The woman held her belly, doubling over at the pain of the contraction. Strands of her red hair stuck to her face, held there by the sweat that dripped off her forehead. Clenching her teeth together she moaned as the contraction reached its peak.

"Hush. It'll be over soon," the woman next to her said soothingly.

"It hurts!" cried the woman. "Make it stop hurting!"

"I wish I could, dear. I wish I could." She wrung out a cloth and placed it on the other woman's forehead. "I think you can push now."

The woman nodded her head, tired already from the job of birthing. Taking a deep breath she held her legs and pushed. A scream ripped from her throat as her perineum tore, her fingers digging into her flesh. Panting, she fell back when her friend told her she could rest a minute. She wanted to push again. She wanted to be rid of this life that had made its home inside of her for the past nine months.

"A couple more pushes and the baby will be out. You can do it," her friend said, helping the woman up.

"I can't! I'm too tired!"

"You can and you will. Now push!"

Once more, she gripped her legs and pushed. She felt her muscles forcing the baby out; felt the tiny arms pressed tightly against the little body. Finally, with a sickly wet noise, the baby was freed from her body. Without a moment's hesitation, her friend tied off the umbilical cord and wiped the trembling body off. Exhausted at the effort the woman jumped when she heard the mewling cry of the baby, then felt the weight of the child as her friend placed her on her heaving chest.

"Please. Not right now," she pleaded.

"You have to hold her while I deal with this mess. There's still the afterbirth to get rid of."

Her head barely nodded this time as she gave a small push, aided by her friend pushing down on her now slack belly. The sliminess of the placenta made her shudder as it landed between her legs on the dirty bed sheets. The woman was more than grateful when her friend quickly removed the warm mass. In her arms the child squirmed and it took all her effort not to let the child drop to the floor.

"Give me the child," her friend said, now back at the bedside.

There was no effort on her part to release the baby. After a moment, her friend came back and began washing her down with warm cloths. Before her friend was too far along, the woman fell asleep, glad to have the child out of her body.

~ ~ ~ "Are you certain this is what you want?"

"Yes," she said, nodding.

Her friend sighed heavily and handed the week old child to her. She would be sad to see the little red head baby cooing in her makeshift crib. It made her sad that her friend had not even named the child, nor taken any pleasure in having her. Pinning the note to the ragged blanket, she then watched as her friend made her way across the street to the orphanage.

Shivering in the cool of the mid-spring night the woman placed the child in the doorway of the orphanage. She did not look down at the sleeping child with any hint of love or that the child would be missed. The child remained asleep, a fluff of red hair sticking out around her face as the woman rang the night bell and ran back to her waiting friend. Without waiting or looking back to make certain the child was taken in, she hurried her friend off and into the night.
Triad Main / Troubled/Child Main /