Howl (3 page)

But Lorelei's most striking feature was a
small ring of gold around her pupils, blending into dark grey eyes.
Although nearly every werewolf’s eyes turn from blue in infancy to
bright yellow in adolescence, and finally to grey after reaching
maturity, Lorelei’s retained the tiniest remnant of her youth. Made
her look ‘like some weirdo teenage-leftover’ she would often
complain. I couldn’t disagree more.

Lorelei rubbed one hand absentmindedly over
her extra-large bump. “Okay, enough time wasted. Back to cleaning.”
She immediately began digging around for some cleaning rags under
the sink and with a determined look on her face took to washing
every single thing in her kitchen. I grabbed a rag and tackled the
bathroom even though it must have been scrubbed clean within the
last few days.

Tristan stopped by the apartment at some
point to find John. Lorelei must have been precariously perched on
a dining room chair cleaning a light fixture because I came out of
the bathroom to Tristan giving her a piece of his mind about it.
After that Lorelei stuck to organizing her book collection
alphabetically and Tristan cleaned all of the light fixtures in the
apartment.

The three of us spent close to two hours
cleaning. Finally Lorelei collapsed on the couch, too tired and
sore to move. I opened a quart jar of vegetable soup and warmed it
on the stove. Lorelei, Tristan, and I spent a pleasant evening
discussing baby names and taking bets on whether or John would
faint during the birth.

Gavin’s prediction that it wouldn’t be long
until Lorelei gave birth turned out to be accurate. The next
evening Lorelei began having more regular contractions. In the
middle of the night her water broke. My family piled into our
mini-fleet of cars and drove to the hospital.

Lorelei wanted John and Mom in the delivery
room with her so the rest of us hung out in the too small waiting
room. Gavin, Granddad, and Will took the only chairs available. The
rest of us sat wherever we could find space. We must have been a
sight to see. Five adults and two teenagers who refused to take off
their dark-tinted sunglasses even though they were inside, all
squished into the tiniest of spaces.

“I really hate these things.” Ethan moaned
for the fifteenth time and removed his sunglasses after an
attending nurse left us. “Why can’t I just get colored contacts?
Nobody would see the yellow if I had dark brown contacts.”

“Because we don’t have the money for
contacts, that’s why.” Gavin stated plainly. “So put the shades
back on.”

Will leaned forward toward Ethan’s ear. “Just
for your information, no optometrist will give someone with
record-setting eye sight a prescription.”

“Humph.”

Thomas joined us shortly after the nurses
took Lorelei to her delivery room. So now we were six adults. The
cold tile floor wasn’t very forgiving and the few magazines
available were squabbled over repeatedly. One of the nurses peeked
in on us and asked if we would like a few more chairs. “Yes
please!” Ethan called out with relief. So we rearranged our seating
as the nurse brought in several more chairs.

At one point we heard a deep growl turn into
a scream followed by a loud crash and cursing from an unfamiliar
voice. A moment later, mom came into the waiting room looking a
little frazzled.

“What was that?” Ethan asked.

“Lorelei was having a bad contraction and I
reminded her to breath – that’s all I said! Well she got mad and
broke the railing off the bed and threw it at the wall, almost
hitting the doctor!” Mom took the magazine in Gavin’s hands and
flipped through several pages, eyeing but not really seeing them.
“Anyway, John said it might be better for me to step out for a
while.”

Ethan laughed out loud until Kylin elbowed
him in the ribs. Just then a new nurse appeared and requested me.
Mom flashed me a look of betrayal for she had been replaced. I
mouthed the guilty words ‘I’m sorry’ as I exited with the
nurse.

“Your sister is really strong and her husband
is having trouble keeping her still. He said to bring you in so you
could help.” The nurse gave me a look that told me she didn’t think
I was right for the job.

I put on a hospital gown over my clothes and
walked in. The doctor instantly seemed relieved to someone else in
there to help John.

“Can you sit behind her and help support her
back?” He asked me. “She is having trouble maintaining a proper
sitting position.”

I climbed onto the bed behind my sister and
wrapped my arms around her chest. John stood to our left, retaking
Lorelei's hand in his.

It seemed hours that I sat supporting my
sister as she pushed and panted and cried out in pain. How long
could the birthing process take?

Finally the first baby came. The head, the
body, followed by the rest. Little gurgles turned into energetic
shrieks as she entered her new world. Crying and kicking, red-faced
she came. How could I explain the moment? Incredible doesn’t even
come close. Mind-blowing would be truer. Seeing the newest member
of our family, our pack, being born was breathtaking. Tears pooled
at my eyes as I sat mute with awe.

Lorelei took a moment to breathe, leaning
against me. The nurse cleaned the baby, wrapped her in a pink
blanket and held her close so we could see her face. She was
beautiful. Slate blue eyes sparkled in a chubby face beneath a
nearly-bald crown. Breathtaking.

Lorelei’s body tensed up while I stared at
the baby. Regaining my position behind her, she gave one last hard
push and the baby’s brother was born. Looking like a miniature
version of John with a full head of dark brown hair, he was just as
adorable as his sister. Slightly longer than the girl and with a
rounder belly, his cries were more akin to a lazy wail than
anything. Good-natured, easy-going despite the ordeal of birth. The
doctor delivered the placentas and began to clean up.

At last Lorelei gave in to the exhaustion.
She collapsed against me and sobbed with joy and fatigue. I took a
cool, wet rag from a nurse's hand and gently stroked her face and
neck.

”I don’t know if I could do this several more
times.” She whimpered.

“You were wonderful.” I whispered and kissed
her damp cheek. “They are beautiful.”

After tossing the rag onto the night stand, I
carefully got off the bed so Lorelei could at last lie down. The
nurses handed the babies to her to feed for the first time. They
showed her how to hold them both so they could nurse at the same
time. The girl took to feeding like it was going out of style. The
greedy little sucks and grunts she gave made me giggle. “She's a
hungry one, that girl.” I noted. The boy just latched on gently
and, eyes half closed, threatened to fall asleep at any moment.

After she was situated, I crawled onto the
bed at Lorelei’s feet. Though her crown was matted with sweat and
her face paled from exhaustion, she looked like an angel.
Botticelli’s portraits had nothing on my sister.

“What are you going to name them?” I asked.
Lorelei and John had picked out a lot names they like but had
decided to wait until the babies were born to actually choose
one.

“Well, this one looks like a carbon copy of
John so I think that’s what we should go with.” Lorelei’s eyes
shone brilliantly as she watched the boy feed. John nodded in
agreement as he stroked his son’s hairy head.

“John William” John spoke up. “After
Will.”

“John.” Lorelei cooed, taking in the sound of
her baby’s name. “But we should distinguish him in some way. Maybe
we’ll call him Little John.”

“Like in Robin Hood?” I giggled again.

“No!” Lorelei looked horror struck at that
thought.

“Okay maybe we’ll call him something like LJ
for short.” John offered.

“And this pretty little thing will be Sabina
Noelle, after our moms.” Lorelei smiled at her mate. “But we’ll
call her Nina.”

The rest of my family came in then to peek at
the babies so I decided to take a break. I walked downstairs to the
empty basement atrium where vending machines were located and cozy
armchairs sat scattered in semi-circles throughout. I had just
enough money for a small snack and so bought myself a packet of
peanuts and water. Lazily, I plopped down in a chair along a far
wall and grabbed a magazine from the low coffee table to my right.
The stillness in the air was refreshing after exerting so much
energy.

Suddenly, my reading was interrupted by a
familiar scent. I didn’t even need to look up. I knew exactly who
was walking my direction.

~Grounded in reality
– or not~

“Hey! Thomas’s sister, right?” Jaime seemed
surprised to see me.

“Sophie.” I nodded more than a little
embarrassed. I was certain that I looked a tired mess after being
up half the night. Almost involuntarily, I smoothed the hair around
my face.

“What brings you to the hospital so late? If
you don’t mind me asking.”

“My sister Lorelei had her babies.”

Jaime smiled at me. That shock of electricity
came back with a vengeance. From head to toe I seemed to buzz with
the energy of an electric fence. What is wrong with me?! Mentally,
I tried to shake it off.

“Babies, as in more than one?” He asked as he
dropped his coins in the machine’s money slot.

“Twins – a boy and a girl.”

“Another set of twins! Congratulations.”

“Yeah, I would be more shocked if any of us
had just one.” I chuckled. Werewolf families don’t have single
births. “So why are you here?”

“Um, well, that’s a long story.” He looked a
bit awkward, as if he were debating whether or not to let me in on
a secret.

“I have some time.” I offered, intrigued.

Jaime dragged a chair closer to mine. For a
minute or so he fiddled with his candy bar. His every movement was
unusually graceful for a human.

“The truth is, a friend of mine broke his arm
and needed me to drive him to the hospital.”

“He broke his arm in the middle of the
night?”

Jaime laughed with a hint of moroseness.
“Yeah. He has trouble sleeping. I think he has a problem but he
refuses to get help. Anyway, he’ll go days and days with little to
no sleep. But to ease the boredom he does things like trying to
repaint his house or fix shingles on his roof. Well, not sleeping
and climbing on rooftops is obviously not smart. So, this time he
broke his arm.”

“Is it bad?”

“Yeah, it’s bad. Brian, that’s my friend,
will be going into surgery as soon as the operating room is ready.
His arm is a mess.” A moment of sadness washed over his elegant
face. “Brian is a mess.”

“I’m so sorry.” I scrambled to think of
something more significant and helpful than my last comment. “I
guess it could have been a lot worse. Falling from a roof, that’s
pretty serious.”

“He’s lucky to be alive. He landed not more
than two feet from the concrete sidewalk – this time. But it’s not
just the fall; he can’t keep a job or a girlfriend or really, any
friends other than me. The worst part is I don’t know how to help
him. Well, besides drive him to the hospital every time he injures
himself.”

“I’m assuming that you’ve talked to him?” I
asked

“Oh yeah, I’ve tried reasoning with him,
getting angry, begging, and nothing gets through to him. It’s like
he can’t see that there is something wrong.”

Jaime leaned his head against the wall and
sighed. His profile was heartbreakingly handsome. His hair looked
almost dark under the unnatural hospital lights. A straight nose
lead to lips that looked incredibly soft and inviting. My eyes
lingered so long on Jaime’s mouth that as he turned his face my
direction, I startled. My face grew incredibly hot as I shifted
away from him. I was losing my grip on reality for certain. I
couldn’t let this man, this human, next to me get under my skin. I
couldn’t. No, I wouldn’t.

My determination faded ever so slightly as I
inhaled the earthy scent of Jaime’s skin. Past the heavy scent of
soap lay the remnants of wildwood, no doubt from his hours spent
outside. He smelled of fresh air and pine needles, maple sap and
soil after a heavy rain. An image of him running through the forest
beneath a heavily pregnant moon flashed through my mind. And he was
so close….

“Sophie,” the way he said my name, gentle and
low, set my body aflame. “I’m sorry to unload on you. I barely know
you and here I’m pouring out my heart.”

“I don’t mind.” I shrugged.

“Thanks for letting me get this out. It’s
been stressful, you know?” Jaime ran a hand through his hair and
stood up. “I probably ought to get back to him now. I just came
down for a snack.” He actually sounded sorry to leave.

“Alright.” I nodded. “Try to keep your friend
out of trouble.”

“Yeah, well, that’s easier said than done.
Not really sure how I can babysit him and still keep my own work
and sleep schedule.” He paused and shoved his hand into both jeans
pockets. Looking ever more like a ruggedly perfect model he laughed
and asked “You don’t want a job babysitting a grown man with
insomnia, do you?” His tone made it clear that he was only
half-kidding.

“Tempting, but no.” I shook my head and
grinned.

“Maybe I’ll see you around sometime.” My
heart leapt into my chest as Jaime smiled one last time before
walking away. Why was he having this impact on me? Breathe Sophie….
I had to get myself together before rejoining my family.

*

Lorelei and the babies weren’t released from
the hospital until three days later. Nina had become jaundiced and
they needed to keep her under observation. Our house was turned
upside down in preparation for their coming home.

Mom, Will, and Gavin secretly painted the
babies’ room in cheerful blues and yellows with a Winnie the Pooh
ceiling border. They decorated the room accordingly with matching
picture frames and a throw rug. Mom even washed and organized the
babies’ clothes in the dresser.