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Chapter 118 It felt good to get back home and relax. AJ had really missed Emily while he was on tour, even more than he normally did. It was hard for him to be away from her when he knew she wasn't feeling well and needed a little more emotional support than normal. He also worried something bad would happen to the pregnancy and he wouldn't be there to help her. It helped him to be able to be with her and see for himself that she was ok. He made sure she got plenty of rest and took it upon himself to do all the cooking and housework. “Hey Em, maybe we should think about hiring some help around the house.” he said as he finished mopping the floor. “What for?” “Because when you're too big to be doing housework, I'll be in the studio. And then when the babies are born we'll be busy taking care of twins and neither one of us has any family in town to help every day for a few weeks, and then I'll be on tour for some time and I don't want you to have to worry about taking care of all of that and I also don't want to have to worry about you sitting around a pig sty with no clean clothes and two screaming children!” While Emily had thought about a lot of things being difficult after the babies were born, housework surprisingly was not one of them. She just figured once she had her body back to herself it would be easier, forgetting that actually, it would be a lot harder once the babies were actually born and demanding all of her attention. “Yeah, maybe you're right. I'll ask around for some good names and maybe we'll do some interviews next week.” she agreed. “Randy's was really sweet and a great cleaner, maybe she's available to come a few times a week.” AJ resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the thought of hiring Randy's housekeeper, reminding himself that it was more important that Emily was comfortable with the stranger that would be coming into their house after everything she'd been through with Tiny. “Yeah, why don't you get her number and call her?” “Ok! I'll go do that right now.”
Later that afternoon, AJ found Emily in the office on the Babies R Us website looking at strollers. “You mean you don't already have one picked out?” he teased. “Actually, I have refrained from looking at baby stuff while you were gone. I didn't want to do it without you!” He laughed. “All because I told you I was excited to pick stuff out?” “Well, partially. But I also just didn't want to go alone, it didn't seem as exciting that way. I guess we could start our registry soon. Apparently I'm having a shower in LA and another one here, according to Leighanne.” “Oh Lord, she's already planning them?” “Yeah, but I think it'll be fun because it's all about me this time!” Emily smiled. “Well, why don't we go out and get some dinner and then I'll take you shopping!” “Really?” “Do I ever kid about shopping?” “No...it's just that you've seemed hell bent on keeping me from doing too much lately I didn't think I was allowed to leave the house!” “I just want you to get enough rest, that's all.” “Believe me, I'm as rested as I'm going to be getting up 5 times a night to pee! And that's only going to get worse!” AJ took Emily out for a steak dinner and even ordered her cheesecake for dessert. Afterwards, they went back to the maternity store because Emily needed more clothes. “I hate trying clothes on!” she said from inside the dressing room. “Why?” “Because everything I try on makes me look....pregnant!” “I think that's kind of the idea.” “I know. I just hate feeling so huge and knowing that this is only the beginning!” “You look beautiful. Glowing!” “You are a suck up! But I love you anyway.” After convincing Emily to buy the clothes, he took her to Babies R Us. “Leighanne says we should have a few different registries, she says I'll probably be getting gifts from people I've never even met before once this hits the news. This'll be so fun! I think it's way more fun than a wedding registry.” “Don't we get to buy anything ourselves?” “Of course! I thought we could buy all the furniture, and there's one more big purchase we need to make.” “What's that?” “I still don't have a car.” Emily said, a little afraid to bring up the accident. “I've been thinking about that! Did you have anything in mind?” he asked. “A few. I wouldn't mind doing some test drives.” “Ok. We'll do that tomorrow. Will we be able to fit two car seats in the back of my car?” “I think so. It'll be tight though. I just figured we'd take my car most of the time until you decide to replace yours.” Emily and AJ spent over two hours in the store looking at everything from bottles and bibs to strollers, high chairs and swings. She was a little frustrated that there seemed to be a serious lack of gender neutral clothes and promised AJ there would be plenty of time to buy clothes once the babies were born and they knew the gender. “Are you sure you don't want to find out the sex?” he asked. “I mean we could get this cute pink swing if we knew they were girls!” Emily shrugged. “We could. But then what if we have another baby and it's a boy? Then we have to buy all new stuff! It would just be wasteful! Besides...the surprise will be totally worth it!” “Yeah, you're right. It's just kind of hard not to know when you know that you could easily find out early!” “Yeah, it's kind of like peaking at your Christmas gifts.” she laughed. They didn't end up buying a whole lot, just a few really cute toys and a body pillow for Emily to sleep with to give her more support. They found some nursery furniture that they really liked but they decided to look around more before they bought it. “Are we going to get two cribs?” he asked. “We might as well. Eventually they'll need their own bed even if not right away.” “So two cribs, two dressers, and one changing table?” “And a rocking chair with an ottoman!” she added. “And maybe a cradle to put in our bedroom for the first month or two. Oh..maybe two changing tables so we can have one on each level, that way we don't have to go upstairs every time we need to change a diaper.” Emily went home and began writing a list of all the things they really liked so they could compare as they shopped. And then AJ made her go to bed when he caught her yawning. She fell asleep immediately.
The next morning over breakfast, AJ brought up his leaving for LA in two weeks. He really did not want to leave Emily all alone and was hoping he'd be able to convince her to go with him. He just wasn't sure how easy that was going to be. “Penny for your thoughts!” she said as she poured herself more juice. “You've been awful quiet this morning!” AJ took a deep breath. “I've been thinking about how I have to be back in the studio in two weeks. In LA.” “Oh. That.” Emily said, sitting back in her chair. “I want you to come with me.” he said. Emily wasn't really surprised at that. He always wanted her to go with him. She had a suspicion this time, however, that his reasons were slightly different. As much as she didn't want to, she had to admit that this time she really needed to consider it. “I know you do.” she finally said. “And you're right. I really don't want to be without you right now. I think I can survive LA enough to handle it.” “Really?” AJ was astounded that it was that easy. “Yeah,” Emily nodded. “I have to be realistic here. Not only do I not want to be alone, I probably shouldn't be alone. As long as Dr. Paul says it's ok, I'll go.” “Is it possible she'll say no?” AJ hadn't really considered that traveling might not be safe for her. “I doubt it. As long as everything looks ok and we get back in time. The airlines actually won't let you fly past a certain point in your third trimester and since we'll most likely deliver early, I just really need to make sure that we're home in time to get everything ready because I really don't want to have these babies and have nothing set up for them.” AJ remembered reading about the nesting instinct in one of the pregnancy books. And from what he gathered from it, it was a very bad idea to get in the way of a pregnant woman trying to get her home ready for her baby. “Fair enough. I've already told management and the guys that I'll work as long as I can but once you say the word, we go home.” “Do you promise?” “I promise.” “Ok. So, where are we going to live? I don't really want to stay in a hotel for weeks!” “We can probably rent a house. Any particular area you're interested in?” He figured he could at least let her pick where she wanted to live. Emily thought for a moment. “Can we live near the beach?” “We could probably find a house on the beach somewhere!” “Really?” “Sure! It'll be slightly further to drive into the city but I think I can handle it.” AJ loved watching her face light up as she thought about how fun it would be to look out at the ocean every day. After they finished breakfast they went upstairs to the office to look up houses for rent on the beach and managed to narrow it down to three possibilities. AJ contacted the proper realtors for each house and hoped that getting Emily to LA was going to be just that simple. The next day, AJ and Emily sat down to go over their final picks for their rental in LA. Emily had a hard time deciding, telling AJ that any house on the beach would be wonderful and that he knew the areas way better than she did. “Well, they're all pretty close to one another. But this one has a really nice deck and it's all one floor so you wouldn't have to climb the steps to go to bed or anything.” Emily peered over his shoulder at the paper. “Alright then, the ranch house it is!” She refused to look again at how much the rent was. Despite the fact that she knew they had more than enough to pay for it along with their mortgage, she had never forgotten her conservative financial ways and it made her sick to think of spending that much money. “So what do you want to do for the Fourth of July?” she asked as they went and sat on their back deck with some ice cold lemonades. “I don't really know! We should try and go downtown and see the fireworks.” “Maybe we could have a few people over for a BBQ or something!” she said, her face lighting up at the thought of a party. “Are you sure you feel up to hosting a party two days before we leave?” Emily shrugged. “I don't know, I guess I've been feeling kind of lonely lately. Everyone is so busy and I'm just stuck at home growing babies all day.” “But you have me home with you!” “I know. But sometimes a girl needs to be with people besides her husband.” AJ really didn't want her throwing a party. He knew she would exhaust herself between party planning and packing to move to LA for a few months. But seeing the way her face light up at the thought of being with her friends and having a good time, he didn't have the heart to tell her no. Instead, he was forced to get creative. When Emily was taking her afternoon nap, he snuck a call to Leighanne. “Hey AJ, is everything ok? Usually you make Emily call me!” “Yeah, we're both fine. But I need a favor from you.” “What can I do?” “I need you to host a Fourth of July party at your house.” Leighanne was perplexed. “Why?” “Because Emily wants to have one here and I don't think it's such a good idea what with getting ready to leave and being pregnant. I just don't want her overdoing it.” “No, you're right. Why didn't you just tell her that, though?” “She was so excited at the idea. She's been feeling a little lonely lately and kind of cut off, I just didn't have the heart. So I thought that if you called and invited her, she might go for that.” “Well, I guess we could have you guys and Amanda and Randy over for a cookout and then all go see the fireworks downtown. I promised Baylee we'd go see the parade in the afternoon, so why don't we say four o'clock?” “I owe you one, Leigh! What can we bring?” “We'll do the meat, why don't you guys bring side dishes. I'll have Amanda bring dessert.” “Ok. So you'll call her later and invite her?” “Yeah, I'll call tonight.” Leighanne chuckled as she hung up the phone and went to tell Brian they were being forced to have a party. She had to admit that it was cute seeing AJ be so protective over his pregnant wife. But she knew he was right to do so. Emily needed to be taking it easy and if he weren't there to make sure she did so, she probably wouldn't be. Chapter 119 A week later, Emily was beginning to get herself organized to pack. She'd made about five different lists...packing lists, to do lists, reminder lists....she was feeling anxious and was channeling all of that anxiety into organization. AJ began to pick up on her uneasiness and managed to coerce her into talking to him by sitting her down and giving her a foot massage. “Are you feeling nervous about leaving next week?” he asked, trying to get her to open up. Emily shrugged. “A little.” “Just a little? Is there anything else bothering you?” Emily took a deep breath and thought about the best way to explain her feelings. “It's just...right now, everything seems scary.” “How do you mean?” “I'm anxious about leaving and going to this place I know nothing about, where I don't know my neighbors, where I won't have my regular doctor. So there's that. But it's also everything else. So much is about to change. I mean...we're having twins!! It's scary. It's exciting but it's scary. And this pregnancy has me on edge too. I mean, have you thought about how many things could go wrong?” AJ shrugged. “I try not to.” “But maybe that's ignorant of us. With identical twins, there are any number of complications. I could be on bed rest or in the hospital for weeks...months even! I could go into premature labor and we could lose them. Or they could be born early and have all kinds of complications. Or I could have complications. And while Dr. Paul says I can certainly try to have a vaginal delivery, most twins are born by c-section. That's major surgery! And I don't want to be cut open while I'm awake! What if the anesthesia fails or something?” “Ok. So you've thought about a lot more complications than I have. But the most important thing is that we can handle anything that happens. If you have to be on bed rest, I'll be here to take care of you. And you know Leighanne won't leave you alone! If you have to be in the hospital, I'll be there too! The only things that are in our control right now are to keep calm and pray that everything goes well. And right now, there is no reason to believe things will be anything but fine, right? You're healthy and the babies are healthy. Stressing out will not help things.” Emily nodded. “I know. But it's hard not to. I mean, what if I can't handle it?” “Handle what?” “Taking care of twins. What if I like, snap under the pressure or something?” “You will be just fine. Being a mother is a job you were meant to do.” he promised her. “And if it's too much for you, we'll get help. You won't be a failure just because you need a second or third pair of hands from time to time.” “I think I'm just....tired. I never sleep well anymore and I have this nagging fear that I'm going to feel this exhausted for the rest of my life.” “You won't be. But even if you were, you'd find a way to adapt and get through it. You are an amazing woman. Don't ever doubt your strength, ok?” Emily tried to believe him, she really did. But she just couldn't shake her worries. Maybe getting to LA and spending some time enjoying her beach house would help her to relax.
The next morning, AJ took Emily to her OB appointment. “So I hear you'll be traveling to LA for a few months?” Dr. Paul said as she measured Emily's stomach. “That's the plan as long as you say it's ok.” “Everything looks perfect. You're growing just fine, the babies sound great! Do you have an OB out there yet?” “We'll be seeing Dr. Pamela Gill at Good Samaritan hospital. Do you know her?” “I don't believe I do. How did you find her?” “She was my friend's OB. I spoke with her on the phone and she was willing to take me on as a temporary patient and I gave her all of your information in case she needed to talk to you.” Dr. Paul nodded. “Great! If you could just have her fax me your appointment records and any ultrasound and test results you have there so I can track your pregnancy, then we should be all set! When do you plan on returning?” “We're not exactly sure yet. If things go well, probably right before the third trimester. If need be, we'll come back before then.” “And are you prepared to deliver there if something should come up and you aren't able to travel back home?” Emily nodded. “We are.” “What are the odds of something like that happening?” AJ asked. “Well there's really no exact answer because every patient is different. But if I were to be honest, I'd say if you're going to stay that late in your pregnancy, the odds are around 50% if not higher. My advice would be to not stay any longer than you have to if you want to avoid that. And of course, get plenty of rest, stay off your feet as much as possible and drink lots of water! And feel free to call me if you need me, ok?” “Alright, thank you Dr. Paul!” Emily said as AJ helped her sit back up. “Take care and good luck! We'll see you in a few months!” “So do you feel a little better now?” AJ asked. “A little. I always feel better when I hear that things still look good. The closer we get to viable babies, the more relaxed I get.” “Remind me again at what week are they viable?” AJ asked, cringing at the thought of his babies being born too little to survive. “Well for a normal single baby pregnancy, it's usually around 26 weeks but it can depend on the hospital and what they are capable of. With twins, they're more likely to be smaller so 26 weeks might not be good enough but they'd still have a chance.” “Wow...so about ten more weeks until then!” “Yep. But I plan on keeping these babies in there until at least 36 weeks!” “Well, I have a surprise for you!” he said as they left the clinic. “What?” “Your car is in! It's ready to be picked up today.” “Really? Can we go right now?” “Of course!” he said. The week before, Emily had tested out a few cars and they'd decided on the Lexus crossover in a navy blue. Emily wanted to upgrade the stereo and sound system and AJ insisted on getting a few other extras. She mostly liked it because it was the car that most reminded her of her Pacifica, but they weren't making new ones of that anymore so she had to pick something else. AJ drove to the dealership where they handed Emily the keys and they got in and checked everything out. “How does it feel?” AJ asked. “Just right!” she said as she rubbed her hands on the leather steering wheel. “And it has that new car smell!” She started the engine and played around with the stereo while AJ signed the final paperwork. She took AJ for a quick drive before dropping him back off to his car and going home. Emily had to admit she was enjoying all the luxuries her car had to offer and she was kind of enjoying the thought of what it would be like to be driving around town with her two babies in the back seat. She carefully parked it in the garage and AJ helped her out. “This is so much nicer than your car because your car sits low so it's harder for me to get out of! This being higher off the ground is really helpful. Until I can't get in anymore....” Emily laughed. She had to admit, her spirits were much higher. “Can we have pizza for dinner?” AJ chuckled. Lately pizza was one of the only things Emily really wanted to eat. And cereal. “Sure. Where do you want it from this time?” “Have you seen that new Papa Johns pizza? It looked so good on the commercial!” “You want me to call and order it now?” “Yes please!” Emily said, giving him a kiss on the cheek. “Maybe I should tell Leighanne to forget the BBQ and have a pizza party instead!” he teased as he walked into the kitchen to order. “Well...I've been reading that you can actually cook pizza on the grill....”
On the Fourth of July, Emily tried to make AJ take her to the parade but he put his foot down. “Emily, it's ninety-five degrees out! I don't think it'd be so good for you to be sitting out in the sun!” “Fine.” Emily pouted. “Can I at least go out and swim in our pool or is that too unsafe too?” “Just wear your sunblock!” While Emily sulked, she knew he was right. She was very heat sensitive lately and would have probably been miserable; she just hated having to miss out on things. AJ met her a few hours later by the pool with lunch and then she went to take a quick nap before they had to go to the party at Brian's. Emily slept a little longer than she meant to and they were the last ones there. AJ carried the potato salad, pasta salad and chips into the kitchen while Emily was greeted by a very excited Amanda. “Look at your belly! You look amazing! I couldn't believe it when you called us with your news! Oh my gosh you're having twins! Congratulations!” she gushed as she gave Emily a huge hug. Randy turned to AJ and shook his hand. “Congratulations!” he said, civilly. “Thanks.” AJ said, with a genuine smile on his face. Amanda finally let go of Emily and gave AJ a hug giving Randy the chance to congratulate Emily himself. “So it's really true!” he grinned as he eyed her stomach. “I'm happy for you.” “Thanks.” she said. He pulled her into a tight hug and held her there a little too long for AJ's liking. “Hey guys!” Leighanne greeted. “Brian just started the grill, I hope you're hungry!” “Dumb thing to say, really.” Emily said. “I'm always hungry!” “Don't worry, pretty soon you won't have any room left in your stomach for food so enjoy it while you can!” “You know, they say that about a lot of things when you're pregnant.” “What?” AJ asked. “Enjoy it while you can.” “Don't worry Emily, there's plenty more to enjoy when the babies are here!” Leighanne assured her. Everyone decided it was too hot to sit outside and eat so instead they ate in the dining room. While AJ and Brian were talking work stuff, Amanda and Leighanne were catching each other up on family gossip. Baylee had long since finished and had run off to play leaving Emily and Randy left to talk. “So how are you feeling?” he asked, sounding a little awkward. “Oh...pretty well most of the time. The morning sickness has finally passed and now I'm on to feeling huge and bloated. I can't believe how fast I'm growing!” “You look great. Really.” he said. “Thanks.” Emily blushed. “So they're identical twins, right?” Emily nodded. “Yep.” “Well, be extra careful in LA, alright? Make sure you're taking good care of yourself!” “Don't worry, AJ's got me on a pretty tight leash right now.” Randy had his doubts about that but he kept them to himself. “So...do you have a pediatrician picked out yet?” “Why, aren't you available?” she teased. “Of course, I was just checking! Have you run that by AJ?” “Not really. I don't think he'll mind.” “Well, it's just kind of important that he's comfortable with it.” “You're right. I'll talk to him. How are things going with you and Amanda?” “They're great.” It was Randy's turn to blush. “What does that mean?” Emily grinned. “It just means...they're great. I think moving in together was the right decision for us.” “Did you have doubts about that?” Randy shrugged. “We've both had our own issues to deal with, that's all. I didn't want her to move in until I was sure she was going to be the one.” “So, then when are you going to propose?” Emily asked. “Not for awhile yet. I don't want to rush.” “Well...don't take too long either. You're not getting any younger!” she jabbed. Emily's attention was then drawn into a conversation with Amanda about their rental house in LA while they ate dessert. After dinner, they all got caught up in a game of Apples to Apples before it was time to go watch the fireworks. Brian had managed to get them all in the office of a friend of his that was on the top floor of one of the high-rise buildings downtown and in perfect view of the fireworks. Emily leaned back against AJ and sighed. “Did you have a good day?” he asked. “I did. It felt nice to hang out with everyone like old times.” “I know. Can you believe where we all were six months ago? Brian and Leighanne almost got divorced, Tiny was your crazy stalker....and now they're back together and we're having twins and everyone seems to be doing well. I just hope it stays this way for awhile!” “You and me both!” That night, after they got home, Emily didn't quite feel like going to bed yet. “What do you say we make some fireworks of our own?” she suggested. “Do you feel up to that?” “Would I have suggested it if I didn't?” “I was just making sure.” AJ grinned. He helped her out of her clothes and could tell Emily was feeling a little self conscious about her body. “You really do look beautiful.” he whispered just before he kissed her. He could tell she didn't really believe him and decided the only way to prove to her just how much he enjoyed her body was to show her. He spent his time rubbing and kissing her all over until he felt her relax a little more. He made love to her with such a strong passion that for a few minutes afterward, Emily managed to forget how huge and bloated she'd been feeling. In fact she almost felt like her sexy, old self again. Until she realized she had to pee again and had to climb out of his warm embrace and go to the bathroom. “Thank you.” she said when she got back into bed. “For what?” “Just for everything you've done for me. Not every woman gets quite so pampered when she's pregnant, and I really appreciate it.” “I want to do it for you. You're carrying my babies! What kind of man wouldn't want to care for his wife when she's doing that for him?” Emily shrugged. “Lots I suppose.” He kissed the top of her head. “I love you.” As he looked down at her, he smiled when he saw that she'd already fallen fast asleep.
Chapter 120 The next few days were a whirlwind as they got ready to leave for LA. They were taking Emily's cat Guapo with them and sending the dogs over to live with Amanda and Randy. AJ didn't like putting them on planes, he said Daisy really freaked out the last time he'd done it and he promised her he'd never do it again. Their house on the beach was even more amazing than Emily imagined it would be. The kitchen was all state of the art appliances with lots of counters to work on. “What are you going to make, pizza?” AJ teased. Emily swatted at him. “I was actually thinking about making spaghetti and meatballs.” “Mmm...I do love your meatballs!” he said. “That's what she said.” Emily joked. “What?” “Sorry...I've been watching too many episodes of The Office lately.” AJ carried all their bags to the bedroom and helped Emily unpack. Then Emily announced she was going to take a nap. “How about I go to the market while you rest? I'll just get a few things and we can make a bigger trip tomorrow.” “Ok.” Emily wrote out a list for him and went to lie down. She opened the window in their bedroom that overlooked the beach and sighed as she relaxed to the sound of the waves. As much as she hated LA, she had to admit that she was probably going to really enjoy living there. As long as she didn't have to get out and drive in all the traffic! A few hours later, they made dinner together and then took a walk on the beach at sunset. “So how do you like it so far?” he asked. “Not too shabby!” she said. “I think I can manage as long as I never leave the house!” “Brian told me Leighanne is jealous. When they bought their house out here, she wanted to live on the beach but he didn't.” Emily laughed. “Knowing Brian, he was probably worried there'd be sand everywhere all the time. And knowing Baylee, he was probably right.” she stopped to pick up another sea shell. “So are you excited to get back in the studio with the guys?” “I am, but I don't even think it's hit me yet. So much else has been going on lately. And then every time I think about it I get caught up in how much we've all changed since we got started. It's so nice to finally be more in charge, you know? Like we're not just a bunch of puppets with the record company and the managers pulling the strings.” “I can't even imagine. You're all so talented I don't know why they wouldn't have wanted you more involved!” “Well, the downside to being more involved is even longer hours in the studio.” “I know! I'm really going to miss you. But at least I'll have Leighanne and Kristen to visit with. I can't wait to see Mason again! I heard some talk of having all the guys and significant others together again for dinner soon.” AJ groaned. “What's the matter?” “Nothing...just Nick is still dating Natasha and I don't know if I can stand another dinner with her.” “You didn't like her?” Emily laughed. “The woman was a total idiot and rude!” “I know. I couldn't believe the way she talked to him the whole time and the way she just sat there, like she had a million other better things to do. Maybe we can just make a secret code to make fun of her.” “Good idea.” he laughed. “So are you really going to be ok being alone all day out here?” he asked, sounding concerned. “I think so. Actually I was thinking of going to this spa Kristen was telling me about to get lots of massages and pedicures. And maybe I'll do some shopping. Other than that, I'll just be relaxing around the house.” “Just promise me you won't go swimming in the ocean alone, ok?” Emily laughed. “Don't worry, I won't. It looks cold, anyway!”
Over the next week, AJ made sure Emily was settled in as best as he could and then it was time for him to be in the studio. His days were long. He was gone before she was awake most mornings and most nights she was in bed when he came home. There were even a few nights he didn't come home at all, finding it easier to crash on the couch for a few hours than make the drive back to the beach. Emily held true to her plans of relaxing. She did a lot of online baby shopping and she spent a lot of time over at Kristen's playing with Mason. Emily was thrilled to spend time with him and Kristen was glad to have a break. Sunday evening AJ insisted he needed to leave early to spend time with his wife. Emily was surprised to get a call from him saying he was on his way and he was going to bring dinner with him. After eating Chinese out on the deck, they curled up on the sofa together and he caught her up on what the first week had been like. To Emily it sounded exhausting and chaotic. To AJ, it was going very well so far. He had just gotten up to get them some ice cream when he heard her gasp. “What is it?” he asked, running back into the living room with a look of panic on his face. “They're kicking!” “The babies?” “No, the puppies I'm growing. Of course the babies! Come feel!” AJ ran over and sat down beside her. She placed his hand on her stomach and waited. “Was that it?” he asked as he felt the little bump beneath his hand. “It sure was!” “What does it feel like?” “It kind of feels like gas bubbles.” “That's so amazing! Do you think they're kicking each other?” Emily laughed. “Probably!” They sat like that for the next twenty minutes reveling in the tiny kicks until the babies went back to sleep and the kicking stopped. “When is your appointment with Dr. Gill?” he asked. “Tuesday! I'm kind of excited, I really like hearing their heartbeats.” “Do you want me to go with you?” Emily shook her head. “No, that's ok. It's just a quick check, nothing exciting.”
Emily was right about her appointment not being all that exciting. She met Dr. Gill and went over her entire health history before doing the routine check. The babies heart rates sounded great, very loud and clear. “Are they kicking well?” “I just started feeling them Sunday! And it seems like they haven't stopped since then.” Dr. Gill laughed. “Unfortunately for you, as they start to run out of space in there, you'll be able to feel them move around more and more. Eventually, they'll get so crowded they'll slow down a bit towards the end.” “Well, as annoying as it is in the middle of the night, at least all the kicking lets me know they're ok in there.” “That's a good way of looking at it! Now Emily, has Dr. Paul ever mentioned anything about your weight?” Emily shook her head. “No, why? Did I gain too much?” “Just the opposite actually.” Dr. Gill said, looking at the chart. “According to your records you were doing well until this month. Are you eating ok?” “I can't seem to stop eating! I can't imagine I didn't gain enough!” “It's normal. You're growing two babies so you need a lot more calories to sustain both of them as well as yourself. Make sure you're eating lots of proteins and fats. If your weight isn't better by next month's appointment we'll have to look at restricting your activity, ok?” Emily nodded. “Oh and on your way out, why don't you schedule your 20-week ultrasound for next week. Are you going to find out the sexes?” “No, we decided we want to be surprised.” Dr. Gill smiled. “That's great! I didn't know with either of my kids and I absolutely loved it!” Emily scheduled her ultrasound for August 3, exactly one week away. She tried not to let her sensitive hormones depress her about the whole weight gain issue but she couldn't help but feel a little upset about it and when AJ came home that night, he found her crying on the couch. “What's the matter?” he asked, fearing something was very wrong. “It's nothing huge.” Emily sniffed. “Did something happen at your appointment today?” “Dr. Gill said I didn't gain enough weight this month and that if I don't do better next month they'll have to restrict my activity!” Even AJ was a bit surprised given how much she'd been eating lately. But he was baffled when Emily stated bawling all over again. “Sweetie it isn't that bad, is it?” “You don't understand!” she wailed. “Try and explain it to me.” he said, gently. “I'm a terrible mother!” AJ was still adjusting to Emily's hormonal mood swings but he was caught off guard by that one. “Why do you say that?” “I can't even eat right! I've probably been starving them or something! And here I was worrying about how fat I'd been feeling when all this time, it wasn't even good enough!” “Sweetie, it isn't your fault! Your body is on overdrive, that's all. I mean you have to eat for three! It doesn't make you a terrible mother. The babies are fine. You didn't do anything wrong.” “I'm just so afraid of doing something to screw up, you know? Their entire being depends on me. That's a lot of pressure!” “I know. But the only thing you can do is the best you can. And that's what you've been doing! The babies are healthy and now you know you just need to eat more and I'm sure you'll be very careful!” Emily nodded. “You're right. This is just all so scary.” “I know. I get scared too sometimes. But we'll be ok.” AJ managed to cheer up Emily and served her a very large bowl of ice cream after dinner. Emily was starting to see the bright side of getting to eat more as she looked at the enormous bowl of Mint Chocolate Chip in front of her. They went to bed early that night. Emily was so glad to have his arms to fall asleep in as usually he was home after she'd already gone to bed and she'd missed feeling his warm body beside her. She got up with him the next morning because he promised to take her to breakfast. Emily fully intended on eating a lot of pancakes and bacon and was feeling pretty perky until she couldn't button her jeans. She sat down on the bed, frustrated, and once again started to cry. “Sweetie what's the matter?” he asked, sitting down beside her. “My pants don't fit! I'm getting so huge!” AJ scratched his head, completely dumbfounded. Wasn't it just last night that she was upset that she hadn't gained enough weight? “You aren't getting huge honey, the babies are growing! It's a good thing, remember?” “Yeah, we'll see how good you think it is when you have to buy all new wardrobes every month.” AJ chuckled and as soon as Emily said it, she laughed too. “I guess you'd probably love that, wouldn't you?” “Maybe, but I understand what you're saying. Your body is changing a lot. I get that. I still think you're beautiful and I'm so grateful for what you're going through to give us two babies!” “You should be, you're going to owe me for years for all this!” she laughed. “Duly noted. Now let's find you something to wear!” Emily decided not to take her chances and put on her black yoga pants. After all, it was LA. People wore exercise clothes all the time! Emily was paranoid that people would be watching her pig out on breakfast and AJ had to keep pointing out that she was obviously pregnant. She was entitled to eat however much she wanted to and if anyone even looked at her funny, he'd gladly tell them off for her! On the way home, Emily was starting to feel a little silly for being so sensitive. “I'm sorry I've been so weird.” she said. “I really just don't feel like myself a lot of the time, all these stupid hormones are messing with me!” “I know, I'm sorry.” he said. “It'll get better soon I think.” Emily nodded. “Yeah, soon.”
The rest of the week, AJ was very careful to be sensitive around Emily. He realized there would be no telling what would set her off anymore after she flew off the handle at him for leaving his dirty underwear on the bathroom floor one morning, which was something he had always done. He had called Leighanne and Kristin and asked them to help keep her spirits up and they did the best they could, sympathizing with her and giving her lots of girl time. Finally, it was time for her big ultrasound. AJ took time off to go with her, not wanting to miss the chance to see his babies! “I'm nervous, are you nervous?” she asked as they sat in the waiting room. “A little.” he admitted. “But everything will be fine.” They took them back to the ultrasound room and Emily made sure the tech knew they did not want to know the gender of the babies. She didn't want any slip ups. Emily and AJ were captivated as soon as the image came on the screen. The tech gave them a quick overview of what it was they were looking at as she took measurements of both twins. “Did you just see that? They're kicking each other!” AJ laughed. “They sure are very active babies!” the tech agreed. “Look here, Baby A is sucking its thumb!” AJ and Emily smiled as they watched. “It's so amazing!” AJ said. “They're so tiny yet they're already...babies!” “Ok Emily, we're all finished. Dr. Gill will look over everything and be in to see you.” the tech said, avoiding looking at Emily. Emily suddenly had a sinking feeling. A few minutes later, Dr. Gill came in and sat down next to her. “What's wrong?” Emily asked, immediately seeing the doctor's concerned expression. AJ tightened his grip on Emily's hand. “Emily, Baby B measured significantly smaller than Baby A did.” “What does that mean?” AJ asked. “Well honestly right now, it doesn't mean a whole lot. The tech couldn't get a very good view of Baby B so right now, it's possible that everything is fine.” “And if it's not fine?” he asked. “Sometimes with identical twins, the placenta isn't able to sustain both babies. I'm not saying that's the case here, we simply don't know enough. But if that is the situation, we'll keep an extremely close eye on them both and we might have to make some decisions about how long to keep the babies in you or if their chances are better if we deliver them early.” “But she's only 20 weeks! That's way too early, isn't it?” “Yes but if we could get even 6 more weeks, they'd stand a chance if we had to take them out.” Emily squeezed her eyes shut, unable to believe this was happening again. Was she simply doomed to never have healthy children? Was her mother right all along, that it wasn't worth all the pain? “But like I said,” Dr. Gill reminded. “We don't know anything. It's entirely possible things are still fine. I'd like you to have another ultrasound with a perinatologist, a specialist in high risk pregnancies. Hopefully they'll be able to get a better look. His name is Dr. Fox. I'll have the nurse schedule with their office and she'll call you and let you know. Until then, I want you off your feet just in case, ok? And I know it's easier said than done but try not to worry too much until we talk with Dr. Fox, ok?” As soon as Dr. Gill left the room, Emily sat up and buried her face in AJ's shoulder. “This can't be happening.” she said as she wept. “Not again! I can't lose them, AJ. I just can't!” AJ held on tightly, not really sure what to say. He wanted to tell her everything was fine, even the doctor wasn't sure if there really was a problem or not, but he couldn't say that because he wasn't sure himself. So he did his best to keep his emotions in check so that he could keep Emily as calm as possible. The nurse knocked on the door and handed them an appointment card. They had to wait two long days until they could see Dr. Fox and get some answers. AJ knew it was probably going to be the longest two days of his life. |