These Awkward Moments

Chapter 58 Wings

2 months later
Delilah's POV
I had never in my life felt so pampered. For weeks the people of Alexandria had been pitching in to help us with everything from household chores to cooking, childcare, and gardening. When I attempted to resist I was promptly reminded (repeatedly) of how important having me as their doctor was to the community.

Roe and Jesus had done a lot of the cooking too. They managed to set-up a regular shipment of pickles and potato chips from the Sanctuary. I did find it slightly ironic that my pregnancy cravings all seemed to be assuaged by supplies from such a notorious location. The nausea subsided a bit more each week. I could eat most foods now, and I was finally beginning to gain weight steadily.

Even before I started to gain weight, my belly had begun to round out. Daryl had been beside himself when by my twelfth week I had a noticeable baby bump. Now at close to nineteen weeks my belly was significantly larger than it had been at the same stage with Bowyn. Daryl was already able to feel small movements from our babies as they kicked and rolled inside me.

I continued to work, focusing mostly on Gavin's education. Dr. Carson was visiting a couple of times each month to begin training Rosita and Gavin. This also enabled him to do my prenatal visits without me having to travel to the Hilltop. He was happy with the progress the twins were making, but as I approached the halfway mark of my pregnancy he also grew more anxious about preterm labor.

We hadn't been able to catch the babies in the right position on the ultrasound to know genders yet. Dr. Carson was planning a growth ultrasound today, and we were both hoping to get a peek. Daryl had been hanging around inside the walls waiting for the doctor to arrive, and entered the infirmary with Carson just behind him. I was sitting on the waiting room sofa with my feet elevated on cushions reviewing Gavin's latest lessons with him when they arrived. Rosita was reorganizing some supplies. Carson smiled as he took in the scene. "Ah Delilah! Just how I was hoping to find you! Still getting enough rest?"

I handed Gavin's paper back to him, nodding. "Gavin, good work on this so far. You can go to lunch now if you'd like." He smiled and stood up, shaking Dr. Carson's hand as he left. "Yes. I'm gettin' too much rest by my own standards. It won't be too much longer before my husband is describin' me as 'fat and sassy'." I pushed the cushions out from under my feet and sat up.

Daryl reached out his hand to assist me in standing up from the sofa. He smiled and winked at Dr. Carson. "Yeah, I don't know which husband she's talkin' about... but this husband knows better than ta ever say anything like that." He turned to me and put one arm around my waist, pulling me into his embrace and placing his other hand on my growing belly. "And besides, you know how incredibly sexy I think this is." he murmured in my ear.

I blushed and pushed his shoulder. "Let's do this ultrasound, shall we?"

I walked to the exam table and laid back so Dr. Carson could begin his exam. He did his usual measurements and asked about my blood pressure and weight gain. "You doing ok with this pregnancy Daryl?" he asked as he prepared for the ultrasound.

Daryl smiled and nodded, slipping my hand into his. "Yeah, now that my wife seems ta be past the worst parts I'm feelin' a lot better about it. I know we still have ta get through the tricky part at the end, but I'm tryin' ta focus on gettin' her as healthy as possible so she comes through it all safe."

Dr. Carson nodded. "I'd say she's got a great chance of pulling through now. Well, there they are. Both with good strong heart beats. Let's do some measurements first." He had been teaching Rosita more and more with each ultrasound. He started by checking to make sure they were still tracking on the growth curve. "You're certainly doing something right Delilah. Even by singleton standards the babies are growing well. Twin A is even measuring a little large for gestational age. Now... let's see if they'll cooperate today and give us a peek..."