The pain Dabi felt was nothing she had ever felt before, the pain was beyond excruciating, the contractions keeps coming and coming but she was told not to push yet," is not time to push yet NNE had told her for the ninth time" she kept asking with her eyes what the matter was, since her mouth was gagged to muffle the excess screaming, NNE didn't tell her but insisted that it wasn't time yet. In NNE's mind she was worried to death but never letting the worry show on her face, she told Dabi not to worry that everything will be ok.
When NNE checked the position of the baby a couple of hours ago, she had found out that the baby was bridged and not in a proper position to come through the cervix, so she had been on the job of turning the baby to face the cervix through the mother's belly, though it might seem like nothing is happening but she knew that in no time that the baby will be facing the cervix ready to come.
Hours passed into it, yet Dabi was told to wait a little longer, she was getting tired by the second, exhaustion has taken over her body and mind , she could barely keep her eyes open yet NNE told her it will be over soon, just a little more my daughter NNE said. Dabi couldn't wait any longer and told NNE that she is sleepy, and just as she said it, she started drifting off almost at once, which caused fear to gripe NNE's heart, because she knows the meaning of the word sleep in the labour room, no woman that has ever slept during labour has been able to wake up again to narrate the dream she had if any, they always slipped into death never waking again. NNE Rachel told Dabi to not fall asleep that it will not be good, but the more she talks the further Dabi drifts, which caused the elderly woman to snap at her daughter in-law causing the younger woman to startle awake '' Do you want to die and die along with your baby? The elderly woman asked? with a harsh and angry tone, While the younger one shook her head vigorously, NNE proceeded to tell her not to sleep or that her baby will die if she does, this got through to Dabi this time and snapped her out of her drowsiness while she fought to stay awake for the sake of her baby. Meanwhile NNE kept rotating the baby in Dabi's womb to properly position it for delivery.
Finally the baby is in position at long last and ready to come into the world ..NNE was elated, the fear gripping her heart earlier vanished and she told Dabi ,is finally time my daughter, is time to push, on my count you push, and push hard with all your might and bring your child into the word you hear me? she asked, remember, just as you are tired so is the baby and we wouldn't want to lose it, would we? Dabi shook her head again and gathered her resolve to push with all her might, this is because if there is anything she doesn't want ,it was to lose her precious baby that she has nurtured within her this past months, the baby she has come to love more than her own life.
These thoughts of her baby's safety gave her the courage and strength to persevere and to push for the first time since her first contractions, she pushed again and again, suddenly NNE's face beamed with excitement and she told Dabi that she could see the head of her baby, NNE shouted and said "my daughter I can see the head my daughter I can ,now one or two more push my daughter and it will be over , okey ? she kept saying encouragingly to her , one great push alright? Dabi on the other hand kept nodding her head vigorously since she couldn't speak amidst the gag on her mouth and the pain down there.
Now at my count my daughter give it your all okey? Dabi nodded again ,
One, two now my daughter push…!!! Dabi closed her eyes in tears and anguish while she bit down hard at the gag in her mouth and pushed , she pushed with everything within her, but feared that it might not be enough to bring her baby forth but she was wrong this time because at that moment the baby arrived ….
But there was pure quietness except the panting coming from Dabi, something was wrong, something was really , really wrong, it was not supposed to be quiet so why the quietness ?
Anxiety griped Dabi's heart ,the relief she felt few minutes ago was over shadowed with terror, why is there quietness everywhere? Why isn't the baby crying? Oh God ,she looked at NNE, then at the baby, OH God! No! she said in her mind , Sitting up, she Untied the scarf serving as gag against excessive screaming and called out to NNE,…NNE! it was then that the elderly woman snapped out of her daze , because as soon as the baby came through without any sound she frozed, NNE took the baby, wrapped It with a wrapper she had set aside before and with the wrapper she took the baby by the leg and raised it up and shook it a little, still no sound, she flip it again ,still nothing, then she hit it's bottom, again, again, again and again, but nothing ,then she raised it up to look at it properly and then raised her hand , with all the little strength that her fragile wrinkled hand could muster, she hit it again ….and then like some miracle, the room was filled with the cry of a baby ,waii, !waii,!! waii…the baby cried, Dabi looked at the wailing baby and then at NNE, upon seeing the elderly woman nod her head and mouthed to her that everything was okey, then the fatigue that Dabi felt earlier suddenly returned to her body heavy causing her to fall back and passing out immediately.