Astra felt a dull pain on her lower stomach and then felt it go a little lower. They started earlier that day but she figured they were Braxton Hicks and then her water broke, she began to panic. Nicholas was out of town. He had neglected his business for almost too long and it was telling on him. The stress was getting to him. He did not want to have to have her but she all but pushed him out of her house to go make some money so that the children could feed or something like that. Astra remembered that he was unwilling to leave, but he left at the end because he had to.
"Brian please bring my phone," Astra said to her son. She was trying to study the contractions, they were coming faster. She did not know who to call. Stephanie had her own baby just three months back, Yvonne was far away, Sarah and Jared were out of town with Theo. Charise, she was the only one she could call.
"Mommy are you okay?" Her son asked as he brought the phone to her with steady hands. Another wave of contraction wracked through her and she had to hold on to the chair tightly. The pain made her furrow her brows.
"I am fine baby. Are you ready to have a little sister?" Astra asked her son as she settled the wave of pain had gone down. Her son smiled. The type that only a big brother could.
"I am ready Mommy," Brian shouted.
"Alright then, hand Mommy the phone and I will call Aunt Charise, you have to be a good boy now, don't be cranky, since Daddy is not around," Astra told her son. He was getting very attached to his father and these days he barely listened to anyone else.
Brian handed Astra the phone and then she called her sister. They could not have the typical sister relationship after all that happened to them.
"Hello Astra. What is up?" Charise asked her Astra as she picked up the call
"I am good, I am fine, I just may be in labor. Can you come over to my place?" Astra asked her sister in a calm voice, she was trying to be as calm as collected as she could be.
"What?" Charise shouted. Astra expected that she would be this dramatic.
"I am coming over this instant, please just be calm, and don't walk, we don't want to have you giving birth to the baby in the house," Charise said and Astra sighed.
"Please be quick," Astra said as another wave hit her.
"I will be there," Charise said before disconnecting the call and Astra sat and waited for her sister.
"I am here, I am here, let us get going," Charise said immediately she got to the house. Astra already had her baby bag with her and then an overnight bag for Brian. Ready for all eventualities.
"Aunt Charise," Brian shouted and her sister kissed her son.
"How far apart are the contractions now?" Charise asked Astra.
"5 minutes," Astra replied and Charise's eyes opened in wonder.
"We need to get to the hospital fast," Charise said to Astra. They both went on to leave the house and Charise drove like a maniac to the hospital.
The doctor attended to Astra and told her that she was not fully dilated yet and so they had to walk a bit. Astra saw the maternity ward full with women that all looked like they were about to pop babies. Astra closed her eyes in pain as another contraction hit her again, they were coming very fast now. She was sure it was almost time.
The doctor then called Astra to the room and then they said she was ready to have the baby.
"Please call Nicholas," Astra said to her sister who looked at her as though she was mad.
"You haven't called him?" Charise asked. Astra did not have the chance to answer as she was helped into a wheel chair and rolled into the operating room.
"Is Mommy okay?" Brian asked. He held her leg. The little boy was clearly scared, it was understandable he saw his mother in varying levels of pain.
"She will be fine," Charise told Brian and lifted him in her hands.
She then called Nicholas.
"Hey, Charise. What is up? Is anything the problem?" Nicholas asked as he picked the call. Charise knew Nicholas figured she would not be calling him if there was no problem at all.
"Astra, she is having the baby we are at the hospital. I know you are out of town, but you should know," Charise said and she heard Nicholas curse low and hard.
"I am on my way, I am not going to miss the birth of another child," Nicholas said before he disconnected the call. Astra was already inside the operating room, he was most probably not going to make it. Charise sighed and then called her parents and her husband. Someone was going to have to take Brian for the night.
Nicholas was out of town for business and he did not want to have to leave Astra and Brian alone and not so close fo her due date. He did not actually think she would go into labor without him there. His meeting was already over when Charise called him, and he was already on his way home, he was going to surprise Astra. He knew that it had to be important for Charise to call him it was not like they were best friends or anything of the sort. She was the sister in-law that his wife did not totally like and so they were distant to each other, when Astra reconciled with her family, she became closer to Charise, but they were not still as close as sisters should be. So it was weird that Charise was calling him after all.
"Hello Charise. Is anything the problem?" Nicholas said to her.
"Astra is having the baby, I know that you are out of town but I wanted you to know," Charise said to him and Nicholas was shocked. He did not expect at all that Astra would be having the baby. She was not even due yet. Nicholas told his driver to step on it immediately.
There was no way he was missing the birth of another child. The way Charise explained they were already at the hospital and so Nicholas explained the hospital for the driver.
"My wife is having a baby, we need to get there as soon as possible," he told his driver who nodded. He understood.
They drove down the hospital with speed and then he asked for Astra immediately he got into the hospital. Various scenarios were going through his head. Many many things, he thought about. He knew that many women died during childbirth and that they could be very many complications, and so he was scared for Astra, he could not help himself it anything happened to her, she had been through so much already. she did not need more.
Nicholas had picked a ring for her then, he wanted to ask her to be his wife the minute he got back home, the baby would cover all of that. It would not be easy to ask her then, everyone would be concerned with the new baby.
Nicholas came up and saw Charise and Astra's parents standing by the door, they all looked expectant and tired.
"Daddy!" Brian shouted as he saw him and he smiled at his son.
"Nicholas, you are here already? Astra is still inside, she has not had the baby yet we are worried, it is taking long," Charise said to her brother in law and his son all but jumped to him.
"She will be fine," Nicholas said even if it sounded very much like he was trying to convince himself.
Nicholas greeted Astra's parents with a smile.