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belamy20
Medical Center.
Adam was getting hit with "surprises" left and right.
First, his uncle—who'd been proudly single and gay for years—suddenly decided he wanted to start a family. Before Adam could even dig into that, his mom, Amy, called with "good news."
Given the timing and Amy's track record, Adam braced himself like he was facing a final boss. 😱
"It's not a pregnancy!"
Amy finally snapped, fed up with Adam's parrot-like repetition. Her tone was anything but cheerful.
"Thank you, Dad!"
Adam practically sang it like a prayer to the heavens, giving props to his dad, Bob.
This time, Bob actually came through—no accidents! Though Adam strongly suspected it was only because of his last freakout, which finally scared Bob into being more careful instead of living life like a free spirit.
"You really don't want another sibling that bad?"
Amy couldn't help but laugh at Adam's over-the-top reaction, momentarily forgetting her "good news" to tease her eldest son.
"We're just worried about your health," Adam said with a sheepish grin. "Besides, the Duncan volleyball team's already set. We're all in top shape—every game's a breeze, full court, no subs needed. And you just had Jenny…"
Hmm…
Not long ago, the Duncan family welcomed their sixth kid, little sister Jenny. The Duncan five-man basketball squad officially upgraded to a six-player volleyball team. Three boys, three girls, perfectly spaced out. Talk about balance!
But Adam, as the oldest, couldn't handle the nightmare of a seventh sibling. That'd make them the freaking Seven Gourd Brothers!
Sure, Adam's got strength and could probably go giant-mode if he wanted, but being called "Big Gourd"? No thanks! Even if most people in this American TV world wouldn't get the reference, it'd still be mortifying. 😳
"Alright, alright," Amy said, backing off. She could see her son softening and knew she'd reasserted her "empress dowager" status. "I get it—you're worried about me. Don't worry, I've got an IUD now. No seventh sibling for you."
"Mom, you're a genius!"
Adam let out a huge sigh of relief and laid on the flattery thick. "Out of us six, Gabe's the only dud—number three's a write-off. The rest of us? You nailed it. No need to roll the dice on a new one."
"You can't say that…" Amy started, sounding annoyed.
"My bad! I'll never trash Gabe again," Adam said, practically sliding into an apology on his knees.
As long as Amy stayed in a good mood and didn't risk her health popping out more kids at her age, Adam was ready to grovel. Skipping a jab at Gabe? Small price to pay.
"I'm not talking about Gabe," Amy said with a laugh. "Number three being a bust is obvious—no need to mention it. I mean Toby, number five. He's starting to take after Gabe—a little troublemaker. Jenny's too new to tell, but out of six, I've probably botched two. Maybe three."
"Exactly!" Adam clapped his hands. "That's why you can't have more, Mom! Look at the pattern: boy, girl, boy, girl, all nice and even. Jenny's number six, so even if you pushed it now, you'd just get another boy. And the flops? All boys! No more, please!"
An IUD isn't foolproof, though. Adam made a mental note to team up with Teddy and the others later to give Bob a stern talking-to. Double prep: track the safe days and keep up the usual precautions. As a doctor, Adam knew his stuff.
"But Adam, you're a boy too," Amy said hesitantly. "What if number seven's another you? You're our pride and joy—wouldn't another one be great?"
"Heh." Adam smirked. "Mom, please. Trust me, there's no second me."
"Fair point," Amy nodded after a pause. "Even if I had a seventh, I wouldn't let your dad drop him on his head too. That 'dumb-then-genius' lightning strike? Way too rare. PJ, you're one of a kind!"
She got all sentimental, slipping back to Adam's childhood name.
"…"
Adam nearly choked on the comeback stuck in his throat.
Holy crap, that logic was airtight—almost too close to cracking the穿越 (transmigration) code! If he hadn't crossed over at 14 instead of as a baby, he'd seriously wonder if Bob dropping the original kid was what let him take over.
"Okay, deal—no more scaring me," Adam said with a wry smile.
"I wasn't trying to scare you. You freaked yourself out," Amy shot back. "I just said I had good news, and you went full drama queen. Hmph!"
"My bad," Adam admitted instantly. "So, what's the good news, Mom?"
"It's Teddy," Amy said, beaming.
"Oh no!" Adam's head throbbed as he morphed back into a broken record. "Please don't say pregnant, please don't say pregnant, please don't say pregnant…"
"ADAM DUNCAN!!!"
Amy's yell blasted through the phone. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Sorry, I've been extra twitchy about pregnancies lately," Adam said with an awkward laugh.
"Ooh!" Amy's mood flipped like a switch, all sunshine and excitement. "Did one of your girlfriends get pregnant? Don't tell me yet—let me guess! Is it Heather's?
If it's hers, that kid's gonna be blessed.
Or maybe Peggy's?
If it's hers, I can't even imagine how smart that baby'd be.
Wait—Juno's?
I knew this day was coming…"
"…You should write scripts with that imagination," Adam deadpanned.
"Thanks, but my dream's always been acting… And don't change the subject! Whose is it?" Amy pressed. "Adam, if any of your girlfriends are pregnant, you better tell us. No abortions—marry her and give me that baby now!"
"No! It's nobody!" Adam grumbled. "I'm not Dad. If I don't want it, it's not happening."
"Don't be so sure," Amy said gleefully. "You can never be 100% certain. Maybe I'll get a grandkid soon! It'd be like training a new little one without wrecking my body—perfect!"
Wow. Her obsession with "training newbies" was next-level.
"Too bad for you," Adam said with a grin. "I'm a doctor—a damn good one. If I say no accidents, there's a 99.99% chance there won't be."
His math skills and medical expertise teamed up for the first time—not some Duncan-Adler Formula, but the Anti-Duncan-N (Adler, Sawyer…) Formula. 😎
(End of Chapter)