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A surrogates struggles By fishy9890 on 17th August 2021 12:27:02 AM

A Surrogate's Struggles
by doombeez, Apr 22, 2019, 3:19:50 PM
Literature / Prose / Fiction / Romance / Erotic / Short Stories
When Becky was young, her mother would always say “things could always be worse” when things got bad. When she was feeling especially standoffish (which was constantly, when she was between the ages of 13 and 17), she would roll her eyes and say “Yeah, the room could be full of bees.”
Today, at at the age of 43, Becky had taken those words to heart. She’d had her first son at 18. She hadn’t meant to get pregnant, but these things happen, and he’d married her before Chris had been born. A decade and change later, her twin girls, Rhonda and Reba had come along. And two years after that, she’d discovered he’d been concealing a mistress and a drug habit from her. He’d tried his best to be penitent, blamed it on stress and the like, but Becky’s mother hadn’t raised a pushover. She’d signed those divorce papers, taken the girls, and moved far, far away. Chris, bless him, had been all too happy to get a place with his mother to help her take care of the girls, and the four of them lived very comfortably together. Between the two of them, they’d made sure that the twins wanted for little. It may have been a step down from their prior living situation, but nobody went hungry.
And it could always be worse, she told herself whenever things got rough. She was more than just content. She was happy.
For the past six years or so, she’d been working at La Bonne Choufleur, a rather upscale restaurant uptown, mostly cleaning up after hours. It was a nice job. The pay was decent, the benefits were good, people genuinely liked having her around, and she occasionally got to take home some choice leftovers.
(Although, she did have her suspicions about how many times one of the chefs had an “extra” steak for her to take home. Not that she was planning on voicing them.)
All in all, things were good, and most of all, she’d established a sense of routine and normalcy for her family. And things could most definitely be worse. It was with this attitude that she seldom asked for more than she could use. But change is life’s only inevitability.
The chain of events that would end up shaking things up for her in a way that nothing had since her divorce started, innocently enough, with a glass of wine.
She’d pulled a double that day, and even though she knew Chris was staying home with the girls, it was still wearing thin on her. She was just about ready to go home for the night when she saw someone waving her over to the bar. She was a slender, dark-skinned woman with short, fluffy hair, a few years her junior.
“Hey, Becky!” she called. “Come have a drink with me!”
“Evening, Trisha,” said Becky. Trisha was the wife of Byron, the restaurant’s manager, and a good friend. She’d pushed for Becky to get the job in a time when she really needed it, and had always been sympathetic to her troubles.
“I’d love to, but I really need to get home to the girls and the last bus for the night leaves in thirty minutes,” Becky continued. “It’s been a really long day.”
“I’ll drive you home,” said Trisha. “Come on, just one drink. I could really use the company.” She opened up a bottle of red wine and poured out two glasses. It looked very tempting. Becky couldn’t remember the last time she’d had wine that didn’t come out of a box.
“Alright, one drink,” said Becky, making her way over to the bar. “Lord knows I could use it.”
“I think you’ll like this,” said Trisha. “It’s a moscato from the vineyard Byron owns part of up in Cali, and it is excellent.”
“I do like a good moscato,” said Becky, smiling nervously. Wine was either red or white to her taste buds, but it was all good in her book.
Trisha held up her glass. Becky did likewise and they clinked, each taking a sip. It really was quite good.
“How’re the kids?” asked Trisha.
“Doing alright, thanks,” said Becky. “Reba’s taken up painting and Rhonda’s been big into Minecraft lately.”
“Glad to hear,” said Trisha. “Have you ever thought about having any more?”
“Hell no,” said Becky, shaking her head. “Pardon my language, but no. Three is definitely enough for one lifetime. Besides, even with Chris helping me out, there’s no way I’d be able to afford another kid even if I wanted to. It’s hard enough trying to get a college fund started for the twins.”
Trisha nodded, taking another sip. She took a deep breath and idly topped off her glass. “Me and Byron don’t have any kids of our own,” she said. “We’ve been trying for a while with no luck. Then, a couple months ago, we finally hit the jackpot, and then I miscarried.”
“Oh no,” said Becky. “I’m so sorry!”
Trisha shrugged. “What happens, happens,” she said, as she swirled her wine around a bit and took another sip. “My doctor told me that… well, I’ll spare you the gruesome details, but he told me I shouldn’t try and conceive again.” She sighed. “I really want to start a family, and so does Byron. So we’re not going to let this stop us.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” said Becky. “You know there’s other options out there!”
“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about,” said Trisha. She drained the rest of her glass and took a deep breath before continuing. “Becky, I want you to be our surrogate!”
Becky nearly inhaled the wine she was drinking into her sinuses. “Your what now?”
“There’s nothing wrong with me or Byron’s… stuff,” she said. “My oven just isn’t right for buns. So Byron brought up the idea of hiring a surrogate, and yeah, there’s services for that sort of thing, but I said that I wanted to ask you to do it.”
“Me?” said Becky.
Trisha put her hand on Becky’s. “I know it’s a big ask,” said Trisha. “But it would just mean so much more to us if you played a part in this instead of some stranger.”
Becky’s lip twisted a bit. Trisha was a friend, true, and she wanted to help, but it really was a big ask. Her last pregnancy hadn’t been easy, and she wasn’t sure if she was ready to put her body through that again. She would have to-
“And of course, we’d pay you just as much as we were prepared to pay the service!” continued Trisha, nodding. “More, even, since we wouldn’t have to pay the service’s fees! And of course, it should go without saying that we’d give you all the maternity leave that you wanted.”
“Pay?” said Becky, as her train of thought was forcibly derailed. “How much money…”
Trisha leaned in and whispered a number to Becky. Becky almost choked for the second time.
“That much?” she said.
“You think I don’t know how hard it is to be pregnant?” said Trisha, rolling her eyes. “Like heck I’d make you go through that without compensating you for it!”
Becky would have liked to say that she spent some more time thinking about it. She would have liked to say that she weighed the pros and cons carefully and went into this with the utmost deliberation. But the truth was, that money would be more than enough to settle all of both hers and Chris’s outstanding debts, with enough left over to start a very modest college fund. To Becky, it was hardly a choice at all.
“I’ll do it, Trisha!” said Becky. “I’ll have your baby!”
Trisha squealed and pulled Becky into a bone-crushing hug, repeatedly professing her gratitude. Becky smiled and patted her friend on the back.
She knew she could handle this. She’d done it twice before, after all. Her body would know what to do. This would be a walk in the park.
~*~
“Wait, you’re what?”
The first thing that had to happen was Family Meeting Time the very next day. Chris had just gotten back from his construction job and hadn’t gotten undressed when Becky dropped the bomb. He looked gobsmacked. The twins just looked confused.
“Wait,” said Reba. “You’re having Miss Trisha’s baby?”
“Are you and Mister Byron gonna do it?” said Rhonda, earning her a dirty look from Chris and Becky alike.
“No, we are not going to do it,” said Becky, shaking her head. “And we don’t talk like that in polite company! A doctor is going to take Trisha and Byron’s… um, babymaking things, mix them together, and then put them in my belly.”
“Ooooh,” the twins said in unison. “Cool!”
“Why don’t you go play?” said Chris, ruffling both his sisters’ hair. “I gotta talk with mommy for a bit.”
The two of them looked like they wanted to hear more, but they also knew when not to press the issue. They scampered off.
“Are you sure about this?” said Chris, pulling up a chair. “I mean… pregnant? At your age? Do you think you’ll be able to handle that?”
“I’m not that old, Chris,” said Becky, shaking her head. “Lots of people have children after forty! I’ll be fine. And Trisha’s a friend, I want to do this.”
“I don’t want you to feel like you have to,” said Chris. “We’re doing okay for ourselves. I’m in the running for a foreman position.”
“I know we are,” said Becky. “We always have been. But wouldn’t it be nice to do more than okay for once? This money would help us a lot. Maybe you could even get your own place again.”
Chris waved a dismissive hand. “There’s no place I’d rather be than here helping you, mom,” he said. “But…”
“I know you worry about me,” she said, putting a hand on her son’s shoulder. “But trust me. I’ve thought about this and I want to do it.”
Chris sighed. “I know better than to try and change your mind once it’s made up,” he said. “Just be careful, alright?”
“I’ll have the absolute best of care,” said Becky, smiling brightly. “Trust me. I can handle this. Everything will be fine.”
~*~
A little over a month way, Becky was checked into the clinic where everything would go down. She was given a pamphlet to read on what, exactly, the whole process would entail, which she tried to look over until her eyes started to unfocus. She trusted Trisha and Byron to make the right choice.
And about a month later, she had a phone call to make.
“Trisha?” she said. “It worked! I’m pregnant!”
She had to hold the phone away from her face in order to not be deafened by the sound that was coming out of it. Trisha was absolutely ecstatic.
“I can’t believe it!” she said. “It’s really happening! We’re gonna have a baby! Thank you so much, Becky!”
It was hard to tell, but it sounded like Trisha was crying, and Becky couldn’t hold back the waterworks for herself. The money was nice, true, but this was why she was doing this. Some things were worth more than money.
Becky hoped that would be a comfort when she was dealing morning sickness, swollen feet, backaches, and peeing like a racehorse over the next nine months.
~*~
Aside from the occasional checkup, Becky’s routine was the same as it ever was, despite her increasing size. The biggest difference was Trisha giving her belly a rub and talking to it a little every time they crossed paths. Becky didn’t mind. She’d have been excited too in Trisha’s shoes, and it was adorable to watch. Trisha looked like she was going to keel over from dopamine overload the first time she felt the baby kick.
As she got bigger and bigger, Becky slowed down but had no intention of stopping. Pregnancy was hard on a body, but Becky was stubborn, and she kept on working. At least, until month seven, when Trisha found her passed out on the toilet. It hadn’t been anything serious, just a dizzy spell from a blood sugar spike, but after that, both Trisha and Chris put their foot down, and Becky’s maternity leave started early.
She made the best of it. It was as good a time as any to catch up on some books she’d been meaning to read, finally make it through her Netflix queue, and taking up knitting again. But it wasn’t long before she’d started to go stir crazy. Chris wouldn’t let her leave the house unattended, so whenever she could, she’d get someone to watch the girls and get him or Trisha to escort her on an outing.
Sometimes it was easier than other times.
“Come on, Chris,” said Becky, sighing. “I feel like I’m going to go insane in here. I just want to do a bit of shopping, is that too much to ask?”
“You’re due in less than a week, you should really be resting,” said Chris, rolling his eyes.
“I’ve done plenty of resting!” she said, throwing up her hands in frustration. “I need a little fresh air and exercise and maybe a some beef and broccoli.”
Chris sighed. “Fine,” he said. “I’ll call Mrs. Lambert and ask if she’ll stay with the girls. And I do hope the irony of you, my mother, wheedling me, your son, to take you out to the mall is not lost on you.”
“I assure you that it’s not.”
~*~
Becky let out a dreamy sigh as she wandered about, her son in tow. This was exactly what she needed. The massive outdoor mall near her home had been one of her favorite places to get some fresh air, and she hadn’t been since her collapse.
“You sure you’re alright, mom?” said Chris, breaking her out of her happy trance. Becky sighed.
“My child, my beautiful child, oh beloved apple of my eye,” she said, as dramatically as she could, “I was fine the last time you asked and the time before that and I’m fine now.”
“Excuse me if I don’t want to see my mother pass out in the street,” said Chris, giving his mother a playful swat on the arm. Becky laughed. She really did need this.
“I appreciate it, really,” said Becky. “We both do.” She patted her belly for emphasis. “If it makes you feel better, I’ll sit for a few minutes, my back’s been aching a little.”
“Good,” said Chris, as Becky settled down on a nearby fence. “Well, as long as you’re going to be resting, I need to go pick something up. Might as well while we’re here.”
“Go ahead,” said Becky, shooing him away. “I promise I won’t move from this spot until you get back. Get me some of those chocolate covered peanuts while you’re out and about.”
Chris nodded as he departed, vanishing into a nearby electronics store. And Becky leaned back on the bench, soaking in the sunlight, feeling the breeze on her face, and trying to ignore the nigh-constant aches she’d been feeling for the past few days.
“It’s been fun, little darling,” she said, gently rubbing her middle. “But I’ll be ecstatic when you become your mother’s problem rather than mine.”
She felt a little kick, as if the baby had taken offense to that, and laughed.
“Sorry,” she said. “I didn’t mean to- ow!”
She suddenly started to rub her midsection, as the sensation of the kick persisted. That had never happened before. Despite her promise to her son, she tried to stand up, and after a couple of false starts, managed to do so, letting herself stretch. The sensation abated, and she let out a pleased sigh. But her relief was short-lived, as it was replaced by a sharp stabbing pain through her middle, causing her to stagger back and land on the bench again. She couldn’t stop from crying out in pain.
“Miss?” said a passing jogger, pulling out an earbud as he ran by. “Are you alright?”
“I’m fine,” she said, rubbing herself with both hands. “I’m just- ow, ow!” She winced as the sharp pain grew sharper, and she let out a yelp. The next thing she knew, she felt a wet sensation in the back of her dress, and was aware of the sound of fluid trickling onto the ground below. “Oh no,” she said. “Oh no.”
“Mom?” said Chris, darting to her side with a small paper bag tucked under his arm. “Mom, what happened?”
Becky took a deep breath. “Chris,” she said. “Don’t panic. But I think you need to get me to the hospital. Right now.”
She saw Chris’s eyes bug out and his mouth open, and she quickly put a finger on his face. Several onlookers had stopped to gawk, and she could feel her cheeks burning from embarrassment, but she tried her best not to think about that.
“Help me up,” said Becky, holding out her hands. “Then let’s get to your car, at a reasonable pace, and go to the hospital. I’ll call Trisha on the way. Did you get the peanuts?”
Chris closed his mouth, swallowed heavily, and nodded, offering her the paper bag. She took it and shoved a handful into her mouth.
“Good,” she said, slightly muffled. “Let’s go.”
~*~
Becky had originally flirted with the idea of a home birth, but it was eventually decided that, all things considered, it would be better to do this in a setting where emergency care would be available if she needed it. But Trisha wanted her to be comfortable to, and had chosen a hospital with a very reputable birthing center. Trisha had called ahead for her, and before she was even in the door, an orderly was waiting for her with a wheelchair.
The room she was brought to was, rather than a cold, sterile white, a rather home-like affair, decorated in soft autumnal colors. Loathe as she was to ask, she had needed Chris’s help to get changed into a hospital gown, and though he was clearly uncomfortable at the idea of seeing his mother in such a state of undress, he grit his teeth and helped her.
Part of her wished that she had worn a different pair of maternity panties. The neon pink ones had not helped matters much.
Soon enough, she was dressed down and relaxed, being monitored regularly as Chris held her hand. About an hour later, Trisha made her way in.
“I got here as soon as I could,” she said. “Byron wanted to be here for this too, but he’s still at the conference. You weren’t supposed to be due for another week!”
“Don’t look at me,” said Becky, grinning tiredly at her. “It’s your impatient baby.”
“Do you want me to go now?” said Chris. “I don’t want to make it weird for you-”
“Please stay,” she said, squeezing her son’s hand. “Both of you, please stay.”
“We’re right here for you, babe,” said Trisha, taking Becky’s other hand. Becky smiled. The contractions were only getting worse, and unfortunately, she had been too far along for an epidural by the time she’d gotten settled in. As if on cue, she let out a groan as a new contraction raged. It wasn’t much longer before the doctor made her way in. She was an older woman with East Asian features by the name of Yang, and had been personally requested by Trisha as something of an expert in difficult births.
“Hello there,” said Dr. Yang, smiling at her. “How are you feeling?”
“Like I’m about to have a baby,” said Becky, flashing her something between a smile and a grimace.
“Sounds about right,” said Dr. Yang, as she slipped on a pair of gloves. “Let’s take a look at you, hmm?”
Becky held onto Chris’s hands as Dr. Yang performed the examination, and she tried her best not to squirm too much.
“It looks like you’re just about ready to go,” said Dr. Yang. “That’s not surprising, since I understand this isn’t your first rodeo?”
Becky nodded, looking over at Chris. “This one over here wasn’t a small baby,” she said, causing her son to blush. “And then I had twins. So hopefully- nnngh!”
She groaned as her belly suddenly tightened, and Dr. Yang gave a nod.
“I think… I think I have to push!” hissed Becky.
“Then go ahead and try,” said Dr. Yang. “Just a little one at first, alright? Try to take it easy.”
Becky wasn’t sure how little she could manage, but as the contraction built up, she started to bear down. It had been over a decade since she had last given birth, but this was all too familiar. She could feel the baby’s movement as it made its way into her birth canal, feel her inner muscles squeezing painfully, but she could have swore that it was never this difficult. Finally, she let herself rest while Dr. Yang looked over her.
This pattern repeated for about an hour, pushing a little bit and then resting as the doctor coached her along, but her progress was far too slow for Becky’s comfort.
“Nothing’s happening,” she groaned. “Why is nothing happening? Is something wrong?”
“The baby’s just being a little bit stubborn is all,” said Dr. Yang. “Do you feel up to moving? I’d like you to try changing positions. Getting upright might help.”
“Here, I’ll help,” said Trisha, letting Becky lean on her as she got up, but she felt her knees buckle almost immediately.
“Can’t do it,” she said, as she leaned against the bench. “Feel too weak…”
“Let’s try something else, then,” said Dr. Yang. “Chris, was it? Fetch a blanket from that cabinet over there. Do you think you can get on your hands and knees?”
“I can try,” said Becky, as Chris pulled the blanket out and unfurled it onto the floor as Trisha threw down some cushions. With the help of her son and her friend, Becky settled down, breathing heavily. Almost immediately she felt better, a lot of the pressure relieved by the new position, and she soon felt the urge to push once again. Chris knelt down in front of her while Trisha rubbed her back.
“Come on, mom,” said Chris. “You can do it! I know you can!”
Gritting her teeth, Becky started to push once again, sticking her butt out and groaning, and sure enough, she could feel the baby moving, far faster than before, and it wasn’t long before she was aware of the burning sensation that could only mean that the baby was starting to crown.
“You’re doing great, Becky!” said Dr. Yang. “Keep pushing, keep pushing!”
“Try and stop me!” yowled Becky, leaning hard into her latest effort. Her whole body burned now as she pushed and pushed, feeling the head slip out of her and starting to work on the shoulders, but she didn’t dare stop, even as her head started to swim and her vision unfocused. The doctor was saying something, but Becky was tuning it out. If she stopped now, she didn’t think she’d be able to start again, and so she kept at it, pushing and pushing, feeling the baby slide further and further out of her, letting out a groan as she felt a shoulder slip free… until finally, with a powerful yell, she felt the baby slip out of her, and slowly, reality started to come back to her. With Chris’s help, she carefully turned around, sitting down on the floor as she saw Dr. Yang holding the newly-born baby. Trisha was kneeling down next to her, hands over her mouth and tears streaming out of her eyes.
“Congratulations,” said Becky, looking up at Trisha and smiling. “You have a beautiful baby girl.”
“Thank you,” she said, her voice cracking. “Thank you so much…”
And in that moment, Becky knew that everything, all of the pain and discomfort, had been worth it. She’d done a good thing, perhaps the best thing she would ever do, and that was something she’d carry with her forever.
She was dimly aware of someone holding her up, and she turned to meet Chris’s eyes. He still looked a bit uncomfortable, as would be expected from having just watched one’s mother give birth, but he was smiling. And Becky smiled herself.
“Hope you don’t want any more little siblings. Because I am done.”

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A Surrogate's Struggles
by doombeez, Apr 22, 2019, 3:19:50 PM
Literature / Prose / Fiction / Romance / Erotic / Short Stories
When Becky was young, her mother would always say “things could always be worse” when things got bad. When she was feeling especially standoffish (which was constantly, when she was between the ages of 13 and 17), she would roll her eyes and say “Yeah, the room could be full of bees.”

Today, at at the age of 43,  Becky had taken those words to heart. She’d had her first son at 18. She hadn’t meant to get pregnant, but these things happen, and he’d married her before Chris had been born. A decade and change later, her twin girls, Rhonda and Reba had come along. And two years after that, she’d discovered he’d been concealing a mistress and a drug habit from her. He’d tried his best to be penitent, blamed it on stress and the like, but Becky’s mother hadn’t raised a pushover. She’d signed those divorce papers, taken the girls, and moved far, far away. Chris, bless him, had been all too happy to get a place with his mother to help her take care of the girls, and the four of them lived very comfortably together. Between the two of them, they’d made sure that the twins wanted for little. It may have been a step down from their prior living situation, but nobody went hungry.

And it could always be worse, she told herself whenever things got rough. She was more than just content. She was happy.

For the past six years or so, she’d been working at La Bonne Choufleur, a rather upscale restaurant uptown, mostly cleaning up after hours. It was a nice job. The pay was decent, the benefits were good, people genuinely liked having her around, and she occasionally got to take home some choice leftovers.

(Although, she did have her suspicions about how many times one of the chefs had an “extra” steak for her to take home. Not that she was planning on voicing them.)

All in all, things were good, and most of all, she’d established a sense of routine and normalcy for her family. And things could most definitely be worse. It was with this attitude that she seldom asked for more than she could use. But change is life’s only inevitability.

The chain of events that would end up shaking things up for her in a way that nothing had since her divorce started, innocently enough, with a glass of wine.

She’d pulled a double that day, and even though she knew Chris was staying home with the girls, it was still wearing thin on her. She was just about ready to go home for the night when she saw someone waving her over to the bar. She was a slender, dark-skinned woman with short, fluffy hair, a few years her junior.

“Hey, Becky!” she called. “Come have a drink with me!”

“Evening, Trisha,” said Becky. Trisha was the wife of Byron, the restaurant’s manager, and a good friend. She’d pushed for Becky to get the job in a time when she really needed it, and had always been sympathetic to her troubles.

“I’d love to, but I really need to get home to the girls and the last bus for the night leaves in thirty minutes,” Becky continued. “It’s been a really long day.”

“I’ll drive you home,” said Trisha. “Come on, just one drink. I could really use the company.” She opened up a bottle of red wine and poured out two glasses. It looked very tempting. Becky couldn’t remember the last time she’d had wine that didn’t come out of a box.

“Alright, one drink,” said Becky, making her way over to the bar. “Lord knows I could use it.”

“I think you’ll like this,” said Trisha. “It’s a moscato from the vineyard Byron owns part of up in Cali, and it is excellent.”

“I do like a good moscato,” said Becky, smiling nervously. Wine was either red or white to her taste buds, but it was all good in her book.

Trisha held up her glass. Becky did likewise and they clinked, each taking a sip. It really was quite good.

“How’re the kids?” asked Trisha.

“Doing alright, thanks,” said Becky. “Reba’s taken up painting and Rhonda’s been big into Minecraft lately.”

“Glad to hear,” said Trisha. “Have you ever thought about having any more?”

“Hell no,” said Becky, shaking her head. “Pardon my language, but no. Three is definitely enough for one lifetime. Besides, even with Chris helping me out, there’s no way I’d be able to afford another kid even if I wanted to. It’s hard enough trying to get a college fund started for the twins.”

Trisha nodded, taking another sip. She took a deep breath and idly topped off her glass. “Me and Byron don’t have any kids of our own,” she said. “We’ve been trying for a while with no luck. Then, a couple months ago, we finally hit the jackpot, and then I miscarried.”

“Oh no,” said Becky. “I’m so sorry!”

Trisha shrugged. “What happens, happens,” she said, as she swirled her wine around a bit and took another sip. “My doctor told me that… well, I’ll spare you the gruesome details, but he told me I shouldn’t try and conceive again.” She sighed. “I really want to start a family, and so does Byron. So we’re not going to let this stop us.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” said Becky. “You know there’s other options out there!”

“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about,” said Trisha. She drained the rest of her glass and took a deep breath before continuing. “Becky, I want you to be our surrogate!”
Becky nearly inhaled the wine she was drinking into her sinuses. “Your what now?”

“There’s nothing wrong with me or Byron’s… stuff,” she said. “My oven just isn’t right for buns. So Byron brought up the idea of hiring a surrogate, and yeah, there’s services for that sort of thing, but I said that I wanted to ask you to do it.”

“Me?” said Becky.

Trisha put her hand on Becky’s. “I know it’s a big ask,” said Trisha. “But it would just mean so much more to us if you played a part in this instead of some stranger.”

Becky’s lip twisted a bit. Trisha was a friend, true, and she wanted to help, but it really was a big ask. Her last pregnancy hadn’t been easy, and she wasn’t sure if she was ready to put her body through that again. She would have to-

“And of course, we’d pay you just as much as we were prepared to pay the service!” continued Trisha, nodding. “More, even, since we wouldn’t have to pay the service’s fees! And of course, it should go without saying that we’d give you all the maternity leave that you wanted.”

“Pay?” said Becky, as her train of thought was forcibly derailed. “How much money…”

Trisha leaned in and whispered a number to Becky. Becky almost choked for the second time.

“That much?” she said.

“You think I don’t know how hard it is to be pregnant?” said Trisha, rolling her eyes. “Like heck I’d make you go through that without compensating you for it!”

Becky would have liked to say that she spent some more time thinking about it. She would have liked to say that she weighed the pros and cons carefully and went into this with the utmost deliberation. But the truth was, that money would be more than enough to settle all of both hers and Chris’s outstanding debts, with enough left over to start a very modest college fund. To Becky, it was hardly a choice at all.

“I’ll do it, Trisha!” said Becky. “I’ll have your baby!”

Trisha squealed and pulled Becky into a bone-crushing hug, repeatedly professing her gratitude. Becky smiled and patted her friend on the back.

She knew she could handle this. She’d done it twice before, after all. Her body would know what to do. This would be a walk in the park.

~*~

“Wait, you’re what?”

The first thing that had to happen was Family Meeting Time the very next day. Chris had just gotten back from his construction job and hadn’t gotten undressed when Becky dropped the bomb. He looked gobsmacked. The twins just looked confused.

“Wait,” said Reba. “You’re having Miss Trisha’s baby?”

“Are you and Mister Byron gonna do it?” said Rhonda, earning her a dirty look from Chris and Becky alike.

“No, we are not going to do it,” said Becky, shaking her head. “And we don’t talk like that in polite company! A doctor is going to take Trisha and Byron’s… um, babymaking things, mix them together, and then put them in my belly.”

“Ooooh,” the twins said in unison. “Cool!”
“Why don’t you go play?” said Chris, ruffling both his sisters’ hair. “I gotta talk with mommy for a bit.”

The two of them looked like they wanted to hear more, but they also knew when not to press the issue. They scampered off.

“Are you sure about this?” said Chris, pulling up a chair. “I mean… pregnant? At your age? Do you think you’ll be able to handle that?”

“I’m not that old, Chris,” said Becky, shaking her head. “Lots of people have children after forty! I’ll be fine. And Trisha’s a friend, I want to do this.”

“I don’t want you to feel like you have to,” said Chris. “We’re doing okay for ourselves. I’m in the running for a foreman position.”

“I know we are,” said Becky. “We always have been. But wouldn’t it be nice to do more than okay for once? This money would help us a lot. Maybe you could even get your own place again.”

Chris waved a dismissive hand. “There’s no place I’d rather be than here helping you, mom,” he said. “But…”

“I know you worry about me,” she said, putting a hand on her son’s shoulder. “But trust me. I’ve thought about this and I want to do it.”

Chris sighed. “I know better than to try and change your mind once it’s made up,” he said. “Just be careful, alright?”

“I’ll have the absolute best of care,” said Becky, smiling brightly. “Trust me. I can handle this. Everything will be fine.”

~*~

A little over a month way, Becky was checked into the clinic where everything would go down. She was given a pamphlet to read on what, exactly, the whole process would entail, which she tried to look over until her eyes started to unfocus. She trusted Trisha and Byron to make the right choice.

And about a month later, she had a phone call to make.

“Trisha?” she said. “It worked! I’m pregnant!”

She had to hold the phone away from her face in order to not be deafened by the sound that was coming out of it. Trisha was absolutely ecstatic.

“I can’t believe it!” she said. “It’s really happening! We’re gonna have a baby! Thank you so much, Becky!”

It was hard to tell, but it sounded like Trisha was crying, and Becky couldn’t hold back the waterworks for herself. The money was nice, true, but this was why she was doing this. Some things were worth more than money.

Becky hoped that would be a comfort when she was dealing morning sickness, swollen feet, backaches, and peeing like a racehorse over the next nine months.

~*~

Aside from the occasional checkup, Becky’s routine was the same as it ever was, despite her increasing size. The biggest difference was Trisha giving her belly a rub and talking to it a little every time they crossed paths. Becky didn’t mind. She’d have been excited too in Trisha’s shoes, and it was adorable to watch. Trisha looked like she was going to keel over from dopamine overload the first time she felt the baby kick.

As she got bigger and bigger, Becky slowed down but had no intention of stopping. Pregnancy was hard on a body, but Becky was stubborn, and she kept on working. At least, until month seven, when Trisha found her passed out on the toilet. It hadn’t been anything serious, just a dizzy spell from a blood sugar spike, but after that, both Trisha and Chris put their foot down, and Becky’s maternity leave started early.

She made the best of it. It was as good a time as any to catch up on some books she’d been meaning to read, finally make it through her Netflix queue, and taking up knitting again. But it wasn’t long before she’d started to go stir crazy. Chris wouldn’t let her leave the house unattended, so whenever she could, she’d get someone to watch the girls and get him or Trisha to escort her on an outing.

Sometimes it was easier than other times.

“Come on, Chris,” said Becky, sighing. “I feel like I’m going to go insane in here. I just want to do a bit of shopping, is that too much to ask?”

“You’re due in less than a week, you should really be resting,” said Chris, rolling his eyes.

“I’ve done plenty of resting!” she said, throwing up her hands in frustration. “I need a little fresh air and exercise and maybe a some beef and broccoli.”

Chris sighed. “Fine,” he said. “I’ll call Mrs. Lambert and ask if she’ll stay with the girls. And I do hope the irony of you, my mother, wheedling me, your son, to take you out to the mall is not lost on you.”

“I assure you that it’s not.”

~*~

Becky let out a dreamy sigh as she wandered about, her son in tow. This was exactly what she needed. The massive outdoor mall near her home had been one of her favorite places to get some fresh air, and she hadn’t been since her collapse.

“You sure you’re alright, mom?” said Chris, breaking her out of her happy trance. Becky sighed.

“My child, my beautiful child, oh beloved apple of my eye,” she said, as dramatically as she could, “I was fine the last time you asked and the time before that and I’m fine now.”

“Excuse me if I don’t want to see my mother pass out in the street,” said Chris, giving his mother a playful swat on the arm. Becky laughed. She really did need this.

“I appreciate it, really,” said Becky. “We both do.” She patted her belly for emphasis. “If it makes you feel better, I’ll sit for a few minutes, my back’s been aching a little.”

“Good,” said Chris, as Becky settled down on a nearby fence. “Well, as long as you’re going to be resting, I need to go pick something up. Might as well while we’re here.”

“Go ahead,” said Becky, shooing him away. “I promise I won’t move from this spot until you get back. Get me some of those chocolate covered peanuts while you’re out and about.”

Chris nodded as he departed, vanishing into a nearby electronics store. And Becky leaned back on the bench, soaking in the sunlight, feeling the breeze on her face, and trying to ignore the nigh-constant aches she’d been feeling for the past few days.

“It’s been fun, little darling,” she said, gently rubbing her middle. “But I’ll be ecstatic when you become your mother’s problem rather than mine.”

She felt a little kick, as if the baby had taken offense to that, and laughed.
“Sorry,” she said. “I didn’t mean to- ow!”

She suddenly started to rub her midsection, as the sensation of the kick persisted. That had never happened before. Despite her promise to her son, she tried to stand up, and after a couple of false starts, managed to do so, letting herself stretch. The sensation abated, and she let out a pleased sigh. But her relief was short-lived, as it was replaced by a sharp stabbing pain through her middle, causing her to stagger back and land on the bench again. She couldn’t stop from crying out in pain.

“Miss?” said a passing jogger, pulling out an earbud as he ran by. “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” she said, rubbing herself with both hands. “I’m just- ow, ow!” She winced as the sharp pain grew sharper, and she let out a yelp. The next thing she knew, she felt a wet sensation in the back of her dress, and was aware of the sound of fluid trickling onto the ground below. “Oh no,” she said. “Oh no.”

“Mom?” said Chris, darting to her side with a small paper bag tucked under his arm. “Mom, what happened?”

Becky took a deep breath. “Chris,” she said. “Don’t panic. But I think you need to get me to the hospital. Right now.”

She saw Chris’s eyes bug out and his mouth open, and she quickly put a finger on his face. Several onlookers had stopped to gawk, and she could feel her cheeks burning from embarrassment, but she tried her best not to think about that.

“Help me up,” said Becky, holding out her hands. “Then let’s get to your car, at a reasonable pace, and go to the hospital. I’ll call Trisha on the way. Did you get the peanuts?”

Chris closed his mouth, swallowed heavily, and nodded, offering her the paper bag. She took it and shoved a handful into her mouth.
“Good,” she said, slightly muffled. “Let’s go.”

~*~

Becky had originally flirted with the idea of a home birth, but it was eventually decided that, all things considered, it would be better to do this in a setting where emergency care would be available if she needed it. But Trisha wanted her to be comfortable to, and had chosen a hospital with a very reputable birthing center. Trisha had called ahead for her, and before she was even in the door, an orderly was waiting for her with a wheelchair.

The room she was brought to was, rather than a cold, sterile white, a rather home-like affair, decorated in soft autumnal colors. Loathe as she was to ask, she had needed Chris’s help to get changed into a hospital gown, and though he was clearly uncomfortable at the idea of seeing his mother in such a state of undress, he grit his teeth and helped her.

Part of her wished that she had worn a different pair of maternity panties. The neon pink ones had not helped matters much.

Soon enough, she was dressed down and relaxed, being monitored regularly as Chris held her hand. About an hour later, Trisha made her way in.

“I got here as soon as I could,” she said. “Byron wanted to be here for this too, but he’s still at the conference. You weren’t supposed to be due for another week!”

“Don’t look at me,” said Becky, grinning tiredly at her. “It’s your impatient baby.”

“Do you want me to go now?” said Chris. “I don’t want to make it weird for you-”

“Please stay,” she said, squeezing her son’s hand. “Both of you, please stay.”

“We’re right here for you, babe,” said Trisha, taking Becky’s other hand. Becky smiled. The contractions were only getting worse, and unfortunately, she had been too far along for an epidural by the time she’d gotten settled in. As if on cue, she let out a groan as a new contraction raged. It wasn’t much longer before the doctor made her way in. She was an older woman with East Asian features by the name of Yang, and had been personally requested by Trisha as something of an expert in difficult births.

“Hello there,” said Dr. Yang, smiling at her. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I’m about to have a baby,” said Becky, flashing her something between a smile and a grimace.

“Sounds about right,” said Dr. Yang, as she slipped on a pair of gloves. “Let’s take a look at you, hmm?”

Becky held onto Chris’s hands as Dr. Yang performed the examination, and she tried her best not to squirm too much.

“It looks like you’re just about ready to go,” said Dr. Yang. “That’s not surprising, since I understand this isn’t your first rodeo?”

Becky nodded, looking over at Chris. “This one over here wasn’t a small baby,” she said, causing her son to blush. “And then I had twins. So hopefully- nnngh!”

She groaned as her belly suddenly tightened, and Dr. Yang gave a nod.

“I think… I think I have to push!” hissed Becky.

“Then go ahead and try,” said Dr. Yang. “Just a little one at first, alright? Try to take it easy.”

Becky wasn’t sure how little she could manage, but as the contraction built up, she started to bear down. It had been over a decade since she had last given birth, but this was all too familiar. She could feel the baby’s movement as it made its way into her birth canal, feel her  inner muscles squeezing painfully, but she could have swore that it was never this difficult. Finally, she let herself rest while Dr. Yang looked over her.

This pattern repeated for about an hour, pushing a little bit and then resting as the doctor coached her along, but her progress was far too slow for Becky’s comfort.

“Nothing’s happening,” she groaned. “Why is nothing happening? Is something wrong?”

“The baby’s just being a little bit stubborn is all,” said Dr. Yang. “Do you feel up to moving? I’d like you to try changing positions. Getting upright might help.”

“Here, I’ll help,” said Trisha, letting Becky lean on her as she got up, but she felt her knees buckle almost immediately.

“Can’t do it,” she said, as she leaned against the bench. “Feel too weak…”

“Let’s try something else, then,” said Dr. Yang. “Chris, was it? Fetch a blanket from that cabinet over there. Do you think you can get on your hands and knees?”

“I can try,” said Becky, as Chris pulled the blanket out and unfurled it onto the floor as Trisha threw down some cushions. With the help of her son and her friend, Becky settled down, breathing heavily. Almost immediately she felt better, a lot of the pressure relieved by the new position, and she soon felt the urge to push once again. Chris knelt down in front of her while Trisha rubbed her back.

“Come on, mom,” said Chris. “You can do it! I know you can!”

Gritting her teeth, Becky started to push once again, sticking her butt out and groaning, and sure enough, she could feel the baby moving, far faster than before, and it wasn’t long before she was aware of the burning sensation that could only mean that the baby was starting to crown.

“You’re doing great, Becky!” said Dr. Yang. “Keep pushing, keep pushing!”

“Try and stop me!” yowled Becky, leaning hard into her latest effort. Her whole body burned now as she pushed and pushed, feeling the head slip out of her and starting to work on the shoulders, but she didn’t dare stop, even as her head started to swim and her vision unfocused. The doctor was saying something, but Becky was tuning it out. If she stopped now, she didn’t think she’d be able to start again, and so she kept at it, pushing and pushing, feeling the baby slide further and further out of her, letting out a groan as she felt a shoulder slip free… until finally, with a powerful yell, she felt the baby slip out of her, and slowly, reality started to come back to her. With Chris’s help, she carefully turned around, sitting down on the floor as she saw Dr. Yang holding the newly-born baby. Trisha was kneeling down next to her, hands over her mouth and tears streaming out of her eyes.

“Congratulations,” said Becky, looking up at Trisha and smiling. “You have a beautiful baby girl.”

“Thank you,” she said, her voice cracking. “Thank you so much…”

And in that moment, Becky knew that everything, all of the pain and discomfort, had been worth it. She’d done a good thing, perhaps the best thing she would ever do, and that was something she’d carry with her forever.

She was dimly aware of someone holding her up, and she turned to meet Chris’s eyes. He still looked a bit uncomfortable, as would be expected from having just watched one’s mother give birth, but he was smiling. And Becky smiled herself.

“Hope you don’t want any more little siblings. Because I am done.”