[Sophie’s POV]

The first prenatal appointment happens on a Thursday, two weeks after I left the hospital.

Adrian drives. Cassian sits in the back with me, his hand a steady presence against mine. The silence in the car isn’t uncomfortable, but it’s heavy—filled with anticipation and anxiety and the shared awareness that today we might hear the baby’s heartbeat for the first time.

The baby’s heartbeat. The thought makes my chest tight with something between terror and wonder.

“Nervous?” Cassian asks quietly, his thumb tracing circles on my palm.

“Terrified,” I admit. “What if something’s wrong? What if the stress from everything—the collapse, the hospital—what if it affected the baby?”

“The doctors said you were stable. The baby was stable.”

“I know what they said. But knowing and believing aren’t the same thing.”

Adrian catches my eye in the rearview mirror. “Whatever happens in there, we face it together. That’s the deal.”

The clinic is bright and clean and smells like antiseptic underneath a thin veneer of vanilla air freshener. The waiting room is full of other pregnant women in various stages—some barely showing, others looking like they might go into labor at any moment. I feel like an impostor among them, my barely-there bump hidden beneath a loose sweater.

When they call my name, I stand on shaky legs. Adrian and Cassian rise with me.

“How many of you are coming back?” the nurse asks, her expression carefully neutral.

“All of us,” I say, before either of them can defer. “They’re both… they’re family.”

The nurse’s eyebrow twitches, but she nods and leads us down a hallway to a small examination room. The ultrasound machine sits in the corner, dark and waiting. A paper gown is folded on the table.

“The doctor will be in shortly,” the nurse says. “Change into the gown, opening in the front.”

When she leaves, I stare at the paper gown like it might bite me.

“We can wait outside,” Cassian offers, reading my hesitation.

“No. Stay.” I take a breath. “I’m just… having a moment.”

Adrian steps closer, his hands finding my shoulders. “You’ve got this.”

“What if I don’t?”

“Then we’ll carry you through it.” His voice is firm, unwavering. “That’s why we’re here.”

I change into the gown with my back turned, more out of habit than modesty. When I’m settled on the table, the paper crinkling beneath me, Adrian takes the chair by my head and Cassian stands near the ultrasound machine, both of them positioned to see the screen.

The doctor arrives with a warm smile and a clipboard. Dr. Patel, according to her badge—a small woman with kind eyes and an efficient manner.

“Sophie, good to see you again. How are you feeling?”

“Better,” I say, and for once it’s true. “The nausea has eased up. I’m eating more.”

“Good, good.” She reviews her notes, then looks at Adrian and Cassian. “And these are your…?”

“Partners,” I supply, when she trails off diplomatically. “Both of them. It’s complicated.”

Her expression remains professionally neutral. “Modern families come in all shapes. What matters is that you have support.” She sets down the clipboard and reaches for the ultrasound wand. “Are you ready to see your baby?”

The question makes my heart stop, then race. I nod, not trusting my voice.

The gel is cold against my abdomen, shockingly so. Dr. Patel moves the wand in slow circles, her eyes fixed on the screen as it flickers to life with gray static and shadows.

“There we are,” she murmurs, adjusting the angle. “Let me just get a better view…”

And then I see it.

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