He woke up the next morning, disoriented, but quickly remembered where he was and rushed down to Kristy's room to see how she had fared during the night. He knocked softly, in the hopes he wouldn't wake her if she was still asleep.
"Come in," she replied hoarsely when she heard the knock. The nurse had already been in to check on her, explaining what had happened when she awoke startled and panicked at her new surroundings.
"You ok?" he asked as soon as he had entered the room.
"Yeah, tired and sore, but otherwise fine," she reassured him with a weak smile.
"Good," he smiled back.
"How's James doing? The nurse said he's still on oxygen and won't let me see him." She inquired with a mother's concern.
"I'll see if I can find the doc," he told her, not knowing himself with having slept so hard.
"Thank you BJ," she answered, "For everything. I don't know what we would have done if…" she broke off, knowing she would start crying if she were to try to finish that statement.
"It's ok, It's alright," he reassured her, gathering her carefully in a hug. The held each other for several moments before BJ finally broke away, telling her, "I'll go see what I can find out."
The nurse was just leaving the room across from Kristy's when he came out. "Excuse me, can you tell me how the twins are doing?"
She smiled reassuringly. "They're both fine. The baby who was having trouble breathing has had no more problems and was taken off the oxygen late this morning. You can go in and see them. We'll take them to their mother in a little bit after the doctor has another chance to examine her," she explained.
"Thank you," he replied turning the knob on the door to the babies' room. He walked in, smiling as soon as he saw the newborns sleeping peacefully in the same crib. Their tiny chests rising and falling with each breath they took, James no longer struggling or wheezing. He exited quietly, on his way to see Kristy to tell her the good news.
He knocked on the door before entering; remembering the nurse telling him the doctor would be examining her again.
"Just a second," the doctor called, "I'm almost done and then you can come in." He no longer needed the young man's help as the nurse was now free to help him while the babies slept.
A few moments later, the door opened and the doctor stepped out, shutting the door behind him before BJ could go in. "Your wife's lost a lot of blood, son. She'll need to stay here a couple days and might possibly need a transfusion with the amount of blood she lost."
"Ok," he agreed , still not telling the doctor the truth to save Kristy from embarrassment. "Can I see her now?" he asked worriedly.
"For a few minutes," he told him gently, "She needs her rest."
BJ nodded, his brow wrinkling in concern for the new mother. He stepped into her room and took her hand in his, stroking her forehead with the other.
"Hi," she whispered tiredly.
"Hi," he smiled back. "You're gonna have to stay here for a few days," he told her. "You've lost a lot of blood."
"I know, the doctor told me. Oh BJ, what am I gonna do? After I leave I mean. I don't even have a place to stay, let alone raise two newborns."
"It's gonna be ok, we'll figure something out. I'm not going anywhere 'til I know you're ok," he promised a plan already forming.
The nurse knocked on the door a moment later. "Here Daddy," she told BJ handing him one of the baby boys. "You hold that one while his Momma gets this one settled." Kristy's eyes widened the moment she heard that, looking up at BJ with a shocked expression. It never dawned on her before they would think she was married!