"Come on Daph…can you just stop pacing and sit down? You're going to walk a path in to the carpet." Justin sighed, running the palm of his hand over his face in an attempt to rub the sleep away. Sitting in the sterile doctor's office; his best friend was a nervous wreck and he had to admit he was just as worried about the impending results they would soon receive once the doctor arrived.
Justin hadn't slept well the night before as he tossed and turned in what felt like the most highly uncomfortable hotel bed ever. It was, of course a very lovely bed in what was the nicest hotel in Allentown, thanks to Brian's insistence when they had booked the rooms for this very purpose a week ago. His mind, however, kept warring back and forth with itself to the point where he had finally given up on sleeping and did what he always did when he was worried; he pulled out his sketch pad from his suitcase and tried to shut his mind down as his hand flew over the paper.
It helped…if only a little.
Now, as he watched his best friend twist the hem of her shirt between her fingers, he grabbed her arm to stop her. "I'm sure everything is going to be fine."
"But what if it's not? What if the tests come back and there is something wrong. What if…"
"Then we will find out what the best course of action is and go from there." Justin said, his hand rubbing what he hoped to be soothing circles over the tiny hands he held within his.
"Right." Finally agreeing to take the seat beside him, it was only a small victory as she sat down on the edge of the padded chair, her legs bouncing nervously in front of her.
Daphne's grasp tightened on Justin's hand when a slight click could be heard and the door swung open; a short, rounded, middle-aged man in a white coat walked purposefully in to the room and sat behind the desk, flanked with diplomas and other forms of certification framed prominently on the wall behind him.
Everything about the man screamed professionalism and proficiency, but it was his kind, soft eyes that allowed Justin to relax just a little bit. "Hello, Ms. Chanders. It is nice to meet you. You must be Mr. Kinney? My name is Dr. Anthony."
Sitting up straight, Justin pulled his right hand from Daphne's grip as he extended it towards the doctor. "Yes, Justin Kinney, it is nice to meet you Mr. Anthony."
The doctor smiled warmly as he looked from the nervous young woman to her equally nervous male companion.
"Let's get down to business, shall we?" Opening the file he had brought in with him, he spread the various papers in front of him before he picked up the one furthest to the right.
Daphne tensed automatically, preparing herself for whatever would be said next as Justin reached out for her hand once more. Grasping it in the space between their chairs, Daphne looked over to Justin before nodding her head for the doctor to continue.
"I've received your test results from your preferred clinic in Pittsburgh, Ms. Chanders. Your levels are right on track and since we specialize in this particular procedure, I have every confidence that the extraction will go as planned with little to no complications."
Relief washed over Justin as he turned to Daphne, her face scrunched in confusion before her expression softened as she turned to her best friend. "So does that mean…?"
"I think it does, Daph!" Keeping their emotions in check for the time being, they both turned back to the doctor for confirmation.
A light knock sounded on the door before the doctor could continue as all three sets of eyes turned toward the tall brunette who ventured assuredly in to the room. Quickly sitting in the only other available seat in the room, Brian took his spot beside Daphne as he extended his hand to the doctor. "Brian Kinney, sorry for the interruption but I just finished filling out all the paperwork and the nurses told me to come straight back."
Brian looked to Justin and Daphne as the doctor nodded his head in understanding. The mutual looks of relief and happiness on their faces offered him silent reassurance as he had spent the last half an hour filling out paperwork, all the while wondering what Daphne's results would be. Anything besides a positive outcome would have been devastating to both his husband and their friend.
To him as well.
"That's quite alright Mr. Kinney, I was actually just giving them the good news that all is well. We can begin tomorrow."
"How long will all of this take?" Justin asked, barely able to contain his smile.
"After the procedure tomorrow, we could know within a few weeks if we were successful or not."
"You mean, I could know within a month if I am pregnant or not?" Daphne exclaimed, her eyes widening in amazement. "I just figured this would all take a lot longer than that. I didn't find out I was pregnant with Suvi until I was almost two months."
"The process is already well underway, Ms. Chanders. The medication you have been taking, prescribed by your local clinic, is helping us to determine the best time for extraction, and it also helps your body produce multiple eggs in a single cycle. This is called Ovulation Induction, and your local clinic has been monitoring your egg development as well as your hormone levels, the results of which I have here in my hands. Everything looks perfect. I understand that you have traveled from across state, your hometown being Pittsburgh, is this correct?"
"Yes."
"The immediate timeline for the procedure is as follows, in case you need to work your schedules accordingly. Tomorrow we will retrieve the produced eggs in a process called Follicular Aspiration. This is considered a minor surgical procedure where we inject a hollow tube through your pelvic cavity, guided by ultrasound, to retrieve the eggs. We can also acquire the sperm samples on the same day at which point we will begin the process of Insemination. Before I go any further, I want to make sure I have everything clear as far as the specific requests you have. Normally, I would receive a sperm sample from one of you to be fertilized with the egg, but as I understand, you both wish to provide a sample?" The doctor asked as he looked up from the paperwork in his hand.
Even though his expression had not changed in regards to the unusual request, Justin still felt his cheeks heating up.
Brian looked to Justin, almost laughing at his husband's sudden shyness before he ventured forward. "Here's what we decided, doc. We want to put in two fertilized eggs, one with my sperm and one with my husband's and let nature take its course. We couldn't agree on who should do the deed; I already have a son who is ten years old and would very much like for my husband to have the chance to have a child of his own but he feels we should both give it a shot, so to speak."
"This is a rather unconventional request and while this will be a first for us here at this clinic, I cannot say for a fact it has never been done before." Sifting through the papers in front of him, Dr. Anthony marked a few notes before turning his attention back to the small group in front of him.
"Conventionality has never applied to us before; why start now." Brian huffed, proudly.
"The procedure itself will work in the same capacity but I must caution you that I cannot guarantee that both embryos will take; unfortunately I cannot guarantee that even one will. This is when science must take a back seat and fate must take over."
"With all due respect, doc, we didn't just pick this clinic out of a hat. I had many people looking in to this particular procedure and which clinic was the best. Your clinic came up more than any other as right now I have been relegated to staying within the confines of the state," Brian mentioned as he looked over to Justin with a slight scowl, only to be met with a triumphant smile from the blonde. "We're aware that nothing is guaranteed but if this does not work, then I have every intention of then going to the best in the country."
"I understand your concerns, Mr. Kinney, but I feel I should inform you that, while we are the best in the state, we are also one of the top in the country as well. We currently have a 71% live birthrate which is nearly ten percent higher than our closest competitor within the state and if you would look at the statistics of other clinics around the country, you will find that there is only a slight increase in the percentage of live birthrates. Here at the Reproductive Medicine Associates of Pennsylvania, we purposefully take on fewer clients so that we can provide the most comprehensive care for our patients. Yes, we perform fewer procedures annually, but our success rate simply can't be beat. You are more than welcome to get second or third opinions, in fact I often encourage doing just that, but I am confident you will find we are the perfect fit for you and your future family."
"Excellent, doc. That is just what I wanted to hear." With a firm nod of his head, Brian sat back in his chair with a satisfied grin. Justin recognized the look in Brian's eyes. It was the same look he got when he was working a campaign. He was in business mode; all facts and no emotions in his quest to the ultimate finish line.
"Very well," Dr. Anthony chuckled as he continued, "Once the samples have been collected, they will be placed, separately, in an incubator to be fertilized and monitored for cell division. Once the eggs have begun to divide it is then considered an embryo and will be transferred into the uterus within 2 to 3 days. This process will likely be finished within a week's time. As you have requested we will transfer a single fertilized egg from each of your sperm samples. Then you will be asked to rest as much as possible and be on the lookout for any signs of pregnancy, that of which will be discussed in greater length after the transfer takes place, but it is possible to know within a few weeks, if you are pregnant or not, since you will be actively looking for signs."
"What are the risks?" Brian asked pointedly.
"As I stated before, there is always the risk of the eggs not taking and simply passing out of the body. Women 35 years and younger have a success rate of approximately 30-35% of becoming pregnant. Of course it helps when the host does not smoke, do drugs of any kind, or drink caffeinated beverages such as coffee, soda or certain teas, and so on. As the chart indicates you appear to be very healthy Ms. Chanders, very good. But even then, the odds are less than half. I do not wish to discourage you; I simply want you to be aware of the realities involved here."
"Thanks, but I was referring to Daphne, what risks will she be facing?" Brian corrected simply.
"The risks associated with IVF are fairly minimal in most cases. Cramping may occur the day of egg retrieval, with other risks being anesthesia related as well as a risk of bleeding, infection around the injection site and possible damage to the bowels and the bladder. Once the embryos are transferred there is a risk of cramping as well, but the procedure is usually painless. The biggest risk actually lies in what we call Ovarian Hyper Stimulation Syndrome when the ovaries are being prepared for retrieval and run the risk of becoming swollen from over stimulation; which includes risks of nausea, vomiting, and/or a lack of appetite, but we are already past that mark at this point. All of these risks run very low and I can assure you that we have never had any major problems in the past."
"Thank you." Justin managed to say, wiping his clammy hands down the front of his jeans as he tried to process the long list of risks that had just been presented to them. Even at a low probability, it was still a lot to process…and a lot to ask of his closest friend.
He glanced over to Daphne who simply nodded her head and smiled back at him in reassurance.
True, they had done their homework long before they made their final decision to go forward with IVF, but this was a whole new beast.
"I appreciate how concerned you are for your friend, but I assure you that Ms. Chanders will be in the best hands possible and we will do everything in our power to make this as painless for her as possible."
Dr. Anthony stood up from his desk, holding his hands up when the others started to follow suit. "I have other matters to attend to but please feel free to take as much time as you need and if everything is still satisfactory when you are finished, please see my receptionist on your way out to confirm the time for the egg retrieval and sperm donation tomorrow."
With one last kind smile, the doctor quickly exited the room, leaving the three to their thoughts.
Justin was the first to speak as he turned to his friend. "Daph, are you sure you are willing to do this; to go through all of that just to help us out?"
"You make it sound like I'm giving up a Saturday night to help you study for a final. I am not just helping you out here. Of course I am sure, you heard him; the risks are minimal. Besides, just think…in a few weeks there could be a baby in here." Daphne beamed as she grabbed Justin's hand and put it to her flat stomach, her eyes round with excitement. Once again bouncing on the edge of her seat, Justin couldn't contain his laughter as he leaned forward to look to Brian, who sat silently in his seat, his eyes seemingly focused on nothing and everything all at once.
Daphne's face fell as she thought over Justin's words again, looking back to Brian, trying to gauge his current mood. "That is, if you guys still want to go through with this."
"Are you kidding me? I've never wanted anything more in my life?" Justin practically yelled as he looked to his best friend incredulously.
"Brian?" Daphne asked as both she and Justin looked to him cautiously.
Shaking his head as he pulled himself out of his thoughts, Brian smiled, biting his lower lip. Without a word he stood up, placed a kiss to the young woman's cheek, and extended his hand towards his husband. "Come on, young ones. We've got some babies to make tomorrow and we are going to need all the rest we can get!"
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I hope you enjoyed this, I am really excited about where this story will be going as I have much of it planned out and so many ideas swimming in my head. This story is actually a tie in to my other story "Vacation of a Lifetime" – VoaL is a sort of one shot, whereas this story started with a single idea for a continuing one shot from VoaL that has spawned in to an entire story that takes place before and after VoaL. And I am still working on that story as well, I just had to get this going because all the ideas for this story that I had were preventing me from working on VoaL!
I have to give a million thanks, kisses, and hugs to Nalana for her help with both stories and for never once telling me to shut the hell up when I couldn't stop talking about all my random ideas! This looks to be a decent length when all is said and done, but please let me know what you think. And feel free to ask any questions you might have; also don't hesitate to give any suggestions either. If things can be worked in to the plot, I am totally open for anything.
Evelyn