Page 19 of Blizzard Babies
“Okay.” I nestle against him, so glad he’s home.
The memories of last week’s blizzard adventure are mostly fading, and everyone is safe, but now that he’s home it feels like I can give in to the rush of emotions overwhelming me.
He gently puts me on the bed as he pulls off his jacket and tie. “Give me two minutes,” he whispers.
“No.” I shake my head and follow him into the bathroom, taking over the task of unbuttoning his blue dress shirt and removing his belt.
His somber blue eyes find mine and he slowly lifts my chin with two fingers. “You are okay, muruseni?”
“I thought I was, but now that you’re here I’m scared and nauseated all over again. Although, to be fair, I’m almost always nauseated.”
“We have to talk to the doctor,” he whispers. “You need the medicine. You cannot be strong enough to grow the baby if you are so sick all the time. If the doctor says it is okay, it must be. We have to trust her.”
“Okay.” I let out a sigh of relief.
More than anything, I need him to be on board before I make what feels like a monumental decision.
But he’s right.
If the doctor says it’s okay, it has to be.
Because I can’t continue like this for much longer. Especially not if I want to finish the school year, and I really do. My students need me, and I need to finish what I started. I’ll feel like I never got closure if I leave now.
“Let’s go to bed,” he says after he strips out of his clothes and brushes his teeth.
We pad back into the bedroom hand-in-hand, and I curl into his arms.
“Let’s make an appointment with the doctor as soon as possible,” he says firmly.
“Tomorrow.”
“What?”
“I have an appointment tomorrow.”
“I will tell Coach Riser I cannot go to practice.”
“I made it late in the afternoon. Just in case.”
He chuckles. “You are always prepared, my sweet Char-lot.”
I love when he says my name in two slow syllables, just like he did when we first met.
“Not always,” I say. “I definitely wasn’t prepared to be stranded in a blizzard.”
“But you were. Gas tank was full so you were warm for hours while you waited for help. Blankets in the back of the SUV. Those things made a difference. And then you did what was necessary to get help for Laurel and the others. They were all okay, including the new baby, because of you. You are very brave, my love.”
“I was so scared.”
“But fear does not make us less brave. We often do things that are scary, but we do them anyway. Coming to North America when I was so young and spoke no English was very scary. But hockey was important, so I did it. This is how we grow.”
“I don’t want to do anymore growing for a while,” I admit.
“Is okay. I’m here now, and no more long trips this season.”
“I’m glad.”
“I am very proud of you, Charli. You are a hero.”
