Chapter 14 Carmen Royal #3
I nodded because I couldn’t really talk.
The second we got inside, everything started moving fast. A nurse brought out a wheelchair even though I said I could walk, and Keondra fussed at me until I sat down.
Imagine that little ghetto Keondra who I was once having to train, we here with me being my support. She had matured so much.
“Sit down,” Keondra snapped, wiping under her eyes. “You trying to be hard-headed right now and for what?”
That was the only time she would ever get away with bossing me around because I was the only Boss around here.
I sat down without arguing and they rolled me through the emergency room while people looked over, and I hated every second of it because as soon as someone realized who I was, someone would tip off the media and I’m back in the headlines.
I prayed to God that didn’t happen. I needed this privacy, not stress.
When they got me upstairs to labor and delivery, I felt like I was going to throw up.
Keondra stayed right beside me the whole time.
When they got me into the room, they had me change into one of those ugly hospital gowns while a nurse hooked monitors up around my stomach.
I laid back against the bed shaking while they moved around me.
One nurse checked the bleeding, and another took my blood pressure while one more kept asking me questions.
“How far along are you?” she asked.
“Seven months.” I replied.
“Have you had any complications before?”
“No.”
“When did the cramping start?”
“A little while ago.” I winced.
The doctor came in not long after that and she looked serious, matter fact a little too serious.
That was what scared me the most. She stood near the bed flipping through my chart while another nurse spread cold gel across my stomach.
I inhaled a deep breath and closed my eyes for a second because the cold made everything feel even more real.
The ultrasound slowly wand moved across my stomach while the room got quiet.
The screen lit up beside me, and I turned my head toward it immediately.
My baby moved and I could see the tiny arms and feet and the heartbeat sounded strong.
I started crying the second I saw it. “Oh my God,” I whispered.
Keondra was standing beside the bed with one hand over her mouth amazed although she had experienced this herself already. The doctor kept looking between the screen and my stomach, with her expression getting tighter and tighter.
“What is it?” I asked.
She looked back at me. “Carmen, it looks like part of your placenta may be detaching.”
I froze. “Say what?”
“It’s called placental abruption,” she said carefully. “It can happen for different reasons, but right now the most important thing is making sure you and the baby are okay.”
I stared at her and suddenly it felt like everything was caving in on me. The room suddenly felt too small. “What does that mean?” I asked, trying to control the shaking in my voice. “What does that mean?”
The doctor looked at me for a second before she answered. “It means there’s a good chance we’re going to have to deliver the baby.”
The whole room started spinning to me. “No.”
“Carmen—”
“No.” My hand flew to my stomach immediately. “No, it’s too early.” I wailed.
“I know and she’s really little but…” The doctor looked back at the screen for a second. Then she looked at me again.
I cut her off and my eyes shot back up. “She?” I froze.
The room got quiet again and even Keondra looked confused for a second. The doctor gave me the smallest smile. “You’re having a girl.”
I stared at her. For a second, I couldn’t even think. Wow, me and Dom were having a girl. The tears came harder after that and not because I was sad but because I was terrified. I had just found out my baby was a little girl and now they were telling me she might have to come too soon.
“Oh my God,” I whispered, covering my mouth with my hand.
Keondra started crying too. “A little girl,” she whispered. “Oh my God girl that’s so precious. Them little girls are the best, they change you.”
I looked back at the screen at that tiny little body, and tiny little heartbeat… my daughter. The doctor kept talking, but all I could hear was the word ‘girl’. Dom was going to have a daughter and all I could do was pray to not let anything happen to her.
“Carmen,” the doctor said gently, pulling my attention back. “We’re going to do everything we can to keep you stable, but I need you to understand that if the bleeding gets worse or if the baby goes into distress, we’re going to have to deliver her.”
Keondra moved closer to the bed immediately and grabbed my hand. “Hey,” she said softly. “Hey, look at me.”
I looked at her through my tears. “You gotta be strong,” she whispered. “Do you hear me? You gotta be strong for your baby. We can’t be weak in this life; you told me that now get it together. You can do this. I know you can. ”
I shook my head. “I’m so scared. I’m terrified and nothing terrifies me.”
“I know.”
“I need Dom.”
“He’s coming. I know he is.” She assured. I just stared at her and she said it again. “He’s coming,” she repeated firmly. “You know he is and when he get here, he gon’ be right here with you but right now, you gotta hold it together.”
I nodded even though I didn’t know if I believed in myself.
Another nurse came into the room after that with paperwork and more monitors.
Everything was just moving so fast with people talking, the damn machines beeping, and the doctor giving instructions.
Keondra was still holding my hand and through all of it, all I could think about was the tiny little girl on that screen.