Cherry - S01 E65

Story 1 year ago

Cherry - S01 E65

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 65

Cherry's doctor came to check on her not long after I caught up with her and said that, although she was in labor, the baby wasn't coming immediately. He offered her an epidural and she turned it down without hesitation.

I said, "Babe, you realize it's going to be extremely painful without one. I don't want you to go through that kind of pain..." Cherry said, "I know. But that's part of it-part of the experience. I don't want to cheat myself out of that."

The doctor said some women try that and change their minds at

the last minute. He told her that she can change her mind if she

wants, but after a certain point it would be too late. Cherry said she understood but assured us that she would not change her mind. She was right.

After 15 unbelievably long hours of labor, my wife-the most beautiful girl in the world-had to start sharing her title with our daughter, Nicole Olivia Mann. Nicole was a tiny angel and it was

clear she had good lungs! To others, she was crying, but to me,

she was singing. Her hair was red, just like her Mommy's; perhaps a few shades lighter (but would likely darken a bit over time). Once the nurses weighed her and recorded all of the other vital information they needed for their paperwork, Nicole was handed to Cherry and almost immediately stopped crying. We took tums counting fingers and toes and enjoying that 'new baby smell'. As new parents, we could not have been prouderi

After Cherry rested for a while, we began letting family and then friends come in to greet the newest member of the family, first our parents and then Amanda and Olivia. Even several of the guys from the station house came by to see the baby.

Cherry only stayed in the hospital for one night before she was ready to go home. Perhaps typical of all first time fathers, I drove 10 miles an hour UNDER the posted speed limit (at the most)!

Prior to becoming a father, if anyone had told me that it would change things between my wife and me, I would have told them they were certifiably crazy. Surprisingly however, they would have been one hundred percent correct. The dynamic between us changed dramatically. Perhaps more precisely, the dynamic was built upon: we still had the same Love and passion for each other, but now we had our daughter to show for it and Nicole opened up an entirely new level of Love in us that neither of us could have imagined before!

But the most dramatic change was with my outlook on life in general. My priorities in life shifted a bit and that took me by surprise. I no longer saw firefighting as my passion; it became nothing more than a job. My passion was my family. And the longer I thought about that, the more I realized that my inherently dangerous job put them at risk. It didn't take long for me to start looking for new work

Chief noticed the change in me and, when he asked about it, I told him what I was thinking. He wasn't exactly taken aback. In fact, he said he didn't blame me. I told him about a job that I heard opening as an assistant to the arson investigator. It was basically in the same line of work, a lot safer, and it would even afford me a pay raise. But the best part was that it offered regular working hours! Chief helped me tailor my résumé and I submitted my application. When I went for the interview, I was told that my experience level was perfect for the job; enough experience to have a solld understanding of how and why a fire moves, but not so much that I thought I knew everything (meaning I was still trainable). It came as little shock and a huge relief when I was officially offered the job.

Six weeks after Nicole's arrival, Amanda went into labor and gave birth to the twins. The first born had brown hair like mine while the second had golden blonde hair; taking after her mother. When Amanda and Olivia announced the girls' names, the first one took me a little by surprise. They named her Katelyn. But her name had nothing to do with Katie; it was just a coincidence that they picked that name for her. Her twin sister was named Ericka. A short two weeks passed and Olivia delivered the first boy: Ryan-who looked exactly like me.

We were all very satisfied in our lives; both personal and professional. Amanda and Olivia were done having kids, of course, but Cherry and I wanted at least a few more. The new job was working out great and the larger paychecks combined with Cherry's salary allowed our savings account to grow enough to buy a small home. And as soon as we were settled into the new home and knew we could afford it, Cherry and I decided to have another baby. Nichole was almost two when Cherry and I gave her a little brother-who, once again, looked just like me. Cherry insisted on naming him David after me. I didn't want to be a 'senior' or having people call my son 'Junior', so we gave him a middle name (Allen) as well

Over the course of the next several years, we had two more kids, first another boy (Chris-who looked a lot like Cherry) and then a beautiful baby girl (Elizabeth-she looked like both of us). Life could get a bit chaotic at times with four kids in the house, but we loved every second of it. And with the help of Amanda and Olivia, Cherry and I still managed to find time for 'alone time'. The unspoken arrangement was we would take the kids for a day once in a while (usually at least every other week) so they could have some private time and they would do the same for us in return. The understanding was perfect for all four of us and worked perfectly for many years.

One Summer Saturday When the oldest four were nearly 8 years old, Amanda called to ask if I could take the kids for a few hours to the play ground nearby. I told her that I was more than glad to take them and I loaded up the minivan (an ugly necessity for large families on a tight budget) with the seven kids and headed for the playground.

En route to our destination, we stopped at the 'Infamous' intersection. It had been changed years ago and, to my knowledge, there had not been an accident there since they fixed it; certainly not one with any serious injuries. While waiting for the light to change, I reflected on the events from what seemed another lifetime yet, not that long ago. I remembered Katie and realized that she had not 'visited' my dreams in years-before Nichole was even born. I missed her in that moment and wondered where she was' and 'how she was doing'. The light turned green and I barely noticed but began driving as if on autopilot. The sound of tires passing quickly over rumple strips snapped me out of my semi- trance and I saw a large bus coming to a rapid halt. Fortunately, the driver of the bus managed to stop before the light. I continued driving, shaking my head at the other driver's inattention (while chastising myself for almost doing the same thing).

We got to the park and the kids were so excited that they poured out of the van as soon as put it in park. The seven of them had the park all to themselves and took a seat on a bench to soak up some sun and watch then play. A short time later, I saw Katelyn on the swings but she wasn't really swinging; she just sat there. A feeling of severe déjà vu came over me; I went to see if she was ok

"Katelyn, sweetie? Is everything ok?" I asked. She nodded her head while looking at the ground and replied, "I think so."

I asked, "Why aren't you playing with your sister, brother and cousins?"

With a look of confusion, she said, "I'm trying to remember something-a dream I had, I think."

I waited for her to continue and she said, "I dreamed of today. before...a long time ago. I remember you were here. And we sat on the swings here-like we are now. And, I could hear them playing, but they weren't here. What do you think that means?"

The End.........