Chapter 8

Chapter 8
My sister reappears with my bag that I had packed to go to the hospital when it was time to deliver. I never saw her leave the room, but then again I was busy dealing with this pain so I wouldn’t have noticed her leaving anyway. “Shaye can we take your car? I don’t think we would all fit in the Mustang comfortably and there is no way that we can get her into the truck.” My sister shook her head yes and we started walking towards the front of the house. “This baby can’t be coming now. I still have another month.” As if on que, another pain shoots through my body nearly making my legs buckle and I scream again. The only way that I can describe the pain is by saying that it feels like a dinosaur is tap dancing on my lower back. Once we get outside, Jay opens the back door for me to get in and then climbs in with me. “I’m going to sit back here with you if that’s okay.” She is so out of her element right now and normally I would try to help calm her down, but I am in so much pain that I can barely think straight let alone try to deal with calming her down. “Sit wherever you want just take me to the damn hospital now!” I’m trying to breath like they taught me in those classes, but that just was not working for me. My sister starts the car and we are headed to the hospital. Jay calls the doctor to let her know that we are on our way. This just cannot be happening right now. We just had a great night and now this happens. I guess the baby says he or she is coming now instead of waiting another month. Yes I did say he or she. We decided to not know the sex until the baby is born. Everyone told us that we shouldn’t wait because it makes it easier to get the baby’s room decorated and of course it makes it easier for people to buy baby presents. I told them that we are not going to decorate the nursery the way some people like to decorate. The whole blue for boys and pink is for girls thing is something I never liked and Jay agrees with me. I am a girl and I can’t stand the color pink. My favorite colors are baby blue and yellow. We have decorated the room in neutral colors and as for presents, we told everyone if they want to get us presents to just buy things like diapers and bottles. Jay and I will buy things like clothes, car seat, and more personal items. This baby will have everything he or she needs before being released from the hospital and believe me Jay will make sure of that fact. Finally we pull up to the hospital and I am still doubled over in pain. Almost as soon as the door is open and I stand up, my water breaks. Well at least it didn’t happen in the car. My sister goes to park the car and I am seated in a wheelchair and being whisked through the doors with Jay close behind. Another contraction comes and it feels like my insides are being ripped apart. The orderly finally stops pushing the chair when we reach the receptionist desk, and Jay is at my side in an instant rubbing my back and talking to me in soothing tones. I love her touch but right now everything she is doing is annoying the hell out of me. “Jay I love you but if you don’t get your hands off of me I’m going to rip your arms off and smack you with them!” Did I really just say that to her? What has gotten into me? She moves her hands quickly and I feel better and worse at the same time. The receptionist hands Jay a clipboard telling her that she needs to fill out these insurance forms while they take me to a room. I don’t want to be without her right now, not even for a second. “I’m not going anywhere without her. Can’t she fill them out later?” Before anyone can answer me another contraction hits and I scream at the top of my lungs. My sister comes in at this point and demands to know why I’m not in a room yet. They tell her that they were bringing me but that I refused to go without my wife. She looked at everyone like they were crazy. “Excuse me but she is in labor and in a damn wheelchair, so how much resistance could she possibly have given you? Are you all crazy? Get her to a damn room now! Sis I love you but you can go a few minutes without your wife, but this baby can’t wait.” I love my sister but right now really isn’t the time to argue with me. She wasn’t taken from her other half and held captive and I’ll be damned if I go anywhere without Jay right by my side. “Look, I am not going to argue with any of you right now. Jay is coming with me and that is the way it is going to be whether you like it or not. She can fill out that information later. We have insurance and I’m sure that they can look it up. Jay give them my medical cards and lets get this show on the road. I don’t think I can take any more of this pain.” Another pain rips through me and I suck in a breath to keep from screaming.
The orderly and nurse don’t wait around any longer and start escorting me to a room to get checked out. Jay is right behind them and my sister stays with the receptionist getting me all signed in. Once in the room the nurse asks the orderly to help get me out of my clothes and into a gown but Jay and I scream “NO” at them simultaneously. Jay quickly explains the situation as I am desperately trying to breathe through this pain. They both say that they understand and the orderly leaves while Jay and the nurse get me out of my clothes and into a gown. I’m so happy that I didn’t have on anything too difficult to take off. Finally I am in the bed and the pain has subsided for a few minutes. The nurse asks if I’ll be having a natural birth (no drugs), or an epidural. Honestly I thought that I could have a natural child birth when I first started thinking and talking to Jay about things, but now that I am experiencing the pain first hand, I want them to give me every drug in the book. Normally I can stand pain, but this is way too much for me to handle. I look at Jay and then back at the nurse and tell her that I want drugs. She simply smiles a little and tells me that she will be right back with the doctor so that the doctor can check me out and then they’ll administer the drugs. That is the best news that I have heard since all this happened. My sister comes into the room as the nurse is leaving and tells me that I am all signed in and then takes a seat asking what she’d missed. I’m suddenly very exhausted and let Jay fill her in on everything that happened and will be happening. She walks over to me and wipes my forehead with a cold towel the nurse provided before she left and it feels so good. I lean into her hand and she rubs my head saying soothing things to me as she does. I love my wife and am so lucky to have her in my life. My sister is looking at us and smiling and I smile back at her. I’ve been through hell and yet I am still able to smile. Isn’t that amazing? I think so. “Baby do you want to try to get some sleep? Labor could take hours and I don’t want you to be exhausted.” She is so considerate but I know that I cannot fall asleep right now, at least not until I get the epidural. “I will after they give me the drugs. If I tried to sleep right now the pain would just wake me up again. Get in the bed with me and let me put my head on your shoulder. I feel like being close to you right now and you seem too far away.”