Chapter 16
Sixteen
Elias
W hen we arrived at the hospital emergency room entrance, someone came out with a wheelchair. I gave them as many details as I could, and they helped Karla from the car and into the wheelchair. After parking, I got the girls from the back and headed inside.
By the grace of God, the emergency room wasn’t busy.
Karla had already been taken back, and one of the nurses escorted me and the girls to the waiting room.
Thankfully, there was a small couch available.
I sat in the middle with the girls on either side of me, wrapped in their blankets and my arms around their tiny frames so they could lean against me.
An hour passed before someone came to the waiting room with news.
“The family of Karla Newsome,” the woman said.
“That’s me.”
“Hi. I’m Dr. Benjamin. Karla is awake and doing fine. She asked if I could bring you back and allow her to give you an update.”
“Okay.”
I paused briefly to figure out how I’d pick both girls up since they were still sleeping. I held them in place as I slowly stood. After picking up Caira and adjusting her on one side, I scooped up Chloe and did the same.
“I was wondering how you’d manage, but you look like a pro.”
I smiled at the compliment but didn’t respond. She didn’t need to know that I hadn’t even officially met these sleeping beauties. We walked through a set of double doors and halfway down the hall before she knocked on the door and entered.
“Karla, you have a few visitors,” she announced before adding, “if you have any questions or need help explaining anything, let one of the nurses know.”
Almost as soon as we entered the room, the girls began to stir. Caira lifted her head from my shoulder and looked around. When she spotted Karla, she damn near hopped from my arms.
“Mommy,” she sang, rushing to her mother’s side. “You sick?”
She looped her arm through Karla’s and leaned her head on her shoulder.
“I’m okay, sweetheart.”
While that was happening, Chloe woke up, looked around, and rubbed her eyes. When they landed on me, she looked a little confused.
“What’s your name?” she asked in her raspy morning voice.
“Mr. Elias. I’m your mommy’s friend.”
“I’m Chloe. That’s Caira.” She pointed to her big sister.
“It’s nice to meet you both.”
Chloe yawned, and her head fell back onto my shoulder. Within a few seconds, she was asleep again.
“Chloe rarely lets anything interfere with her sleep. Caira, why don’t you sit over there, and I’ll find something for you to watch. Mommy needs to talk to Mr. Elias.”
“Okay.”
Caira sat in the chair closest to the television, and Karla flipped through the channels until Caira asked her to stop. While still holding a sleeping Chloe, I sat in the chair nearest the bed.
“Thank you,” was the first thing Karla said to me.
She spoke in a low voice, so I matched her tone.
“You know I gotchu. How do you feel?”
“Physically, much better. Mentally, I’m still processing some things.”
“Did they tell you what was causing the pain?”
“Yeah. It was my IUD.”
“Your birth control?” She nodded. “I’m no dummy, but I’m not well-versed in birth control. Is it supposed to cause you that much pain and bleeding?”
“No. I’m not sure when or how it happened, but my IUD shifted, causing the cramping and bleeding.”
“Oh. Is that common?”
“Not really, but it happens. Sometimes the IUD isn’t inserted correctly, and it can shift. I got mine replaced not long before you arrived in Chicago. I’ve been having some mild cramping on and off since then, but nothing nearly as bad as this, so I didn’t think much of it.”
“Did they fix it?”
She shook her head and looked down at her hands.
“They removed it because . . . I’m pregnant.” She said the last part barely above a whisper.
“You’re—”
“Shh. I don’t want the girls to overhear.”
I looked at Caira, and she was engrossed in the show she was watching, and Chloe was still sound asleep in my arms.
“Baby, you can’t tell me something like that and end the conversation. I have questions.”
“I’ll answer any questions you have, but not in front of the girls. I called my mother before the doctor brought you back. She should be here soon to pick them up.”
As if on cue, there was a knock on the door, and an older version of Karla, freckles included, entered the room.
“Grandma,” Caira sang as she hopped from the chair to greet her grandmother.
“Hey, pumpkin.” She hugged Caira before kissing her forehead. “How are you, Karla? You didn’t give me much information on the phone.”
“I’m good, Ma. Thanks for coming so early and so quickly. Caira, you're missing your show.”
Caira rushed back to the chair closest to the television, quickly returning her attention to the show.
Still speaking in a low voice, Karla continued. “Ma, this is . . . my boyfriend, Elias. Baby, this is my mother, Valerie.”
“Karlos mentioned seeing you out somewhere with a man, but I was waiting to hear it from you,” she whispered.
“It’s nice to meet you, ma’am. I wish it could’ve been under better circumstances.”
“It’s nice to meet you as well. Once I find out what’s wrong with my daughter, I’ll have a few questions.”
“Understood.”
“Karla, what happened?”
“I had my IUD replaced a few months ago, and somehow it shifted and caused some cramping and bleeding.”
“Oh my. Is everything okay now?”
“Yeah. They took care of that, but umm . . . I’m pregnant.”
“Preg—”
“Ma!”
“I’m sorry, but I wasn’t expecting to hear that. Are they sure?”
“They’re positive, and don’t tell Daddy or Karlos yet. Especially Karlos, because he’ll go right to Cairo and I really don’t need their negativity.”
“They won’t hear it from me,” her mother assured her.
“Elias and I need to talk. Would you mind taking the girls home with you? I’ll pick them up as soon as I’m released in a few hours.”
“How about they stay with us for the night while you get some rest? Bring this handsome young man when you pick them up tomorrow evening, and he can meet your father. I’ll have dinner ready, and we’ll talk more about the news you shared.”
“Thanks, Ma. I’ll call you when I get home and settled.”
“Come on, Caira. You and Chloe are hanging with me and your grandpa for a few days.”
“Yay!” she cheered.
“I can carry Chloe to your car if you want,” I offered.
She shook her head. “She’s still a lightweight. I can handle her.”
“You sure? I don’t mind.”
“I’m positive. It was nice meeting you, and be ready for those questions tomorrow,” she said as I put Chloe in her arms.
Caira hugged and kissed Karla while I held the door open for them to leave. I watched them until they walked through the same double doors we’d entered less than thirty minutes ago. I returned to the chair next to the bed, took Karla’s hands in mine, and looked into her eyes.
“We haven’t talked about kids,” I said.
“I know.”
“Please tell me you’re not thinking of getting rid of our baby.”
“It hasn’t crossed my mind. Even if you wanted to end things with me today and have nothing to do with this baby, I had no plans of having an abortion.”
I sighed with relief, lifting her hands to my lips and kissing the back of them.
“Can you do something for me?” I asked, and she nodded. “Give yourself permission to love me. I understand your hesitance, but now is the time to put your big girl panties on and put your guard down. I love you, but if you don’t think you’ll ever feel the same way?—”
“I love you, Elias. I knew I would love you before I left Punta Cana. I’d convinced myself that I wasn’t looking for love because I wanted to protect my heart.”
“Love found you, baby. You don’t need to protect your heart from me.”
“I realized that soon after we reunited, but I was still afraid to give in.”
“Are you ready to stop running?”
“I am.”
“Are you ready to let me love you how you deserve to be loved?”
“I am.”
“Are you ready to meet my parents?”
“I—wait. What?”
I laughed. “You’re carrying my seed. I think it would be a good idea for you to meet my parents. I have a court date in Toledo next Thursday. You should come with me.”
Before she could give me an answer, her phone vibrated on the side table. Cairo’s name flashed across the screen, and she rolled her eyes as she answered on speaker.
“Hello?”
“The kids’ camp just called me.”
“Oh, shit. I forgot to call them and tell them they weren’t coming today. I’ll call them now.”
“Why didn’t you take them?”
“They had a rough morning, so I decided to keep them home today.”
“What do you?—”
“Cairo, the girls are with me this week. I don’t have to explain to you why I kept them home.”
“If something is wrong with them?—”
“They’re fine. I let them stay up late, and they had a hard time getting up this morning. That’s it. Goodbye.”
She ended the call before he could respond.
“So, about you meeting my parents.”
“Oh yeah. Sure, I’ll go with you.”