4 Years, 6 months and 2 weeks earlier…
"You didn't have to come with me, Spencer. I'm quite capable of making it to the doctor on my own thank you very much, and besides what about school? You're final exam is in less than a month and you know you have to ace it to finalize this job at the BAU crap. You shouldn't be jeopardizing school just to keep poor, lonely Katie company while she goes to the doctor. I mean, come on…"
Spencer Reid rolled his eyes as he and Katelyn walked from the parking lot towards the hospital. She was just entering her fifth month of pregnancy, though she surprisingly barely showed much of a belly at all yet. Some might think she was merely stealing a rolled up t-shirt underneath her sweater, but she continuously threatened those who warned her that the weight would hit her like a bus once it came.
Her hormones were fairly in check, however it wasn't much of a difference from the non-pregnant Katelyn. Always opinionated, didn't hold anything back, and could go from cheerful to angry in 0.49 seconds. So it didn't come as a surprise when Katelyn refused Spencer's request to come with her to her check up. He knew Dave had taken her a couple times and one of her girl friends went with her the others, but he knew she didn't have anyone to accompany her to this one. And seeing as he hadn't been to one yet, he decided he wanted to go with her. Besides, the human body was fascinating.
"Maybe I wanted to come for me," Spencer shot back defensively, but couldn't stop the teasing smile that was at his lips. Even though Katelyn never showed it, he knew she didn't like being alone. And through the hard rock exterior, he also knew she was terrified about this whole ordeal.
She exhaled a breath and eyed him suspiciously, "Uh huh… Well, you're about to be fascinated, potential Doctor Reid. By the way, if you get this PhD, well, WHEN you get it, because we all know you are, smarty pants. Even if you miss a day to take me to the doctor…" She muttered the latter part under her breath, but turned her attention back to him as they walked through the doors of the hospital, "When you get this whole PhD crap, you have to make sure that people call you Dr. Reid. Mr. Reid sounds so stupid and plus, you're really way too young to have a PhD anyways… And you're scrawny and have this adorable little baby face," she paused to pinch his cheek a little, but he swatted her hand away in embarrassment. "Always introduce yourself as Dr. Reid. It's titles like that that will bode for a great first impression and it will also make others take you seriously."
They entered the small waiting room of the obstetrician's office and Katelyn quickly checked in with the front desk before they took a seat.
"And, you know, when you leave and go off to solve crimes and do justice and all that… If anyone ever gives you any trouble about your age, or anything, let me know. I don't care if I'm nine months pregnant and look like a bus, I can still pound their ass. No one better mess with you over there or-" Katelyn began steaming as her eyes sort of glazed over as she stared at the wall across the room.
"Katie," Spencer interrupted in mock horror as he tried to hide the slight fear from his face. "You're getting, um, all fired up again…"
She broke her angry gaze at the wall and relaxed as she turned to him before laughing out loud, "Sorry. The hormones, and…" She sighed out loud and rolled her eyes in exaggeration. "Ok, sometimes I just worry about you leaving and people giving you flack for being so young and stuff."
Spencer smiled and looked at the ground, but before he could conjure up a reply the nurse suddenly called Katelyn's name and he stood up behind her to follow to the room.
"What are you doing?"
Spencer stopped in his tracks and looked up to see Katelyn turned around and looking at him with an almost questionable look on her face. He frowned in confusion, he had assumed his role in taking her to the check up included being with her in the room, but he hadn't really put any thought into it. He stood awkwardly and tried to think of a response that he hadn't been prepared to give,
"I, uh, thought since um… Company and, uh, well I thought you would want," he stammered as he pointed past her to where the nurse had disappeared to. He watched the mocking smile play across her face and she laughed before waving him forward.
"I'm kidding, come on, you can see the ultra sound. Though, I'm not sure if it will look like anything more than a deformed peanut…" Katelyn turned to continue walking and Spencer mentally slapped himself before hurrying behind her.
It was only a quick, routine check up so she didn't need to put on one of those flowy, drafty gowns like last time. She had regretted bringing Dave with her last time, especially when he began cracking comments about the unavoidable movements of the thin gown that had continuously untied.
She felt relief in Spencer wanting to come to this appointment. He became embarrassed much too easily, and as much as Katelyn would have wanted to see his face if he had been at the last appointment, she knew he probably would have rather died. She chuckled suddenly at the thought.
"What's so funny?" Spencer asked suspiciously and looked at her as if she had suddenly sprouted a second head. She smiled at him as she climbed on top of the hard hospital bed,
"Nothing. Pull up a chair, it might take a few minutes," she said just as the nurse returned with a tube in one hand and a pair of gloves in the other.
"Well Ms. O'Neil, I see you brought a new friend with you today," the older nurse smiled at the two and Spencer nodded a greeting as he pulled the chair up next to Katelyn who was already stretched out and pulling her shirt up. He looked away and turned his attention to the older nurse as she pulled a small tray over to the bed, along with a small computer sitting on a cart.
"Ok, so we'll check the heart beat first, just to make sure everything is normal and healthy, then we'll check out how baby's growing," the nurse advised as she took a seat and squeezed some of the clear, gooey liquid from the tube onto Katelyn's stomach.
She sucked in a quick breath and the contact and Spencer looked at her in sudden concern, but she only shook her head and laughed,
"That stuff's always cold," she advised and he let out a breath of relief. The nurse pulled on the rubber gloves and grabbed the hand held device before rubbing it into the clear paste on Katelyn's small bump of a stomach.
Spencer made a face at the motion and found himself wondering if the stuff was sticky or more like aloe vera. He hadn't had much time to debate it because suddenly a soft, rhythmic pulse sounded from the computer and his attention quickly perked,
"Is that…?"
"That's the heart beat," the nurse smiled as she answered his question and then paused to listen for a few seconds. An excited smile passed Spencer's face and he looked down at the raven haired girl in front of him.
"Katie! That's the heart beat, it's… Well, it's… It's a living thing inside of you, listen!" He paused and held his hand out while he listened. "Thirty seven and a half beats in fifteen seconds, that's… One hundred and fifty beats per minute. The average heart beat of a fetus at five months is anywhere between 120 and 190 beats per minute. The baby is perfectly on par," Spencer yammered excitedly and looked at the nurse for confirmation.
"Wow, you've done your research. Yes, the baby's heart sounds perfectly healthy," the nurse smiled at them both as she moved the hand held device a little. The muffled rhythm of the baby's heart continued to beat in the background. "Have you thought of any names yet?"
Katelyn was slightly taken off guard at the question. She hadn't had much time to think about what would happen after the baby was born or the unavoidable things like picking out a name. "Uh, actually I haven't really thought of it… I guess for now we'll just call it… Peanut?" She looked to Spencer with a shrug and he laughed, but the rhythmic heartbeat surrounding them suddenly began beating faster and all three of them laughed.
"I think it likes peanut," Spencer said in amazement, "In the 20th week of pregnancy, the baby has developed anatomically enough to receive sound impulses. It could have understood… Katie, maybe you have a genius growing in there!"
Katelyn laughed, "Spencer you amaze me sometimes. I'm starting to think that maybe you should be the one who is pregnant, you sure know about it more than I do… I don't even know if it's a boy or girl yet, and I haven't even thought of the possibility of a real name…"
The nurse clicked her tongue and smiled, "Don't worry dear, you have plenty of time for things like that. But if it will help you, I can tell you the sex of the baby now."
Katelyn's head snapped to the nurse and then the monitor which was now displaying a muddled up picture of what was supposed to be her baby. It still looked like a peanut to her, but she looked at the nurse in a mixture of fear and excitement, then to Spencer who seemed to be mirroring her expression.
"Really?" Katelyn managed to sputter and the nurse nodded with a smile,
"Well, certainly! Some people prefer not to know and like to have the gender a surprise at birth, but others like to know ahead of time for planning and things," the nurse looked at Katelyn as she pressed a button on the computer, which started to print out a snap shot of the ultra sound. "So, would you like to know?"
Katelyn looked at Spencer again with wide eyes before turning to the nurse, "Um, I think so… Yeah, I'd like to know. I want to know if Peanut's a he or a she…"
The nurse smiled and Katelyn's heart began to beat faster and harder in her chest as the nurse wiped off the clear goo from her stomach. Katelyn pulled down her shirt and sat up on the bed while she handed her the snapshot of her ultra sound,
"You're having a girl, Ms. O'Neil. And so far from what I can tell, a very healthy one," her smile widened as she watched Katelyn's shocked expression. "I'll let you two have some time. Take care and I'll see you in a few weeks."
The nurse made her exit and closed the door behind her. Katelyn sat staring at the picture of what she could only tell was a morphed version of a giant peanut and felt the tears begin to sting her eyes.
"Hey," Spencer said softly when he noticed a tear fall down her cheek and he quickly moved from the chair to sit beside her on the bed. "You ok?"
She sniffled and nodded before letting out a small chuckle and wiped at the tear on her cheek. "I'm having a girl Spence. A baby girl."
She smiled through the blurred vision and Spencer couldn't help but smile back at her before putting his arm around her shoulders.
"You sure are. And she's going to be amazing. She'll be just like her mommy," Spencer said as she wrapped her arms around his neck for a hug. She chuckled softly into the crook of his neck and sniffled again,
"I sure hope not," she laughed and Spencer laughed with her as his grip tightened around her waist. She was going to have a baby girl.
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A/N: As always, please review. I absolutely love them. Also, if you would please check out my profile page and take a moment to vote on my new poll. Thanks to you all for reading so far! You rock my socks!
-A
