There Was You

Pulling her glasses off of the end of her nose, Riley leant forwards, depositing them onto the coffee table before she allowed her head to loll backwards against the sofa, squeezing her eyes closed to avoid looking at the screen of her laptop any longer. She had been staring at it for most of the morning, with her ultrasound appointment scheduled for that afternoon, she had arranged with her boss to spend the morning working from home, but she hadn’t gotten much done, a dull ache in her head making it nearly impossible for her to concentrate. It wasn’t the first headache that she had had, during the first trimester of her pregnancy, they’d come and gone a couple of times, and she knew that it was likely to be stress of the appointment that afternoon causing it, even if she had no reason to believe that there was anything wrong. She doubted that she would find herself able to relax until Alma had given the all clear.

Squeezing her eyes closed, she gently massaged her temples for a few seconds before she felt a light touch against her forehead, something which caused her to blink her eyes open, glancing up at Iker with a furrow in her forehead. “What are you doing here?” she asked.

“I live here” Iker replied impishly.

Riley shook her head. “You know what I mean” she noted.

“I normally get home about now” Iker replied “It’s nearly one. I figured I would get in, take a quick shower, and then we’d head to the hospital. The appointment’s at two, isn’t it?” he added, sparing a quick look down at his watch.

Riley, who’d closed her eyes again, nodded her head, her fingers gently massaging her temples.

Iker frowned a little as he watched her. “You have a headache?” he asked.

“A little one” Riley replied, not making any attempt to look up at him.

Iker glanced down at her for a moment before he leant over, touching a light kiss against her forehead. “Do you want me to do anything?” he asked, gently pushing her hair off of her face.

Riley allowed her eyes to flutter open before she quirked a little smile, shaking her head slightly. “I’m just worried about this afternoon” she replied gently “Once we’ve seen Alma, and she’s shown us that baby’s doing OK, then I will relax. Besides, I’ve already made plans to come home and take a nap later. I’ll feel better after that” she added.

Iker offered her a slightly dubious look, something which caused Riley to reach a hand out, cupping his cheek gently before she leant into him, brushing her lips over his. “I’m fine” she insisted quietly “Really” she added.

Iker searched her face for a moment before he leant into her, pecking her lips a couple of times before he pulled back, straightening up. “I’ll go and take that shower” he noted “And then well go, yeah?” he asked.

Riley smiled and nodded. “Sounds like a plan” she mused.

~#~
“Your blood pressure is a little higher than it was the last time I saw the two of you” Alma noted as she gently pulled the cuff off of Riley’s arm, settling it down on the cart.

Riley tilted her head. “Is it too high?” she asked.

Alma shook her head quickly, a comforting smile on her face. “It’s not high enough that I am immediately worried about you” she noted “It’s just something to keep an eye on. I’ve got some leaflets around here somewhere about things you can do to help you relax, but a lot of it is making sure that you eat well and sleep well. If you’re feeling particularly stressed, then there are exercises you can do. A lot of the mums-to-be I work with speak pretty highly of things like yoga” she added, scribbling something down into Riley’s notes.

Riley nodded her head slowly, sparing an anxious look towards Iker who merely flashed her a grin in return, his hand gently squeezing hers.

Riley held his stare for a second, feeling herself relax a little, before Alma cleared her throat, pulling the brunette’s attention back towards her. “Are we ready to get started?” she asked.

“Of course” Riley breathed.

Alma flashed her another reassuring grin before she gently leant forwards, pushing Riley’s sweater up over her pronounced bump.

Iker’s grip on Riley’s hand tightened for a moment, causing her to look back at him, her stomach flipping at the look of awe that filled his features.

“It’s going to be cold, Riley” Alma warned gently, smiling a little when Riley gave the inevitable flinch.

Riley squeezed her eyes closed, feeling as Alma ran the scanner over her stomach, before a familiar thumping filled her ears, causing her to let out an audible sigh of relief.

Alma smiled at the sound Riley made. “That’s a good heartbeat” she insisted.

“A strong one” Iker agreed, happily marveling at the screen.

Alma offered him a bright grin before she nodded. “Are you two looking to find out the sex today?” she asked “Baby’s in a pretty great position if you are. Clearly, he or she isn’t going to be camera shy” she teased.

Riley let out a breathy laugh. “It’s not something he or she has inherited from me” she played along.

Alma laughed gently before she shook her head. “Do you two want to know or not?” she asked.

Riley turned to look at Iker. “Do you still want to know?” she asked.

Iker tilted his head, nodding it cautiously. “You know I want to know” he replied “But you’ve always been pretty adamant about waiting” he added.

Riley shrugged, her lips quirking upwards slightly. “We can ask” she quipped.

“You didn’t want to ask” Iker replied.

“Maybe I’ve changed my mind” Riley quipped impishly.

“Riley...”

“Ask” Riley interrupted with a breathy laugh “Just ask, Iker” she added.

Iker offered her an uncertain look, not quite sure if he entirely believed that she had changed her mind, before he turned to Alma, offering her a slightly sheepish grin. “Can we find out?” he asked.

Alma nodded. “You can” she confirmed “Are you both sure?” she added.

Iker glanced at Riley, not missing her encouraging grin, before he nodded his head. “We are” he confirmed.

Alma’s face lit up with a grin. “Well” she mused “In that case, I am delighted to be the one who gets to tell you that you’re going to be having a little boy” she cooed.

Iker laughed, a breathy sound of surprise. “Boy?” he asked.

Alma just nodded her head.

Iker shook his head, trying to wrap his head around the words, before Riley tugged on his arm, pulling him into a tight hug that he was more than happy to melt into, both of them mumbling the phrase ‘we’re having a boy’ over and over.