I laugh, and it’s lighter than expected. “Yeah, it is a pretty small pond. You’re an amazing friend, Jenna. I know from experience. Kiera is lucky to have you.”
“Ah shucks,” Jenna jokes because it’s her go-to method when she’s feeling vulnerable. “We’re playing it by ear at the minute.”
“I like this for you, Jen.”
“I like it for me too. I’ll tell Mum and Dad when there’s more to share. Right now, I’m enjoying the soccer camp and talking to her. She likes me, and that’s all that matters.”
We get crappy vending machine coffee and return to the waiting room, where Liz is animatedly explaining the concept of ‘push playlists’ to Becca.
My phone vibrates with a text from Eden. It says, “send help,” followed by four skull emojis and a gif of a baby velociraptor hatching. A second text follows moments later which reads, “Pia says if she dies tell everyone Todd’s weak and Eden’s her true soulmate.” I show Jenna, who bursts out laughing, coffee almost coming out of her nose.
Liz leans over, catching the gist. “Are those two going to survive this?” she asks, not exactly joking.
“They might,” I say. “As long as Pia’s being drugged.”
Becca chimes in, “Honestly, I don’t think Pia needs drugs, she just needs to compete with the patient in the next room over. Every time the lady in room seven screams, Pia yells even louder.”
“That tracks,” Liz says, admiring. “Pia’s fierce.”
Bella returns, arms full of snacks and clothes. Hours drag in a blur of junk food and rounds of “guess that medical code” every time a number is announced over the intercom. Eventually, Todd emerges from the back. He’s got the face of someone who’s just seen a lot more blood and placenta than he’d like. “She did it,” he says, looking stunned. We all pop up like prairie dogs.
“She did great,” he says with a wobble in his voice. “Baby is healthy. They’re going to bring them to the maternity ward after a little while.”
Taking a step towards him, I smile softly. He looks wrecked. “Is she asking for anyone?” I say, hoping but not expecting.
“She said, ‘Send in my girls, but only if Bella doesn’t make any weird jokes about the afterbirth.’” His delivery is so deadpan that the laughter is explosive.
Eden dashes out of the delivery area, hair askew, shirt untucked. She’s wearing an unidentifiable fluid on one sleeve. Her face is marred with the same horror as Todd’s. “She did it. She’s here! Pia’s a mom and I can never unsee what I have seen!”
The rest of us flood her with hugs, food, wet wipes and a stack of clothes. “How did Todd actually do?” Becca whispers, eyeing Todd from the side.
Eden makes a thumbs-up. “Took the fainting like a champ.”
Pia is propped up in bed, looking like someone who just bench-pressed a Smart car but would do it again if dared. She’s holding a bundle, impossibly small, red-faced, and already possessed of Pia’s stern brow.
“It’s a girl,” Pia says. “Meet Meena.”
“She’s beautiful,” I say, and mean it.
Eden’s face is softer than I’ve ever seen it, and everyone takes turns holding the baby, even Jenna, who pretends to hate it but is totally enchanted.
Later, after everyone leaves, Eden and I drive back to her apartment. The city is quiet and sweet-smelling in the early morning. Her hand finds mine, and she grips my fingers.
“I didn’t faint,” she says.
I nudge her shoulder. “You did so good.”
She smiles at me, tired but dazzling. “This was the best first date ever.”
I look over and wholeheartedly agree.
Bella and Becca are passed out on the couch when we arrive. Eden doesn’t ask if I’m staying over, she simply pulls me into her room and begins undressing. Honestly, I’m too tired to overthink it and follow her lead. She hands me an oversized band tee and climbs into bed, holding the covers open for me. I slip in and curl myself around her lean frame.
She’s warm and humming, fingertips making a slow circuit from my wrist to elbow. After a while, Eden speaks, voice low and a little awed. “Do you think Meena’s going to have the same scowl as Pia her whole life?”
“Oh, for sure,” I say. “But with Todd’s impossibly wide nostrils.”
She snorts, and the sound vibrates against my skin.
