Page 67 of The Soul Never Forgets

I bolt to the door and sling it open. “Doc. She says the baby is coming.”

He strolls into our bedroom, not a care in the world while I stand at the doorway, not knowing what to do. Waiting for a verdict.

“Frank, I’ll stay and help the doctor,” Mrs. Le Blanc says. “You go to the front porch and sit with Thomas. I’ll come get you when it’s time.”

“I don’t want to leave her.”

“Don’t worry, Frank. I attended all of my sister’s births. The doctor and I will take good care of her and your baby.”

Gussy grunts. “He’s coming. I feel it.”

“Everything is going to be just fine with your wife and child, Mr. Harrison,” the doctor says.

“Come get me as soon as I can come to see them,” I tell Mrs. Le Blanc.

“I will, Frank. I promise.”

I go to the porch and sit in the chair next to Mr. Le Blanc. “It feels wrong to not be with her.”

“Childbirth is messy business. I think you’re exactly where you ought to be.”

A baby that has been growing inside of Gussy for nine months is pushing its way out of her body and into the world right now. She and I are about to become parents. A tiny human being is going to depend on us for everything. “Our lives are never going to be the same.”

“No, they’re not. Things are going to be hard and different and wonderful all at the same time.”

“I’m scared of doing everything wrong.” I’ve never admitted that to anyone.

“I think fear is to be expected in the beginning, but you and August will figure it out. Sable and I were never blessed to be parents, but we’re here to help you any way we can.”

“Thank you, Mr. Le Blanc. I truly appreciate that.”

“GET IT OUT.”

“IT’S RIPPING ME APART.”

“AHH—”

Silence… and then a high-pitch squeal pierces the quiet of the night. Relief rolls over me like a wave on the beach.

“The baby’s here, safe and sound.” This is the moment I’ve prayed for countless times since Gussy told me she was pregnant.

Thank you, God, for bringing our child safely into the world, but this isn’t over. Please place your hands on Gussy and keep her safe.

Mr. Le Blanc slaps me on the back. “Congratulations, Frank. You’re a father.”

So many emotions flood me at once. Happiness. Joy. Fear. Many of them are the same emotions I felt the night she told me she was going to have a baby.

I’m a twenty-one-year-old man who feels like a child about to raise a child. I’m terrified. But I’m eager to see Gussy and our new little one. Too eager to sit here on the front porch and wait. “I’m going in to check on them.”

“They’ll come get you when it’s time, son.”

“I can’t sit here on this porch another minute, Mr. Le Blanc. I need to know they’re all right.”

“I understand. Go on then.”

The baby’s cries are loud, but I don’t hear Gussy’s voice at all. “Everything all right in there?” I call out through the door.

“Mother and child are doing well, Mr. Harrison,” the doctor replies.

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