End of the Line
Page 22
An excruciating scream pierced through the first peaceful night we’ve had. I bolted up and so did the others. I looked around, trying to figure out where that scream came from and when I found its origin I could feel the blood drain from my body. My knees became weak. Jackie was on the bed looking like those women we saw in health movies right before they gave birth. I wanted to run out of the house at that moment as the nausea hit me.
“What the hell is going on?” Aaron asked with sleep still clouding his eyes.
“Aaron, I’ll give you a hint, she’s pregnant. What the hell do you think is wrong with her after being that pregnant?” I shrieked with my wide eyes locked onto Aaron’s.
Realization overcame his face.
“Oh no, there’s no way in hell I’m watching a woman give birth!”
“Shut up and help me!” Jackie bellowed.
My eyes widened to their limits.
“Jill, take the others in the other room. Aaron, you’re staying with me. If I’m going down, I’m bringing you down with me!”
“Are you nuts, I’m not doing that!” Aaron’s voice nearly cracked.
“Too bad!” I grabbed his arm and yanked him closer to me.
I pulled him up as Jackie let out another scream. I so didn’t want to do this. Wasn’t there a way we could leave her? No we couldn’t leave her at that moment. We had to help her. Damn conscience!
“You get the bottom, I’ll get the screaming head,” Aaron said, not looking well as he kept his eyes on the ground.
“Wait, why do you get the head?”
Jackie screamed again, even more infuriated. I jumped and I thought I saw Aaron do the same.
“Because you’re to go through this sometime in the future!”
“Shut the fuck up and help me!”
I don’t know whose words were more powerful at that moment, but I pushed that aside as I walked disgusted toward the area that baby was going to come out. I really had no idea what to expect or anything since when it came to this part of the movie in health class, I wasn’t paying attention. Jackie screamed again and I looked at Aaron because I really had no idea what to do!
“Lift up the dress, you moron!” Jackie screeched.
I followed her directions, instantly trying to get the images out of my head. Aaron gave the woman his hands to squeeze to get her mind off of the pain. I saw him flinch when she did so. She pushed and before I knew it I had a slimy being in my arms that was crying out into the night. I took hold of one of the sheets that was tossed to the side and wrapped the baby in it after cutting the umbilical cord. I handed the baby over to her, not believing how small the child was. It is strange to think that we were all that size at one point. I remembered when Mom and Dad brought Sean home. He was cute.
I felt tired and happy as I watched Jackie hold the baby close to her. A calmer side of Jackie showed through as she held it. Her eyes became softer and didn’t seem like they could move away from her own child. The muscles in Jackie’s face relaxed. She brought up a finger and tenderly stroke the baby as it slowed the babe’s tears. At that moment I started to wonder what gender the baby was.
“Jackie, is the baby a boy or a girl?”
She lifted the sheets a little, made a slight face, then the baby grabbed onto her hand. The baby was so cute.
“It’s a boy,” she said affectionately cleaning the little boy up.
Aaron let out a laugh and Jackie glared at him.
“He’s very cute,” I stated before an argument brewed between the two.
“He is, isn’t he?” She appeared so happy holding him. “Thank you very helping me, you two.”
“You’re welcome, but I need to go clean up—”
“The bathroom is right there. Feel free to take a quick shower if it works.”
“Thank you.”
I walked into the bathroom and locked the door behind me. I turned on the water and the sound was music to my ears. The water came out in spurts, but a shower was a shower. I quickly took off my clothes and noticed how gross they were now. As the water was warming up, I rinsed my clothing out quickly. The second the water was the slightest bit warm, I jumped in to take my shower. As I scrubbed my arms harshly to rid of the evidence, one thought ran through my mind, and only one thought.
My hands started to shake as the words echoed through my mind. My breath shortened and I sat on my feet in the shower now fearing the words. Many thoughts ran through my mind as I tried to figure out what Aaron meant with that one sentence.
“Because you’re to go through this sometime in the future!”
Chapter Eight
Aaron