Page 20 of The Promises We Broke
Two minutes. I didn't know much about babies, but I was pretty sure that meant we were running out of time fast.
"GET DOWN THERE AND LOOK, GAGE!" Delaney suddenly commanded, pointing toward the end of the couch.
"I'm not looking at your... that's Trace's..."
No, no, no, no. This wasn't happening. That wasn't a part of Delaney I ever wanted to see.
"GAGE FARRINGTON, I SWEAR TO GOD, IF YOU DON'T HELP ME RIGHT NOW I'LL TELL EVERYONE ABOUT THAT TIME YOU CRIED WATCHING BAMBI!"
"That was PRIVATE! And I was SEVEN!"
"AND THE TIME YOU GOT STUCK IN THE TIRE SWING!"
I was wrong. This was about to get so much worse.
"Okay, okay! I'm looking! But I'm NOT happy about it!"
I awkwardly maneuvered myself into position, my crutches clattering to the floor as I stared at the ceiling, dread building in my stomach.
"Maybe Xander is on his way, I could try calling him..."
I was grasping at straws now, but there was literally nothing I wouldn't do to get out of looking at whatever was going on in Delaney's downstairs area.
"GAGE!" Delaney snapped and then she started to scream as another contraction hit her hard.
Okay, Gage. This is the hardest thing you're ever going to do in your life but it's time to man up. The pep talk wasn't helping so I panted in time with Delaney hoping for an adrenaline rush that would push me into action.
Nothing. Fucking fantastic.
Delaney suddenly surged up. Her hands grasped my shoulders in a steel-like grip but I resisted the need to tell her it hurt because I saw just how close to death I was as I looked in her eyes.
"Right. Yes. Totally doing it now," I muttered and then pinched the edge of Delaney's dress and lifted it to try and see what was happening.
And immediately wished I hadn't.
"Oh God," I breathed. "Delaney, I can see the head!"
This was... I might never have sex again.
"What do I do now?" I asked, my voice cracking with terror as I stared in horror at what was happening in front of me.
"You catch him!" she panted. "And you make sure he's breathing!"
And then she screamed. She screamed and she pushed and I found myself cheering her on because as gross as this was, it was absolutely fucking amazing as well. "You've got this, Delaney. You're fucking incredible, do you know that?"
The head was out and Delaney gave a whimper as her contraction ended. My eyes darted up to her face and I could see how tired she was, how much it had taken her to get here, to my useless self and now to the point of actually having a baby.
For some reason that thought calmed me. Because if Delaney was doing this, the least I could do was be here with her when she needed someone the most.
"How do I know if he's breathing?" I asked, peering closer and immediately regretting that decision.
"He'll cry! Babies cry when they breathe!" she shouted and then with a grunt her next contraction started and she pushed again.
The baby came fast that time and it was a close call to me missing him completely. But suddenly I had this warm, sticky bundle of baby goo in my hands and the responsibility of protecting this little life crashed over me.
Right. Crying. I could handle crying. I'd been making babies cry since I was old enough to babysit. This was just... a really extreme version of babysitting.
"Come on, little guy," I murmured, positioning my hands as best I could with one arm still in a sling. "Work with me here..."
