By the time the doctor declares that I am officially in labor, Sage, Bryan, Waylon, Lindsey, and Eric are all in the waiting room, and Lindsey has called my mother to tell her that something is wrong.
"What do you mean she's in labor?" Stefan snaps at the shorter, stocky, middle-aged man. "How? She's not even full term, yet!" I don't think I have ever seen Stefan lose his composure too quickly.
"Sir," the doctor says, calmly. "My best OB nurses are about to hook her up to a uterine monitor. This records the spacing and duration of contractions. We will also be monitoring the mother's heart rate, as well as the baby's. If there is anything we can do to stop this or slow it down at least, we will. Now, are you the father or a family member?
Stefan shakes his head. "No, I'm her boyfriend."
An odd look crosses the doctor's face, and I feel my cheeks begin to redden. "Uhm," I interject awkwardly. "The father is in a room on a different floor right now. He's a patient here at the hospital."
He nods. "Ah, I see. Well, just for now, Sir, I am going to need you to leave the room. We will let you know when you can come back."
I see Stefsn tense, and just before he objects, I grab his arm. He looks back over to me with worried eyes, I give him a weak smile. "Hey," I mumble. "I'll be alright, just listen to the doctor. Go tell everyone that I'm fine for now, okay."
A second longer, he stares at me, and then his shoulders fall as he nods. "Okay, I'll be back," He whispers. Jyst before placing a light peck on my forehead. "It'll be okay."
After he leaves, the doctor grabs his clipboard and glances at me from his squared glasses. "Alright, hon. We are going to run some tests and swab you from. a few vaginal infections. Hopefully, this hasn't gone too far, we won't be seeing this baby for a few more months."
I nod. "Okay," I reply, quietly. "But, what happens if we do? Will she be" I trail off, feeling tears spring into my eyes.
He gives me a kind smile, "Babies born at 26 weeks gestation have around a 95% survival rate. You would hopefully just be looking at a long stay in the NICU. There are many risks, but we will figure this out, okay."
I nod, taking a deep breath as another contraction builds. Just as I let out a loud, pain-filled groan, a couple of nurses rushed in with medical equipment. They hook Emma and me up to monitors, and I lay back, my mind racing. I can't tell if everything is moving way too fast or if time is dragging by, but as soon as I hear a familiar voice in the doorway, the beeping from my monitor quickens.
"Mya?" Jacob says quietly as a nurse rolls him in my room. "Are you okay?"
"Is it alright if the father is present, ma'am? He wouldn't stop asking until we got him up," The burse asks, I stare at her wide-eyed for a moment and then nod, wordlessly. She rolls over to my bed. "The doctor will be back shortly, we are looking over some of your tests. If you feel any pressure or see any blood, press your call light immediately, okay?"
When she leaves, my eyes flicker back to Jacob. Neither of us speak for a moment. We only exchanged strained stares.
"What do you want?" I whisper, barely breaking the silence.
As I speak, I see his eyes redden and his chin begins to tremble. "I was wrong," He choked out. "I was so wrong, and I'm so sorry. You were right, I did stop caring. It wasn't about you or our baby, though. Some of my memories have been coming back, I never stopped caring about you. I stopped caring about myself. It was-" His voice cracks and I see his jaw flex. "It was so stupid, I don't even know what was happening in my mind when I cheated, and now I'm the reason that our baby and you are in danger. I'm so sorry."
