Page 53 of Resolution
As if they hear, both babies nearly flip upside down. They’ve grown so much since our last ultrasound. They’re now a bundle of arms and legs. Their spines zoom in and out of focus, and if I didn’t know any better, I’d say Enzo’s right. I’ve been taken over by aliens.
The technician measures each of the babies. She identifies each part as it appears on the screen, as well as which baby it belongs to. Right now, we refer to them as Baby A and Baby B. I think it’s the cutest thing ever to watch their little bodies move all over the place.
After another sudden movement on the screen, Enzo asks in wonder, “Does that hurt?”
I shake my head. “No. I only feel the big moves.”
The technician interrupts with, “Do you want to know the sex of each baby?”
I look to Enzo for reassurance and he nods. Since their arrival has been enough of a shock, we think it’s best to prepare ourselves for the future. “Yes. We’d love that,” I eagerly state, and Enzo grips my hand tighter. I’m just as excited as he is waiting to find out, now that I know they’re both healthy.
The technician moves the wand around and suddenly, there’s legs and a little bottom on the screen. It goes in and out of focus for a few seconds, then she freezes the screen. “See here.” She uses the pointer on the screen to bring our attention to a specific area. “See these dots here…”
“What does that mean?” Enzo jumps in as she takes several screenshots of the image.
“Congratulations. Baby A’s a girl!” She takes a moment and types it onto the screen as well.
“Wow… Just… Wow,” Enzo murmurs. He looks to me and I swear I see his eyes shine as if they’re filling with tears. He blinks a few times and they clear. He whispers, “I hope she looks just like you, Samantha.” He bends down and presses a kiss to my temple. “I love you.”
The cheery technician brings our attention back to her. “Now, let’s see if we can find out the sex of Baby B.”
After a few moments looking at a blurry screen, Baby B cooperates. Its bottom comes into view and I gasp, throwing my hand over my mouth. Enzo immediately turns to me. “What’s wrong?”
I shake my head, pointing to the screen. “Look…”
He’s silent for a couple of heartbeats and I hold my breath, waiting for his response. “Are you kidding me?” He shakes his head from side to side. “Is that what I think it is?” He turns to the technician, who nods in agreement, then to me for confirmation.
“That depends. What do you think it is?” I ask playfully.
Enzo’s eyes are as round as saucers and his hand squeezes tighter against mine. “We’re having a boy, too?”
“It appears so,” I say, getting excited. He bends over and brushes a kiss to my lips. “Oh my God, Enzo! Can you believe it?”
Later that evening, we gather in our family room to update the kids on their new siblings. All are eager to see the ultrasound pictures. Each takes a turn enjoying the profile pictures, not believing how big they’ve gotten since the last ultrasound was done. When we announce Baby A’s a girl, Frankie jumps up and down. Her hoots and hollers could probably be heard by our neighbors. Her reaction melts my heart and makes me realize everything’s going to be okay.
Declan, on the other hand, groans until we reveal the sex of Baby B. Then he cheers right along with Frankie. “YES!” comes out as a hiss before he turns to Enzo and grins. “Five girls in the house would be crazy.”
“You may live to regret that.” Maddie reaches over and rustles his hair. Then she turns to Enzo and me, sitting on the couch together. “As long as they’re healthy, I didn’t really care.”
“My thoughts exactly, Mads,” I add as I instinctively cradle my belly.
“Have you thought about names?” Maddie excitedly blurts as she pulls her feet up and settles into the oversized chair beside us.
“What about Zelma, for a girl?” Frankie suggests.
“Zelma?”There’s no way in hell I’m naming my child that. Has she been watching Scooby-Doo?
“Or Tapanga?” Frankie shrugs.
“We’re not calling our sister that, squirt.” Maddie laughs. “You’ve been watching too much TV.” Her voice turns serious and she places her hand on her chin as she thinks seriously about something for a moment. “What about… Hayley? Hayley Harper sounds cute.”
“That does sound good,” Enzo agrees.
We spend the next twenty minutes discussing possible names. In my mind, many more were vetoed than considered a possibility. I’ve read too many books or knew someone with names similar to ever consider them as a possibility.
By the time we’re getting ready for bed, I think I’ve heard at least one hundred names for each twin. Enzo takes it all in stride. He suggests a few, but I’m pretty sure we’re going to go with Lorenzo Dean Harper. He’ll be the fourth son to have this family name. I’d really like to continue this tradition.
As we snuggle into bed, I lay my head on Enzo’s shoulder, in that special spot I’ve claimed as mine. “Would you be against naming our son Lorenzo Dean Harper?”
