Chapter 6
"Theresa, Baby, it's time to get up," Ethan said as he gently nudged his soulmate. "We have to take Little Ethan to school. He starts first grade today, remember??"
"Mmmm hmmm," Theresa mumbled sleepily.
"Come on, Sweetheart. Little Ethan has to be there at 8:00 sharp," Ethan replied. "Either you get up right now, or Little Ethan and I will be forced to tickle you ferociously until you do get up out of this bed." With that, Ethan and son climbed on top of Theresa and began a ferocious tickle attack that seemed to last an eternity. Theresa was laughing so hard she had monstrous tears flowing down her cheeks. She was wide awake, as well as out of breath, at this point.
"I'm awake, I'm awake!!" Theresa cried. "Please stop tickling me, Ethan. I can't breathe." Ethan and son stopped tickling Theresa, and she climbed out of bed and made her way toward the two of them. The closer she got, however, the further away she seemed to drift. "Ethan, what's happening??" cried a bewildered Theresa. "Ethan, come baaaaaaaaack!!" Theresa cried as Ethan continued to slip further and further away into some sort of bright white light.
"How much longer will it be before she wakes up??" Ethan asked Dr. Jones.
"Any minute now," Dr. Jones Replied. "As soon as I finish giving her this medicine that will counteract the meds that I used to induce her coma, she should wake up. I have to administer the this medicine very carefully and bring her out of the coma very slowly so as to prevent any harmful reactions that might occur otherwise."
Just then, Theresa's eyelids began to flutter. Ethan rushed over to her bed and took her hand in his. "That's it, Theresa, come back to us," Ethan said.
"Let's see, her vitals are normal, and she's showing no sign af any kind of reaction to the meds," Dr. Jones stated. "She should be just fine. Well, I'm going to go now. If you need anything, just have one of the nurses page me."
"Mmmmmhmmmhmm. What happened?" Theresa asked groggily. "Why am I in this hospital bed with a bandage around my skull?? Why are my mother, brother, sister-in-law, niece, and son here?? Ethan!! What are you doing in here with me?? Shouldn't you be with Gwen?? Why is this room decorated as if someone is going to propose to me?? And Ethan, is the song playing on the CD player the same song that you and I sang to each other that night at the Crane cabin??"
"Theresa, Sweetheart, just calm down, okay??" Ethan said. "I'll fill you in on everything, but you're gonna have to promise me that you will remain calm when I do. Do you think you can do that, Theresa??"
"Of course I can," Theresa replied. "Just hurry up and tell me, okay?? The suspense of it all is killing me."
"I'll give you the bad news first," Ethan said. "Gwen and I are over. She lied to me, manipulated me, and used a baby that wasn't even mine to keep you and me apart. Gwen also nearly killed you with that bedpan tonight. Gwen is in the Psych ward right now, because the psychologist wants to keep her restrained and sedated for the time being so that she won't come after you again. Gwen will stand trial for attempted murder, and she will be spending the next forty or fifty years in a California prison--most likely San Quentin. You, my dear, will never have to worry about her coming between us or harming you ever again."
"Oh, Ethan," Theresa said. "I'm terribly sorry about all that. I never knew that Gwen could be so cold and calculating. Well, at least you found out now instead of years down the road."
"Yeah, I know," Ethan said. "Now, for the good news. Earlier this evening, I took Little Ethan up to the Genetics lab and had the lab technicians run a DNA test on the two of us. Guess what?? I am Little Ethan's father, not that damnable louse Julian Crane. ALso, Little Ethan said his first word!! He called me Da Da and he told me that he loves me!! I have never been this happy in my life!!"
"Little Ethan is yours and not Julian's?!" Theresa exclaimed. "This isn't just good news, this the best news anyone could ever get!! Unhhhh, I feel so nauseous all of a sudden."
"Pilar, will you hold this hospital pan under her chin please??" Ethan asked. "I'll go and get a nurse."
Ethan stepped out into the hallway and asked one of the nurses if she would mind taking a look at Theresa. Ethan and the nurse went into Theresa's room, and the nurse proceeded to examine Theresa.
"Theresa, how long have you been feeling nauseous??" The nurse asked.
"Not long at all. The wave of nauseousness just swept over me all of a sudden, just like that (snaps her fingers). I don't know what could have caused it," Theresa replied.
"Well, I'm going to give you something for the nausea, but I'm going to have to draw some blood and take a urine specimen," the nurse stated.
The nurse took some blood from Theresa's arm, and Ethan helped Theresa to the bathroom so that she could collect a urine specimen for the nurse. Once the nurse had what she needed, she made her way to the diagnostic lab. Once there, she had the technicians run some tests on the specimens--including a pregnancy test. As soon as the results came back for all the tests, the nurse looked them over.
"Let's see," the nurse said. "No infection of any kind, nor any drug reaction of any kind. No chemical or nutrient imbalance of any kind, nor any type of stomach bug. No ulcers either. Wait a minute, this shows that the pregnancy test came back positive. That's what's causing her nauseousness!! She's going to have a baby!!"
The nurse immediately went back to Theresa's room. Once she got there, she told everyone that they would need to sit down for what they were about to be told.
"Well, nurse," Theresa asked. "What is it??"
"Congratulations!!" the nurse said. "You are going to have a baby!! The nauseousness you are experiencing is morning sickness."
All of a sudden, a loud "thud" came from Ethan's direction. Ethan had fainted when he heard what the nurse said. Slowly, he regained consciousness.
"I'm okay, I just fainted from the shock of what the nurse just told us," Ethan said. "Theresa is pregnant?! Could it be that she conceived that first night we were in Los Angeles?? That night we were making out in bed and didn't know it?? If that's the case, then she is carrying my second child!!" Ethan thought to himself. "I mean, she hasn't been with anyone else since she's been here in Los Angeles."
"Theresa, Do you remember the first night we were here in L.A.??" Ethan asked. "The night we were making out in bed together and didn't know it?? I was naked and you were wearing a very sexy lace undie set, remember??
"Yes, Ethan, I remember," Theresa replied. "What's that got to do with my being pregnant??"
"Well, I think that was the night that you conceived this baby," Ethan said. "What I'm saying is that you are carrying our second child. Can you believe it?? Could this night get any better than it already is??"
I don't know, Ethan," Theresa replied. "I just don't know."
"Theresa, do you see that Teddy bear at the foot of your bed??" Ethan Asked. "I want you to look behind the red velvet heart and I want you to read the card in the bear's lap as you open what's inside the heart. By the way, the song you're listening to is the song we sang to each other at the Crane cabin. It is entitiled 'Kiss Me,' remember?"
Theresa reached inside the red velvet heart on the bear's chest, and as she opened the heart-shaped box, she read the card that was on the bear's lap. Theresa could not believe her eyes when she saw what was in the box--it was the most beautiful diamond ring she had ever laid her eyes upon!! Tears streamed down her face as she read Ethan's heartfelt message on the card. She could not believe that all her dreams were coming true at that very moment. She couldn't have been any happier than she was right then.
"Theresa," Ethan said. "I have a couple more things to give you, and then I want to ask you a very important question."
Ethan then handed her the box of chocolates and the bouquet of roses. As Theresa read the card Ethan had placed inside the bouquet, Ethan poured himself a glass of champagne, and he poured Theresa a glass of the apple juice he had the nurse bring in.
"Theresa, I am madly, deeply, passionately, and completely in love with you," Ethan said. "I have been ever since the first time I laid eyes upon you. We have overcome many obstacles to get where we are now. I know that I have caused of some of those obstacles, and in doing so, I have hurt you very deeply. I am truly sorry for any pain that I have caused you, and I swear to you on my own life that I will never hurt you again nor will I ever leave you again. I love you so much. I just have to know this one thing: Will you, Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald, make me the happiest man in the history of time and be my wife always and forever??"
"Oh, Ethan!!" Theresa exclaimed. "I have waited so long for you to realize that you truly belong with me and not with Gwen. Oh, I love you more than you will ever know!! I would love nothing better than to be your wife always and forever!! My answer is 'YES!! YES!! YES!! A MILLION TIMES YES!!"
By this time, everyone in the room had the waterworks going. Ethan carefully removed the ring from its box, and before he put it on Theresa's finger, he asked her to read the inscription.
"To my beloved Theresa: I was fated to be yours forever. Love for eternity, your beloved Ethan," Theresa read aloud. "Oh, Ethan!! I love you so much!! Now, will you put this ring on my finger, or will I have to do it myself??"
"Of course, Sweetheart," Ethan said with a laugh. Ethan placed the ring on her finger. "There. Now, may I have this dance??" Ethan asked as John Michael Montgomery's "I Swear" began to play on the CD player.
"You bet I will!!" Theresa exclaimed as she pulled Ethan into a long passionate kiss.
Pretty soon, everyone was dancing. Miguel was dancing with his wife, Kay. Fox was dancing with his fiancee, Whitney, Chad was dancing with Pilar. Of course, the babies were playing with Theresa's Teddy bear.
Ethan reached down and scooped Little Ethan into his arms so he could share the dance with his parents. Miguel and Kay did the same with Maria.
"I wuv oo Da Da!! I wuv oo Ma Ma!!" Little Ethan exclaimed as he threw his chubby little arms around his parents' necks.
"We love you too, Baby," Ethan and Theresa said in unison as they kissed Little Ethan's forehead. "We love you too."
"Theresa, Baby, it's time to get up," Ethan said as he gently nudged his soulmate. "We have to take Little Ethan to school. He starts first grade today, remember??"
"Mmmm hmmm," Theresa mumbled sleepily.
"Come on, Sweetheart. Little Ethan has to be there at 8:00 sharp," Ethan replied. "Either you get up right now, or Little Ethan and I will be forced to tickle you ferociously until you do get up out of this bed." With that, Ethan and son climbed on top of Theresa and began a ferocious tickle attack that seemed to last an eternity. Theresa was laughing so hard she had monstrous tears flowing down her cheeks. She was wide awake, as well as out of breath, at this point.
"I'm awake, I'm awake!!" Theresa cried. "Please stop tickling me, Ethan. I can't breathe." Ethan and son stopped tickling Theresa, and she climbed out of bed and made her way toward the two of them. The closer she got, however, the further away she seemed to drift. "Ethan, what's happening??" cried a bewildered Theresa. "Ethan, come baaaaaaaaack!!" Theresa cried as Ethan continued to slip further and further away into some sort of bright white light.
"How much longer will it be before she wakes up??" Ethan asked Dr. Jones.
"Any minute now," Dr. Jones Replied. "As soon as I finish giving her this medicine that will counteract the meds that I used to induce her coma, she should wake up. I have to administer the this medicine very carefully and bring her out of the coma very slowly so as to prevent any harmful reactions that might occur otherwise."
Just then, Theresa's eyelids began to flutter. Ethan rushed over to her bed and took her hand in his. "That's it, Theresa, come back to us," Ethan said.
"Let's see, her vitals are normal, and she's showing no sign af any kind of reaction to the meds," Dr. Jones stated. "She should be just fine. Well, I'm going to go now. If you need anything, just have one of the nurses page me."
"Mmmmmhmmmhmm. What happened?" Theresa asked groggily. "Why am I in this hospital bed with a bandage around my skull?? Why are my mother, brother, sister-in-law, niece, and son here?? Ethan!! What are you doing in here with me?? Shouldn't you be with Gwen?? Why is this room decorated as if someone is going to propose to me?? And Ethan, is the song playing on the CD player the same song that you and I sang to each other that night at the Crane cabin??"
"Theresa, Sweetheart, just calm down, okay??" Ethan said. "I'll fill you in on everything, but you're gonna have to promise me that you will remain calm when I do. Do you think you can do that, Theresa??"
"Of course I can," Theresa replied. "Just hurry up and tell me, okay?? The suspense of it all is killing me."
"I'll give you the bad news first," Ethan said. "Gwen and I are over. She lied to me, manipulated me, and used a baby that wasn't even mine to keep you and me apart. Gwen also nearly killed you with that bedpan tonight. Gwen is in the Psych ward right now, because the psychologist wants to keep her restrained and sedated for the time being so that she won't come after you again. Gwen will stand trial for attempted murder, and she will be spending the next forty or fifty years in a California prison--most likely San Quentin. You, my dear, will never have to worry about her coming between us or harming you ever again."
"Oh, Ethan," Theresa said. "I'm terribly sorry about all that. I never knew that Gwen could be so cold and calculating. Well, at least you found out now instead of years down the road."
"Yeah, I know," Ethan said. "Now, for the good news. Earlier this evening, I took Little Ethan up to the Genetics lab and had the lab technicians run a DNA test on the two of us. Guess what?? I am Little Ethan's father, not that damnable louse Julian Crane. ALso, Little Ethan said his first word!! He called me Da Da and he told me that he loves me!! I have never been this happy in my life!!"
"Little Ethan is yours and not Julian's?!" Theresa exclaimed. "This isn't just good news, this the best news anyone could ever get!! Unhhhh, I feel so nauseous all of a sudden."
"Pilar, will you hold this hospital pan under her chin please??" Ethan asked. "I'll go and get a nurse."
Ethan stepped out into the hallway and asked one of the nurses if she would mind taking a look at Theresa. Ethan and the nurse went into Theresa's room, and the nurse proceeded to examine Theresa.
"Theresa, how long have you been feeling nauseous??" The nurse asked.
"Not long at all. The wave of nauseousness just swept over me all of a sudden, just like that (snaps her fingers). I don't know what could have caused it," Theresa replied.
"Well, I'm going to give you something for the nausea, but I'm going to have to draw some blood and take a urine specimen," the nurse stated.
The nurse took some blood from Theresa's arm, and Ethan helped Theresa to the bathroom so that she could collect a urine specimen for the nurse. Once the nurse had what she needed, she made her way to the diagnostic lab. Once there, she had the technicians run some tests on the specimens--including a pregnancy test. As soon as the results came back for all the tests, the nurse looked them over.
"Let's see," the nurse said. "No infection of any kind, nor any drug reaction of any kind. No chemical or nutrient imbalance of any kind, nor any type of stomach bug. No ulcers either. Wait a minute, this shows that the pregnancy test came back positive. That's what's causing her nauseousness!! She's going to have a baby!!"
The nurse immediately went back to Theresa's room. Once she got there, she told everyone that they would need to sit down for what they were about to be told.
"Well, nurse," Theresa asked. "What is it??"
"Congratulations!!" the nurse said. "You are going to have a baby!! The nauseousness you are experiencing is morning sickness."
All of a sudden, a loud "thud" came from Ethan's direction. Ethan had fainted when he heard what the nurse said. Slowly, he regained consciousness.
"I'm okay, I just fainted from the shock of what the nurse just told us," Ethan said. "Theresa is pregnant?! Could it be that she conceived that first night we were in Los Angeles?? That night we were making out in bed and didn't know it?? If that's the case, then she is carrying my second child!!" Ethan thought to himself. "I mean, she hasn't been with anyone else since she's been here in Los Angeles."
"Theresa, Do you remember the first night we were here in L.A.??" Ethan asked. "The night we were making out in bed together and didn't know it?? I was naked and you were wearing a very sexy lace undie set, remember??
"Yes, Ethan, I remember," Theresa replied. "What's that got to do with my being pregnant??"
"Well, I think that was the night that you conceived this baby," Ethan said. "What I'm saying is that you are carrying our second child. Can you believe it?? Could this night get any better than it already is??"
I don't know, Ethan," Theresa replied. "I just don't know."
"Theresa, do you see that Teddy bear at the foot of your bed??" Ethan Asked. "I want you to look behind the red velvet heart and I want you to read the card in the bear's lap as you open what's inside the heart. By the way, the song you're listening to is the song we sang to each other at the Crane cabin. It is entitiled 'Kiss Me,' remember?"
Theresa reached inside the red velvet heart on the bear's chest, and as she opened the heart-shaped box, she read the card that was on the bear's lap. Theresa could not believe her eyes when she saw what was in the box--it was the most beautiful diamond ring she had ever laid her eyes upon!! Tears streamed down her face as she read Ethan's heartfelt message on the card. She could not believe that all her dreams were coming true at that very moment. She couldn't have been any happier than she was right then.
"Theresa," Ethan said. "I have a couple more things to give you, and then I want to ask you a very important question."
Ethan then handed her the box of chocolates and the bouquet of roses. As Theresa read the card Ethan had placed inside the bouquet, Ethan poured himself a glass of champagne, and he poured Theresa a glass of the apple juice he had the nurse bring in.
"Theresa, I am madly, deeply, passionately, and completely in love with you," Ethan said. "I have been ever since the first time I laid eyes upon you. We have overcome many obstacles to get where we are now. I know that I have caused of some of those obstacles, and in doing so, I have hurt you very deeply. I am truly sorry for any pain that I have caused you, and I swear to you on my own life that I will never hurt you again nor will I ever leave you again. I love you so much. I just have to know this one thing: Will you, Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald, make me the happiest man in the history of time and be my wife always and forever??"
"Oh, Ethan!!" Theresa exclaimed. "I have waited so long for you to realize that you truly belong with me and not with Gwen. Oh, I love you more than you will ever know!! I would love nothing better than to be your wife always and forever!! My answer is 'YES!! YES!! YES!! A MILLION TIMES YES!!"
By this time, everyone in the room had the waterworks going. Ethan carefully removed the ring from its box, and before he put it on Theresa's finger, he asked her to read the inscription.
"To my beloved Theresa: I was fated to be yours forever. Love for eternity, your beloved Ethan," Theresa read aloud. "Oh, Ethan!! I love you so much!! Now, will you put this ring on my finger, or will I have to do it myself??"
"Of course, Sweetheart," Ethan said with a laugh. Ethan placed the ring on her finger. "There. Now, may I have this dance??" Ethan asked as John Michael Montgomery's "I Swear" began to play on the CD player.
"You bet I will!!" Theresa exclaimed as she pulled Ethan into a long passionate kiss.
Pretty soon, everyone was dancing. Miguel was dancing with his wife, Kay. Fox was dancing with his fiancee, Whitney, Chad was dancing with Pilar. Of course, the babies were playing with Theresa's Teddy bear.
Ethan reached down and scooped Little Ethan into his arms so he could share the dance with his parents. Miguel and Kay did the same with Maria.
"I wuv oo Da Da!! I wuv oo Ma Ma!!" Little Ethan exclaimed as he threw his chubby little arms around his parents' necks.
"We love you too, Baby," Ethan and Theresa said in unison as they kissed Little Ethan's forehead. "We love you too."