Before you start reading, let me tell you that I am not a doctor, so I'm only taking my best guess at how this hospital visit would go. So if anything happens that usually wouldn't, you know why. Enjoy!
A few days after telling his sister, Phineas drove Isabella to the hospital with an appointment to see the doctor that had last checked her out. Both of them had questions, the main one being why the signs were coming so early, even if she was expecting twins.
Over the past five days, they had told the rest of their family and close friends. Most of them had been happy for the young couple, but a few of them showed barely hidden disdain at the news. Overall, the good reactions outweighed the bad ones. They hadn't had much success with Isabella's mother though. Linda had called her son the other day, telling him that Vivian had refused to see reason. He hadn't shared this news with Isabella yet, not wanting to cause her any more stress.
They arrived right on time, and were sent into a private room to wait for the doctor. Isabella sat on the patients' bed, Phineas standing right beside her. She gripped his hand tightly, nervous for what the doctor was going to say.
A few minutes later a young woman of about thirty, with long blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail walked into the room with a clipboard in her hand. She had rectangular glasses, and a white coat, as most staff did, and when she spoke, she had a slight French accent.
"Hello Isabella, how have you been doing?" she asked brightly, setting the clipboard on the table.
"Pretty good," she replied. "Phineas, this is Dr. Hadley."
Dr. Hadley shook Phineas' hand, and then glanced at her clip board again.
"So, you said over the phone that you had some questions and concerns," she said. Isabella nodded.
"That's right. The main concern is why everything is happening so early. I know that I'm expecting twins, and that that will affect it, but it still seems strange."
Dr. Hadley nodded, picking up her clip board again.
"Yes, based on what you said, is it a few weeks earlier than normal for you to be showing these signs. Since I saw you a week ago, what else has happened?"
"Well, when we were driving five days ago, I started feeling really sick, and then I ended up throwing up. For the rest of the day though I was perfectly fine. Yesterday night, I started feeling a little dizzy, but it passed after a few minutes. Other than that, I noticed that my stomach is already getting slightly bigger, which I thought didn't happen for another couple of weeks."
The doctor nodded slowly as Isabella was talking, writing notes down on her clip board.
"I agree that it is strange. The nausea is normal, although it usually isn't that serious yet, but being in a car would have made it come more easily. The dizziness is slightly earlier than expected, and so are the physical changes. I'm just going to use my stethoscope and listen to see if I can hear any signs of movement."
Dr. Hadley put down her clip board and picked up a stethoscope that was hanging on the wall, putting it in her ears.
"Would you mind lifting your shirt up a bit so that I don't get any resistance from the fabric?" she asked. Isabella nodded.
"No, of course," she said, and she lifted it up just enough to reveal the small bump in her abdomen. Phineas squeezed her hand reassuringly. The doctor placed the end of her stethoscope on Isabella's stomach, slowly moving it around. She nodded to herself several times, and when she was done she made another note on her clip board.
"From what I can tell, you're already going into the early stages of development. It's not unheard of, but it is rare for a mother, even one of twins, to have such premature signs. It shouldn't cause any problems, but just to be on the safe side, you should come in once every month so that I can keep track of the development. And make sure to come in if there are any problems. Other than that, you're free to go, unless you have any more questions."
Isabella started to shake her head, but Phineas did have something to say.
"I was actually wondering about something," he started. Dr. Hadley nodded for him to continue.
"Do you know how it happened? Isabella told me that she explained everything to you, but I still don't understand how she could be pregnant. She'd been on birth control for months."
"I'm afraid I can only give you my professional opinion," said the doctor. "Due to the fact that the only protection you used was her birth control, and because she hadn't even taken it yet that day, it was possible for something to have slipped through, which seems to be the case."
Phineas nodded, knowing that was best answer he would get.
"Thank you Dr. Hadley," he said, shaking her hand again. Isabella said her thank you and the two of them left with an appointment scheduled for next month.
When they arrived back at home, Phineas found twenty messages on his work phone, which he had mostly ignored since finding out. He sighed. He had taken the last week off work to be with Isabella, but he was starting to see now that his absence wasn't going unnoticed. He would have to get back to work soon. Isabella saw him looking at the phone and smiled.
"Phineas, you can go ahead and answer those calls," she said, giving him a soft kiss. "I don't expect you to stay home every day for the next seven months."
Phineas knew she was right, so he nodded.
"Alright," he conceded. "But I'm still going to take days off more often."
"Don't you have a limited number of days you can take off?"
"Not exactly. I'm not technically my own boss, but I do make my own schedule. I work when and where I'm needed, and if I want days off then I get them. It's just that the longer I'm away, the more there is to do when I get back. I guess I'll take the rest of today off and go back in tomorrow to catch up. And what about you? I think it would be best if you stayed home."
Isabella sighed, knowing he was right. Although she was barely two months pregnant, Dr. Hadley had said that she was developing at a rapid pace, and so she would probably get more symptoms fairly soon.
"Depending on how the next few days go I might go back in for a while. I'll stay home for a few more days and decide then whether or not I'll go back into work. Anyways, I'm sure they can handle without me."
Phineas nodded, satisfied with her decision, and then started towards the kitchen
"Alright, I'll make lunch and then I'll check the messages."
Isabella smiled. Phineas had insisted on doing all the cooking and housework lately. It wasn't that he never did it, but usually they shared the work.
"You don't need to do everything for me. I'm perfectly capable of making my own meals."
"I know, but I want to do what I can for you," he said. Isabella rolled her eyes jokingly, and then remembered something.
"Oh yeah, did your mom talk to mine?" she asked, smiling hopefully. Phineas hesitated, and then sighed, knowing he had to tell her.
"Yeah, she did. Your mom still feels the same way she did when we went to see her."
Isabella's smile faded, and she nodded sadly.
"My mom can be like that. When she gets her head around something, she'll stick with it no matter what."
Phineas frowned in concern and walked over to her, taking her hand.
"Don't worry, she'll come around. It just takes time."
He squeezed her hand slightly, and Isabella nodded.
"I hope you're right."
The following morning, Phineas went off to work, leaving Isabella with the house to herself. She made herself some tea and sat down on the couch to read. But her mind kept wandering. She was mostly thinking about her mother. It had been a week since they had told her, and Isabella hadn't talked to her since. She thought about calling her, but knew that it would only make her feel worse. Maybe she would go visit in a while, once things cooled down. If she went over now the most likely thing that would happen would be more yelling. Her mother wasn't mad at her; just the opposite really. She blamed Phineas for Isabella's unexpected pregnancy, and refused to listen when Isabella tried to tell her that it was completely her doing. Typical. Blame the boyfriend.
After twenty minutes Isabella put down her book and turned on the TV instead. There were no good shows on, so she settled for the news. Some guy arrested for trying to rob a coffee shop, a street fair happening in a week. She was about to turn it off and call her friends when she saw a very familiar face on the screen. Isabella smiled wide.
The reporter was downtown, standing just outside a large construction site. Standing next to her was Phineas, about to be interviewed. He was dressed in his business suit, and he was talking about the site.
"So I hear you've taken some time off work lately," said the reporter. "Would you tell our viewers why that is?"
"Actually, it's because I recently learned that my girlfriend is expecting twins. I wanted to stay home with her for a while, but she insisted that I come back to work today. Love you Isabella!"
He said the last part facing the camera and waved, before getting on with the interview. Isabella laughed. She watched him talk about the site of a few more minutes, and then when it finished she got up to put her empty mug in the kitchen when the phone rang. She briefly checked the caller ID, seeing the hospital's number, so she answered it immediately.
"Hello?"
"Hello, Isabella? It's Dr. Hadley."
"Oh, hello Dr. Hadley," said Isabella setting her cup down and sitting down on a stool. "What can I do for you?"
"Well, I was reviewing your test results earlier and I noticed something a little off. I'm sure it's nothing to be worried about, but I think it would be safest if you came in tomorrow for a brief test. Would that be alright?"
"Yes, that would be fine. I can be there around nine o'clock tomorrow morning if that's alright."
"That's perfect. I'll see you then. And if you could please bring any medication that you've taken in the last month, I'd like to have a look at it. Have a nice day."
Isabella said goodbye and hung up, trying not be too worried. Dr. Hadley had said it was nothing to be worried about. Then again, sometimes doctors said that at first to make the patient more comfortable until they knew for sure what was wrong.
Isabella put her mug away and picked up the phone again to call one of her friends, needing to talk to someone to clear her head. She was about to call Gretchen, but then she paused, and hit the end button, punching in a different number. After two rings the phone was answered.
"Hello?"
"Hey Candace, it's Isabella. Are you busy right now?"
"Hi Isabella. No, I'm not busy, I'm just watching TV. Did you see Phineas get interviewed?"
"Yeah, I was watching it earlier. If you're not too busy then, do you think we could talk?"
"Of course we can. What's on your mind?"
Well, short chapter, but whatever. At least it's over 2000 words. So, because of school starting, I'll be updating less often, but I promise I'll still finish the story. Let me know what you thought!