Party of Four

Anatomy Scan - Nica

In the weeks between Cole’s birthday and my anatomy scan, life felt relatively uneventful. Cole and Riley eventually started packing up their house and moving things to the new one. Every time I was there it seemed as if there were fewer and fewer things there. Gwen and Odie had already settled into the guest house, which we had dubbed the cottage, at Stonehaven, but the boys had been taking their time.

It was hard for me to understand their reluctance to move. Growing up, I’d been all over the place. Even though my stepdad had lived in the same place for as long as I could remember, it had never felt like home. Even when I lived there. Part of that was because so much of my childhood was spent with my mom packing us up and leaving only to go back to him days later.

Once, when I was in middle school, she actually stayed gone for just short of a year. Then she was back. That was around the time I moved in with my dad, who had also already moved three times throughout my life. He moved two more times since then, and then again to northeast Florida about five years ago.

Regardless though, after a lifetime of not living in the same place for more than a few years, it was hard to understand the attachment they had to their home. Especially since their parents were moving with them. I would give anything to have my dad next door.

I sat on my patio with my decaf coffee considering all these things and wondering why it was so hard for me to pull the trigger on moving too. Sure, I loved my little sanctuary that I’d built at Magnolia Pointe. At the end of the day though, it was just an apartment. Surely some part of me had known last year when I moved in that it would be temporary.

What I did know, without a doubt, was this:

One, no matter how temporary, I hadn’t expected Magnolia Pointe to be this temporary.

Two, it had only been eight months since I sat here telling Cole we’d take things “day by day,” and now I was pregnant and wearing a promise ring he and Riley had given me.

Three, I’d left Alan with the conviction that I was never going to get married again, but Cole and Riley weren’t like Alan.

Four, we already spent nearly every day together. It was rare that I spent a night alone, though my lovely contemplative morning now was proof that it did still happen occasionally.

Five, I didn’t want to be alone with a newborn.

Six, regardless of how quickly it happened or how ready we were for it, we had started a family.

I finished my coffee and headed inside to start getting ready for my appointment. My last checkup had been uneventful, but it had went well. Today was the day we’d find out the s*x of the baby…if we wanted to know. Gwen was excited and had offered to plan a gender reveal, but I wasn’t sure that I wanted one yet.

As much as I preferred to dress up, I kept my outfit simple. Leggings and my oversized Dream Warriors tee with the Converses I’d snagged from my dad when I helped him move the last time.

“Freddy? Really?” Riley asked with an arched eyebrow and a teasing smirk when he and Cole arrived to go to the appointment with me.

“It’s comfortable,” I stated as if the irony of my wardrobe choice didn’t just dawn on me.

Riley jokingly rolled his eyes while Cole leaned in to press a kiss to my cheek. “You look cute,” he murmured, breath warm against my skin.

“Thank you.”

Not to be outdone, Riley leaned in to kiss me too. “Are you ready?”

During the appointment, bebita - as Dr. Martinez referred to them - was once again being uncooperative, lounging comfortably with their legs crossed, and rolling away anytime she tried to get a good image of them. Eventually, she was able to check everything and get all of the necessary measurements to ensure the baby was growing at a healthy rate and there weren’t any signs of potential issues. “If you don’t want to know what bebita is, close your eyes for this part,” she instructed.

I looked to Cole and Riley, our hands finding each others as we closed our eyes. I wanted to know. I really wanted to know. For the moment though, I decided to wait. We would get lunch after the appointment, and I would tell them what I had been thinking - what I was heavily considering doing - then we would decide whether or not to find out.

“Okay,” Dr. Martinez continued clicking buttons. She even switched to the 3D ultrasound and we got to see new images of our baby’s face.

By the end of the appointment, we had several printouts. The most important one though was tucked inside a small sealed envelope for whenever we were ready.

~*~

I sat across from them at a small table at Poe’s. It was almost strange being here during the day. It felt like a completely different place. The red lights were off, and the main lights were on, brightening up the dining room. It had more of a restaurant vibe compared to the typical nighttime tavern atmosphere I was used to.

The envelope sat in the middle of the table.

“Are we going to let mom plan a gender reveal?” Riley asked, knowing that was something Gwen wanted.

“I don’t know…I’ve never really been into the idea of them,” I admitted. I wasn’t really sure I wanted one. I was fine with a baby shower. We could use a baby shower. I didn’t really understand the point of a gender reveal.

“Mom loves to plan things, she’ll be disappointed if she doesn’t get to plan something. Especially since the whole moving thing is winding down,” Cole pointed out.

“She can plan the baby shower,” I reassured him. “Besides…I really want to start putting the registry together and…I’ve been trying not to think about names, but I have a few ideas.”

“You really want to know?” Cole asked, his expression soft.

I nodded my head.

“Mom’s going to want something else to plan,” Riley added, watching as Cole picked up the envelope and broke the seal.

“I might have an idea for that too,” I breathed, my eyes locked on Cole’s hands as he slid the ultrasound image out.

He placed it on the center of the table and I gasped as I read the words Dr. Martinez had typed across the top in the black space:

It’s a girl.

I felt excited, happy tears brim my eyes. My hands covered my mouth.

Cole and Riley both got up and wrapped their arms around me as they kissed my cheeks. I couldn’t believe we were going to have a daughter. The first ultrasound had made the fact I was pregnant feel real. Knowing we were going to have a baby girl solidified my earlier thoughts that we were starting a family.

I dabbed at my face, wiping away the tears before the server brought our food out. Once they had left I looked at Cole and Riley and no longer had any doubts about anything. “I want to move too,” I told them. “In June, before my lease is up. I can spend the last month at Magnolia Pointe moving, then Gwen can plan the baby shower for late July.”

“My birthday’s in July,” Riley pointed out.

“We won’t have it on your birthday,” I teased, grinning.

“You said you have an idea for something else mom can plan too?” Cole reminded me.

I nodded, then told them the idea that had started to plant itself inside my head prior to the appointment this morning.