End of March
Elizabeth sighed as she heard the children coming back from lunch break. She loved being a teacher but she was exhausted. She wasn't sure why. The pregnancy test was negative, again, that she had taken a few weeks before. It had officially been a year since she and Lucas got married and apparently getting pregnant wasn't going to happen.
Her ob/gynecologist had told her back in September that there wasn't a physical reason why she shouldn't be able to get pregnant. Even Lucas had some testing done and he was fine as well. Just no baby.
"Mrs. Bouchard!" Connor yelled, running in the door.
"Connor, inside voice please."
"I saw a black doggie outside on the playground."
"You did?"
"Yup."
"Was the dog all alone?"
"Yeah…it had a leash dragging on the ground behind him but no one was around."
"Did you tell the playground guard?"
"Yup."
"Alright. Thank you, bud. Why don't you take a seat so we can get started?"
Elizabeth stood up and had to sit back down. She was so dizzy all of the sudden and hot. She felt like she was going to pass out. She took a few deep breaths and relaxed for a moment.
"Connor?"
"Yes, Mrs. Bouchard?"
"Can you go get Mrs. Coulter from the music room? Tell her I need her as soon as possible."
"Okay!"
"Are you okay?" the other kids said, sounding like they were miles away and in a tunnel.
"Beth? Beth?"
"Mmm…Rosie?"
"Beth? We called Luke to come get you."
"No, I'm fine."
"You passed out, Beth."
"Huh?" She opened her eyes and looked up. She had Rosie and about a dozen little eyes staring down at her. "I passed out?"
"Yes you did. How are you feeling right now?"
"Embarrassed." She tried to sit up, using Rosie's outstretched hand.
"Just sit there for a moment, Mrs. Bouchard," Mrs. Hancock the principal told her.
"I'd just like to get up off the floor, please."
After a few more moments, Mrs. Hancock agreed so she and Rosie helped her up and got her to her desk chair.
Rosie handed her a bottle of apple juice in case her blood sugar was low. Elizabeth hated apple juice but she took a few sips to make her friend happy.
"I'm really okay. Luke doesn't need to pick me up."
"I insist," Mrs. Hancock told her. "You go home and get some rest and we will see you after the weekend.
"Yes, ma'am."
About ten minutes later, Lucas walked in and knelt in front of her. "Beth? Honey, Rosie told me you passed out?"
She cupped his handsome face with her hand and smiled. "I'm okay. I promise."
"If you passed out, you're not okay. There's something wrong. Maybe we should take you to the ER."
"No. I'm fine. Let's just go home."
He knew she was stubborn, but so was he. He needed to know she was fine. Since he was driving, she would go where he went.
"Babe, I really am fine."
"Rosie is going to bring Noa home with her and we will pick her up after we get done in the ER."
"Okay."
"Thank you."
Lucas wiped a tear from his cheek and kept his eyes on the road. "Lucas, sweetheart."
"You don't know that you're fine. What if something is really wrong? We need to know. I need to know that I'm not going to lose you."
"Honey."
"Please, Beth. Just let me have some peace of mind."
She put her hand on his thigh and left it there for the rest of the ride.
She let him help her out of the car and keep his arm around her back, securely on her hip, as they wandered into the hospital.
"My wife passed out," he told the lady behind the desk.
She handed them a clipboard. "If you could fill this out and then bring it up. We can get you into triage."
"Do you have a trash can?!" Elizabeth shouted, needing to throw up right at that moment. The lady handed her one just in time for her to empty her stomach of the small lunch she had eaten.
"I'm so sorry."
"Don't worry, dear. Why don't you sit down and keep that with you unless you need it again."
About an hour later, they were finally taken into triage.
"Elizabeth? I'm Amanda. Let's see what's going on, alright?" the nurse said.
"She passed out in her classroom."
"You're a teacher?"
"Yeah. 2nd grade. I love it."
"My mom was a teacher. Retired after 30 years."
"That's awesome."
Amanda listened to her heart and took her blood pressure.
"Any chance you're pregnant?" Amanda asked.
"I took a test a few weeks ago and it was negative," Elizabeth told her. "Its been a year of trying so probably not."
"You never know. It took me two years to get pregnant with my son. I had all but given up. Miracles sometimes happen right when we need them to." She wrote down her blood pressure a moment later and then smiled. "I'm going to take a blood test and then we can see what the doc says, alright?"
"Thank you."
Another thirty minutes went by. Elizabeth closed her eyes and Lucas curled up on the gurney next to her to wait.
The door opened and in walked a doctor. She smiled and sat down on a stool, looking at her clipboard. "Mr. and Mrs. Bouchard?"
"Yes?"
"When was your last period, Mrs. Bouchard?"
"Um…about six or seven weeks ago."
"How are you feeling now? Any further nausea or lightheadedness?"
"No. I feel okay."
"Well, we got the results from your blood test and your HCG levels are up."
"What does that mean?" Lucas asked. "Is she sick?"
"No, sweetie. Those levels go up when you're pregnant," Elizabeth smiled. "Right, Doc?"
"That's right. Your test shows that you are in fact pregnant. Congratulations."
"Oh my goodness," Elizabeth whispered, hugging Lucas and crying. "A baby, sweetheart!"
"That's amazing."
He pulled back and kissed her over and over, making the doctor chuckle. "I do think you are slightly dehydrated so we are going to give you an IV before you can leave, alright?"
"Sure. Thank you!"
"Happy Anniversary!" Lucas said, kissing her again. "I can't believe it, Beth. Finally."
"Noa is going to lose her mind," Elizabeth mentioned, kissing him this time. "I'm so happy."
"Me too."
…..
They decided to make an appointment to see her OB and get a due date before telling anyone else, just in case.
In the meantime, Elizabeth soaked up lots of baby time with Faith and Carson's little girl, Mia Elizabeth. She of course took Noa with her and she loved it just as much.
"So…" Faith whispered. "When are you due?"
"You…how did you…what?"
"You have been lightheaded, throwing up, exhausted. Doesn't take a rocket scientist, my friend."
"Okay well, we have an appointment tomorrow to get the due date."
"That's so exciting! Congratulations."
"Thank you." Elizabeth took a deep breath of Mia's baby smell. "Mm, she smells so good."
"Its the best, isn't it?"
"It is."
"I have news too," Faith mentioned.
"Pregnant again?"
"Uh no. But we did get matched with a child in Ohio. A little boy. He's four. Carson is excited and I'm scared but we are going to meet him in a few weeks."
"That's great, Faith. A little boy is going to have a family now to keep him safe and healthy and loved."
"Because he's a bit older, we might get him in just a few months if we mesh well."
"I'm sure it will all work out."
She hoped it would. Families, no matter how they come about, were huge blessings.
"Mama?" Noa said, climbing up on the couch next to her.
"Yes, punkin?"
"Can you hold me?"
Elizabeth handed Mia to Faith and patted her lap, letting Noa climb up. "What's going on, sweet girl?"
"I just want you," she shrugged, cuddling into Elizabeth's chest.
"You know what? I want you too. You are my first baby girl and that will never change."
"Mama?"
"Hm?"
"Am I Noa Faith Bouchard yet?"
Faith looked over and smiled.
"Not yet but when you are, you will know." They planned to have the grandparents all out and have Faith and Carson and Mia, of course and were going to have a party.
"Kay."
…..
A bit later, Luke decided since he was working from home that he was going to order takeout and suggest a family trip.
"Camping?" Elizabeth asked. "Sounds like it might be fun."
"What's that?" Noa asked around a mouthful of fried rice.
"Noa Faith, please don't talk with your mouth full," Elizabeth told her, tapping her knee.
"Sorry," she said, doing it again and then giggling, spraying her rice over her plate.
"Noa."
"I'm sorry, Mama."
"Alright."
It took all she had not to laugh too. Noa was so darn cute but laughing at her wasn't going to help anything.
"So what's camping, Daddy?"
"Its when we go somewhere and take a tent and some sleeping bags and food and sleep outside."
"Won't that be cold?"
"Yes, but we build a fire to stay warm."
"I'm not sure Janette and Bluey would like to sleep outside, Daddy," she pointed out. "They would be cold but the fire would scare them."
"Well, sweet pea, your hamsters would need to stay home." She started to protest but he stopped her. "Before you get all excited, Noa, we can have someone stay with them."
Elizabeth watched Noa pout, cross her arms, and kick her feet, eyes down. She didn't say anything though. Lucas looked at Elizabeth who just shrugged.
"Thank you for dinner, hon," Elizabeth said, sitting back. She was full. Not nauseated but full. She couldn't eat another bite.
"You're welcome. I have some work news that maybe we can talk about when little ears aren't around."
"Sure. You are still coming to our appointment tomorrow, right?"
"Wouldn't miss it."
…..
Later, living room
"A month? Lucas, how can they expect you to stay in New York for a month? Don't they know about us? We need you."
"Yes, and that's why they are putting us up in an apartment and we will stay there together."
"All three of us?"
"Yes."
"This is in July?"
"Yes. What do you think?"
He pulled her feet up onto his legs and started massaging them, thoroughly distracting her from his news.
"Oh goodness, that feels good."
She opened one eye and looked at him, a smirk on his handsome face. "That was very sneaky, Bouchard."
"Did it work?"
"Well, there's no way we are going to stay here with you there for a whole month so I guess we are going to the city."
"Are you really okay with it?"
"It will be summer and we won't have school so I guess so."
"Think of it like an adventure. You can probably hang out with Joseph and Minnie and the kids. They can show you around while I'm working."
"But we will still have family time, right?" she asked, sitting forward, stopping his hands from massaging her feet for a moment.
"Of course. We will still have weekends. Just us three."