You don't have to be pessimistic

Dr Henry Thomas pinched the bridge of his nose. "Ron, actually Jayne is a Thalassemia-minor."

The corner of Ronnie's eyes crinkled. He clicked his head. "Thalassemia-minor? What does that mean uncle?"

Dr Henry Thomas drew in a sharp breath, "Let me explain to you in a very simple language."

"Thalassemia is a group of genetic diseases that affects the blood by reducing the count or I can tell you, it's the defective production of red blood cells and hemoglobin in the body. Due to this, the  transport of oxygen from the lungs to the other parts of the body is hampered."

"Genetic disorder?" Ronnie stood up in the next instant. He was clearly shocked beyond words.

"Ron, please calm down. Listen to me completely. Please sit down." Dr Henry Thomas gently squeezed Ronnie's palm which was resting on the table.

Ronnie nodded. But then, he could hardly breathe. "Okay uncle!" He agreed.

Dr Henry Thomas continued to explain. "Ron, there are many types of Thalassemia. Let me not go into the details of others and restrict myself to Thalassemia-minor." 

"Our Jayne is a Thalassemia-minor. In such a condition, the person inherits one defective gene from either of a carrier parent. He may have no symptoms or mild symptoms of anemia. This condition is very similar to mild iron deficiency anemia. However, a person with Thalassemia-minor has normal levels of iron as well. It is not a serious form of the disease at all. The patient may not require any treatment. He usually lives a normal life." Dr Henry Thomas explained at length. 

Ronnie felt slightly relieved to hear this.

"Do you know why I asked you to listen to it completely? Are you okay now?" Dr Henry Thomas questioned him.

"Yes uncle… Jayne is having a normal life." Ronnie answered him.

"Exactly Ron! That's the reason we don't find any difference in Jayne. She's leading a very normal life. But then, the problem will arise when she gets pregnant. Her mutant gene can get inherited by your child." Dr Henry Thomas came to the actual point.

"So, when she gets pregnant, I'll perform certain tests to estimate the occurrence of Thalassemia in the progeny. Based on the results, I'll counsel you two about whether you can carry on with the pregnancy or have to interrupt it in case the foetus suffers from a severe form of the disease." Dr Henry Thomas by far summarised her entire condition. 

Ronnie somewhat understood Jayne's condition. 

Dr Henry Thomas justified, "That's the reason, I asked you to slow down with her pregnancy. There are chances that she might not even bear your child. You both must prepare yourselves for this." He cautioned. 

"Uncle, if that's the case we don't even want to take that risk. We're more than happy this way. We don't need kids. I love Jayne for what she's and not so that she'd bear my child." Ronnie uttered with total determination. 

"Ronnie, my child, you guys are still very young. You have a long life ahead. Plus, you don't have to be pessimistic either since she's just a carrier. The chances of having a normal baby is in fact high as well. So, when the time is right, we'll discuss about this." Dr Henry Thomas added.

"Uncle can you please do me a favour?" Ronnie pleaded Dr Henry Thomas. 

"Sure Ron! Go ahead!" Dr Henry Thomas agreed without even listening to what Ronnie wanted from him.

"Uncle, we're not telling this to Jayne or anybody else in the family. I'll bring Jayne to your house in the next week. You can just tell her that her body is still recovering from her accident and it still needs time to recover." Ronnie requested.

Dr Henry Thomas frowned. "But then-" 

Ronnie interrupted Dr Henry Thomas, "Uncle please trust me. I'll handle this." Ronnie assured him.

"As far as it doesn't cause any problem to my wife, I've no problem with this Uncle." Ronnie added.

"Like I told you, Jayne is leading a perfectly normal life like anybody else. So, you don't have to worry about it." Dr Henry Thomas assured Ronnie as he got up to leave.

After Dr Henry Thomas left, Ronnie snapped back to his normal self like he heard nothing from him. He very well knew Jayne could easily make out any slight change in him. He went back to casually conversing with everybody else.