The Wish(100)

“I think I needed it,” I said. “Did the doctor come in earlier?”

“He did,” she said. “He said you were doing very well. You should be out of the hospital tomorrow morning.”

“I have to stay another night?”

“They like to monitor you for at least twenty-four hours.”

The sunlight from the window behind her seemed to frame her in a golden halo.

“How’s the baby?”

“Perfect,” she said. “The staff is excellent and it was a quiet night. I think yours is the only one in the nursery right now.”

I absorbed what she’d said, imagining the scene, and the next words came automatically. “Do you think you could do something for me?”

“Of course.”

“Can you bring Maggie-bear to the nursery? And let the nurses know that I’d like the baby to have her? And maybe they could tell the parents, too?”

My aunt knew how much Maggie-bear meant to me. “Are you sure?”

“I think the baby needs her more than I do right now.”

My aunt offered a tender smile. “I think that’s a wonderful and generous gift.”

I handed her the teddy bear, watching as she cradled it before reaching for my hand. “Now that you’re awake, can we talk about the adoption?” When I nodded, she went on. “You know you’re going to have to formally give the baby up, which means paperwork, of course. I’ve reviewed it, so has Gwen, and as I mentioned to your parents, we’ve worked for years with the woman who set up the adoption. You can trust me that everything is in order, or if you wish, I could arrange for you to have an attorney.”

“I trust you,” I said. And I did. I think I trusted my aunt Linda more than anyone.

“The important thing you should know is that this is a closed adoption. You remember what that means, right?”

“That I don’t know who the parents are, right? And they won’t know me?”

“That’s correct. I want to make sure that’s still what you’d like to do.”

“It is,” I said. The thought of knowing anything would drive me crazy. “Are the new parents here yet?”

“I heard that they arrived this morning, so we’ll take care of the paperwork in a little bit. But there’s something else you should probably know.”

“What is it?”

She took a deep breath. “Your mom is here now, and she’s arranged for you to fly home tomorrow. The doctor wasn’t thrilled by that because of the possibility of blood clots, but your mom was fairly insistent about it.”

I blinked. “How did she get here so fast?”

“She found a flight yesterday right after I called. She actually arrived in New Bern late last night, before you delivered. She came by this morning to see you but you were still asleep. She hadn’t eaten, so Gwen and I took her to the cafeteria to get her something.”

Preoccupied with thoughts about my mom, I realized that I’d almost tuned out the other thing she’d told me. “Wait. Did you say I’m leaving tomorrow?”

“Yes.”

“You mean I’m not going back to Ocracoke?”

“I’m afraid not.”

“What about the rest of my things? And the picture Bryce gave me for Christmas?”

“I’ll ship everything to you. You don’t have to worry about that.”

But…

“What about Bryce? I didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye. I didn’t say goodbye to his mom or his family, either.”

“I know,” she murmured. “But I don’t think there’s anything you can do. Your mom made the arrangements, and that’s why I wanted to come up here to tell you right away. So you wouldn’t be surprised.”

I could feel the tears again, different tears than the previous night’s, filled with a different kind of fear and pain.

“I want to see him again!” I cried. “I can’t just leave like this.”

“I know,” she said, compassion weighting every word.

“We had a fight,” I said. I could feel my lip beginning to quiver. “I mean, sort of a fight. I told him I couldn’t marry him.”

“I know,” she whispered.

“You don’t understand,” I said. “I have to see him! Can’t you try to talk to my mom?”

“I did,” she said. “Your parents want you to come home.”

“But I don’t want to leave,” I said. The thought of living with my parents again, not my aunt, wasn’t something I could face right now.

“Your parents love you,” she promised me, squeezing my hand. “Just like I love you.”

But I feel it with you more than I do with them. I wanted to say that to her, but my throat locked up and this time, I simply gave in to the sobbing. And, just as I knew she would, my sweet and wonderful aunt Linda held me tight for a long time, even after my mom finally entered the room.

*



Manhattan

2019

“Are you okay? You look troubled.”

Maggie watched as Mark set the eggnog in front of her. “I was remembering the next morning at the hospital,” Maggie said. She reached for the glass while he took his seat again. When he was settled, she told him what had happened, noting his dismay.