The doctor nodded and hummed as he continued flipping through the pages. He shook his head after several minutes and closed the file. “Well, I guess once really is all it takes.”
“Why is when my last period was so important?” she cast a glance toward me. “What do you mean it only takes once? Do I have some sort of STD?”
I rolled my eyes and muttered, “Give me a break.”
“Well, how am I supposed to know?” she asked me.
“You could ask,” I said.
“You’ve been so upfront about all your secrets?” she asked.
I shook my head. I wasn’t sure whether to be offended or laugh hysterically. The audacity. How could she really believe I had an STD and gave it to her?
“It’s not an STD,” the doctor said jumping into the middle of our argument. “And judging by when you last had sex, unless I’m wrong about the math, you are pregnant with twins.”
“What?” Cadence and I both said at the same time.
The doctor sat back and sighed. “Surprise!”
I glared at the doctor.
He huphed at the lack of response and then said, “We will need to get an ultrasound to confirm gestation. I’ll give you a med to help with the nausea and put in an IV for some fluids. I may want to keep you overnight just to make sure you can keep things down okay. You’re extremely dehydrated which can be dangerous not only for you but for your fetuses too.”
Cadence nodded. Her eyes were wide. She was as pale as a ghost. I wasn’t sure she was even breathing. I wondered if she had gone into shock. Her mouth was parted slightly.
I switched my gaze to the doctor, holding my breath. His words started to blend and slur… somehow blending in my mind and turning into mush. I shook my head.
Cadence was pregnant. And we weren’t just having one baby. We were having two.
Either I was dreaming or I this was really happening. Never in a thousand years did I ever consider kids. It was something I would entertain with the right woman after a period of time, but immediately?
Don’t get me wrong, I wanted my own family, but this was a lot. And sudden.
My world just got a whole lot bigger. I now had more than one reason to stick around. More than one thing holding me to this world. My heart swelled. I wanted to shout it from the rooftops, but I also held my breath for fear the doctor was mistaken somehow.
I settled my attention on Cadence who was even more pale and more in shock than before. I smiled. Now there really was no way in hell I could leave her.
The doctor stood up. “Any questions?”
Cadence shook her head.
He nodded. He looked to me. I gaped like a fish out of water, but no words could come. My brain wouldn’t go past the concept of me being a dad.
The doc sighed. “I’ll be right back with the ultrasound machine.”
He left without another word and things were silent between the two of us. I had no idea what an ultrasound machine was or how it was possibly helpful in this situation. And it didn’t matter. I was going to be a dad.
I almost couldn’t believe it.
I probably should have said something to Cadence. Though I wasn’t entirely sure what to say. All I could think about were the babies.
Twins.
Twice the babies.
Twice the love.
Damn near instant family.