Niles had been feeling confident that this time that the test would confirm her pregnancy, and stay that way. But, this time, the test came out negative. After seeing Daphne's face fall at the sight of the negative sign on her test was when Niles told her they had to go to the doctor.
Just like that, the nerves came flowing back. He knew there was nothing wrong with Daphne. She was still young, and no doubt, fertile. It just had to be him. It would certainly explain why Maris had never gotten pregnant. Though, the one night of passion per year could explain that as well. But, a child could be conceived on only one night.
Oh, the whole thing was so confusing, and Niles was glad it was just him and Daphne in the waiting room. It would have been worse if Frasier and Martin joined them.
"It'll be okay," Daphne whispered, her hand on his.
He didn't have the heart to reply. He just patted her hand with his free one, and studied the waiting room. Seeing mothers with their children made him want to scream. Just give me one, he thought. I want a child so badly.
"Mr. and Mrs. Crane?" the nurse asked. "This way, please."
Niles and Daphne followed the nurse into another small room. Daphne sat down while Niles stood, balancing himself on the balls of his feet.
"The doctor will be with you shortly."
Niles squeezed Daphne's hand, unable to say anything of comfort should this end badly. They had already taken their separate tests, and all that came was the results.
The doctor's face, much like Daphne's was when she got the false positive test, was unreadable. Of course, that made Niles feel even more apprehensive. With Daphne, it turned out to be good news. Hopefully it would be the same this time around.
Dr. Lee held a clipboard in his hands. As he approached the couple, he took off his glasses and said, "I'm afraid I don't have good news for you two."
And just like that Niles felt his heart sink like a boulder. "Don't have good news," the doctor said. Those words made his stomach churn, and he felt like he would vomit.
"What's wrong?" Daphne had the courage to speak. Her voice shook slightly, and Niles was ready to bolt for the nearest trashcan or toilet.
"Mr. Crane, you told me you went to the sperm bank and found out they had discarded your sample, yes?"
Niles nodded, not trusting himself to speak. He couldn't even look the doctor in the eye.
"Though, she was right in telling you it would be difficult for you to conceive, it appears it has gotten worse. Your sperm's motility has not improved, but have actually lessened."
"So?" Niles spoke, his voice cracking. "We… we can't…?"
Dr. Lee looked sympathetic. Niles tried to be grateful that the doctor cared and felt sorry for them, but he couldn't. He was angry. But not angry at the doctor or Daphne. He was angry at himself. He knew he didn't have any control over this, but he was angry all the same.
"I'm sorry."
Niles nodded. "Yeah. No, thank you, Dr. Lee… Daphne, why don't we…? Daphne?"
She was crying. Niles could tell she was trying hard not to, but the tears were just dripping out of her eyes. She tried to wipe them free, but more kept coming.
"Daphne, I am so sorry. Please, don't…" He stopped. She had every right to cry. Her husband couldn't give her a child. "Let's go home, okay?"
Daphne nodded and got out of the chair. "Thank you, Dr. Lee."
Once they were home, Niles embraced his wife tightly. "Daphne, I am so sorry," he said again. He rubbed her back comfortingly.
"It's not your fault."
"It has to be. What other reason could there be?"
"Niles!" she snapped, pulling away from him. Her lips were thin lines. "Stop blaming yourself."
"Daphne, you heard Dr. Lee. He said nothing about your tests. Only mine. Because mine were the ones that caused this whole mess!"
Daphne didn't say anything. Her lips became thin lines again, and she turned away from Niles. As she walked away, he reached out for her, but she tore her wrist from his grasp.
He didn't want things to be like this. Both of them received crushing news, and the way to deal with that was to be there for each other. But, Daphne was walking away, and Niles was left standing with his hand falling limply to his side.
"Daphne!" he called. "Please, I'm sorry."
She stopped at the foot of the stairs, not turning around. He was reminded of the day he told her that Mel demanded that he not see Daphne in public. "Please, Niles, this is horrible news. Don't make things worse." Daphne turned around, and offered him a slight smile. "We'll get through it, okay? You and me… just like we got through Mel and Donny, my mother moving in, your heart surgery. We're stronger than you give us credit for."
Niles's body seemed to move of its own accord, and soon he had Daphne in his arms again. "Yes. Together, that's all I need."
"I'm so sorry, you two," Martin said when they came over a few days later. They had wanted some time to themselves, to cope with the news in their own way before telling anyone else. "You just can't help these things." He shrugged, but Niles knew he was disappointed that he would not have another grandchild.
"Yeah," Niles replied. "Oh, well, I suppose." He squeezed Daphne's hand. "At least I have her, right?"
Martin smiled. "That's right."
Frasier opened the door and came in. He slammed his keys into the key bowl and angrily shut the door. His face was red with anger.
"What's wrong with you?" Martin asked.
"Do you really want to know?" Frasier snapped.
"Not really."
Frasier ignored that. "I'll tell you! I just spent half an hour with a man on my show, trying to tell him that dogs cannot fly. He said he claims to see his poodle flying through the house like a helicopter. I tried telling him calmly to perhaps see a doctor so he could get a proper diagnosis. But, no. What did he do? He argued with me that nothing was wrong with him, that perhaps the one that needs to get a diagnosis is his poodle. 'Flying around the house,' he says, 'is not proper dog behavior. So, Cuddles should get some help.' And I look over, and I see Roz laughing at me." He groaned. "She did it on purpose, I'm sure of it."
"So, a man who sees flying dogs is the reason you are in such a foul mood?" Niles asked, though he instantly regretted it when Frasier barked, "No!"
"There's much more to it than that, Niles. Traffic, everywhere. People stopping in the middle of the road for no reason. People honking at me for no reason. I almost got into two accidents today because of reckless drivers!"
"Are you sure it wasn't your fault?" Martin asked.
"I am! This town, I swear… People can't drive or like to pretend they can't, and people can't see when they are wrong…!"
"Frasier, if you're done complaining about Seattle and its inhabitants," Niles spoke up. "Daphne and I need to tell you something."
"Flying dogs, my ass…" Frasier continued.
"Frasier…"
"It's a stop sign for a reason," he continued to grumble, as if he never heard Niles. "It means stop, so you don't ram straight into traffic. That Volvo was so lucky I didn't smash into them!"
"Frasier!" Martin barked. "Will you stop for two minutes so Daphne and Niles could talk to you?"
Frasier stopped his rambling and looked at the couple. "Oh, I'm sorry. So, what do you need to say?"
Niles and Daphne exchanged glances at one another until Niles said, "We went to the doctor's today, and we can't have children."
Frasier's expression softened. Suddenly, all the stuff he had been through that day seem unimportant compared to what his brother and sister-in-law were going through. "Oh, Niles, Daphne, I'm so sorry." He went over to hug them. "What horrible news. Are you alright?"
Daphne nodded. "More or less. It's hard, you know, but we're dealing with it. We'll be fine."
"Yeah," Niles agreed. "We also wanted to thank you and Dad for supporting us this entire journey, even if it didn't turn out the way we wanted."
Frasier patted Niles's back. "No thanks necessary. And the support doesn't end there, Niles. We'll always be there for you and Daphne, especially during this time."
Martin smiled and nodded to show that this was true. Eddie plopped onto his lap and barked and wagged his tail, telling them that he would be there for them as well.
"We really appreciate it," Niles said with a smile.
"How about some dinner? I know you and I aren't keen on pizza, Niles, but let's order a few and just stay in. I'll call Roz."