Come What May

chapter 15

As soon as those words struggled from Mary's lips, Bert sat bolt upright – his eyes wider than ever. His heart began to pound – like it was trying to escape from his chest; did he hear her correctly? Surely she didn't just say what he thought she'd said?

"Wait, what?!"

Mary hissed from the pain.

"I said… -" she exhaled deeply, "—I said the baby's coming"

Time seemed to stretch out and slow down – almost completely.

"Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure" Mary replied – managing to somehow stay calm.

Bert practically leapt out of the bed and moved around to his wife – he placed a tender hand on her shoulder. He could feel the sheer panic surge through him like an almost deadly impulse – it made his mind go blank, his limbs became weak and everything seemed to spin. A few beads of sweat began to appear on his brow as he took one of Mary's hands in his own.

"Mary, sweetheart, are you okay?" he asked stupidly – his chest rising and falling at an alarming rate.

She turned to him and rested her forehead against his.

"It hurts…" she whispered simply as a stray tear dared to fall down her cheek.

"It'll be okay…" he soothed as he stroked the back of her head, he was trying to convince himself as much as he was her, "…what should I do?"

"You need to get dressed and go and get the midwife…" she paused for a moment, unsure of whether or not another contraction was about to wash over her, "…and please hurry"

Bert bounded away from her and grabbed whatever clothing he could find – his shirt was left un-tucked and he hopped across the room whilst trying to pull on his trousers and boots. Mary could see the panic growing on his face.

"Calm down" she told him – although she felt slightly hypocritical for doing so, for her mind was beginning to breakdown from her hidden panic.

Bert rushed back to her side.

"I'm gonna be as quick as I can – I promise…are you gonna be alright?"

He really didn't want to leave her alone.

"I'll be fine…just go" she instructed weakly.

"I love you" he said softly.

"I love you too" Mary managed to utter as a more pain began to flow through her – Bert stayed by her side until it seemed to cool, "Bert…I'm scared" she wept.

He placed a delicate kiss on her forehead.

"It'll be okay" he told her with as much confidence as he could muster. But the truth was that he was that scared too…utterly petrified, in fact,

Reluctantly Bert moved away from his wife and took one last look at her before bolting out of the door and onto the already bustling streets of London. He went barrelling down the streets – his legs felt numb and they seemed to be in control, for Bert's mind was blank of any thoughts that didn't concern Mary. His mind became white with panic and everything rushed around his head.

'I just gotta get there as fast as I can' he thought, 'Then I'll be back with the midwife and everythin' will be fine…oh, I 'ope Mary's alright…I'm so worried about 'er!'

And he was, he could feel the fear coiling in his chest like a painful weight that would send sharp surges through his abdomen; his breathing also became heavier as he crashed around corners – nearly knocking several people over, but Bert struggled to keep his mind focused. He seemed to get more and more tense with each step he took, his chest becoming tighter and his world began to tumble away from reality. He constantly had to reassure himself, he had to be there for Mary, he had to support her and make sure that she was okay. He would do anything for her.