AGAIN
Chapter Thirteen: It's a….!
Suze
Jesse was way over reacting; seriously, the doctor said that the baby and I were both just fine. But no, Jesse still insisted in taking off three weeks off from his job so he could take care of me during the last couple of weeks of my pregnancy. That's what the rational part of me was saying. That Jesse was over reacting, I mean.
But the part of me that had gotten real scared after that little bleeding I had during my 32 week, yeah, that part, was very, very glad that Jesse was home.
He didn't let me do much; Jesse cooked, and cleaned and did the chores. He also put the finishing touches in the baby's room; Jesse did let me help him with that because he knew that was important to me. We had transformed the second bedroom at the apartment – the one Jesse and I used to use as a study – into the baby's suite.
I was really pleased about how the room had turned out. We didn't go for the traditional stuff –girly pink or boyish blue – instead we went for a "Polar Bears" theme, you know, lots of white, blue, pale green and pastel yellow and, or course, baby polar bears. It was lovely, or so I thought. And Adam and CeeCee had found this really cute 'polar bear' layette set for the crib and…
Okay, I'll stop. You can tell I get really excited with the baby-theme.
Anyway, the nursery was pretty much done, Jesse had washed all the little baby clothes we had bought or that our friends had given to us in the baby shower, and I was in charge of putting it all into the chest of drawers and, you know, make it all ready.
Near the end of my pregnancy I was oh so very huge, as Dopey liked to remind me, and Sleepy had complained that I would drive his business – He had gotten lucky once in the stock market and with the profit of it did the smartest thing he could think of: Sleepy bought Peninsula Pizza – into bankruptcy if he kept giving me free pizzas each time I craved them, which was, I must admit, fairly often. But I was so happy that I didn't mind my hugeness. Much.
Jesse and I were in a 'holding' pattern and as we waited, he pampered me and wooed me with soft love words and told me how beautiful I looked –'not fat but pregnant and radiant.
By Thursday the first week Jesse was home 24/7 I was a bit tired of my vegetative existence so I convinced Jesse to go to The Olive Tavern, an Italian/Steak House that we both liked. And afterwards we walked around a little, drawn to the baby's stuff stores though we already had all we needed but still, Jesse loved looking for toys and I just adored looking layette sets for the crib.
We had just purchased a new baby-blanket when I felt this pain in my stomach. "Ouch," I said.
"What? What is it, Susannah?" Jesse asked, already a little frantic while we walked me to a near by bench and made me sit.
"I hurts, maybe it's something I ate, remember how I got after the chili-chicken fajitas Andy made last week?" I said, trying to remain calm. "Ouch." I said when it hurt, again. I took a deep breath, like they teach you in Lamaze, then it hit me, it wasn't something I ate, nope, it was a contraction. I told Jesse so. Still, I thought not much of it, during the last month I had had random contractions here and there, Jesse said that was normal. I felt a third contraction and then my water broke.
Jesse called Jerry at the hospital and he sent an ambulance for me; and off we went to the hospital. Jesse held my hand all the way, and didn't even flinch when I practically squeezed the life out of it because I was clutching it so hard. Jesse kept smoothing my hair and kissing my forehead and saying –in a very soothing tone – that everything would be over soon.
Jesse
Susannah was wonderful, I thought she was going to go nuts and throw stuff at me or yell at me but she didn't. And she fully went through a natural birth, you know, no pain killers, no anesthesia. That's my Susannah, she's strong and brave, because God knows that if I had been the one giving birth I would have yelled and pleaded for someone to knock me out. But not Querida. She went through it all and was very brave about it, she didn't cry or anything… and I hope the feeling will return to my right hand someday… like, before I die.
But I didn't mind that as Doctor Hertz said that it was a boy and asked me if I wanted to cut the cord. And when the nurse put the baby in Susannah's arms – after it had been checked up and declared a healthy as it could be – and she looked up at me, her green eyes shining with happiness, and said "We made it." And our baby opened his eyes and I saw they were green, like Susannah's.
Something inside of me snapped… I never before, ever, in my life felt as terrified as I felt in that split second, I was a father, and that can be the most scary job in the world. But then I understood that I had Susannah to help me with the job and that no matter where Fate took our son; he would be safe because he would be well loved.
So I embraced Susannah and our son at the same time, leaned back and enjoyed, because when life is good to you, that's all you can do.
Paul
When Jack told me Suze had already had her baby, it barely register. Part of it was because at the time I was watching TV with Wendy in my room… well, alright, I was wresting her for the possession of the remote. So all I said was "Tell her I said congratulations.", and I meant it too, I had Wendy and – cosmic punishment that she was – she made me happy; so happy that I didn't even envied Rico and Suze. Wendy was the last person on Earth I though I would fall for, but when it happened, it was okay and, somehow, made sense.
I enjoyed Wendy's company, even when she mocked me or made me angry, and I really liked kissing her because I got the feeling she liked when I did it and –unlike Suze – she still liked me when it was over.
One afternoon, Wendy and I had been talking, walking and kissing in the beach, discussing this offering I had of a law firm, less prestigious that the one I was in, but that did a lot of pro bono work for the under privileged. I had been ready to dismiss the idea but Wendy asked me to think about it, she wanted to be a Public Defender back when she was still alive. So I said I would think about it. When we made it back to the house, then grandpa told me one thing that made me think back about Suze.
So the next day after work, I bought a baby's blanket and went to pay Suze a visit…
"Do you want something to drink?" Suze asked, sitting in the couch while rocking her baby in her arms.
"Um, no thanks, I'm good. Congratulations about…"
"Victor." She said with pride. "We named him Victor, that's the name of Jesse's grandfather, they were close when he was a kid."
"Great, congratulations."
There was a moment of silence then Suze said. "What did you come here, Paul, really?"
"I need help with something and you're the only one who can help me."
"What is it?"
"Grandpa said something, about Wendy… He says that there is a way she can have her life back, there are risks – for me mostly – but he thinks there is a good chance it might work."
"I thought you couldn't bring her body her like you did with Jesse's before."
"Yes, but I wouldn't be bringing her body here, I would be taking her soul back to the point where she died. Wendy said she was in coma for a while before her parents unplugged the life support devices. She said that she saw it all because she was a ghost already, only that grandpa thinks she wasn't, when she got shot, Wendy accidentally stepped out of her body and never figured she could come back to it. Since her body didn't have a soul, it died – even when the doctors said she could have lived. So if I take her soul back and make her return to her body, she'll get her life back.
"Sounds like a plan to me. What do you need my help with?"
"I haven't told Wendy. If I say it she'll want me to do it and I will because I can't say 'no' to her and then I will lose her forever."
"Paul, that's her decision to make. Not yours."
"I love her." I said suddenly, surprising even myself.
"Then you know what to do, don't you? If its real love… you know what to do."
………….
So I went home and told her, and I said she had to do it, go back I mean… that it was the best for her.
"You don't want me here anymore? Like, for real?" Wendy's voice sounded so weird, then I realized why… she as about to cry.
I hugged her tight. "Of course not, Wendy, I want you here. But that's not the best for you; you have to get your life back."
"But… I love you," she said… she had never said it before that nearly meant my undoing. "I want to stay here with you and Jack and Grandpa."
"What about your parents? Don't you want to be with them again?"
"Paul…"
"And you have no reason to love me you just…"
Wendy smacked me. Hard. "I know what I feel," she said slightly angry. "I've known real love, Paul, and I wouldn't settle for anything else. And I do love you, I don't need a reason, love isn't like that."
In that second, everything inside of me changed. I don't know how or why or anything, but I knew what I had to do. If I let it up to Wendy, she would stay because she loved me – why, good heavens, I don't know – just like Jesse would have chosen to stay if Suze had asked him what he wanted years before. And I realized I would have to make the choice myself, because, just like Suze, I could see what was at stake, while Wendy – And Jesse, before – couldn't.
"I love you too." I said quietly, tightening my hold on her and closing my eyes, tapping into Wendy's memories until I found the right one in the hospital, and took both out souls there, leaving my body behind.
When we materialized in the hospital room, there was a woman being held by a man as she cried. "Mom and Dad." Wendy said softly, inching closer to the bed. The heart monitor was beeping as her heart stopped, dying slowly for the lack of soul inside.
"Go, you don't have much time."
"Will I remember you?"
"I don't think so."
"Will we see each other again?"
"I'm not sure."
She doubted what to do and her life was tickling away but then she looked at her parents and nodded. "I'll find you. And I'll remember. I know I will."
I gave her one last fierce hung and kiss and shoved her in the direction of her own body lying in the bed. She touched her own arm and got sucked inside the body.
The monitor stopped beeping after a moment or two as her heart started to beat again, her mother was by her side in a second, while her father ran out to find a doctor. "Wendy?" her mother asked. "Sweetheart?"
I saw Wendy's fingers move a little, as if she tried to hold something… I leaned down and kissed her forehead. "I promise I won't forget." I whispered and returned to my own body.
Suze
"I'm telling you, Suze, it's pathetic." Jack was saying as he, CeeCee and I walked the mall, Jack had wanted me to help him pick a gift for his girlfriend's birthday and CeeCee had heard and decided to come with us and drag me into the seamstress so she could start to re-fit my maid of honor dress. The wedding was in two weeks, a month had happened since I had little Victor and I was FINALLY getting my figure back. Jack went on. "He switched jobs, and sold his apartment in its going to live with us now, and not because grandpa is making him. And all he does now is mope around the house looking all pathetic and depressed."
"Oh, Jack, it can't be that bad." I Said.
"I sincerely doubt your brother has the emotional dept to feel depressed." CeeCee added, she was so not warm about Paul nor she would ever be.
"I thought so too," Jack answered not taking offence. "But he's seriously hurting since Wendy left."
"He'll be fine, Jack," I said, feeling a little sad for Paulie, after all I had already been there.
"I hope so… he seriously ruins the mood when I'm making out with Lucy in the couch and he walks in staring at nothing…."
"It'll get better." I repeated as we walked into the seamstress' place and waited for my maid of honor dress to be brought around.
"Changing the subject." CeeCee said suddenly. "Why don't you start thinking about your own wedding? I know he's getting a little impatient… Father Dominic has been putting ideas in his head about the two of you living on sin."
"How do you know that?"
"Jesse told Jerry and Jerry told Adam the other night when they went on their 'boy's night', remember? When you and I went with Sam to that place she knew that had all those cool china patterns?"
"I didn't know Jesse felt that way…" I said…
And so, by the time we left not only my maid of honor dress was re-fitted. Oh nope. I also had picked up a wedding dress and put down a payment to start getting it made.
Now all I have to do was tell Jesse that I was ready to marry…
… Gee, how was I going to do that?
End of Chapter 13.
NOTES:
There!
I'm evil.
Clavie.
