Allegro con fuoco

XLVII

The midwife came forward silently when the pool was completely filled.
"Would you like to get in the pool, Lily?" she asked gently. "Would you like me to check your dilation before?"
Lily nodded.
"Okay. Would you like..."
"Eddy stays." Lily said before Lydia could even finish the sentence.

Eddy made sure to keep his eyes firmly on his friend's sweet face as the midwife did something with her fingers down there.
"Very good work, Lily. You're at seven centimetres." she said after moment, beaming at Lily over the sound of snapping gloves.
Lily smiled at the midwife, then sat up and pulled her loose dress over her head in a fluid motion. Eddy stopped breathing. She was only wearing a black bikini - clearly with some forethought about the pool - and her belly... wow. It was absolutely massive, and yet the most beautiful thing in the world.
And inside was a little baby that he would get to meet, that he would get to be around.
Then he saw her belly tightening and Lily closed her eyes again. She breathed deeply, rhythmically, and Eddy found himself breathing with her as she squeezed his hand until it hurt.
"You got this, Lils." he whispered.
After a minute or two Lily opened her eyes again and he held her hand,supporting her as she moved, still graceful despite the situation, slowly to the pool and sank into the warm water. She heaved a giant sigh. 
"Oh, that's nice." she whispered as she leaned forward on all fours, resting her head on the plastic edge of the bath. Eddy stroked her hair back without thinking. 

Time seemed to fade as he sat with Lily, whispering little words of encouragement through her contractions, making sure not to wince as she squeezed his hand with all her might.
Who cared if he couldn't practise this week? All that mattered was Lily, and her belly, and the baby in it. Brett weaved in and out, bringing her something to drink, kissing him on the head, and his heart surged with love for him, for her, for the baby he hadn't even met yet.

Things had been so quiet for so long that he was getting into a weird, meditative state with her, and he startled a little when Lily suddenly started making a low, drawn out sound. He looked up at the midwife in shock, but she just smiled at him and walked over calmly.
Okay. So nothing to worry about?
Lily called again, like the moo of the worlds most elegant cow.
"Do you feel you need to push, Lily?" the midwife asked gently, as if it were nothing.
Lily nodded and mooed again.
"Just let your body take you where it needs to be, Lily. It knows what to do."
The situation was so beyond weird that even those words, that might usually make him snigger on the inside, made complete sense. He knew he was witnessing the most special, and at the same time the most normal thing in the world. Most women throughout history had done this, okay, maybe not in a fancy plastic pool but still, and yet this time, every time it was the most miraculous event ever.
The calling got louder and the squeezing of his hand harder, but he sat and breathed with her, his forehead to hers.
"Oh!" Lily called then and she moved back in one swift motion. One more giant moan and he couldn't believe what his eyes were telling him. Because there was a baby, a real, actual baby, floating between her legs in billowing clouds of soft, pink water. She reached down then, the tears running over her cheeks as they were over his, and picked it up, placing it tenderly on her chest.
"A girl." he whispered with tears choking his throat.
She nodded and looked at him. She looked tired, real tired but she was radiant all the same.
"I knew it would be. Uncle Eddy, meet Edlyn."