Against the Odds (Fighting to Survive #2)(16)

“When will you do that?” I look around the room and I don’t see an I.V. hooked up to Leah.

“Someone will be in soon to draw her blood and hook the I.V. up. I’ll give you both a few minutes. Push the nurses call light if you need anything, Leah.”

She nods and inhales through her nose and exhales through her mouth. “It’s painful?” I ask, stupidly. Look at her, of course, it hurts. She nods again. I hold her hand and wish that our mothers were here. They are great for this kind of stuff.

Over the next hour, the nurses come in and draw blood, insert the I.V. in Leah’s left hand and the doctor examines Leah and checks her cervix to see if she is still dilating. I am happy when there is no change. The swishing sound of the baby’s movements and the sound of the heartbeat fills the otherwise quiet room. The doctor comes in and begins to do an ultrasound of the baby just before the nurse informs us we have a waiting room full of visitors.

Talking to Leah I say, “You stay here and do this, and I’ll check on our guests,” I joke. The doctor laughs, but Leah doesn’t think I’m funny. “I’ll just be right back.”

I walk into the waiting room and I am surprised to see our parents and Jo, Carl, Gus, Dove, Kyle, and Bethany sitting there. As soon as they see me, they all stand. I can see fear in the eyes of everyone in the room. I quickly say, “Leah’s fine. The doctor is with her now.” I can hear the sighs of relief as soon as the words are out of my mouth.

“Oh, thank God. Did her water break?” Sue asks. Mom is listening intently.

I fill them in on everything that I know and was told by the doctor. Everyone looks a little relieved, but Mom and Sue are still insisting on seeing her. I know Leah will want to see them. I tell Jo, Carl, Dove, Gus, Kyle and Bethany to go home. Jo, Dove, and Bethany hand me a card to give to Leah before they leave. Dad and Tim turn on the sports channel and take a seat. They know they will be here for awhile. Mom and Sue won’t leave until they are sure Leah and the baby are out of danger.

When we enter the room, the doctor is gone and Leah is sound asleep. The swishing sound of the baby’s movements has decreased and the heartbeat is loud and strong. My child and wife are finally resting. Mom and Sue walk over to the bed and look at the monitor. They have no idea what they are looking for, I don’t either. They continue to look and watch the screen. I wonder whether Leah sleeping is a sign that her contractions have stopped. I hope so.

Mom and Sue take the seat on each side of Leah and I am left standing. Leah doesn’t move when they take her hands in theirs. The nurse comes in and brings me in a chair. She checks on Leah and tells me it looks like the contractions have stopped. I say a silent prayer. Mom and Sue leave to tell Dad and Tim the news. I smile and walk towards Leah, who is still resting in bed. “This is good news,” I say as I bend down and kiss her.

“It is,” she agrees. “I have more good news.”

“A delayed labor is about all the good news that I can handle at the moment.”

“You don’t want to know that we are having a son or a daughter?”

“You know the gender of the baby?” I ask in disbelief.

“I do,” she smiles.

“How? I thought we were going to wait until next weekend and find out together at the gender reveal party.”

“During the ultrasound the doctor slipped up and said he… or she was very healthy. Do you want to know if our baby is a he or a she?” Leah is still smiling. As long as the baby is healthy, that is all I care about. But to know the gender would be nice. I look at Leah and it looks like she wants to tell me. It also looks like she likes knowing something I don’t know.

She is still smiling and I say, “It’s a boy, I can feel it.”

“Are you so sure?”

Am I sure? No, I’m bluffing her. “Yes, positive,” I lie.

“Is there something you want to wager on it?” she asks.

Leah wants to play. As long as Leah is playing, she isn’t depressed. “Mmm, let me see.” I run my hand over my now 5:00 o’clock shadow with the pretense that I am considering something big. I’m not. “Are you talking sexual favors?” I tease.


“Ace, they are going to sew my cervix closed. I’m pretty sure sex is out of the question for awhile.”

“Oh, right. I didn’t think about that. Didn’t he say you’ll be on bed rest?”

“He did.”

“I guess breakfast in bed for a month is out of the question.”

“Nice try,” she giggles. “Since there’s nothing to wager, do you want a hint?”

If she knows than I want to know, too. “Do we need to buy trucks or Barbie dolls?” I ask anxiously.

“Ace, you’ll need to buy…”

Just then, the door opens and in walk our parents. “Oh goody, she’s awake,” Mom says, as she makes her way to the bed. Leah smiles when she sees them and I stand to move out of the way. Since Leah’s labor has been stopped, this is a huge relief for everyone. I walk over and stand near the large window with Tim and my dad.

After a few minutes, Dad and Tim walk over to the bed to visit with Leah. She smiles at everyone and often looks over their shoulder at me. I smile and let them visit. Leah and I don’t tell them we were in the middle of a conversation when they entered the room. That would be rude — our conversation will wait until they leave. Honestly, the gender of the baby is the last thing on my mind. Madison, Jamie, Leah, and a safe pregnancy are on the top of the list of the things that will keep me awake for the next few weeks — or months. I get a text and decide to check it while everyone visits with Leah. I’m expecting to see something from Bruce and surprised to see it’s from Leah.