Chapter #5Weeks Later by: BeeJay   It was an ordinary mid-October morning: Birds not heading south for the winter were singing; leaves were falling off the trees; and there was general discussion of who would assist Mom in handing out treats on Halloween.
What wasn't ordinary that morning, however, was the return trip my breakfast was making.
Mom knocked on the bathroom door. "Is everything alright, Sweetie?"
"Sick as a dog," I managed to say between stomach upheavals.
"I'll call the school, and tell them you're not feeling well. Then, I'll see about getting you in to see Dr. Madison. You shouldn't be feeling like this."
I certainly wouldn't argue with that.
******************************
Dr. Madison wasn't in that morning, so I had to see one of her associates. Dr. Ross was pleasant enough, though, as she shook my hand. "What brings you in to see me this morning, Valerie?"
"I spent the morning throwing up."
"Well, I'm sorry to hear that. How are you feeling now?"
"My stomach's settled down since then."
She turned to Mom. "Has anyone else in the house been throwing up?"
"No, Doctor. This came out of the blue."
Turning back to me, the doctor asked, "When was your last period?"
"Just a couple of weeks ago. It was spotty, and didn't last as long, but it was right on schedule."
"And are you sexually active?"
"No, I'm not."
"Doctor," Mom asked, "are you suggesting that she might be pregnant?"
"We have a saying in the medical field, Mrs. Baker: When you hear hoofbeats, think horses, not zebras. It means that, when certain symptoms present themselves, the more obvious conclusion is more likely to be true. The most common causes of nausea in women your daughter's age are food poisoning and pregnancy. Still, let's run some tests, to see what we're looking at."
And so she sent me to the lab to have my blood drawn, and to get a cup for a urine sample. Luckily, I had been peeing more frequently lately, so providing one was no problem. Then, we returned to the exam room to wait for the results.
Dr. Ross didn't keep us waiting for long. "Valerie, would you like for me to discuss this with you privately?"
I shook my head, and held Mom's hand. "Just tell me what it is."
"Well, it's official: You're pregnant."   indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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