Chapter 30 - The sarcasm in the words "Don't Panic"
Cesca rushed as she got her stuff together, purse and phone being chucked in her bag as well as Flopsy, Cesca didn’t care whether Mia wanted him, and she needed to leave... now! Cesca had all her stuff together so picked up Mia who was beginning to get a little confused and scared as to what was going on, Cesca was beginning to panic, bit of a contradiction when she was trying to keep Layla so calm, she knew that this was all going to be so hard, not knowing what to expect but knowing that it would all be worthwhile. Layla was in agony, clenching her fists and biting her lip through the pain, Cesca bounced Mia on her hip as she began to grizzle she really was finding the whole thing quite traumatic, “Layla you really need to be strong, breathe through the contractions”. Layla breathed in deeply through her contraction whilst Cesca tried to brighten up Mia, “Mia, you need to be a big girl for mummy, Layla’s having her baby”, “Her bubba”, Cesca smiled, “That’s right, it’s nothing scary, it’s not a big bad monster, but mummy really needs to help her, so will you be big and brave”, Mia nodded sucking her thumb whilst the tears did continue to flow down her cheeks but without the screaming. Layla’s contraction had passed so Cesca took this opportunity to leave. She helped Layla up, but from there she was fine. Layla walked in front of Cesca that way she could keep an eye on her. Cesca had parked outside so it wasn’t far for them to walk. Cesca placed Mia down, she was still all teary. “There’s a good girl Mia”, Cesca searched for her keys. Her hands were shaking, she was panicking, she didn’t know what to do and it was stressing her out that she couldn’t find her keys, were they even in her bag. “Mummy”, Mia called out grizzly, she could tell that Cesca was agitated; she was trying to be caring. “Alright Mia, I’m trying to find the keys”. “Right there not in here, must have left them inside”. Cesca grabbed Mia and ran back inside, she was flustered but focussed, she spotted their table, it was still messy but there lying beneath the crumbs where her keys. They were easy to spot with the purple glittery house key that was attached. What other colour would it be, Cesca really was a lady of glamour. “Mia, what did I say to you”, she said as Mia continued to cry and moan. Cesca unlocked the car quickly, Layla was having another contraction she was leant against the car, her head bowed down to the pavement. Cesca placed the keys in her mouth as she opened the car door and strapped Mia in quickly, “lala”, Mia cried out Layla’s name, she may have been nearly 3 but she could still tell if something was wrong. Cesca was finding it heart breaking that Mia was seeing everyone so sad or agitated. It wasn’t exactly the nicest of experiences for an adult let alone a toddler. Cesca shut the door making sure fingers and toes were out the way before she did so. Layla was panting and beginning to return to her normal self, the contraction was over, she headed for the passenger door, getting her phone out before getting in and fastening her seatbelt. Cesca started the ignition as Layla called Danny. There was no answer. “For god sake”, Cesca drove as quickly as she good, to the point it almost shot them backwards in their seats, she looked over towards Layla who was beginning to well up with tears as Cesca spoke the first droplet ran down her face, her hand was clenching the side of the door, it was obvious she was scared. “He’ll get there, I promise”. “No tears Lala”, Mia called out which made Layla smile, Cesca was grateful for Mia’s input, “Well done sausage”, she called out. However Cesca was starting to panic even more, how stupid could she have been to promise such a thing to her, how was she to know that Danny was going to make it, he was at a music festival, there was no way that he was going to make it. Though there was no way he was going to miss the birth of his baby either. Cesca pulled into the emergency parking. Layla got out, it was a struggle but she wasn’t in pain. Cesca knew they had to get a move on; her waters had already broken, so the race was on. Cesca grabbed Mia out of the car not forgetting her bag and Flopsy that really would have been the end of the world. She wiped Mia’s tears away as she walked towards the reception, Layla following closely behind. “Mia, it’s going to be okay. So no more tears popit”. Cesca smiled, she found it sweet that Mia was worried about Layla, she was a sensitive little girl, and she defiantly took after her daddy and mummy for that matter.
“How can I help you?” A stubborn woman in her mid fifty’s asked, as if they needed anymore chaos added to the whole situation. “It’s my friend Layla, Layla Mansfield. She’s in labour”, Cesca was breathless, jiggling Mia around on her hip, trying to keep her calm despite her calling out for Flopsy. Cesca tried to ignore it but Mia was starting to get really agitated once more. “Mia you’ll have to wait for Flopsy”. Mia began to cry and this time she was screaming. The woman looked towards Cesca with eyes of disgust. “Stop your winging”, the woman directed towards Mia, “Excuse me”, Cesca said. She was shocked, “She’s two for god sake, she’s been dragged to hospital and doesn’t have a clue what’s going on she’s scared”, the woman looked rather embarrassed but still managed to have her nose in the air at the pair of them. Cesca shrugged it off she didn’t have time for this. “It’s alright Mia, mummy loves you”, Cesca stroked Mia’s face, kissing her on the forehead, which seemed to calm her down. A nurse had helped Layla into a wheelchair “Cesca, don’t leave me”, Layla was worried she was going to have to face this on her own, she was beginning to bare up to the idea of Danny not being there. “We’re not going anywhere, are we Mia”, Cesca smiled, following the nurse, who was the complete opposite of the receptionist, lovely and kind, through to a room. The nurse helped Layla on the bed and Cesca sat down in the chair next to her, Mia sat on her lap, she was beginning to calm down, she was still whimpering but now had Flopsy in her arms and her thumb in her mouth so everything was beginning to look a lot better from Mia’s point of view. She snuggled back in Cesca’s arms, she was a picture, her eyes all glazed and sparkly, her long eye lashes flickering away it was a proud moment for Cesca. “So how are you feeling”, “I don’t think I can do this”, Cesca was blunt but in a reassuring way, “You have no choice, this baby is coming whether you like it or not and you are going to do this”, Cesca offered her hand, Layla happily obliged in taking it, they really were becoming closer by the second. This was definitely not something Cesca had planned to be doing today, but you take what’s in front of you and focus on the present more than the future and right now Cesca needed to get hold of Danny and fast, the midwife who had come to examine Layla had warned her that it wouldn’t be long, the baby would only hang on for another 2 hours, which seemed like a long time, but when it came to the situation they were in, it felt like minutes. “Right, I’m going to try and get hold of Danny, you breathe and if you need help, press the button. I won’t be long, I’m not going anywhere, so don’t worry”, Cesca got up placing Mia, who was worn out from all the crying on her hip, she cutely placed her head on Cesca’s shoulder whilst she sucked her thumb. Cesca has made it outside the hospital, which luckily wasn’t too far from Layla’s room, so she could make several attempts at calling Danny. They all failed. Cesca paced back and forth, this was stressing Cesca out let alone Layla, she must have been close to breaking point, she really didn’t need the stress of Danny not being there for her, she needed to keep their baby safe and this defiantly wasn’t helping. Cesca decided to call Jonah, she needed to tell him what was going on, and she thought he might be able to help on the Danny front to. She tapped the numbers in, looking over to Mia, who was being such a good girl. “Ces”, Jonah answered “You need to get Danny, you need to get him to the hospital quick”, “Is everything alright Ces”, “Layla’s having the baby!” Cesca was panicking now, but she couldn’t help it, she owed it to Layla to do everything she could for her. “I can’t get hold of him on his mobile, but Layla mentioned something about a music festival”, “Know it, I’ll go get him! I’ll be as quick as I can”, “I love you Jonah”, “Love you to, give Mia a kiss from me”. Cesca placed her phone in her pocket holding Mia tightly; being at the hospital brang back a lot of happy memories Cesca couldn’t help but admire how much her daughter had blossomed. Cesca was feeling a lot calmer after speaking to Jonah; he seemed to have that affect on people, especially Cesca. They headed back to the room, meeting the door to screams, which only made Mia cry and Cesca burst on in. “Layla!” Cesca rushed to her side, these were screams Cesca recognised, it couldn’t be happening now, it was too soon. Danny wasn’t even here yet. “He’s not coming is he”, Layla said through the pain, “I didn’t get hold of him, but Jonah’s gone to go and find him, he knows where he is going. Don’t lose hope; focus on the baby, your baby.” Cesca looked down at Mia, rocking her to and throw. She really was rather emotional, “aw Mia, you worry too much you’re just like your daddy”. Cesca could hear Layla laugh at that comment. The laughter was interrupted by the midwife, “Right we really do need to start delivering this baby”, “No not yet”; Layla was frantic in her reply. “Please, can’t you wait? Her boyfriend is going to be here soon, he can’t miss this”. “I’m sorry but this baby isn’t waiting for anybody, its vital we deliver it now”.
Cesca’s face turned to worry, it almost mirrored Mia’s, she looked down, her bracelet catching her eye, which only reminded her of how much Jonah loved her, of how willing he was to do anything for her. She had so much faith and trust in him, she knew he wouldn’t let her down. And with that thought mustering through her head, her phone rang. Mia had fallen asleep; crying really had warned her out. She answered the phone whilst she left Mia in her seat; Layla’s eyes were fixed on a sleeping Mia, whilst thoughts as to who was on the other end of the phone ran through her head. “Ces, I have Danny, were in the car now, we can’t get there any quicker than 15 minutes”, “Great, but 15 minutes, she’s in labour now” “Oh my god, I’m driving as fast as I can”, “be safe, I love you”, “love you always”. Cesca hung up and headed back into the room with a smile on her face yet a pasty colour that distinguished that she was worried. “Is he coming, is he going to be here!?” Layla was worried, she was pushing, he was going to miss it she just knew it. “There on their way, they’ll be here, I promised you didn’t I”, Cesca smiled she was being strong for Layla’s sake. Layla was pushing, it was almost over, her head was sweating her cheeks were flushed, this baby was about to arrive. Mia was still sound asleep in the chair, Cesca couldn’t help but question how, but she wasn’t complaining. This was a magical moment and she was sure that Layla and Danny wouldn’t want it ruined because of Mia’s screaming and crying. It was nearing the birth, Cesca couldn’t help but worry where they had got to, she wouldn’t forgive herself if Danny missed the birth of his baby. “There’s the head”, the midwife called out, “See I told you, you could do it, come on final push”, Cesca wiped Layla’s head; she still looked great considering she was in labour, a quality both of them shared. Layla gave her final push as the door swung open. It was Danny and Jonah. Cesca stepped back and ran towards Jonah, flinging her arms around his neck and giving him a passionate kiss before saying thank you. “Ces, anything for you”, she knew she could count on him and he was yet to prove her wrong. Danny held her hand as the baby was delivered, the midwife held their baby up as it caught its first gasp of air, resulting in it crying. “It’s a boy, congratulations”, they all smiled, tears of joy were shed, especially from Danny, he couldn’t believe he had made it, none of them could, but the point was he had and that was all that mattered.
“I’m so sorry, you had to do this on your own”, “Your here now and I wasn’t on my own, I had Cesca”, Layla smiled towards Cesca as she was handed their baby boy; as he was towelled clean in her arms. “Thank you so much Cesca, I don’t know what we would have done without you”, “It was nothing, she was a friend in need”, Jonah held Cesca close, kissing her on the head, Cesca held Jonah’s hands which were around her waist, she was rather proud of herself, for once she had helped someone and it had actually paid off, she felt so honoured to be part of such a joyous occasion. The couple shared the special moment with their new born baby son as Cesca and Jonah took turns of taking photos, capturing this special moment. “Cesca, I’m so proud of you. I would never have been able to cope today. It’s hard enough keeping Mia under control now that she runs around let alone at a hospital where you had to help Layla to, I love you so much, your something special Kirby”, He held her close, his lips became attached to Cesca’s as they shared a long passion filled kiss, there was a lot of love in the room at that moment. Cesca couldn’t believe after all the worrying Mia had been doing that she had missed the most important part, meeting the baby. But Mia was only little and Cesca was pretty sure that Mia would have another opportunity like this at some point and it would feel and be even more special. “Oi, love birds”, Danny called out, disrupting the Kirby’s passionate moment, the couple laughed, Jonah’s arms returned around Cesca’s waist and his head perched on her neck, Cesca inclined her head towards his, it was a picture perfect moment. “Come and meet Olly James Mansfield”.
“How can I help you?” A stubborn woman in her mid fifty’s asked, as if they needed anymore chaos added to the whole situation. “It’s my friend Layla, Layla Mansfield. She’s in labour”, Cesca was breathless, jiggling Mia around on her hip, trying to keep her calm despite her calling out for Flopsy. Cesca tried to ignore it but Mia was starting to get really agitated once more. “Mia you’ll have to wait for Flopsy”. Mia began to cry and this time she was screaming. The woman looked towards Cesca with eyes of disgust. “Stop your winging”, the woman directed towards Mia, “Excuse me”, Cesca said. She was shocked, “She’s two for god sake, she’s been dragged to hospital and doesn’t have a clue what’s going on she’s scared”, the woman looked rather embarrassed but still managed to have her nose in the air at the pair of them. Cesca shrugged it off she didn’t have time for this. “It’s alright Mia, mummy loves you”, Cesca stroked Mia’s face, kissing her on the forehead, which seemed to calm her down. A nurse had helped Layla into a wheelchair “Cesca, don’t leave me”, Layla was worried she was going to have to face this on her own, she was beginning to bare up to the idea of Danny not being there. “We’re not going anywhere, are we Mia”, Cesca smiled, following the nurse, who was the complete opposite of the receptionist, lovely and kind, through to a room. The nurse helped Layla on the bed and Cesca sat down in the chair next to her, Mia sat on her lap, she was beginning to calm down, she was still whimpering but now had Flopsy in her arms and her thumb in her mouth so everything was beginning to look a lot better from Mia’s point of view. She snuggled back in Cesca’s arms, she was a picture, her eyes all glazed and sparkly, her long eye lashes flickering away it was a proud moment for Cesca. “So how are you feeling”, “I don’t think I can do this”, Cesca was blunt but in a reassuring way, “You have no choice, this baby is coming whether you like it or not and you are going to do this”, Cesca offered her hand, Layla happily obliged in taking it, they really were becoming closer by the second. This was definitely not something Cesca had planned to be doing today, but you take what’s in front of you and focus on the present more than the future and right now Cesca needed to get hold of Danny and fast, the midwife who had come to examine Layla had warned her that it wouldn’t be long, the baby would only hang on for another 2 hours, which seemed like a long time, but when it came to the situation they were in, it felt like minutes. “Right, I’m going to try and get hold of Danny, you breathe and if you need help, press the button. I won’t be long, I’m not going anywhere, so don’t worry”, Cesca got up placing Mia, who was worn out from all the crying on her hip, she cutely placed her head on Cesca’s shoulder whilst she sucked her thumb. Cesca has made it outside the hospital, which luckily wasn’t too far from Layla’s room, so she could make several attempts at calling Danny. They all failed. Cesca paced back and forth, this was stressing Cesca out let alone Layla, she must have been close to breaking point, she really didn’t need the stress of Danny not being there for her, she needed to keep their baby safe and this defiantly wasn’t helping. Cesca decided to call Jonah, she needed to tell him what was going on, and she thought he might be able to help on the Danny front to. She tapped the numbers in, looking over to Mia, who was being such a good girl. “Ces”, Jonah answered “You need to get Danny, you need to get him to the hospital quick”, “Is everything alright Ces”, “Layla’s having the baby!” Cesca was panicking now, but she couldn’t help it, she owed it to Layla to do everything she could for her. “I can’t get hold of him on his mobile, but Layla mentioned something about a music festival”, “Know it, I’ll go get him! I’ll be as quick as I can”, “I love you Jonah”, “Love you to, give Mia a kiss from me”. Cesca placed her phone in her pocket holding Mia tightly; being at the hospital brang back a lot of happy memories Cesca couldn’t help but admire how much her daughter had blossomed. Cesca was feeling a lot calmer after speaking to Jonah; he seemed to have that affect on people, especially Cesca. They headed back to the room, meeting the door to screams, which only made Mia cry and Cesca burst on in. “Layla!” Cesca rushed to her side, these were screams Cesca recognised, it couldn’t be happening now, it was too soon. Danny wasn’t even here yet. “He’s not coming is he”, Layla said through the pain, “I didn’t get hold of him, but Jonah’s gone to go and find him, he knows where he is going. Don’t lose hope; focus on the baby, your baby.” Cesca looked down at Mia, rocking her to and throw. She really was rather emotional, “aw Mia, you worry too much you’re just like your daddy”. Cesca could hear Layla laugh at that comment. The laughter was interrupted by the midwife, “Right we really do need to start delivering this baby”, “No not yet”; Layla was frantic in her reply. “Please, can’t you wait? Her boyfriend is going to be here soon, he can’t miss this”. “I’m sorry but this baby isn’t waiting for anybody, its vital we deliver it now”.
Cesca’s face turned to worry, it almost mirrored Mia’s, she looked down, her bracelet catching her eye, which only reminded her of how much Jonah loved her, of how willing he was to do anything for her. She had so much faith and trust in him, she knew he wouldn’t let her down. And with that thought mustering through her head, her phone rang. Mia had fallen asleep; crying really had warned her out. She answered the phone whilst she left Mia in her seat; Layla’s eyes were fixed on a sleeping Mia, whilst thoughts as to who was on the other end of the phone ran through her head. “Ces, I have Danny, were in the car now, we can’t get there any quicker than 15 minutes”, “Great, but 15 minutes, she’s in labour now” “Oh my god, I’m driving as fast as I can”, “be safe, I love you”, “love you always”. Cesca hung up and headed back into the room with a smile on her face yet a pasty colour that distinguished that she was worried. “Is he coming, is he going to be here!?” Layla was worried, she was pushing, he was going to miss it she just knew it. “There on their way, they’ll be here, I promised you didn’t I”, Cesca smiled she was being strong for Layla’s sake. Layla was pushing, it was almost over, her head was sweating her cheeks were flushed, this baby was about to arrive. Mia was still sound asleep in the chair, Cesca couldn’t help but question how, but she wasn’t complaining. This was a magical moment and she was sure that Layla and Danny wouldn’t want it ruined because of Mia’s screaming and crying. It was nearing the birth, Cesca couldn’t help but worry where they had got to, she wouldn’t forgive herself if Danny missed the birth of his baby. “There’s the head”, the midwife called out, “See I told you, you could do it, come on final push”, Cesca wiped Layla’s head; she still looked great considering she was in labour, a quality both of them shared. Layla gave her final push as the door swung open. It was Danny and Jonah. Cesca stepped back and ran towards Jonah, flinging her arms around his neck and giving him a passionate kiss before saying thank you. “Ces, anything for you”, she knew she could count on him and he was yet to prove her wrong. Danny held her hand as the baby was delivered, the midwife held their baby up as it caught its first gasp of air, resulting in it crying. “It’s a boy, congratulations”, they all smiled, tears of joy were shed, especially from Danny, he couldn’t believe he had made it, none of them could, but the point was he had and that was all that mattered.
“I’m so sorry, you had to do this on your own”, “Your here now and I wasn’t on my own, I had Cesca”, Layla smiled towards Cesca as she was handed their baby boy; as he was towelled clean in her arms. “Thank you so much Cesca, I don’t know what we would have done without you”, “It was nothing, she was a friend in need”, Jonah held Cesca close, kissing her on the head, Cesca held Jonah’s hands which were around her waist, she was rather proud of herself, for once she had helped someone and it had actually paid off, she felt so honoured to be part of such a joyous occasion. The couple shared the special moment with their new born baby son as Cesca and Jonah took turns of taking photos, capturing this special moment. “Cesca, I’m so proud of you. I would never have been able to cope today. It’s hard enough keeping Mia under control now that she runs around let alone at a hospital where you had to help Layla to, I love you so much, your something special Kirby”, He held her close, his lips became attached to Cesca’s as they shared a long passion filled kiss, there was a lot of love in the room at that moment. Cesca couldn’t believe after all the worrying Mia had been doing that she had missed the most important part, meeting the baby. But Mia was only little and Cesca was pretty sure that Mia would have another opportunity like this at some point and it would feel and be even more special. “Oi, love birds”, Danny called out, disrupting the Kirby’s passionate moment, the couple laughed, Jonah’s arms returned around Cesca’s waist and his head perched on her neck, Cesca inclined her head towards his, it was a picture perfect moment. “Come and meet Olly James Mansfield”.
