The Awakening of Love Ch. 09

:: Chapter Nine: A New Beginning::

"Shira?" Jake called, walking out to the garden. Ashira looked up from her book and smiled. "Hi," she murmured.

"Are you feeling all right?" Jake wanted to know.

"Yeah, just tired," Ashira replied.

"How much longer?" he asked.

"Two weeks," she answered with a groan.

"Your back?" Jake asked. Ashira nodded. Jake straddled the bench behind Ashira and began to gently massage the knots out. "Are you excited?" Jake asked.

"I'm scared," Ashira admitted. Jake stopped massaging Ashira's back and pulled her to him. "Why?" he wanted to know.

"I don't know if I can do this. Mark doesn't want to be a father and yeah, he's willing to pay money, but I don't know if I can do this alone," Ashira said.

"Shira, you're not alone, you have all of us," Jake reminded her. Ashira gave a small smile.

"A baby needs a father and Sunshine isn't exactly father material," Ashira joked.

"What about me?" Jake asked. Ashira turned to look at Jake. "You know I care about you. Let me be there for you and for the baby," Jake murmured. Before Ashira could say anything, Sunshine walked out onto the patio.

"Hey guys, dinner is done. And before you ask, it isn't Mexican, or Chinese," Sunshine told them. Ashira and Jake laughed as Jake helped Ashira to her feet.

"What is for dinner?" Ashira wanted to know.

"Manicotti," Sunshine replied. After they had finished eating, Ashira turned to Jake.

"Can you drive me to the salon? I have some paper work to finish up," Ashira asked.

"Yeah, give me five minutes to finish something in my room and I'll meet you in the car," Jake agreed. True to his word, five minutes later, Jake met Ashira in the car. They rode the fifteen minute ride to the salon in silence. "What do you need to do here?" Jake asked.

Ashira turned and looked at Jake. "I just have some paper work to finish up," she told him. "It'll only take about an hour," Ashira added. Jake looked at his watch. "Okay, I'm going to go shopping for my mom's birthday then, I'll be back here at 7:30," Jake said.

"Have fun," Ashira murmured, walking into the salon and into the office. Jake got out of the car and headed for town. Ashira walked into the office and sat at her desk. Ashira reached for the files that she hadn't filed. Ashira first checked the number of times the customers had tanned in the last sixty days, and then she checked how much money they had spent between buying packages and buying lotion.

Everyone who had spent a hundred dollars in the last sixty days was bumped up to preferred customer status. Just as Ashira reached for the last file, she felt a searing pain in her abdomen and felt a warm, sticky fluid run down her leg. Ashira reached down and felt her leg. When she pulled her hand back up, Ashira was shocked to find her fingers covered in blood. Ashira tried to stand and fell to the ground. "Jake," Ashira whimpered as she struggled not to panic. Ashira glanced at her watch. She still had fifteen minutes before Jake would be back.

Ashira reached for the phone and managed to pull it off the desk. Ashira dialed Jake's cell phone number. "You have reached Jake, I'm not here right now, just leave a message and I'll get back to you ASAP," the voice mail recording sounded. "Jake, I need help, please hurry," Ashira said in a panicked voice before hanging up the phone. Shortly after 7:30, Jake walked back into the salon.

"Shira?" he called. Jake walked into the office. "Shira?" Jake called. He walked around the desk. "Oh my G-d! Ashira!" Jake exclaimed. He grabbed the phone and dialed 911.

Jake paced in the hall way as he waited for the doctor to come out and speak with him. Just as Sunshine found him, the doctor came out of Ashira's room. "Are you Jake Barnes?" the doctor wanted to know. Jake nodded.

"Is Ashira okay?" Jake wanted to know.

"We're taking her up to surgery to have an emergency cesarean section. The placenta started to break away from the uterine lining that is what caused the haemorrhaging. She should be fine and so will the baby, if the doctor can get it out in time," the doctor replied. Jake and Sunshine exchanged concerned glances as Ashira was wheeled out of the examining room and upstairs to the Operating Room.

"Do you want me to call Mark?" Sunshine asked. Jake clenched his fists but nodded.

"He should know that his child's life is in danger," Jake said after several moments. "I'm going out for air, I'll be back in a few minutes," he added. Jake was pacing up and down the hall when Mark started walking towards them. "How is she?" Mark asked. Jake looked surprised to see Mark get there as fast as he had; forgetting that Mark had been transferred to San Diego a few weeks before.

"There's no word yet," Sunshine told him, toying with her hands nervously. Mark looked at Jake, hesitated then walked up to him.

"Jake, I know I should apologize to Shira, but I'm going to apologize to you. I'm sorry for the way I treated her after she was raped. I know you've hated me for it since and to be honest, I hate myself for the way I treated her. She deserves way better than me, and I hope you guys are happy together. I know you care about her; I've seen the way you look at her. If Shira wants your name on the baby's birth certificate, that's fine, but I would like to see the baby every once in a while, you can call me 'Uncle Mark," Mark told Jake.

Before Jake could say anything, the doctor came out of the operating room, his scrubs speckled with blood. Jake's hands clenched as Sunshine and Crystal came to stand next to him. "How is she?" Jake asked.

"She's one lucky lady. We managed to get the baby out and save them both. Ashira's weak and she's lost a lot of blood, and while I don't recommend it right away, provided she is kept as stress free as possible, she can have another baby," the doctor said. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. "The baby, what is it?" Mark asked.

"A little girl; eight pounds, ten ounces and twenty three inches long," the doctor replied. "You can see the baby now, but you need to wait about a half hour before you can see Ashira," he added, anticipating their next question. "She's in the NICU," the doctor told them before walking away. Everyone looked at each other. "Let's go see the baby," Jake said, turning towards the NICU.

Jake stopped after a few feet and turned back to Mark who was hanging back, unsure of where he stood. "C'mon dad," Jake told him. Mark caught up with them and the four of them walked to the NICU.