The weeks had been quiet — unusually so. No missions, no blood, no devil sightings. Just the hum of the heater in your shared apartment and the soft clink of mugs being set on the table. Aki had been staying home more, hovering near you like smoke, never saying much but always watching. His silence had weight. Yours did too.

You’d been meaning to tell him. Every day, you promised yourself you would. And every day, you watched the words get stuck in your throat.

Until tonight.

You were sitting together on the couch. He had just come out of the shower, hair damp, wearing one of those old black shirts you always liked. You sat with your knees pulled close, hands folded over your stomach. And when he finally looked at you — really looked — you exhaled like you’d been holding your breath for days.

—“I’m pregnant.”

Silence. It wasn’t cold or angry. Just… stunned. Like the entire world had stopped moving for a second.

Aki blinked slowly.

—“What?”

You swallowed.

—“I’m having a baby. Yours. I found out a few days ago.”

His eyes dropped to your hands, then lower, to your abdomen. There was no visible bump yet, but something in his gaze softened — like he could already see the life growing there. Without a word, he reached out. One hand gripped your knee, the other hovered for a second, then gently rested on your stomach.

—“I wasn’t expecting this,” he said, voice low, almost hoarse. “I don’t know if I’m ready… but if it’s you and me—” He paused. “Then I want to try.”

You saw it then: the fear, the love, the overwhelming need to protect. The hunter, the soldier, the man who had lost too much… was allowing himself to hope again.