The elevator doors parted and Josh walked slowly down the sterile hallway of the maternity ward. He again passed the sleeping babies, Ava included, without even a second glance. He was in a state of complete and total shock. The instincts that had kept him going last night: allowed him to drive to the hospital, speak with the doctors, and somehow respond when spoken to…those instincts were gone.
Josh now felt like he was floating, no, falling and there was nothing he could do about it. There was no survival mode to kick in and get him through the next few hours of his life. There was no reference he could glean from past experiences to help him deal with the magnitude of this situation.
He passed the nursing station as he approached Donna's door and he saw the same kind woman who had first handed him Ava. He wondered if they thought he was crazy, he had just walked by them moments ago angry, bitter and sad but what a huge difference those few moments had made. He was still angry, but there was something else; for some reason, he had hope.
Tears stung Josh's eyes as he thought about the possibility of his dream family actually being his reality. The elevator ride with Leo had confirmed that the morning 7 ½ months ago in the lobby of his hotel had actually occurred and, more importantly, that means the night before was real as well. Josh and slept with Donna and every health class he had ever taken reminded him that it only takes one time.
Josh walked to her door and put his hand on the cold metal handle. He took a deep breath and pushed open the door.
The scene hadn't changed much from the few minutes previous. Will was still standing by her bedside, Donna was still sleeping although not very peacefully. Will looked shocked and Josh felt anger rising in him.
"Were you sleeping with her?" Josh's question was abrupt and right after he directed it at Will he tensed, not knowing if he wanted the answer. He felt so frayed that at this point those were the only words he could form coherently and he decided that it would be best to just get it over with.
Will was turning a bright shade of red and looking at the sleeping Donna as if to ask forgiveness for Josh's accusation as he answered "No. No, of course not!" Will began his denial in that particularly panicked way he had of saying things. His nervousness made Josh suspicious and to further his denial Will added, "She is just as likely to sleep with me as she is with you!"
Will meant the statement as a validation of his answer but it not surprisingly made Josh squirm.
"What is that supposed to mean?" He spat angrily at the confused Will.
"Nothing." Will said blankly quickly realizing that there was something going on here that he failed to see.
"So you're telling me that that's not your baby out there?" Josh was having trouble hiding the eagerness in his voice. He was gesticulating toward the door and in his mind toward the nursery.
Will continued to look horrified as his eyes bugged behind his glasses. "BABY? NO. No that is not my baby, a baby would involve sex and I already told you there was no sex!" Will had gone from nervous to adamant but still carried the panic in his voice.
"Right." Josh looked pale as he placed his hands on his knees and took in sharp breaths.
Will continued to observe the man for what felt like several minutes as Josh just inhaled and exhaled unevenly.
"Would you like me to get a nurse?" He asked hesitantly and began to move towards the door Josh was blocking with his backside.
"No, no I am fine thanks." Josh held up his arm and straightened so he could look Will in the eyes. "How did you find out about this?" He motioned towards Donna in the bed and swept his arm through the air indicating the hospital itself.
"I emailed her library address and got a really odd out of office response. When I called to check up on her they said she had been taken to the hospital and so I just thought I should come and see if she was ok."
"So you knew about the baby?" Josh was trying to fill in the blanks and ignore the pain he felt at hearing of Will and Donna's apparent relationship.
"Baby? Oh, right, a baby. No. I had no idea she was, um, expecting. We just emailed. I haven't seen her in months. Not sense we kicked her off the campaign bus for her frequent urination stops."
"Right…" Josh began.
"about 7 ½ months ago" both men finished the thought together.
Silence overtook the room as Josh tried to absorb the fact that Ava really could be his. Will stood by and just for comedy's sake tried to picture Donna with a huge belly and barefoot. He broke the silence a minute later with: "So, how did you hear about all this?"
"Emergency Contact". Josh answered distractedly.
"Ah, right of course." Will nodded and then looked over at Josh slightly confused. "So is it yours?"
The turn to panic now belonged solely to Josh who looked at Will and immediately put his hands on his knees and began the same sporadic breathing pattern as before.