“What?” Sapphire asked, noticing my hesitation.
“Your water just broke.”
“It did?” She jolted upright and felt the sheets underneath her, which were damp from the pool she’d just released. “Oh my god…”
“It’s alright, Muse. It’s time to get you to the hospital.” I hopped out of bed, pulled on the clothes I kept laid out for the occasion, and then got her outfit out of the dresser.
She continued to lie there as she gripped her stomach. “Oh my god…I’m having a baby. Jesus, I’m having a baby…” She started to breathe hard, gasping for breath as she began to panic. “I’ve gotta go to the hospital… I’ve gotta push a football out of my vagina…”
I grabbed the bag with supplies and set it on the bed. “Alright, let’s get you dressed.”
She stayed still. “Conway, I can’t do it. I just can’t…”
I grabbed both of her wrists and pulled her up. I kneeled on the floor at her feet so we could be eye level. “Muse, I know this is scary, but you can do this. If anyone can do this, it’s you.”
“It just won’t fit.” Her breathing increased as her panic became worse. “The first time we had sex, you barely fit—”
“Muse, just breathe.” I grabbed both of her wrists and squeezed them. “This is natural. Women do it every day. I’ll be there the whole time. You aren’t doing this alone.”
“You aren’t pushing anything out of your—”
“Don’t think about the process. Think about what we’re getting at the end. Our little boy or little girl will be here. We’re starting our family, Muse. That is the most beautiful thing in the world. You grew this little person inside you. Do you understand how amazing that is? Now it’s time to meet them.”
She slowly nodded, her breathing slowing down.
“You’re the strongest woman I know. You can do this.”
She nodded again. “Okay.”
“Now, let’s get you dressed and get going.” I gently pulled her to her feet and helped her change out of her pajamas into the new clothes. I stripped the sheets off the bed and left them on the floor so they wouldn’t soak into the mattress. “Just sit here for a second, and I’ll get my parents.”
“Alright.” She lowered herself into the chair and breathed, her hands on her stomach.
I ran up the stairs to the third floor and knocked on my parents’ bedroom door. I hadn’t done this since I was still living in the house as a teen.
“Coming.” My father’s deep voice sounded completely awake even though it was the middle of the night. He was always prepared for anything. He opened the door, shirtless in just his sweatpants. “Is it time?”
“Her water just broke.”
He grinned, fully awake at three a.m. “That’s great. Your mother and I will get dressed and meet you downstairs.” He started to shut the door.
“Wait.”
“What?” He opened the door wider and looked at me, his chiseled physique still tight and strong for a man in his late fifties. His muscular arms led to a powerful chest, and the veins bulged across the surface.
“I just… I’m gonna be a father.”
He grinned slowly. “It’s not as scary as you think it’s gonna be.”
“I don’t know anything about being a father.”
“I didn’t know anything either. You and Vanessa grew up just fine.”
I ran my hand through my hair, still nervous. “My whole life, it’s just been me. Now, I’ve got a wife and a kid… This isn’t where I thought I would be a year ago.”
“Life is crazy in its unpredictability. But that’s what makes it wonderful. I promise you, being a parent is the most rewarding thing you’ll ever do in your life, even more rewarding than starting your own company. Trust me on that.”
Muse had her breakdown when her water broke, and now that she wasn’t around, I was having mine.
My father continued to grin while he watched me. “I have no doubt you’ll be a great father.”
“How so?”
“Because you’re a great husband.”
“I haven’t been married long…”
“Doesn’t matter. You took care of her right from the beginning. You’ll do the same with your kid.”
I stared at him, feeling a little better.
“Your mother and I need to get dressed, son. And you should be down there with your wife.”
“You’re right…absolutely right. I just needed—”
“A little pep talk. I understand. I wish my father had been there to give me one when I had you.” He wrapped his arms around me and gave me a hug. He patted me hard on the back. “You’ll do great, Conway. I really believe that. Now go have your baby.”
Muse was in labor for ten hours before anything happened.
I held her hand and let her squeeze mine through every contraction. As the hours passed, the pain increased, and so did the bruising to my hand. Even though I needed my hands for work, I let my wife do whatever she wanted.