Page 54 of Penn

We sit there for a few minutes, but the baby stops showing me he or she is awake, and I slowly slide my hand away. I don’t want to give anyone any more reason to laugh at my expense.

Jolene comes running into the waiting room, looking around frantically. “Where’s Zep?”

“He took Bernie to the cafeteria,” Dixie says. “What’s wrong?”

“Misty’s awake!”

“Oh, thank God.”

Standing, I help pull her up beside me. We walk to the room where Misty is in fact awake. The mother of Zeppelin’s children. The woman who keeps our VP as grounded as possible. She survived the worst of it.

“I’ll go get Zep,” I say, kissing Dixie’s temple and taking off.

My heavy boots squeak against the polished floor, and I manage to sneak onto a closing elevator. Pressing the lower level where the cafeteria is, I tap my leg in impatience.

Maybe I should have taken the stairs.

The moment the doors open, I sprint out toward the food area. The smell of coffee and something fruity hits me, but I don’t stop until I find Zep in the corner with Bernie.

His head snaps up the moment he sees me, and he stands, the chair tipping over in sheer panic. “What happened? What’s wrong?”

“She’s awake!” I manage to say, not really sure why I’m out of breath.

The transformation from terrified to ecstatic is instant, and he picks up Bernie and runs toward the elevator. It takes a few moments before the doors open up, and I know he’s thinking the same thing I did on the way down. But running up four flights of stairs with a nine-year-old wouldn’t be so easy.

“Mommy’s awake?” Bernie asks as I press the button.

“Yeah, kiddo. Saw her pretty blue eyes myself before I took off running to get you and your dad.”

Bernie clings to Zep’s neck and cries. He looks concerned as he rubs her back, ignoring the doors opening. “Bernie, baby, what’s wrong?”

“I was scared,” she sobs. “I was scared she wouldn’t wake up.”

“You said you had faith,” he says, and I hold the doors open, making sure we don’t lose the moment to step out.

“I did, but I had to be strong.”

Well, fuck. “You didn’t have to be strong, sweetheart,” I say.

“Yeah, because Zep was already scared. And sad. I was the strong one. Mommy asked me to be strong for Zep if anything ever happened to her.”

It hits me how real this risk was. I knew Misty was on bedrest, and Zep was sidelined to be here in case anything happened, but this is like a slap in the face. To have the conversation with Bernie about what to do if something happened to her had to be incredibly difficult.

“Let’s go see her,” Zep says. “Tell her how much we love her.”

Bernie nods, wiping her eyes and knocking her glasses off her head. Catching them, I wait for them to exit before following behind and handing them back.

“Thanks, Uncle Penn.”

“Anything for you, Bernie Baby.”

Dixie moves out of the way, and Zep rushes into the hospital room to find Misty sitting up slightly. Her face is pale and tired, but her bright blue eyes are open and alert. The moment she spots Zep and Bernie, she breaks out into the biggest smile I think I’ve ever seen.

“Mommy!” Bernie squeals and manages to clamber out of Zep’s grip and onto the bed.

“My sweet girl,” she whispers, her voice hoarse as she wraps her arms around her daughter.

Jolene steps forward after a few minutes and taps Bernie. “Let’s give Mommy some breathing room.”