Trying Again

Part 10

December 31, 2015
Royce crashed around 10:00 which was actually much later than they thought he would. Now, they sit on the couch wrapped up in each other with five minutes left in 2015. "2016. A lot to look forward to." Rick says as he lays a hand on her flat belly. They have their first appointment in two weeks and they couldn't wait. "Royce will be three this year." Kate says, "And we'll have another little one." He adds. She giggles as her hand moves to join his, "I still can't believe it." She says. Neither of them could.
Months of trying, tears, negative tests, and losing hope turned out to be all worth it when she got the positive result that he saw on Christmas morning. "I can't believe you kept it a secret for three days." He teases before kissing right below her ear. She giggles and looks back at him, "I wanted this time to be more exciting than when we found out with Royce." She says. He kisses her cheek, "You were freaking out when we found out about Bubba." Rick reminds her, "Um, yeah, probably cause I hadn't even started my senior year yet."
"I knew we'd be fine. We always are." He tells her. "Yes, we are. Oh, look! One minute until 2016." Kate says. They stand from the couch and grab their champagne flutes filled with sparkling cider and begin counting down with Ryan Seacrest and the other hosts of Dick Clark's New Years Rockin Eve. "5...4...3...2...1! Happy New Year!" They announce in unison before sharing a sweet kiss and enjoying sips of their cider. Rick leans in and kisses her cheek before bending down to kiss her stomach, "We can't wait to meet you this year, little one."

January 14, 2016
It was a little hectic bringing a toddler to a prenatal appointment. Royce was in a phase where he didn't want to be held and he didn't want to sit down, so their options were to let him roam around the exam room or listen to him cry bloody murder by trying to hold him. They were doing the latter now and Rick paced back and forth trying to get him to calm down. "I'll take him." Kate says holding her arms out for her son, "It's okay, I've got him." Rick insists.
     "Rick, give him to me." She insists. He doesn't argue as he passes the two year old to his wife who gathers him in her arms. He calms down a little bit but he still lets out some whines, "I need you to calm down, Bubba." She whispers as she runs a hand through his curls. Royce grabs onto the neckline of her shirt. There is a knock on the door and Kate shifts Royce to sit next to her, "Sit still, Royce." She instructs him and he does. "Hello. I'm Dr. Megan Leeds. And who is this cutie?" The woman asks.
    "I'm Kate and this is Royce. And this is my husband, Rick." She introduces everyone. "It's nice to meet all of you. Now, I understand you're here for a confirmation of pregnancy?" The doctor asks and Kate nods, "Alright, well we will start with a urine test and blood sample. If the urine test comes back positive then I'll perform a pap smear and an ultrasound. How does that sound?" Dr. Leeds asks. Kate nods with a smile before she accepts the urine sample cup from the doctor and disappears into the exam room's bathroom. She hears Royce cry upon her disappearance.
    When she walks back out, she takes her son from her husband and kisses his forehead, "I was only gone a few minutes, Baby." She assures her son. A nurse comes in to draw her blood, "I'm gonna take him for a walk down the hall." Rick says as he takes Royce out of the room so the sight of his mother getting poked with a needle doesn't scare him. Kate nods appreciatively, "How old is he?" The nurse asks, "He just turned two in October." She answers as the tourniquet is wrapped around her upper arm.
    The nurse nods, "My little guy turns three in April. It's crazy how fast time flies." She says and Kate nods. Once her blood is drawn, the nurse disappears and then the doctor comes back in to inform her that her urine sample came back with elevated hCG levels which indicate a pregnancy. Kate then has a pap smear done, "Would you like me to get your husband and son for the ultrasound?" Dr. Leeds asks, "Yes, please." Kate asks. Dr. Leeds disappears and soon returns with Rick and Royce. She watches her husband sit with Royce in his lap.
     "Okay, Royce, look at the TV." Rick says and points at the ultrasound machine. Dr. Leeds begins the ultrasound. They watch on the screen anxiously waiting to see their baby. "Alright, there is your amniotic sac and that little peanut is your baby." Dr. Leeds says. Tears spring to the parents' eyes as they see their second baby. They waited so long for this moment. "Look, Bubba, it's the baby." Kate says as she points to what the doctor just showed them. "Baby!" Royce says happily before clapping his hands. The adults all smile and chuckle at the adorableness of the two year old.
     "We won't be able to hear a heartbeat today because it's a little too early for that, but if you come back in about two weeks we can do another ultrasound and look for it. Based on the date of your last period and the baby's measurements, I'd say you're about 8 weeks along which would make your due date late August." Dr. Leeds says. She leaves the machine on for a few minutes so the parents can look at their baby before sending the sonograms off to be printed. "You can pick those up at the front desk. I'd like to see you again in about two weeks. Until then, get plenty of rest, eat well balanced meals, and begin some prenatal if you haven't already." Dr. Leeds says.
     Later in the evening, Royce is playing in the living room while Rick and Kate work on making spaghetti together. Well, Rick is cooking. Kate hasn't been able to stop staring at the sonograms since the receptionist handed them to her at the front desk when they checked out of her appointment. Rick turns the heat on the pasta water down before he wraps and arm around her waist. "It's so little. I can't believe Royce was this little once." He says. She nods, "This one's a boy. I can feel it." She tells him. "Are we going to figure out this time?" He asks. She shrugs, "How do you feel about it?" She asks. "I think it could be fun. I mean it kind of matches the pregnancy. Waiting to find out if Royce was a boy fit because everything was a surprise. With this baby, everything has been planned so maybe finding out would fit this time around." He suggests. She stares at him in awe of how his brain works.
    She nods, "Okay, we'll find out with this one. But I'm telling you, there is another bouncing baby boy in there." She tells him. He chuckles and leans down to kiss her belly, "As long as they're healthy, I don't care." He says and presses another kiss to her belly before standing up to kiss her. "I love you." He whispers, "I love you too." She smiles.
Part 10! Let me know what you think! Baby boy? Or baby girl?