Page 90 of Pulled By the Tail
Georgia
G,
Customs on this planet is crazy. You’d think a bag of coffee beans was a controlled substance. Okay, technically it’s a “mild stimulant” but it’s just coffee. I had the pleasure of paying exorbitant fees. But hey, I got a sticker slapped on my coffee bag, so let’s count that as a win.
-Freema
“Looks like someone is eager to meet the world. The kit is early but healthy. I predict an easy labor,” Belith said. Her cheeks had a glow which indicated sincerity. Nice to know the doctor didn’t feed her meaningless bull.
Georgia clenched her eyes closed as a contraction rolled through her. Nothing about the last two weeks felt easy. Her back hurt, her ankles swelled up like balloons and she had to pee all the damn time. The spring weather went from cool and damp to hot and sticky in the blink of an eye. She hadn’t been comfortable in so long she had forgotten what that felt like. Had she ever slept an entire night without a pee break every two hours? A solid night’s sleep felt like a lifetime ago and she wouldn’t be getting rest anytime soon.
“Why is it so hot in here?” Sweat collected in the small of her back. The medical clinic should have air conditioning. The house's unreliable cooling system seemed to only make things marginally cooler but never cold. Never not sticky.
Talen shoved an ice chip in her mouth and handed her a glass of melted ice water and ice chips. “I will inquire about the temperature.”
“Don’t you dare leave me here,” she said, grabbing his hand, which she promptly dropped. “Gah, it’s too hot to touch. You’re a fucking furnace. Go away.” She sloshed the near-empty tumbler. “And I need more ice.”
He gave the doctor a pleading look. “When will the kit arrive?”
“Soon.”
Not soon enough.
“You have not yet fully dilated.” Belith arranged the paper blanket over Georgia’s legs. “We will continue to monitor.”
More waiting. She was so ready for this to be over.
“Can you just take the baby out? I changed my mind. I don’t want to do natural childbirth.”
“We can perform emergency surgery if you or the baby are in distress,” Belith said with a smile.
“But not because this is hell and I’m tired,” Georgia replied.
The blue-skinned doctor gave her a pat on the arm. “Soon this will be over, you’ll forget all the unpleasantness and you’ll be planning your next child.”
Not likely.
“We will name the next kit Endeavor,” Talen said with a nod.
“Unless you’re going to carry it yourself, I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about,” Georgia snapped. Another baby. What the hell was he smoking? She still had the first one wedged up in her like a watermelon in a tube sock.
“Have some more ice.” Talen pressed another ice chip to her lips.
“Have you decided on a name?” Belith asked conversationally, sitting down near the bed like she was visiting a friend and not, you know, delivering a baby.
“Yes. Persistence Marie,” Talen said, obvious pride in his voice.
“Like the books?”
“Yes!” He launched into a detailed explanation of how they had been reading the books, which had always been his favorite as a kit, and could not agree on any name…
Georgia tuned him out. She didn’t care about anything other than the watermelon up her tube sock and her current state of utter anguish. Oh, and getting the watermelon out. That was relevant to her interests.
Another contraction broke her from her spiral of misery with a fresh slash of pain.
Belith grinned and nodded. “Soon,” she said.
“You’ve been saying that for an hour,” Georgia grumbled, accepting another ice chip. She narrowed her eyes at her amber-striped husband, unsure if he was being supportive and attending to her needs, or shoving ice in her face to keep her from complaining.
