"Doubt thou the stars are fire,
Doubt that the sun doth move.
Doubt truth to be a liar, but never doubt I love."
~ William Shakespeare
"Lawrence, you most certainly will not drive Kate into hospital!" Caroline bellowed into the Jeep's Bluetooth as she raced towards home. She didn't mean to sound so harsh, especially knowing how petrified Lawrence must be, but her own growing panic made her lose control of her composure.
"But mum, I've read the manual 5 times and I take my driver's test next week!" Lawrence squeaks into the phone, more driven by fear and the need to do something proactive than the desire to argue his point.
Hearing the child-like tone of her son's voice, Caroline takes a deep breath, willing her own nerves to calm. "Reading a manual does not constitute the ability to drive, Lawrence. Kate needs to get to hospital safely and quickly. I'm calling an ambulance now and I'll turn round and meet you at hospital."
"Well, what do I do then?!" Lawrence shrieks in a whisper over the phone. Caroline realizes Kate must be in the room with him and her heart goes out to her young son, who's trying to be so mature and not make Kate worry. She takes another deep breath, calling on Dr. Elliott, the one that gets things done, no matter how hairy the situation might be.
"Ok, listen to me Lawrence. You are doing a wonderful job, alright. Kate is very lucky to have you there to help her. Now, what I need you to do is make sure you have her overnight bag ready by the door. If she can move without pain, help her to the door and sit her in a chair and wait for the ambulance there. If moving is not an option, then have her stay where she is and just try to keep her comfortable. Keep the door open and watch for the ambulance, alright. You need to keep timing her contractions as well, ok, because the paramedics will ask when they arrive. Can you do that for me Lawrence?"
There's an undecipherable groan on the other end of the line as Lawrence processes what she's said. After a short pause he mutters his reply.
"Yea, yea, I can do that. Just tell them to hurry."
"Right, ok. I'm hanging up now Lawrence, so I can call them. Just hang in there and keep doing what you're doing, son. I'll see you at hospital because I won't get home before the ambulance makes it there. I love you Lawrence and tell Kate I love her too."
She clicks off the call before he can reply and immediately dials for an ambulance. Once the ambulance has been dispatched, she turns around and heads back toward the hospital on the other side of town. In good traffic, it's 25 minutes away.
Her heart has started racing now and she feels the trickle of sweat as it starts between her shoulder blades and glides down her back to the waist of her skirt. Her mind is racing with a million and one things that could go wrong. Instantly she thinks of her mother, as she always does in a time of need. She dials Celia's number and impatiently taps the steering wheel as she waits for her mother to answer. Celia picks up on the third ring.
"Hello love, how are you today?" Celia chirps obliviously into the phone.
"Mum, mum, Kate's gone into labor." Caroline shrills urgently into the phone. Celia picks up on her daughter's distress and puts down her magazine on Gillian's cluttered coffee table.
"Isn't it a bit early? Is she alright?" Alan hears her questions and looks up with curiosity from his paper.
"Yes mum, about two weeks early. I was at school for a board meeting and Lawrence called me. He's at home with Kate and I've just called the ambulance to pick them up. I'm on my way to Harrogate District now. I don't know how she is mum…I'm worried." Caroline confesses as tears start to fill her eyes.
Celia can hear the waiver in her daughter's voice and her chest clenches tight with worry. She shifts to the edge of the settee and begins to soothe Caroline over the phone.
"Love, I'm sure Kate and baby are both fine. How is Lawrence, is he ok?"
"He's terrified, but he's trying so hard to be a grown up and take care of things. " The tears begin to stream down her face as she thinks of her son again.
"Alright love, now stop crying, you're driving and it's not safe. Everything is going to be fine. Alan and I will leave farm now and we'll meet you at hospital. We should be there within the hour."
"Thanks mum." Caroline wipes the tears from her eyes and exhales a shaky breath.
"Of course love. Now, drive safely and we'll see you soon."
Caroline ends the call and tries to calm herself. Suddenly she remembers Ginika. She immediately calls her from the car, completely forgetting it's only just after 7am in New York. Ginika answers on the second ring.
"Caroline, hello, it's nice of you to call." Ginika's soothing voice fills the Jeep; working to calm Caroline's frazzled nerves.
"Hi Ginika, it's lovely to hear your voice. Listen, I'm calling to tell you Kate's gone into labor. I'm on the way to hospital now. She was at home with Lawrence and I was at a meeting, so I've called an ambulance to pick them up." She tries desperately to keep her voice calm, not wanting to worry Kate's mum who is helpless and 2,000 miles away.
"Oh my goodness, how is she, how are you and Lawrence?" Ginika questions urgently over the phone, but her voice retaining its calm timber.
"We're all worried and nervous since it's a bit early, but I think everyone is ok. Obviously, we don't know anything yet, but I wanted to let you know while I had a second to call." Caroline taps nervously at the steering wheel again, trying hard to keep the worry from her voice. Ginika picks up on it though and begins to reassure her daughter in law.
"Well, it's only two weeks and you and I know that's still safe. I'm online to book a flight now and I'll let you know as soon as I'm booked. I know you'll take care of Kate and my granddaughter, so I won't tell you to. Just keep me posted and I'll keep my phone on. Send Kate my love and I love you too Caroline…and congratulations." Caroline can hear the smile in Ginika's voice and can't help but smile herself.
"Thank you Ginika, we love you too and I know Kate and Flora Grace can't wait to see you."
"Flora Grace…that's beautiful. Drive safely Caroline and keep me posted."
oOo
The ambulance arrives at Harrogate District within 15 minutes and Kate is whisked immediately to the maternity ward, Lawrence following hurriedly behind. She's ushered into a room where they quickly transfer her to a hospital bed and begin hooking her to a menagerie of devices to monitor her condition. Lawrence stands in the corner of the room, his eyes wide as she watches the scene. He turns away towards the door when Kate's clothes are taken off and pulls out his phone shooting a text to his mother asking where the hell she is.
"Mrs. McKenzie-Dawson, who is your obstetrician?" One of the half a dozen nurses asks as she leans Kate forward to attach the heart monitor leads on her back.
"Dr. Deepti Sunil." Kate replies through clenched teeth as another contraction hits.
"And how far apart are your contractions now?" Asks another that is working on Kate's arm to start an IV. Kate casts a helpless glance to Lawrence. He pulls up the memo app on his phone and yells over the cacophony of sound.
"Her last contraction was 8 minutes ago and lasted 1 min, 26 seconds."
The nurse hooking up the heart monitor looks to him with a smile. "And who is this very responsible young man?" Lawrence smiles shyly and looks to the floor.
"My wife's son, Lawrence." Kate replies with a half-smile, which is all she can muster at the moment.
"Well Lawrence, you've done a really lovely job looking after your stepmum like this, but you might want to wait outside. We've got to have a look because I think your little sister may be making her appearance rather soon." The nurse replies with kind eyes and a smile.
Lawrence looks questioningly to Kate, now feeling very protective of her. She smiles at him and reaches out her hand. Lawrence approaches timidly and takes it, looking into Kate's face that is now glistening with perspiration.
"Lawrence, you're my hero. You've been brilliant. Now, go stand outside by the door so you can flag your mum as soon as she gets here." She squeezes his hand affectionately; he smiles and then turns to head out the door.
A few minutes later a nurse exits the room and quickly returns with another woman in a long white coat. Lawrence assumes she must be a doctor and so he listens to their conversation as they walk into the room.
"Dr. Sunil is at a conference in London, so you'll have to deliver. Baby's oxygen levels are a bit low, so we need your assessment." The door closes behind them and Lawrence immediately jumps up and peers through the window at the top of the door, anxiety printed all over his face.
When Kate first came around, he wasn't exactly the most accepting. Actually, he had been a real arse. It wasn't really Kate's fault though, which had taken him a while to admit. He actually really liked her if he were honest with himself; it was all just a big adjustment; his parent's separation and divorce, his dad becoming an alcoholic asshole, Judith, his mum being a lesbian, Kate, and then a baby. It had been a lot to take in, but he knew Kate was a positive change, whether he had admitted it aloud or not. Now seeing her in pain and terrified, pulled at his heart strings though, and he couldn't deny the worry he felt as well. He didn't want anything to happen to Kate, or the baby, and he knew his mum would be devastated if anything did, which worried him even more. He turned back to his phone and tapped out a text to the person he knew could help him.
Kate's gone into labor, we're at hospital now. Mum's on the way from school. Worried, not sure if something's wrong. Can you get here?
He watches his phone anxiously for the reply. Two minutes later William's reply appears on the screen.
Leaving library to catch the train now. Hang in there, see you soon, and keep me posted.
Lawrence releases the breath he had been holding and turns back to the window. He jumps away from the door just as they open it, wheeling Kate hurriedly toward the wide double doors to the left at the end of the hall. The nurse that had connected the heart monitor steps to him, seeing the frantic look in his eyes, as the others wheel Kate from the room.
"We're taking her for an emergency c-section. The baby's oxygen level is too low and the umbilical cord may be restricting her airway." She speaks tenderly to soften the harsh reality, but Lawrence begins to panic.
"Well, is she ok, is Kate ok? How about the baby?!" He yells nervously as he reaches up and grabs his head, running his hands anxiously through his hair.
"As long as we get baby out fast, she and Kate will be fine. Do you know where your mum is? We can take her back if she gets here soon." Lawrence looks down at his phone, then back down the hall towards the exit.
"No, no. She's on the way from Sulgrave Heath. I text her when we got here, but she hasn't replied."
"Ok, I'll check back in just a few minutes. If she gets here before we are ready to get baby, we can bring her back to be with Kate then." She runs a reassuring hand down his arm and nods for his agreement.
"Flora, her name is Flora. The baby…my little sister." The nurse smiles warmly, releases his arm and briskly walks back toward the double doors where Kate had disappeared.
"Wait!" Lawrence yells as he registers a familiar sound behind him. The nurse turns back, startled by his outburst, just as Caroline comes around the corner.
"Mum!" he yells as he runs toward her, wrapping her up in a tight embrace. She peels herself from his grasp, absolute terror on her face as she sees the look in his eyes. She drops her purse and keys at his feet and sets off at a run toward the double doors, straight for the nurse standing there.
"What's happened? Is she alright, I need to see my wife!" Caroline screams; the throbbing in her ears is so loud she's nearly deaf.
"It's alright, come with me and we'll gown you up to go in. We're just prepping her for a c-section as the baby's oxygen levels are low and we want to get her out quickly." She takes Caroline's arm and they disappear behind the door.
oOo
"What's happening? Is she alright, is Flora going to be ok? Where's Caroline? I need Caroline!" Kate cries as she listens to the medical team on the other side of the sterile sheet they have put up that blocks the view of her belly. She hears a door open and feels the hand that tenderly caresses the top of her head. Caroline steps into view and Kate lets out a sob.
"It's alright sweetheart, I'm here. I'm here." Caroline leans down, pulls the mask down from her mouth and kisses her wife, the tears falling from her eyes and dripping on Kate's face. She lifts up, replaces the mask and wipes the tears away gently.
"Caroline, I'm scared." Kate whispers between sobs.
"I know sweetheart, I know, but everything is going to be fine." Caroline coos as she strokes Kate's head.
"We're making the incision now Kate, so tell us if you feel anything. We've given you some morphine but can give you another dose if you need it." Kate nods to the nurse standing by her head. She looks back to Caroline, who reaches up and wipes the tears from her beautiful brown eyes.
"What's happening? Can you see her?" Kate squeezes Caroline's hand as her lip trembles.
"Not yet darling. Are you ok? Are you in pain?" Caroline asks, returning her gaze to her wife.
"No, I'm ok. I just want to hold Flora in my arms; I want to see our daughter." Caroline leans down and places another kiss on her wife's forehead.
"Alright, baby is coming. We'll have her in your arms in just a few minutes Kate." The doctor replies from behind the sheet.
Caroline peeks around the sheet and watches in awe as they begin to remove Flora from Kate's belly. Initially, her color is a bit pale, but once she's out, it quickly returns to normal. The entire room breathes a sigh of relief as the first wail escapes her tiny mouth. The doctor clamps the umbilical cord and looks to Caroline, gesturing to her with a pair of scissors.
"Would you like to cut the cord, mum?" Caroline smiles through the sobs of joy, taking the scissors and delicately cuts the cord where instructed.
The nurses quickly take the necessary measurements and wrap Flora up in a warm blanket, as the doctor continues her work on Kate. The nurse gently places Flora in Caroline's arms and Caroline is completely speechless.
Never in a million years had she expected to be a mother again and the road to get here had been more than full of its fair share of hardships. Looking at the perfect, beautiful daughter now lying in her arms though, she knew she was complete. Kate had made her whole again, and now the tiniest little human she had ever held made her life complete. She leaned forward and placed the gentlest kiss on the tiny little girl's head and smiled broadly through the joyful tears, as she turned and placed Flora on Kate's chest.
The unadulterated joy in Kate's eyes set Caroline's heart ablaze and she thought she might die then and there from sheer bliss. Kate sobbed as she held her daughter close, showering her perfect head with butterfly kisses. She looked up to Caroline, absolute devotion in her eyes.
"She's absolutely beautiful." She whispered with a beaming smile.
"Of course she is. She's got a very pretty mother." Caroline smiles coyly in return.
She leans down slowly and kisses Kate, the most passionate and loving kiss they have ever shared. She pulls away enough to meet Kate's ecstatic gaze with the most euphoric smile.
"I love you with all my heart my darling and I'm so proud of you. You and Flora have made my life complete."