Chapter Twelve
Gillian holds onto Ryan's hand as Dr. Clader prepares to squirt the clear jelly onto her stomach.
"This might feel a little cold at first," she says as she smears it over the round protrusion of Gillian's stomach.
The day Gillian had first noticed the slightest swell of their baby, she had been standing in her underwear, examining herself from all angles in front of the full length mirror. Ryan heard her shrieks of joy and came upstairs to find out what the commotion was about. He had already discovered in bed several weeks before that her breasts had become heavier, fuller. They had been taking turns reading each other to sleep at night with books covering every aspect of pregnancy, and Gillian had decided that she wanted to nurse her baby. They learned early on to skip the chapters on labor. Neither of them was quite prepared for that yet.
Dr. Clader moves the scope over the now jelled portions. "You're going to see a picture of your baby projected onto that screen. It might be a little fuzzy at first."
Gillian tightens her grip on Ryan's hand, and he finds himself holding his breath in anticipation.
"There it is. See that little flutter right there. That's your baby." Dr. Clader says as she points to a tiny gray blur that seemed to be jumping up and down.
"Baby, look at that. You've got a little person in there."
Gillian nods her head, dazed and speechless, seemingly hypnotized by the image on the screen.
"Is that the heartbeat?" Ryan asks as he strokes Gillian's hair. Dr. Clader nods her head. In the quiet of the room could be heard the periodic thumping of a new heart, so petite, falling without question into it's own rhythm, keeping the child alive.
It was then that the fog of life seemed to lift, bringing clarity and a new understanding of their purpose, the plan of whomever or whatever had brought them to this place. How swiftly it can be given, and how swiftly it can be ripped apart.
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