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Chapter Forty Three

For the first time in my life, I was disappointed that I actually had a Monday off from school. I actually fit in and I was becoming fast friends with Apple and Taurus. But, it was Martin Luther King, Jr. day and everyone had the day off.

I had been driving for two weeks. Dad was a horrible backseat driver. By the time my lesson was done for the day, his knuckles were as white as snow. The instructor kept telling me I was doing a great job; I think he had wanted to kick dad out on the curb a time or two. But even the driving school was closed today.

The one thing that wasn't closed today was the doctor's office and that in itself was exciting. I was finally going to be able to say 'him' or 'her' when I talked about the baby.

Mom and dad were both with me. By the time we pulled up to the office, I was clutching at the door handle.

"Well, here we go," mom said. I was already getting out of the car.

Mom had decided to take me to Dr. Tresher. She was the same doctor who helped Ally and Joe when they were born so premature. And she had delivered Brayden and Tristan.

Now she was my doctor.

We walked into the office. Several extremely pregnant women were sitting in the waiting area. I walked up to the counter with mom and checked in. I seriously sat down and looked around before realizing that there was one young guy in the room.

Mason.

"MAS!" I squealed.

"Surprise," he said with a smile.

I got back out of my seat, albeit awkwardly.

"What are you doing here?"

"I convinced dad to let me come down here. I didn't want to miss this."

He stood up and I hugged him tightly.

"I can't believe you're here!"

"Only for a couple hours," he said with a smile.

"I'm a little nervous," I whispered. I hadn't wanted to admit it to mom and dad.

"Me too. But excited," he whispered. I nodded.

"Shelby?"

I turned. The nurse was standing there, clipboard in hand.

"Follow me."

It was like a parade. Mom gave Mason a hug and we all headed back into the exam room.

The nurse took my blood pressure and then we were left to wait. The waiting was excruciating. I had to pee. BAD. I had downed like two bottles of Gatorade before we came and it was hitting me full force.

"Don't think about it," mom said. I glanced at her. She knew my discomfort. I took a deep breath. There was a knock and then Dr. Tresher poked her head in.

"Ah, we have a big crowd for today's show," she said lightly.

One of the reasons I liked her was because she was always totally calm. And she didn't lecture or judge.

"AJ, long time no see. Molly," Dr. Tresher said was a nod. She looked at Mason. "And is this the daddy?"

I smiled. "Yeah, this is Mason."

Dr. Tresher held out her hand and Mason shook her hand.

"Good to meet you. I'm sure we'll beseeing more of each other."

Mason smiled. I sqiurmed.

I was going to explode.

Dr. Tresher glanced my way. "Let's see what we're dealing with, okay?"

I nodded. Mason hopped out of his chair.

I was five months pregnant. I was getting to the point where I couldn't even see my feet. Ally had actually been able to feel the little roly-poly moving around last night.

"Cold touch," Dr. Tresher warned. The gel hit my stomach and I sucked in a breath.

Mom still has the picture from her ultrasound from when she was pregnant with Brayden and Tristan. It was a 3-D shot of the two huddled together. She always gets emotional when she sees that.

"Alright, time for popcorn."

I turned my head towards the screen. It flickered and came to life.

And there it was. Not just an it but a person. Little nose, closed eyes, little hands balled into tiny fists...

"Oh wow," Mason said softly.

"Shelby's told me you want to be a doctor Mason," Dr. Tresher said conversationally.

"Yes ma'am."

"Well, this is your first exam. What do you see?"

Mason looked shocked. I was praying this whole doctor dream of his wasn't just a whim. I had to pee and I was dying to know what I was carrying in my gigantic stomach.

"Well, there's the head and I can make out the nose, eyes, ears..."

"Fingers, toes..."

He got quiet.

"It's a girl," he said confidently.

"Are you sure?" dad asked. I had a feeling he was thinking back to the little five year old boy freaking out on the plane. Mason actually smiled.

"No weiner," he said lightly.

I looked up at Dr. Tresher. She nodded.

"A+ Mason," she said. "It's a girl."

"A daughter," he said happily.

I studied the screen. As the image on the screen moved, I felt the same movement inside. It was a crazy thing to witness.

Mason leaned down and kissed my forehead. I heard the sounds of the images being printed.

"A girl," I said softly.

Our girl.

-----------------------------

"Dad, it's a girl," Mason said. We were driving back to the airport and Mason had his dad on speaker.

"Really?" Kevin said. He sounded surprised.

"She's beautiful," Mason said. He puffed his chest out. I smiled. I was feeling much better now that I had been allowed to pee.

"A granddaughter?" Kev asked. I think he had been so sure he was going to hear the word 'grandson' that it was just really throwing him for a loop.

"Yup."

"I can't believe I'm going to be a grandparent," my dad said from his perch behind the wheel.

"So everything's okay?" Kevin asked.

"Perfect," Mason said. He glanced over at me. I smiled.

"Well, wow." There was a pause. "Call me when you get into Lexington okay?"

"I will. Love you dad."

"Love you too."

Mason hung up. He had already called his mom. She hadn't even cared that she had been wrong. She had started planning my baby shower with mom over speakerphone (I guess the theme was 'pink'). Luckily, Mason had cut her off.

The airport came into view. I reached out and touched his arm. He leaned over and kissed me.

"Until we meet again," he said softly. He leaned down and kissed my stomach.

"And you too little girl," he whispered.

The waterworks came then. I waved my hands in front of my face to get more airflow. I really hated the airport. And planes. Sure, they got Mason here. But they were also taking him back.

And the more times we did this send-off, the more I began to feel like I should be sitting in the seat right next to him.

"I'm moving to Kentucky!" I blurted out as dad parked the car.

Mom and dad both swiveled around.

"We've got time to talk--" dad reasoned, but I cut him off.

I shook my head.

"No, dad. I'm sure. As soon as the baby's born, I'm moving to Kentucky."