Blindsided....

"Mr Sandstone...your wife was born male." The doctor said.

Everything after that is a blur. All sounds became muffled. You remember how all the adults sounded in the Peanuts cartoons? Yea. That's what I was hearing. How the hell did I get here?

I met Lyn 5 years ago. I was filling up at a random gas station and tripped. I reached out to grab her out of instinct. Cliche but true. We had a good laugh and went on our separate ways. About a week or so later, I am in the local coffee shop before work getting my usual when who do I see two people ahead? Lyn.

"At this point, we should just get married because clearly the universe is trying to put us together." Lyn chuckled.

"Either that or one of us is a stalker!" I awkwardly blurted out.

We exchanged numbers and went n a few dozen dates over the course of a year. We got along great. We had a ton of stuff in common. I proposed on the one year anniversary of the day we met. Cue the usual relationship progression activities: living together, the wedding.... I had to pinch myself all the time because I just couldn't believe my life was so good. That would all change the day Lyn told me she was pregnant.

Our lives became pretty routine. I wouldn't say mundane though. I actually enjoyed the predictability. I came home from work. I'm stuffed into business clothes all day, so as soon as I get home, I change into shorts and a t shirt. There's nothing more comfortable than that. I get to the bedroom and there is a rectangular box, a note and a bow on the bed. Lyn was nowhere to be found. I opened the box. There was a pregnancy test inside. I had no idea how to read the damn thing. The note read:

"I'M PREGNANT! YOU ARE GONNA BE A DADDY! I LOVE YOU!"

Lyn then pops out of the bathroom yelling "SURPRISE!"

I was thrilled. A little us running around in the world. Like I said, life was great.

I own a cyber security firm so I make 6 figures a year. Lyn was working as a psych nurse when we met. After we got married, I told her she didn't have to continue working full time or at all if she didn't want to. She cut her hours for the first year of our marriage. Her paychecks went straight into the bank. Now, 5 years later, I am still making 6 figures and we have a couple 6 figure savings accounts. Since Lyn no longer worked, she fell right into her stay-at-home wife role. Dinner was ready everyday when I got home. This night was no exception.

"So a baby huh?" I said with a proud smile. I hugged my wife so tight.

"Let's eat dinner gets cold." Lyn said.

She made vegetable lasagna and a big chicken Caesar salad. I will remember that meal forever.

"SHOOT!" Lyn said outta nowhere.

"What's wrong baby?"

'I forgot the crescent rolls and cheese to make the garlic bread. That's my favorite part. How could I forget it? Pregnancy brain setting in already." she chuckled.

It was about 7:30 by this time. She said she was going to run up the road and grab the stuff. I told her that it wasn't that big a deal. We went back and forth about it for a minute or so. I relented and let it go. She was determined to go to the store. She grabbed her keys and headed out the door. The store is literally 3 minutes away. Fifteen minutes pass. Then twenty minutes. At the 30 minute mark, I started to wonder. I wasn't worried per se because we lived a small town and crime is rare. I was more so wondering if she went somewhere else or if the store was like super duper packed or something. She knew I was waiting for her though, so I didn't think she would go other places. I had this whole internal conversation within a few seconds. I called her cell phone. Of course it's on the couch. That made sense because she probably figured she wouldn't be gone that long. Lyn had been gone for one hour and 39 minutes when my cellphone rang.

"Something must've happened and she borrowed someone's phone to check in and let me know she's safe." I thought. Boy was I wrong.

"Mr Kevin Sandstone?" A male voice asked.

"Yes. Who is this?"

"My name is Officer Clayton. Your wife gave me your name and number before she lost consciousness." He replied.

"What? Lost consciousness? What is happening right now?" At this point, I am totally freaking out and panicking.

"She was in a car accident. We had to extract her from her vehicle and have her air lifted to the trauma hospital in the city" Officer Clayton continued.

I didn't even say goodbye. i just hung up and jumped into my truck. My mind was racing. I had no idea what condition my wife was in and whether or not she and my unborn child will live.I was on autopilot. I don't remember driving or parking. I was still frantic when I walked in. I was yelling at the staff to save my wife and child. After a while, the attending physician walks over to me and takes me into an exam room and tells me to sit down.

"He's telling me to sit down because Lyn is gone." I thought.

"Mr Sandstone, calm down ans listen carefully." The doctor started. "There is no unborn child." He continued.

I cried out, "The baby didn't make it? Ohhhhhh noooooo!"

"No, that isn't what I am trying to say Mr Sandstone. Your wife was born male. Her birth name is Dylyn. She cannot get pregnant..."