Left Behind

Past Twelve Weeks

March fifth, 16 weeks-

"Jessica, your baby's heart beat is really strong. You should be proud of your little peanut." Her doctor says as the heart beat echos around the small inclosed room.

Jessica gives her a fake smile. When the doctor is done she cleans Jessica up.

"... you've also gained some weight. Five pounds to be exact. Maybe next week when I see you we can possibly bring that number up? You're at one fifteen right now..." She writes on her clip board.

"I'll try." She says in a soft voice

"Here's a picture of your little bean." She hands Jessica a picture of the baby and Jessica holds it in her hands. The doctor watches Jessica hold the picture and look into it.

She turns away for a minute but when she turns back around she sees Jessica in tears. Jessica was alone today, she had come after a long day of work. Dorthy was not there to comfort her.

"Jessica, are you okay?" The doctor says putting her hand on Jessica's shoulder. She shakes her head and cries even harder.

"No, I'm not okay." She whispers

"What's wrong? Everything with the baby is just fine."

"It's not the baby.... it is, but it isn't. I just wish my husband was here, to see this and go through this with me."

The doctor looks into Jessica's watery eyes

"... he died in November." She struggles to say

The doctor already knew this, but this was the first time Jessica had ever said anything.

"I'm sorry, Jessica. I know how it feels." She says softly

"He wanted a baby, but I didn't... he sacrificed that want for me. Now he's gone and he is missing it. I feel guilty, not wanting this baby. Also, for never giving him a baby... I just have a lot of emotions. I want to be happy that I'm pregnant. But I can't be." She says

"... I miscarried his baby." She says, speaking of the past.

"I understand how hard it is to be happy. But, Come August you'll hold your beautiful baby in your arms and thank him for giving you this beautiful gift. Things will fall into place. And by the looks of it you have a great support system. I get that maybe a baby wasn't something you planned to have, but god has a plan for you... you just need to keep your chin up and remember that your baby is happy and healthy. Do you think the miscarriage is what caused you to not want children?"

Jessica nods slowly "Yes, Of course... I've been too scared."

"Well don't be scared." She says

"Thank you, for being such an amazing doctor."

"Of course. And when I say I understand, I truly do mean it. I was in your shoes ten years ago... but things worked out. I have a beautiful son. I wish my boyfriend was able to see him, but I know he's watching and smiling. I know he's proud."

//-//

Jessica was still a bit emotional when she got back from the doctors. Dorthy sat in the apartment waiting for her.

"Hi! How did it go?" She asks standing up from the couch.

Jessica nods her head and sets her things down on the kitchen table. "Fine, the baby is healthy."

"That's great! I told you, things would be okay."

"I got a picture." She says handing her the photo the doctor had given to her.

Dorthy looks at the picture and smiles. "The first one, huh?" She smiles

Jessica nods then goes to the fridge to get some water.

Dorthy follows her and sits at the island. "You know, Jess, everyone is asking how you are. No one back home has heard from you." Dorthy says

Jessica sighs "I know... I guess I've been avoiding everyone."

"Sooner or later people will find out. You should tell everyone, they'd be happy for you. I get why you don't want to right now, but it's passed the twelve week mark. Your baby is doing great." Dorthy smiles

"I'm not in a rush to tell anyone." She huffs

"I know, but at least call everyone and let them know that you're okay, alright love?" She says giving her a hug.

//-//

Time went on and so did Jessica. She worked everyday, came home, and that was it. Dorthy was still in town, but would soon be leaving after Jessica's birthday. She really wanted to stay but her life was in Minnesota and she needed to be home. She would be coming back to New York, especially in the summer when Jessica's pregnancy had progressed.

Now that Jessica was farther into her pregnancy things really began to change. Her body, mood, appetite and everything else that goes along with pregnancy. She was still seeing her doctor, but not as frequently. Now that her baby was thriving and way past the twelve week mark Jessica's mind was at ease. She was slowly warming up to the idea of having a baby. Of course it was still extremely hard not having Danny, but she faced the fact that being sad and angry wasn't going to fix anything. This was their child, she had to embrace it.

Jessica's life was slowly falling into place. But, there always felt like a time when it would come crashing down. She still had her breakdowns, but she was lucky to have Dorthy there to help her through them all. The major bump Jessica was facing was work. She absolutely hated it. She used to love her job, but the workplace had changed so much for her. Ever since her promotion she was never able to write like she used to. That's why she took the job years ago. Now, she was running a department. On top of hating going to work, Sam was there too. It was awkward and uncomfortable. Jessica was slowly starting to drift from her job. She had lots of thinking to do. She was antsy and ready for a change. Now that she had a baby on the way, she was beginning to think about making lots of big changes.

//-//

Sarah, Ann, and Jane all got a ticket to New York to surprise Jessica. They hadn't spoken to her in what felt like forever. She had been distant. Dorthy spoke to them all to update them but never told them about the pregnancy, for some reason Jessica still wasn't able to tell her family, or anyone for that matter. Ann, Sarah, and Jane never suspected anything when Dorthy suddenly left for New York, that's a main reason why they're still oblivious to the fact that Jessica is pregnant.

Sarah was coming out with Aspen to see Devin. It gave Sarah an excuse to come. For her sisters, they just really wanted to see Jessica. All of them did.

Dorthy had no idea the three girls coming. No one did.

They got in on a Friday. Before going to Jessica's they settled in at a hotel and waited for Sarah to drop off Aspen at Evan's.

They had had a big plan when they saw Jessica. They wanted to take her out to a bar and loosen her up a bit. They thought it's what she might need.

//-//

Jessica's pov-

Dorthy and Jessica were in the living room watching some old movies. They sat next to each other wrapped up in blankets. They had their own bags of popcorn in their hands, relaxing.

As they were watching the movie it was interrupted when the doorbell rang.

As Jessica goes to stand up Dorthy stops her.

"You rest, I'll go get it." She says standing up

"Thank you" She smiles

Dorthy happily walks to the door. When she opens it her jaw drops and her heart begins to race. She was shocked to see her daughters and Sarah standing at the door.

"Surprise!" The say

Jessica recognizes the voices. She turns to the door. Right as she does her and Dorthy make eye contact, both shocked.

//-//

I hope you are all liking this! How do you want them to react to Jessica keeping the pregnancy a secret?

//-//