Room For Rent

Scared To Death

Chapter 15:


Two Months Later


"Thanks so much for coming." Jina said to her guest as they left. I was the last one there so I can help clean. I started to change my mind due to the kick I was feeling, but it went away.


"You don't have to---" Ben started.


"It's fine." I said smiling as I started to clear off the tables.


"Alright...don't let Justin see you." Ben said walking away. I rolled my eyes...he's not even here.


"Thanks so much, Ali. But you don't have to. Let the men do that." Jina said.


"Ben would be doing this by his self." I said holding my stomach from another sharp kick.


"No, my brothers helping and my cousins. Plus Justin---"


"Justin?" I asked. I looked up only to see him there...helping. "When did he get here?" I said confused.


"He come in right after you. I thought you guys rode together." Jina said laughing.


"I didn't notice him this whole time." I said shaking my head at myself. The baby kicked again, but I ignored it.


"Well anyway, sit down with me." Jina said grabbing my hand. I followed her to some seats.


"Did you like your gift?" I asked.


"Oh my God yes! Those little onesies were so cute." She said excited. "I can't wait to put them on her." She said clapping.


"So y'all just go sit and watch, huh?" Jerrod, Jina's brother said. He looked real familiar.... "Figure it out yet?" He asked me.


"Do you know Cameron Simmons?"


"Yeah...I work with him."


"That's where I know you from. Cameron is my brother." I said smiling.


"Forreal...yeah, yeah now I remember you. I use to eat at y'all house all the time in high school."


"Yeah...my momma use to hate that." I joked. "She use to be like 'is that Jerrod boy coming over? I need to stock up'."


"Haha...his appetite ain't change either." Jina said.


"Yep...matter of fact, I'm taking a break. That banana pudding is calling my name." He said rubbing his stomach. He walked away leaving the two of us laughing.


"He's so damn fat..." Jina rolled her eyes with a smile.


"Yo man, what's up with you?" Ben asked someone. I felt a tap from Jina and I looked in the direction.


"I'm fine...I just need to sit for a minute." Justin said. He looked weak and sweaty.


"Sit down over by the girls." Ben said guiding Justin toward us. He sat down and held his head.


"Are you ok?" I asked frowning.


"I will be...I just ain't eat today, that's all."


"Why haven't you?" Jina said.


"I don't know...I didn't really feel hungry."


"Well I'm gonna fix you a plate, I'll be back." Jina said getting up cautiously. She walked away.


"What the hell, Justin?" I said in more of concern that ridicule.


"I haven't have much of an appetite lately...that all."


"That's not all, you don't look so good."


"I'll be fine once I eat. Don't worry." He said hanging his head down. It was hard not too...


Jina came back with a plate full of food. She handed it to him and he started eating like he hadn't seen food in years. He was right...once he had food he was looking better, but he looked like he haven't slept in days. When he was finished, they were done cleaning.


"Do you need a ride?" He asked me in a tired voice. I shook my head and he started to walk away. I felt another sharp pain, but it didn't feel like a kick.


"Ow...." I said in a high pitch voice. I held my stomach and started to straighten back up, but I felt another that hurt worst. It brought tears to my eyes. "Ow ow.." I said in a crying voice. Justin turned and rushed toward me.


"What's wrong?" He asked holding my back.


"The baby is kicking really hard---" I stopped and frowned at another sharp pain.


"No, that's more than a kick." Justin said.


"It hurts, Justin." I said feeling tears coming down. My tears was more for the fear, not the pain. I felt something warm go down my leg and that only made me panic more. "Shit, no...I'm only 34 week, Justin." I said squeezing his hand.


"What happ---" He looked down and started to walk with me. "We gotta go to the hospital." He said.


"What happened?" Jina said.


"She's gonna have the baby." Justin said making me wanna hit him.


"No...it's early, I can't---" I said shaking my head.


"Oh my God, Ben!" Jina called out as he went to go find him. Justin rushed me in his car and got in quickly.


"Justin..." I said in a scared voice as we started driving fast.


"It's ok, Ali. It's gonna be ok." He said in a voice as calm as possible. I can see in his face he was worried as hell. I was still crying. "Ali, calm down. Just focus ok. Just think about the baby. Calm down for the baby." Justin said...probably to me and his self.


New tears stopped forming by the time we got to the ER, but I was still scared as hell. The took me to the delivery room and so much was going on. It all happened so fast.


All of a sudden I was in a gown with Justin by my side holding my hand in scrubs. They were telling me to push and I did feeling hot and sweaty. They told me to stop...they had to do a C-section. I was panicking so hard that I almost fell out.


Just let the baby be ok...just let the baby be ok...


Blackness...


4 hours later


I woke up feeling the light burn my eyes. How long was I out? I looked around and everything hit me.


"Where's my baby?" I said in a panic sitting up quickly. I frowned at the pain in my stomach forgetting I had a C-section.


"Calm down, Ali." Justin said pushing my back. I still had his hand from earlier.


"Is the baby ok?" I asked in a near whisper. He smiled and rubbed my hand.


"Yeah, he's fine---"


"He?" I said feeling my eyes light up.


"Yeah...the doctor said its gonna take a while before he can feed and breath by his self but he's gonna be fine." Justin said in a tired voice.


"When can I see him?" I said squeezing Justin's hand.


"I can tell the nurse you're woke and they can take us to the NICU, now." He said getting up. He walked out and Cameron and Momma walked in. I rolled my eyes and folded my arms.


"Look who's here..." I said looking at the both of them.


"We heard what happened...are you ok?" Momma asked.


"I'm fine...I just don't know how he's doing." I said thinking about my baby. "What do you guys care anyway? You two haven't talked to me since you found out I was pregnant."


"We didn't really know how to handle the situation..." Cameron said shaking his head.


"What situation?"


"The situation with you and---"


"The nurse gave me this wheelchair so you can---" He trailed off seeing Mom and Cameron.


"Hey, Justin." Momma said breaking the awkward silence.


"Hey...Mrs. Simmons." He said giving a small smile.


"Justin." Cameron said looking the opposite way of Justin.


"Cameron." Justin said back. He pushed in the chair, helped me in it and we waited for the nurse. "Are you ok?" He asked looking at the worry in my eyes.


"I'll be ok when I see him." I said holding my head.


"Alrighty, ready to meet your little guy." The nurse said. I smiled and nodded. She pushed me toward the elevator with Justin, Cameron, and Momma following us.


We went into NICU and rolled into a room...there he was. My tiny baby in a incubator. She rolled me close to him and I put my hand in the incubator slowly to touch his head. I started crying and I looked away. Justin sat next to me and let me lay on his shoulder as I watched my baby lay in the incubator with tubes in him. One to help him breath and one to feed him.


"I lied..." I said whispering trying to stop crying.


"About what?" Justin asked as he touched our son's little feet.


"I said I was gonna be ok, but I'm not and it's all my fault he is like this. It's all---" I trailed off into crying out loud. Justin held me tighter.


"Shh...no, no. It's not your fault at all, Ali." He said as he rubbed my cheek. "This was totally out of your control." He whispered to me. He brushed my hair out of my face and let me cry for about twenty minutes.


"Austin..." I said in a soft tone.


"What?" Justin asked pulling away to look at me.


"Austin Elijah Harris." I said wiping my face.


"Yeah...I like that." He whispered realizing what I was talking about. I sighed still worried about my tiny little baby. "He's gonna be fine, Ali." He assured me.


"It would've been fine if I'd just held on---"


"I don't want you to keep blaming yourself...cause it's not your fault at all. He's here now and we have to take care of him." He told me.


"I'm scared..." I said feeling some more tears fall.


"I am too...I am too, Ali. That's why we gotta do this together." He said. I could hear the tears in his voice. He sniffed and I looked at him and saw that he was crying. I wiped the few tears on his face.


"Austin is gonna be fine..." I told him just like he told me. He was gonna be fine, but That didn't stop us from being worried to death...




March 5th
2:54pm
5 pounds 15 ounces
Austin Elijah Harris...