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“Nope, girlie, you’ll have to beat me off with a stick,” Dana added, nodding at her. “Now, I’ll drive.”
“You’re the only one with a car,” Ashley pointed out.
“True, but I don’t think if I declined… Well… this isn’t really an Uber moment,” Dana replied.
Jessica sighed and let her friends pick her up and lead her out to the car. The drive was a blur and the appointment’s beginnings even more of a whirlwind. Ashley and Dana took care of the forms and making small talk with Dana’s friend the tech. All of it was too overwhelming. Jessica barely managed to step on and off the scale and then sit still long enough for her blood pressure to be taken. She felt like she had to have a neon sign over her, some scarlet letter that marked her obviously for everything she’d done.
Finally, the doctor entered. She seemed nice enough with a wide smile and kind eyes shining out from her dark face. She nodded to Jessica on the table and then surprised her by taking her hand. The doc patted it softly. “I know this might be hard, but let’s see what’s going on for right now. It’s all going to be okay. I know you can figure this out.”
“You don’t know me.”
“No, but I see women make hard choices all the time, and they don’t have two friends come with them all the time. Besides, Dana volunteered here a few summers ago, so I know you have some resources. Something. You have good friends to support you and a medical team who cares. So, let’s breathe together, and I’ll get the ultrasound started.”
Tears sprang to Jessica’s eyes, both because she was glad the doctor was so kind and because this felt wrong, like it was an insult to Brent and all they’d shared. He should be here.
If he wanted to actually be here.
God, she’d have to come to that decision later. The doctor and tech… everyone had been so delicate with her even as the tech prepped the gel over her stomach. All assembled weren’t saying what her options were, but Jessica knew there weren’t any. Not at all. The second she’d realized she was pregnant, she’d only thought about keeping the baby. After coming from a shattered home, she couldn’t imagine not reaching out and doing anything she could to keep an extra member from joining it. It just wasn’t her.
The biggest questions were more: Was the baby healthy? and What do I tell Brent?
The doctor kept her smile in place as Dana and Ashley each held one of her hands. The wand moved over her stomach, and then her heart sank. The doctor’s mouth set into a grim line as she squinted more closely at the monitor. She, like her friends, looked closer, too, but it was all a blur to her. Then she saw some movement, but it seemed like… Wait, was there more than one heartbeat?
The doctor turned and was calm and kind when she spoke. “Miss Billings, you’re definitely pregnant and with two healthy twins so far. The heartbeats are strong. It’s too early to tell the sex yet, but for right now they look to be in excellent condition.”
“Twins?” Ashley asked.
“Oh, wow,” Dana said, her expression more neutral. Made sense. Her friend had worked in a clinic before and probably knew more about how to stay calm in hairy situations. “Thank you so much for the appointment on short notice.”
The doctor nodded. “I’ll let you get cleaned up and come back with information about options and…”
“I’m keeping them,” Jessica said. “I just need to know about keeping appointments and payment plans and vitamins. I don’t know much about all the prenatal stuff.”
“That’s what we’re here for, dear,” the doctor replied. “You get ready, and we’ll come back to talk appointments. Congratulations.”
After the door shut, Jessica mopped up the ultrasound jelly on her stomach, and then slipped the T-shirt over her body. Dana squeezed her hand tighter, but Ashley was pacing.
“What?” Jess asked.
“You don’t have to do this,” Ashley said. “I know you want to do the right thing but twins? Are you maybe at least going to think about adoption? I know you want to be a scientist and with twins—”
“It’ll be hard, but I can do it.”
Dana frowned. “Are you going to tell Brent?”
“And have his father disown him, break Cara’s heart, and lead my father to murder him? Honestly, guys, I have no idea what I’m doing. All I can trust now is my gut. And that says that these children are the best thing I’ve ever made,” Jessica said, gesturing to her stomach. “But it’s less clear on if telling Brent is a good idea. He might hate me forever since I was the one assuring him I was on the pill.”
