The Human Side

by Cori Garrison

  “Shawn!! I can feel the pressure. I have to push!” Rebecca was crying now.

  “Don’t you dare push yet!” Shawn said as she grabbed a blanket from the closet and with one arm she lifted Rebecca’s hips, sliding the blanket under her with the other. “You don’t push until I tell you that you can!” She grabbed the medical bag and tossed it on the end of the bed within her reach and positioned Rebecca’s legs again. She grabbed all of the pillows from her side of the bed and jammed them quickly behind Rebecca’s back, forcing her into a partially upright position. Please let them get here quickly, I don’t think I can deliver twins with no help!

  She gently assessed Rebecca’s cervix and could feel one of the baby’s heads pressing tightly against it. Rebecca doubled over with another contraction. She reached up and grabbed Rebecca’s hand. “Squeeze my hand baby and breathe with me ok? You’re completely dilated and one of their head’s is crowning so I need you to push on the next contraction ok?”

  Rebecca shook her head. “You are one of the best OB nurses I have ever met Shawn. I know you will take care of us. I love you.”

  Another contraction came quicker than before and as it did, Rebecca grabbed her legs and pushed with everything she had until it let up. She collapsed back against the pillows, sweat running down her forehead.

  “Okay honey, one more good push like that and the shoulders will be out ok? I’m holding the head right now baby.” She turned her head to wipe the tears with her own shoulder. “The baby looks like you Becca.” She glanced up locking eyes with Rebecca.

  Rebecca started to cry, but another contraction hit and she bent forward pushing with it. Falling back exhausted against the pillows again she heard Shawn’s voice “She’s here baby, Isabella is here!” The announcement was followed by a sharp newborn cry.

  Voices from downstairs came as the EMS crew thudded up the stairs and hurried into the bedroom. Shawn quickly gave them her assessment but made no move to let them take over. “Twenty nine year old female, thirty three weeks pregnant with twins with no medical history. As you can clearly see, our daughter has already made her appearance…” She was cut off as Rebecca cried out as a contraction took hold.

  “Son of a .. why are they in such a hurry to get out?” She gritted out between her teeth. One paramedic stepped to the head of the bed to support her back.

  Shawn quickly handed the little girl to the other paramedic, who held her while Shawn quickly clamped and cut the cord. He then wrapped her tightly in a blanket, laid her on the other side of the bed and used a bulb syringe to suction fluid out of her nose to help ensure she didn’t aspirate any. The baby clearly did not appreciate it and let out a loud cry.

  Shawn grinned “She’s definitely your daughter. All she’s missing is the accent when she’s angry.”

  “Now is not the time for jokes, Shawn Marie. I feel pressure again.” Rebecca informed her.

  “How you can feel anything down there right now is beyond me, but you’re right. I can see his head crowning.” Shawn inspected. “So, we might as well see if he’d like to come on out and meet us.” She tried to keep it light like she normally did during a delivery. Please let him be okay, please let all three of them be ok.

  As the next contraction hit, Rebecca pushed hard and Shawn saw his head begin to emerge, face-first. “Push baby, push! He’s coming, push!” She encouraged Rebecca.

  Another contraction came almost immediately, giving Rebecca little time to recover but she pushed with all her might. Once he’s out, we can go. Please let everything be okay.

  “Push Rebecca! He’s almost out. Push baby, you can do it. One more push!” Shawn encouraged here as she held the tiny boy in her hands as he came out.

  Rebecca collapsed back and the paramedic who had been helping her, quickly moved to take the baby from Shawn. Shawn clamped his cord, cutting it quickly and let out a breath of relief as he began to flail his little arms and cry more. She turned her attention back to Rebecca. “Baby, before we can go you have one more job to do ok? I’m sorry, I know you’re so tired.”

  Rebecca nodded. “It’s okay, I can do it.”

  The second paramedic handed the baby boy over to his partner, who was already holding the baby girl and stepped behind Rebecca again to support her.

  Twenty minutes later, they were loaded in the ambulance on their way to the medical center. Their doctor met them there, where she examined Rebecca and the babies thoroughly. She smiled as she placed the little girl into Rebecca’s arms and smiled at Shawn, who was holding the boy.

  “I have to say that if I was an insecure person, I might be concerned that you would take over my job Shawn. You did a fantastic job on all three of them. They are all doing just fine. The babies are surprisingly a little bigger than I expected from the last ultrasound, you must have been feeding them miracle grow!” The doctor laughed. “I’m going to leave you ladies to get some rest and I’ll be back to check on you later.

  Shawn leaned down to kiss Rebecca. “You did all of the hard work baby, you were amazing. I told you that you could do it.”

  Isabella began to fuss in Rebecca’s arms. “Seriously? You’re hungry already?” Rebecca crooned at her. She lowered her gown and shifted the baby around to the other side, trying to get her to latch on. As if on cue, Brady began to fuss in Shawn’s arms.

  “Uh oh, how’s this going to work?” Shawn looked up at Rebecca looking a little panicked.

  Rebecca giggled at the look on her face. “Well, I do have two you know and one happens to be available. I’m not sure how long I will be able to feed both at the same time, but for now if you can help me get him started hopefully I can.”

  Shawn placed the baby in Rebecca’s empty arm, helping him to find the nipple he was desperately searching for. She laughed. “He’s a little spastic about it isn’t he?”

  Rebecca raised her eyebrow. “Then he’s definitely your son!”

  “Hey now! I freely admit my addiction to your breasts.” Shawn laughed in response.

  Less than twenty minutes later, both babies had fallen asleep on the job. Shawn carefully picked Isabella up in one arm while Rebecca covered herself up again. She laid the little girl down in the bassinet and reached for her brother. “You need to get some rest baby, I told the girls to give us a couple of hours before they came up ok?” She laid the little boy in his bassinet. She stood a minute looking at them both.

  “Come lay down with me Shawn. I will rest better if you’re with me.” Rebecca carefully scooted over, making room. Shawn gently climbed on the bed, pulling Rebecca close.

  “You are amazing, have I told you that? I love you so much.” Shawn kissed the top of her head. They fell into an exhausted sleep, holding on to each other.

  ****

  “I don’t need a wheelchair. I’m more than capable of walking with crutches.” Randy shook her head in frustration.

  Stacy looked around briefly and then leaned close to Randy’s ear. “If you don’t sit down in this wheelchair and let me wheel you upstairs, I’m going to stop everyone we pass, and them what a hero you are saving my life, getting shot…” She glared at Randy.

  Randy huffed back. “You aren’t that crazy. Now come on, I’d like to meet these new babies and I really want to see Jace before we leave.”

  “Excuse me ma’am. I would like to introduce you to Officer Miranda Cash. She saved my life by throwing herself in front of me, getting shot in the process. Don’t you just think that was so brave of her?” Stacy stopped an old lady walking the hall towards them.

  “Oh my! I would say so young lady. God bless you officer.” The old lady smiled and headed on down the hallway.

  Randy stared at Stacy, who had an angelic look on her face. “You really have lost your mind haven’t you? You are such a pain in the ass Evans. I should have just come by myself.” She muttered.

  Stacy simply smiled and pushed the wheelchair forward a little.

  Randy took a deep breath. “Is it always going to be like this?”
She grumbled.

  “By that statement do you mean will I always look out for your well-being? If so, the answer is yes. I did, after all, take the same oath to serve and protect as you did.” Stacy said sweetly as she pushed the chair right behind Randy’s knees so she could lower herself into it.

  Randy reached up and gently grabbed Stacy’s ponytail, pulling her down to eye-level. “Is that sass you’re giving me because it sounds like it and I don’t deal well with sassy women.” She said with a sarcastically short tone.

  “Call it whatever you’d like Officer. If you feel so strongly about it, you can punish me for it later. In private. Repeatedly.” Stacy grinned at her with a devilish look on her face.

  Randy shook her head. “How can such a stunningly beautiful southern belle have such a dirty mind?”

  Stacy pushed the wheelchair down the hallway towards the elevator, moving inside once the doors opened. She leaned down after waiting to make sure no one else was getting on it and looked directly into Randy’s eyes. “That is entirely your fault Officer. If it weren’t for you, I would have had no idea how wonderful an orgasm could really be, especially when it’s caused by a drop-dead gorgeous woman’s mouth on my…”

  “Stacy! Jesus woman, you are crazy!” Randy looked around uncomfortably. “What if someone heard you?”

  Stacy looked suspiciously around the elevator. “I don’t think we have to worry about that at the moment unless they’ve now installed listening devices in their elevators. Besides, if anyone acted offended, I could always just casually move my jacket to the side so they just happened to see my gun and badge. That should end their objections to my attraction to you.” She smirked.

  Randy just rolled her eyes and shook her head. “I was more concerned with someone overhearing and passing it on to one of your sisters.”

  “Why are you so worried about them knowing? Do you think they’ll have a problem if I’m sleeping with a woman?” Stacy asked sarcastically.

  “Of course not. I just don’t want them to think that I am taking advantage of the situation and using your gratitude.” Randy said quietly.

  “Excuse me? Is that what you think I’m doing? Having sex with you because I feel guilty you got shot because of me? If that’s what you think, you don’t me at all!” Stacy said, her quick temper flaring. The elevator door opened and she stomped out, leaving Randy sitting in the wheelchair holding her crutches. She didn’t stop to look back.

  Randy looked around in embarrassment. She precariously balanced the crutches on one of the feet of the wheelchair as she struggled to roll it out of the elevator without dropping them. Once outside the elevator, she pushed herself into a standing position using her crutches and maneuvered away from the chair. Her chest constricted and tears threatened to spill. I knew I couldn’t fucking go long without fucking it all up. Everyone leaves, you should know that.

  She turned and hobbled back into the elevator, hitting the button to the ground floor. She watched the numbers go by in silence. When the doors opened again, she hobbled out carefully and leaned against the wall. She felt stupid and useless. I can’t even drive myself home. I can call a cab though. She pulled her cell phone out of her front pocket and dialed one she knew by heart. Five minutes later, a cab pulled up in front of the main entrance and Randy hobbled out, awkwardly managing to get herself in the back seat. She looked back at the entrance as the cab pulled away. I’m sorry Jace. At least you have a family that will never leave you.

  Stacy had expected Randy to eventually show up in Rebecca’s room, but after twenty minutes she began to worry. She knew her mouth had once again gotten her in trouble. Her eyes kept flitting to the open door, hoping to catch a glimpse of her but she saw nothing but a few nurses and some random visitors. When she looked back, she found Shawn’s gaze on her. She looked away, not wanting her to see the distress she felt.

  A few minutes later, the babies began to fuss and Stacy used that as her cue to leave. She pulled out her phone in the hallway to see if she had missed any texts or calls but there was nothing. Shit. She headed down the hall towards the elevator looking from side to side as she went, hoping to find her sitting in a waiting room somewhere. She found the wheelchair sitting by the wall outside the elevator. She punched the elevator button and took it down to the ground floor. By the time she hit the main entrance she was almost in a panic. She stopped at the security desk, brushing her jacket aside to display her badge. “Excuse me; did you happen to see a lady on crutches with short dark hair leave here within the past 20 minutes?” Probably shouldn’t be doing this, but I need to find out where she went.

  “Yes. I saw her get into a cab about 15 minutes ago. Did she do something Officer?” The guard asked with alarm.

  “No, no she didn’t do anything. I just need to make sure she’s okay.” Stacy answered absently as she headed towards the door. Damnit why did you take off on your own?

  Stacy sped out the parking lot and headed towards their apartment building. When she got there, she ran past her own apartment door, knocking quickly on Randy’s before she used her key to open it. The apartment was dark but she checked each room anyway. Where is she? Jesus where could she be?

  Stacy slumped to the floor in front of the couch. She racked her mind trying to come up with a single place that Randy might have gone and she couldn’t. Randy didn’t have any family and really no friends to speak of except her partner and Stacy. And I’ve ruined that. She pulled her knees up, resting her head on her arms. She felt like throwing up. She had never been overly concerned about what other people thought of her before. Part of that was because she grew up in a house with two parents who never praised. She had developed a hard, sarcastic shell. She had thought that Randy was tough as nails also. I didn’t expect a little argument to cause this.

  Stacy had no idea how long she sat there in the dark. She finally stood up, looking at the clock. Nine pm. Where the hell is she? She locked up the apartment and walked down to her own. For the next two hours she sat perched on the arm of the couch, watching at the window so she would see if Randy came home. Her back ached and her ass was numb.

  Randy slowly made her way down the sidewalk. It had started to rain and she was now soaked but she didn’t seem to notice. When she reached her door, she reached into her pocket and pulled out her keys. Her hands were wet and the keys slipped to the ground. “Son of a bitch!” She sighed as she tried to precariously lean down to pick them up. Her leg was already exhausted and pounding from being on it too long and it gave way under the strain. Her crutches went skidding out from under her and she fell to her knees hard. She cried out in pain, leaning her head against her apartment door. Tears ran down her face, mixed with rain drops. What? What the fuck do you want from me? I have no one else to take! She didn’t realize that she had yelled those words out loud, they were meant for no one to hear.

  Stacy thought she had heard someone yell so she opened her door and peered around the corner. She saw Randy on her knees in the rain. Damnit she must have come from the other side. She started when she heard Randy yell “What? What the fuck do you want from me? I have no one else to take!” She stopped, thinking that Randy was yelling at her but then realized she wasn’t.

  Stacy ran the few steps and knelt down beside Randy. “Let me help you up, you’re soaked.” She picked up the dropped keys, helped Randy to her feet and got her inside the house. She helped her to the couch and then ran to grab some towels. “We need to get those wet clothes off you.” She looks like a wounded animal.

  Randy allowed Stacy to pull her shirt over her head, drying her off with a towel. She felt Stacy gently tug her pants down over her hips, covering her with the other towel. “Let’s get you into bed and I’ll get you a pain pill.” She led Randy down the hall, helped her into bed and went for a glass of water. Randy still had not said a word.

  A few minutes later, Stacy returned to the bedroom with a glass of water and Randy’s pills. “Here you go.” She said holding them out. Randy took th
em and leaned a bit while she swallowed it. She kept her eyes averted and didn’t look at Stacy. She didn’t want her pity; she just wanted to be left alone to lick her wounds.

  “Maybe I should stay here with you in case you need help getting up.” Stacy said nervously. She had stayed at Randy’s every night for over a week now, without asking. But tonight was different, tonight she had fucked it all up with her mouth that she couldn’t control.

  “Just leave me alone.” Randy said quietly.

  Something clicked in Stacy’s head and she repeated Randy’s words in her head. I have no one else to take! She swallowed hard. She thinks I left her. Because that’s what people do in her world. Her parents left her, even though it wasn’t of their own will. Foster parents left her. She has no friends, probably because she’s afraid they’ll leave her. Oh God, how thoughtless could I be? Tears rolled down her cheeks. “I’m just going to lay over here. I’ll be right here if you need me.” She said quietly as she carefully climbed on the other side of the bed and curled her legs up. She’s never going to trust me again.

  Randy laid flat on her back, not moving throughout the night. She slept little, very aware of Stacy sleeping curled in a ball next to her. She had convinced herself throughout the night that Stacy was only there out of pity. She had only helped her because her sister had shamed her into it and then she had just been an experimenting with her sexuality. How stupid could I be?

  The sunlight streamed through the blinds on the window, finally causing them to stir from their fitful sleep. Stacy looked at the clock. It was still early and it was Saturday so she didn’t have to work. She looked over at Randy, who was laying on her back staring at the ceiling.

  “You can go now. I’m fine.” Randy said flatly when she realized Stacy was awake.

  Stacy scooted over towards her on the bed and got to her knees. “I am not going anywhere. You’re going to have to throw me out of here if you want me to leave.” She reached out to run her fingers through Randy’s hair. Randy turned her head away. “I’m sorry about yesterday. You hurt my feelings when you questioned why I was with you. I’m not with you because I feel guilty or any other ridiculous reason you’ve convinced yourself with. I’m with you because I love you. How can I make you see that?” She begged her.