A Mothers Fear
12 Weeks
The first thing Olivia noticed was the pungent smell of disinfectant wafting through the corridors. In normal circumstances it would please her that Hospitals were making the effort to keep clean but at 12 weeks pregnant she couldn't stand such strong odours; accompanying that with the nerves she was currently feeling and she was pretty sure she would be sick at any moment.
She felt a hand gently rest on her left leg which prompted her to stop the incessant tapping that she had found herself doing for the past 15 minutes.
'Liv' relax' she heard Peter say calmly.
Acknowledging him she turned her head in his direction and smiled, while taking his hand and placing it between her two clammy palms. She would've liked to reassure him that she was fine and that he needn't worry but right now she couldn't focus on anything apart from her impending check up.
'Its going to be fine you know' Peter said reassuringly, refusing to break eye contact with her.
'But we don't know that Peter' she replied, her eyes now firmly focused on the Olive green speckled linoleum floor.
'I know it's hard but worrying about it isn't going to help'.
She knew he had a point but she wasn't able to detach herself and get on with things like Peter always managed to do so easily, the baby was inside of her and its presence was getting stronger with every waking day.
Looking up from the floor Olivia now firmly looks at Peter and he was quick to notice the fear in her eyes.
'Peter, what if they find there's something wrong the baby? I just don't know if I could copy if I was responsible what with the cortexiphan and being shot! I mean think about it, its perfectly rational to think that, the baby could have been starved of oxygen before Walter revived me, anything could be wrong.'
'Olivia, listen to me. Nothing is going to be wrong and don't for a second blame yourself for anything, none of this is your fault. Besides I'm the one who is supposed to protect the two of you'. Peter smiled as he brushed his hands through her hair, the way they had both got accustomed to during the mornings when they both sat on the bathroom floor, Olivia exhausted from and constant nausea and Peter calming her.
Olivia wondered whether Peter did really feel that positive about the baby's health; after all she was sure that it must have crossed his mind. The combination of the cortexiphan, her momentarily dying, their dangerous jobs, not to mention the fact that they were both from different universes must surely put their baby at some degree of risk.
Before she had a chance to question him however a short woman dressed in a black jumper and grey slacks appeared in the corridor and called out Olivia's name. She introduced herself as Dr. Rose, the lead Obstetrician at Boston General before promptly ushering both her and Peter into an examination room.
Upon entering the room she signalled for Olivia to take a seat on the bed in the corner while Peter sat across from her in a bucket chair.
Olivia couldn't help but feel that this room was far colder than the corridor and wasn't too pleased at the prospect of the impending examination.
As Dr. Rose finished drying her hands she turned toward Olivia before asking how she has been feeling. Not content with what appeared to be Olivia's automatic response of 'fine' she promptly turned towards Peter.
'And Dad, how has she really been feeling?' She asked as she disposed of the tissue she had been using to dry her hands.
'If I'm honest I'm a little concerned about her morning sickness. I appreciate most pregnant women get it but it seems to be relentless and I'm worried Olivia and the baby aren't getting the energy they need.' Peter replied, fully aware of the dagger Olivia was giving him across the room.
'Olivia would you say you're sick at least once a day?' Dr Rose asked, seemingly concerned.
'Try at least four times a day' Olivia quipped.
'Ok, well I can administer an anti-nausea shot which should keep it at bay for about a week. Hopefully by then your morning sickness should have calmed down'
Peter smiled at Olivia, almost trying to coax her out of her apparent mood with him. He knew she didn't appreciate being mothered but as she had mentioned outside he was supposed to protect both of them.
'I also noticed from your bloods that your iron levels are a lot lower than what I'd like to see so we're going to have to keep an eye on that as well as your blood pressure' Dr. Rose continued.
The doctors' words almost begun to sound like white noise to Olivia from that point as she struggled to cope with what she had just heard. If she was being rational Olivia would know that anaemia was common in pregnancy, after all Rachel had experienced it with Ella but she couldn't stop going over the fact that it could be more.
Breaking out of her thoughts she could see that both Peter and Dr Rose were looking at her expectantly and she realised they were waiting for her to lay down on the bed ready for the ultrasound.
Peter moved from the corner of the room, taking the seat and placing it next to Olivia and the bed. As Dr Rose prepared the ultrasound machine he noticed the slight curve of the newly formed bump on Olivia's stomach and couldn't help but smile. To him Olivia had always been perfect but now there was something ethereal about her since she had been pregnant. He had been keen to note the changes in her body, almost documenting a new one in his head each day. He particularly liked how soft her hair had become even though Olivia would moan most mornings because it was almost impossible to tease it into a ponytail or bun. Though he would never admit it for fear of sounding crude he had also become particularly fond of her enlarged breasts although he knew they were off bounds at the moment due to their tenderness.
He had noticed that Olivia now had his hand in a vice like grip as they waited for an image to appear on the screen. He gently brought her hand to his lips and kissed it in a comforting manner, all the while looking at Olivia whose eyes were locked on the blank screen in anticipation.
An erratic thumping noise could be heard first shortly following by a blurry black and white image moving across the screen. Even with his knowledge he struggled to tell what part of the baby they were looking at.
Olivia's lips were tightly pursed as he took in every millimetre of the image in front of her, like Peter she had no idea what she was looking at but she could clearly hear a heartbeat and noticed the frantic movement so was able to relax slightly.
Dr Rose zoomed in on the screen and took what seemed to be an eternity to Olivia before she spoke. Olivia took her eyes away from the screen and looked at Dr Rose. Normally she found it so easy to read people but Dr Rose' face was showing no clues as to what she was finding and this concerned Olivia.
After noting down some figures in the booklet on the desk Dr Rose proceeded in highlighting each one of the baby's features to Peter and Olivia.
Once she had taken in every part of her baby's profile Olivia proceeded to ask the question she had dreaded most.
'And…is everything ok? With the baby I mean'
Dr Rose looked up at Peter and Olivia and smiled, 'your baby is perfectly healthy. Their heartbeat is strong and their measurements are exactly where I'd want them to be. Your low iron levels and blood pressure don't seem to be affecting baby at this point but this is something we'll keep an eye on. I'll give you a minute to clean up and get yourself organized and then we can go ahead and book your next appointment.
Meanwhile back at the lab Astrid was going through her daily routine of calming Walter down after another one of his hysterical ramblings.
'Walter, calm down. I have no idea what you're talking about. Who said who's coming?' She asked, clearly confused by Walters latest outburst.
'Six weeks ago after I left the Hospital, the observer he came here to warn me they were coming' Walter stated frustratedly.
'But who's coming Walter?' Astrid asked again.
'The other observers, apparently they're working their way back through time to a point when the world hadn't been destroyed and they are coming now. The observer, my friend mentioned that they had ruined their earth and are coming to claim it from us'
At this point Walter was speaking so fast that it seemed as if every word rolled into one making it extremely difficult for Astrid to understand.
'If what he said is true then we have to tell Peter and Olivia' Astrid mentioned.
'No!' Walter barked, 'No, we can't tell them Astrid, we mustn't. Not yet. They have enough on their plate with the baby and for once everything is perfect. I wont ruin it for them' he continued adamantly.
'Walter they have a right to know. They need to know' Astrid stated, trying to get Walter to think logically.
As Dr Rose exited the room Peter looked at Olivia and noticed that her gaze had fallen on the scan that had just printed out, he smiled to himself as he walked around to pick it up. As he went to hand it to Olivia he noticed that her face was tearstained and was getting redder by the minute. Concerned, he crouched down by the side of the bed and cupped her face in his simultaneously wiping away her tears.
'Hey, hey Olivia what's wrong?' Peter asked.
Olivia let out a huge sigh as she sat up before bursting into a fall flood of tears. It was as if every emotion that she had been holding in for the past week had been let out, along with all of the fears plaguing her mind.
'The baby's ok Peter. They're ok' She sobbed as she buried her face into the crook of his elbow.
Peter chuckled as he noticed his eyes prickle with tears too.
'The baby's ok' He repeated assuringly.
He continued 'what do you say we get out of this freezing room and go see Walter and Astrid. I'm sure its been killing him all day knowing that we we're having the first scan. In fact I bet on him ripping this picture out of my hand faster than I can give it to him'
Olivia couldn't help but laugh knowing that Peter was probably right. For the first time in six weeks she finally felt as if she could begin to enjoy her pregnancy now that the first hurdle was over and if she was honest with herself she couldn't wait to show off the scan.
'Walter we're back' Peter called out as he held the door open for Olivia who was trailing behind with a bag of Chinese takeout.
'Peter! Olivia! So good to see you' Walter exclaimed, practically sprinting over to the two of them and enveloping Peter in a tight hug before taking the bag out of Olivia's hand and emptying out the contents onto the table.
'Hey' Astrid joined in as she made her way to the table also.
'So, don't you have something to give me?' Walter asked gleefully, in a not to dissimilar way to a small child waiting for presents at Christmas.
'Here we go' Olivia replied, taking a perfectly folded sonogram picture out of her coat pocket and handing it to Walter.
'And everything is ok with you and the baby my dear?' Walter continued as he marvelled over the blurry photograph in front of him.
'Everything's perfect' Olivia replied, stressing the word perfect which made her smile to herself.
'Isn't it wonderful Astrid! I'm going to be a grandfather and everything is going to be perfect from now on' Walter exclaimed while making intense eye contact with Astrid, almost begging for her to keep their conversation between the two of them for now.
'Its perfect' Astrid chimed, unhappy about having to keep up appearances.
Later that evening Peter and Olivia lay in bed, enveloped in each others arms with the sonogram propped up against the lamp on Olivia's side of the bed.
'Was it just me or did things seem a little weird with Walter and Astrid earlier?' Olivia asked.
'Hun, Walter is weird, on a daily basis. Besides how do you mean?' Peter replied, stifling a yawn.
'I don't know' Olivia asked as she scrunched her nose 'Almost as if they had been talking about something they clearly didn't want us to know. I don't know, maybe this pregnancy is making me paranoid' She joked before turning around and turning off the light.
'Probably. I love you' Peter said as he rubbed her nose before setting down to sleep.
'We love you too' Olivia smiled.