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Sydney_Rosebud
Yes, that is my real name. To all my readers, I would like to say hello. A real hello. Marie Johnson is simply my pseudonym. So...nice to meet you all, my name is Sydney :) Enjoy this chapter and let me know what you think in the reviews should I be lucky enough to receive any - "MJ123"
Alex's world was shut down once Dr. Rosewood delivered the news.
"So...you're absolutely sure about this? You're not joking here?" He asked, hoping internally that this was just more of her medical humor.
"Um," she began, sounding uncomfortable with the sway of the conversation, "Yes. She is pregnant. We can't be sure of how far along, not until she comes in for an ultrasound. You two didn't know about this?"
"No, no," he sighed, "We had no idea. I'm sure she'll be shocked. I sure as hell am."
"Well, I hate that I had to be the one to break the news to you, Alex. I wish she could've been the one to tell you, I wish she knew. But it's up to you, if you wanna tell her soon," she explained.
"Yeah, I'll be sure too. I don't really have a choice here, do I?"
"Not necessarily," she laughed, trying to add humor to the seemingly darkened mood but Alex wasn't going to budge.
"I need to go. I'm gonna go- I'm gonna go tell her," he said nervously, the mood had changed entirely and in his mind, he felt scared shitless.
"Well, congrat-"
He hung up before she could finish the word. Norma was still sleeping for sure. He took the opportunity to sit at the kitchen table as his soup simmered and poured himself a tall glass of scotch.
Pregnant.
Norma really was pregnant. There was gonna be a baby in there lives sooner than he could actually take time to picture it. He was so frightened. All of this brought him back to Callie. How he was robbed of a child and a wife in the past. What hurt the most was that he tried his hardest to make sure they were both always secure. He would've bubble wrapped Callie if he could have. But that car crash was the worst thing to ever happen to him. Now it was all like deja vu, Norma was his lovely wife and now she was expecting. They already lived under dangerous circumstances as it was, there was a lot of fright that came along with a baby coming into their lives.
He drank and wondered how Norma was going to take the news. She would probably be excited out of her damned mind to have another kid. He couldn't see past the fear coursing through the sectors of his brain. Easily and understandably enough, he really believed something would happen to the baby. And to Norma.
This was always a fear of his. He never really wanted anyone after his wife and child were taken away from him but then Norma came into the picture. He couldn't deny his feelings for her, she was beautiful and stubborn and smart and caring. All the qualities he would dream of having in a partner even as a boy. It was simple to get down on one knee and propose to her but a baby...that was a different story.
He was so scared and he didn't know what to do with himself. This was one thing he refused to tell Norma. He was in no way, shape, or form going to tell his wife that there was a fetus inside of her. This was something she needed to find out on her own, the normal way. Either with a home pregnancy test or suspicion or another doctor's visit. And he would act...surprised? Overjoyed? Yes. Because anything else would make her upset. She'd think he wasn't happy and she'd think it was a mistake.
He refused to take her joy away. He just wouldn't show much enthusiasm. He'd be there, of course he would be there but not to the crazy extent that most soon to be fathers are. Bottom line, Alex was deeply, deeply in love with his wife but not the idea of having a child. Not now. It wasn't supposed to happen. But now that the egg was fertilized, there really was no going back.
X
Later on, Norma woke up from her deep slumber. It was quite the blissful sleep, considering she had lost all touch with it because of her flu. She wasn't sure where it had come from as she hadn't even had any of her medicine yet. Once she rose out of bed, it became apparent how groggy her body felt.
Yes, the nap was nice but the feeling that was washing over her, not so much. It was like the uncomfortable ache someone felt when sleeping too long. Rinsing her face with cool water was a good healer as she got ready to head downstairs to Alex. At the moment she needed some form of human interaction to pull her out of the sleepy state she was stuck in. She wanted to be woken up.
Upon entering the kitchen, she was smacked in the face with the potent scent of chicken soup. Alex was sitting at the table with the scotch bottle in front of him, he wasn't drunk but he looked hazy.
"Baby," she sniffled, looking at the glass, "Why are you drinking that?"
"Hmm? Oh ya know, I just wanted to unwind a bit," he slurred with a tiny smile overlooking her. Pregnant. He kept thinking about it the more he took the familiarities of her in. She was pregnant. And there was some kind of life forming inside of her just as they sat there speaking.
"Okay," she said simply, walking over to the soup and pouring herself a bowl. She moved to sit at the table with him. "I really really appreciate you taking such amazing care of me. And this soup looks delicious. I don't know how you made it.
"Mm...this and that. It all came together and I was like whaaa...couldn't believe it actually looks real," he said, staring into the bowl with wonder. Maybe he should've became a chef? Or a real doctor? Or gigolo? Oh hell, rethinking career choices at this juncture would certainly not heal what was going on at the moment. He was going to be a father. Something he could never truly believe seeing in himself.
"Well it's really good," she said, taking some more of it in. The food felt good as she was nicely rested and actually very hungry. She still couldn't get over the fact that he could cook, this was something she never would've suspected about him.
"Good."
"So, that prescription? Is it ready at the pharmacy yet?" She asked, anxious for medicine. The sleep was nice but she'd really enjoy kicking this cough and congestion to the side for good. Hopefully this shit would be strong enough to aid her symptoms within the next two days. She couldn't very well run a motel and take care of two boys and a husband while suffering, now could she?
Truthfully, he couldn't remember what the doctor said on the phone. All he heard was pregnant. Anything said about a prescription was completely and utterly irrelevant to the situation at hand yet she still had no idea.
"Um...no, no babe. No meds yet. We'll check back in the AM," he said, it was something drunken and on the spot to just get her to agree.
"Okay honey," she agreed, "I think I'm just gonna try and sleep it off a bit more than. Did the doctor call while I was sleeping?"
He was going to feel like the worst person and shittiest husband alive but it was going to happen, she couldn't know, not yet. He was going to lie to her, something he never vowed to do. Internally, he was whipping himself for the answer that was already forming on the tip of his tongue. Though he couldn't erase the baby from her insides, he sure as hell was going to pretend it wasn't there. That was the best coping mechanism he could think of.
"No. There were no phone calls while you were sleeping."
Hope you all enjoyed this. I will be back soon with more. Follow me on Instagram if you have an account and please leave me a review if you'd all be so kind. I'd love to know your opinions on my choices! - "MJ" XOXO
