Sickle cell and the unborn child (II)

This is the second part of the story sent to me by an unborn child. The first part was published last week. I hope you enjoy the continuation of the story.

Father you went home full of guilt to your wife, whom you had never cheated on and mother was left in her bedroom crying and sobbing her eyes out, thinking how could she have been ‘the woman’ who would do such a thing. She had seen such relationships around her from friends, work colleagues, her parents’ friends, family members and told herself, she would never cause another woman pain.

But she had, as she lay on her bed, thoughts swirling in confusion in her head. Here she was, she had done the same thing she told herself she would never do.

Father would try to visit mum after the incident but she made sure she did not see him alone or allow him into her bedroom again. She made sure she sat in the living room with her parents when he visited and somehow the conversation was strained between them.

A few months later, father stopped coming to visit mother altogether; she on the other hand had been feeling strange inside and really did not give his visits any more thoughts. This was because whenever she saw him, she remembered that day; a day she wanted to forget. Whenever she got home after work, she felt tired and at work she had cravings that she had never had before.

One day, as she was getting ready for work, she looked at her stomach and noticed a bulge. How strange she thought? At the end of that week, she decided she needed to go to her work clinic and do a pregnancy check because her friends at work had been teasing her about how much food she was eating all of a sudden and had jokingly asked her if she was pregnant.

“Pregnant,”my mother replied, how could she be? She didn’t have a boyfriend she replied and they all laughed at her response as they nodded.

The result came out positive. This was such a bewildering situation for her to be in. How could she be pregnant? It only happened once. What would people say? She, Miss Paragon of Virtue. What should she do? Get rid or not? But my mother with her high principles decided she would keep it. The other dilemma was should she tell father or not? Better not tell him and cause contention in his relationship.

But he had a right to know she mused. If she allowed him to know, he would do the right thing and want to be the father in every sense of the word. Ah! How would she tell her parents? How about his wife who looks up to her like an ‘aunt’ because she is her husband’s friend. What a mess.

I am no longer in the distance, I am here, inside of you. Please don’t let your chaos affect my development as I grow inside of you; you have to remember to eat, I am hungry in here. I had better eat well because I know once out, I will see food and not eat because of pain.

After all her internal turmoil, she finally tells father. He is overjoyed, over the moon, jumping up and down like a grasshopper. Holding her hands and dancing.He confesses to her that his marriage had broken down and separated. He said he wanted to call and tell her but because of her coldness towards him, he decided not to.

He reminded her of the first time he felt love for her, how she rebuffed him, how he tried to tell her that he loved her before they went to different universities and yet she still did not get it. He reminded her of how she persuaded him to befriend, date and marry someone else, when all the time it was her he truly loved.

At this point, they both sobbed. I am inside her, as they are hugging and I am thinking, “you people should please watch yourselves, there is a human being in her stomach.” I am hungry and she doesn’t care; kick her and get her attention I tell myself. You both might ‘be full’ because you are happy, some of us have to eat well now because of the life of misery I will be subjected to once out.

By now mother was 16 weeks gone, the first two months, she did not know she was pregnant, the third month, she was busy mulling over her discovery and here we are four months of pregnancy. She moved in to father’s new home and they were happy. A happiness that was going to be short-lived. In her fourth month, mother was very tired, always short of breath and having heart palpitations.

She went to hospital and was told it was sign that she was anemic as she has the sickle cell trait. She introduced father to the doctor, who advised them to both do another blood test. They did and when the result came, the doctor asked them to see him.

They were anxious and deliberated what could be the problem. Surely, he could have told them over the phone but he did not. They finally saw him and he gave them the devastating news that they both have sickle cell traits and had a 40 per cent chance of their child having full blown HbSS. They could not believe what they just heard. They were distraught and went home quietly. Their joie do vivre had disappeared.

Mother said it was her cross to bear and father countered, it was theirs to bear together. Was I not trying to tell you both, there will be pain in your togetherness? Did you pay any attention? No. Just make sure you both read about sickle cell disease, so you know how to look after me, because I did not ask to be born by the two of you. I will soon be coming out and it is not going to be the best life but we will all make it good.