Chapter 83: Lots of Movement

January

Amelia's first day back at the hospital after the Canada trip coincided with the kids' first day back at school. She pulled into her parking spot just as Jackson was walking toward the Main Lobby. Being in similar situations, Jackson and Amelia had come to lean on one another over the past few weeks. Jackson was planning to take Oliver and Finley to a Sonics game the following week, and he and his mom took Bronwyn to ice cream just before Amelia and the kids left for Canada. Amelia had come to treasure Jackson's encouraging support and the conversations they shared.

"How was Canada?" Jackson asked Amelia with a smile as he hugged her.

"You know, it was absolutely fantastic. We played board games, the kids explored their former home, and the twins went with the flow. It was a really great time away," Amelia smirked.

Jackson smiled and responded, "I'm so glad. You needed a break. Hell, we all need a break. Have you heard from Owen in the last day or two? Do you know the big news?"

"He called this morning. He told me about the Army moving them to Sudan temporarily to deal with logistics at Medic units there. He said he's been in the middle of the desert and that it's been incredibly hot over there. Oh mercy, Jackson, he shaved his head and he just doesn't look right at all," Amelia chuckled.

"April told me about the move. You know what that means, right?" Jackson asked. Amelia shrugged and Jackson explained, "Their time in Kuwait has concluded. They transferred them to another site because the infrastructure where they've been is a well-oiled machine."

"I guess I was too busy commenting on his shaved head to find that out," Amelia quipped. "I grabbed a screenshot – wanna see?"

"Not especially," Jackson joked as he winked and patted Amelia's back. "Owen's just not my type even though he's a redhead. But dinner tonight? Are you and the kids still on?"

"Looking forward to it. We'll see you at the house around 6ish?" Amelia confirmed. Jackson nodded and hugged Amelia before heading off to a meeting.

After saying goodbye to Jackson, Amelia headed to Annalisa's office. At 14 weeks, it was time for her second ultrasound. Because Amelia's pregnancy seemed to be going so smoothly, Annalisa didn't schedule the first ultrasound until 8 weeks. Amelia had been agreeable to that timeline – it gave her additional time to not think much about the baby. Owen had just left for Kuwait and Thanksgiving was around the corner; Amelia had plenty on her mind last November. Just confirming that she was carrying only one baby and that everything appeared to be normal was enough for her.

Annalisa smiled warmly as she entered the exam room, "Well, Mama, are you ready to see what we can find out today?"

"Yeah, I guess so," Amelia sighed. She had such mixed feelings about the last few months and the baby was just one part of a much larger whole. In some ways, Amelia almost felt guilty about not being exuberant about the baby. She still had not told Owen. At first, she didn't mention it because she didn't want the baby to be a factor in his decision to go overseas. After that, the time just never felt right. Her pregnancy was getting to the point that she was just beginning to show. Soon, everyone at the hospital would figure out the news. Amelia knew she wanted to tell Owen before that.

As Annalisa prepared, she asked Amelia about Owen. After finding out he was safe and that he had been relocated to a new post, she nudged, "And you're going to tell him about the baby when…?"

"I wish I knew," Amelia grumbled. She explained her thoughts and asked for input.

"There are a few different options. You could simply blurt it out next time the two of you speak or, if you want to be creative, we could email him a video or some pictures of today's ultrasound. You can certainly handle this any way you choose Amelia, but I'd suggest you let him know sooner rather than later," Annalisa advised. "Now…let's take a look."

Annalisa placed the transducer on Amelia's growing bump and smiled widely before asking, "Do you want to know the gender? Because this is a textbook angle and there's little doubt at all." Smiling softly, Amelia nodded without saying a word. Annalisa whispered, "It's a boy, Amelia. Congratulations."

Although she couldn't explain why, Amelia teared up with joy. Pulling herself into smartass mode, she shared, "Now we'll be like the Brady Bunch, I guess. 3 boys and 3 girls."

"Why stop there?" Annalisa shrugged with a giggle.

"One baby at a time. This guy's enough for now," Amelia laughed. "Are you taping the scan?"

"Yep," Annalisa confirmed as she stopped the video at certain points to measure distances and lengths. "And, I'll tell you something, Mommy, this little guy is busy…he's moving all over the place now."

"I think I would like to send it to Owen," Amelia smiled gently.

"We can do that – no problem. Stop by the receptionist's desk and she'll email the link to you," Annalisa confirmed as she finished up. Annalisa wiped off Amelia's belly and offered a hand so Amelia could sit up.

"So, everything still looks great?" Amelia asked with anticipation.

"Amelia, I mean this with all the love in the world, but there's really no reason to keep you on my service. Everything appears to be ideal and you haven't experienced any complications whatsoever. Your pregnancy is really not considered high risk anymore," Annalisa explained.

"Are you firing me as your patient?" Amelia joked.

"For the best reason possible," Annalisa smiled. "I can refer you to an OB if you aren't sure who you'd like to see."

"Let me talk to Owen about it. He might know someone. Otherwise I'll be in touch," Amelia suggested. Giggling to herself, Amelia couldn't wait to tell the kids. Bronwyn probably wanted another sister, but the boys would be overjoyed at the idea of a brother. And Owen? Even though he'd be thrilled no matter what, Amelia was fairly certain that he'd be especially thrilled to be having a little boy.

"Mommy, is today the day we go to the ferret-tist?" Bronwyn asked when Amelia picked her up from school.

"Bronwyn!" Oliver growled with disgust, "It's ther-a-pist. We're not going to a pet store, stupid."

"I'm NOT stupid," Bronwyn screeched in a high-pitched whine.

"I'm driving," Amelia reminded her children gently. They knew that meant they needed to be quiet so Mommy could concentrate.

"Mmmoooommmmyyy! Did you hear what Oliver said, though? He called me stupid and I'm not stupid. He's stupid," Bronwyn proclaimed.

"Am not! Take that back, Bronwyn, or I'll punch you," Oliver threatened.

"Finley?... Finley?... Finley!" Amelia called out.

"Huh?" Finley uttered as he pulled an ear bud out of his ear.

"Would you please deal with your brother and sister for me?" Amelia requested.

Finley sighed a sigh of teenage frustration and asked with a cracking voice, "What's going on you two?"

"Oliver called me stupid," Bronwyn tattled.

Finley stared right at her with an expression of sheer boredom, "Well, are you stupid?"

"No!" Bronwyn declared.

"Then who cares what Oliver says. You know he's not right," Finley advised. "Oliver, what's your deal?"

"She called me stupid," Oliver grumbled. "And she's annoying."

"One guess what I'm gonna ask you, Einstein," Finley groaned.

"No, I'm not stupid," Oliver spat out.

"Both of you get over yourselves and be quiet so Mom can drive without your ear-piercing screams," Finley ordered as he put his ear bud back in.

"Ummm…hey….ummm…Mommy?" Bronwyn asked.

"Yes?" Amelia responded.

"Why does Finley get to be the boss of us? He's just a kid too," Bronwyn wondered aloud.

Amelia chuckled, "Well, Bronwyn, because he's been helping me out a lot since Daddy went overseas."

"I want to be your helper," Bronwyn whined.

"You are, sweetie. You're my helper in different ways," Amelia explained.

"Yeah, you can't help with kid stuff because you're just a baby," Oliver harassed.

"Oliver Blake, enough," Amelia declared sharply.

"It's true," Oliver argued.

"Oliver. I mean it. That's more than enough. I suggest you stop now before your life becomes more complicated," Amelia stated firmly.

"I wish Dad was here. He's never as mean as you are. I wish you were the one in the desert and that you just stayed there forever," Oliver reacted as Amelia took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

Finley reached into the back seat and backhanded his brother's cheek. "Oliver, don't you ever say anything like that again."

Oliver couldn't help but cry at the pain of the slap. Luckily, Amelia was just pulling up to the therapist's office as the slap fell. She parked the car and twisted back, offering Finley a death stare. "Was that really necessary?" she asked her eldest.

"Did you hear what he said?" Finley yelled.

Amelia remained calm and nodded, "Finley, go on in and take Bronwyn. See if Adam is ready for you and if Erin is ready for Bron." Finley climbed out of the car with as much drama and noise as possible as he grabbed Bronwyn's hand and urged her to come with him. After grabbing an instant ice pack out of the glove box, Amelia climbed into the back seat and sat next to Oliver.

"How's your cheek?" she asked as she leaned in close to it. She activated the ice pack by smacking it between her hands.

"Don't talk to me. I hate you," Oliver yelled as he yanked the ice pack out of her hand. Amelia didn't respond verbally; instead, she continued to sit next to him and gaze toward the front of the car.

Her phone buzzed and she saw that Owen was calling. It was 1:30 am where he was. Amelia answered the phone and asked curiously, "Hey, is everything all right?"

"Yeah. Just missing you. I can't sleep," Owen admitted softly. "Did I catch you with your hands full of kids?"

"Kind of. We just pulled up for therapy. Finley and Bronwyn are inside. Oliver and I are in the car and Oliver's holding an ice pack to his cheek because Finley smacked him," Amelia elucidated.

"What? That doesn't sound like Finley," Owen sighed.

"There's a lot that happens around here now that isn't like it was, O," Amelia disclosed with exhaustion.

Oliver grabbed the phone out of Amelia's hand without asking and began talking to his dad, "Dad? I really miss you."

"I miss you, too, buddy. Why did Finley smack you?" Owen asked.

"I don't wanna talk about it," Oliver replied.

"You deserved it, huh?" Owen chuckled softly.

"It's not funny, Dad," Oliver pouted.

"I'm sure it's not, Oliver. I'm sorry. Are you supposed to be meeting with what's his name right now?" Owen inquired.

"Paul and yes, but I'm injured," Oliver answered.

"Sounds serious," Owen responded flatly. Oliver could tell he wasn't going to get anywhere with Owen. He handed the phone back to Amelia and asked if he could go inside. Amelia told him to let the receptionist know she'd be right in, and she watched Oliver stomp into the office in a huff.

"I'm back," Amelia sighed.

"I called at a really bad time, didn't I? I'm sorry. I can call later," Owen apologized.

"No, you're fine. I've got about 10-15 minutes before I start making the rounds in their appointments," Amelia assured him.

"So, what caused the squabble?" Owen asked. "Entertain me with a story that doesn't involve heat, sand, or surgery."

Amelia chuckled. She recounted the car conversation for him as accurately as possible.

"What's gotten into them?" Owen asked.

"I'm not trying to make you feel bad, Owen, but this is part of their reality since you've been gone. They act out a lot more. They fight, they whine, they argue," Amelia admitted.

"I feel like a jerk," Owen disclosed.

"What do you mean?" Amelia asked with confusion.

"For choosing to be here. I'm sorry it's been so tough on you," Owen apologized.

"I'm not going to lie. It pretty much sucks. But I do have some good news to share," Amelia remarked.

"I like good news," Owen acknowledged with a grin.

"Can you open your email and be on the phone at the same time?" she wondered.

"Yeah," Owen said as he shuffled out of bed for the only laptop available in the camp. "It's satellite and I can't stay on it long." He'd already booted it up and pulled up the browser. "This one from you from about an hour or so ago?"

"That's the one. Open it and follow the link. I promise you'll love it," Amelia hinted.

"It's the middle of the night. It's not some stupid joke email, is it?" Owen asked as he waited for the link to connect.

"No. No joke," Amelia insisted.

"Uhh… Mia? Umm… wha? Umm… is this..? Are we having a baby?" Owen muttered.

"You're a doctor. What do you see?" Amelia flirted.

"I see a baby," Owen uttered with complete shock.

"Well, there you go. Now the secret's out… you knocked me up before you headed overseas, Major," Amelia teased.

Owen cleared his throat, "And you're just telling me now? Is everything ok? Why did you wait? When are you due? Mia…."

Giggling softly, Amelia suggested, "Everything is great. Annalisa fired me as a patient today because I'm not high risk enough for her. I'm due in early July. The rest of your questions…let's deal with those later. Congratulations, Daddy. It's a boy."

Choked up, Owen sputtered, "A boy?" After a pause, Owen asked, "How far along are you?"

"14 weeks," Amelia disclosed.

"When I get home, you'll be almost 20 weeks, huh?" Owen clarified.

"Yeah, I guess so. I'm just starting to show. Who knows what I'll look like in 6 weeks," Amelia joked.

"Beautiful, Amelia. You'll look beautiful. I love you more than words can say," Owen conveyed just as their connection went dead.

Amelia took in a few deep breaths and held her phone close to her heart before exiting the car and heading in to deal with the melee. She was so relieved that Owen now knew about the baby. Even though he was faraway, she didn't feel quite so alone anymore.