Day by Day

Chapter 27: Don't Wanna Be Attached

Evie and Doug were at the doctor once again for a routine checkup. Evie was still very uneasy about doctors' offices. Her fear only grew after she found out about her previous miscarriage. She prayed that this time would be different.

Doug peered over at Evie, and he could tell that she was very nervous. "Relax, Evie," he said, putting a supportive hand on her knee, which caused her to look up at him. "Remember what the doctor said last time? She said everything looked great. I'm sure he or she still is perfectly fine."

"I-I know," Evie replied. "I just can't shake the feeling that something is wrong. They haven't kicked yet. Shouldn't they be kicking by now?"

"I'm sure they're just taking their time," Doug said. "Probably don't want to give their mommy a hard time right now." Evie nodded. The two didn't really talk about the ultimate outcome, which is them having to hand their baby off to the orphanage. However, both knew that it was going too hard on the other. "Hey," Doug began, "If I remember correctly, the doctor said we most likely will be able to know the gender today."

Evie chuckled. "Oh, yeah. Um, about that."

"What?"

"Well, you see, I think-"

"Evie Dwarfman," the nurse called. Both Evie and Doug entered the back. Evie's vitals were checked before they were directed to a room, where more waiting occurred.

After a few minutes, the doctor arrived in the room. "Sorry for the wait," she said. "Hope it wasn't too bad."

"No, no, you're totally fine," Evie said.

"Okay then. Let's take a look at the baby," the doctor said.

Evie lied down on the table. She pulled her shirt up to reveal her stomach, which had grown quite a bit, which relieved Evie since it gave her a sign that the baby was doing alright. The doctor put some gel on Evie's abdomen, in which she flinched at the slight coldness. Evie looked to Doug as she reached her hand towards his. As their hands interlocked, Doug brought hers up and kissed her the top of her hand. He gave her a smile, and she smiled back.

The doctor placed the little wand-like machine on Evie as an image appeared on the screen. Tears began to form as Evie watched the baby move around. Seeing her child, despite not being able to watch it grow up once it was born, made Evie smile. "Let's listen to that heartbeat," the doctor said. Evie tensed up. Every single time she heard the heartbeat, she feared there wouldn't be a sound. Doug squeezed her hand, reassuring her that everything would be alright. When the doctor pressed the button that allowed them to hear the heartbeat, Evie relaxed. "They've got a real steady beat," the doctor said. "Everything seems to be where in needs to be at this point in time."

"So...there's nothing wrong?" Evie asked, scared that there might be some sort of 'well' to this conversation.

"Not that I can detect," the doctor replied. "And I promise you, if I haven't detected anything, that's a good sign."

Both Evie and Doug let out a sigh of relief. "So he or she is healthy?"

The doctor nodded. "Speaking of he or she," she began, "You should be far along enough that we can get a clear shot of what the gender is. Would you guys like to know?"

"Yes," Doug replied.

"No," Evie said at the same time.

"No?" Doug replied.

"I'll give you two a couple minutes to talk this out," the doctor said before exiting the room. She obviously felt a little awkward.

"I thought you wanted to know the gender," Doug said. "You were so excited last time."

"I know," Evie replied. "I honestly would love to know the gender. I really would. It's just..."

"What?"

"I don't know," Evie said. "I...I just feel like that if I knew the gender, then...um, when we have to say goodbye to him or her...then, um,...I just don't want to be attached I guess." Evie was on the verge of tears. "I...I'm sorry."

"You have nothing to be sorry for," Doug said.

"You can find out if you want," Evie said.

Doug shook his head. "I'll know when you know," he said placing a kiss on her forehead. "Plus, I feel like something as big as whether we have a son or daughter would be incredibly hard to keep secret."

Evie chuckled. The doctor then returned to the room. "Do we have a decision?"

They both nodded. "We will be waiting until the birth to know what the gender will be," Doug told the doctor.

She nodded. "I hope you don't mind though, I do have to look for medical and record purposes." Both nodded as the doctor turned the ultrasound machine back on. As she looked, Doug and Evie turned away, not wanting to ruin the surprise.

After the appointment, Doug and Evie were driving home. On their way home, they picked up fast food because Evie had been craving it lately. They sat silently in the drive thru. That was until Evie gasped, grabbing her stomach as she sat up straighter. "What?" Doug asked with fear starting to build. "What's wrong?" Doug was just about ready to turn the car around and go back to the doctor.

Evie looked down at her stomach. She carefully moved her hand, slowly, across her abdomen, obviously trying to find something. She stopped and gasped again. She covered her mouth in shock. Tears began to form in her eyes. All Doug could do was watch in confusion. Once Evie noticed how puzzled he was, she chuckled. "I think the baby kicked."

Doug's eyes grew wide. "Really?" he asked, a smile beginning to grow across his face. Evie nodded. She grabbed his hand and placed it on top of her stomach where she had felt the kick. At first, there was nothing. About ten seconds later, Doug felt something that felt like a light tap against the palm of his hand. "I guess the little one wanted to let us know that they are alright."

Evie smiled as she placed her head on his shoulder. Their baby was alright. For the first time in a long time, Evie felt like everything would be just fine.

I'M BAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!!