Until Autumn

Asher’s eyes widened at the tone I used with his cousin, but I put it aside to pick apart at a later date. “Fuck. Alright. November, can you hear me?”

“YES.”

“Right, legs up. You’re going to take a deep breath and then push. Asher, slowly count to ten.”

They instantly jump into it, showing that they’re far more experienced in this than I am. With November's legs up, I move in, ready to catch the baby.

Her face turns red as she strains to push while the soft rhythmic sounds of Asher’s counting fill the elevator.

“6, 7, 8, 9, 10.”

“Right, deep breath,” Dr. Mayson says. “And push again until the contraction fades.”

November does just that and as the head slowly pushes through to the outside world, she lets out a pained scream. “HOLY FUCK. MY VAGINA BURNS.”

Asher is quick to soothe her. “You’re doing great, baby. You’re doing great.”

“You’re nearly there,” I tell her, staring down at the wonder of childbirth and realizing just how amazing this is. It’s one thing to see it on a screen, but right here in person … nothing can compare. It’s a thrill I wasn’t ready for and has me pumped to keep going. Though I’m not going to lie, I’m more than happy not to be in November’s position. That shit looks deadly. “The head is just about out.”

Dr. Mayson takes that little snippet of information and runs with it. “Okay, November. On the next contraction, you’re going to push until the head is out and then I want you to stop. Autumn, let her know once the baby’s head is out. You’ll need to hold the head, keep it protected.”

“Got it,” I say, a thrill rushing through me.

November hardly gets a chance to catch her breath before the next contraction is bearing down on her. She pushes again, and just when I think she’s about to run out of breath, the head comes out. She sucks in a deep, well-deserved breath, not needing me in the least to prompt her to stop.

I catch the baby’s head, cradling it in my hands. “Alright, Dr. Mayson, the head is out. What next?”

“Is she breathing?”

My eyes widen. Why haven’t I already thought of that? November and Asher both freeze. This is probably a part of the job that the doctor wouldn’t usually say out loud as to not frighten the parents, but this is certainly a unique situation.

Not hearing her crying or being able to take her pulse in the usual way, I hover my hand over her mouth waiting to feel her breath. In the next second, a soft gasp comes tearing out of her little mouth, and I can’t help but laugh as the joy takes over me.

“Holy shit, that’s incredible,” I say, letting the emotion come over me as my eyes fill with tears of joy. “Yes, yes, she’s breathing. Now what?”

“That’s great news,” Dr. Mayson says as November and Asher share a proud smile. “I need you to check the baby’s neck. Make sure the umbilical cord isn’t wrapped around it. If you’re not sure, check again. Once you’re certain, you’re going to help the baby rotate to get her shoulders out.”

I nod, swallowing hard and concentrating with everything that I have, checking the neck and then checking it a second and third time. The baby finally rotates, and Dr. Mayson talks me through guiding the shoulders past the pelvic bone, and then finally, the rest of the baby. As she comes soaring out into the world, I’m drenched in amniotic fluid in the process, yet I can’t find it in me to be grossed out.

With tears in my eyes and joy overwhelming me, I hand the baby through November’s legs and place her daughter on her chest, just as they do in the movies.

The baby’s cries bounce off the mirrored walls of the elevator, and as I fall back on my ass, watching in amazement, I hear Dr. Mayson’s voice ring through the small space. “Good job, November. I’m standing just outside the elevator doors on level four. I have my whole team here to check you out. As for now, hold that precious little girl and hang tight. We’ll have those doors open in no time.”

And just like that, the call goes dead and a wide smile spreads across my face. How the hell did I get so lucky to have this life?

CHAPTER 2

THORNE

I stand with my team, pacing back and forth in front of the elevator doors on the fourth floor. Who does this girl think she is taking my patient from the ER and putting her into a dangerous situation like this?

Had she just left her downstairs, November would have been whisked away into one of the many private rooms and been able to give birth to her baby girl with the help of trained doctors instead of on the ground of a dirty elevator.