IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER/QUESTION/SURPRISE:

Do you guys wanna see me through Instagram and actually get to know me? I've been private and using a pseudonym for the past three years and I'd love to reveal my identity to all of you wonderful people. If you wanna know my Instagram name, tell me in the reviews and I'll leave it at the top of my next chapter. Also let me know how you liked this. As always, thank you for reading and let me know how you feel about my little "reveal" offer - "MJ123" :)

They were at the doctor's office and Alex simply refused to leave Norma's side. She assured him that it was only a checkup but he insisted every step of the way. Was it nice having someone there that cared so much about her? Yes, of course. But did it get a little exasperating having to deal with someone who treated her like a child? Completely.

Waiting for the doctor was taking some time, Norma observed Alex as he sat and flipped through some gossip magazine. "Alex?"

"Mm…?" he hummed, eyeing the pictures of the young celebrities he could not name that were getting DUIs and shit said about them by older people.

"You seriously didn't have to come inside with me."

He scoffed and dropped the magazine, "I'm looking out for you. How do we know this doctor isn't some creep off the streets?"

"Some creep off of the street? Alex, you were the one that told me this doctor did the best work in all of White Pine Bay. Why would you have suspicion?" She asked, now beginning to get nervous herself.

"I said Dr. Rosewood does the best. She's not here today. And she's the only doctor I'd ever trust with anything, okay? The woman has been checking me out since I was a little kid, she's always been my pediatrician," he explained, there was always something nostalgic about her office and she was always the nicest woman to him. Maybe he was going overboard about the "creep" fear but things were different back in the day regarding doctors. People were turning to shit, it was the modern world after all.

"How sweet," she snorted, "You've never been to another doctor, really?"

"Nope. Except my dentist. He's a pretty good guy. I don't know...I just love Dr. Rosewood and I wanted you to see her today. I guess Monday's are the only day she takes off," he said, propping himself up as the doctor stepped in the room. A middle aged man with glasses and a brown combover. Nothing like he was expecting.

"Norma Romero," he said simply, looking over her paperwork. "What seems to be the problem?"

She fiddled with the hospital gown as he waited, "Well, I'm coughing a lot, I have a ton of congestion, and a sore throat. I've also been pretty tired lately. This one over here," she paused a moment to motion to Alex, "Thinks it's some kind of bronchitis but we didn't wanna play the guessing game so that's why I'm here."

"Well alright, I suppose we should check you out."

X

"Should I get blue or red Gatorade?"

Norma held up the bottles and examined both flavor names. It was around noon, they had just gotten to the convenience store. The doctor claimed he would have some kind of medication available after they looked at her blood samples and throat swabs, until then he advised her to grab some fluids and run of the mill items at the store.

"I'm not sure. Never really liked it. But, I would suggest the fruit punch, sounds the most tasty," Alex was holding a whole bunch of things in his basket, cherry flavored cough drops, tissues with no lotion, and some Vicks vapor rub. He could've ran a small pharmacy from the looks of it, but he never liked to play it safe with sick people.

"Okay," she threw it in the cart and kept walking the aisles aimlessly, looking back to him after a few minutes once she realized that they had everything they needed, "I wanna go back home and try to get some sleep for a little while."

He nodded and told her to go wait in the car as he checked out.

$55.87 later, Alex was ready to head out as well. She was already asleep by the time he got to the car. He could consider it a blessing because she hadn't done so well with sleeping but it made his job harder, because now he had to be the one to wake her from what looked like a blissful nap.

Upon arriving back to the motel, he shut the car off and went over to the passenger side, lifting her up which jolted her awake.

"Alex," she sighed, "I'm sorry. I totally didn't mean to fall asleep that fast."

"It's fine, babe. I'm gonna take you upstairs and let you nap some more. I hated waking you but I wasn't gonna let you sleep in the discomfort of my SUV. You would've woken up with a bunch of kinks in your neck and back, believe me I've fallen asleep in there on a stakeout once...I paid the price the next morning," as he explained all of this, he walked them up the steps to her home and opened the door.

"I have stuff to do today," she grumbled lightly as he walked her to the bedroom.

He shook his head and laid her on the bed. "No, no, no. I'm gonna get all of the stuff out of the car and set it up here. Then I'm gonna head downstairs and make you some kind of sick food while I finish cleaning the living room. I will let you sleep as long as you wanna."

"You're the best," she smiled, as she let her head hit the pillow.

"Get some sleep, I'll be back up to check on you later."

X

Somehow, someway, Alex managed to find the items to make chicken soup. Was he shocked? Not really. One of the best things about the Bates home was that there was always a mirage of comfort food and comfort food ingredients residing in the refrigerator. Rotisserie chicken, broth, celery, carrots, and even some oyster crackers in the cabinet, he was feeling good about his findings.

As the soup simmered and he sorted through all of Norma's sick items, the phone rang. He placed the stuff in a paper bag and set it aside while he answered the vintage home phone, it reminded him of the one his mother bought them when he was younger. He'd never seen anything so ancient anywhere else.

"Hello?" He asked, wiping his hands on the towel hanging out of his pocket, there was still some grease residue from the chicken sitting on his fingertips. Wasn't the most pleasant feeling in the world, almost felt like lubricant.

"Hi, this is Dr. Rosewood, I'm calling for Norma Romero."

"Oh, hey Dr. Rosewood. This is Alex speaking," he smiled.

She let out a chuckle on the other end, "My gosh! Nice to speak to you again Alex. I heard you called my office today and I got so excited. It sure has been a long time. How'd everything go? Dr. Porter is a new hire of mine and I trust he took good care of your wife?"

"Yes, yes, he did fine. Said he would have a prescription ready later today, is that why you're calling?"

"Well, yes. Your wife seems to have strep throat. Not the most fun illness to be laid up with but it certainly beats the heck out of bronchitis or mononucleosis, I'll tell you that much," she laughed.

He smiled as he remembered the amount of doctor humor she would force on him as a kid, always cheesy but always someone uplifting, "That's not good. Is the prescription available now?"

"Yes, she must take it twice a day and especially right before bed. We made absolutely sure not to prescribe anything with Naproxen, Ibuprofen, or Chlorpheniramine, those are 100% off limits during pregnancy," she said, looking over her papers.

Alex stopped everything and went completely silent, "Pregnancy? I think you have something wrong there."

"Dr Porter took a blood test from your wife today. The results confirmed pregnancy."

Enough said. Let me know how you all feel - MJ XOXO