A group of doctors gathered outside Pod C, waiting to begin
rounds. Kim came over to tell Sophie and Adam they had
to step out of the pod for a few minutes. Morning rounds were
starting, and for the sake of privacy, parents had to leave until
they were done.
Adam pushed Sophie and the wheelchair out of the NICU
and down to the lobby. They maneuvered over to the fish tank
that stood in the middle of the lobby and was surrounded by kids.
Dressed in hospital pajamas, with some on crutches and others
in wheelchairs, they laughed and pointed at the colorful lion
fish and clownfish swimming back and forth. Sophie stood and
stepped away from the tank to call her sister. Kate lived four
hours away in Boston. The last time they had talked, they were
planning Sophie’s baby shower, still weeks away.
Kate answered, “Hey, Soph. What’s up?”
Sophie told her.
“Are you serious? What happened? How’s he doing?”
“He’s doing okay. He’s on a respirator to help him breathe, but
hopefully, he won’t need it too much longer. This hospital has an
excellent NICU, and I really like Kim, Danny’s nurse. It’s all so
much, Kate. He’s so small we can’t even hold him. He’s tiny, Kate.”
“How much does he weigh?”
“Two pounds.”
“What? Oh my God!”
“I know, and they say he’s going to lose weight before he gains
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THE VERY BEST OF CARE
it again. I can’t even imagine that. A lot is going on, and so much
I don’t understand yet. Twenty-six weeks and two pounds, Kate.
You have to see it to believe it.”
“That’s my plan, sis. I’ll be on a train down this weekend. I
can’t wait to see you! Do you need anything?”
“Nope, just bring yourself. I’ll be so happy to have you here,
you have no idea.”
Back in Danny’s pod, Sophie noticed another mother sitting
next to her baby’s incubator. Adam left to return the wheel
chair, no longer needed, to Sophie’s room. The mother looked up
at Sophie with a warm, friendly smile. Her skin was a soft brown,
her eyes the color of tidal pools. When she stood to introduce
herself, Sophie marveled at her toned figure. She had just deliv
ered a baby, and she looked like a million bucks.
“Hi, I’m Rihanna.” She spoke with an accent that Sophie
couldn’t place.
“Nice to meet you, Rihanna. I’m Sophie. Mind if I sit?”
Rihanna gestured for her to pull up a chair.
“You don’t sound like you’re from New York,” Sophie said.
“Can I ask, where are you from?”
“De Bahamas.”
“Oh, that’s the accent I hear.”
“And you?”
“I’m a New Yorker, through and through.”
In less than an hour, they were chatting as if they’d known
each other for years. Sophie was intrigued by this woman who
was so calm despite being stuck in the same situation as Sophie.
She asked what life in the Bahamas was like. Rihanna asked what
life as a native New Yorker was like. They compared delivery
stories. Rihanna’s baby girl, Isabelle, was born eight weeks early.
“How come you delivered so early?”
“Preeclampsia,” she answered in her Bahamian cadence. “My
26
JULIE HATCH
blood pressure was getting dangerously high. The doctor gave
me a dose of steroids to help the baby’s lungs, then induced me.
Good thing. By the time she was born, my blood pressure was
off the charts. As soon as she came out, it came down. I love my
obstetrician. He’s so good.”
They talked for over an hour. As staff walked by, Sophie
noticed how they looked twice at Rihanna, no doubt because of
her striking beauty.
One of the doctors came over to talk to Rihanna, interrupting
their conversation. Sophie went back to sit by Danny’s incubator.
She watched Rihanna and the doctor together. They were at ease
with each other in a way that only intimate partners could be.
They murmured softly, their heads together, cooing to the baby.
The doctor was preparing to leave when Rihanna called Sophie
over to introduce them.
“Sophie, this is Sheldon. I mean Dr. Vandewater.”
“Nice to meet you, Dr. Vandewater,” replied Sophie.
“You as well, Sophie, but please, call me Dr. Sheldon. It’s a
lot easier.” He smiled. “I’ll be back in a few,” he said to Rihanna
before leaving the pod.
Sophie desperately wanted to hold Danny. Kim was out on
break, and there was another nurse covering for her. Sophie
called out to her and asked for some help when she had a minute.
When the nurse came over, Sophie said, “I’d like to hold my
baby. How do I get him out of his incubator?”
“Whoa there, mommy tiger,” the nurse said with a smile.
“He’s not ready to be held yet. That tube down his throat is keep
ing him alive. See that machine attached to the other end of it?”
Sophie felt the sting of tears tickling her nose as she nodded.
“It’s going to be a while before he’s ready to be held. Didn’t
anybody explain that to you?” asked the nurse.
“I don’t know, probably. I just don’t remember.” Sophie wiped
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at her tears.
THE VERY BEST OF CARE
“I’m sorry, but you have to wait until he’s bigger.” The nurse
walked away.
Sophie’s foot bounced as she chewed her thumbnail and the
tears rolled down her cheeks. She hated this feeling of losing
control. She was always waiting for the other shoe to drop. Now,
finding herself in the NICU and forbidden from holding her own
baby, the shoe had finally dropped
