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“Ner Sarad?”
“In here” I yelled out, amongst the vomiting.
“You’re throwing up again” Boba walks in, holding a warm glass of water, as he kneels beside me, resting the cup on the floor beside the toilet, while I brace my head on my forearm that had been leaning on the edge of the seat.
“You don’t say?” I let out gasps, trying to hold back the bile rising in my throat.
Boba lets out a sigh, holding my hair back, rubbing circles on my back, “Sarad, I think we should get a med droid in here, this is the third time you’ve thrown up, since you woke up a few hours ago.”
“It’s just my migraine” between the vomiting, the Mustafar size migraine resting on my tiny head, my vision blurry, I could barely keep it together to speak.
“Sarad…”
“Boba, I love you, but if you don’t lower your voice by at least a few decibels, I’ll take your blaster and shoot you myself.”
“Sorry” he says in a lower voice, if I was feeling well, that lower voice would be doing wonders for me. However, in my current state it was at least keeping the pain from boiling over. Just then I couldn’t hold it back anymore and I upheaved again. Tears streamed down my face, legs and arms shaking trying to brace myself, as my stomach tried to condemn me, wanting to empty itself of every bit of fluid in there. Problem was there was nothing left. It was completely empty two sessions ago.
I leaned back against the wall of the fresher, resting my arm on my bent knee, my hand holding my head. Boba moved closer and wiped the tears, and spittle from my mouth with a damp cloth.
“Cyar’ika, I hate seeing you like this. Did you take the meds for your migraine?”
“Yeah, but I’m pretty sure I threw them up the first time I had to hurl”.
“Here sip some warm water”
I nodded, grasping the glass with shaky hands, Boba helped guide the glass to my lips with one hand, while the other rested on my forehead. The warmth of his hands helped my aching head.
“Want me to make you some very strong tea? That seems to help at times.”
“Yes, please”
“Alright. Do you think you’re done throwing up?”
I sat there for a minute, trying to have a silent conversation with my body, seeing if it in fact was finished. I closed my eyes, trying to calm the beating heart that was pounding in my ear.
“I think so …” I answered shakily.
“Ok, little one. Let’s get you back to bed then.”
“Boba, you don’t have to take care of me. I know you have a busy day, you’re meeting with the new representatives of the New Republic for our sector.”
“Sarad …”
“Honestly, I’ll just be sleeping. Please. I’ll feel guilty seeing you dote on me all day, knowing you have back to back meetings.”
“And I’ll feel guilty sitting in back to back meetings knowing you’re suffering in our room”
I let out a sigh, still sitting on the floor resting, my head against the cool wall of the fresher, providing my head a bit of relief, while Boba still braced my forehead with his hand. Something about the cold from the wall and the warmth from his hand provided my head with a bit of a relief. “So we’ll both feel guilty either way”
Boba nodded, “Alright how about a compromise?” I offered.
“I’m listening,” Boba answered, “But only if we get you into bed.”
“Trying to get me into bed, already” I chuckled, “How about letting a girl brush her teeth first?”
Boba chuckled at my adult humour, which only reared when I was in extreme pain, and needed to be distracted. “You must be in a lot of pain. All the more reason to get you to bed, so you can rest properly.”
I nodded gently, trying to trick my head that it didn’t need to scream in pain from any movement. I tried moving, but my legs refused to move, every muscle protested vehemently. Apparently, a meeting had been held and the union decided to strike until better conditions were approved. Unfortunately, no one had decided to tell the head office, so when I forced myself to stand, my legs gave out, causing me to fall hard on my butt, resulting in a new wave of excruciating pain, running around my head like aftershocks of a major earthquake.
Boba moved his hand from my forehead to my shoulder, having me sit, while he moved one arm under my knees and the other braced my back. With a practiced move, he lifted me in no time and carried me back to bed.
I looked at my shirt and noticed a bit of vomit had landed on it. Boba must have noticed too, because in the next second, he brought over one of his shirts. He helped me remove the soiled shirt, and put the clean shirt on. It smelled like him, which helped my migraine a little.
“Now, cyar’ika, you had said something about a compromise?”
I was drifting into sleep, when his low voice brought me back out.
“Hmm, oh, yeah, I was thinking we could ask one of the med droids to come up and do a scan. You’re right this amount of vomiting is not normal for me, and it’s not helping the migraine. If anything it’s making it worse.”
“Okay, on my way to make your tea, I’ll arrange for a med droid to come during my meeting, but that’s the only meeting I’m holding. Not to mention I’ll try and end it as soon as that di’kut begins speaking.”
“Hey don’t bite … don’t … you know what, my head hurts too much to finish.”
Boba let out a chuckle, “Sleep, ner sarad”
I sleepily nodded in agreement, I felt the bed shift, when Boba stood, I remember feeling his hands tuck me into bed, and a soft hand caressing my cheek, after that I don’t remember him leaving, or hearing anything really. The next thing I know, I feel a cold durasteel hand touching my forehead, shocking me awake.
“Who are you?” I slightly yell to the droid face hovering over me, causing the strain to provide a new wave of searing pain to roll on through.
“I am a medic droid YX-64637, I was requested to come and check on your vitals”, thankfully the droid's voice was soft, easing the new wave a little. The conversation with Boba comes to mind.
“Right, sorry”
“Please tell me your symptoms”
“I woke up with a migraine at 6 a.m. I took my migraine meds about a half an hour later, but they didn’t help, the pain kept increasing. Then I proceeded to start vomiting around 7 a.m. after finishing breakfast, and didn’t finish till … actually I don’t know when I finished, but I vomited at least four times today, each session lasting between 5-10 minutes. I also appear to have slight blurry vision, not sure from the migraine or from hunger since I haven’t been able to keep anything down.”
“Have you had these symptoms before?”
“I’ve had really bad migraines before, yes, hence the medication.”
“The vomiting, does it usually come when you have a migraine?”
“Not usually, but like I said when I have a really bad migraine. I do vomit on occasion, however it is usually once or twice, not as often or as aggressively as today.”
“Has the vomiting just been today?”
“Yes … no, wait, it happened a few days ago too, but I chalked that up to food poisoning, we had some questionable food at a cantina.”
“Is there a possibility of you being pregnant?”
“I don’t think so. My husband and I take precautions.”
“Please lay still while I perform my scans.”
I lay on the bed for what felt like forever, while the droid above me, passed the scanner over and over and over again.
“Is there a problem?”
“Unsure”
“What do you mean?”
“There seems to be some interference with the scan”
“Can I take a look?”
YX passed me the scanner, usually without the migraine I would have been able to fix whatever the issue was in a matter of seconds, but right now between the searing pain and the blurry vision I couldn’t focus.
“I’m sorry, my vision is really blurry and I can’t focus. I can’t fix it.”
“I will be back momentarily”
YX exited the room, not sure where the droid left to go, couldn’t care much to know anyways. My head was beginning to spin from the pain and trying to focus on fixing a datapad. What was I thinking! Trying to look at a bright screen with a migraine. Idiot! I was trying to calm my breathing while I dealt with the tilting room. I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths, however that was a mistake, as I felt the bile begin to rise again, and rushed to the refresher trying not to sway too much, hoping my legs weren’t going to give out and to make it to the toilet before I lost my ability to hold the bile down. I made it within a step of the bathroom, when the hold broke down, I ended up throwing up all over the floor.
Seeing how I was unable to hold it in, the mess I made on the floor of our bedroom, the once clean shirt, now sprayed with spittle from the bile, my legs not wanting to cooperate, my body not doing what I needed it to, unable to get up from my current position to either clean myself or the floor, it all made me so angry. I clenched my hands, as tears streamed down my face, and screamed as loud as I could while I hit the floor with my fists.
“Ner sarad?” I heard Boba’s concern ringing through as his steps quickened till he kneeled beside me, seeing the tears, the clenched fists, the soiled shirt, the vomit on the floor.
“It’s okay, it’s okay sweetheart, don’t worry about it, I’ll clean it up.” His voice was soft, the concern easing out, his love seeping through his words and the gentle touch to my back, trying to show he wasn’t angry at my weakness, he was only concerned about me.
“NO!” I shouted, I didn’t care about the pain anymore, “NO! It’s not okay! I can’t do a simple thing like make it to the toilet without throwing up all over me. It’s not okay!” I screamed through tears as the smell of vomit wafted up my nose. Boba only moved closer, pressing a kiss to my head, his hands never leaving my side, trying his best to ground me.
“I found a functional scanner” came YX’s voice behind us.
“Droid, come here and help her!” Boba’s voice was laced with frustration at the droid. Without another word, YX came by my side, the droid and Boba on either side, helping me back to bed.
“Where were you?! I asked you to scan my wife 45 minutes ago! How did it take this long!” Boba’s anger wasn’t really at the droid, but rather at himself since there was nothing he could do to take away the pain. The droid was completely unfazed by the anger coming off the man in front of him, beginning to offer a simple explanation of a new scanner needed to be acquired.
“Babe, you’re too loud” I mumbled from my prone position.
“Sorry, ner sarad”
Boba moved away from the droid, I couldn’t see where he went, but knowing him, he went to deal with the vomit on the floor, and then probably to find me another shirt. I didn’t deserve this sweet man’s love. To anyone else he was fierce, authoritative, able to command a room with a simple turn of his head, however, in the privacy of our home, he was sweet, kind, considerate, and always made sure I was looked after.
“This scanner is fully functional, therefore, let’s proceed. Remember to lay still.”
The scanner now working, chimed once it had finished.
“I need a minute to analyze”
Boba came and sat on the bed on the other side of me, his hand patting my forehead, it was soothing and relaxing me completely, I was trying hard not to fall asleep to his ministrations.
“Analysis complete. You are suffering from a migraine.”
“Thank you for stating the obvious, good thing I had to wait 45 minutes to find out what I already knew. Anything else you can tell me from the scan.” I looked over to Boba, and rolled my eyes, he chuckled under his breath, as he leaned forward placing a tender kiss on my forehead.
“The acidity in your stomach is elevated, which is not unusual when you are pregnant.”
“When I’m what …”
I didn’t hear that properly. Boba’s hand that was patting my forehead became stilled.
“What did you say?” I asked, Boba was silent, just staring at the droid.
“The pregnancy explains all your symptoms”. The droid stated matter of factly.
“I’m pregnant?”
The droid didn’t respond, simply analyzed the scan again, “The pregnancy does not explain your hearing issues. Do you have difficulty comprehending? Difficulty hearing?”
“No, di’kut” Boba’s frustration being unleashed on YX again. My hand went to hold his.
“No. I just want to fully understand, you are saying I am pregnant.”
“Correct”
“How far along?”
“First trimester. About six weeks. Migraines, vomiting, nausea are all common symptoms during pregnancy. The vomiting and nausea will become more frequent due to morning sickness, which in most women begins at six weeks and ends by the start of the second trimester. I can give some pain medication for the migraine. It will not affect the fetus’ development.”
“Please” YX administered the medication into the arm I presented for the needle, instantly I started to feel relief.
“I suggest following up with a doctor, you will need regular check ups to make sure the fetus is healthy and there are no complications. For your morning sickness, try having some ginger, plenty of fluids, water and make sure to have electrolytes to avoid dehydration from vomiting. Mint either eating it or smelling it, has proven effective in some women. Try eating something like dry toast or plain biscuits. Frequent meals of healthy and blander foods tend to avoid setting off your nausea. Make sure to have plenty of vegetables, foods that are low in fat and easy to digest. Your doctor can provide you with more suggestions and care.”
“Thank you, we’ll contact a doctor as soon as possible,” Boba said.
“Have a good day” YX left our bedroom.
As soon as the droid left I looked over to Boba, who was still and hadn’t really moved or spoken, outside of the two comments he said to the droid. At that moment, I wasn’t sure if this was something he wanted.
“Boba?”
“Yes, cyar’ika”
“I’m pregnant”
Boba nodded, his face held no emotion, usually I could read his expressions like the back of my hand, but at that moment, it was all unnerving. Until, I noticed the tears welling up in his eyes.
“Are you okay?”
“Sarad” he turned his head to look me in the eye, a smile beginning to form, as a tear slipped down his cheek, “I’m more than okay. You’re giving me a family!”
He bent down and kissed my lips, leaving kisses all over my face, I laughed at his adoration, he rested his forehead against mine, as his breath fanned my cheek. He pulled back a little, “Are you okay?” He asked me, the smile was now a full on grin from ear to ear.
My smile couldn’t help but match his, “Are you kidding! I’m having a baby! Your baby! I didn’t think…”
I sat up, the migraine now a distant memory.
“We’re pregnant!” I shouted, joy overflowing in every fibre of my being.
“We’re pregnant!” Boba shouted, his voice echoing through the room.
I threw my arms around his neck, as his arms found their purchase on my waist, he pulled me closer so I was flushed with his chest, while sitting on his lap, tightening his hold on my waist.
“Cyare, thank you! I never thought I’d have this … I can’t …” I felt my shirt begin to dampen from his tears, I didn’t mind, as my tears were dampening his shirt as well. We were blessed with a child, something neither of us had thought possible. Between his injuries, my own reckless injuries from the dangerous life I had lived before meeting Boba, the idea of having children had been a distant dream that we both thought we would never experience.
We pulled back from each other, his hand resting on my womb.
“You’ve made me the happiest man alive! From this moment forward, I vow to you and our child, I will do everything in my power to make sure this child is loved, they’ll know what it truly means to be free, to know they're not alone. They’ll never be alone.”
His declaration ran deep within me, Boba had told me all about his childhood, lack of a childhood really. How he felt, he didn’t have people he could truly trust or rely on often, especially after his father was killed, how he never really had a childhood friend, or knew what it meant to be a kid. I knew the vow he made wasn’t a light one, there had been so many things he missed out on, he was going to make sure our child didn’t.
I cupped his face, wiping the tears that were still freely flowing, “Ner riduur, our child will have the childhood, neither of us had. You are going to be an amazing dad. You take such good care of me, not just me but all of us here at the Palace. You make sure we are looked after, cared for, protected, having everything we need. You treat everyone justly and fair. I have no doubt, our child will receive that and more from you. I can’t wait to see you be the best father in the universe.”
I kissed his lips hoping my love for him, our dream, and everything, translated to his lips. I pulled back to look into those warm brown eyes.
“Our child is going to have an amazing mother, and I hope they take after you. I hope they’ll have your humour, brilliance, cunning, charm, and beauty.”
I chuckled at the praises that fell so easily from his lips, the same lips that could easily deal a death sentence, “I hope they have your confidence, determination, sense of justice and honour, not to mention your fierceness, your handsomeness, your kindness, your sweet nature. I hope they take all of our best qualities.”
“That I have no doubt, cyar’ika”
He kissed me once more on the lips, shifting me slightly so he could lean down to place a kiss on my womb, when I heard Boba’s soft whisper to our child.
“Ni kar'taylir gar, ner adiik. Ni kar'taylir darasuum gar buir bal gar, ti an ner kar'ta. Ni malyasa'yr draar ba'slanar gar eso.” (I know you, my child. I love your mother and you, with all my heart. I will never leave your sides.)
Boba straightened, adjusting me, so my back was pressed against his chest as his arms wrapped around me, rubbing small soothing circles over our child. As he held me in his arms, we planned what our future was going to look like, now that there was going to be the pitter patter of tiny feet to be heard at the palace. No matter what happened, I knew one thing for sure, this child and any future children were going to have the best dad ever. No doubt.