"Are you sure about this?!" Peyton asked nervously as they waited outside the doctors room.
"Yes. I mean, I think we need to know what the risks are right? We still may not be having any more children, but I think it's something both you and I need to know" Lucas concluded.
Peyton smiled at him. "If you're sure, then I'm sure. Lucas, I want you to know… If the doctor advises us to not have any more children, while that would really suck, I'll be ok with that in the long-term. It's just…. I need to know. But I also need you to know that if there still is a risk, and we go ahead with trying for another baby and present with the same issues as Sawyer's pregnancy, I still won't be terminating the pregnancy. I couldn't do it." Peyton felt that she needed to tell Lucas these things before they went to see the doctor.
Lucas pulled her closer and kissed her forehead "I know. And I get it… now. I wouldn't even expect you to terminate the pregnancy."
Peyton smiled, so thankful that Lucas understood. Both of them nervously looked at each other knowing that their future of having a larger family was lying in the hands of what this doctor had to say to them. Peyton was also finding it hard being surrounded by all of these pregnant women around her in the waiting room. With the uncertainty of whether they would ever be able to go through that again hanging in the balance, it seemed so confronting to be constantly surrounded by this all of a sudden.
"Mr and Mrs Scott?!" The doctor called. Tentatively, both Lucas and Peyton rose and followed the doctor into his office.
"Hearing that still gives me a thrill!" Peyton whispered to Lucas as they walked across the hall. Lucas grinned at her.
Dr. Williamson was the same doctor that they dealt with throughout Sawyer's pregnancy, so in some ways it was like dealing with an old friend. After the exchange of greetings and hand shakes, they took a seat opposite Dr Williamson's place at his desk.
"Well I must confess, I expected to see the two of you back here much earlier! Sawyer must be what? Three years old now?! How is she going?" he enquired.
"Two and a half. She's perfect. She's doing really well". Peyton responded proudly.
"Good, Good! Now what can I do for you both?!"
Lucas silently grabbed Peyton's hand and looked at her before he answered the doctor's question
"We are thinking about trying for another baby…" Lucas began. "We are just… worried I guess about the possible implications considering the difficulties we had with Sawyer."
"Well I must say, I certainly didn't expect you back here in this fashion. Hmm… now looking back at Peyton's records she had Complete Placenta Previa or PP during Sawyer's pregnancy…." Dr Williamson continues to read their notes for a few moments making regular interjections and remarks, before finally placing the manila folder down, folding his hands on top of it and looking at the young couple.
"This is a little bit of a difficult question for me to answer" He began.
"You see PP is a relatively common occurrence, happening in approximately 1 in every 200 pregnancies. It is however quite rare to have 'complete placenta previa' as you did with Sawyer. Now your chances of PP occurring again are increased with your subsequent pregnancies, but usually we are talking about if you have 6 or more children. However, because you had PP in your first pregnancy, that does increase your risks again." Dr Williamson says before pausing for a little while.
Peyton feels like her heart has sunk to her stomach. She was almost sure she was going to hear positive news.
"That doesn't however mean that you will be unable to have completely stress free and healthy pregnancies just because you have had PP in the past. We can however manage PP quite well. I mean we are talking about risk factors here, but a mortality rate of either the mother or baby are incredibly low." Once again, Dr Williamson paused.
Lucas' head was swimming, in one breath, what the doctor was saying was positive, and in the next, it sounded impossible.
"Looking at your history again, we do have some things on our side. For example, you are both still quite young, which drastically reduces your risk factor. You are also healthy and have left quite a while between pregnancies which is also good. You are however at a higher risk due to a previous caesarean section and a previous case of PP."
"Should the PP happen again, we are unable to diagnose until approximately 20wks, but certainly would be keeping our eye on it from your earlier ultrasounds, simply because of your previous history. While we cannot formally diagnose, it will give us a rough idea of where the placenta is lying. Again, we can have quite a few management practices in place. Should PP occur again, we would probably schedule and elective caesarean just to make sure. This can be done at any stage after 36wks and we would do so dependant on the health and growth of the foetus. Now just to make sure there aren't any further risk factors, I would like to run some tests on both of you, first to check your fertility status, since you are here, but then also to look at you Peyton and see what state your uterus is in, particularly considering you have had a previous c-section. This will further let us know about your risk of PP, but also risks associated with a natural birth."
"Mouth - Millie told me you guys were thinking of getting a dog" Skills ventured on one of his weekly meets with the boys.
"Yeah – we're pretty excited about it! I mean we haven't chosen a breed yet, still tossing between a few, but we think it's a step in the right direction you know.
"I'm not so sure man. I mean… dogs bite and all that right?! Are you sure it's safe… you know… sharing your house with a furry pet?! It won't eat you alive at night?!"
Mouth laughed. He had forgotten how adverse Skills was to pets. He had to remember to tell Mille that not only do they need a dog that is kid friendly, but also Skills-proof.
"People do it all the time Skills! I assure you – our dog will be a friendly beast!"
"I'm not sure dawg…" Skills sais unconvinced. "All I can say is I'm glad I moved out!"
At this, Mouth laughed out loud.
"So have you seen Haley and Nathan's new baby yet?! Mouth asked...
"Ok guys, we have your preliminary results back" Dr Williamson said, addressing Lucas and Peyton once again, later that afternoon.
"Things are looking pretty good. Both your health checks are fine, so no problems there. Peyton, your uterus is showing minimal scarring from your previous c-section which is fantastic, and everything else is looking great. Realistically there is no reason for you to not try for another baby, given that we have quite a few approaches should PP occur again, and your risks are still probably outweighed by the positives at the moment. I would encourage you however to start and finish your family earlier rather than later, as a pregnancy while you were over 35 will certainly drastically increase your chances of developing PP".
At this point, Dr Williamson stood up and shook both of their hands.
"I think that's about it. Should you have any questions, you know where to find me, otherwise, I'll pass you the final results in a few days once we have collaborated them all".
Lucas and Peyton's head was spinning. There were so many things to think about. The car was silent on the trip home. As soon as they arrived home, Peyton went straight inside, needing some time to herself. Sawyer was with Andy, Lily and Karen who had taken her out for the day. In some ways, Peyton was glad, in others, she missed her daughter and wished that she was here for company.
After hours had passed without a word being passed between the two of them, Peyton finally went to find Lucas.
"Luke… I know you will need time to stew this over, as will I. So I'm going to give you time, and give you space on this. While I'm pretty confused, I think I know where I stand, but I don't want to put pressure on you or think that you have to decide by yourself. It's our decision, but I know that you will need time to digest all this information. So… whatever you decide… I want you to know, I'll stand by it, whatever it is."
Lucas was quite overwhelmed by Peyton's speech. He was pretty sure he knew where her direction was headed. Silently, he lent over and kissed her for a long time.
"Thank you." That was all Lucas said, but to Peyton, it meant so much more than that.
Haley was bent over Amelia's crib, gazing longingly at her newborn daughter. She couldn't get over how utterly perfect she was. It was incredible that this little being was theirs. Just hers and Nathan's. How could they create something so wonderful? So perfect?
"She's pretty amazing isn't she?!" Nathan asked, sneaking up behind his wife and wrapping his arms around her. He was equally as awestruck with his daughter as Haley was.
"She's more than amazing" Haley whispered. Silently, she bent over and kissed her daughter on the forehead, before sighing and leaving her room to allow the baby to sleep peacefully.
"So Jimmy Jam, what shall we do today!?" Haley asked her son.
Jaime rolled his eyes. His mother was really the only one that could still get away with calling him from his old nickname.
"Andre is going to come over to play some Wii" Jaime responds.
"oooh sounds like fun! Can I help with the warm up?!" Nathan asks once again coming up behind Haley.
"Sure! But you always know I'll beat you! Even Skills can't keep up now!" Jaime boasts before quickly running to place the game into the console.
Lucas was once again returning home after a walk to the river court. A place that had never failed him when he needed time to think things through. There were still a lot of things to consider and that were running through his mind. On one hand, the results sounded quite positive and encouraging. On the other hand, there was no guarantee that they wouldn't have to go through it all again, and they still had some pretty high risks by the sounds of things. The thought of having to go through all of that again really scared Lucas. He had spent the whole day making one decision, and then feeling unsettled. Changing his mind he would decide on the alternative, and once again, feel unsettled and like he had made the wrong decision again.
It had been two weeks since visiting the doctor and he was still no clearer in his thoughts. Peyton and he were still yet to discuss the matter at length. Mainly because they both knew how the other felt, and it seemed to be something they both needed to come to grips with in their own way. They both knew and understood that whatever final decision was made, they would still have the support of the other.
Arriving at home, Lucas captured a rare glimpse of a special moment between Peyton and Sawyer through their living room window. Not wanting to spoil the moment, he held back and watched the scene unfold. Peyton and Sawyer were sitting around the table, heads together evidently working hard on something. Peyton said something to make Sawyer smile and giggle. This escalated until Peyton had Sawyer in peals of laughter on the floor and was tickling her all over. Lucas could hear music playing throughout the house. Typical he thought. Trying to form her music opinions before she's even old enough to understand and appreciate he thought with a smile. Looking through the window again, he sees Sawyer now in her mothers arms as they dance around the room. Such a beautiful scene that it seems a shame to break it up.
Suddenly, Lucas knows what decision he has to make. While he knows that he doesn't want to deny Peyton the ability to have a family, he can't imagine himself or Sawyer growing up without her, the mother she adores and dotes on. Tearing his eyes from the scene, Lucas collects his thoughts and heads inside.
Turning her head to the door opening, Peyton and Sawyer see Lucas enter their home. Peyton knows how much this decision is weighing on him. But also, knowing Lucas, she knows he has to make this decision on his own, and be ok with it in his own mind. She understands that he needs his space, even though it's nearly killing her. Sawyer pulls to get out of her mothers arm to run over to her father.
"Daddy!! I missed you!" she exclaims. Lucas gives her a big hug, before turning his attention to Peyton.
"Ok." He says.
"Ok?!" Peyton questions.
"Ok, yes…. Lets try for another baby."
Peyton's heart catches in her mouth. Even though she dreamt of this, she never actually thought Lucas would come around.
"Are you sure?!" She asks meekly, half afraid to hear the answer.
"Yeah. The risks are there, but I think moment like these far outweigh the risks. Like Dr Williamson said, they are well equipped to be able to deal with these risks. I think everything seems to be in our favour." Lucas explains coming closer to his wife. "But let me tell you" he whispers in her ear. "If you ever dare leave me, Sawyer or any other children we might have, so help me, we will not be able to survive without you Peyton Scott."
By now Peyton is crying silently.
"So, let's try for another baby" Lucas says again.
"Lets try for a baby" Peyton confirms, before once again kissing her husband.