I have a hella busy schedule these days so updates may take a while but I haven't given up on any my stories!
My Wife and Kids - Chapter 11: Miscarriage
*Flashback to the Start of the Year*
"God, shower sex is so convenient." Emily sighed in satisfaction as she wrapped a towel around herself.
Her boyfriend chuckled from behind the shower curtain. "Sunday funday indeed, am I right?" He joked over the sound of the water.
Emily just bit back a laugh and shook her head as she picked up her toothbrush.
"What're we doing today anyway?" Benji asked as he turned the water off. His girlfriend said something but he couldn't make out what it was due to her brushing her teeth. "What?" He chuckled in amusement, wrapping a towel around his waist once he stepped out of the shower.
Emily spat into the sink before repeating herself. "Shopping."
"For?" The man asked, walking up behind his girlfriend and letting his hands settle on her waist, pulling her gently against him.
"Like everything." The woman replied distractedly as she tilted her head and furrowed her brow.
"What's wrong?" Benji asked as he noticed her expression change. He reached up and let her hair down from its hair tie, running his fingers through her long locks.
"Uh babe, what's the date?" Emily asked quietly as she picked up the unopened box of tampons on the counter.
"January 20th...why?" The 26 year old said slowly once he realised what his girlfriend was holding.
"I-I'm like a week late...Benji I'm never late." Her eyes met her boyfriend's in the mirror, panic written all over her face. "What-I don't…"
"Hey, hey calm down." Benji soothed as he turned her around and held her face in his hands.
"Calm down?" Emily asked incredulously. "How can I be calm when I've just realised I might be-" Her voice cracked as her eyes welled up.
"You don't know yet." The man said calmly. Surprisingly calm for a guy that's just found out his girlfriend might be pregnant.
"Benji, I'm never late." She repeated, shaking her head as she covered her face with her hands.
"Em." Benji said softly, trying to take her hands away from her face. "Emily look at me, babe...please."
The woman finally took her hands away from her face and her boyfriend was quick to grab hold of them, giving them a reassuring squeeze.
"Listen to me, sweetheart." He gently encouraged and she finally locked eyes with him. "I'm gonna run out to the store for you alright? You'll take a test and then whatever comes up, we'll figure it out then okay?"
Benji offered her a nervous smile and she finally nodded.
"Okay." She whispered.
"Benji, what the hell, how many did you buy?" Emily's eyes widened when her boyfriend pulled out more than one pregnancy test.
"...3, 4, 5." Benji counted as he lined up the tests on the counter next to the sink in their ensuite bathroom. He glanced at her with a sheepish grin on his face. "I didn't know which one would be the most accurate so I bought 5."
"Of course you did." Emily nodded with a light chuckle as she picked up one of the tests. This was a very Benji move and she couldn't help but find it quite amusing.
The woman opened up the first box and slowly pulled it out.
"You ready?" Benji asked seriously.
Emily nodded. "Yeah." She swallowed thickly.
"Do you want me to let you get to it or?" He awkwardly pointed over his shoulder with his thumb.
"No, stay. You need to help me."
"Help you?" Benji asked with a furrowed brow as Emily opened up all the tests and handed them to her boyfriend.
"Well since you bought so many I'm gonna need you to hand them to me as I go." Emily explained.
"And who says romance is dead?" Benji joked as he got down on his knees beside the toilet.
"What're you thinking about?" Benji asked softly as he brushed his girlfriend's hair out of her face.
The couple were sitting side by side on the bathroom floor with their backs against the wall, awaiting the results of the tests.
Emily was just staring at her hands in her lap as she exhaled loudly. "Just thinking about whether I'm going to be able to do this if they come back positive." She admitted quietly.
"Of course you will...We will." Benji took hold of her hand and interlocked their fingers, pulling them into his lap.
"When I was growing up, I always wanted to be a mom y'know." Emily began with a sigh as she kept just staring straight ahead as Benji turned his head to face her. "It's just when that finally becomes a real possibility, it's scary as hell." She let out a shaky breath.
"Beca used to run a mile whenever she saw a kid and now she's got a son and a step-daughter. The one and only Beca Mitchell is a mom. A legit mom!" Benji exclaimed with a laugh making his girlfriend giggle. "If she's done it, you can too." He reassured.
Emily smiled and nodded as she thought about her step-sister for a second. This was the girl who was adamant she'd never have kids and now she's a mother of 2 and is handling motherhood like a champ. There was many things Emily looked up to Beca for but she never expected this would be one of them.
If Beca can do it, Emily can do it.
The timer on Benji's phone pulled Emily out of her thoughts and back to reality.
"You ready?" He asked once her turned off the timer, giving her hand a squeeze.
"I got this." She whispered as she pulled herself to her feet and walked over to the counter where all the tests were waiting for her.
Benji stood up but didn't move, he just watched his girlfriend from afar. He chewed on his bottom lip anxiously as he stared at the back of Emily's head as she picked up each test, unable to judge her reactions.
The woman ran her hands through her hair before gripping onto the edge of the counter.
Benji felt like he could die with the anticipation.
"They're all positive." The woman's voice was barely above a whisper.
"W-we're having a baby?" Benji's voice cracked as he couldn't hold back the tears welling in his eyes.
Emily turned around and her heart immediately melted at her boyfriend's expression.
A huge smile was spread across his face, a tear rolling down his cheek and a certain sparkle in his eye that Emily wasn't quite sure whether she had seen it before or not.
"We're having a baby." Emily said quietly with a nod in confirmation.
"Oh my god." Benji rushed out as he finally approached her and pulled her into a tight hug.
Emily smiled as she nuzzled his neck. The thought of having him there every step of the way made this a whole lot easier to take.
They were going to have a baby and they were going to be okay.
The couple are ready for this, they might just not know it yet.
"I feel like I haven't seen you in so long, sweetheart." Kat smiled at her daughter across from her in the booth while she picked up her glass of water.
"I know mom, I've just been so busy with work and stuff." Emily shrugged before she started nervously biting her bottom lip.
The 23 year old invited her mother out to lunch because she wanted to break the news to her now that her and Benji have had their first doctor's appointment.
"You alright?" Kat suspiciously narrowed her eyes.
"Mhm." Emily hummed as she picked up a fry off her plate and popped it in her mouth. "I was at the doctor this morning." She didn't even get a chance to think before the words slipped out her mouth.
"Why?" Her mother panicked, the colour draining out of her face.
"No no, mom, I'm okay. That came out wrong." Emily chuckled awkwardly as she reached forward and took hold of her mother's hand that was resting on the table. She took a deep breath. "I'm pregnant." A small smile appeared on her lips as the words left her mouth.
Kat's mouth opened and closed a few times, the power of speech seeming to fail her as she brought her free hand up to cover her mouth.
"Mom, please say something." Emily chuckled nervously.
"Emily you better not be messing with me." Kat warned as she pulled her hand away, a smile beginning to play at her lips.
"I'm not, Benji and I are really having a baby." The younger woman nodded.
"Congratulations, baby girl." Kat grinned proudly at her daughter. "I didn't know you guys were trying." She said as she finally let go of Emily's hand, now in need of details.
"Oh we weren't…" Emily offered a sheepish grin as she averted her eyes away.
"I see." Kat chuckled as she shook her head. "How far along are you?"
"Only about 7 weeks so please don't tell anyone just yet, not even John."
"Your secret's safe with me, honey." Kat gave her daughter a reassuring wink. "You're going to be an amazing mom, you know that right?"
Emily blushed as she tucked her hair behind her ear.
"And you know what I always say about Benji, he re-"
"Reminds you of dad." The 23 year old smiled softly as she stared down at the table.
They always say that you end up with a man who's similar to your father, right?
When Emily got back home, she found herself sitting on her bed looking through old photos that she kept in a special little box.
"Em you need to look at what I've bought." Benji excitedly burst into their bedroom making Emily jump and quickly put all her photos back in the box.
She had no idea he had even came home.
"First of all, a strawberry milkshake for m'lady." He bit his lip as he handed the milkshake to his girlfriend before climbing onto the bed next to her.
"You're the best." Emily hummed as she slipped the straw into her mouth.
"Look how tiny these are." Benji cooed as he pulled out the tiniest pair of white Converse Emily had ever seen in her life.
"Oh my god." The woman whispered as she took them into her hands. They were so small! "These are adorable."
"They're for the baby." The man stated proudly.
"I can see that." Emily giggled.
"Oh oh, also, look." Benji reached back into the bag and held up a baby onesie.
The 23 year old lifted her head and couldn't help but laugh at was on it. It read 'If you think I'm cute you should see my dad.' "He's very cute." She confirmed as she lifted her hand to gently caress his cheek.
"Are you crying?" Benji asked with a frown as he noticed tears forming in his girlfriend's eyes.
"Yeah but I don't know why." Emily laughed as she wiped her eyes. Everything just seemed to overwhelm her.
"What's this?" The man asked curiously, tapping the small box sitting beside his girlfriend who finally composed herself.
"Nothing." Emily quickly covered her box with her hand.
"Em." Benji gently pushed.
"It's old photos of my dad." The woman admitted quietly and Benji took his hand away.
"Your dad?" He asked in disbelief. Not once has Emily spoke about her dad during all those years of their relationship. Yes he was always curious but he didn't want to bring it up if she wasn't comfortable.
Emily nodded as she picked up the box and slowly opened it up. "I can't remember him, this is all I have. I know I've never talked about him before but I think it's about time I should."
"You don't have to, babe." Benji reminded as he gently squeezed her thigh.
"No, no, I want to. My mom always says you remind her of him by the way." She lifted her head and gave her boyfriend a soft smile through the tears in her eyes. "I think that's why she loves you so much." She giggled.
Benji smiled back, continuing to softly rub her thigh for encouragement.
"He was in the army." Emily began as she pulled out the first photo, handing it over to her boyfriend.
Benji looked down at the photo of the man in uniform, he took a closer look before glancing back up at his girlfriend. "You have his eyes." He smiled.
Emily nodded as she searched through the box before pulling out a photo of her dad holding her the day she was born. "Here."
"Awww." Benji cooed.
"He died when I was just a year old." Emily said quietly as she kept handing Benji different pictures of her late father.
Benji scooted beside his girlfriend and wrapped an arm around her, pulling her into his side.
"I just wish I could remember him properly y'know?" Her voice cracked with tears but she didn't let the emotion completely take over.
"Of course." Benji turned his head and placed a kiss on her temple. "He'd be so proud of how much of a strong woman you've grown into."
Emily nodded as she nuzzled into her boyfriend's neck before she couldn't hold back anymore and began crying freely.
Benji wrapped his arms around her tight and softly swayed side to side. He was glad she opened up to him about this but now he understands why she couldn't bring herself to do it for so long.
2 Weeks Later
Isn't it mind blowing how happy you can be one second and then the next it feels like your whole world is just crumbling beneath your feet?
"Mom!" Emily cried out. "Mom! Please help!" Tears were rapidly streaming down her face.
"Emily, what's wrong?" Kat's panicked voice was finally heard behind the bathroom door, clearly freaked out about her pregnant daughter's distraught crying.
"I-I'm bleeding." The young woman cried.
Kat closed her eyes and rested her forehead against the door. "Emily sweetheart, is it a lot? Because if it's just a little bit then that's usually-"
"Mom, it's a lot, I'm so scared I don't want to-"
"Honey just stay calm for me okay? We need to get it checked out." Her heart was breaking for her daughter but she had to stay strong for her.
*End of Flashback*
"It was just over like that." Emily said sadly with a shake of her head.
"Em I am so sorry, I had no idea you went through something like that." Chloe reached across the counter and stroked the back of her sister-in-law's hand. "You could've came and talked to us. We're family Em."
"I know I should've but you guys had enough to worry about with Xander. It felt like that was the point our relationship started to fall apart so I had to deal with that anyway. Benji was so excited for this baby, it probably broke him more than me when I had the miscarriage. We argued a lot about anything and everything."
Chloe just listened intently to the woman.
"Then the whole marriage thing came up and all that was in the back of my mind was, what's the point in getting married if I can't even give him the one thing I'm supposed to?" Emily's voice cracked again as fresh tears welled in her eyes.
"Emily he wants to marry you for you, he loves you so much. Plus in this day and age there's so many different ways to have kids-"
"Can you please just get the pill for me?" Emily pleaded, obviously wanting this conversation to come to an end.
"Yeah." Chloe nodded with a sigh as she stood up, not wanting to push any further.
I know some of you won't be too thrilled about no bechloe but I had to tell Emily's story and I thought a flashback chapter would be the best way to do it.