Hope - A Louisentine Story

Chapter 18

Description: Clem, Louis, and AJ feel the baby kick for the first time, deepening AJ's concerns about his place in the family. Clem's dream is visited by a familiar face, who offers sage advice.

Wordcount: 4069

---

"Will I be able to hear the baby?"

AJ walked a few paces behind Louis and Clementine as they made their way through Richmond. The afternoon sun shone over the city in a bright yellow hue, the late summer warmth enveloping them. AJ unzipped his jacket, a small bead of sweat running down his forehead.

He checked his watch and nodded. 6 o'clock. Upon seeing his new garment, Louis had taught him to read time, something AJ had never had to do before. It had turned out, Javi said, that the inscription read: "Prove you were here. Leave your mark". It was a Garcia family heirloom, passed down from father to son at the age of eleven. Since Javi never had kids, he decided AJ should have it.

Louis, whose arm was around Clem's waist, turned his head and smiled back at the boy.

"Of course!" he said, giving AJ the thumbs up. "She can hear you too, by the way."

"She can?"

Louis nodded. "I talk to her all the time," he assured him. "You should too, so she can recognize your voice when she gets here."

"And when is she getting here?" AJ inquired. The trio turned a corner at the end of the street and AJ spotted the large white tent that served as a makeshift hospital for the town. Since Clem was nearing six months in her pregnancy, Eleanor had urged her to go by her office one more time to check the baby's vitals.

"Just a few more months," Clem reminded AJ. They stepped through the door of the tent, sidestepping a nurse that rushed past them. AJ followed the couple through the aisle, his eyes darting to every patient and doctor in the premise.

"Well, it's taking a really long time," he complained, rolling his eyes. He heard Clem and Louis chuckle from ahead. They arrived at a green door at the end of the hall, a red cross painted on it. Louis knocked twice, stepping back as it opened and Eleanor poked her head through the gap.

"Oh great, you made it," she said with a smile. "I'm just finishing up with a patient and I'll see you in a moment."

"Thanks," Louis replied giddily, leaning against the wall beside the door. He looked Clem up and down, his eyes landing on her swollen stomach. "I still can't believe you're actually having my baby."

"Neither could Violet when I told her," Clem teased, raising an eyebrow at him. "I believe her exact words were 'Good luck with that.'"

He rolled his eyes. "Always such a ray of sunshine, that woman," Louis said. He leaned in, cupping her belly in his hands. "I just can't wait for us to start this chapter of our lives. An awesome Ninja Family," he commented with a grin. "Just the four of us living happily ever after."

"Four?" AJ exclaimed, his brows tightly knitted. "Who's the fourth? Is there gonna be another baby?" he inquired looking up at Clem.

She chuckled and shook her head, ruffling his hair. "You're the fourth one, goofball," she assured him.

"Oh," he muttered, looking down at his hands. "I'd... I'd like that."

Their conversation was cut short as Eleanor's door was swung open and a middle-aged man stepped out, nodding at the couple. As he left, the doctor ushered the trio inside, closing the door behind them. Clem took a seat at the gurney, AJ, and Louis at her side. Eleanor repeated the process she'd done the first time, applying the gel on the weird stick.