Struck by you [a Roman Reigns story]

24 Soothe our souls

Roman POV

It was the middle of the night when I was awakened by a repeated nudge against my cheek. Sleepily I wiped the skin there, but already after three seconds the nudging was back.

Grunting, I opened my eyes and looked into the puppy eyes of Buttons. She was standing next to my head on the pillow while her head was tilted to the side. Softly, she barked.

"What's the matter, Butt-Butt? It's the middle of the night." I said softly as I closed my eyes again to go back to sleep.

But Buttons was persistent. Again and again she nudged me.

"Do you need to go for a walk?" I asked, knowing full well that she couldn't give me an answer.

I sat up. It was still totally dark outside. But that didn't surprise me. What surprised me was that Cassia was not lying next to me in bed. Immediately my heart began to beat faster. Where could she be so late into the night? Then I noticed that even her pillow was missing. Strange.

I was about to get out of bed to look for her when Buttons jumped off the bed and sat down in front of the bathroom door. She alternately looked at me and the door before barking softly again.

Apparently she had woken me up to tell me something. I swung my legs out of bed and quietly went into the bathroom. First I stuck my head in the door to see what was going on. There she was.

Cassia was lying on a thick blanket in front of the bathtub, close to the toilet. Her face buried in the pillow and a second blanket draped over her. My poor darling. This time, morning sickness had hit her full force. Apparently she had camped out here now. I hadn't even heard her throw up.

Quietly I knelt down next to her before I stroked some hair out of her forehead. She looked very tired.

"Baby girl? Cassia? Come to bed." I said softly.

"I can't... I feel so sick... It's easier that way..." she mumbled without opening her eyes.

"You can't sleep on the floor." I replied softly.

"I can. It's comfortable. Go to sleep, Ro... I'm fine..." she breathed sleepily.

"Do you want me to carry you to bed, maybe? And get you a bowl? Or is there anything else I can do?" I asked.

"No... Just leave me here... We'll be fine. I promise." she said with a deep sigh before obviously falling asleep again.

I didn't like that. I couldn't leave her here on the floor in the bathroom after all. I thought for a few minutes until finally a thought came to me. As quietly but as quickly as I could, I made my way to the garage. Fortunately it didn't take long until I found what I was looking for.

With the help of the pump, I quickly inflated the air mattress and carried it upstairs to the bathroom. Then I fetched a few more blankets from the linen closet. Quietly, I built a nice nest for my girl and our baby before lifting her into my arms and sliding the air mattress under her. Immediately I heard a sigh escape Cassia.

Then I went back into the bedroom to get my pillow. If she was going to insist on spending the night in the bathroom, she shouldn't be doing it alone. I laid down next to my baby girl before gently pulling her close to me. Cassia's back nestled against me as we now spent the rest of the night in the bathroom. And of course it wasn't long before Miss Buttons joined us.

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Cassia POV

"I'm nervous.... I hope everything is okay. It certainly feels different than the first time." I said as we sat in the waiting room at the doctor's office.

It wasn't just the stronger nausea that was different than my first pregnancy. No, the doctor was new too. This way it was easier than always driving to Orlando to see my doctor. That's why it took me a few weeks to get an appointment. I also wanted to be sure that we could see something on the ultrasound. We should also be able to hear the heartbeat today. Or at least I hoped so. Especially for Ro. Since he had missed that experience the first time.

"It's going to be okay, baby girl. Think positive. I'm with you." replied Roman.

He lifted my hand and pressed a kiss on the back of it. I really tried everything to stay optimistic. There was no reason to think it would end badly again. As bad as this experience was. Miscarriages were not as uncommon as I had thought at the time. Still, that didn't mean I could never have a baby. And giving up was not in Roman's vocabulary. He was sure that we would have our little rainbow. And I loved him so much for his attitude and support.

"I love you for being you." I said as I hugged his arm and rested my head on his shoulder.

"I love you, too. And the little bean." he replied and gave me another kiss on my hair.

After that, it wasn't long before I was called in. The doctor asked me a lot of questions and had the nurse draw my blood before it was finally time for the ultrasound. Since I was a new patient to him and due to the previous events, he did the scan himself.

I took a deep breath as I lay down. My heart was beating at 1000 beats per minute. Roman noticed how tense I was and did not move an iota from my side. The whole time he held my hand tightly.

"Here's your baby. Everything looks just the way we want it to." the doctor said as he moved the probe over my belly.

"Hello my little rainbow." I whispered as I felt tears welling up in my eyes.

I looked up at Ro and immediately saw that his eyes were sparkling too. A proud smile played around his mouth as he squeezed my hand before leaning in and giving me a sweet kiss.

"And now.... the heartbeat." he said as he placed the probe in the right spot.

Anxiously, we waited until it was time. The tension in the room was palpable.

But then we finally heard it. The thumping or rather fluttering of our baby's heart. And it was a strong heartbeat.

"This is so incredibly beautiful." said Roman softly, moved.

"It really is." I agreed as we both still stared at the monitor.

This moment, right here, was what we both so desperately needed. It soothed our souls and gave us so much happiness at the same time.