Page 117 of Forever Fallen

She vaguely heard Ryan thank the man for helping him and heard the hospital room door close.

As the contraction subsided, she opened her eyes to stare into Ryan’s beloved brown ones that were bright with so many emotions. Joy, relief, fear, and love…

“Hey you…” he whispered, smiling tearfully. “God, you look so beautiful right now and I’m so glad I’m here.”

“Did they offer to drug you too?” she grimaced, feeling another contraction building in her back. “Wow, they are getting s-stronger.”

“I’m here…” he offered, taking her hand in his. “Do you need anything? Can I help you?”

Sophie couldn’t speak just yet, closing her eyes and trying desperately to breathe through the contraction. Suddenly she felt a cool rag touch her forehead and while it was a major distraction, she saw he was trying to comfort her the only way he could imagine how.

“Ice… chips… please,” she uttered, feeling wrung out as the contraction started to fade.

“You got it,” Ryan promised, getting up and quickly going to get ice chips for her down the hallway. When Sophie had first arrived, she would go get her own cup, then one of the wives would fetch it with her, but now? There would be no more of that, and she was beginning to feel a lot of pressure in between her legs.

Ryan walked back into the room with her doctor and heard Dr. Bow bringing him up to speed, welcoming him.

“Let’s see where you are at, Sophie…” Dr. Bow began, putting on a fresh pair of latex gloves to examine her. “That will give us a better idea if we need to talk about an epidural or not.”

Moments later, the doctor smiled at them both.

“You are just in time, Mr. Merrick,” Dr. Bow began. “Sophie, you are dilated to a nine and when we get to a ten? We’ll start pushing. It’s going to be a little late for that epidural now, but we can get you some Demerol or something else?”

“No… I’m g-good…” Sophie clenched out, nodding.

“Are you sure, Soph?” Ryan said gently. “Dr. Bow, is there anything I can do to help her? Anything I need to know?”

“Just be there, comfort her, get her ice chips, and stand back because we should be greeting a baby in the next few hours,” Dr. Bow smiled, patting Sophie’s hand, and she barely felt it as she clenched down, trying to keep from groaning with the pain.

She understood why the women were so surprised that she was having such a manageable time now, because if this is what contractions felt like? She was grateful for the mild cramps she’d had earlier…

“Can I have some juice…?” she whispered, taking a bite of an ice chip and crunching on it loudly. “How was your flight?”

“We can talk later, babe,” he countered, getting up to get her some juice. She watched him walk out the door into the hallway and felt another contraction roll over her, pinching her eyes closed at the pain.

She had no idea when he walked back in, but Sophie heard several voices in the distance as she tried to keep breathing through it. Something had changed and the waves of pain were consistent now.

“Sophie… Dr. Bow said it’s time to push, babe… c’mon honey,” Ryan urged from somewhere close by.

She was trying to keep from screaming and heard this groan in the distance, clenching at the bed rails as everything in her was pressing down to push the baby out.

“That’s it, baby… Push, Soph!” he ordered.

“I’m pushing!” she snapped.

“Push harder woman!” Ryan ordered – and she turned to him, cracking an eyelid at him, intent of doing physical harm for ordering her to push when he wasn’t feeling any of this… only to see that her beautiful husband’s eyes were bright with tears, and she could see a few streaks on his cheeks.

“Push like you are shoving me to the ground!” he ground out, still mouthing and sassing her. “Harder, Soph, put some effort into it!”

She wanted to scream at him, rail at him, and knew he was doing that same thing as before, trying to make her angry so she would be distracted.

“Mr. Merrick?Please!Sophie – we need you to push down now or…”

“She’s fine,” he bit out, looking Sophie dead in the eyes. “I want you to bear down like you’ve never done before. The baby is waiting and in distress, Soph… PUSH, WOMAN! R-RIGHT N-NOW!” he screamed at her, his voice breaking.

Sophie pushed with all her might, bearing down, screaming, and crying from the pain, shaking with everything in her… only to feel the baby slip from her body and a wave of relief roll over her that was almost too much.

“The baby…” she choked out desperately, fighting to open her eyes from the exhaustion swamping at her – and heard the most beautiful sound in the world.

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