Drama Queen (15 page)

“This is from me and Theo,” Tia said and handed her the pretty, wrapped box. Inside Kayla found a giftset from Bath and Body Works and an envelope. She opened it and found a gift certificate to a day spa. Kayla squealed in delight.

“Do you get to bring a guest?” Von asked.

“Sorry, only good for one.” Tia laughed.

“And this is from me.” Roni could hardly push the big box in front of Kayla.

“What in the world?” Kayla asked. She opened the top of the box and looked down into it. “A suitcase.”

“Help her take it out,” Tia said. They slid the rolling bag out of the box and laid it on its side.

“Open it,” Roni encouraged. Kayla unzipped the bag and her eyes filled with tears.

“Oh, my,” she heard her mother say. Tia and Yvonne came closer to get a better look. The bag was fully packed with nightgowns, slippers, underwear, socks, soap, comb, brush, toothpaste, toothbrush; everything Kayla would need at the hospital, down to an outfit to wear home. Kayla could tell that Roni put a lot of thought and effort into packing it.

“Roni, I don't know what to say.” Kayla did not try to stop the tears from falling. By now, every eye in the room was watery.

“Well. I guess it's my turn now.” Jennifer stood and handed Kayla the gift she had gotten her. When Kayla opened it and saw what it was, she really began to cry.

“Oh Mama, it's beautiful.” She held up the gold locket for her friends to see. She opened it and found her baby picture.

“Read it, baby,” her mom said.

“From one mother to another.” Kayla barely got the words out because she was crying so hard.

“The other side is for you to put your baby's picture. We all love you, Kayla. We know this hasn't been easy for you, but we are here for you and we just wanted to show you.” Her mother sniffed.

They all gathered around Kayla and hugged her, big belly and all.

Kayla was two days from her due date and she was beyond miserable. She came back from lunch and laid her head on her desk. All of a sudden, she felt a pain go down her back and spread across her abdomen. It caused her to suck her breath in and sit straight up.

“You okay, Kayla?” her manager asked.

“I got a pain in my back,” she told her.

“Just one?”

“Yeah, so far.” She looked at her watch and mentally noted the time as six forty-two. She began work and after a while, another pain shot through her body. This time it was six fifty-one, less than ten minutes apart. She waited until she had a set of six pains.

“What's wrong, yo?” Terrell asked.

“I think I'm in labor,” Kayla told him.

“For real? You want me to call Roni?”

“I wanna go now. Can you take me, Terrell?”

Terrell looked at his friend and then his watch.

“Okay, Kayla. It's after seven now. That means I'm gonna miss two hours on my paycheck. You gonna pay me back?”

“Shut up, Terrell, and let's go.” She grabbed her purse and cut her terminal off. Her co-workers wished her good luck and Terrell wasted no time in getting her to the hospital.

“Which floor?” he asked as they got on the elevator.

“Fourth, labor and delivery.” She groaned. He reached out and rubbed her shoulders. She looked at him and noticed the worry on his face. They got off the elevator and Kayla wobbled to the nurse's station.

“Hi, I'm having a baby,” Kayla told the pretty nurse.

“Well, we're here to help you do that.” She smiled at Kayla. “I'm Nicole and your name?”

“Kayla Hopkins. Karen Bray is my doctor.” She felt another pain and grabbed the counter.

“Okay, Ms. Hopkins, follow me. You're already pre-registered so you don't have anything to fill out. Just sign. We can get that done after you're settled in the labor room. You need a wheelchair?”

“I think I can make it,” Kayla told her.

“Okay. Mister Hopkins, you can wait in here while I examine your wife.”

“I'm not Mister Hopkins. That's her father. I'm Mister Sims,” he corrected her.

“I'm sorry, Mister Sims. Excuse me for making that assumption. You can follow Ms. Hopkins to the labor room. I know you're excited. Is this your first child?” she asked.

“Yes, my first baby,” Kayla answered as they left Terrell and went into one of the birthing rooms.

Nicole helped her settle in and Kayla quickly felt comfortable with her. Kayla changed into a hospital gown and Nicole wrapped the monitor around her belly. Sounds of her baby's heartbeat filled the room. Kayla couldn't help but smile.
It won't be long now,
she thought. Nicole continued to examine her and told her to relax for a little while as she went to get Terrell.

“She's nice,” Kayla said to Terrell when he came into the room.

“And she's fine. I like her.”

“You okay, Mister Sims? Can I get you anything?”

“Um, your number. That is, if you'd like to maybe have dinner with me.”

“I don't think now is the appropriate time or place for you to be flirting.” Nicole laughed as she checked Kayla's vitals. “How are you gonna disrespect your child's mother like that?”

“God, Kayla, I swear. People call me your baby daddy so much that I'm beginning to believe it. No, Nicole, I am not the father of this baby. I am the lucky godfather.”

“I thought you changed it to godpimp,” Kayla told him. He looked at her like we wanted to hit her.

“Quit playing, girl. What kind of name is that? Godpimp?” He laughed lightly and Kayla opened her mouth in amazement.

“Well, you're a good godfather, bringing her to the hospital and waiting this long. Especially since she's not in active labor.” Nicole wrote something down on Kayla's chart.

“What do you mean? I'm having contractions, aren't I?” Kayla wailed.

“Yes, but they aren't strong enough to make you fully dilate. When I checked you, you were only three centimeters dilated. Now, you can stay for a couple hours and walk, maybe making you further along, but I don't think you'll have that baby tonight.”

“Aw man, so you mean we've been here for nothing?” Terrell whined.

“Not for nothing,” Nicole said and wrote her number down, giving it to him. “Let's just say I have a thing for godfathers.”

“Told you I was a pimp.” He winked at Kayla when the nurse left the room.

“Whatever. I can't believe I'm not having this baby tonight.” She covered her face with the back of her hand.

“Kayla, Kayla. I got here as fast as I could. I brought your suitcase and Toby is bringing the camera. Thank you, Terrell. You okay? You need any ice chips?” Roni came rushing in.

“You could've took your time. She's not having the baby tonight. She's not in active labor,” Terrell informed her.

“False alarm?” Roni asked.

“False alarm. Call Toby and tell him he may as well turn around.” Kayla sighed.

“That's okay, Kayla. He'll come out when he's ready.” Roni rubbed her friend's stomach and laughed. “Still comfy in there, li'l man?”

“Who wouldn't be? He's got it good. He got three squares and a warm bed,” Terrell said.

“You make it sound like I'm a jail,” Kayla told him as she sat up.

“You are. He can't get out, can he?” Terrell laughed. Kayla didn't find it funny.

 

 

Kayla decided not to return to work until after the baby was born. She spent the next day walking as Nicole had advised her to do. She walked around the neighborhood, she walked the mall, and she walked around the grocery store and Wal-Mart.

“Mama, what am I doing wrong?”

“Nothing, baby. You just gotta wait. He'll come when he gets ready,” her mother told her.

“But Karen promised that he'd be here by tomorrow. And now you and Daddy are getting ready to go out of town. I wanted you all to be here.” Kayla's parents were going to her aunt's house for Thanksgiving.

“You'll be fine, Kayla. I promise you we will be there to spoil our grandbaby enough. Look, I have got to get out of here. Your father has a list of things for me to do before we hit the road. I love you, Kay. And keep walking. Or you can always call Craig and have sex; that causes labor.”

“Mama!” Kayla yelled into the phone.

“What? It's not like you haven't slept with him before. Now you need to. I'm just playing. Love you and call us if it happens before I call and check on you.”

Kayla was even more depressed when she hung up the phone. All of her friends called or came by to make sure she was okay, but she knew they had plans for the holiday weekend. Yvonne was gone with her family, Tia was taking Theo to her grandmother's, and Roni was invited to the Sims' for dinner.

“Come on, Kayla, you should come,” Roni told her Thanksgiving eve on the phone.

“No, I am too tired to move. I'm gonna stay in bed all day and be the warden for my son.”

“You're crazy. I'll be over there after dinner,” Roni told her.

“That's okay. I'll be fine. Enjoy meeting your future in-laws,” Kayla mumbled. She climbed into bed and somehow found a spot comfortable enough to sleep in. The phone rang as she began to doze off.

“Hey, Beautiful. What are you doing?” Craig asked her.

“Trying to sleep,” she murmured.

“Well, I'll let you go then. Call me if anything happens.”

“Like what?” Kayla knew she was being mean, but she couldn't help it.

“Go to sleep, Kayla. I hate when you get like this. Call me if you need me.” She heard the dial tone and put the phone on the receiver. She woke to the sound of the Macys Thanksgiving Parade and dialed Terrell's number.

“Hello,” he groaned into the phone.

“Happy Thanksgiving, Terrell. Are you watching the parade?” she asked him innocently.

“No. What time is it?”

“Nine seventeen.”

“Bye, Kayla. Call me after twelve. I can't believe you called me this early.” Again, Kayla's ear was filled with the sound of the dial tone. She got up, took a shower and got dressed. As she was sitting at her kitchen table eating a bowl of cereal, her mom called to wish her a Happy Thanksgiving and make sure she was okay. That call was followed by Roni, Tia, and Yvonne. By the time Kayla told everyone she was fine, she was tired all over again. The burst of energy she had when she woke up was gone and she was again having the pains in her back. She grabbed a blanket and relaxed on the lounge chair in the living room, watching television. She tossed and turned from the discomfort until she fell asleep. She thought she was dreaming when the doorbell rang. She sat up and looked at her watch. It was after seven and her back was killing her. She stood up and doubled over in pain.

The bell rang again and she called out, “Give me a minute. I'm trying!”

Taking careful steps, she slowly made her way to the front door. She didn't even look to see who it was. She just opened it.

“Happy Thanksgiving! I knew it was your due date so I decided to stop by and check on you! Kayla, what's the matter?”

She lifted her head and saw Geno standing there, carrying plastic bags, “My back is killing me, G.”

“Come on. I'm taking you to the hospital!” He put his arm around her and helped her to his SUV.

“My bag, Geno. I need my bag,” Kayla told him and he ran back in to get it.

While he was in the house, Kayla felt water run down her legs. She could not believe this was happening. She was standing in the middle of the sidewalk, legs straddled, when he came running out of the house. She looked at him, dazed and told him, “My water broke!”

“Don't move. I'll get some towels.” He ran back to the door, realizing he'd locked it and raced to get her keys out of her purse. He flew in and got some towels then ran back to Kayla. He covered the passenger seat and helped her in. Kayla flinched as he pulled out of the driveway.

“It's gonna be okay, Kayla. Hold on, baby.” He sped to the hospital and rushed her to Labor and Delivery. Kayla was in agony the whole time.

“Hi, Kayla,” Nicole greeted her. “You back for good?”

“I hope so.” Kayla let out a long moan and Nicole grabbed a wheelchair. They got her into a room and when Nicole checked her this time, she frowned at Kayla.

“What? What's wrong?” Kayla asked her.

“Why did you wait so long to get here?” she asked Kayla and reached for the phone on the wall.

“I don't know. I didn't want it to be a false alarm again so I waited, and when I got up to answer the door, I couldn't walk.”

“Page Doctor Bray and get her here. Her patient is fully effaced,” Nicole said into the phone.

“What does that mean?” Geno asked.

“That means in about fifteen minutes she'll have a baby.”

“What about my epidural and my breathing techniques?” Kayla asked.

“Too late, Kayla. Your baby's almost here. Are you gonna stay with her?” she asked Geno. He looked at Kayla and she reached for his hand.

“You don't have to do this, Geno.” He looked at the fear in her eyes and knew he had to do this. There was no way he was leaving her side. She began to wail and writhe in pain.

“I'll be here. What do I need to do?”

“I gotta go to the bathroom. I need to get up!”

“That's your baby you feel, not your bowels.” Nicole looked at Geno. “Grab her leg when I tell you to. Okay now, Kayla, on the next contraction I need for you to bear down and push. Ready? One, two, three, push.” Nicole counted and Kayla screamed. It felt as if her bowels were being ripped from her body.

“God, I can't do this!” she yelled and sweat began to mix with tears on her face.

“Yes you can, Kayla. Look at me. You can do this,” Geno told her. She shook her head fiercely at him, but he stopped her and moved her head up and down. “Yes you can.”

“Okay, here comes another one. You ready?” Nicole said. “Push, Kayla, push! That's it!”

“I gotta stop! It's splitting me wide open!” Kayla screamed and panted.

“It's the head, Kay. I see the head. Come on! It's almost over. You're doing it, baby!”

“Looks like I made it just in time. Good thing I was with another patient upstairs. Hi, Geno.” Karen burst through the door with a smile.

“Hey, Karen. Look. The head is right there,” he said excitedly.

“I see. Now let's get him out. Come on now, Kayla. I need you to push for me. And go!”

Kayla bore down, chin on her chest, and pushed as hard as she could.

“That's it, the head is out! It's almost over, Kayla,” Karen told her and she felt Geno's chin on her head. She closed her eyes as she heard his voice encouraging her to keep pushing, and then it was over. She heard the cry of her baby and she knew she had done it.

“Uh oh!” Karen said. “We made a boo boo!”

“What? Is he okay?” Kayla began to panic.

“She's beautiful,” Karen said and put the wriggling, wet baby on Kayla's chest.

“She?”

“Yes, you have a beautiful baby girl. Geno, would you like to do the honors?” She held the scissors clamped on the umbilical cord.

“I don't think . . .”

“Do it, G. I want you to,” Kayla told him. He reached and snipped the cord connecting Kayla and her daughter.

“Let's clean you up, Little Miss. Geno, you want to help while Karen finishes up with Kayla?” Nicole said as she took the baby. She put an ID bracelet on her little foot and on Geno's arm.