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Emmeline’s heart thumped in her chest, her hand clutching desperately onto Zee’s.
Most women would have been happy for their first routine ultrasound, but Emmeline was anything but. Okay, she was a little happy, but the fear gripped her belly like a tight fist. They didn’t have IVF in East Mountain, but she knew her case was even more special than just standard IVF. She had been told—through a bunch of medical jargon her small-town-Texan-education just didn’t understand—that the procedure was experimental, and it may not yield the desired results. Doctor baloney, as she’d put it. She wanted to have a baby with her girlfriend, so she should be able to do it. Zee tightened her grip on Emmeline’s hand.
Emmeline’s knee bounced nervously, and she swallowed the lump in her throat. She was sitting on the examination bench waiting for Angelyne, going over the details in her head. She’d kept a strict diet, avoided intercourse, avoided exercise, took her medication every day, avoided hot baths (and God, did she miss hot baths), and worst of all: she had waited to take a pregnancy test. There was an eagerness in her allying with the stubbornness she naturally carried herself with. Eight weeks of doing nothing but treating herself like a feather was taking a toll on her psyche. She wanted desperately to know if the injections had worked, but she knew she could not. Not until today, exactly six weeks from the date of conception. Injection? For her own sake, she would say injection, because God forbid the needles fail her. And besides just failing her… she really didn’t want to disappoint Zee. Zee had been laser focused the entire time Angelyne implanted the embryos, watching and listening closely for any signs of pain. Emmeline noted that it was the only time both her and Zee’s tails had ever been completely still.
Angelyne rolled in with the sonography machine and Emmeline had to shut her eyes. Zee licked her shoulder affectionately. “Zee wishes Emmie not to worry.” She uttered. “Will have baby soon.” Gently, she ran a hand over Emmeline’s lower abdomen. It wasn’t flat (it had never been flat, the girl liked to eat) but Emmeline was sure—despite her girlfriend’s insistence—that there was no baby in it. Zee gently helped Emmeline lie down on the table, rolling her shirt up while Angelyne prepared.
“I know this is scary, but it’ll be alright.” She assured the two of them, dispensing cold gel into Emmeline’s belly. “We implanted eight, remember?”
How could Emmeline have forgotten? The standard was five for IVF, but she’d requested eight. Eight chances were better than five, but it would mean so much more to her if it failed.
“Ready?” Angel asked, looking directly at Emmeline.
“Yes, ma’am.” She replied, huskily.
The wand rubbed over her belly a few times, evenly dispersing the gel a few times, before it started to make conclusive movements. Each moment felt like eternity. Emmeline wasn’t sure how she wasn’t sweating the gel off entirely. After a few long moments of silence, Angelyne smiled at the couple.
“We have a heartbeat.”
The tightness in Emmeline’s chest softened immediately, and she couldn’t help but let out a breath of relief. Zee happily licked her girlfriend’s face a few times, “What Zee tell you? Have baby. Nervous for nothing.”
Emmeline was so happy, she almost didn’t hear the way Angelyne gulped audibly.
“And another heartbeat.”
Two? Two babies? She was having twins with the love of her life. Emmeline’s heart rate picked up again, and she almost spoke up before Angelyne once again cut her off.
“… and another. And… oh, my, that’s quite a few heartbeats, isn’t it?” She offered a nervous chuckle that Emmeline didn’t return.
“Wait… how many?” But she didn’t listen to the number. Zee’s tail swished with excitement, and Emmeline’s did too (albeit without her knowledge).
“A… congratulations. To both of you. All of you!” Angelyne anxiously wiped off Emmeline’s stomach and left the room.
“Emmie did good job,” Zee wrapped her arms around Emmeline’s shoulders. “So strong.”
Emmeline returned the hug, burying her face in her girlfriend’s neck. “Proud’a me?” She asked softly, tears welling up in her eyes.
“How Zee not be proud? Emmie strong.” She assured her, squeezing her ever tighter. Emmeline sniffled, and Zee licked her tears.
“God, Zee, I’m a gumball machine.” She laughed for the first time that day. Zee smiled back.
“Pretty gumball machine.” She murmured, still licking her girlfriend’s face. “Very pretty gumball machine.”