Fate || BENNIFER

Green Light

Jennifer's P.O.V

We didn't rush or hide this time. Ben and I sat like everybody else, waiting nervously to find out if everything was just fine. We held hands tightly as we watched the other expectant mothers walking in and out. My stomach was full of butterflies, like every month before an ultrasound.

As I was called, I took a deep breath in an attempt to calm my nerves. The assistant nurse greeted us with a warm smile.

"So," The doctor began. "How have you been feeling, Jennifer?"

"I've been feeling much better. I followed your advice." I told him.

"Oh yeah, I read the post. Beautiful words." He replied.

"Thank you." I could feel my cheeks flushing.

"Are there any concerns you'd like to address before we proceed with the ultrasound?" He asked.

"Actually, I've been feeling a lot less movement these last few weeks." I answered.

"Okay, let's have a look at that then." He nodded understandingly.

While he applied the gel, he told us about the baby's growth and development at five months, and what to expect. My eyes were fixed on the monitor and my heart rate spiked as the image started to appear.

The doctor noted that the baby's heartbeat was healthy and strong. Together, we stared at the miracle before us, a tiny human, only inches long, but growing and changing by the day.

Ben put his arm around me, and we both let out a small laugh of relief and joy, not only because the baby was moving and kicking, but also because we could see perfectly on the screen a gesture of thumb-sucking.

"Everything looks good." The doctor finally said smiling. "The baby is growing exactly as it should. It's perfectly healthy, and all your concerns are entirely normal at this stage."

We left the office that day with the confirmation that our baby was fine, and therefore, green light to start assembling the nursery.

Ben and I were standing in the middle of the empty room. I held paint rollers in my hands, and Ben was holding a paint tray. We were about to spend our Sunday painting the walls of our future baby's nursery.

Ben dipped the roller into the pale yellow paint and began to coat the top of the wall with long strokes. I started at the bottom of the wall and worked my way up.

"This color is fantastic. It reminds me of the beach." Ben commented as he continued to paint away.

"I was thinking the same." I said nodding. "Maybe we can add some pictures or wall decor that goes with a beach theme."

As we painted, we talked about the baby's future interests, passions, and discussed a few names. We giggled and shared stories of our own childhood, laughing at how much simpler life seemed back then. Some things we remembered from when we dated the first time, others we didn't and was fun to know them.

We worked onto the next wall, eager to see how it would turn out. But in the meantime, we joked and flirted with each other.

"You're splattering paint all over me!" I laughed as Ben created a splotch on the back of my shirt.

I dipped my paintbrush into the paint and slowly walked towards Ben.

"Oh, no you don't!" He shouted, grabbing his own paintbrush as he saw me approaching.

The next thing I know, we were having a paint fight. Thick streaks of paint were flying across the room as we laughed and chased each other.

"No fair!" I cried, dipping my hands in the paint bucket and smearing hand prints all over Ben's face, causing him to stumble back and fall onto the drop cloth.

He got up, his face and clothes covered in splatters of paint, and started chasing me around the room.

"You're not escaping that easily!" He shouted.

We continued the paint battle, throwing paintbrushes and splattering paint all over each other. It was a beautiful mess.

We finally stopped and looked at our surroundings. There was paint all over the walls, floor, each other and our hair.

"We better get this cleaned up." I said as we both burst out laughing.

We spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning up the paint. As we ran out of steam, we cuddled together, covered in paint, and smiled at each other.

"That was crazy." He said giving me a kiss on my nose.

"Definitely. Let's do it again sometime." I replied snuggling into his chest.