Page 184 of My Unfinished Heart

He takes a seat next to me, rubbing his hands over his face. “Where’s Tristan?”

“He went to get his laptop to study. He’ll be back in a few minutes,” I tell him. “I think. I can’t really remember what time he left. How are you holding up?”

He yawns. “I’m bored out of my damn mind.”

“How’s Joey?”

“Asleep. Once she got the epidural, it was lights out. I would have come out then, but I crashed. Sorry, brother.”

“At least someone’s sleeping.”

“Wanna trade places?” he asks. “I can hang out here, you can sleep on the sofa bed in the room.”

“I’m sure Joey would love that. She wakes up and sees you sent in a pinch hitter.”

His laugh is silent because he probably doesn’t have the energy required to give it sound.

“Can I go sit with her?” Connor asks. “I won’t wake her up.”

“Sure,” West says then slaps my thigh. “Get up. Your turn to buy the coffee.”

It’s always my turn to buy the coffee.

“I have my phone,” he shouts after Connor as he leaves the waiting room. My brother raises a hand to acknowledge that he heard him. It would have been impossible not to.

Under protest, I get up and stretch to prepare for the walk to the hospital cafeteria. I text Tristan.

Caffeine run with W. C’s in J’s room.

Tristan

K

I grin.

“Nervous?” I ask West, rubbing his shoulders as we start our walk.

“Nervous isn’t the word, brother.”

We turn left down a long hall, the smell of coffee in the air. It’s a faint scent that gets stronger as we get closer.

“What’s the update?” I ask.

“Seven centimeters.”

“What’s the goal? Ten?”

“Ten,” he says.

“And then what? The baby comes out?” I ask, unashamed of my complete ignorance of the process.

“Evidently,” he says, his voice heavy with dread and impending doom.

Maybe I’m just tired, or suffering from waiting room psychosis, but the way he says it has me laughing my ass off. I almost can’t keep walking.

“This could still happen to you, you know? I get it won’t be Tristan you’re worried about, but maybe one day you’ll understand.”

“Tristan and I won’t have to be there, though.”