Chapter 17
Joey sat listening to the machines that surrounded Lauren, the dull, repetitive beeping showing Lauren's heartbeat, closely followed by the quick, quieter beat of the baby's. His hand was entwined with hers and as he'd continued to sit by her bedside, he'd noticed how cold and thinner they'd become since the last time he remembered holding them. She looked broken and so, so fragile.
"I could stay here all day" Lauren admitted as Joey played with her fingers "Joey?"
"Hmm?" he questioned
"Most guys have obsessions with boobs and bums, but no, you, have an obsession with my fingers" she chuckled
"They're gorgeous" he informed her, kissing each one individually, watching her as her eyes shut contentedly "I love you, Lauren"
"I love you too" she mirrored, opening her eyes, finding his immediately
Sighing, he moved her hair from where it sat over her eye. He tucked it behind her ear, his fingers continuing to run through the ends… "Why didn't you tell me, Lauren? You know I would've been there for you"
The door creaked open a few moments later, the nurse adjusting Lauren's drip and taking some readings.
"How long do you think it'll be until she wakes up?" Joey questioned
"The medication should've worn off by now, but her body's weak and tired so she may sleep for a while longer yet" she informed him "just press the button on the wall if she does wake though, we'll need to make sure everything's okay"
"I will. Thank you" he replied, resuming watching her sleep
It was another hour or so before there was any movement. Joey must've fallen into a light sleep when he felt a gentle pressure on his hand. He woke quickly to see Lauren opening her eyes. He watched her as her eyes blinked rapidly adjusting to the light.
"Head hurts" she mumbled
Joey got up from the bed and dimmed the lights, Lauren finally opening her eyes fully as he sat back down… "Better?" She nodded smiling weakly. "Hello, stranger" he greeted her, cupping her cheek in the palm of his hand, Lauren instantly leaning into him, her body relishing in how much she'd missed him.
"Where am I?" she asked
"Hospital" he informed her, watching as the panic cross her face "it's okay, you're alright now. You're suffering from dehydration, exhaustion and malnutrition. You'd passed out when Abi and I found you"
"But I was in my bedroom, the door was locked" she whispered "how did you get in? Did Abi find the key?"
Joey shook his head… "I kinda kicked the door in"
"You did what?" she questioned "Joey, my Dad will freak"
"He already has" he admitted "he and your Mum haven't long gone actually"
"They were here? What did they say?" she asked
"Nothing that I don't already know" he replied "that we can't be together, that we can't have this baby"
"You know?" she inquired her eyes flooding with unshed tears.
"The doctor told me" he explained "why didn't you tell me, Lauren?"
"I wanted to tell you. I did. I tried to, I promise you I did. But Mum and Dad took my phone off me when they found out and locked me in my room" she informed him "I didn't tell them it was yours, I didn't wanna get you into trouble"
"It's okay, babe" he assured her, stroking his fingers through her hair, successfully calming her down "they know the baby's mine. I told them"
"Your Dad is gonna kill you when my Dad tells him" she sighed
"Do you really think your Dad is gonna want anyone to know you're pregnant?" he asked sympathetically "especially my Dad? He'd do anything to make a show of your Dad and it'd be at your expense. He won't tell him, Lo, I promise, okay?"
"Okay" she replied
"I'll go and get your doctor" he informed her "she wanted to check some things when you woke up"
*JL*JL*JL*
"Well, Miss. Branning, it's a very good job you were found when you were. I have every mind to call the authorities " the doctor admitted
Lauren took a breath and sank back into the pillows, Joey's hand entwining with hers as the doctor removed the drip.
"Is the baby okay?" she questioned
"I don't see why he or she shouldn't be" she informed her "but we'll do a scan now you're awake, just to be sure…I'd also like you to talk to someone from the psychiatric unit"
Laurens eyes widened her hand tightening around Joey's "I didn't do anything I promise…"
"we know babe…they just want to see if you're ok" the doctor nodded agreeing with what Joey had just said. "you're really underweight Lauren… the doctors need to know what's going on in that beautiful head of yours... Given your history"
"Mr Branning is right, You are underweight Lauren and you should really be putting weight on in pregnancy not losing it. Now i'd like to discuss your blood test results with you a little further, are you still taking Paroxetine ?" Paroxetine being the medication Lauren took to control, her "Bad" thoughts, they were an antidepressant almost.
"no I stopped as soon as I found out I was pregnant...i read it's not good for the baby. Why?"
"It appears that you have a very high level of it in your blood still and if you stopped about two months ago that shouldn't be the case, are you taking anything else at all that could possibly contribute to these levels ?"
"No, I do take vitamin supplements though...i'm always getting coughs and colds, Mum said I should take them especially now I was pregnant".
The doctor raised her brow "I see... well I shall be talking to your Mother, I have a suspicion the vitamins may not be vitamins"
"what? Oh god will it have hurt the baby "
"that's something we'll look at... I also need to inform social services if your parents are the reason behind this Lauren"
"no dont do that!" she objected "it wasn't their fault " she lied
The doctor frowned but nodded "get some rest Miss Branning"
As Lauren watched the doctor leave the room, she thought back to when she'd first found out she was pregnant. It was the 3rd morning in a row she'd been forced to get out of bed to be sick. She'd made it to the bathroom just in time. She'd gone to the doctors thinking she had food poisoning, but was given the news she was pregnant. Straight away Lauren knew it was Joey's, it could only be Joey. It took a day or two for everything to sink in but decided she didn't want any secrets. She needed to tell her Mum and Dad and get their support but telling her parents was a decision she soon came to regret. She hadn't told them the baby was Joey's, just she was pregnant. Her Dad had yelled and her Mum had cried and she'd sat there in silence. Max had said she was to get an abortion, which caused another argument when Lauren straight out refused. She told them she was keeping the baby, weather they liked it or not. And they didn't like it, she pushed a small card across the table to them and told them she was already into her third month. Tanya cried some more and Max yelled some more eventually leaving the house. Cora had surprisingly been on Laurens side and had told Tanya she had no right to Judge as she was only 17 when she had Lauren. The crying and arguing went into the night until the Brannings had settled down and had basically told Lauren they were done with her, it was her life and if she wanted to mess it up then that was her choice.
*JL*JL*JL*
"Quit staring at me, creep" she chuckled, turning onto her side to face him
"Can't" he admitted, moving his position so he was resting closer to the bed "do you know what sex the baby is?"
"Nope" she informed him "I was only 9 weeks when I had the scan"
"Haven't you had another?" he questioned, Lauren shaking her head in reply "babe"
"I didn't have a choice, Joey" she sighed "I haven't been able to leave my room for the last 2 and half months, never mind the house"
Joey stood up and nudged her, rolling his eyes when she didn't move "Shift over".
Lauren did as he said and shuffled to the edge of the bed, creating some space for him. Climbing onto the bed, he got himself comfortable and pulled her to him, her head resting on his chest.
"What's gonna happen now, Joey?" she asked after a brief silence. It had been whirring around her mind ever since she'd woken up. What were his intentions? Was he just doing it to spite her parents or did he really want to be there? Lauren was an insecure person, even though her tough exterior showed different, she wasn't as tough as she made out, and she was pleased that Joey was one of the few that knew that.
"Well it usually takes 9 months for a baby to grow, so give it another 4 and we'll have a baby of our own…baby" he informed her
"I'm being serious, Joey" she sighed
"So am I" he assured her "your parents can do what they want and so can mine. We're having a baby, Lauren, and no matter what, we'll be together and we'll be the best damn parents we can be. We'll run away if we have to, but nothing is gonna keep me from you, Lauren, not anymore"
"I was so close to …y'know ? Yesterday, I dropped a cup and the pieces were just staring at me… one more movement and I could have ended it Joey" she cried looking up at him.
"but you didn't though did you ? You stopped. You dropped it . I know this time last year you wouldn't have been able to do that?"
Lauren's hospital room door opened before either could speak again, a nurse walking in with the ultrasound machine… "Not interrupting, am I?" Lauren shook her head, smiling as the nurse paused by the door."Good" she replied "am I okay to take a look at baby then?" Lauren again nodded her head, the nurse smiled at her warmly as Joey took the hint moved from the bed "Just pull your top up for me then, please, sweetie"
Doing as she was asked, Lauren lifted her pyjama top up, revealing her little bump, Joey staring at her stomach as she did so.
"What're you staring at?" she asked, turning her head to him
"This is really real". Lauren rolled her eyes at his obviousness. He always did like to state the obvious. Seeing the nurse was ready to start, he decided not to reply and entwined his hand with Lauren's.
"Okay, so baby's heartbeat is good, it doesn't seem as if there's been any effects from the Paroxetine " the nurse informed them, turning the screen to them "here's baby's head, legs and arms. Baby's a little small for how far along you are... that's something we'll keep and eye on. Other than that everything looks ok Lauren, but you really do need to take care of yourself "
Lauren glanced at Joey and he felt guilty he hadn't been able to stop what had been going on. The nurse wiped the gel away and took some reading from Lauren too. "your blood pressure is a little high, nothing major but you'll need rest and someone to look after you.
Joey assured the nurse as she was sorting out the ultrasound machine that there was no chance Lauren was going to end up in hospital again, not on his watch anyway. He'd sworn to himself and to Lauren that he would do everything in his power to protect them. Thanking the nurse as she left the room, Lauren turned to Joey.
"You should sleep, babe" he admitted, running his fingers through her hair
"I can't, my mind's in overdrive" she sighed, moving back to rest her head on his chest
"What're you thinking about?" he questioned
"Everything" she replied "I'm scared I'll wake up and all this is a cruel dream and if it's not...when I'm discharged from this place I won't be safe anymore. That Mum and Dad will take me home and lock me away again because they're so ashamed of me. That they'll send me back to Meadow's (psychiatric rehab) That I'm not good enough…What if I screw up and I'm a crap parent, Joey, what if I can't do it?"
"That's not gonna happen" he assured her "we'll figure something out. And as for being crap parents, maybe we will be at first, but we'll get the hang of it and we'll make sure this one is healthy, happy and well looked after. I'm not letting anything or anyone hurt either of you again. I'm staying right by your side, Lauren, okay?"
Bad Tanya ! Has she been giving Lauren medication she's not supposed to have ? It seems that way ...Laurens stressed, which definitely isn't good for her or the baby and Joey's trying his hardest to keep everything together not an easy challenge ! And I know in real life the doctor would have called social services and followed through etc. But for this story she hasn't, lets call it artistic licence ? Back tomorrow xx