Just a little Christmas present for anyone who wants to read it (:
It had been silent between them ever since they had left the doctor's. Isaac wanted to say something, anything to comfort Jenna, but he didn't know what he was supposed to say. What were you supposed to say to your wife when she had just been given the devastating news that she couldn't have children? He thought that to finally have a conclusion would be a relief, but it only seemed to drop a bigger weight in his stomach. And he could only imagine how badly Jenna was taking this.
For months they had been trying to conceive and nothing. It finally came to the point where Jenna demanded going to talk with a doctor, just to see what was going on. It came down to the doctor's disturbing assumption that Jenna was unable to have children. The moment they arrived home after the visit, Jenna dropped her things and headed straight for their room. Isaac followed her to see that she was sitting on the edge of the bed, biting on her lower lip.
"You okay?" He really didn't know what else to say.
Without a word, she shook her head. He took a seat next to her on the bed, placing his arm over her shoulder and drawing her close to him. "It's going to be okay," he said, his voice holding some amount of promise.
Over the course of the next few months he would sometimes wake to her crying in the middle of the night. There was nothing else he could do at those times other than hold her until she fell back to sleep. He kept a strong front for the time but inside he was hurting as well. The thought of having a family was something he had hoped for, but now the dream was out of reach.
As the days went on, things seemed to be growing easier for Jenna. In fact, on the day before Christmas Eve she informed Isaac that she was planning on heading out.
She was folded into him on the couch when she explained the plans. "Sheba thinks I should get out of the house for a day. She wants me to go out tomorrow."
Isaac more or less pushed the idea. He was thankful that Sheba decided to stay in Vale with Jenna's brother Felix, because she was the person who Isaac turned to for help in regards to his wife. To have Jenna finally go out with her friends again brought about a hope in Isaac that she may finally be recovering from the news given to them just two months ago. "Yes, of course. You should go."
Jenna grinned up at him and slipped her hand behind his head to give him a peck, "Thank you." She said. The tone that she thanked him in gave him the sense that she would have gone anyways had he said no.
… …
It wasn't Christmas without snow. Isaac had believed in that since he was just a child, so to see snow finally falling on Christmas Eve was relieving to him. It released a calm in him that he hadn't felt in a long time.
The guests that he and Jenna had invited over for dinner that night started arriving before Jenna returned home. First were Garet and the girl that he had been seeing for some time, Abigail. Despite the fact that it was snowing, a warm rush of air filled the room upon the door opening.
"Hi," Garet stepped in and shook the snow from his clothes. He put his arm around Abigail and pulled her to his side, "Where's Jenna?"
"She should be coming back soon. She's with Sheba."
Garet's scrunched up his nose, something he had been doing since his childhood and peered towards the table that was already set with food. "So you cooked? You sure it's edible?"
Abigail dug her elbow into Garet's side; a move that she had picked up from Jenna. "He's joking. It smells great."
"Thanks," Isaac smiled. He had just begun to walk them to some chairs when there was a hard knock on the door. He reached for the knob but before he could touch it the door swung open and Jenna stepped in, followed by Sheba.
"Hello," Jenna's face easily warmed up Isaac inside. Even after thirteen years he still felt the need to hide his blush from her. "Sorry we took so long."
Isaac slipped his arm around her thin waist and pulled her close enough to him to place a kiss on her cheek. "You had a good time?"
Jenna's eyes diverted from his and he noticed her exchange a look with Sheba, "Yes. It was great."
Guests began filling in quickly after Jenna and Sheba's arrival. First Felix followed by Ivan, and then Isaac's and Jenna's parents. Either everyone loved his food or they were just being polite by complimenting it. It can't have been too bad because Jenna had been eating his cooking ever since they married, and she never complained.
It was in his conversation with Ivan that he noticed Jenna sitting quietly on the window-ledge, watching the snow fall to the ground.
"…So that's why Feizhi couldn't make it tonight. She's sorry."
"No, it's alright," Isaac replied, although he had been to focused on Jenna to really listen to why Feizhi, Ivan's ongoing partner, wasn't present. "Listen Ivan, could you excuse me?"
Ivan's purple eyes narrowed, and Isaac felt the sudden loss of his privacy. He waited for Ivan to finish using his mind-read psynergy, knowing there was no point in trying to avoid it. Ivan finished quickly and looked behind him towards Jenna, then he turned back to Isaac. "Go ahead," he said.
Isaac stepped past Ivan and started towards Jenna. When he reached her he sat on the ledge on her side. "You okay?" He asked, unable to avoid the hint of worry penetrating his voice. "You've been quiet all night."
Jenna turned her head towards him and nodded, "I'm okay."
"Nothing went wrong today, did it?"
Jenna smiled at him and placed her hand over his, "Thanks for being concerned. But really, everything's fine."
He didn't exactly like her answer because he knew it wasn't the complete truth, but he also knew there was no point in prying further. He kissed her softly on the cheek and rose to head back to his conversation with Ivan, but was stopped.
"Isaac, actually…can we talk for a second?"
"Sure."
"In private?" She led him to the bedroom and closed the door behind her so it was only opened a crack. "I have a confession."
"Really?" Isaac didn't bother trying to sound oblivious. He knew she had been hiding something.
"I didn't tell you where Sheba and I really went to today." She looked up at him.
"Well…where were you then?" It's not like they could have been anywhere that would have upset him, so his interest hadn't exactly peaked.
"She took me to the doctor's," her voice was quiet for the reply.
Isaac was suddenly flushed with concern. "You-you're not sick, are you!" His first instinct was to grab her hand in his, and he did. He tried not to sound panicked, but he had been scared something like this would happen. He was scared that the depression Jenna had been dealing with the past few months had finally gotten to her, but she quickly reassured him.
"No!" She replied as quickly as she could. "No, I'm fine." And then he saw a smile tugging at her lips. He watched as she guided his hand to her stomach, where she covered it with both of hers. She looked up to him and waited until their eyes locked. "We're just fine."
"We?" It took a moment to sink in, but the realization hit him. "Are you…" he found he couldn't finish the question. It didn't seem possible.
Jenna, still smiling, pressed her lips together and nodded her head, "I'm pregnant."
Isaac found he still couldn't speak. He was stunned in silence. He opened his mouth to say something but the words were caught in his throat.
"You're going to be a dad," Jenna said, her voice growing higher. There were tears resting in her eyes, ready to fall.
"I-I'm going to be a dad." Isaac stated, as if still trying to convince himself. The feeling he was experiencing were incredible. He pulled his wife into his arms and held her tightly for a time he couldn't guess, he just knew it wasn't long enough. When they pulled apart he shook his head, "But the Doctor said you-"
"I know," Jenna shook her head as well. Then she grinned and shrugged her shoulders, "Sheba thinks it's a Christmas miracle."
"Sheba's right," Isaac nodded.
There was a short silence between them, Jenna breaking it by saying, "It's a girl, you know."
Isaac chuckled, "No. It's a boy."
Jenna raised a quirky eyebrow and smirked, "You want to bet on that?"
He didn't have to think twice. "Yeah, I do."
And, well, I think you all know who wins.
Have a happy holidays everybody. (;