Next Generation
Today is a day that will go down in the history for mankind as a day to remember. Scott and Ann Wells will be talked about for many years to come. Their lives will soon change forever, very soon. Scott is a well-respected chef hosting his own local television show. His wife Ann is loan a consultant at Total Care World (TCW). The Wells have a very normal life in suburban Chesterfield. "Scott it has been three months and it hasn't gone away yet. You need to go see a doctor. What if it is serious?" stated Ann with firmness in her voice. Scott limps into the room easing himself down into the chair. His scrotum is swollen to twice its normal size, and is painful when he moves. "All right, I'll go. I have to do something about this,� said Scott gritting his teeth in pain. Ann calls to make an appointment for this afternoon at Dr. Johnson's office. Unfortunately, he doesn�t have any openings until Wednesday, three days later. "I can't wait three days. I would rather go to the ER now, I can�t take this pain anymore," said Scott wincing in pain. Ann calls a cab because their car is still in the shop. When the cab arrives it takes a few minutes for Scott to sit down as he has to be extra careful with his most tender area. "To the ER," says Ann. The cabby nodded and started driving. Scott feels every bump in the road as the cab propels toward the hospital. Ann watches her husband in silence during the trip. Fifteen minutes later, the cab dropped them off at the ER entrance. They wait more than three hours to be seen and the ER doctor decides to admit him. Two days, 15 blood samples, two stool samples, two x-rays, 12 urine samples, one ultra sound, and they finally had an answer. Dr Skipwith walks into the room to give them the news. "Mr. Wells, I am not sure what to say, so I'll just give you the facts. You have had 12 positive pregnancy tests," says Dr Skipwith with a straight face. The doctor says nothing more to give the patients time to reflect. �How can I be pregnant? You didn�t even test me," replies Ann in disbelief. "You are not. He is," says the doctor with another long pause. "The ultrasound confirms that the fetus is four months old. So far, you have a healthy baby girl." "Excuse me, umm...What are we talking about? I�m lost," says Scott with an extremely worried look upon his face. "Scott, you are four months pregnant with a baby girl, and since you are four months along, abortion is not an option for you. We�ll need to start a hormone therapies and a nutrition program. The hormones will help you produce milk glands, and help increase the elasticity of your scrotum. Are you ok, Scott?," asks the doctor as he watches him turn ghostly pale. "I feel nauseous," croaks a very shocked Scott. "I am going to give you some nausea medication and a sedative. It won�t hurt the baby." After Scott falls asleep from the medication the doctor gives him his first injection of the hormone therapy. He then explains to the wife about all the side effects of pregnancy including: mood swings, swollen breasts, swollen feet, weight gain, acne, frequent urination, morning sickness, heartburn, and unusual food cravings. With Scott still asleep, the doctor explains more to Ann, "Your eggs apparently swam into his scrotum sack. I am not sure how or why your eggs swim, but they do. The pregnancy should be perfectly safe as long as he keeps up with his hormone regimen. The medication will allow for his scrotum to stretch without anymore pain. At six months, he will need to come in and get fitted for a hoister device to help his body support the child. I estimate that his scrotum will grow roughly to the size of a watermelon. Due to this being such a unique case, I want him to stay at home, no more working. I�ll need to see him once a week to ensure that everything is going along smoothly. Congratulations," says the doctor and he leaves the room. The nurse helps Ann get Scott into a wheelchair for discharge. The nurse calls a cab to meet them at the entrance since they did not yet have their car back. By now, Scott is starting to come back around and by the time they are getting into the cab, he is uncontrollably sobbing. "It isn�t that bad," Ann says to Scott as she pulls the door shut, yet she knows it is. She explains everything the doctor told her while Scott was still asleep. What will the neighbors think? Freaks of nature, she thinks quietly to herself. "It's not that bad... are you crazy?" Scott says in anguish as he is wiping away his tears. "They have never seen anything like this before; I could even die. I'll be the laughing stock of the world," and Scott again began to cry. �I will be an idol for women everywhere,� she imagines. �Being the first woman to impregnate a man, why I�ll be famous.� She almost smiles with her next thought... I have eggs so strong that they swam into his scrotum and nested.� �The doctor says it will be fine. The stretching will be painless as long as you continue your hormone therapy. There is plenty of room in your scrotum for the baby to grow. Though it may hard to walk, you will need a hoister device in a month or so,� she says holding a straight look on her solemn face. The cabby was now looking into his mirror listening intently to this odd tale. �You men never go to the doctor. If you would�ve gone three months ago at the first signs, it could have been aborted. But no! You had to wait four months and now it is illegal to abort,� Ann complains. �How can I be pregnant?� screams Scott. Screech!!!!!!! Crash!!! The cab driver is listening so intently that he hits the car in front of him, outside the local news station. Ann jumps out of the cab and screams �Somebody, call an ambulance! My baby! My baby!� A reporter who is standing outside calls 911 as he runs over to the crash site. �Are you okay? Sit down and relax for the baby,� says the reporter trying to calm her down. �Not me, my husband is pregnant,� yells Ann as she sits down on the curb. The reporter looks at her strangely, and then whistles at his cameraman to come over to him. �Steve, you have to record this,� he says with his eyes half bulging out of his head. By the time they reach home from the hospital, their entire story is all over the news. Ann had told the reporter the whole story before the ambulance arrived. Everyone emerges from the accident physically unharmed, though Scott�s pride is heavily damaged. Scott thinks about calling his friends and family, but he is so embarrassed that he becomes more of a recluse, keeping contact with the doctor and Ann only. Scott agrees to follow all of the Doctors� orders. He starts his maternity leave immediately, mainly because he doesn�t want to be seen in public after everything hits the news. At first it is hard for Scott to adapt to the solitude of being a homemaker. He has trouble figuring out how to occupy his time. Doing what he knows best, he starts running his house as if it were his restaurant. He cleans every nook and cranny. After the house is as clean as his restaurant he takes to watching television, but there is nothing on except Soaps. Scott becomes a regular addict to the series Days of Our Lives. Eventually he gets use to all the extra time he has to himself, but that will change when the baby arrives. As the weeks pass, the hormone therapies begin to change Scott�s body inside and out. He starts wearing a custom-fitted training bra to help his breasts form the proper shape. He enjoys the fact that he now has to shave only once a week now. He does not enjoy the fact that he is gaining weight and it is all going to his hips. The hoister device he uses to support the baby is rather comfortable. It wraps over his shoulders like suspenders, and comes down in between his legs, supporting his scrotum, which is now about the size of a honeydew melon. Now that Scott has been spending all this time at home he performs most of the house chores. Ann has been so working long hours, being the soul provider. Scott decides to make her dinner, something to reward her for her hard work. Scott is cooking Ann her favorite dish for dinner blackened Ma-hi Ma-hi. For the sides he prepares a mescaline salad with a vinaigrette dressing, and fresh snapped green beans. He is ending the meal with a chocolate mousse made from her favorite Bulgarian chocolates. Scott turns on the radio to listen to some soft jazz while they dine. When he turns on the radio, he catches the end of the seven o�clock news. He is about to call his wife to dinner when he hears something peculiar: "For the second time in world history a man has been impregnated by a woman. Both of these men reside in Richmond VA, but are of no relation." Scott quickly switches the radio to another station while Ann is on her way to the dinner table. Scott is staring at her with a lost look in his face. "Are you okay?" asks Ann with a perplexed look on her face. "I...I forgot the salad dressing," he says as he rubs his left eye. Scott goes to the kitchen to look for the dressing, only to realize he had already put it on the kitchen table. He returns to the dining room and takes his seat across from Ann. "How was your day at the office, meet any new clients?" Scott asks, unable to make eye contact with her, still disturbed by the news report. "Actually, I did. I closed three new accounts today. However, I am not sure if it is our service or my name that has been doing the selling. Ever since all this hit the news, my sales have tripled. This Ma-hi is delicious,� she says with ultimate satisfaction. "If that one isn't good enough, you could try another," says Scott with a sneer in his voice, still unable to look her in the eyes. "Did you take your hormone therapy pills today? You seem a bit off," Ann asks with a puzzled look on her face. Something just doesn�t seem right to her. "Yes dear, I have taken all my medication today, just as ordered. It has been a long day cleaning the house, doing the laundry, and making your dinner,� stated Scott with a snarl in his voice that could even make a rabid animal retreat. "We have a lovely white wine in the fridge that would go perfectly with this delicious fish," Ann says, trying to change the subject. "You know better than that,� snaps Scott. �I can�t drink. Is the fish not good enough by itself that you need something to spice it up?" says Scott, this time looking Ann right in the eyes. "There�s nothing wrong with the fish, Scott!� she snaps back �I just wanted a little change in flavor, something to calm my nerves since you don't want to step off of them," Ann barks as she stares him back down, wondering what is Scott�s problem. She gets up and walks to the kitchen to get her wine, despite the fact that Scott cannot partake in the bottle. While she is in the kitchen opening the bottle of wine, she notices that Scott has turned up the volume on the stereo. "This is a live news update on 102.1. It has been confirmed that John Bentley, an associate of Ann Wells at TCW, is the second man to be impregnated in U.S. history. Ann Wells is the wife of Scott Wells, the first man impregnated, and it may be more than coincidence that Bentley is her associate." stated the radio as it is turned off. Ann drops the bottle of wine. It shatters across their marble kitchen floor. Scott hears the crash and assumes the news is right. He waddles upstairs as fast as he can, crying profusely and slams the door. Ann runs the thought through her mind over and over; John is pregnant. It was so long ago that I was with him. Scott hadn�t made love to me in months because of his medical condition, and I didn�t even know I could impregnate someone when I was with John. I am a woman. I still need loving and Scott couldn�t provide. What kind of mess have I gotten myself into? Ann contemplates to herself. Knowing that there is nothing she can do to comfort her husband, she begins to clean up the glass, and put away dinner. After everything is put away, she grabs a pillow and blanket out of the closet to make up the couch as her bed for the night. As she lays her head down on the pillow there was a knock at the door. �Eleven O�clock at night, who could that be,� she wonders to herself. As she opens the door, the brightest light she has ever seen blinds her. It was so bright she bumps into the doorframe and almost falls down. Then comes the commotion. �Mrs. Wells, are you the partner of the second pregnant man?� �Are you having an affair?� �How long have you been cheating on your husband?� �Do you have anything to say to the females of America?� �Do you have any STDs?� �How many men have you impregnated?� �Are you an extra-terrestrial?� Everyone is speaking at once. She can�t make sense of what they were saying. She feels like a small fish being thrown in the middle of a group of sharks, where everyone wants a piece. There are news crews as far as she can see, which is not far considering she is still half blind from the bright lights. She fights her way back into the house and shuts the door without saying a word to anyone. Everything is quiet when she shuts the door, but she knows they are still out there, the piranhas. She goes back to her made-up bed on the couch, puts a pillow over her head and eventually falls to sleep. Ann awoke the next morning with a stiff neck. She gets ready for work like she always does. The bedroom door is still locked, so she wears some old clothes out of the guest room. She goes to pull the car out of the garage, only to be bombarded by the press again, still screaming all the same questions. She drives past them with the window up and goes to work. Ring, ring�ring, ring� Scott wakes on their massive king size bed, surrounded by the tissues of his lonely crying episode last night. He realizes that Ann didn�t even attempt to come talk to him. She would be up here begging me for forgiveness if she really loves me he thought to himself. Scott looks at the caller ID before answering the phone, to ensure it is not his wife. PEPSI CO shows up on the caller ID. �Hello?� answers Scott still sniffling and wiping his face with yet another tissue. �Mr. Wells, this is the president of Pepsi Corporation. I am sorry to hear about your current situation. We may have a solution to fit your needs,� said a man in a distinguished voice. �What needs?� says Scott. �We would like to sponsor you and your unborn child. We will cover all your medical expenses, housing, food, transportation, wardrobe, we will accommodate every need you have. I am also prepared to offer you a ten million dollar signing bonus,� says the businessman. Scott is puzzled why Pepsi wants anything to do with him. �What do you want with me and my baby?� �We are Pepsi, the Next Generation, and you are carrying the Next Generation inside of you. I know from personal experience that it isn�t easy living with a spouse that has cheated on you. I have a limo and security team outside awaiting you. They are willing to take you anywhere.� �I want to go to northern California. I want a beach house, with no neighbors. I want it to be private and not known and I want an espresso maker. Also for some reason, I am craving a Coney Island hotdog, with everything, lots of them and some caviar I have never had caviar.� �Done. I�ll fax the contract to the car.� The Pepsi CEO hangs up the phone. Just then, there is a knock at the door. Scott answers it with a bewildered look on his face. The security guards are ready to take him to the limo. �My bags, I need� �No need for that. All will be provided for you.� Scott gave up trying to think for himself and just got into the car. Within 30 minutes, he is in the air on a private jet heading far away from that adulterous whore of a wife. Little did he know of all the holes in the contract. He will not get the privacy he expects. Within two weeks, he will become one of the most popular television series. Ann drives all the way to her office with her radio off. The last thing she wants is to hear what the media has to say about everything. She is able to make it to her office building without hearing anything else, or being attacked by the media. On the elevator ride up to her floor she can swear that everyone is staring at her. She wonders what her boss is thinks of this media mess, yet she can�t go back home that place is a mad house with all the media. When the elevator opens up at her tenth floor office, she is overcome by the press yet again. �Mrs. Wells, are you the partner of the second pregnant man?� �Are you having an affair?� �How long have you been cheating on your husband?� �Do you have anything to say to the females of America?� �Do you have any STDs?� �How many men have you impregnated?� �Are you an extra-terrestrial?� �What are you going to do now that your husband has moved out?� The last question catches her attention, but she continues and runs past them into the safety of her office. Her boss meets her at the entrance of the office and asks her to join him for a private conversation in his office. �This is one hell of a mess you got yourself into,� says George Bentley, her boss and John Bentley�s father. �I knew you were messing with my son, but this! How many lives are you going to destroy?� George paused awaiting a response. �I... I... How could I ...� she says as she is cut off by her boss. �Needless to say this PR is not good for our business,� George says as he stands up out of his chair, now hovering over her. �You are no longer employed by us, or any other firm in this city. I will personally see to it that you are responsible for all damages to this company and to my son. Now get the hell out of here� he says pointing at the door, almost drooling out of his mouth like a rabid animal. Ann gets up and starts running for the door softly crying. She runs straight into the crowd of media. Instead of waiting for the elevator, she pushes her way to the stairs and quickly descends them with the media in hot pursuit. She runs for her car, the only safe place left she has to hide. �Mr. Bentley, your son is still holding one line one,� says his secretary. George picks up the line. �Hello�. �Has she come there yet? I need to talk to her. I must see her,� says his son John, frantically. �You don�t have to worry about that happening. She will never step foot in this office again after what she has done. I forbid you to contact that freak of nature. This will be over before you know it. I am having my personal physician come over tonight to take care of this mess you got me into,� states George with the firmness of a drill sergeant. �You what!! I can�t believe you, Dad. You always ruining everything,� he says in a sobbing voice. His hormone therapy is already starting to effect his emotions. �I am going to have this baby and you can�t stop me. I am a grown man!,� John says before hanging up the phone. That was the last time he ever spoke to his father. John tries everything to reach Ann, but she does not answer her cell phone or house phone. He has no idea where she could be. John feels so alone Ann, on the other hand, is drinking her problems away at a local bar. She saw the news report where Pepsi Co took away Scott, the love of her life. Ann loves Scott very much; she just couldn�t handle all the abstinence. She has lost her job and she is about to be heavily sued by her former employer. She has had enough of this self-shame at the bar and she is going home, where she can sulk about the life she once had. As if things couldn�t get worse, she gets a DUI on the way home. The judge that trials he case is an old friend of the Bentley�s and the judge enforce the maximum sentence, three months in county jail. Ann was famous in the jailhouse. Everyone knows of her story and how she impregnated two men. With all the popularity, she was still sad over the loss of her family. Then she meets Crystal Lynch, a lawyer who was spending the weekend for contempt of court. The lawyer offers to help her with the custody battle free of charge. Since it would be such a high profile case, Miss Lynch will get a great extent of good PR. While in jail, she tries to keep up with the news. Pepsi has started a TV program, starring the life of the first pregnant man. She religiously watches the show. She almost feels involved with her old family when watching the show. Within her first month in county jail, she hears that John had a miscarriage. Poor John she reflects to herself. Miss Lynch had convinced George Bentley to drop the lawsuit after the unborn baby had died. When Ann gets out of jail she starts a new life. A New York doctor offers to buy all of her remaining eggs at $100,000 a piece. He is using them to impregnate men around the world, particularly homosexual male couples that want children. She no longer needs to worry about money. Once she settled into her new life, she began the custody battle. Miss Lynch had no chance against Pepsi�s lawyers. She is able to get visitation rights for every other weekend. Ann and Miss Lynch got very close to one another during this case. They plan on raising the baby on their weekends as a family. Within two weeks of the court case Scott�s labor is induced. The camera crew keeps a close watch on him to record every second of this historical moment. Scott screams in pain with every contraction of his scrotum. He swings at the cameras, telling them, �Get the hell out of here!� They do not; they just keep recording. Scott�s midwife, a sexy blonde that stared in the ER series, stood by his side trying to comfort him. �Breath in and out nice and slow,� said Nicole the midwife. �I know how to freaking breath. Grrr. Ahhhh,� said Scott as he began to wail again. Two hours after they got to the hospital the anesthetist arrives. The doctors prep Scott for his deliver and the cameramen didn�t miss a shot. Scott gives birth to a beautiful baby girl, by scrotum section. Her name is Angelica, which is also the name of Pepsi�s newest concoction. Scott is happily raising his daughter in Northern California. At six months old she says her first word. �Dadma?�
Copyright © 2007 Christopher Evans |