With the water supply generally considered to be responsible for the majority of pregnancies in and around Rhy'Din, most people were surprised to note that the Family Clinic attached to Rhy'Din General Hospital was located on the riverside campus site. In fact, the view from the waiting room overlooked said river. It was a pleasant enough diversion for most people, however.
Vicki had already been told off by her doctor once this week for not having found a midwife yet, much less not having an ultrasound scan, and as a result, she and Jon had been crammed into the radiographer's schedule at the earliest opportunity. Hospitals being what they were, though, the ultrasound suite was backed up a little with appointments, and thus, Vicki was bored out of her mind in the waiting room, her head resting comfortably on Jon's shoulder. "Is the idea of all this to keep us waiting until I have the baby early out of sheer desperation to get out of this place?" she complained mildly to her husband, lifting her head to look at him with her usual brand of comical dismay.
Jon was breaking his own cardinal rule by flipping through magainzes while sitting in the waiting room, killing time. He was currently flipping through an issue of Nexus Weekly magazine, pausing at a page that featured a photograph of himself, supposedly getting dropped off at the Spaceport. "When the hell did they take this?" he muttered to himself, curiously. Distracted away from the magazine by Vicki's impatience, he chuckled and glanced her way. "Patience is a virtue, Vicki. I doubt we'll be waiting here..." He had to think a minute, unsure how far along she was exactly. "Six months, is it?"
She shrugged, more than a little at a loss with dates herself. February the tenth was her best guess for a due date, but she wasn't exactly trained for this. "I don't know," she admitted a little helplessly. "It's all very new to me." Her eyes lowered to the magazine in his hands. "Since when do you wear baseball caps?"
"I don't..." He furrowed his brows as he looked back to the photo. "I don't remember this photo being taken. Is this supposed to be the Spaceport' I never use the Spaceport. I always use the portal to go back and forth." Jon handed the magazine to Vicki to have a closer look and turned to look through the pile of magazines on the table beside him, tossing several aside, until he came to one that had him cussing like a sailor, which was very un-Jonlike. "Son of a....What the eff....I was giving that kid an autograph!" Jon declared, his face flushing with anger. This was exactly why he made a point of never reading gossip mags. The cover read: Jonathan Granger, A Deadbeat Dad.
"What the eff?" Vicki repeated laughingly, looking over at him in amusement. "Did I miss the memo telling us to be on our best behaviour again, love?" She grinned, lifting her hand to gently touch a fond caress to his cheek as the door opened across from them and another expecting couple walked out, both of them smiling over a scan picture. The redhead couldn't help feeling a little envious of them - they seemed to be completely calm and enjoying the anticipation of having a baby. She was shaking like a leaf, deep down.
She blinked, distracted by Jon's angry declaration, and looked down at the magazine in his hands. A loud snort of laughter escaped her lips. "Easy, love - remember, this is the magazine that declared Piper had left Oliver and was shacking up with another man a couple of months ago. They love making things up."
"You don't think I do have any love children floating around anywhere, do you?" he asked, frowning worriedly. He didn't remember his past and really had no idea what skeletons might be lurking in his closet, other than the ones he'd read about in his own journals. He knew his past was less than lily white, but he didn't think there were any kids involved.
She sighed softly, smiling as her hand came down on the pages, closing both magazines and tossing them back onto the table in front of him. "I think if you did, someone would have come forward by now to remind you of it," she assured him, twining her fingers with his. "The only child you have is this one, Jon." Drawing his hand across, she turned his palm against her slowly increasing belly, wishing he could feel the little flutter inside that was the baby's quickening.
It was just like Vicki to turn Jon's frown into a smile as his hand came to rest against the swell of her belly beneath which their baby was residing, growing and waiting to be born. "The only child I want is this one, " he said, leaning toward her. "And the other five," he added, pecking a kiss against her cheek with a sly grin.
She laughed softly, her head turning to bump her nose to his at his sly teasing. "Five, hmm?" she asked, tempted to suggest he do all the work next time and see whether he still wanted many. "Have you picked them out of the catalogue yet?"
The door to another ultrasound suite opened, and the radiographer came out, smiling over at them encouragingly. "Mr and Mrs Granger" Would you like to come through?"
"I've placed an order for one of them to look just like her mother," he replied, smooching a kiss at the tip of her nose. His smile softened, undeniable adoration shining in his blue eyes, before turning to glance up at the technician who had come to fetch them. He gaze Vicki's hand a reassuring squeeze as he looked back at her, smiling warmly. "Ready, Mrs. Granger?"
He always had known exactly how to melt her, even when she was a child. A comment here, a smile there, a kiss to calm her down even when he didn't realise she wanted it; Jon always gave Vicki exactly what she needed in the moment she needed it. Wrapped up in his loving softness, her smile lost its nervous edge as she looked up at the technician, moving to rise to her feet with Jon. "If I say no, are you going to tie me up in a sack, Mr Granger?" she asked her husband playfully, drawing him with her toward the private room. Only Jon knew just how tightly she was holding onto his hand; Vicki was terrified that they were about to find out she'd hurt their baby somehow over the past months.
Jon chuckled at her question as he got tugged along with her toward the radiology room. "How about I tie you up later?" he smirked, a teasing gleam in his blue eyes, which seemed to lack any hint of nervousness. In fact, other than for his annoyance at the scandalous magazine photos, he seemed the epitomy of calm.
"Promises, promises." How is he so calm' Why am I the nervous wreck here? Her nerves made the quiet snort of laughter his smirking suggestion earned a little less rich than it might otherwise have been, her smile wavering just a little as the door closed behind them.
The technician glanced over to them again. "If you could lie back here, Mrs Granger, and uncover your stomach," he suggested quietly, finding Jon's gaze with a faint grin. "Feel free to pull that stool up close, Mr Granger."
Vicki had already been told off by her doctor once this week for not having found a midwife yet, much less not having an ultrasound scan, and as a result, she and Jon had been crammed into the radiographer's schedule at the earliest opportunity. Hospitals being what they were, though, the ultrasound suite was backed up a little with appointments, and thus, Vicki was bored out of her mind in the waiting room, her head resting comfortably on Jon's shoulder. "Is the idea of all this to keep us waiting until I have the baby early out of sheer desperation to get out of this place?" she complained mildly to her husband, lifting her head to look at him with her usual brand of comical dismay.
Jon was breaking his own cardinal rule by flipping through magainzes while sitting in the waiting room, killing time. He was currently flipping through an issue of Nexus Weekly magazine, pausing at a page that featured a photograph of himself, supposedly getting dropped off at the Spaceport. "When the hell did they take this?" he muttered to himself, curiously. Distracted away from the magazine by Vicki's impatience, he chuckled and glanced her way. "Patience is a virtue, Vicki. I doubt we'll be waiting here..." He had to think a minute, unsure how far along she was exactly. "Six months, is it?"
She shrugged, more than a little at a loss with dates herself. February the tenth was her best guess for a due date, but she wasn't exactly trained for this. "I don't know," she admitted a little helplessly. "It's all very new to me." Her eyes lowered to the magazine in his hands. "Since when do you wear baseball caps?"
"I don't..." He furrowed his brows as he looked back to the photo. "I don't remember this photo being taken. Is this supposed to be the Spaceport' I never use the Spaceport. I always use the portal to go back and forth." Jon handed the magazine to Vicki to have a closer look and turned to look through the pile of magazines on the table beside him, tossing several aside, until he came to one that had him cussing like a sailor, which was very un-Jonlike. "Son of a....What the eff....I was giving that kid an autograph!" Jon declared, his face flushing with anger. This was exactly why he made a point of never reading gossip mags. The cover read: Jonathan Granger, A Deadbeat Dad.
"What the eff?" Vicki repeated laughingly, looking over at him in amusement. "Did I miss the memo telling us to be on our best behaviour again, love?" She grinned, lifting her hand to gently touch a fond caress to his cheek as the door opened across from them and another expecting couple walked out, both of them smiling over a scan picture. The redhead couldn't help feeling a little envious of them - they seemed to be completely calm and enjoying the anticipation of having a baby. She was shaking like a leaf, deep down.
She blinked, distracted by Jon's angry declaration, and looked down at the magazine in his hands. A loud snort of laughter escaped her lips. "Easy, love - remember, this is the magazine that declared Piper had left Oliver and was shacking up with another man a couple of months ago. They love making things up."
"You don't think I do have any love children floating around anywhere, do you?" he asked, frowning worriedly. He didn't remember his past and really had no idea what skeletons might be lurking in his closet, other than the ones he'd read about in his own journals. He knew his past was less than lily white, but he didn't think there were any kids involved.
She sighed softly, smiling as her hand came down on the pages, closing both magazines and tossing them back onto the table in front of him. "I think if you did, someone would have come forward by now to remind you of it," she assured him, twining her fingers with his. "The only child you have is this one, Jon." Drawing his hand across, she turned his palm against her slowly increasing belly, wishing he could feel the little flutter inside that was the baby's quickening.
It was just like Vicki to turn Jon's frown into a smile as his hand came to rest against the swell of her belly beneath which their baby was residing, growing and waiting to be born. "The only child I want is this one, " he said, leaning toward her. "And the other five," he added, pecking a kiss against her cheek with a sly grin.
She laughed softly, her head turning to bump her nose to his at his sly teasing. "Five, hmm?" she asked, tempted to suggest he do all the work next time and see whether he still wanted many. "Have you picked them out of the catalogue yet?"
The door to another ultrasound suite opened, and the radiographer came out, smiling over at them encouragingly. "Mr and Mrs Granger" Would you like to come through?"
"I've placed an order for one of them to look just like her mother," he replied, smooching a kiss at the tip of her nose. His smile softened, undeniable adoration shining in his blue eyes, before turning to glance up at the technician who had come to fetch them. He gaze Vicki's hand a reassuring squeeze as he looked back at her, smiling warmly. "Ready, Mrs. Granger?"
He always had known exactly how to melt her, even when she was a child. A comment here, a smile there, a kiss to calm her down even when he didn't realise she wanted it; Jon always gave Vicki exactly what she needed in the moment she needed it. Wrapped up in his loving softness, her smile lost its nervous edge as she looked up at the technician, moving to rise to her feet with Jon. "If I say no, are you going to tie me up in a sack, Mr Granger?" she asked her husband playfully, drawing him with her toward the private room. Only Jon knew just how tightly she was holding onto his hand; Vicki was terrified that they were about to find out she'd hurt their baby somehow over the past months.
Jon chuckled at her question as he got tugged along with her toward the radiology room. "How about I tie you up later?" he smirked, a teasing gleam in his blue eyes, which seemed to lack any hint of nervousness. In fact, other than for his annoyance at the scandalous magazine photos, he seemed the epitomy of calm.
"Promises, promises." How is he so calm' Why am I the nervous wreck here? Her nerves made the quiet snort of laughter his smirking suggestion earned a little less rich than it might otherwise have been, her smile wavering just a little as the door closed behind them.
The technician glanced over to them again. "If you could lie back here, Mrs Granger, and uncover your stomach," he suggested quietly, finding Jon's gaze with a faint grin. "Feel free to pull that stool up close, Mr Granger."