Chapter 33
Thirty-Three
Charlie
Blinding pain radiated across my stomach, forcing me awake as I cried out, clutching it. Axel stirred beside me, turning the light on as a contraction took hold and wouldn’t let go.
“Try to breathe through it, baby,” he said softly, rubbing my back as I let go of my stomach and gripped the sheets instead.
Out of all the contractions I’d had already, this one was by far the worst. The pain was so intense that I felt like I was going to pass out as I struggled to get any words out.
“Jo,” I grunted, my whole body trembling as I got the single word out.
Axel nodded, grabbed his phone, and immediately called.
“I think Charlie is in labor,” he said as a way of greeting when she answered right away. “She just woke up with a contraction now, but it’s bad. She can barely breathe through it.”
I sucked in a ragged breath as the contraction stopped. My forehead was beaded with sweat as I looked at Axel. While I expected him to look panicked and ready to bolt, he was calm and collected as he got up and grabbed a handful of towels from the bathroom.
“What are those for?” I asked, resting for a moment while I tried to catch my breath.
“Just in case we need them,” he answered, not saying anything more.
We all knew that I could go into labor at any time now, and given the stress of the day, it didn’t surprise me that now would be when my body decided it was time. I didn’t have time to think about it when another contraction started.
“Son of a bitch,” I growled, scrunching my face as I tried to move in whatever way I could to get some relief from the pain.
“Jo is here. I’ll be right back,” Axel said before rushing downstairs to let her in.
I tried to stay focused on my breathing, but the pain was too much for me to bear. I tipped my head back as the tears ran down my cheeks, staining my face.
“You’re doing great,” Jo said as she rushed into the room and dropped a large bag on the floor beside the bed before sitting beside me and checking her watch. “Keep breathing, Charlie. You’ve got this.”
I shook my head because there was no way I had this. This was harder than anything I had ever gone through, and my body felt like it was being ripped to shreds. I screamed in pain as the contraction continued, finally stopping a few seconds later.
“Axel, get a paper and start writing these down. Dr. Foster will want to see how far apart they are when she gets here,” Jo said over her shoulder as Axel did what she asked. “Charlie, do you mind if I check you to see if you’re dilated?”
I shook my head and laid back on the bed, trying to lift my hips enough so Jo could take my shorts and underwear off. It was useless trying to be modest because I was going to need her help getting this baby out of me.
Once I was situated, Jo did the exam, and the look on her face told me everything I needed to know. She grabbed her cell phone, her fingers flying over the screen before she pressed it to her ear and held it between her head and shoulder as she rested her hand on my stomach.
The baby hadn’t moved much since the contractions started, but then again, I had only been awake for about fifteen minutes, so maybe the baby was lucky and sleeping through them.
“She’s already dilated to seven, and I would say ninety percent effaced.
Her contractions are—” she paused for a second as she watched me grab my stomach and hunch over as another one started.
“Contractions are back-to-back, about two to three minutes apart. I haven’t been able to track how long they’re lasting, but I would say about ninety seconds. ”
I felt Axel’s eyes on me as I tried to breathe through the contraction, but my body was already too tired, and it seemed like we had just begun.
I had no idea how I was supposed to be able to do this because the pain was so immense.
I tried to ignore the worry and panic that flooded through me when I thought about giving birth in this room and not at the hospital where I always imagined I would deliver.
There was no time to worry about that now because it was clear I was in active labor, and the closest hospital was too far to get there safely before the baby came.
“Dr. Foster is on her way,” Jo said to Axel so he could go let her in. Then she turned her attention to me. “I know this hurts, but you’re doing so good, Charlie. We’re going to take care of you and this baby. I will not leave your side, okay?”
I nodded, finally resting once the contraction released its grip on me.
“Does it get any easier?”
“Do you want me to lie to you?” Jo teased with a playful smirk, lightening the mood.
“At this point, yeah, I think I do. I have no idea how women do this. This fucking hurts. It feels like I’m dying.”
“You’re a bad ass, Charlie. You have already survived more pain than most people will ever know in their lives. You will survive this, too. I will make sure you do.”
I laid back and let my breathing return to normal while I waited for the next contraction to start. Jo was arranging the towels Axel had set out when he came back up the stairs with Dr. Foster.
“How are you feeling, Charlie?” Dr. Foster asked as she handed Axel the medical bags she brought with her and rushed over to me.
“I—” I stopped for a second as my eyes widened in horror as I looked down, feeling the bed get wet beneath me. “I just peed myself.”
The embarrassment that flushed my cheeks worsened when I noticed the surprised look on Axel’s face. Great, I ruined his bed by peeing on it like some idiot.
Jo opened her bag and pulled out a container, then grabbed what looked like a test strip and pressed it against the wet spot. A few seconds later, she turned it to face Dr. Foster, who narrowed her eyes to look at it, then smiled.
“You didn’t pee yourself. Your water just broke. Looks like this baby girl is on her way.”