“Finally!” Melody entered the room, dressed in grey leggings and a pink sweater that matched her hair.
“Did you choose that color intentionally?” I asked.
“Well, since everyone is being all secretive,” she said, glaring at Milly. “I’ll love it no matter what, but we need more girls in the house.”
Hope rolled up a sleeping bag. “So you can use them to model your clothing?”
Melody gave a sheepish grin.
The Relic moved the monitor against the wall. “If there’s one thing I can do, it’s keep a secret. Nobody gets to know the gender until the mother does. The reveal party should be today. You’re all invited.”
We laughed after she left the room.
Atticus sat at the foot of the bed and rubbed my feet.
“Can you open that for me?” I gestured to the bedside table.
Atticus opened the drawer. When he pulled out the black beanie I made for him and turned it in his hands, he smiled. “Yellow stripes.”
“Only three. And they’re narrow, so you won’t look like a bumblebee. You need some color in your life. Everything is always black and white with you.”
Without anyone prompting him, Atticus put it on and beamed with pride. I wasn’t sure whether it was the mustard-yellow stripes that made him seem human or the love shining in his eyes, but I took a mental snapshot and saved it in my heart.
Chapter 32
“Ineed you to push!” Milly called out from behind me.
“I can’t. I can’t do this anymore.” My hands gripped the headboard and I sobbed, the pressure unbearable. Exhaustion overwhelmed me to the point where my thighs were shaking.
“Joy, sweetheart.” Hope wiped my forehead with a wet cloth. “You can do this. I knowit hurts, but soon all that pain will be gone. Be brave.”
Milly encouraged me to try different positions when labor began, and being the wolf that I was, getting on my knees and using the headboard as my anchor felt the most natural. But now my muscles trembled, and I couldn’t hold myself this way anymore with my knees sinking into the mattress.
The only ones in the room were Milly and Hope. Everyone else had been ordered to stay outside. I couldn’t bear the thought of Atticus seeing me like this.
“Help me. I need to turn over,” I whined.
Hope gripped my arm and assisted me, but sitting felt worse, so I stood and clutched her for support.
Milly laid another towel on the floor before turning a chair around in front of them. “Try squatting. Gravity helps move things along. Make sure you’re only pushing with the contractions. Let your body tell you what to do, and make sure you don’t hold your breath. Remember what I said about your breathing.”
Hope helped me get into position as I squatted on the floor, my hands gripping the back of the chair. This felt easier, and suddenly the pressure was unbearable with the next contraction. My growl turned into a feral scream.
“It’s crowning!” Milly announced with her hand between my legs. “Big push. You can do it. We’re almost there.”
Another scream ripped from my lungs. “It burns!”
“One more big push!”
Tears ran down my cheeks. I could feel that life between my legs, and I wanted the labor to end. I wanted more than anything to hold my baby in my arms and be over all this pain.
Hope stroked my back. “You can do this. We’realmostdone. Give it all you’ve got!”
With everything I had in me, I pushed so hard that I became dizzy. There was so much pressure—so much burning.
“Here it comes!” Milly announced. “I’ve got the head. Give me a small push.”
Relief came fast as soon as the baby was out.
