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After: Stuff Started Changing


Ashley

It took about twenty minutes before the vomiting began.

During that twenty minutes, the epidural was great. The contractions were more like mild cramps than full on pain, and I had Nick's hand in mine and Dr. Jorryn came in and checked on me to see how I was doing down there and he said everything was coming along really good.

But then stuff started changing.

It started out like a little bit of nausea and I tugged Nick's hand and waved my arm, "I'm gonna be sick," I choked and before he could even react to my words, I rolled as much as I could - easier said than done when you're paralyzed from the boobs down - and threw up over the side of the bed. He jumped back in surprise as the vomit hit the floor and splashed at his feet.

He looked up at me, and I started crying.

"Oh baby..." he pouted and reached, hitting the call button for the nurse. He walked around the bed and held my hand on the far side from the throw up and rubbed my back. I stayed curled, ready to throw up again over the side of the bed if I had to.

A monitor behind me started beeping.

"What is that?" I asked.

"I dunno, whatever this thingy is," Nick said. I glanced over my shoulder. He was pointing at a big computer-like screen that displayed my heart rate, the baby's heart rate, and a bunch of numbers with codes and blinking lights that I didn't understand.

McKenna peeked into the room, "Hello," she called, stepping around the curtain that blocked me from the outside world. She spotted my pool of sick. "Aw, honey." She picked up the phone and dialed a number, "Hey could you come to Room B in the delivery ward with cleaning supplies?" she asked, and hung up the phone. She pushed my hair out of my face. "We're going to take care of it," she said, smiling into my eyes.

Nick squeezed my hand. "See, baby, they gonna take care of it."

Another nurse, a male, came in the room and motioned for Nick to move, so he stepped around me again and hovered behind McKenna, who was sitting on the edge of my bed. The other nurse started hitting buttons and stuff on the beeping machine until the machine stopped.

"I'm gonna be sick again," I groaned, clutching my stomach. McKenna opened the cupboards under a small sink in the corner and pulled out a pink bucket and stuck it under my mouth just before I threw up again. The barf splashed off the bottom of the bucket and flecks of it hit my face. McKenna handed the bucket to me and disappeared, returning a moment later with a washcloth, which she dampened in the sink, and came over, wiping my own throw up off my face. I looked up at her. "Why's this happening?"

"Your blood pressure is really low," said the male nurse.

"Ashley, this is Gideon," McKenna said. "He's one of the nurses that's going to help later in the delivery room."

"Hey," Gideon said, waving.

"Hi Gideon," I mumbled. I looked at McKenna, "Why is my blood pressure low?"

"It's from the epidural," McKenna explained, "It's normal."

"It's a little lower than average so you're probably feeling more nauseated than most epidural patients, but it is normal," Gideon agreed. He was still pressing buttons.

McKenna was staring up at the screen. She looked back down, at my bucket. "Uhhh... I'm going to call Dr. Jorryn," she said calmly, and she got up, leaving the bucket in my hands. I threw up again.

I stared into the bucket.

Blood.

Nick sat down where McKenna was, holding the bucket for me. "It's okay, baby. She's gettin' Dr. Jorryn, maybe that means it's almost time," he suggested. He looked down at the bucket. Then he looked at me. And for a split second, I saw the fear in his eyes.




Nick

Now I'm not the smartest person in the planet, but I know one thing for sure: It ain't good when you puke up blood.

In fact, I know that it's the opposite of good, it's damn bad.

I tried to be nonchalant about the bucket. I didn't want to scare her. I could see she was scared already, she didn't need me being scared too. So I took a second, looking up at the clock counted to ten with the ticking of the seconds, then stood up and said, "I still like the name Matthew. Or Samantha if it's a girl. What do you think?"

"I hate the name Samantha," Ashley muttered.

"Lucas," I said.

"Nick."

"It can't be Nick, silly, that's my name," I said.

Ashley's eyes filled with tears, "Am I dying?" she asked.

"No," Gideon answered. "Of course not. It's just low blood pressure, that's all." He smiled.

A nurse came in that we hadn't met yet with the cleaning supplies and she sooshed me out of the way while she quickly cleaned up Ashley's puke on the floor. It only took a moment. She had this crazy powder stuff that went on it and just swept up easy. It was the Chuck Norris of cleaning supplies. When she was done, she smiled timidly at Ashley and I, then rushed out of the room.

"She totally recognized you," muttered Ashley.

I laughed.

Ashley looked up at me. "Nick, if I am dying, you promise you'll be with my baby?"

"You aren't going to die."

"Promise me."

"Ashley, I promise you if you die, I will be with little Phin or Mikayla."

"Promise me you won't name my baby Phin or Mikayla."

"I promise that, too." I bent down and kissed her forehead.

Dr. Jorryn came in the room, all but sprinting, with McKenna right behind him. Gideon turned around and I saw a Look pass between the three of them. Dr. Jorryn said, "Hello Ashley, how are we feeling? Is the epidural still helping?"

"I'm throwing up blood," Ashley muttered, "What does that mean?"

Dr. Jorryn said, "Well, that's what I'm here to find out."