“I’ve got one.”
We find two seats in the corner, tucked a little away from everyone else, and I start filling everything out. Name. Date of birth. Address. Easy things. Things that don’t require a full mental spiral.
When I get to the emergency contact section, I hesitate. My mom is the automatic answer. She’s always been my emergency contact. But I’m having a baby now.Things are different, and the lines on this page feel heavier than they did five minutes ago.
Jake notices the pause. “You okay?”
“Just thinking.”
He doesn’t push. Just waits, ankle resting on opposite knee, fingers tapping lightly against his knee like he’s giving all that lawyer energy something to do besides hover.
After a moment, I write my mom’s name and number in the first line. The familiar choice. The safe one. Then I glance over at him.
“Can I put you as my second emergency contact?” I ask.
His expression shifts. Surprise, then this warm, almost shy kind of pleased. “Yeah,” he says. “Of course.”
I write his name and number on the second line. Seeing it there makes something low in my chest loosen and tighten at the same time. We’re tied together now in more ways than just biology.
When I finish the forms, I slide the clipboard toward him. “Can you fill out the father’s section?”
He takes the clipboard like it’s an actual contract that might go before a judge, eyes scanning each line with that focused, careful attention that made him one of my dad’s favorite attorneys before any of this.
“Here you go,” he says finally, handing it back.
We sit in companionable silence for a few minutes before a nurse appears in the doorway, clipboard in hand.
“Natalie?”
Jake stands immediately. When he places his hand on the small of my back to usher me through the doorway, my stomach flips. I’m not sure if it’s from the nerves or him.I hand the completed forms to the receptionist as we pass, and decide it might be a bit of both.
The nurse leads us down a hallway lined with exam rooms, the floor a little too shiny under the fluorescent lights. “Right in here. I’m going to get your weight and blood pressure, then the doctor will be in shortly.”
She glances at Jake and smiles. “Dad, you can have a seat right there.”
Jake sits in the chair by the window, phone in his hand, knuckles white around it like it’s some kind of grounding device.
“You can go ahead and change into the gown. Opening in the front,” the nurse says, heading for the door.
“Do you want me to step out?” Jake asks immediately, already half rising.
“No.” I shake my head. “Just…turn around for a second.”
I change quickly, the gown thin and drafty and making me feel far more exposed than I’d like. My bare legs dangle off the side of the table.
“Okay,” I say.
He turns back around, eyes firmly on my face. I can literally see him make a conscious decision not to allow his gaze to drop below my shoulders, which is both sweet and slightly ridiculous.
“You okay?” he asks.
“I’m great,” I lie, swinging my foot once.
This is so awkward.
A knock sounds, then the door opens and a woman in a white coat steps inside. “Hi there.” She smiles as she checks the chart on her tablet. “Natalie? I’m Dr. Nelson.”
“Hi,” I say, forcing my voice not to squeak.
