Breaking Point (BWWM)

5. Aversion

Lucinda fumbles with her fingers anxiously, not daring to twist or fiddle with her ring as it often earned her a hard stare from her husband if she did. She bites her bottom lip, paling as Dr. Bernard starts to press the wand to her exposed abdomen.

"You're not sick again, are you?" Braxton asked, though he sounded more annoyed to Lucinda than he did worried. She swallows the bile climbing her throat, it made her throat ache and sting but she shook her head.

"Are you sure? You're looking pale." He pressed with insistence, though she simply nodded. She avoids his steely, unmoving gaze on her face. It's like he tries to make her squirm with those mean looks.

Laurence stood on the other side of the couple's bed, he folds his arms and shakes his head hearing his son's tone. Marlene and Brooke watched the screen with the couple, the staticky scuffle of the wand against her abdomen was agonizing as they all waited to spot what they were looking for.

Lucinda was the only one not looking, studying her nimble fingers and continuously fumbling with them. Her propped up knees press together. Dr. Bernard's smile grows, "Right there, there's your baby," he points at the white bean-shaped mass on the screen. Marlene and Brooke shriek in excitement, hugging and bouncing each other. Laurence smiles fondly at the sight. Braxton couldn't take his eyes off the screen, his demeanor changing entirely. Before, he was focused and his muscles were taut with impatience, however as he stared at the little bean-shaped mass on the screen, he couldn't help the relief flooding his shoulders. Quickly, it was followed by hope and excitement.

Lucinda felt the bed dip beneath his weight, she startles for just a moment when his strong hand grasped one of hers in a tight grip. Thank you. His thoughts were sincere as he delivered them to her.

Lucinda said nothing, her plump lips pursed as she chewed the inside of her cheek. She still hadn't looked up at the screen, it would make things feel too real. Even with the rest of the family celebrating, relieved and excited about the new baby on it's way.

"Any way of telling if it's an Alpha yet?" Braxton wondered, looking up from where he stared at his wife's womb.

"It'll be easier to tell in the coming weeks, but if I had to make any predictions..." Dr. Bernard studied the screen, looking back and forth between his notes of Lucy's symptoms. "Since her symptoms have been so severe, I would say it's an Alpha. As you know, Alpha babies typically give their mothers a harder time in the womb, and they appear bigger." He gestures to Lucinda's abdomen. Which wasn't as flat as it used to be. "She's already starting to grow, I'm inclined to say she'll grow pretty big with this baby."

Braxton smiles with twinkling eyes; it wasn't an odd sight, per se, though Lucinda hardly ever saw such an expression grace his features. He had a nice smile, she wished he showed it more often. It made his eyes crinkle at the corners just a bit, and despite how stone-like his expressions tend to be, it didn't crack his face. His cheeks seemed to naturally lift at such news. He pulls Lucy's hand towards his lips and gives it a tender kiss. His green eyes land on her face, though her gaze was still on her fingers, specifically how long her nails had gotten. She was pushing down the thoughts of how soft his lips were against her hand.

"As I'm sure you know, things will only get harder for the Luna from this point onward. I'm mandating a "bed-rest" for her, though by no means does she have to lounge in bed all day. Just make sure she isn't doing any intensive or exhausting labor, anything that any of you think is too challenging for her is prohibited. Carrying the next Alpha is one of the most important jobs there is to have, she should be treated as such." Dr. Bernard declared warmly, his smile was somewhat comforting - though it achieved little in soothing Lucinda's bad nerves.