Blown Away

by K'Anne Meinel

  “We’re going to need a mini-van,” Rae had pointed out.

  “The safest we can find,” Ellen promised as she shifted easily through the gears on the Maserati.

  “I can’t imagine you driving a mini-van,” Rae teased in a laugh.

  “I can’t imagine you putting car seats in this,” Ellen teased in return indicating the sports car.

  They shared a laugh. They shared a lot of those laughs to keep Rae’s hormones from making her a crying mess.

  “Oh gawd, if this it...” Rae groaned loudly as they drove carefully and slowly to the clinic in the dark.

  Ellen hoped not, she’d seen those emergency deliveries in cars and as much as she didn’t care about the upholstery in the Maserati, she didn’t want their sons or daughters born in the expensive sports car. It was as she was turning the last corner to the clinic that the accident happened. It wasn’t even her fault as she was driving so carefully. Another driver lost control of their car and sideswiped their car.

  “Oh shit,” Ellen had just enough time to say as the other car hit them. It was over quickly and she turned to Rae to ask, “Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine, check on the other driver,” she advised doing cleansing breaths. “I’ll call 911.” Ellen nodded.

  “Are you okay?” Ellen got out of the car to ask, getting soaked in the process. There was no one around on the normally busy street.

  “I couldn’t stop, the road was too slick,” the woman stated.

  “My wife is having a baby; we have to get her to the clinic,” Ellen pointed, “There.”

  “Are you saying it’s your fault?” the woman leapt onto this tidbit of information.

  “No, I’m not saying that. I was stopped at the intersection when the light turned green,” Ellen said almost defensively. She was angry at the delay and glanced back at her car to see Rae on the phone nodding and clenching her teeth. “Look, my wife is having a baby, we need to get her to the clinic,” she repeated pointing again down the street.

  “Your WIFE?” the woman asked confused.

  “Yes, my wife,” Ellen repeated, trying to make her understand. She saw that the woman had a head injury, a small trickle of blood was coming from a gash on her forehead, she wondered idly if it was from the steering wheel and glanced at it as if to confirm her theory. The woman was gripping the wheel tightly.

  The woman blinked but obviously didn’t understand. Ellen was about to get back in the Maserati and leave the scene, she was drenched from the rain pouring down, when she thought she heard sirens. She was shocked to realize it was an ambulance and it turned at the corner to head for the clinic she was desperately trying to get to. She glanced into the Maserati to see Rae making panting gestures; she looked to be in agony. It was then that she saw a police car coming up behind them.

  “Is anyone injured?” he called from the safety and protection of the cop car, his window rolled down.

  “Yes, this driver hit me and my wife, she has a head injury,” Ellen called back. “My wife is in labor, we need to get her to the clinic,” she pointed down the street where the ambulance had gone.

  “I’ll call for an ambulance,” he called back, rolling his window up slightly to protect himself from the deluge.

  Ellen stared at him in utter shock that he hadn’t gotten out of the vehicle. “My wife is in labor. Can I drive her there,” she yelled through the window where she could see him on his police radio. He held up a hand as though to stop her from speaking.

  Ellen was furious. First this idiot woman had hit them and now this idiot cop? “What the hell are you playing at?” she yelled at him.

  “Now ma’am, you take it easy there,” he said condescendingly.

  “Why don’t you come out here and do your job?” she asked just as loudly.

  He stared at her like she was a madwoman. “Why don’t you go back to your car ma’am,” he advised.

  Ellen glared at him one more time, ready to say more, and then took his advice. She checked on Rae. “Are you okay?” she asked her again.

  “I…need…to…” she took a deep cleansing breath. “Get…to…the…doctor,” she breathed.

  “I know baby, I know,” she answered worried. She glanced over at the other car where she could just make out the other driver, now holding her head with her hand. “Call the doctor and tell him we are just down the street,” she advised.

  They waited a few minutes before an ambulance came, from the opposite direction. The police officer got out of his car for that, wearing a rain poncho in the deluge coming down. Ellen was pissed to see them go to the other driver first. She got out of the Maserati to approach the officer again.

  “Ma’am, get back in your car,” he said pointing back at the sports car.

  “But my wife…” she began and he cut her off.

  “Ma’am, get back in your car!” he barked. “If you don’t, I’m going to arrest you!” he stated and Ellen, despite her need to argue, complied.

  “Are they going to send someone over?” Rae asked through clenched teeth, her forehead was beaded with perspiration despite the cold of the car and the rain coming down.

  “No, did you get through to the doctor?” she asked pointing at the cell phone.

  “No, I got the recording that all lines were busy. I think the storm is causing a…ouch,” she gasped as another contraction hit her.

  “Oh baby, are you okay?” Ellen asked once again, concerned.

  “I…need…to…” she started again but couldn’t finish, the pains were too intense.

  It was then that the cop finally came over to take their statement. “Holy shit, she’s pregnant!” he said unnecessarily.

  “That’s what I was trying to tell you!” Ellen nearly shouted but tempered it with Rae’s presence.

  “Is she far along?” he asked, equally as stupid.

  “She’s in labor, due to give birth at any moment,” her voice did rise a bit with this information. She was cold, her wife was in labor, and because of this idiot she was still sitting here. “Look, the clinic is right there, could you follow me over for my statement so my wife can be admitted? They are expecting her.”

  “I should call an ambulance,” he began but she interrupted him.

  “It will be quicker if I drive her, you can follow us over.”

  “I should really follow procedure…” he began again. It was then that Ellen realized how young the guy really was. Usually they had partners when they were rookies…she wasn’t sure he was a rookie.

  “Look, she’s not going to last that long. I’m taking her there, to the clinic. You can arrest me after she’s admitted,” she said and closed the door in his face and tried to start the car. It turned over once and died. “Damn!” she swore.

  “Ma’am, get out of the car!” he commanded loudly through the door.

  Ellen ignored him and tried the car again. It turned over.

  “Ma’am, get out of the car!” he shouted once again.

  Ellen ignored him again and put the car into gear, hearing Rae crying next to her, mewling in pain, was breaking her heart. She steered around the other car and sped off down the street to the clinic. Pulling into the entrance bay she was relieved it was under the building and out of the rain. They had been waiting for them and staff ran out to the passenger side to unload Rae and get her into a wheelchair.

  “You can park over there,” one of the staff said pointing to some open spots, still out of the rain and Ellen nodded.

  Parking the car she debated whether she should wait for the stupid cop or to go in after her wife. Rae won out and she quickly went inside.

  “Ms. Christenson?” one of the staff greeted her. “These are for you; you can change in there,” she pointed to a room, “And get out of this wet stuff. I can put it in the dryer if it’s safe to?” At Ellen’s nod she smiled.

  “There will be a police officer coming in here,” Ellen told her. “Looking for me. We were in an accident down the road,” she said pointing from the
clinic.

  “That was you? We heard it on the scanner,” she indicated the radio behind their desk.

  “Yeah, they wanted to order an ambulance but since we were so close…” she began to explain.

  “I’ll handle it and have him wait, you better get changed if you want to see your babies born,” she advised.

  “Thank you!” Ellen said reverently and slipped into the room the woman had indicated. Peeling off her wet clothes she was surprised at the amount of water that was in them but then, remembering the amount of water coming down she wasn’t as surprised. She dried her body quickly with a towel she found in the room and slipped into the scrubs which included slippers of sorts, normally worn over shoes but even her shoes were soaked. She put her hair in one of those unattractive head caps and opened the door.

  “This way Ms. Christenson,” another nurse approached her, obviously waiting for her.

  Ellen began to follow her and made the mistake of looking back, the police had arrived and were arguing with the other staff member, she turned around and kept walking, following the nurse.

  Rae was on a reclining table, the doctor was telling her to “PUSH” in no uncertain terms.

  “Oh thank God, Ellen!” Rae said relieved to see her wife.

  “I’m in time? Have you had either of them?” she asked as she went to hold Rae’s hand.

  “Nope, just trying to get one out!” the doctor quipped. “If Rae would cooperate?”

  Rae chuckled and then winced at the pain as she began to push in earnest.

  Ellen was amazed at the grip she had on her hand, it was then she realized Rae should have had her nails clipped; they were digging in painfully to her hand.

  “That’s it Rae, push, once more and we’ll have one,” the doctor encouraged her.

  Moments later they heard the first cry of their baby. Ellen and Rae exchanged a look and Rae asked, “Is it a boy or a girl?”

  “You have to push more so I can tell, they don’t put genitalia on their heads,” he said to make her laugh.

  Rae laughed but the pain made her wince again as she pushed through it. Moments later she heard, “It’s a boy!” from the doctor who quickly handed the baby to a nurse, cutting the umbilical cord after he neatly clamped it.

  “Let me see him, let me see him,” Rae ordered weakly, she was exhausted.

  “Nope, let them clean him up, we have another one to deliver here and they aren’t waiting!” the doctor told her authoritatively.

  “Watch them, I don’t want them to switch him or anything,” Rae said to Ellen.

  Ellen looked startled at the suggestion and glanced at the doctor who grinned and shook his head. She did watch as they began to wash him, weigh him, and do other things to him across the room. He wouldn’t be leaving it without one of them.

  “Now PUSH,” he told Rae as he glanced at his monitor, seeing the rise of another contraction on it.

  “I can’t, I’m tired,” Rae whined.

  “C’mon babe you can do this,” Ellen encouraged her.

  “You do it, I’m tired,” Rae tried to make a joke but she began to half-heartedly push.

  “More than THAT!” the doctor admonished her. “Just a little more and you’ll be done!” he promised.

  “No, I don’t want to,” she refused.

  The doctor sat back and glanced at the now fading peak of the contraction, wasted.

  “Now what?” Ellen asked concerned. Rae had loosened her death grip on her hand, her nails no longer imbedded in her skin.

  “Well, unless she pushes, that baby ain’t comin’ outta there,” he said matter-of-factly.

  Ellen looked at Rae and mopped her brow using a cloth they had placed there, she hoped for that very thing. “Come on baby, we need to get that baby out of you. I want to know if I have won the bet or not,” she teased.

  Rae got a glint in her eye. “What if Iris wins the bet?” she asked as she began to feel another contraction starting and began to bear down.

  “That’s the ticket,” the doctor exclaimed getting ready to catch the baby as it crowned.

  “Then she wins the bet but I’m gonna win it,” she promised confidently.

  Rae pushed with some more spirit, she felt like she was being torn asunder. The baby slipped easily through her passage, the previous baby stretching the way. “Bet it’s your offspring,” she gritted her teeth to mete it out.

  “Oh? Why do you say that?” Ellen asked, they didn’t care whose genetically they were, they were THEIRS!

  “It’s impatient,” Rae said and pushed, hard.

  “It’s a GIRL,” the doctor proclaimed holding it up, showing it off.

  Both Ellen and Rae were crying but neither wanted to hold the yucky baby, it was full of fluids and he understood as he clamped the cord.

  “Do you want to cut it?” he asked Ellen who shook her head. She was staring in awe at Rae who had just expelled two babies from her womb.

  “Is she okay? Is she okay? She’s not crying,” she cried instead.

  “She’s beautiful,” Ellen breathed reassuring her.

  “She’s perfect, let us get her washed up and you can see for yourself,” the doctor told her as he clipped the cord and then held her up, yuck and all.

  Rae smiled weakly but she wanted to see the two babies for herself. The doctor got busy between her legs again. “Ow, that hurts, what are you doing?”

  “You have to expel the placentas,” he told her.

  “NO! You lied to me!” she told him angrily.

  “What?” he asked perplexed looking at Ellen in absolute surprise.

  “You said only a little more and I pushed and the baby was born, I don’t want anymore,” she whined through her tears, she began to sob in pain.

  “C’mon baby, you remember they said you had to expel the placenta,” Ellen encouraged her.

  “I DON’T WANT TO ANYMORE!” she shouted. “IT HURTS!”

  Ellen pulled back, not too far but to be out of the line of fire as she glanced at the doctor. He shrugged and shook his head but waited for Rae.

  “Ow that HURTS,” she repeated and pushed against the pain, convinced she had another baby in her. In no time at all she had expelled both of the placentas and they cleaned her up.

  “I’ve put a little numbing here so I can stitch you up,” the doctor told her.

  “I ripped?” Rae asked concerned.

  “Just a little, nothing to be worried about,” he explained.

  “OH my GOD,” Rae screamed.

  “What? You can feel that?” he asked concerned. He looked down to where he had made the first puncture with his sewing needle.

  “How about I take your foreskin and pull it over your head and see if that hurts you?” Rae threatened weakly.

  “Here, let’s give you a little shot,” he said non-pulsed by her vulgarity or her threat.

  The sewing only took a few stitches, after the numbing agent took effect.

  Rae lay there in and out of it, exhausted from the quick and intense labor she had experienced. Ellen stood there by her side, feeling useless as she held her hand. She woke up enough though as they brought the now clean babies to her to put in each of her arms, both crying until they were in her arms, the stopped immediately. The boy baby was wearing a little blue blanket and matching skull cap and the little girl was wearing a little pink blanket and matching skull cap.

  “Oh, aren’t they beautiful?” Rae asked Ellen, her eyes shining with unshed tears.

  Ellen thought they looked squashed and ugly but she wasn’t about to argue with her wife now. She nodded and gave a false little smile of agreement.

  Later she looked again at the babies through the maternity window and still thought they were ugly and squashed, she wondered if she just wasn’t the maternal type of woman. Looking at them she realized that biologically one of the babies was hers and the other, her wife’s. They both were related to each other through their father.

  “I’ve got a brother and a sister!” I
ris said excitedly. She had been out with some of the people from Gigitech, friends she had made from working at the Foundation. Getting the text from Ellen telling her that Rae was in labor had cut her evening short. “I guess you win the bet,” she joked with Ellen.

  Ellen smiled at the pretty young woman. The acne was gone, the dermatologist had confided in Rae, telling her that the teen would never have it again if she simply kept her face clean and occasionally used the crème she had prescribed. She now looked exactly like a younger version of Blossom, except for the eyes. Ellen turned back to the twins in adjoining bassinets and realized that three children of Ryan’s were here and it was amazing. Winning the bet that they would have one of each wasn’t that big of a deal, Iris had been convinced they would have two boys and just to be contrary Rae had said they were having two girls. They were here, they were healthy, and that was what counted.

  * * * * *

  The police weren’t very understanding about Ellen leaving the scene of the accident. They at least didn’t arrest her when she pointed out the twins her wife had given birth to. They had wanted not only to arrest her but give her a healthy ticket for the accident. Even the ticket would be dismissed when the woman who hit her was found to have caused the accident. That didn’t stop the lawsuit that the woman filed when she found out who she had hit with her car. Ellen Christenson had deep pockets and she felt she should pay.

  Ellen wasn’t upset though, not in the least. People were funny that way; she wasn’t going to get angry. Not over the accident, not over the car, and certainly not over the greedy woman who was suing her.

  She brought her wife and children home in the new, luxurious and safe mini-van. She had gotten rid of the Maserati and was already contemplating replacing it. Ellen looked with pride at the happy, healthy family she had and realized how much they meant to her. They were her family, her accomplishment; not something she had inherited, but something she had made. She was proud of this accomplishment more than any other in her entire life. No amount of money that she and Ryan had made for their inventions could buy what she was holding in her arms as she held one baby, Ryan Allen II, and Rae held the other baby Ellen Sheehan, giving them both unique and personal names, and unique lives. Ellen thought that perhaps Ryan was looking down and smiling on their proudest ‘invention’ as she held her wife and babies.