Chapter 15. Trick or treat comes early

Several weeks into October, Sarah found the dizzy spells seemed to be getting worse, and she blamed her bad eating habits. Arriving at the lecture hall in the science building she took her seat and prepared to take notes. When the instructor came in the rest of the seats had filled. The man began speaking on the subject of the circulatory system, and the last thing Sarah remembered him saying before the darkness was something about wounds. When she opened her eyes, she found herself on the floor of the lecture hall surrounded by students and the instructor.

"Young lady," he addressed her with concern.

"I'm sorry," She placed a hand to her head, still spinning.

The man helped her to her feet. "Young lady, did you skip another meal?" She nodded, and he made a disturbed noise. "My dear girl, you are already too thin! You young people and your diets!"

Sarah feeling most embarrassed whispered her apology and re took her seat. She was glad she only had this one class today. And even gladder she was meeting Magda for lunch at a homey little place nearby. When she arrived at the restaurant Magda was standing outside waiting for her.

"God you look whiter than I do, and I'm in makeup!" Magda said to her as the pair hugged in greeting.

"I fainted a little bit earlier," Sarah said thinking that would explain it all. "I skipped breakfast before class… and it was too much… I should have known, but I was afraid I'd be queasy with all the talk of blood and guts. And I've not been sleeping well of late… just too much stress with the new classes. I really must stop skipping breakfast! Maybe then the dizzy spells will just go away."

Magda looked at her over her menu. "I had no idea you had vasovagal syncope," she shook her head; "I would never peg you as the type."

"Vasovagal syncope," Sarah repeated with a frown.

"Yeah, fainting at the sight or mention of blood," Magda returned to reading over the menu. "I wouldn't have thought you the type."

"I'm not." Sarah whispered. "Blood never bothered me before." She looked at the waitress, "Just some chicken soup."

Magda snickered, "Still dieting?" She ordered a Rubin sandwich.

"Just not very hungry these days," the other girl said quietly. "Too much stress with school."

"Right, the girl who stood up on stage in little more than a hanger has stress in school?" Something in the way Sarah had said the words caught the attention of the Goth girl. Holding up her hand she asked the other. "How long?" When Sarah looked at her, she repeated. "How long have you been without an appetite? You look like you've lost a bit of weight."

"Not long," Sarah suddenly felt defensive about the matter. "Just a few weeks really, I think it's the stress of the new school year." She grimaced as the food was served. "Oh God Magda, how can you eat that. I can barely stand the smell of it."

The Goth girl frowned at her, "Are you kidding me? This is the best Rubin in town! If I didn't know better…" she stopped and stared. "Maybe I don't know better…" Sarah leaned back trying not to smell the food that was making her feel queasy. The Goth girl snapped her fingers to get the other's attention. "Sarah, when was your last cycle?"

Covering her mouth and nose, Sarah shrugged. "I don't know… June…July… I think, something like that. I've haven't been real regular for some time… Why?"

"Fainting, no appetite and now the smell of food making you ill…. And lack of sleep… Sarah, are you pregnant?" Magda asked quietly.

Dark circles under the green eyes seemed to go darker. "Oh don't be silly, of course I'm not."

Magda shook her head. "How can you be so sure?"

"I haven't had…" Sarah stopped, began counting back to the opening of the play. "OH…Yes... that one time…." She looked over at the Goth girl. "Hell, I don't know." She leaned away from the table and excused herself to go use the ladies room.

Magda shook her head, following and listened to Sarah retch. "Is this the first time you've lost your lunch?"

"No," Sarah said from the closed stall. "I just thought it was a bug…"

"Shit," Magda leaned on the wall. "I say we forget lunch, go to a drug store get a pregnancy test kit and head back to the studio… Dido is out with a client, and we'll have the place to ourselves."

Sarah exited the stall looking washed out. "Okay." She had no fight in her.

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Sarah was lying on the sofa in the studio when Dido arrived; she looked at the girl with her eyes closed, then at Magda who raised the package of the test kit. Dido looked at Sarah again before she went to the little kitchenette to make tea. A buzzer went off and Magda looked at the tester. Sarah looked up; her eyes met those of the Goth girl. Dido brought a cup of tea to the young woman on the sofa. "Drink this, it will help."

Sarah accepted the cup of tea, surprised that it did indeed help settle her stomach. "What do I do now?"

Taking a seat on the sofa the older woman patted the girl's leg. "I would suggest a trip to a good doctor before anything else."

Magda was already on the phone. "I'm on it," she said. "My cousin has a nice little practice, and he's very discreet."

"Discreet?" Sarah wondered if she were losing her mind, she didn't seem to be able to understand simple words. "Why do I need someone discreet?"

Magda looked at her with worry. "Well, you have options," she reminded the other girl.

Sarah turned to Dido, "I have options?"

The older woman shrugged and nodded; "Of course."

Sarah finished her tea silently, options? Yeah right, tell Linda, tell Karen… oh yeah options.

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Dr. David Rostoff looked at his cousin as she entered the clinic's waiting room. "Magda!" he greeted her warmly. "How's my favorite cousin?"

She warmly greeted him as well. "I'm well, David. This is my friend Sarah, the girl I was telling you about."

Sarah tried to smile but didn't sense that it was really necessary.

David held a hand out to her, "Miss Williams? Come right in, get into a gown and I'll be in directly." He watched the girl go to the examining room he pointed for her to enter. When the girl had, he turned to Magda. "How far along is she?"

"I'd say near three months." Magda sighed. "Be gentle with her David." She pleaded.

"When have I not been?" He asked getting a little huffy. "You sit here and wait." He then disappeared into the examining room.

Magda looked up when the door opened to find Dido entering and taking a seat like a queen. Magda approached her. "What are you doing here?" She demanded trying to sound like she was in control.

"Showing support," the older woman said firmly. She reached out a hand to her apprentice and pulled her to the seat beside her. "We'll wait together."

Magda leaned on her and whispered. "Thank you, Dido."

The older woman sighed, and nodded as she gave support to her apprentice. For the first time in a long time, Dido felt like part of a real family. Every protective instinct was rearing its head.

Sarah looked at the doctor, "I think this must be a mistake."

"A false reading is possible." He set up the stirrups. "But we'll know in a moment." He patted the metal foot rests. "Come on," he encouraged. "You said you're not very regular these days? Well an examination will tell us if there's something else we should be worried about. How's your diet been?"

Sarah leaned back and moved down on the long examining table, embarrassed and dismayed. "I usually eat what ever I want…though I do try to keep it healthy. Lately, with the stress of the new school year, I'm a little off my feed…"

David nodded, getting her to talk and feel less embarrassed. "Do you exercise regularly?"

"I walk almost everywhere here." Sarah said looking at the wall. "I use the stairs at school, and I had taken a dance course when we were in the play, but I do notice I seem to tire out much quicker…again I figured it was me being off my feed and the stress."

"I saw you opening night." David said with a smile, moments later the he was feeling her stomach and then began his internal examine. "You were wonderful, in fact I don't think I've ever enjoyed a production of the Dream more." His voice was soft and soothing as he touched her. He looked over at her. "You are most definitely, without doubt, unquestionably pregnant. About three months along, I'd say." He helped her to sit up. "I take it this was unexpected." Sarah nodded. "Dress, and then I'll speak to you." David entered the waiting room to find Magda and Dido waiting for Sarah. He invited them into his office to be supportive to the girl.

Sarah took a seat between the two and looked across the desk at the Doctor. "Well, what now?"

"Now, you have a few choices to make." He said calmly. "The first, do you want the baby?"

Sarah blinked, "I don't understand."

"He wants to know if you want an abortion." Magda said flatly.

"An abortion?" Sarah asked repeating the word. "No." She stood up to protest, only to be pulled back in her seat by the two other women at her sides.

"Good because it's really too late for that option," David relaxed a bit; "Alright, we need to set you up on a routine of coming in, I'll give you a list of do's and don'ts and some vitamins. And for the love of God, you need to eat." He began to write things down. "I've a good midwife I work with, and she's very good with young women. I want you to schedule an appointment with her. She's got a lot of things that will make the gestation go easier for you. And she runs a great birthing class, I highly recommend it." He smiled over at the girl. "Do you have questions?"

Sarah sighed, "I don't know where to start."

"What about the father?" David asked softly. "Have you informed him? Will he be involved?"

"No, I haven't told him, but then I had nothing to inform him of…or so I thought. I'll try to reach him." Sarah said she looked at Magda. "How do I go about trying to find him? Got any ideas?"

"Find him?" David looked from Sarah to his cousin.

"An actor," she explained. "He left our company because of some emergency overseas at his home…" she looked at Sarah. "Actor's equity would have an address for him." She turned to Dido for confirmation and the older woman nodded.

David looked at them, "I see." He wrote down the prescriptions and the name and number of the midwife. "I want to see you in here in three weeks," He smiled over at the girl. "I assume you're going to be my patient."

"I guess so." Sarah said standing.

He walked with her to the front of the clinic. "This is Jen, my nurse. Jen give Sarah here our standard new mommy to be kit." He placed an arm about her shoulders. "It has everything you need to get you started. Now remember, I want you to have more regular meals."

"Yes, Doctor." Sarah said quietly. "I'll see you in three weeks."

Jen got the bag out from under the desk and smiled. "What day is good for you, Mrs. Williams?"

Sarah cleared her throat, "I'm Miss Williams."

The nurse smiled; "My bad, what day is best and what time?" Her face was calm, friendly and nonjudgmental.

Sarah made her appointment for the next checkup and gathered up her belongings and the bag of items the doctor was giving her. Magda hooked arms with her as they exited the clinic. Dido looked at the pair and gave them a smile. "Would you like us to come with you?"

"With me?" Sarah asked feeling as if she were lost in a maze. "With me where?"

"To talk to Linda," Dido had a cigarette in her hand and shoved it back into its package as she had no intentions of smoking around the expectant mother. "You should talk to her as soon as you can and as we are already here…"

Sarah Williams stopped walking, closed her eyes and groaned. "What the hell am I going to tell her?"

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Linda had just poured a cocktail for Jeremy, and was taking a seat opposite him when Sarah entered with Dido and Magda in tow. Jeremy, seeing the serious faces drank his drink down in one gulp. Linda looked at Sarah, then at the women coming in directly behind her. Reaching out her arms, she embraced the girl who burst into tears and began apologizing. Motherly instincts had never plagued Linda, but at this moment she remembered how she'd felt when Sarah was born. She kissed her brow, and smiled at her. "Don't be silly," she teased. "You've done nothing, to be ashamed of."

"I'm pregnant," Sarah whispered in a sob. "And my baby was conceived in the middle of a stage in front of a full house."

Jeremy, pouring himself a second drink as well as one for Dido and Linda smirked. "Well, no one can say the Williams women don't have style."

With one arm around her daughter, Linda pulled the girl to the sofa and took a seat. "What would you like to do, honey? Would you like to stay here, or go home to daddy?"

Sarah closed her eyes, "Daddy? He's going to kill me."

Dido smiled. "I doubt that."

Magda looked around the room, "I think she should stay here, in New York."

Linda nodded, as did Jeremy followed by Dido.

Sarah looked about the apartment. "Here?" She blinked. "But it will be so crowded."

Linda took the drink offered by Jeremy. "We'll manage." Raising her glass she toasted the blessed event. "To my first grandchild."

Sarah sighed, as tears stained her cheek.

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"Puck," the voice whispered. "You must check up on Sarah regularly for me." The crystal showed the entire scene to the pair watching in the great circular throne room of the castle beyond the Goblin City.

The Hobgoblin nodded, "I plan to."

The King of the Goblins frowned. "Someone… is nearing the veil."

Puck turned to the King and bowed, "I bid you adieu I go to offer the passage to immortality to one who has earned it."

Jareth nodded, "I wish him well, and safe passage."