Their Double Blessing

After all these years she was pregnant again. All the hoping and wishing had finally paid off. Hitting the pavement for adoption had failed, making her think this was never going to happen. It was so unexpected. By now she’d given up on having a child. The next thing she wanted was to know the gender. But that probably should wait until George returned from his trip.

“Your sister’s here. We haven’t told her anything, but if you want, she can be brought in,” the nurse added. “Congrats on the baby, Patricia, I can see the happiness radiating off you.”

“Thank you, both. Please send in Mary.” Patricia was finally able to lift her head a bit. Hopefully these drugs didn’t have any adverse effects on the baby. She couldn’t imagine how panicked those closer to her were over this. Guilt radiated off her, a happy time was also complicated. The pregnancy carried risks and no one was out of the woods yet.

Mary walked in, looking perfectly primped and ice-faced. No one would have guessed her sister had been through a medical emergency. Instead of sitting, she stood at the edge of the bed surveying Patricia as if looking at a piece of faulty equipment. “I guess you escaped the worst of it unscathed. So what did the doctors say is wrong with you? I’m surprised after what happened recently that I was still your next of kin. Thought we were over as sisters.”

Patricia sighed, telling herself to not get mad while in a weakened state. She couldn’t believe that Mary was here to complain instead of being supportive. Next of kin had three names on the list and it was surprising that they weren’t present. Instead standing over her was a sister too self-absorbed to process how serious things were right now. “I’m surprised the others aren’t here. Thank you for coming Mary, and I hope things work out between us one day. I have surprising news that neither of us expected. This situation is a blessing in disguise.”

“Well you better reveal the good stuff fast. I sent away the welcome party, the doctors said you needed rest. Decided it was best to keep you away from noise and useless people. I called our family in case there needed to be funeral arrangements. But you’re still here,” Mary said without showing much emotion. It was like talking to a wall. What was wrong with her?

“Right, do you know if George tried to call?” Patricia decided not to get in a confrontation. “I think he’ll really be excited about what’s developed.”

“I turned your cell off to focus on more important things. Now tell me what has you so excited. This is a hospital not a ballroom.” Mary finally sat and crossed her legs.

Patricia considered not saying anything. Mary was being strange and that was worrisome. But she was still family and it wasn’t as if her sister was dangerous. So she pushed past her instincts. “I’m pregnant. Don’t ask me how, I was shocked about it too.”

“George pregnant or Virgin Mary pregnant?” Mary actually started to have emotion on her face, but it was something between disgust and shock. If this wasn’t her sister Patricia would have ended the conversation a long time ago.

“The first one, I just didn’t expect this to happen now after all the miscarriages and lost opportunities. I hope George will be just as happy as I am.” Patricia rubbed her belly. There was hardly any change. Now that she had to rest a belly might actually start to show soon. The idea of being visibly pregnant excited her. That would mean being one step closer to having a child. Blinking back tears she thought about what their future would be like.

A boy would be nice to have. No question he would be cute with both her and George’s features. It might seem selfish but she wanted the child to look like her as much as possible. She’d seen how some people behaved when a black mother carried around a fair-skinned child. The behavior ranged from surprise to outright rude. Including those assuming the mother was a nanny, even while breastfeeding. But a white woman with a dark skinned child was treated as if she committed the best act on earth. Whether the child was hers or not.

A girl would be spoiled rotten by both of them. She wanted little angel to grow up smart, kind and independent. An image of a baby girl reaching out to her almost had Patricia in tears.

“Congrats on the baby. I know this has been something you wanted for a long time,” Mary finally smiled. It was nice seeing her sister acting like a normal person. “Also Ronald got me an engagement ring.” She held out her hand to show off a sapphire ring that shone on a silver band.

Patricia decided to not comment on how Mary co-opted her moment. “That’s great, I’m certain Ronald will take care of all your needs. I can’t wait for George to return.”

Mary patted Patricia’s arm. “That goes for the both of us.”