Chapter 2
Nine months later, at her parents' house, Melinda's water broke and she was rushed to the hospital by her mother where she gave birth to a boy. Melinda could hold back the tears that cascaded down her cheeks as she looked down at her little bundle of joy.
Her son had ushered her into motherhood and she was going to embrace that life with every atom of love in her.
Her mother rushed in through the door, looking agitated. "Melinda?" She called out.
"Over here ma," Melinda responded, waving her hand out to her while she held the baby in her other arm.
"Oh, Melinda. He's here already." Her mother said as she approached the duo.
"How do you know it's a boy, mother?" Melinda asked, smiling weakly. She had used up almost all of her strength in bringing her son into the world. Yet, even in her depleted state, she devoted every ounce of remaining vitality to showering her newborn with affection.
"How's my grandson," her mother, Lori said ignoring Melinda's question.
Lori's face contorted into a frown as she pinched the little one's cheek. Melinda was taken aback by her mother's facial expressions. Why had her mother's expression suddenly changed from an excited one to that of horror?
"Mother, what's wrong?" Melinda asked with a look of worry etched on her face.
Lori stepped back as she looked from child to mother.
"Mother, what's wrong?" Melinda said her voice nearly a yell as a sense of dread began to take hold within her.
Lori walked back to them, her eyes red with tears as she took the child from Melinda's grasp. "The baby isn't breathing," Lori said after a moment of staring wide-eyed at the child.
"What?" Melinda screamed and the four walls of the hospital's room almost came crashing down.
"Tell me you're joking right now, Mother," Melinda said with pleading eyes.
Lori shook her head as she handed the baby back to her daughter. Melinda grabbed her child and tapped the child lightly against the arm.
"But....but he was breathing a while ago." Melinda stuttered heavily.
Lori managed to sprint toward the door as she made her way out quickly out the swing doors that continued to pace back and forth incessantly even after she had left.
Melinda tapped her child and placed her ear against his chest. "No...no no, please no, no!" She cried when her child wasn't responding.
In the next minute, Lori was back with two nurses trailing behind her.
"Oh my God!" One of the nurses exclaimed when she saw that the baby's skin had turned completely blue. The nurse made an attempt to collect the child from Melinda, but her grip on him was too strong.
"We need to take him to the emergency ward right now." The nurse said impatiently.
"No, please. Mother, please don't let them take my baby away." Melinda cried out.
"You have to give him to them," Lori responded, wiping the sweat from her forehead.
Melinda reluctantly let go of the baby. She watched in anguish and the nurses sprinted out of the room with her child.
"My child!" Melinda wept heavily as her mother came to her side and consoled her.
"Mother, I need my child please."
"It's okay sweetie. They're going to bring him back soon." Lori assured her with a tinge of uncertainty as she stroked her daughter's hair. Melinda hugged Lori tightly as she soiled her mother's clothes with her tears.
About an hour later, one of the nurses came back with a serious look on her face, indicating that she had important news to break to them.
"Miss Melinda?"
Melinda and Lori both shot their head in the direction the noise had come from. They had been so engrossed in weeping that they didn't hear when the nurse had walked inside.
The nurse looked from both of them to the file she held in between her fingers as she cleared her throat.
"Is my baby alive now?" Melinda asked with a tone of desperation, almost getting up from the bed. Her body held her in place and laid her back down.
The nurse hesitated for a moment.
"Well answer me," Melinda yelled.
"Yes," the nurse answered, meeting Melinda's gaze.
"Thank heavens!" Lori exclaimed. "My grandson is alive."
Melinda couldn't contain her emotions as tears of joy welled up inside her and splurged out in form tears rolled down her blushed cheeks.
"But there might be a slight problem." The nurse said, interrupting their outburst of relief and happiness.
"Wha...what problem?" Melinda stuttered. Her heart was already floating in her stomach.
"I'm afraid your child is suffering from MAS."
Neither Melinda nor her mother had ever heard of that kind of disease, still, none of them had the heart go ask the heart to ask the nurse what MAS was.
Melinda clutched her mother tightly and continued in her river of tears.
The nurse sensed that none of them was ready to speak after that so she continued. "Your baby's airway is blocked and his lungs are inflamed..."
"Oh No!" Melinda screamed not waiting to hear the rest of what the nurse had to say.
"Calm down, Sweetie." Lori said to her daughter throwing a tantrum. "let's hear her out." Lori turned to the nurse with a heavy heart and said. "Please go on."
"His case is severe but he has been admitted into the neonatal intensive care unit, and treatment has commenced."
"We'll need you to make a deposit of $50,000 to continue the treatment."
"$50,000?" Melinda and Lori said simultaneously.
"So.. so what's the total of the bill going to amount to."
"Probably $159,000..." The nurse started.
"Oh my God!" Melinda clutched her chest even tighter as she looked away and began to panic.
"Where are we going to get such an amount of money from?" Lori inquired, her mind already plunged into a state of confusion.
"This isn't happening," Melinda said in her dazed state.
"You're free to leave, but you can come back tomorrow with the money so that we'll be able to go on with the treatment." With that, the nurse dropped the file she held in hand on a table beside Melinda, before turning to take her leave.
Lori yanked the paper off the table as she flipped through the file, her jaw hanging down in disbelief.