*Heh, I've been waiting for this...as I'm sure you have. ;)
Rebecca was glad when the kitchen supplies had been unpacked, and she could take a breather at the table. She noticed that Karina was still familiarizing herself with the space, locating pots and pans, and checking for spices that had been carried over from the house's Bed and Breakfast days.
Jenna shook her head as she closed the freezer. "This fridge is a monster. We need one like this at home; then maybe we wouldn't have to shop every five days."
"There's another ice chest outside the pantry," Calley remarked. "It makes sense. Luke said his family could get stuck up here in the winter sometimes. They had to be prepared."
"What are we in the mood for, guys?" Karina asked of no one in particular. When she didn't get an immediate answer, she looked over at Rebecca. "How about a suggestion, Becky? You haven't asked for anything in a long time. You know what we have in stock - are there any requests?"
Rebecca hesitated. "You should ask Raph, that would be better than taking me up on anything. I'm just not hungry."
Karina's forehead creased. "What's the matter lately, hermana? You've hardly been touching food."
Becky shrugged. "It's better than getting sick, which is what I feel like doing when I eat."
"Have you talked to the docs or Donny?" Calley asked. "It seems unusual."
"It hasn't been going on that long, and I am still eating," she insisted. I'm just not enjoying it, she added inwardly.
"But that doesn't mean someone shouldn't have a look at you," Jenna countered. "What about the motion sickness thing, or even the fact that you're tiring out faster?"
Rebecca opened her mouth to downplay it, but her mind was spinning. I didn't realize anyone noticed me getting tired, with the exception of Mike that is.
"I've been feeling a little off since we got back from Pennsylvania, the day after Mike passed out from having that spar with Raph. That feels like ages ago, somehow. I assumed I just needed to start taking better care of myself."
"But not eating isn't the answer to that, is it?" Jenna persisted.
Rebecca was going to answer, but she was too distracted by the strange smile Karina was giving her.
"Wouldn't it be something if you were pregnant?" Karina suggested.
The question stopped Rebecca cold, and she had to admit she hadn't considered the possibility. "I don't know. Mike and I didn't...well, we weren't trying..." She stumbled as the other girls came to sit down.
"Is it possible, Becky?" Calley asked softly. "Do you remember when your last cycle was?"
Rebecca shook her head as goose bumps invaded her arms. She'd been so distracted with Mike over the last few weeks, she hadn't given it a second thought. "We weren't trying," she repeated awkwardly. "I mean, we weren't not trying, it's just..."
Calley reached for her hand and squeezed it firmly. "Becky, it's going to be okay. You should get tested."
"Now that we're out in the middle of nowhere?"
"You know it isn't like that," Karina said. "All it takes is a blood test, and they can analyze your results with the hand-held scanner, the same way Luke tested me."
Rebecca swallowed. "I don't want to say anything to Mike yet, not without knowing for sure. He'd be ecstatic, and I don't want him getting his hopes up for nothing."
"Then you should go through Marc," Calley told her. "I think he'd have the easiest time keeping it quiet. Do you want one of us to get him?"
"No, I'm fine; I can do this. I can't just sit here anyway. I'll go find him now."
"Don't leave us hanging," Karina said impishly.
Becky smiled. "I won't."
The curly-haired woman walked into the Great Room as casually as possible, scanning all directions. Raphael was still in the recliner, but now Tiger was curled up with him, and Olivia was playing on the floor nearby with Reina. A stack of colorful plastic cups was spread out between the two girls, successfully occupying them. Rebecca stood transfixed for a moment, watching how naturally Reina interacted with the baby turtle.
Olivia isn't unusual to her. Reina will grow up never thinking there's anything strange about her uncles or cousins...Rebecca rubbed her arms as the goose bumps became more pronounced. Is this really happening? I expected to have a baby eventually after we realized it was possible through Karina, but this all feels so sudden.
She stole another glance at the two girls. This is such a great opportunity for the babies, especially for Liv to have someone young to play with. What a chance to stay in a place like this, where Liv and all the guys can roam more freely and see the sunlight.
Leonardo was sitting on the edge of the couch, a bemused smile of his own growing as he watched the young ones. Becky came up beside him, and the blue-masked turtle looked at her expectantly.
"Hey, Becky. Do you need something?"
"Actually, I'm looking for Marc. Do you know where he is by chance?"
Leo nodded. "Go down that hall to the left, and you'll probably find him in the last room at the end. I think he said he was going to start unpacking. Is everything okay?"
She smiled evenly. "Yeah, I have a question for him. I'll see you guys later."
Becky made a discreet exit, walking silently down the hall past the open door where Katherine was badgering Luke to lie down, and another empty room that had been set aside for Raphael and Karina.
We've barely seen the whole house. It's amazing, she thought distractedly, before focusing on her errand. The last door was closed most of the way, but not clicked shut. She knocked lightly.
"Come in." Marcus turned around to see her as she hovered in the doorway. A smile was ready on his face, but it disappeared when he saw how serious she looked. "Becky, what's wrong? Is this about Mike?"
"Believe it or not, no. Well, kind of. It will affect him too, depending on what the answer is."
"What answer?"
Rebecca took a deep breath, and shut the door quietly behind her. "I need your help to figure something out, and it needs to stay quiet until I know for sure."
His brow furrowed in confusion.
"I need a blood test. I've been feeling weird, just different over the last couple of weeks, and something Karina said...I could be pregnant, but I don't want to say anything to Mike without knowing. Will you help me?"
Marcus exhaled before nodding. "Sure, um...I have to get the scanner. I think Luke has it, so it shouldn't be hard. Do you want to wait here? I'll only be a minute."
"Okay."
"Sit down and try to relax. This will be completely painless, and I'll have an answer for you in no time."
Marcus disappeared from the room, and Becky sat down on the end of the bed with a sigh.
I don't know what to think about this. The timing feels off, but mostly...I think it's just overwhelming. With everything else going on, not knowing what's wrong with Mike...it feels like the wrong time. But if I am pregnant, we have to find a way to make it work. All life is a gift, even if it's not expected. This would put yet more to do on the docs' plates, not that they'll complain. Rebecca could feel herself flushing from anxiety. Why does this make me feel so nervous? We know it can work; Olivia is living proof.
She ran a hand through her hair, absent-mindedly twirling a strand around her finger. Becky tugged the curl so hard, she could feel it knotting up. The young woman looked up as Marc came back into the room.
"Got it," he announced. "Let's take a sample in the bathroom, and it won't be long before we know for sure, okay?"
Becky wordlessly followed him to the attached bathroom, and allowed the man to draw a small blood sample from her.
"You can go sit down if you want," he told her. "I'll let you know as soon as I do."
She nodded her thanks, but her stomach rolled over with increasing nerves as she perched on the bed again. A knock at the door had her jerking up straight.
"Uh...who is it?" she called tensely.
"Beck, is that you? What are you doing?" Mike called.
The young woman grimaced. I can't very well tell him to go away, can I?
With an inward sigh, she got to her feet. "Yes, it's me, Mike."
The orange-masked turtle opened the door. "I've been looking for you. Are you all by yourself in here?"
"No, not really. Marc is checking something for me."
Michelangelo's gaze deepened. "Are you okay? Does this have something to do with you not feeling great?"
"Yes, but everything's fine, Mike. He hasn't even found anything, he's just..." Rebecca trailed off, unsure of how to get rid of the turtle without him realizing she was getting rid of him.
"I'm sorry, Becky," Marcus said from the bathroom. "The scanner is giving me fits. I think I'm going to have to draw your blood agai-" The man cut off the instant he saw Michelangelo. "Uh...you um..."
"What are you testing her blood for, Marc?" Mike asked. When the doctor looked at Rebecca, the turtle did too. "Beck, what's going on?"
"I didn't want to get you excited without a good reason," she said weakly. "There's a chance that...well, one of the girls suggested that I could be pregnant. But we don't know that for sure," she added swiftly as his blue eyes widened.
"You think you're pregnant?"
"I don't know; that's why I'm getting a blood test."
The turtle took a deep breath before speaking again. "All right, Becky. Then let Marc take your blood again, and let's find out, huh?"
Marcus took the second round of her blood apologetically, and left them alone while he went to analyze the sample.
Michelangelo sat down on the bed, and reached for Becky's hand to draw her in to his side. "You're as white as a ghost, Beck. You need to sit down."
"I'm all right," she said faintly.
"You seem upset," he said carefully. "Is it…do you not want this?"
"It isn't that, Mikey. I'm nervous, and I feel overwhelmed. There's so much happening already, and a baby on top of everything..."
As she spoke, a vision of Mike cradling a four-day-old Olivia came to her mind unbidden. The gentleness he employed coupled with the sheer joy in his eyes had moved her tremendously. Now those same eyes were gazing at her, searching for her true reaction to the possibility of being pregnant.
"I do want to have your baby," she said quietly. "And if this is for real, I'm going to be very happy, Mike. I wasn't trying to hide it from you. I just didn't want to disappoint you."
Michelangelo shook his head firmly. "You couldn't, Becky. You couldn't disappoint me. Even if we couldn't have a kid together, you wouldn't be letting me down. That's not why I love you."
She felt herself on the brink of unexpected tears. "I won't say the idea doesn't scare me. I've asked myself if I could carry a baby, even knowing that Karina pulled it off. I'm not trying to expect the worst, but I'm afraid of getting my hopes up too."
"Beck..." Mike rested his forehead against hers. "No matter what happens, we'll still be there for each other. We'll get through it. You're not in this alone, and you don't need to be scared by yourself."
As hot tears coursed down her cheeks, Rebecca realized how much she did want it. She clung silently to the orange-masked turtle. She was unwilling to speak the words out loud, lest some kind of evil fate hear them and deny her of the gift she wanted for Michelangelo, and yes, herself. Mike held her without saying another word either, resting a hand on the back of her head while they waited.
Rebecca heard footsteps shuffling on the hard wood, and raised her head off Mike's shoulder to glance back. Marcus was standing in the doorway that connected the bathroom to the bedroom with the scanner in hand, and an indiscernible look in his eyes.
"Well?" Mike asked breathlessly. "Do we know, or not?"
The man nodded, unable to hide a smile any longer. "It's positive."
Rebecca felt Mike shudder as he gathered her in a second time, and she saw tears in his eyes too.
"It's so unreal," she wavered. "I can't believe this whole time...Wait. How do we know how far along I am, Marc?"
"We'll be able to figure that out when we have more equipment at our disposal, which should be days rather the weeks, thanks to Director Kelley."
Mike tugged Becky's chin around to look at him. "You're happy, Becky?"
She nodded without hesitation as he wiped her tears away. "So happy, Mike. You're going to be the greatest dad."
"And you'll be an awesome mom. We're gonna make the best team ever."