Chapter 28
TWENTY-EIGHT
VANESSA
This isn’t how I imagined today going. I’m eight months pregnant, and I was really hoping I’d have more time to figure out how to be a mom.
For months now, I’ve been preparing myself to raise two kids on my own if Mateo never comes back, thinking about how I’d tell them who their father is and how much he loved them, even if he isn’t here.
I guess today is when all of that becomes real.
I’m in Dr. Ryan’s office for my thirty-five-week checkup. With twins, I probably won’t make it to full term, but I was still hoping for a little more time. She walks in just a few minutes after the ultrasound tech leaves.
“How are you feeling?” she asks.
“I’m doing okay. It’s really starting to feel real.”
She gives me a gentle smile. “You’re getting close. Have you noticed any contractions?”
“Maybe a little, but nothing that feels serious. Just some tightness here and there.”
“Okay, let’s take a look at these two.”
She applies gel and moves the ultrasound wand across my stomach.
“So, it looks like Baby A has turned, but Baby B hasn’t yet.”
She shifts the wand, and the steady thump of two heartbeats fills the room. I glance at the screen and see them both moving, which is a relief.
“They both look healthy. Let’s check for any signs of dilation.”
She grows quiet again.
“Are you sure you haven’t had any contractions?” she asks.
“I don’t think so. I had a few this morning, but they didn’t last long. They were probably just Braxton Hicks.”
“Well, you’re seven centimeters dilated, so you’re definitely in labor. Sometimes the contractions feel like Braxton Hicks when they’re actually the real thing. I think we need to get you to the hospital. It looks like these two are coming today.”
As soon as she says it, a contraction hits me so hard it makes me nauseous.
I guess these two really are coming today.