“We are pretty happy too,” I told her with a smile of my own.
Since Ali would be at school for a couple more hours I decided to get some work done while I was at the office. I dug into the stack of papers and lost track of the time. Looking at the clock mounted on the wall I should be hearing form Allison soon. A few long minutes later no word. I checked my phone and my watch, nothing. I closed down my computer and gathered my things as panic began to ice my veins. Ali called after each class like clockwork. I picked up my phone and it started ringing in my hand.
“Ali,” I answered breathless.
“Cooper,” her voice filled with tears. My knees turned to water as I held the wall for support.
“Babe, what’s wrong?”
She took a deep breath. “I’m all right,” she started, “but there was some bleeding.” My ears started ringing and blood buzzed in my veins. I couldn’t think clearly at the thought of anything bad happening to Allison or the baby.
“Where are you?” I finally asked.
“The hospital,” her voice caught. “Coop, I am all right. The baby is all right.”
All the air wooshed from my lungs. “Oh thank God.” My hand covered my face and I found it was shaking. “I’m going to come get you babe. I’m on my way.”
The drive to the hospital was a blur. My only focus was getting to Ali. She said she was all right, but was I? Parking was a fuzzy memory before I sprinted into the Emergency Room. After shouting incoherently at a nurse, they finally understood what I was trying to convey. What felt like hours later, they took me to my wife.
She looked tiny and frail in the hospital bed that seemed to dwarf her. Her knees were pulled up to her chest and her forehead rested on them. I was at her side without remembering moving. Without a word I sat and pulled her into my chest. We held each other silently, too many emotions passed between us for conversation.
“Oh Mister Perez,” Doctor Johnson entered the room. “I told your wife she did the right thing coming in, but everything is fine. A little bleeding can be normal and in this case it was just that. I spoke with Doctor Gilchrist and she agrees that you should stay the night for observation.”
Ali nodded as she looked at me. “Okay,” her voice small.
Doctor Johnson’s smile was kind. “You both are doing very well. Try to get some rest hon. Cooper, I’ll make sure the nurses know you’ll be staying the night with your wife.” She swung the door shut as she left.
“I should have called you as soon as I thought something was wrong,” Ali finally said.
“Yes, you should have. God Allison, you scared me to death.” It was a relief to finally say that out loud. That yes I was indeed scared out of my mind.
“I was so scared Cooper,” her voice filled with fear and tears. “I didn’t realize how much I wanted this baby until there was a chance I was losing it.” I kissed her hair, afraid if I said anything I’m be reduced to tears of my own.
“The second I heard your voice everything inside me stopped.” I’d only been that scared one other time. Watching Ali pass out in front of me and rushed into heart surgery. “Ali,” hot tears slide down my face. “I can’t lose you. I don’t want to be in a world that you aren’t in.”
“Oh Cooper,” Ali turned and took my face in her hands. “I’m all right, I promise.” She kissed my wet cheeks and pulled me into her. “We’ll get through this and live long happy lives with our child.”
I tightened my arms around my wife. Her words soothed me to an extent, but words would never be enough to clear my heart of the fear of losing the person I loved most.
Chapter Twenty Three
Allison
“I just want to eat and sleep all the time,” I complained to Christina who is unfairly thin. She sat on the floor with a now eight-month-old Joel, who was beyond fascinated with a roll of bubble wrap.
“I understand exactly how you feel,” she smiled. “Except this little guy took up too much room for me to eat as much as I wanted.” Christina tickled Joel’s ribs and he squealed with delight.
It was the first week of February, but you could never tell it by the warm California weather. My pregnancy had been picture perfect since my bleeding scare. Cooper had kept a watchful eye on me, and by watchful eye I mean under a microscope. He never tried to hide it either. He was being overprotected and it made me feel safe, treasured and loved.
Danielle had been insistent at helping us get into a larger home, probably so we would fill it with half a dozen grandkids for her. Once we started to evaluate our space and where we would fit our little bean, we accepted. Today all our things were not only being moved for us, but they were also being unpacked. I liked this version of moving.
We had decided on a two story cottage near the beach. It had four bedrooms and three and a half baths, as well as a huge living room attached to a chef’s kitchen and a large covered patio in the back. The pathway to the front of the house was paved with brick and contrasted perfectly with the white and gray paint tones of the house. The previous owner knew how much I loved all the potted plants they had lining the walkway and I was so pleased to find that they left them for us to enjoy. There were large black awnings with a bold white strip above the top floor windows. The selling point for me, however, had been the master bedroom connecting to a large covered porch upstairs. It overlooked the ocean and was completely private. As soon as I had stepped onto it a couple of months ago, I knew I was standing in our new home. The house wasn’t huge for San Diego standards, but was exactly perfect for us. We knew when we first saw it that we had found the home in which we would grow old together.
In two weeks it would be Valentine’s Day. It would also be Sean and Christina’s wedding Day and I would be serving as matron of honor at almost nine months pregnant. So, needless to say, I was going to be gigantic and uncomfortable. But that day wasn’t about me, it was about our friends spending the rest of their lives together. My hands rubbed over my swollen body as I tried to get more comfortable in a chair. Cooper walked in and his blue eyes scanned the room until they landed on me. It is not like I was easy to miss.
There was an intensity in his eyes as he made his way across our new expansive living room. Squatting next to me he took my hand in his and brought it to his lips. I could feel his kiss from the arches of my feet to the top of my head. After all of this time together, all he had to do was kiss my hand and my face still would feel warm. His eyes continued to scan me, making sure I wasn’t showing any signs of distress.
“Are you feeling all right, babe?” His tone was even, but touched with a little worry.
I had spent the last two months on bed rest, which sounded almost fun in the beginning, but quickly drove me nuts. It gave Coop the freedom to fuss over me and make sure I was doing exactly what Doctors Gilchrist and Johnson had told me to do. That wasn’t the bad part. I would do anything to keep our baby safe. However, it was the boredom and aching in my legs and back that drove me crazy. The only thing that got me through it was Cooper setting up a workstation on our bed where I could continue to write and do schoolwork. About three weeks ago Cooper had come into our bedroom nervous.
“I have to tell you something,” he confessed. “You might be mad.” These were the words every girl wanted to hear from her husband, I thought sarcastically. I arched an eyebrow and waited. “Before I found out you were pregnant I did something to try to cheer you up and then I kind of forgot about it.”
“Go on.”
“I had your book published,” he said the words so fast I almost didn’t hear them.
I instantly felt sick and didn’t know if I would throw up, pass out or attack Cooper. “Why?”
“I love your writing and this story was special, so I thought it should be shared. At the time it seemed like a really good idea.” He at least had had the decency to look sheepish. “I wanted to tell you, but then I forgot all about it with the news of the baby. And, for some reason today, I remembered. I opened an email with the sales and was astonished.”
He handed me a slip of paper, I scowled as I took it. I scanned over the number more than once. I looked up into Coop’s pleased blue eyes. Again, the feeling of being sick washed over me.
“Is this for real?”
His smile said it all. “Apparently you’re not the only one who has had a thing for your teacher. Your story is starting to go viral.”
I was surprised and perturbed, but excited. “You aren’t off the hook for not telling me.” I warned him.
“Babe?” Cooper’s voice questioned, pulling me from the present and back from the memories. “What can I get for you?”
I smiled at him. “I’m good.”
And I was. Very good, in fact. My book was selling, my heart looked strong and our little baby was absolutely perfect. She kicked as I rubbed my hand over my swollen belly. Yes, she. Cooper and I couldn’t wait to find out what we were having. Christina and Sean chose to wait like so many couples, but we just couldn’t. We haven’t picked a name yet, but are thrilled to meet her.
Cooper kissed my hand again and placed his own hand on my stomach. The baby continued to kick and the wonder and amazement hadn’t left his eyes since the very first time. His lips pressed lightly to the last place she kicked.
“Mister Perez,” one of the movers called from across the room. “We are just about finished here. We just need you to do the walk through and make sure everything is in order.”
“All right,” Coop said standing up. He kissed my mouth gently. “And, I’ll bring you back a cup of ice and some of that fresh fruit we picked up at the market yesterday.”
“Thank you,” I said as our lips brushed together.
“I’ll keep an eye on her for you Coop,” Christina said merrily. She had loved that I had needed a babysitter for the past two months.
“You all set for the wedding?” I asked her as I shifted in an attempt to get comfortable in my chair.
“Yeah, I am. The funny thing is I already feel married and it almost seems weird having the ceremony. I’ve looked forward to it all of my life, but now with Joel and having a house and everything,” she paused and shrugged a shoulder. “It doesn’t seem all that important.”
I felt my mouth fall open in shock. For as long as I could remember, Christina Harper had wanted a huge white wedding. One with all of the bells and whistles. Her grass green eyes were focused on Joel, watching with delight at how he was trying to pull packing paper from freshly unpacked boxes. Her smile was soft and constant when she was with her baby or Sean. I hadn’t seen her so relaxed and happy in all of her life.
“There they are,” Sean said walking into the house. He looked around and nodded. “Nice place you got here, Book Girl.”
“You just missed all the heavy lifting,” Christina told him.
“Oh did I? I think they forgot to move this,” he said, swooping down and threw Christina over his shoulder.
She screeched with shock and pounded her fists on his back, laughing the entire time. Joel looked at his parents, a wide, drooly, toothless smile lifting his chubby cheeks. He giggled and clapped his hands together and I couldn’t help smiling. Christina had all her bells and whistles already. The wedding was just a formality.
“Put me down you big troll,” Christina demanded breathlessly. Her face was flush and her eyes sparkled.
“As you wish,” Sean said as he winked at me. Christina’s blush deepened and she smacked his shoulder.
“Mama,” Joel squealed. “Dada.”
Both parents knelt to the floor and Sean picked their son up. “Hey buddy, I didn’t forget about you.”
Sean flipped his son over, kissing his tummy. Joel laughed so hard he got the hiccups. I took in the scene before me and couldn’t help laughing too. Formality or not, these two loved each other and a wedding was a way for the world to see what I had the opportunity to see whenever I was around them. Love between two people. No, make that three people. I shifted again, unable to find any position that I could get comfortable in.
“Argh,” I groaned under my breath as a dull cramp pulled across the top of my stomach.
Christina was at my side in an instant, worry creasing her brow.
“What is it?” She took my hand in hers.
“Probably nothing,” I assured her. “Just a pain, nothing to worry about.”
She glanced at Sean who was watching us intently. “I’ll go get Coop.”
“No,” I told him. “It’s really nothing, probably indigestion.”
“Yeah the last time it was nothing you ended up with your chest cracked open and in the hospital for a month. Go get Cooper so he can decide.”
Sean took off up the stairs with Joel still hiccuping in his arms. I would have folded my arms across my chest in a pouty protest if I could’ve reached. Instead, I opened my mouth to tell Christina that I was completely capable of making my own decisions when another pain, sharper this time, radiated across my abdomen.
She tightened her grasp on mine and I started panting, trying to breathe like they taught us in our parenting class. The pain subsided as Cooper came bursting into the room. The fear in his eyes was evident and he looked at me franticly.
“I’m fine,” I told him, trying to sit up.
“Oh no you don’t,” Christina said as she pushed me back gently. “She thinks its indigestion, but she could be having Braxton Hicks contractions.”
“She is sitting right here,” I mumbled.
Cooper walked to me painfully slow. I could see his hands shaking with panic as he made his way across the room. He was trying to calm down before he got to me so he could be strong. When he reached me, his hands cupped my face and I could see the anxiety in his summer blue eyes.
“I’m taking you to the hospital right now,” his voice deceptively calm. I wanted to object, but the look on Coop’s face had me holding my tongue. The fight that had been building inside of me dissipated.
“Okay, let’s go.” Both Christina and Cooper had to hoist me from the chair.
“We will take care of everything here,” Sean told Cooper. “Should we call anyone?”
“No, not yet. I’ll keep you updated though.”
“You damn well better,” Christina snapped. I could tell she was riddled with concern and wanted to come with us. She wrapped a slender arm around my shoulder. “I love you, sis,” she whispered.
“Love you too.”
Chapter Twenty Four
Cooper
I took Ali gently by the arm and led her to the car. I could feel my heart racing and my hands shaking, watching her get in and settled. Her hands never left her stomach and occasionally she wore a small smile. The ride to the hospital was quiet, but the silence was deafening. Both of us were nervous, everything had been so good for us so far. There had been no issues since the bleeding early on. Ali’s blood pressure was elevated, which had caused her body to swell. I knew we were both wondering if the other shoe was about to drop.
A monitor was strapped to her belly and the consistent beep of our baby’s heartbeat filled the room. Every fifteen minutes the cuff on her arm took her blood pressure. So far, no alarms had gone off which was a great sign. We were waiting for the doctor to speak with us.
“Everything seems all right,” the on call doctor told us as he looked over the fetal monitor printouts.
I could see it in Allison’s big brown eyes, the I told you so look.
“It was most likely your body stretching and preparing for the big day. It’s not uncommon to have more aches toward the end. You have about five weeks left, so it won’t be too much longer.”
“Is there anything we should be watching out for?” Ali asked.
“Well, more consistent pain every few minutes apart and, of course, be sure to come in if your water breaks.” The older man laughed at his own joke and Ali shot me a glance.
“Can I take my wife home now?” I asked.
“Absolutely,” he said. “I’ll give your paperwork to the nurse.”
The nurs
e came back into the room and took the monitors off Allison’s belly and the blood pressure cuff from her arm. Once she was gone, I helped Ali back into her clothes and put her shoes on her swollen feet. Ali looked exhausted and miserable. She would never complain about any of it though, she was too happy to do that. I helped her down from the bed and she stumbled into my arms. The swell of her belly pressed into me and I held her upright.
“I got you babe,” I assured her.
“I don’t doubt it,” she smiled and my heart melted.
I still couldn’t believe this is the girl I saw alone on the beach over three years ago, the most beautiful girl I had ever seen with a huge book pressed to her nose. I wanted to talk with her so badly, I never could have dreamed she would marry me and have our baby. I had thought that first summer together was magic, and it was. But I didn’t expect every day after that would be too. I pushed some of her hair behind her ear and kissed her cheek.
“You are amazing,” I told her.
Her eyes turned to liquid chocolate. “I love you so much,” she sighed.
Sean and Christina were still at our new house when we got home. I knew I should have been surprised, but I wasn’t. I helped Ali inside and she was so tired I thought she might be sleeping on her feet. Christina took her other arm to help me support her.
“We have your bed made,” Sean told me as Christina and I got Ali up the stairs.
A bedside lamp glowed warmly in our dark room. Ali was asleep before her head hit the pillow, resting comfortably on her side and breathing deeply. One of her hands was curled under her chin, the other wrapped around her belly. She sighed and then smiled, completely at peace. I didn’t want to leave her, but I wanted to tell our friends what the doctor had told us so that they didn’t worry. Since finding those pregnancy tests, I have come to terms with the fact that I would never be able to stop worrying about Ali or our daughter.
Downstairs Christina had started to organize shelves in the kitchen. She made us all some tea before she sat at the breakfast bar. Baby Joel was sleeping in his pack-and-play in the living room, unaware of the adults in the next room. I told them how the doctor had told us what Ali experienced was normal, but that I also planned on calling Doctor Johnson in the morning just to be safe.
Lessons Learned Page 13