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Health; Fitness & Dieting,
Contemporary Fiction,
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Two Hours or More (65-100 Pages),
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Relationships
read the signs, and rather than asking, she simply assumed the father would not be coming. “Let me see,” she smiled as she took the device and recorded the result on Selena’s file. “You can fill that out in the meanwhile,” she told her as she rummaged in her desk for something else.
“Oh,” Selena said, the clipboard and paper all but forgotten next to her on the chair. She began to fill out the form with unsteady hands and slapped the board down on the desk when she was done. The doctor smiled and took the paper from it. She pored over what Selena had written down, made some notes of her own, and then slipped the paper into a file jacket.
“Okay, now for that third request; the ultrasound.”
“Excuse me,” Melanie said now. “What would you advise concerning an abortion?” She wasn’t sure why she asked, but she felt she needed to.
Dr. Matthews looked at Selena with concern in her eyes, just as she shot daggers at Melanie in return. “Do you want an abortion, Selena?” she asked.
“I don’t. I don’t know why she asked,” she replied, looking at Melanie the entire time. Melanie didn’t even look at her at all but focused entirely on the doctor.
“I am interested,” she spat.
“Well, that is something I am prepared to discuss only with Selena if the need arises. Until then, we will have that ultrasound you requested,” she said cordially, all the while with a smile which began to irritate Melanie, but her hands and lips were tied at the moment.
Dr. Matthews led Selena into a section of the office where a curtain was drawn; Melanie trailed behind. She pulled away the tissue like paper on the adjustable bed and asked her to lie down. When Selena did, she instructed her to pull her blouse up so that she could apply the gel to her stomach. Selena twitched when she felt the cold substance on her body, but she soon relaxed into it. The doctor took a metal object and began moving it around on her stomach in a circular motion. The monitor was directly in front of Selena so she was able to see the image of her baby when it became clear, and her eyes watered when she did.
“There it is,” Dr. Matthews said when she could detect the small heart beating on the screen. “Say hi to your baby.”
“Hi,” Selena said, her voice now getting scratchy the more emotional she got.
Melanie was quiet now as well, having softened somewhat now that she was seeing the actual image of the baby she wanted to kill. “Can you tell the sex?” She asked.
Even though Melanie was the one to ask, Selena looked at the doctor expectantly. “Not yet,” she told her. “But we can reschedule an appointment for a later time if you would like to know that.”
“I’m not sure I want to,” Selena said. “I’d love to be surprised.” She turned her attention once more to the screen.
“Okay,” Dr. Matthews said as she pressed the device on the monitor and a small, square picture came out. “This is your first official picture of baby Selena,” she said with a smile as she handed her the photo. She then used a warm rag to wipe the gel from her stomach before instructing her to rejoin her in the office.
Melanie smiled and hugged her after the doctor had gone. “Congratulations, mommy,” she grinned.
“So, you okay with a baby now?” Selena asked her as if she actually had a say.
“Damn right,” she said. “I change my mind.” She held her hand in the air in surrender, and Selena laughed at the unusual sight.
Dr. Matthews gave Selena tips on staying healthy throughout the pregnancy after congratulating her on her tiny miracle. At the end, she smiled and shook her hand, feeling a lot lighter than when she had first gone in. It’s like seeing the baby had made all the difference in the world to her, and she no longer cared whether Ethan wanted the baby or not; he or she was hers, and she would do anything to protect her baby.
Chapter Five
But things aren’t always as you would have them, and