The Halstead's (Linstead)

~ Chapter 11 ~

     "She's...pregnant." Will said, nervous at how Jay was going to react.
     "She's what!?" Jay yelled.
     Will calmed Jay down and explained that she was about 6 weeks pregnant.
     "Take your time. I know this is a shock. Then you can go see her. She just woke up and is ready to see you."
     Jay somewhat calmed himself down and was ready to check on his wife.
     Jay entered her room, "Hey," he said. He walked in to find his wife staring off into space, clearly in shock.
     "Hey," Erin whispered, her voice even raspier than normal. "Are you ready to be a dad?"
     Jay smiled, "Of course I am. I couldn't be happier to start a family with you."
     "I can't believe this is happening. We didn't plan this. Finding out I'm pregnant is supposed to be a happy, exciting occasion. Instead, I'm scared to death, because of what happened," Erin expressed to her husband with tears rolling down her pale face. She barely had a voice and it was extremely painful to talk. They kissed and each looked up as Will and Natalie walked in. Neither of them looked particularly calm. Something was wrong.
     "Erin, as we explained earlier, you are going to be fine," Will said.
     "What about the baby? Did the chemical do harm?" Erin asked with tears in her eyes. She had a gut feeling something was wrong. Natalie took a deep breath and started explaining their findings.
     "The chemical went deep into your blood stream. That means that it definitely reached the baby," Erin buried her head in Jays chest, crying, "The baby is alive, but because the chemical was homemade, we don't know exactly how it will impact the baby, you, or the pregnancy. It could mean there might be complications throughout the pregnancy or the delivery. It could also mean the baby could have developmental problems. We just don't know. Let's do an ultrasound to check it out."  
     Natalie put the cold gel on Erin's stomach. It didn't even faze her. All she was worried about was her baby. Natalie moved the wand across Erin's abdomen, searching desperately to find a heartbeat. 'Bu-dum, bu-dum, bu-dum' they heard as they all looked up in unison. There was a heartbeat.
     "The heartbeat is slower than it should be at this stage, which is concerning. All we can do, though, is check on you in a couple weeks. We will get a better feel for how the baby is progressing," Natalie explained.
     The four of them hugged each other as they cried together. They knew they needed to stay positive. That is what Erin and the baby needed.