CHAPTER TEN
Three months later
Sara was in the middle of a deep sleep when she felt a horrible throbbing pain in her back. She turned over and looked at the clock – 1:14 AM it read.
She slowly got out of bed and began pacing. Roger was still sleeping and turned over, feeling for Sara. He turned on the bedside lamp and saw her pacing, taking deep breaths as she did so.
"What are you doing?" Roger mumbled. It came out 'wha you doin?'
"What does it look like I'm doing?" Sara snapped. "I'm sorry, I just have a horrible pain in my back and it won't go away."
Roger was awake and went to Sara's side, banging his knee on the bedside table. He cursed loudly and limped over to Sara. She laughed and then whimpered in pain.
"Baby, it's okay," Roger assured Sara as he called Dr. Elliot. There had been a huge snowstorm the night before and the roads hadn't been cleared. "Her water broke and her contractions are about twenty minutes apart…Uh huh…Okay….That would be great, thank you," He hung up and turned to Sara. "Honey, Dr. Elliot's on her way to deliver our little guy, but you need to stay calm, okay?"
Sara nodded and watched as Roger retrieved the rubber mattress. He removed the sheets and put the rubber mattress on top of the regular one. He helped Sara to the bed and had her lay down on it.
"I'm impressed – someone's been watching Call the Midwife." Sara teased as she laid down on the bed, all the pillows were behind her, along with Roger.
"Hey – it's a good show." Roger said, squeezing her hand.
The girls were beginning to suspect something was happening and exited their room. They began tiptoeing to the master bedroom when they saw Dr. Elliot enter the loft, along with three nurses.
Dr. Elliot smiled briefly at the girls and quickly made her way to the master bedroom.
"Okay, how far dilated are you?" Dr. Elliot asked, going to Sara's front. Sara pushed herself up on her elbows, with Roger's help.
"About five centimeters." Sara whimpered. Dr. Elliot carefully looked between Sara's legs and had her spread her legs a little. Roger held Sara's hand and kissed her forehead. Dr. Elliot then put a gloved hand between Sara's legs and felt around. She smiled and threw her gloves away before putting on a new pair.
"Your little boy is in a really good position. Just relax and we'll do this together, okay?" Dr. Elliot told Sara. She then looked over and saw the girls standing in the doorway. "Girls, could you get me a baby blanket, two bath towels and some water, please?"
The girls nodded and went to get the things that the doctor had wanted. While they were gone, Dr. Elliot checked the baby again.
"Ow!" Sara yelped, closing her eyes. Roger looked over and saw that a contraction was searing through her.
"Honey, it's okay," Roger soothed, losing all the feeling in his hand. He switched hands and rubbed Sara's back just as the girls came into the room, bringing all the things the doctor wanted. "Girls, go back to bed. I'll let you know when your brother comes."
"Will mommy be okay?" Emily asked.
"She's having a baby, sweetie," Dr. Elliot told Emily as she checked the positioning again. "Okay, Sara, on my count, push!"
One of the nurses escorted the girls back to their room and closed the door. The gross part was coming and they didn't want the girls to see the birth, fearing it would give them nightmares.
Sara leaned forward, sweat and tears streaming down her face. Roger rubbed her back and soothed her as Dr. Elliot counted down from ten to one.
"AAAHHHH!" Sara screamed. Roger held her and continued rubbing her back. She leaned back against Roger's chest when she was done pushing.
"His head is almost here. Keep pushing!" Dr. Elliot encouraged. Roger sipped his coffee and rubbed Sara's back. She had been in labor for twelve hours and was getting tired.
"Don't give up yet, sweetie. It's okay," Roger encouraged, kissing Sara's temple. He looked over her shoulder and saw an enormous bubble. "His beautiful head has just emerged."
Sara took some calm breaths as she prepared to deliver the rest of her son. By now, a nurse had taken one of Sara's legs and Roger had taken the other.
Two hours later, Sara let out a final grunt and pushed her baby into the world. Dr. Elliot smiled and turned the little guy around. He was screaming at the top of his lungs. He was also bloody and pink.
Roger cried as he cut his son's umbilical cord. The newborn was then taken over to one of the nurses, who put him on a portable scale. She then measured him, cleaned him and wrapped him in a blanket.
"He's 7 pounds, 5 ounces and is 17.2 inches long." The nurse told Roger as she put the baby in his arms. He walked over to Sara, who was resting.
"Honey, are you okay?" Roger asked. Sara nodded and held her arms outstretched. "He's so handsome."
Roger looked at his watch – it was now 3:17 the following afternoon. Both Cassidy and Emily were still sleeping, which Roger was okay with. They were on winter break, so they could do what they wanted.
He watched Sara nurse the newborn as Dr. Elliot and her team of nurses left the loft, congratulating Roger and Sara on the birth of their son.
At 3:45, Cassidy came into the room. Sara was sleeping and Roger had just entered the room.
"Honey, would you like to meet your brother?" Roger whispered. Cassidy nodded and followed Roger to the nursery. "He's sleeping right now, so just let him, okay?"
"Okay, Roger." Cassidy told him, taking his hand and entered the nursery.
Jace was asleep on his back, swaddled in a blue blanket. On his head was a blue cap.
"When Sara wakes up, she and I are going to take Jace to the hospital. Sara had him at home, so the doctor just wants to make sure Jace and Sara are okay," Roger explained. "Collins and Angel are gonna spend some time with you girls."
Roger escorted Cassidy out of the room. She hugged Roger and went to the bedroom she shared with Emily.
He then went to the master bedroom to check on Sara. She was somewhat awake and smiled at Roger as he entered the room.
"We should get going soon. Collins and Angel are on their way." Roger told Sara. He carefully helped her stand and led her to the bathroom. He stood outside the shower, washing the blood and membrane off Sara's body. He then lathered some shampoo onto his hands and washed Sara's hair.
Twenty minutes later, Roger, Sara and Jace were ready to head out the door. Roger and Sara waved goodbye to Angel and Collins, told the girls to behave and exited the loft.
Halfway to the hospital, Jace began crying. Sara, who was sitting in back with him sang a lullaby and looked lovingly at him.
"Hush little Jacey don't you cry and I'll sing you a lullaby." Sara sang, her voice gentle and soothing. Roger looked in the rearview mirror and smiled.
They reached the hospital ten minutes later. Roger explained to the nurse why they were there. She smiled and led the two of them to the maternity wing of the hospital. Roger held Jace while the nurse took Sara's vitals.
The nurse then took Jace's vitals and smiled at the couple. Roger looked down at Jace's face and kissed his forehead.
"You two can go home. Both mother and baby check out fine." The nurse told Roger and Sara. They thanked her and walked out the door.
Roger put Jace in his car seat as Sara climbed in next to him. Roger leaned over and kissed Sara's forehead before getting in the driver's seat.
He knew that he would love Sara, Jace, Cassidy and Emily from now until the end of time.