Home (Grey's Anatomy Series)

Shepherd-Avery/Thomas

"Eleanor Bergen. 23 weeks in. The O.B. noticed an abnormality with the baby. She's here today for a 3D ultrasound to follow up." Owen said.

Walking down the hallway, I scrolled down my tablet and looked over at her previous ultrasounds when Owen slips out the last 3D ultrasound Eleanor had.

"Whoa."

"I know." He gasped.

"Well, there's a buildup of cerebrospinal fluid."

"Doctors split on what to do here, some say wait as long as possible to take the baby, then clear it once it's out."

"Well, if the swelling continues, the baby could have severe brain damage and possibly rupture the mother's uterus," I whispered.

"That's the other camp. They say deliver the baby now."

"23 weeks is way too soon."

"Or terminate," Owen added hesitantly.

Continuing to walk down the hall towards Eleanor's room, Owen and I kept discussing the possible outcomes.

"Eleanor and her husband didn't know what to do, so they called me, and I called you to break the tie. Chief."

"Where's the husband?" I asked.

"He's on his way from a convention in France."

"You think he's gonna make it in time?" I asked.

"He said he was going to be here by the end of tomorrow."

"Okay, well, let's meet Eleanor."

Walking into her room, she laid back with her head staring up t the ceiling.

"Hi, Eleanor. This is the doctor I was telling you about." Owen introduced us.

"Hi, Elena Shepherd," I whispered as I shook her hand.

"Thank you so much for coming. My husband and I are a little freaked, a lot freaked, actually. We look at the scan, at the baby's head...my husband's across an ocean praying with me over the phone that you're not gonna tell us to give up."

"Let's, uh, take a look, and we'll talk after, okay?" I said as I tried to calm her down.

Asking Owen to bring in an ultrasound cart, I watched as Eleanor breathed in calmly.

She seemed so young. Almost around my age, dark black hair, greenish-brown eyes. She was me when I first freaked out about having Theo.

"Okay, here we go."

Squirting out the gel onto her belly, I move the probe around.

"Maybe this is my penance for pushing. I never thought I'd have a child until I met my husband. I tried to get pregnant a year ago, but I just couldn't. And I mean, how can tell your husband that you can't give him the one thing that he's always wanted..." She cries softly.

"You have a very patient husband," I whispered.

Carefully pushing around her stomach, I could feel the baby move underneath my fingers.

"How far along are you?"

"8 1/2 months...I'm almost done."

"Is it girl?"

"Yeah? How did you know?" I asked.

"You cheeks are rosy, and you have great skin."

"I'll give credit to the all fruit diet my mother has put me in." I chuckled.

"They have you on those crazy gender psychic remedies?"

"Yeah, those."

"If you don't mind me asking, how were you able to conceive?" Owen said as he stood beside Eleanor.