Our Love Story: Hard to Guard Against the Sudden Love Strike

Chapter 613 - 584: Fetal Position

The days passed with such sweetness, happiness, and smoothness.At the end of July, Sienna Thornton applied for maternity leave from work, resting from August until the end of October and returning to work in November. All related work had been arranged, and the team she had trained was excellent. The new director and Deputy Director Linton were also very supportive of her work during her maternity leave, allowing her to start her long holiday without any worries.

Initially, when Simon Forrester went to work, she stayed at home. Because she wasn’t very agile during the later stages of pregnancy and tired easily, she didn’t do much housework, making her feel a bit bored.

She never thought her life would have such leisurely days.

Almost since she could remember, she had been constantly busy, always racing against time. As a child, she studied tirelessly; in college, besides studying and exams, she spent a lot of time working part-time; after graduating, it was day after day of work and self-improvement.

Now, with a stable job, a harmonious family, healthy and loving parents, and a successful husband, there was nothing in life she needed to worry about, except for the little one in her belly.

Yes, "Little Grace" was their daughter’s nickname, given by Simon Forrester. He hoped their daughter would be as graceful, wise, and emotionally intelligent as her mother, hence the name "Little Grace."

Sienna Thornton was eagerly expecting Little Grace’s early arrival since she longed for something to keep her busy. However, the due date was the eighth, and at the last prenatal checkup in July, Joyce Sutton examined her and said the baby’s head hadn’t descended, suggesting a late delivery. Joyce advised her to closely monitor bodily changes and be prepared to go to the hospital at any time if she experienced symptoms like abdominal tightness, lower abdominal pain, frequent urination, or back and leg pain.

Knowing it wasn’t time yet, Sienna stayed home for two days before returning to her parents’ house, accompanied by Melinda Linton and Auntie King, who made it less boring.

Melinda and Auntie King were also quite busy recently — one was knitting woolen hats, sweaters, and shoes for the baby, and the other was sewing various cotton gauze monk costumes for the baby. Summer-born children might still feel hot wearing cotton clothes, so more breathable and cool cotton gauze monk clothes were prepared.

When Sienna wasn’t tired, she would lend a hand; when she was, she rested in her room, waiting for Simon Forrester to pick her up in the evening after work.

...

The days quickly passed until the due date, but Sienna’s belly showed no signs. Simon Forrester took her to see Joyce Sutton for a checkup.

Joyce first checked the baby’s head position and found that the baby still hadn’t descended, so she ordered an ultrasound and personally accompanied Sienna for the exam.

When the cold gel dripped onto Sienna’s belly, she shivered, and Simon Forrester, holding her hand, noticed and quickly leaned down to ask nervously, "What’s wrong? Are you uncomfortable?"

She tightly gripped his hand and looked up at him pitifully, "I’m a little scared."

He kissed her forehead and said, "Don’t be afraid, I’m here with you."

Standing nearby, Joyce Sutton overheard and smiled, saying, "The baby is fine, no need to worry."

The ultrasound probe moved across Sienna’s pregnant belly, applying pressure at times.

Joyce Sutton watched the monitor closely, examining the intrauterine condition.

Simon Forrester alternated his gaze between Sienna and the monitor, but he couldn’t make sense of the dark images with occasional shades of white.

Ignorance breeds fear.

He was actually very anxious, but he dared not show any of it to Sienna, fearing it would add to her fears. At that moment, he finally understood why Scott Langford took a year to rotate through obstetrics and personally delivered his wife’s second child.

The ultrasound room was very quiet, with no one speaking. The only sound was the baby’s healthy, strong heartbeat from the speakers, interspersed with static-like noise: "thump, thump..."

In the sweltering August heat, the air conditioner sprayed cold air into the room, yet Sienna felt a chill all over as she breathlessly awaited the end of the exam.

"Dr. Sutton, it’s OP," the ultrasound technician suddenly said, glancing at Joyce.

Joyce leaned closer to the screen to take a better look: "LOP or ROP?"

The probe pressed harder above Sienna’s pubic bone, making her gasp, to which Simon quickly turned to comfort her softly, "It’s okay, don’t be afraid."

The ultrasound technician said, "It appears to be ROP."

Joyce nodded and walked over to observe Sienna, examining her pelvis intently, until the ultrasound technician said it was done.

Simon Forrester helped Sienna clean the gel off her belly, got her dressed, and helped her off the bed and into her shoes.

Before leaving the ultrasound room, Joyce said, "Let’s discuss this in the consulting room; I’ll wait for you there."

After leaving the ultrasound room, Sienna couldn’t hold back and teared up, her face turning pale, her legs growing weak, and she asked Simon in a trembling voice, "Is there something wrong with the baby?"

Simon hugged her close, kissed her gently on the hair, and said, "Silly, we just saw that the baby is healthy."

"But Dr. Sutton and the ultrasound technician were discussing OP, and she seemed serious," she replied.

Simon stroked her hair and smiled, saying, "OP refers to occiput posterior, one of the fetal positions. Don’t worry, at worst, a cesarean delivery might be needed."

In fact, Simon felt relieved when he heard the ultrasound technician mention the baby’s occiput posterior position. Malposition of the fetus might just mean a cesarean delivery, sparing Sienna the labor pains.

"But I want a natural birth; it’s better for the baby, and my recovery will be faster," she insisted.

"Let’s see what Dr. Sutton says," he replied.

They returned to Joyce Sutton’s consulting room, where the nurse usually sitting across from Joyce to record cases was absent, as if deliberately excused by Joyce to offer privacy.

This made Sienna even more worried.

Joyce gestured for Sienna to lie down on the exam bed, then carefully measured her belly and pelvis with a soft tape. After reviewing the ultrasound results, she used her hands to check Sienna’s pelvis and the baby’s head.

"Okay," Joyce said gently, fixing Sienna’s skirt and patting her slightly tense arm, "let’s discuss outside."

As soon as Joyce left the room, Simon immediately entered and helped Sienna sit up, putting her shoes on.

Returning to Joyce’s desk, Sienna was so nervous that her palms were sweaty.

Joyce looked at them, smiled slightly, and got straight to the point: "The baby is currently in right occiput posterior position. This position can allow for a vaginal delivery, but it requires certain pelvic conditions—the pelvis must be large enough, and delivery might take longer."

Only then did Sienna understand why Joyce had been so focused on checking her pelvis. She urgently asked, "Do I meet those pelvic conditions?"