Hello again dear readers!
Thank you to everyone who voted in the poll, but there was a majority (Only one vote for the opposite gender)!
Also, a big thank you goes out to everyone who has favorite/alerted/reviewed, you are all AWESOME! Enjoy your virtual pies!
Oh, and I added like 3 lines to the last chapter... You don't need to go back and read it... It's just telling you that the mall is decorated like Christmas...
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The whole ride to the OB/GYN an electricity filled the air. There was almost a perceptible crackle in the air. The tension was palpable, and Tori was pretty sure that her mom and Trina were going to have panic attacks. Neither would say why they were so stressed when they claimed to not have a preference for the gender.
They pulled up to the small, flower decorated building, and they got out of the car and waited. Finally, Andre pulled up in his car, and he all but ran to greet them. He caught Tori around the waist and gave her a gentle kiss, and one hand traveled down, to touch where her baby was. He paused kissing her and looked down. "Well shiz. I mean- wow. When did this happen?"
Tori blushed a little, "I noticed it this morning. Nothing fit me! We had to get a whole new wardrobe just so I could wear clothing!"
He kissed her again, this time longer. In fact, they might have stayed that way throughout the scheduled appointment time if it had not been for Trina and Mrs. Vega, who tapped them on the shoulder to break them apart after a moment.
Tori blushed again (maybe it was the pregnancy, but she had noticed a definite increase in the amount of blushing she was doing. Was that even a pregnancy thing, or just something she had never noticed about herself before she was pregnant?), before grabbing Andre's hand and starting the walk up to the small brick building. The four of them made their way in, and Mrs. Vega volunteered to sign them in at the small front desk. Tori sat, sandwiched between her sister and her boyfriend, surrounded by women in varying stages of pregnancy. There were even a few mothers with babies in there, but there were a lot fewer than there had been the last time she had come in. Maybe it was because it was a Monday, and more mothers were working? Whatever the reason, there were only maybe a dozen other pregnant women in there. She rested her head against her lovely boyfriend's strong shoulder and sighed, soaking in this moment.
After some unknown length of time, a young nurse came out and called to the room, "Victoria Vega?"
Andre and Trina leapt to their feet, Andre insisting that he help her up (people kept doing things like that for her… which she supposed it had something to do with suddenlylooking pregnant instead of just being pregnant, which was sweet, but if it continued for an extended period, she might just lose it), then they followed the nurse to a small room with several chairs and a bed-ish chair-thing. Tori climbed on, ignoring Andre's plea to let him help her (at least for now, she could do it-and as long as that was true you could be damn sure she was going to) and waited for her doctor to come in. Dr. Jennings came in much sooner than she had the last time, looking less haggard too. She supposed it had something to do with the fewer people there. The doctor smiled at them. "Hello, Tori. I see you brought your family with you today! How have you been? Keeping the stress down?"
"I've been okay, and I've been trying to stay as de-stressed as possible." She smiled over at Andre, who smiled tentatively back.
"That's good! Now, I can see that you have 'popped' as is the layman's term for it. Have there been any other recent developments?" Dr. Jennings commented, making a note on the computer.
"Well, today I felt my baby move… I know it's really early for that though," The sentence came out with a question mark at the end, although it was meant to be a statement.
The doctor raised her eyebrows a little, "Really? That must be because you're so thin… Perhaps contributed to by an acute awareness of the abdominal region…" she trailed off, her hands typing quickly away at the keyboard.
"Alright, so I believe the reason so many are here today is to find out the gender… Right?" There were eager nods from all present. "Well, hopefully your little one is being cooperative." She chuckled a little before flipping on several switches and grabbing the tube of cold gel. Tori pulled up her shirt, resigned to the freezing stomach in her future.
She still shivered.
But suddenly there was her little baby in a grainy black and white on the screen, and Tori couldn't tear her eyes away. The doctor switched another switch and the heartbeat echoed in the room, the soft rushing filling her entire being with utter joy. Her hand clasped with Andre's and the other reached over blindly, and Trina grabbed it (Trina's other was being held by Holly Vega). The doctor swiveled the wand around on her stomach for another moment, staring intently on the screen, before smiling. She announced to the impatient room, "Congratulations Tori, you're going to have a little girl."
There was an imperceptible pause. Then Trina and her mother were hugging each other tightly ("I'm going to have a niece!" and "A granddaughter!" coming from their direction) Andre smiled and hugged Tori as best as he could while still remaining gel-free (he couldn't stop thinking I'm going to have a beautiful little girl). Tori grinned, laughing when she realized again and again that she was going to have a little girl. The doctor smiled at them, enjoying the sight she got to witness so often of baby-inspired joy. It was certainly a hell of a lot better than the alternative.
After a few minutes of hugging, Tori was asked by the good doctor, "Would you like a picture of your daughter?"
When Tori nodded, Dr. Jennings clicked a couple of commands on the computer before quickly leaving and returning with the printed pictures. She turned to Tori, "Now, as I'm sure you're aware, because you're so young you have been listed as a high risk pregnancy. Because of this, we will need you to come back in 2-3 weeks just to check in and make sure everything is alright. After all, your due date is May 4th, and that is not as far away as it may seem." Tori nodded and allowed Andre to help her down from the chair-recliner-bed-thing. There was so much joy in the room, as was befitting of the holiday that they were near to. "Good. Well, I have to go on to my other appointments, so have a merry Christmas!"
They all grinned at each other before heading out, making a quick stop at the front desk for scheduling and a stop at the bathroom for Tori. They then went outside where Andre and Tori said a quick goodbye.
Andre smiled at her, "I love both of you so much. My two girls."
Tori blinked away the rapidly forming tears in her eyes, "I love you more than I can ever say Andre." Some might say that their declarations of love were just the "honey-moon stage" but really, it was as if they had already been together forever and not realized it. They had always loved each other from the first time they had met, and they seemed to meld together like two cogs in a machine, so perfectly matched were they.
They pulled away from their embrace, each going to their separate cars. The drive home was ecstatic, and Tori couldn't stop smiling, imagining her beautiful future baby girl. They pulled into the driveway and went to the door, Trina and Tori waiting for her mother to open it impatiently. When she opened it, both daughters froze.
Their father had done it all. He had covered mantles in fake snow, brought in a huge tree (and decorated it! He still won't tell anyone how he did it so quickly though… Just saying "Every magician has his secrets,"), hung holly (his favorite plant), and added garlands everywhere. He stood in the center of the living room, wearing a Santa hat, and holding a platter of hot chocolates, each mug filled to the brim with marshmallows. "Merry Christmas!"
