The Night I Was Saved

Chapter Two

It takes me one second to snap out of my shock and another to get to her. I'm vaguely aware that Dwight orders the lady that let us in to go downstairs and wait for the ambulance.

As I kneel by her parted legs, the girl breathes out a carnal cry. "Please, help me. I can't stop it."

Her face is covered in tears mixed with sweat, and my heart breaks for her. She is scared and probably fucking uncomfortable on the hard, wooden floor, yet I can't move her.

"Breathe," I tell her as I shrug off my heavy bulletproof vest and coat to give me more freedom to move. "We're here and we will help you. Just breathe."

My words don't seem to calm her down at all, and I'm not surprised. Both Dwight and I probably look just as scared as her. Dwight hasn't even left his spot on the threshold.

"Get me warm water and towels, Dwight," I tell him as I watch the girl take another deep breath before she pushes again.

I have no fucking clue why I need warm water, but my sister used to watch this tv show about midwives, and they always asked for it. Fuck, I could need Mercy right now.

Dwight finally snaps out of his shock as well and runs through the hall and out of the sight to search for water and towels.

"It hurts. I can't," the girl cries, her teeth clenched. When I look in between her legs, I see the top of what I assume is the baby's head.

Jesus fuck. I can't do this either.

I put my hands on her legs as a reassuring gesture. "Hey, look at me," I tell her, and immediately her scared, wide eyes snap up. "What's your name?"

It's an attempt to distract her from the pain now that she is not feeling the need to push. I have no fucking clue about childbirth, so right now the only thing we can do is trust her body and follow that lead.

"Jo..," she whimpers. "Josephine."

I nod my head and give her a small smile. "Josephine. I'm Hero. Listen, I need you to listen to your body and-"

"Arghhh," she cries once again, cutting me off. She then starts pushing once again, her left hand now traveling down to where the head of the baby becomes more visible.

Her head turns red, her breath stuck in her throat as she pushes for dear life. All the while, her blue eyes stay glued on my face, her terrified expression begging me to give her some kind of sign that it will be okay.

It's that expression that snaps me out of my shock completely, and it's suddenly as if instinct takes over. She will have her baby in a matter of seconds, and I'm the only one that can help her.

"You're doing great," I tell her determined, and as if she feels my shift, she straightens her back a little while giving me a small, barely-there nod.

I look down once again and see that the head is almost completely out now. I move her hand out of the way and grab it in my own, squeezing reassuringly before she pulls it back and steadies it on the floor next to her.

"It'll come out. I feel it," she sobs, panic rising to the service. Her hand is once again reaching down, now cupping the head of the baby as if she wants to push it back in. "I don't want it to come out. It can't come out."

I scoot even closer, deciding to ignore her panic for as long as I'm able to. I once again move her hand away, clasping it in my own. She needs to focus and she doesn't have a choice. This baby will come out. Now. "It will be okay, Josephine. I'll help you. Just a little longer. Come on."

She nods, but I'm not sure if she's heard me completely. I don't have time to check though, because her body once again tenses as she gives another deadly push.