she comes out of the bathroom. Furrowing his brow, he places the paper down for a moment. "Hey there. Heard ya making some not so friendly sounds in there." He nods toward the bathroom. "You all…right?" He frowns as she rushes to the sink. "Let me make you some tea or something, get your stomach calmed down."
*
The faucet is turned on, and Sue splashes some water on her face. She rinses the sink and then slowly turns towards Ben before shuffling back to the table. She lays her head down on the table and allows her eyes to close. "I can't keep food down," she mutters softly. "For days." She groans softly and becomes dead weight on the table. "Mint tea?" she asks pathetically. No, she does not feel well.
*
"For days? Why haven't you said anything?" Ben gives Sue a gentle little pat on the head as he gets up from the table. As he fills up the kettle, he glances back at Sue. "Either you've got some sort of terrible stomach flu, the worst case of food poisoning I've ever seen, or…" He puts the kettle on the stove top and turns on the element, "in nine months I'm gonna be Uncle Benji." He chuckles, making a slight joke with the last suggestion.
Putting a mint tea bag in a tea mug, Ben makes his way back to the table and sits down next to Sue, rubbing her back as gently as possible with his rocky hands.
*
The questions aren't easily answered. Very slowly, Sue presses her head up, straightening in her seat as she does so. Her expression turns pained at the joke and her eyes close tightly. An audible breath presses out of her nose. As he brings the tea to the table, her gaze follows him silently. And it's only when he sits down that she finally manages, "Ben," there's weight to the name — heavy. Cumbersome. "….don't tell Reed." Her expression silently requests, "…please."
*
There's a pause. Ben looks at Sue with a confused gaze. "Wait…are…I mean, are you…?" It takes him a moment to properly process the realization he's coming to. "Oh." He takes a deep breath in and lets it out slowly. "I mean, of course. But, it's…it's Reed's, isn't it?" There's another pause. "Of course it is! …Right? You and Victor didn't…when you were sick? I mean," He clears his throat. If he could blush, he'd probably be blushing right now. "Not that it's any of my business. But of course. It's up to you who to tell and when."
*
Seo squints at Ben. Welp, that escalated quickly. Her eyes remain trained on Ben. "I don't exactly know whether I am," she offers in return with that same paned expression. "Tests are notoriously unreliable," but with the bevy of other symptoms, she's becoming increasingly convinced. The thought of having Victor's spawn causes her expression to sour, "And it couldn't be anyone except Reed's. Brain bugs or not, I love Reed Richards."
*
"Of course." Ben mutters quietly. "Can't know for certain, I guess until…" He waves a hand around. He knows things. He just doesn't usually talk about things. Not these things. He clears his throat. "Look, I'm uh, I'm sorry that I suggested that it could ever be Victor's. I hope you can forgive me the question."
He offers a little smile. "And, for what it's worth, I'm here for you, to help no matter what. I'm a very reliable babysitter. I'm as solid as they come. Solid as a rock, some would say. 'Nobody better to babysit than Uncle Benji!' That's what'll be said, it will. 'Uncle Benji knows how to warm the milk up to just the right temperature. And nobody burps baby quite like Uncle Benji!'" Despite, perhaps, attempting to overcompensate for the Victor comment, he does mean what he says. He will be here no matter what.
*
Sue's gaze lifts and she reaches out to squeeze Ben's hand. It's already forgiven. She shudders thinking about Victor's spawn once more and then just shakes her head. "I'm being ridiculous," she murmurs softly. "I've worked in the lab all week," without anyone noticing, "and every test is positive. Even with chance of false positives and false negatives, that brings the certainty to 85%." Her eyes close lightly. "I'm probably pregnant." Her face presses into her hands. "And, while I appreciate the help, it's not quite that simple," she lowers her hands and offers Ben's hands an appreciative squeeze.
*
Patting Sue's hand gently, Ben nods along softly. "However you need help, I'm here. We're a team. We're a family. Heck, we're fantastic, and we're more fantastic together than we are apart!" Tilting his head, he raises a rocky brow. "In…in the very likely event that you are, in fact, pregnant, what are you going to do?"
*
"I don't know,," Sue offers back. "Reed is a good guy. We both know Reed is a good guy. I don't… I don't want to rope him into something more committed than we're in now." She frowns slightly. "And I know you'd argue with me on the point. Truly." Her eyes lid lightly. "But. It still stands." She inhales another long breath. "But the fact remains that everything I understand about my altered physiology," ever since the accident in space, "means I shouldn't be able to even get pregnant. It's unlikely this body can carry anything full-term. Reed and I both reached that forgone conclusion just after the accident."
*
"Sue, even if I were to argue with you regarding the merits of our dear Doctor Richards, it does not negate the fact that this is your body, your baby, and everything that pertains to it is your decision." Ben says in a gentle tone. "Sure, Reed is the father. But in the end, no matter what he, or I, or Johnny, or anyone else says, you need to do what's right for you. No matter what the decision, we'll be here for you and have your back, one hundred percent."
*
Ben wins a smile in turn and a vague nod. "Heather said I should decide what I want. And to be honest, I sincerely don't know right now." She shoots him a tight-lipped smile. "I'm confused. Genuinely ambivalent. I have this visions of family life," her lips twist to the side. "We lost our parents when we were young and I've just wanted to have that security again. To give someone that love. But… I would probably make a terrible mother. And what we do… oy Ben, what we do." She sighs. "What am I going to do, hire a nanny to watch the tike while mommy and daddy go save the world?" Her head shakes, "These aren't easy choices."
*
"You know, you don't have to decide what you want. Not right now." Ben responds. "And…" He scratches his forehead and sighs. "You know, I don't know if I've talked about it much with you, but I, too, know what it's like to loose your parents. I lost mine. And my older brother, to boot. My brother was the hardest one to loose, I think. But," He waves a hand dismissively. "That's not the point. The point is, as terrible as it is to loose our parents, and I am so sorry that you lost yours, our own ability to parent doesn't diminish because our parents are lost to us."
He sighs. "I don't think I'm getting this across right. What I mean is, if you're able to have the child, and if you decide to keep it, I think that you'll make a wonderful mother. As to the question of who would take care of the child when you're off saving the world? Well, on the missions that I'm not required, I could look after the kid. Or what about Captain America? I hear he lives in our building. I bet Captain America would make an excellent nanny for your child!"
*
"Don't I?" Sue asks with a wry smile. "I feel like everyday I don't tell Reed I'm just getting consumed by lies of omission. Which are still lies as I pretend that there's nothing to know." Her eyebrows lift. "Maybe I should just tell him. Maybe it's time to rip off the bandaid and actually have the conversations about what it means and what if this is actually possible." She tightens her jaw. "Maybe."
*
"Do you want me to tell him?" Ben asks, before shaking his head. "Wait, nevermind. You told me not to tell him. So I won't." He frowns. "Look, should Reed know? Maybe." Helpful, Ben! Real helpful! "Just remember, I'm here for you, whatever you need." The kettle starts to whistle, indicating that it's boiling. "How about I start by getting that tea for you?"