Chapter 118: Impending Fatherhood

Doctor's Office, Lakeshore Ave, Baltiney, New York...

 The ticking of the clock on the far wall had been a tedious thing to have to endure as Ken Ryker found himself forced to sit in a boring and semi-crowded lobby at the doctor's office beside a rather nervous and anxious Valencia Ramos along with her mother Sylvia Ramos and his mother Mildred Kennison. Sylvia had been worried for her eldest daughter and insisted on showing up for her and her unborn grandchild so she could see with her own eyes that mother and baby were doing alright. Mildred had agreed, although she'd mostly showed up to ensure that her son, had been doing his utmost to support the expecting mother and his future wife as agreed upon at the family dinner turned engagement party. 

 After a long and agonizing wait with the concerned future grandmothers, both Ken and Valencia were called back into the exam room to speak with the doctor about the baby's development. Ken had not known how many weeks she'd been along but he wasn't in the least looking forward to having a kid, he'd been lousy with his now-dead children and here Valencia and his mother were forcing him to do it all over again. 

Aside from haunting memories that he had no control over and vivid flashes of his time with his family, Ken had not recalled much about his older children aside from their ages at the time of their death and occasionally the look of their dead bodies when the unwanted memory of them came flooding back on a cold and dark night just to ruin whatever he'd had going. 

It was apparent from the home movies and considerable family tales that little Carter Kennison had been his favorite of the two sons, reminding him so much of his mother, while Sera had favored Kevin due to him being so much like Ryker in those days. 

With a glare from Mildred, Ken accompanied a nervous Valencia and offered a measure of support and assistance despite his opinion on the matter of her pregnancy. As Valencia sat down and was prepared for the examination, Ken spent a good deal of time reading the posters on the walls not at all interested in what was happening with Valencia or the rapidly developing baby. The doctor had stepped out for a few moments to make sense of some charts and Ken found himself alone with a pregnant and vulnerable Valencia looking at being a mother for the first time in her young life. 

"I can't believe we're finally going to see the baby," she said more so to herself than to Ken, she'd known all too well how he felt about everything and that she and his mother had forced his hand when it came to his involvement with this child. 

Ken folded his arms across his navy blue suit-clad chest and stood near the far wall not wishing to be anywhere near her. He wore no tie and the collar of his long-sleeved white dress shirt was unbuttoned as he stood attempting to amuse himself for a short amount of time in a bid to mentally escape the scene. 

Valencia imagined he'd been thrilled when Sera had told him about her pregnancies and actively participated when it came to their hospital visits and weekly care. She had known she'd forced the entire situation on Ken but she was still a bit disappointed that he hadn't truly come around to the idea of them having a baby together, they were engaged and expecting their first child and it was like pulling teeth with him. 

Ken sighed noting the very palpable fear that filed across Valencia's beautiful young face as he tried his best to ignore how much she needed him. She'd gotten what she wanted and still, it didn't seem to be enough. Sadly, he'd known all too well that having this baby was not only stressful but terrifying to her as well given it was her first child, and possibly only child. 

In truth, Ken had been just as nervous about the new arrival as she was and forced himself to think about her need for comfort as opposed to his own. He ventured across the exam room and despite his reluctance, took her hand even as he stared across the room at the many posters he'd read at least five times since venturing into this place. 

Contrary to everyone's beliefs, he had not known the first thing about how to be a father or a husband, the man who knew all that had perished in the wake of the tragic car accident he'd caused of his own accord. Ken only knew how to broker deals, be it in the boardroom or in some manner to get what he wanted in terms of sex and Spyder's kandy, he knew next to nothing about having or maintaining a family, and even less about being a father despite the home videos and anecdotes from those around him about better times. 

He knew he was screwed up in some fashion and wanted nothing to do with raising another human being to be just as screwed up as he was, least of all passing on his rather questionable genes to them. 

Valencia had been near tears and very grateful as she gripped Ken's hand despite his back being toward her and him looking at the posters along the far wall. She sighed taking even the small measure of an attempt to comfort her in this rather delicate situation. 

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

 After several moments, the doctor arrived and they were able to not only make sense of all the chaos from the past few months but also to see the baby for themselves. According to the doctor, Valencia had been about four months pregnant, or rather 18 weeks. Ken had not known all the technical terms nor what that truly meant until he saw the images on the ultrasound machine as clear as Valencia had. 

"Looks like you two are going to be expecting a baby boy." said the doctor seemingly happy for them. 

Valencia had been in tears as she looked over at the early images of her unborn son. 

Ken had been quiet, and his body stiff despite Valencia still gripping his hand as he noted the images of ultrasound. The tiny bundle had been moving and was indeed showing all indications that it was a son in the making.