Jewel's POV
Bright lights pour into my eyelids and a loud thumping starts to beat in my ears. Someone is carrying me, I'm not sure who but their arms are strong and it feels like they're running.
Running where?
Voices chatter around everywhere, making me cringe back into the large figure. Only moments before I fall back into nothingness, I hear the person speak.
Desperation fills his voice, almost pleading.
"Please! Please save her!"
And then the blackness that had me, takes me back into it's arms, closing me out from the world once more.
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Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
A heart monitor clicks off to my left, revealing my even paced pulse. Slowly, I open my eyes up to the world around me. I'm wrapped in a blue smock, wires all over my body, attached to different places. One of them has been placed up my nose, making it difficult to breath. I tug at it gently, before a large hand catches my wrist, stopping me.
"Don't, baby."
I jerk my head to the sound of the husky voice and dark blue eyes meet mine.
Eric.
He sits on a chair, next to the bed. He looks absolutely exhausted. His eyes are blood shot and if I didn't know any better, I would say that he's been crying.
"Wha- Where am I?" It's hard to talk. My throat is dry and I start to cough. Eric immediately leans up, stroking the side of my face with his calloused hand.
"Shh, you're alright. We're at Erudite."
What?
I open my eyes wider to look at him better.
"Why are we here?"
But I don't need him to answer me because now I'm beginning to remember. I remember screaming and all the blood that covered the bed sheets.
I remember the baby...
My heart rate picks up and my breathing becomes heavy.
"Is the baby okay?"
A panicked look glazes over his eyes and for once in his life, Eric looks vulnerable. So breakable that I want to cry. I reach out a hand to him and he leans closer to me, pressing his forehead against mine.
"They won't tell me anything." He's angry. Underneath that sad look is the same man that I've always known. The one who is used to getting his way and will do anything for the answers he wants. His jaw becomes rigid as he pulls back.
"How long have I been here?"
His eyes drift to my belly, where they stay.
"Five hours. Maybe more. I stopped looking at the clock."
Why haven't they told him anything?
Why hasn't he demanded answers?
If I've lost this baby, where does that leave us? Eric and I. Would we ever be the same? Could we recover? For him, it would probably be easier. His leadership position would keep him occupied, giving him different tasks to keep his mind off the more somber subjects. I, on the other hand, would be left in limbo.
Here, I was pregnant with this baby, by a man that I'm not even sure I love or that he loves me and now the baby is gone. Do you keep going? Act like it didn't happen? Move on? Sure, I could move on, eventually but would Eric and I stay together?
And then...as if all of this isn't bad enough, past memories start to flood my brain like a tsunami. I remember Eric talking about having lost a baby with Natalie. How he said he wasn't ready to be a father. Was he with her when it happened? Like he is with me right now? Obviously, they didn't work out. How would he and I ever be different from that?
Small tears trickle down my face and I can't stand to look at him. I shove his hand away from my face, making a confused look appear on his features.
"What's-"
But a nurse walks in the door before he has the chance to say anything.
She's dressed in all blue, typical Erudite, a white lab coat drapes over her narrow shoulders. She holds a clip board tight to her chest. I meet her gaze and she sends me a soft smile then her eyes trail over to Eric where a grim expression washes over her face.
She seems absolutely disgusted by his presence.
Quickly, she walks around to the other side of the bed and sits on the edge.
"Is the baby alive?" Eric's harsh voice booms over the continuous monitors.
The nurse doesn't even look at him, only me. Her hand comes over to mine and she takes it gently between her bony fingers. I start to cry harder, dreading her words to come.
"My name is Sarah. I've been the nurse taking care of you." Her voice is sultry and calming, very unlike any Erudite I've heard before. She seems soft and motherly.
I nod at her introduction, indicating that she go on.
Sarah glances down at her clip board, lifting a page or two to look at notes and scribbles. Then she brings her gaze to mine again, with a determined look on her face.
"You had severe hemorrhaging. You lost a significant amount of blood but you're stabilized now."
"Is. the. baby. okay.?" Eric is on the verge of losing it. His chest heaves back and forth, looking like he's just gotten done with a long run.
The nurse cuts her eyes at him, her lips pressed into a tight line.
Her fingers grip tightly to mine. And I wait for what's to come. My heart beat practically stopping.
"You didn't lose the baby. Even with the blood loss, somehow the baby survived." She shakes her head in astonishment.
I cry harder. Releaved to know that my baby is alright. Our baby is alright. I look over at Eric to see the color has come back to his face and his breathing has evened out.
Sarah stands, leaving to exit.
Eric takes my face in his hands and kisses me with passion. Something I can't ever remember him doing before. But I gladly kiss back, enjoying the taste of his lips on mine and the butterfly sensation he always seems to bring.
Sarah clears her throat and Eric pulls away.
She forces a smile, obviously still offended by Eric's presence.
"I also wanted to tell you both congratulations." Her smile widens when she looks at me.
"You will both be parents to a baby girl."
I am so sorry that it has taken me so long to update this story. I've been busy writing my other story, Haunt. But here it is! I hope everyone is happy with the outcome!
