by Lane Hart
“Well,” he said as he considered it. “You know your parents will be thrilled. My parents on the other hand, well, they’ll be excited for us but they’ll probably scare the shit out of you when they start telling you how tough they had it with me.”
He was right. My parents had been thinking about grandkids since we told them we were engaged. “I’m sure you weren’t that bad.” I really couldn’t see him as being a “problem child.”
He looked at me with a serious expression. “Oh, you have no idea. I don’t want to worry you unnecessarily, but have you thought about what it will take to keep up with a child that can be almost any animal with absolutely no control?”
Oh, well no. “What exactly do you mean?”
He put down his fork and said, “When I was two my parents had to lure me out from under the refrigerator with a hunk of cheese. I had shifted into a mouse and I wouldn’t come out from under there for hours. It would have been a nightmare if I had shifted back to normal while I was under there."
He paused a moment as he reminisced and gave me a chance to let it sink in. "Then when I was four I shifted into a monkey and wouldn’t come down from the trees in our yard. Thank goodness we didn't have any neighbors for miles.”
Oh. Now I was starting to get it. “So it’s going to be hard to keep up with our baby if it’s a boy, and really hard to keep this secret under wraps?”
“Exactly,” he answered. “The only good thing is that if it is a boy, at least I will be able to shift into whatever it takes to keep up with him. I always felt bad for my mom. She would have to call my dad and wait for him to get home from work to track me down some days. But that’s only if it’s a boy, which I hope it’s not, for our sakes.”
“Well, don’t worry about that,” I said. “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it, and it can’t be that bad. I want you to be happy about this and not worry so much. Everything will be fine.”
“I don’t know if you have noticed, but if we do have a boy there will be one good to come from this, um, situation,” he said.
That was a surprise. “What’s that?” I asked.
“Haven’t you noticed that over the last three years since you’ve known me I’ve never been sick?” he said.
Come to think about it, I was pretty darn healthy but I made at least two or three trips to the doctor a year, and yet Ben has never been to a doctor that I know of, or had the sniffles.
“So you and your dad never get sick?”
Ben shook his head with a grin, “Nope. Never.” Then he added, “And um, not to be smug but you know for a fact that I don’t work out or lift weights to maintain this kind of size.”
“Wow. I’m not very perceptive am I?” I joked, looking him over like I’d never really seen him before. I suddenly had more questions about the wilder side of him. “So, what’s it like when you shift?”
Ben furrowed his brow as he thought about it. “Well, despite how it looks, it doesn’t hurt. It’s more like a tingling sensation all over, sort of like when your foot falls asleep.”
“And do you still feel like yourself?” I asked.
“Yeah, of course,” he frowned at me. “You’re not worried about me hurting you when I’m an animal are you?”
“Well, no, not really,” I answered honestly. “I was just wondering what it’s like to see, I don’t know, everything from that animal’s point of view,” I tried to explain.
“It’s pretty much like when I’m myself, but depending on the animal I might be able to see or hear better, it just depends. When I was younger I’d spend hours shifting from one animal to the next just to try each of them out,” he said with a smile.
“So, um, why did you change into a penguin yesterday?” I asked, surprised by the rather unusual selection.
Ben chuckled and then looked slightly embarrassed. “I’m not sure. It was just sort of the first thing I thought of. I knew you liked penguins and I was afraid that if I changed into a dog or cat it would be too, I don’t know, ‘normal’ for you to actually realize it was me shifting.”
I guess that kind of made sense. If he had shifted first into a dog or cat I’d probably have just picked him up and went on my way thinking it had just somehow found its way into our house.
“Is the shifting the reason you went to veterinary school?”
“I don’t know, I guess. I just couldn’t see myself working in an office with a lot of people, trying to hide this side of me. I feel like because of the shifting I can relate to the animals better than anyone else, so I thought I’d be good at working with them.”
“And you did finish at the top of your class in school didn’t you?” I bragged on him.
“Technically, but I always felt like I was cheating.”
“You were born this way, and if that’s the advantage you got for having to struggle with this your whole life then I’d say it leveled the playing field. And, you’re the smartest person I know,” I told him trying to cheer him up.
“Maybe,” he said with a half-smile, and I could see some of his confidence returning. “You’re actually handling all of this better than I expected. Now I regret keeping it from you for this long.”
“No, I get it. Need to know basis was probably best.” I hesitated and then added, “And um, I think I know why my birth control pills didn’t work.”
Ben raised an eyebrow in question.
“So, you remember a few weeks ago when I had pneumonia and the doctor put me on an antibiotic?”
He thought about it for a moment. “Ah. The antibiotic reduced the effectiveness of the birth control, and since we didn’t use a backup method during that period of time …” he chuckled as he let the sentence trail off.
I felt my face redden in embarrassment of my fubar. “That’s it. I’m sorry. I should’ve known and been more careful,” I said as I got up and walked over to rinse my now empty plate in the sink.
Ben came over and stood behind me, wrapping his arms around me and kissing me on the side of my neck.
“You know I’m not upset and I don’t blame you," he said. "This is great. I’m sorry about my reaction yesterday. It wasn’t you being pregnant that worried me but having to face telling you I’m a freak and our child might be too. I didn’t even think there was a chance we’d ever have a baby, so this is amazing, really. I was just terrified you wouldn’t want to be in the same room with me after you found out.”
I turned around in his arms to face him and gave him a kiss. “Good. And I know you are going to be a great father,” I said as I ran my hand over his muscular chest and abs before tugging on his waistband and biting my lip suggestively. “But you’re not a freak, and I’m not going anywhere.”
Before I finished my sentence Ben had thrown me over his shoulder and was carrying me to our bedroom. I was really enjoying us having a weekday morning off together.
He laid me down on the bed and quickly began removing articles of our clothing. I was about to tell him we should take weekdays off more often when he was suddenly between my legs making me gasp and forget my own name.
Chapter
Eight
After Ben reluctantly left for work I went online to try and find an OBGYN. I looked for one near my office so that I wouldn’t miss much work during checkups. Then I started wondering if or when I’d even be able to go back to work after the baby was born. If it’s a boy, finding a sitter would be out of the question for secrecy’s sake. If it’s a girl, well, it will be hard to leave her and go back to work full time. Let’s just focus on one problem at a time for now Emily, I told myself.
I found an OBGYN within walking distance of my office and they put me down for an appointment on May 16th, over two months from now. The nurse assured me that there was no reason for the doctor to see me this soon. I told her I had passed out last night and asked how I was supposed to deal with the god-awful morning sickness until May.
She calmly told me to call back if I had any spotting and suggested I eat something ev
ery few hours and as soon as I wake up in the mornings. I made hasty notes on a post-it as she gave me some over-the-counter remedies to try and ease the morning sickness, instructed me to immediately start taking prenatal vitamins, and gave me a long ass list of things I shouldn’t eat or do. I should’ve grabbed a bigger piece of paper. It appeared that my sushi eating and trampoline jumping days were over for at least a few months.
A little while later I was lined up at the pharmacy with my vitamins and several options for nausea. Luckily, the cashier I was unnecessarily rude to yesterday wasn’t working today. I was going to play the hormone card again for that outburst.
As soon as I was out of the store I put on my new acupressure “motion sickness bracelets” to see if they really worked, and then remembered I needed to call my parents to see if we could come over for dinner tonight. I wanted to tell them our news in some cute way, and finally thought of just the thing.
As I pulled out of the pharmacy parking lot and headed down the highway to Kohl’s I went ahead and made the call. I knew I had to try and keep my voice as normal as possible if my mom answered because she had a bizarre psychic ability when it came to me keeping secrets from her.
My mom answered on the second ring. “Hi Em, why aren’t you at work?” she asked with concern.
Shit! I had completely forgotten it was three o’clock in the afternoon and she knew I worked until at least five o’clock every weekday. Shit again.
“Oh hey, I, um, you know, had to take a late lunch. Trial prep is keeping us really busy right now.”
“Uh huh,” she said in disbelief.
“So, ah, do you and dad have plans tonight?”
“No, and I just put a roast and vegetables in the crockpot. You and Ben want to join us? Is everything okay? You don’t sound like yourself?”
God, the woman was a human lie detector.
“Yeah, that’d be great,” I answered quickly, then decided I better hang up before I gave anything else away. “Well, I’ve got to hurry up and get back to the office. See you about six-thirty?” I asked.
“Sure, we’ll see you then. You sure everything's okay?” she asked again.
“Yes, mom,” I answered, hoping to end the interrogation.
She sighed. “If you say so sweetie. See you tonight.”
About that time I pulled into the Kohl’s parking lot, which was uncrowded due to the time of day, and made my way inside. I resisted the urge to go by the baby section and quickly found what I was looking for, along with four gift bags and some tissue paper.
I made a stop at the bookstore to pick up a “What to Expect” book. I wanted to know what I was in for while I waited until my doctor appointment in May. May, jeez, that seemed like forever from now. I drove home just missing rush hour traffic, and had a few crackers to try and hold off the increasing nausea.
While I had some time I read through a few chapters in my book, which only caused more anxiety, and then wrapped the gifts for our parents. I didn’t know if the motion sickness bracelets were really helping, or if it was the snacking, but I hadn’t phoned my old buddy Ralph all afternoon, which was a huge relief.
Chapter
Nine
Ben got home from work with just enough time to shower and change before we had to head over to my parents’ house. After we got in the car and were on our way I started getting nervous. I knew they would be happy, but I hadn’t had a chance to talk to Ben about what we’d tell them if it’s a boy. How could I keep that sort of thing from them? “Oh no mom, this is not your grandson. This is our new pet raccoon that we keep in the house” or insert various other animals. That would never get past my omniscient mother.
Ben must have known what I was thinking in the silence because he reached over and put his hand on top of mine, giving it a squeeze.
“It’s going to be fine. If it’s a boy we can tell them. I’m sure they would keep it a secret.”
“Yeah, of course they would," I responded. Who would they tell? One word and they’d be shipped off to the looney bin.
“My book said the doctor will do an ultrasound around twenty weeks, so fifteen weeks from now we should know.”
“I’m not going to lie, if it’s a girl our lives will be so much easier. Not to mention she’ll be beautiful like her mother,” he said as he glanced at me and gave me a smile. “But I think the two of us could handle a boy. You may not be able to work for the first few years but between your parents and mine maybe they could stay with him some. Either way, we’ll cross that bridge in fifteen weeks.”
Even through Ben’s concern I could tell there was a part of him that was hoping for a boy.
We pulled into my parents’ driveway a moment later, and made our way up their stepping stone sidewalk. My mom was waiting for us at the door. She had her light brown hair pulled back and was wearing a red and white striped outfit that probably came from some store’s children’s department. If I was petite then she would be considered a midget. Although, what she lacked in size she made up for in her fierce tenacity.
“Hey guys, come on in. I just put everything on the table.” She quickly hugged both of us in greeting and then stepped back to look over us as if trying to figure out what was up. I didn’t miss the glances she kept giving the two gift bags in my hand.
“Thanks for having us over Mrs. Jennings,” Ben said shyly. He looked like the Jolly Green Giant standing next to my mother.
“Oh, Ben! How many times do I have to tell you? Call me Julie,” she said with a smile as she led us down the hallway.
We passed the family pictures of us together and some of which were of me when I was a baby. I did a double take on some of them wondering if they could be a glimpse into the future of what our son or daughter might look like. I glanced over my shoulder and noticed Ben was looking thoughtfully at the pictures too.
My dad was already in his seat at the head of the dining room table loading up his plate.
“Hey dad,” I said as we walked through the kitchen, and I gave him a peck on the cheek.
“Hey sweetie, come on in and grab a plate. Hey Ben, how’s business?” my dad asked.
“It’s going great sir, Mr. Jennings, I mean Robert,” he stuttered, unsure of how to address my father who still intimidated him. Ben had a good five inches and probably sixty pounds of muscle on my dad’s average size but fit frame. Somehow I didn’t think it was my dad’s size that concerned Ben, but his tough and sometimes caustic nature.
“Rob is fine son, you’re family now,” my dad told him genuinely. Ben didn’t have anything to worry about. Even my dad had to admit I’d hit the jackpot with Ben, and he and my mom both thought the world of him. I uncomfortably wondered if that would change if we had to tell them his secret.
We all took our seats at the dinner table, and before I could take a sip of my water my mom’s patience snapped. I was surprised it took her this long.
“So, what’ve you got in the bags, Em?” she asked with a sly smile and a twinkle in her eyes.
“Oh, it’s just a little something for you and dad,” I said as I handed them each a gift bag.
“So, what’s the occasion?” she asked insistently.
“Why don’t you just open them and find out?”
She of course was the first one to dig into her bag.
“Oh my goodness!” she squealed, and coming out of the chair so fast she almost flipped it over, actually jumped up and down off the ground. “I knew it! I knew it when I talked to you earlier! Come give me a hug! This is so wonderful!”
A few happy tears slid out of my eyes as I went over to hug her. I glanced over at my dad but he was still fumbling with the tissue paper and his forehead was wrinkled in confusion.
He finally pulled his shirt out and said, “Grandfather? What are you saying, that I’m an old man? Oh. Oh! You’re pregnant?”
Nothing gets past him. I went over to give him a hug too as he smiled warmly. Then he looked at Ben and his eyes narrowed and his expression shifte
d to one of severe protectiveness, as if I was a fifteen-year-old year girl that Ben had just deflowered.
“We’re married dad, remember, you were at the wedding?” I kidded him. It’s not as if I was a virgin on our wedding night either but I’d rather my dad think I had been pure than ever have to go there.
“Oh, I know, it’s just you seem so young. I know you are going to make great parents and this baby is going to have the best grandparents around,” he said as he puffed out his chest in pride.
After we got through with all the hugs and excitement we finally found our way back to our seats at the table, each of us wiping our eyes surreptitiously.
The entire dinner conversation was baby centered, “Do we think it’s a girl or boy? When is the baby due? Are you going back to work? When did you find out? Have you been sick?” and a million other questions, some of which I hadn’t even had the time to consider myself.
It was nice when Ben and I finally made it back to our quiet car and headed home. I could tell he had been considerably more anxiety ridden by the past two hours than even I had been. Apparently he had not had time to consider all the questions they had posed, either. We got home and called it an early night. I was asleep before my head could hit the pillow.
Chapter
Ten
The next morning I was up not so bright but early with the alarm clock at six a.m. Ugh. I decided to have a few crackers and some juice before getting ready for work to try and head off the morning sickness. I had my trusty motion sickness bracelets on too.
I wasn’t going to tell anyone at work that we were expecting until after my doctor’s appointment in May. It was going to be tough to keep my mouth shut, but I thought I could manage it if I was careful.
My plan literally went right down the drain around nine a.m. My boss came into my office and asked me to pull the crime scene photos from our murder case.
