"Did you want to find out the gender today?" Dr. Moore asked as she examined the baby.
"I don't know." I sighed, looking over at Colby. He was looking at the screen with a soft but protective look on his face.
I could tell he was thinking about all the danger that was surrounding this baby and how he would do anything to keep it safe.
"What do you think?" I asked, causing him to look at me. "It's whatever you want, sweetheart." He said with a reassuring smile.
"I can write it down and put it in an envelope. You can open it if you want or you can throw it away." Dr. Moore said then pulled the wand away from my belly.
"That'd be good." I said quietly and looked at the empty screen while she wrote it down for us.
"I want to do some more elaborate tests since we're halfway through now. Are you guys back in Texas full time now?" She asked and started doing something on the computer in front of her.
"Not exactly. I don't know how we're going to figure all of this out but we have to go back to LA." I explained and looked over at Colby.
"For how long? We won't be needing to do appointments close together until thirty weeks." Dr. Moore explained.
"We're not sure how long we'll be." Colby said as I chewed my lip nervously. "Hmm. I don't want you traveling too much considering the circumstances." She said then looked up at us.
"Are you willing to see a doctor out there or have a birth plan in case you're still in LA?" She asked as I looked at Colby.
I didn't know what his plan was or how long we would be in hiding. I almost wanted him to figure something out so we could stay here but I knew it wasn't possible.
"I'd prefer her to have the baby here. It's more comfortable for her." Colby said with a sigh, watching me carefully.
"I'll figure something out and get back to you." He said, looking at the doctor.
"Okay, just keep me updated. I can always help you find resources that can make your lives easier." She said with a reassuring smile.
"I appreciate that." I said as she changed something on the ultrasound machine.
"For now we're gonna check out the baby a little more. See how the little one is growing and do some tests." She said and focused on the screen again.
We spent the next hour or so getting tests done and checking the baby out. Everything was looking perfect as far as the baby was concerned but I was far from okay.
My stress levels were out of control for obvious reasons but it was making this pregnancy more complicated.
If I didn't calm the fuck down there was a chance the baby would come early.
We would have to figure all of this crime stuff out before it was too late.
"This is for you. I want to either see you in four weeks, or hear from you before then so we can find options." Dr. Moore said and handed me the stack of papers in her hand.
"We'll be in touch." I said as Colby took my hand. "Try to relax as best as you can. You don't have to be on bed rest but try to keep yourself as calm as possible." She explained as I nodded.
"I'll try." I said with a sigh then looked at Colby. "Ready?" I asked as he nodded and led the way out of the room. "That was really cool." He said as we walked down the hallway.
"Yeah, I wish I could enjoy it more." I said quietly, putting my hand on my belly.
"I don't want you to worry, sweetheart. Everything is going to work out and I'm going to take care of you and the baby." Colby said and summoned the elevator.
"It's just nerve wrecking. Knowing that I can't control what other people do." I said quietly, looking down at the ultrasound in my hand.
"The baby is so small and fragile and anyone can hurt it if they tried hard enough." I said as he sighed and took the ultrasound from me so he could look at it.
"You won't let that happen and you're in charge of who gets close to it." He said then kissed my head as the elevator opened.
I knew he was right and that I could control who was near the baby but we've seen before that if someone wants something enough they'll get it.
I wasn't fully safe and neither was the baby.
When we got back to the car, Colby started driving us home.
I was actually exhausted after all of the tests that I nearly fell asleep in the car. Being pregnant was taking a huge toll on me physically which was normal, but I haven't stopped to think or talk about it.
My mind was suffering from all of the stress and my body was suffering from literally growing a human.
"Jules." Colby said quietly causing me to look over. "You okay?" He asked with concern as I nodded. "I'm tired." I said as he grinned slightly. "Alright, stay there." He said then got out of the car.
I sighed and watched as he walked around the car and opened my door. "I can walk." I said with a laugh as he lifted me out of the car.
"I know. You're tired though." He said as I laughed and leaned my head on his shoulder.
"Are you gonna take a nap?" Colby asked as he carried me up the stairs. "Yeah. You can't look in the envelope while I'm asleep." I said as he chuckled. "I won't. I wouldn't do that." He said and laid me on our bed.
"Good." I said with a sigh and got comfortable. "I'm gonna do some work though so just come down when you wake up." Colby said as I nodded. "Okay." I said and closed my eyes, trying to drift off.
I felt Colby come up to me and give me a kiss on the forehead before leaving to go downstairs.
It only took a couple minutes for me to fall asleep, the dream world surrounding me.
"Julia." Juniper said causing me to open my eyes. "Yes, love." I said and sat up. "He's here." She said as I scrunched my brow. "Who?" I asked as she looked around nervously.
"Julia, he's here." Carter said, walking into the room. "Who?" I asked again as a baby screamed from the distance. "Is that my baby?" I asked with fear, looking down at my belly.
"Colby's with him." Little Sam said, appearing in front of me. "He's here." Jenna said as she walked into the room.
"Who is here?!" I asked with fear. "The bad guy." Juniper said simply as I got up, running towards the baby's cries.
When I got into the room, Colby was laying on the ground, blood covering his whole body. I screamed in agony as I looked up to see a man holding a baby.
"This is for what you did." The man said before taking a knife and slicing the baby's throat, causing its body to fall to the ground.
I woke up screaming in pure terror and I looked around the room, my hands laid on my belly. "Julia!" Colby cried out as he ran to me.
"No! No!" I screamed as he pulled me into his arms. "It was a nightmare, Julia. You're okay." He hummed, holding me close.
I whimpered and turned my face, hiding it in his chest. "Shhh....take a deep breath." He said and scratched my back.
No matter how many times I had nightmares, I couldn't shake the feeling of dread that surrounded me after them.
"Wanna talk about it?" Colby asked after a little while. "I can't do this." I said quietly. "Do what?" He asked and pulled away, looking at me.
"Any of it. I'm so scared they're gonna kill you." I said as he shook his head.
"They won't." He said and brushed my hair behind my ear. "But what if they do? I can't go through that again." I said, looking into his eyes.
"You won't have to. Just trust me." He said then leaned in and gave me a kiss.
I melted into him, trying to relax against his lips. Colby could probably tell I was having a hard time relaxing into him since he only kissed me for a second before leaning me back and hovering over me.
"I don't know if we can do this." I whispered as he kissed behind my ear, trailing kisses down my neck. "You need to relax." He mumbled against my skin.
"You've been too stressed." He said lowly as he let his hands trail down my body. "We need to let off some steam." He whispered in my ear, sending a chill down my spine.
"The baby." I gasped as he brought his hand around my neck, squeezing it gently.
"The baby is fine." He said then kissed me again with so much passion I couldn't help the moan that escaped my throat.
It had been so long since we've had sex and it was honestly not a bad idea to do it in an attempt to loosen me up.