Page 78 of Unexpecting

″—about raising a child properly, let alone three! How the hell can I have three kids? That’s, that’s a whole family already. How will I fit them in my car? I need a minivan. Did I ever tell you I hate minivans? They’re nothing but slow-moving boats for suburbanites! There’s no way I can fit three carseats in my car. Three babies! What if I have three girls? Oh my God, what if I have three boys? I can’t do this! What was I thinking? thinking can just go get some sperm and that’ll make me this wonder mother who can do everything herself when—” By this time I was standing in the middle of the sidewalk yelling at J.B. People were crossing the street to avoid me, but I was still getting quite the audience.

″Casey, slow down. Let’s just go home. Talk about this. Calm down.”

″I can barely dress myself some days. How can I think I can handle one kid, let alone three of them? Three of them!”

″Let’s get out of here.”

″I have to get rid of it. I have to get rid of them! Women used to drink a bottle of gin or vodka or something and sit in a bathtub—I can do that. I’ll go home and try that. Or I can fall down a set of stairs—women alwaysused to miscarry after that. Or I can just go throw myself under a bus, that should do it, because the way my life is these days—”

“Casey! Shut up!” J.B.’s words finally registered in my hysterical brain. “Let’s just get out of here.”

″She said I’m having triplets!″ I screamed at him, so loudly people across the street stared at me. I made a face at them. “She said I’m having three babies! ‘There’s your baby,’ she said, and then, ‘There’s another one! And whoops, there’s one more!’ Three! Three friggin’ babies! I didn’t sign up for this! What am I supposed to do?”

Chapter Thirty-Four

“While the idea of multiple births may seem daunting, it truly is a blessing.”

A Young Woman’s Guide to the Joy of Impending Motherhood

Dr. Francine Pascal Reid (1941)

“What’s wrong?” Emma demandedwith horror. I was surprised to find myself at Coop’s restaurant. J.B. didn’t even bother trying to put me in the car; he just dragged me the six blocks to Galileo.

″I didn’t know what to do,” he was telling Emma bleakly.

″Oh my God,” she breathed. “What happened? The baby…”

″I’m having three fucking babies!″ I snapped. Emma blanched.

″The doctor thinks she’s carrying triplets,” J.B. translated.

″Three!” Emma actually jumped up and down in delight. “Three of them? That’s wonderful news!”

″For whom?” I yelled.

″For you. Or not for you? Oh, Casey, it’s a surprise, but this is so great. I have to tell Cooper.” And she ran into the kitchen.

″We’re having three babies,” J.B. said glumly to a passing waiter.

″Congratulations!” he chirped in return.

″No, it’s not congratulations.” I was back to snarling again. “It’s the worst news ever!”

Cooper stalked out of the kitchen with a look of irritation on his face. I cringed, thinking it was directed at me, but all he did was pull me intohis arms. “Really, triplets?” he asked into my hair. I nodded. “Three babies are better than one. Everything will be fine.”

I burst into tears.

″I didn’t know what to do, man,” J.B. explained in a low voice. “She just lost it. I think she’s hysterical.”

″Everything will be fine, Casey,” Emma told me with a pat on the back. I was still crying.

″I don’t know what to do,” J.B. repeated. I wished he’d think of something to do, or at least something else to say.

″Everything will be fine. Just calm down.” I didn’t know if Cooper was talking to J.B. or me, but I think his words worked on both of us. I finally stopped crying, and J.B. ceased his pacing through the restaurant.

Emma brought me a glass of wine and led me to a table already set for dinner. “I’m sure the doctor will say this is okay,” she assured me.

″I have a Valium in my purse,” offered one of the hovering waitresses. I remembered her from the night of Brit’s stagette. I’d have said hello, but I was not capable right then.

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