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“Please don’t say that.” Lucero took her hand in hers. “I couldn’t bear if anything happened to you.”
“Promise me,” Noelle croaked. “Please.”
“I promise you,” Lucero eventually relented.
Noelle smiled, squeezing her hand.
“I’ve never told you before, but I love you like my sister. I’m so lucky to have been able to meet you, Lulu. I want you to know that,” she murmured, tears shining in her eyes.
Lucero started crying too, unable to stop the tears from falling as she reached for Noelle to give her a hug.
“I love you, too, and I won’t let you die. I won’t,” she added vehemently.
Noelle didn’t reply, simply holding her for a moment. She was well aware that nothing Lucero could do would help her. Giving birth was a dangerous avenue even with an army of doctors around. What could two girls achieve by themselves? Especially when one of them was the one going into labor.
Lucero did her best to make her comfortable, but it wasn’t long before her active labor began. The contractions were swift and painful, and every single moment she felt as if she was going to pass out.
Settling between her open legs, Lucero monitored her dilation, and when she spotted the head of the baby come through, she cried out, “Push!”
Noelle did as told, pushing with all her might.
Her hands were wrapped tightly in the bedsheets, pulling against them every time she had to push.
“Breathe,” Lucero reminded her.
“It hurts,” she whizzed, barely able to get the word out.
“I know, but he’s almost here. You’re a fighter, Noelle. So do what you do best—fight!”
Noelle gritted her teeth, giving her a brisk nod and taking a deep breath before pushing again.
It went on for what felt like forever, and the baby wasn’t coming through. Noelle was becoming exhausted and dehydrated. Her strength was waning, and that was what she’d been afraid of. God, but if she’d been at a hospital, they could have already done a C-section on her and saved the baby. The longer he was stuck, the more dangerous it was—even she knew that.
She focused on her breathing as she closed her eyes.
“Our baby, Raf”,she whispered to herself.I can’t let anything happen to him.
Her body was near its breaking point, but using what little strength she had left, she gave a few more pushes.
“Just a bit more. You can do it, Noelle!”
Noelle shook her head. She didn’t think she could do it anymore. She was tired. So, so tired.
“One more push. Come on,” Lucero urged gently. “You can do it.”
Her face was red from the effort, but she knew she couldn’t give up.
All her life, she’d marched forward, giving everything her best. She wasn’t about to let this one event end her, just as she wasn’t about to let anything happen to her baby.
Mali.
She honed in on the name, as well as her vision of what her baby would look like—lovely like his father—and that was all it took for her to give that final push.
A sharp cry broke through the air, and Noelle tried to hang onto it. It was so beautiful—the sweetest melody. But even as she strained to keep her eyes open—to look at her child—she found that she couldn’t anymore.
He’s alive.
That was the only thing she needed to know before she let herself go, the ghost of a smile on her face.
