Smile Like You Mean It (One)

Chapter Thirty Two

"Who do we call first?" Beth questioned Brian, as he shrugged his shoulders, maintaining his concentration on the road ahead.

"I-I guess we call Sal. Do you know his work number?" Brian replied, as Beth shook her head. "I've got it written down in the glove compartment."

He pointed to in front of her, as Beth searched through the small space, pulling out a crumpled piece of paper. She dialled the number into her cell phone, letting it ring, as no answer came. She hung up, as Brian quickly looked at her, before turning his attention back to the road. "What happened?"

"No one picked up." She sighed. "I'll try again later, but I'll call the others so that they're there too."

A cry came from the backseat, as Beth turned to Bryony, her heart falling in her chest. "We're almost there, just keep breathing, okay?"

"Where's Sal?" Bryony wept, the pain being absolute agony for her.

"He'll be there, we promise. Just focus on you for now."

Beth tried to call Sal's place of work another time, once again getting nothing but no answer from the other end of the phone. She gave up for the time being, contacting James and Rachel to inform them on what was happening, before calling Joe and Bessy too.

It wasn't long until Brian pulled up outside of the hospital. He didn't care how badly he had parked, as he sprinted into the building, soon returning to the car with a wheelchair. He helped Bryony out of the vehicle and into the chair, as Beth dealt with the forms in the reception area. Brian wheeled her through the entrance doors, as he was led by a nurse to an empty room. The staff took over with dealing with Bryony, as Brian made his way back out to Beth. She was just finishing off the last few details, when the entrance doors opened. They looked up, coming to find James and Rachel running in.

"Where is she? What's happening? Where's Sal?" James threw questions left, right, and centre, as Brian held his hands up to the boy, calming him down.

"She's with the nurses, she's gone into labour, and he's at work. We can't get hold of him." Brian informed them.

"Can we go and see her?" Rachel asked, as Beth nodded her head.

"We'll go and see her after you, something about too many people in the room." Beth replied, watching them both make their way down to Bryony's room.

Bryony sat up on the hospital bed, hearing a small knock at her door. Her heart leapt in her chest, praying that it was Sal. Rachel stepped in first, with James following in behind her. They took a seat either side of the bed, as Rachel placed a hand to Bryony's shoulder.

"You're doing great." She smiled, as Bryony thanked her nervously.

"I'm scared." She admitted quietly.

"About what?" James asked sincerely, witnessing the single tear roll down Bryony's cheek.

"What if he doesn't get the call in time? What if he misses the birth? He'll never forgive himself."

"Beth has been calling him non-stop. She'll make sure that he gets here in time, even if they have to go all the way to the movie theatre to get him." Rachel responded, as Bryony nodded her head.

"I hope so."

**

James and Rachel spent a short while in the room with Bryony, before leaving her to it, whilst the nurses checked up on how she was doing. They made their way back to the waiting room, coming to find that Joe and Bessy had both arrived.

"Still no sign of Sal then?" James asked, as a deep sigh escaped Brian.

"Nope. The line is always engaged." He answered.

"I wonder how he is going to act when he finds out." Joe commented, saying his thoughts out loud, as everyone turned to him. He looked around the group, shrugging his shoulders. "What?"

"I never thought of that." Beth winced. "What if he panics?"

"Sal...panic? Never heard of such a thing." Joe chuckled, as Bessy elbowed him, wiping the smile off of his face.

"Now isn't the time for jokes, Joe." James muttered, shaking his head.

"What's the number? I'll try on the hospital phone as well." Rachel suggested, as Beth handed her the scrap piece of paper with the number written on it.

**

Five hours of waiting had passed, with still no sign of getting in contact with Sal. The group were defeated, with Joe passed out on the chair, with his legs hanging over the armrest, and his head lying in Bessy's lap. Her hand ran through his spike of hair, as a deep sigh escaped her. She looked around the waiting room, seeing James and Rachel talking quietly amongst themselves, and both Brian and Beth asleep opposite. Brian had his arm wrapped around her shoulders, as Beth lie asleep beside him. James soon stood to his feet, stepping over to Bessy.

"I'm going to the vending machine, do you want anything?" He asked her, as she shook her head.

"Still no hope contacting Sal then?" She questioned.

"Afraid not. Rachel's been trying."

"He should finish soon though, shouldn't he?"

"Hopefully." James responded, soon making his way out of the waiting room.

All was quiet, until Rachel jumped up from her seat in celebration, waking everyone up in the process, as she called down the phone.

"Sal?" She asked.

"Rachel? What is it?" He responded. "I'm in the car, just about to head home."

"Sal, you need to get to the hospital! Bryony's gone into labour. We've been trying to call you all day! Why haven't you answered?!"

"What?! Wh-When? Is she okay? I'll be there as soon as I can!" He panicked from the other end of the phone.

"She's doing fine, but the nurses are saying that it's almost time. Hurry!" Rachel exclaimed, hanging up the phone, as everyone looked at her. She cleared her throat, letting a smile play on her lips. "He's on his way."

"Finally!" Brian marvelled.

"I'd better go and check on her." Beth declared, as Rachel followed after her.

"I'll come with you."

They stepped into the hospital room, as Bryony looked up, smiling weakly through the pain. Rachel took a seat on the end of the bed, as Beth sat on the chair to the side. They both watched over the girl, as she looked between them both.

"Is he on his way?" Bryony asked cautiously, expecting the same answer she had been receiving for the past few hours.

"Yes." Rachel smiled, seeing Bryony whisper a small thank you in praise under her breath. "How are you feeling?"

"Crappy." Bryony answered. "The contractions are getting closer together, and the pain is unbelievable."

"You're almost there. It'll all be worth it in the end." Beth added with a smile, as Bryony nodded her head. She paused, before turning to Rachel.

"Can you call my parents...please? I know that they won't come, but I still want them to know."

"Of course we will." Rachel responded, standing from the bed. "We'll let you rest for now, and we'll send Sal in as soon as he gets here."

Bryony watched her friends leave, feeling the slight panic inside, as reality hit. This was it, she was about to have a baby. A baby. The words rang around her head, as she thought everything over; from the first day she set foot on American soil, all the way to that morning. The image of the hurt on Sal's face stained her mind, the guilt writhing through her veins. She was brought out of her thoughts by the sound of the door opening, looking up to see the one person she had been waiting for.

Him.