Chapter 16
Sora just lay there in the middle of the street, waiting for the pain to hit, but as she lay still with the crying child in her arms, she realized that the impact she felt was not enough to have been a speeding car. She heard the crowd begin to gather around and the child's mother crying out, wondering where her child was.
"Someone call an ambulance!" She heard a voice yell. I'm fine, she wanted to tell them, but couldn't exactly find her voice. She heard a bunch of people gather behind her, panic in their voices.
"Mommy!" The child cried.
"Johnny!" The mother cried the relief was obvious in her voice; Sora sat up and let the child go, aware that he was now safe. She began to stand, a little shaky on her feet, but shock did that to a person. An older gentleman grabbed her elbow, to steady her. "Are you okay?" He asked, but his eyes kept peering behind them.
Sora just nodded.
"Thank you!" The woman hugged Sora, tears streaming down her face. Sora began to pay closer attention to the commotion and finally noticed the crowd behind her, but they were looking at something on the ground, one man was yelling loudly into a cellphone, giving an address and demanding an ambulance. Her chest went cold; there was someone else in the accident?
She began to elbow her way through the circle of people, trying to catch a glimpse of the figure lying on the ground, but only had to see the flash of silver-white hair before her chest felt constricted, and she felt lightheaded. She brought a hand to her mouth; she was going to be sick. Oh my god! Her mind was running a mile a minute, trying to process what she was seeing. She rushed forward and landed on her hands and knees near the motionless figure on the ground, almost landing in a quickly growing pool of blood rushing from a nasty gash running from the center of his forehead, through his left eyebrow and down across his temple.
"Leon?" was the only word that escaped her lips.
The paramedics would not leave her be as she lay down on the stretcher in the quickly moving ambulance. Seeing she was pregnant, the EMTs were quick to decide that, along with Leon, she needed to be rushed to the hospital in order to have the baby checked and see if she had any physical trauma. She remained silent, though her thoughts didn't. Her mind kept flashing back to the image of Leon lying apparently lifeless on the ground. When she saw him there, she had taken his head into her lap, touching his face, just willing for him to wake up, but there was no response,
"Speak to me!" She had yelled, "Leon!" Tears were streaming down her face, how could this happen? She felt a firm grip on her arms, pulling her back.
"No!" she had cried, pulling free and grasping Leon's limp body in her arms, blood staining her dress.
Now she lay there motionless, the tears now dry on her cheeks, finally she broke her silence.
"Is he okay?" She asked the paramedic who was taking her pulse. Her voice cracked.
"Right now we need to worry about you." He said, skillfully avoiding her question. "How many weeks are you?" Is asked, indicating the baby. Sora's heart sank, the baby.
"Is my baby okay?!" She tried to sit up, hysterical; the paramedic gently pushed her shoulders down.
"Calm down, your baby should be fine. How far along are you?" he asked in a soothing voice.
"14 weeks," Sora said softly. She felt cold, but she knew the child was coming from within, what if he's… she couldn't bring herself to even think it.
"I'm sure you can see him as soon as you are checked." The paramedic tried to be reassuring. Sora only hoped that Leon's wound wasn't as bad as it had looked. Her mind and body were numb.
She paced back and forth in the waiting area; her nails were all but chewed down to the quick. The receptionist looked at her uneasily. She looked to the clock for about the 20th time in the past five minutes. She took back to pacing, skillfully avoiding eye contact with the receptionist who wouldn't stop staring, though Sora couldn't blame her. There she was in the hospital waiting room, blood stains on her dress, an arm bandaged and face slightly scraped from the fall, looking around like she expected a ghost to appear out of thin air.
"Sora!" May called from the door, a mixture of relief and anxiety etched onto her face. Sora could tell she was judging the amount of blood on the front of her dress, but that didn't seem to matter considering how quick she was to pull Sora to her chest. Ken wasn't too far behind. She pulled away and looked Sora up and down. "Are you okay?" Her eyebrows were pulled together in worry.
Sora's vision blurred as tears began to stream down her face again. "He knocked me out of the way." Her voice broke. "He saw me run, and knocked me out of the way." She began to sob as May pulled her close again; Ken remained silent, unsure of what to do in the presence of tears.
"SShh," May whispered as Sora cried into her shoulder, "It'll be okay." Where was Layla when you needed her? Why did she have to pick that week to go on vacation with the family?
Sora sniffled, "What if he's…" her voice broke, "Because of me… What if he's…"
"Don't even think about it!" May pulled away and held Sora by the shoulders, looking directly into her scraped up, tear-stained face and said it firmly. "Do not sell him short. We've seen this guy fall from fifty foot drops, he will get through this, I promise." May only hoped she hadn't turned herself into a liar.
"Miss Naegino?" Sora turned to see a young nurse, maybe a couple years older than her, in lavender scrubs. "Your friend is out of surgery now, you may go in," she looked at May and Ken, "I'm sorry but I can only allow one person in at a time, he needs to rest."
"That's fine, thank you." May answered for all three of them, she turned to Sora, "See, I told you, now go." There was no hiding the relief in Sora's expression, she squeezed May's hand and turned to follow the nurse.
Her throat felt blocked, her chest constricted, her eyes were locked onto the bed. Leon looked like he'd been hit by a train, or should I say a car. His eyes were surrounded by dark circles, deep bruises that would not fade for a while. His forehead was wrapped tightly in gauze; she could see the stitches peeking out from one corner. His face was pale; she could see a split in his upper lip and the oxygen hose in his nose. His left leg was in a cast, his arm was bandaged, Sora assumed he's gotten some pretty bad scrapes, though that was the least of his worries.
He had an IV drip hanging near the bed and was hooked up to the heart monitor. Sora could hear the steady beeping of the machine, a sign that he was alive. She nearly collapsed at his bedside, relief making her knees weak, but her chest ached, knowing that this was her fault.
"This is all my fault," she had begun to cry yet again. Stupid effing hormones! She took one of his hands in both of hers and kissed it softly. "I'm so sorry Leon." She whispered. She rested her forehead against his hand. "I'm sorry. I never wanted any of this to happen." She sobbed softly. "Why did you do this for me? Why would you risk dying just for me?" she asked, her head throbbing. "I just want to say thank you," she said softly, "I know you can't hear me right now, but I just wanted to thank you for saving my baby," she paused, "Our baby," she whispered, her voice breaking in the end. "You'll make a great father one day. I'm sorry for lying to you Leon, I'm so sorry." She cried yet again, "Leon, I know it's not right, but I love you. Please wake up." She pleaded, but he didn't respond. "Please." But her plea was only met with silence.
She sat in silence for a few minutes, occasionally letting out a choked sob, unaware of the platinum blonde ex-model standing just outside the door.
Leon didn't wake up for nearly three days. Every day, Sora went, if only to see if he woke and every day, Annette was there, once she even walked by and saw a very tall man with shaggy blonde hair and deep, crystal blue eyes, he and Annette on each side of the bed, Sora could hear them speaking in French. The man was very handsome, he could have been a movie star, or with his slight figure, a model, he certainly dressed like one.
On the third day, he was alone, so she went in and took a seat next to the bed. She took his hand in hers and just stared at his face, the bruises were fading a bit and she could see that his bandages have been changed, and the one over his forehead has been removed, showing the stitches and the former gash that looks like it will leave a scar. She gently brushed her fingers over the stitches. She swore she felt a twitch in her hand. A smile broke across her face, he was okay.
She heard someone clear their voice at the door. There stood Annette wearing a pair of white capris and a light blue t-shirt along with her signature four inch stilettos, her hair was in a single long braid. She smiled softly at Sora.
Sora abruptly let go of Leon's hand and stood up, blushing profusely. She walked to the door. "Hello." She said to Annette as she was about to leave.
"You don't need to go." She said in her thick French accent.
"Its fine," Sora forced a smile. "I have plans." She said, maybe she'd drop by Ava's shop and see how things were going.
"Goodbye." She said as she kept walking.
"But-" Sora was already gone, Annette wasn't quick enough.
A few minutes later Annette was sitting by Leon's bedside, holding his hand when she felt a pressure on hers and heard him take a deep breath. She looked up in time to see his eyes flutter open and he groaned.
"My head." He said in a thick voice.
"Morning sleeping beauty." Annette said.
"What happened?" He asked groggily, ignoring her joke.
"Well, let's just say you had a disagreement with a car in the middle of the street." She said flatly.
He looked up at the ceiling for a minute, apparently trying to remember what happened when his eyes grew wide.
"Sora!" He cried, trying to sit up, but apparently it was a little too much because he just fell back and hit the pillow with a gasp. "Is she okay?" He said in an alarmed voice. "The baby?"
"Zey are both fine." She said reassuringly. "Zat was a very brave thing you did, Leon, you saved her life, the baby, and the child Sora was trying to save."
"At least they are okay." He winced. Annette handed him the morphine button.
"Now don't you go turning into an addict on me." She joked.
He pressed it and visibly relaxed; his eyes began to droop. He promptly fell asleep. Annette pulled the blanket up to his shoulders and walked to the door; the nurses should know he was awake. Judging by how fast he fell asleep with the drugs, he would be out for a little while. So Annette decided to get him some treats as a little pick me up, hopefully he'd stay knocked out until she got back.
Sora walked in the late September heat, southern California never seemed to cool off, but she liked the weather. She was smart enough to have tied up her hair and worn sunglasses that day because it seemed abnormally bright, but maybe it was just her mood. She avoided the area of town where the accident took place; luckily there were other side-streets that she could use to get to where she wanted to go. She just so happened to be walking through the shopping district this time.
She looked into store windows as she walked by; one storefront particularly caught her attention. She paused and looked in. She was looking at a store for baby clothing and furniture. She imagined herself holding a little bundle, wrapped up in the softest of animal patterned blankets, cooing softly. She imagined pushing a stroller with a giggling toddler pointing and babbling, trying to show mommy all the wonderful things outside. She imagined herself on the beach, holding chasing the child in the sand, pretending she couldn't catch up. She imagined holding the hand of a very handsome man who was holding her child and kissed her forehead softly, his long silver hair blowing in the breeze.
She needed to stop torturing herself. She needed to stop thinking of Leon, she could be happy without him, knowing that he himself is happy.
She looked into the store one more time, then it hit her; she'd never even gotten anything for Ava's baby. She walked into the door without hesitation.
"Hello?" Sora called into the shop, a shopping bag under her arm; there was no one at the counter. She walked in, leaving the door open; she remembered Ava saying something about letting in a breeze being good for the flowers. "Hello?" She called again and heard a rustling in the back room and someone muttering.
Sora looked on the counter and found a little bell that said ring for service. She tapped it softly, letting the sharp sound fill the air.
"Coming!" She heard a soft voice call from the back. There was a bump and a soft "Ouch" before there were footsteps in the hall. "Can I help you?" She said before she even saw Sora.
"Sora!" She cried, giving her a hug, that seemed to be her default greeting. "I'm so glad you're okay! I heard about the accident!" She said quickly, "I'm sorry I wasn't able to go see you."
"It's fine. I'm fine, and Leon moved today so that's a plus!" She smiled weakly.
"That was a brave thing he did." Ava said.
Sora was silent.
Ava, deciding things were getting too serious, decided to change the subject. "Look at these." She pulled a basket of orange roses out from behind the counter. "I've been getting them ready for the fall season, you know, special colors and all."
"Wow! I've never seen an orange rose before!" Sora was fascinated.
"We grow them in a special dye so they grow different colors. It doesn't hurt the flowers and they come out in awesome colors." She moved them around in the basket. "What's that?" She said, indicating Sora's bag.
"Oh, it's for you actually, well, for the baby." She handed her the bag. "I thought you'd like it."
Ava pulled out a soft ivory blanket with roses embroidered onto it in different colored threads. "Oh! It'd beautiful! I love it! I'll have to show it to Grant when he gets back."
"From where?" Sora asked.
"He went to help his brother move in Santa Barbara, so he should be back tomorrow or the day after." She paused for a second; her hand flew to her stomach.
"Are you okay?" Sora asked after a moment of silence.
Ava didn't speak; she only took Sora's hand and placed in on her stomach. Sora felt a light flutter beneath her fingertips, she smiled.
"He's a little kick boxer lately." Ava said softly, her eyes full of love as she looked at her belly.
"Wow," Sora whispered as she felt Ava's baby kick again. "This is amazing!"
"I know! Sometimes it can get a little uncomfortable but it's worth it!" She laughed. "Has yours kicked yet?"
"No," Sora sighed. "Nothing yet."
"Oh, I'm sure he'll start moving around soon, don't worry about it. Well, thank you so much for the blanket, I love it!" She rubbed the blanket against her cheek. "Oh! I almost forgot! I have more roses I want to show you, come on, they're in the greenhouse." She began to walk down the hall when she stopped suddenly.
"What's wrong?" Sora said. Ava didn't answer, she only stood there.
"Oh my god…" came her voice after a moment of silence.
"What?" Sora asked. She noticed a puddle of water on the floor.
Ava turned, her dress soaked.
"Oh my god." It was Sora's turn to be shocked. They just stared at each other for a second, shock setting in. She ran to the door and flipped the open sign to closed.
Sora stood outside the delivery room, pacing anxiously. Why did Grant have to be gone then! She looked at the clock.
"Miss Naegino?" A nurse peaked her head out the room. "You can come in; Mrs. Ross wants you to be here."
"Me?" Sora asked dumbstruck. Her heart was pounding as she walked through the door. Ava was hooked up to a couple of machines.
"Good." Ava sighed with relief, "You're still here."
"Of course, I wouldn't leave at a time like this."
"Grant's brother couldn't have picked a worse time to move." She laughed but was hit with a contraction. "They're getting shorter." She just looked at Sora for a second, then swallowed and asked, "Will you stay in here with me?"
"What?" Sora thought she misheard.
"Grant is gone and I'm scared to do this alone." She wanted Sora in the delivery room. Sora's heart lept.
She smiled, "Okay."
About an hour later Sora was all gowned up and standing by Ava's head. "You're doing great."
"AAGGHH!" Was her answer. Her face was contorted with pain. Sora was suddenly scared; this was going to be her in a few months. Ava was squeezing Sora's hand so hard that her finger tips were turning purple. She wiped the sweat from her forehead. What had she gotten herself into?
"Okay, push!" The doctor said. Ava screamed again. "One more!" The doctor said, then was silent. He spoke to one of the nurses.
Sora suddenly got this sinking feeling in her stomach.
"What's wrong?" Ava asked between gasps. The doctor just looked at her for a second. "What the hell is going on?" She demanded.
"Mrs. Ross, I need you to relax," she took a breath, "The baby is not descending."
"What does that mean?" Sora asked, alarmed. Ava was suddenly very still,
"What's wrong with my baby?" she cried loudly, but the doctor ignored her question.
"Get the ultrasound ready," she isntructed the nurse,
"Doctor?" Ava said uneasily. the doctor only kept working with the equipment. "What the hell is going on?!" Ava now sounded hysterical.
"We're just checking to make sure everything is alright." the doctor said. Ava was silent except for the occasional whimper when a contraction would pass.
The doctor spread the cold gel over Ava's stomach. A blurry image appeared on the screen. Sora couldn't really make much of it at first, but as the doctor located the baby and the picture got a little clearer Sora's heart nearly stopped.