~Operating Room~
What Dr. Sharma had first suspected had unfortunately turned out to be correct. Ishita wasn't contracting strong enough and postpartum hemorrhaging occurred. After delivering the placenta Dr.Sharma had tried every available option, she tried massaging the uterus, giving medication and changing Ishita 's position but nothing helped. Once inside the OR several other techniques were being tried, but Ishita was losing entirely too much blood in the process.
"If this doesn't work, we're going to have to open her up and take a look from the inside." Dr.Chopra informed Dr.Sharma . "The only way to stop the bleeding may be to perform a hysterectomy." ( Removal of the uterus )
"Ishita's only in the mid. thirties, I don't want to have to perform a hysterectomy unless we absolutely have to." Dr.Sharma replied. "We still have a few options."
~Waiting Room~
Raman got up from the sofa. "All this waiting is killing me." he sighed as he ran his hands through his hair. "Why won't they come out and tell us something?"
"They will as soon as the can, Raman ." Vandu replied.
"What did you tell the kids.?" he asked.
"Amma sent Adi home with the Kids .
I told them that Ishita was still in labor and that I'd come and get them as soon as I heard something." she told him. "I didn't want to scare them ."
"Good." he breathed. "I don't know how much more of this I can take, Vandu "
Vandita got up and walked over to where he was leaning against the wall and gently wrapped her arms around him. "Ishu is the strongest woman I know and I'm sure that she's going to be just fine. She has to be."
"Mr.Bhalla ?" Rhea called out.
"Yes?" he answered,"My wife is she alright?"
"Mrs. Bhalla is under the best possible care." Rhea tried to assure him. "As soon as she can Dr. Sharma will come out and speak to you. I just wanted to tell you that your baby is in the nursery and you can visit whenever you're ready."
Thank you." he replied.
"I also wanted to give you this." she said, extending her hand. Rhea gently placed Ishita's ring in the palm of his hand and then left the room.
Raman looked down at the ring and then slowly closed his hand. It was her engagement ring. He remembered forgetting to buy a ring at the engagement. He had later bought her a ring and that, he had chosen with love......"This means they had to take her into the operating room."
"We don't know that." Amma offered. "But for right now I think we should walk down to the nursery and take a look at the
baby."
He gently nodded and slipped Ishita 's ring onto his pinky. Romi lead him down the hallway until they reached the nursery window. "In all the chaos I forgot to ask. Is the baby a boy or a girl?" Vandu asked
A boy." Raman answered.
"I told ya it was a boy." Said Amma, she smiled. "Let's go in and see him."
They walked into the nursery and were greeted by Rhea. "Would you like to hold him?" she asked.
"Sure." he smiled, trying to take his mind off of Ishita . "I think I'm going to sit though." Raman sat down in the rocking chair and Rhea brought the baby over and gently placed him in his father's arms.
"I'll be next door if you need anything." Rhea told them as she left.
Mihika looked down at the small baby ."Oh, Jeeju, he's beautiful."
"Isn't he." Raman agreed. "Ishita said he was perfect."
"He is." she agreed.
He gently rocked his son, holding him tightly in his strong arms. He wanted to shield him from the entire cruel world. Amma watched Raman with his son
but her mind wandered back to Ishita and she knew Raman 's did as well. As he continued to rock the baby all the tears that he had been holding in began to
fall. One by one.
The family welcomed the new family member. Amma, Appa, Mamij and Papaji were again proud grandparents, but they were all worried about Ishita....
~Operating Room~
Nurse looked from the monitors back to Dr. Sharma . "Her pressure's dropping."
Dr.Sharma glanced up at the machines. "Open up the IV's." she instructed.
The nurse did just as the doctor instructed, but after following several different orders nothing seemed to help. Ishita 's vitals continued to fall rapidly. A loud, high pitched noise began to fill the room.
"Get me a crash cart!" Dr. Sharma ordered
~ Hospital Hallway ~
Raman paced frantically up and down the hospital corridor as he waited for news on Ishita . It felt like she had been in there forever and it was as if time was just slowly dragging by. Feeling as though his legs were going to fail him, Raman rested his back against the wall. He took long, deep breaths hoping they would calm him down. Carefully he lowered himself down so that he was sitting on the floor.
He tried thinking happy thoughts. He tried imagining Ishita holding the Baby in her arms. He tried to imagine their son saying his first word or taking his first step. He tried to imagine them celebrating his first birthday.......
Mr. Bhalla?" Dr. Sharma called out. "Mr. Bhalla?"
Robert snapped out of his daze and quickly got to his feet. "Ishita?" he asked. "Is she alright?"
"Ishita experienced what we call Postpartum Hemorrhaging." she explained. "Luckily we were able to stop the bleeding before any drastic measures had to be taken."
You didn't have to perform a hysterectomy?" he asked.
"No." she answered. "That would have been another complication, but luckily we did not need to do it."
"Thank you." Raman replied. "When can I see her?"
"I'll take you to her now." she told him.
~Ishita's Hospital Room~
Raman cautiously entered and closed the door behind him. Ishita looked the same as the last time he had seen her, pale and delicate. He made his way over to
her bed and had a seat in the chair beside her. "Ishita ." he breathed out as he took her hand in his. "I thought I was going to lose you." he confessed. "I don't know what I would have done without you. There's no way I could have raised our children all on my own."
tbc...
