Hit Rewind

Michael

Caitlin giggles as the woman spreads some sort of gel across her protruding stomach. It is much better than how she reacted when the obstetrician examined her.

She had clung to my arm and begged me not to leave her even as the doctor was clearly telling me with his eyes to get my butt out of the room.

I had listened to my girlfriend because I felt like I was going to be spending more time with her than the obstetrician.

Now, though, she is gripping my hand while we wait for that first glimpse of our baby. It would almost feel like it was just the two of us if it wasn't for her parents and my mom.

The two of them are sitting with their entire attention focusing on the blank screen. Mrs. Heyers is holding her husband's hand while he uses his other to pat her leg gently.  My mom is rod-straight with her hands playing with the fabric of her skirt, eyes almost not blinking.

"Michael," Caitlin says, and I blink down at her, realizing that she had been trying to get my attention for a while, "I don't think I'm ready to see the baby."

I bend over and kiss her forehead. "Cait, it's going to be fine."

"It makes it so real though. I mean, I know it's real because I can see and feel my body changing, but this feels different. It feels more permanent like I didn't understand exactly how our lives were going to change until this moment."

The technician places the probe on her stomach, and on the screen, my girlfriend's womb appears along with a sight that I was familiar with.

"Our baby," I whisper, watching that little body rolling about inside of her.

The sonographer laughs lightly before moving the probe slightly. "What you're actually seeing is your twins. It would be more correct to say your babies."

A startled gasp comes from where the parents are sitting, and I look over to find Caitlin's mom's hands over her mouth as her eyes start to fill with tears.

"Our little girl's having twins," she manages to say before a nervous chuckle erupts from her. "We're going to have two grandchildren."

I look back towards Caitlin, whose eyes are shining as she gazes at our babies. She notices that I'm staring at her.

Carefully, she places a hand on my arm, knowing exactly what I'm thinking about. "We're being blessed twice over. Michael, we're going to be parents."

I gently kiss her forehead before staring at the screen, where those little babies are showing off for us. Her words sink in, and I start to realize exactly what she meant by feeling more permanent.

I'm just starting to come to terms with it, the fact that I'm going to have two little ones to care for, when the sonographer frowns and stares at the screen before looking at the monitors.

"Actually, I think that there might be triplets."

Progress with 2746

Note: Our previous assumptions were incorrect. The Head insists that it was us who were wrong. I don't disagree and therefore will be taking better care to make sure all information is correct in the future.