One

“This is the one!” I exclaimed.

I took the ball gown wedding dress off the rack and admired the beauty of every stitch and every detail that embellished this beautifully created gown. The corset was intricately designed with various styles of beads and gems that flowed into a unique piece of art that would be my wedding dress.

“Don’t you want to try it on first?” my maid of honor Alice asked with one eyebrow arched.

“I mean I suppose I could try it on for formality but I’m not walking out of this boutique without this dress,” I said matter-of-factly.

I went into the dressing room where one of the boutique staff members helped me put on the dress, before they even had the corset tied, I felt tears well up into my eyes making the mirror I was looking into blurry.

“You look beautiful” She stated.

“Thank you. This dress is everything.” I replied as the warm tears trickled down my cheeks.

I walked out onto the podium in the boutique I could tell by Alice’s face that I had indeed picked the right gown for my most special day.

“Alright, you got me, we are definitely not walking out of this boutique without this dress.”

After checking out Alice and I headed out the door with my dream dress in tow.

“Okay.” I said taking a breath, “So the wedding is in four weeks and all we need to do now is just confirm that the church and hall are all set for the event on January 7^th.”

“I’ve got that all handled!” Alice replied. “Just enjoy the holiday and we will regroup on the 27^th.”

“Sounds like a plan!” I replied while giving her a hug, “Thank you so much for everything. You have been nothing short of amazing this past month.”

“Of course!” She replied, “Now go home and put that dress somewhere Drew won’t be able to see it!”

“I’m on it!” I said laughing.

I got home to the sound of dishes clinking in the kitchen.

“Rats, he beat me home!” I said under my breath.

“Ev is that you?” He asked.

“Yes, but whatever you do stay in the kitchen, this is not a drill!” I shouted from the living room.

“I’m guessing you found the dress then. He asked.

“You betcha!” I replied.

I ran down the hall careful not to trip on the garment bag holding my dress and slammed the door shut when I entered the bedroom. I quickly realized there wasn’t anywhere else I could put the dress except in our bathroom. I hear a knock on the bedroom door as I quickly slam the bathroom door shut with my wedding dress securely behind it.

“Come in” I replied breathlessly.

“Hey! I made a fruit smoothie for you if you’re interested. I know you said the more vitamins the better when trying to conceive so I thought you couldn’t go wrong with smoothies.”

Drew and I decided a month ago we would start trying for children. We are so excited at the prospect of having little ones we couldn’t wait.

“That actually sounds amazing!” I replied, “Lately I’ve been so thirsty it seems that no matter how much I drink I have cotton mouth.”

“hmm, could that be a pregnancy symptom?” he asked.

“I’m not sure but it’s too early to take a pregnancy test so we will have to wait and see,” I replied.

In what seemed like a blink of an eye it was Christmas day. Drew and I spent the day at his grandmother's home enjoying good food and good company.

“Could you get me another glass of juice?” I asked Drew.

“Yeah, of course, you must really like my grandmas’ juice this is your fifth glass.” He replied.

“five? I guess I didn’t realize I was so thirsty. That explains why I’ve been using the bathroom every 5 minutes.” I stated.

The night went on in pure bliss. Drew and I got into our matching Christmas pajamas and headed to bed.

“Hey, Drew?” I asked in the darkness of the bedroom.

“Yeah?” He replied while yawning.

“I think I’m going to see the doctor tomorrow. With all of the symptoms, I’m experiencing I’m wondering if maybe we are pregnant.”

“Did you want me to come?” He asked.

“No that’s ok I don’t want you missing work, but I’ll keep you posted.”

“Ok just let me know if you need anything. I love you.” He stated.

“I love you too.”

I called the doctors as soon as the office opened and was able to get squeezed in at 9:15 due to a cancellation. I waited anxiously for the doctor to come in hoping for good news after leaving a urine sample in the small office bathroom.

“So, what brings you in today Ms. Leopold? Dr. Nixon asked.

“Well for the past few weeks I’ve noticed that I’m more fatigued than usual. I seem to have frequent cotton mouth no matter how much I drink and in return, I’m going to the bathroom almost every hour. My fiancé and I are trying to conceive but didn’t know if it was too early to tell or if it could potentially be something else.”

“Well, we ran your urine, and it did come back negative for pregnancy.” He replied. “I do want to ask; do you have a family history of diabetes?”

“Diabetes?” I asked confused.

“Yes, type 1 or type 2. “he stated.

“Um, I do have an uncle that has type 2 diabetes,” I replied.

“If you don’t mind, I do want to draw some blood and see what your levels are at.” He stated.

“ok, no problem,” I replied.

I left the office and went to the local laboratory and had my blood drawn. I returned to my car and sat soaking in the quietness of my Volkswagen. Diabetes? That has to be the last thing I have. I’m relatively healthy and I’m not overweight. It has to be something else.

After arriving home, I changed into my favorite jogger set and turned on my favorite home design show, buy it and Break it. Halfway through the show, my cellphone rang. I stared at the number and realized it was my doctor’s office calling.

“Hello?” I asked answering the phone call.

“Ms. Leopold?” Dr. Nixon asked.

“Yes, this is her,” I replied.

“So, your labs did come back, and your blood glucose level was 327. This is greatly higher than the normal range…”

I spaced out realizing exactly what the doctor was telling me. I have diabetes. No baby. Diabetes. I visualized the idea of having a family fade slowly until it was gone.

“Ms. Leopold?” Dr. Nixon asked.

“Oh sorry, yes?” I replied with a broken voice.

“I want to set you up with an endocrinologist right away. It is imperative that you get this taken care of immediately. Based on your labs it looks like Type 1 diabetes.” He said sternly.

“Of course,” I replied.

I hung up the phone after scheduling my first visit with an endocrinologist. I got up and rose from my seat. I have to do something, anything. I just can’t sit here any longer.

I picked up my phone and called Drew.

“Hey! How did the appointment go? Any good news?” He said excitedly.

“I need you to come home,” I replied.

“What, what’s wrong Everly?” He asked concerned.

And I lost it.