Summer whipped the tears from her eyes. “Oh where are my manners. Joan this is my friend Starr. Starr this is Joan.”
The younger woman offered her hand to the older one.
“It is so nice to meet you, Miss Joan. I’ve heard so many nice things about you.”
“It’s nice to meet you too, Starr. Summer talks ‘bout you and Ava all the time. And chile please don’t call me no Miss Joan, makes me feel old. I still got a few miles left in me,” Joan teased.
“Okay, Joan it is.” Starr agreed, offering the older woman a dimpled smile.
♥♥♥
Time dragged by with each minute seeming like an hour and each hour like a day. Summer walked the halls in an attempt to pass the time and speed up the labor process. Starr and Joan took turns walking back and forth, up and down the hall with her. As she and Starr walked again for what seemed like the hundredth time, a strong shearing force ripped through her uterine wall. Holding onto the wall, she began taking a couple of deep breaths as Starr coached her through the pain.
“That’s it Summer, take a deep cleansing breath through your nose and out your mouth.” Starr gently instructed as the contraction came in a wave, starting low, rising to a high peak, and then descending down again leveling out.
“Wow that was a rough one. I think I better head back to the room. If I get another one like that you’ll be picking my big butt up off the floor.”
“Girl, you know I can’t lift your big tail. I’ll have to drag you by that long ponytail of yours like a caveman or something.”
Summer’s laugh turned into a soft groan. “Oh no, this is so embarrassing.”
“What girl?”
Summer spread her legs and looked at the floor. “Either I just peed on myself or my water just broke.”
Starr held Summer’s hand as she helped her to step around the clear puddle.
“Come on, let’s get you back to bed then I’ll go tell the nurse to have someone come clean up your pee-pee.”
“Shut up Starr. I didn’t pee on myself,” Summer said as she playfully nudged her friend.
“You did too. Wait until I tell my godchild how his or her momma peed in the middle of the floor,” Starr teased.
“Starr don’t make me kick you in the lip.”
“As if your fat behind can lift your leg up that high.”
“Shut up Starr.”
♥♥♥
Nine forty-five rolled around and Nick hadn’t showed up. Joan left forty-five minutes earlier to baby-sit her neighbors, the Kennedy’s two younger children. Joan hated to leave Summer, but she’d committed herself to keep the adorable toddlers last week. Joan gave Starr her home phone number and the Kennedy’s number. “Please call me the minute that little precious baby is born.”
“Of course I will and thanks for everything,” Starr promised the older woman.
Joan wasn’t at all surprised when Summer held her arms out to hug her before she left. She gladly returned the hug wishing more than ever she could remain for the birth of the baby.
Every time Summer had a contraction, Starr cringed as she helped her breathe through it.
“Summer are you sure you want to go through with this natural childbirth stuff?” Starr questioned her friend; she appeared to be in such agony with every contraction.
“Yeah, girl, I told you I don’t want my baby all dopey from those drugs.”
Starr sucked her teeth. “Shoot, girl, when my time comes, I’m gonna want the whole dang pharmacy. Demerol, morphine, deluded, Percocet…give me evvvverything!”
Summer couldn’t help from laughing at her friend. “Starr, you are nuts.”
Moaning replaced Summer’s short-lived laughter. “Ooh, ouch, ouch…Starr here comes another one.”
For some reason it hadn’t taken the few seconds it had earlier for the pain to build and intensify. This particular contraction was intense as soon as it started.
“Come on girlfriend, squeeze my hand and breathe. That’s right, breathe. Let the pain go.”
Just as the contraction was subsiding, Nick entered the room along with Dr. Neil. The doctor was the first to speak.
“How’s my favorite patient?”
“Dr. Neil that last contraction was really bad,” Summer moaned.
“Sure you don’t want anything for the pain? I can have anesthesiology down here right away. Just give me the word.”
Summer shook her head. “No, Dr. Neil, I want to do this without drugs.”
“All right then, let me check you. See how far along you are.”
After thoroughly washing and drying his hands, grabbing a pair of latex gloves, he asked,
“Do you want your visitors to leave before I exam you?”