Part 311
"Billy, come on, you can let me in."
"No, I can't. I have my orders." The large man blocked the door to Becca's suite and did his best to ignore the pitiful look on Nick's face.
"Billy, please. She's cut off the phone, she won't talk to me ... She won't even talk to Sarah, her best friend."
"Not my problem, I have my orders." He remained immobile.
"DAMNIT! Billy please! I have to see her. Man, you don't understand. It's been a week since I've seen her and my son. This is killing me." His voice softened and a single tear fell. "She won't even talk to me," he whispered, repeating what he'd already said and leaning against the wall, his hands in his hair.
"You should have thought of that earlier," he replied, passing judgment for the first time. "Nick, sometimes you just don't know when to stop."
"Billy, that's whacked. You didn't hear what Howie said to me. I am NOT a bad father. Hell, I haven't been a father LONG enough to know how to be a bad one."
"Didn't hear it?" Billy snorted. "Everyone on the bus heard everything, Nick. Just be glad it was just you all, the driver, and me. They wanted a reporter on board today, but Kevin put a stop to it."
"I didn’t mean to yell at her, Billy. My god, I've never raised my voice at her, ever. I love her." His voice cracked and Billy began to soften.
"Give her till the morning, Boss. She'll feel better and then you can work it out. This last week has been pretty rough for her."
Nick tried one last time. "Look, it's almost 2:30 in the morning. Just let me go in and check on them? I promise I'll leave. They're asleep and I just need to see for myself that they’re okay. Please?"
Billy knew when he'd been beaten. He'd been around Nick for too long to deny him this. "You'll leave after I let you in?"
"Billy, look at the size of you, I'm not gonna mess with you." Nick was dead serious.
Billy hesitated one last time before swiping the door with his keycard. "Two minutes or I'm hauling you out of there."
"Thanks," Nick whispered. On impulse he hugged Billy, who rolled his eyes and pushed him through the door.
The suite was dark, including the bedrooms, not even the glimmer of a nightlight shining beneath the doorway, but something wasn't right. Nick may be inept at a lot of things, thank you Howie for pointing that out, but he knew Becca better than he knew himself. He stopped and listened, and then he heard it. He pushed open the door and was hit by a powerful sense of déjà vu. Only Becca could get to him this way, and there she was in the rocking chair with Garrett and both were crying. From the sounds of it, they'd been at it for quite a while, both were sobbing and from the light shining through the window he could see the tear stains on Becca's face.
"Oh shit." He was by her side in seconds, kneeling at her feet and wiping the tears from her face. He didn't even have to ask, she began spilling it all as soon as she saw him.
"He won't stop," she sobbed. "I've done everything. I've fed him, and changed him and rocked him …" she took a breath before beginning to cry again. "I've walked him around, I put him down, I picked him up and he won’t stop. And I'm so tired, Nick. I can't do this anymore. What's wrong with me? Why can't I do this?" She jiggled Garrett, patting his bottom and still he cried.
"Bec, he'll be fine." Nick laid his hand on the squalling infant and could feel the angry heat coming off of him in waves. "Maybe he's too warm?"
"I changed him, Nick. I bathed him and I sang to him. And he won't stop." She was sobbing openly now, still rocking steadily back and forth. "And I threw you out, Nick. You're his father and I threw you out. He's going to hate me," she sobbed.
Nick resisted the urge to laugh. "Sweetheart, he's only a week old. He never has to know." He pushed her damp hair away from her face and looked lovingly into her eyes. "Becca, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for what I said to you today."
"I'm sorry I threw you out. I love you," she said, sobbing all over again.
Nick rolled his eyes at her tears, but thankfully she didn't see. "Bec, why don't we call Sarah, she'll know what to do with G.T."
"NO!"
"Baby, why not?"
"Because … she … and Howie …" She turned her head away.
"And what? Bec, she's your best friend."
"Not any more."
"Becca, you don't mean that."
"Yes I do. You have no idea what she did."
"Becca, an argument is hardly reason to give up a friendship like you two have."
She began to sob again. "You just don’t understand."
"Then explain it to me, Bec." Nick pulled her to the floor and held them both in his arms, on his lap.
"She …. She… She killed you!" She laid her head on Nick's shoulder and continued to cry as he rubbed her back.
Nick was clueless and it sounded like too long a story to get into at almost three in the morning, so he didn't even try. Struggling to his feet, he helped Becca up and took the baby from her. "Go wash your face, Bec, let me see what I can do with him."
Becca looked at him skeptically, but did as she was told. By the time she returned, Nick had changed Garrett into a lighter weight sleeper and had wiped him off with a cool cloth. He was still crying, but at least looked a little more comfortable than he had a few minutes prior.
"You look better too," Nick said smiling at her. "Now, about this little guy …" He held him out in front of him, his tiny back stretched along the length of his arm like a football. "G.T., what're we gonna do with you? You're givin' your mom fits tonight, buddy."
"Maybe he's sick," Becca said weakly.
"I don't think so." Nick felt pretty certain that it must be something else. "Let's go stretch out on the bed, maybe we can get him to sleep." He saw her start to protest. "I know you already tried that, but just humor me." As they moved to the bed, Nick put the baby up on his shoulder and he and Becca were both amazed at the sound that came from the tiny body.
"Holy crap!" Nick said. "What was that?"
Becca began to giggle though her tears. "Oh god, Nick, he burped."
"Like a damn trucker, Bec, good god." Nick began to giggle, too.
"He had gas, Nick. That's what was wrong." She began to cry again. "I should have known. I feel terrible, Nick. He's been in pain all night …"
"Come on girl, let's put you to bed. You're too tired to be reasoned with." He put his arm around her and led her to the bed. Pulling back the covers with one hand, he laid the baby in the middle and tucked Becca in beneath the comforter. Stretching out on the other side of Garrett, he made sure he was safely blocked in for the night before closing his eyes. It was only minutes before Becca and Garrett fell into an exhausted sleep, and Nick wasn't far behind them. Once the suite was bathed in silence, Billy let himself out into the hallway to return to his watch.