Chapter 3
Disclaimer: Still don't own them.
A big thanks to Soar, Sinead-Conlan, and JuliaAurelia for their help with this chapter.
January 24, 1979
Mary say at the front desk in the maternity ward, filling out her transfer papers. She was going to hand them in to her supervisor after her shift, she just couldn't take maternity anymore. All that was needed was to fill in the area she wanted to transfer to and her signature. She signed her name and hesitated over what unit she wanted, not sure of where to go. Before Mary had a chance to really think about it, there was a commotion that caused her to look up.
A young girl had just burst through the door. "HELP! PLEASE HELP!" she cried out.
Mary reacted instantly, grabbing a wheelchair and approaching the young girl. Mary could clearly tell that she was scared and obviously pregnant, clutching at her swollen belly. Mary walked slowly, so as not to startle the girl. She gently asked the young woman to have a seat in the wheel chair. The girl sank into the chair and grabbed her stomach. "IT HURTS," she moaned.
Mary leaned down so that she was at eye level with the girl. "Its okay, hun," she said soothingly. "Can you tell me your name?"
"Mmaanddyyy," she stammered. "Mmandddy NNeewtton."
"Hi, Mandy, I'm Mary. I promise to take real good care of you, okay?" she said gently.
"Can you make the pain go away? It feels like I'm being split in two," Mandy said roughly, pain clearly evident in her voice.
"It's normal. How far along are you?" Mary asked.
"Seven months," Mandy answered.
Mary knew it was way too soon for this baby to be born. She told the other nurse on duty to page the doctor and she got Mandy into a room and settled into bed. She really hoped the doctor showed up soon because upon examination, Mary realized that Mandy's waters had broken and she knew that there was no way to stop the labour now. If the baby survived it's birth, it would have an uphill battle.
"How old are you Mandy?" Mary asked trying to keep the young girl distracted.
"19," Mandy replied.
"Do you want me to call your parents?"
"No, they kicked me out for being a slut. Tried to make me go live with the nuns," she said bitterly.
"What about your boyfriend?" Mary inquired.
"NO!" Mandy cried emphatically. "He said he loved me and that he wanted me to prove it to him. I did and look what happened. After he found out, he called me a slut too. Said there was no way the baby could be his, but it is. I know it is. Tony is the only guy I ever did it with," Mandy said sounding close to tears. "I mean…" Mandy stopped suddenly and again wrapped her arms around her stomach. "OW! God, get this thing out of me."
"Easy, Mandy, you're having a contraction. Breathe with me, okay? In, out, in, out," Mary coached.
Mandy let Mary talk her through. "Can't you just knock me out until it's over," she begged.
"I have to wait and see what the doctor says," Mary explained. "Can you tell me who your doctor is?"
"I don't have one," Mandy said.
"What do you mean?" Mary asked in confusion.
"I didn't see a doc. I didn't want anyone to know I was pregnant. Little shit already cost me Tony. So I hid, I didn't eat much so I wouldn't gain weight. Then my mom noticed how I'd changed one day and figured it out. She called me a slut and sent me to the nuns. I hated it there so I ran away. I didn't get far when my stomach started to hurt, so I came here."
"So you haven't seen a doctor since you got pregnant?" Mary asked in a worried tone.
"Nope. I wouldn't have come here either if it didn't hurt so god damn much," Mandy said.
Mary felt her emotions rise, she would have given anything to get pregnant and here was this girl acting like it was a curse. She couldn't believe how unfair life was. She was glad when the doctor finally showed up. She was on the verge of saying something she would regret.
The doctor quickly examined Mandy and confirmed Mary's earlier thoughts. There was no stopping the labour, Mandy was going to have to deliver. Mary said a quick prayer to have an angel watch over the baby. It was going to need all the help it could get.
Fortunately, it was a slow night, and for the next eight hours, Mary was able to stay by Mandy's side and coach her through labour.
"It shouldn't be long now," Mary said reassuringly after she gave Mandy another examination.
"Thank god. Maybe now my life can go back to normal."
"Are you planning on giving the baby up for adoption?" Mary asked.
"I don't care what happens to it. I just want my life back," Mandy stated forcibly.
Mary couldn't stop the look of horror that came over her face. How could anyone think of a child like that? "A child is a gift from God," she snapped back. She couldn't help it.
"A gift," Mandy said disbelievingly. "Ever since that night with Tony, my life's gone to hell. Tony doesn't talk to me anymore. My parents practically disowned me. My friends all hate me, and every boy in school keeps asking me out because they think I'm easy. How's that a gift, you tell me?"
"I understand it's not easy, but remember that baby did nothing wrong..."
"Are you saying I did?" Mandy said accusingly.
"No," Mary said quickly. "I don't think you did anything wrong, I'm simply pointing out that your child didn't either."
Mandy softened. She did like Mary, the nurse was the first person that had been nice to her in a long time. "I just want my life back," she lamented.
"Do you want me to contact social services for you, so you can legally put the child up for adoption?"
"I told you, I don't really care. Just...Oh, LORD..." Mandy cried and clutched her stomach as another contraction hit her.
Mary knew this was it and quickly paged the doctor. Dr. Oppen came with Dr. Tyler, who worked in the neonatal ICU. There was also an incubator standing by, ready to transport the child as soon as it was born.
Mary stayed by Mandy's side for the whole delivery and an hour later, the child entered the world.
"It's a boy," Dr. Oppen said and before Mary or Mandy even laid eyes on the child, he was handed to Dr. Tyler and whisked away.
"It's over Mandy. Great job," Mary praised the young woman.
"Thank goodness. I never want to go through that again in my life," Mandy stated firmly.
"You get some rest. Oh, by the way, is there a certain name you have picked out?"
"I don't care," Mandy said again. She closed her eyes, rolled over and went to sleep.
Mary helped clean up and filled out the paper work and when she was done, it was time for her break. She found herself drawn to the neonatal unit. She walked over to the incubator that held baby boy Newton, as he was being referred to for the time being.
He weighed a mere 3 pounds 1 ounce and he was on a ventilator for his underdeveloped lungs. There were monitor leads all over his tiny body, IVs in his arm, leg and head, an extremely tiny blood pressure cuff on his other arm, a feeding tube in his left nostril, and an ID bracelet on his other ankle. There wasn't a spot on him that didn't have some kind of tube or lead. You could hardly see the baby through it all and yet, Mary thought he was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen.
She quickly donned a pair of gloves, put her hand into the incubator, and lightly stroked the baby's head, being careful of the IV. "Hi little one," she said gently. "I'm Mary. I know you can hear me and I want to say that I know the battle you're facing. The odds against you right now are so overwhelming that no one here expects you to survive, but guess what, little one, I'm not one of them. If I was a betting woman, I'd put all my money on you. I'll come see you everyday, and I'll fight for you. You just have to promise me that you'll fight for yourself, okay? You have an angel watching over you and I just know you're going to be fine," she finished with conviction.
"Hey, Mary," another nurse came over to where she was standing.
"Hi, Roberta," Mary said to her friend.
"Can I get in there for a second, I have to give him his feeding," she requested.
Mary reluctantly moved aside. "Poor fella," Roberta said. "I was just in talking to his mother and she won't come to see him. I guess it's for the best, though. Little tyke probably won't make it through the night."
"Premies are a lot tougher than people give them credit for. I think this little one may surprise you," Mary said firmly.
"Mary, don't get attached to him," Roberta cautioned. She knew how much her friend wanted a child and she hoped that losing this baby wouldn't do more harm than good. "You know the odds, given the lack of medical care his mother had, and his birth weight. Even if by some miracle he does survive, he's most likely going to have physical and mental problems. It may be a blessing if he goes peacefully."
Mary felt her temper flare up. Why was everyone so quick to think the worst? She refrained from saying anything because she knew her friend was just trying to protect her. "I know all that, but I just feel so sorry for him," she replied.
"Me too," Roberta admitted after a moment of thought.
Mary glanced at her watch and realized that she had to get back to work. Roberta told Mary that she would talk to her later and went to attend another baby. Mary turned back to the incubator. "I'll see you soon, little one. Remember what I said."
Mary went back to the maternity ward and finished her shift. She checked on Mandy and gave her an update on her son, then she called social services and they said they would send someone as soon as they could. When she got off, she didn't go straight home but went to check on the little boy instead. He was still hanging in there. He really needs a name, Mary thought.
She thought about it all the way home. This baby wasn't the first they'd had born to a teenage mother who wanted nothing to do with her child. Mary couldn't figure out why this little boy had made his mark on her so quickly. She was determined to come up with a name, though. The usual policy on the neonatal ward was to name or nickname the baby, but she guessed it was because no one expected him to make it, and that thought saddened her greatly.
Paul, Terry, Trevor, Mark, Steven, Douglas, no,none of those sounded right.
When, Mary got home, she found a huge bouquet of flowers on the table, with a note attached that said simply 'I'm sorry'. Mary forgave John on the spot. She was in a good mood for the first time in a long time. She couldn't wait until her husband got home.
Mary went upstairs, more names running through her head, yet none of them sounding quite right. She lay down and caught a few hours sleep. When she awoke, she took a quick shower. When she got downstairs, she immediately got her coat and boots, she wasn't on that day, but something was drawing her back there.
She went directly to the NICU and found that the baby was in the middle of it's first crisis, his blood pressure was too low. He had a doctor by his incubator giving orders. Tammy, the nurse, was carrying them out.
"Hi, Mary," Dr Tyler said.
"Morning, Adam," Mary greeted him. "How's the little guy doing?" she inquired worriedly.
"We've given him medication to help his blood pressure, but it's just wait and see at this point. There is nothing more we can do for him."
"Have you told his mother?"
"She left," Adam informed her.
"What do you mean?" Mary asked in confusion. They wouldn't discharge someone so soon after giving birth.
"I mean, she left. We were in the delivery room and she slipped out. Just took her stuff and left.'
Mary was in a state of shook over that. How could someone abandon their child? "I know you must be busy, I'll sit with him if you have other stuff to do," Mary offered, trying to get her emotions in check.
"Thanks, I'd appreciate it," Adam said gratefully. "It's a busy morning."
When Adam walked away, Mary scrubbed up, gloved up, and put her hands in the incubator, again lightly stoking the baby's bald head. They'd shaved the small amount of sandy blond hair that he'd been born with to accommodate the IV. "Hey, little one, remember what we talked about yesterday? You have to fight," she encouraged. She continued with the small talk, while still running through names in her head.
Then she thought back to a few months ago, when she and John had been discussing names for their own child.
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A Few months ago.
"How about Aaron?" John suggested as he read the first name in the baby name book. "It could work for a girl too."
"Aaron or Erin Winchester. It sounds nice. What about..." she grabbed the book and opened it to a random page. "Winston," she suggested.
"Winston Winchester," John said trying it out.
"Guess not," Mary said with a giggle.
They passed the book back and forth and made suggestions, neither really finding a name that they liked. Mary finally took the book and threw it across the room.
"What was that for?" John asked in surprise.
"I want our child's name to mean something and I know that you want the name Dean somewhere if we have boy, after your father. Family is everything, John, and I want to give that to my kids. If we have a girl, we're going to name her Samantha Frances, after your mom and mine."
"It's perfect, Mary. My mom would have loved it. What about a boy? Mark Dean, after your dad and mine."
"No, I'd rather use my maiden name as his first name and your father's name as a middle name. I was named after my father, they just substituted the K for a Y. I know that dad would probably like to see his name continue."
John burst out laughing.
"What?" Mary said in an almost hurt tone.
"Sorry, Mary, I didn't mean to laugh at your suggestion. I was laughing at the fact that that gives our son a name of James Dean Winchester."
Mary couldn't help but chuckle as well. "I love it," she said. "It's the perfect name for our son."
"Just remember that when he's 16 and sneaking in late after breaking curfew and you can't chew him out with a straight face."
Mary laughed again and leaned over and kissed her husband. "Let's get started on our family. I can't wait to meet James or Samantha," she said with a wild glint in her eye.
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"Mary, hey, Mary, earth to Mary," she heard a voice calling her and she came back to the present.
"Hey, Tammy, sorry. I was just thinking about something."
"I just wanted to say, I think you have the magic touch," Tammy said and pointed to the monitors.
Mary couldn't help but grin when she saw that the baby's blood pressure had returned to normal. "He's a fighter," Mary said firmly.
"He is," Tammy agreed. "A real rebel, I'd say."
"What did you say?" Mary said.
"I said he's a real rebel," Tammy repeated patiently.
"Yeah, you sure are..." Mary paused. "Dean," she finished.
"What did you call him?" Tammy inquired.
"Dean, after James Dean. It fits, don't you think?"
"Like a glove," Tammy agreed. "I have to examine Dean. If you want to get a coffee, I should be done in about ten minutes."
Mary agreed that sounded like a good idea. She ran for some coffee and she decided to stop by maternity to get her schedule for next week. She saw the transfer paper she had left sitting on the desk. She was about to throw it out but then she stopped. She sat down and filled in the blank on where she wanted to transfer to, neonatal ICU. Dean needed her.
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