What Now?

Ultrasound

The next couple weeks seemed to go super slow. You'd scheduled a 3-D ultrasound for the second Thursday following the lunch with your parents. You were hoping to get it done sooner than that, but Henry wasn't available for a full week while he was out of town. You really wanted him to come with you, so you waited. The two of you had discussed it, and you'd schedule all doctor appointments to work with your schedule, and he would adjust accordingly. Because the 3-D ultrasound was optional and fairly last minute, you wanted to be flexible with him.

You chose the highest rated facility for the ultrasound. It offered the necessary discretion for Henry to come and go privately. Dany had called ahead and arranged for NDAs to be signed by any staff that would be in contact with Henry. You now had her number and she had yours, so if there was an emergency and you couldn't get ahold of Henry, you could contact her. However, all of your communications about the baby were directly with Henry.

You sat down with your boss the Monday after lunch with your parents and told him about your pregnancy. Since he has no legal right to ask questions regarding paternity, he simply acknowledged it and recommended that you see HR for the necessary paperwork regarding maternity leave. He was a pretty good guy, so you hadn't expected any issues.

The day of the ultrasound, you were practically shaking with nervous energy. This was the first time Henry would be with you to see and hear the baby. You were excited to see his reaction, and you were excited to hear your baby's heartbeat again.

The appointment was at 2:30pm. Henry planned to meet you there. You got to the office about 10 minutes early, and saw Henry as soon as you walked in the door.

"Hey, sweetheart, how are you?" He asked while giving you a hug.

"Excited. You?"

"I'm very excited. Today felt like the longest day ever waiting for this."

"I totally understand. I've only had 2 ultrasounds, so I'm excited to see the baby."

The nurse called you back while the two of you were chatting. You could tell she was a little starstruck seeing Henry, but she stayed professional. Once you were in the room, she had you hop up onto the table and lift your shirt.

Henry's eyes were glued to your bump. He wasn't even trying to hide the fact that he was staring, not that you minded. You were carrying his baby. It was understandable. Especially since neither of you anticipated these circumstances with expecting a child. He didn't get to see the day to day progression that he'd see if you were together.

She squirted the gel on your stomach and pulled out the Doppler machine. You were watching Henry as the heartbeat was heard. You could see tears shimmering in his eyes as he listened to his baby's heartbeat for the first time. He glanced down at you and smiled wide.

She pulled out a different machine and asked if you were ready to see the baby. You both said yes, and the screen lit up with images of your baby's face. You were slightly surprised to feel Henry grasp your hand, but you didn't pull away. This must be such an emotional experience for him. It was for you, and you'd seen and heard the baby before.

The nurse talked you through what you were seeing, then switched to the 3-D imaging. Suddenly you could see the shape of the baby's face. A little hand moved in front of the face, making it difficult to see. But, the sight of 5 tiny fingers made your heart clench. That tiny, perfect baby was growing inside you. You'd helped make them.

Henry squeezed your hand slightly. You turned your head to look at him, and he smiled down at you. He wasn't trying to hide the fact that he was crying.

You spent the next 20 minutes holding hands with Henry while the nurse showed you your baby. She offered to make a recording of the heartbeat, and a disc of all of the images she took. You automatically agreed, and knew Henry would too.

When she'd finished with the ultrasound, she handed you some tissues to wipe the gel off your stomach. As soon as your shirt was pulled down Henry pulled you into a hug. He squeezed you tight and whispered in your ear.

"Thank you so much for letting me be here. It means more than you could possibly know."

You squeezed him back just as tight. "Of course. You can come to any appointment you want. Anytime."

He pulled back and smiled at you. You grabbed your stuff and the two of you headed to the front. As you expected, Henry bought a bunch of stuff, like a teddy bear with the heartbeat, a copy of the ultrasound pics, and a couple framed images. He gave you a sheepish smile at the pile, but you just smiled wide. You liked that he was excited about the baby. The whole time he was choosing stuff, he stood with his hand on your belly. You didn't mind. You wanted him to be a part of this.

After you'd taken care of everything, you headed to the lobby. He insisted on paying for the ultrasound. You tried to argue it, but he wouldn't budge. He reminded you that you wouldn't take any money for prenatal care, and he just wanted to do his part. You weren't worried about the cost of prenatal care. You had excellent insurance, and didn't pay much out-of-pocket.

In the end, you gave up fighting him on it. You understood his desire to help. You just never wanted him to think you were taking advantage of him.

He gave you a big hug again before you left, and told you he'd call or text you later about dinner. You were meeting his parents tomorrow.