Nini POV
After the movie night, Ricky and I went right to bed. We had both been exhausted (me especially, from exerting all of my energy) and as I woke up for my fifth bathroom trip of the night, I was super grateful we had decided to sleep so early. Bathroom trips were becoming a regular for me. Our little girl rests right on my bladder and makes anything and everything that takes an extended amount of time impossible. Every time I have to get out of bed though, guilt courses through me and my mind silently prays to whoever's listening that Ricky doesn't wake up. After washing my hands, I sit on the tile and I rest my head against the cabinet. It was starting to catch up to me, the fact that I only had 5 weeks left of this. Cradling my stomach, I look down and smile. "I hope you're doing well in there." I whisper. I look up when I hear the door creak open slowly and my eyes meet Ricky's. "Hey there babe." He whispers, walking over to where I was seated and wrapping me in his arms. "Why are you up?" I ask gently and he smiles. "You were taking much longer than every other time you got out of bed and I just wanted to make sure you're okay." My eyes go wide. "You were up every time I got out of bed?" He laughs a little and draws circles on my hand. "Yeah but it's worth it. We only have so many more of these middle-of-the-night bathroom hang outs." I laugh and he smiles brightly. "Bathroom hangouts? That's what you're calling them?" His smile grows and he scoots closer to me, pressing a kiss to my temple. "100%." I close my eyes as I rest my head on his shoulder and his hand finds a place on my stomach. "Are you ready to see her for the last time on a screen tomorrow?" He asks quietly and I smile. "I'm so nervous and so excited." I say and he rubs his hand gently over my big belly. "Gina texted me and asked if it'd be wrong to bring the entire gang to Joana's and Lydia's office." I pull back and laugh. "Oh my god can you imagine us walking in there for our last ultra sound check up thing with 10 people in tow." Ricky's laugh echoes throughout the bathroom. "That's what our girl is going to have to deal with. First day of school, first dance, first date." I giggle as I think about our group of dramatic friends following our kid around. "The others need to have kids like soon." I say and he smiles knowingly.
The next day, Ricky and I were ready and out of the house by noon. We were both feeling the anxiety and the excitement of seeing our baby on the screen for the last time, so much so that Ricky asked my parents to come along. "Are you guys sure you want us to come along?" My moms ask for the tenth time as we get in the car. I nod and take Ricky's hand, squeezing it gently. "The more support the better." We insist and we drive towards our clinic for the last time.
"Anything abnormal happening lately?" Lydia asks gently as I sit up on the table at the clinic. I think for a second and shake my head. "Nothing that I can think of... I am just always going to the bathroom." I admit with a laugh and she smiles. "That's extremely normal for where you're at." She says and she helps me lay back on the table, pulling up my shirt just a little. "Can we take a look?" She asks, gesturing to the monitor and I nod, beckoning Ricky over from where he sat with my moms. He nods, walking over and taking my hand while Lydia smiles at me. "Now I'm sure this warning is second nature to you by now, but this will be cold." I laugh as she pours the gel on me and I revel in the fact that it's probably the last time that I'll feel it. As she moves the monitor around on my stomach, I see Lydia's facial expression twist into something I couldn't quite read. My heart rate was going up, watching her unsure facial expression and I squeezed Ricky's hand. He noticed the fear in my eyes and he spoke up. "How's everything looking?" He asks and Lydia turns to us. "So it seems like there's a little issue." Just those words alone make my heart start pounding and the talking in the room sounds like it's at the bottom of the ocean. "Nini, sweetie, everything's okay." I hear Momma C say, and suddenly she's at my side, grabbing one of my hands. "Everything is indeed okay, Nini. Your baby is perfectly healthy, but she's breeched." Lydia says and I look up at her in fear. "So that means...?" She turns back to the monitor and points to my girl. "Her head should be down here, but instead it's up here and it makes the birth much more difficult, especially for a natural home birth." My heart starts to pound again but I feel Ricky's finger move gently across the skin of my hand and I try to calm myself down, knowing the baby can feel stress. "What do I do?" I ask and she smiles softly. "There are a number of things. We can wait it out, I can give you exercises to do so that she turns on her own." I nod. "What are the chances of her being able to do that?" Lydia looks doubtful for a second. "You're a first time mom, and you're 35 weeks, so I'd say it could be pretty difficult but some moms want to try-" I shake my head and cut her off. "Are there any other ways to turn her around?" She nods and I feel a little relief. "There's a specific action we can take today. I could go get Joana and she and I can perform a certain procedure that turns the baby in your uterus. There's always a chance that she'll turn back, but most babies stay put after being turned." I nod and Ricky squeezes my hand, a way to tell me that I should go with the idea. "Is that something you'd want?" Lydia asks and I look at my moms who nod a little bit. "Does it hurt?" I ask quietly and Lydia's facial expression turns sympathetic. "A little. For some women, more than others. But in the long run, it'll make your birth safer and a little easier." I nod but I take a deep breath knowing this is what I had to do. "Yeah, then let's go ahead with it?" I say and I get encouraging smiles from the room. "Wonderful, I'll get Joana and we'll take you back in about an hour, if that's okay? You can stay in this room." I nod and try my best to smile as she heads out of the room. When she leaves, I sit up and put my head in my hands.
I feel Ricky's hand rub my back gently. "Everything's going to be just fine baby." I feel another set of hands clasp around my wrists and pull them gently away from my face. "Nini, babe are you okay?" I look at my moms and Ricky and I nod just a little. "Sweetie, talk to us." I lean against Ricky's body and his hand massages my arms as I think about how to answer my mom. "Did I do this to her?" I ask in a small voice, bringing my hand to my stomach. Momma D shakes her head and her hands come to my cheek. "This happens naturally hon. Plus she's the daughter of Ricky Bowen, the boy that doesn't sit still." Ricky looks at her offended and I burst into laughter, welcoming their sweet distraction. "That's pretty true." I admit and Ricky's offended facial expression turns to me. "Hey!" He says and I bring my hand up to ruffle his curls. His smile slips through and he leans down to kiss my nose. "I love you and everything is going to be alright." He assures me gently.
