“Alright, people, I need blankets right now. This baby is coming and I want something soft beneath her in case."
James ran to the back of the trailer and came back a minute later carrying every towel, sheet, and blanket that he could find.
Another contraction ripped through her. “Edward!” she screamed.
********
Edward’s head whipped up. He dropped the body double and took off running toward his screaming wife. It was the fifth take with the body double and if they didn’t have a good shot he didn’t give a rat’s ass.
He heard the scream again and realized it was coming from the trailer. He burst inside and saw Dana lying on the floor in Eric’s lap, holding his father and mother’s hands, panting and crying while a medic knelt between her legs with his hands under a sheet.
“Holy shit!” he said, dropping next to Dana and taking her hand from his father.
He blurted out the first thing that came to mind. “Baby, what are you doing? You’re supposed to be having a c-section.”
“Tell that to your sons!” she screamed. “Oh god, I’m serious, Edward, please tell them to stop it!”
He couldn’t stop himself from chuckling. She glared at him. “Edward…oh!”
“You need to push now!” the medic ordered.
Eric held her hand. She squeezed Edward and James' hands as she bore down. “I can’t do this, Edward, I can’t do this!”
“Yes, you can. Just push,” Edward said. He leaned in and kissed her forehead.
“No, I’m serious, Edward. Just push them back in and we’ll go see Dr. Downy and let him knock me out with some lovely drugs. Please!”
He pushed back her damp hair. “You have to push, sweetheart.”
“I know,” she whimpered. Then she bore down and closed her eyes.
“Here we go!” the medic said.
Edward watched his wife pant and push down. She was in so much pain. He didn’t complain as she squeezed his fingers to the point of breaking them. It was the least he could do. A baby’s cry caught his attention. He looked over to see the medic holding a bloody screaming baby. It was absolutely beautiful.
The second paramedic wrote something on a tag and tied it around the baby’s leg. Then he wrapped a tag around Dana’s hand. “Someone want to grab this baby from me? Dave suction out his mouth and nose,” the paramedic said.
Amy stepped forward, holding a clean white towel. She took the baby and wrapped him up. “Here we go, Dana.”
“You’re doing so good, baby,” Edward said.
She nodded weakly and pushed down again. “Oh god,” she whimpered.
“That’s it, one more push should do it,” the medic said. She pushed down with everything she had. “Got him!” the medic announced a few minutes later.
Edward watched as the second paramedic finished suctioning out his first son’s mouth and nose and moved to attach a bracelet to the second baby’s leg and then one on Dana.
“Dad, you want to hold your son?” the paramedic asked.
Edward nodded. His mother handed him a towel. Edward took the towel and held out his arms for his son. He took his son and gasped. He looked just like a perfect mix of Dana and him. His eyes opened up and he cried. “Hi, handsome,” Edward said. His mother used a face cloth to wipe the blood off the baby. Edward kissed his son’s head.
“Shit!” the paramedic said.
“What?” Edward asked.
“She just delivered the placenta….but….fuck….she’s bleeding out.”
“What?” Edward looked at Dana. She was pale and unconscious.
“Mom, take him, please,” Edward said. Eleanor gently took the baby and stood near Amy.
“Fuck! Where’s that second ambulance?”
“Echo seventeen to dispatch, where’s that second ambulance?” Dave said into his microphone.
Edward heard the response over the radio. “They just arrived. Police escort is with them.”
“Our patient just delivered two healthy males. Patient lost consciousness and is losing blood, alert the hospital please.”
“Received.”
“Here they are,” James announced from his spot by the window.
Edward leaned over Dana. “Baby? Please wake up,” he kissed her lips. “Please.”
“Edward, I need you to rub her stomach to help contract the uterus. Ladies, I need one of those babies to feed so we can try stopping the bleeding,” the medic said.
Edward rubbed her stomach through the dress. He watched as the medic bared one of her breast and held the baby to it. The other medic pinched her nipple and brought it to the baby’s mouth. He latched on and began suckling. It looked painful.
“John, what do you want us to do?” the new medic asked.
“I need you to get the mother the hell out of here,” John said.
The new medic knelt between her legs. “She’s still bleeding.”
“Shit,” John said. “I need you to move her carefully so we don’t break the latch.” Edward moved for the men so they could carry her out of the trailer and place her on the stretcher. They had her secured in less than a minute. John pressed his body against the stretcher and held onto the baby firmly as he fed creating a safe cushion for the baby.
“That’s right, buddy, keep sucking. Good boy, you’re helping your Mommy,” John said in a soothing voice. “Alright, let’s move!” He looked at Amy. “I need you to follow me.”
They loaded up the ambulance. Amy was strapped in the second stretcher so she could hold the baby safely in the ambulance. After both women were loaded into the ambulances an IV was started on Dana. They gave her a face mask as well.
Edward held her hand while he rubbed her stomach. His son continued to suckle with John holding him firmly in place. They took off with two police escorts.
“Edward,” Dana said weakly.
“I’m here, sweetheart,” he said with obvious relief.
“It hurts.”
“I know, baby, they’re going to stop the bleeding.”
She shook her head slowly “Not that. Your son is like a barracuda. He’s worse than you.”
Edward and John chuckled. Dana raised her hand to wrap around her son’s body. John didn’t go anywhere. She was too weak to hold the baby on her own.
“Have you thought up any names?” John asked.
“We each get to name one,” she whispered hoarsely.