Julia's baby, Bk 2 - Oh, Mama.

Chapter 12 - Hospitals were not made for relaxation.

Someone was yanking things out of her throat.

She wanted to yell but honestly, that didn't happen very much when a tube was half out and she suddenly couldn't breathe. Oliver's smell washed into her head as she felt something wrenched from her. Hands grabbing her. He was trying to rip off her clothes or something.

It was confusing. It made Julia angry because she was cold and he wanted her naked? Crazy Oliver. She had confusing sleep and it made her so angry. Why couldn't her dreams make sense? Her babies agreed, she saw them sitting beside her in some room, nodding their heads like little old ladies. Maybe they were little old ladies. Maybe they were just giant fetuses.  Julia could barely talk but somehow she didn't have to. 

Julia fell into a more peaceful sleep after some discussion over this, when the babies tucked her in and she could go to sleep. She forgot what they discussed exactly but that Oliver was being very silly and not letting her sleep.

Then she dreamed of boats, islands, monkeys, and a jungle inside a bedroom that had little beetles that liked to paint the walls green and blue. That was nice. She liked their little beetle feet making green and blue spots all over the walls. Julia, even though she was dreaming, decided that when she woke she'd make little 'beetle' tracks all over the nursery walls. 

It was then that she finally woke for real, slowly, firstly becoming aware that she was dreaming. Then she felt pain and tension in her chest. It was really heavy. Something was making her chest expand and contract and it was cold. Something down her throat. It was moving.

Julias eyes flew open as she reached for the thing down her throat. A woman bent over her and was tugging at it.

"It's all right. Relax." The woman was tugging the thing out and pushing a mask over Julia's face. She stared down and saw something else was sticking out of her chest. Another tube? What the hell was it doing inside her chest? "You were shot. It's going to feel strange for a while."

"Babies?" The word made Julia's throat tickle and she squeezed her eyes shut. Woah. What a Christmas today was turning out to be. She wanted to open her presents and get her teeth into the BBQ they were going to have in the sunshine like what most 'Aussies' did. 

"Happy. Your doctor's been coming in to make sure."

By happy Julia had to assume they weren't injured because she could feel them wriggle-dancing on her spine. Or something. They weren't helping much.  The mask bothered her though- it stank, and it was so cold, the air made her feel cold. Julia tugged it down only to have it shoved back on. 

"Keep the mask on. One of your lungs got punctured so you're going to have to wait a while." The woman said gently. "You'll need to stay here a while."

"Water?"

The woman was gone and returned with ice chips. Julia stared at it. The hospital's air conditioning was keeping the summer out wonderfully but ...  

"You're getting fluid through your arm." The nurse explained. Maybe she was a doctor. Julia watched her take that tube thing and inject something into her drip. 

Julia tried to get rid of the dryness in her mouth, shutting her eyes, only for them to fly open again as she heard something outside. An argument. Someone trying to get in, leaning on the wall, reminding her that she'd had a dream about crazy Oliver trying to rip her clothes off.  And wanting beetle tracks on the nursery walls.

It wasn't Oliver. Levi stared at her as he came around the thin white curtain, ignoring the nurse trying to insist he sit down, gripping onto a cane that was much too short for his tall frame. Maybe he'd stolen it. The other hand was clutching onto some sort of wheely thing with bags all over it, one of them dark red.