Chapter 188 - A Challenge of Both - Fedds
Roland
The doctor's laughter was contagious, she covered her mouth to avoid waking the sleeping babies. They had been quiet since we brought them together, placing them as I believe they were in Veronica's womb.
"I want to see my wife."
"She’s out of recovery, sleeping. I promise you can see her tomorrow."
"Just let me see her and give her a kiss. Let me be by her side; the Sandovals won’t bother until five in the morning."
"I’ve broken all my rules for you. I'll see what I can do."
"Doctor, I’d like to invest in your clinic, make it one of the best in Texas with the best infrastructure and technology." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
"I needed an investor." She covered her mouth.
"Well, you’ve got one now. Not just me, I speak for the association."
"Thank you, we’ll talk about that later. Let me see what I can do, future partner."
"I just want to sleep next to my wife."
"Starting tomorrow, Veronica will be able to breastfeed her children for fifteen days, until she begins iodine therapy or chemo."
"Veronica will adore you for that."
"You need to rest, Roland. Tomorrow begins the kangaroo care plan and there are four babies."
"Don’t worry, I have the godparents, the grandparents, the aunts, and her parents for that."
"Yes, I see you’re very united. It’s beautiful to have a big family."
"Thank you."
When we left the neonatal area, I found my friends in the waiting room. I thought they had left. The doctor continued to see if I could stay with Veronica.
"I thought you were already home." Simon handed me a coffee and a sandwich. "Thanks. Gustavo, are you staying at the ranch?" He nodded. Arnold had told me he would stay tonight too. "By the way, I didn’t mention it." I looked at them. "You’re Dante’s godfather, my eldest son. And you, genius," Arnold was the tallest of us all, "you’ll be Enrique’s."
"Honored, boss." I closed my eyes.
"I’m not..."
"Sorry, it’s a habit, it’s been ten years," Gustavo commented.
"I’ll be an excellent godfather. Enrique won’t get anyone pregnant before his wedding." Simon flicked his ear. "But I haven’t said anything your kids won’t do. Besides turning into piles of crap, they’ll raise their kids like puppets." We laughed at his comment.
"I need you. Tomorrow begins the kangaroo care plan. I’m still researching it, but the basics are that I need to give the babies body heat to help them grow. We have to take turns. I need two people every two hours, either in the morning or afternoon."
"Of course, count on it. What time?" Simon asked.
"I saw a schedule that said from nine, but I don’t know if it was for the kangaroo care plan. Find out, Simon."
"Mr. Sandoval!" A nurse was signaling me.
"See you tomorrow. Rest. Thanks for being here. They set up a bed next to Veronica. By the way, Gustavo, I want to invest in this clinic. We have experience with that. I’m leaving you in charge. I want to know how it’s doing and do a financial analysis. I don’t care if it’s in debt; I want to invest."
"Yes, sir." We said our goodbyes, and I followed the nurse.
"I’ll see you at the admission time," I said.
"They moved the patient to a room."
When I arrived, Veronica looked exhausted, with dark circles under her eyes, but as always, beautiful. She was still alive, no longer had the cancer that could have killed her, and in a few days, they would eradicate the one in her throat. Thank you, Lord.
There was an extra bed, but I wanted to be by her side, so I took the white chair. The scene reminded me so much of the hours before they disconnected her. I kissed her forehead, her nose, her mouth.
"Thank you for giving me these four beautiful children. I love you."
I settled next to her hand, caressing it, and I don’t know when I fell asleep. Gentle strokes in my hair woke me up. Veronica was smiling. It was evident how worn out she was. A C-section to deliver four children, no matter how anesthetized she was, I saw how they squeezed her womb, then removed her entire uterus.
She should be crying from the pain, but no, she kept giving me that beautiful smile, that precious sparkle in her honey-colored eyes. She kept looking at me in that way that broke down all my barriers and made a demon from hell desert to create a paradise on earth.
"You look beautiful."
"Once you said you don’t lie, don’t start today. I must look like death."
"Sorry to disappoint you, you look stunning, especially now that you wake up as the mother of four angels."
Her face wrinkled. I understood; she was fainting when Liam happened. I nodded and smiled.
"Four? Roland, I want to see them, I don't know my youngest child."
"I named him Liam and..." he must have noticed my change in expression.
"And what?"
"Vida, our youngest child was born with Down syndrome."
For a few seconds, she was silent. I looked at the clock; it was almost five in the morning. We looked at each other, and slowly, I saw her smile. It was the brightest smile I had ever seen on her.
"Do we know if Liam has mild, moderate, or severe Down syndrome?"
"They haven't told me anything yet. All the necessary tests will be done." She smiled again.
"They are special children, and I don't mean because of their condition. No, Down syndrome means they are children with infinite love to give. Do you know what it means that we were given a special child to care for, protect, and love? God expects a lot from us. I want to see my babies, meet Liam, I want to kiss them. Look at my breasts, Roland, the children are crying."
"How do you know that?" A nurse entered the room.
"Mr. Roland, we need your supervision. Your children have woken up and are crying. Mrs. Sandoval, do you want to feed them?" Seeing the joy on Verónica's face was priceless. She nodded. "Well, while I get you ready and cleaned up, the father of these beautiful angels is needed in the neonatal area."
I kissed my wife and went where I was needed. When I arrived, my children were exercising their lungs. Two nurses were feeding Dante and Enrique with formula. A few minutes later, a third nurse sat me in a large chair.
"Good morning, Mr. Sandoval. Please take off your shirt and put this on. It's quite large, you can hold two babies at the same time."
I did as told. They gave me a kind of wrap, and before I understood, a very dark-skinned nurse placed Dante on my chest. As she did, my son calmed down and gradually stopped his panting. Then they placed Enrique on me. The sensation... I had no words to describe it. They handed me a blanket.
"They need body heat, and if it's from their loved ones, they feel it."
I caressed my children's heads, instinctively giving each one a kiss as Verónica entered in a wheelchair. They handed Liam to her.
"It will hurt at first," said the short nurse. "Boys suck harder."
"Can I hold my daughter on this side?"
"It's better if she stays in the crib for now. We need to give her body heat so she gains weight. She'll soon ask for food, and hopefully, the little one will be fed by then."
Verónica winced in pain. Her whole body hurt, yet she subjected herself to feeding them. I watched her coddle our youngest son. Minutes passed.
"Good morning," the doctor entered the area accompanied by Simón.
"The godfather of the Princess has arrived."
Immediately, the dark-skinned nurse grabbed Rata by the arm and asked him to do the same as me. I watched him take off his shirt, they put the wrap on him, and Victoria began to cry from hunger. Rata was given Liam to hold on his chest, now with a full stomach, and Verónica was handed Victoria to breastfeed.
"This will be the routine for the next fifteen days while Verónica can feed her children. We will need one more helper. While the mother feeds one, the others will be with a baby providing body heat."
"When she finishes feeding the girl, one of the two the father is holding will switch when it's time for the next one to eat. Verónica, you must eat well, not just what we provide at the clinic. In two days, you will be discharged, and at night, eat very well."
"I'm not leaving the clinic and abandoning my children."
"You will. You can arrive from five and leave once they fall asleep. At nine, they will be ours. Meanwhile, you must take turns giving heat to the babies. As soon as your children reach 2900 grams, we will discharge them."
Simón rubbed his nose on Liam's head, and Verónica was enchanted with Victoria latched to her chest. It was the common scene of a woman breastfeeding a newborn, but it was my wife feeding one of my children. Four, I now had four beings for whom I would break my back to provide for.
"Simón," I looked at him. He was good at logistics, organizing people. "Verónica and I will spend the whole day here. We just need two more chests, every two hours."
"We will all help, except my Black-Haired and Diana. One is breastfeeding, and the other is starting her pregnancy. They need to be calm."
"Include Lupe. She loves children, and I want my kids surrounded by people who love them," said Verónica. "And she will be the godmother of one of them."