12
They sat at their table taking in a late breakfast, Piper was mid-sip of orange juice when she pulled the glass away from her mouth and closed her eyes. She breathed audibly through her nose until the pain went away. Throughout the early afternoon, the contractions continued closer and closer together until they were about 7 minutes apart. When she realized after the first hour that these weren't going away she tried walking through the apartment to keep them going strong. She made herself dizzy lapping the same rooms, so she insisted on slowly climbing stairs of their apartment complex. When they started getting to a point where she couldn't talk through the pain, they went back inside their own apartment to try to take a break. Like clockwork, every five minutes a new pain would come, it felt like her bones were being pulled apart, with horrible cramping. After about 60 seconds the pain would subside and she'd rest in between. Alex only asked her once earlier if she wanted to go to the hospital, but she replied slightly annoyed that she would tell her when she was ready.
"Shit!" she stood up gripping the doorway and rubbed her own back, Alex moved her hand to copy the motion but her hand was swatted away, "don't touch me."
Alex retracted her hand and just stood by, after that contraction passed, Piper changed her position and leaned against the backboard of their bed. "It's so fucking hot in here!"
"Do you want a cold towel?"
She nodded as she felt her body start to tighten again, while Alex went away to quickly soak a towel in cold water. She returned and placed it behind her neck.
"Where did you go?" she said through closed eyes, tilting her head back slightly welcoming the cool moisture.
"To get the towel babe."
Piper readjusted her position again to her side moaning hard through the next contraction, while Alex whispered to her that she was doing a great job.
While the next one started to build, she asked Alex to put pressure on her back.
Alex immediately pressed into her lower back but made a face, hadn't she just done that and was swatted away? She remembered not to take anything that was said to heart, that the erratic behavior was normal. She got a can of seltzer from the refrigerator in between contractions and rolled it along the small of Piper's back.
"I need something," she said in an altered state. "I need to move."
It took getting through several more contractions before she was able to get off the bed. During this time Alex insisted on calling Polly, so that she could at least be there to help get them to the hospital, but she was starting to freak out.
The distance from the bed to their bathroom was maybe 10 feet, but Piper was so hesitant to take anything more than a baby step. She leaned on Alex as she took another step to the bathroom, when she felt her back and front tighten again; she draped her arms around Alex's neck and pressed her body into hers, resting her cheek on her chest. Alex leaned against the wall, baring Pipers full body weight, as she supported her wife who hung loosely in her arms. Alex encouraged her to get to the bathroom before the next one came, trying so hard not to demand that they go to the hospital yesterday, but Piper refused to move. She needed to stay in this position; she couldn't put into words what she felt in this position, speaking was out of the question. She needed to stay in Alex's embrace, just-like-this, she trusted Alex whole heartedly and just needed to lay in her arms, she felt fully supported. She moaned and talked herself through her contraction, "c'mon baby," she whispered to Mookie as she rocked her hips.
Polly let herself in and made her way to their bedroom. With her help, Alex got her on the toilet and started the shower that Piper demanded. Again, she insisted on staying in the same position on the toilet, unable to move.
"Piper please don't have our baby in the toilet," she begged more seriously though she had a tone of sarcasm in her voice.
"She's doing so much better than I did, I was restless after an hour."
Piper peered at Alex and told her to turn the shower off that she couldn't stand up. She had been plowing through contractions every three to five minutes for at least four hours. Alex was so proud of her, but the noises she was making in pain were getting to her, it was really hard to listen to and she wanted to go. She felt like had run a marathon herself.
After much coaxing that she was cutting it close, Piper listened to Polly. They grabbed their bag and went down the elevator to the ground level. Polly said she was going to get her SUV and pull it around the front, when Piper said they could walk the three blocks to the hospital.
Alex almost lost it, "Piper we're not walking there. You're going to end up delivering our baby on the sidewalk like a cat, please!" Piper heard how tense Alex was in her voice and rationalized getting in the car. Polly ran off and pulled her SUV up front.
"Bump," Polly said as a warning to prepare for the jostling of the car.
Piper gripped the edges of the seat breathing through the pain, this was so much worse than walking around. Alex could see the grimace of her face in the sun visor's mirror. She wrapped her arms around the seat and smoothed the wrinkles over Piper forehead, "relax your head," she brought her hands down to her lips, "relax your mouth." She pushed her hands smoothly over her shoulders and arms, "let it go Pipes, keep your body relaxed, we're almost there."
Polly went over some other less than impeccable street paving, "the bumps Polly!" Piper whined at the audacity of the city's potholes.
"I'm sorry Pipes, its Manhattan, we're here."
They got upstairs, they gave her a gown to change into and a cup. She stared at the nurse who gave her the cup and put it on the table with no intention of ever peeing in that cup. She pulled the curtain closed and got changed with Alex's help. The nurse started asking her demographical information, Piper gave the nurse her name, when another contraction came, "I feel like I'm gonna shit my pants," she said almost crying.
"Oooookay, can we have someone check this patient, please?"
A young resident came into the curtain introduced herself and asked if she could examine her and asked Alex to step out.
"I'm not going anywhere, who are you? She sees the midwives."
"Ok, she looks really active, let me just check her and I'll let the midwife on call know one of her patients is here."
Piper stroked Alex's arm soothingly, "it's fine, just let her check."
The resident slipped on a sterile glove and examined Piper when her eyes went wide.
She called out over her shoulder, "she's eight to nine, plus one station, bulging bag, I need a room, page the midwife." She turned back toward Piper, "you're almost done, we're going to move you in a room in just a second, alright? What number baby is this for you?"
"My first."
"Nice job, I just need to listen to your baby's heartbeat really quick and we'll get you down to a room." Quick thumps were recorded on a strip of paper, when the midwife came in excited to see one of her favorite patients, "hey! what's going on?" Alex practically fell on the floor she was so relieved to see this woman. The midwife got the brief report from the resident and helped move Piper to a room. Polly was directed to a waiting area while Piper got settled into a new bed. The resident tried to put the bands around her torso to monitor the contractions and the fetal heart beat, when Piper unstrapped the band and glared at the resident. The midwife helped her take the band off and whispered to the resident, "healthy mom, healthy kid, no meds in her system, we'll just get a heartbeat every five minutes, don't strap these on her, she's obviously not going to let you anyway."
"I feel so much pressure," Piper grunted out, "I'm not pushing, my body's just pushing down."
The midwife told her she could break her water, that she could leave it alone and let it break by itself but it would slow the process down.
"Just break it, I don't care," she whined. A warm gush of clear fluid poured out, soaking the pad on the bed. Alex's eyed widened at the amount of fluid, she turned away and just looked at Piper.
"You're open all the way, so whenever you feel like that you can't back off that pressure, let me know."
She nodded quietly, turning to her side and closed her eyes in between the contraction. The next contraction was more intense now that the cushion from the water bag was gone and she told her she felt like she needed to push. She was told to take a deep breath and push down long and hard and to try to repeat while she still felt the pressure in her body. She was told she was doing a perfect job. The midwife set up the table, and asked the nurse let down the bed rail so Alex could help support Piper. Alex started hyperventilating as the bright blue table was opened and the light came down from the ceiling.
"Hey, you slow your breathing too, no fainting on me. If you hit the deck, no one's gonna help you, were here for her and your baby."
Alex nodded and rested her head next to Piper on the white hospital sheet. She kissed her forehead and held her hand.
"Okay I feel it," Piper prompted her again. She was told to hold her top leg back and to curl her chin down to her chest while she pushed.
"Keep going, keep going, perfect, and rest." After she pushed for another 10 contractions, she was becoming discouraged.
"Can you see Mookie at all?" Piper asked exhaustedly. The nurse looked at the midwife and mouthed, "Mookie?" It definitely wasn't the strangest name she had heard but it was up there.
"Their baby's nickname, this is a surprise baby." She turned back to Piper, "I promise I won't announce it and ruin it for you." Piper nodded. "When you push I can see the top of your baby's head, when you stop it goes back in. It's supposed to come slowly, you're doing great."
She pushed a few more times and got to a point where their baby's head came into view and didn't retreat. "It's never going to come out! Can't you just pull it out?" she asked desperately breathing quickly.
"Slow your breaths. You're going to do it, I can't pull your baby out. I can get a mirror so you can see if you want, your baby's right there."
She shook her head no. She rested her head back down, her leg hung lazily over her arm, Alex fed her ice chips.
She pushed again, bringing the baby closer and backed off pushing until the contraction went away, her body was shaking. "You're going to feel a ton of burning, you just have to push past that burn."
She pushed again, felt the burn and backed off again, "I can't, I can't, " she cried. She blew through the contraction until it went away.
"You got it Pipes, you're gonna do it, you're so strong" Alex encouraged her. The midwife brought a baby blanket up onto her chest, and told her she could do it, that she already was doing it, that her baby was so close. "Reach down and feel your baby's head, it's right there." Her hand trembled as she reached down and was met with wet, hot, hair.
"Oh my God," her heart melted at the touch of the hard, hot head that stretched her skin, "okay, I can do it."
She took another deep breath as the contraction came and pushed through a burning sensation that felt like she was on fire, when she was told to look down, and she felt immediate relief and a pink, wet, screaming baby was placed onto her chest.
She immediately burst into convulsive tears as their baby stretched out over the blanket. "Hi baby, oh you're so gorgeous," she said as she wiped her baby off. She felt Alex's soft kisses on her face and her hot tears rolling off her cheeks and over their baby. Alex rested a shaky hand over their baby's head, caressing the wisps of hair in her fingertips.
"So what do we have ladies?" she nurse asked so she could pull a pink or blue paper from the cabinet.
Piper moved their baby's scrunched up legs out of the way, and started crying again.
"We have a son," Alex said happily. She kissed her son's wet head, "oh Jamie, mommy did so good."
She started inspecting him, "does he have all his toes and stuff?" she asked Piper while moving their child gently this way and that.
The midwife grasped the cord and waited for it to stop pulsing before she clamped it, "Alex do you want to cut the cord?"
She shook her head nervously, no.
"You have to! It's a right of passage Alex," Piper blurted out.
"Okay just tell me what to do," she said taking the shiny scissor.
"Just cut between 'here' and 'here', it's tough like chicken. He can't feel anything, you're not gonna hurt him."
She cut the cord separating their son.
"Piper just push gently so I can deliver your placenta. Alex you can move her gown out of the way and put your baby right onto her chest, it's easier for him to transition that way."
Alex had no confidence in her hands, Piper lifted their baby James gently just an inch off her now wet gown, while Alex pulled it up out of the way and she rested their son skin to skin against her.
"Do you want to see the placenta?" She showed them the side that was attached to Piper and then inverted it showing them the baby's shiny side, the cord, and the amniotic sac and explained that's where he lived.
She cleaned up and offered to go get Polly. Alex hugged her and they both thanked her for her help.
"She did all the work," she said pointing to Piper, "I'll go get your friend."
Polly came in and practically curled up into the bed with them. The pink baby laid against Piper chest licking his hand, while slowly opening and closing his eyes.
"This is your Aunt Polly, James."
"He's a boy?" she said stroking his back under the blanket, "he's so sweet."
She sat with them for a while, "I'll let you guys rest, I'll be back in the morning." She kissed her friends and her new nephew and left.
"Pipes, he's so beautiful," Alex whispered to her. She gazed down at her son, still wide eyed, complacently resting.
"I'm sorry if I was a bitch earlier," she said laughing.
"Your repertoire of profanities was pretty impressive," she said adjusting herself at the edge of the bed,"you're incredibly strong, you know that? Your sounds were killing me though, I wish I could've put on headphones."
She just looked over and smiled at her. "I want to try to nurse him, but I want you to hold him first." The nurse scooped him up, swaddled and placed him in Alex's arms. She clutched him closely to her chest afraid to drop him and bounced him slightly. Piper started to dose off, her son blinked his eyes slowly and yawned, making Alex giggle. She pressed her lips to his head, "here goes nothing, kid."