All I Want Is You

“Lizzie! I'm so sorry!” Jackson said, running to my side.

“It's okay.” I said as he kissed my forehead.

“Are you okay?” He asked, grabbing my hand. Rob stood up and went to stand by Ada.

“I'm fine. Rob's taken very good care of me.” I smiled, winking at Rob. He shook his head, grinning.

“How far apart are the contractions?” Ada asked. She had probably read more books than Jackson and I combined, and had been almost too excited when I asked her to stay with me for the delivery.

“I don't know.” I answered.

“Three minutes.” Rob said. We all stared blankly at him.

“What? I had to do something.” He said.

“Thank you.” I stuttered, amazed that he even knew what a contraction was.

“We need to call our parents!” Jackson realized suddenly.

“I'll call everyone.” Rob said. He turned to the door. “Good luck?” He said it like a question, like he wasn't sure what to say at this moment.

I laughed, but soon another contraction hit. Jackson looked worried for a few seconds, but then he took my hand and ran his smooth hand over my forehead.

After that, the Doctor Robin came in. “You're doing great Lizzie!” She said enthusiastically.

I sighed and rested my head against the pillow. “It should only be a few more hours.” She said, like a few hours were a walk in the park.

“Great!” I said sarcastically.

This was going to be so much fun!

…...........................



“Come on Lizzie! One more push!” Ada was shouting like a drill Sargent in my ear.

“I'm trying!” I yelled through gritted teeth.

“We know. Your doing great.” Jackson said. His voice was strained, probably because I had a death grip on his hand.

“Almost there Lizzie!” Doctor Robin announced enthusiastically.

As the contraction passed I looked up at Jackson, tears falling down my cheeks.

“I'm tired.” I sobbed. “I can't do this anymore.”

“You have to babe. You're almost there.” He pressed a cold cloth to my forehead as Ada fed me a spoonful of ice chips. I could feel another contraction building. I had decided that I was sick of this. I wanted this to be over. I wanted my baby.

“Okay Lizzie! Big push this time.” Doctor Robin sounded like one of those over peppy cheerleaders I used to make fun of in high school.

I sighed and then grabbed Jackson's hand pushing with all my power.

Then I heard the most beautiful and scary sound in the world. The sound of my baby crying.

“Congratulations! It's a girl!” Doctor Robin announced, while a nurse spread a blanket on my chest. She laid the tiny baby on my chest. She looked just as tired as I was, and her tiny cries both alarmed me and soothed me.

I looked up at Jackson, and then at Ada, who both had tears in their eyes.

“She's beautiful.” Jackson whispered, kissing my sweaty forehead.

“Look how dark her hair is.” Ada whispered, gently running her finger over the baby's head.

“She's perfect.” I whispered. Tears flowing down my cheeks. They took her from me then, to clean her up and weigh her. Jackson went with her, to take pictures, and so she wouldn't be alone.

“Go tell Rob. Tell him to come in.” I told Ada. She smiled and hugged me before leaving the room.

I listened to the tiny whimpering baby across the room. I had a daughter. I was a mother. This was amazing.

….....................

After the nurses cleaned both me and the baby up, they placed her in my arms. Jackson sat on the edge of the bed, just staring at her, like I was doing.

The door creaked open and I looked up. Rob and Ada were standing in the door.

“Come here Uncle Rob.” I said. He smiled and Ada followed behind him.

“She's so tiny.” He said. He kept his distance. He was nervous, but still smiling. Smiling was inevitable when you were around a baby.

“What's her name?” Ada asked.

I looked up at Jackson, who smiled and nodded his head.

“Chloe. Chloe Adeline.” I whispered.

“It's beautiful.” Ada whispered.

“Adeline was the closest to Ada we could get.” I added, not sure if she had made the connection yet. Jackson and I had loved the name Chloe from the very beginning, but it had taken a long time to find a middle name that fit. We tried Chloe Ada, but it hadn't sounded right.

“You mean...” Ada whispered, her voice trailing off. She had tears in her eyes.

I nodded my head. “You inspired the middle name.” I said.

“Well, it sure beats Pip.” Rob added.

As if she recognized the name, or maybe even the voice, Chloe stretched out her tiny arm, yawning and opening her eyes.

I giggled at her reaction. He tiny eyes traced every face in the room before she settled on Jackson's. She just looked at him, blinking and waving her little arm in the air.

“I think she wants her Daddy.” I whispered, shifting the baby in my arms so that Jackson could take her.

She looked so tiny in his arm. She looked up at him once again before closing her eyes again. I wanted to stay awake, I wanted to keep watching her, but I was so tired.

I soon drifted off to sleep, the last image in my head being Chloe in Jackson's arms.