Scared Of Healing

3 Months Later

It has officially been 3 months since I've taken Ellie home to live with me. She has adapted incredibly well and we've all become very close. As of last week, Ashton officially put Ellie on bed rest and she's bored. She's spent most of her time studying, wanting to prove to herself that even with everything she's going through, she can still finish school with good marks. She's been working with the department of distance education instead of starting face to face school. We all decided that it would be too much stress for not enough outcome. She is absolutely over the moon that she has the opportunity to be having a baby and, even though she's 16, I already know that she's going to be an incredible mother. I go to sleep happy almost every night, knowing that I get to make an impact to such a beautiful person.

As always, I wake up 10 minutes before my alarm, allowing myself time to think about all this stuff. My thoughts are quickly interrupted when I hear my name being called from down the hall. It's Ellie... and she's panicking. You can hear it in her voice. Crystal wakes up at this and we both jump out of bed, making our way to Ellie's room. I fling the door open and she looks up to me with tears in her eyes. She's sitting in a pool of water and I kinda just stand there, frozen. I have no idea what I'd do without Crystal. She is so quick to act, immediately crouching by Ellie's side and taking her hand. I watch as my wife kisses our daughter's hand before yelling through the house, "EVERYONE GET UP! WE'RE ABOUT TO HAVE A BABY!" she shouts. While we wait for everyone to get their asses out of bed, I start rushing around, trying to find Ellie's hospital bag and everything she'll need. 

Luke and Sierra are the first to rush into the room and Sierra immediately joins Crystal in comforting my daughter. Ellie and Sierra have grown very close over the last few months and I'm so glad that she has Crystal and Sierra with her. Luke pats me on the back with a smile, "ready to be a grandpa?" he chuckles. I bury my face in my hands, "I'm never gonna be ready for that... oh my god" I mumble. He laughs at me before Ashton and Calum rush into the room. Once we have everyone, we start loading into the car. I try to help Ellie stand up but she screams in pain, making Ash take over. He slowly moves her out of bed, supporting all her weight. Even with a baby inside her, she still weighs nothing, so Ash can easily support the 56 kilos and help her downstairs and into the car. We all pile in and Calum starts driving us to the hospital. Luke is on call at the moment anyway, so fitting her in to get a c-section won't be a problem.

My nerves start to kick in once we get Ellie into a hospital bed. Calum and Sierra sit on seats in the corner of the room while Crystal and I sit with her in bed. Ellie clings to one of us each time she has a contraction, squeezing her eyes shut and biting her lip softly to wait out the pain. We rub her back, trying our best to comfort her.

Ashton bounces his way into the room with a smile, "should we get rid of this pain for you?" he asks. Ellie looks to me anxiously and I place a kiss on her forehead, "you'll be ok, sunshine. It's gonna make you feel better" I reassure, watching Ash get ready for the epidural. Ash comes around to look at Ellie, "alrighty, sweet cheeks. I'm gonna get you to dangle your legs over the edge of the bed for me. Sierra and Crystal are gonna hold your hands while you're gonna hug this pillow for me" he says, helping her to sit up. Ellie looks to him desperately, "I'm freaking out a bit" she mumbles. Ash smiles softly with a little nod, "most women do... I promise I'll be quick. It's not gonna hurt any more than the contractions already do. I'm gonna start with a local anaesthetic" he says. Ellie nods, leaning forwards into the pillow that Sierra has moved over to give her. Ashton smiles, "good girl, Elle. I'm gonna give your back a little clean now" he warns before creating his sterile field. I gently hold my daughter's shoulder as I watch my friend pick up the local anaesthetic. "Alrighty, Elle. Little pinch now, I'm gonna go slow for you so it doesn't hurt as much" he says, making Ellie nod, squeezing the girls' hands as Ash gently pushes the needle into the skin near her spine. She lets out a little whine as the anaesthetic is pushed, but Ash finishes quickly, "good job, sweetheart. That bit's done" he says, disposing of the needle. Ellie shakes her head, I know this is the bit she's been dreading.

Ashton sighs, "it's just gonna be a lot of pressure, sweetheart. It's not gonna be nice, but it'll take me a minute. Then it's over and we can go see Luke" he says. Ellie lets out a little cry, shaking her head again. Crystal places a kiss on her forehead, "breathe, sunshine. Ash's gonna be gentle, it'll be over super quick and then we can get rid of the pain" she reassures. My baby lets a few more tears slip before, squeezing the pillow again. Ashton sighs, "alright, pretty girl. Stay nice and still for me" he says softly, getting the needle ready. She whimpers but doesn't move, letting Ash do what he has to. She cries as the needle is pushed between her vertebrae and I rub my hand through her hair, "shh, you're doing so well, sweetheart" I praise, watching Ash finish the procedure. "All done, Ellie. You were so good. You're gonna feel so much better now" Ash says, cleaning up.