Page 67 of Pieces of Us
“What about you?”
“If we have a girl, I want to name her Millie. It was my grandmother’s name.”
“Millie is cute. Makes me think of a little girl with pigtails and a big smile.”
“My grandma was always smiling. I think it’s where my dad got his easy-going demeanor.”
Linc rubs my arm. “Millie, it is, then.” A few moments later, the nurse calls my name to go back.
“Let’s start with the ultrasound. We’ll be in room three.” She stops at a door and motions for us to go inside.
“Go ahead and lie down on the table there. And if you could bring your top up a bit and lower the waist of your pants, then we can get started!”
I do as she instructed. My bump is a little bigger now, so it doesn’t disappear when I lie down.
Linc reaches out and rubs my belly. He has started touching it over the past couple weeks. He was cute, asking if it was okaythe first time he did it, but I think it’s sweet, and it doesn’t feel invasive. If I’m honest, I like how affectionate he already is with the baby.
The nurse does measurements and tells us everything looks healthy. She points at the screen. “There are the fingers and over here, the toes.”
Linc sniffles beside me. “Oh my god, it has fingers and toes. Mel, it’s all there. It’s so real this time. You can see its nose. Oh my god, I think the baby has your nose.”
I laugh. “Maybe.”
The nurse turns to us, handing Linc a tissue. “Did you want to find out the sex today?”
I look at Linc and squeeze his hand. “Yes, please.”
Chapter Forty-Six
Linc
I’m already about to lose it when the nurse asks if we want to know the sex. I’ve been reading the app every day, so I know all the developmental stages the baby has gone through, but seeing a real little human on the screen is overwhelming.
The nurse runs the ultrasound wand over Mel. “Okay, we… should… be able to see… There, there it is.” She points at the screen. “Mom, Dad, you’re having a little girl.”
I let out a shaky breath. “A girl?”
“You got it, a girl!”
Mel swipes away tears from her cheek as the nurse extends the box of tissues to us. I take two. Mel looks in my eyes. “We’re having a girl.”
“Millie.”
She shakes with a happy sob. I stand from my chair and lean down to kiss her hair. “Thank you so much, Melonie. This is the best day of my life.”
The nurse finishes cleaning up the goop from Mel’s stomach. “Just wait, Dad, lots of best days to come. I’ll let you have a couple of minutes. You’ll meet with the doctor in room nine. Feel free to go there when you’re ready.”
“Thank you,” Mel says as she takes my hand, helping her to sit up, swinging her legs off the side of the table.
As soon as the nurse closes the door, I wrap my arms around her. I breathe in the smell of her hair and let out a long breath as she places her head on my chest.
“Your heart is beating fast.”
“I’m feeling a lot of things right now.”
She pulls her head away from my chest, looking up into my eyes. “Same.”
I run my hand through her hair, my hand coming to rest on her cheek.
