Matt followed his mother-in-law out to her car and got in the passenger seat. She drove quickly. "The security company called," she explained. "There was a break in at the building and the cameras showed some tampering at the door to my office suites. We don't have an on-site security guard, but the company is sending someone over. The agent who called told me that it looks like something was left at the door. And I have a sinking suspicion I know what it is."
"What?" he asked, bewildered as to what on earth was happening two days before Christmas at the offices of an obstetrician.
Margaret gave a shaky exhale. "I really hope I'm wrong. I have a patient who gave birth last week. She's young. Just turned eighteen about a month before the birth. Her parents are very strict but have been reluctantly supporting her through the pregnancy. I'm...god, I'm really hoping Annie didn't abandon her baby at my office."
The very idea of it was horrifying to Matt. Particularly in the wake of all the troubles he and Elizabeth had been having. They would have given anything to have a baby of their own. And this young woman—a child herself, really—was abandoning her baby?
They arrived at the office building within twenty minutes. It wasn't far, but everything took longer in LA traffic. Margaret parked the car out front in the vacant lot and practically ran to the door, Matt following close behind her. Margaret commented that they beat the security team. They both hurried through the lobby and up the stairs to the second floor where Margaret's offices were.
Sure enough, right in front of the door to Suite 210 was a baby carrier. With a crying baby inside.
"Matt, pick the baby up while I get the door open. I'll have to do a full examination inside," Margaret instructed.
He did as he was told. He had barely spent any time with babies before, but he was too consumed with the panic of the situation to worry much. He bent down and saw a pink wailing little thing with a red face and red gums and wiggling little hands and feet. It—she?—looked a little smushed somehow. If Margaret was right, this baby was only about a week old. Matt had never seen one so small before. But he reached into the carrier and pulled the baby out and cradled her in his arms.
The baby calmed almost instantly. The wailing stopped and was replaced by gurgling noises. And the smushed look on her face smoothed out to reveal chubby pink cheeks and a tiny button nose and thin little lips and bright blue eyes.
He looked at those blue eyes and those blue eyes looked at him. And Matt felt the world shift beneath his feet. His heart flipped in his chest and he could hardly remember to breathe.
"Come on, Matt."
Margaret's voice cut through him and he blinked, returning to reality. The door was open, and Margaret had the baby carrier in her hand, gesturing for Matt to follow. He carried the baby inside, holding secretly to the precious cargo in his arms.
Meanwhile, Elizabeth and Richard returned home with bagels and croissants and pains au chocolat from their favorite bakery. She was excited to fry up an egg to put on her bagel and save one of those chocolate pastries for later. She indulged in French pastry as a treat while living in London and it was definitely more authentic there what with actual French bakeries for her to visit. But there was something about this Americanized version that always felt nostalgic and comfortable in the best way. It was a nice taste of home.
But when they arrived home, the house was empty. "Matt?" Elizabeth called. No answer.
"Mom left a note," Dad said from the kitchen.
She walked in and took the paper he held out. Work emergency. Took Matt with me to help. Be back later.
Elizabeth frowned. What on earth kind of work emergency would need Matt's help? Nothing related to obstetrics. She wanted to call him, but when she went upstairs to get her cell phone, she saw his sitting on the nightstand where he'd left it. So much for that.
She and Dad made some eggs for themselves to go with the fresh bagels they toasted. They'd just have to wait to hear what was going on.
At Margaret's office, Matt was reeling. He had a baby in his arms. A baby! Had he ever held a baby before? He couldn't remember having ever been near one this small before. His brother had two children, but he lived in Essex and Matt hadn't gone to meet his niece and nephew until they were a couple months old, particularly since that was back when he and Elizabeth were traveling back and forth between London and LA all the time.
No, holding this baby felt nothing like when he was with his brother's children. He could hardly come up with the words for it, but it was...well, all he could think was that this baby was special.
Margaret had led them both into an exam room and got a bunch of things out and prepared the table before taking the baby from Matt. His heart actually ached to let go of her. But he stood by and watched closely as Dr. McGovern did her job.
"Alright, I think she's just fine. Heart rate is a little fast, but that's not too unusual. She probably needs to eat. I'm going to mix up some formula. Can you feed her while I make some calls?"
Matt was slightly stunned. "How do I feed her?"
Margaret gave him a look that was equal parts endeared and exasperated. "I'm going to mix up formula and put it in a bottle and you hold the bottle while she drinks it. I'm hoping she'll be able to latch on alright. If this is Annie's baby, I'm almost positive she's been feeding with a bottle already."
It took a little doing, but Matt did get the hang of it quite quickly, as did the baby. Margaret mixed up the bottle and sat Matt down in a comfortable chair and showed him how to hold the bottle and tilt it so the baby didn't suck on air. And just as Margaret predicted, the baby latched on to the bottle right away, and they were all relieved for it.
"Are you alright to stay here for a little while? I'm going to call Annie first and see where that leads. I really, really don't want to call the police if I don't have to," Margaret said.
Matt nodded, not looking up from the baby. "I think we're alright here." He stared at the tiny little girl in his arms, watching her eat hungrily. "Why would Annie ever do this to her baby?" he wondered aloud.
Margaret shook her head sadly. "She never wanted a baby. She was terrified when she got pregnant. Her boyfriend wanted nothing to do with her. And her parents weren't supportive at all. The most helpful thing they did was not kick her out. But Annie came to every appointment and took good care of herself and followed all my instructions. I think she knew she wanted to give the baby up, but she never took any steps. Never contacted an adoption agency or anything. In my practice, unless I'm told otherwise, the assumption is that the pregnant woman is going to raise her baby. When she gave birth, I've never seen any new mother so distraught. In my experience, birth is the most difficult thing for the body to endure but it comes with a rush of hormones and joy and bonding. And Annie was just...I don't know, I've never seen anything like it. Postpartum depression usually takes a couple days at least to set in. Annie seemed like she had it immediately. Just sad and tired and wanting nothing to do with the baby. So I guess I can't say I'm too surprised she abandoned her baby. At least it was here and not somewhere dangerous."
Matt couldn't imagine such a thing. Though he couldn't imagine what it was like for a teenager to get pregnant or to feel so lost and alone and desperate like that. But how could anyone see this baby and not do anything in the world to protect her? "What's the baby's name?" Matt asked. "Assuming it is Annie's baby." It was suddenly very important to Matt that he know the baby's name.
"I don't know if she has a name," Margaret answered. There was a smile in her voice. "Annie hadn't given her one when she was discharged from the hospital. The birth certificate was left blank. She was discharged as Baby Girl Smith."
Margaret left to go make her calls, and Matt was left on his own with the baby. He focused on feeding her and trying not to think too much about the strange feeling welling up deep inside him. "I hope you weren't too hungry, Baby Girl," he said gently. "But you're alright now. No more hunger. No more being alone. You're safe. Everything will be alright."