Page 86 of Always Been You

I leave work the next day at 11:30 a.m. and meet Olivia outside her doctor’s office and we go in together. We get her checked in and take a seat in the waiting room. My knee won’t stop bouncing. I’m full of nervous energy. I’m excited about this appointment to see how far along she is and hear the heartbeat of our baby. She eventually leans over and places her hand on my knee and holds my leg still. I look over at her and give her a small smile.

“Sorry babe, just excited.”

“I know,” she laughs lightly, “but the knee shaking is driving me batty.” I chuckle.

Right then, a nurse comes out and calls her name. Because we aren’t married yet, they call her Carter. I can’t wait to marry her and hear people use my last name as hers. Olivia Lincoln has a nice ring to it. The thought has a grin spreading across my face.

We walk down a hallway with closed doors on both sides. When we get to the end, the nurse opens the last door on the right, and hands Olivia a gown and tells her to get changed and take a seat on the exam table.

She changes quickly and takes a seat. I move the spare chair in the room right beside the table and take a seat beside her, grabbing her hand in mine and placing a kiss on the top of it. There are posters on all the walls talking about the different stages of pregnancy, many of them with diagrams about baby positioning and more. It creates an overwhelming feeling inside me, a nervousness mixed with the excitement. My stomach tightens as I read some posters and the warnings that they give. Olivia sees where I’m looking and squeezes my hand reassuringly. After a few minutes, the doctor walks into the room.

“Good Afternoon Miss. Carter, my name is Dr. Conway. How are we feeling today?” Dr. Conway is a petite woman in what looks like her forties, with her deep black hair piled on top of her head in a bun. She has delicate features and I can see the smile lines around her eyes as she smiles at Olivia and I.

“I’m feeling okay. Nothing too strong today.”

“So I take it you’re experiencing symptoms then?”

“Yeah, I’ve had some morning sickness, though it hasn’t been too bad. Food aversions and cravings too, but Josh here has been good at helping avoid the foods that make me sick and keeping me stocked on pickles,” she laughs, and I squeeze her hand.

“Well, that’s good. Sounds like you two are doing this together well. Today, we are going to do a vaginal ultrasound and try to get a look at your baby and listen to the heartbeat. We will measure the gestational period and generate a due date for you. I’ll give you some prenatal prescriptions and set up a plan for the rest of your pregnancy.”

Olivia lies back on the table and puts her legs into the stirrups as the doctor rolls her stool to the foot of the table along with a machine with a big screen, which must be theultrasound. She puts on her gloves and puts a wrapper over the ultrasound wand she grabs. She then puts some lube on it.

“You’ll feel some pressure for a second, but that’s it.” She warns Olivia before she gets to work.

After a few seconds of her pressing some buttons, a sound fills the room, a ‘whoosh, whoosh, whoosh’. I feel my heart stop for a second, and my hand tightens on Olivia’s.

That our child’s heartbeat.

Dr. Conway reaches forward with her free hand and moves the screen to face us and points at a spot. “That right there is your baby.” I can feel the heat behind my eyes. I’m not usually a crier, but I’m sitting here getting to see my baby and their heartbeat for the first time, and I’m sharing this moment with Olivia.

I turn and face her and kiss her, wiping away her matching tears. “Our baby,” I whisper against her lips and she nods. “Our baby, Josh.” I brush her hair behind her ear, then place a kiss on each cheek over her tears, her nose, and forehead before looking back at the screen. Dr. Conway presses a few more buttons and smiles at us. The machine prints a few images and she hands them to us.

“Here are a few pictures of your baby. You’re about eight weeks along now. I want to schedule appointments for every four weeks right now and once you get further along, we will schedule them closer together.” She hands Olivia a piece of paper. “Here is your prescription for prenatal vitamins. Do you have any questions for me?”

“Um,” Olivia runs her hand in circles over her stomach. “I was drinking before I found out I was pregnant this week. Will that hurt the baby?”

“No dear, as long as you stop now and make sure that you are eating and taking care of yourself, your baby should beperfectly fine. Many mothers drink until they confirm they are pregnant and have healthy babies.” Olivia and I both nod.

“I’m going to let you get dressed now. Just stop at reception on your way out and schedule your follow-ups. Congratulations, Mom and Dad.”

Olivia and I both say our thanks as she leaves and then Olivia gets dressed. We schedule her follow-up appointments and I ask the receptionist for scissors. I cut off one of the sonogram photos from the printout of four and hand the three remaining ones back to her. She has a questioning look on her face as she looks at them and then back at me. “I want to keep one in my office,” I say.

We walk outside to her car, opening the driver’s door for her when she unlocks it. I lean in and kiss her. “I love you. I should be home around 7 tonight.” She climbs into the car and does her seatbelt before I close the door and watch her drive away. Once I can’t see her car anymore, I order myself an Uber and head back to the office, positioning the sonogram photo on my desk beside a photo I have of Olivia so that I can see them both as I work.

By the time Saturday rolls around, Olivia has everything for this barbecue completely planned and prepped. Loading up the car with everything that she has put together, we make our way toward the park. I hold her hand on the centre console and play with her engagement ring. I love seeing it there, knowing that she’s agreeing to spend the rest of her life with me.

When we get to the park, we work together to set up. Both of our parents are the first to show up and they help us get everything ready. As people begin to show up, we start the barbecue and throw on some burgers and sausages while people mill around and talk or play some games Olivia set up.

After everyone has shown up, I walk up to Olivia, wrap my arm around her waist and bend to whisper in her ear, “You ready, babe?” She turns and looks at me over her shoulder and nods. Grabbing her hand, I pull her over to the side, raise my beer above my head and call for everyone’s attention. When everyone has gathered, I begin.

“Well, first Olivia and I would like to thank everyone for coming and joining us today. While we love just spending time with all of you, there was actually a purpose behind today.” Laughs sound out from our friends and family. “These last few months have provided a lot of change, change that I am extremely happy about. Olivia and I have been seeing each other for the last few months.” I lift her left hand as I hear murmurs from our friends and family. “And on Tuesday I asked her to marry me and she said yes!” I look down at her and she’s beaming at me.

Congratulations are called by our friends and family, and we are bombarded by people coming up and giving us hugs and people wanting to see her ring. She is eventually pulled away from me and I’m left standing there with my parents and Emily. They each give me a hug.

“Congrats Josh, I’m happy for you. I’m glad the two of you finally got your heads out of your asses and realized that you both love each other,” Emily says with a small laugh.

“Emily,” Mom chides her, but she has a smile on her face too. “Well, I’m happy for you too, Josh. I’m glad that you two are happy.”

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