“I think so. Yeah. I’m good. I mean, I’m not sure how I’m going to push two kids out of my vajayjay, but other than that… yeah, I think I’m good.”
She laughed, seeming to take my word for it. “Good. Then let’s get moving before you get trampled by angry pedestrians.”
Haley led me out of the path of oncoming foot traffic, the two of us making our way to the parking garage. Haley had one week left of her summer break before the next school year began, and she’d been cool enough to come with me for my two-month checkup.
I’d been nervous, of course, worried that something might be wrong with my son or daughter. And when that expression of confusion had taken hold on the nurse’s face as she tried to puzzle something out, the ultrasound wand on my belly, that’d taken my anxiety to another level.
“What is it?” I’d asked.
“It’s… there’s a heartbeat, you hear that?”
I did, that littlewhomp-whomp, whomp-whomp.
“Why does it sound weird? It’s like… there’s an echo or something.”
Her expression of concern turned to a smile. “That’s not an echo you’re hearing—that’s two heartbeats.”
Twins. I was going to have twins.
The rest of the appointment was a total blur, the doctor telling me how my lifestyle needed to look over the next seven months, though it could be less since twins tended to show up a little sooner. She gave me some printouts about diet and told me that I needed to keep my exercise low impact.
It’d been so hard to wrap my head around—I felt like I was underwater, the doctor’s voice faraway and muffled. All the rest of the news about the twins was solid, however. They were growing at a good rate, and their heartbeats were strong and healthy.
Everything was lined up for me to become, in less than a year, the mother of two gorgeous children.
Haley, of course, had nearly exploded with happiness when I’d told her the news, throwing her arms around me and letting out a scream that everyone in downtown Denver must’ve heard.
“Alright,” Haley said, snapping her fingers in front of my face as I walked. “I know you’ve got a lot on your mind, but I’m going to make sure you don’t walk straight into traffic.”
I laughed. “Alright, sorry. I’ll be a little more careful.”
She grinned back at me. “You know, we should’ve guessed it was twins—look at that bump!”
Haley was right; my bump was already bigger than it should have been for only being two months pregnant.
“It makes sense now. I mean, I just thought I was having one huge baby.”
We reached her car and got in. Once I was seated, a new wave of anxiety washed over me. I buckled up, then placed my hand on my belly.
“You alright?” Haley asked again once her seatbelt was on.
“I don’t know. I’ve been spending the last month getting psyched up aboutababy. I’m really excited and can’t wait to meet him or her, but it’s taken some time to let the idea settle that I’m going to be doing it all on my own. And right when I finally got to that point, I find out that I’m going to be havingtwobabies. Don’t get me wrong, two babies means double the love and I’m super thrilled. But…”
I trailed off, not knowing where to finish. Haley, supportive as always, reached over and took my hand.
“Trust me, you’ve got this. I mean, seriously, you got your Masters, you’ve written two bestselling books. A couple of kids is a piece of cake compared to that. Plus, I’m here. I know I’m still in Denver, but I’ll help whenever I can. I’m only barely an hour away.”
I smiled. “Thanks, Haley. I couldn’t hope for a better friend to go through all of this with. I know that sounds super corny, but it’s true. You’ve been amazing, and I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“You know I love corny. And I’m happy to do it. Who knows? Maybe someday when I’m knocked up by some gorgeous, mysterious Greek millionaire you’ll be there to help me through it.”
“You bet your ass I would.”
My hand still on my stomach, I felt it growl.
“OK, I’m getting kind of hungry, which is weird considering I ate breakfast like an hour ago.”
“Not weird at all, you’re eating for three, remember.” She checked the time on her phone. “How about an early lunch before you head back? What sounds good?”