the one thing
"It's amazing how much you can care for someone you've never met but sometimes, you're forced to say goodbye to them, somehow. Forever...without ever seeing their face."
It was a blur. A red blur, mostly, because of the blood and the fear. They've been through a lot. A lot more than the average person but the pain of this couldn't compare to anything else. Physical pain, mental pain, it all hit them with full force.
The fear slowly crept up both of them, starting in their toes, neither of them moving. His brain clicked first and he moved towards where they kept the car keys, almost mechanical. "Chloe? It's okay," his voice was soft, "come on, let's go. It'll be okay."
His words came more out of fear than the actual positivity that it was going to be okay, and she knew that, but still...she grasped onto those words as if it would be the only thing to keep her sane. The drive felt like hours but it was really just a little over thirty minutes. He found a spot close to the emergency room, pulled her out of the car while trying to soothe her with words he wasn't quite sure were even true.
Of course the wait was long but, to Chloe's surprise, he didn't argue with the nurses when they claimed it would be "just a few more minutes". Finally, they were given a room and vitals were taken and they were left alone, again. She was lying on the bed, palms laying flat of her stomach, almost as if she would be able to feel the heartbeat herself. Derek was near the bed in a plastic chair, hands folded, head down, eyes closed. And, for once, Chloe didn't want to know what he was thinking.
"Derek?"
He looked up.
"You know I love you...don't you?"
He exhaled, letting her words sink in for a moment. "Yes, I know."
The fear came back again, a little stronger this time but she managed a melancholic smile. "No matter what happens, I will. Always. I promise. Okay?"
"Okay."
Four hours had passed with a multitude of visits from both doctors and nurses. They all entered the room with smiles but by the time they took blood, asked questions, scribbled on useless papers, probed and prodded, the smiles were gone from their faces. A lot of information was packed into those hours from the various medical personnel.
"Normal gestation is up to forty weeks, which I'm sure you already know, but if the pregnancy ends prematurely, well this is called an early pregnancy lost, up to about six weeks. Miscarriage, up to week twenty, stillbirth, up to about week thirty-seven. Then a premature birth,and so on. If the baby dies after being born, that's still called a birth."
They heard those words from many people, so much that they would even finish their sentences. Toward the end, the doctor scheduled an ultrasound.
"Why didn't he do this first?" Chloe whispered.
Derek couldn't look in her eyes. "Probably figured it a lost cause."
By the time the ultrasound machine came, they were emotionally pushed over the edge, absolutely exhausted, dreading those sad phone calls to family and friends. The new room they were ushered into was small, dark and quiet. After close inspection to the screen, the doctor cleared his throat.
"Well, I don't know what to tell you but there's some other unknown reason for all the blood we saw today, because there," he pointed to the monitor, showing them the bright screen, "is your baby." A quiet but fierce thump-thump-thumping sound filled the entire room. "Strong and healthy. Your child is still alive."
Elizabeth Jennifer Souza was born in happiness and love. Today is her birthday. They almost couldn't believe that one year ago they could have lost the one thing they couldn't imagine living without. She was a lovely mix of her parents; alert and intelligent like her father and kind and empathic like her mother. Derek would say that the second you looked into her viridescent eyes you were already wrapped around her finger.
It was a miracle they had her and they never forgot that.
Thank you for reading! Reviews of all kinds are tremendously appreciated.