SUPER IMPORTANT NOTE! This chapter is rough. Without giving anything away, I just want you to be prepared for that. There will be mention of medical procedures and blood.
The Christmas and New Year holidays passed by in a blur for Gajeel, he was so deliriously happy over the news he'd honestly never expected to be glad for, that time seemed to be standing still. Levy had doctors appointments set for early January, and save for the occasional spell of dizziness, and cramping that she tried to hide, it felt surreal to him to know she was pregnant when there were absolutely no outward signs.
He went with her to the first appointment, and took an instant dislike to the obstetrician, who bore a terrifying resemblance to his aunt, Grandeeny. That was where the likeness started and stopped however, for Dr. Porlyusica was every bit as hard and abrupt as his aunt was gentle and polite. Levy didn't seem to mind her bedside manner - or complete lack of - and Gajeel figured she probably enjoyed the straight forward explanations and reading suggestions, knowing how her brain was. Levy was subjected to a blood test, and a brief physical examination, before she was handed a referral for an ultrasound in three weeks, and then they were sent on their way, with instructions to book a second appointment on the way out.
They never did make it to the ultrasound.
Two weeks later, Gajeel was home, enjoying the solitude of having the house to himself, Levy having gone off shopping with Lucy, the only other person who knew their news, when his phone rang.
"'Sup, Bunny Girl?"
"Gajeel, stay calm, yeah? It's Levy..."
He heard nothing else she said, the blood pounding in his ears as his vision started to blur. Shaking his head clear, he muttered a gruff "be there soon" before grabbing his keys, running on autopilot as he locked up and headed for the hospital.
"Lev'?" He kept his voice quiet as he pushed passed the nurse into the darkened room, rushing to her side when the sound of her sob practically broke his heart. "Oh, Kitten. Come here". He sat beside her, wrapping his arms tight around her shaking body and holding her to his chest. The sound of her anguish had his throat closing and his eyes burning as he blinked back tears.
"I'm - I'm sorry."
"Levy, ya got nothin' to 'pologize for. 'M sorry I wasn't with ya." He turned to see Lucy carefully shutting the door behind her. "The doc been yet?"
"No, but it shouldn't be -" Lucy was cut off by a knock at the door, opening it to reveal a young woman in a white coat and glasses.
"Hi everyone, I'm Dr. Green. May I come in?" Her voice was gentle, and she waited for a nod before she stepped in, wheeling a machine behind her. "Levy, isn't it? And you must be the fiancé. My name's Ever. Levy, if it's okay with you, can I ask you a couple of questions?" She paused, waiting for the tiny nod before smiling reassuringly. "Have you been having a lot of cramping? It's okay, you can just nod. How about bleeding?"
"Only - only a little bit. Until today" Levy managed to squeak out, her voice wavering, sobs threatening to start again.
"And this morning, what happened?"
"I was... Fine, when I got up. Lucy and I went out for b-breakfast. Then it started hurting a-and when I stood up, I f-f..."
"She nearly fainted. I helped her out to the car, but when I saw the blood on her thighs, I brought her straight here." Lucy finished for her friend, Levy's eyes closed and she focused on her breathing.
"I would like to do a couple of tests, if that's okay Levy? I'm going to chase up your blood test from earlier, but right now, do you think I can do a quick ultrasound?"
Levy nodded, laying back and lifting her shirt to expose her abdomen, flinching a little at the cool gel.
"I'm sorry, I know it's cold. So, I'm just going to have a quick look, I'm sorry, I know it's uncomfortable" she spoke softly as she moved the transducer around, occasionally prodding a little harder. "Okay, all done. You can wipe that goop off" she smiled softly, passing Levy some paper towel. "I'm sure you already know, so I won't say it. I know how much those words hurt. I do want to send you upstairs for a quick procedure though, we need to make sure there's no retained product, and I don't want to put you through this any longer than necessary. Does that sound okay?" Levy just nodded mutely, staring at her hands. "Okay, I'm going to organise that now. Mr Redfox, would you step out here to sign some paperwork?" She gestured to the door. Gajeel looked at Levy, how small and scared she looked, and hesitated.
"Go, I've got her" Lucy whispered, waving him away.
"Lev? I'll be right outside, kitten." With a kiss to her forehead, he turned, three strides taking him out into the hall.
"I'm sorry, Mr Redfox -"
"Gajeel. Name's Gajeel."
"Of course, Gajeel. I know how hard this is, for both of you. Your fiancé has miscarried, it's not uncommon for early pregnancy to end like this, but that never makes it any easier. Our concern now is making sure she passes all the tissues, anything left behind could cause an infection. I'm going to organise to send her upstairs for a DC procedure. It's a very short operation, low risk of any negative effects. I do need to explain them though, there is a change of bleeding, pain, infection, uterine rupture and infertility. They are very, very small risks, and I feel, in this case, the option of using medication would pose a greater risk to your fiancés mental state. You're listed as her next of kin, so you have the right to make this decision for her. Do I have your permission to organise this?"
"Oh, uhhhh, sure" Gajeel muttered, blankly signing the papers she held out for him. He could have been signing away anything for all he noted, or cared. He just wanted to be back with Levy, making sure she was okay.
He stayed with her, holding her hand tightly in his own, right up until the moment they wheeled her into the pre-op suite to be anesthetised. It was then, and only then, that he let himself break down, completely unaware for Lucy beside him, pulling her phone out and making a call.
When Levy came around the first time, it was to the sight of Gajeel's hair strewn across her legs.
"Gaj?"
"Lev! You're awake! How do you feel?" He sat up at the sound of her raspy voice, hand gently cupping her cheeks below the oxygen cannula.
"'mokay, sleepy. Your eyes are red."
"My eyes are always red, ya goose. They got ya on the good stuff or somethin'?"
"No, you've been crying. Please don't cry about me." She trailed off, slipping back into sleep.
"It's okay, it takes a while for them to wake up properly" the matronly nurse reassured him as she jotted down notes in Levy's chart. "It's a heavy sedation, just let her sleep it off."
The second time Levy woke, it was Lucy's blonde hair laying over her legs.
"Lu?"
"Hey Lev. How you doing?" She asked softly, thumb rubbing circles on the back of Levy's hand.
"Tired. Where's Gajeel?" she rubbed her eyes sleepily, looking around for the man in question.
"He's just outside, think his Dad rang just before you woke. I can get him for you?"
Levy shook her head, she knew he probably wasn't doing well - he always hated hospitals. "Sorry for scaring you, Lu".
"Girl, I'm marrying Natsu. You're fine." Lucy joked, waving a hand dismissively. "Do you want to talk about it?" Levy thought for a moment before shaking her head. "Okay, I'll be here when you do. You should rest for now."
She fussed over her friend, adjusting the blankets and heat pack as Levy's eyes closed once again.
The third time, Levy awoke into full lucidity.
"You're not who I expected" she whispered at the sight of none other than Metalicana Redfox sitting in the chair beside her, glasses on and his attention focused on the book in his hands.
"I'd wager not. Better lookin' though, right?"
"Infinitely less morose than the last Redfox I saw. What are you reading?"
"Nothin' interesting, little one." He stood then, looking around the room. "Room hasn't changed at all. Nice ta see they patched the hole."
"Metalicana? What do you mean?"
"Haven't I told ya? Just call me Pops." He moved to sit on the edge of her bed then, scarred hand holding her own pale one. "Can I tell ya a story, little one? Long time ago, 'fore Gajeel was born, Emeline an' I were expectin'. Few times, actually. All of 'em, we ended up in this very room an' every time we went home with empty arms. See that funny spot on the wall? 'swhere I punched a hole 'cause the docs couldna tell us why."
"Gajeel never said..."
"'Cause he don't know. Not 'xactly somethin' ya work into the talk about sex with a teenage boy. Which wasn't ever a talk I hadta have 'til he met you, little one." He smirked at her, patting her hand as the door opened with a knock.
"Levy, they told me you were awake. I'm just about to finish my shift, and I wanted to see how you're doing. May I come in?"
"Of course. Dr Green, this is my father in law, Metalicana."
"Pleasure, sir. The family resemblance is striking. Where is Gajeel?" She asked, shaking his hand firmly.
"Sent the brat home, shower, clean clothes, all o' that. Ya want me to wait outside, little one?"
"No, please stay, Pops." Her tiny hand shot out, grasping his wrist with a strength he wasn't expecting. Patting her hand with his free one, he smiled reassuringly as he moved to stand by her head.
"It's alright, sir, you don't need to step out. So" she turned her attention fully to Levy, pocketing her glasses. "Everything went really well. You're on some antibiotics in your IV just to be safe, and you'll probably be a bit sore and cramp-y for a few days, along with a little bit of bleeding. I'd like to see you for a follow up in two weeks before clearing you for anything penetrative -" she had to pause, smiling at the stifled chuckling coming from the older man. "I'm going to organise your discharge papers and some pain relief, and then you'll be able to go home in a couple of hours. The next OB on shift will go through everything with you in more detail before they let you leave." She smiled, rummaging in her pocket for a moment. "I also wanted to give you these. They're full of some very useless stuff, but I found Pink Elephants to be really helpful, if you want to talk to someone about this. This has all their details on it." She set a pamphlet down on the table before squeezing Levy's hand gently and leaving the room.
"Wish she was around all those years ago" Metalicana whistled lowly as the door clocked shut.
Levy picked up the brochure, opening it to find an appointment card with a handwritten note on the back - "It's alright to grieve the loss of everything that might have been". Yes, Levy definitely liked Dr Green too.
"Gajeel, I can walk the six steps into the house. The wheelchair at hospital is just protocol. You don't have to carry me!"
"Too late, Shrimp. Already inside. Ya want couch or bed?" he smirked, kicking the door closed with his boot.
"Couch. And a cuddle"
"Ya got it". He sat her carefully down on the couch, finding Lily and placing him on her abdomen. "Be right back".
Levy watched him disappear out the front door, before returning a second later with the paper bag from the hospital pharmacy, followed in by a head of shining silver hair.
"Sorry kitten, couldn't get rid of 'im."
"Oi, watch yer tone, brat. I brought Thai, peanut satay. Still yer favourite, isn't it little one?"
"My two favourite Redfox men. You're so good to me" she joked, before her eyes filled with tears. "I don't d-deserve you."
Gajeel was by her side in an instant, thumbs swiping away the tears that spilt over and ran down her cheeks. "Don't say that kitten. Yer amazing." He sighed as she just shook her head, and shot a look at his father, who took three strides to kneel in front of the couple.
"Listen here, little one. Yer gonna be sad, of course ya are. We're all gonna be sad fer a while. 's normal. Em always said it wasn't losin' the babe tha' hurt the most, it was givin' up on all the dreams o' the future, just when yer was startin' to have 'em. So be sad, grieve over losin' that future. But don't you dare say you don't deserve our love and support, Levy McGarden. I will not stand for it!"
Gajeel and Levy just blinked, stunned. First at each other, and then at Metalicana who had wandered back to the kitchen to divvy up their dinner.
"What the fuck is he talkin' about?"
"I didn't think he even knew my name!"
This one was HARD you guys. I'm sorry for triggering anyone, or generally being a huge downer.
The reality is that, in Australia, 1 in 4 pregnancies end in miscarriage, and that sucks. I know that, because I am that 1. So as hard as this chapter is to read, it was harder to write. This is a super dramatised version (because staying home while you bleed and cry into icecream doesn't make for a great story) so apologies for any medical inaccuracies. And, as fair warning, there will be mention of this in future chapters. I'll pop a TW in the header when that's the case.
So yeah, huge bummer of an update. Sorry! Please drop a review, let me know how you're doing, lets talk about stuff. And keep your eyes out for another update soon to hopefully lift your spirits a bit xxx