“Oh, my God,” Lea whispers, sliding off my lap into the chair next to me. Her arm wraps around mine and her head leans on my shoulder as we listen to the loud cry coming from a few feet away.
“He’s perfect,” Ben says, stepping out into the hall spotting us. I get up and go to my best friend, giving him a hug and a pat on the back. “I’m a dad,” he says, and I see tears of pride in his eyes.
“You’re going to be a great dad. Congrats, Ben,” Lea says from my side, and his eyes drop to her and he picks her up off the ground, spinning her around, making her laugh echo down the hall.
“Thanks for getting her here,” he says, kissing her temple.
“I didn’t want to deliver the baby,” she grumbles as he drops her to her feet, making him and me both chuckle.
“The doctors are cleaning him up. As soon as they say it’s okay, I’ll bring you guys in to meet him,” he says, looking at the door anxiously.
“Go be with your family, brother. We’ll be here,” I tell him, and he nods, heading back into the room. I pull Lea back to the chairs and sit with my arm wrapped around her while we wait.
When Dr. Rubin walks out, we both stand and head towards him.
“Mom and baby are doing great. Ben says you can go in now,” he says, patting my shoulder and smiling at Lea before walking off down the hall. When we walk into the room, Rhonda is in the bed, with her hair braided over her shoulder and the blankets up high around her. Ben’s standing, holding a small bundle in his arms while talking to the doctor, and the nurse who called for Dr. Rubin is filling out some paperwork off to the side.
“Hey.” Lea walks over to Rhonda, leaning over and kissing her cheek, and I follow, doing the same. Ben comes over carrying his son in his arms. His head dips to look at his face and he speaks softly to him, once he’s close to us. “Braden, I would like to introduce you to your godparents, Lea and Austin,” Ben says, causing Lea to inhale a sharp breath.
“Really?’ Lea asks, and Ben looks from her to Rhonda then back again.
“We couldn’t think of two better people,” he says softly.
“You’re gonna make me cry,” Lea complains, and I hear Rhonda’s laugh mix with Ben’s as he places Braden in Lea’s arms. Seeing her holding a child, even if it’s not ours, causes a pang to hit my chest so hard that I have a difficult time breathing.
“He’s so beautiful, so perfect,” she whispers, running her finger down his soft, chubby cheek.
“He is perfect, isn’t he?” Ben says with pride, running his finger over his other cheek. “We make cute kids, babe.” He tells Rhonda over his shoulder.
“I know.” Rhonda smiles, and Lea turns toward me. I take him from her, holding him high up on my chest. He’s so small that I could probably hold him in one hand. Lea’s hand on my arm pulls my eyes to her. Her face is softer than I have ever seen it, and there is a look in her eyes that shows how badly she wants this, a family of her own.
When her eyes finally land on mine, a small, sad smile pulls at her lips. I want to tell her that one day we will have this, but I don’t. Instead, I lean forward and kiss her softly then lean back to look down at Braden, who is asleep. His lips form into a pout, so I lean over, handing him to his mom before he has a chance to wake up and cry, then kiss her on the cheek, telling her softly, “You did good.”
She smiles and looks down into her arms then up at Ben. I know they both had no idea this would be their life. Ben had been easygoing with relationships, never settling down until Rhonda. She changed everything for him, the same way he did for her. I was happy for both of my friends; they deserved this moment.
“We should probably head out and let you guys get settled in,” I say, taking Lea from under Ben’s arm and wrapping mine around her.
“Do you need anything?” Lea asks, watching as Ben settles into the chair next to Rhonda’s bed.
“No, we’ve got everything. Thanks again, Lea, for getting her here for me.”
“It was either get her here or deliver the baby, and option two didn’t sound appealing to me,” she says, making us all laugh.
“We’ll stop by tomorrow,” I say as Lea walks over to kiss Rhonda’s cheek before coming to me and taking my hand. Once we’re out of the room, I wrap my arm around Lea’s shoulders and lead her out of the hospital to her car, since Ben drove his truck here.
“Let’s stop at your house so you can get some clothes for the night.”
She looks up at me and a blush touches her cheeks, making me wonder what she’s thinking. “I packed a bag. It’s in my trunk,” she says quietly, looking away from me.