Alex Is 30
Copyright© 2008 by Serena Jones
Chapter 3
I finally corner her doctor, "What the fuck is goin' on?"
"Mr. McElroy, babies come when they come. Your wife is a good month premature anyway. Frankly, we should stop this labor and wait another few weeks. But the longer this takes, the better for them."
"So stop it."
"She's refused the treatment. I was coming to find you to discuss this with her."
Treatment. "There's no way she can just close her legs and count to ten? Stopping it has to be chemical?"
"Oh, there's no serious danger to the fetus. Premature birth is more dangerous."
I shake my head, "No drugs."
"Sir, this is..."
I reach out but Peter grabs my arm, "No drugs." I repeat. "What do I have ta say? She wants to do this naturally. If-n they comin' t'day, they is comin' ta-day. Are we clear on that point, Doc?"
He stares at me then relents. "We are very clear."
I take a deep breath, flex and look at Peter. He lets my arm go. "Ok. What happens next?"
"Next we wait. At some point, your wife will hopefully dilate enough to deliver. Then the neonatal unit will take the babies and hopefully they will only be up there for a day or so."
I nod. "Thank you, sir. I promised her."
He nods. I think he might even understand. I go back up and risk peering into her room. She's asleep. Beth's with her. I take over holding her hand 'til she wakes up. It's another contraction that wakes her. This isn't pain - it's torture. If another person were doing this to her, I would tear them in half. If I could do this for her, it wouldn't even be a question. But my Ame is lying here suffering and won't let me do a thing to stop it.
"Where were you?" she whispers.
"Downstairs."
"They tried to stop it."
"I know. I talked to the doctor. I think he understands now. They won't try again."
To read the complete story you need to be logged in:
Log In or
Register for a Free account
(Why register?)
* Allows you 3 stories to read in 24 hours.