It was quiet for a really long time and Charlie was blinking at an increased rate. Lyla was completely silent, tears continuing to fall from her eyes.
Suddenly, Charlie's hands were on her face, forcefully rubbing the tears from her eyes as his own began to water. "A baby?" he gasped, finally. She nodded uncertainly and he smiled brightly, single droplets falling onto his cheeks. "A baby!" he screamed, picking her up at the waist and holding her over him then clutching her to his body.
"Are-are you happy?" she asked shakily in his ear.
"Yeah" he breathed, hugging her closer. He sat back down on the bed and stood her in front of him, lightly rubbing her stomach. "I mean...is the timing perfect? No. Do I know what to do right now? No." his leg began bouncing up and down involuntarily when the wheels of logic began turning in his head. "Is my mom going to kill me? Yeah, most definitely." He looked around his room. "Do I have what I need to provide for it?" he swallowed forcefully "I-I don't know." He looked down at his terry cloth clad knees and then back up at Lyla. "Do I feel like all my dreams are coming true, no matter how inconveniently? Yes. Is the prospect of raising a baby with you the most exhilarating prospect of my life? Yes" Lyla's shoulders began to shake with uncontrollable happiness and tears continued to stream down her face. He stood up and wiped her eyes again. "Is this going to be the hardest thing we've ever had to do? Yes. Will it be worth it? Absolutely."
She grabbed his face and kissed him roughly, turning around and standing on the bed so she was holding his face up to her. He grabbed the back of her legs causing her to fall violently to the bed. He dropped the towel from around his waist and slowly pulled the sweatpants off of Lyla then slid his hands under her shirt and pulled it off over her head. He kissed her neck sensuously and slid slowly into her. He ran his hands up her body and over her arms finally lacing his fingers with hers as he moved rhythmically inside her.
Lyla didn't attempt to bite his lip or scratch his back and he didn't suck on her delicate skin or ram his cock into her roughly. He moved slowly, feeling every inch of her around him. She fully experienced every etched line in his penis when, rubbed against her supple walls, gave her a different feeling with each soft, slow thrust. Their eyes were locked on one another the whole time and, after an intense yet gentle hour of what fit the dictionary definition of 'love making', they came together, what would've been screams escaped their bodies as whimpers and moans instead.
"I love you, I love you so much Lyla" Charlie said when he laid down next to her
"I love you too." she said back, smiling at him. She pulled the covers over her body and looked up at the ceiling in contentment, "If I were going to have a baby with anyone...I'm so glad it's with you."
"What are your thoughts about it...I'm so sorry I never even asked." He turned to her rubbing her temple.
She sat up and quickly pulled her clothes back on. "I don't know I think you said it really well...it's the happiest I've ever been to be inconvenienced." she sat back down next to him and sighed. "But it's such an inconvenience." she held her head in her hands. "I have to sell my apartment, get transferred, find a doctor in Romania, tell my mom I'm moving to Romania..."
"Woah, woah, woah" he said zipping up his jeans and walking around the bed to face her. "You don't have to do all that."
"There's no dragon sanctuary in England and there is a Spirit Division in the Romanian Ministry. Besides...I want to. I want to come live with you. In this cute little cottage, underneath these beautiful mountains."
Lyla noticed that Charlie was beginning to sweat, the skin around his hairline blistering with perspiration and her hand flew to her hair, obsessively twirling and running her fingers through it. Charlie pulled her hand down away from her head and held in roughly in his hands. "I'm just so sorry." he said finally, choking back fear.
"Sorry?" she asked, tilting her head and searching his eyes for an explanation
"Your job...your life. Your family, your..." he trailed off and looked at her stomach. "I didn't mean to ruin this for you."
"Hey" she said, smiling weakly, "Nothing's ruined...just different."
He inhaled deeply and shook his head as though clearing his thoughts "Okay, there's a hospital on the grounds. Do you want to try and get an appointment for this afternoon, while I'm still off?"
Lyla's mouth dried out and her thoughts clouded while this situation became all too real but she nodded her head anyway in agreement. Charlie stood up quickly and left the bedroom, crossed the living room to a panel next to the door. Lyla followed him out and watched as he pushed a green button.
Through the speaker in the panel she heard someone say, "Medical Line, what is your emergency?"
"No emergency, can you connect me to a midwife please?" he said calmly into the speaker
"Right away, sir" the polite voice said
"Office of Birthing Professionals" a young voice finally said from the other side.
"Yes, I'd like to make an appointment at the earliest opportunity for my..." he hesitated and looked at Lyla, who smiled, "girlfriend, please."
"Midwife Allegra is open all afternoon. We don't have very many women in need of our services at this moment. Your girlfriend can come in at any time."
"Okay thank you." he turned to face Lyla, "You want to go?"
"Umm" she fidgeted nervously, "Yeah" she said, taking a deep breath to bolster herself up, "lets go."
Before stepping outside, Charlie plucked an old jean jacket out of the closet on the other side of the door and threw it around Lyla's shoulders. When they emerged into the valley she pulled the oversized jacket close around her body. They walked in silence up a sloping hill to a sort of village center in the sanctuary.
"Wow this is like your own little town" Lyla commented.
"It's kind of isolating" he said, looking at her while she looked around at the shops and the sky, knowing that someone as vibrant and social as she was would feel stuck in a place like this.
"I can imagine" she sighed breathing in the fresh air. "It's beautiful though."
"You're beautiful" he said, wrapping his arm around her waist, guiding her through the town center. The doors to the medical clinic opened when they approached and Lyla squeezed Charlie's hand with her clammy one. They approached the welcome desk apprehensively and Charlie cleared his throat.
"Can I help you?" The young girl at the desk said
"We're here to see Midwife Allegra" Charlie said raspilly.
"Alright, just go down that hall to the left and it's the third door on the left...it has a bunch of baby dragons painted on it." the young girl smiled and wrinkled her nose in adoration of the idea of the whimsical dragons on the door. She smiled brightly at Lyla and, somehow, her innocent, young smile reassured her and she felt all the muscles in her body relax.
She soothingly rubbed Charlie's bicep and forwarded the bright smile she received from the receptionist to him. He furrowed his eyebrows confusedly and smiled back at her. When they reached the periwinkle door with the chubby, little, brightly colored dragon babies frolicking across it it was truly delightful and she saw Charlie's face relax and his eyes sparkle when he saw it. Lyla wondered if he was picturing himself with a dragon stuffed animal over a bassinet as she had.
When they entered the Birthing Center the walls were warm and inviting and there were many green, docile plants around the front desk.
"Ahh" said a soothing voice from beyond the desk, "You must be the ones who called for a midwife."
Charlie and Lyla walked closer to the desk and peered over it to see a squat House Elf wearing a purple tea towel, rouge and a hat with a large peony on it. She smiled up at Charlie and Lyla, the skin around her eyes wrinkling around the twinkling globes within them. Lyla sighed contently at the presence of this welcoming House Elf and smiled at the hat sitting, crookedly on her head between her ears. It bravely declared her freedom from servitude and she wore it proudly.
"You look lovely, dear" the House Elf continued, lifting the small, half moon glasses that were tied around her neck with a shoelace onto the tip of her nose.
"Thank you" Lyla said, in a much softer tone than her usual voice "I love your hat, peonies are one of my favorite flowers"
The House Elf beamed and patted her hat gently. "Now, if you'd just both fill out some information I'd be happy to file it into our system and send you back with Miss Allegra." She handed Charlie and Lyla a few scrolls of paper and a small quill to fill them out with. Lyla filled out her date of birth, residence and place of business then went on to answer questions about her medical history and, finally, the approximate date of conception. They each signed a paper with their contact information and Charlie filled out a form for payment through the Sanctuary then turned it into the House Elf. She hopped off her chair behind the desk and hobbled over to open the door to the center for them to enter. They followed her down the hallway and then peered into the door she was gesturing for them to enter.
"Thank you" Lyla said, smiling at the elf.
"Yes" Charlie agreed.
"Of course" the elf nodded deeply and walked back to her station at the desk.
"Please, please!" a high, wavering voice beckoned to them "Come in, sit down"
The room was a burnt orange and there was an array of pillows on the floor in different shades of purple. A small, comfortable cot was on the ground, raised only a few inches off the ground next to the sinewy, silver haired women who was kneeling on a large purple pillow next to it. Lyla sat across from the woman and Charlie attempted to sit on a pillow but his large, boxy frame didn't lend itself to flexibility and he was constantly moving, trying to get comfortable.
"Now," Allegra continued, hovering her hands over Lyla's abdomen. "It said you were six weeks along so your due date should be around mid August, most people don't know that pregnancy lasts a little more than nine months so I'm thinking this little one will be a Leo."
Lyla grabbed Charlie's hand and squeezed it, "The Lion"
Allegra smiled at her wisely and nodded, "So, the Little Lion in there is about the size of a pea. Tell me about how you've been feeling and your symptoms. Nausea? Moodiness? Fatigue?"
"Nausea, absolutely." Lyla replied, "Usually in the late afternoon or evening. I don't know if I'm tired from fatigue or just my trip to Romania or all the craziness of this news..." she sighed
"Ah," Allegra said, waving her finger gracefully in the air, "So this is a little bit of a surprise for us, yes?"
Charlie cleared his throat, "Yea" he said, his voice dry.
"Well" she sighed, pumping some lavender lotion into her hands and rubbing it into her silken, wrinkled skin "That's okay, everything will be fine. It's essential in these next six weeks that you not let this stress you out too much. I know that's hard" she said, seeing the glances Charlie and Lyla were looking at one another. "But the first trimester is the most fragile time for our cub, here, okay?" Lyla felt her throat tighten, her eyes well up and her cheeks flush but Allegra reached out and held her hand softly, "I can give you some creams and herbs for tea to help you relax if you think it may take a toll." She stood up abruptly and began puttering around the tall apothecary table set against the wall. Charlie began rubbing Lyla's back. "Have you told your families?" Allegra asked over her shoulder to them.
"No" they both croaked
"No, not yet" Lyla continued. "I realized it was a possibility and came to see him right away."
"Well, it is, in fact, an actuality, Flower. You're pregnant and you are truly radiant" she lowered herself back onto the floor in front of Lyla and smiled at her reassuringly. "Little Birds, I wouldn't tell your families just yet."
Charlie shifted uncomfortably behind Lyla and coughed softly.
"If you feel their reactions may be overwhelming to you it's unnecessary to let them know right away and put added stress on yourselves. This time really would be best spent coming together as a couple and a new family if that's what you desire." she let silence fall in the room and be absorbed by the thick, warm air and the plush pillows around them. "Okay, Lyla, if you'd like to lie down on the cot, I'll do a short exam and I'll send you home with some of the herbs here."
Lyla crouched down next to the cot and rolled onto her back to look at the ceiling. She lifted her shirt up to underneath her bust and took a deep breath. Allegra moved close to the cot and kneeled over Lyla, rubbing her stomach with a light, fresh oil and closed her eyes. Lyla closed her eyes as well and focused on the soft touch and refreshing scent of the oil underneath Allegra's hands, her stomach stopped flipping and making embarrassing noises for the first time all day.
"Okay!" Allegra said sunnily, getting to her feet to wash her hands. Lyla sat up on her elbows and cracked her neck to release the serenity flowing from her stomach into her head. "It's still very early and I'm glad you came to see me right away. Everything seems to be normal and moving along as it should be and I'm going to assure you that there's no apparent need for concern."
"Can we..." Charlie chimed in, "can we hear it yet?"
"No" Allegra sighed passively, "It's still a little early and it's rare to be able to hear the fetus at this time. In, maybe, two to three weeks we'll make you another appointment and see what we see then."
Charlie helped Lyla up and nodded understandingly to Allegra who said, "Now, I have prescribed you some of the oil I just used which will help with the elasticity of you skin and some herbs for the tea. You can drink it as needed if you're feeling particularly stressed or regularly, it won't have any adverse effects. I do suggest drinking it at night or when you have nothing going on, especially if that fatigue starts to kick in a little more for you."
"Thank you very much Madame Allegra" Lyla said as Charlie plucked the two jars from Allegra's hands and they followed her back to the front desk.
"Absolutely!" she said and rubbed a tendril of Lyla's hair between her fingers "Now, go home and enjoy one another!" she smiled and waved goodbye to both of them as they exited the office, the door of adorable dragons closing behind them.
