I went with Vinnie down the hallway, doing as I was told. Jesus, that was a lot of water on the floor. I had no idea if that was normal or not. When we reached the bedroom, Vinnie froze. He turned to me with eyes as big as golf balls. I waited for him to say something, but my usually gabby big brother was speechless.
Despite the gravity of the situation, it made me smile. Vinnie. Lost for words. Wonders would never cease.
“Come on, Daddy, get your shit together. Jas needs her bag,” I said, clapping him on the back.
That seemed to spur him on, and he nodded, seeking out a small canvas bag that sat on the floor under the window.
“Where are your car keys?” I asked, reaching out to take the bag from him.
He blinked at me. “Living room.”
“Great. We’re done here, then. Let’s go.”
I steered him out of the bedroom and back down the hall into the living room, where a hive of activity awaited us. Maia was sitting with Jas on the couch, holding her hand and talking to her in a low voice. Another one calm in a crisis. Bridget was on the phone to the midwife. Alex rushed in, slightly breathless.
“I’ve moved our cars so you can get yours out,” he said, pocketing the keys. “Is that the bag? Mum said to put it in the car. Here, I’ll take it. Where are your keys?”
Handing the bag to him, I waited for Vinnie to answer.
I shoved him in the shoulder to hurry him up. “Vin – keys?”
He looked around the room, as if trying to remember, then pointed to the dining room table. “Over there.”
Bridget got off the phone and clapped her hands together. “Right, the midwife said she’d meet us there. The contractions are still pretty far apart, but because her waters have broken, they need her at the hospital as soon as we can get her there.”
“Contractions?” Vinnie frowned, echoing my thoughts. “What contractions?”
“I didn’t know that’s what they were,” Jas said sheepishly. “I thought she was just really active in there.”
“Seems she’s been having them most of the day,” Bridget added, heading to the couch to help haul Jas to her feet, with Maia’s help. “Up you come, love. Time to go.”
It was pretty clear Vinnie wasn’t capable of driving. My laid-back brother was in near lock-down mode. I grabbed his keys off Alex when he reappeared, and offered to drive them.
Everything after that happened in a rush. Suddenly, we were all going to the hospital, in convoy.
It was the longest forty minutes of my life. The contractions started getting more painful, and despite Jas putting on a brave face, I could tell she was scared. I was torn. Drive faster or slow down and drive carefully? I settled on driving as fast as I could, as safely as I could. Maia sat beside me, while Jas and Vinnie occupied the back seat. Bridget and Alex followed close behind in her car.
By the time we arrived at the hospital, things had really sped up. Jas was having trouble walking, and Vinnie and I both had an arm around her shoulders, flanking her as we slowly made our way across the car park towards the main entrance.
A wheelchair miraculously appeared as we were checking her in, and then we were on our way up to the maternity ward. The whole hour seemed to fly by. Jas was whisked into a delivery room, with Vinnie right behind her, and Bridget, Alex, Maia and I were left to stew in our own juices in the waiting room down the hall.
My God, the noise.
Not Jas, but some other woman, just up the hall from her. She sounded like a wounded animal and it grated on my nerves. I wished someone would shut her the hell up.
Maia reached for my hand, as if reading my mind. “I’m so nervous for them.”
I stared down at our hands, laced together on my thigh. I felt sick, now that the adrenaline rush had worn off. I kept seeing the puddle of water on the kitchen floor at Jas’s feet. I could only imagine what Vinnie was going through.
“How long do you reckon it’ll take?” Alex asked, sitting across from us, his elbows resting on his knees as he wrung his hands.
Bridget smiled, reaching over to put an arm around his shoulder and give him a squeeze. “There’s no way of knowing, but I think we’ll be here a while.”
Alex leaned back in his seat, frowning. “How long’s a while?”
“Well, with Em it took about twelve hours. With you, about eight.”
I gaped at her. Twelve hours? In pain like that?
Right on time, the woman up the hall let out a guttural moan that made the hair on the back of my neck stand on end.
Bridget cringed. “Poor love. Just as well it’s worth it in the end.”
Jesus, it’d better be.
She was grinning at me, her eyes crinkling with merriment. I frowned at her.
“Your face,” she giggled, although she was trying not to.
“How can you laugh at a time like this?” I snapped.
She sighed. Indulgently, like you do with children. It made me even angrier.
“Childbirth is such a privilege,” she said patiently. “It changes your life. Your body is torn apart, but your heart is suddenly stronger and yet more vulnerable at the same time. The pain is part of the journey. Nothing worth having is easy.”