Page 38

CHAPTER

TWENTY-ONE

ARCHIE

It’s been a few days since we’ve been back, and I’ve been at Emma’s every day. She’s going to classes, but comes back home right after. It’s almost like she’s moving on autopilot, and I can’t figure out why. And I feel like she’s pushing me away.

I’m waiting for her at the doctor’s office now.

We decided to meet here because she had class before this and drove to campus; she didn’t want to leave her car there, and we wouldn’t have had time to run it home before coming here.

Before the scare in Arizona happened, we would have come together, no matter what.

The door opens, and she walks in, looking a little flustered.

“Hey. Sorry I’m late. There was some traffic when I was trying to leave campus.”

I stand when she walks over to me and wrap her in my arms. “All good. I got you checked in.”

“Thanks,” she says, pulling away.

Just as we’re about to sit, the nurse opens the door to the back and calls Emma’s name.

When we get to the room, Emma is instructed to undress and wait for the technician to come get her. I look over at her in question.

“We’re doing the ultrasound first?”

She nods. “Yeah, I guess so.”

“Okay, good. I can’t wait to see the baby.” I reach for her hand and squeeze gently.

She won’t look at me. She just stares at the wall in front of her.

Something has changed with Emma. When we got off the phone yesterday, she seemed fine, but then stopped taking my calls.

“Darlin’, can you look at me for a minute?”

Her head turns, and she looks at me.

“What’s going on, Em?”

“I’m fine. Just want to hear what the doctor says so we know what we’re dealing with.” She releases my hand and stands, then turns her back to me to undress.

I nod. “Okay, yeah. But the doctor in Arizona said everything looked okay, right?”

“I mean, other than the possible hole in the heart, yes.”

“Are you worried that it’s the same thing as your sister?”

She looks over her shoulder at me and scoffs. “Yes, Archie. My sister literally died from a heart issue, so, yeah, I have feelings about this.”

“I’m sorry. I’m just trying to get you to talk to me. I want to understand how to help you.”

“You can’t really help me, Archie.” She turns back to face me once she’s tied the gown.

“Well, I want you to tell me how you’re feeling.”

The technician comes in before Emma can reply, and she preps her computer and probe thing that she uses on Emma’s stomach.

She lifts Emma’s shirt and squirts some liquid on her belly, then takes the probe and runs it across her stomach .

We hear the baby’s heartbeat right away, and I reach over to hold Emma’s hand again.

“Okay, Mom and Dad, let’s take some pictures of baby.

” She moves it around, stopping to take some measurements, and taps a few things into the computer.

“Heart rate looks good. Measurements are good. I’m not sure if they went over this with you yet, but we’re measuring the possible hole in the heart that they believe they saw in Arizona. ”

“Yes, I’m aware,” Emma says, not in a mean way, but more mechanical-sounding. Robotic almost.

“I have all the numbers the doctor needs. Do you guys want to know the sex of the baby?” She looks at Emma first, then me.

“I think we decided to wait, right, Em?” I answer for both of us.

She just nods and lets go of my hand to take the tissue from the technician.

“No problem. I love surprises, but sometimes, parents want to know for nursery design and clothes. Moms start to want to nest near the end of their pregnancies.”

“Nest?” I ask.

She hums. “It’s when the mom feels the need to get everything prepped and ready for baby. Bedroom, clothes, all the baby needs.”

“I see. Well, baby, if you want to do that, we can.”

Emma finishes cleaning off her belly. “I’m good. Let’s just wait.”

“Okay then, I’m all set. Here are a few pictures for y’all to take home. Have a good rest of your day, you two.”

No reply from Emma again, so I answer, “Thank you. Same to you.”

Emma shifts around on the table and sits up.

“You need anything, darlin’?”

“Archie, I’m good. I appreciate you asking, but I’m fine. If I need something, I’ll tell you. ”

Now, I only grew up in a house with one woman, but I know that tone well enough to know to keep my mouth shut.

A few minutes later, the doctor comes in with her nurse.

“Hi, Emma, Archie. Good to see you both here. I’m going to get right to it because I have to head out for a delivery.

Emma, you look great. Baby looks great. All of your blood work from previous tests and the one from Arizona all look normal.

We do see a small secundum—which is a hole in the heart—located in the upper part of the baby’s heart, in an area called the atria septum.

This type of defect does typically close on its own without medical intervention.

Because of the size, I don’t see any reason to believe that in this case, it won’t close on its own after birth.

But due to your family history and this development, we will have you monitored by one of our high-risk OBs in our practice and continue the fetal echoes.

Do either of you have any questions for me? ”

Emma shakes her head. “No, I think I understand everything.”

“Archie, how about you? You have any questions or concerns?”

“Well, I mean, I’m sure I’ll have more after I do a little more research on this, but my primary concern is if Emma is okay. Is the baby okay and not in any type of pain?”

“Of course. Good questions. Emma is doing great. I have no further concerns about Emma. What happened in Arizona was most likely caused by dehydration, but also, as your baby grows, you may experience spotting from time to time. We want to know if that happens, but it is pretty normal in most cases. As for the baby, the baby is growing nicely; measurements are all good. Even though you’re on the smaller side, it’s still within range.

The heart rate is strong, and I don’t see any murmurs or problems with heart function.

But because of Emma’s family history, we need to monitor the heart closely. ”

“Thank you. That’s helpful. I just want to make sure I can give them both anything they might need, and the more I know, the better.”

The doctor smiles at me, points at me, and then looks at Emma. “He is one of the good ones, Emma. Hold on to him.” She looks back at me. “Try to enjoy the last few months of the pregnancy. Once the baby arrives, your lives will change completely.”

I smile my signature smile. “Why, thanks, Doc. I appreciate that and also agree with you. One more question: is it safe for us to have sex? I don’t want to do anything to hurt Emma or the baby.”

“Archie, Jesus.” Emma looks at me, then at the doctor. “Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. I’m glad you asked. You can absolutely have intercourse over the next few months. Emma, you can really do anything you want as long as you feel good. So, take good care of her, Archie.”

“Yes, ma’am. I fully intend to.” I stand from my chair. “Thank you, Doctor.”

“I’ll see you in two weeks. We’ll start seeing you every two weeks, and then once we’re in the last month, we’ll want to see you weekly.

Now the high-risk OB will set a schedule with you, but we’ll try to schedule your appointments on the same day to make it easier on you.

” She touches Emma’s arm on her way out.

“Thank you, Doctor,” Emma says.

After the door closes, I reach out to Emma and help her move off the table to get dressed. She accepts my hand, but releases it right away once she stands.

“You can go out and see if you can schedule the appointments with the high-risk doctor. Might be easier for you to do it because I don’t know your schedule yet for when you’ll be here and when you’ll be in Texas for training.”

I watch her as she takes her gown off and starts to dress. She won’t look at me .

“Sure, I can do that. We should probably talk about my schedule soon. I would like you to be with me as much as possible. Do you know when you have your meeting with your coach yet?”

She shakes her head. “Not yet. I should hear something by tomorrow.”

“If you want me to go with you, I can do that. Just say the word.”

“I’ll let you know, but I’m sure I’ll be fine. I’m gonna run to the bathroom real quick, so I’ll meet you at scheduling.”

She opens the door and walks out. And I just stand there for a minute, hands on my hips.

I don’t do well with guessing games. I know she’s going through something right now, and I’ll be as patient as I can be, but I won’t be able to deal with this for long.

I need her to talk to me so I know what she needs.

After we get the next appointments scheduled, we walk out to the parking lot. I walk her to her car, and before she opens the door, she turns to face me.

“Arch … I …” She grabs on to my shirt with her hands.

I pull her into me and wrap my arms around her. “Tell me what you need, Em, and it’s yours.”

She shakes her head into my chest. “I’m not really sure.

I feel like everything is happening at rapid speed now, and I just need to process it all, I guess.

I mean, we’ve been living in this nice little bubble where everything is perfect.

You went from being one of the most notorious players on campus to basically living with me.

But, Archie, you’re leaving, and then after that, you’ll be gone a lot.

I can do this alone. Hell, I’ve been alone for so long that I don’t think anyone realized it.

I’m just thinking that maybe we need to?—”

“Don’t you start pulling away from me.”

“It’s just a lot of pressure. You need to get through the draft, and I need to figure out what I’m doing. It’s just a lot.”

“I see.” And I do. “It is a lot. But I know we can work it out because I think we’re worth trying for, but also, I will be there for my baby. Yeah, it’s not always going to be easy or go according to plan, but we’ll figure it out.”