Yay next chapter!
Reminder, I've never been pregnant, so have done quite a bit of research.
Enjoy!
CHAPTER 3
The next morning, Carlton found himself leaning over the toilet, again. This was the sixth straight day in a row and it showed no sign of stopping. With a sigh, he flushed, washed out his mouth and dried his hands before grabbing his phone. He rarely went to the doctor, usually only for his yearly physical; but drastic times call for drastic measures.
It was not long before a voice way too cheery for 9 o'clock in the morning answered. "Doctor Oscar Whitman's office. This is Angela speaking, how may I help you today?"
"Yeah, I was wondering if I can make an appointment for today?"
"Name please?"
"Carlton Lassiter."
After a few seconds of typing she said, "Alright Mr. Lassiter…"
"Detective Lassiter." Carlton corrected as he sat down on the couch.
"Detective. You're in luck! There is an opening today at 10:30. Is that alright?"
"Yeah, sure."
"Okie dokie. And can you tell me the reason for the visit? I see that you're not due for your yearly physical for another 3 months."
"I haven't been feeling well lately."
"Okay. Can you describe your symptoms?"
"Yeah, um. I've been very nauseous the past week, throwing up several times a day. I've also been really tired and sore in odd places with no explanation."
"Hmm. Do you have a fever?"
Carlton felt his forehead. "I don't think so."
"Have these periods of vomiting coincided with any particular activities or eating certain foods?"
"No. They seem to be random, although occur more often in the morning."
"Have you been urinating more frequently or experienced any constipation?"
"I don't believe that is any of your business!" Carlton growled.
"Sir." She said calmly. "I'm just trying to help the doctor get a better sense of what he should be looking for. So please answer my questions."
Carlton sighed as he collapsed on his couch. "Fine. Yes, I have been urinating more often."
"No constipation?"
"I would have mentioned that." He growled.
"Have you experienced any changes in mood or food preferences?"
"What does that have to do with anything?"
"Detective, please answer the questions."
"I don't know. Besides feeling tired all the time, there hasn't been much of a change in my mood. And, if anything, I've been eating less food than normal in hopes of not throwing up, but it hasn't worked."
"Alright. I'm going to pass this onto the doctor before he sees you and he's probably going to ask for both a urine and blood sample. Please arrive at least 10 minutes before your appointment which is at 10:30."
"Fine. Thanks."
"You are welcome! See you…"
Carlton hung up on her cheery voice. Looking at his watch, he saw that he had about an hour before he had to leave. Just enough time to take a shower and eat breakfast. Sighing, he pulled himself off the couch and headed for the bathroom.
Carlton sat impatiently in the waiting room. They said 10:30 and it was already 10:53. What was the point of him showing up early if they were just going to keep him waiting so long?! If they did not call him soon, Carlton had half a mind to march back there and grab the doctor himself!
Finally, the doctor came out; escorting a woman in her 40's who was trying her best to stop crying. Judging by the cancer treatment center pamphlets she was clutching, Carlton could tell that she had gotten some very bad news. Carlton felt a little guilty, seeing why the doctor was late, and avoided the women's gaze as she slowly walked out of the room. Once the door closed, Doctor Whitman checked in with the receptionist who nodded towards Carlton and handed him a chart.
"Hello Carlton. Sorry to keep you waiting." The doctor came over and shook his hand.
Carlton nodded and stood. "It's okay. I know that I was lucky enough that you had an opening today."
"Yes. Would you follow me, please?" Doctor Whitman led Carlton down the hall and into a room as he flipped through the chart. "Have a seat." He gestured at the paper covered examination table. Carlton was never a fan of those and chose the chair instead. Doctor Whitman shut the door and sat on the rolling stool, chart on his lap. "So, Carlton. Can you tell me why you needed to come so quickly?"
"Shouldn't that be in my chart? Your secretary asked enough questions." He growled, slightly embarrassed.
"I would like to hear it from you. I already have a guess at what could be going on, but I want to see if your answers will change that."
"Fine. I've been feeling very nauseous lately, almost a week now, and vomiting several times a day."
"Mmm hm. Continue."
"I've also been feeling really tired, but not enough to actually fall asleep once I get home and have the time to take a nap. At first, I thought it was the flu, but they usually don't last this long."
"No, stomach flu usually lasts 24 to 48 hours while influenza will completely knock you out for a week or more. Now, I'm going to ask you a question and I want you to answer honestly without getting too upset."
Carlton studied the doctor carefully. "Why would I get upset?"
"Because I know you, even though you only come in once or twice a year. Is there any way that you can be pregnant?"
Carlton laughed, "That's funny doc."
"I'm serious."
"I'm not pregnant. I can't be pregnant. I don't have the right…parts for that."
"Are you sure about that?"
"Yes, I am." Carlton growled
The doctor held his hand out in a placating motion. "Because 1 out of every 5 men have the genes to become pregnant while only 1 in every 100 ever do become pregnant. I'm sure you've heard about that before?"
"Yeah, of course. But usually their father or grandfather had been pregnant at some point or another. And, believe me, neither of mine have been."
"That doesn't mean that they weren't able to. What about uncles or cousins or great uncles?"
Carlton thought about it. He did have an uncle that his family rarely talked about. When he was in college, he looked him up and found out that he was married to a man and had a few children that looked a lot like him and his partner. "I have an uncle who might have been, but I've never actually talked to or even met the guy."
The doctor nodded as he wrote on the chart. "Have you had anal sex recently with any other man? Whether a continuous relationship or a one night stand?"
Carlton blushed as he lowered his head. He let Shawn top him on their one-year anniversary. Carlton did not enjoy it as much as Shawn did so they had only done it a handful of times. "Yeah."
"And how long ago was that?"
"About 2 months ago."
"Okay." The doctor wrote down a few more things before looking up. "I'm going to take a blood and a urine sample. The blood test is more accurate but takes a few days while we can have the results of the urine sample in 10 minutes. Is that alright?"
Carlton nodded.
"Good." The doctor reached over and unlocked a drawer. He pulled out a syringe and started gathering the other supplies for drawing blood. "I'm going to start with the blood test and then, while I get it labeled to be sent out for testing, you can give me a urine sample."
Carlton sat quietly while the doctor worked and then left. He could not believe what was happening, what could be happening. How the hell was he going to raise a kid? He was not even good with kids! He knew he could not get an abortion, could not live with that. He found out Victoria had gotten an abortion just a year before they separated because she did not want a child to interfere with their fighting, especially since she did not believe they would last. He was not going to do that. He would rather the kid be adopted than to kill it.
Carlton shook his head. He did not even know that he was pregnant so he should just stop worrying. He shakily took the cup and filled it, almost spilling it twice before he got a decent amount in. Not sure what else to do, he placed it on the counter and sat back on the chair.
It was almost 5 minutes before the doctor came back in with a kit. Carlton watched with bated breath as the doctor tested the urine and set the kit down. Doctor Whitman sat down on the stool and said, "It'll take a couple minutes so I'm going to ask you a few questions, if that's okay."
Carlton nodded as he turned his attention from the kit to Doctor Whitman.
"Okay. Have you had any alcoholic beverages in the past few months?"
"Yes."
"How often?"
Carlton sighed, "I don't know. Every few days. One day, about a week ago, I was angry and upset and might have drunk too much."
"Might?" The doctor raised his eyebrow disbelievingly.
"Okay, I did drink too much. About 5 or 6 beers and half a bottle of scotch. I was mad and trying to block some things out!" Carlton snapped.
"Carlton, I need you to calm down."
Carlton growled and tried to take a few breaths.
"Good. Now, as long as you haven't been binge drinking every night, you should be fine. I've told you before to watch your alcohol consumption and blood pressure."
Carlton nodded.
"Now, have you had any drastic life style changes? Smoking, drugs, extreme sports? Anything like that?"
"No. I was dating someone who was trying to get me to be more adventurous, but that's over now." Carlton looked away.
The doctor nodded and set the chart down when they heard a beep. "Okay. Let's see what we have here." Carlton closed his eyes and ducked his head, dreading what the doctor would say. "Congratulations. Looks like you are pregnant."
Carlton shook his head and made his hands into fists.
"Carlton? Are you okay?"
Carlton took a deep breath and tried to keep his voice even. "Yeah, I just…that wasn't even a possibility an hour ago. Oh God, what am I going to do?" He covered his mouth as everything ran through his head. What was he going to do? He would have to quit the force, possibly move in with his mother, tell Spencer… Oh no, he could not tell Spencer. He was leaving for 6 months. If he told Spencer, he would drop everything to be with Carlton and get in even more trouble, possible jail time….
"Carlton?"
Carlton jumped when he felt a hand on his arm. He looked up to find Doctor Whitman next to him, holding out a tissue box.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
Carlton shook his head as he lifted a hand and felt the tears on his cheek.
"Do you want me to call someone?"
"There's no one to call." Carlton replied as he grabbed a tissue.
The doctor frowned, "Are you sure?"
"Maybe one person, but she's working right now."
"I bet if you ask, she might be able to come get you."
"She's in New York."
"Oh, okay." The doctor went back to his chart and looked through it. "What about this Juliet O'Hara? She has a local address."
Carlton laughed as he wiped his face. "Oh no, I'm not calling her."
"Well, I would advise you to talk to somebody, and soon. If you are trying to decide whether to go through with the pregnancy or have an abortion, you have until the 12th week to decide, after which I can't perform it without a medical reason."
"That won't be necessary. I'll keep the baby."
"Are you sure?"
Carlton felt his stomach for the first time, thinking about how something was growing inside of him. "I'm sure."
"Okay. I have about 15 minutes until my next appointment shows up. I can do an ultrasound to see how far along you are and give you an approximate due date, if you want."
Carlton looked up. This whole situation was getting too surreal. "Yeah, sure."
