I Wanna Love Somebody Like You

21

"And your nausea has gotten better since you've entered the second trimester?"

"Yes," Meredith said from the exam table, one hand gripping Derek's as the other hand rested on her belly that was already slightly swollen.

"Excellent," Dr. Cooper smiled as she made a note in Meredith's chart. "Let's get to the fun part, shall we?"

"Definitely," Derek said, smiling at Meredith as she settled back on the table and lifted her shirt over her stomach.

"I see you're already showing a bit," Dr. Cooper smiled as she covered Meredith's lower stomach in cool gel.

"I am," Meredith smiled, looking over at Derek. "We still haven't told anyone. We want to make sure that everything is okay."

"Well, we'll take care of that right now," Dr. Cooper smiled as she turned the monitor to face Derek and Meredith. "Alright, this is your uterus, and right here...is your baby."

"Oh, Mer," Derek breathed, feeling his heart constrict in his chest. They'd seen the baby a couple months before when it was no larger than a spot on the screen. But now he was looking at an actual baby. His baby, inside of his wife.

"He's beautiful," Meredith whispered, reaching for his hand without taking his eyes off of the screen. "Look at his hands, Derek."

"They're moving," Derek whispered. "This is...amazing."

"Would you like to hear the heartbeat again?" Dr. Cooper asked.

"Is that a question?" Meredith breathed.

Dr. Cooper smiled warmly and flipped a switch, causing a soft wooshing sound to fill the room. "Good and strong."

"He's so strong, Mer," Derek breathed, turning to press a kiss to her cheek. "Listen to that."

"And he has a spine," Meredith breathed.

"A perfect spine," Derek nodded in approval.

"Everything looks perfect," Dr. Cooper nodded. "Baby Shepherd is on track for development, heartbeat is steady. You're about fourteen weeks along, looking at a due date of July 15."

"July," Meredith nodded. "That's so far away."

"He needs a chance to grow," Derek whispered.

"I'll take some pictures for you," Dr. Copper said, clicking a few more buttons.

"I want to keep watching him," Meredith said, watching her baby's arms move slightly.

"I'll tell you a secret," Dr. Cooper smiled. "One of the good things about being a doctor is that you can come up whenever it's quiet to look at your baby."

"Which we will be doing frequently," Derek smiled softly.

"And at your next scheduled appointment we'll do another ultrasound to determine the sex of your baby," Dr. Cooper smiled.

"It's a boy," Meredith nodded. "I can feel it."

"Mothers are usually right about these things," Dr. Cooper said as she shut the machine off and reached to wipe the gel off of Meredith's stomach. "Do you have any other questions for me?"

"She's been working a lot," Derek commented. "She's less exhausted right now, but I'm still worried that she's putting too much stress on herself."

"And I keep telling him that I'm fine," Meredith rolled her eyes. "He just worries too much."

Dr. Cooper smiled as she reached for Meredith's chart again. "A lot of fathers to be worry a lot," she said. "And I trust Meredith to know her limits. It's not just you anymore. If your body is telling you to slow down it means your baby needs the rest too. Take it easy, try to get a stool in the OR if it's a long surgery. Taking care of yourself will take care of your baby as well."