A/N: Hi everyone, just a quick update! Once again thank you for the reviews, much appreciated and they do always make me smile! x
Jac and Zosia were walking towards the main oxford street shops from the tube station, making light conversation as they took in their surroundings. It was busy, although not so busy they could not walk around comfortably, and Zosia was visibly excited.
"Is there anywhere in particular you want to go?" Jac asked, smiling at the way Zosia's eyes lit up as she saw the vast rows of shops, ranging from clothes shops to technology shops and small bars and coffee shops.
"Well, I'd really like to get some clothes and some trainers for work, but aside from that there's not much I need." Zosia replied. There were so many places she'd love to have gone, but her rent prices were almost £1500 a month, and by paying back student loans and the finance for her car on top of that she had very little disposable income left.
"OK, of course. I could do with some new trainers for my scrubs anyway, let's go to office over there and see if they have anything nice." Jac agreed, and the pair of them walked towards the large shop, entering and going over to the trainers section. Zosia immediately walked over to a pair of dark purple Nike air max thea trainers, picking them up excitedly. They were beautiful, and the deep purple colour would match beautifully with her dark blue Darwin scrubs.
"Jac, what do you think?" Zosia asked, holding up the shoe for her boss to see.
It was bizarre, Jac going shopping with her junior – who she was happy to call a friend – but it was nice to have someone to be close to, for both of them.
"They're very nice! I had some really similar before, some dark blue ones." Jac replied, browsing for herself. Spotting a pair of dark grey nikes in the same style she laughed to herself, they were a nice colour and looked very comfortable. Deciding to get them, Jac found a box with them in her size before going over to Zosia, who was talking to a sales assistant. Passing Zosia a box, the sales assistant walked away, leaving the two women to go to the tills to pay. Zosia went first, paying £50 for the trainers, followed by Jac, who paid the same amount. After placing their purchases into bags they left the shop, moving on into the place next door, which was a large river island.
Zosia and Jac split up, both finding clothes they wanted to try on. Reuniting to go into the changing rooms they grabbed cubicles opposite eachother, Zosia trying on some black jeans from the sale, and Jac trying on a dark green shirt. Both of them decided they wanted to buy the items, and they paid, leaving the shop and re-joining the large crowds gathering around the shops on Oxford Street.
Further along the shopping street, Serena and Bernie had just come out of the large topshop. Serena had purchased a new pair of black work trousers, whereas Bernie had found a new grey shirt, form fitting and figure hugging. They'd queued and brought the clothes, before Bernie decided she wanted to get a coffee.
"Serena, there's a starbucks just over the road, can we get a coffee? Takeaway or something, but I'm exhausted already." Bernie laughed. She'd come off shift at 2am the previous night, and although she'd managed to get around 4 hours sleep in the oncall room she was still absolutely knackered.
Serena had agreed, and they were about to cross over to get to the starbucks when a woman, who was stood outside the shop, began to moan in pain. From her days in the army Bernie was always alert, something she'd never been able to shake, and she automatically went over to where the young woman was standing.
"Hi, are you ok? My name's Bernie, I'm a doctor." Bernie introduced herself, feeling concerned for the woman, who appeared to be visibly pregnant.
"My… Oh God, I think my." The woman stopped short of her explanation, moaning in pain as she doubled over. Bernie sighed softly as she looked down, watching the helpless woman as a gush of water pooled around her feet.
Serena, who was stood by watching, looked at Bernie with concern evident on her face – the woman was clearly in active labour, and in the middle of the busiest shopping street in Europe, it was not an ideal situation. Bernie knelt down so she was level with the woman, placing her hands on the woman's shoulders.
"Ok, we want to get you somewhere more private, do you think you could just walk to this shop here if Serena and I help you?" Bernie asked softly, gesturing to the restaurant which was next door to the clothing shop. The restaurant was not open, but Bernie could see servers inside setting up for the lunchtime sitting, and as it was more private she banged on the glass to get their attention. One of the servers looked up, annoyed, and unlocked the door.
"We're not open yet, what exactly do you think you're doing?" The woman asked, irritated. In the middle of London they had experienced their fair share of anti social behaviour and related problems, and on such a busy day the last thing she needed to deal with was more of that.
"This lady, she's pregnant, and in active labour. We need to get her inside." Bernie explained quickly, as the server held open the door, ushering the two doctors and the moaning woman inside.
"R… Right, ok. Come to the back, it's more private." The server asked, rushing through to the back, shouting through to the kitchen to explain what was going on. There was half an hour until they were due to open, but the woman took priority and the server went with the doctors to ensure she was ok.
"Ok, can you tell me your name my love? How far along are you?" Serena asked gently as she helped to get the woman comfortable on the floor, settling her against the wall so she was supported.
"Rebecca, Rebecca Medowes. 36 weeks along, God, this is too soon. This shouldn't be happening yet!" The woman exclaimed, visibly distressed.
"Shhhh, it's ok, everything is going to be fine." Serena spoke calmly, trying to reassure the young woman. Bernie re-entered the room, holding a phone.
"The waitress, Hannah, she's rung for an ambulance. I've got some hand santisier and gloves, shall we examine her?" Bernie asked, pulling out hand sanitizer and the gloves she had been given by one of the chefs in the kitchen.
"Yeah, we're going to have to – I don't think we've got long." Serena stated, staying calm for the sake of the young woman.
Gently, they asked if they could examine her, and helped her to pull up her dress so they could see how far dilated she was. However, Bernie was just about to measure when she pulled down Rebecca's underwear, revealing that the baby was crowning.
"Woah ok, it's going a bit faster than expected… Serena, she's crowning… I think on the next contraction that baby is coming out whether we like it or not!" Bernie explained, moving over for Serena to take a closer look. The baby was coming, now, and although neither Serena or Bernie were specialists in maternity care they had both delivered enough babies to know she was very close.
The next contraction came, and with it brought a new desire to push. Several minutes later, and in what they would later describe as a total blur, the baby was delivered. A healthy baby girl, with a strong airway and a great set of lungs. Bernie and Serena exchanged looks, the birth of a baby was always special, even when it was messy and loud and painful. They'd both had their own children, and it was hard for Serena in particular to look back on hers with anything other than happy memories, despite the pain and agony it had caused at the time.
After checking over both the lady and the baby Bernie asked Rebecca what she was planning to call the baby girl.
"I want to call her Lily." Rebecca revealed, tired and drained from the labour but filled with love for her new child. The two doctors spoke with the woman, giving her advice and tips on how to look after the newborn, until a team of paramedics arrived. Serena explained the situation, and after the cutting of the cord (which Bernie had done, at the request of Rebecca) she was taken on her way, to the hospital where she could receive the rest of the care and checks she would need.
Sighing, Bernie smiled slightly.
"Ok Serena, I think I need that coffee now more than ever."
Several hours later, and oblivious to the dramas that had just unfolded with their colleagues, Morven and Jasmine were having a lovely time shopping. They were in lush, picking up a variety of brightly coloured products and inhaling an array of different scents, from citrus to lavender to the delectable smell of freshly ground coffee beans. They'd both picked up baskets at the entrance, and despite both saying they didn't intend to buy much, after discussions with the staff they had both selected some products to try. Jasmine was excited; she'd loved bath bombs and various lush products since she was a young girl, and although they were a luxury she hadn't always been able to afford she was looking forward to treating herself. Three bath bombs, a solid shampoo, a facial cleanser and a ladybird shaped limited edition bubble bar had all made it into her basket, with Morven following behind with more bath bombs, a moisturiser, some bubble bath and some shower gel. Paying, they were excited to receive their purchases in the lush bags, decorated with swirls of colour.
It wasn't long after they'd left the lush shop they realised they'd have to start heading back to the tube station, and after a final look around in HMV and Jack Wills they'd walked back, ready to re-join the group and make their way back to the hotel for the welcoming dinner and speeches.