The pain of labour was manageable. I expected more to be honest. Not that I didn’t understand that it could be much worse for others. I realised everyone was different and I felt extremely lucky I was blessed with an easy labour.
Labour may have been easy but the birth and the events that followed were the worst experiences of my life to this date.
My first child was birthed screaming as expected. Chloe smiled widely as she announced that it was a girl and went to oversee her quickly in the incubator. I was given her briefly whilst Chloe continued to monitor me for my second babies birth. I could barely concentrate on what was going on in my body as I stared down at the tiny human on my chest. She was sucking her hand as she stared up at me. She was beautiful.
More than beautiful actually.
I remember the baby being taken from my arms as the labour pains hit again and my second daughter entered the world. I knew instantly something was wrong.
No cries and the limp limbs of my child were quickly taken out of my sight and chloes back was all I could see.
“Aunt Chloe” I said softly, trying to hold back my panic but it was growing inside me faster than id ever felt anything before. I twisted my body to move and sit up so I could go see what Chloe was doing and to see my daughter for the first time. The pain that ripped through me in that moment was excruciating. I remember screaming, I remember my mother sitting behind me to support me and I remember the people coming in and out the room and then I remember the pain as Chloe pulled the placenta out of my womb because it had ripped apart my insides in a haemorrhage.
Moments later I passed out. When I woke Chloe had finished what ever she had to finish and was sitting next to me holding my hand. My mother was still behind me, cradling me.
“where is she?” I asked.
“Im going to go to the hospital to see what I can do. But I wanted to be here when you woke up. Youre doing fine, youre going to need some blood and rest but your body should be fully recovered in an hour or so. Until then, you have to stay here. Do you understand me?” Chloe asked me.
“my baby” I said turning to look around the room. No one was here except us. Where was Micah? Where was Eden? Where was my second daughter I hadn’t named yet?
“listen to me Ivy. Your daughter is going to be fine. Babies don’t die in this family remember? I promise ill save your little girl” she said leaning forward to kiss my forehead. I sighed, contempt with her words. She was right. There was Annie and Lidy. My baby had world class surgeons and the Life and Death twins. She would be fine. I just had to wait.
“where is Eden?” I said realising I still had a perfectly healthy baby somewhere I could cuddle whilst we waited for her sister to come back to us.
My sister must have heard us because moments later Lidiya walked in with Eden in her arms. She was perfectly wrapped up in a blanket, fast asleep in her aunts arms.
“shes so beautiful Ivy” she said replacing Chloe on the bed. I watched as Chloe left and then my eyes fell on the baby on Lidiya’s chest. I felt as exhaustion started to overcome me.
“Ivana you need to drink” my mother said from behind me as Micah came in with some blood already warmed for me to drink. I couldn’t look at him as he handed the flasks to my mother first. He left and my heart would have shattered if it wasn’t for the baby now laying in my arms.
“sleep Ivie. Your daughter has a dozen doctors and Anelie with her.”
“why aren’t you there?” I asked my sister. If she needed healing surely my sister should be there?
“im not needed” she said softly. The words gave me comfort and I managed to sleep but it wasn’t until after that I realised that Lidiya couldn’t heal her at all. That’s why she wasn’t there. It was actually worse than I ever even imagined if Death herself couldn’t heal her.
I woke up hours later. My mother still at my side.
“mama is she okay?” I asked barely awake. I still had my first daughter in my arms, she was sleeping softly. Her chest rising and falling exactly how it should.
“shes alive. That’s all that matters, sleep baby. You need to rest” she told me stroking my hair and I couldn’t fight it. I was asleep again before I knew it.
When I did wake, it was still only me and esther in the house. Lidiya and Micah were gone.
“Ivy” my mothers voice whispered to me.
“shes in surgery” I said, tapping into my sisters mind
“she is.” She confirmed and I held onto Eden tighter. My other baby didn’t even have a name yet.
“sweetie I have an idea. Your baby is going to have a dozen surgeries and life support for months until shes strong enough. I think she needs you to help her”
“what?” I asked in clarification
“your ability” she clarified and suddenly it hit me.
“my ability!” I jumped up excitedly and I groaned in pain. I almost dropped the daughter in my arms. Esther took her as I recovered.
“careful, you still cant move much” she told me.
“I have to get to the hospital. I can grow her a lung. I can make her better!” I said making the effort to get out of the bed.
“youre too weak. You need rest” she told me using her spare arm to pull me into her side.
“no, I need to save my baby” I said frantically.
“your baby Is fine. Your baby has the life and death twins that love her like their own. As soon as her surgery is finished they can bring her here, to you. You don’t need to go there” she told me.
“shes too fragile to move” I panicked.
“not with annie shes not. Theyre bringing her as soon as Chloe and Carlisle are done. I promise” esther assured me and I knew my sisters were agreeing with her.
“ok” I mumbled and rested back into my mom.
“sleep and ill wake you when they get here okay? You need your rest for this” she said and I was asleep again before I knew it.
I was awoken by the people entering my house. I sat up, my mother and daughter still at my side. Micah was the first in, he scanned over us both and sighed in relief.
“go and get some blood micah” esther told him.
“what?” he asked her for clarification as Anelie and Lidiya walked in with my baby. I gasped at how tiny she was compared to Eden.
“shes going to need some blood to get through this.”
“ill go with you” Chloe said taking his hand and they left. I couldn’t look away from the baby that was attached to my sisters like wires. They placed her on the bed opposite me but didn’t move.
“we cant let go” they said sadly.
“I know. Its ok” I said sitting up right.
“here” I heard esme say as she took Eden out of the room. It was only myself, my mother and my sisters left with my fragile baby on the bed. I reached for her, placing my hands on her chest, only it was too tiny so my left hand had to be on the left side of her body. Anelie and Lidiya were touching her legs. I closed my eyes as I began to feel and visualise the inside of my baby’s body. I could feel her damaged organs and I wanted to burst into tears but I didn’t. I remained strong as I began to feel for her dna, her one healthy lung was working at double capacity as I began to make a note of her genetic make up. I felt my mothers supportive touch on my back as I began to work on replicating organs for my tiny daughter.
I didn’t know how long it was taking but it felt like minutes before I began to sway, weak at the power draining from me. This wasn’t like disintegrating an object, or creating a hole or healing something, this was pure creation and even though my daughters organs were tiny in comparison to some of the things I had created in the past they were far more complex than anything I had ever copied. It was a functioning bodily organ. It had to be perfect.
“Ivy you need to take a break” my mother spoke.
“I cant” I mumbled, my eyes still closed. If I stopped now I had no idea what would happen to the part of the organ I had made. It needed to be complete.
“ivy” she said more urgently, her arms steadied me.
“I cant stop now! I don’t know what would happen if I did. I need to finish this” I told her and I felt her sigh. Her hands touched mine over the top and suddenly I felt a wave of energy. Like a pure spark. My mother kissed the back of my neck and suddenly my fatigue had gone. I saw every child I had ever saved in my head, I used their happiness and elation as fuel to save my baby. I also saw those I had lost, I saw little Nova. My miracle child. I was supposed to save her. I would make sure the baby in my hands lived, for Nova. Because of Nova.
“youre going to crash in an hour if you don’t get blood and rest. And I mean comatose crash not just sleep.” She informed me. It was a warning.
“im nearly done!” i informed her as I used my newly gifted energy to finish saving my baby.
It took 59 minutes to finish. I looked to my sisters and told them to let go and when they did my baby was breathing normally on her own. I smiled in triumph as I lifted and held my youngest daughter for the first time. I cuddled her into my shoulder right as I felt the energy dissipate.
“Micah!” Esther called loudly as I felt her arms wrap around me and I lost unconsciousness.
I don’t know how long I was asleep. I woke still in my mothers arms, an IV in my arm with blood and a straw and flask between my lips. I was being fed blood in every way possible.
“I’m ok” I said groggily. I felt my mother sigh in relief and her kisses on my head. I stopped drinking the blood and sat up. “where are my babies?” I asked looking around to see the room empty except for Esther and Eddie.
“Your youngest is at the hospital. Carlisle wants her in the nicu for a week just to keep her under observation. You did amazing Ivana, your baby has her organs back. Shes breathing on her own shes doing amazing” Eddie said softly reaching for my hand to hold. I squeezed it in thank you.
“Eden?” I asked turning to my mother.
“downstairs being held by everyone that can get their hands on her” Esther smiled softly. I sighed in relief, relaxing back into my mothers arms.
“you still need rest, lots of it. Sleep and blood” she informed me.
“I know” I mumbled but looked down at the bed I was still in.
“can I please get a shower though? And change of bed? I mean chloe did very well cleaning up but Im still in the bed I gave birth in” I mumbled and eddie and esther smiled.
“im sure that can be arranged but you need to stay here for a few days okay? Or at least in the house. Very little movement”
“but what about my baby?” I asked with a frown.
“Anelie and Lidiya aren’t going to leave her side. They’ll hold her and feed her and care for her for you. They’ll stay until you can go see her” Esther informed me and I linked to my sisters to see she was right.
We’ll be here Ivy. The whole time. They told me and I thanked them a dozen times in my head. My baby would be ok, shed be safe and loved with her aunties there. They were practically her mothers too.
“Ivana” I heard micahs voice as he made his way up the stairs, suddenly he was in front of me and hugging me over my mother. I giggled as he dug his face into my shoulder.
“your mother has been keeping me away until you were more lucid and stronger” he told me with a slight irritated tone. My mother shuffled her way out of my bed.
“too right I did. She didn’t need the stress of you in here too. You were needed with your daughter” esther said standing and eddie meeting her at her side. Micah was still wrapped around me in a hug.
“I love you” he whispered.
“we’re going to go” I heard eddie say as he pushed esther out of the door. I eyed my mother as she left and nodded softly,
Thank you mama for everything. Ill be okay now. I informed her and she just left with her best friend. Leaving me with mine.
“my mother was right you know. I needed you with our daughter. I needed to know she had you” I told him. He was hugging me again but I felt his nod.
“I know, and I knew you were ok with your mother. Shed bring down the world before anything happened to you” he said.
“and she could” I laughed. I felt his smile on my shoulder. “I need a shower” I said after a break. He still hadn’t let go of me.
“okay” he said pulling away but keeping my hands in his. He reached for the IV and gently removed it. We both watched the wound on my arm heal slowly.
“its slower than normal” I said as I flinched getting off the bed.
“because youre weak and your energy has been drained past zero. When esther told me you were in a coma because she gave you a major boost I was so angry with her but then she explained that you couldn’t have saved our daughter without it and I felt like an idiot.” He said helping me get to the shower.
“is everyone still here?” I asked trying to listen for people in the house. My mother said it had been days. What were people doing? What had I missed?
“my mother is with eden down stairs. After Esther assured everyone dozens of times you just needed rest and would wake in a few days. Everyone else finally went home or stayed at the hospital with our other daughter” he informed me as he helped me strip from my night dress. I entered the shower and it felt invigorating. After a minute when micah was sure iw asnt going to collapse, he went to change my bed for me and get me fresh clothes to sleep in.
“go and get our daughter” I told him as I climbed back into our bed. He nodded and left. I put the IV back in my arm and waited.
“my moms gone home, its just us again now” he said as he sat next to me. Our sleeping daughter in his arms. I reached for her and placed her between us. Sleeping softly.
“I think I know what her sisters name should be” I said watching her tiny chest rise and fall.
“what?” he whispered. I looked up from our baby to Micah.
“Nova.” I whispered and the second I said the name out loud I knew it was the name of my daughter. He smiled widely.
“I cant believe we didn’t think of it before” he said reaching to stroke my cheek.
“when I was saving her, I kept thinking about all the other children ive saved and the ones ive failed and nova was there. I was fighting for her, fighting to save nova. I wanted to save her, I used that energy, the grief I felt losing her to save our daughter. I saved her in Nova’s name just as I have everyone since I lost her.” I explained.
“its beautiful and perfect. Nova Hope.” He said and I smiled.
“and Eden Luna” I said bending down to place a small kiss on my babies head. She was so peaceful. I stared at her and I was overcome with emotion of the last day.
“I cant sleep, how am I supposed to sleep? What if something happens to eden too? What if Nova’s organs shut down? What if..” I asked Micah watching her breathe. He cut me off.
“you sleep knowing I am here, im watching her I promise. I wont move from this position until you wake up. If something happens ill wake you up. Ill spend the next six months watching our daughters sleep at night if that’s what you want me to do.”
“you’ll get bored” I sighed although it was comforting to know he could.
“I will never get bored of looking at our daughters. Never.” He told me with so much sincerity it made me want to kiss him.
“ok” I whispered barely able to keep my eyes open anymore. He would have won eventually anyway.
“ill watch her. I wont move.” He coaxed me as I slipped into unconsciousness.
I woke with a jolt, my hand reaching out for my baby. I felt her tiny foot and my eyes snapped open to see her still in the same position. I looked to see Micah staring down at her, he hadn’t moved a muscle since I was last awake. He finally moved to look at me and his face lit up in a smile.
“she slept through the night, our two day old baby slept through the night” he chuckled.
“you stayed?” I asked with a frown.
“of course I did. She breathes an average of 55 times a minute. Her heart rate was 140 a minute.” He informed me.
“you counted?” I asked him in awe.
“I did” he said as a matter of fact, like it was nothing. I leant over our still sleeping baby and kissed his cheek.
“thank you” I breathed into his skin without pulling away. He looked at me so close and mumbled a your welcome. His eyes went to my lips and if our child didn’t chose that exact moment to wake up I was sure we would have had our first real kiss in two months.
“ill go get the bottle” he said moving off the bed.
I lifted our daughter into my arms and went to follow him feeling a hell of a lot stronger than yesterday
“no you did the night shift. Its okay I have this. One of us needs to get to the hospital before Nova wakes up” I told him and he simply nodded as he went to get his keys.
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