Epilogue
TEN MONTHS LATER
“My wife is outside in our Jeep. She’s in labor,” I told the woman at the front desk who rushed to take action.
In no time at all, two nurses and a doctor appeared with a wheelchair in tow.
I raced out the automatic doors and opened the door of the vehicle to see Ainsleigh with her hands on her stomach battling another contraction.
“Help is here, baby,” I told her as I let them help her into the wheelchair.
“We’re taking her straight up to the maternity ward. Once you’ve parked come up to the seventh floor, and they’ll buzz you inside,” the doctor told me as a nurse pushed my life into the hospital.
I parked the Jeep in a nearby parking spot and grabbed her bag before I raced inside. I almost ran into the automatic doors when they didn’t open fast enough.
Thankfully the elevator door opened just as I reached it.
I ran inside and pushed the seven button several times willing the doors to close.
I sent a quick text in the group chat to let everyone know the baby was coming as I waited for the elevator to arrive at its destination.
It felt like the seconds were hours before the elevator stopped on the floor where Ainsleigh awaited my return.
I walked up to the double doors and pushed the button for the intercom system and waited.
“How can I help you?”
“My wife was just brought up in labor.”
The door buzzed then slowly opened to allow me to enter.
A nurse met me at the door and showed me the way to Ainsleigh.
She’d been dressed in a gown, and another nurse assisted her in getting into the bed.
“The doctor will be in to check her in a moment,” she said as she placed a blanket over top of Ainsleigh’s legs.
“Thank you,” I told the nice lady before she left the room.
I sat down in the chair beside the bed and moved it as close to her as I could.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m okay right now. I feel another one coming though, so I’m trying to stay calm,” she said.
Her breathing picked up, and I held out my hand which she instantly grabbed and squeezed.
Hard. I didn’t even flinch with the pain.
She was in far greater pain than I was, and I’d take it away from her a hundred times over if I could.
“You’re doing so good, baby. Keep breathing. It’s almost over,” I reassured her as I took my other hand and rubbed the top of her head. Rubbing her hair always soothed her.
“Another one down,” I whispered as I picked up a towel left on the bed and wiped the sweat off her forehead.
“Several hundred more to go.”
“You’ve got this. Just think of the end result. We’ll get to finally find out what the sex is and meet our little boy or girl.”
“You still want a little girl?”
“I want a healthy baby. Boy or girl. Doesn’t matter.”
“That’s what I want too. More than anything,” she said as she looked away from me.
I knew this was hard on her. I knew she was thinking about Arabella.
I was too. She was never far from my thoughts.
But today she was at the forefront of our minds.
The little girl we lost. The little girl who should’ve grown and had a chance at being a big sister.
“How is everything this morning?” someone asked from the door of the room before she entered.
Turning, I saw a young woman in scrubs enter the room. She pulled on blue gloves as she approached and stood in front of the bed.
“How’re you feeling, Mrs. Courtright? I’m Becca. I’ll be one of your nurses tonight,” the nurse asked.
“I’m in a lot of pain,” Ainsleigh admitted.
Worry covered Ainsleigh’s features as another contraction started, and she breathed through it.
I took my eyes off the nurse and turned my attention rightfully back to my wife.
“We’re going to get him or her home before we know it, baby. Just keep taking deep breaths in and blowing them out. You’re doing great.”
“I’d be even better if I could get drugs. This hurts,” she screamed as she gripped my hand tighter than she had with the prior contraction.
“I’m sorry for screaming,” she said as the contraction died down.
“You’re doing great. I’m going to check your progress, and we’ll see about getting those drugs,” Becca said as she lifted the blankets.
“The good news is you’re making amazing progress. The bad news is I can’t give you any drugs. You’re eight centimeters already and completely effaced. This baby will be here in no time at all,” she said as she stood from the bed.
“She had a cesarean section with our little girl. Can she give birth to this baby naturally after having a cesarean? I don’t want to risk anything,” I asked, concerned for both of their well-beings.
“Everything looks amazing, and the baby isn’t in distress.
I read her chart and will brief the on call doctor of Ainsleigh’s progress.
I’m sorry for the loss of your little girl.
The baby’s heart rate, as well as the mother’s, is great.
We should be meeting your little boy or girl in no time,” he said before he left the room.
I finally felt like I could breathe a little better hearing her say that.
“How are you feeling after what she just said?” I asked Ainsleigh while I rubbed my thumb across her knuckles.
“I hate that I can’t get drugs. I don’t think I can do this without them,” she admitted.
“Look at me, butterfly.”
I waited until she turned her head toward me. Tears filled her eyes to the brim, but she hadn’t let them fall.
“You’re doing amazing. You’re one of the strongest women I know. You don’t need the drugs to get through this. You’re going to do just fine without them. I’m right here. Scream at me, grip my hand; hit me if it helps. We’re in this together, and I’m going to be right by your side the entire time.”
“You’re too good to be true. I love you.”
“And I love you.”
For the next two hours, I watched in amazement as she breathed through every contraction and never broke down.
I could tell the labor was wearing on her, but she pushed through it.
She didn’t complain or even scream at me again.
With each and every contraction she gripped my hand, and I whispered words of encouragement and everything I could imagine us teaching our little one.
Those words seemed to get her through every one.
“I think I need to push,” she said, and at that moment I went into a panic. The doctor wasn’t here. Frantically, I pushed the call button on the side of her bed as I held her hand and told her to stay calm. If only I could take my own advice.
“This is Nurse Becca. Is everything okay?”
“She’s feeling like she has to push,” I screamed into the arm of the bed.
A couple of minutes later, the room filled with two nurses and the doctor, who’d exchanged his lab coat for blue covers for his clothing and shoes.
“Who’s ready to have a baby?”
We both nodded in agreement as the bed was broken down, and he did a final check on her.
“I can see the baby’s head. On the next contraction, I want you to push until we count to ten. We’re going to try to get three of those in each time.”
The next contraction hit a minute or so later, and the nurse held one of Ainsleigh’s legs back while I held the other, and we all counted to ten as she pushed with all her might.
Six pushes later at a little after six in the morning our baby was born.
We both waited with bated breath until the doctor placed the baby on Ainsleigh’s stomach.
“It’s a girl,” he announced as the nurses cleaned out her mouth.
A few seconds later, the most precious sound filled the room.
Her first cry.
Ainsleigh and I both cried tears of joy as we watched in amazement as she moved her little arms and legs around.
“You did so good, Ainsleigh. She’s gorgeous.”
She looked just like her momma. A headful of hair and big round eyes. She blinked several times as she took in the world around her.
We had a little girl. A beautiful, precious little girl. Who hadn’t stopped wailing since the moment she was born. I’d take every cry she let out as long as she was here with us.
The nurse took our daughter and weighed her then cleaned her up while the doctor finished taking care of Ainsleigh. I couldn’t take my eyes off the baby we’d created.
The doctor talked to Ainsleigh, but I didn’t really hear what he had said. I could only hear our daughter’s beautiful cries.
“Six pounds, nine ounces. Nineteen inches long. She’s perfect,” the nurse said as she wrapped her up and placed her in my arms. Feeling her there for the first time brought more tears to my eyes.
“You mean the world to your momma and me. I’m so glad we finally got to meet you, beautiful girl,” I whispered to her as I carefully bounced her up and down. Her cries subsided as she looked up at me, taking in my every word.
“You’re just as good with her as I knew you would be,” Ainsleigh said from the bed beside me. The doctor had finished with her and had placed a cover over her legs.
“Thank you. I never thought this day would get here. But now that it has, I feel like I need to put her in a bubble to protect her from everything,” I told her with a laugh.
“She’s going to be just fine. I’m sure there are enough people in the waiting room along with us who will protect her.”
“Should I go put them out of their misery or keep them waiting?” I asked her as I kissed our daughter’s forehead and placed her in Ainsleigh’s arms.
“Hi there, sweet girl,” she whispered as she took the top of her gown off and placed her on her head right above her chest. The baby started to root around, and we both laughed when she found what she was looking for and latched on.
“She’s going to be a pro before long,” I told Ainsleigh as I watched in awe of her feeding our daughter. There wasn’t a more beautiful sight in the world.
“I think I know what her name should be,” Ainsleigh said as she rubbed the top of her head.
“The first, second, or third name?” I knew what my choice would be, but I wanted to see if we agreed on the name before I told her mine.
“The first. I think it suits her perfectly.”