Rookie Playing For Keeps #Wattys2015 #NewAdult

Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Present

            I feel a chill deep down in my bones as I move from one hospital bed to another. My heart is pounding fiercely in my chest and a small hiccup of a sob tries to escape through my chattering teeth. Jackson has to stay out of the OR while the doctors get set up, and I suddenly feel very alone in this room full of busy people. The doctor gives me a reassuring smile as a nurse helps to get her gloves in place before approaching the table.

            "Lie back," a deep voice requests from behind me and I turn to see an older gentleman at the head of the completely prone bed. He smiles at me and taps his hand on the white pillow. "I'm the anesthesiologist. I'm going to have you turn on your side for just a few minutes so I can get you numb and then your husband can come inside." I do as he says, trying not to notice the way my hand shakes as he holds it in his to help me position myself.

            I can't tell you a thing about what happens next, because in my mind I am on the roof of our home with Jackson. My eyes are shut tight, the voices around me fading out as I focus on exactly what it feels like to be there with him. I can almost hear the sound of cars driving along the coast below our neighborhood. At times I can follow the sound of an engine as it winds up the road that leads to our street. The air has been crisp lately, so cold it almost makes your skin numb.

            I imagine lying between Jackson's legs as he props himself up on the outdoor loveseat he had specially made for us. His strong arms would be around me, and the scent of his soap and aftershave, clean and masculine, would fill the air around us as I breathe him in. I imagine him rubbing his hands down my arms to keep me warm, and pressing soft kisses to my head as we look up into the night sky. I feel my heart rate slowing down and I remind myself to breathe deeply and relax. I've done what I can and now our fate is in the hands of the doctor I trust. 

            I feel the slight scratch of Jackson's unshaved face as he leans over me and kisses my cheek. I open my eyes slowly and meet his gaze. I feel safer now that he's here, but I hate the way a large blue sheet has been hung right beneath my chest, blocking my view of my belly behind it. Jackson leans forward and takes my hand in his, wrapping his other around my head and turning my attention to him again. I notice now that he is wearing scrubs with a net over his hair. This is not the way I imagined this moment was going to be, but having him beside me, suited up to weather this storm with me, makes all the fears begin to crumble. 

            "We're going to get started." The serene voice of my doctor floats from behind the drape and then she steps up onto an elevated surface of some kind so that I can see her eyes as she nods reassuringly to me. The room is now full of people in scrubs and I watch as they set up for things I can't even imagine right now. There is a whole team here to help, but I don't even think Jackson has noticed because his eyes haven't left my face from the moment he sat down beside me.

            "This is it, baby," he whispers excitedly. We've come a long way from that first night on the roof of our apartment, but I wouldn't trade one minute of the road that lead us here. I can feel a slight tug, but no pain as the doctor works above me.

            "Tell me a story, Jackson." I say quietly, knowing that the sound of his voice alone can help calm my heart.

            "Once upon a time there was a king who had married the woman of his dreams and made her his queen." He gives me a small wink. "He bought her a castle with a spectacular view of the night sky. Well, at least that's what everyone told him—he was always too busy looking at his queen to really notice."

            I laugh at his cheesy story, but deep down inside I melt for him a little more. "It really is a gorgeous view," I say.

            "So I've been told," he answers, leaning forward and pressing his lips to mine quickly. "One day the queen told the king that he was going to be a father. In his head he hoped for a little boy so that he could teach him everything he knew and watch him grow up playing football and driving big trucks." His smile is breathtaking and I hold his hand tighter. "But in his heart, he hoped for a little girl who would be as beautiful and kind as her mother. He imagined a miniature version of the woman that had him wrapped around her finger."

            I hear the emotion in his voice now and it makes my own throat feel tight with unshed tears. He clears his throat and continues. "What the king should have known all along was that his queen had never failed to give him everything he'd ever wanted, and this would be no exception." He brings my hand up to his mouth and presses a kiss to my fingers. "So she gave him both." His whisper is soft but it wraps itself around my heart tightly.

            "What happens next?" I ask, still needing the distraction. He smiles brightly at me as the sound of a baby's cry fills the room, quickly followed by another.

            "They lived happily ever after."

            Our son is laid on my chest first. His tiny fists clench as he opens his blue eyes and looks at me. "Welcome to the family, Carter," I kiss his little head and rub my thumb across his cheek. Jackson reaches for his hand and smiles when Carter grips his finger.

            "You are going to be strong just like the man you were named after, little guy." Jackson and I agreed that our boy should be named after his father. As I look at Jackson watching him, my heart is so full of love it aches.

When our littler one is brought to me, Jackson takes Carter from my arms so my chest is free to accept the tiny gift. She is so delicate, and I can see that her big brother was clearly sent to help protect her, always there to watch her back as they grow up together.  

Her eyes are darker and her lips are puckered in the most precious little pout. I kiss her soft cheek and run my hand down her back. "And welcome to you too, Isabel." They say that babies this new can't smile, but I would swear she does as she hears my mother's name, which is now her own. She is going to have a fight ahead of her because of her small size and early birth, but I already know she'll be as strong as the woman she was named for.

Fairytales have endings, usually happy ones. If that is true, then this life that Jackson and I are living is not a fairytale. It is an ongoing love story, one that has had its share of ups and downs, plot twists and sweet moments. To say that we will live happily ever after would be cheating us out of those moments, big and small, that weave a magnificent tale too epic to ever be contained in the colorful pages of a storybook. No, our story will continue forever—in our hearts first, and then, long after we're gone, in the hearts of our children.

The End.

****You have all been such wonderfully supportive readers. I have truly enjoyed sharing Jackson and Maddy's story with you. I hope you love the way it ended and all your questions have been answered. Thank you for reading, voting and sharing! It is you, the readers, who make my stories a success and I appreciate that. Stay tuned for my next story! Remember to follow me on Twitter @sarahwhitewrite, find me on Facebook and Instagram. I do not know how long this story will be up, so please download it to your library so it is yours to read again!****