Drama Momma (Surprisingly Perfect Sequel)

Bad News

My baby girl rolled around in my belly while we sat in the waiting room of the doctor's office. I placed my hand against the glass of the fish tank, next to the sucker fish.

"I read that these things grow like crazy. It's even bigger than it was just a few weeks ago," I said.

Chase was much more quiet than usual. His knee was bouncing up and down. I reached for his hand and looked around the stark, empty office. We were the very first appointment of the day.

The door across from us opened up and one of the cheery nurses walked out. She gave me a big smile.

"Hi Poppy. You can come with me," she said.

I followed her into the examination room. She took my vitals and asked me how everything was going.

"Everything's perfect," I said, rubbing my belly.

"Terrific. Doctor Andrews will be in momentarily to talk about your bloodwork," she said, then closed her laptop and headed out of the room.

I scrolled through my phone and looked at the pictures of my brand-new, mostly empty room. So. Much. Potential. I wasn't even examining the picture for five minutes when Doctor Andrews came in. She was carrying a big folder full of stuff.

"Hi there! How are you guys doing?" she asked.

"Good!" I said.

"Alright," Chase said.

"Okay, let's get right down to business," Doctor Andrews said. She sat down at the desk with her legs crossed and opened her laptop. "So one of the nurses explained to you why you were asked to come in today?"

"Yeah. She said something was up with my bloodwork," I said. "So, what is it? Is it Gestational Diabetes? My mom had that when she was pregnant with me. Just tell me what meds I have to take and we'll get the ball rolling."

"You don't have Gestational Diabetes, Poppy," she said.

"Oh, nice! So what do I have, then? Is it just a during the pregnancy kind of thing?"

"It isn't quite you Poppy. It's your baby."

Chase, who was holding my hand, was squeezing it. I took my hand away from his so I could hold my bump. She was kicking and rolling. She was having a great time all the time in there. It didn't make sense.

I swallowed the knot in my throat and said, "What's going on with her?"

Doctor Andrews took a deep breath and said, "We believe your baby girl has Down Syndrome."

I took my palms and slapped them over my ears. No. No. No! I never wanted to hear another word ever again. My whole world was finally starting to take shape and now it was falling apart again.

"You're sure?" Chase asked.

"Considering what I saw on the ultrasound and your blood work, these all show common signs of a baby with Downs," she said.

"I understand that this is never, ever the news that any parent wants to hear. I'm extremely sorry to give you this news right after your gender reveal. I made sure I don't have an appointment after you two for over an hour, so I'm here to answer any questions you may have."

I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing came up. I ended up letting out a super embarrassing burp instead, because I was extremely gassy. I wiped my tears on the sleeve of my adorable cotton maternity shirt.

"You're absolutely positive about this?" Chase asked.

"Again, all signs point to yes, but I'd like to do an amniocentesis to be sure. It's a procedure that involves taking a sample of the amniotic fluid," she said.

"Is it painful?" I asked.

"You'll be numbed. Don't worry," she said. "You always have the option to not do the procedure and find out at birth if the baby has Down Syndrome."

"That's a definite yes on the amnio thing," I said.

"Amniocentesis," she said, turning to type on her computer. "I can get you in at nine on Friday."

"Oh no. That's when I have my interview for The Morning Show!" Chase said, quickly pulling out his phone. "I'll cancel it."

"No, it's okay." I grabbed his arm. "Mom or Chrys can take me. Don't worry about it, and don't ask me if I'm sure, because I am."

"Okay. If my gumdrop says so," he said, taking my hand again.

Doctor Andrews shifted in her seat. "So before I hand you the entire packet of information I have here, and I know what your answer is going to be already, but please forgive me. I'm required to ask you if, after finding out the baby's diagnosis, you want to terminate your pregnancy."

"Are you insane? Of course not!" I said. "Do people really do something like that? This far along? Knowing what gender their baby is and everything?"

"More often than not," she said, handing me the big folder. "I'll get you all set up with a genetic counselor as well. So, what questions do you have?"

"Other than the disability, is she okay?" Chase said, now holding my bump. She kicked right into his hand.

"She's a strong girl. A lot of Down Syndrome babies I see on the ultrasound have heart issues, but her heart looks normal. It was beating nice and strong when I last saw it," she said. "Her life expectancy is a little shorter, though. Instead of eighty, she will most likely live into her fifties."

"Yikes. That's kinda short," Chase said.

"Depends on how you look at it," I said.

"Any other questions?" she asked.

"I think we'll let you know as they come along," Chase said.

"Alrighty. Poppy, I'll see you on Friday at nine. Take care, you two," she said.

Doctor Andrews left the room and it was hard for us to move for a while. Hard for Chase, at least. His eyes were following something on his phone.

"Hey, let's get out of here. I want breakfast," I said.

"You didn't eat this morning?" he said.

"Couldn't find the pancake mix. It was all I wanted. We literally just moved in last night. It's kind of a mess in there," I said, chuckling. "So it looks like we're going to the diner."

"Of course," he said, his voice flat.

We held hands and walked down the hall, then out the door to the waiting luxury car. His hand was sweaty, clammy, and cold.

"Hey, you good?" I asked as he held the car door open for me.

"Would you mind getting your pancakes to-go? I'd really like to go somewhere private where we can talk," he said.

I nodded, kind of reluctantly, but I still nodded. Something about Chase's composure was tipping me off. He never acted like this.

***

I hope this plot twist doesn't sway anyone from continuing this story. I really wanted to diversify my story in a way that other teen pregnancy stories haven't.