The next couple of days had gone by slowly. Gabriella would basically sleep the majority of the day or would spend time with Natalie. She would try to make Natalie feel better about the situation but she knew that nothing would make it better. One day, Gabriella had had enough. She got out of bed and walked quietly downstairs. Natalie saw her mother and smiled.
"Daddy, mommy is here" Natalie said.
Troy turned around and looked at his wife.
"Brie, you need to be in bed" Troy said.
"I'm tired of being upstairs Troy" Gabriella said.
"Babe, I know you are tired of it. But you are keeping the baby safe by doing it" Troy said.
Gabriella sighed.
"Come on, you need to go back to bed" Troy said.
"I just want to give Natalie a hug and a kiss first" Gabriella said.
Natalie ran into her mother's arms. Gabriella kissed her daughter's head softly.
"I love you" Gabriella said.
"I love you too mommy" Natalie said.
"Alright, you need to go back upstairs" Troy said.
"Okay" Gabriella said.
Troy and Gabriella walked upstairs. Gabriella got into bed and looked at a frustrated Troy.
"Are you mad?" Gabriella asked.
Troy sighed.
"I'm not mad. I'm just frustrated that's all. You need to stay in bed. I know you hate it, but it's the best for the baby" Troy said.
"I'm sorry" Gabriella said.
Troy's face softened.
"Sweetheart, I want you to be able to be downstairs with us. Trust me, I do. I just don't want anything to happen to you or the baby" Troy said.
Gabriella nodded. Troy kissed Gabriella's forehead softly.
"I love you" Troy said.
"I love you too" Gabriella said.
"Stay in bed please" Troy said.
"I will" Gabriella said.
Troy left the room. Gabriella slumped down against the pillows and put her hand on her bump. A couple hours later, Natalie came into the bedroom and looked at her mother.
"Mommy?" Natalie asked.
Gabriella turned and looked at her daughter and smiled.
"Hi baby" Gabriella said.
"Is daddy mad at you?" Natalie asked.
"Why would you think that Nat?" Gabriella asked.
"Because you got out of bed" Natalie said.
Gabriella smiled and motioned her to get onto the bed. Natalie crawled onto the bed and sat next to her mother.
"Daddy just wants the baby and I to be safe that's all. I wasn't supposed to get out of bed. He isn't mad sweetie" Gabriella said.
"He's not?" Natalie asked innocently.
"No baby, he's not. I promise" Gabriella said.
"Okay" Natalie said.
Gabriella looked up and saw Troy leaning against the door frame. Troy walked in and kissed Gabriella's cheek and sat on the bed.
"We were just talking about you" Gabriella said.
"I heard" Troy said.
"Nat thinks you are mad at me" Gabriella said.
Troy picked Natalie up and set her on his lap.
"Nat, I'm not mad at mommy" Troy said.
"You aren't?" Natalie asked.
"No honey. I just got a little upset that she came downstairs. She's supposed to be in bed and not walking around" Troy explained.
"Oh" Natalie said.
Gabriella looked at Troy. Troy looked at Gabriella and winked.
"Nat, why don't you go to your room and play okay? I will be there in a minute" Troy said.
"Okay daddy" Natalie said.
Troy set Natalie down and watched her walk out of the room. He then looked at Gabriella.
"She was concerned about you being mad at me" Gabriella said.
"I know, but we got everything resolved. How are you feeling?" Troy asked.
"Fine" Gabriella said as she put her hand on her bump.
"No headache?" Troy asked.
"No" Gabriella said.
"Good. Maybe she wants to give you a little break" Troy said as he put his hand on Gabriella's bump.
"Maybe" Gabriella said.
"I love you" Troy said.
"I love you too" Gabriella said.
Troy leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips softly. He pulled back when he heard Natalie calling him from her bedroom.
"I need to go see how Nat is doing. But I will be back in a little while. Yell if you need anything" Troy said.
"I will" Gabriella said.
Troy got up and walked out of the room and went into Natalie's room.
"Hey sweetie" Troy said.
Natalie looked up and smiled.
"Hi daddy" Natalie said.
"What are you doing?" Troy asked.
"Drawing" Natalie said.
"What are you drawing baby?" Troy asked.
"You, mommy, and me" Natalie said.
Troy smiled.
"Can I see it?" Troy asked.
Natalie handed the piece of paper to her father. Troy looked at the picture and smiled.
"It's beautiful Nat" Troy said.
Natalie smiled. Troy hugged his daughter and kissed her cheek.
"I am going to go show this to mommy" Troy said.
"Okay" Natalie said.
Troy took the picture and walked out of the room. He walked into the master bedroom and handed Gabriella the picture.
"What is this?" Gabriella asked.
"Our daughter drew a picture of our family" Troy said.
Gabriella looked at the picture and smiled.
"This is really cute" Gabriella said.
"I am going to put it on the refrigerator" Troy said.
Troy left the room and walked downstairs. He went into the kitchen and put the drawing on the refrigerator. He then walked upstairs and went into Natalie's room.
"Mommy loves your picture Nat" Troy said.
Natalie smiled brightly. The doorbell rang and Troy walked out of Natalie's room and went downstairs. He walked to the front door and opened it, revealing Taylor.
"Hi Troy" Taylor said.
"Hey Tay, what's going on?" Troy asked.
"Nothing much. I was in the neighborhood and thought I would stop by and see how everything was going. How is Gabi?" Taylor asked.
"She's doing okay. She's on bed rest" Troy said.
"Oh wow. Troy, I know that I haven't really been around and I am really sorry about that" Taylor said.
"It's not your fault. You have work and your own family. Gabi has hers" Troy said.
"Is she up for any visitors?" Taylor asked.
"I will go run upstairs and see. She may be sleeping" Troy said.
"Alright" Taylor said.
Troy walked upstairs and went into the master bedroom.
"Baby, Taylor is here. She wanted to come visit you. Is it okay for her to come up?" Troy asked.
Gabriella turned over in bed and looked at Troy and nodded.
"Okay. How are you feeling?" Troy asked.
"A little tired and my muscles ache" Gabriella said.
"I will give you a massage when Tay leaves okay? I will send her up here" Troy said.
"Okay" Gabriella said.
Troy left the bedroom and walked downstairs. He looked at Taylor and smiled.
"You can go up and see her" Troy said.
"Thanks Troy" Taylor said.
"No problem" Troy said.
Taylor walked upstairs and went into the master bedroom. Gabriella looked at Taylor and smiled.
"Hey" Gabriella said.
"Hey beautiful, how are you feeling?" Taylor asked.
"Tired and my muscles ache" Gabriella said as she put her hand on her bump.
Taylor smiled.
"How's the best rest going?" Taylor asked.
"Horrible. I hate being in bed all the time. I hate when Nat asks Troy why I can't come downstairs. I feel like a horrible mother" Gabriella confessed.
"Gabi, you are not a horrible mother. Nat just wants her mommy with her all the time. She's three, it's normal" Taylor said.
"I know, it just hurts sometimes" Gabriella said.
"It will be over soon and think about it this way, you are helping the baby by being on bed rest" Taylor said.
"Yeah, I know" Gabriella said.
"How's everything else going?" Taylor asked.
"Well I sleep, go to the bathroom, and occasionally snuggle with my daughter. Everything is fine" Gabriella said.
Taylor smiled.
"How's everything going with you?" Gabriella asked.
"Everything is fine. Chad called me a couple days ago and wanted to catch up" Taylor said.
"And did you?" Gabriella asked.
Taylor nodded.
"You miss him don't you?" Gabriella asked.
Taylor and Chad had dated for several years after high school but broke up a year ago because they didn't know where the relationship was going.
"I miss him sometimes" Taylor said.
Gabriella smiled.
"Why don't you go get coffee together? So you can catch up in person" Gabriella suggested.
"I don't know. I don't want to push anything on him" Taylor said.
"Tay, it's just coffee. I think you guys will be fine" Gabriella said.
"We will see what happens. I will call him and ask him" Taylor said.
Gabriella smiled.
"Good. Let me know what happens. I will get Troy to spy" Gabriella joked.
Taylor laughed.
"Chad would kill him" Taylor said.
Gabriella smiled. Taylor left a few minutes later. Troy walked upstairs and sat on the bed and looked at his wife.
"How was your talk?" Troy asked.
"Good. She wanted to know how everything was going with the baby and she also told me that she misses Chad" Gabriella said.
Troy smiled and started massaging Gabriella's stomach.
"She misses Chad and Chad misses her. They should just get back together" Troy said.
Gabriella shrugged.
"They broke up badly. I don't know what is going to happen" Gabriella said.
"Well that is not something that you should be worrying about right now" Troy said.
"I know but they are my best friends. I can't not think about what's going to happen" Gabriella said.
Troy smiled and stopped massaging Gabriella's stomach and took her hand in his.
"Even on bed rest, you are coming up with plans. You are supposed to be relaxing babe" Troy said.
"I'm not stressing myself out. The baby is happy as can be in here" Gabriella said putting her hand on her expanding bump.
"Let's keep it that way too. You have a doctor's appointment tomorrow" Troy said.
Gabriella sighed.
"I feel like doctor's appointments only get me upset" Gabriella said.
"Baby, we are going through a difficult pregnancy-" Troy started.
"I know that! Everyone needs to stop reminding me that it's difficult!" Gabriella yelled.
Troy heard footsteps behind him and turned around and saw Natalie standing at the door. His face softened.
"Nat, everything is okay. Go play honey" Troy said.
Natalie walked out of the room. Once she was out of earshot, Troy looked at Gabriella.
"I'm sorry for yelling at you" Gabriella said.
"Hey, it's okay Brie" Troy said taking her hand in his.
"I know that it's a difficult pregnancy. I just don't want to deal with this anymore" Gabriella cried.
"Oh baby" Troy said as he held Gabriella in his arms.
Troy rubbed Gabriella's back as she cried. He kissed her head softly.
"Baby, look at me" Troy said.
Gabriella looked at Troy. Troy wiped her tears away.
"Sweetheart, I know that you don't want to deal with this anymore. But you are doing amazing. I'm so proud of you. I know that it was hard to go on bed rest and let me do everything for you, but you are thinking about the baby and what is best for her" Troy said.
Gabriella sniffled. Troy looked at Gabriella and kissed her head softly.
"I love you" Gabriella said.
"I love you too" Troy said.
"I hate mood swings" Gabriella said.
Troy laughed.
"They are just part of the pregnancy" Troy said.
"Yeah, but they suck" Gabriella said.
"They will go away soon. Are you okay now?" Troy asked.
Gabriella nodded. Troy kissed Gabriella's lips softly.
"I have to go console a very upset little girl. I will be right back" Troy said.
"Okay, tell her that I'm sorry if I scared her" Gabriella said.
"I will" Troy said.
Troy left the bedroom and walked down the hall to Natalie's room. He walked into the room and saw his daughter playing with her toys.
"Hi honey" Troy said.
"Hi daddy" Natalie said.
"Are you okay?" Troy asked.
Natalie nodded.
"Come here" Troy said.
Natalie walked over to Troy, who had sat down on her bed. Troy lifted Natalie into his arms and placed his daughter on his chest.
"Mommy is okay Nat. The baby makes her upset sometimes" Troy said.
"I don't like when mommy cries" Natalie said.
"I know you don't sweetie. I don't like it either. But when the baby comes, she will stop" Troy said as he pushed her hair out of her face.
Natalie nodded. Troy kissed Natalie's head softly.
"I love you" Troy said.
"I love you too daddy" Natalie said.
"Do you want to help me make dinner? Mommy will be so happy that you helped me" Troy said.
Natalie nodded.
"Alright, let's go downstairs" Troy said.
Troy picked Natalie up and they went downstairs to the kitchen. He put Natalie down and went to the refrigerator and looked inside. Troy pulled out some ingredients and set them on the counter. He was going to make bean burritos for Gabriella, since she is fluent in Spanish and from Mexico. Troy put the beans in a pot on the stove and waited for them to cook. After they finished cooking, Troy brought the pot and poured a little of the beans into the flat tortilla.
"Alright, Nat put some of the cheese and vegetables on top of the beans for me" Troy said.
Natalie did as she was told. Troy then wrapped the burritos and placed them on three plates.
"Can you go give this to mommy?" Troy asked.
"Yeah" Natalie said.
Troy gave Natalie the plate. Natalie walked upstairs and went into the master bedroom. Gabriella looked at her daughter and smiled.
"Did you make that for me?" Gabriella asked as she took the plate out of Natalie's hands.
"Yeah" Natalie said.
Gabriella leaned over and kissed Natalie's cheek.
"Thank you baby" Gabriella said.
Natalie walked out of the room and went downstairs. Troy looked at his daughter and smiled.
"Did you give mommy the plate?" Troy asked.
"Yeah" Natalie said.
Troy and Natalie sat down and ate their dinner. After they finished, Troy gave Natalie a bath and put her in bed. He sat on the edge of her bed and kissed her head.
"I love you baby. Get some sleep" Troy said.
"I love you too daddy" Natalie said.
Troy walked out of Natalie's bedroom and went into the master bedroom and saw Gabriella looking at her bare stomach.
"What are you doing?" Troy asked.
Gabriella looked up at Troy and smiled.
"Looking at my stomach" Gabriella said.
"I can see that, but why?" Troy asked.
"I'm just thinking" Gabriella asked.
"About what?" Troy asked.
"The baby" Gabriella said.
"Oh" Troy said.
"Who you do you think she will look like?" Gabriella asked.
"I think she will look like you" Troy said.
"You don't think she will look like you?" Gabriella asked.
"I don't know" Troy said.
"I hope she has your eyes" Gabriella said.
Troy leaned over and kissed Gabriella's lips softly.
"I hope everything goes well tomorrow" Gabriella said.
"I hope so too babe. But, if it doesn't, we have to figure out a plan" Troy said.
Gabriella nodded and snuggled into her husband's chest.
"Four more months until this is all over" Gabriella said.
Troy smiled.
"Yeah, but then we have to figure out how to help her" Troy said.
"Yeah" Gabriella said.
"Get some sleep, Brie. You and the baby need it" Troy said.
The couple fell asleep. The next morning, Troy woke up and smiled when he saw Gabriella still sleeping. He kissed her head softly and got out of bed. Troy got dressed and walked down the hall to Natalie's room and saw her getting out of bed.
"Good morning, Nat. We are going to see the baby today" Troy said.
Natalie smiled. Troy got Natalie dressed and ready to go. He then walked to the master bedroom.
"Alright, we need to go soon" Troy said.
"Okay" Gabriella said getting out of bed.
Gabriella got dressed and walked downstairs. Natalie ran into her mother's arms.
"Hi baby" Gabriella said as she kissed Natalie's cheek.
"Hi" Natalie said.
"Are you ready to go?" Troy asked.
"Yeah, let's get this over with" Gabriella said.
The little family left the house. Troy drove to Dr. Green's office and parked his car. He got out of the car and walked to Gabriella's side and helped her and Nat get out of the car. The Boltons walked into the office. Gabriella signed herself in and sat next to Natalie. A couple minutes later, a young woman with light brown hair came into the waiting room with a file.
"Gabriella Bolton?" the nurse called.
The Boltons stood up and followed the nurse into a room where Gabriella's vitals were taken. They were then escorted into an exam room.
"Gabriella, please change into this gown and Dr. Green will be in shortly" the nurse said.
"Thank you" Gabriella said.
"I am going to take Nat to the hallway. Open the door when you are done" Troy said.
"Alright" Gabriella said.
Troy and Natalie walked out of the exam room. Gabriella changed into the gown quickly and opened the door. Troy and Natalie came back into the room and sat down next to the bed.
"Are you excited to see the baby today Brie?" Troy asked.
"Yeah, but I'm nervous" Gabriella said.
"Everything will be okay babe. Let's just keep an open mind and if there is something wrong, then we need to fix it" Troy said.
Gabriella nodded. A couple minutes later, there was a knock on the door. Dr. Green came into the room and smiled.
"Hi guys, how's it going?" Dr. Green asked.
"Fine" Gabriella said.
"How are you feeling?" Dr. Green asked looking at Gabriella.
"Okay" Gabriella said.
"Have you been staying in bed?" Dr. Green asked.
"Yeah" Gabriella said.
"Good, let's take a look and how the baby is doing today" Dr. Green said.
Troy helped Gabriella lie down on the bed. He took Gabriella's hand in his. Dr. Green put a blanket over Gabriella's lower body and raised her gown above her bump. She then turned on the ultrasound and waited for it to heat up. Once it heated, Dr. Green took a bottle of gel and squeezed some of the product onto Gabriella's bump. She then took a wand and moved the gel around Gabriella's stomach and looked at the monitor.
"There's your baby" Dr. Green said.
Gabriella and Troy looked at the monitor and smiled.
"How does she look today Dr. Green?" Troy asked.
Dr. Green moved the wand around and looked at the screen. She then looked at Troy.
"She looks fine. Her head has fluid in it, so that is why the head looks that way" Dr. Green said pointing to the baby's head.
"Is she in the right position?" Gabriella asked.
"Right now she is. But, if her head keeps swelling, we will have to deliver early" Dr. Green said.
"But wouldn't that be dangerous?" Troy asked.
"It's more dangerous if we leave her inside because her head is swelling and I know you don't want to have a c-section" Dr. Green said.
"So then what are we going to do?" Gabriella asked.
"Well, you are five months along correct?" Dr. Green asked.
"Yeah" Gabriella said.
"I think that the baby should come out no later than eight months" Dr. Green said.
"Will a month make a difference?" Gabriella asked.
"She will be fully developed by then. It will be safe, I promise" Dr. Green said.
"So you are going to induce her?" Troy asked.
"As of right now, that is the plan" Dr. Green said.
Troy and Gabriella nodded.
"Okay" Troy said looking at Gabriella.
"Are you okay with that Gabriella?" Dr. Green asked.
"I just want the best for my baby. If inducing her and having her early is what's best, then we should do it" Gabriella said.
Troy nodded.
"Alright. Let me examine you and then you can leave" Dr. Green said.
Gabriella spread her legs apart and took a deep breath. Troy kissed Gabriella's head softly.
"I love you sweetheart" Troy said.
Gabriella looked at Troy with tears in her eyes.
"I love you too" Gabriella said.
Dr. Green examined Gabriella and looked at the couple.
"Everything looks fine Gabriella. I want you to remain on bed rest" Dr. Green said.
Gabriella nodded.
"Alright, I will see you guys soon" Dr. Green said.
Dr. Green left the room. Gabriella and Troy looked at each other and realized that they were never going to be able to solve this problem.