The CEO’s New Baby

Chapter 4

Bright light. That was the first thing that popped into her mind. She thought, or rather acknowledged, that way before she even opened her eyes. She could see the shadows of the bright rays playing on the surface of her closed eyelids. Her mind was foggy, a mess of clouds and darkness. She tried to recall her last memory, to remember when she had fallen asleep or rather where, but she couldn’t. Her head hurt only by thinking about it.

Kayla associated the feeling with a hangover. The symptoms were so similar: loss of memory, muscle ache, and headache. But that couldn’t be the case, she knew she would never drink while pregnant. Pregnant. That was the thought that pulled her back to reality.

It was like a wakeup call, a memory that was too strong to be forgotten by her body, no matter how worn out her brain was. Her eyes immediately opened, moving in sync with her hands that went to rest on her, still flat, belly.

There was white and silver everywhere. The metallic handles and bars of the different machines were in contrast with the white sheets and coats around her. She could hear voices coming from beside her too. She recognized them clearly. They matched the exact two voices she had heard before she fell into the darkness that had lured her in.

“Ryan?” Her lips moved on their own, curling to form the only word her body seemed to know in such a crisis.

The murmurs that had been going on around her suddenly stopped. The room got silent, the three voices seemed to stop in sync, along with the sound of sniffing and heavy breathing.

“Kayla!” She had never heard her voice being uttered with such relief or happiness. The emotions, however, dripped from Ryan’s voice.

He was by her side in seconds, his hand grabbing hers, while the other moved to cup her face. She could swear she saw tears in his eyes, a kind of moisture Kayla had never witnessed. Worry was written all over his face, and he had every right to be. She could only imagine the terrifying thoughts that had run through his mind up to the point when they arrived at the hospital.

However, while everyone else was worried about her, she was worrying about the baby. She could take any injury or any harm, but she could never survive knowing that her baby was hurt. Call it mother instinct, or unconditional love. She did not know. It did not matter either. All she needed to understand and acknowledge was that she would give up her life for any child of hers. Even one she was yet to hold.

“The baby?” she whispered, her hand slipping from his as it came to rest once again over her belly.

“The baby is fine. You, on the other hand, gave us a good scare,” Ryan said.

“Oh, stop talking. I’m fine. I told you, it’s my body adjusting to the pregnancy. Right, Doctor?” Kayla looked past Ryan and towards the man behind her mother.

He was old with white hair and a crooked nose. The white coat hugged his figure, clinging to the curve of his stomach.

“Well, I was just telling your husband that we are unsure. Your lab results just came in, and certain levels made us skeptical. While the theory of the pregnancy might just be right, we would like to perform an MRI scan. Just to be sure.” Performing the procedure did not mean anything, but the mere thought of it made a chill run down her spine. There was something about it that made Kayla shiver.

It felt like a bad omen, her gut did not accept it at all. And yet, what could she say to disagree with the doctor? He knew best. She needed to make sure she was safe and healthy, if not for her, then for her still unborn child.

“The doctor is right, honey, we should make sure everything is all right. Ryan told me you almost fainted yesterday too.” If only they knew. She had been feeling dizzy for weeks now, the exhaustion that had settled over her body seemed to be impossible to get rid of.

She wasn’t going to tell them that though. That would only scare them more. And that was certainly not fair to them. Kayla could read the fear and worry on their faces. She needed to be strong for them. She needed to show them that everything was fine, or in fact, more than fine.

“Okay. But first, where is Emily?” She prayed to God that her mother and Ryan had been smart enough not to scare the little girl.

“Meredith told her we had to attend an important business meeting. Don’t worry about that. Focus on you for now.” Kayla sighed and sank deeper into the white sheets of the uncomfortable hospital bed. She closed her eyes for a second and allowed herself a moment to think.

It was funny how life keep putting her in the oddest of situations. A few hours ago, she was on cloud nine, revealing the happy news of her pregnancy. And now, just like that, she was lying in a hospital bed, hoping that the results of her tests would be clear.

“Mom, how about you go home? Assure Meredith that I am okay. Ryan is here with me anyway.” In fact, Kayla wished to have as much privacy as possible. She hated hospitals, that little fact hadn’t changed over the years.

To her, those buildings still represented the dark shadows of death and pain. All she needed was Ryan by her side. His presence was the only antidote to all her fears and worries. He always had been.

“Kayla is right. We will call you as soon as we get the results.” He seemed to understand her unspoken words. But it wasn’t unusual. They were like that. They didn’t only complete one another, they also understood the other half as if it was themselves.

Tanya clearly wanted to protest, she had parted her lips and took in a deep breath. But Kayla looked her in the eyes seriously, speaking silently, asking her mother to listen to her just this once. Tanya’s shoulders sank as she sighed. She slightly nodded and looked towards the doctor, before grabbing the bag that had been resting on the black iron chair in the corner of the room.

“Okay. But call me as soon as you get those results. Okay?!” She was dead serious, her eyes boring into Ryan’s, daring him not to listen to her.

Tanya was as intimidating as her daughter. Their hazel gazes could make Ryan agree to almost anything. But then again, maybe it wasn’t the fact that they were intimidating, maybe it was just the fact that they were his family. He cared about them, and their well-being, maybe even more than he did about himself.

“Don’t worry. I will.”

Just as he finished his sentence, the front door of the room opened. The brunette nurse who had been in earlier peeked her head inside, her eyes gazing past them and towards the doctor who was silently watching.

“Dr. Mike, we are clear for the scan.”

“Okay. Thank you, Sara. I will go make sure everything is all right there. Sara will speak to you and bring you to the room.”

That was where Kayla lost track of time. She could never recall the moment her mother left or if she said goodbye at all. Having the nurse help her change in a blue hospital gown made Kayla relieve moments she never wanted to remember ever again.

She could picture her mother all those years ago, back when her life was hanging by a thread. The image of the past and that of the present was oddly familiar, only changing their star. She would have been lying to herself if she didn’t admit how scared she was. She had seen what a sick person went through. She had seen the hardships and pain of diseases. She feared them so badly.