A/N: Good day, my lovelies! Exciting chapter today! I hope you guys like it.
Disclaimer: I'm actually not all that familiar with Jamaican speech. I did my best.
The flight was calm, for the most part. At least, Priestly thought it was. He fell asleep shortly after the plane took off, leaving Jen to deal with her anxious boyfriend. Jen vowed that she would be the one to sleep on the flight back so Priestly could deal with the new father and the new baby. "It's so much better than revenge," she claimed.
After landing, Ezra spotted a jeep parked near the airport door, and he led his cousin and girlfriend to the man leaning against it. "Hey, Josh," he called.
Josh had dark hair, nearly black, and his skin was dark from days and weeks of sun exposure. A bright smile beamed under his aviator sunglasses. "Hey, Ez!" he hollered with a hand raised in greeting.
"Good to see you, man," said Ezra as he pulled his friend into a hug. "How's Aaliyah doing?"
"She hasn't gone into labor yet," Josh reported. Priestly loaded their bags into the jeep so his cousin could talk to his friend. "But again, Mina said she could go any day now."
"Well, we plan to stay for at least a few weeks. A friend of ours suggested we stay about two weeks after the baby's born, so that's our plan. I guess we'll just buy return tickets when we decide to go back." Ezra glanced beside him at his cousin and girlfriend. "Bo, Jen, this is Josh. He's the one that called me about the baby the other day. Josh, this is my cousin and best friend Priestly." The two shook hands. "And this is my beautiful girlfriend Jen."
"Good job, Jen," Josh teased lightly. "You're the first girl I've ever actually known Ezra to date." The quip had its desired effect, and both Jen and Ezra blushed.
"Zig even took his dreads out for their first date," added Priestly. He could never pass up an opportunity to tease his cousin.
"And I've never even seen him without the dreads!" gasped Josh.
As the others laughed at his expense, Ezra just rolled his eyes. "Okay, if we're quite finished, I've got a girl and a baby to see after." The three loaded up in the jeep and Josh drove out toward the less populated areas of the island.
Upon arrival, Ezra jumped out of the jeep and ran into the house that had been his home several months ago. There were a couple women milling about in the kitchen, to whom Ezra sent a quick greeting. When he reached his destination, he calmed himself down before quietly opening the door.
Lying on the small bed was Aaliyah Thomas. She looked to be asleep, but Ezra could see that her breathing wasn't as deep and steady as it would be in sleep. So he quietly approached the bed. "Hey, Aaliyah," he said softly, not wanting to scare the resting teen. He sat down next to her on the bed.
Aaliyah's eyes opened slowly, and it took a minute for her to recognize Ezra. "Ezra," she hummed happily. She held a hand out to him. "Where ya been? We been missin' ya."
"I had to go set up a home to take care of Squirt," he told her. "How are you and Squirt doing?"
"We doin' good. You tell Squirt hello?" Aaliyah took Ezra's hand and pressed it to her rounded abdomen. "Squirt, it be ya daddy."
Ezra couldn't keep a smile of wonder off his face as he felt his child moving under his hand. "Hey, Squirt. I'm your daddy. I can't wait to meet you." All conversation fell away as Ezra sat and relished the feeling of his baby squirming and kicking his hand. It was one of the most amazing things he'd ever experienced, and he was anxious to meet his little one in person.
As Aaliyah had fallen asleep, Ezra decided to join his family in the living room. It was with great reluctance that he pulled his hand away from the baby, and he had to look back one more time at the teenager who had given him such a blessing.
When he got to the living room, Ezra found Jen, Priestly, and Josh sorting out their sleeping arrangements. "Really, I can sleep on the couch," Josh offered. "There are only four beds in the house. Aaliyah has her own bed, of course, and Cameron and Mina can share the big bed again."
"Bo and I can share a bed," Ezra added. Priestly nodded his agreement. "That would give Jen the last bed."
"That works for me," said Jen, "though I really don't like the idea of putting you out on the couch."
Josh just shrugged his shoulders and waved his hand dismissively. "Won't be the first time I've slept on the couch. It's actually much more comfortable than it looks."
"And sorry, Bo," Exra turned to his cousin, "but shower use is kinda limited out here, so you probably won't be able to keep dying your hair while we're here." A pout scrunched Priestly's face, but he didn't comment. The other women in the house came out of the kitchen, and their movement caught Ezra's eye. "Oh, have you guys met Cameron and Mina?" The women, identical twins with long red hair, gave a friendly wave to the newcomers. "They're sisters. Cameron was originally on the mission team along with the rest of us, but when we met Aaliyah, she brought Mina, who's a midwife, with her to take care of Aaliyah during her pregnancy."
"Nice to meet you guys," said Cameron. Mina nodded her agreement as they sat down on the couch, joining the rest of the group.
The rest of the evening passed uneventfully. Ezra spent a lot of time with Aaliyah, talking to the baby so he or she would know Ezra's voice. It took a lot of persuading from Priestly and Jen to pull Ezra away from the younger girl and send him to bed. He only acquiesced when they reminded him that he would be no help to Aaliyah or the baby if he was half dead. It wasn't easy for Ezra to get to sleep. He was on edge and his nerves were frayed with anxiety. Priestly finally resorted to rubbing his cousin's back to get him to fall asleep. Just like when they were kids, it worked like a charm.
That is, until everyone was woken up a little after four that morning by the sound of pained moans and feet stomping back and forth across the house. Just as Ezra was getting up to find out what was going on, the bedroom door swung open, revealing Cameron.
"Ez, Aaliyah's contractions have started," she informed him. The dad-to-be's eyes widened as he processed the woman's words, and he shot out of bed and rushed to the other bedroom.
Ezra found Aaliyah curled up in her bed, her face scrunched up in pain. "Hey, Aaliyah," he said gently as he sat down next to her. He pulled the younger girl into his arms, and he could feel the muscles in her abdomen tightening under his hands. "You're doing good, sweetheart," he soothed as best he could. This wasn't something Ezra was very familiar with.
Mina came in at that moment to check on the younger girl. "How's she doing, Ez?" she asked as she put her hands on Aaliyah's stomach.
"I think she might've just had a contraction," he reported. "I'm not sure. I don't have a clue what I'm doing here. I've helped out with a couple of births volunteering at hospitals, but I was never this involved."
"Well, for right now, you're doing fine. She hasn't even started hard labor yet, so just stay with her and help her stay calm. I'll keep checking on her every once in a while to see how she's progressing. But she responds best to you, so try to help her stay as relaxed as possible."
"Okay, I'll try," promised Ezra. "How long is this supposed to take? I know labor takes a while, and birth takes even longer, but how long will it be before the baby's born?"
Mina shrugged. "No one knows but God," she answered helplessly. "Some women give birth quickly, others take hours, and even days." Ezra's jaw dropped in shock. "We'll just have to wait and see."
Ezra carded his fingers through Aaliyah's hair. "When did the contractions start?"
"She woke up Cameron and me about ten minutes before Cameron told you what was going on. So they probably started while she was still asleep, so who knows when they started."
Ezra gave a nod in understanding. "I'll stay in here and keep her company. Will you ask Bo or Jen to bring me something to drink?" With a promise that she would, Mina left the two in silence.
Hours passed slowly as Aaliyah's labor progressed. She understood everything Ezra was saying to her, but she didn't recognize any of the others when they entered the bedroom.
About one in the afternoon, Priestly was sitting with Ezra and Aaliyah, keeping his cousin company and letting the baby learn his voice as well. Ezra's concern grew as Aaliyah's contractions increased, so Priestly was there to help keep his cousin sane. Looking down at the bed, Priestly noticed a large wet spot on the sheets. "Uh, Zig, I think her water might've broken."
Ezra's eyes followed the finger Priestly pointed at the bed, and his anxiety shot even higher. "Oh my gosh, I think it did. Go get Mina." The older man ducked out the door and Ezra refocused his attention on Aaliyah, just in time for a strong contraction to clench her muscles. A scream tore from her throat as her hands gripped Ezra's shirt. "It's alright, Aali. Mina's coming. You're doing just fine."
At that moment, Mina burst into the room, Jen and Priestly on her heels. "Her water broke?" the midwife asked as she lifted the soaked sheet. "Yep, looks like it. Ezra, lift her up so we can put dry sheets on the bed." Doing as told, Ezra gathered Aaliyah in his arms and cradled her to his chest as the others moved to put clean sheets on the mattress. "Okay, you can set her back down. Help me lift her legs." As he did so, Ezra saw a little blood on the younger girl's thighs, and he felt the blood drain from his face.
"Whoa, Ziggy," exclaimed Priestly as he saw his cousin list to the side. "Hey, man, you alright?"
"I think the blood freaked him out," Mina said absently as she examined Aaliyah.
"He's never had trouble with blood before," mused Priestly as he took in the younger man's pale face.
"Take him outside for some air," Jen instructed. "I'll stay here with Aaliyah."
Priestly nodded and wrapped an arm around his cousin's waist. "Come on, Zig. Let's go outside." Ezra babbled incoherently as he was led through the house. "Breathe, Ezra." It was a struggle because of their height difference, but Priestly managed to make Ezra lean over and put his head between his knees. "Deep breaths, man." Ezra took deep, slow breaths, trying to calm down. "Dude, what was that?"
"I have no idea," rasped Ezra. "Normally the sight of blood doesn't bother me. I mean. I've volunteered at hospitals for years, seen all kinds of injuries, including a couple births. Why would I get so freaked out this time?"
"I wonder if it's because that's your baby being born," Priestly guessed. "You're much more emotionally involved with this one."
"I really wanted to be in there with Aaliyah during the delivery." Ezra sighed regretfully as he stood up, leaning against the side of the house. "I wanted to see my kid be born, you know?" A pained yell echoed through the house, making the men wince in sympathy.
"You can be there the next time you have a kid." Ezra turned to look at his cousin, eyebrows raised. "Don't even give me that look," Priestly admonished. "I know how much you want to get married and have a family. I've seen it in your eyes more times than I can count."
"I know we haven't been dating long, but I've been thinking I want that with Jen." The older cousin's eyes widened in delight. "Of course, I'm not going to do anything about it right now. It's way too soon for that. But I can see myself happy with Jen for the rest of my life."
"That's awesome, Zig." Priestly pulled his cousin in for a hug. "Actually..." He trailed off, letting out a nervous chuckle.
"What?" asked Ezra, smiling along with the older man.
"I, um, I'm gonna ask Tish to marry me." Before Priestly could look up into his cousin's eyes, he was engulfed in a giant hug by his giant cousin.
"Bo, that's wonderful," Ezra said with an enormous smile. "I'm so happy for you, man. I know she'll say yes. I've seen the way she looks at you." The men had big grins on their faces as they continued to talk about anything and everything. Their happy mood was dampened, however, by Aaliyah's screams. Ezra wished so badly he could help alleviate her pain, and the more she cried, the more Ezra hurt for her.
To help keep Ezra's mind off the cries coming from the house, Priestly kept up a litany of pointless topics of conversation. It helped some, but he could still see the worry and nervousness in his cousin's expressions and body language.
"So what names have you come up with for the baby?" asked Priestly. "Have you thought of names?"
"Yeah. Jen got me a book of baby names. It's really diverse, too. It's got names from tons of other countries and cultures."
"So what'd you come up with?"
"A girl name was easy. I picked Hadassah."
"Like Esther," Priestly realized, remembering the biblical heroine.
Ezra nodded. "I've always liked that name, so it was a no brainer. Coming up with a name for a boy wasn't as easy. Jen and I actually spent several days looking through the book and online for a good name. It took forever, and then it took even longer to decide what spelling I wanted to use."
"Must be some name," Priestly joked. "So what is it?"
"I decided-" Just as Ezra was about to reveal the name he'd chosen, Cameron came running outside.
"Ezra, come on back in," she summoned. "The baby's almost out."
"How's Aaliyah?" asked Ezra as he followed the woman back into the house.
"She's in agony," Cameron said sadly. Tears sprang to Ezra's eyes. He'd come to really care for Aaliyah, especially after she asked him to adopt her baby. "But it should be over very soon. The head's mostly out, and after that, the only obstacle left will be the shoulders. The baby should just slide right out after that."
"Thank you, God," Ezra prayed softly. "Thank you she's almost done."
"Amen," Priestly and Cameron agreed. "There is one thing we haven't discussed with you, though," Cameron continued. "As soon as you hear the baby cry, take your shirt off." She received confused looks from both men. "Once the baby's born, we'll bring him out here to you so he can learn who is father is, and the best way to do that is skin to skin contact. He'll be able to learn your heartbeat, your scent, and the sound of your voice and help him already start to develop a sense of identity."
"Okay, shirt off when the baby cries," repeated Ezra, taking deep, bracing breaths.
"Will you dry the kid off first?" wondered Priestly.
"Yes," answered Cameron. "We'll dry him off some so he won't be so messy, but the first thing we'll do is bring him or her to you."
"Hey, Cameron!" Mina's voice called.
"I'll bring him out to you as soon as we can." Then Cameron exited the living room, leaving the father and uncle waiting and pacing impatiently. What seemed to Ezra like an eternity later, Ezra heard a cry, a new cry that hadn't been present before. His baby had been born.
A/N: Sorry if any of this seems a little inaccurate. I've never been pregnant, so I have no personal experience. You guys don't even know how much research I put into this story, particularly for this chapter, oh my gosh. So much. Like, I get pregnancy ads on the internet now because of all the research I've done. It's nuts. But I wanted it to be as accurate as I could get it. I hope I was at least a little successful. Leave me a review please!