The Time After (Sequel to Lexi's Twin)

6

***28 Weeks Into Pregnancy***

I felt like a whale. The three babies were getting bigger and moving around a lot more. I could feel every little motion. When a pain coursed through my body, then another just a few minutes later, I knew what was happening. I called Elijah into the room and he came running. I never really needed anything so me needing him now was obviously serious. "Elijah, I think the babies are coming." A look of panic spread across his face, "Alright, lets get you to the hospital. I will compel you the best doctor and nurses. Everything will be okay." Even though he looked panicked, his voice remained calm. The babies were rather good at picking up on that. 

******

"PUSH" The nurses kept talking loudly, as if I wouldn't be able to hear them, it was rather annoying. But, I did obey their commands. It was painful, but I kept pushing. They even had extra nurses on hand, just because the babies were early. Most triplets at least get to 33 weeks, and I was just at 28. After an hour of pushing and pure agony, there was one little cry. "It's a boy," one of the nurses held him to where I could see, but did not let me hold him yet since I still had work to do. As he was in the corner of the room, getting cleaned off, I was told to keep pushing. Elijah went over to our son, knowing I didn't exactly need to hold his hand. Plus, this situation seemed to make him feel a bit awkward. Maybe it was the feeling of uselessness, knowing he could not stop my pain, or help in any way. I know I would feel the same way if he was in pain and I couldn't help it. Especially in this case where we are both at fault for my pain. The second baby came out faster than the first, it only took about twenty minutes before I heard another soft cry. "You have a girl." She was precious, I just wanted to hold my babies, for this to be over, but still, there was one more. The last one was not as easy as the second though, it took a lot longer. The nurses were all, except one, helping the doctor with whatever he told them to do. The one other nurse, was tending to my baby girl, as Elijah held our son. I felt dizzy after awhile, spots appearing in my vision. There was talking in the room, but all I could hear was a low murmur as I faded out of consciousness.

****** 

When I woke up, Elijah was sitting in the corner of the room, watching me. The room was weirdly silent. When he saw my eyes flutter open, he came to my side. "We have a son, and two daughters. The nurses took them to make sure they are all okay since they came early. We don't exactly know what they are, so it is better to be safe." I nodded, still groggy. "So what happened?" He sat on the edge of the bed, brushing a lock of hair from my face. "You lost too much blood and lost consciousness before the last girl came out. They didn't let me see her for very long, but last time a nurse came in here to check on you, she said that our babies looked alright." My eyes widened, barely registering the fact that I just gave birth to triplets as I swung my legs over the side of the bed. Just as quickly as I started to get up, Elijah had his hands on my legs, scooting me back on the bed. "You just had three kids and lost consciousness, I don't think it's time to go for a stroll around the hospital. Stay here, I will get a nurse." He left the room and I sighed. I felt useless, stuck in a bed while my babies may or not be fully healthy, while they may be human, vampire, or some weird magical hybrid of sorts. I just wanted to do something for them, anything but sit here. When Elijah returned, he was holding a baby. "This is our first little girl." She had long eyelashes and Elijah's eyes. We both had brown eyes, but mine were lighter, his were dark, chocolate brown. I loved his eyes. I smiled, taking her into my arms gently. The nurse followed shortly after with one of those stupid rolling bassinets. I could see from the little blue tag attached, that this was my baby boy. Elijah held him, sitting with me so I could see them both. "Where is my other girl?" The nurse looked at me, "She is still being watched, she is not fully stable yet." My heart sank, and I went to stand again, this time, the nurse stopped me. "I will get a wheelchair, you shouldn't be walking. I can take you to see her." I nodded, sitting back. "Elijah, is this my fault? Did I hurt her?" I could see the pain in his eyes with what I said. "You didn't hurt her. They won't tell me much though. But you could never hurt your own child, I know you, Alyson." That did make me feel better, but my head was still swarming with thoughts. 

After I was taken to see her, my heart sank even more. She was in an incubator, hooked up to what looked to me, like a million different things. I reached my arm through one of the holes, touching her tiny hand softly. All I could see was the other babies around us. Looking at each of them, my heart broke. I wasn't the only mother here who was going through the pain of the unknown. Suddenly, an alarm went off and Elijah moved me backwards. A nurse rushed over and checked on my little angel. The alarm stopped and the nurse walked away. I looked at Elijah curiously. "The alarm sounds when she stops breathing. It has happened a few times, but it always starts again." He explained what it was, but it really didn't help. I was much more content with the unknown. Shortly after, the doctor came in, opening the top of the incubator. That is when an tiny oxygen mask was put on her. The tubes weren't enough, this was the next step. 

Not long later, we were outside the nursery while they took the babies for another test. A different nurse went in and placed a purple butterfly on each of their bassinets. I was confused, as nobody had told me anything. Maybe it was how they identified multiples when they weren't all together. He and I were on our way back to the NICU to see our little girl, when a nurse pulled us aside. "Your daughter, she was having complications with her breathing, and we couldn't figure it out at first. Her heart wasn't consistently beating and she was having trouble with a lot of things. Sadly, we discovered the issue. IVH, an intraventricular hemorrhage, this means bleeding in the brain. This led to many other issues. In most cases, IVH is minor and can easily be resolved. The issue with this case was, she seemed to get better, healing herself, but then it just got much worse very quickly." My eyes were already flooding before she even finished talking. I looked at Elijah, he was crying as well. "I am so sorry, she did not make it." It was then that she handed me a box, decorated in a pink baby themed design. I opened the box, seeing two blankets and pillows, two teddy bears, three pins, and a piece of paper with spots for her hand and foot prints. I then started to cry harder, realizing where the extra pillow, blanket, and teddy bear were meant to go. She then left us to have a moment to ourselves, smiling sadly. "Elijah, I can't do it. I can't bury my baby." I leaned into his side right before he crouched down to be at my level. He pressed his forehead to mine, kissing my cheek gently. "I don't want to do it either, but we have to do it. For her. I will be by your side, always and forever, darling. Even through the hardest thing we have ever had to do. I won't let you do this alone." The salty tears were half soaking our clothes, half dripping down our face. I could taste them as some of them streamed inside my mouth. Rushing back to the nursery, I took my babies into my arms, holding them both securely. I would never let them out of my sight again. 

******

When it was time to go home, I dreaded it more than anything. I would have to explain everything to the whole family. Not only that, but I would really have to let go of my baby girl. The one positive thing, our babies had names. Our little angel got the name Scarlett,  our son, Grayson, and our daughter, Luna. The hospital gave us an extra little box, heavier than the last. I did not have to open this one to know what was inside. It seemed Elijah had the same thought as he looked down at the ground. There were still dry tears on both of our faces. I had stopped crying, I just couldn't cry anymore. I was so sad, at this point it was a numbing pain. The only thing that could make either of us smile happened to be the babies, and each other, in that order. The car ride back was rather easy, Elijah drove so I could sit in the back with Grayson and Luna, still never taking my eyes off of them. I hesitated when we arrived home, only to take Luna, while Elijah got Grayson. In his other hand, he took the other box, knowing I wouldn't want it to be left in the car like some old shoe box. Walking through the doors, we were greeted by our family, but their faces did not bring Elijah and I joy. They were looking at us both, confused by the dried tears and only two car seats. This would be the second hardest thing to do. The hardest thing was yet to come, which was like a boulder weighing down on my chest.