Chapter 4: Beautiful Surprises
"So, what are we doing?" Jake asked as Addison led him through the mall. She was clearly looking for something, but hadn't told him what yet.
"Looking for something for Amelia," Addison informed him.
"She hasn't been feeling all that great lately, and she's going through a breakup, so I want to get her something nice," Addison added, explaining.
"So, what are you looking for exactly?" Jake asked as they looked through the bathroom decor.
"I just thought I'd replace a few things and re-decorate her space a little. She says she doesn't need to because the stuff I have is fine, but that was before when it was just an empty guest room. I just want to personalize it a little for her," Addison explained, browsing for things she thought Amelia would like.
"Well, what does she like?" Jake asked, joining in her search, figuring he might as well attempt to help.
"Nothing pink. Anything with unicorns and something quirky," Addison explained.
"So, something like this?" Jake joked, holding up a dinosaur soap dispenser.
"Something like that," Addison agreed with a laugh.
The two continued shopping until they found enough stuff for Amelia's bedroom and bathroom makeover.
After eating lunch at one of Addison's favorite restaurants, they headed back to the house so Addison could get to work. She knew Amelia wouldn't be home until late tonight. If she even came home. Addison wasn't sure what she was up to, and she didn't ask. Amelia was an adult. All Addison asked was that she didn't bring her dates home to stay overnight when Olivia was around. She didn't want to risk her six-year-old seeing something she shouldn't or asking questions they didn't know how to answer. So far, Amelia hadn't gotten into any trouble there and knew to keep her dates away from the house until those relationships got more serious. If it ever got that far.
Addison immediately put the new bedding in the wash before taking the bags upstairs, motioning for Jake to follow her. After opening Amelia's bedroom door, Addison held back a laugh. Milo was lying on the bed in the direct sunlight, clearly basking in the afternoon sun. Amelia and Milo didn't really get along, so finding him here was odd, but she supposed it was what happened when they weren't home.
"Well, I was going to strip the bed, but I guess Milo can have it for a little longer," Addison mused out loud, causing Jake to laugh.
"We can't move him now, can we?" Jake agreed, moving to give the cat a head scratch, which was welcomed by the cat, judging by the purr that started filling the room.
Addison hummed in agreement, moving to take down various things to replace them with the stuff she bought.
"Are you sure Amelia won't mind us changing things in her bedroom?" Jake asked curiously, taking a look around. He noted how plain it looked, a vast difference from what he'd imagined Amelia's bedroom would look like.
"She might complain at first, but she'll like it. She doesn't really mind. Sometimes, Liv moves in here for a bit. If you take a look around, I'm sure you'll find some of her toys. Well, hers and Milo's," Addison said. Jake scanned the room before finding two baskets, one with Olivia's clothes and one with a few of Milo's toys.
"Maybe you can start in the bathroom," Addison suggested, hoping they could get this all done before Amelia came home.
"It's just through there," Addison pointed. Jake hesitated. He didn't want to enter the bathroom and find something he wasn't prepared to see.
"It's fine, it's clean. The only thing she leaves out sometimes is some makeup, but she usually cleans it up before Lydia comes in," Addison informed him, seeing him hesitate.
"Okay," Jake agreed, trusting his girlfriend.
He scooped up the bags he needed before heading into the bathroom to see what to change. He moved around, changing the shower curtain and putting up the wall decals Addison bought. Then he laid the new bath mat down and finally turned around to add trinkets around the sink.
He laughed earlier when Addison bought the soap dispenser. It was a silly little thing he thought was for Olivia at first, but Addison corrected him. Pulling the items out and putting them on the counter, Jake noticed what he thought was a lipstick container that Amelia had left on the counter. As he arranged the new trinkets on the counter, he accidentally knocked what he thought was the lipstick container over onto the floor. He bent down and picked it up, his eyes widening when he realized what he was holding.
"Addison?" Jake called over his shoulder.
"I think you should look at this," Jake added. He thought about just putting it back and ignoring it, but he couldn't.
"What is it?" Addison asked, coming into the bathroom, her eyes landing on the item in Jake's hands.
"I'm assuming this isn't yours," Jake said when Addison stared at the stick in his hand without speaking.
"You would be correct," Addison replied, swallowing hard before carefully grabbing it out of Jake's hand. It wasn't hard to see the plus sign on the test, but she couldn't freak out. Not now.
"Did you know she was…?" Jake started to ask as Addison threw it in the trash.
"Did I know Amelia was pregnant? No," Addison replied before turning on the sink to wash her hands. And Jake promptly joined after putting the bag of stuff down.
"What's on your mind?" Jake asked after a few minutes, referring to Amelia.
"Do you want to call her?" Jake asked carefully.
"No," Addison shook her head.
"That would be a terrible idea. She'd run or just pretend she didn't hear me. She'll completely shut down and it could jeopardize her entire health. Besides, it may not even be hers. Her friend Michelle was here the other day. It could easily be hers," Addison added.
She knew it probably wasn't Michelle's because of her declining health, but she told Jake it could be anyway to try to calm her nerves or to try to respect Amelia's privacy. Even if it was Michelle's, Addison thought it would've been a terrible idea for a hundred different reasons, and she knew Michelle would think the same.
"Do you think it's Michelle's?" Jake asked cautiously.
"No," Addison sighed.
"She doesn't want kids and does everything she can to prevent it. And I support her," Addison explained, knowing Michelle wouldn't dare bring a child into this world with her health problems.
"Okay," Jake said slowly.
"Any idea why Amelia wouldn't tell you?" Jake asked. He was under the impression that the two told each other everything.
"Trauma response," Addison sighed, not giving up any more information. Jake hesitated to say something in return.
"Don't ask," Addison added, noticing him struggling to figure out what to say. Jake nodded.
"Is there anything you need from me? We could talk, or not talk. Or a hug or something…Maybe more than a hug?" Jake asked, his tone started out serious and quickly turned playful as he moved closer. Addison smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Well, we still have to finish decorating. And Amelia's great, but I doubt she'd be okay with doing that in her bathroom," Addison laughed.
"But maybe I can convince Amelia to take Olivia out tonight for dinner and a movie or something, if you're interested," Addison teased. Jake smiled and pulled her in for a kiss before they untangled from each other and went back to decorating.
"Is that a promise?" Jake asked suddenly.
"Is what a promise?" Addison asked with a laugh, picking up Milo so she could strip the bed.
"No kids, and we'll have the house to ourselves?" Jake asked playfully.
"I think so. I have to check, but it should be fine," Addison giggled.
"Are you sure we can't just skip to later now?" Jake asked teasingly.
"No," Addison laughed.
"But if you're patient, I'm sure the reward will be well worth it," Addison said, walking over to kiss him.
While the couple was busy redecorating, Amelia stepped out to head toward a deli a few blocks away from the hospital. She felt like grabbing something different for a snack since she'd been getting too much from the vending machines lately. After finishing up her surgery, she had some free time, so she thought a walk would be good.
Stepping into the deli, Amelia scanned the counter, trying to decide what she wanted. She tried focusing on the food in the display but found herself unfocused, feeling her cramps ramp up.
"Ma'am, are you okay?" the barista behind the counter asked, seeing her so unfocused.
"Huh?" Amelia looked up.
"Oh yeah. I'm fine, thanks. Can I just grab that sandwich there, please?" Amelia asked, pointing to a random sandwich, no longer caring what it was.
"Sure…," the barista said slowly as she grabbed the sandwich, not taking her eyes off Amelia until she got to the sandwich she had pointed out.
"Did you want something?" Amelia asked, annoyed at the woman staring while wincing and holding onto her stomach cramp.
"No, I…sorry. Are you sure you're okay?" the barista asked.
"Yeah. It's just a cramp," Amelia said.
"Do you need a tampon?" The barista asked softly, making sure no one else could hear her.
"What? No. I'm fine," Amelia insisted. She wasn't even on her period, it's been months since her last one, and she hated that she knew why.
"Are you sure? My best friend's appendix burst last month, and we had to rush her to the hospital. Maybe your appendix burst," The barista suggested.
"It did not burst," Amelia said.
"How do you know? It's supposed to be on the right side, right? And you're clutching onto your right side," the barista pointed out, putting the sandwich in a paper bag with the tongs she'd been holding.
"I know because I'm a doctor. Now, can I just have my damn sandwich?" Amelia asked, irritated and still wincing in pain.
"Fine. 13.78," the barista said.
Amelia reached for her purse that hung over her shoulder and immediately knew it was the wrong move to make. Her cramp only felt stronger, and she winced harder and grabbed onto the counter for support.
"Okay, that's it. I'm calling an ambulance," The barista said, turning and grabbing the phone.
"Stop! I'm fine!" Amelia insisted. But the barista had already dialed the number and had the phone up to her ear.
The barista explained to the operator on the phone that her customer was having stomach cramps that she was worried about and started asking progressively invasive questions about what she ate that day and her last bowel movement. If the woman wasn't so panicked, she probably would've hesitated more before asking each question. Less than ten minutes later, they heard the sirens getting louder before the EMTs walked in.
"I'm fine," Amelia insisted to the EMT checking her out.
"Alright. But I'm still gonna check you out and we're still gonna take you to the hospital to get some tests done," The EMT said gently.
"Of course you are," Amelia muttered, wincing when the EMT put pressure on a certain spot on her stomach.
"What hospital are you taking me to?" Amelia asked.
"Providence St. Jude's. It's a few blocks away," The EMT replied.
"No way. Take me to St. Ambrose. It's barely three blocks away; I work there," Amelia groaned.
"Are you sure, ma'am?" the EMT asked.
"God yes. Take me there if you insist on taking me in," Amelia said.
"Alright, let's go," the EMT agreed easily.
Pete stepped outside to greet the ambulance, shocked to see it was Amelia getting unloaded. He could tell instantly that she was in a sour mood.
"Pete!" Amelia called upon seeing him.
"Tell them I'm fine. It's just a cramp. Geez, take it easy," Amelia groaned, feeling the bump of them unloading the stretcher. She swore she didn't need to be here.
"That doesn't sound fine to me," Pete replied.
"Put her in trauma one," Pete told the paramedics.
After they left, Pete closed the curtain.
"They said you're having severe stomach pains, and that the barista was worried you were about to pass out. That doesn't sound like nothing, Amelia," Pete said.
"I get cramps sometimes. I think I'm close to getting my period," Amelia tried.
"So bad that you're about to pass out?" Pete asked.
"Well, no," Amelia said weakly.
"Okay then, let me do my job, and then you can probably get out of here soon," Pete said, moving to get set up.
Amelia had to bite her lip when Pete pressed down on a tender spot.
"Yeah, it's nothing," Pete said sarcastically after seeing her reaction.
"Aren't you supposed to have good bedside manners?" Amelia replied sarcastically.
"Yes, but only when patients aren't trying to hide things," Pete said.
"I can send you for a CT scan, or I can do an ultrasound. Pick your poison," Pete gave her her options.
"Fine. Ultrasound. It'll be faster. Then I can get back to work," Amelia chose.
"Or you'll be admitted as a patient and I'll have to call someone to speak for you because you're a pain in the butt," Pete replied.
"Whatever. Just get it over with," Amelia said, rolling up her shirt.
"This will be cold," Pete warned her before squirting the gel on Amelia's bare stomach.
Pete rubbed the wand on the gel and, after a few minutes, a picture showed on the sonogram. And they could both clearly see there was a small fetus on the screen.
"Do you need me to say it?" Pete asked. They were doctors, and she lived with an OB; he knew that she knew what the ultrasound meant.
"No," Amelia answered, looking up at the ceiling to try to stop herself from crying.
"It's gonna be okay, Amelia," Pete said reassuringly.
"You don't know that," Amelia said, trying to keep her voice stable.
"You're right; I don't. But I know that whatever happens, you're gonna figure it out. You always do," Pete replied honestly. When it came to patients, honesty was always the best policy in Pete's mind. And with Amelia, he knew better than to try to sugarcoat it.
"Do you want me to call for the OB on call, or go straight to Addison?" Pete asked.
"Addison. I don't trust people not to blab," Amelia sighed, her eyes never leaving the ceiling.
"Are you good here, or do you want your own private room?" Pete asked.
"Get me a room. Somewhere no one can find me," Amelia replied.
"Do you want me to stay with you?" Pete asked. He didn't normally do this, but he had a soft spot for the younger woman, and she was clearly upset.
"No. But thanks," Amelia replied, giving him a small smile as a show of appreciation.
Pete smiled back and lingered for another few seconds before leaving to find Amelia a private room.
Once he found a room, he came back to move Amelia. He settles her in before calling Addison to let her know she had a patient.
Just as the couple settled down to watch some TV, Addison's phone beeped. After looking at it, she couldn't help but let out a little groan.
"Jake, I'm so sorry. I'm getting paged," Addison said apologetically.
"It's fine, you go. I'll clean up here," Jake said, gesturing to the mess they left about.
"I have to call Dell and see if he can pick Liv up from school," Addison reached for her phone.
"I can do it," Jake offered.
"Are you sure?" Addison asked, surprised.
"I have a spare booster seat in the garage you can use. It's Betsey's," Addison thought about it.
"It's not a problem. I'll get it," Jake said, getting up from his seat and offering Addison a hand up.
"Thank you," Addison said, walking toward the garage with Jake.
"Don't worry about it," Jake said easily.
"I think I can handle her for a little while. Anything I need to know?" Jake asked.
Addison thought for a moment.
"They mostly speak French at her school, but they'll still speak English. I have to call to put you on the list to pick her up. And you might have to show them your ID," Addison explained.
"So, no Spanish then," Jake joked.
"Unfortunately, no. Not that I know of," Addison laughed. She could only imagine Jake talking to one of the school staff members in Spanish purely to entertain her daughter. And she was sure Olivia would find it funny if he actually tried this stunt.
"There's food in the freezer that you can heat up for dinner and I will try to call around dinner time tonight. Just tell Liv I miss her and I'll see her as soon as I can," Addison added.
"Sir, yes, sir," Jake said playfully as he pulled her in for a kiss goodbye.
"Thank you. I owe you," Addison replied after pulling away from their kiss.
"I'll hold you to that!" Jake called out as she walked away, which made her laugh before she closed the door on her way out.
After arriving at St. Ambrose, she saw Pete waiting for her at the front door. Her initial page didn't include any details other than she was needed as an OB.
"Hey," Addison said as she walked closer to him. She was still in a good mood after leaving Jake at her place, and Pete smiled back at her.
"Well, you look happy," Pete commented.
"I would've been happier if I hadn't gotten called into the ER. What's going on, anyway?" Addison asked.
"It's Amelia. She's fine and has her own room, but…," Pete started.
"What room?" Addison immediately grew concerned.
"1312, but…," Pete started. Before he could say anything else, Addison walked away from him quickly, going towards Amelia's room. Once Addison got there, she found Amelia sitting up in her bed, eating a chocolate chip cookie.
"Hey, Addie," Amelia smiled before taking another bite of her cookie. Addison looked over at Pete, who was now standing beside her in a look of betrayal.
"I did say she was fine," Pete pointed out.
"Amelia, what the hell is going on?" Addison asked.
"Nothing, I'm fine. People freaked out. It's not a big deal," Amelia said, trying to brush it off. Addison looked at her, suspicious, before turning to Pete.
"She was having stomach cramps that were enough for the barista to call for an ambulance," Pete informed her.
"What kind of stomach cramps? Did you get an ultrasound? Or a CT scan?" Addison asked, worried.
"I got her an ultrasound. Do you want me to tell her the rest?" Pete asked, changing his focus from Addison to Amelia.
Addison looked between them, still suspicious. She knew they were still hiding something big from her; she just didn't know what. But she also knew Pete was just being a good doctor; he couldn't tell Addison anything Amelia didn't want her to know.
Something clicked in Addison's mind right then and there.
"Does this have to do with the thing I found in your bathroom earlier today?" Addison asked Amelia.
"What thing?" Amelia asked, avoiding answering the question.
"And why were you in my bathroom, anyway?" Amelia asked.
"I was…redecorating…but that's beside the point, Amelia," Addison said, trying to change the subject. She didn't want Amelia to refuse everything she'd gotten for her by telling her everything.
"Redecorating?" Amelia and Pete asked in unison. Addison very rarely decorated herself, let alone redecorated.
"I just wanted to make you feel more at home, that's all," Addison said.
"Am I gonna come home to a completely different bedroom?" Amelia asked, half-jokingly. Knowing Addison, she'd do it.
"No. It's just a few things but, again, not my point," Addison replied, trying to get them back to the topic at hand.
"Amelia?" Addison asked after Amelia didn't say anything. She looked over at Pete to try to get him to answer her.
"You know I can't tell you anything unless she says I can," Pete reminded her. They both looked back at Amelia again.
"Fine. I'm pregnant," Amelia said softly. Addison took a deep breath.
"And the cramping?" Addison asked, looking back at Pete.
"Her uterus expanding," Pete replied, knowing Addison knew what he'd likely say.
"Are you okay?" Addison asked after letting Pete leave, moving to sit beside Amelia.
"I'm fine. Just hungry. And I just ate! How am I already hungry?" Amelia asked, half-jokingly. She knew why.
"You have an extra belly in there to feed, that's why," Addison replied, laughing, knowing Amelia also knew the answer.
"Pregnancy cravings are unreal. Why do I want apples right now? I don't even really like apples," Amelia said. Addison chuckled.
"Well, at least it's healthier than your weird spray cheese thing," Addison commented.
"Ooh, that too. Apples and cheese go together, right?" Amelia asked. Addison laughed, shaking her head as she climbed into bed beside Amelia. Sure, apples and cheese could go together on a charcuterie board, but not spray cheese, Addison thought.
Amelia sighed, resting her head on Addison's shoulder.
"Can I get out of here? I swear I was fine," Amelia asked.
"Fine. I'll find Pete," Addison said, moving some hair out of Amelia's face before getting out of bed and leaving the room.
Amelia straightened up, waiting for her release. She still felt bad, but she wanted to go home. She hated being the center of gossip and people would find out if she was here any longer.
Addison and Pete came back a few minutes later with a stack of papers.
"Sign for your freedom," Pete commented sarcastically, leaving the stack.
"Just take it easy for the next few days, alright? You're not invincible," Addison said.
"There, done! Am I free?" Amelia asked, a little too giddy.
Pete and Addison shared a look.
"Yes. Go home," Pete said.
After getting home, Amelia immediately spotted the TV screen showing the basketball game and looked down to see Jake turning around from sitting on the couch.
"Oh, don't tell me I interrupted you guys when you were…," Amelia started to ask, gesturing somewhat inappropriately. Addison glared at her.
"Why didn't you tell me? I could've called Michelle. She would've come to my rescue," Amelia added.
"Amelia!" Addison scolded. It didn't exactly come across as very sternly as she wanted. The entire thing caused Jake to laugh quietly.
"Michelle can't even drive!" Addison added, well aware of the young woman's medical issues.
"Sorry about that, Jake. Didn't mean to cock-block you," Amelia joked. Addison glared again, but it didn't dissuade her from doing any differently.
"Jake, where's Olivia?" Addison asked, silently hoping she did not overhear that.
"She's upstairs playing with Milo," Jake chuckled.
"Okay, well Amelia, get your butt up to bed and I'll bring you up a snack," Addison ordered.
"I don't want to see you down here for the rest of the night, got it?" Addison added.
"Yes, Mom," Amelia replied dramatically with a laugh, earning a playful swat on her shoulder before she headed upstairs to her bed. If she was being honest, going to bed right now sounded like a good idea.
Addison smiled, moving to the kitchen to get her sister-in-law a snack, knowing she really wanted green apples and spray cheese. Addison thought it was gross and unhealthy, but Amelia was Amelia.
"Spray cheese, really? Do you know how unhealthy that is?" Jake made a face, mildly judging her as he walked over to the stove.
"Me? Yes. Amelia? No. She has the eating habits of a teenager. She's great at not letting Liv have too much and she buys it herself," Addison shrugged, picking up the plate.
"I can't say no to anything she buys for herself, and I'm not exactly a model citizen either; my kid practically lives off mac and cheese," Addison pointed out.
Addison wasn't one to police Amelia's eating habits, even if she did occasionally. Plus, she was very aware of pregnancy cravings, and Amelia, while she hadn't been pregnant before, that Addison knew of anyway, sometimes had the same eating habits as a pregnant woman.
Jake laughed.
"I guess that's true. So, is everything okay?" Jake asked.
"Yeah, it's fine. I was just told I had to come to collect my kid," Addison laughed.
"Are you even old enough to be her mother?" Jake asked, amused. He moved to take over the kitchen so he could finish up dinner for everyone.
"Maybe if I got pregnant when I was 11 or 12. But no," Addison laughed.
"What are you making?" Addison asked, peering over his shoulder after seeing him stir a pot.
"Chilli. Liv helped me earlier. It still needs to cook out a little longer, and you didn't have everything we needed, so I took her grocery shopping after school. I think she liked it," Jake said, smiling.
"Mind if I go to pick up Angela for dinner? Swim practice should be about done," Jake added after looking at the time.
"Of course. Go ahead. I'm gonna take this up to Amelia and go check on Liv," Addison said, leaning over to kiss him in thanks.
"Just stir it every five minutes or so," Jake said.
"You do know I'm not a good cook, right?" Addison asked sarcastically.
"It's just a stir here and there. The rest is already done," Jake laughed.
"Alright, I got it. Now go," Addison said.
Jake happily accepted and headed toward the door.
Addison took the plate and bottle up to her sister-in-law, sitting down beside her.
"Thanks, Addie." Amelia picked up a slice of apple, ate it, and felt instantly gratified.
"So, do you want to talk about it?" Addison asked carefully.
"No," Amelia replied almost instantly.
"Not even a little?" Addison tried.
"Nope," Amelia replied, taking another bite.
Addison shook her head.
"Okay, well, if you need to talk, you know where to find me," Addison said, leaving the room, and heading into Olivia's room.
"Liv, what are you doing?" Addison asked.
"Playing with Milo, Mommy," Olivia replied, still in her school uniform.
"Why are you dressing him up?" Addison asked.
"Because he likes it," Olivia shrugged. This cat never fought back. At least not with Olivia.
"Okay, well, how about we get changed before dinner and undress that poor cat," Addison suggested.
"Do I have to?" Olivia asked.
"Yes," Addison said sternly, going to find some play clothes for Olivia to wear. Olivia sighed, doing as told.
After Olivia got changed, and they let the cat go, Addison brought her downstairs to do homework. She'd just go right back to dressing up Milo if she left them alone again. Plus, Addison told Jake she'd stir the pot of chili every once in a while before he left and it'd just be easier if she was already downstairs.
"Where did Dr. Jake go? He didn't say goodbye," Olivia said with a pout.
"He'll be back for dinner. Come on. Sit down and I can help you with your homework until they get back," Addison led her to the table. They'd work until Jake and Angela came back.
A/N: The drama is just getting started in this story, so we hope you enjoy where we're taking the story and where it goes from here. Chapter title inspired by the song, Beautiful Surprises by India Arie. Comments/reviews are welcome and encouraged.