Skinner/Change in the Wind
By Atonia
Part 5
Max drove home from the airport thinking about his visit to the Thornes. They did talk to each other and sometimes argued, he caught that from Terry. He hoped he hadn’t put his foot in with Toni by telling Terry she’d called Connie. Dinner, he’d noticed was superficially happy and lighthearted. But still and all it had been a good visit, and Terry had been right on where his own problems were concerned.
He’d taken the early flight and got home before eleven o’clock in the morning. He parked his car and got out and stretched heaving his bag on his shoulder he went inside. He found Connie in the bed.
“Hello, love, still abed?” he bent and kissed her.
“I’m sorry what time is it, I wasn’t expecting you this early.”
“It’s still morning and besides, you can sleep all you want, we aren’t on any kind of a timetable here.”
“How was your trip, everybody okay?”
“Yeah, they’re fine…you can actually hold a conversation with Jacky now, however he still speaks a foreign tongue that only Toni can understand. She didn’t upset you did she?”
“Well…no not really, what she said was true, I have excluded you and not because I was trying to do things behind your back, I just didn’t realize you wanted to be in the middle.”
“I do want to be in the middle. I want to be where you are, Connie.”
Connie pulled him down beside her, “That’s where I want you to be, right here with me. You may not get a full night’s sleep for some time to come, but if you don’t mind it.”
“Ignore me if I complain. I think sometimes you worry too much about me, let me suffer too and not just being pregnant, but you let me get away with too much. It’s okay to tell me no or don’t do that or why haven’t you done this. I’m not going anywhere, Connie.”
“You know, I’ve tried to make everything perfect for you, tried so hard to be at my best all the time because I know I’m not the one you wanted.
“Connie, all that happened long before you came into my life. I am far from perfect a fact that keeps being thrown at me by Terry, I just want to be happy…with you and little Maxi here. Something I realized while in London is that we don’t talk…at least not enough and not about important things like why you think you have to make everything perfect for me. You don’t…you’re just creating a monster when you do that.”
Connie smiled, “But I like my monster.”
“See, it’s already happened. Don’t make it easy for me, make me work for it, make me grovel at your feet.”
“I’m not sure I want you groveling about my feet. I think I understand what you’re saying, Max.” Connie pushed her way up the pillows and propped up against the headboard. “You can start by bringing me a cup of tea. You make good tea,” she took his face in her hands and kissed him.
Connie had been having false labor pains for so long she hadn’t realized when the real thing started. She’d been to her weekly doctor’s visit and found she was dilated 4 cm. Max was waiting out in the lounge area when she came out.
“I hope you don’ t have any plans for the rest of the day, possibly the night.”
“Why, what’s on?”
“We’re going to have a baby, I’m in labor.”
“Oh, Connie…shouldn’t we be getting you to hospital?”
“Not yet, but we need to go home and pack a bag,” she waddled out to the car.
Once at the chateau she went upstairs and packed a bag, “Max, come and pick out what you want to take,” she called down the stairs.
“Me…I need to take something?” he climbed the stairs.
“I’d prepare for an overnighter. Oh…oh.” She bent double.
“Connie!”
Connie held on to the foot of the bed until it eased off. “Okay…now go and pack a bag for Maxi, it’s in the crib…”
“Pack a bag for Maxi…” Max walked into the nursery and found the bag but had no idea so he began going through drawers and pulling out things listening to Connie as she told him what to put in the bag, hoping he was choosing the right things. “Okay, it’s full so…we need to head for the hospital.”
“No…not yet.”
“Yes…now Connie we have to go all the way to the other side of Bonnieux . I’ll um, put the things in the car.” He ran down the steps with the two bags.
Ludivine was at the foot of the stairs, “Max what is happening?”
“Baby,” he called as he ran out of the door.
“Oh,” she clapped her hands and ran up the stairs to Connie. Between the two of them they got her down the stairs and into the car. “You call, Max,” Ludivine called after them and went to find Duflot.
Max drove wide-eyed all the way to the hospital, Connie was having contractions one after another and he was near panic at her distress.
Once she was in a room and they let him back with her, he went to her side and held her hand a little alarmed at all the machines attached to her.
“Vitals,” she said to him, “listen that’s the baby’s heartbeat.”
“It’s loud is he okay?”
“Yes, he’s strong and ready to come out into the world.” She moaned as another contraction hit her.
Hours went by and still no baby, Max had been in and out of her room, placed a call to Aubrey to let him and Penny know Connie was admitted to hospital. They were on their way now.
“Why is it taking so long?” he moped her wet forehead with a cloth.
“It just does but everything is going good…do you think you can stand it, Max?”
She’d asked him to be in the delivery room with her, “Of course…I can.” But he was far from sure he’d make it though.
Penny came in and gave Max a break; he walked out into the hall and saw Aubrey leaning against a wall.
“Who’s having this baby you or Connie?” he grinned giving Max a look over.
“I think we both are, she’s in such pain…I can’t….it’s…”
“Yes I know, but that’s the way it’s done, Max. That’s how we all got here.”
“There won’t be another one, I can’t do this again and it’s not even me that’s hurting.”
“You might want to reserve that thought until later, he might want a sister.” Aubrey put his hand on Max’s arm and guided him to the waiting area to sit down.
A little while later Penny came running down the hall, “Max, they want you…he’s coming!” she squealed.
Max glanced at Aubrey and got up and ran down to her room, they were just taking her out to the delivery room where Max was outfitted in scrubs and a mask. He stood at the head of the delivery table and held her hands, he couldn’t look at the other end, he just couldn’t, even when the doctor told him the baby’s head was out. But once the whole baby was laid on her belly he looked…and fainted dead away.
Revived and sitting on a stool next to her while they weighed and cleaned little Maxi up he marveled that such a thing could be. “Strong set of lungs,” he said to Connie.
“Better get used to that,” she smiled slightly exhausted and excited.
“Sorry I fell out,” he looked a little sheepishly at her, “with all you’ve gone through…but when I saw him all covered in…mucky stuff”
“He’s better now, look” They brought the baby over to her and Max got a good look at his son. He didn’t realize he was crying until a tear fell onto the baby’s little blanket. He wiped his eyes.
“Oh look at him…little fingers…ten of them. They want me to take him?” his eyes widened.
“Take him to the nursery, darling, Dad and Penny will want to see him too.” Connie smiled, loving the expression on his face as he looked at his baby.
“Would you look at that,” Aubrey with a wide smile when he saw Max coming down the hall with a nurse behind him, “he’s got Maxi.”
Penny noticed his face, a picture of love and wonderment as he walked carefully to them as if carrying a bundle of eggs. “What have you got there, Max?” she asked walking over to have a look.
“It’s him, Maximillian Aubrey Skinner.”