Sunday. March 5, 2017
Umina
"Are you sure you're going to be alright if I go," EJ, dressed in his morning run attire, spoke softly into Nicole's ear after approaching her from behind where she stood loading the morning's breakfast dishes into the dishwasher. As usual, he couldn't resist laying his hands on her now, very prominent baby bump and almost immediately after his hands made contact, he felt the baby kicking furiously.
"Whoa, it must be football practice time," EJ commented, leaning in to peck Nicole on the cheek over her shoulder, while his hands continuously relocated on her stomach following the movements of the baby.
"I know you had to have felt that one," Nicole said collapsing backward into him. "This little guy has been mighty active all morning."
"I think I'm just going to stick around instead."
For the last week, EJ had been completely paranoid to leave Nicole's side for just one second after being told at her last doctor visit that waiting just one more week for her to have the baby was pushing it. Her womb was running out of sufficient space for the baby to grow and after observing her weekly for the last month, Doctor Siegel had made the call that her office visit scheduled for tomorrow would likely be her last. In fact, he had wanted to send her in for a c-section that week but knowing that the baby's lungs were nowhere near fully developed at just twenty-five weeks, they collectively decided to wait one more week to allow for Nicole to begin taking a steroid which would help develop the baby's lungs more quickly.
Nicole had turned around to face him "No, honey, I'm fine. Really. Go for your run and just take your phone with you like you've been doing. I'll call you if I need you."
EJ hesitated to answer while he continued to debate over it. "Alright, but instead of worrying about these silly dishes, why don't you go and join the kids in the family room and I will do them when I get back."
"Seriously, there's like three glasses left on the table. I think I can manage. I'll head to sofa city as soon as I'm through."
"Pinky swear," EJ inquired with a raised eyebrow as he waved his aforementioned digit in front of her face.
"Yes, I pinky swear," Nicole answered with mock agitation as she entwined her finger in his for a brief shake. "Now will you just go," she announced playfully as she broke their embrace and spun him in the direction of the door and pushed.
EJ was chuckling all the way to the door. "Alright, I'm going. I'm going. I'll run across the street and feed Rufus while I'm at it too."
Rufus was Natalie and Jeff's cat which was left in their care for the weekend while Natalie, Jeff, Emma, Alex, and their new baby girl Lily visited with Natalie's parents up near Sydney. Although the request was relatively low maintenance and only involved EJ making two trips to their house, Natalie had been very apologetic for even asking. She and Nicole, or Sarah as she knew her, had become incredibly good friends and she was just as concerned for her and the baby as EJ was. If it hadn't been for her father being extremely ill, Natalie insisted she would have put off her plans so she could be there if she were needed for anything but her father hadn't been given much longer to live and since he was not able to make the trip to Umina to meet his new granddaughter, they had no choice but to bring her to him, the sooner the better.
She stood in the doorframe and shook her head at him as she watched him take off down the street and disappear around the corner. He had been 'up her butt,' for lack of a more appropriate term, for the entire past week. If she didn't know it was only because he was every bit as terrified as she was, she surely would have killed him by now. She was amazed she actually had managed to get him to go for his daily, morning run since she could hardly manage to go to the bathroom without him tapping on the door if he thought she was taking too long but she'd simply reminded him that once the baby was here, that opportunity might become scarce. Undoubtedly, the baby would be spending at least several weeks in the NICU and without any reliable childcare lined up since Natalie was tied up with important family obligations of her own, one of them would have to be at the hospital with the baby while the other tended to Belle and Dez's needs.
She finally made her way back into the kitchen and returned to clearing the table. She grabbed the glass that had been hers, still nearly half-full with orange juice, and debated whether or not to finish it. Since the thought of actually taking a sip strangely made her feel nauseous, she stepped toward the sink to dump the contents down the drain and was suddenly struck by a sharp pain in her back which was so intense that the glass just slid from her hands and crashed to floor, shattering around her feet. The noise had lured Belle in from the family room to investigate.
Nicole was nearly bent in half as she staggered to the nearest dining chair, carefully avoiding broken glass all the way. She took a seat and panted heavily as a result from the pain itself and the instant fear that something was terribly wrong with the baby it brought along with it. Belle was standing frozen like a statue just a couple of feet away, instantly alarmed by her mother's state.
Nicole caught a glimpse of her daughter's feet as she rocked hunched over in her chair. "Oh, princess be careful. There's broken glass here everywhere."
"What's wrong mommy," her daughter asked, wide and teary-eyed, obvioulsy frightened.
And just as soon as her daughter had inquired about her state, the pain stopped. She was able to finally sit upright, though she did so carefully in fear that any movement whatsoever might cause the pain to return. When it was clearly apparent that wasn't the case, she began to feel somewhat at ease and offered Belle a smile to aid in laying her little girl's fears to rest.
"I'm OK, sweetheart. I think mommy just ate something that didn't agree with her."
"Are you sure, mommy?" Belle still looked every bit as concerned as she did before and had beun to approach her.
"No," Nicole hollered sternly, holding her hand out as a stop sign as she sprung to her feet. "Honey, you don't have any shoes on. Go and put on your sneakers while mommy cleans this up, ok?"
Belle nodded and skipped off to do as she was told while Nicole went and collected the broom and dustpan to clean up the mess before either one of her kids could come runing through and end up with glass in their foot. At least the pain had stopped but she still planned to call EJ as soon as the kitchen floor was clear. However, just as she was dumping the final dustpan-full of debris into the trash, the pain returned and this time, with even more intensity. She instantly dropped to her knees, screaming as she doubled over in pain, grabbing her stomach. It was no longer isolated to her back. Her entire mid-section was radiating and she felt incredible pressure in her groin area. Having been through this twice before, she knew at that moment that not only was she in labor, she was ready to have this baby, and soon.
Belle had come running back to the sound of her mother's screams, this time joined by Alex who opted to only go so far as the kitchen doorframe for fear of what he might see if he should go further. She flew to Nicole's side who, despite her best efforts to remain calm, cool, and collected in the presence of her daughter, was now crying hysterically. SHe didn't need her mother's instructions to know what to do. She had already grabbed the house phone and was dialing 9-1-1 when Nicole had told her to do the same. Belle very calmly repeated what her mother had instructed her to tell them even though she could hardly believe what she was hearing. Her mother was going to be having a baby any minute and was not going to make it to the hospital.
While still on the line with the dispatcher, Belle used Nicole's cell phone to call her father.
"Everything alright," he answered after just one ring, considerably out of breath.
"Daddy! You have to come home quick! Mommy's having the baby!"
"Sweetheart, what?" He had to ask for confirmation of what he just heard though he didn't need to actually hear it before running full speed ahead in the shortest route home.
"Mommy is on the floor and she says the baby is coming now."
He could hear Nicole screaming in the background. Thankfully he had decided on his own to cut his routine short today and with this change of direction he estimated that he would be home in probably about five minutes if he was actually running as fast as he imagined himself to be.
"Sweetheart, you have to get off the phone with me and call 9-1-1 right away.!"
"I did, daddy. They're on the other line."
"Good girl. Make sure you're talking to them and let them know what's going on. I'll be there any minute."
"Where's your daddy, honey, is he close," Nicole asked desperately, panting heavily between each word.
"He said he'll be home in like five minutes."
Nicole didn't feel like she had five minutes left in her. The urge to push now was incredible and she was going to have to start, with or without EJ, or anyone, there to help her.
"Ask the operator when she thinks they'll be here. I have to start pushing."
"She said five minutes too mommy. She told me to go get some clean sheets."
"OK, sweetheart, that's perfect, thank you."
She seized the opportunity of her daughter being out of the room to remove all clothing from the lower half of her body. She wasn't sure if it was her movement which prompted it or not but suddenly, her water finally broke just after successfully performing the task. She started pushing. She had to. There was no thinking or debating about it since she could already feel the baby's head expanding her just one, good push she knew immediately she had made a lot of progress and she began to worry that not even Belle would be around to help guide the baby through.
Her prayers were answered by the sound of the front door flying open. She wasn't sure whose face she would see running into the kitchen but she cried with relief when she saw that it was EJ.
He immediately fell to his knees between her legs, ready to play his part. There was simply no time for anything else as he had clearly seen when he arrived that the baby's head was already half way through. "Alright, sweetheart, I'm here. We got this OK," he spoke to her reassuringly as he slid his hand underneath the baby's head for support. "Where is Belle?"
"She went upstairs to get sheets," Nicole informed him the very moment their daughter's footsteps could be heard thumping down the stairs.
"Daddy, you made it. I got the sheets!"
"Excellent, sweetheart," he praised her, taking one sheet from her with his free hand and spreading it out beneath Nicole with Belle jumping to his assistance. He couldn't believe how brave his little girl was being considering the circumstances but then again, she was Nicole's little clone so it really shouldn't have come as a surprise.
"EJ, I have to keep pushing!"
"Go on sweetheart, we're ready."
Two more good pushes was all it took before EJ was holding the tiny little boy in his hands. Nicole was staring down at the still, little baby in his hands, waiting to hear his first cry but never had she heard a more disturbing silence in her life. It hadn't been more than a few seconds since she gave birth, but with every increasing second she heard no cry she bcame more and more hysterical.
EJ quickly began to work on him, using the other clean sheet to wipe around the baby's mouth and nose to make sure there was nothing preventing him from breathing. He could see the baby's little chest rise and fall, struggling to breathe but it was clear that he was getting no air in. He immediately took to performing mouth to mouth.
Finally, the sound of sirens could be heard outside and just as soon as they'd pulled up they were inside just as quickly. When they finally pried EJ away from the baby so they could take over his care, Nicole heard the most beautiful sound she'd ever heard in her life. In that very brief moment between EJ giving the baby his last breath and the paramedics using their devices to force air down her baby's lungs, her little boy let out a soft, sweet little cry which instantly made her weep tears of joy.
She watched the whole scene with awe, as EJ hovered around the medics attending to the baby while another helped her onto a gurney. She was desperate to know what was going on with the baby too but the pair assigned to help her insisted she lay down and she didn't have the strength left to argue or attempt to do otherwise. After all, the baby was in good hands now. EJ would make sure he was getting all the attention he needed.
He returned to Nicole's side only when he was certain he could be the bearer of positive news. He bent down and hugged her head to him tightly. "He's going to be fine. They've got him breathing steadily on the machine and he's taking well to it. Did you hear that little cry?"
"Yes," she sobbed happily into his chest. "I heard him. I heard my baby cry!"
The significance of that moment was something that had touched him deeply as well. It was a moment that had been stolen from the both of them with Belle and Desmond. It was an irreplacably precious moment that they would never get back, but were finally blessed to have with this baby. He had felt the tears stinging his eyes himself upon hearing his son's cry but ultimately, it was seeing Nicole's happiness now which caused the floodgates to open.
His son. Even though he technically was not, he couldn't imagine loving the boy any more if he were. He was already completely devoted to being the best dad in the world and found it hard to believe there was a time when he'd turned his back on Nicole when he was made to believe that Sydney wasn't his daughter. But of course that was the very reason why he could stand here today and very proudly play the role of father to Nicole's little boy. He had been too stupid and proud before to admit that he had made the worst mistake of his life by letting Nicole and the little girl, both whom he loved dearly regardless, slip away.
Aside from the baby's health issues, which he was sure the little boy would completely overcome with time, everything seemed damn near perfect. His family was bonding wonderfully, the baby was here and surviving. Once the baby was home they would start planning their vow renewal ceremony; the event that Belle was probably more excited about than anyone. It seemed that finally nothing or no one was going to interfere with their happiness. Of course he had no way of knowing that earlier that day, an event had taken place where a source connected to Kristen would learn their precise location. And he was right there in Australia.