Flac ~ Their World

We've done this before

Scared out of her mind the next morning, Jac dressed herself ready to go for their first scan. It'll be fine, you've done all this before, she told herself. She was just doing up her shirt buttons when Fletch's hands were placed on her shoulders as he gave them a comforting squeeze. At his touch, she sucked in a sharp breath and closed her eyes. I can't let him see me scared, not again she thought. She opened her eyes and turned to face him, plastering on a bright smile.
"Come on you, let's go and see our little bubba in here." She said, trying to sound confident and placed her hands on her stomach. Grabbing her usual black leather jacket in one hand and clutching onto Fletch's hand in the other, she led them to the front door.

"I'm driving. No arguments." Fletch stated and Jac rolled her eyes.
"You know this baby won't make me completely incompetent right?" Jac tried to defend herself but Fletch just raised his eyebrow and said, "We'll see about that Ms Naylor." The pair locked the front door and walked out across the driveway to the car. Having had the morning off, Fletch had been able to take all of the children to school and the younger ones to his Mother's house. It wasn't very often he managed to do this, however it was a little difficult having to come up with an excuse as to why he was having today off work. The couple had come to the joint decision that there was no need to tell his mum or their kids about their potential sibling in the making just yet. They wanted to get this scan out of the way first.

Fletch drove them to the hospital and when they pulled up in the car park he cut the engine off.
"Ready?" He turned to face her.
"Mmhmm." She nodded, still trying to hide her fear. The Nurse and Doctor got out of the car and made their way to the main doors. They were going to have to be careful not to be spotted, especially as they were both supposed to be 'ill' and they were currently heading towards maternity. Nobody could be stupid enough to not make the connection if they were seen and the couple weren't ready for the news to be spread just yet.

As they were waiting at the lift doors for it to reach their floor to take them up, Frieda approached them also waiting for the lift.
"Ms Naylor, Mr Fletcher." She greeted them politely. Fletch looked nervous and stuttered out, "Hello Frieda. We're um er just here to uh-"
"Fletch calm down. She knows." Jac hissed at him as she watched him get flustered about trying to find an excuse for why they were there. Petrenko sent him a smirk as he looked taken aback.

"What do you mean she knows? How?" He demanded.
"She was the one who made me realise there was a chance that this could be what it is." Jac explained calmly.
"Oh." His face visibly relaxed as the lift pinged, alerting them of its arrival. Luckily, only Frieda entered the lift with them when the doors opened so they could speak without people listening in.
"So you are then?" Frieda asked.
"Yup, going for a scan." Jac spoke bluntly, staring straight ahead at the doors in front of her. Frieda guessed that she didn't really want to talk about it so she left it at that. Shortly after they reached their floor and stepped out, holding hands and left Frieda to get to her ward to start her shift.

They were just about to turn the corner when they heard two familiar voices heading towards them.
"Ugh Essie it's so boring. I feel like a porter." Dom complained.
"I know but it's only Hep C, you'll be back in theatre in no time. Just be patient. It'll fly by, don't you worry." Essie's voice filled the corridor. Jac tugged on Fletch's hand, pulling them to a stop. They stepped into a small alcove and waited discreetly until the pair had passed by along the adjacent corridor. Fletch's face was so serious that Jac had to clamp her hand over her mouth to stop her laughter from escaping.

As soon as they were out of earshot, she let her hand drop and her laughter spluttered out past her lips. At the sight of a happy Naylor, Fletch cracked a bright grin and grabbed her hand and pulled her down the corridor. They walked briskly, side by side the rest of the way without interruption from anyone else and took a seat in the waiting room. Already in there were another two couples and a woman who was heavily pregnant sat alone. Silently, the Nurse and Doctor sat waiting to be called.
"Jacqueline?" A nurse came out and called her in. When she had made the appointment she had requested not to be called Ms Naylor in hope that she wouldn't be recognised.

Fletch stood up and squeezed Jac's hand and they walked into the room.
"Hello Ms Naylor, Mr Fletcher. There's a seat over there for you sir," The Doctor gestured over to a chair beside the examining bed. "And Ms Naylor can you hop up onto the bed and lift your top above your stomach please." The doctor smiled and Jac did as she was asked. Jac was glad that the doctor was female and relaxed a little; it made her feel a little less self conscious of showing her body. She watched as the woman glanced over at her scar and then began to set up the scanner.

"Okay so this will be a little cold but it'll be quick." The Doctor then proceeded to rub the cool gel onto her stomach and switched on the scanner. The sound of a steady heartbeat filled the room and reduced Jac to emotional tears. That was their baby. Their healthy and happy baby. They were having their own family. Fletch reached over and kissed her forehead.
"Hey look at that, they're beautiful." The Doctor smiled at the sweet scene in front of her.
"So your baby is healthy at the moment but we need to discuss your future plans. Due to your situation with your injury, having a baby may be a bit difficult. We will have to monitor you frequently and for the birth you will have to have a caesarean. However," The Doctor paused and thought about how to phrase this next bit. "I'm sorry to say this but I have to warn you, there is a high risk of death for both you and baby due to the strain on your body."
This reduced Fletch to tears, the thought of him losing either one of them. He wouldn't be able to cope. It just wasn't fair. Why couldn't they be happy for once, be a normal couple with a family of their own? Jac and Fletch embraced and clung onto each other, not wanting to ever let go in fear that they might lose each other.