Epilogue (Justine)

While setting up their new life together, Justine and Yvette start to discuss the next steps toward their future.

The medical center's reproductive department was probably what a textbook chapter on the subject would look like if it were used as inspiration for the interior design. The area was mostly off-white, the color of stationery, but there were splashes of color in the form of posters and images littered across the walls, all of them covered in text describing some reproductive procedure or function. The most interesting thing by far were the assortment of young, attractive, mostly female nurses walking around. I always assumed this was the case so it would be easier for men to get excited when they showed up to donate sperm.

Today, Yvette and I happened to be sitting in one of the rooms in the back, both of us looking a little anxious and remaining dead silent as we anticipated the doctor's return. Making a kid has got to be one of the most amazing things anyone could ever do, but when you're a lesbian couple, the process gets a lot more complicated, even more so than just adopting.

"Well ladies, it appears the experiment was a success," the doctor chirped as he finally reentered the room. "Thanks to the eggs you both gave me, I was able to combine both of your DNA, so all we need now is a sperm donation. Feel free to pick from any donor from any sperm bank in the country."

"Sounds good, thanks!" I nodded, accepting the thick record book he handed us, as Yvette and I started to run through the list, complete with pictures of each guy.

"I'll give you two some time to think it over…"

"Hmm… this Trevor Bordeaux guy sounds like a good option. He's got a healthy gene pool in his family, and he's kinda' cute too," Yvette said. "Just imagine those eyes on a baby girl or boy…"

"…or maybe even twins." I smirked. "My mom's one of those women who's more likely to have twins, so it makes sense that might be the case with me too."

"Not unless I'm the one carrying it."

"Wait, what? But… you don't even-"

"Actually, I do now. I scaled back my fitness regimen a bit, so my period returned… and boy do I remember why I loathed having one."

"Okay, but what about your figure? You do realize carrying our child is gonna mess up all your progress, right?"

"You act like I can't gain it all back. Plus, I'm already in such good shape, so a healthy mom would surely make for a healthy baby. And besides, you're so openly repulsed by semen, so I thought, 'why not take one for the team?'" Yvette shrugged. "Sure, I think it's gross too, but I'd say it's worth it."

"Well actually, I was also willing to push my own disgust aside for the sake of this baby."

It was then that I paused before I could continue speaking, those last six words reverberating throughout my mind for a bit. In an instant, I recalled a long span of time the previous year, when my brother was still adjusting to being a dad for the first time, and our whole family was working together to mend the drama among his wife's family in order to provide a healthy environment for my niece to grow up in. I then thought back to the present, remembering Yvette's familial situation: not only was she still at odds with her own mother, but her father was only now entering her life, and he was also not getting along too well with the woman who'd had his daughter. If these two were about to become grandparents, then they would at least need to be amicable with each other. Plus, it wouldn't be ideal to bring up a kid within a family that was always fighting, would it?

By the time I'd finished explaining my thought process to Yvette, the doctor had returned.

"I take it you two have come to a decision?" he asked.

"Yes, we agreed that we're gonna go with Trevor Bordeaux," Yvette replied, pointing to the man's picture.

"Ah, why am I not surprised? He sure is a popular one… mainly because he has so many donations stockpiled. It's a mystery how many kids he could have wandering around."

"Yeah, well you can go ahead and do the lab fertilization thingy, or whatever, but we've decided that we'd like to freeze the embryo until further notice," I said, briefly glancing at Yvette, who gave me an understanding nod.

"Suit yourself."

As the doctor left, we both looked at each other in neutral silence.

"Ready to take this next step in our lives?" I asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be… to think that right when I was feeling content with the direction my life was going in, suddenly I find another hurdle."

"Hee-hee, well regardless of how many hurdles there might be, just know that I'll be right there with you the whole way."

"Thanks, Justine." Yvette put on a warm smile. "Thanks for everything."

"Hey, you deserve it."

And boy did I deserve all of this as well.

~ ~ ~ The End ~ ~ ~