AN: This story is for my favorite kids….To my little Ian Bean you never cease to amaze with how much you have accomplished! You barely learned to walk and now you are running and climbing over everything! I know some people think you don't understand but I know you know what love is…no one gives hugs like you! And of course there are your kisses that melt my heart and gross me out at the same time! I love you to death buddy! To my favorite explorer Joshua - I can't help but smile every time I am around you! You are the only person who can take me from a bad mood to ridiculously happy in a matter of seconds! Nothing makes my day more then when you accomplish something new and so proudly say "I gid it!" I love you to pieces!
I can't leave out the other kids who have taken over my life…Livie Loo, Bella Boo, and Ruby Doo! I know that God blessed your brothers and sisters with you guys for a reason. I know they will always have you guys to take care of them! You all are such amazing kids with wonderful hearts! I can't wait to see the amazing things God has planned for you all.
To clarify…I have spent much time researching and working with children who have special needs and disabilities. In my research I often come upon old medical practices regarding the treatment of children with special needs. This story deals with that issue. It is set in the early 1900's - everything the doctor says regarding classifications and treatments of Mongoloids (the term for children with Down syndrome back then) is completely accurate. I should warn you that you may find parts of what the doctor says upsetting but it is a harsh reality of the times.
A Place In My Heart
He shook his head in shock. He didn't know how to respond. He wasn't stupid -he knew that there was a chance this would happen. Pulling out before hand wasn't exactly the most effective way from getting a girl pregnant…it was just the only way that anyone knew at this point. He glanced up at the girl who was sitting in silence starring at him as if trying to read his thoughts.
"So what does dis' all mean?" He asked uncertain of what he meant or what she really wanted.
"It's yours." She said defensively.
"I know dat." He hadn't meant to imply that it wasn't. He knew she was faithful. She had been a virgin when they were first together and he had been too although his reputation had lead people to believe otherwise. He sat down on the bed next to her and grabbed her hand.
"I'll make dis' right." He gave her a slow smile as he stood up and began digging through a trunk that was at the end of the bed. He pulled out a small box and turned to her. He didn't really know what he was doing as he found him self kneeling before her. This was far from where he thought the night was headed.
"Jo… I… um mean Josephine, would ya do me the honor of becomin' my wife?" He asked in a way as if wondering if he had done it the right way.
"Get up Spot." She said sadly. He looked confused. She sent him a small smile as she shook her head. "I don't want it to be this way. I don't want to feel like we have been forced into a marriage that neither of us wanted. What kind of life would that be for us or our child? I appreciate you trying to do the right thing but I won't marry you - at least not like this."
"So what now," Spot asked hurt but with a clear sense of relief washing over him. He slipped the box that had his mothers ring back into the trunk at the end of the bed. "People are gonna say things - with you being pregnant without a ring on your fingah."
"I know." She said in a small whisper. He could clearly see that she was frightened but ready for the battle.
"So uh, how are you doing? I mean um do you know how far along you are or um…." Spot was interrupted.
"I'm doing okay…I went and saw a doctor today. I had suspected for awhile but he confirmed it….I am about twelve weeks." She responded dryly.
"So three months." He was surprised at how fast he had done the math in his head. That wasn't the only math going on in either. He had quickly figured out that left his six months to get a good job, find a place for him, Jo, and the baby and convince Jo to marry him. He sighed aloud. Jo sat back and watched as the cogs that worked Spot's mind were clearly turning. She stood up which brought his attention back to her.
"Are you leavin'?" He asked surprised by her sudden movement.
"Yes…I think I should get home. Sarah and David are probably going to be leaving soon and I should go with them."
Spot nodded and said goodbye. They made no attempt to hug or kiss each other something they had always done when they parted ways in the past. Spot sighed as he watched her go. The news still hadn't settled. The thought of him self becoming a father seemed surreal.
He threw himself on the bed remembering how he and Josephine had first met right after the strike. She had been a neighbor of David's and Sarah's. It had really been by chance that they had met. Spot had gone with Jack on a whim that day. He had come early for the usual poker game, a tradition that had started after the success that was the strike. He and Jack had been talking and before he knew it they were at David's apartment and chatting with the entire Jacob family. That was the day he had met Jo. She was beautiful. Her tanned skin and petite frame had excited him. Her light brown hair and pale green eyes gave her a look of being exotic. They had hit it off right from the start and things had progressed from their.
Their first meeting had been almost a year ago. They had been steadily seeing each other since then. It had only been a few months ago….three to be exact that things had turned physical between them. Spot sighed and rolled over. He was exhausted but his mind raced with thoughts. He knew that more worries would come in the following months and he wondered to himself if he would ever be able to sleep again.
6 Months Later -
The last few weeks had been extremely nerve wracking for Spot. He had been working steadily for the last four months at a factory job. He despised it. He hated the freedom he had to give up but he reminded himself often that it wasn't about him anymore.
The newsies had all found out about his and Jo's predicament pretty early on. The girl was tiny and it didn't take her long to show. He laughed at the thought of her now. She really did look as though she was about to pop.
He had been surprised by the newsies reactions…they had all been fairly supportive. He had been disappointed when he had to tell them about taking the factory job. The change in occupation had also meant that he couldn't live in the Newsie Lodging House anymore. He hadn't realized until the day he moved out how much the situation he was in had forced him to grow up.
He walked with long strides to the boarding house he now called home. He was excited when he opened the door to his small room to see Jo sleeping. She hadn't been sleeping very well. She was at the point in her pregnancy that she just couldn't get comfortable. He starred at her for a moment letting his eyes linger on her bulging belly. He felt a pang of hurt as he noticed the ringless left hand that was resting on her belly.
Jo had moved in with him but she still refused to marry him. She had been quickly disowned by her family when her condition became obvious. Spot had considered that they had been lucky that all of their fellow boarders had assumed they were married. He knew that it could be troublesome for them if anyone ever found out that they weren't. He pulled himself into a lounge chair and let himself fall asleep too.
It wasn't long before he heard her scream out in pain.
"Spot…my water just broke and …..oh god…go get….help!" Jo screamed at him between bouts of pain. It took him to seconds to have some of the other women from the boarding house in with Jo. One of the little kids who lived in the room two doors down had been sent to fetch the doctor. That left Spot to pace the floors outside the door of his room. He cringed as every few minutes her heard Jo's soft screams of agony. He could hear sobbing and wanted nothing more than to be at her side at that moment.
The doctor came quickly….clearly annoyed that he had been called in for labor…something most women managed to handle with the help of other females. Spot wondered why the same thing hadn't been done with Jo. He hadn't asked why the doctor needed to be there…he just assumed that the other ladies weren't too excited about the prospect of helping out the girl in labor.
He was surprised a few hours later that he still heard no crying from a baby. He began to walk faster as he paced outside the door. He nearly mowed down Mush, Race, and Tails when they pulled themselves up the stairs.
"Whaddya doin' here?" Spot asked surprised.
"We had to come see how you and Jo were doing." Tails, the only Brooklyn newsie out of the three, responded.
"From da sound of it…not to well," Mush said wide eyed while staring at the door.
"Thank god I ain't ah woman!" Race said aloud to which he received smacks on the head from both Mush and Tails.
"Yeah she went into labor about three hours ago. They haven't been out to tell me anything since." Spot said ignoring Race's crack.
"It will be okay." Tails said squeezing his friends shoulder. The four sat in silence for another two hours before infant cries were suddenly heard. As the angry wails of a child burst through the doors the three newsies congratulated Spot who just, smiled exhausted from the worry of the evening.
He bounced up as the door opened about half an hour later. The women who had gone in the room hours earlier exited first. Spot noticed their somber looks and worry washed over him.
"The father can come in now." The doctor said looking at the four boys waiting outside the door. Spot pushed his way through the door. He smiled when he saw Jo sitting in the bed holding a tiny baby that had been wrapped in a sheet. The smile went away quickly though as Jo shot him a look of worry.
"Well what did we have?" He asked quietly as he made his way to Jo's side.
"You had a little girl Mister…I'm sorry I didn't get your name." The doctor said quickly.
"Conlon," Spot supplied.
"Yes, Mr. Conlon. Well as I was telling your wife her we have some things we need to discuss."
Spot glanced down at the baby in Jo's arm. She was pink with loads of the same black hair as Jo. He smiled at her thinking how beautiful she was. He looked at her a little closer and began to realize that she wasn't really all that much like a normal baby. His thoughts were interrupted.
"I am afraid the child has been born into the classification of Mongoloid." The doctor said matter of fact.
"Mongo what?" Spot asked unable to take his eyes off of the beautiful baby that was his daughter.
"Mongoloid - it is a classification used to distinguish the difference between children that are cretins and those that are feeble minded. I am afraid your daughter falls into the latter." The doctor said without a note of sympathy.
"So what are you sayin' my daughter is stupid?" Spot asked confused and a little angry at the doctors assumption.
"To be completely honest…yes that is what I am saying." The doctor said dryly.
"How can you tell?" Jo finally spoke. Spot could hear the tiredness and worry that lingered in her words.
"She has all the classic features of a child who would be classified into the Mongoloid division. The large head, the rounded cheeks and I have already examined her tongue which is unusually large. I also looked at the irises of her eyes. She had the white spots that are common in Mongoloids." The doctor replied. "She fits Dr. Down's description of a Mongoloid perfectly. I have a copy of his paper at my office I would be happy to lend you if you believe my diagnosis is wrong. Dr. Down's was the leading voice in the study of feeble minded children. His paper Observations on an Ethnic Classification of Idiots is quite informative."
Spot cringed at the words feeble minded and Idiot. He glanced at his daughter and wondered how someone could be labeled as an idiot just an hour after being born. He shook his head - she was to perfect, beautiful surely the Doctor was wrong.
"What does this all mean?" Jo asked. Spot could tell she was near to a break down.
"Well as I see it you two have three options. You can keep the child and try to raise her on your own. You will find that she will not develop cognitive skills as other children would and depending on the severity of it, which judging by her features I am imagining is fairly brutal, she will probably never cognitively progress past the mindset of a two year old." Spot sat down on the bed and began to rub Jo's back. She had begun sobbing at this news. "You also have the option to have her institutionalized - where she will become a ward of the state and her welfare will no longer be of any concern to you. Your third option deals with eugenics and infanticide." The doctor glanced at the two.
"I'm sorry what is that?" Spot asked. He felt as though he might pass out. This was all too much. He had barley become a father and now he was being hit with all this. His heart broke at the thought that the beautiful little girl lying in Jo's arms wouldn't grow up to be "normal." He took a deep breath and tried to be strong for Jo who was crying.
"Eugenics was a term coined by Sir France Galton. It refers to improving human genetic qualities. That is essentially done by eliminating the bad genes from the gene pool. In this case it would mean infanticide or euthanizing the child to ensure that she doesn't pass her bad genes on to another generation." The doctor said without a twinge of shame.
"You want to kill er'?" Spot asked angrily.
"Mr. Conlon I assure you that if it is done it is what is best for the child. Mongoloid children have very difficult lives. They are plagued with health problems. The average Mongoloid has a life expectancy of six years. Euthanizing the child would be entirely humane." The doctor said calmly.
"If Jo and the baby are alright now I think you should leave." Spot said as rage built up inside of him.
"That is fine Mr. Conlon. I will be back in the morning to check on your wife and find out what you wish to have done with the child. Arrangements will need to be made whatever decision you make." The doctor collected his items throwing them into a bag before he finally exited.
Spot turned his attention back to Jo who was still crying but trying to calm herself down.
"You should rest." He said as he wiped away the tears. "We can talk about this later." She nodded as he went to pick up the baby. He gently lifted her. He was amazed at how tiny she was. He held her close to his chest. He could feel his heart beating.
"Whatever happens - you'se got a place in my heart little one. I already love ya kid." He whispered as he kissed the sleeping baby on the head. He let the silent tears that slipped down his checks flow freely.
AN: Okay first off all of the stuff the Doctor says is true but only in regards to the time it is set in. Although eugenics is still commonly practiced today in regards to Down Syndrome it just happens while the baby is in the womb instead of after it is born. 93 percent of women in the US who find out they are carrying a child with Downs will abort the fetus. A sad reality. Something to think about right? Anyway I haven't decided if this is a one shot and I am leaving it off here and letting you all imagine what happens or if I will continue on with the story. I figure I will let your reviews (or lack there of) speak for themselves. So please let me know what you think!
NEW AN: I have decided to let this story stay as a one-shot so that the reader can decide what happens. It really wasn't about the characters more or less it was to write about an issue near and dear to my heart. I appreciate all the kind reviews I recieved - thanks so much for reading. While you are here I also have another favor to ask. I have a poll on my profile page regarding my next fanfic and which newsie you all want to read about so please stop by and take it. Thanks again -Emily