Chapter 10: Stay With Me

Part 22: Spencer-June 20/Waking Hanna Up

I softly creep into the bedroom that Grandma Marin is letting Hanna and Emily share, and forcefully pull the window shade. Sunlight comes bursting in, and Hanna stirs, groaning at me. "Spencer, pull the freaking shades back down, I'm trying to sleep." She demands, aggravated. I sit on her bed, firmly planted. When my friend realizes that I'm not going to leave she sits up, opening her eyes. "Good, you're finally alive to the world. Now, we have to get dressed and work on the Farm." I tell her. She looks at me, unaware of what I'm trying to say. "Spence, it's seven-thirty in the morning, we never do farm chores this early, at least I don't. Eight o'clock is the beginning of Aria's shift." She says, trying to remind me of the usual routine.

"Hanna, Today is inspection day, the city chiefs are coming to make sure that your grandmother's Farm is well kept. All four of us need to work today, if we wanna make a good impression." I tell her, hoping now she'll understand. Instead though, she just shoots me another look of bewilderment. "How the heck are all four of us gonna work? Emily is almost eight months pregnant, she can't do farm chores." Hanna tells me. Crap. I forgot about that. I turn back to Hanna, who is looking worriedly at her Emily's sleeping figure. I can tell that something other than the fear of Emily's upcoming due-date is plaguing Hanna. "Han, what's bothering you?" When I ask her this, she looks at me and turns away. What I see in her eyes is something I wish I hadn't.

In a very quiet, almost inaudible tone of voice, Hanna speaks. "Emily got a text from –A last night." With those words, I instantly freeze. Oh, God, no. "T-that can't be, I thought we were safe with your Grandma." I tell her. Before she gets a chance to respond, we hear a voice behind us. "Is it starting again?" Aria asks, standing in the doorway. We must've woken her. Hanna slightly nods a 'yes' to Aria's question, and frantically speaks again. "Oh you guys, the text was about the baby. What if –A hurts Emily or our baby? What the hell am I going to do?" As Hanna starts to cry, Aria sits on the side of Hanna's bed, close to me, and hugs her. "Nothing's going to happen, I can promise you that." Aria tells her. Even though I know Aria is just trying to comfort her, I have the sense she knows something that I don't. I won't question it however, not now. My friends soon both embrace me in a three-way hug, the kind that we only share when we feel exceptionally threatened. Threatened by –A.

It occurs to me that all of this talking has not yet awoken Emily, and I know Hanna is thinking the same thing when she gently shakes her fiancée. "Emmy, sweetie, wake up for me." Hanna says, hoping for a response. Nothing. Hanna starts to get very worried after calling Emily's name for the fifth time, to no avail. She tries everything to wake the one she loves. Still nothing. Soon, I put my ear to Emily's chest. "She's breathing, but it's very labored. We need to get her to the hospital, she's semi-conscious." I inform them, in a sort of calm, almost professional manner. All of the time I've spent reading Melissa's Med School textbooks is really paying off right now. I just hope we can get Emily to the hospital before it's too late.

What we need now is an ambulance. "Aria, call 911, Hanna and I will carry Emily to the living room." I direct her. Aria grabs a phone without question, and Hanna and I begin the somewhat mammoth task of moving the full body weight of a heavily pregnant Emily. I silently thank my dad for telling me to take weight-lifting as an elective at school last fall. I guess sometimes parents can give good advice.

Dear God though, is Hanna ever horrible at this. "Hold her shoulders, keep them up!" I yell to Hanna, who is actually much too frantic to really be helping at all. "I'm trying, Spencer! This is just too much!" She yells back to me, breaking down and leaving me her limp fiancée's full weight. Luckily, I drop Emily just above the living room couch, and she lands softly. I realize that the only thing I can give Hanna now is comfort. "It's all done, Han. I laid her down. The Ambulance truck is coming, she's gonna be okay." I try to comfort her as best I can, but all she can do is lean over and kiss Emily's belly and forehead, sobbing almost uncontrollably.

"Oh Emily, my beautiful Emily, please stay with me." I hear Hanna softly cry out to her girl. It takes all I have not to cry in that moment, and it is then that I realize Hanna will not survive without the love of her life. Her Emily.

Part 23: Emily-Same Day/ In a Georgia Hospital

Everything is blurry as I hear the voice of my love. "Emily, baby… Please, sweet girl, wake up." And my Hanna's words are enough to pull my vision into focus. "I love you, Hanna Bear." I tell her, in what I know is a very weak voice. Her face lights up with love and relief as she hears me. "Oh, my Emmy, You're awake! I'm so glad you're awake!" She says as she leans down and kisses me, lovingly. Tears of joy overtake us both, as they have so many times before. Soon, I ask the first question that comes to my mind. "How's our baby, Han? How's Chloe?" She then places a gentle hand on my bulging belly. "She's fine. The "Doctors here think she's big enough for you to deliver today. Do you think you're ready, my love?" She asks me. I can only tell her the truth. "Hanna Bear… I'm scared." I say, in what I know bares resemblance to the voice of a frightened child. I can't help it though, I feel so much like a child.

My loving Hanna holds me then, and rocks me slightly in her arms. She sings to me, just as she did last night, but this time, a different song. :

Deep in the meadow, under the Willow…

A bed of Grass, A soft, Green Pillow.

Somehow, the melody soothes me, and as all of our friends enter the room, I feel a comfort in knowing that after they leave, Hanna will still be there. Aria, Spencer, and Grandma Marin all hug me, and give their wishes of strength. After they all get to the waiting room again, the Doctor and nurses come in to do what they call, "prepping me for delivery." I don't exactly know what it means, but it still scares me, because I know everything about this is going to hurt. Just as they raise my legs in those holder things, Hanna leans in to kiss me and gives me her hand to squeeze. "Okay, you're all the way there, fully dilated. Time to push, Emily." The doctor tells me, as if it's the simplest thing in the world.

The moment I feel the first of horrifying contractions ravage my body, I squeeze my Hanna's hand as tightly as I can. "Stay with me!" I cry to her, in agony, and I know that she will.