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“Mhmm,” I said warily.
“What’s wrong? Your dream guy is sharing the news he’s becoming a dad with you.”
I set the pen down and looked at her, my eyes watering.
“I don’t know, Monica. After dinner the other night, he just seemed to shut down. I don’t know what happened. I was actually going to invite him here today, but he was so distracted. So distant. I just don’t know…”
Monica put her arm around me as I fought back tears. I had never been this emotional in my life. Was it because of my feelings for Daniel or the hormones? Probably a mix of both.
“Hey now,” soothed Monica. “I’m sure it’s a lot for him too. Don’t count him out just yet.”
A nurse called my name from an open door. I quickly scribbled in the last information on my paperwork before handing it to her and following her back to the ultrasound room.
“We will do the ultrasound first, and then you will go to an exam room to meet your new doctor. You’re going to love her,” said the nurse with a warm smile.
I lay back on the exam table and lifted the flowy blouse I wore. The nurse applied some jelly to the wand and ran it over my stomach, which felt way less invasive than the first time. She found the baby quickly on the screen and I was surprised how much bigger it had gotten.
“Oh, my gosh,” I whispered.
“Is this your first?” asked the nurse.
I nodded.
“How exciting! There’s nothing like it,” said the nurse as she moved the wand around my stomach. “Everything looks on track. I’ll get those pictures printed right out for you.”
She cleaned my stomach with a paper towel and exited the room. Soon, she was back with a few ultrasound photos that she carefully handed to me. She led us back to an exam room, and a few minutes later, my new doctor entered the room.
With just a simple hello, my doubts diminished. She was so friendly and witty, and there wasn’t an ounce of judgment as she met both me and Monica. I asked her a few questions, which she answered patiently and informatively. Soon, we were done with my appointment and walking out onto the sidewalk with pictures of my baby in hand.
I sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly.
“Way better, huh?” I asked Monica.
“Night and day,” she replied, pulling me in for a hug.
“I kind of wish I had invited Daniel. Not that I didn’t love having you there…”
“I know, I know,” said Monica, waving me away. “I get it.”
I kicked at the sidewalk feeling defeated.
“Hey, why don’t you go visit him at work? Show him the baby. I’m sure he would love that,” suggested Monica.
“You think?” I asked.
“Go,” she said, giving me a little shove.
“Thank you,” I said as I walked the short distance to the subway.
The ride to Manhattan went quickly and my excitement bubbled inside of me, knowing I was going to see Daniel soon. I would rave about my new doctor and we would both probably ooh and ahh over the ultrasound photos, and I would realize how silly I had been.
Downstairs in the lobby, my excitement came to a halt when I was met with a front desk attendant who wasn’t allowing me to go upstairs without an appointment.
“If you just tell him it’s Addison. Er… Heart. He will tell you it’s fine,” I said.
“Which is it? Addison or Heart?”
“Heart,” I said.