It's time for NaNo and my writing class has to participate...So on top of the two stories I have here, assignments and now Nano, I am slowly losing my mind! Looking at filler again. Sorry. Drama is coming, just have to get there first!
Also, thank you for all of the follows and faves! I appreciate them! Leave a review if you feel inclined and bear with the insanity of this month! Enjoy!
Disclaimer : I do not own Percy Jackson, or any of the content published from Rick Riordan.
Chapter 18
Annabeth tossed and turned in her sleep, trying to wake herself from the nightmare that plagued her but she couldn't get her eyes to budge. They simply refused to open.
Annabeth heard the sounds of infant cries and instantly started down the long hallway toward them. The closer she got to the cries, the more panicked they sounded to her and she began to run. She threw herself into the only room with its door opened and she stopped dead in her tracks. There in the middle of the room was Luke, holding her baby.
"Hello Annie. Did you miss me?"
Annabeth's heart raced and she tried to find her voice. She opened her mouth to respond, only to find the air catch in her throat.
"She looks like me, don't you think?"
Annabeth shook her head and finally found her voice. "No she doesn't. She belongs to Percy, now give her to me," She demanded angrily as she stepped toward him with her arms out.
"Oh no Annie. This one is definitely mine. From the dark blonde hair to the blueish gray eyes, this little one belongs to me and she is going home with me! Now that dark headed one over there is definitely the douche bag's kid. Feel free to keep that one. But this one, yes she is definitely mine."
"No," She cried as she lunged at him, trying to get her daughter away from him.
"Annabeth! Wake up," Percy cried as he tried to dodge her flailing limbs. "BETH!"
Annabeth bolted straight up and clamped her hands over her mouth to keep from screaming.
Percy pulled her close and she buried her face in his chest and started to cry. She closed her eyes and the image of Luke holding her baby returned and the tears turned to sobs as she tried desperately to control herself.
"Shhhhhhh, babe, it was just a dream. You're fine." Percy whispered to her as he stroked her hair and gently rubbed her back. "Do you want to talk about it?"
She shook her head no and tangled her fingers around his shirt as she pulled him closer to her. She allowed his presence to comfort her as the sobs slowly subsided. If this was any indication of how the rest of the pregnancy was going to go, she wanted no part of it.
She allowed Percy to pull her back down to the bed and she cuddled in close, praying for a dreamless sleep the rest of the night.
The pair woke to the alarm at six thirty, and she was thankful that the rest of the night was quiet but could instantly tell that her eyes were swollen from the sobs. They remained quiet all morning, Annabeth trying to avoid bringing up the topic of the nightmare and Percy just trying to keep from saying the wrong thing and upsetting her even more.
They pulled up to the aquarium and Percy walked her over to the make shift office that was set up for her. He pulled her in for a hug and whispered, "I love you. I will pick you up for lunch and we can head over to the doctor's office." He lightly kissed her neck and smiled as he felt the shivers run down her spine and she sighed in content.
Annabeth leaned into him and hugged him tightly. "Sorry about last night. And sounds good." She slowly pulled away and as Percy turned to walk away she said, "Oh, and by the way, I love you too." Percy smiled back at her and took off toward his usual place, the dolphin tanks.
She spent the rest of the morning running between two exhibits that were quickly getting off schedule and found herself exhausted in her office just minutes before lunch. All she wanted to do was take a nap but between the lunch date with Percy and her doctor appointment at one, she knew that she wasn't going to be able to get one in today.
A sudden knock on the door pulled her from her thoughts and Percy poked his head in smiling at her. His smile quickly dropped when he saw the look on her face. "You okay?"
"Yeah, just exhausted already. Let's go before I pass out on the desk." She quickly stood and gathered her things and made her way toward Percy.
Percy wrapped an arm around her waist and led her to the car. He opened the door for her and bowed as he said, "Your carriage, my lady," just as he had done the night of her birthday.
Annabeth laughed and ruffled his hair as she slowly sat down in the car. "How sweet, my dork is back," she replied lightly.
"I never left," He whispered softly. He knew that was probably the wrong thing to say with her sensitivity level being insanely high lately but he didn't care.
She smiled weakly at him, knowing his statement was true. She was the one who had pushed him and everyone else away and yet somehow he was still holding on to her. She wasn't sure why. All she knew was that if someone was treating her the way she was treating him, that she would have been gone a long time ago. She hated to admit it but she didn't deserve him. She didn't deserve anything he did or gave her right now.
The couple ate a quick lunch, Percy trying to keep the topics light, knowing that she was beyond nervous about the blood test results. He still didn't care what the results led them to, as long as the babies were healthy. Percy pulled the car into a massive parking lot thirty minutes later and he allowed Annabeth to lead him to the doctor's office that was situated inside the medical building in front of them.
"Is this where we will go from here on out?" He looked at her cautiously out of the corner of his eye and she simply nodded.
They reached the entrance to the building and he held the door open for her, following behind her as she led the way to the elevators. He watched as she pressed the up arrow for the car and stepped in behind her as soon as the doors opened. "What floor?"
"Two," she replied as she leaned back against the wall and closed her eyes.
Percy quickly hit the button and stood next to her, once again wrapping an arm around her waist. The car lurched upward and she quickly popped a hand over her mouth. "Maybe lunch first was a bad idea."
She slowly nodded and tried to breathe slowly, as the nausea began to subside. "I don't think all of the stress is helping any either."
The car jolted to a stop and Percy pulled her close to steady her as she groaned into his shoulder. She slowly led him out of the car and down the hall to the doctor's office and checked in. She filled out the note on the check in station as quickly as possible and then went to sit next to Percy.
He dropped an arm over her shoulder and he felt her tense ever so slightly next to him. He tried to ignore the feeling but it was hard to when she started bouncing her left foot, causing his body to shake. He lightly placed his other hand on her knee and smiled at her. "Calm down babe. Everything will be fine."
Before Annabeth could respond, her name was called by her same nurse from two weeks previous. The couple got up and followed behind the nurse. "So, this is going to be the drill every time you come in. Weight and vitals and then we will head back to the room and make sure that everything is okay with your little ones."
Nurse Cadence was a little to perky for Annabeth's mood at the moment but she plastered a fake smile on her face and nodded in agreement as she did exactly as she was told.
"So everything is good so far. This way Ms. Chase and Mr . . ." she trailed off as she looked curiously at Percy.
"Oh, sorry. Jackson. Percy Jackson."
"Alright then, this way Ms. Chase and Mr. Jackson." She led them farther down the hall than they had gone the first time she came in but the room was identical to her first room. "We will sort of have the same routine each time you come in. Strip from the waist down, drape the sheet over you and wait for us to come back in. Plus side, we shouldn't have to use the wand anymore. I know that sucker is not all that comfortable."
Percy shot Annabeth a weird look at the mention of the word wand and she shrugged his look off. "Here is the sheet, and we will be back in just a few minutes." The nurse left the room in a flurry and left Annabeth standing by the edge of the bed blushing.
She quickly stripped and hopped up on the bed, tossing Percy her clothes as she did so. Just as she covered up there was a knock on the door. "Come in," She said lightly, hoping that Percy wasn't sensing just how nervous she was about the upcoming blood test and how worried she was that there would be a discrepancy.
"Hello there!" The doctor said enthusiastically and she watched as Percy jumped up to shake his hand introduce himself. "So, Annabeth, how have you been feeling?"
She shrugged and looked at her doctor, "Still a little nauseous from time to time. The elevator really doesn't help."
The doctor laughed lightly and replied, "You aren't the first to tell me that about the elevator. So, I am going to get measurement from your pelvic bone to the top of your uterus before we move on to hearing their heartbeats for the first time. I think I will also do a quick ultrasound, just to make sure things are okay and so dad here can get a peek at his babies."
"Will we still be able to get the blood work for paternity today as well?" Annabeth was too quick to ask her question and Percy shot her a look.
"Definitely. We will do a blood draw from the both of you after all is said and done. I will get Cadence to write the lab orders up for you right now while I check on everything. Sound good." He waited a moment and the pair nodded as he pulled out a small measuring tape and then folded the sheet back exposing Annabeth's lower abdomen. He quickly moved the measuring tape over her and then moved back to her chart writing down something that she couldn't see.
"Can you tell me what you are measuring?"
The doctor turned back to her and smiled. "The size of your uterus. It's just another way to make sure that things are on track. You should measure a centimeter for every week you are pregnant but since you are carrying twins, your measurements should always be a bit larger than normal until you get to the third trimester and the babies really start putting on the weight. Right now you are measuring right at 12 centimeters which is okay."
The couple nodded as the doctor put the measuring tape away and then moved to pull out another instrument. "So this is our fetal Doppler. Let's listen and see how these little ones are doing, shall we."
He busied himself by getting the Doppler ready and then he nodded at Cadence who was hiding at the back of the room. She walked over with a bottle of gel and before she poured a glob on Annabeth she smiled over at her. "Don't worry, this batch has been on the warmer."
Annabeth let out a sigh of relief, remembering the odd coldness from two weeks before. Before she knew it the room was filled with what sounded like radio white noise before a strange fast fluttering took over the small speaker.
Percy spoke up as he listened to the strange noise fill the room. "Is that the heartbeat?"
The doctor nodded and replied, "Yes sir. One hundred and fifty eight beats a minute. Totally normal for this gestation. Now let's see if I can find Baby B." The room fell quiet again as he moved the Doppler around on her lower abdomen and suddenly Annabeth was worried. It has been several minutes since they heard Baby A and she was beginning to wonder if something was wrong when the strange fluttering noise returned. "That little one is hiding in there but a good heart rate of one hundred and fifty two beats per minute. I think I am going to go ahead and run the ultra sound. I want to make sure all is well with Baby B."
Her doctor quickly handed the Doppler over to Cadence and he moved to the large screen. This time he pulled out the hand held wand and ran it over her belly as the screen flickered on. Instantly Percy recognized the twins and a smile spread across his face.
The doctor turned the screen so the couple could better see their babies and he pressed a button on the computer in front of him, turning small sections of the screen red. "That is their heart beats. They are good and strong and I see nothing to worry about. Baby A is still measuring dead on at eleven weeks and two days while Baby B has actually passed A and is measuring eleven weeks four days. You are feeding them well Ms. Chase!"
Percy smiled and looked to his girlfriend to see a worry look plastered on her face. "What's wrong babe?"
"Hmmm?"
"You okay?"
"Yeah, sorry. I was just lost in thought. Dr. Boscoe, when do we get the results of the blood tests back?"
"Oh," He paused for a moment, as he was cleaning gel off of her abdomen, "you will get a call from the lab some time Monday with the results. I do have to remind you, you are carrying fraternal twins. They are most likely going to have different blood types which will make the tests come back inconclusive. That doesn't mean that Mr. Jackson here is not their father. If you are really that worried about their paternity, there is the amnio test you can do between fifteen and twenty weeks. I personally, would not risk my children's lives with one though."
"Why exactly is that?" Annabeth ignored the ugly look Percy gave her and continued on with her questions. "What happens with the amnio that makes it's so dangerous."
"Well, we are literally shoving a fairly thick, hollow, three inch needle into the amniotic sack. Pain levels vary greatly and I will do everything possible to avoid the baby, but I can't make promises because the baby can always move. After the procedure you would have to take it easy for at least three days. No heavy lifting, no sex and no flying. Cramping is common and if it gets really intense or continues with bleeding, you may be miscarrying. Fever is also a sign of infection. You will also have to go through this twice which doubles your risks. I will have to monitor heart rates and movements for at least an hour afterward to make sure they are still behaving as normal. It takes about two weeks to get back every test we do with an amnio and that includes the paternity test."
Annabeth tried to swallow but her throat was dry. She knew Percy was throwing daggers at her with his eyes but she needed to know what her next step was going to be. There was no way she was going to wait to the end of the pregnancy to find out if she was carrying Luke's babies or not.
"I don't foresee us needing the amnio but thank you for all of the information Dr. Boscoe." Percy flashed a kind smile. "When does she need to come back?"
"Three weeks. That should put you at fourteen weeks and then we will go to four weeks and by twenty-two weeks I will want to see you every two weeks. Once you hit thirty weeks, I will want you in every week. I will remind you every time I see you so you don't need to try to remember all of this off the top of your head." The doctor watched as the couple nodded at him and smiled, "Now, get dressed and Cadence will take you down to the lab. I will see you in three weeks. Enjoy the last little bit of summer you two." And with that Dr. Boscoe was out the door.
"I will be waiting out in the hall for the two of you," Nurse Cadence stated as she quietly stepped out of the door.
Percy waited for the door to shut completely before turning on Annabeth. "What the hell was all of that?"
Annabeth took her clothes from him and quickly slipped them back on. "Not now Percy. Not here."
"No, now!"
"Percy, please don't start. I just wanted information in case the blood tests came back less than satisfactory. I don't want to fight and I don't want to be in tears the rest of the day at work, so can we please just drop this until this evening?" Her voice and eyes pleading with him.
He sighed heavily. "Fine," He replied dryly as he followed her out of the room.