Surviving in Harmony

Chapter Thirty-Six | Ivy House, December 2012

Chapter Thirty-Six

Ivy House, December 2012

 

            There were four bedrooms in Ivy House, two on each side. One was the master bedroom for Sonia and Charlie, the one beside it Sonia's office. Across the hall was Max's room and a small library.

When Max got home the library was being packed up.

When his parents explained that Sonia was having a baby, he was a little peeved at first – they were old! Well, his Mum was only thirty-two, but his Dad – he was 40! Max himself was seven months away from turning fifteen. That was a large gap between him and this new baby.

He told Teddy when they lay on the floor of his room. Sonia and Charlie had gone to a healer for a check up.

"Are you sure you don't want to come?" Sonia had asked for the tenth time. "You can see the baby!"

Max had barely looked up from his book. "S'okay." He mumbled. "Ted's coming over anyway."

He had pretended not to notice the crestfallen look on his Mamma's face as she left.

He was still annoyed when he told Teddy. "You think they'd know how to bag it after fourteen years." He'd grumbled, pushing the popcorn bowl to Teddy. "I mean, they made the same mistake with me – you thin they'd have learned!"

"It's not that bad." Teddy said cheerily. "Babies are nice, and you know it'll be fun. You'll barely be here anyway."

And that got Max thinking. This baby would have parents who hadn't had a baby for a long while; they'd have to fend for themselves – who would teach them all the tricks of living at Ivy House? Max would just have to visit a lot.

At dinner that evening Sonia and Charlie asked Max an important question, gave him a responsibility. An honour.

"Max, we'd like you to name the baby." Charlie said over their plates of spaghetti.

"Within reason, of course." Sonia said, barely able to contain her smile. "No Jubilee's or Zenobia's."

"Seriously?"

The proud parents nodded. "I think it would give you two a special bond." Said Sonia. "With such an age difference a good relationship is important, right?"

That night Max thought about his new little brother or sister. He thought over Christmas, and it was New Years Eve when he decided on them. Charlie was expected home in an hour or two and Sonia was reading in her room; Max was happy to just read in his own window seat, admire the light snow falling outside.

He was just getting into his book when he heard a crash, followed by a strangled cry.

Going still, Max listened for a moment before calling out: "Mamma?" There was no answer. Putting his book aside Max crossed the hall; the bed was wrinkled and the bathroom door was closed.

"Mamma?" he heard a whimper from the bathroom and moved swiftly towards the door, throwing it open and nearly vomiting.

The stench of blood hit him, and he covered his mouth; on the floor Sonia sat with her legs bent in a W, nightgown covered in blood.

"Don't look, Max." Sonia choked, trying to get up but slipping, crying out in pain. "I – I don't want you to see."

Not saying a word, Max helped her up and into the bath; her nightgown ballooned and the water turned red. Her inner thighs were covered were covered as well as her hands; he didn't look as she washed herself gingerly and wrapped herself in a fluffy housecoat.

They both ignored the tiny babe lying on the white tile, all alone.

Silent tears streamed down Sonia's face as Max tucked her into bed. He wrote a note to their family healer and asked him to come, just to be safe. Max didn't know much about miscarriages, but he thought there must be danger for Sonia.

With a heavy heart, he returned to the bathroom, a small towel in hand. It was pretty, pink – fitting. He kneeled by the small baby, almost four months old and teensy tiny and delicate. Wrapping it in the towel he picked it up gingerly, feeling tears drip off his chin.

"Hullo," he whispered, rocking the babe back and forth. "I'm Max."

He laid the towel and its inhabitant in a hatbox, just off to the side. The healer arrived and checked Sonia over, reassuring Max that she was fine, just shook up.

"She doesn't look okay." Max observed as they stood outside the bedroom. He had his arms crossed, eyes down. The door was closed.

The Healer, the same one that Max had been going to his entire life, gave him a reassuring pat to the shoulder. "You did very well Max, but now everything is up to her. Get your Dad to owl me later, I'll arrange another check up through him."

When the house was empty again besides the two of them, Max returned to Sonia and climbed in bed beside her. She curled up against her son's chest – he was taller than her, taller than Charlie. Gangly, not stocky like his father – and sobbed. Max held her, not awkward as many other sons might be.

"Boy or girl?" Sonia finally asked, gripping onto the sheets for dear life.

"Girl." Max told her, eyes closed. He didn't want to see her cry anymore.

A choked noise left her lips, and Sonia buried her face in her hands. She would have had a girl.

"What would her name be?"

Max knew, and with some quick math made a decision. "Nora." He said the name softly, like a small prayer. Sometimes his Aunt Amara would be caught muttering under her breath, and when she'd explained she was just asking God a favour he hadn't understood. She'd done it when Robin had pneumonia a little while ago, and he hadn't understood what good it could do. Now he did. "Nora June."

The day faded away slowly, and it was just after the sun set that Charlie came home. He found them sleeping, tear tracks on their cheeks. He saw the box.

Crawling in beside his wife, he let a few tears slip. If only he hadn't been at work, then Max would not have had to deal with it on his own. They little family slept like that, Sonia between her two boys. Nora June lay in her hatbox, only ever been cradled by her older brother.

A/N: Sorry to get your hopes up folks...not a rash decision, by the way. All planned out.

Question: Thoughts on what transpired during this chapter, of little Nora June and her Mamma and big brother?

Rose