Part 42

                                    

                                          
-five months later-
"You and Griff still not on good terms?" I asked Dixie, leaning back in my chair. 
"Absolutely not. That man is a disaster. If he apologizes, I'll consider. Until then, I'm gonna pass," she replied, a hint of anger in her voice. 
I groaned. "Everything hurts. I can't wait to get this kid out of me."
Dixie's expression softened. "Any day now, mama. You're forty weeks today, right?"
I nodded. "If this kid doesn't come today, I'll cry. I can't handle it anymore."
Nessa came back from the bathroom. "Food still isn't here? I'm starving."
"Calm down," Dixie joked, taking a sip of her drink. 
"I'm gonna go pee, guys," I said, standing up. As I waddled, I felt a sudden gush. I stood in place, in shock. 
                          
Nessa turned to look at me. "You okay, Kate?" she asked. 
"Um," I muttered. "I, um, I think my water just broke."
Nessa stood up, walking over to me. "That's not funny," she began, stopping as she reached me. "Oh, you weren't joking."
Dixie threw a stack of bills on the table and rushed over to us. "What are we waiting for? Let's go!"
                          
I waddled slowly between them to the car, stopping to thank our waitress and explain the situation to her. This made Nessa very irritated.
"Are you serious? That wasn't that important. Come on!" she said, before rushing to grab the car. 
As I sat back in my seat, the contractions started. "Ooh," I grunted. 
"Contraction?" Dixie asked. I nodded. 
                          
Nessa sped to the hospital. When we got there, she already had a nurse waiting for me. "Nessa, wait," I said, grabbing her arm before she could sit in the waiting room. "Where's Bryce? Get Bryce here," I murmured, tears filling my eyes. She nodded, dialing his number. 
"Let's get you to a room, honey," the nurse said sweetly, wheeling me down the hallway. 
"My husband," I said to her. "My husband is coming. I can't have this baby without him. I need him."
The nurse chuckled lightly. "I will do everything in my power to make sure that your husband is here when you deliver, but if this baby doesn't want to wait, I can't make it."
                          
I let the tears fall. It was just my luck that Bryce wasn't here. The nurse helped me out of the wheelchair, handing me a hospital gown. "Do you need any help with that?" she asked softly. 
I wiped tears from my face. "No, I'm okay."
"Go ahead and get changed, and we'll get this IV in you, okay? I'm gonna send a nurse out to wait for your husband."
I hugged her. "What's your name?" I asked. 
"Denise, baby. It's gonna be okay, Kate. Don't you worry." After I changed, I felt another contraction. Denise looked at me as my face scrunched in pain. "Let's breathe through it, baby. You've got this, mama."
As the contraction subsided, Denise reminded me that she needed to get an IV in me. I sat numbly in the bed, watching the door as she stuck me. I turned to thank her and heard a voice come from behind me. 
                          
"I'm here, Kate. Let's have this baby."
I turned to see a flustered Bryce enter the room. I sighed in relief as Bryce kissed my forehead and shook Denise's hand. 
Hours passed. "Bryce, can I speak with you outside?" Denise asked, walking towards the door. 
                          
They went into the hallway, and I strained to hear their voices. "Are you sure?" I heard Bryce ask. 
"The doctor doesn't want to wait any longer," Denise replied. 
                          
Bryce came slowly back into the room. "Baby, we need to talk about something."
"What?"
"The doctor doesn't want to wait any longer. You're not progressing quickly enough. He's worried that it could cause complications for you and the baby if we wait."
I sighed. "I can't even have a baby correctly," I mumbled, tears filling my eyes. 
"Hey, hey, no. That isn't it at all. There isn't anything that you could've done differently. This is not your fault," Bryce said, wiping a tear from my face with his thumb. "The doctor wants to get the C-section started soon. I'll be right there with you, every step of the way, okay?"
"Okay," I whispered. "Let's just get this baby here, happy and healthy."
                          
Bryce went back into the hallway with Denise, who had been joined by the surgeon. They talked briefly before the surgeon came into the room. 
I heard every word he said to me, but everything went in one ear and out the other. 
I responded numbly as they prepared me for surgery. "We're ready."
The surgeon wheeled me down the hallway while Bryce held my hand. "I love you, Kate."
"Bryce, this isn't up for discussion, so don't argue. If there comes a time when you have to choose between saving me and saving him, I want you to choose him. Choose him every time, no matter what. Promise me?"
"Kate, I-" he began. 
"No, damn it. Promise me."
He kissed the hand that he held in his. "I promise."
                          
The doctor set up a curtain, separating me from the procedure they were about to go through with. 
Bryce held my hand firmly as they got to work. "Everything's going great," he whispered to me. "You're doing so good, mamas."
I nodded numbly. After about fifteen minutes, I heard his cries. My little baby. He was here. I was really a mom. 
                          
Denise placed him on me as the doctor stitched up my incisions. "You did it," she murmured. "Congratulations, mama."
As the doctor finished up, Denise took him from me. "We're gonna get him cleaned up and weighed, and we'll bring him back to your room. Don't worry, mama."
                          
Tears of joy threatened to cascade down my face. "We have a little baby, Bryce."
"We do. He looks like you," Bryce whispered to me. 
"No, he has your nose," I replied, giggling. 
                          
Another nurse entered the room. "Hi, guys. I've got the birth record here. No rush to fill it out. We just need it before you leave in the next few days. Congratulations."
Bryce grabbed the paper and a pen off of the table. 
"Alright, name: Isaiah Michael Hall. Father's full name: Bryce Michael Hall. Mother's full name: Kate Marie Hall. He was born at nine-nineteen on September nineteenth. I love that."