4 Months Ago
The Canterlot City Hospital is one of the most well-known medical centers in the health companies. It has been serving its purpose of treating, diagnosing, and providing therapeutic needs for thousands of patients over the decades. The company even went as far as to expand in clinics and pharmacies. Even though they promise a safe and comfortable space, some fear the many instruments accompanying the institution, while others have little to no experience visiting a hospital.
The clinic's waiting room offers its purpose of presenting tranquility, with the walls painted beige-ish white and a small number of awaiting patients filling the entire room. The atmosphere gives off the whiff of disinfected soap and the gust of air-conditioning. Children are fixated on toys, others read pamphlets about the inner workings of the clinic, some are gazing at the television at the right corner of the room, and three friends discuss how one of their specific procedures will go.
“So, how exactly does it work?”
“What usually happens is the doctor puts a thin layer of gel on your stomach so–”
“Wait, why would they put gel on my stomach?”
“...I was getting there before you interrupted me.”
“Sorry.”
“As I said, the gel is for transmitting the ultrasound waves from the transducer through your body.”
“Think of it as...Uhh…I got nothing.”
“Not very reassuring coming from you.”
“Hey, I can’t always make up every good simile. What do you want from me?”
A doctor finally comes into the waiting room. Her skin is a shade of periwinkle, her ponytail is midnight blue with streaks of sea green, and she fashions indigo glasses. She looks down at her clipboard and calls for her next patient. “Sunset Shimmer?”
The redhead looks up from her seat and her two friends, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight Sparkle, Sunset takes a deep inhale, shakily exhales, and tightly grips her friend’s hands as they go to the doctor.
The doctor gives a calm and gentle smile. “I’m Dr. Periwinkle, and I’ll be managing the ultrasound. Now if you follow me, I’ll take you to the room." Sunset glances at her two friends nervously. Twilight gives an encouraging smile, and Pinkie nods while offering a thumbs-up with a toothy grin. She exhales heavily as her shoulders rest.
She has a small amount of determination in her eyes as she replies, "Lead the way."
–xx–
“Cold, cold, cold!”
Twilight sheepishly laughs. “Right, forgot to mention the gel can get pretty cold."
"Pretty cold?" Sunset scoffs. "It's freaking freezing!"
"Well," Pinkie interjects. "At least it's not as cold as the snowball fights back in high school." The trio collectively shudder.
"Never again," Twilight mutters, shaking her head.
"Hey, you can't ask us to not have more snowball fights. Don't you know which friends we have?” Sunset argues, pointing at Pinkie Pie, who now has an innocent smile.
Twilight's eyes roll. Before she says anything else, a familiar rapid thumping catches Twilight's attention. She looks up at a screen on the left side of the bed. A sentimental grin comes across her face as she recalls the last time she went through this. "Sunset, look."
As Sunset and Pinkie turned to look, the sonogram unveiled a moving grayish-white silhouette in a fetal position. They seem to be moving their small hands and stretching their feet. Pinkie beams with excitement, while Sunset is awestruck by the incredible sight. “Whoa,” she mutters with astonishment.
"There they are," Dr. Periwinkle remarks. She points to the sonogram. "As you can see, there's the head, and right there are their tiny feet.”
Sunset runs her hand through her fiery hair and chuckles wholeheartedly. "Wow. This is..." She chuckles again. "That's really my baby?"
"Well, duh!" Pinkie Pie affirms enthusiastically. "Twilight and I aren't the ones who scheduled this appointment," She gestures to Sunset's revealed stomach, which has a small yet noticeable sign of a growing child inside her, as the doctor holds a linear probe on the baby bump. Twilight chuckles at the statement.
Sunset laughs. "Fair enough." She keeps hearing the thumping sound and wonders what it could be. Is it normal during an ultrasound or could there be an issue with the machine? “Uh, can I ask what’s with the thumping? Is this another part of the process?"
Dr. Periwinkle chuckles. “Actually, Ms. Shimmer, it’s the baby’s heartbeat.”
Sunset was taken aback as her eyes widened. She gazed down at her baby bump and wondered how she could have missed the rhythmic sound of her child's heartbeat. She had no idea babies could produce such a melodic sound while still in the womb. Tears welled in her eyes as she put her hand on her mouth. The little one seems responsive to their mother's cry as they stretch out their hand in the sonogram. Sunset sobs even harder at the sight.
The doctor gently smiles. “The baby looks healthy with a steady heart rate, a normal fetal position, constant movement, and no signs of potential birth defects.”
Sunset wipes her eyes with the back of her hands while laughing. “Damn it, these hormones.” Pinkie Pie grabs a tissue from…somewhere and offers it to the expectant mother. She chuckles due to her friend’s antics and then takes the tissue.
“Would you like to know if it’s a boy or girl?”
After she wipes her eyes, Sunset sniffs and replies, “Nah. I think I’m good not knowing until the kid’s here.”
Dr. Periwinkle nods. “Very well, then. With the baby in good shape, it seems fair to say that you’ll be a great mother, Ms. Shimmer.”
“That’s what we’ve been saying!” Pinkie Pie exclaims, gesturing wildly with her hands. “We’ve told Sunset over and over that she will be a fantastic mom! But does she ever listen?”
“No, she does not,” Twilight chimes in, smirking. "She thinks that she's going to be the worst mom, even though she's been doing enough research–"
"Do we really need to get into this?" Sunset drags her hands on her face and interrupts the incoming rant.
"Yes, we do," Twilight nods with each emphasized word while crossing her arms. "You're going to hear this, whether you like it or not."
While her two friends discuss the importance of reassuring expectant mothers, Sunset takes a moment to gaze at the sonogram of her baby. Seeing the peaceful image of her unborn child brings a gentle smile to her face. It's still hard for her to believe she's carrying a tiny human, but she's filled with excitement at the thought of meeting the little one who will change her life forever.
Author's Note
About time I did another story, huh? This new story is about going in-depth with Sunset and most of the Rainbooms discovering the trial and error of motherhood. Also, we get to see more of my precious bean Aurora Flare and more of my original characters. BTW I headcanon that Sunset doesn't like hospitals and has to be forced by her friends just to have a proper check-up. I also did a couple of research to make sure that the ultrasound appointment was accurate as possible. Here's the source referenced: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diagnostics/4995-ultrasound#:~:text=During%20an%20ultrasound%2C%20a%20healthcare,gel%20and%20into%20your%20body.
