Quickie:
xKatie-Bearx - I didn't say it wasn't a girl. Nor did I say it was a boy. They decided not to find out, remember?
LostSista - Well I've always known it as a boy's name. But don't think just because I wrote that that the kid will be a boy. It's a surprise for them, and for you. Hehe!
Mathildou - Awww. I like hearing that though! It makes me feel all fuzzy...lol! Um, I may or may not have an idea for the name...
xox-emily-xox - Yay! Caught up! I was wondering why I had so many reviews in my inbox...lol
SassyLostie - You know what, that's it. We're over! And not kidney over! Over over! Haha. Anyway, Aiden for a Jaby? Eeeps! Scratching that name off the list...Just kidding. But Sawyer didn't like it anyhow. So..no worries.
I know this is a little…cringe-worthy, to say the least. But just imagine how awkward I felt to have to write it. I'm sorry if there are any male readers!! (besides Lord Xwee. P)
A few normal weeks passed. Kate and Sawyer were sitting in the living room one night, watching TV as usual. Kate got up to use the bathroom, leaving Sawyer free to change the channel. After a few minutes, Sawyer's glance switched to the bathroom door. Just as it did, it seemed, the door opened and Kate walked out, her face white with worry. He muted the TV.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
She tried to form the words, but nothing came out. After taking a deep breath, she tried again.
"We need to go see Dr. Park."
A quick trip later, they were at the office, waiting for Dr. Park to arrive. Kate sat, shaken. She wasn't crying yet, but Sawyer could tell she could burst any moment.
"Freckles…what's the matter?" he murmured.
"I…" she paused to exhale. "I think we might be losing the baby…"
Dr. Park arrived shortly after, and they followed her to the examination room. Kate sat in the chair and Dr. Park closed the door.
"So, what's this about, Kate?" Dr. Park asked.
Her lips trembled. "I think…I might be miscarriaging."
Dr. Park's eyes widened. "I see. James, I think you should wait outside."
"Why in hell would I wanna do that?" he sneered.
"I just assumed you wouldn't want to be present for a vaginal exam."
He stared at her, taken aback. Then, he glanced at Kate.
"I'll just…" he pointed backward, as he started to leave.
"I'll have Amy bring you back in when we're through," Dr. Park told him.
He nodded, and left the room.
Sawyer sat in the waiting room with increasing dread and anticipation. Neither he nor Kate knew what was going on. The thought of losing their baby when they were so far along in the pregnancy already was sickening. After being so used to the idea, it was being ripped away. AGAIN. Was that supposed to be a sign? Was Kate not supposed to have a child? Or maybe she just wasn't supposed to have his child? He didn't know. She said she thought she might be miscarriaging….What gave her that idea? And was she? Would Dr. Park even know? He hated waiting…
About ten minutes later, Sawyer was summoned back into the room. Neither Dr. Park nor Kate looked pleased.
"Well?" he urged.
"I've just explained to Kate the details of her diagnosis. And I need you to remain calm while I explain them to you. Can you do that?"
"What diagnosis??"
"I'm getting to that." She exhaled. "It's called Placenta Previa. It means that the placenta is lying unusually low in the uterus, next to or covering the cervix."
"In English?"
"It's near the area where the baby comes out."
"And that's bad?"
"Yes. If it blocks the entire cervix, we can't do a natural birth. We'd have to do a cesarean, and there may or may not be complications. However, Kate's previa is only partial, so there is no need to panic just yet. It's very common for the placenta to migrate around this time. There's a chance it may still move away from the cervix in time. But, if it doesn't – and I'll be monitoring – we might have a problem."
"What do you mean problem?"
"Well, it CAN cause bleeding, which might mean an early delivery or possibly other complications. We need to be careful, because if it persists, a c-section is required."
Sawyer looked down, distressed. He snuck a glance at Kate and noticed a few tears rolling down her cheeks. Dr. Park spied the both of them.
"But…let's not worry right now. We'll have a better idea of what's going on with the next ultrasound, which – if I'm not mistaken – is two weeks before Christmas."
Dr. Park began to write something on Kate's chart, while speaking.
"I'm going to put you on 'pelvic rest', Kate. That means no more vaginal exams, and no more intercourse for the rest of the pregnancy," she said, eyeing Sawyer. "I want you to take it easy from here on out, as well. No strenuous housework or heavy lifting. Nothing that could provoke the bleeding."
Kate nodded, silently. Just when they thought things were going so well…
Nearly two months had passed, and already autumn had begun. Leaves were changing colors, the air was getting cooler, and nights were growing shorter. The diagnosis was quickly swept out of their thoughts as they tried to maintain a more optimistic outlook. With only one day left until Halloween, Sawyer and Kate pondered what they wanted to do. About to embark on the sixth month of her pregnancy, Kate's stomach – much to her dismay - was now quite large and noticeable, and in her opinion, proving to be a problem.
"What? You don't wanna dress up?" Sawyer teased.
"As what, a balloon?" Kate rolled her eyes.
"Well, you could always wrap yourself in a net and be a basketball hoop," he grinned.
"Cute."
"Aw, come on. I'm just messin' with you."
"Well it's not funny."
He sighed. "You're right, it ain't."
Even though it was funny – at least in his opinion – Sawyer had begun to understand that Kate always had to be right. Her moodiness had increased over the weeks and he quickly discovered that antagonizing her would only make things worse for him.
"Well you don't wanna sit and give out candy, do you?" he asked, dreading her answer.
"Do a lot of trick-or-treaters come by?"
"No."
"That's a shame."
"It is?"
"Yeah. Where's the fun of Halloween?"
"Oh, don't tell me you actually wanna do somethin' now."
"I'm just remembering how it was when I was a kid. Carving pumpkins, going out and getting candy."
"My mama hated Halloween. I used to bounce off the walls from all the sugar." He smirked. "Probably 'cause I went through the whole bag in the same night. Didn't care about getting sick afterwards."
"That's disgusting," she laughed. "I used to go through mine in a week, at least. But I traded all the ones I didn't like."
"I sold mine," he grinned devilishly.
"Figures," she teased. "Were you dressed up as a conman too?"
"No. I was always a pirate."
"Close enough," she muttered.
"Except for the one year my mom made me be a clown," he narrowed his eyes.
Kate laughed.
"Oh and what did you dress up as?"
She smiled sheepishly. "A vampire."
"Every year?"
"Well, it varied, but yeah. We were mostly vampires."
"We?"
Her smile faltered. "Tom and I always did some sort of matching costumes."
Sawyer stayed silent, and looked away.
"Was Barbie and Ken one of 'em?" he offered, trying to lighten the mood.
Kate laughed. "No."
"Didn't think so."
