“Okay, baby. You got this. One more time,” I say, amazed at how incredible my wife is.
But this time, when she pushes, the baby seems to go further up inside of her instead of coming out.
Fuck. I don’t know what to do. I don’t know how to help her. All I know is this isn’t supposed to happen. The baby is supposed to come out, not retreat inside her. And I know if we don’t get the baby out soon, that this isn’t going to end well.
“Stingray, I need you to push harder. This baby needs more help than the first.”
“I’m trying,” Kai cries back.
I move to look her in the eyes. “Stingray, you can do this. I need you to take a deep breath and when you feel the next contraction push with everything you have.”
She pushes harder than ever before, and finally, the baby descends down.
I catch the baby, and Kai collapses.
Baby number two cries immediately, and relief fills the room. I cut the second cord. And then wrap our baby boy in a blanket before helping Kai scoot back on the bed. I put our son on her chest, and Beckett puts our daughter alongside her brother.
“They are so little,” she says.
“They are perfect,” I say, wrapping my arms around them all.
“Congratulations, Kai. They are incredible,” Beckett says.
“Thank you, truly, for everything,” she says.
He nods. “I’m going to go see about getting a doctor here to check everyone over.”
“Thank you,” I say, choked up. I'm not sure we would have had a healthy delivery without his help and research telling us wh
at to do.
He nods and then leaves me alone with my new family. A family I’m already willing to die for. A family I will do anything to protect.
22
Kai
“That one has quite the pair of lungs on him,” the doctor says.
Enzo frowns at the doctor, not liking him to imply are our children are anything but perfect.
“Are we finished?” Enzo asks the doctor.
“Yes, everyone has a clean bill of health,” the doctor says. “You all did a fantastic job considering the circumstances.”
“Kai was incredible,” Enzo says.
“Do you have any names picked out yet for these little ones?” the doctor asks as he packs up his things.
I look to Enzo. We both have some ideas, but we haven’t decided yet. And we wouldn’t be sharing the names with the doctor first.
“Not yet,” I answer, holding our daughter closer against my chest.
Enzo is rocking our son in his arms who has quieted down a little but is still chirping.
“Well, I’m sure you will get it figured out soon. Please call me if you have any other questions or concerns,” the doctor says before leaving.
“I thought he’d never leave,” Enzo says as he carries our son over to the bed and climbs in next to me. The baby is now quietly sleeping in his father’s arms now that the doctor has left.