Open My Heart to Love

Chapter 31

"Macy!? What happened!? Macy!?" Karim shouted into the phone before pulling it away from his ear to look at it, afraid for a moment that the call had been disconnected. 

The sheer panic he was feeling was overwhelming. He could hear Macy's cries and groans and there was nothing he could do to help. He feared that she had fallen down the stairs in her attempt to get to the front door so that she could unlock it for the ambulance that was en route. Glancing from Sergio to Audrey, who both looked as terrified as he felt, he shot them a helpless look, knowing that in this moment there was nothing he could do, he was a helpless as he felt. Finally hearing Macy's voice on the other end, he loudly let out the breath he had been holding. 

"Karim? Are you still there? I...I...dropped the phone..." Macy said, her voice burdened with the pain that she was feeling. 

"I am here, Mace...I am here. Are you okay? Can you make it to the door? If you can't...I will tell them to bust it down." He asked as he tried to control his own breathing in an effort to bring Macy some comfort. 

"Yes, I made it to the door and it is unlocked...I am fine...but Karim?" Macy said.

"Yes, babe?" He answered.

"I don't know if the baby is going to wait until I get to...oh my God...no no no no..." Her words stopped as she began grunting through the next contraction. 

"It's okay, baby...just breath...like the book said...in through your nose and out through your mouth...until it's over...there you go...you got this, Mace...you are amazing..." Karim said as he tried his best to coach her through the difficult time she was currently enduring. 

Karim could here her following his directions and found a sense of calmness wash over him as he counted her breaths, telling himself that it would be okay. Macy was quite possibly the strongest person he had ever met and she only solidified that judgement in the composure she was portraying right now. 

"Holy shit! Karim this sucks so bad! As I was saying....I don't think I am going to make it to the hospital...the pressure...oh my God...Ahhhh!" She said as she began to struggle again. 

Karim looked at Audrey, who was still on the phone with the emergency operator. 

"How far away are they?" Karim asked, his voice shaking against the emotion he was trying so hard to conceal. 

Audrey spoke into the phone that was pressed against her ear and flashed Karim a reassuring smile. 

"They are only a few blocks away...she says they should be there within minutes." Audrey relayed. 

"Mace? The paramedics are almost there...just stay calm okay, baby...can you do that for me? Just stay calm." Karim said soothingly. 

Looking up through the windshield, he saw that they too, were not that far away from their house, or from Macy. 

"Karim...I have to push...she is coming...I can't....I have to!" Macy shrieked, the panic heavy in her words. 

"No! Macy...you can't push! You have to wait for the paramedics! Please...baby...remember when we were in Anguilla?" He pleaded, trying to get her mind off of the urge to push.

"Yeah...yeah...I do." She answered against her labored breath, the words ragged as she spoke. 

"Remember how calm and blue the water was on the beach?" 

"Yeah...it...it was beautiful..." She said. 

"Think of the calmness of the water...imagine the sounds that it brought...are you imagining it, Mace?" Karim said softly.