In all honestly, Bea had simply never noticed these things. She wasn't self-centered, but she wasn't a gossip and never speculated as to what caused a friend to disappear to the countryside for an extended period of time, or married suddenly. Such speculation simply wasn't in her interest.

"Oh."

She also couldn't help realizing that disappearing to the countryside probably meant giving the child away. Bea took a deep breath, forcing herself to keep her hands in their current position.

That simply wasn't an option.

"The...illness aspect," she began after a moment, her voice inquisitive, "are there...alternative methods to manage it? I've found potions to be, at best, unreliable." She couldn't believe she hadn't mentioned the sporadic nausea during their preceding appointment — but, granted, she'd been a bit focused on the cause of the nausea rather than the symptom itself. "If I am to take a renewed interest in marriage, it wouldn't do to — well, you get the idea."