Chapter Ten
“Where’s the new husband?” Doctor Kim asked Emily as he examined her.
“Working,” Emily answered, pretending not to feel discomfort with the doctor’s fingers inside her. Doctor Kim removed his hand, changed gloves, and then measured her stomach. “It won’t be long now. You’re already dilating. How have you been feeling?”
“Tired,” Emily said. “I feel like a beached whale and I’m fat from my face to my toes.”
Doctor Kim chuckled. “That usually happens during pregnancy. You’ll lose most of it right after delivery and you’ll have to work the rest off with exercise.”
“How’s the baby?” Emily asked.
“The baby has a strong heartbeat and probably weighs close to nine pounds.”
“I will be unconscious during the delivery, won’t I?”
Doctor Kim chuckled again. “No, you’ll be just fine. Mister Lacolmn will be holding your hand throughout the entire event.”
I’m not holding my breath.
Doctor Kim finished with the exam. “You can get dressed now. I want you to go straight home and get back into bed until the labor begins.”
“I understand,” Emily said. She didn’t want anyone to see how big she’d gotten. She was even hiding from Bekim lately. Which didn’t matter since he was working late every night and coming home long after she’d fallen asleep.
Emily left the clinic and got into the car. The driver drove away from the curb. Emily’s cell phone rang. “Hello?”
“Hi honey, it’s Daddy.”
“Hey,” Emily said.
“What are you doing?” Solomon asked.
“I’m just leaving the clinic. I had a doctor’s appointment. Are you busy?”
“I’m always busy,” Solomon told her.
“Can I drop by to see you?”
“You’re supposed to be on bed rest.”
“I’m near the fashion house,” Emily said. “I won’t stay long.”
“Okay,” Solomon said. “And then you have to go straight home. Bekim will kill me if I let anything happen to you.”
Emily disconnected the call. “We’re making a slight detour,” she told the driver. “Take me to the House of Bucktell.”
“Yes, Mrs. Lacolmn,” the driver told her.
Moments later he helped her out the car and onto the sidewalk.
Emily entered the building and entered the elevator. The door closed and the elevator ascended up a couple of floors and then stopped. And not in a good way. The elevator was trapped between floors. Emily pressed a couple of buttons, but the elevator wouldn’t budge. About an hour later her cell phone rang. “Hello?” Emily said.
“Where are you Emily, dear?” Solomon asked.
“I’m trapped in the damn elevator,” Emily said. “It’s stuck between floors.”
“And you didn’t think to call for help?” Solomon asked suddenly sounding concerned.
“Of course I did,” Emily said. “The repairmen are on their way, but they’re halfway across town. They told me to just sit and wait.”
“How long ago was that?”
“About an hour,” Emily told him. “And my water just broke.”
“What?” Solomon asked loudly.
“My water just broke,” Emily said.
“Why aren’t you hysterical? Maybe I should call Bekim.”
“Don’t bother,” Emily said. “He’s probably too busy with Natalie or one of his other women.”
“What are you talking about Emily?”
“Oh shit,” Emily said as the first contraction hit.
“What’s wrong?” Solomon asked.
“I just had a contraction.”
“I’m going to find Bekim,” Solomon said. “Don’t move.” He disconnected the call.
“Funny guy,” Emily said. “Where in the hell am I going?”
* * * *
“Emily, baby, are you okay?” Bekim asked when he finally called her.
“Sure,” Emily said, riding out another contraction.
“The elevator guys are stuck in traffic,” Bekim told her.
“Great,” Emily said. “I guess I’ll just deliver the baby in the elevator.”
“What?” Bekim asked. “Are you in labor?”
“Yes,” Emily said. “Didn’t my father tell you?”
“No. He just said you were trapped in an elevator.”
“I love the man like a play step-cousin but he’s no good in emergencies.”
“Listen, honey. I’m going to try to get you out.”
“How? What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to try to climb down the elevator shaft.”
“Are you insane? That’s dangerous.”
Bekim disconnected the call.
“He better not try something so stupid,” Emily said aloud. Another contraction hit. “Ouch, ouch, ouch, shit.” Emily heard a sound above her and then the elevator shook. Oh Lord the elevator is going to fall. She heard a loud noise again.
“Emily, honey, are you okay?”
“Bekim, are you crazy? The elevator might fall.”
Bekim opened a little door on the roof of the elevator and slid in. “I was so scared,” Bekim said. “I didn’t want you to be alone. The elevator guys said they’ll be here as soon as they can.”
“My water broke,” Emily said. “Watch how you step. You might slip.”
Bekim maneuvered his way over to her just as another contraction hit. “Everything is going to be okay, baby.” He took his jacket off and made a pillow for her.
Emily lay down with her head on his lap.
Bekim pulled out his cell phone and dialed the emergency number. “Hello, my name is Bekim Lacolmn. My wife and I are stuck in an elevator in the House of Bucktell Fashion Building,” he told the dispatcher. He gave them the address. “The elevator repairmen are stuck in traffic and my wife is in labor.”
“We’ll have someone there as soon as possible,” the dispatcher told him. “Don’t panic.”
Another hour passed. Sweat rolled down Emily’s face and the contractions were coming more frequently.
“Why ween’t you home in bed?” Bekim asked as he wiped her brow.
“I had a doctor’s appointment and I thought I’d stop in to see my father.”
“Oh, I forgot about the appointment,” Bekim said. “Sorry, darling. I’ve been so busy.”
“With Natalie,” Emily said.
“No, of course not. Natalie just flew in town for one night. She and her husband wanted to go out to see New York.”
“Her husband?” Emily asked. “She has a husband?”
“Yes,” Bekim answered. “I told you Natalie and I are old friends. I introduced her to her husband and they were just in town for a short visit.”
Emily felt so stupid. “I thought you were cheating on me. You came home that night drunk and reeking of perfume.”
“I was drunk and I danced one dance with Natalie. She always wears too much perfume.”
Another contraction hit. “Ouch,” Emily moaned. “That hurt.”
“Your contractions are about five minutes apart,” Bekim told her. “If they don’t fix the elevator soon we’ll have some funny stories to tell our grandchildren.”
“I am not having this baby in the elevator, Be-kim,” Emily shouted as the pain hit her in the bottom of her stomach.
“You do a real good Camille,” Bekim said.
“Not funny Be-kim,” Emily said.
“Are you folks okay in there?” someone shouted to them.
“Yes,” both Emily and Bekim shouted back.
“We’ll have you out of there in a couple of minutes.”
“Hurry,” Bekim said. “My wife is in labor.”
The elevator repairmen got the door open five minutes later and an ambulance had been dispatched to take them directly to the hospital.
* * * *
Bekim got suited up in blue scrubs and entered the delivery room.
Emily’s contractions were now a minute apart and Doctor Kim was with her trying to get her to push.
“Emily dear, I can see all the way up to your head,” Bekim told her from the opposite end of the delivery table.
“Evil man,” Emily said. “This is no time for jokes.” She wasn’t feeling any pain because the good anesthesiologist had given her an epidural.
“I can see the baby’s head,” Doctor Kim announced. “Get ready to push.”
Bekim got behind Emily and lifted her shoulder while the nurse pushed down on Emily’s stomach.
“Push,” Doctor Kim said.
Emily pushed and cursed Bekim in the same breath.
“You can relax now,” Doctor Kim said, chuckling. “Don’t mind Emily. She is loopy from the medicine.”
“It doesn’t bother me a bit,” Bekim said. “I’m capturing all this on tape.” He’d set the camera up in the room and had it on automatic to free up his hands to help Emily.
“I’m going to need you to push again, Emily,” Doctor Kim told her. “This time without the curse words. Push.”
Emily pushed.
“You can relax,” Doctor Kim said. “It’s almost over.”
Emily rested for a few minutes.
“Okay, we’re going to do this one last time,” Doctor Kim said. “This time I need a big push.”
“I’m thirsty,” Emily whined.
Bekim fed her some ice chips and then got back into position behind her back and lifted her again.
“Push,” Doctor Kim said. “A big one.”
Emily pushed.
“The head’s out, and now the shoulders and now the rest of the baby,” Doctor Kim said.
The next thing Bekim heard was a lusty cry.
“It’s a boy,” Doctor Kim said.
Bekim giggled like the Joker. “See, I told you, Emily. I got me a son.”
Doctor Kim chuckled. “Congratulations to both of you, Mr. and Mrs. Lacolmn. You’ll get to see your son as soon as he’s cleaned up and his vitals are taken.”
“Thanks, Doctor,” Bekim said. “And you too, Emily.”
* * * *
Bekim looked down into the gray, possibly in the near future blue eyes of Bekim Alexander Lacolmn, Junior, who had entered the world weighing nine pounds and eight ounces. The boy also had a head of jet-black hair like his father.
Grandfathers Solomon and Martin passed out cigars to the men and kisses to the womenfolk.
Emily lay unconscious in her hospital bed from some medication Doctor Kim gave her to relax.
“I don’t see Emily in the baby,” Solomon said. “Are you sure it’s hers?”
“He has her attitude,” Bekim said. “He’s a fussy little guy.”
“He looks just like Bekim did as a baby,” Dora said. “But Baby B has more hair.”
Bekim shook his head. The poor boy had a nickname already.
“You’ve spoiled him long enough,” Dora told Bekim. “Let me hold my grandson.”
Bekim rose from the chair, let his mother sit down, and then handed her the baby.
“The baby is doomed,” Charity said. “They are going to spoil him rotten.”
“So will we,” Glenda said. “I saw this precious sterling silver piggy bank in the mall. I think I’m going to drop over there later and get his name engraved on one.”
Emily moved on the bed but didn’t wake up.
“Your wife is missing out on all the fun stuff,” Solomon told Bekim.
“She’ll have all the fun she can stand once she takes the baby home,” Bekim said.
Dora, Glenda and Charity laughed sarcastically.
“Yeah, she’ll just love being woken up out of her sleep every night for feedings and diaper changes,” Dora said to Bekim.
“I plan to help out,” Bekim said.
“Sure,” Martin said sarcastically. “I think I slept through your first year of life.”
“You did, dear,” Dora said. “Thank God for the nanny.”
Bekim saw Emily open her eyes. “Hey, sleepy head.”
“Hey,” Emily said. “Did I have the baby yet?”
Bekim chuckled. “Yeah about four hours ago. Don’t you remember?”
“No,” Emily said. “I have a habit of blocking out things that hurt.”
“Yes, I know,” Bekim said thinking back to the first night they made love and the morning after.
Emily dozed off again.
Bekim bent down and kissed her on the head. “I’m going to miss this crazy doped up Emily.”
“Yes, she’ll be back to being the Dragon Queen just as soon as she returns to work,” Solomon said.
“Urg,” Bekim said. “Maybe I should keep her knocked up so she won’t return to work.”
“Don’t even think about it,” Emily said. “Two Bekims are enough in any family.”
“I love you, honey,” Bekim said as Emily dozed off again.
“Right back at you, designer boy.” Emily said.
The End