“You’re back.” Aubrey’s tired voice sounds from behind me and I spin with the food in hand to find her leaning against the door frame.
“Yeah, just got back. I was coming to wake you.” I wiggle the bag and box in my hands with a smile that she returns.
“Wow, that’s a lot of things,” she says next, looking around the room.
I begin to walk toward her. “It is, but you don’t have to worry about that. I’ll place everything tomorrow.”
She smiles again and pushes off the wall. I’m only three steps away from her when I see it happen.
Her eyes roll back into her head and she collapses.
“AUBREY!” I shout, dropping the food in my hands and lunging for her. I throw myself to the ground, catching her in my arms before she connects with the floor, but hit my injured shoulder onto the corner of a box.
“Fuck!” I push the jolt of pain aside and focus on my girl, who lies limp in my arms. “Angel, baby, can you hear me?” I check her pulse, finding it quickly.Thank God.“MARIANNE!!!”
She shows up at the door seconds later and gasps when she sees us on the floor. “Oh, dear God.”
“I need you to call for an ambulance. Make them hurry!” I rush out, holding Aubrey to my chest while making sure I can feel her breathing.
God fucking damn it! I thought we were done with this!
She rushes back out of the room as I hear her frantic voice on the phone.
“You’re going to be okay… Both of you are going to be okay,” I whisper into Aubrey’s hair as I place my hand on her belly.
Three hours later, Aubrey’s sleeping form is lying in a hospital bed and hooked up to machines to monitor her heart rate and the baby. They also have an IV going into her arm for dehydration, while I sit in an uncomfortable chair, praying we won’t be getting any bad news as I wait for the doctor to come by.
She woke up in the ambulance but seemed confused and passed back out a minute later, then again while they were running tests on her. That time she stayed awake a little longer, but you could tell she still wasn’t feeling well, and by the time we took her back to her room, she was sleeping and has been since.
There’s a soft knock on the door before it opens and Aubrey’s OB-GYN walks in. “Dr. Carlson?” She wasn’t the one I was expecting to see.
“Hi, Shane. I saw Aubrey’s file during the shift change. I’ll be taking over for the rest of the night until the morning,” she says quietly, walking over to Aubrey to check on the monitors.
“What’s wrong with her?” I ask as a lump forms in my throat and fear crawls up my skin.
She sighs and steps away when she’s done looking over everything. “It’s her blood pressure again. All her tests came back clear, which is a good thing.”
“How is this a good thing? She’s fainting left and right. She’s not eating or acting herself.” I swipe my hands through my hair, pulling on the ends as aggravation fills me from the inside.
“I understand your worries, Shane, and you have every right to be. These are scary situations. All I’m saying is that her tests coming back clear are a good thing, because it means her condition isn’t caused by anything more serious. It’s just the pregnancy.” She smiles sadly.
“I’ve seen other pregnant women, none of them went through this. Why is it happening to her?”
“I wish I could tell you, but every pregnancy is different. Some have it easy and others don’t. It’s unfair, I know that, but it’s just how it is. Yes, I’ll admit that most pregnant patients I’ve had with low blood pressure were better after the second trimester. But even if it’s rare to have it at this stage, it doesn’t mean it’s not possible.”
“So, what do we do?” I ask desperately.
“I’m putting her on bedrest from now on. She can still walk around the house but try to get her sitting or lying down as much as possible. We’ll be keeping a closer eye on her until she gives birth. No big activities, nothing stressful.”
She comes to stand beside me. “I’d also like her to take more vitamins and increase her salt intake; those can help raise her pressure. Is she still working? Have you been doing anything that could have caused her any anxiety lately?”
I shake my head. “She’s not working anymore, and we just had renovations done to the house. We also have our wedding coming up at the end of August, but we have someone planning it for us. We’ve really been doing everything to keep her stress level low. I even did all the baby shopping on my own because I didn’t want her to have to deal with it.”
“I know you’re doing all you can, but stress works in weird ways. Even if she’s not physically involved in anything, it can still make her anxious. Just keep doing what you’re already doing. Keep her well rested, make sure she eats multiple times a day and takes her vitamins.”
She bends slightly and places her hand on my arm. “I understand a wedding can’t exactly be canceled without repercussion, but anything else that could cause her even a tiny bit of anxiety, push it back. Wait until after the baby is born.”
“Okay.” I nod, wishing there was a magical cure to this.
