FrankElza: Thank you for the review and for checking the chapter over. Ricky is struggling. I enjoyed writing the conflict between the two brothers, you'll see how Ricky takes the news in this chapter.
Braxton. 54: Thank you for the review. I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter. I'm glad Ricky is getting help as well.
The Surrogacy.
Chapter 29.
Bianca's POV
"Ricky can keep Nathan" I say, before walking out of my brother in law's house, heading next door. Heath follows me.
"Babe? Why did you say that? I thought you wanted another baby?"
"I do, Heath, but I'm tired of fighting. "
Heath pulls me in to his arms, where I sob for the loss of another baby.
"Ricky's won" I mumble, through my tears. Heath wipes them away.
Heath woke early the next morning and decided to make Bianca breakfast, like he did when they first started dating.
Over in the psych unit, Ricky had been woken, handed a clean gown to change in to. She was led down the hall with the nurse to the bathroom, where she was led in to the cubicle, she went to shut the door when the nurse pressed against it. Ricky looked at her, confused, then it hit her: she'd have to undress in front of the nurse. She bit her lip. This was degrading.
"Quickly " The nurse snaps.
She allows the gown to fall to the floor, keeping the dressing gown around her as she moves to the shower, but was stopped.
"You can't shut the door"
She had to be kidding.
Feeling the tears in her eyes, she stepped in to the shower, watched by the nurse as she washed her hair. She wrapped herself in the new gown, once she was finished, before putting the gown on and following the nurse out, down the corridor and to a large room at the end of the hall.
"Take a seat, Ricky" Nate told her.
"I'm not hungry, Nate" Ricky replied.
"You have to eat, Ricky"
"Or what?" She asks.
"If you don't follow the rules, you'll have your prillvages revoked. That means"
"I can't see Brax, " She says.
Nate nods, heading towards her, so only she could hear. "The quicker you co -operate and do as we tell you, the quicker you can get back to Brax, "
Brax was the only thing keeping her going in here, Denny and Phoebe hadn't bothered with her. It made her feel alone.
Ricky nodded, but still refused to eat the porridge.
Once it was time to clear up, the nurse tutted as she removed Ricky's bowl.
She heads back to her room, passing the lounge where other patients are watching TV, or sitting around chatting to other patients. It seemed boring to her. She'd rather just hide.
"Meeting with Maria, "
"Great" Ricky said.
"It's this way" A nurse said, gripping her arm, so she didn't try to escape.
Let go of me!"
"Ricky, calm down, they want to help"
"I'm fine"
"If your fine, then you wouldn't be in here" Another patient, who'd heard her, commented.
Ricky rolled her eyes, glancing at the patient. She was female, looked like she did, with the hospital gown, dressing gown and ID bracelet, easy to ID in a crisis, as they all merged in to one, stripped of their individuality.
"What you in for?" She asked.
"None of your business" Ricky retorted, she hated this.
Nate stood in the doorway, "Language, Ricky"
She felt like a child, not the 27 year old she was.
"Nate, can I call, Brax please?" Ricky asked.
"I can't let you, "
"I just want to see how Casey is, " She said, she'd been made to hand in her pics of him.
"I can't, Ricky, sorry" Nate repeated.
"I thought we were mates?" She asked.
"We are, but I can't give you any special treatment "
"I know"
As part of her treatment she had to take her medicine.
Ricky looked at the small pill, and then glanced at Nate, before uncharacteristically throwing the pill across the room.
Nate shook his head, disappointed in her. He walked out of her room, not before leaving a nurse with her. He come back, wheeling in a tray. He gloved up, before picking up a syringe from the trolley.
"No, Nate, please" Ricky begged.
"You had your chance, Ricky" He said before gesturing to the nurse. "Hold her arm still. "
As the nurse grabbed her arm, Ricky accidentally kicked the nurse.
Ricky soon found herself being held down as Nate pushed the needle in to her arm.
Nate sat on the edge of her bed, "I'm not doing this to be cruel, but if you don't take your medication, willingly, you can be restrained, as you've just seen, "
"I'm sorry" She said, burying her face in to her hands.
Nate put a hand on her shoulder. "It's not nice, but sometimes it has to be done"
Ricky went asleep after that, her head swimming, as the drug took effect.
The next day was the same, with one foot in front of the other. It was like she was going through the motions.
After lunch, Nate informs her she has a visitor. She heads to her room. It's Bianca.
"Ricky, I'm giving you what you want" Bianca said.
What she wanted, was to go home.
"I wish I'd said no, "
"You were the only one I trusted, it's why I asked you," She said, hoping she could hear the sincerity in her voice. "But now I think maybe that wasn't a good idea, that's why I've decided you can have Nathan. "
"Time's up," Nate told Bianca. Bianca sighed, stood up and left the room.
Heath was coming back from another surf when he saw his wife. "Hey"
"I told Ricky she could have him, " Bianca whispers.
"Bee, I know how much you wanted this,"
"You did too"
"Yeah, but I have Darcy" Heath told her. "
"Can I see her? She asks, despite not being her biological daughter, Bianca saw her as "hers""
"I'll talk to Connie" says Heath as the two of them made their way of the beach, when Darcy wasn't with her dad, she lived with her gran in Mangrove River, just a few doors down from where her dad grew up.
Bianca nods, resting her head on heaths shoulders as they walk off the beach
Brax, has pulled a shift, while Kyle looked after the boys, they are in the bouncers when he heads in to the living room.
Brax walked to the door, when he heard a knock, it was Heath, he was carrying a box.
"They are no use to us now"
"Heath" Brax says, setting the box down by the door.
His brother puts a hand up, his way of not wanting to talk to him as he heads back to his house. Brax looks at what in the box. They are all new items: baby blankets, dummies, toys.
Next door, Bianca headed up the stairs, to her son's room, he should be in it, it was unfair that he wasn't.
Heath comes up behind her. "We could try again"
"No!" Bianca yelled. "What if the other woman does what Ricky has and decides she wants to keep the baby? Heath, I don't know if I can do it."
Heath sat down, rubbed her back and then made her a coffee.
Kyle arrived, after minding the boys. "Maybe I could have a word?"
"You?" Heath stared at his brother. "Kyle, I've tried, Bianca's tried, Brax has tried, we can't get through to her. What makes you think you can?"
Kyle shrugged. "Worth a try"
"Aright, " Heath agreed, wanting to try anything. They just had to wait for the next visiting day. Heath didn't know how Kyle planned to get through to Ricky, he just hoped that he could talk, but would he be able to change her mind about handing baby Nathan over to his actual parents? He was going to try to draw on his experiences with his parents.
Thanks for reading.
