It is said that second-born sons have all the fun. This much is certainly true for Benedict Bridgerton, free from the burdens held by his eldest brother, the Viscount. One must wonder, how does the second eldest Bridgerton spend his time?
To the to...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Five and a half months into the pregnancy, Madeleine and Benedict had almost entirely forgotten about their fears. This pregnancy had progressed much further than the first one had, and both had high hopes.
"Aw, look at this one!" Madeleine cooed as she held up a baby bonnet that Violet had picked out. Benedict's lips parted in awe at how adorable it was as she handed it to him.
"This is just so small, I am not sure the little one's head will even fit into it!" He gasped dramatically, holding the bonnet. Madeleine giggled and nodded.
"Well if the baby has your head then most certainly not." She teased, laughing as he feigned offense.
"You take that back." He glared, walking closer to her. She giggled and shook her head, backing up until she hit the wall. He smirked and grabbed her waist, pulling her to him.
"You are lucky you are pregnant, my love. I will get you back for that comment once the baby is born." He growled, attacked her neck with kisses as she squealed in laughter.
"Okay, okay, I take it back!" She shrieked, giggling as he pulled away with a triumphant smirk on his face. He pulled her into a proper kiss before pulling away with a smile on his face.
"Come, the doctor will be by soon." He pecked her lips and took her hand, bringing her to their room. Benedict had been having the doctor come by more frequently now that the pregnancy was progressing and they were much closer to his office.
"Benedict, Dr. Phillips is here." Anthony called out right at that moment, coming up the stairs with the man behind him.
"Speak of the devil." Madeleine giggled and Benedict nudged her playfully as they turned to greet the man.
The doctor had Madeleine lay down as usual, the three had pretty much fallen into a routine at this point. She would lay down for the exam, the two would wait anxiously to hear about the status of the baby, and they would smile in relief when he told them everything looked just fine.
They had gotten through the better part of that routine tonight when the doctor's smile suddenly fell as he examined Madeleine.
"Doctor Phillips, what is it?" Benedict's voice was worried as he noticed the change in expression.
"Just a moment." The doctor's face was tightened in concentration as he probed around with one of his tools. Madeleine grimaced slightly at the discomfort and Benedict squeezed her hand. He glanced at her with a worried expression, and she looked back up at him with fearful eyes.
"Doctor Phillips?" Madeleine's voice broke as she spoke, coated in fear. The doctor paused for a moment before straightening up. The look on his face sent a wave of terror through her body.
"There seems to be a bit of a complication." He finally spoke, a hesitant expression on his face. Benedict's eyebrows narrowed as he tightened his grip on Madeleine's hand.
"A complication? What sort of complication?"
"It seems the baby is in a precarious position. With the way it is growing, there is a good chance that this pregnancy will harm you." He spoke carefully, trying his best not to scare the two. Madeleine's lips parted as she sat up, staring at the doctor.
"Harm me how?" She urged, wishing he would just come out and say it.
"If you carry this pregnancy to term, there is a strong likelihood that it will kill you." He grimaced as he spoke. Benedict's heart plummeted straight down at his words, unable to comprehend it.
"Kill her? How? Why-" He could not even form an entire sentence, his mind racing from this development. The doctor sighed, thinking of how to best explain it.
"The position that the baby is currently in is not sustainable for proper growth. It is too late to attempt to position it manually without harming it. If the baby continues to grow in this position, it will cause severe damage and internal bleeding to the organs that we may not be able to fix. I am incredibly sorry."
Madeleine's hand flew to her mouth as her eyes filled with tears, her heart aching so deeply she felt she could not breathe.
"I should not be telling you this, but there is a doctor in Wales. He is quite an expert in this field, and he has been rumored to give women miscarriage-inducing prescriptions if they do not wish to have a child." Dr. Phillips gave them a sympathetic look before leaving the room to give the two privacy.
Benedict felt frozen in place, like every inch of his body was being weighed down with rocks. He felt as though his lungs were shriveling up inside of him and cutting off any flow to his heart.
"This can not be happening again. Oh god, this can not be happening again." Madeleine sobbed weakly, shaking her head. Benedict moved to hold her and she shook her head frantically, sobbing as she stood up.
She felt like she was suffocating in the slowest possible way, every inch of her aching with pain. Benedict watched her with watery eyes, standing up as well as he noticed the signs of an anxiety attack.
"Madeleine.." He whispered, his voice coated with gut-wrenching pain. The girl began to hyperventilate as she paced back and forth.
"This can not be happening again!" She shouted, crying out in frustration as she gasped for air. She took her anger out on everything around her, hurling books across the room, knocking over a vase of flowers. She felt incomprehensibly angry at the world, fury pulsing through her veins.
Tears streamed down Benedict's cheeks as he watched her. Each time he attempted to approach, she would shake her head and back away, sobbing. He sighed as she threw another book, quickly walking over to her and pulling her into his arms.
She sobbed, beating her fists against his chest and attempting to push him away from her. He only tightened his grip on her, closing his eyes as tears rushed down his cheeks.
"No, let me go." She sobbed weakly, squirming around. "Let me go.."
"Shhh, my love." He hushed her, pinning her hands in one of his. Her body shook with cries as she finally stopped fighting, softening in his embrace. He kissed the top of her head and held her tighter, in fear that her legs might give out if he let go.
He guided her to the bed and sat down, not letting go of her. She clutched onto his shirt as she cried, burying her head in his chest. The two sat there for what felt like eternity as Madeleine calmed down, utterly exhausted.
"We can try again, love. We can try again and we can-" She cut him off as she suddenly looked up at her, cheeks stained with tears.
"Try again?" Her voice was tense as she sat up, letting go of him. "What do you mean, try again?" She did not take her eyes off of him, knowing very well what he meant. He sighed softly at her reaction, not saying anything. She gasped in disbelief at the confirmation, standing up.
