all too well | ethma

Twelve

Emma
Three Weeks Later

I'm 9 weeks now, which means it was time for another appointment. Regardless of what side of the country we were on.

So, Olivia and Joey helped Ethan and I do some research, and we found a gynecologist that is specifically for people that are on vacation.

I made an appointment, which lead to sitting in this waiting room with Ethan.

The doctor called us back, and I laid down on the ultrasound table.

"You must be Emma?" She said, shaking my hand. I smiled. "Yes. Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too, Emma. I'm Dr. DeKennie. You can call me Amy if you prefer." She said, turning to Ethan. "Are you dad?"

He smiled, taking in a nervous breath "Yes." He responded, shaking her hand. "I'm Ethan. Nice to meet you."

"Let me guess, first baby?" She asked.

I laughed. "Yep. It's our first. Completely unexpected, but here we are."

"Emma had an IUD when she got pregnant. The doctor said that it wasn't even misplaced at all. She just got pregnant anyway." Ethan said.

Dr. DeKennie raised my shirt, putting the ultrasound gel on my stomach and starting to look for the baby.

"There it is." She said. "It's too early for me to tell, but we can do a blood test for the gender, and you'll know in two weeks." She offered.

I looked at Ethan. He nodded.

"Sure." I said. "Ethan's convinced it's a boy."

"Well, you'll find out if it's a girl or a boy in two weeks." She said, getting the needle for the bloodwork ready.

Once she got my blood, and took a few minutes to study the baby and figure out that he or she is healthy, we were all set to leave.

We paid the co-pay at the counter before going outside to the car.

"Baby's healthy." Ethan sang as he started the car. I smiled.

"I can't believe we'll find out in two weeks."

Ethan took my hand as he drove. "As long as they're healthy I'm happy. But that doesn't change the fact that I know it's a boy. I just know."

"You're getting me excited for a boy. I kind of think it might be."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I guess when a girl is pregnant, they kind of get this feeling that they're having one or the other, and I just feel like I'm having a boy."

Ethan quickly glanced over at me. "You're such a beautiful girl." He said, squeezing my hand before bringing it to his lips.

"And you're really handsome, but that's not the only thing I love about you."

I glanced over at him, and he had a huge smile on his face while he kept driving. "Tell me."

"I love that you taught me what real love looks like. You helped me out of a situation I thought I'd never escape from. The only healthy relationship I've ever witnessed was my mom and dad, and in a way you love me like my dad loved my mom. I feel like their love lives through us if that makes any sense. You treat me as amazingly as my dad treated my mother. I love that you're my protector, and you're the funniest guy I know. There's no doubt in my mind that we're perfect for each other. I knew it the second we met. The only problem was that a few minutes later Luke walked into Olivia's apartment, and then he told me to stay away from you, and that's when I knew I was gonna end it once and for all. But of course I didn't. I'm afraid that if you hadn't gone with me the night I left LA, I might've still been with Luke. I digress, but I love everything about you. The way your eyebrows twitch when you're asleep. The way you subconsciously protect our baby while we're sleeping. The way you made a cover album of my dad's music. Holy cow, Ethan. I had never been more touched by something in my life. That was the biggest gesture anyone had ever made to me, and that was the first moment that I knew you were the one."

He smiled as he parked the car in the driveway.

"What was the other moment?"

"A few." I responded. "When you flew to California for me without any question just because Olivia told you that I needed you. When you made me wait in the car while you talked to my mom and dad's graves by yourself. When we danced together in my studio for the first time. The way you reacted when I told you about the baby. You know, when I took those pregnancy tests, the first thing I wondered was how angry you'd be that I was pregnant. But you were somehow excited, and that made me realize even more that we're meant for this life together." I said.

Ethan was staring at our intertwined hands, and he looked like he was contemplating what to say next. He looked kind of nervous, but not in a bad way. His lips were pressed together in a small smile.

"Marry me, Emma." He whispered.

"Are you just saying that, or are you seriously asking because—" I said. I had no idea what was happening.

"Emma, marry me." He cut me off as he spoke, confirming that he was seriously asking me to marry him.

I felt my eyes welling up with tears as I smiled and nodded my head. "Yes." I whispered. I was afraid that if I spoke any louder, I'd start sobbing uncontrollably. Hormones, you know? Or just the fact that the love of my life asked me to marry him.

His smile grew bigger as he cupped my cheek with his hand, and we both leaned in.

The kiss was soft and slow. Warm. Loving. Everything.

As our lips danced in synchrony, his land laced into my hair. He pecked my lips before pulling fully away, then smiling at me again.

"I'll get you a ring soon. We can pick one out together if you want."

"You know, someday I'm gonna tell our kids that you proposed to me in a rented car that was parked in Olivia's beach house driveway."

"And I'll add to the story, telling them that you told me the moments you knew we were meant to each other, and I decided I couldn't wait any longer to propose."

"You were already planning it?" I asked, smiling.

"I was gonna wait until the baby was born. But after you gave me that little speech about knowing I was the one for you, made me wonder why I had to wait that long."

"Should we go tell Joey and Grayson?"

He smiled again. "Yeah."

We got out of the car, walking into the house, and finding Joey and Grayson cooking lunch on the grill on the patio in the backyard.

"Hey. How'd it go?" Joey asked. I couldn't contain my smile.

"We're engaged." I said.

Joey and Grayson both stopped what they were doing, and Joey lifted me up in a hug. "Emmaa, you're getting married. My little sister's all grown up." He said, putting me back down.

Ethan and Grayson were chuckling at something one of them must've said while they hugged.

Joey went over and gave a handshake to Ethan while Grayson gave me a quick hug.

We told the rest of our friends that night, and we told Ethan's mom and sister. They were all super excited for us.

I couldn't stop smiling at Ethan. He's my fiancé now. It's hard to believe, but at the same time it feels like it's all I've ever known.

Knowing I was marrying Ethan plus having his baby made me realize that I had everything I've ever wanted.

The perfect kind of love for me.