Chapter 4: Midnight Snack

A few days had passed, and Michaela's mood swings were coming fewer and far between. Sully was grateful, because Michaela wasn't weepy, and she was happy most of the time now. Ever since her apparent final encounter with Abagail, she seemed like a rejuvenated woman.

The town was starting to progress as well. The townsmen were all pitching in to build the school, with the exception of Sully and Robert E., who had their own obvious reasons for not wanting to help out.

Michaela had been busier than ever at the clinic, and Sully was sure that contributed to her mood swings becoming so infrequent. She had something else to do and other things on her mind. Over the past few days, Michaela had delivered three babies, performed an emergency appendectomy on Mr. Garney, and stitched up at least five children's knees.

Michaela's cravings, however, had not stopped. Sully knew he had about six more months of Michaela's strange cravings, and he knew that he could put up with them because it was for a wonderful cause.

Michaela was sitting at her desk at the clinic when Myra walked in. Myra looked tired and a little upset. It was understandable, because Horace had gone into shock a day ago, and he hadn't woken up. Michaela was concerned because she had never seen anyone take so long to wake from alcohol poisoning. She was starting to wonder if maybe there was something more she could do, so she had been spending the entire morning looking through medical books and new reports, hoping to find some other way to help the telegraph operator. The town wasn't doing well without him. He was one of the most needed people in town, because he was their connection to the outside world.

"No change today?" Myra asked.

"I'm afraid not."

"I don't think he wants to wake up, Dr. Mike. I think he wants to die," Myra whispered. She sat down in a chair across from Michaela's desk. Michaela put her hand on Myra's. The poor woman hadn't slept much at all, and this morning, Michaela had asked her to leave for awhile to go get coffee and breakfast at Grace's. Myra was so worried about Horace that she was neglecting herself, and most of all, she was denying her heart.

"Myra, have you decided anything about Hank?" Myra sighed and swallowed hard. The tears were trying to flow, but she was fighting them back.

"I feel so bad, Dr. Mike. Hank loves me so much, and I love him, but I can't be with him if he's going to continue to have saloon girls that entertain men in private. You know what I mean. Prostitutes."

"I know," Michaela replied.

"I told him that he had to choose what was more important. He's been avoidin' me since then, but every time I catch him lookin' at me, he looks away like he feels guilty."

"Maybe he does."

"I don't know," Myra replied, wiping her nose with a handkerchief. "If only this hadn't happened to Horace, I might be able to think a little clearer. It just ain't fair what happened. It ain't fair to any of us. I still feel like I coulda done somethin' to help Horace. I couldn't live a lie. I couldn't pretend to be in love with him."

"I know," Michaela replied with a reassuring smile. "You have to do what's best for your heart. You can't let anyone tell you what to do." Myra nodded and sniffled.

"Thanks, Dr. Mike."

"Anytime," Michaela replied.

"I'm gonna go sit with him some more."

"Alright, but please don't stay up there all day. You need fresh air and food."

"I won't stay long," Myra promised. She stood and went upstairs to sit with Horace. Michaela shook her head, feeling bad for Myra. The poor woman had been through a lot, and she was beating herself up on the inside for what happened to Horace.

A knock came to the clinic door, and Loren walked in.

"Loren? How are you today?"

"I'm alright," he replied, fidgeting nervously.

"Is there something I can do for you?"

"Uh, I don't know."

"Are you feeling aliright?"
"Not exactly."

"Will you let me examine you?"
"No!" Michaela sighed heavily. She always became so frustrated with the men who were reluctant to let her examine her. It wasn't as if she enjoyed it. She was always professional.

"Well, what seems to be the problem?"

"Well, I've sorta got a rash," he began.

"A rash? Where?"

"You know where!" Loren snapped.

"Oh," Michaela replied, her eyes widening a little.

"I think it's cause I went fishin' the other day. My trousers got all wet and I rode home in 'em."

"Alright," Michaela replied with an amused smile. She walked over to her cabinet and pulled out a small jar. "Put this salve on twice a day, once when you wake and once before you go to bed. That should clear it right up."

"What do I owe ya?" Loren asked.

"Just let me know when it's gone." She placed the jar in his hand and he smiled gratefully.

"Thanks, Dr. Mike." Loren left quickly and Michaela shook her head. She sucked in a deep breath and her stomach began to growl. She was hungry yet again, even though she had just had breakfast a couple of hours ago at home.

"Alright little one," she whispered. "I'll take a break." She pulled her coat on and started off across town to Grace's. Grace had been kind enough to give Myra a few days off to help look after Horace, and she seemed to be doing alright by herself seeing as most people were at work or at home. Grace loved this part of the day because she actually had time to herself to sit down and eat.

"Mornin', Dr. Mike!" Grace greeted her friend.

"Good morning, Grace. The baby must be hungry again." That was her latest excuse. Grace chuckled in understanding.

"I'll fix you both somethin' right away."

"Thank you," Michaela nodded. She sat down at a table and Grace poured her a cup of milk. She drank it down quickly.

"Are ya cravin' anything?"

"Not at the moment," Michaela replied. "I'm afraid the children are worried I'm going to eat everything in the house." Grace laughed and shook her head.

"They just ain't used to havin' a pregnant lady around, I s'pose." Michaela shrugged her shoulders. Grace fixed up her famous meatloaf and mashed potatoes and served it to the doctor. Grace sat down across from her and smiled. "What do ya think it's gonna be? A boy or a girl?" Michaela thought for a moment.

"Oh, I don't know. I'd be happy with either. Brian and Matthew seem to really want a boy, but Colleen really wants it to be a girl. Sully and I don't care what it is, as long as it's happy and healthy."

"All parents say that," Grace chuckled. "But what do you want? Come on, you have to want one more than the other."

"No, really," Michaela laughed. "If it's a boy, that would be good, because Sully would have his firstborn son. If it's a girl, that would also be good, because I've always wanted a little girl. But I've got Brian, Matthew, and Colleen now, so I'm content with either one."

"Have ya picked out any names yet?" Grace asked thoughtfully.

"We know for sure that if it's a girl, her name will be Katherine Elizabeth Charlotte Sully. Katherine after Sully's mother, Elizabeth after my mother, and Charlotte after, well, Charlotte."

"That' a beautiful name!"

"Yes," Michaela agreed.

"What about if it's a boy?"

"I think Sully would laugh at me if I suggested Byron the second." Grace laughed and nodded.

"I think it's safe to say that he would forbid naming your baby that."

"I want my father's name to be his middle name, if it's a boy. We haven't really talked about names since before we found out we were expecting. We're too busy thinking about what the baby's going to look like and be like to really worry about names or whether it'll be a boy or a girl."

"Me and Robert E. wanna have a baby. I can tell that Robert E. would love to have a son, and I would love to have one too. A little boy would be perfect for us."

"I believe you're right," Michaela agreed with a nod.

As soon as she was finished eating, Michaela made her way back over to the clinic. She had been so busy lately, that she savored the wonderful moments she had outside of it. Her favorite part of the day was coming home to Sully and the children.

She was surprised when she walked inside to see Sully standing at the window.

"Sully? What are you doing here?" she asked in a very pleasant tone. She smiled and walked over to her husband. He pulled her into her arms and answered her with a kiss.

"I just wanted to see my beautiful wife." Sully kissed her again and she giggled as his hands made their way down her back to rest on her hips.

"Sully!" she exclaimed with a chuckle. He laughed and let Michaela go.

"Are ya feelin' okay?"

"Yes, Sully. You don't have to ask me that every time you see me. I'm fine." She gave him a peck on the cheek. Sully smiled and put his hand on Michaela's fairly flat tummy.

"I can't wait until ya really start showin'." Michaela put her hand over Sully's.

"Neither can I."

"I thought ya said you looked fat already."

"And you told me I didn't," Michaela replied, folding her arms over her chest.

"You don't look fat," Sully replied, realizing that he was about to get himself into trouble. "You look beautiful, and I love you more than I ever though possible. This baby inside proves that." Michaela thanked him with a loving kiss.

Sully woke when Michaela shifted in his arms. They had spent the past several hours showing their enthusiasm for one another.

"Michaela?" He sat up as she stood and put her robe around her waist. "Where ya goin'?"

"Nature calls," she replied with a yawn.

"Ah," Sully replied with a knowing nod.

"I'll be back in a couple of minutes." Michaela hurried out of the room, silently thanking God that Sully had put indoor plumbing in their house. She really didn't want to have to run outside to use the outhouse.

Sully chuckled to himself, knowing that later in Michaela's pregnancy, nature would be calling much more frequently. That happened with Abagail a lot, and he knew that poor Michaela would be running back and forth at all hours of the day and night. He didn't mind though, because he knew from his experience with Abagail, that it was all a normal part of pregnancy, and just another sign that all was well.

Sully started to doze off, but he wanted to wait for Michaela, so they could hold each other the rest of the night. He stood and walked over to put a couple more logs onto the fire.

After about ten minutes, Sully started to get concerned. What if she had fallen in the dark? Sully quickly pulled his pants on and rushed out of the bedroom, into the hallway, and down the stairs.

"Michaela?!" he asked in a frantic whisper, not wanting to wake the kids. He half expected to see her lying at the bottom of the stairs, but then again, he would have heard her fall. But, he didn't see her on the floor. In fact, she was sitting at the kitchen table with a basket of cold fried chicken that Grace had given her. She wasn't eating though. She was fast asleep with her head cradled in her arms. Sully smiled and shook his head. He figured that on her way back from answering nature, she had smelled the friend chicken and decided to have a midnight snack. Unfortunately she had been too tired to finish it.

Sully gently scooped his wife up into his arms. She stirred a little.

"Hmm?" She was half-asleep.

"You fell asleep at the table."

"I was hungry," she whispered before her eyes closed completely and her head lolled on Sully's shoulder. He grinned and kissed her forehead.

"Let's get you back to bed." Sully continued up the stairs with his wife in his arms, not minding having to come downstairs and carry her to bed, because he enjoyed every moment he got to spend with his wife, whether she was awake or sleeping. Either way, she was the most beautiful creature he'd ever set eyes upon. He couldn't wait to spend the rest of his life taking care of her when she needed him the most. He knew she was independent, but being able to be there for her in moments such as this one made him feel like all was right in the world.