A Life Like This

Chapter 21

Penny
I wake up, groggy, and cant move. Im hooked up to wires, and hoses. For a moment i think im back in the hospital the day I found put about my parents' death. When I notice my baby bump doesn't feel quite as full and squishy as it used to, i remember last night. All the events come flooding back...i lost the baby.

Eric P.O.V
Great. I don't even know what to do at this point. Fuck. Im waiting in the waiting room for the nurse to come show me to Penny's room.
EE says they didn't loosr the baby, but he doesn't have a lot of detail. Said the doc was baffled about something and refused to let him or Penny see the baby until he was for sure about what it was.

Docs P.O.V
"This can't be..."
The words escape my aged, chapped lips, before I can stop them. Holding the newborn in my arms, caked in blood, it screamed, and screamed. The girl lost consciousness a few moments ago. The baby is very, very, premature, but looks like a full term child. I hand the child to a nurse so it can be cleaned.
While the child is being bathed, the nurse stops, almost as though shes frozen in place.
"Uh, umm, aye doc, you might wanna look at this..."

EEs P.O.V
I ask the doc what gender my kid is, and he said he didn't know. Like, you delivered the fucking thing and you can't tell me if it has a penis or vagina??

Something isn't right about this..

Docs P.O.V
There is only one thing I can do at this point. I go to the nursery. Find one of the healthy smaller children signed up for adoption, and swipe the child. Placing the odd infant in the crib and wheeling it into my office, locking the door as I leave. I wrap the infant in the gender specific blanket, and head to the mothers room.

EEs P.O.V.
I followed the doc, into the nursery, and to his office. I waited until he left so I could aproach his door.
Checking my surroundings, i head to the door. Shit. Locked.
I look around, scrounging for keys or a bobby pin, or something. Finally, in one of the dirty gowns bin, there's a wire hanger, yes. I go back to the door, keeping a look out, I get to work. In a matter of seconds, i hear a click, and the door is opened.
Just what I thought, my real child is swaddled, curled up, asleep in one of the glass bassanets.
I pick up my child, instantly being overwhelmed with the warmth and love of the newborn.
I hold him in my arms just right, and quiety exit the office, and head to my baby mommas room.

Pennys P.O.V
I wake up to a clicking of the door behind the doc. He has a baby in his arms.
"Get the corpse away from me, I know it was a miscarriage."
"Actually, you have a healthy baby girl, shes a bit small, but healthy.
He has an eerily warm smile about him. He hands me the child.
Tears come to my eyes.
"Andria.."
I'm not sure what it is, but something doesn't feel right, it feels off.
As the doc is leaving to give me some space with Andria, EE kicks the door in with another baby. Did I have twins?
"Babe, thats not our baby, this is."
"Wait..what?..."

DOCS P.O.V.
"Look, there's a good explanation, I swear."
The father sets the child into the arms of its mother and moves quickly towards me with murder in his eyes.
"HE LOCKED OUR BABY IN AN OFFICE, ALONE."
"Please, just let me explain sir."
I stutter, as i fall of over one of the tables.
"Ch- check the baby's gender. Go on."
He takes the infant, carfully unwraping the white blanket.
"What kind of sick fucking joke is this?"
"It's no joke sir, it just, came like that."

EEs P.O.V.
The baby is genderless. Like, a barbie, there's just nothing there.

I feel a hand on my shoulder, the hand of death itself. The shadow man.
I've been doing some research on my own without Penny, apparently, in some cultures, they revere to the shadow man as Death. Like, the Grim Reaper.

I SEE YOU HAVE NOTICED MY FOAVORITE TOUCH. HMM HMM HMMM.
"Fix our child, now!"
OH YOU IMBECILIC CHILD, IT ISNT YOUR BABY, ITS MINE...YES, THANK YOU FOR BRINGING MY BABY INTO THIS WORLD, NOW THEN, I MUST BE OFF.
He snaps his fingers and Andria is in his hands, leaving us with the baby the doc brought us.
"Give us back the baby!"
The shadow man simply grins. Looking slowly from Andria, to me, to Pen.
IF YOU SAY SO.
With a jerk of his wrist in the air, there's a sick snap, and Andia's head is turned 360°.
He drops the infants limp body to the floor, and disapears into thin air...
Pen is bawling, hurling herself into tears, handing the crying baby girl back to the doc.
He leaves with the child, to give us time. We will not take that other baby home.
I lay in the bed next to Penny, and wrap my arms around her. She sobs into my chest,bawling, heaving, screaming, and finally passes out from hyperventilation. Nurses come in, sent by the doc. Likely ones who understand sick circumstances like this, because they ask no questions. They pick up Andria and take her to be cleaned up and taken away. And clean up the mess in the floor.
I squeeze Penny tightly, and soon we're both fast asleep, crying through the nightmares in each others arms..