“The staff here is wonderful. They’ll take care of her. Come on, I’ll show you where to go.”
Ethel takes me to the emergency room, where the lady tells me they’ve taken her to labor and delivery.
“Well, we best get on up there.” Ethel is slow and I want to run there, but I’m not sure if I’d make it. I let her show me the way because right now she’s keeping me somewhat calm.
“Good afternoon, Ethel.”
“Hi, Lois. This young man is looking for his wife. They just brought her in by ambulance.”
Lois smiles, but it’s not very reassuring. I just want to see my wife. “She’s with the doctors now. Ethel can take you to the waiting room.”
Ethel tugs on me to follow her and I do. When she sits down next to me, I feel like asking her if she has someplace else that she needs to be, but the truth is I don’t want to be alone. I don’t know how much time passes until I hear familiar voices. Noah comes sprinting toward me and I stand up and catch him as he launches himself into my arms. Everyone is frantic, except Nick, who is calmly speaking with the nurse.
“What’s going on, Liam?” Mrs. Preston asks.
“I don’t know,” I say, shaking my head and holding Noah in my arms. I don’t care how old your child is, when their mom is hurt, they’re just like babies again. I set him down and pull him into my side.
“Where is she?” her father asks.
“The doctors are with her now. We have to wait until they come out.” I’m useless in this situation and my hands are tied. I want to be in there with Josie, but know I’d be in the way. I’d have to touch her, hold her, and they need the space to work on her.
We cram into the waiting room, which isn’t big enough to hold our family. JD, Nick and Harrison all take spots on the floor. Jenna is holding a sleeping Eden in her arms. Peyton is sitting on Harrison’s lap with Quinn sitting next to him, while Elle is sitting in JD’s lap. Noah is next to me and we’re sitting in between my mom and Josie’s. Tess, Mr. Preston, Katelyn, Mr. Powell and Jenna sit across from me, as Yvie and Xander lean against the wall.
Ethel appears out of nowhere with a tray full of coffee and juice for the kids. Right now I think she’s the greatest lady I’ve met in a long time because she’s taking care of my family without even being asked.
When she stops at my mom, she smiles softly. “You know, you look like this actress I used to love on the big screen.”
“Is that so?” I eye my mom out of the corner of my eye and watch her. Her silver screen days have been over for so long that her movies are hard to find.
“Oh yes, she stopped acting though, and just disappeared.”
“What was her name?”
I don’t know if my mom is fishing or just making conversation, but either way, their chatter is keeping the mood light.
“Bianca Page. She just lit up the screen when she’d smile.”
“Oh, Bianca, you must give her your autograph.” Josie’s mom says, chuckling. Ethel’s face is priceless as she gasps. My mom blushes, but I know she likes it. She recently auditioned for a role in the fall production at the Beaumont Theater.
“My dear, what happened to you?”
My eyes are focused on the hallway, waiting for the doctor to appear, but trying to listen to my mom as well. I’m interested in her excuse as to why she stopped.
“I had a family to raise, and grandbabies.” I turn just in time for her to motion to all of us sitting around. I wish it were true, but Ethel doesn’t need to know that.
I’m starting to get jittery so I stand and walk out into the hall. Nurses move around, and babies cry. Looking into the waiting room, I see family – family that didn’t exist years ago, aside from Tess, Harrison, Quinn, Yvie and JD. They’ve been with me through everything and never questioned me when I came back.
“Mr. Westbury?”
I look to my left when my name is called. The doctor, dressed in blue, is taking off his paper hat as he reaches me. “I’m Doctor Rolland. I’ve been treating your wife. There really isn’t much to tell you except that she’s in labor. We can stop it, but we have to do an ultrasound first. Her blood pressure is higher than normal, which could have been caused by her being in the sun so much and from what I understand she ate half the hot dogs in the park?”
I try not to laugh because this isn’t funny, but if he knows this, it means Josie’s awake.
“She’s okay? And the baby?”
“Baby sounds good, no distress. We’ll be doing an ultrasound in a few minutes. Your wife has a headache and is dehydrated, but she’s awake and asking for you. You’ll find her at the end of the hall. I’ll be back in a few to do the ultrasound.” He turns and looks at the waiting room where everyone is standing. “Just one at a time, please.”
There’s no question that I’m going in first. The others can fight it out. As soon as the doctor turns the corner, I call for Noah.
“Let’s go see your mom,” I say, as I grab his hand. There’s no way I’m making him wait. He needs to see her as much as I do.
When I push the door open, her room is dark and the machines are beeping. Noah’s hand tightens and I squeeze back, reassuring him, even though I’m not so sure myself until I see her lying there looking at us.
Noah let’s go of my hand and rushes to his mom’s side. “You did so well today,” she says as she pushes his hair out of his face.
“You scared me so much, Mom.”
“I know. I’m sorry.” Josie tries to pull him into a hug, but one arm is hooked up to a blood pressure machine and her other one has IV’s poking out of her skin. Still, Noah finds a way to wrap his arms around her.
When he lets go, Josie’s wiping tears away. Noah comes over and stands next to me and I place my hand on his shoulder. “Do you want to stay?” He nods and I motion for him to sit in the extra chair by the window.
“Hey, Jojo,” I say, as I approach her bed. She smiles softly and reaches for me. “I’m going to have to ask that you never do something like this again.” I kiss her dry lips and hold my forehead to hers.
“It was the hotdogs.”
I nod and try not to laugh. It comes out as half laugh, half cry. “Yeah, let’s go with that.”
Josie takes my hand and puts it under her head, holding it there. It’s uncomfortable, but I don’t care. If this is what she needs, I’ll take the discomfort. Noah moves his chair closer and puts his head on her legs.
“Are you in pain?”
She shakes her head. “They’re going to try and stop the labor, but I’m still having contractions. I think I was in labor during the game. That’s why my back hurt.”
“I should’ve known.”
Josie runs her fingers down the side of my face. “I didn’t even know. There were five other women near me who have all given birth, and no one knew.”
“I froze, Josie. I didn’t know what was going on and all I could think about was my grandmother and JD – when they tried to take you, I wouldn’t let them. I was afraid I’d never see you again.”
“I’m never leaving you, Liam. You’re stuck with me for life.”
“I’ll take it,” I say, as I give her a kiss.
Josie and I are just looking at each other when the doctor returns to do her ultrasound. She has one hand with me, while the other holds Noah’s.
“Come here, Noah,” I say when the doctor starts setting up the machine. “Do you want to see your brother or sister, or would you like to go out and wait?”
“Is it cool?”
“Aside from me being your dad, it’s the coolest thing ever.”
He shrugs and says he’ll stay. I keep him with me though, next to Josie, so that the doctor isn’t looking for an excuse to kick him out. A few nurses come in; one checks her vitals, while the other checks her IV’s.
“I forgot to tell you, a little old lady recognized my mom from an old movie. I thought mom was going to get up and dance a jig. When she asked mom where she disappeared to, she said she was raising a family and motioned to everyone in the waiting room.”