Silence clung around the walls of the commanders office, yet my ears still burned.

"Lieutenant, does this belong to you?" There was a certain level of sternness missing from the commanders tone, replaced with curiosity.

"No, Sir." Axels voice was pure fear.

"A pregnancy test." The commander commented, slowly I raised my eyes to meet his. "And why would you need a pregnancy test in a bootcamp detention where conjugal visits are not allowed?"

"Maybe you should tell your officers that." I spat back. The commander stood up, towering over me and leaned across the table.

"Are you telling me, my officers are responsible for that?" He pointed to the pregnancy test with his eyes and I smirked.

"No, Mc'Holls up the road is responsible for that. The baby however," I patted my stomach "that's from one of your officers."

"Williams!" Axel shouted in his Lieutenant voice. Our eyes snapped to him. "Do not throw accusations around, that is a direct order."

"I bet it is." My smile grew.

The commander picked up the box and opened it out. His eyes floated over the instruction manual and then he handed the stick over to me.

"Through there." He pointed towards a door with two strong fingers. "No point believing there's a problem if there isn't a problem. Lieutenant watch her do it."

"I'm not peeing in front of him. Shouldn't I have a female nurse, if anything?"

"This issue doesn't leave this room Williams. Test, now." I clutched the test stick tightly in my hand and reluctantly moved towards the bathroom with Axel following behind. "Leave the door open!" The commander shouted.

I sat down on the toilet seat and looked at Axel, he folded his arms across his chest and had whole unapproachable manner. Like he didn't give a shit.

He had emotionally detached himself from the situation, if I was pregnant it was a problem. My problem. An issue as his father said. He wasn't laying that upon himself, that was on me.

I peed on the stick and then handed it to him aggressively, on the pee side. He winced and changed it over before washing his hands.

"What does it say?" The commander shouted impatiently.

"It needs time." Axel replied, studying the test like he was about to perform a bomb removal on it.

"Dumbass." I muttered under my breath.

Axel walked out with the stick and lay it on the desk. The two men hovered over it, watching carefully and I stood back, still in the doorway of the restroom.

"Pregnant." The commander said pointedly.

"Pregnant." Axel repeated slower and quieter, in disbelief.

The commander narrowed his eyes at me but Axel stated focused on the test, willing it to change result.

"I know a guy, I'll make your appointment for tomorrow." The commander stated, searching through a directory on his desk.

"You're getting me a doctor?" I questioned, not expecting that courtesy at all.

"An abortion." He continued flicking through the directory, answering without even looking at me.

But Axels attention snapped up, his brows furrowed at his father and then they fell on me, softening.

"What? I'm not — I don't think I am — I — I just found out. I need time to think on it."

"What's there to think about Williams? You broke the legal rules here. Got yourself pregnant. Brought shame upon our leadership." He glanced at Axel. "Well, that wasn't hard." Axels head lowered. "We're not keeping you here pregnant. You'll go to jail pregnant. That what you want? Your baby will be born and taken straight into foster care because you're serving time."

I looked at Axel for help, for support, for something.

"Maybe the dad could—"

"No. Not my officers." He interrupted. "You've done enough to hinder my bootcamp. Seducing my men. Terminating the pregnancy is the only option for you. You're selfish for even thinking you could keep it."

I held back my tears. Axel said nothing. He didn't defend me, he didn't defend our baby. He just stood silent and still, looking at the stupid pee stick.

"And what do you think?" I asked him directly.

"I think—" he began, taking a short pause to assess the look on his fathers face, my face and again the positive pregnancy test. "I think you should get an abortion."

I wanted to reply, I tried to reply something like 'well I think you should've wrapped up your dick.' But I didn't.

Instead I just cried, my tears poured out relentlessly and I covered my mouth to stop my sobs. It was messy, heart breaking but neither of them comforted me. Axel didn't comfort me at a time I needed his support the most.

"Take her to the disease centre, we'll keep her there isolated from everyone until her appointment. You can recover there Williams and then we'll notify the judge that bootcamp isn't working out for you. The charges based primarily on how quietly the abortion goes."

"You're blackmailing me?" I whimpered.

"I'm offering you a free abortion and after care. I'm merely heavily suggesting you take me up on that offer Williams. You wouldn't want the judge to find out about all of the crimes you've committed during your time here. Automobile theft. Personal belongings theft. Anger and aggression. I'll check in on you tomorrow, see that you've made the right decision. Keep her away from all of the generals and the recruits." The commander demanded.

Axel walked me out, it was an awkward silence as we walked towards the quarantine building. My tears still fell but I refused to talk to him, to look at him, to breathe the same air as him. I hated him.

"Harper—" he tried, nervously.

I ripped off his dog tags and threw them at him. "I hate you! You said nothing!"

"I gave you my honest opinion Harper." I pushed him but he didn't even falter.

"Even so, you shouldn't have done that, cornered me in like that. That was for us to discuss in private, not for you to have ganged up on me with with your fucking dad."

"God, how did you expect me to react? You drop this bombshell on me in the worst way imaginable. I need time to think. To process. You asked what I thought, I told you." I stopped, my combat boots gathering the dirt into a pile. I grabbed his hand and put it on my stomach.

"This is our baby. You don't want our baby?" He looked at my tummy and then up at my face.

"That's not a baby, it's just a bunch of cells." The tears flooded harder, my heart was constricting and breaking. I didn't want to abort our baby.

"I'm really hurt." I offered quietly. "I'm really fucking hurt and disappointed by you."

"Harper." He grabbed my arm, now wanting to offer me the comfort he should've gave me five minutes ago. I snatched it back harshly.

"No, I'm done with you." I walked ahead, hearing his footsteps walk faster behind me. "You're an asshole!"

"God Harper, you're being too emotional about this. My father is right, what life would it have? You'll be in jail, I'll be here. It can't live here. It can't be brought up like me. The cycle ends with me."

I stopped and spun around, making patterns in the dirt with my combat boots. "Don't tell me I'm being too emotional about a pregnancy that I'm being forced to abort." I poked my finger into his rock hard chest.

"Don't tell me I'm being too emotional about a fucking dickhead Lieutenant who deems me good enough to fuck without a condom but then doesn't stand by me when I get pregnant." I slammed my finger into him again.

"Don't tell me I'm being too fucking emotional when you stand there and let your dad blackmail me because you're too much of a coward to stand up to him."

I was breaking down in front of him, crying, terrified and alone. He sighed sadly. "Harper," he whispered softly and grabbed me, pulling me into his chest. I cried against him, soaking his T-shirt with my salty tears.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." He ran his fingers through my hair. "You're right." His strong, long arms cradled me, right there in the middle of bootcamp. Not caring who could see. Not caring if it was against the rules. He kissed my forehead softly and pulled back.

"I'm with you, I support you one hundred percent. It's your choice and I won't let him blackmail you. I will support whatever you decide but my opinion still remains unchanged. I think it's best if you terminate the pregnancy."