Chapter 34

Kagome sat on the table, her legs dangling nervously. She had expected to do this in an office, not an ultrasound room, but it is what it was. She had made the appointment to talk with a gynecologist before she and Miroku left for their honeymoon. Unfortunately, because they had been gone for a week, Miroku was unable to join her for the appointment. He needed to make sure everything with the bar was still going strong because InuYasha had been in charge.

So, Kagome was here alone. She didn't mind, the questions she had were basic, but still, something inside of her wished he was there. She had already gone through the normal procedures. Make sure Insurance was good, given a urine sample, and then be escorted to a room. However, she wasn't in the room for long before she was moved to the ultrasound room.

She jumped, startled as a woman dressed in a white coat, knocked and then entered. "Hello, Mrs. Taisho. I am Doctor Yamaha." The woman closed the door and then smiled brightly at Kagome. She sat in her chair, swiping up the tablet that held all of Kagome's information. "It says here you are wishing to try and have a baby with your husband, but that you have questions?"

"Yes. My birth control shot should run out later this month. I was wondering if it would be safe to try and have a baby immediately, or if we should wait." Kagome wrung her hands together, swallowing her nervousness. "I also had a miscarriage a few years ago, and I want to make sure it won't interfere with having a baby."

"Yes, I see that here. Most of the time, the miscarriages themselves won't affect any other pregnancies. The main concern would be what caused the miscarriage in the first place." The doctor stood, motioning for Kagome to lay back. Kagome had already undressed from the waist down, though she hadn't understood why. "We will check anyway, and make sure everything is okay. Plus, there is something your urine sample told us that I would also like to take a look at. Can you tell me what caused your first miscarriage?"

"Um, what did my sample say?" Kagome was suddenly nervous, but just received a smile from the doctor. She closed her eyes trying not to focus on the cold wand that was being inserted into her. "I was married before. My ex-husband wasn't happy about me being pregnant. He... um… he was very abusive and…"

"I understand." The doctor paused for a moment, then continued on. "Your new husband is different?"

"Yes." Kagome almost seemed to glow as she started to speak about Miroku. "He saved me. Literally. He is loving and caring, and one of the strongest men I know." Kagome stopped herself. If she wanted, she could talk about Miroku all day long. She was sure the doctor didn't want to hear about that. "So, will it be safe for us to try and have a baby immediately?"

"Well, in most cases, we do recommend that a couple wait a month or two before they try. Even if you are no longer on birth control it can take a few months for your hormones to return to normal. Sometimes a baby is conceived, but it would be at a higher risk of miscarriage." The doctor clicked a few buttons on her computer, seemingly happy with what she saw.

"So, we wait a few months. Are there any other things we should keep in mind?" Kagome was a bit disappointed to learn that she was going to have to wait that much longer to get pregnant. She knew Miroku was going to be disappointed as well.

"Well, as I said, in most cases. However, you made a mistake in your calculations for your birth control. You were due four months ago." The doctor patted Kagome's leg, making her open her eyes. "You are already pregnant. That was what your urine sample told us. See." She motioned towards the screen, and Kagome's mouth dropped as she saw the little blob that was her baby.

"I'm pregnant?" Kagome could feel the tears burning her eyes, and they quickly overflowed, running down her cheeks. "That's my baby?"

"Yep. You are about ten weeks along." The doctor moved the wand, and the angle of the baby changed, giving Kagome another picture. "Everything looks healthy. The baby is a good size, there is no scaring from your last miscarriage, so I don't see anything wrong. Would you like some pictures?"

"Yes please." Kagome wiped at her eyes, smiling happily. "Extra. My family will want a copy each."

"Okay." The doctor pressed a few buttons, and Kagome could hear the ultrasounds printing. "I also have a cd; it will have the baby's heartbeat. Bring it back every ultrasound visit, and we can add more audio, pictures, and even video."

The doctor pulled out the wand, throwing away the slip that had been over it and then returning it so it could be sanitized once Kagome left. Turning her chair to Kagome, the doctor helped the woman to sit up, and then handed her some cleaning wipes so Kagome could clean herself. "While you redress, I will get your pictures together, and then we can talk about where we go from here."

Kagome nodded, legs shaking as she stood. The elation she felt at the moment couldn't be explained. She was pregnant. She and Miroku were about to start their family, and they hadn't even realized it. Cleaning herself up and getting redressed, Kagome walked back to the table, seeing a second chair across from the first.

Doctor Yamaha smiled at her, motioning to the chair. She had an entire bag of papers and little boxes that Kagome had no idea where it came from. When she sat down, the doctor handed over a small folder, and inside were the pictures of Kagome's baby. As she looked at them, her tears started up again, a hand resting protectively over her belly.

"In this bag are flyers of do's and don'ts. It has a recommended list of books to read as your pregnancy progresses. We recommend not telling anyone outside of your husband until after the first trimester. The chance of miscarriage drops drastically at that point. However, with you being two weeks away from that point, and as healthy as your baby looks, I don't foresee any problems. The boxes contain different kinds of prenatal vitamins. They are samples. See which one you like best, and at our next appointment we will prescribe you more of that one." Doctor Yamaha handed over the bag, and Kagome gratefully took it.

"Thank you so much." Kagome sniffled, holding both the pictures and the bag close to her. "The baby really is healthy?"

"Yes. One of the healthiest I have seen in a while." The doctor stood, indicating that this appointment was over. "We do have a store here for instances like this. If you would like a unique way of telling your husband, feel free to stop by."

Kagome nodded, and they said their goodbyes going their separate ways. Kagome did stop by the store, and decided on a mug that said, "You're going to be a daddy.", on the inside. She planned on making him a cup of tea and waiting on him to finish drinking it.

She hadn't wanted to buy a onesie or anything for the baby, because she was worried about jinxing her healthy pregnancy by buying things for the baby too early. So, she steered clear of that altogether. The mug was perfect. Miroku liked a cup of tea during dinner. It kept him awake for the night of work at the bar.

A nervous wreck, Kagome finally made it home. She quickly stashed the vitamins and booklets into her dresser, and then went downstairs to start dinner. Miroku would come home for that, and then they would both head to work.

She wondered if she should keep her job but realized that she wanted to. She didn't want to sit around doing nothing while everyone else continued with her lives. She would take it easy, but still continue on with her job.

Swallowing she tried to focus on cooking. Her belly was fluttering like it was full of butterflies. A part of her was excited, knowing that Miroku was going to be ecstatic. Another part, the part of her that was never going to go away, still worried that Miroku would reject her, and now the baby. That was why she was so nervous.

Finishing dinner, she made his cup of tea, and had everything set out and waiting. He arrived just in time, immediately going to her, and kissing her cheek. As they sat down for dinner, Kagome had to force herself to eat so he didn't suspect anything.

"What did the doctor say?" Miroku had wanted to call her as soon as she left, but he got busy with work and was unable to. Something seemed off in the way she was acting, and now he wished he would have called sooner.

"I'm healthy. Everything is as it should be." She watched as he took a sip of his tea, her anxiety rising. He wasn't even halfway done drinking yet, and already she was bouncing her leg in nervousness.

"What about us having a baby?" He stopped chewing, looking at her and her nervous manner. Something was wrong, and suddenly he was as nervous as she. "Did she say we couldn't have babies?"

"No!" Kagome set down her fork, taking a deep breath to calm herself. "She did say that most couples wait a few months to start trying to have a baby after the birth control runs out. It gives the woman's body time to return to normal."

"Ahh. I see." He didn't even try to hide his disappointment and instead took a sip of his tea. He had wanted to try and start right away, but that did explain her behavior. "Well, we will just have to wait then. It will happen when we least expect it."

Kagome scoffed, rolling her eyes. "You've got that right."

Miroku turned back to his dinner, noticing that Kagome was still nervous. He had thought she was upset about them having to wait, but he realized it was something else. "Kagome, what is wrong? Did something else happen?"

"I just…" She looked at him, eyes wide. "I bought you a new mug. It says something on the bottom."

"Does it?" He looked at the plain white mug. "Do you want me to chug it?"

"No… It's not that important." That was the biggest lie she had ever told.

Miroku raised an eyebrow, picking up his tea, and drinking it quickly. The moment he saw what the bottom said, he started choking on his tea, nearly dropping the mug completely. He caught it, setting it down as he patted his chest.

Kagome was behind him, rubbing his back as he sorted out his breathing. She was smiling, finding his reaction amusing as he both processed what he just read and trying to get his lungs working properly. He spun around; eyes wide as he looked at her. "Are you pregnant?"

She nodded, squealing as he suddenly picked her up, spinning around in his excitement. He lowered her to the ground, claiming her mouth with his as his own eyes welled with tears. They didn't fall, but she could see them, and knew he was happy.

"How?" His voice was tight, hoarse with emotion.

"I miscalculated when my shot ran out. It ended four months ago." She grabbed his hand, dragging him upstairs. When they made it to the bedroom, she grabbed the folder she had been given and handed it to him. When he opened it up, he took a shuddering breath, eyes once more becoming glossy.

"Our baby?" He spared a glance at her, seeing her nod while she cried happily, and then looked back to the ultrasounds.

"The baby is healthy." Kagome sniffled, wiping at her eyes. "I'm ten weeks along."

"Before our trip to Bora Bora." Miroku frowned, thinking of everything Kagome had been through. Getting punched by her mother, hit by Kouga. All of the work she had done at the bar, the heavy lifting, the bartending. The rough sex they had often. All of it had been a risk to their baby. No more. Nothing would ever threaten the life of their baby again. He would make sure of it.

Turning to Kagome, he set down the ultrasounds, and then fell to his knees. He lifted up her shirt, kissing his baby that was curled under her heart. Kagome's hands fell onto his shoulders, and he grabbed one of her hands, resting his cheek against their future. It was amazing how much he loved this baby, and he had only known about it for a few minutes. Once again, Kagome was giving him everything he thought he would never have. There was no way he would be able to make it up to her, so he would love and cherish her as deeply as he could.