CHAPTER 19
Karolinska University Hospital is the biggest hospital in Stockholm. Mattias spent many years at this hospital during his medical residency and later, working as a Pediatric attending physician. Mattias drove to the hospital for almost 45 minutes.
"Mattias, I can take a pregnancy test at home. We don't really need to go to the hospital. Besides, I'm pretty sure the result's going to be negative", Amy was trying to escape from that uncomfortable situation.
"We're almost there. I think it's better if you take a blood pregnancy test because it's more sensitive. If you get a negative result we can do some other tests to find out what's wrong", Mattias was truly worried for Amy's health.
Amy nodded; to be honest, she didn't have a better plan. This situation was so unexpected; she wasn't sure how to feel about it. "Should I be happy? Should I cry or be scared?" She kept repeating herself in silence.
When they arrived to the hospital, Mattias greeted a few doctors and nurses while they walked through the hallway, until they finally got to the laboratory. Josefin Nilsson a middle aged, tall and blonde nurse welcomed them into the room.
"Hi Mattias, it's been so long since I last saw you. Are you working at the hospital again?. We miss you." Josefin Nilsson was glad with Mattias's visit.
"Well, not for now Josefin. To tell the truth I came here to ask you a favor. But… let me introduce you to my friend Dr. Amy Farrah Fowler, she's an outstanding neurobiologist.
Josefin and Amy greeted politely with a handshake. When the nurse realized that Amy didn't speak Swedish, she talked to her in English.
"Josefin, I need you to draw a blood sample from Amy. We need to determine her serum levels of β-Human Chorionic Gonadotropin hormone" Mattias used the technical name of the test.
"So… you need a pregnancy test? Congratulations Mattias, your father's going to be so happy with the news" Josefin misunderstood the situation.
Amy and Mattias looked at each other, blushing when they heard Josefin's words. "Oh! No, no, it's not my baby. Amy's just trying to rule out the possibility", Mattias quickly added. "And it's not that I wouldn't like that" Mattias silently told himself.
"I'm almost certain that I'm not pregnant; it's a very slight possibility. So, let's do this now!" Amy rolled her blouse's cuff up, exposing her forearm so the nurse could do her job.
"Alright! Let me just set everything and we'll be done in a minute". Josefine told Amy with a comforting voice.
When Amy saw the needle, she was a little scared; although she worked in the field of biology, she had a mild fear of needles. She tried being brave, but she knew she would give everything to be with Sheldon at the moment. According to the Relationship Agreement, he should hold her hand during a flu shot, and even though this wasn't a flu shot, this procedure involved a needle stick. "It doesn't matter; the Relationship Agreement doesn't have an Impending Paternity Clause anyway", she thought.
"That's it! In a couple of hours you'll have the result." Josefin told Amy.
"Ok!, We'll be back in two hours" Mattias and Amy said goodbye to Josefin as they left the lab.
Amy was utterly silent, pressing a cotton ball against her left forearm. She hadn't recovered yet from the initial shock. She didn't know if she wanted a negative or positive result.
Mattias was sitting next to her in that cold waiting room; he grabbed a magazine from the coffee table. Mattias couldn't interpret the expression on Amy's face. He thought she would be happy and thrilled with the possibility of having a baby with her much-loved boyfriend. At the present moment, Mattias could only see a shadow of anxiety and concern on Amy's eyes. Without saying a word Mattias put his arm around her shoulders and strongly hugged her.
Amy began to cry, she couldn't hold her tears anymore. She couldn't breathe easily, she was afraid she would faint again. She felt silly for acting like a teenager in trouble; she was a mature and independent woman after all. "Stupid Amy, why did you have to ruin everything?" she recriminated herself.
"Amy, listen to me, everything's going to be fine, no matter what happens next," Mattias tried to comfort her in that awkward situation. "Let's have something to eat, and then we can come back for the results" Mattias took Amy's hand.
"Yes, let's go!", that was the only thing Amy could say; she wiped her tears with a tissue and walked with Mattias to the cafeteria.
As everyday Sheldon was having lunch with his friends at Caltech's cafeteria. Sheldon practically devoured his Caesar Salad. Leonard hadn't seen him eating with that much appetite since Amy left. Leonard was happy to see that Sheldon was in a better mood.
"Hey, Sheldon you seem hungry! How are your plans for your trip to Stockholm? Did Dr. Siebert authorize Alex to be your substitute?" Leonard asked.
"I'm going to talk to Siebert this afternoon; and if he doesn't authorize Alex Jensen as my substitute, I'll quit" Sheldon said matter-of-factly.
"You'll… quit? Leonard almost choked with his lunch.
"Yes, I'll quit; to be honest I don't think President Siebert would risk losing a remarkable physicist like me. He knows this University needs me", Sheldon answered with his conceited tone.
"I can't believe this day has come. Sheldon's been enslaved by his girlfriend. If I didn't know you, like I do; I'd think you are experiencing the effects of sexual deprivation. Ha ha!" Howard laughed out loud.
"That's ridiculous! My relationship with Amy Farrah Fowler is a relationship of the mind." Sheldon was getting increasingly nervous, his face blushed. "I just want to know if that Neurosciences Institute is at the height of a notable scientist like Amy, and… I don't need to give you any explanation". Sheldon's tics were obvious.
"I think this is so romantic, and if you need to be with Amy, you should follow your heart" Raj told Sheldon as he ate a spoonful of carrot cake. "Aw, I'm the only one without a girlfriend"
"Look! There's President Siebert!. If you excuse, I'm going to talk to him right now", Sheldon stated. This was the perfect opportunity to end that uncomfortable conversation.
Sheldon headed to Dr. Siebert's table: "Hellow Dr. Siebert! How are you?" he saluted.
"Doctor Cooper! Whatever you have to say to me, will have to wait. I'm in the middle of my lunchtime at this moment", Caltech's President grunted.
"I understand Dr. Siebert, but this will only take me a couple of minutes. You'll see. Have you met my assistant, Alex Jensen?, Sheldon inquired.
"Yes, I've met her. She's a charming and brilliant young woman. But... why are we talking about her? I'm pretty sure you want to ask me again for those two weeks off. Don't you?. Dr. Cooper my answer is NO", Siebert insisted.
"Dr. Siebert, Alex Jensen is fully capable of being my substitute. She knows my research perfectly, she's trustworthy and qualified for this position" Sheldon's voice trembled.
"Dr. Cooper, she doesn't have enough experience to continue your research on her own, even if it's temporary" Siebert realized there was something different in Sheldon. Apparently, the annoying theoretical physicist had a deeper impulse in his mind.
"Dr. Siebert, I'm going to be honest with you. I need to go to Sweden. My girlfriend is working at Stockholm Neurosciences Institute. She's a well-known neurobiologist, and she's going to be there for six months and the truth is… I can't stay away from her any longer. Please, believe me, I've never felt like this before. If you don't authorize Alex Jensen as my substitute, I'm afraid I'd have to quit. I have no other choice." Sheldon gulped.
"So, that's the reason behind your rushed trip to Stockholm" Siebert smiled.
"That's… correct; and if you ever cared about anyone as I care about Amy Farrah Fowler, I know you'll… understand." Sheldon stuttered.
"I've known you for a few years and I've never expected this kind of behavior from you. No, don't get me wrong I'm pleasantly surprised. I could say that you're growing up. Dr. Cooper, you can have your two weeks off, if Alex Jensen's replacing you." Siebert replied.
"Thank you Dr. Siebert! I'll work overtime this week to progress on my research as much as I can. Thank you!" Sheldon giggled as he got back to his friend's table.
"Did you get your two weeks off?" Leonard asked Sheldon.
"Yeah, I did. Siebert couldn't risk losing the best physicist in Caltech", Sheldon exclaimed.
Amy and Mattias looked at the cafeteria menu, today they were serving: "Laxfilé med bakad potatis". Mattias translated: Salmon fillet with baked potatoes.
"Sounds good!. You should try it, you like salmon" Mattias said. "It's getting late and we didn't have lunch. Let me see if they have a vegetarian option for me".
"I don't have much of an appetite, but I'll try to eat something", Amy sighed.
Amy tried her first bite of salmon and it didn't taste good at all. She took a sip of water and continued with the baked potato, she thought it tasted a little better.
When she tried a second bite of salmon; she couldn't even tolerate the smell of it. She rose quickly and ran to the bathroom. She couldn't keep the food in her stomach. She washed her face and left the restroom. All she could drink, was a glass of water.
"I think we should go back to the lab and get those results now", Mattias was concerned about Amy.
Amy nodded and together they went to the laboratory where Josefin, the nurse, handed an envelope to Amy.
Amy stared at the envelope for a few seconds that seemed endless. Finally, she decided to open it. The letters and numbers written on that white paper sheet appeared blurred in front of her eyes. She tried to concentrate and focused her attention to a number, highlighted in that document.
"What is the value to consider this test as positive?" Amy asked Mattias with a low, quivering voice.
"Well, that depends on the lab, but when they use an ultrasensitive technique as the one they use in this hospital, it's a positive result when it's greater than 5 mIU/ml" Mattias replied.
"So, I assume 7,337.21 mIU per ml is considered…" Amy looked at the number again and again.
"More than seven thousand, is considered very positive", Mattias stated.
