"Ava? Have you seen Melanie?" I ask loudly with one hand on my hip and the other resting on my stomach.

She takes her hand off the bow of the violin and shrugs. "Nope."

"Fantastic." I huff, glancing at my phone. "Then you're coming with me, let's go."

"You know, I'm old enough to stay home alone." She says pointedly.

I glare at her as I begin walking out the door. "I said let's go."

"Fine." She mutters quietly, following behind me as we take the elevator downstairs and walk out to the warm New York air.

"What are you finding out at the doctors today?" Ava asks as we walk down the crowded street. I stick my hand out to her and offer her a shrug.

"Nothing special. Just a check up."

"Oh!" She exclaims. "Will they do an ultrasound?"

"Yeah." I say softly, yanking her across the street. "C'mon, it's right up here."

"Is Freddie coming?" Her voice is high pitched and innocent.

"Nope." I mumble, swinging the door open.

"Why not?"

"He's got, uh, an interview." I sit down on a waiting room chair and glance back at my younger sister. "Did you see Melanie last night?"

"Yeah. I heard her leave late at night."

"God." I roll my eyes, crossing my arms over my chest and glancing down at my phone. "Where the hell are you? You had to watch Ava this morning, thanks a lot." I type with narrowed eyes, hardly caring how bad it sounds and pressing send to my inconsiderate sister.

If it weren't for her irresponsible actions I wouldn't have been in such a terrible mood since the beginning of the day. I woke up after Carly had left for her sixth day of her new job and Freddie was just getting ready for his interview. Melanie was supposed to be there to watch Ava while I got ready and went to the doctors. I'm hardly surprised that she turned out to be M.I.A. By the time I got out of bed everyone except Ava had left, and I had to leave for this pain in the ass doctors appointment I had scheduled for this morning. Which brings me to right now, sitting in the tiny, boring waiting room of a OBGYN six blocks away from my apartment.

"Sam Puckett?"

I raise an eyebrow at Ava as we get up from our seats and walk towards the young blond nurse who gives us an easy smile and leads us into our room. "Today is your six month check up?"

I nod and she smiles. "I'm Sierra." She has to be no more than twenty, and I'm wondering how the hell she got a job here. "I've been interning here for the year, you're my first actual check up!" I raise an eyebrow skeptically.

Sierra motions to a cot on the side of the small room. "Go ahead and lay down here." She mutters, pulling out a bottle of blue gel to spread over my stomach. I glance down at Ava who stares up at the nurse with wide eyes, obviously excited by this experience. "Okay." Sierra clears her throat as she stares at the computer opposite to me. "I'm just doing a routine check up now." She moves her device over my stomach and I shiver at the cold gel hitting my skin.

I watch as the nurse's eyes scan the computer deliberately. She narrows her eyes at something and stares at it quizzically. "Everything's been normal?"

I nod. "Yep."

"Right. The twins seem to be the ideal weight and length for 24 weeks...but, uh..." She squints at the computer again, slowly opening her mouth then closing it. "Um.." She says quietly, making eye contact with me but quickly pulling her eyes away. "I-I think there's something wrong with the computer. I'm gonna go get a doc-" She doesn't finish her stammering, just points to the door and walks out with her hand on her head.

Ava gives me a look. "What happened?"

"Nothing, Ave. The computer wasn't working." I mutter, glancing at my nails. When I look back up I notice that her eyes are still widened and scared.

"It doesn't seem like it was nothing! What if something's wrong?" She asks quickly and worriedly.

I roll my eyes. "You're such a hypochondriac. Everything's-"

I'm cut off by a doctor rushing in our room, not even bothering to introduce himself. I just raise an eyebrow as I watch him walk by the computer and widen his eyes, nodding slowly. He nervously glances at Sierra, who returns his nod. "Well, Sam." he clears his throat. "It seems we have a problem."

"A...problem?" I whisper as Ava grasps my hand.

Silence passes through the room for a second as the doctor looks at the computer and shakes his head. I begin to feel nauseous as Ava's hand tightens around mine, not letting myself stare into her big eyes before the doctor's voice interrupts my thoughts.

"One of your fetuses seems to have a heart or circulation problem."

A heart or circulation problem. There's no fucking way.

I clamp a hand over my mouth and attempt to keep my breathing intact. I'm not sure what this means, but I know it's bad. Maybe really bad, maybe moderately bad. Maybe fatal. Heart problems aren't fucking casual. Oh god.

The doctor states "This is not impossible to treat. We are not completely sure what the specific problem is, and we'll have to transfer you to Lenox Hill Hospital where they will perform a foetal echocardiography. This will help you know if your child's cardiac malformation is associated with additional structural or chromosomal problems. It is helpful that we become aware of the problem as soon as possible to give the unborn baby the best care we can manage."

I shake my head. I stopped listening after he told me he'll have to transfer me to the hospital. A heart or circulation problem. I keep repeating those four words in my head. Heart or circulation problem. A heart problem. A fetus with a heart problem. The way the doctor came rushing in here. The fact that they have to transfer me to a hospital to perform a test. How I can hear my little sister's uneven breathing from under me, and feel the doctor's sympathetic gaze on my stomach. This isn't a goddamn joke.

Ava's high pitched voice shakes me out of my warped thoughts. "Is he gonna be okay?"

The doctor stares down at his clipboard then back to me, giving me a reassuring glance before he breaks some of the worst possible news to me. "We won't know until we test the mother and child seriously."

Ava opens her mouth and clamps a hand over it. I know she wants someone to tell her it'll be okay. I want it too. "Only one twin?" She whispers.

"The other is completely unaffected." Sierra replies, her eyes sad as she glances at my younger sister and I. "This problem is usually discovered at around 19 weeks. You're lucky it's only been unnoticed for about a month. It's best that the mother knows before the child is born."

I nod uneasily, not hearing a word she's saying. My brain is spinning, I feel like I'm going to puke. "Um...right, right."

Ava widens her eyes and shakes her head. "But he's gonna be okay right?" She looks up at me for reassurance. "Right?"

"Ave..." I mutter softly, running a hand over her hair. "Shh..."

"You don't know! Nobody knows! Nobody knows if he's gonna be okay!" Her lip trembles and she bites it, trying to stop the avalanche of tears from pouring out. It hardly works though, and one bitter tear slips down her cheek.

Sierra just takes a deep breath and looks down. "I can give you some information on it. We'll make an appointment at the hospital for tomorrow, and once we find out exactly what the condition is we'll be able to focus in on it." She hands me a stack of papers titled 'Heart problems in babies.'

I accept it, feeling dizzy and nauseous. "Um...uh...thanks. Thank you." I stammer, trying to pull myself out of the daze I entered.

Ava's voice becomes increasingly louder. "He's not going to die, right? Tell me he's not going to die!"

Sierra and the doctor share a glance at I have to hold a secure hand over my mouth to ensure that I don't blow chunks all over the damn doctors office. They don't know. They seriously do not know if he's gonna be okay. "C-come on, Ava..."

"If you have any problems or concerns please go to the hospital immediately." Sierra says softly. "You have an appointment at Lenox at 12 tomorrow. They'll determine the official problem there."

I nod softly, unable to focus on Sierra or the doctor, especially not my younger sister. I'm not sure if I've completely dissected this information yet. I'm not sure if I want to. I just found out that one of my twins has a serious, potentially fatal, heart problem and I'm numb. Completely lost and unsure.

"Okay, Sam?" I glance up to see Sierra's sympathetic eyes focused on me.

I'm not sure what she just said to me but I mutter an uneasy "Okay." anyway, lifting myself off the cot and squeezing the paper in my hand, ripping through it with my nails. I walk slowly down the narrow hallway and back into the waiting room, finally stepping out of the goddamn place.

My sister looks up at me with big eyes. She doesn't need to say anything before she pulls me into a tight hug, keeping a steady hand on my stomach even after I pull away. "L-Let's go home." She stammers.

She's the one to grasp my hand now, pulling me behind her softly. "Yeah, yeah Ava. It'll, um, get better at home." I tell her. Her eyes are unconvinced. So are mine.

I hesitantly move the door open to notice the sound of the tv up way too high. I scan my eyes over the room and see Melanie who sits with her legs swung over a chair and a wet washcloth on her head. I make sure to slam the door hard enough to wake her up, where she moves her head and the washcloth falls to the ground.

"Sam?" She asks with squinted eyes.

"Fucking Christ, Melanie!" I yell, finally breaking my numbness with what emotion I express best: anger. I don't care that Ava is standing no more than two feet away. Not right now. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

She crinkles her nose and adjusts her position, hugging her knees to her chest. "Shh," She whispers, moving her elbow to her head. "I'm sick."

"Sick." I repeat, walking five fucking steps into the kitchen where I pull a half empty bottle of rum off the island. I swing it in front of her with a shake of my head. "Great solution for a night of drinking. Avoid all your responsibilities and come back home at half past noon so you can get fucked up all over again!"

This gets her attention and she opens her mouth quickly, moving a hand to her hip. "Why the hell do you care what I do?"

"I don't know, Melanie! Maybe because you've got some fucking things to do around here, believe it or not! And I don't want you around anybody in this house when you do shit like this!"

"You're not my mother." She snarls. "And you're not any better yourself. I mean," My sister lets her eyes graze me, then directs them to Ava. "look at you right now."

I'm suddenly aware of how cold and chapped my fingers are from squeezing the bottle so hard. I hardly think before I launch it to the wall opposite of me, watching without a wince as the yellow liquid stains the wall and glass splatters on the floor.

Melanie gets up from her chair and pulls Ava to her with a disgusted gasp plastered on her face. "Are you trying to get the fucking cops called? Jesus Christ, Sam, get a goddamn grip!" She jerks our younger sisters hand and begins pulling her out the door.

I almost completely lose it before Ava speaks up with a small "Wait!"

Mel stops in the doorway for a second then shakes her head. "C'mon Ava."

I glance at my brunette sister and notice the endless tears running down her face. The sound of her sniffling almost makes me break down.

Fuck. What did I do? She doesn't deserve to witness this. She shouldn't-

"Something bad happened at the doctor today! That's why Sam's upset! Just please...please let her talk..." She cries, bringing her hand to her face and escaping Melanie's grip to run back into the apartment. I hear a door slam seconds later and I slowly move my head up to face my sisters piercing glare.

"Something bad?" She asks quietly.

I nod, walking through the door and pulling the stack of papers Sierra handed me off the floor. I must've lost them sometime before I threw that bottle. I slowly move the stack to Melanie's hand and she deliberately takes it, letting her eyes graze over the title. "Fuck." She mutters after scanning a few lines. "Are they okay?"

I shake my head. "One of them is. The other...they...they don't know." I murmur, fighting her gaze on purpose. If I look over at her sad, sympathetic eyes I know I'll finally lose it. It's bound to happen in a few minutes.

"Oh, Sam." Her soft words push me over the edge and I throw myself in her embrace, sobbing loudly into her shoulder. "It's okay." She says soothingly, running a hand over my hair.

"It's not!" I exclaim just as the sound of the violin becomes loud in the room next to us. Ava is playing one of her fast pieces, a violent, jerky song she only plays when she's mad about something. "I probably fucking scarred our little sister for life." I pull out of her hug and glance at the wall, wondering if the stain will ever come out. "And the landlord's gonna be pissed as hell if we don't get every inch of this shit off."

She shakes her head. "It doesn't matter right now." She looks down so I can't see her glassy eyes. "Just...just tell me what they told you."

"They don't know much." My voice comes out shaky and I walk to the kitchen and pull out a chair at the table, facing my glare out the window. "I have an appointment at the hospital tomorrow morning. A goddamn Sunday morning."

Melanie nods softly and takes a deep breath. "God." I bite my lip until I draw blood but it's unavoidable, the tears still come pouring out of my eyes. I move a hand over my face so my sister doesn't have to see.

The sound of the front door swinging open again forces my head up with an eyebrow raise at Freddie, who is immediately focused on the stain on the wall and the glass surrounding it. "What the hell happened?!"

I cross my arms over my chest as he walks towards me. His gaze softens when he sees the tears and smudged makeup surrounding my eyes. Melanie stares at me, shaking her head softly. She knows how hard it is to tell Freddie this. We both know exactly how he'll take it. "Sam..." He mutters, switching his gaze from me to Melanie. "You...had a doctors appointment today."

I nod and he raises his eyebrows at Melanie as if to ask her what happened. She glances at me to make sure it's okay and I give her permission with my eyes. She just shoves the papers towards him and mutters "One of the babies..."

"A heart problem?" He shakes his head. "But-"

"I have an appointment at the hospital tomorrow." I whisper.

"On a Sunday." He murmurs. "Which means-"

"It's not good." Melanie finishes.

"Oh God." He whispers, shaking his head. "What else did they tell you? Is he gonna be okay?"

"I don't know, Fredward." I snarl with glassy eyes, walking out of the kitchen to avoid him having to see me cry. I let the tears run freely down my face as I enter my room and slam the door behind me, collapsing on the bed immediately.

I try not to let myself think about it for too long. I wait. For a distraction or something to tear my thoughts away from the fact my son's life is at risk and I have no goddamn idea what to do.

"Sam?"

I turn around at the tiny voice that comes from the doorway. "Ava...not now." I manage but she walks in anyway, a sad look on her face.

"What are you gonna do with the wall?" She asks innocently.

I shake my head. "I don't know."

"You know, my mom used to tell me that prayer fixes everything. She never really taught me how to pray but...I was improvising. I prayed for the twins. And for Melanie, and of course I prayed for you."

I give my younger sister a small smile as I nonchalantly wipe my face. "Um, thanks Ava."

"I think he'll be okay." She mumbles as I sit up on the bed. Ave's eyes ask me if she can touch my stomach and I nod softly as she places a hand on it. "He has to be okay, right?"

"Right." I clear my throat, still trying to drill that idea into my head. "Listen..." I mumble, running a hand through her knotted hair. "I'm really sorry about everything..."

"It's okay," She replies softly. "I understand. It's just like how dad would get when-"

I refuse to let myself hear the rest of what she's saying. "I'm sorry." My voice cracks and Ava's grasp around me tightens while I struggle to keep my breathing even. "I'm really sorry."

I really hope you guys like unnecessary drama, because I am obviously in love with it. Review and let me know what you thought of the chapter. More drama to come!