When we reach the building, we take the elevator to the thirtieth floor. My heart feels as though it’s trying to jump out of my chest as I watch the numbers slowly climb. I want to get in there and find out what’s going on, but at the same time, I’m absolutely petrified.
The elevator dings, the doors open, and we step into the hall.
“I just realized something,” she says as we turn left. “Every member of my family died young. Both of my dad’s parents had heart attacks. My mother’s parents died in a car accident. I don’t know much about my great-grandparents, but I know Daddy said he grew up without them. Everyone dies early.”
I tug on her arm and spin her toward me, then I put my hands on her shoulders. “Not you, do you hear me? You and I are going to live until we’re old and gray. Nothing is going to happen to you. I won’t allow it. Whatever the doctor tells us, everything will be okay. Remember? We’re not worrying about anything until there’s something to worry about, right?”
Nodding, she presses her lips together in a weak smile. “Right.”
When we reach the doctor’s office, I open the door for Ari, then follow her in. The waiting room is packed, which probably means we’ll have to wait forever. Fantastic. More time for me to sit and brainstorm all the possible things that could be wrong.
“Arianna,” the receptionist calls.
All heads in the room turn toward us. A few people start to whisper, presumably when they recognize us. I put my arm around Ari. She doesn’t need to be a celebrity right now.
“You can go on back,” the receptionist says.
I’m not sure if that’s a good sign or not. Finding out sooner is great, but if she’s seeing us right away, is that an indication of the severity of the situation? Ari looks at me with worried eyes as a nurse takes us to the doctor’s office.
“Don’t worry,” I say. “I’m sure they just want to get us out of the waiting room so people don’t start talking. I’m sure they’re trying to preserve your privacy.”
“Oh,” she replies, apparently buying it. “That’s a good point.”
Not bad bullshit on the fly if I do say so myself.
We sit in the chairs opposite the doctor’s desk. I run my thumb across her knuckles as we wait. About an eternity, or five minutes, later, the doctor comes in.
“Sorry, to make you wait. It’s a crazy day today.” Shifting her folders to her left arm, the doctor holds out her hand to me. “I’m Dr. Saverino. Such a pleasure to meet you.” We shake hands, then she walks behind her desk and sits down. She opens the folder, then steeples her hands. “Ari, you were right. You are anemic and you have several other levels that are off, but I’ve figured out the cause of all of these deficiencies.”
“What?” Ari asks, then holds her breath.
“You’re pregnant.”
Chapter Forty
Chase
Did I hear that right? Pregnant?
Is that even possible? I watch Ari take her pill every day. With how beat-up I’ve been all season, it’s not as though it’s been a nonstop sex-a-thon. But then again, it only takes once. Looking at the smile on the doctor’s face, I don’t think she’s kidding. Doctors wouldn’t joke about this sort of thing.
Or would she…
No, she couldn’t. There’s no way for that joke not to be cruel. Unless the patient was eighty or something. Then that might be kind of funny. But in every other context, it would be totally out of line. This doctor doesn’t strike me as having the “oh yeah, I just went there, and we’re all going to laugh because what I said was so wrong it’s funny” sense of humor. She went to Harvard. They don’t give degrees to people with a sense of humor at Harvard. So… that means she must be serious. So… if she’s serious, then that means…
Holy shit! Ari’s pregnant! This is happening. This is really happening!
Images of a toddler with blond ringlets running through the grass pop into my mind. I’ve wanted this for so long, but I honestly thought it would be years before Ari was ready to seriously discuss it. Between what happened last year and her finally getting her life on a track she wants it to be on, this isn’t the right time.
Apparently nature has other ideas. God, I love nature.
All the fun I have when I play with Calder I can have all the time? With my own kid! Playing at the park and crawling through the grass looking for bugs, teaching him to blow raspberries, especially when he has a full mouth of peas. I can read the book with the cows and sheep, where I make all the really good animal sounds. I am the master of the moo—I don’t think there’s a non-bovine creature on this planet that can moo better than I can. And my chicken sounds make Calder crack up so hard, his face turns red and snot bubbles come out of his nose. Now I’m going to be able to make my kid laugh. Put a smile on my kid’s face. Teach my kid to spit peas.
My heart’s racing, practically bursting with excitement. I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy.
“Um,” Ari starts, pulling me out of my internal ramblings. “I just had my period not too long ago. Could the test be wrong?”
My heart, which was soaring moments ago, plummets, screaming, “Mayday!” It didn’t cross my mind that the test could be wrong! This doctor is just her internist, not a gynecologist. Maybe she read the results wrong or ordered the wrong test. Maybe there is no baby.
“Did your period seem light?” Dr. Saverino asks.
Ari furrows her brows. “Yeah, and a little off schedule, but that’s common for me—a side effect of working out so much.”
“It was probably just some light spotting,” the doctor replies. “Which is perfectly normal in the first trimester. I can say with one hundred percent certainty that you are most definitely pregnant.”
“Really?” Ari says, her voice cracking.
Ari reaches for my hand. I turn to her. Her eyes are gleaming.
A nurse pops her head in. “Mr. Gupta is ready for you.”
Dr. Saverino looks at her watch then shakes her head. “This day is just slipping away from me.” After sifting through the files on her desk, she picks one then stands and crosses the room. “I’ll be right back. We still have a few things to discuss, so don’t go anywhere.”
As the doctor closes the door, I jump out of my seat then pull Ari out of hers and into my arms, careful not to hold her too tightly. “I love you so much.”
“I love you back.”
“Can you believe it? A baby?” I whisper.
“No! I’m still in shock! This was the last thing I was expecting her to say. I honestly had no idea!” She pulls away and looks at me, nibbling her lip. “Are you okay? I know this is out of nowhere. We haven’t really talked about this, and—”
I kiss her to stop her foolishness. When we break our kiss, I place my hand on her stomach. It’s still flat and toned, so it’s hard to believe there’s a person growing inside there. “I am so much more than okay. I feel like I’m the luckiest man alive.”
Tears threaten to fall from her eyes. “Really? You’re happy?”
I cup her face. “Blondie, I’ve never been happier in my life. Not after I was drafted. Not after the Super Bowl. Nothing else in my life could compare to how I feel right now.”
“You’re even happier than when you beat me for class president in the sixth grade?”
“I was pretty fucking happy then, but I’m a million times happier now. I love you so much.”
I lean in to kiss her, but the doctor returns to the room. “So sorry about that. It’s one of those days.”
Ari and I take our seats as the doctor crosses the room then returns to her seat behind her desk. She opens the file on the top of the pile and looks at us. “So I already broke the big news. Let’s talk about next steps. Based on your previous miscarriage and a few other risk factors, I think it’s important for you to be seen by a high-risk OB.”
Risk factors? How can she just drop a bomb like that and smile?
Ari reaches for my hand. “Why? Is there something wrong?”
Dr. Savarino smiles. “I’m probably being overly cautious. I haven’t seen anything to indicate that there is a problem. But I advise having an ultrasound as soon as possible—just as a precaution.” She scribbles on a piece of paper. “There is an excellent high-risk OB in the building. I gave her a call, and she said she’d be happy to see you today for an initial consult. If you don’t click, you can always look for someone else to manage your care for the remainder of your pregnancy.” She pulls the paper off of the pad then holds it out toward us. “Dr. Schultz, on the twenty-second floor. She’s expecting you.”
I glance at Ari—she looks frozen in her chair. I stand and take the paper from the doctor. “You’re hitting us with this really fast. I know nothing about any of this stuff, so pardon me if this is a dumb question, but what is this doctor going to do for us? Why are we going, and why does it have to be right now? I feel as though there’s a piece of the puzzle I’m missing. You talked about risk factors. Is there some red flag we should know about?”
The doctor stands then picks up the stack of folders. “Throughout the duration of the pregnancy, there’ll be a number of things you’ll have to do simply as a precaution. This is just one of them.” She glances at her watch. “I must get back to my patients. If you decide to wait and see another doctor, please have them send me their report.” She squeezes Ari’s shoulder as she walks by. “Congratulations.”
As the doctor steps out, a nurse sticks her head in. “If you’d like, I can let you out the back door so you don’t have to go through the waiting room again.”
“Yeah, that’d be great,” I say then offer Ari a hand to help her up. She looks dazed, and I can’t blame her. My head is spinning too. “Come on, Blondie.”
She takes my hand, and we follow the nurse to a back door that lets us out by the elevator.
I hold up the sheet of paper. “What do you think about going to see this doctor?”
“We’ve got to go. Something’s wrong. She wouldn’t have pushed so hard otherwise.” She squeezes my hand. “There are so many similarities. I had no idea I was pregnant last time. I don’t feel pregnant. That has to mean something, right?” Her hands go to her stomach. “What if I lose this baby too?”
I pull her to me then kiss the top of her head. “Slow down, baby. Let’s just go see this doctor and see what’s going on. I think Dr. Saverino would have to tell us if something was wrong when I asked, and she didn’t. She said it was all just precaution, so let’s trust her. Right now, we don’t know anything, so there’s nothing to worry about.”
The elevator doors open before she gets a chance to respond. She sniffs then wipes her eyes, straightens her posture, and steps into the crowded elevator. We go down the few floors then follow the arrows to the doctor’s office.
The OB’s receptionist ushers us into an exam room in the back. I don’t know if going straight back is standard operating procedure, or if this is because of the celebrity factor, or if this is a huge red flag that something’s wrong.
Dr. Schultz introduces herself as she walks into the room, then she gets right down to business. “I spoke to Dr. Saverino, and she sent me copies of your bloodwork, and I agreed it was important to get you in here as soon as possible.”
I give Ari’s hand a reassuring squeeze. “Doc, I’ve got to be honest, I’ve heard a number of times how important it is to be seen right away, but no one has explained why.”
She shakes her head. “It’s just a—”
“A precaution… yeah, I’ve heard. Is that a term they teach you in medical school?”
The doctor presses her lips together and gives me a knowing look. “I know the process can be frustrating. Let’s start the examination, then we’ll discuss everything. We’re going to start with a transvaginal ultrasound. At this stage of the game, it’s more accurate. Why don’t you get changed into the robe, and I’ll be right back.”
As soon as the doctor leaves the room, Ari picks up the robe and strips. I try to catch her gaze, but she’s tearing her clothes off faster than a virgin on prom night. She’s as white as a ghost and her forehead’s glistening with sweat.
While she looks down, tying her robe, I put my finger under her chin then tilt her head up, forcing her to look at me. “Hey, talk to me. Where’s your head?”
“I just want to get this test over with. I want to know, and the waiting is killing me.”
“I hear you. I feel the same way, but where’s your head?”
“I’m totally freaked out and barely keeping it together. I just need to know whatever it is that’s hanging out there. Once I know, then I can start to deal with it, but not knowing… it’s killing me.” I reach for her, but she turns and opens the door. “All set,” she calls into the hallway. She hops onto the table.
The doctor comes in a moment later. “Let’s get started.” She drapes a paper cloth over Ari’s knees then pulls out a wand. “Just bend your knees, Arianna, and scoot to the end of the table. This won’t hurt a bit.”
“You’re going to put that inside her? Won’t that stab the baby?”
“It’s perfectly safe,” she says as she slides a condom on the wand. “I promise.”
Ari turns her head to look at me. “It’s fine.” She takes my hand and pulls me closer to the table. “Watch the screen.”
“Here we go.”
Ari squirms a little and squeezes my hand as we watch the screen, which reminds me of a white-out blizzard, just a bunch of snow.
The doctor smiles. “Ah, just as we thought.”
Ari’s nails dig into my skin. “What’s just as we thought?”
I stare at the screen, desperately hoping to figure out what the hell the doctor’s talking about. She pushes a bunch of buttons and twists a few knobs and the screen becomes a little clearer. Now it looks like a black hole in the middle of a blizzard. Was our baby swallowed by a black hole?
“Your lab results showed your hCG levels were through the roof—triple what we would typically see during pregnancy—which is why we needed to get the ultrasound right away to confirm. You’re having twins.” She zooms in a little, and we can see two faint blobs within the black hole. Using two fingers, she points at the blobs. “Here are your babies.”
“Twins?” Ari and I say at the same time.
“Yup, twins. It looks as though you’re about eleven weeks pregnant, and everything looks great.” She flips a switch. “And here are their heartbeats.”
I never thought one sound could completely change my life, but the whomp, whomp, whomp of my babies’ heartbeats changes absolutely everything for me. They aren’t just an idea or goobers on a screen—they’re real. Their little hearts are beating. Ari is going to bring these two beings into the world, and together we’re going to raise them, teach them, watch them grow. I’m not just me anymore—I’m going to be someone’s father. Two someones’ father. All at once, the reality of what that could mean settles in. I say “could mean” because I’m beginning to realize that everything I thought I knew about being a parent doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface.
Ari’s eyes meet mine, and she smiles so big it must hurt. “Oh my God, Chase. Twins!”
I lean down to kiss her. “I guess we shouldn’t be shocked. I’m a twin. It runs in families, right?”
“Fraternal twins do run in families, due to a gene that causes hyperovulation,” the doctor explains. “That’s not the case here.” She points at the screen again. “Your twins share a placenta, which means they’re identical. And that’s just a totally random fluke of nature. The cells just happen to split.” She places the wand back in its holder. “Everything looks perfect.” She reaches forward and grabs something from the printer then hands it to Ari. “For your scrapbook.”
Ari holds the picture so I can see. “Twins,” she whispers as she touches her fingertip to the blobs.
“I’ll give you a few minutes to get changed. Then please stop in the bathroom and leave a urine sample. It’s the third door down on t
he left. Once you’ve finished, come to my office so we can talk. We have much to discuss.”
“Doc?” I ask before she leaves the room. “The twin thing? Was that the risk factor and the red flags that had everyone spooked, or is there something else? If there’s something else, we need to know.”
She holds up the Girl Scout salute. “Yes, the hCG was the issue of concern, and now that we’ve confirmed there are twins, there’s nothing to worry about. I promise, if any issue comes up, I’ll be upfront with you. I won’t keep anything from you.”
As soon as she leaves the room, I pull Ari into my arms. “Wow.” I chuckle. “I wish I had something more prolific to say, but my mind is totally blown. Wow’s the best I’ve got.”
“I know,” she replies. “Considering we went from walking into this building expecting them to tell me I had cardiomyopathy or something to finding out we’re having twins… I’m flabbergasted.” She pulls back and looks at me with a nervous expression. “What do you think Charlie’s going to say? After she gives you crap about having super sperm. Which is total bull, because it’s my egg that split. Your sperm has nothing to do with that.”
I can’t help but laugh. “Hey now, my sperm was so powerful, your egg had no choice but to split.”
She rolls her eyes. “Whatever. Seriously, do you think Charlie’ll be okay? We’re kind of stealing her miracle baby thunder.”
“She’ll be happy for us, and she’ll be thrilled the two of you’ll be pregnant together. I think there’s part of her that’s always hoped we could raise our kids together, and now we can.” I hand her the robe. “Now get dressed. I have a million questions for the doctor.”
Chapter Forty-One
Arianna
When we called everyone to Pat and Katie’s for an announcement, they were obviously all preparing themselves for more bad news, considering that’s how this year has gone. But when we break the news that not only am I pregnant but that it’s twins, they go crazy. Katie and Pat are completely overjoyed. Pat opens a bottle of champagne, and Katie passes out flutes to Spence and Chase.
Love To Love You (Love/Hate #3) Page 35