Being Invisible

Chapter 9: The Proudest Night of My Life

"Mom? Mom!" I screamed, my voice reverberating off the walls and bouncing up the stairs as well. As I ran up the stairs, falling twice and getting right back up again, Travis and Olivia followed behind. All the events of the past week never could have prepared me for this. I finally reached the top of the stairs, panting for breath. I called three more times for my mom and then ran to end of the hall, gasping at the sight of her. "MOM! What the heck?" I panted. She gave a low groan and said, "Honey, you need to get me to the hospital. My water broke." 

Travis, being the level- headed, cool, calm, and collected one of the group heaved my mom off the floor and carried her in his arms down the stairs. Man, was he strong. Unable to move with the shock of this situation, Olivia had to tug on my shirt before my mind was able to focus. Telling myself to just put one foot in front of the other all the way down the stairs was hard enough. I wasn't sure I'd be able to drive. 

A voice strained from carrying a heavy load burst out in one gasp, " Where's the car Mrs. Davis?" I jogged ahead of Travis to push the door open. I could see Miriam and Josh talking in hushed tones. "Mom- baby- now!" I let out, signaling to Miriam to grab her car because I knew dad was still at work with the family car, Travis wouldn't have enough room, and Josh's car was full of all the boxes of things from his old house. 

"Mom? Want me to call dad?" Miriam asked, rushing to mothers contracting side body. "Just load her in the back. Come on! Josh, you and Olivia follow in your car, please. This way Travis." I said defiantly, taking charge of the situation. Travis slid her smoothly into the back, seeming relived not to have the weight anymore. Miriam took the driver's side, Travis in the front, and I slid in the back with mom, whipping out my cell phone and handing it the Travis in one fluid motion. " Speed dial 3. If there's no answer keep calling" 

"Got it." he replied, and for the first time I sensed a bit of unease in his voice. 

"Rose, Rose, please hold my hand" my mother cried, while she screwed her face up in the utmost pain. "Thank you dear. People are crazy to have natural child birth." She said while another contraction came. 

"Uh, are they supposed to be this rapid?" 

Miriam piped up from the front as we sped past two stop signs, " When they're really close together then the baby's coming. We need to be prepared if that happens. Travis, get a pair of scissors out of the glove compartment. Rose, there are some blankets back there, put one underneath mom and keep the others on hand." Since when was Mir a nurse? Did she want to do that as a profession? "This isn't exactly a good time for you to zone out, Rose." I half- heard her say. But it was enough to bring be back to the present.

"Are you kidding me?" Miriam screamed, honking her horn like a madman.

"What, Mir?" I asked desperately, having to raise my voice above my mother's cry of pain.

"Closed road! I would go through it but there's not enough room. We don't have the strength or time to move it. If a cop pulls me over downtown we won't make it, looks like we're not taking the back roads. And now we have to go the speed limit too!" Miriam grunted in frustration.

After another good 15 minutes I heard my mom speak a faint whisper, "It's time"

"What? No, can't you wait another 30 minutes? I swear we'll - "

"No. I'm sorry you're going to have to do this." My face automatically turned to one of disgust. 

"Miriam, wouldn't you rather-"

"Sorry sis, I don't do blood"

"But Mir! How did you know what to do?" She snorted, and chuckled a bit.

"All those episodes of "I Didn't Know I was Pregnant". But of course if this case we do know she is."

"This is no time for comedy. I don't do blood either." Travis added, looking grim at even the mention of blood.

Miriam quickly explained what to do once the baby was born. Wipe the white plugs out of its nose, get blood of its face, and wrap it in a blanket until we're able to reach the hospital. That should keep it alive for the few minutes it'll take to get there.

I was hesitant, put I stripped of the pair of lose fitting jeans she was wearing, along with her underpant. Gross. I could see Travis felt the same way and he closed his eyes as soon as I had started with the pants. 

"Alright mom, I guess just push" I said, unsure but trying to keep my head in this very unusual, awkward situation." She let out three extremely hard pushes, I could tell by the way her knuckles turned white as she gripped the back of Miriam's seat in utter agony. "You can do this" I was telling myself as much as her. Another large push. "I see the head!" I screeched, suprising myself at how I wasn't fainting yet. 

"Okay, we're making it past the next two stop lights, then we're there!" Miriam called over the already screaming baby.

"Mom, hurry!" 

"Working," big push "On," big push "It," big push. Now the upper half of his/her body was out. We'd soon know whether it was a boy or girl. With another giant scream the baby was out. I reached down to grab a towel for the nose plugs, fumbling to pull on up from the floor. My mother was so worn out, her body was limp and there was blood. Good thing Miriam thought to put a towel under her. She might have saved her backseat interior. The nose plugs were out. I cut the umbilical cord, wiped off the face of blood and wiped the rest of the wriggling body best as I could, then wrapped it up neatly as I could manage in a clean towel. At the same moment, we pulled into the parking lot. 

" Let mom hold the baby, is it a boy or girl? And run to the emergency doors over there. We'll be waiting here." Miriam called as I sprinted away. I snickered a little when I glanced back because Joshua still had his eyes closed. Then I forgot I didn't answer her question so I hollered " It's a boy!"  And continued on my way, screeching to a halt at the sliding doors then finding the nearest human being, showed them the way.

"Here's the happy mother," Dr. Patruse said, gliding into the room, an hour later. " You, young girl, saved your mother's and the baby's life. Perhaps you'd consider a job in nursing." He said, pointing to me. "Now, we can get you a birth certificate Mrs. Davis, if you're feeling energized enough." 

"Yes, yes. Thank you. I'd been hoping for a boy," she said, looking lovingly towards my new baby brother. Travis hadn't been able to contact dad, so we decided he'd get home, find no one there and call us instead since we couldn't reach him. " Do you mind if I wait till my husband's here though?"

"You can only wait so long for these things. But I understand completely."

"Actually I have a name. We've discussed it but I just want to make sure it fits with what this little pumpkin looks like. Mir, Rose, can I ask your opinions? Who knows if your father will even notice, sometimes he just comes home and plops on the bed to sleep."

Travis went to look out the window at the starry night while Miriam and I sat on either side of her. 

"What do you think of Raymond Clark Davis?" my mother whispered so that only us three could hear. 

"I love it," I said, sighing as I looked into his eyes, thinking that it had been much too long off a night and I was so tired I could fall asleep on the hard, cold floor right now. 

Miriam glanced at him, then shook her head and I was about to think she didn't approve, but she said, " It fits him so perfectly." Then mom smiled so big and looked so genuinely happy, I think tears started welling up in my eyes. I'd never seen her this happy since Lydia and Luci were born. Speaking of which, I wonder where they were tonight. Probably a good thing they weren't around though. We wouldn't have been able to fit them in a car. 

"Doc, get that certificate in here! This is Raymond Clark Davis." She filled it out and they put Ray's hand and footprints on there. My dad called soon after and he rushed here. He held Raymond and did that baby talk voice thing. When it was my turn to hold him he giggled when I made a weird face. Then he fell sleep in my arms and stayed that way while he was passed to Miriam and finally back to mom. Lydia and Luci were at some sleepover, we'd get them tomorrow. Mom and Ray would be home by then. As Miriam, Travis, and I filed out I looked back at my mother and father, and Raymond. The smile couldn't be swept off my face.