You're Still The One

by Cheyenne Barnett

Chapter Fifteen

  Logan called everyone once he got back to the hospital. They were all taken by surprise and of course, I was right. Katie was angry with him for waiting so long to call her, but I told her it had been a very eventful morning and to give him a break. She calmed down and said she would come and see me after she got off work. The General told Logan if he needed to take some time off, he understood, but I refused to let him sit here with me all day. There was no reason he couldn't work during the day and that's exactly what I told them.

  Helen was a different story. She wasn't really scared about my health or Julianna's, for that matter, she was afraid that she wouldn't make it in time for the delivery. Logan kept reminding her that there was no plan to deliver Julianna yet. They wanted her to stay exactly where she was for as long as possible but Helen kept insisting that I would deliver early, especially since I had already gone into labor once before. She told us she was canceling all her plans and that she and Alex would be flying out by the next evening.

  That night, Logan spent the night with me, just as he had said he would. I felt better when he was with me. I didn't like hospitals, never had, but I knew for Julianna's sake, I had to stay here. Granted, I didn't like the idea at first, but now, it didn’t seem so bad. As long as I had Logan, I didn't care if we were home or not. Home was wherever he was and right now, it just happened to be in a hospital room.

  The next morning I woke up around six. A nurse was quietly examining Julianna's heartbeat. I waited until she slipped out the door before I moved around a bit. I turned over and watched Logan sleep a few more minutes before waking him. "Logan? You better get going if you're going to work." I nudged him as his eyes fluttered open.

  "The General said I didn't have to go, remember?" He says, rubbing his eyes.

  "And I said you needed to go. Just because I'm here, doesn't mean you can’t work. There's nothing wrong, so you should go do whatever it is you do." I add.

  He smiles and looks at me, "Whatever it is I do, huh?"

  "Well, I don't really know what your day consists of..."

  "Meetings. Phone calls. Lunch. Fitness tests. More meetings..."

  I shrug, "That's lovely, now, go get ready."

  He groans, "Why can't I just go tomorrow? I'd rather stay with you."

  "I'm sure you would and I wouldn't complain, but your soldiers need their Captain. Now, go get ready. I'll be fine here. Probably read some books I haven't had the chance to get to." I give him a reassuring smile.

  "Fine, but I'm coming straight back as soon as I get finished and I'll probably text you every hour to see what you're up to. Promise you'll reply?"

  "I promise." He reluctantly gets out of bed, grabs his suitcase, and walks off to the bathroom. While he's getting ready, I flip on the television and watch the local news. Once I was bored of it, I flip through the guide until I found a movie I liked. I click on 13 Going On 30 and watch patiently. I've watched this a thousand times, but it just never seemed to get old.

  Within a half an hour, Logan came back into the room, in uniform, and threw his suitcase back in the corner. He walked over to me and kissed me goodbye, "See you this afternoon. Don't have too much fun without me." He smirks before walking away.

  "Logan?" I yell after him.

  He looks back, "OREO blizzard or Butterfinger?"

  I smile, he always knows what I'm going to say, "I think Julianna wants Butterfinger this time... Yep, that's what she wants."

  "Julianna's going to have a major sweet tooth, I do believe." He chuckles and shuts the door behind him.

  The rest of the day went by very slowly. By lunch time, I had regretted telling Logan to go to work. I was bored and I hated being by myself. There's only so much I can do without getting out of bed. I watched movies, read a few books, and even tried to play silly iPad games to pass the time. Every time my phone went off, I jumped. Logan's conversations with me were short but I enjoyed them, nonetheless.

  When Logan called and told me he was off of work, I actually told him to forget about the ice cream, because I knew that would take him longer to get here and right now, I just wanted someone, who wasn't a nurse, to talk to me. That's when he figured out I was desperate.

  And when he got here, he had to tell me 'I told you so'. I knew he would but I didn't care. I was glad to see him. "Julianna changed her mind, huh?" He asks as he comes out of the bathroom in his casual clothes.

  "Yep. She's a fussy one, isn't she?"

  "Oh yes... Alex just texted me and said they were getting off the plane. They should be here soon." Well, at least I'll have two other people to talk to me.

  "Please tell me they aren't sleeping here too..." I mutter.

  He chuckles, "No, they're staying at the house."

  "Good, cause I'm not that desperate. I like company during the day, but not at night."

  "What about me?" He laughs.

  "You're the only exception, I assure you."

  Within an hour or so, Alex and Helen arrived at the hospital. Alex was dragging suitcases behind him and Helen was carrying multiple decorative bags with tissue paper peeking out at the top. "Hello, darling! How are you feeling?" She asks, sitting opposite of Logan.

  "Fine, Helen. Just fine."

  "Wonderful. Now, I brought you a few things from California." She starts handing me the bags, one by one.

  "Aw, you shouldn't have..." I add as I start opening a few. Tons and tons of clothes, from newborn to twelve months, are piled into the bags. Even some toys and stuffed animals.

  "Mom, I'm pretty sure we've got clothes under control." Logan adds.

  "I knew you'd say that, so I brought twenty-five diaper bundles with me. You can never have too many of those. There in that suitcase over there." She points to a duffle bag beside of Alex.

  Logan smiles and looks back to her, "You're the best, mom."

  "Well, I decided since I didn't spoil you as much as I wanted, I get to spoil my granddaughter. Julianna will have the best of everything, I assure you." Neither of us said a word. We both knew it wouldn't make any difference what we said, Helen would do as she pleased.

  It didn't really bother me, my parents weren't in the picture, so Helen was all Julianna had when it came to grandmothers. Although she hates that word and insists Julianna call her, Nana, I'm sure she'll do a wonderful job. She can be difficult at times, but she's really a sweet person, once you get to know her.

  I'm sure Julianna will love her and I can't wait to see Helen's face once she sees Julianna for the first time. I've never really seen Helen's loving side, at least not with children, and that's something I look forward to.