The first few weeks after discovering our pregnancies were unlike anything I had experienced before.
Emily called me almost every day.
Sometimes she wanted to discuss something important.
Other times, she simply wanted to tell me that she had eaten something unusual or that she was tired.
We compared everything.
Morning sickness.
Food cravings.
Sleep problems.
Doctor appointments.
Even the smallest changes became reasons to call each other.
Because Emily was three weeks ahead of me, she often experienced certain pregnancy milestones first.
Whenever she attended an appointment, she would tell me everything afterward.
I listened carefully.
Then I waited for my own appointment.
We began shopping for baby clothes together.
The first time we entered a baby store, I remember standing in front of a display of tiny socks.
They looked impossibly small.
Emily picked up a little white pair.
"Can you imagine our babies wearing these?"
I smiled.
"I still can't believe this is happening."
She held the socks against her hand.
Neither of us wanted to put them back.
We started looking at baby names.
We had different opinions about almost everything.
Emily liked names that sounded traditional.
I preferred names that were a little more unusual.
Sometimes we disagreed so much that we ended up laughing.
But there was never any real argument.
We were simply enjoying the experience.
We also talked about how we would organize our lives after the babies arrived.
We wanted our children to spend as much time together as possible.
We imagined family dinners.
Shared birthday celebrations.
School holidays.
And all those ordinary childhood moments that become precious memories years later.
Sometimes we talked about the future so much that we forgot how long the road ahead still was.
Pregnancy was not always easy.
There were uncomfortable mornings and exhausting afternoons.
There were appointments that made us nervous and days when we simply wanted to sleep.
But whenever one of us felt overwhelmed, the other was there.
We kept reminding each other why we had started this journey.
We weren't just expecting babies.
We were building the family we had imagined since childhood.
By the time we reached the fifth month, we had settled into a comfortable routine.
Our pregnancies had become a regular part of our conversations.
We had medical appointments.
We had baby preparations.
We had lists of things still to buy.
And we had countless photographs of our growing bellies.
Looking back, I remember how ordinary those days seemed.
That is something I still think about.
Sometimes life changes without warning, even when everything appears to be going exactly as planned.
The morning everything changed started like any other.
I was at home when my phone rang.
The number belonged to the genetics clinic.
I answered without thinking much about it.
A nurse introduced herself and asked whether I was available to speak.
Her voice sounded different from the usual friendly tone I had heard during previous calls.
She was polite.
But something about the way she spoke made me uncomfortable.
"Sarah, we need you and Emily to come in."
I sat down.
"Is there a problem?"
"The doctor would like to discuss your genetic test results with both of you."
I looked at the phone.
"What kind of problem?"
There was a pause.
The nurse didn't immediately respond.
Then she said that the doctor needed to explain the findings personally.
I felt a strange tightness in my chest.
I asked whether something was wrong with my baby.
The nurse remained quiet for several seconds.
Then she told me that it would be best if we came to the clinic.
I ended the call.
For a moment, I simply sat there.
My hand moved toward my stomach.
The baby moved slightly.
I remember looking down and whispering that everything would be okay.
But I wasn't sure I believed myself.
I called Emily immediately.
She answered quickly.
"Did the clinic call you?"
Her voice told me everything.
They had contacted her, too.
"Yes," I said.
"Do you know what's happening?"
"No. They wouldn't explain anything over the phone."
We agreed to go together.
I changed my clothes, picked up my bag, and checked my phone several times.
I kept hoping the clinic would call again and explain that there had been some mistake.
But no one called.
When I arrived, Emily was already waiting.
She was sitting in the reception area with her hands folded in her lap.
I sat beside her.
Neither of us knew what to say.
The receptionist greeted us and asked us to wait.
I looked at the clock.
Then I looked at Emily.
She reached over and held my hand.
"We'll hear what they have to say," she whispered.
I nodded.
I wanted to believe that this was simply a routine misunderstanding.
But the nurse's voice kept returning to my mind.
And I knew that whatever the doctor had found, it was serious enough that he wanted both of us in the same room.
Click here to continue reading: PART 4: The Doctor Closed His Office Door, Studied Two Genetic Reports, and Asked One Question That Changed Everything
The Promise Two Little Girls Made Twenty-Five Years Ago Was About to Change Both Their Lives Forever
Part 3 of 20
