© Oleg Molokanov, 2016

ISBN 978-5-4483-1913-6

Created with intellectual publishing system Ridero

INTRO

Believe it or not – at the moment when Pete came into this world, he was laughing. Specialists state – and it’s a scientific fact – that any baby, before he or she sees the light, passes through unbelievable sufferings. There are lots of reasons for that: baby’s organism gasps, for its lungs are only unfolding; mom is screaming – and while she screams, baby’s heart nearly stops pumping thus causing oxygen hunger; vaginal muscles in the birth canal compress child’s head like vice clamps. In spite of all that Pete did not shed a tear; at the moment of birth he was laughing, and that’s it. Dr. Eugene G. Khovaev, a gynecologist with a 30-years’ experience and author of a Ph. D. thesis about progressive methods of ovarian cyst surgery, highly appreciated in due time all over Moscow, was immediately called to hospital to investigate such an extraordinary case. The aged doc, who had seen so much in his life, gave the baby a scrupulous survey: during the procedures he was bending brows, sighing, and in the end, lost for proper words, just said, “What a strange… abbreviation!”

Nonetheless, the fact was that something really extraordinary had happened, and no one of the doctors could find a more or less reasonable explanation for Pete’s case. The latter, against the odds, staying at maternity clinic, was developing quite well – without any abnormalities in his organism. Before leaving the clinic Linda, Pete’s mother, was told about the peculiarities of her case and asked – if she finds any reason for uneasiness in terms of baby’s mental or physical health – not to take the boy to her district child health centre but visit the special one they had recommended, and do that as soon as possible. In advance, they sent there all the Linda’s documents dealing with her pregnancy, as well as information about baby’s height, weight, appetite, and so on. It was a good thing that the staff of the maternity clinic had enough wisdom not to give publicity to this case – organize a special council hard on the heels or, even worse, invite media. Thus they preserved a huge mass of mother’s nerve cells; after all, she herself was very startled with what had happened.

We are riding before the hounds, though. First, it is worth mentioning that Dr. Khovaev, right after what he had seen, requested Linda’s prenatal record and studied it with great attention. To those who have little to show in medicine, the further facts may seem dull and even annoying – but we can’t ignore them if we want to arrive at a comprehensive picture and to make sure that nobody accuses us as illiterate manipulators. After all, everyone has his own opinion about this or that phenomenon, and nobody deprives him or her of the right to have it. So, in Linda’s record the experienced gynecologist didn’t find any warning signs:

the patient was registered in her district maternity welfare centre and submitted to blood, urine, vaginal smear and ECG tests; then she was examined by a therapist, an ophthalmologist, an ENT specialist and a dentist – no alarming symptoms;

clinical blood analysis – no inflammatory processes in organism. For the first time – as prescribed – general analysis was made when the second month of pregnancy started, and further was repeated every month before delivery occurred. There was suspicion of anemia, but it turned to be false – further tests prove that. Changes in quantity of red and white blood cells, blood platelets and their proportion; Hb level; red blood cells sedimentation rate, and clotting tendency of blood – everything within normal limits;

biochemical analysis – no operational disturbance of internals. First made on the date of patient registration, one more at the phase of 30-week pregnancy, no additional analysis recommended;

blood glucose test – passed on the date of patient registration, and once again at the phase of 30-week pregnancy. No glucose level increase registered; no patient’s complaints registered re clinical symptoms of diabetes, such as sharp thirst, excessive urination and skin itch;

hemostasiogram – test passed on the date of registration and at the 30-week phase; in terms of prothrombin ratio, clotting time, bleeding time – within normal limits;

blood tests on alpha fetoprotein, Serum Beta hCG Qualitative, and pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A (the latter interested Dr. Khovaev most of all, since it determines the risk of having Down syndrome and dropsy of brain) passed at the phase of 18-week pregnancy and were computer-processed, as prescribed – within normal limits;

pregnancy sickness – first registered at the 10th week (early phase). Patient’s complaints: depression, weakness, nausea, increased saliva flow, vomiting up to 5 times a day. Weight slightly lowered. Specialists prescribed special therapy course (correct, as Dr. Khovaev mentioned to himself), namely promenade and moderately warm meals in small portions. After the course negative symptoms disappeared. Further weighing on regular basis at home showed that the patient’s weight loss had been a casual fact;

at the 25^th week Patient passed the 2^nd sonography (as planned), which determined baby’s gender (male); body structure – within normal limits; no congenital malformations; volume and quality of amniotic fluid – within normal limits; placenta location and state – within normal limits;

womb; uterine tubes; ovaries; changes in lacteal gland; blood supply of kidneys; metabolic activity; cortisone and estrogens and progesterone percentage; protein, carbohydrate, lipid, mineral and water turnover – all within normal limits;

vitamin C, A, B1, D, and E doses – prescribed correctly;

skin surface – light brown pigmentation registered on abdominal line, nipples and areolas; no striae gravidarum;

since the 30^th week the patient visited clinic every 2 weeks – she received her prenatal record;

at the 34^th week the patient passed Doppler sonography – it showed that the fetus had been getting enough oxygen and nutritional substances;

at the 36^th week the patient once again passed vaginal smear test and blood tests (AIDS, syphilis, biochemical) – normal findings; the last ultrasonography showed normal state of placenta, fetus’ height and weight; fetal presentation – cranial; amniotic fluid – hydramniosis;

according to doctors’ information, the patient obeyed all their recommendations and passed tests in due time.

As you see, it turned absolutely impossible for Dr. Khovaev – at least soon after the act of delivery – to explain the newborn baby’s laughter basing just on the medical point of view. Moreover, first months and even years of Pete’s life made it unnecessary to take him to doctors at the special health centre: the boy was growing and developing as all ordinary kids. God bless him hereafter. Our world is plenty of miracles, and very often medical science and science in general are unable to explain them. Why, for instance, pig’s liver assimilates into human organism? Why blind people feel keenly their friends and relations and everything that passes around, and some of them predict what happens in future to those who want to know their destiny? Why is it possible to teleport objects? Our case – Pete’s laughter at the moment of birth – belongs precisely to this category. And if we really want to know the matter’s essence, we suggest some extraordinary thing. Let’s study his case, say, “from the very past”. We will put aside the result (laughter) and return to the situation that had led to Pete’s birth. To put it straight, we will remember in detail how he was fathered, thus giving you the opportunity to make your own conclusions.

LINDA AND TWO ABORTIONS

When Linda got pregnant for the third time in her life (with Pete), she was already 30. It was for this reason that she decided to carry the fetus to term, despite her vague wifehood prospects. To be honest, not vague – there were none. No family could be born out of Linda, Pete and Pete’s father, and under no circumstances. But let’s wait a bit and not explain everything right now – towards the end of the story we will form a proper opinion.

Linda’s body was penetrated by quite a number of male organs. Those “visits” began in the graduating class of secondary school and frequently repeated in the period when she worked in a publishing house. This is precisely the period that we take as the starting point of our story. There is no sense to tell how Linda had lost her virginity, to speak of her first love and its loss… Each and every woman remembers such things with sweet pain for the rest of her life, and these things are really interesting – but we have set ourselves quite another task. We must explore the circumstances which led to conception of Pete as fairly and open-mindedly as possible, and that’s why we will mention only details directly linked with this conception – those which in one way or another worked towards Linda’s pregnancy. There is no need to turn on emotions describing our characters’ childhood, their fledging years, their achievements and failures; in this case the reader might choose himself a favorite character to support through the whole narration process. As a result, somebody will take Linda’s side, somebody the side of a man of hers; readers will try to figure out who is right and who is wrong – and this work, instead of being a serious investigation, runs the risk of turning into an ordinary piece of writing. We cannot afford such things.