Now What?

Now What?
Pierce put his hands on top of his head and paced around in circles.
"Pierce...please say something."
"Just give me a minute," he demanded as he attempted to gather himself. "You're pregnant?"
"Y-yes, I'm pregnant."
"And the baby is mine?"
"I wouldn't have flown all the way to Texas to tell you I was pregnant if it wasn't."
"Right...sorry. I'm shocked, and I'm not thinking straight."
"I'm sorry, Pierce. I know you didn't want to have more than one kid, and I didn't mean for this to happen. I-I just thought you should know, and I wanted to give you a chance to be a father."
"Please, stop apologizing. How are you? I'm assuming that your pregnancy is high-risk."
"I'm doing fine. I'm finally getting over my morning sickness. So far, the baby is healthy, but I am considered high-risk. I already have a specialist here in San Antonio," Arianna admitted.
Pierce didn't say anything. He continued to stare at Arianna, speechless and unsure of what to say. What would happen to them now?
"Pierce...can you please say something? The anticipation is killing me."
Pierce observed their surroundings and found a nearby bench. He grabbed her hand and tugged her towards the bench. He gently eased her down and sat beside her.
"I'm..I'm going through a range of emotions right now," he admitted, grabbing her hand again. "I feel as if we wasted the last few years. Think about it, we broke up because we couldn't get on the same page about children, and now you're 21 and pregnant."
"I like to think our breakup was a little bit more complicated than not being able to get on the same page about children."
"How so?"
"Pierce...there were things I wanted that you weren't willing to give me. You said we needed to compromise, but the compromise only benefited you. You wanted me to carry your child, but you didn't want to make me your wife. I refused to allow you to make me a statistic. Ironically, that still happened. All you had to do was surrogate or adopt, and then give me a baby later. That's ALL I asked for. Why couldn't you do that?!"
Pierce released a heavy sigh and revisited a painful subject that was discussed with his therapist.
"My new therapist informed me that my refusal to entertain your compromise and my insistence on waiting until you were 21 was my way to exert control over you and cement you in my life."
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"My therapist explained that I purposely didn't seek out the adoption/surrogate route when you offered to support me because subconsciously I realized that it would be easier for you to break up and leave me if I adopted or surrogated because technically you wouldn't be that child's mother. If I impregnated you, then we would be forever attached."
"Pierce..."
"I know...I fucked up. It was good that you left. I would've ruined you."
"I feel the same way when it comes to Reggie. I feel like I ruined him. I've never seen a grown man cry like that. It broke my fucking heart."
"You didn't cheat on him with me, did you?"
"No...we weren't together, but he told me once I got better that we would be together again because he was willing to wait for me. He bought me a ring and everything. I fucked up. I know we weren't together, but I still feel like I betrayed him."
"Are you still in love with him?" Pierce asked cautiously.
"Honestly?"
"Please."
"Yeah...I am...but that ship has sailed," Arianna admitted as she wiped away her tears. Pierce rubbed Arianna's back in an attempt to calm her down. He wasn't even jealous that Arianna was crying over another man because he would be the first to admit Reggie was a good guy, and Arianna deserved the best. Reggie was way closer to her age, was successful, considerate, and kind. Pierce put an arm around Arianna and pulled her close while she cried into his chest.
After a few minutes, she was ready to speak again.
"I'm sorry. I'm over here crying over another man."
"It's just the hormones," Pierce sighed, giving Arianna an out.
"Yeah, let's just go with that," she giggled, wiping the remaining tears away.
"Can I be frank with you, Arianna?"
"Of course."
"I know you may be upset about the baby, but I don't regret that night."
"I'm sorry. I don't want you to think I regret it either. Despite everything, I'm so happy."
"Me too," Pierce whispered.
The pair sat in a comfortable silence until he spoke up again.
"So...what's next? Are you moving back to Texas?"
"Yes, I've already moved into a house I'm renting on your side of town."
"Wow...that'll be super convenient."
"That was the plan."
"Thank you, Arianna."
"For what?"
"For the sacrifices you made moving back to Texas and giving me the opportunity to be a father."
"You don't have to thank me. It was the right thing to do. I knew how important it was for you to be a father," Arianna said, standing to her feet. "Do you want to come over and see my place?" she offered.
"It's kinda late, don't you think?"
"Yeah...that's the point. My hormones are acting up."
"Arianna Rose, I refuse to allow you to use me for your sexual gratification," Pierce replied defiantly.
"Oh, my God. I'm so sorry, Pierce," Arianna gasped. "I didn't mean to offend you."
"I'm just fucking with you, Ari," he laughed, before pulling her close to him. His lips pressed against hers before she could respond.
"Mmmm," Arianna hummed into the kiss before allowing Pierce access to her mouth. Pierce easily stole her breath away. It felt like their first kiss all over again, but with a lot more passion and love. He pulled back and stared into her eyes.
"You know I still love you, right?"
"Yeah...I know."
"I promise you that I'll do right by you this time around. I've changed a lot since your absence, and I like to think I'm a better man now. I hated that you left, but it was necessary. I wouldn't have grown otherwise. It's as they say, if you love someone, let them go, if they come back, they're yours."
"I-I want to be yours, Pierce. That's all I ever wanted," Arianna admitted.
Pierce responded by kissing her once more before tugging her towards the parking lot.
"You're mine, Arianna, and I'm going to take you back to your place and prove it to you."
"Alright, Daddy."
"That mouth is going to get you in soooo much trouble," Pierce laughed.