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Wish Upon A Star Chapter 3 Kevin entered the cheerful clinic to meet Kristy for their checkup. Kristy was in now in the beginning of her second trimester and the last of her morning sickness had finally resolved. They were at the point where they'd started to tell people... although their parents had been called much earlier and most of the Backstreet family had guessed after Kristy's Teacup incident. He kissed his wife leisurely before bending in time to catch Ashtyn as she launched herself into her daddy's arms. Kristy radiated with happiness and Kevin thought she'd never looked better... but then again, he always thought that about his lovely wife. The rest of the Boys had excused him from practice for the afternoon so he could make the appointment - and told him not to bother coming back that day, knowing he'd be worthless. "Kristy Richardson," the nurse called. Kristy, Kevin, and Ashtyn met Kristy's obstetrician in her office. "Hi, you guys," Dr. Mills greeted the couple. "Oh my goodness, is this Ashtyn?" Kristy and Kevin nodded as the doctor bent down to talk to the little girl she'd delivered over two years prior. "You're such a big girl!" She moved to her desk and smiled at the happy couple. "And she's beautiful... but then again, with you two as parents that's pretty much a given." Dr. Mills opened Kristy's chart and explained how the visit would go. "I'll start with just Kristy for the general exam. Then, Kevin, you and Ashtyn can come in for the ultrasound." "Baby's first picture," Kevin smiled, squeezing Kristy's hand. The exam went smoothly and Dr. Mills confirmed that everything was normal and seemed to be going well. When Ashtyn and Kevin joined Kristy for the ultrasound, she was fascinated with the process. The concept of pregnancy was too much for a child of her age to completely understand, but between Leighanne's growing stomach and having seen Olivia as a baby, both Jacob and Ashtyn were learning. Kristy and Kevin had told her that she would be getting a baby sister or brother, just like Jacob was getting - and since Ashtyn wanted to do everything Jacob did, that was a pretty good thing in her book. The Richardsons left the clinic, each of them - Ashtyn included - carrying an ultrasound picture of the baby. Kristy and Kevin had arrived in separate vehicles and planned to meet back at home. "Want me to take Ash?" Kevin asked his wife as they approached her Lexus sedan. "Nah, I already have her car seat in my car," Kristy replied, lifting the toddler and placing her in said device in the backseat of the car. "Tell Daddy 'bye' and we'll see him at home," Kristy instructed the chattering tot. "Bye, Daddy. See ya soon." Kristy quirked an eyebrow at her husband. "'See ya soon'? Where'd she pick that one up, Richardson?"Kevin grinned sheepishly and kissed his wife on the cheek. "Musta been Nick." "Mhmm," Kristy chuckled. "I'll see you at home." "See ya soon," Kevin said as he opened the door to his new 4Runner, pausing as he realized what he'd said. He glanced at his wife and saw her simply shake her head - he'd been caught. He made a mental note to watch what he was saying since Ashtyn was becoming a very good mimic. He pulled out of the clinic behind Kristy, thinking about how perfect things were going right now. The Boys would be going on tour soon, though they planned to take a lot more time between shows so they could all bring their families along for most of it. And with Leighanne and Kristy's pregnancies, it was certain there would be some shows that needed to be rescheduled. The light at the four-way stop turned green and the first car at the light started to go. Kevin eased his foot off the break to let his vehicle move forward slowly, following Kristy's. Out of the corner of his eye, Kevin saw a pickup coming from the right on the cross street - and it wasn't slowing down. As if in slow motion, Kevin watched the pickup continue forward, despite the red light it faced or the Lexus driving through the intersection. Kevin heard a scream cut through the air as he saw the two vehicles collide, the pickup's momentum pushing the other car towards the oncoming traffic. "Noooooooooo!" His voice hung around him as he watched - paralyzed - while the car containing his entire life finally came to a stop. Kristy woke from a haze - the first thing greeting her eyes was Kevin's beautiful face. She smiled - not registering the frightened look on his face - and let her eyes drift shut again, the pull of sleep too strong for her to resist. Her body, however was now awake and suddenly pain shot through her, coming from almost every part of her. Kristy whimpered in pain and Kevin fought to hold back the tears that filled his eyes as he sat at her bedside. "Angel... Princess... oh Baby, please..." he murmured as he stroked the hair off her bandaged forehead. Kristy wavered between the numbness of the darkness she'd come from and the light - and pain - she'd awoken to. "Kev..." she whispered. Kevin was there. She had to be with him. As she struggled to stay awake, her mind was filled with disturbing pictures and sounds that were worse than any pain she felt from her battered body. A green light. A glimpse of a pickup right before impact. The sound of colliding metal and breaking glass. A child crying. An ambulance. Bright lights. Faceless voices. "What happened? Where am I?" The words were barely above a whisper - her throat tight and dry - but to Kevin they were the most beautiful sound he'd ever heard. "You're in the hospital, Kris. There was an accident." Kristy nodded slowly, then froze - her blood running cold. "Ashtyn!" Kevin gave up the losing battle with his tears and let them fall freely. "She's okay. They examined her - just a few cuts and bruises. Leigh and Bri have her." Kevin didn't mention that he'd had to force them to take her home rather than stay in the hospital's waiting room. It'd been the same with all their friends. He'd urged them to go to their homes - that their prayers would be just as effective from there as the sterile halls of the hospital. In return, he'd had to promise he'd call as soon as she woke up - and as soon as the doctors knew anything about her condition. Kristy relaxed slightly, only to stiffen up again as another thought crossed her mind. "The baby?" Involuntarily her hand went to her abdomen. Kevin wiped his tears and took her hands in his. "Angel, you got pretty banged up. Your leg's broken..." Kristy glanced down the bed to see her leg suspended from a traction device for the first time, only to have the movement send throbbing pain through her head. "And you have a concussion," Kevin explained - needlessly. "And..." Kristy heard his voice crack and saw his eyes fill with tears again. "A lot of internal bleeding. They stabilized you, but..." Her heart sank. "They're not sure if the baby will make it. The next 24 to 48 hours are going to be crucial." The doctors had told Kevin that Kristy had been lucky. Had she been driving a less durable car, the outcome would've been worse - much worse. As it was, the frame and the airbag had not only saved her life, but had given their unborn baby a fighting chance. Ashtyn was relatively unscathed thanks to her being in her safety seat positioned in the backseat of the car. Kevin started to excuse himself so he could call Kristy's family, as well as his mom, then the rest of their friends. Kristy stopped him, "Stay here... please." Kevin saw the fear in Kristy's usually confidant blue-green eyes and immediately sat back down. He took her hand, caressing the soft skin with his thumb, knowing the action would help Kristy relax. He paused for a minute and fished something out of his pocket. "They had to take this off in the ambulance." Kevin slipped Kristy's wedding ring back on her finger... where it belonged. "I've got the rest of your jewelry when you want it - but I figured you should have this one now." Kevin had convinced the EMTs to let him ride along in the ambulance to the hospital, wanting to be with his wife and daughter. Ashtyn had been more scared than hurt, and Kevin had struggled to stay composed so he wouldn't make things worse. The sight of his young daughter crying and hanging on to her mommy's hand while Kristy had been unconscious was more than Kevin could handle. As soon as they had reached the hospital and Kevin had signed releases for both Kristy and Ashtyn, they whisked both girls away to be attended to - leaving Kevin alone where he finally broke down and cried. He squeezed Kristy's hand and brought it to his lips to kiss it. "Baby, I don't know what I'd do if anything happened to you or Ashtyn." He tried to clear away the lump that seemed to be permanently lodged in his throat, but it was pointless. "You're everything to me. I love you." He bent his head, shoulders shaking, his voice soft and trembling. "I love you." Kristy extended her hand, cupping the side of Kevin's face and wiping away the tears on his cheek with her thumb. "And I love you. I'm not going anywhere." She gazed into his vivid green eyes and felt herself get lost in their depths. "We're going to make it through this... all of us," she said, her other hand going to her abdomen once again. "We're on the side of angels - remember?" Kevin smiled, remembering the song Kristy'd played during the night of the hurricane. Kevin had been caught in the fierce storm, trying to get to a nearly-panicked Kristy. When Kevin had finally arrived at Kristy and Cheryl's condo, the two had clung to each other for dear life. Whatever doubts there may have been about the future of their relationship had been discarded that night. That was the night they both knew without reservation that they would spend the rest of their lives together. "My Love," Kevin whispered before claiming Kristy's lips with his in a kiss that carried all the emotions they felt - love... fear... gratitude... hope.Kevin stood in the corner of the room, talking quietly on the phone while Kristy slept. She'd been examined by the doctors and they'd reassured the couple that Kristy would be okay - stiff, sore, and in a cast for awhile, but okay. They were still cautious about the baby, but were more optimistic now that Kristy was awake. "She's sleeping right now," Kevin told Kristy's parents and his mom, using a three-way calling feature to reduce the number of times he had to relive the incident while keeping their families up to date on Kristy and the baby�s condition. "They said that being in the second trimester improves our odds." Kevin hated thinking that they were playing a game of chance with the life of his child. "Ash is fine. I'm having Brian and Leighanne bring her by so she can visit... I know she's young, but the doctors okayed it. She's still upset about seeing Kristy like she was in the ambulance." Kevin shut his eyes against the image. "I want her to see that Kristy's okay." Kevin saw some movement in the hallway outside the room. "In fact... I think this is them now. I'll call you guys back as we learn more." Kevin stepped into the hallway and scooped his daughter into his arms. "Hey, Princess. How's my girl?" The normally animated toddler looked around her at the machines and equipment at the nurses' station and through the hall, quietly taking it all in. Kevin hugged her to him, again coming close to tears at the thought of losing her. "Want to go see Mommy?" She shook her head, the bright blue-green eyes she got from her mother welling up with tears as she clung to Kevin. "Shhh... Ash, it's okay. Mommy's all right and she's going to be so happy to see you." She wasn't entirely convinced by Kevin's words, but she nodded her head as Leighanne, Brian, and Kevin all nodded their encouragement. Kevin carried Ashtyn into the room and felt the little girl stiffen up as she saw her mom lying motionless in bed. Kevin rubbed her back and moved closer to the bed. "Kris? Angel, you have a visitor." Kristy slowly opened her eyes, her smile broadening as soon as she saw her precious daughter. "Hi, sweetie! How's my Lil Princess?" Ashtyn's face lit up as she saw Kristy was okay. "Mommy!" Kevin sat her on the bed and was about to warn her to be careful, when Ashtyn very gently curled up next to Kristy and rested her head on her stomach, softly rubbing Kristy's abdomen - as they'd had her do when they first told her about the pregnancy. "Hi, baby." Kristy met Kevin's eyes, both pairs shining with tears. For the first time since the accident, they were both filled with a sense of peace. Kristy stroked Ashtyn's dark hair and smiled as the little girl turned to her. "Mommy, can we wish tonight?" Kevin looked a little puzzled until Kristy clarified. "You want to make a wish tonight, like we do at home?" Ashtyn smiled and nodded at her parents. "What would you like to wish for?" "I wish..." Kristy and Kevin watched her small face reflect her concentration. "Me... and Mommy... and Daddy... and the baby... were home." Kevin kissed Ashtyn on the forehead and squeezed Kristy's hand. "That," he said with a bright smile, "Is a very good wish." |