her remedy

22

"I don't want to." My answer hasn't changed in the last hour.

"Adele, my goodness, it's a doctor's appointment, not a trip to the gym!" Simon says, starting to sound defeated.

"You're not the one who has to lay down on the uncomfortable table, are you?" I say, knowing I got him there.

"I'm not, but I'm always right there next to you, aren't I? And you only have to be on it for a few minutes." He pulls me into him.

"I know, baby, I just would rather stay home and cuddle or something." I pout.

"Don't you want to find out what we're having?"

I sigh. "It's a boy, I can tell."

"How can you tell?"

"Because he kicks at night."

"What does that have anything to do with the gender?" His nose adorably scrunches up in confusion.

"He likes to bother me at night, just like his father." I say, an amused grin on my face.

Simon laughs. "I'm sorry, baby. I know I'm a restless sleeper."

"Restless? Simon, sleeping with you is sometimes like sleeping with a monkey that has ADHD."

"It's not that bad." He disagrees, shaking his head.

I sit up and look at him. Then I say, "Adele, why is this blanket so heavy? Adele, the sheet is too cold. Adele, why are you going to sleep, don't you want to talk to me? Adele, can I play with your hair? Adele, do you ever sing in your sleep? Adele, what's your opinion on the color purple? Adele, why do you have two middle names? Adele-"

"Ok, I get it." Simon interrupts. "I guess I do ask a lot of questions when you're trying to sleep."

"You think?" I laugh, looking at the time and realizing I have no choice anymore and I have to go to my appointment.

"Be ready in 15 minutes." Simon says, getting up and grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge.

As I walk up the stairs, a task that gets harder every day, I say, "You sound like my mother."

It earns a light laugh from Simon, allowing me to hear the most beautiful sound in the world aside from the sound of my unborn baby's heartbeat.

*

As we wait for the doctor, I start to mimic Simon. "Simon, why are there so many female anatomy posters in here? Simon, how long have you had a beard? Simon, the lighting in here is unflattering. Simon, who is your boy crush? Simon, why is the sky blue? Simon, do you like rain? Si-"

"My boy crush is most definitely Simon Konecki." He says, interrupting my flood of questions.

I look once at him and blink. "Are you high?"

He laughs and firmly says, "No." Before I can say anything else, a knock on the door and the entrance of the doctor stops me.

She goes through the routine that I've now memorized after doing it a dozen times; the usual "How are you feeling, is the baby kicking, are you eating healthy" questions, the "How are you Simon?" question and then the best part happens. She runs the ultrasound monitor across my stomach, and Simon and I get to see the love of our life and hear their heartbeat.

Without even thinking about it, our hands always find their way to each other and hold on. He gives me a reassuring squeeze every once in a while, and each time he does, it melts my heart.

Today, however, things are a little different. We find out if the baby is in fact a boy, or if I am entirely wrong and it's a girl.

Holding on to my hand a little tighter than normal, the doctor looks at the ultrasound screen to answer our biggest question.

Simon whispers, "Let's make a bet." I nod, listening carefully. He continues, "If you're right and it is a boy, I take you out for Chinese. If you're wrong and it is a girl, you let me buy those cookies I like at the grocery store."

"The crumbly ones I never let you buy because they make a mess?" I ask.

"Those are the ones." He confirms with a smirk.

"You've got a deal, Konecki." I shake his hand, sealing our bet.

With perfect timing, the doctor says, "Congratulations, you're having a baby boy!"

Simon immediately accepts his loss and hugs me tightly, as I feel my heart pound and my face light up with immeasurable happiness. We're having a precious little boy, one that will capture my heart unlike any other boy in my life.

Lost in the most dreamy and perfect world that is now our reality, we finish the appointment. Simon takes my hand and we walk back to the car, already talking up a storm about what the nursery will look like, what we'll name him, who we'll tell first, as well as repeatedly saying, "I love you" to each other and the baby.

"Well, you're the loser." I say, adjusting the seat belt around my large belly.

"I've never been so happy to hear those words as I am now." Simon laughs.

Our hands meet each other again, and I look at Simon and then at my stomach, where the child we created is being made. It gives me an unmatched feeling, the kind that makes me realize that hard times really do end up being worthwhile.

"Hey, Simon?" I ask him as he turns in the direction of the Chinese restaurant, causing a smile to form on my lips.

"Yes, my love?" He answers.

"I love you."

He briefly turns his attention away from the road to me, looking straight into my eyes and saying the words I never get tired of hearing.

"I love you too."