AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I tell her I’m still struggling with morning sickness. As she listens, she jots a few things down and scans my chart, reading the notes made by the nurse. She turns a page and then lifts her gaze to meet mine. “I’ll give you something for the nausea and we’ll check you carefully since you’re spotting.”
Nodding, I finally accept the offer. “Alright.”
Sean is silent, listening, but something about him becomes rigid. He doesn’t say anything. Doesn’t interrupt the doctor.
“It should ease up soon,” Dr. Liz continues, pushing back her brown braid, tossing it over her shoulder before gripping the stethoscope around her neck with both hands. She rocks on her heels for a moment, her mouth tipping down in the corners. “It’s unusual to have morning sickness throughout the pregnancy, but some women do. You’ve done well managing your weight. Haven’t gained too much or too little.” Excusing herself, she pulls open the door, and grabs a machine on a rolling cart from the hallway. As she rolls in the cart, she explains, “Let’s see how things are going...” She reaches for the tube of gel on the counter.
Sean is next to me, his hand on my shoulder. Dr. Liz wasn’t the one doing tele-med with me on the island. Her concern doesn’t match the previous doctor’s. She seems worried, her face pinched tight, more stern than normal.
“You’ve been spotting? Why didn’t you say something?” Sean asks me softly, his hand on my shoulder.
“I didn’t want to worry you.” That’s a half truth. I was terrified. It started right after we got home. The spotting wasn’t a lot, but the doc wanted me to come straight in. Especially since I hadn’t seen her yet.
“Worry me, Avery. Please. Next time, say something.” Sean’s voice is tight as we wait for the doc to tell me what to expect. If I’m okay. If the baby is okay.
The doc does her thing, setting up the machine and squirting goo on my stomach while this terse conversation with Sean ends abruptly. He locks his jaw and swallows anything else he planned to say.
The doc slides the freezing cold knob over my skin and keeps moving it. So far she hasn’t said anything. Her eyebrows knit together as she clicks a button on the machine. Then she slides the probe a little, more clicks.
Fear wraps its fingers around my heart and squeezes. Sean’s grip on my shoulder tightens and I swear he’s stopped breathing. He’s standing a step behind me, so I can’t see his face, but I know it’s a mask of ice.
Something is wrong.
Dr. Liz notices our silence. She looks up for a split second, flashes a fake smile, and says, “Just a few more measurements—”
My stomach is in knots. Maybe the bleeding wasn’t nothing. Maybe the morning sickness caused damage elsewhere. The fact that I don’t know what’s possible and what’s not is driving me crazy. We shouldn’t have stayed away so long. I should have come home sooner.
The tension cords up my arms and down my spine. I can’t take it anymore. I blurt out, “What’s wrong?”
Doc is concentrating, shifting the probe and clicking, her gaze flashing back and forth between the screen and my tummy. Due to the angle of the cart, we can’t see anything. “One more second. I just need to be certain—”
My heart drops into my stomach. I can’t breathe. I know it can happen, a pregnancy can self-terminate, especially early on. But I thought we were past that. I felt movements. I swear I did. Shit. Grinding my teeth, I clench down hard. My mouth turns to sand as realization after realization pounds me. I didn’t take care of us early on. I didn’t have a chance with my lunatic brother gunning for me. Regret takes hold as sorrow weeps through my veins.
A feminine hand on my forearm startles me. The doctor is looking at, trying to catch my eye. “Avery, do you want to see?”
“Is everything all right?” Sean voices the concern for me.
Dr. Liz says, “See for yourself.” She turns the cart towards us so that we can see the screen. She smiles, says, “Congratulations.” When I don’t reply, she offers, “Why don’t I give you both a moment. I’ll be back shortly.”
We nod as she exits the room. On the screen is a mixture of unidentifiable static sprinkles with weird shapes and blobs all tangled up. Toes, fingers. A nose. I squint.
“Is that..?” My voice trails off as I point at the screen, from one smudge to another? A rush of emotion wells up and I start crying. I can’t tell what I’m looking at. It’s a massive gray blob.
Sean leans down and wraps his arms around my shoulders, kisses my cheek. His voice is full of joy, and hope. “I never expected it either.”
“Expected what? That Baby Baby Pants has an extra leg?”
He smiles. “Avery, that’s not a leg. Don’t you see it?” He whirls to my side, kneeling next to me.
“No!” I start crying while I ramble, “Where are the baby’s hands? Why can’t I see anything but blobs? Why is it so still? Sean, I expected to see a curled up tiny baby with little fingers and toes. That’s what my Mom told me I’d see. It’s what that big fat pregnancy book said I would see, so why is there none of that? I thought….I thought—”
Tears start as I blubber incoherently thinking the worst has happened.
Sean holds me with one arm and pulls the cart closer with the other. “Look here.” He points to a large white area. “This is the baby’s head. The baby is positioned away from us, but you can see little hands here.” He points to the tops of the screen.
I stare for a few moments. I can see that. “Why isn’t the baby moving? And what’s that?” I point to the blob next to it.
Sean kisses my cheek, repressing a smile. “The baby isn’t moving because this is a picture. Remember? She has to have the probe on your stomach to see the baby moving.”
“Right,” I nod. I knew that, but that second blob has me near hysteria. “But that other part. Is it bad?”
Sean does the same thing. Leans in towards the screen, outlines the second white spot with his finger. “This shape is about the same size as this one. And see this—” he points to the bottom, to little wisps, “—fingers. And that third leg isn’t a leg, but we should ask the doctor to be sure.”
“What?” I choke out the word. “What are you saying?”
“There are two babies, Avery. One here and one here.” He takes my hand and puts it on the screen, touching the first child and then the second.
“Twins?”
Sean nods, beaming at me with paternal pride.
CHAPTER 10
Sean holds my hand tightly as he watches my face, recognition finally dawning on me. “What do you think? Say something.”
I’ve been quietly starting at the screen, uncertain of anything. “I don’t know how to be a mother to one kid, never mind two. Sean…” my voice cracks on his name.
He pulls me into his arms and we stay like that until the door opens, and the doc walks in.
“So, twins.” Dr. Liz, swings the machine around. “Both are healthy and measuring what they should. It appears to be fraternal, due to the second placenta. I know you wanted to wait, but I’m giving you nausea medicine and suggest you take it easy. Try to be as least stressed as possible. Do things that you enjoy.” She scribbles on a prescription pad and hands it to me.
“Are you sure?” It’s a stupid question, but I manage to blurt out the entire thought. “They’re both okay?”
Dr. Liz stands at my foot and looks me in the eye. “I know you went through an ordeal in the beginning of this pregnancy, but these babies are unharmed. Your last doc gave you prenatals and checked you, right?” I nod. “But he didn’t tell you there were two babies?”
Sean shakes his head. “No. The sonogram was done early.”
It’s clear that she won’t speak against the other doctor. “It’s possible the first scan wasn’t conclusive. Either way, it is now. These are twins. Healthy, too. There’s no indication of duress or anything to be concerned about at this point. I want you to take it easy because you’ve had such an ordeal. Having time to mentally prepare for these babies an
d what your life is going to be like will be good for you.”
I nod. I already heard this speech several times, but it’s hard to talk about any of it.
Sean speaks for me. “We will.” That’s interesting. He said ‘we.’
The doc seems satisfied. She hands Sean a card. “Here’s the next appointment. If you need anything between now and then, call me.”
“Wait,” I hold up my hand as she’s about to walk out of the room. “Can you tell what they are? A girl or a boy, I mean?”
Dr. Liz smiles, explains, “I’m supposed to tell you that I can’t tell 100% either way, but I can.” She winks at me and points to the screen, “This one is a boy. The other appears to be a girl. Sometimes it depends on the position of the babies, but, you have a strapping son and a daughter.”
“A girl and a boy?” I breathe, as I glance over at Sean.
“You’re entire life is going to change. Congratulations.” Dr. Liz rips a little piece of paper that printed from the machine and hands it to us before she walks out of the room, leaving us behind, and slightly shell shocked.
