Sweet Little Thing(19)

I loved those impromptu concerts with her. We played around like that in the studio all the time, but since finding out Mia was pregnant, it’s like the light that followed her around got brighter. After the morning sickness passed, she smelled better than ever before. She looked better, she glowed, her hair looked shinier, and her cheeks had a natural blush to them. It made me want to keep her pregnant for the rest of our lives. I was surprised at my own old-fashioned, primal thoughts.

When we finally stopped jamming, Mia went to grab her purse. “So, the appointment is in half an hour. Are you going with me?”

“Yep, let’s go.” I grabbed her hand and we headed out.

We rode the subway into the village where the OB/GYN’s office was. After Mia filled out a thousand forms, the nurse took her temperature, blood pressure, and then weighed her before leading us to an exam room where she asked Mia to undress.

I stood up when a young, Asian, female doctor entered the room. “Dr. Chow,” I said, reaching my hand out to greet her.

“It’s Dr. Cho. Three. Simple. Letters,” she said to me without cracking a smile.

“Oh, sorry, Dr. Cho. Nice to meet you.”

She shook my hand, then Mia’s, and then went to the sink to wash her hands.

“So, you had a positive pregnancy test at home and you’re six weeks past the first day of your last menstrual cycle?” she said to Mia, who simply nodded. “Okay, then we can do an ultrasound today to confirm and see if we can find the heartbeat.”

I could tell Dr. Cho was a straight shooter. She didn’t mess around and probably didn’t have the best bedside manner, either. She pulled the long stick from the ultrasound machine to perform the test transvaginally. Like I said, I’m a quick study. I didn’t even flinch when Dr. Cho held the probe up with triumph. Mia’s legs were already propped and spread in the stirrups. I stood by her head and stroked her hair while our eyes stayed glued to the monitor.

Suddenly on the screen appeared an oval shape floating in a large black circle. You could immediately see the steady flicker of a heartbeat.

There are moments in life that you know you’ll never forget, even while it’s happening, and that was one of them. “She’s going to be a drummer!” I announced before the doctor could even speak.

Mia elbowed me. “Shhh.”

That’s when we heard it. It sounded like a pounding and sucking at the same time, but it was the most beautiful sound I had ever heard. It was the sound of my kid’s heartbeat.

“See, baby, she’s gonna be a drummer.”

“What if it’s a boy?” she said.

The doctor interrupted us. “We won’t be able to tell the sex for some time.”

“I can’t imagine not having a beautiful little girl that looks just like you.”

Pointing at the monitor, Mia smiled. “That’s our baby.”

“I know.” I kissed her forehead and then swallowed back the huge lump growing in my throat.

The doctor visit was short. She just reminded Mia to take her prenatal vitamins and then gave us a bunch of packets of information.

Back at home, lying in bed, Mia and I swept through the endless pamphlets and information booklets, periodically asking each other questions.

“Oh, look, we can tour the hospital. You’re not thinking you’re gonna have the baby at home, are you?”

“Martha suggested it, but I’m not crazy.”

“Good. That would make me a nervous wreck.”

“If it’s a girl, I want to name her Grace.”

“Okay, if it’s a boy, I think we should name him Hamsel,” I said, straight-faced.

“What?” Her tone was not nice.

“Yeah, I’ve always loved the name Hamsel, or we can name him Wilbur Jr. and just call him Junior for short.” I finally had mercy when Mia’s eyes were open as wide as they would go. “I’m kidding. What names do you like?”

“For a boy, hmm. I don’t know; we’ll have to think on it. I really like Birch or Branch, you know something earthy…maybe Webb.” I laughed but she deadpanned, “What? I mean if you don’t like those, I also really like Stream or Haze.”

Oh my God, she’s serious.

She tilted her head to the side, smiled, and cackled like a witch. “Ha, ha, Will. Two can play this game.”

“Thank God, I thought you were serious. Shit.”

She socked me in the chest. “See, it’s not fun being messed with it, is it?”

“You can mess with me anytime.” I grabbed myself.

“Will!” She screamed and then jumped out of bed. As she exited the room, I heard her quietly mumble, “You’re a pig.”



TRACK 7: Wedding Bands

The morning of our wedding, Mia slipped out and went to Jenny’s with her mom, Martha, and Sheil to get ready while I entertained the massive number of family members who’d come into town. Along with Mia’s step-dad, my parents, my brother, and six of my sisters and their families flew in for the ceremony. Our plan was to have the short-but-sweet ceremony at the pier and then everyone would go back to a local restaurant for a wedding dinner. We didn’t do the reception thing. I honestly didn’t think Mia would feel up to that much commotion, and it would have cost us a fortune. Since Mia didn’t want to go out of town after finding out she was pregnant, I reserved a suite at the Ritz-Carlton for our wedding night.