Almost a Family

Jason reached down, jiggled the rings, mocking her. “Are you sure that’s not what got you into this problem to begin with?”

Molly scowled darkly. Really. Jokes about weight gain were not a good idea right now.

“That would be water retention.”

Kim’s happy voice intruded and Molly sent her a thumbs up for the female solidarity. “Ah, the Estrogen Brigade has arrived. I heard you brought my daily fix. Help me up, will you?”

With Jason’s hands pushing and Molly’s gripping Kim’s, she got to her feet.

With a popping sound.

Kim laughed, Jason raised his eyebrows, and Molly said, “Oops.”

“Sara, honey, put the ice cream in the freezer. We’ve gotta go.”

Molly smiled at Jason, unfazed by the contraction. They’d been happening all day, off and on, varying in intensity. “Could you get me some dry clothes, honey?”

“Now?”

“Right now.” She put her hand on his, looking up into his awed, frightened eyes. “My water just broke. Besides, it’s about time this show got on the road, don’t you think?”

Jason’s heart hit his throat.

His wife was standing there, calm as you please, in the middle of labor, and all he could do was stare at her dumbly.

The fact that she was laughing at him shook him out of his stupor. “Right. Bag. Hospital.”

He was guiding her to the truck, Kim and Sara going to Kim’s car to follow, when a contraction hit.

“Mmmm.” She paused, pursing her lips.

“Mmmm?” He peered into her face.

“This one’s a little stronger than the others.”

Dear Lord. A contraction and all she could say was Mmmm? His wife was made of tough stuff.

“Let’s go,” she murmured, but he heard the underlying urgency in her voice and quickly got her in the truck and out the drive.

At the hospital she was taken immediately into a room for monitoring while he looked after paperwork. He tried to rush through admitting, hating every moment he had to spend away from her.

“Relax, Mr. Elliot.” The clerk smiled up at him. “First babies take a while.”

Easy for you to say. It wasn’t her wife up there going through it. It wasn’t her baby trying to come into the world.

When he returned, breathless from jogging up the stairs, Molly was sitting up on an angle, dressed in a hospital gown and chewing on ice chips from a clear plastic cup. A nurse went to the light switch and dimmed the lights in the room, creating a cozier atmosphere.

“Jason.”

“I’m here.”

He moved to her side, leaned over and kissed her forehead. “What can I do?” His fingers stroked her face and she relaxed.

“You’re doing it.”

Another contraction hit and she squeezed his hand.

“Good,” said the nurse, checking her watch. “Three minutes. You’re progressing nicely.”