Martin ran down the hall with an intensity he'd never known before. Oh, he'd run to medical emergencies; he never hesitated. Today, however, he was running toward the greatest medical emergency he would ever see in his career and was worried that even with all of his running, he would still be too late.
"Ellingham!" He demanded as he flew up to the desk, startling the nurses seated behind it. One jumped slightly at his abrupt and gruff manner. He patted the desk with fervor. "Room, now!"
The nurse who had the pleasure of dealing with Martin, and he immediately schooled himself. Maybe it was the fact that he was a doctor and knew that look from nurses, but he paused, smoothed his hair, and he took a deep breath. He may not recognize a lot of social norms, but he knew the look of a very irritated nurse. "Dr. Martin Ellingham," he said, his voice ragged, as he made eye contact with her. "My wife, Louisa Ellingham is here in labor. I'm trying not to miss it."
She reacted better with that explanation, but she didn't move quickly. Martin, rolled his eyes to the sky, holding back snapping at her while she looked to the charts.
"9B," she told him, giving him a look that he understood as to not cause a problem going to the room. He gave a nod of thanks and spun around. He heard someone clear their voice and turned back to see the same nurse pointing in the opposite direction. He nodded again and started to jog or shuffle quickly down the hall. He'd been a madman in the halls of the hospital, making his way up here to Labor and Delivery. Clearly, people would believe he was bodmin with his erratic behavior. He continued to eye the rooms, cursing to himself that of course, Louisa's room was not close at hand.
Martin and Joan had safely arrived at the London hospital, losing at least a half hour with the horrendous traffic they had encountered. Martin had almost abandoned the car, sure he could walk or run faster to the hospital. Joan had grounded him, if he was even glad for that. Right now, he wasn't sure that he was. They had gotten Louisa on the phone and knew that she was very close, if not already had, delivered. He was ready to call the phone company and chew them out for the lack of battery life because her phone had just died now approximately 20 minutes ago. Until then, they'd at least had an almost moment by moment account of the delivery. She was in agony; he could hear it, and nothing he had said or done was helping. She needed him by her side, and he couldn't get there. Martin had almost run over multiple hospital employees who had stepped outside for their breaks, as he and Joan flew up to the front door in the car. He'd abandoned it there, giving a quick wave to Ruth, as he'd darted inside. Ruth, not at all into babies or obstetrics, even though she, too, was a physician, had patiently waited for the duo to arrive. When Martin had abandoned the car at the entrance, she'd stepped into the role of driver, getting in with Joan and parking Martin's car. He hadn't given the vehicle a second thought; his only focus was Louisa.
Martin's heart skipped out of his chest, and he came to a screeching halt as he heard a baby cry. Looking up at the room numbers, he saw that he was still two doors from Louisa's room and sensed the cries were coming from there. Running again, he flew to the door and threw it open, completely out of breath. He caught the attention of the room staff with his very abrupt entrance and quickly surveyed the scene. A nurse was over in the corner facing away from him, busy, tending to the cries. He looked to Louisa, and she looked completely exhausted, leaning back on the bed with her eyes closed. The doctor, who Martin laid eyes on, appeared to have just handed off the baby.
"Louisa!" Martin exclaimed, and with that, Louisa's eyes flew open. She had been so exhausted even his abrupt entrance had gone unnoticed by her.
"Martin!" She beamed, gesturing to him, and he moved quickly to her. He reached her side in an instant, and he found her crying, large tears running down her face. "Louisa, what is it? What's wrong?"
She shook her head, and he had to pull away to see her face. Panic set in on his face as he studied hers. She shook her head again and tried to speak between sobs, "You made it. He's here," she nodded to the nurse who was still working away. "Please, go, check on him. Make sure he's alright. You finally got here."
"Yes," he said quickly, moving across the room. The nurse looked up at him as he reached her side, and he drew in his breath as his eyes took in the first look at his son. Oh, he was breathtaking, something Martin never believed he would say about any child, but truth be told, Martin never imagined having one of his own.
"Vitals?" Martin asked quickly, gesturing to James. James, he had a son, and his son had a name. Martin switched to medical moment without even thinking about it. The nurse gave him a warm smile, already having been alerted to Martin's pending arrival and the fact that he was a physician.
"Everything looks good, Dr. Ellingham. He appears to be a very healthy boy. You can touch him," she gestured to James, and Martin's eyes widened as she said that. He looked to his son, the infant still crying as the nurse continued to finish with him. Martin reached and briefly stroked the bottom of his foot, which caused James to pull at it. His reflexes, at least, appeared to be normal. Martin turned back to see that Louisa was staring intently at him. He nodded to her, a small smile on his face.
"Excellent health, it appears," he said with a nod. At that, he looked back to see the nurse had now bundled the baby in a blanket and was smiling at Martin, gesturing for him, inquiring if he wanted to hold him. Martin's eyes widened again at the thought, and he shook his head, gesturing to Louisa. While he had not been in the room to see if she'd been able to hold him yet, he was not about to hold him now, not yet. He still was a little uneasy about infants, even if it was his own. Instead, he followed the nurse as she placed the bundle in Louisa's arms. Martin melted at the sight, seeing the woman he never knew he could love so much, holding their child. Their child. It was almost overwhelming, and he quickly put his hand down on the side of the bed to steady himself. Louisa noticed this, and she looked to him with concern. He shook his head, steadied himself, and he gingerly sat down beside her to look at what they'd done.
"Oh, Martin," Louisa said, still crying. She was running her hand all over James. Martin shifted to pull a handkerchief from his pocket. Louisa didn't notice, and he reached to wipe her face as she looked at James. At his touch, Louisa turned to Martin, a wonderfully, large smile on her face.
"He's so perfect," she sighed. Martin, full of emotion himself, leaned toward her and kissed her, his usual shy demeanor in front of others, apparently being overwhelmed by emotion today.
"I am so horribly sorry I missed this," he admitted to her. "I wanted nothing more to be here, and I will forever regret I started out as father failing him, failing you."
She shifted slightly to cup his face in her hand, giving him a large, warm smile, "You did nothing of the sort. You moved mountains to get here, Martin, and that is what matters."
"I didn't move mountains, Louisa," he admitted, with a frown. "That is obviously impossible."
"It's a metaphor, Martin," she said, with a hint of sass in her tone. She nodded toward the baby, "Let's just enjoy this moment, hmm? We've had many special moments ruined by you speaking."
"Ahh, yes," he said, feeling his face flush, and he turned his attention to his son.
It was well over an hour later before Louisa was situated and moved to a different room. James seemed to be doing very well, and it was clear his lungs were working properly. Even with being a week late, he was only 7 lbs. 11 oz, which was a relief to Louisa who had worried he might be quite large given his being overdue. Martin had avoided holding James with all of the chaos, but now that Louisa was finally settled and had James back in her arms, she smiled at Martin, clutching his hand in hers.
"Want to hold him?" Louisa asked, searching his eyes for a sign that he was just waiting for her to ask.
"Oh, ahh, no," he frowned. He instantly saw Louisa's eyes sadden, and he quickly jumped to explain, "I'm not good with babies. Even handing him to you, he's cried for me, and I think it would be best if I didn't."
"Martin," she said sweetly and softly, clasping his hand even tighter as she held James in her other arm. She squeezed his fingers, "He's your son, our son," she admitted, her thick accent rolling off her tongue as she said son. "You can hold him. I would like you to hold him. You aren't bad with babies, not your own. It's new for me too. You can learn, yes?"
He paused and made a face. She quickly continued, "I'll be right here with you, Martin. James wants to get to know his daddy. Please, for me?"
"Err, yes," he said, his eyes darting around. Louisa looked too, deciding that right there next to her was the best spot. She released his hand, patted it, and she used it to help herself shift slightly in the bed. Martin saw her wince, and he quickly jumped to see what was wrong.
"I'm fine, Martin," she said through gritted teeth as she clutched James even tighter. "Just a little sore," she told him, meeting his gaze. She rolled her eyes and sighed, "Okay, who am I kidding? I feel like I've been hit by a truck, and I'm incredibly sore, but I want you to hold him, and I think you would enjoy doing so right here with me. So," she said, almost breathless after just shifting in her bed. She nodded to the spot beside her, and Martin eyed it. He sat down, and before he leaned back next to her, he toed off his shoes. He situated himself, and she smiled warmly before gesturing for him to take James. He gingerly received the baby, and Louisa put her hand on his forearm to comfort him. Martin was very awkward with James, but he instantly locked eyes on him.
"Hello, James," he said in his soft voice, the voice that until now had only been used with Louisa. "You look like your mother," he said, studying the boy's features. "It's very good to meet you finally. You've given your mother quite the challenge these last few weeks. I'm hoping you will not always be this stubborn."
Martin glanced to Louisa as he heard her chuckle. She leaned over to kiss his cheek, and he blushed at that.
"See, you're doing just fine, Martin," she told him. James started to squirm, and Martin froze. With Louisa patting his arm, he relaxed slightly and shifted his grip on James.
"He does look like you, Louisa," Martin said, running his hand over James' face. "He has your nose and same eye shape."
"Hmm," she leaned over him, "that is your scowl, though, my love." Martin grunted, still mesmerized by the tiny creature in his arms.
"I can't believe he is here," Martin admitted. "I need to get out of Cornwall immediately."
Louisa sighed and gripped his arm again, "Yes, with him here now, the thought of going about this alone is quite overwhelming. I mean, certainly I am capable, but I don't want to do this without you, Martin. We are a team."
James squirmed again, and Martin looked to Louisa for help. She leaned over and kissed him on the lips before smiling at him.
"Well done, Martin," she grinned. "See, your son adores you. You did just fine," she told him as she accepted the baby again.
"I did nothing, other than arrive late," he said with a grunt. "You did all the work, and I will be forever grateful, Louisa, for you seeing this pregnancy through. I know it was rough from the start, not knowing what might happen with us, but now that he's here, I couldn't-" Martin paused and swallowed, trying not to lose his grip on his emotions. Louisa reached over and squeezed his hand, smiling up at him.
"I couldn't imagine life without him, without you, Martin, so I know what you are saying," she beamed. "You're here, at least for a few days, so let's start adjusting to our new family."
"Yes," he said with a quick nod. His eyes widened, "Family, yes. I need to alert Auntie Joan and Aunt Ruth."
Several hours later, after both great aunts had set eyes on their newest nephew, Martin found himself downstairs in the hospital cafeteria with them. It was now the middle of the afternoon, and Martin, for one, had not eaten anything. He'd been waiting on Louisa hand and foot, insisting that she be brought a lunch tray, even though in moving her into her room, she'd missed the lunch tray. He'd held James now several times and wasn't tensing up at the thought of doing so each time. He had a dull headache, no doubt from the stress of the day and the lack of food, and with Louisa wanting a little rest now while James was out for his hearing and vision screening, Martin had agreed to let his aunts pamper him a little with a light late lunch in the cafeteria.
"Oh, he's just wonderful!" Joan gushed as the three sat at a small table by the window. Martin wasn't much in a talkative mood; he never was, but right now, he was trying to absorb all that had happened in the last several hours. Less than 12 hours ago, he'd been home asleep in Cornwall, and now, here he was, a father in London.
"He is a rather striking boy, definitely looks like an Ellingham," Ruth added.
Martin put down his fork, and he tilted his head at her, "What do you mean? I didn't think he looked anything like me."
Both Joan and Ruth chuckled. Joan patted his hand, and Ruth explained, "He has the same jaw line as you, Martin. He does have Louisa's ears, but I saw you in his eyes."
Martin frowned again, glancing to Joan, and she nodded in agreement with Ruth. He shook his head, "I only saw Louisa in him. He looks like his mother."
Joan shook her head and pointed to the many pictures she had snapped on her phone, "He's definitely an Ellingham, Marty," she nodded to the photos. She'd snapped one of Martin holding him, and she smiled at that one, pointing to it, "Like father, like son. He looks just like you."
"Heaven help him if that's the case," Martin grunted. The women chuckled.
"Martin is that you?" Martin snapped his head at the sound of his name, and instantly froze, his eyes landing on the one man he loathed.
"Ahh, Danny, what are you doing here?" Martin stammered.
"Martin," he flashed a bright smile and walked to the table with his own tray, patting Martin on the shoulder. Martin flinched and made a face as Danny greeted the aunts.
"Lovely to see you both, Mrs. Norton and Dr. Ellingham." Martin eyed his aunts, and at Ruth's clueless expression, he interjected, both to clarify who Danny was and hopefully avoid giving away any information.
"Ahh, this is Danny Steele, from Portwenn, and he now lives here," Martin said, eyeing Ruth. Joan jumped in.
"Yes, Danny, it's lovely to see you," she said with a warm smile. She also eyed Ruth and added, "I believe last I saw you was back at home when you were seeing Louisa."
"Yes, yes," he said with a sad smile, "Louisa. I've lost touch with her-"
"Oh yes, I remember you as a boy," Ruth jumped in. "Your mother was friends with Joan, correct? You used to come over and feed the chickens."
"That's right," he smiled brightly at the memory. Martin looked down at his plate, having no interest in striking up any conversation with Danny Steele. As he glanced down, he quickly moved his hand to his lap to hide his wedding ring. He felt so odd not wearing it when in he was home in Cornwall, which struck him because until just a few months ago, he'd of course, never worn a wedding ring. It was peculiar how something that was so new felt so right, and how not having it on his hand felt so wrong. He had been religious about putting it on when he was headed to London. Martin had a small pocket inside his wallet where he stored it, and as he was driving this morning, his eyes fixated on his hand. He quickly put it on, and now he didn't want to have to take it off. He continued to look down at his plate while his aunts addressed Danny.
"I'm sorry, but seeing the three of you here in a hospital in London," Danny asked, "well, forgive me for prying, but is everything alright?"
"Fine," Martin said abruptly as he glanced up and frowned at Danny. The idea that Danny had ever had his hands on Louisa made Martin's skin crawl. He truly loathed the man, the smirk he had, the grin he flashed. "We are visiting a family member," Martin said with a quick nod.
"Yes, that's right," Joan said with a small smile and nod. "Ahh, what about yourself?"
Martin closed his eyes briefly and let out his breath, grateful his aunt had been able to steer the conversation. He wasn't at all interested in Danny, but he knew he had to be careful to not have him of all people discover his very large secret.
"Oh," Danny said surprised at their reply, possibly hoping for more of an explanation, "I am visiting one of the elderly from my church. I'm here quite often, in fact," he said. "I decided to stop down here while the man is with the physical therapist. I'd only just arrived when he had to go to his session. We'll visit more when he's done. Would you like me to stop in and pray with your loved one?"
"That won't be necessary," Martin said rather crisply as he gave Danny a look.
Danny tilted his head at Martin, "You're still in the village, I presume? Still alone?"
"Martin is the best doctor we've ever had," Joan interjected. She eyed Martin, hoping he would keep a lid on his frustrations, and she looked to Danny.
"How are you enjoying life in London?" Joan asked him now pointedly.
"It's everything I wanted it to be," he admitted, a blush creeping across his face. "I've been seeing someone, someone wonderful. I realize now what I want in life."
"The heart wants what the heart wants," Ruth stated in a very monotone state. Martin raised an eyebrow to her, and she gave a quick glance to him. Danny only seemed inspired by that.
"Yes, I suppose it does," he smiled brightly.
"It was lovely to see you, Danny," Joan told him. "I miss your mother, may she rest in peace."
"Yes, thank you," he said with a grim smile. "I do miss her too. Martin," he turned to him, "I suppose I won't ask you about Louisa, considering the way you two parted-"
"Danny," Ruth interjected, "we have had a long day, and I apologize for sounding rude, but we'd like some time alone."
"Of course," he said, eyeing them, almost trying to pry into their lives. "Nice to see you all."
Martin grumbled, and he kept his eyes diverted from him until he'd walked away. He could see both of his aunts studying Danny's retreat.
"He's already talking to someone else," Joan interjected several moments later, and Martin found himself exhale. He looked to his aunts. Ruth used her fork to point at him.
"You can't keep up this ruse forever, Martin. Just tell people. You aren't the first to have a relationship mess and then have a child. Move on, and I mean literally," she raised an eyebrow.
Martin nodded, "Yes, yes, thank you for the lecture. I am trying. I'm meeting about a job while here."
"Oh," Ruth raised her eyebrows, and Joan nodded, as he'd told her all about it on the drive. "Good. Your phobia is better?"
"It will be," he assured her. "It's progressing, yes, but if I ever had a reason, well, now I have two. My life has gone nothing like I planned, but," he paused as he tried to find the right words. He nodded to himself before picking up his sandwich, "well, all of this mess not happened, I would not be in this mess."
"Oh for goodness, sake, Martin," Joan rolled her eyes and glanced at him. "You are one of the most well-spoken men I've ever met, and did you hear yourself? You would not be in this mess if this mess had not happened? We're your family. Just admit you love your wife and now your son. All of this is for them."
He blushed and darted his eyes, but he did quietly mutter, "Yes."