A/N: I know this is like my third update in the past 24 hours and I feel like I'm on a roll. That might be the insomnia talking. However, thank you for all the wonderful comments and reviews. As usual, it really does mean a lot to me and keeps me motivated. I'm pretty sure if I didn't have you guys, this would have been abandoned long before now, and as a reader I hate to get really invested and then for it not to have been updated since 2010.
A few little tidbits and teasers: You will be seeing more of Finn. I fell in love with his character and have been trying to find the right time to fit him in, and here it is. Logan's conversation with him plays a huge roll from here on out, even with Logan still being alive. A part of me wants to apologize for you all thinking the next update is going to be 'the one.' I like keeping you on your toes. Thanks to Droolia, roganjalex, jordana60, and eschoenh for your constant reviews. I look forward to reading them. And thank you to the wonderful Estelle for her essays in the review sections. I really appreciate all of you who read this and who comment. Again, it really does mean a lot to me. Now, enough of my rambling. Here's the next chapter!
She made an appointment for the next week. They sat in the waiting room, surrounded by extremely pregnant women with their significant others and children. And here they were sitting, and her mind was focused on Logan. All these other couples seemed to be happy, and she wanted to be happy too, but she was losing Logan. She hadn't let herself think it for the past week, but now that's all she could think.
"You okay, Ace?" he whispered in her ear. She didn't answer, hand resting on her stomach and the other entwined with one of his. She just closed her eyes, trying to will the thoughts away, trying to escape the happiness in the room. It was nauseating, partly from the morning sickness. If she didn't know she was pregnant before, then she sure did now. She didn't understand why they called it morning sickness when she was getting sick at all hours of the day. Morning, during class, after class, on her way to class, in the newsroom, at dinner, after dinner, when they were watching the news, the middle of the night, her list could go on and on.
"Lorelai Gilmore," the nurse called out from the doorway. Logan stood, helping her up. She smiled at him, knowing he just wanted her to be feeling better. She remembered after about the fourth day of morning sickness when he didn't know what to do and called her mom. He didn't know she'd overheard him, but she did. 'Is this what she went through with me? I swear, Lorelai, it seems like she's gonna die with how often she's getting sick.' It broke her heart that he thought of it that way, but she also knew it was partly true.
The nurse led her to one of the exam rooms and then checked her weight and vitals. The woman's brow furrowed, but she didn't say anything. "Go ahead and have a seat, the doctor will be in shortly." She did as the woman asked, sitting on the exam table. Logan stayed standing next to her, holding her hand.
"I love you," she told him with a small smile. He kissed the top of her head.
"I love you too," he replied. "You didn't answer my question earlier. Are you okay?" She shrugged. She knew what she wanted to say, but it sounded so stupid.
"You'll think I'm stupid," she muttered, but she knew he could understand her. He looked at her quizzically. "Just sitting out there with all these ladies and their significant others being happy, and out of habit, my mind thinks 'That's going to be us in six months,' and then I realize there might not be a six months and it makes me just not wanna be around them because they know for sure they're fiance or boyfriend or husband or whoever is going to be there for them, and I just…" She felt the tears rolling down her cheeks. He pulled her up and sat in one of the chairs, pulling her onto his lap. Her head rested in the crook of his neck as his arms wrapped around her.
"It's not stupid," he told her softly, kissing the top of her head. "How about this. Instead of thinking six months ahead, let's think next month. I'm not going to leave you in a month. So, we think about April. We have April Fools day…." He thought for a minute, trying to think of other things that would come in April. "We have Luke's birthday. We have probably a couple of doctors appointments for both of us, and you know I'm going to be here with you for each of those next month. We have our engagement party…" As he continued to make a list of the small things they'd do in the next month, she felt herself calm down. She closed her eyes, breathing him in. He kept talking, and she knew the topic had changed, but she didn't know what it was. It wasn't important, she knew that much. If it was, he'd have made sure he had her attention.
The door opened, revealing a woman in her forties. She was about the same height as Rory, a little bit heavier with her black hair cut in a bob-style. "I'm Doctor Andrews. And you must be the new parents," she said with a smile. Rory lifted her head from Logan's shoulder, looking at the woman with a small smile. "If you could just move up to the exam table," she told Rory. She obliged and Logan moved his chair next to the table, still holding her hand. "So, a few questions to start off with. When was your last menstrual cycle?"
Rory thought about it, trying to actually remember. Despite planning and tracking almost every aspect of her life, she wasn't one to track her periods. "I think it ended like the third or fourth of February," she finally said as Andrews wrote it down.
"And you think you're pregnant. How many tests did you take?"
"Three. My mom told me which ones to buy because I had no idea." Logan smiled, squeezing her hand.
"Is there any chance you have an STD?" Had she asked this when she and Logan first got together, she would have said it was a possibility. But she had complete faith in him, and she knew she hadn't cheated.
"No. I've been with Logan for going on three years, and we've been exclusive for most of that time." Logan nodded, not disputing.
"Are you having any problems right now health wise, related or unrelated to the possible pregnancy?"
"Don't get me started on the morning sickness. It's all day every day sickness at this point. I can keep some things down, but other things just come right back up," she admitted. She'd been able to keep fruits and vegetables down - oh the irony - but almost everything else was a no-go.
"Okay," she hesitated a moment as she took some more notes. "Go ahead and lay back for me and lift your shirt up to the bottom of your bra." She did as she was told and Andrews moved the ultrasound machine on the side Logan wasn't sitting on. "This is going to be cold." The doctor squirted the gel onto her stomach, and she tensed for a moment. It was kind of like how it was in the movies where the doctor said it was going to be cold and the patient never believed it and then froze to death. She put the wand on her stomach, moving it around.
She couldn't make out anything, so she glanced over at Logan who was entranced by the screen. "So, you're not going to see much. I'd say you're about five weeks along." Rory turned her head back towards the screen. "We can't make out much except two things. This is your baby," she said, pointing to a blob. "And this," she turned the sound on, "is Baby Gilmore's heartbeat."
The sound that filled the room brought tears to her eyes. It was real now. They're baby was real as she heard the strong thuds of its heart. Logan squeezed her hand as she squeezed her eyes shut, trying not to sob. When she felt strong enough, she looked over at Logan. He had a smile on his face, and she could see tears streaming down his face.
"Your due date is an estimate, but I'd say December sixth or so." It seemed like so far away, so she thought back to what Logan had said, think about it a month at a time. She printed the ultrasound pictures, handing them to Logan. As she cleaned off Rory's stomach, she spoke. "I'll send in your prescription for your prenatal vitamins to the pharmacy of your choosing. Stick to the foods that you can keep down, throw in some toast, rice, and yogurt. Drink lots of water, Lorelai." Rory pulled her shirt down and sat up. "Do you have any questions?"
"Not questions," Rory then said. "I do have a couple requests though." Andrews looked like she was listening intently. "To begin, can you guys call me Rory. I don't go by my full name." Andrews took note. "And it's not Baby Gilmore," she then said. Andrews looked slightly confused. "We're engaged, and it would make more sense to call it what it really is, Baby Huntzberger."
"Okay," she said, taking final note. "I have that all written down. Your next appointment will be set up for April sixteenth. Is that alright?" Rory nodded. "I'll see you then. And congratulations on both the engagement and the baby." When the doctor left the room, Rory looked at Logan who still had tears on his face. She reached her hand up, wiping away his tears before cupping his face.
"That was our baby," he said softly.
"Yeah, it was." It was all so much more real now. They saw and heard their baby, they had a due date, they had an appointment the next month. It was so real. "I don't want to tell anybody else. I know we've gotten out of Friday dinners for now, but I just want to wait a little longer." He nodded, kissing her softly.
"I love you, Ace," he told her as he helped her up. When they walked out of the exam room to the waiting room, she looked around. Logan was going to be there with her next month, and they had pictures of their baby. That's what mattered.