Lightning-Dono: Whee, writing spree! oO; Yeah. Okay, you see...It's hard for me to imagine Karen's reaction to the fact that she's going to be a future parent, but...What did she expect? Seriously...Oh, and if anyone doesn't fancy health lessons...I'm sorry, but this chapter has some references to that stuff. =0
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Karen's Point of View
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"I'm what...?" I asked faintly, gazing up at the kind nurse who was examining the blue-tinted pictures that she had placed over light.
"You heard me right," she replied seriously, pointing to each part of the picture and muttering something about them under her breath.
I pulled a face. "It's not true," I said shortly, turning over on my side to study the pictures. But right when I turned, Elli shut off the light and paced around the room, her face a work of art. The perfect nose; just the right length of hair; a beautiful peachy skin color...Everything about her complexion was completely flawless. While I, a steady beauty critic; nosy behavior; Queen of Attitude, was nothing like my friend. Not to mention I often accused people of lying to me, even when I am deeply convinced what they're saying is true.
"Unless you're growing some type of tumor, I suggest you take a carefully look at them." She handed me small snapshots of what she had seen. I shuddered, just looking at the tiny figure lying in a protective coating of nutrients.
"O-Okay," I said in hushed tones. Elli nodded her head politely and helped me up from the bed. Pulling on my thin, cream-colored coat, my eyes stayed glued to the ceiling blankly. It couldn't happen. Rick had told me specifically that he wouldn't let it happen. How could it be? Obviously I hadn't paid very much attention in health class.
"How could this happen?" I muttered anxiously, searching my mind for information that I knew I didn't have. Elli heard me, and to my displeasure, answered my softly spoken question.
"You see, when a male sperm cell makes contact with the egg of a female, it grows into a living organism. Do you catch my drift?" I nodded my head, my eyes misting over. Elli noticed this and rushed over to comfort me but I pushed her away, wiping away my tears furiously. "You should leave now," she said worriedly. Once again, I nodded, opening the door leading to the dreaded lobby. If anything more, I hated admitting someone was right. My heart throbbed at such an un-naturally hard beat that I thought it might burst. As I, Rick rushed over to me, his boots clunking on the tiled ground loudly.
"I...I'm pregnant," I murmured. The world spiraled out of sight and I was trapped in darkness.
"Karen...Karen!" A panicked voice repeated my name over and over. Rick. My eyelids fluttered open and I found myself with a damp cold cloth on my forehead, buried under two layers of white sheets.
"Wh-What happened?" I asked, groggily getting up and blinking.
"You passed out," Elli explained, allowing me enough time to recover before stripping off the sheets and handing me a glass of water. I greedily gulped it down out of thirst and wiped my mouth with my sleeve, enduring the stares given by Rick and Elli.
"Oh." The news I heard before I had fainted flooded my mind and I felt an overwhelming urge to jump up and pummel Rick. That was I saw the upset look plastered on his face.
"I'm so sorry," he said quietly, looking extremely tired. "I didn't mean to do anything like that." I watched his shoulders slump as he placed his head in his arms and leaned them on the edge of the bed. My heart softened to see him shake like that like a child trying to hide from the rain. But I couldn't bring myself to say, "It's okay." All I wanted to do at that very moment was have him grovel to me and beg for my forgiveness, which was cruel, but it was my idea of loyalty.
"All right." I got out of the bed and slung on my scarf. "How long was I out?"
Elli gave a shrug. "A couple of hours, at the most. It's nine o'clock now. You had Rick and I worried sick!" She hung up her apron on a hook. "Well, the Clinic is closing, so you both should leave." Nodding, I left the room. Rick was taking off his glasses so he could wipe his eyes. I found this very unmanly of him, but I knew how deeply he had felt about his unspoken promise to me about not getting me pregnant. He had only assured me that he wouldn't impregnate me, but I knew he had a hidden meaning to even those simple words.
"Stop sniffing," I said at once as we got out onto the open streets, the street lights shining upon us. He immediately stopped for a couple of seconds, but not being control it, he started using his sleeve to take in the flow. "Why are you crying?"
"..." Rick's eyes reflected every regret in the world he had as he looked at me. "I...I didn't mean to. It just happens..." I didn't demand any more answers from him for the rest of the walk, feeling uneasy.
I bid him good night before we went to bed.
"Good night, my sweet," he told me, a forced smile appearing on his face. I almost lost it then, but instead I just spoke this calmly.
"Rick, can I ask you something?" To my chagrin, he ignored me. "Rick?" That was when I realized that he was shaking again. Even I could control my tears! I went up to him, gathered him into my arms and walked him over to the loveseat. "Oh, Rick...What's wrong?" I didn't know how dedicated he had been to me until now.
"It's all my fault!" He cried. I tightened my wrap around him.
"Don't blame everything on yourself, okay?" This had an affect on him and he stopped shaking quite so much until he was reduced to a heavy breathing.
"What was it you wanted to ask me?" Rick asked as soon as he was done sniveling.
"I want you to know that...I don't want you to keep smiling at me because you know it makes me happy. I want you to tell me everything...Don't keep it all bottled up inside. Please?" I almost threw myself onto the floor and raised my arms up in a praising position, but I wasn't one to do something that dramatic. Rick drew himself up to his full height; or as tall as he could sitting down.
"I will." Embracing for a few seconds, we then headed up the stairs into bed. But before we got in, I steered him towards our bookshelf and pulled out a photo album. The cover's corners were bent and the lovely cloth I had glued onto it was peeling. But the photos were safe.
"Do you remember this?" I inquired, lying on my stomach and indicating the small wallet-size picture of Rick and I. He leaned over my shoulder to look at it.
"Yeah, I do," he said slowly. "I was five and you were four...It was taken a week or so after I moved in." I looked up at him in amazement.
"Wow...You still remember? You have a keen memory!" I flipped through the pages absent-mindedly, often stopping to see what I had turned to. There was a photo of our wedding. I was smiling and Rick had a wavering grin on his face. Had he really feared about our marriage or was he just nervous? I supposed that I was just worrying too much and I heard a loud thump behind me. Rick was taking off his glasses by the time I turned around.
"Nighty night," I crooned, putting away the album and getting into bed right next to him. Snuggling up against him, I felt a prickle of fear. There was a sharp knock at the door.
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Karen's Point of View
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"I'm what...?" I asked faintly, gazing up at the kind nurse who was examining the blue-tinted pictures that she had placed over light.
"You heard me right," she replied seriously, pointing to each part of the picture and muttering something about them under her breath.
I pulled a face. "It's not true," I said shortly, turning over on my side to study the pictures. But right when I turned, Elli shut off the light and paced around the room, her face a work of art. The perfect nose; just the right length of hair; a beautiful peachy skin color...Everything about her complexion was completely flawless. While I, a steady beauty critic; nosy behavior; Queen of Attitude, was nothing like my friend. Not to mention I often accused people of lying to me, even when I am deeply convinced what they're saying is true.
"Unless you're growing some type of tumor, I suggest you take a carefully look at them." She handed me small snapshots of what she had seen. I shuddered, just looking at the tiny figure lying in a protective coating of nutrients.
"O-Okay," I said in hushed tones. Elli nodded her head politely and helped me up from the bed. Pulling on my thin, cream-colored coat, my eyes stayed glued to the ceiling blankly. It couldn't happen. Rick had told me specifically that he wouldn't let it happen. How could it be? Obviously I hadn't paid very much attention in health class.
"How could this happen?" I muttered anxiously, searching my mind for information that I knew I didn't have. Elli heard me, and to my displeasure, answered my softly spoken question.
"You see, when a male sperm cell makes contact with the egg of a female, it grows into a living organism. Do you catch my drift?" I nodded my head, my eyes misting over. Elli noticed this and rushed over to comfort me but I pushed her away, wiping away my tears furiously. "You should leave now," she said worriedly. Once again, I nodded, opening the door leading to the dreaded lobby. If anything more, I hated admitting someone was right. My heart throbbed at such an un-naturally hard beat that I thought it might burst. As I, Rick rushed over to me, his boots clunking on the tiled ground loudly.
"I...I'm pregnant," I murmured. The world spiraled out of sight and I was trapped in darkness.
"Karen...Karen!" A panicked voice repeated my name over and over. Rick. My eyelids fluttered open and I found myself with a damp cold cloth on my forehead, buried under two layers of white sheets.
"Wh-What happened?" I asked, groggily getting up and blinking.
"You passed out," Elli explained, allowing me enough time to recover before stripping off the sheets and handing me a glass of water. I greedily gulped it down out of thirst and wiped my mouth with my sleeve, enduring the stares given by Rick and Elli.
"Oh." The news I heard before I had fainted flooded my mind and I felt an overwhelming urge to jump up and pummel Rick. That was I saw the upset look plastered on his face.
"I'm so sorry," he said quietly, looking extremely tired. "I didn't mean to do anything like that." I watched his shoulders slump as he placed his head in his arms and leaned them on the edge of the bed. My heart softened to see him shake like that like a child trying to hide from the rain. But I couldn't bring myself to say, "It's okay." All I wanted to do at that very moment was have him grovel to me and beg for my forgiveness, which was cruel, but it was my idea of loyalty.
"All right." I got out of the bed and slung on my scarf. "How long was I out?"
Elli gave a shrug. "A couple of hours, at the most. It's nine o'clock now. You had Rick and I worried sick!" She hung up her apron on a hook. "Well, the Clinic is closing, so you both should leave." Nodding, I left the room. Rick was taking off his glasses so he could wipe his eyes. I found this very unmanly of him, but I knew how deeply he had felt about his unspoken promise to me about not getting me pregnant. He had only assured me that he wouldn't impregnate me, but I knew he had a hidden meaning to even those simple words.
"Stop sniffing," I said at once as we got out onto the open streets, the street lights shining upon us. He immediately stopped for a couple of seconds, but not being control it, he started using his sleeve to take in the flow. "Why are you crying?"
"..." Rick's eyes reflected every regret in the world he had as he looked at me. "I...I didn't mean to. It just happens..." I didn't demand any more answers from him for the rest of the walk, feeling uneasy.
I bid him good night before we went to bed.
"Good night, my sweet," he told me, a forced smile appearing on his face. I almost lost it then, but instead I just spoke this calmly.
"Rick, can I ask you something?" To my chagrin, he ignored me. "Rick?" That was when I realized that he was shaking again. Even I could control my tears! I went up to him, gathered him into my arms and walked him over to the loveseat. "Oh, Rick...What's wrong?" I didn't know how dedicated he had been to me until now.
"It's all my fault!" He cried. I tightened my wrap around him.
"Don't blame everything on yourself, okay?" This had an affect on him and he stopped shaking quite so much until he was reduced to a heavy breathing.
"What was it you wanted to ask me?" Rick asked as soon as he was done sniveling.
"I want you to know that...I don't want you to keep smiling at me because you know it makes me happy. I want you to tell me everything...Don't keep it all bottled up inside. Please?" I almost threw myself onto the floor and raised my arms up in a praising position, but I wasn't one to do something that dramatic. Rick drew himself up to his full height; or as tall as he could sitting down.
"I will." Embracing for a few seconds, we then headed up the stairs into bed. But before we got in, I steered him towards our bookshelf and pulled out a photo album. The cover's corners were bent and the lovely cloth I had glued onto it was peeling. But the photos were safe.
"Do you remember this?" I inquired, lying on my stomach and indicating the small wallet-size picture of Rick and I. He leaned over my shoulder to look at it.
"Yeah, I do," he said slowly. "I was five and you were four...It was taken a week or so after I moved in." I looked up at him in amazement.
"Wow...You still remember? You have a keen memory!" I flipped through the pages absent-mindedly, often stopping to see what I had turned to. There was a photo of our wedding. I was smiling and Rick had a wavering grin on his face. Had he really feared about our marriage or was he just nervous? I supposed that I was just worrying too much and I heard a loud thump behind me. Rick was taking off his glasses by the time I turned around.
"Nighty night," I crooned, putting away the album and getting into bed right next to him. Snuggling up against him, I felt a prickle of fear. There was a sharp knock at the door.