Y - Yours

Victoria sat ramrod straight in the passenger seat of the Seville as Ryan piloted the car through noonday traffic. Her fingers tugged on the belt keeping her in place but that was the only movement that she made. She dealt with her anxiety the best way she knew how - by keeping it inside, by bottling it up, by trying to appear strong, even if she felt anything but in that moment. She just reminded herself of what her mother kept telling her - "You're a Newman. You're made of the strongest stock. Don't ever forget that."

She felt Ryan reach out and squeeze her arm as they pulled into the parking lot of the small fertility hospital in upstate Wisconsin. The day before Victoria had spent hours inside of a lab being poked and prodded. Today, they would get the results of all of those tests. They would find out if, after the ordeal her body had been through, they could ever have children naturally again.

"I love you, Vicki," Ryan said. "I know that's shallow comfort right now but just know, no matter what Dr. Greene tells us today, I will always love you. And I'll always stand beside you."

Victoria looked over at Ryan finally. "I love you too, Ryan." She offered him a weak smile. "Should we-"

"Yes," Ryan said. "If you're ready."

"Ready as I'll ever be... I want to give you another child someday, Ryan. We have Rina and Reed and we're so lucky but I don't feel like we're done having children, if that makes sense. Not unless Dr. Greene says we are, anyway." Her bottom lip trembled for the briefest of moments and then she squared her shoulders and moved forward, as if she was going into battle. And maybe she was.

Ryan met her on the sidewalk and hand in hand, they walked into the small hospital. They checked in at the front desk and sequestered themselves in a corner of the waiting room, not saying much at all, both too lost in their own thoughts. The nurse finally called them back. The specialist was ready to see them.

They settled in two matching chairs in front of a huge oakwood desk. Dr. Greene, a bespectacled man in his late forties sat on the opposite side of the desk. He looked at them over the tops of his glasses. He had several charts spread before him, ones with her name clearly visible. He wore a somber expression on his craggy face. Victoria felt her heart sink into her toes.

"Mr. and Mrs. McNeil," Dr. Greene started, "thank you for coming in."

"Of course," Victoria said. "Can you tell us if I'll ever be able to carry another child?" She didn't want to beat around the bush or endure niceties. She wanted the cold, hard facts, and wanted them now. Then maybe she could deal with them; or at least, process them somehow.

Dr. Greene looked at Victoria, then at Ryan, and then back at his chart. "I have both good news and bad news."

Victoria tried not to pass out at his words. That wasn't who she was though. She was made of the strongest stock, she reminded herself. Ryan looked at her and she saw the storm of emotion in his blue gaze. She knew he was trying to be strong for her, but she told herself whatever happened, she would be fine. She had to be.

Dr. Greene took off his glasses. "The bad news is that the damage done to your uterus was extensive. You almost needed a hysterectomy, after all." Victoria nodded. Of course, she knew that. "You could likely conceive a child but the possibility of carrying it to term would be almost nil." He looked at them sympathetically as they both slipped down aways in their chairs.

"So," Victoria said, "how is that good news exactly? You're saying that I could get pregnant but would almost certainly lose the baby. How - how am I supposed to be happy with that news?"

"Well, there is a silver lining here."

"What? What silver lining?"

"I am one of the few licensed doctors in this state who can perform a rather radical procedure to essentially repair the damage to your uterus. So that one day, barring any other complications, you could conceive and carry a child to full-term."

Victoria heard Ryan sigh softly but it was almost drowned out by the sound of her own sigh. "You can - you can help us then," Victoria said.

Dr. Greene nodded. "I can."

"Ohmigod," Victoria said.

"Your body needs a little more time to heal. Maybe three to four months and then you can have this procedure."

"Good. I want it," Victoria said immediately.

Ryan was a little more cautious this time. He looked at his wife and then at the doctor. "Is it really safe for Victoria?"

"As safe as any surgery like this can be," Dr. Greene said.

"I'll be fine." Victoria squeezed Ryan's hand. "Thank you, Dr. Greene. Thank you for giving us hope. I didn't want this to be the end for us."

Dr. Greene just nodded. They were soon shown out to make an appointment to return to see the specialist in several months. Victoria knew she wouldn't miss this opportunity. Not for the world.

They walked back to the car and climbed inside. Ryan looked over at her. "You're beaming."

"Yes. I mean, I know this is the answer to every prayer I've said in the past month." She kissed Ryan's cheek. "Can we go home to our kids? Please. I just want to hold them right now."

"Of course." Ryan started the engine.

"You would, wouldn't you?" Victoria said.

Ryan looked at her curiously. "I mean," Victoria said, "you would love me even if I could never give you another baby."

"Of course, Victoria. You're my world. You have to know that."

"I do. I just don't know how I got so lucky," Victoria said.

"Hey. I'm the lucky one… Besides, you're my wife, Victoria. I promised to stand beside you through everything, through every moment, whether good or bad, and I meant it."

"I know. I'm yours alright," Victoria murmured. "For always."

Z - Zoo

2.5 years later…

"Vicki, are you okay in there?" Ryan's voice met her ears. She heard him rap his knuckles gently against the wood of the closed bathroom door. "You've been in there for awhile."

"I'm fine," Victoria answered. Better than fine. She sat on the edge of the clawfoot bathtub, looking at the stick in her hand. "I'll be out in just a second."

A smile shone on her face. When she had first started experiencing nausea and dizziness over a week ago, she wrote it off to being tired and probably overworked, something Ryan always warned her about. However, when she realized last night that she was late too, she had decided to take this test. And sure enough, two pinks lines now stared up at her.

She had almost given up hope of having another baby. Dr. Greene had long since performed the surgery to repair her uterus but in the two years since it happened, she had not gotten pregnant. And not for the lack of trying. She and Ryan were still insatiable.

But somehow, a miracle had finally happened. She was pregnant. She and Ryan were finally going to have the third little baby they'd been hoping for.

Victoria hugged her flat middle for a moment and then carefully placed the stick into a wad of tissue in the trash can. After washing her hands, she fairly floated out of the bathroom.

Ryan was changing into a tee-shirt in the adjoining bedroom when she walked inside. She quietly sidled up behind him, and wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing her cheek to his warm back. "I love you," she said.

Ryan reached out to take her tiny hands into his larger ones. He threaded their fingers. "Oh yeah?"

"Oh yeah," Victoria said. "You have this amazing ability to make all of my dreams come true."

Ryan turned to face her, placing his hands gently on either side of her face. "And what dreams have I made come true?"

"All of them, actually. You gave me a home, and a family… A place to belong. And now … A third special blessing." Her hand dropped to her still-flat belly.

Ryan's eyes went wide. "Vick, are you telling me what I think you're telling me?" He grinned. "Are - are you pregnant?"

"Yes. At least according to the test I just took in the bathroom."

"Oh, Victoria!" He crowed, picking her up and swinging her around and around until she thought she might vomit.

She laughed. "Put me down unless you want your shirt to be ruined," she said pointedly. He placed her back on her two feet and kissed her. She smiled into his lips.

"Ewww! They're kissing again!" A familiar voice came from the doorway. They both laughed as they pulled apart, turning to look at Reed and Rina standing there. Reed looked disgusted and Rina, non-plussed.

"Just wait until you're a little older," Ryan predicted. "Then you won't think kissing is so gross."

Victoria shook her head. "Don't plant any ideas in his head. I want my son to stay a kid for like twenty more years at least."

"That's impossible, Mom," Reed said wisely.

"Well I can dream, can't I?"

Reed shrugged doubtfully, but smiled. "Are we going to the zoo now?" He asked. "I want to see the tigers again."

"Yes, we'll get going."

"I wanna see 'onkey," Rina said.

"A monkey?" Victoria asked. Rina nodded and Victoria swept the brunette little sprite into her arms. "Then a monkey you shall see."

"Mom's in a good mood," Reed said.

"I always am when I'm with you three." She looked over at Ryan. "And someday, four," she whispered to him.

"What did you say?" Reed asked.

"I said, daylight's burning," Victoria replied. It was just understood that they would keep this pregnancy a secret for a little while.

"Alright, let's go!" Reed said enthusiastically. He ran out of the room. Rina squirrelled to be free and join her brother. Victoria let her go and Ryan took Victoria's hand. They stared at each other for a long moment, just marveling how everything had come full circle. They had once thought they would never see each other again, and now by some miracle, they had all of these blessings.

Life was good. Their future shined brighter than the noonday sun, full of endless possibilities.

THE END.