6 Chapter 6
We entered the ultrasound room in Seoul hospital. It was a small room, with a single bed and an ultrasound machine. With the dim lights and monitors, it seemed as if we were going to see our baby live.
The doctor asked Ava to lie on the bed. I could feel her fear and excitement simultaneously.
“You may leave your husband’s hand, Ava, nothing to worry about the ultrasound, “the doctor said, pulling her top, exposing her stomach which was slightly enlarged by then. I took a step back at a position to keep an eye on the monitor as well as her.
The doctor poured some serum on her stomach and asked the nurse to switch off the lights. The doctor then picked up a transducer probe and started moving it on her stomach. Ava was smiling as it was cold and ticklish. Soon we could see the black and white image on the monitor. I was stressing my eyes to get the precise image of our baby, but I could only make out a hazy picture.
“Look at this point; this is your baby. Yes, this white moving spot, “the doctor confirmed, placing her finger on the screen.
“Oh! So sweet, my baby, “ Ava replied with a beatific smile on her face. I took a step towards her to hold her hand again, it was the most breathtaking event of my life. I could feel the presence of our love; I could feel the baby‘s presence around us. Ava was pressing my wrist with every movement of the baby on the screen.
“So, what are you both expecting, a girl or a boy? “The doctor asked with a smile, continuing marking some lines on the screen.
“It must be a beautiful girl like my wife, “I replied, Ava immediately interrupted, “no, it must be handsome like my husband.”
The doctor smiled and continued making some notes, “let’s see who will win. “
The doctor then shifted her probe to the lower part of the stomach, she was trying to find something ; I am not sure what, but suddenly her smile converted to attend space. She was marking some sports and measurements on the screen. My eyes were on her and the display, whereas Ava was still smiling looking at the baby.
“Is everything fine, Doctor?” I asked.
The doctor asked the nurse to clean Ava’s stomach and shifted her chair to the desk, searching for some intercom number on the paper placed.
“You may take Ava to Dr Min; I will be informing her on the phone. “
“Is everything fine, mam? “I again questioned.
“Nothing to worry. “This time she smiled and replied. I then helped Ava to step down from the bed, and we started moving downstairs to meet Dr. Min holding hands.
“ he is so cute, my small Ash,” Ava said with a curious smile on her face.
“No, she is so cute, my small princess, “I retorted. She then pinched me on my shoulder to win the argument. But then she stopped, closed the distance between us and presented her two fingers in front of me.
“Oh! Not this again, “I replied showing an irritated face. “Pick one fast or say, it’s a baby boy. “
“Never, let me pick one, “I replied and with her middle finger this time. “Yes! Yes! Yes! It’s a baby boy. I was always sure, “She replied with excitement. I continued working, giving her a glazed look. She followed me, smiling as we reached outside Dr. Min’s cabin. I knocked on the door and opened it slightly. “Yes, please come in. “She responded from inside, sitting on her chair. I kept holding the door and allowed Ava to enter first. We took our seats and handed over the file to her.
“Okay, so I just got a call from the Doctor who did your ultrasound. “I looked a little tense after reading her face. “Is everything fine, Doctor?” I questioned, interrupting her. “Nothing to worry about as of now. But yes, time to take precautions. “She slightly leaned the bank on her chair to speak to us and continued. “Ultrasound to suspects or disorder of the placenta. “She replied and before I could ask more she took her pen and paper to explain, “placenta is the organ which is attached to the womb and provides nourishment for the growing baby. Your placenta is near or lying across the cervix that is the neck of the warm, and it can block the baby’s way out.”
“Is it serious, what should we do now? “I immediately questioned, holding Ava’s hand. She lost her smile hearing this.
“Nothing to worry. If the placenta is low in the womb, there is a higher chance of bleeding during pregnancy and to avoid that, Ava must remain in complete bed rest now, “She confirmed.
“Bed rest means, I can’t even go to the kitchen or washroom? “ Ava interrupted.
“Not exactly like that. But yes, try to rest more. Avoid working in the kitchen or cleaning the house or long drives. It would be better if you call someone to help – your mother or someone. Someone needs to be with you. I know your husband can’t be with you all the time. “
“Sure mam. We will make some arrangements, “I confirmed. The doctor wrote down some medicines, and then we stood up to go home.
I was more cautious about Ava, so I asked her to walk slowly. And also drove the car at the speed of not more than 20 km/h.
“With this speed, we will reach home tomorrow, “
“Be quiet Ava, you need to be cautious, and we have to plan things now. Till now, we have not informed any of our parents. The first thing we need to do is inform them and then ask your mom to come home and stay with us. “I replied, still driving slowly on the empty road of Seoul.
“My mom can’t come, you know; she is busy handling Tyler’s baby while he and his wife go to the office, “ Ava said.
Ava’s mother needed to take care of the baby, her elder brother Tyler's son, while Tyler and his wife Yua went to work.
“We need to call your mom, Ash.”
“But you know, she will not come without dad from Busan. And you also know he doesn’t like you, nor would he like to stay with me, “I replied with a grave look.
“I know he doesn’t like me, but he will be happy hearing that he is going to be a grandfather. I’m sure everything will be fine, “ Ava assured me.
“How can you be so understanding, when I am so tense? “I showed my concern. “They are our parents, and I will be happy with them. And who knows, because of our baby, the misunderstanding may be forgotten. “
Ava knew how to get me to agree to everything, and she was an expert at that. My father, who was once my role model and best friend, was left far behind in a relationship as I grew up from a boy to a man. My relationship with my father started going downhill after my 10th class result. A space had grown between us, which I could never Bridge.
I still remember the day when I was leaving for school after my 10th class to opt for subjects. And I was excited as I was sure I was going to take maths for my engineering.
“You will be getting the subject for your choice easily, my boy. Tonight we will have a grand party for your first stepping stone to become an engineer. “
Dad said while I was sitting on the sofa tying my shoelaces.
“I will make chicken nuggets tonight, your dad‘s favourite. “Mom replied sitting in front of me.
“Why dad? You must cook my favourite as I studied harder, “I replied standing adjusting my jeans.
“Okay son, will make your favourite egg curry as well. Happy now? “Mom replied smiling.
I picked up my documents and said goodbye.
“Enjoy your day son, we will be waiting for the party tonight, “dad waved from behind as I cycled out of the gate. I waved back with a smile on my face. Soon, I reached the school and found a line of students outside the principal's room, opting for all subjects. I stood behind Jackson Who was last in the queue.
“Hey Jackson, which subject are you planning to take, “
“I am taking banking, and you? “He replied and questioned back. “Science with maths, “I replied. “You always wanted maths ; you told me before as well. “
“Yes, maths is something I love, and I want to go for engineering in the future. “I was replying to Jackson when I saw Ava coming out of the principal’s Cabin with a big broad smile on her face. She was dressed in a yellow top and a black skirt, with a scarf. She looked beautiful and different that day. She was wearing silver earrings, had her hair open, with a light pink Chapstick on her soft lips. I knew I loved her, but when I saw her that day, I felt as if space and time became the finest imaginable, as if time collapsed into one speak and exploded at the speed of light. It felt like she was my universe. My mind started thinking; I could run forever, search forever, but in the end, every part would lead back to her heart and soul because she was the one whom I loved, she was the one I would die for.
“Hey, Ava. Which subject? “I shouted at her, still in the queue. She turned to me and came running. “Arts, I told you before. “ I congratulated her, and before I could speak further, she excused herself as she wanted to talk to some of our batch mates who would be joining her in the same class. For a moment I felt alone, and began to wonder, what if I were to lose her forever. As soon as we Met, I knew she was the one. The one I would spend my days thinking of and the one I would spend my nights dreaming about. The one who would hold me when I would cry and the one who would laugh with me. The one who I would share my life with and the one I would love forever in my life. But at that moment of my life, I felt I was going to lose her forever. I was afraid that she would find someone better than me in a new class, or amongst the new batch mates, or maybe during her further studies.
Soon, we would be sitting in different classes, soon she would go to a different college for further studies, and I would go for mine. Soon distance would separate us, soon communication would be less frequent. Soon I would not find her near me, soon I would not see her every day. Would I be able to win her heart? I got confused with so many thoughts in my head. On the one hand, there was my love. On the other was dad, my role model. I was not bothered about my career then, but worried about how to make my father understand. I was worried about not letting her go. I was concerned about losing her forever. And then I took a decision, which changed the world relation forever. I opted for arts.
I knew my father was angry with me, but I was not sure he would continue to be so for seven years. Now, after nine years, I never regretted taking arts. After being in the marketing industry, I knew I was always meant for this. I enjoy my job. Maybe my love for engineering is what is the love of my father which has overshadowed my own interests.
