Thank you so much for the reviews, I love them. Please keep them coming, I want to know what you guys are thinking! :) For the guest who thinks Rachel's going to die of dehydration: don't worry, bb, her favourite drink is water, she's going to be okay, I promise!
seven.
shots
Dr Lewis patiently explains (again) to a very scared Rachel how to inject Puregon 600 IU into her own tummy, four digits to the side of her belly button. They're not using real needles or anything, Dr Lewis is really only just explaining to Rachel how everything the works, but Rachel's still very scared. She knew, she knew she was going to have to deal with needles and she positively freaks out. She even cries a little, but Finn manages to call her down quick enough so it doesn't escalate to a full sobbing session.
Rachel then asks Dr Lewis to teach Finn, so if she has another "minor breakdown", he can help her through the seven days of needle torture as she so candidly describes it. Furthermore, she is incredibly scared of doing something wrong and ruining the entire process. They have been through enough already; she does not wish to have another weight added to her already heavy shoulders.
Dr Lewis keeps her peaceful demeanour, entirely accustomed to this expected behaviour from her patients. She gently demonstrates and guides Finn through the entire process, repeating everything twice when he asks her to. He pays close attention, absorbing all the information, not interested in messing this up in the slightest. After all, Rachel is not the only one afraid in this situation. After Dr Lewis finishes explaining, she asks Rachel if it's okay for Finn so inject the first shot. Rachel eagerly nods, more than happy to let her husband take charge.
"Great job, Mr Hudson," Dr Lewis congratulates, giving Finn a small smile.
Rachel is next, she whimpers at first, but perseveres through her fear and follows Dr Lewis' instructions. Her hands are shaking and she's biting her lower lip hard enough to almost draw blood, but she does it. She injects a dummy shot to test the waters and breathes a sigh of relief after it's done.
After the entire stressful process, they sit down and talk, ultimately coming to the decision Finn will give Rachel the shots. Rachel happily agrees, giving Finn an encouraging smile when his own falters for a moment, his mouth hanging open from the anxiety running through his veins. Dr Lewis also reassures him, her supportive words making him compose himself and agree to their suggestion.
"Another thing, Mr and Mrs Hudson," Dr Lewis says. "Because the intake of hormones is going to be tremendous in the next couple of days, Mrs Hudson has to make sure to eat plenty of protein and avoid anything with caffeine, no chocolate or coffee or anything of the sort, understood?" Finn quickly nods, already thinking about recipes to make for Rachel. "This is going to be like biggest PMS period you have ever gone through, Mrs Hudson, so watch out for what you eat and drink. And make sure to call me if you have any questions," Dr Lewis concludes.
Rachel nods, making sure to remember everything that's been said to her. "I guess this is one of the times to best appreciate the fact that I have a chef for a husband, huh?" Rachel jokes, making both Finn and Dr Lewis smile.
~.~
The second shot is significantly less stressful than the first one.
Dr Lewis instructs them to inject the shot in the evening, around 9pm, given that the first one was given to Rachel at 7:43pm, so she has to take the next six shots at a similar time, not stretching farther than ninety minutes, either before or after than the first one.
Finn talks to his sous chef and lets her know he has to leave the restaurant before the dinner shift is over for a couple of days. He doesn't let out much detail, as much as he considers Kitty to be a friend. Finn has been planning on giving Kitty more responsibilities anyway and this is a great opportunity. Especially considering Rachel's new treatment and the possible future because if this all really pans out, he will be spending a lot of time at home with his wife and (hopefully) baby. Fertility treatments are stressful and emotionally draining, Finn would never forgive himself if Rachel felt a tiny bit alone in the process, so he really wants to make sure he's there for her every step of the way, just he has always been, ever since they got married.
Kitty is thrilled with the news, of course. She does a happy dance around the kitchen, super excited to be in charge of everything, even if it's just for a few days. Finn laughs at her enthusiastic behaviour and reminds her to be careful and to call him if she needs anything or if something happens. After sobering up and listening to everything Finn has to say, Kitty says her goodbyes as Finn heads out the door, ready to go home and be with Rachel.
Finn texts Rachel that he's on his way home, making sure to remember her to take the medication out of the refrigerator so it can cool off to room temperature. When he gets home, Rachel is waiting for him in the living room, anxiously biting her fingernails and pacing back and forth. A worried look on her face as she talks to herself.
"Hi, sweetheart," Finn says.
Rachel comes out of her trance-like state and turns towards Finn. "Finn! You're finally here! Let's do this already, I'm already freaking out!" she yells.
Finn goes over to where she's standing, giving her a tender kiss and rubbing her shoulders in his large hands, trying to soothe her anxious state.
"It's okay, baby, I'm just going to wash my hands and we'll get this over with," Finn says. As he's heading to the washroom, he tells her, "Remember to breathe, Rachel. It's going to be fine."
When Finn comes back, Rachel reaches for the medication case on the table and hands it over to Finn, giving him an apprehensive look.
Finn tries to give her a small smile. "Rachel, please don't look at me like that, you're making me kinda nervous."
Rachel frowns sadly. "I'm so sorry, honey," She reaches for him, putting her hands on either side of his face and kissing him gently. "You know I'm just really… really afraid of needles," she pouts and shivers a bit.
Finn rubs his thumbs against her crinkling forehead and kisses her temple, hugging her closer, trying to call her down. "It's okay, Rach. It's going to be over before you know it."
In a small voice, Rachel asks, "Promise?"
Finn gives her a comforting smile and says, "I promise, beautiful."
He takes the pen out of the case and sets everything up. After disinfecting the pen, he kneels down on the floor, and asks Rachel to lift up her shirt and count four fingers from her belly button, just like Dr Lewis explained the day before.
She does as he asks and Finn kisses her lower belly in return, trying to give her some strength. It seems to work for like, two seconds. After that, Rachel's chest starts moving rapidly and she's breathing hard, looking down at Finn trying to contain her tears from flowing.
Finn looks up at her and gives her a soft look. Stretching his neck, he presses his lips against her stomach again, dropping kisses all over her exposed skin. Putting his free hand on her side, he squeezes her hip softly, letting her know he's not going to do anything before she's fully prepared.
Rachel puts her hand on Finn's hair, combing her fingers through his hair and taking in a deep breath to calm herself. She closes her eyes and focuses her attention on her husband. He truly is her rock, consistently keeping her steady and safe ever since the very first day he met her.
"Whenever you're ready, sweetheart," Finn whispers against her skin.
Rachel inhales and exhales a couple of times before breathing out, "Okay," she gulps. "I'm ready."
Finn nods and gives her belly one last kiss before disinfecting the area that he's supposed to inject the shot. He leans his head back, trying to see what he's doing. He pinches her skin and he presses the pen against Rachel's skin. He can hear her soft voice mumbling to herself that she's okay as she keeps her eyes firmly closed.
Finn pushes the pen against her skin and Rachel gasps when the needle penetrates her skin. After waiting the necessary five seconds, Finn takes the needle out of Rachel skin and she cries out softly. Finn reaches for the piece of cotton humidified with disinfectant and cleans Rachel's skin again. Hooking his thumb on the hem of her shirt, he pulls it down and kisses her cloth covered stomach.
"There, we're all set," Finn says, collecting everything and making sure to dispose the contents correctly, just like Dr Lewis said.
Rachel lets out a long, heavy breath and shakes her head. "That actually was not the worst thing in the world," she declares with a proud smile.
~.~
The third day is kind of a mess. And it's actually more stressful than the second one. Or the first one.
Of course, Rachel controlled herself very well in front of Dr Lewis, otherwise nothing would ever top the first shot. Rachel might be the most emotional person Finn has ever met, but showing weakness in front of anyone – who's not him – is not something she likes to do at all.
First of all, Rachel wakes up with a huge zit on her chin. Finn doesn't mention anything as he brings her breakfast in bed, most likely he didn't realised it because he's not a Drama Queen like Rachel or because he didn't want to upset her. Nevertheless, it is quite upsetting for Rachel to look at their bathroom mirror and see a pimple staring back at her.
What is she, fifteen?
It's been way more than a decade that her face had the absolute displeasure of sporting a disgusting pimple. It takes a while, but ultimately, Rachel takes a few calming breaths as she puts some of her favourite calming songs to play as she gets ready to take a shower and head to work. It works out better than she expected and she's glad. Of course, if Alina Baraz & Galimatias can't make her calm down, nothing else can.
Well, nothing else except for Finn, of course. Rachel smiles softly thinking about him, her heart filling with love instantly, a calming atmosphere establishing itself around her as she focuses on her breathing, inhaling and exhaling as smoothly as she possibly can.
Plus, it doesn't hurt to remember that this is only happening so she can have a baby of her own, inside of her. That about makes it all worth it. Even though she has a feeling that literally every single human she encounters today will stare directly at her face.
Second of all, Rachel has an awful day at work. She gets home irritated after one of her students literally strips off all of his clothes and pees on her shoes.
Pees.
Pee.
She has pee on her shoe. Pee.
She obviously ran to the bathroom right after she made sure Bernard was clean and proper once again. She might have been irritated with the little boy, but she's nothing if not an awesome and patient teacher, as Finn lovingly likes to claim.
When she gets home, Finn is already there waiting for her. He came home early to try and make Rachel relax for her third shot. She texts that she's leaving the school so Finn makes the math on his head how long will take Rachel to get home. Setting up a bubble bath for her, he waits in their room.
Rachel hastily enters their bedroom, she's huffing and she has an annoyed look on her face, muttering something under her breath about her students always ruining the best names for babies. She almost misses Finn amidst her rant.
"Hi, Rach," Finn says. Rachel stops mid-rant and looks at Finn, her posture relaxing the second she spots her husband.
Finn gives her an experimental smile and she returns it, even though it doesn't quite reach her eyes.
"Hi, honey," she sighs. Finn gives her a questioning look and she points at her face, trying to make him see the biggest pimple known to man (okay, not really, but Rachel certainly feel like it's huge). Finn dramatically sticks his lower lip out, offering her a sympathetic look.
Finn carefully walks over to her, extending his hands and she takes them, letting him envelop her smaller hands in his larger ones. Snuggling into his chest, she sighs again.
"Aside from the pimple, is everything okay?" Finn asks, kissing the top of her head.
Rachel exhales and slowly nods her head. "Relatively. Bernard peed on my shoe today."
Finn's eyes widen. He bites the inside of his cheek to keep from smiling, knowing better than to do anything to upset Rachel further.
Rachel scoffs again remembering how it all went down. "Ugh, I'm going to take a shower, I need to wash this day away."
"I actually set something up for you, Rach."
Rachel gives him a hopeful smile. "Really?"
Finn nods his head, offering Rachel his hand. She takes it and he pulls her towards their bathroom. Opening the door, she can already smell her favourite candles. A soft smile creeps up to her face and she kisses the side of Finn's arm.
Finn then helps her take off her clothes and kisses her softly as Rachel settles in the bathtub, a satisfied moan escaping her lips when the warm water gets in contact with her skin. He gives her space to relax, heading to the kitchen to make them dinner.
Forty minutes later, Rachel comes down to the kitchen in her lilac robe. She hears Finn humming a quiet song to himself as he's finishing up their dinner. Rachel can already smell that he did one of her favourite dishes, sautéed zucchini with cherry tomatoes, garlic and basil. It's such a simple dish, but it's her ultimate comfort food. Well, that along with mashed potatoes. And Finn's special chicken, which he seasons with her most beloved herbs.
Rachel's stomach grumbles as she gets closer to Finn. She eyes the stove and sees that's he's doing exactly what she has been thinking about.
Sensing her presence, Finn turns and gives Rachel a dimpled smile. He leans down and offers her a tender kiss, which she gladly takes, rubbing her small hands on his lower back. Finn groans appreciatively against her lips and Rachel knows exactly what to do next, so she moves to stand directly behind him. Sliding her hands underneath his t-shirt, she presses her fingertips on his skin, rubbing her thumbs in circular patterns all over his back, massaging his muscles and making Finn groan in delight again.
After she's done, Finn turns around and kisses her again. "Thank you."
Rachel grins against his lips and winks at him.
"I already set up the table, do you want to sit down?" Finn asks, "I'll bring the food over in a sec."
Rachel nods her head and sits down on the dining table, waiting for Finn.
They have a lovely dinner, Rachel telling Finn exactly how Bernard peed on her shoes. By the time she gets to the end of the story, she's giggling, completely forgetting about her early annoyance with the small boy.
After dinner and a few episodes of Brooklyn Nine-Nine on Netflix, it's time for Rachel's shot. She starts getting anxious and breathing heavy as Finn takes the medication case out of the refrigerator, letting it cool off until it reaches the correct temperature.
By the time everything is already set up, Rachel is whimpering and trembling. Finn has a hard time pinching her skin as she keeps clenching her insides and making a sound Finn could ever only describe as a wounded puppy getting poked at. Repeatedly.
Finn inhales slowly, letting Rachel take her time. He keeps remembering himself that Rachel is very much allowed to have phobias. He thinks about everything they have ever been through and he has to give it to her, she is one awesome and strong woman. Of course, not being able to have children thus far has been rough on both of them, but Rachel surely feels the pain more deeply and intensely.
"Rachel, you have to help me here," Finn says slowly. "Please, baby. You can't keep moving your body away."
Rachel doesn't answer, only whimpers harder and makes a sound at the back of her throat which sounds like a strangled cry and Finn feels like his heart is seriously constricting itself from her pain filled sounds.
Finn tries again. He pinches her skin and Rachel sucks in her stomach, making it slip from Finger's fingers.
"Baby, I don't want to upset you. Ever," Finn says. He gives her a small smile and asks, "Would you like to do it yourself?"
Rachel shakes her head, a few tears slipping out of her eyes as she slowly fills her lungs with oxygen, letting out a long breath through her trembling lips. Finn's face softens at the painful look on her face, she honestly looks in agony.
He sits on the back of his heels, putting the pen on top of the living room table. Rubbing his thumbs against Rachel's tights, he murmurs Rachel's favourite song trying to get her to call down.
Rachel chokes out a sob, leaning forward and letting Finn rest his head against her stomach as he sings for her. Letting a few more tears slide out of her eyes, Rachel inhales sharply and determinately says, "Okay, let's do this."
"Are you sure?" Finn asks, already reaching for the cotton soaked in disinfectant.
"I'm sure," she says, trying to sound resolutely. She nods her head and adds, "Do it."
Finn quickly cleans her skin again. He pinches her, taking the pen from the centre table and pressing against Rachel's skin. After the five seconds, he removes the pen and cleans Rachel's skin again.
"All set, Rach," he says. "I'll just clean this stuff and be right back."
He steps into the kitchen to put the case back in the refrigerator, but not before discarding the needle into the sharps bin and putting it in a plastic bag.
After doing everything correctly, Finn goes back to the living room. Rachel is sitting by one of the couches, crying softly, her body folded on the edge of the sofa as her head rests on her hands. Finn can hear her sniffling and it breaks his heart. Even though Rachel has already made peace with letting Finn see all parts of her personality, she still feels extremely self-conscious, especially when she feels her like her being upset is not justified in some kind of way.
Finn sits by her side and rubs his large, warm hand against her back.
"It's okay, sweetheart," he whispers softly.
Closing his arm around her, Rachel leans against Finn's chest. She pulls her legs over the couch and folds her body trying to fit into Finn's embrace.
He picks her up and carries her to their bedroom. After crying for as long as she wants, she finally breathes properly, looking up at Finn with her swollen tear-stained face. Finn gives her a tentative smile and she returns it slowly.
"I'm so sorry for being silly about this, Finn," she hiccups "I feel like such a baby."
Finn shakes his head, pressing his thumb against cheek. "Don't worry about, Rach. I can only imagine how hard this is for you," he says earnestly. "Everyone has the right to have their fears, it's okay." He remembers something and adds, "You know I'm terrified of dolls."
Rachel lets out an involuntary giggle at Finn's words. He really is scared of dolls. One time Grace was holding a doll and came near him, he couldn't move for ten straight minutes. Rachel had to take him to the ER because his neck was so stiff, he honestly got that tense.
"I know, honey…" she says as she presses her fingers against his t-shirt. "But you never cried when you got near one."
"Well, not now," he tells her. "But I used to weep uncontrollably at their sight when I was a kid."
"Yeah?"
Finn grins at the hopeful look in her eyes. "Sadly," he says.
Rachel sighs, a few hiccups still slipping from her lips, and gives him a small smile. "I do feel better now."
"I'm glad," Finn chuckles and kisses her forehead.
~.~
After their talk the night before, the fourth shot is significantly less stressful.
Well, kind of.
In the morning, Rachel goes to Dr Lewis office for an ultrasound just to make sure the medication is working and her body is producing the expected amount of follicles. After Rachel receives the good news that everything is going perfectly, she calls Finn and screams in joy for about ten minutes, Finn listening to everything closely and cheering Rachel on. Rachel then leaves Dr Lewis' office and drives to the school.
Rachel gets a text from Santana in the middle of the day asking if she has to bring any drinks for tonight's girls' night or if Rachel already has everything covered. After freaking out for a while, not knowing if she could invite the girls and send them home before 9pm – which, honestly, is very unlikely, particularly when they start to get tipsy – or blow them off completely, Rachel texts Santana back telling her she's not feeling too well and would rather if they could re-schedule their girls' night.
Santana, being… well, Santana… sends Rachel a text with many expletives saying she has been waiting since forever for Sam and Mike to watch Grace, Alice, and Jennifer and this is not going to be a wasted opportunity. She's going to Rachel's house even if she's bedridden.
Rachel gives in and by 7pm, Quinn, Santana, Tina, and Mercedes walk into Finn and Rachel's house with huge smiles on their faces and plenty of wine to go around for everyone. Well, except for Rachel, but her friends don't need to know that (yet). Especially because Rachel called Finn and asked him to buy organic grape juice and she intends on drinking it tonight, never happier that it looks exactly like Santana's favourite red wine.
Two hours later, they're sitting on the couch in the basement talking about their obsession with Rosa Diaz and Brooklyn Nine-Nine's awesomeness when Finn texts Rachel.
Please come up to our bedroom, Mrs Hudson. ;)
Before Rachel has a chance to pick up her phone, though, Santana grabs it and reads Finn's text message out loud.
"Ooooohh!" she teases. "Are you going to give Mr Hudson a little something something, Mrs Hudson?"
Quinn, Tina, and Mercedes laugh, all believing Finn is texting Rachel for something sexual. Rachel would be annoyed, but at this point her friends so intoxicated she can't bring herself to care.
She rolls her eyes and gets up from her seat, heading upstairs to their bedroom. "I'll see what this is about and I'll be right back."
Rachel goes to their bedroom and locks the door. She then goes over to their bed bench, where Finn is already waiting for her. He gives her a dopey smile, stretching his neck and pouting his lips, which she takes in a sweet kiss, resting her small hands on either side of his face. Finn gives her a dreamy grin when they separate.
"Ready?" he asks.
She nods her head, closing her eyes and lifting her blouse. Finn wipes her belly with antiseptic before grabbing the pen and pressing against her skin. Rachel utters a distressing sound, but fights through her fear, not moving away from Finn or clenching her muscles.
When Finn is done, he beams at her. "I'm so proud of you, sweetheart," he says genuinely. "You did really well tonight."
Rachel returns his smile with one of her own, leaning down and kissing him. She tries to deepen the kiss, but a series of continuous knocks on their bedroom door interrupts their tender moment. She and Finn part their lips, eyebrows furrowing, an annoyed look on both of their faces.
They can't hear exactly what's being said, the only distinguished sound if Santana literally howling again and again. Finn heaves, miffed by the abrupt disruption. He reaches for the cotton atop the bed and wipes Rachel's skin again, pulling the hem of her blouse down.
Rachel is going for the door when Finn stops her, "Wait a second, let me clean this before you let them in, Rach."
He does as he says, closing the medicine case and discarding the needle into the sharps bin. He ducks into their bathroom, putting the medicine case inside the mini fridge under the sink and throwing the sharps bin in the trash can. When he's done he gestures to Rachel that she can open the door.
Santana, Quinn, Tina, and Mercedes stumble into Finn and Rachel's bedroom, giggling drunkenly and making sexual sounds that make Finn wonder if they're imitating humans or animals. Actually, depending on the sound and the person making them, by what he knows about his friends' sex lives, it could really be both. He sighs as Quinn and Mercedes throw themselves onto their bed, climbing on top of each other and laughing madly.
Finn breathes out and exits the bedroom, leaving the women to exhaust themselves from so much laughter.
~.~
When Rachel wakes up on the fifth day, her abdomen is so stretched that she has to take a second look. She looks pregnant already. Well, judging by the pregnant bellies her friends had in the past. Her ginormous breasts are not helping either, feeling like two melons on her chest. Rachel makes a mental note to complain about it to Dr Lewis on their schedule ultrasound later today.
Finn enters their bedroom with a breakfast tray on his hands, smiling as he spots Rachel's already awake. Getting closer to their bed, he leans down and puts the tray beside Rachel then kisses her forehead.
"Finn, you have to see this," she says, pushing the covers away from her body. Rachel raises her shirt over her stomach and breasts and Finn's eyes widen at the sight in front of him.
"Holy shit, Rach, you look pregnant."
"I know, right?!" Rachel exclaims, placing her small hand over the small bump.
Finn sits down by her side and extends his hand towards her belly. He hesitates for a moment and then asks her, "Is it creepy if I ask to touch it?"
Rachel laughs softly, shaking her head. "Of course not, honey. Here," she says, taking his hand and putting it on her belly. "Just don't expect any movement or anything, there's not a baby inside of me."
"Not yet," Finn says in a soft, yet firm voice. He has a look of pure fascination on his face as he touches Rachel's belly and tears start welling in Rachel's eyes.
Situating her small hand on his cheek, she pulls Finn closer and kisses him, pouring all the love her small self can into the kiss. Finn kisses her back with the same intensity. As Finn lays Rachel back to show just how much he loves her, her breakfast is left over bed, completely forgotten.
~.~
After they're done with their morning activities, Finn and Rachel head to Dr Lewis' office for another ultrasound. Dr Lewis once again reassures the couple that everything is going as expected as the three of them quietly celebrate everything going well.
They're leaving Dr Lewis office when Rachel convinces Finn to go shop for new blouses. It takes a great amount of pouting, but Finn finally caves in. Rachel ends up buying as many tunics, knot fronts, drawstrings, peasants, and wraps as Finn can possibly pay for (not really, but she does buy half the store… kinda). She even picks out the same model in different colours because she loves them so much.
Finn originally asked if they were going to pregnant stores, but Rachel promptly declined.
Sure, she looks pregnant, but she's not really pregnant. She's not about to get ahead of herself, no matter how much her heart wants to throw caution to the wind and go on a shopping spree the entire day.
By the time 9pm rolls around, Rachel is completely calm and collected, receiving plenty of kisses as Finn sets everything over the kitchen island.
"I'm so proud of you for being calm, baby," he says, leaning in and kissing her again.
Rachel smiles into the kiss and brushes her nose against Finn's, giving him the sweetest eskimo kiss of his life so far.
Finn kneels on the floor and cleans her belly, giving her the shot and Rachel doesn't make a single noise, too busy admiring her handsome husband and her noticeably large lower belly and breasts. She certainly does not want to get ahead of herself, but seeing a bump on her stomach near to Finn's beautiful face makes her heart expand because she knows this is exactly what she has been dreaming for so many years: Finn and a baby of their own. That's it. She doesn't want anything else.
Rachel's musings keep her occupied enough because the next thing she knows, Finn is lowering her shirt and kissing her covered stomach, a loving look on his face.
Oh yes, this is definitely everything she has ever wanted.
~.~
The sixth shot is the best shot. Rachel asks Finn if she can do it herself and he beams and obviously agrees, incredibly happy Rachel is taking control of the situation.
Finn makes sure to stand by her side as she goes through the entire process.
"Remove the cap from the pen and unscrew the body from the cartridge holder," Finn instructs. Rachel does as he says with a determined look on her face. "Put the Puregon cartridge into the cartridge holder with that metal cap first, screwing it again," he points to the part he's talking about. "Make sure there's no gap, Rach. The point of the arrow at the end of the cartridge holder has to be perfectly aligned with that mark."
"Like this?" Rachel asks, making sure she's doing everything correctly.
Finn nods. "That's right, babe. Now you have to clean the very edge of the pen with disinfectant. Here," he says, reaching for something over the kitchen island. "I already soaked a swab with it."
Rachel picks up the swab from Finn's hand and cleans the pen. He then hands her the outer needle shield, already without the paper seal to speed up the process.
"Push the end of the cartridge holder firmly into the needle shield and screw it securely," Finn says, keeping a close eye to the way Rachel's hands move. "Give me the shield, we're going to need it later to discard the needle." Rachel hands the shield to Finn and he puts it over the kitchen island. "Now hold the pen with the needle pointing upwards and tap the cartridge holder gently with your fingernail to help the bubbles rise to the top of the needle. It's okay if a drop of fluid comes out." Rachel does as he says, a few drops of fluid coming out and making her squeal a little. She giggles afterwards, her tongue outside of her mouth.
"Is this okay?"
"Perfect," Finn reassures her, a small smile on his face. "Now dial the orange dosage knob until you can see your dosage." Rachel reaches the correct number and Finn nods. "Let me just disinfect your belly first. Put four fingers by the side of your belly button, please, Mrs Hudson." Rachel reaches with her free hand and does as Finn asked. Before cleaning the area, Finn kisses Rachel's stomach, giving her an encouraging smile. He cleans the area and continues on instructing Rachel, "Now pinch your skin, as much as your small, cute hands can."
Rachel lets out a small laugh, her skin slipping away from her fingers. "Don't make me laugh, Finn!"
Finn raises his hands and says, "Sorry, baby. Your hands are really small and cute, though." He winks at her and adds, "Just make sure the needle is at an angle of 90 degrees."
Rachel shakes her head, a small smile on her face. She pinches her skin again and asks, "How do I know if it's the correct angle?"
"I'll help you, sweetheart." He puts his hands straight in the air, at a perpendicular angle against Rachel's belly, careful not to touch her disinfected skin. "Just rest the pen over my hand." Rachel does that and Finn adds, "Now fully press the orange injection button and wait five seconds before removing the needle."
Rachel takes a deep breath and pushes the button, biting her lower lip as she waits for the five seconds to go by.
"You can remove it now, Rach," Finn says, a proud smile on his face. Rachel removes the needle, her face the very sign of relief. Finn hands her a piece of cotton soaked with disinfectant, and asks for the pen back, so he can dispose of everything.
Rachel cleans her belly as Finn removes the needle from the pen with the outer shield, discarding it inside of the sharps bin. He turns to face Rachel, the proud smile still fixed on his face.
"I did it, Finn! I did it!" she exclaims, jumping up and down and clapping her hands. She throws her head back, a huge beam on her gorgeous face.
"You really did! I'm so proud of you, baby," Finn says warmly. He opens his arms and Rachel pushes her body to his, jumping on him and snaking her legs around his, giving him a hard kiss on his perfect mouth.
~.~
By the time the seventh day (and shot) comes, Rachel is more bothered by her salient stomach, huge breasts and one hundred pimples than the shot itself. It is absolutely insane that in just seven days her stomach seemed to grow enough to be mistaken for a like, a three month pregnancy belly. Just three days ago it was not this huge!
She's sure she's going to love when there's an actual baby inside of her, but right now it really hurts and it's so uncomfortable, her ovaries feels heavy and her lower belly is so swollen that even Finn's soft touches hurt and make her want to cry. And that alone makes her want to cry even more because if one thing she knows to be certain on this Earth is that her husband's touch can sooth and calm her down in any given situation. Not being able to receive his loving touch is enough to upset her further.
Oh the flip side, her new blouses are an absolute delight to cover her prominent stomach and breasts. She had to stop herself from going back to the stores and buying more.
Today they have to go back to Dr Lewis' office again so she can monitor Rachel's follicles and particularly their size. Dr Lewis has to make sure they are big enough which, duh, seems pretty obvious to Rachel that her ovaries are filled with gigantic follicles if the size of her lower belly is proof of anything at all.
Not wanting to be overly confident though, Rachel sits at the waiting room biting the inside of her cheek because she's so anxious, Finn is holding her hand the entire time, pressing his knuckles against her skin. Sure, they've been coming to Dr Lewis office on the regular, but Dr Lewis said to wait until the seventh day to check the size of the follicles, the days before she was worried about the amount of follicles, not specifically their size.
"Mr and Mrs Hudson, please follow me," the assistant says. She guides them to another room, not the one they're used to. Rachel has a minor panic attack before she remembers that Dr Lewis office doesn't have an ultrasound machine. She laughs to herself, receiving a strange look from Finn. Leaning over and kissing the side of his arm, she shakes her head, signalling everything's okay.
Dr Lewis is already waiting for them, getting up and greeting them warmly. "Hello again, Mr and Mrs Hudson," she says. "Rachel, can you please lie down for me, and lift up your shirt?"
Rachel does as she's told, pulling her shirt up to her upper stomach and pushing her pants down, making sure to give Dr Lewis plenty of room to work.
"Today we're going to make sure the follicles are at the right size. How is everything with the medication since I last saw you, Mrs Hudson?" Dr Lewis asks as she applies the gel on Rachel's belly.
"Yes, everything is fine. I mean, kind of..."
"What do you mean?" Dr Lewis inquires.
"Just… my breasts are so, so huge and there are five thousand pimples on my face…" Rachel pouts. She adjusts her body so she can be comfortable. Given that she never had this many ultrasounds before, she wants to see whatever is happening on her body, she doesn't even care there's not a baby inside of her. Yet, like Finn said. "My ovaries are also incredibly swollen, it's just like the last couple of days I have been more uncomfortable than ever in my entire life," she adds.
"I'm sorry if you're uncomfortable, Mrs Hudson. But this is great news, believe it or not," she says, offering Rachel a gentle smile. "All of that means that the follicles are growing as expected!" Dr Lewis exclaims, excited about the great news.
Finn and Rachel share a small smile, Finn leaning and kissing Rachel's forehead.
Dr Lewis starts the ultrasound. After a few moments of moving around, she says, "Rachel, your follicles are great right now." Moving her other hand expertly over the keyboard, Dr Lewis adds, "We need them to be around 18 to 20 millimetres, like I explained a few days ago. From what I can see here," she says, leaning towards the screen and narrowing her eyes, searching for something. "Yours are about 16-17 millimetres so that means you'll only have to take Orgalutran today and tomorrow, I want you back tomorrow and the next day so we can monitor them closely."
"Wow, is that really necessary?" Finn blurts out. He gives Dr Lewis a sheepish smile when Rachel hits his chest with the back of her hand.
Dr Lewis chuckles at their interaction, "Yes, Mr Hudson. We don't want to miss these beautiful follicles. We have to keep an eye on them to make sure they're just the right size. The human body is like a perfect instrument, everything has its right time and place to happen." Finn and Rachel nod at their doctor's words. "We are done here for now," Dr Lewis says, "I'm just going to clean Rachel's belly and we'll go back to my office to discuss things furthers."
~.~
"Finn, she called my follicles beautiful! BEAUTIFUL!" Rachel exclaims. "I didn't even know this was a thing! My follicles are BEAUTIFUL!" She throws her hands up in the air, a winner smile on her face.
Finn chuckles at his wife's enthusiasm, nodding his head and giving her a soft look. "Everything about you is beautiful, Rach."
"Awww! I love you so much," she says as she squeezes her small hand over his face, bringing their lips together. "That was kind of cheesy, honey, but I'm going to eat that up because my follicles are BEAUTIFUL!"
~.~
It's 9pm before both realise it. Finn is setting up both medications whilst Rachel is still chatting away about her beautiful follicles and how she found another woman on this online forum she is a part of that also has beautiful follicles.
"It's like we're beautiful follicles twins, Finn!" she exclaims, her eyes wide and shining and she's so happy about follicles, Finn can't help but smile at her joyful words.
"I'm glad you found a beautiful follicle twin, Rach," he says, lifting up her shirt and cleansing her skin. He gives her the Puregon shot. Rachel doesn't even flinch, still muttering to herself how amazing it feels to have beautiful follicles. Beautiful follicles! Finn chuckles, quickly disinfecting the other side of her belly and giving her the Orgalutran shot, which she also doesn't realise, too busy staring into the distance and shaking her head, as if she can't believe the words Dr Lewis told her hours before.
Finn finishes cleaning her skin, pulls her shirt down and kisses her lovingly on her covered stomach, hoping her good mood continues on forever and ever.
Thank you for reading. :) Tell me what you think!
