Chapter 33: Mother.
It's been one month since Zachary has been hospitalized. I am officially in my eighth month of pregnancy. My legs are so swollen and I can barely walk. I have to wear these fur boots so I can move around. My doctor said I'm showing signs of pre-eclampsia and that my blood pressure has skyrocketed since my last monthly check up. I'm not surprised, I am under a lot of stress right now.
"Your team's playing today." I tell Zachary as I stare at the TV watching the football match.
Before the match starts, the cheerleaders hold up a banner that says "Get Well Soon, Zachary." and I start crying again.
That's so sweet.
"Babe, your team misses you." I tell him, squeezing his arm.
My phone rings in my other hand. It's a FaceTime call from Adam. I answer the phone, putting it on speaker.
"Hi." He says and I smile at him.
"Hey." I say, dryly.
"You look better than you did yesterday." He tells me. "How's he?" Adam asks.
"He's the same. Nothing's changed." I tell him, trying not to cry.
"I'm here for you, Val. Remember that." He tells me.
"I know that." I reply. "I have a feeling I'm going to have this baby very soon. Because I always have to pee." I tell him as I get up from the chair I'm seated on and walk to the bathroom. I place the phone beside the sink and I lift my dress up as I pee. I feel a cramp in my lower belly and I groan.
"Are you good?" Adam asks me, but I don't respond.
"It hurts." I yell.
"What hurts?" He asks, sounding concerned.
"I'm having the worst cramps right now." I tell him, wiping myself with toilet paper and wearing my underwear before I stand up and flush the toilet.
"Well, I hope you feel better. I gotta go now, Vee. I'll text you when I get off work." He tells me and I wave him goodbye before I end the call. I sit on the chair still having cramps, but they aren't as painful as before.
The evening rolls along and I am still on that chair. The only difference is that I'm eating some egg rolls and watching Powerpuff girls. I'm still having those cramps though.
"Hey." The nurse named Bella says as she enters the room with a metal tray. She has been Zachary's nurse since the first day we got here.
"Hello." I reply.
"I'm just here to change his IV. She tells me and I nod.
"Alright." I tell her.
I feel water dripping down my leg and I let out a tired sigh.
Not this again.
"Is everything okay?" Bella asks me.
"Yeah. I think I just peed my pants again." I tell her.
"Sorry about that." She says as she places the IV on the stand. She walks over to where I am sitting and stares at me.
"Need some help?" She offers.
"Yes please." I tell her before I stand up.
As soon as I stand up, it feels like my baby drops. Like he's resting on my pelvis now.
"Ouch!" I scream, holding my stomach.
"Valarie, are you okay?" Bella asks, rushing to my side, holding me.
"I don't know." I tell her, truthfully.
There's a sharp pain in my lower back.
Bella stares at the floor and then stares back at me.
"That doesn't look or smell like pee. I think you're in active labor." She says and my eyes widen.
"There's no way that's true." I say, laughing nervously. "The baby is probably turning or something." I tell her, refusing to believe that I'm having this baby right now.
"Okay, but can I check?" She asks and I nod. She grabs my phone and turns on the flashlight. She gets on her knees and puts her head under my white dress. I feel her shift my underwear and I groan in discomfort.
"Oh My God." She says and I'm immediately concerned.
"What?" I ask, running out of patience.
"I can see the head." She tells me and I start freaking out.
"No, you can't. Stop lying." I say in fear.
"Valarie, we have to get you to labor and delivery. You're having this baby right now." She tells me.
"What? How are you so sure?" I ask her, still in denial. I try to take deep breaths to ease the pain.
"Because I just saw a full head of hair sticking out of your vagina. I think my eyes are working properly." She quips.
"Okay, okay. But you have to help me walk because I don't know how I'm going to do that." I tell her. "And I'm not sitting on a wheelchair because I'll feel like I'm crushing the baby's head."
"Okay, the maternity wards are on the other side of the hospital. And since you're already crowning, we don't have much time." Bella says as she puts her arm around and leads me to the door.
I open my legs wide as I walk with her. I tell her to hand me my phone and I call my mother.
This is not happening right now.
***
"Push." The midwife named Gina tells me.
"I can't do this." I say, tears running my cheek.
It feels like I've been pushing for forever, but in reality it's only been ten minutes.
"Valarie, you can do this." My mother says beside me.
"I don't know...about that." I say, writhing in pain.
This baby is whooping my ass.
"Just give me one big push, Valarie. You got this." Gina tells me.
I take a deep breath and I push. It feels like somebody is tearing my vagina with a blunt knife and using a blowtorch to finish the job. It's a weird description, but that's how it feels.
"Good job." Gina comments. "The shoulders are out, I just need one more push to get the baby out." She says and I nod.
My mother wipes my forehead with a towel and I smile at her.
"Thanks." I tell her, trying to catch my breath.
"Your baby has the most beautiful eyes." My mother says and that gives me the motivation I need. I wanna see his eyes too.
I start pushing as Gina counts to ten. When she gets to ten, I feel something down there go pop. I have no idea what that is.
"And it's a...girl." Gina says, wiping my baby with the towel in her lap and then I hear a cry.
It's a what now?
I thought the ultrasound said I was having a boy.
This hospital and making mistakes are like five and six. Joint by the hip.
"It's a girl?" I ask her, wondering if I heard correctly. "How is that possible? The ultrasound said I was having a boy."
"They read it wrong apparently." The midwife says, handing the baby over to me.
She has the most beautiful eyes. My mother was right. She has a head full of hair and her little fingers latch on to me.
"My baby." I say, as I start to cry.
My mother squeezes my hand as she starts crying to.
"You did it. I'm so proud of you." She tells me and I smile at her, sniffling.
I feel the sudden urge to push again and I do it. I hear something fall on the floor.
"What was that?" I ask, totally terrified.
"It's the placenta." The midwife says as the nurse rushes to pick it up. She places it in a metal tray and shows it to me.
"That was-" I pause. "That was in me?" I ask her.
"Yup." She says before she takes the tray away.
"Okay, I'm gonna have to take her away for a little while. I have to clean her up and weigh her." The midwife tells me and I let go of my baby, allowing Gina to carry her.
"Your father just got here. I have to go get him." My mother tells me and I nod.
As I lie there in the hospital bed, Gina cleaning up my baby, the nurse mopping up the blood on the floor and my mother leaving the room to go get my dad, I can't help but feel horrible inside. Because the one person I wanted to be here for this is fighting for his life on the other side of the hospital.
I'm happy that my child is finally here, but also miserable because her father didn't get to meet her immediately she was born.