Not Who You Say You Are

Chapter Sixteen

The screaming quickly starts again as everybody looks down at the ground. Dana notices the puddle of water quickly expanding on the concrete floor and once again starts hyperventilating. The entire bottom half of her maternity dress she has been wearing all day is now extremely wet. My mother immediately takes charge and rushes Dana into the light, laying her down against the wall. We all follow but when we see Dana in the light, we realise the stain on her dress is not water. It's blood. The dark red stains only get larger as time passes and the fight that was breaking out before has abruptly stopped, even though I'm sure it will resurface soon enough.

Dana's grunting intensifies and Mom sits with her, holding her hand and telling her to breathe. She tries but every few seconds, Dana erupts into screaming fits. I have to cover my ears and close my eyes. It's so painful to watch and spine-chilling to hear. The amount of blood that is on the floor, my mother and Dana make it hard to tell whether the baby will even be alive, which is a truth too difficult to accept, but judging by the way this night is going I wouldn't be surprised. Dana seems to calm down a little and Mom steps away from her. Her face is wet with tears and sweat, and her hands are bloody.

She rushes to an empty corner of the room and sits down against the wall, shoving her head into her hands. Dana goes in and out of consciousness as she quietly whimpers. Wade is still standing at the security camera, covering his mouth and ignoring her. I can't believe that even still, he blatantly disregards her when she needs him the most. I feel my feet moving before my brain can catch up and I march towards him, getting close to his face.

"What are you doing?", I ask him in an aggressive whisper. "Your wife is giving birth and you're doing fucking nothing!"

For once, Wade doesn't look like his usual defensive, accusatory self. He looks sheepish. He stares at me with panic in his eyes as he whispers four words back to me.

"I didn't want this", he admits.

His eyes are full of sadness as he says this. I do think he loves Dana but apparently not that much. I can envision him just wanting to have a fling with a younger woman and leave it at that. But then Dana got pregnant which I'm positive was his fault, most likely him not wanting to wear a condom, and now he's paying the price. I'll give it to him, at least he stuck it out and is staying with her through it. That's the bare minimum I suppose, but it's what's to be expected from Wade.

"I don't care. Neither does she", I say pointing to Dana, still lying on the floor with her eyes closed. "You did it. Now go and support her".

Surprisingly, it appears that some of this resonates with Wade and his eyes go serious, like he's on a mission. He nods vigorously before marching over to Dana and sitting down next to her, holding her hand. Dana opens her eyes and when she sees it's Wade sitting with her, she smiles. Not for long, however, because what I think are her contractions start again and she begins yelling. I can see Wade's discomfort and wanting to leave, but he stays. My mother hears Dana start up again and quickly rushes back to her. She sits on her other side, leaving Wade where he is. I get close to them and can hear my mother telling her to breathe again, but it's no use. Dana continues screaming.

I actively watch the sweat forming on my mother's forehead and drip down her face. She's not a doctor. She's not a midwife. She doesn't really know what to do but she's had two children, and she tells us that it was the most painful moment of her life. If she can do nothing else, she can give her moral support.

"It's okay Dana", she pants. "You're doing amazing".

I don't think Dana agrees, as she continues screaming. Compared to Dana's face, Mom's is pristine. Dana's face is scrunched, bright red and soaked, and when she opens her eyes, I can see that they are bloodshot. We've given up on trying to be quiet. He knows we're down here anyway so there's no point in trying to hide. Dana looks around the room as if she's looking for someone to save her. She looks desperate, pleading for something to take the pain away. Then she notices the blood.