AN-This oneshot is a sequel to chapter 563, where Freddie tells Sam there's a small chance of him ever being able to have children. Enjoy!
…..
Discussion
"Are you almost done in there?" Freddie called out anxiously as he sat on his and Sam's bed.
"I can only pee so fast!" Sam called back. "And you rushing me isn't helping!"
"Alright, sorry," Freddie said. He began absentmindedly fiddling with the corner of the sheets. He hated this part; the waiting. It always seemed to make him even more nervous.
"Okay, well, you know the drill," Sam said, stepping out of the adjoining bathroom, holding a thin, white pregnancy test in her hand. "Set the timer."
Freddie nodded, pulling out his phone and setting the timer for five minutes.
"I feel really good about this time," Sam said. "And you know, I did feel kind of sick this morning."
"That might just be from that gross oatmeal my mom brought over for breakfast," Freddie mumbled. He had learned a long time ago not to get his hopes up in these situations.
Sam gave him a small smile, reaching for his hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. "Stop being so pessimistic."
"I'm not being pessimistic, I'm being realistic," Freddie sighed.
Sam said nothing. She simply craned a neck and placed a soft kiss on her husband's cheek.
The couple waited the rest of the five minutes in silence. This had been the routine for the past sixteen months; ever since Sam and Freddie decided that they wanted to start trying for a child. They both knew it was going to be tough. Freddie had been told by his doctor years ago that he would have a difficult time conceiving children. But still…sixteen months was a long time. And the disappointment was getting harder and harder to deal with each time. When the timer finally went off, Sam slowly got to her feet and walked over to the dresser, where the test was waiting face down.
"Well?" Freddie said as she picked it up, trying not to get too attached to the hopeful feeling that was starting to surface inside of him.
He saw Sam's face falter. "It's-It's negative," she said heavily.
Freddie closed his eyes. "Yup. Of course it is."
"Maybe I should take a second test to just see if-"
"Sam, it's-it's going to just come back with the same results," Freddie said, standing up. He stepped over to the window.
"Baby," Sam said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Come on…don't do this. So-So we didn't do it this month. We'll just try again."
"Sam, we've been trying for over a year," Freddie pointed out. "And-And we still haven't managed-Or rather, I haven't managed-"
"Don't put all the blame on yourself," Sam said. "It-It could be me!"
"Sam, my doctor told me years ago the chances of me ever having kids are slim," Freddie said. "It's not you, it's me."
"Slim doesn't mean impossible," Sam reminded him. "Look, some couples try for years to conceive. It's-It's just how it is."
Freddie looked down at his wife. He knew that each and every time she saw that negative pregnancy test, she felt absolutely devastated. She wanted a child more than anything. She was only putting on this brave face for him.
"I'm really sorry, Sam," Freddie said softly.
"You have nothing to be sorry for," Sam said firmly. "And we're going to make this work. Maybe-Maybe it's time we go see that fertility doctor. I was looking up some stuff about him online! Apparently he can do this procedure where he takes, you know, your materials and somehow puts them exactly where they need to go in me! It's kind of pricey, but-but we have money in our savings account. Plus it will be worth it."
"Yeah, I guess the only way this is going to happen is if someone does my job for me," Freddie mumbled. "Besides, I've read about that same procedure, Sam. It doesn't work if the guy's already basically infertile."
"You're not infertile. You have low fertility. There's a difference."
"Yeah, well the results seem the same to me!" Freddie snapped.
Sam stepped back, alarmed at her husband's tone.
"Sorry…I-I didn't mean to yell," Freddie mumbled.
"It's okay," Sam said.
"I just…this is so frustrating!" Freddie exclaimed. "We've been trying for sixteen months!"
"I know, it-it's a long time," Sam agreed. "But that doesn't mean that eventually it won't happen. We just need to be patient and-"
"I'm tired of being patient, though," Freddie sighed. "Sixteen months! There's people who don't even have to try and get pregnant! They get to have a baby by 'accident' and here we are…"
Sam wrapped her arms around him.
"I just…I just-I know how badly you want this baby, Sam," Freddie mumbled. "Just as much as I do. And it kills me that I can't give you this one thing that you want more than anything."
"You give me more than I could ask for already," she whispered, kissing his lips.
Freddie hugged her tightly, resting his chin on her head.
"We'll try again next month," Sam told him. "And then…And then we should go to that fertility doctor, just-just to see what our options are."
Freddie sighed. "Alright," he nodded.
Sam leaned up, giving him another kiss. "Hey," she said softly. "You know one plus of having to keep trying?"
"What?" Freddie asked.
"We get to keep trying," Sam grinned, taking his wrist as she led him back over to bed.
…..
"Three minutes left," Sam sighed, looking down at her phone.
A month had passed since she had taken that last pregnancy test. Now her and Freddie were in the exact same position, both desperately hoping for different results.
Freddie nodded, but said nothing.
"Come on," Sam said, putting her hand on his knee. "You know what they say…seventeenth month is a charm."
Freddie simply stared at her.
"Just…Just trying to ease the mood," Sam mumbled.
"What's the timer say now?" Freddie asked.
Sam looked down. "Ninety seconds."
"God…it always feels like these things take hours, not five minutes," Freddie said heavily.
"I know," Sam agreed. "The wait's the worst part."
"Yeah, it's like an extra kick in the shins before the disappointment," Freddie said.
"Freddie…it may be-"
She was cut off as her alarm went off. She quickly got to her feet and hurried over to the pregnancy test.
Please, Sam thought to herself. Please let it positive this time. Please.
But as she flipped the test over, she was met with the same feeling that made her stomach dropped every time.
It was negative.
"Yup," Freddie said, not even having to ask what the results were from the look on his wife's face. "That's what I thought."
"Okay, well…now we have to take the next step," Sam said, trying not to look too disheartened. She knew how deeply this impacted Freddie. "Let's make the appointment at the fertility clinic."
Freddie sighed. "Yeah…yeah, let's do that. I guess there's nothing else to do. Obviously I can't make this happen on my own."
"For the millionth time, we don't even know that it's you!" Sam said. "How many times have we had this discussion? It-It could be me!"
"Sam, listen, I-I appreciate what you're trying to do," Freddie told her. "But one of us has had a medical tests that proves low fertility…the other hasn't. It's not rocket science trying to figure out which one of us is at fault here."
"Well….stop-stop making it seem like you've failed at something," Sam said, sitting back down next to him. "So we're having trouble conceiving…it doesn't make me think any less of you. We might just have to do this a different way, that's all."
Freddie didn't respond.
"I love you," Sam told him softly. "And we're going to make this work."
….
"This place looks like a science lab," Freddie mumbled as him and Sam looked around the doctor's office.
"Well what did you expect?" Sam asked. "An ice cream factory?"
"I dunno, I just thought it would…friendlier," Freddie shrugged.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Mr. and Mrs. Benson," a doctor said, coming into the office. He extended his hand. "I'm Doctor Fishbaum. Now, I talked with you briefly on the phone, but I just want to go over some basic information with you. Now how long have you been actively trying to conceive?"
"Seventeen months," Sam replied.
"Okay…do either of you smoke? That and alcohol can have a negative effect on fertility."
"Neither of us smoke," Freddie said. "And we stopped drinking the second we started trying to conceive. We-We really want this baby."
"Yes, I'm sure," the doctor nodded kindly. "Now, do either of you have any medical complications?"
"Um…" Sam said, glancing over at Freddie. "I-I don't. But-"
"I've already been told I have very low fertility," Freddie said. "Which is why we're here."
"Ah, yes, here it is in your file," the doctor nodded. He scribbled down a few more notes in his folder. "Right, well today I would like to go over some treatment options we offer here, just to give you and idea of what we do. But first, we always need each of you to do a routine examination. It just gives us the most up-to-date medical stance of both of you and to make sure you're able to go through with these treatments."
"Okay," Sam agreed. "That's fine. We'll do that."
"Perfect," the doctor smiled, getting to his feet. "We'll go ahead and get you started."
…
About three hours later, as Freddie was sitting back in the office by himself, flipping through a pamphlet, the door opened and Sam walked in and joined him.
"Hey, did you just finish?" Freddie asked his wife as she sat down next to him.
"Yeah," Sam nodded.
"It took that long? I was done hours ago," Freddie said.
"Yeah, well, my exam involved more than me going into a little room with a cup and magazine," Sam said, rolling her eyes.
"Hey, while I was waiting, I was looking at some of the fertility treatments they do," Freddie said. "Did you know that some of them only have, like, a twenty percent chance of working?"
"Twenty?" Sam repeated. "Oh, um…well-well I guess that's-"
"So basically," Freddie said. "We're going to be spending thousands of dollars for a chance at having a baby."
"Well then we'll take the chance," Sam said firmly.
"Of course we'll take the chance," Freddie said. "It's just…God, this would be so much simpler if I-"
"Don't," Sam said.
Just then the door opened again and Dr. Fishbaum walked back in.
"Well," he said, sitting down at his desk. "I've gotten a chance to review your test results."
"And?" Sam said anxiously. "Can we start on one of these treatments?"
"We'd be willing to start right away," Freddie nodded. "Now, even."
"Yeah, seriously, we'll do whatever," Sam nodded.
"Well…Mr. and Mrs. Benson, after looking over everything it seems…it seems you are not eligible for any of our fertility treatments.
Both Sam and Freddie's faces fell.
"What-What do you mean not eligible?" Sam demanded.
"You mean there's nothing you can do for us?" Freddie asked slowly.
"No," the doctor said, shaking his heads. "See, our treatments help couples conceive. We can't do anything if they're already pregnant."
"What?" Sam frowned. "What are you talking about? I'm not pregnant. That's the whole point of us coming here!"
"Actually, Mrs. Benson," the doctor said, a small smile creeping onto his face. "Your tests came back showing that you are two to three weeks along with your pregnancy."
Sam's eyes widened and Freddie's jaw fell open.
"Are-Are you serious?" Freddie said, his voice full of disbelief. "She-Sam's-Sam's-"
"That's right," the doctor nodded. "You two are going to have a baby."
"Oh-Oh my God!" Sam gasped. "I-But-Are you sure? I-I took a pregnancy test yesterday and-and it was negative."
"Yes, those at home pregnancy tests can't usually detect anything until you're a bit further along," the doctor told her. "Our examination is much more thorough. But I assure you, Mrs. Benson, you are pregnant. There's no mistake about that."
Sam and Freddie looked at each other, both of their faces lighting up.
"I'll give you two a moment," the doctor said, getting to his feet. "I'll bring you some pregnancy pamphlets and get you the number of a good OB/GYN. You'll want to make an appointment as soon as possible."
The second the door closed, Sam and Freddie both jumped out of their seat.
"Oh my God!" Freddie yelled throwing his arms around his wife and spinning her around. "Sam! Sam, we-we did it! We're going to have a baby!"
He leaned down and kissed her passionately.
"I know! I-Oh my God!" Sam said when the pulled apart. "I-I can't believe this! Finally! We're finally going to get to start our family, baby! See, I told you! I told you that we'd do it eventually!"
"I don't think I've ever been this happy in my life," Freddie said breathlessly, kissing her again. He reached down and placed his hand on her flat stomach, overwhelmed by the sensation of knowing that his unborn child was housed in there.
"I love you," he whispered. "Both of you."
