Page 95 of Twenty Years Later

I thought back to Gabby's birth. I had missed it all because I was stuck in surgery where a man went into cardiac arrest during a knee replacement. Gabby had arrived early, and thank goodness Fiona's mom was with her and the delivery had gone smoothly.

I was incredibly grateful to be here today, but all this waiting just heightened the anxiety because there was nothing to do except worry... something I wasn't used to doing.

In a hospital setting, I was used to being in charge and calling the shots. And I found myself now in the unusual position of being completely useless. Of course, I imagined all the things that could go wrong, all the terrible things that could happen.

Usually, in surgery, I could keep a cool head, keep calm, and do what needed to be done. But this was a whole different ballgame. And even though I'd read extensively on the subject, being in the actual situation now was throwing me off.

The stakes were too high. This was the love of my life here and my child, along with Audrey and Gabby, the most important people in my life.

The nurse started to come in more and more often as Jayda became closer and closer to full dilation. And then once she finally reached ten centimeters, Doctor Chabra arrived, checking Jayda out and making sure everything was okay.

"We are all set," she said, a pleased smile on her face. "Let's get this started, folks."

Get started? What had we been doing all these hours? It was now the middle of the night, and I pictured our parents dozing with their phones in their hands, waiting for the big announcement.

I hoped to God Jayda wouldn't have to push for very long.

With the doctor keeping an eye on the contraction monitor, she let Jayda know when to push. And my goodness, did she push. And push. And push. The minutes ticked by, on and on and on, all while I held her hand, encouraging her, praising her for how hard she was working.

Jayda was oddly quiet, not speaking... just silent and staring at the ceiling. And I knew she was exhausted, working so incredibly hard to birth this child of ours. Between contractions, I wiped her forehead with a cool cloth.

At one point, the baby's heart rate dropped, and I almost had a panic attack. I said a silent prayer as my eyes darted back and forth between the doctor and the two nurses to see how worried they were. I knew from my own experience that if they were freaking out, then I'd be right to be alarmed.

But while they looked concerned, they didn't seem panicked. They gave Jayda some oxygen and put an internal heart monitor on the baby. And after a minute of oxygen, thank God the baby's pulse returned to normal.

And through it all, Jayda stayed calm, stayed focused, and pushed when she was told. And pushed some more, and then some more.Holy crap. The woman was a warrior, badass princess, and superhero all rolled up into one.

Not for the first time, I thought it was a good thing women were the ones who gave birth because, otherwise, humans would have gone extinct long ago. I'd seen linebackers go down at the sight of a needle and women barely over four feet tall not even crying at an open fracture with a bone poking through their skin. And this experience just confirmed that.

The endurance required to push a baby out of a body... my God.

The sweat poured down her brow, and I kept wiping it away. Her messy bun turned even messier, long strands coming out and sticking to her face. I whisked her hair away from her red cheeks, wishing I knew how to fix her bun. But she didn't seem to care, just kept her focus straight ahead like some kind of zen warrior.

The doctor and nurses seemed to be enjoying themselves as they chatted, sometimes pulling me into the conversation. But I kept my attention on this woman next to me, not fully able to breathe till this whole thing was done, till I knew that both my future wife and this child would be okay.

Then finally,finally, the doctor said we were close.

"Baby, you're doing great." I squeezed Jayda's hand. "You're almost there. Just a little longer."

Doctor Chabra and the nurses sprung into action, marking the end of the pushing and the beginning of this new life in our world. I felt the hugest lump in my throat at the idea of meeting our little baby, this child that had been like a miracle, helping to bring us all together.

"Push hard, Jayda," Doctor Chabra said. "You're so close."

With a loud groan, Jayda sat up and pushed with all her might.

"One more and you're done, love," the doctor encouraged. "Push hard. Harder."

"Come on, Jayda. You got this," I said, supporting her back, wishing to God I could push for her. "You're a rock star. You really are."

She pushed even harder, and seconds later, the doctor said, "It's a girl! A beautiful baby girl!"

Tears streamed down my face as I held onto Jayda's hand and watched as the doctor quickly inspected our baby, soon clamping the cord.

Oh, my God, our baby girl.

"Is she okay?" Jayda squeaked out.

"She's perfect," Doctor Chabra said as she laid her on Jayda's bare chest, her little face turned toward me.

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