You Looked Down on Me Once Now You Look Up (Patricia and Oliver) novel Chapter 796

“She’s been throwing up nonstop. She looks so drained. Can we move the appointment to later this afternoon?” Maggie’s voice was thick with worry the moment Oliver walked in.

The second he heard, “Come up here,” his mind went fuzzy. He glanced past Maggie and saw Patricia sprawled out on the sofa, looking pale and exhausted. He kicked off his shoes and didn’t even bother with slippers, padding across the floor in his bare feet to get to her.

He knelt down beside the sofa and gently wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close. “Let’s go to the bedroom. You’ll be more comfortable there.”

“Yeah, good idea, good idea,” Maggie said, following them into the bedroom and telling Marian to bring some water.

Oliver sat on the edge of the bed, holding Patricia carefully. When Marian brought the warm water, he held the cup to Patricia’s lips. His voice was soft. “Just drink a little, rinse your mouth.”

Patricia was too weak to protest. She didn’t even have the energy to sit up. Lying there, she felt like the ceiling was spinning above her.

Oliver called the family doctor and pushed the appointment back. When he came back to the bedroom, Patricia was half-leaning over the side of the bed, a trash can nearby. Maggie sat next to her, rubbing her back, her face clouded with worry.

“Just a few days ago, you said the morning sickness wasn’t too bad. Now look at you.”

Patricia didn’t leave the bed all day. The checkup had to wait.

She slept restlessly and finally woke up around nine-thirty at night. Rubbing her face, she was about to head to the bathroom when she heard voices from the living room. Maggie was talking to Atticus, probably about her and Oliver. Their conversation was full of concern. Before hanging up, Maggie reminded Atticus about the big temperature swings in the northwest, telling him to bundle up and not get sick.

Patricia gave a little shrug. “I guess I was being too stubborn. You were right. No one gets everything they want.”

She knew Oliver wanted to control her, but Maggie had a point. Sometimes, control came from love. If there was no love, who would bother forcing things?

In Maggie’s eyes, Patricia had never been impulsive or reckless. For her to fight with Oliver so fiercely, something must have happened that she just couldn’t accept. But now, after weeks of standoff, she was suddenly backing down. Maggie couldn’t help but worry. “Are you sure? You really thought this through?”

Patricia managed a small smile. “Yeah. You were right. I need to think about the baby. I never thought about not having it, and I want it to grow up in a good home.”

Maggie sighed, took her hand, and led her to the sofa. “I’m glad you’re thinking this way.” She placed her hand on Patricia’s belly. “No matter if it’s a boy or a girl, Oliver is going to love this child so much. When a father loves his child, he loves the mother too. And the other way around, it’s the same.”