Take My Breath Away

One of Keith's comrades-in-arm had passed away, so Baldwin and Cecelia accompanied the older man to attend the funeral. They informed Blair that they wouldn't come back home that night. The maid was on leave too. Hence, Blair and Gifford were the only ones left at home.

"Yes!" Gifford nodded. Although he didn't understand anything about the dishes, he planned on eating anything she cooked. Moreover, he found it relaxing to be with his mom. He was happy the whole day. His mom would ask his opinions before making a decision, unlike his dad, who decided everything by himself.

Blair walked hand-in-hand with Gifford, with bags of ingredients and groceries in her other hand. She was quite tired. After all, she was still recovering her health.

She sighed. It dawned on her how amazing some full-time mothers were. They had to take care of their kid all alone, and some of them had to take care of two or more kids at the same time. She admired them for their devotion.

The supermarket wasn't too far away from home, so Blair didn't hail a cab. After making sure that the little one wasn't tired, they walked back home.

Before she began to cook, she told Gifford to play with the toys in the living room. She stressed that he wasn't allowed to go anywhere, and if he needed the toilet, he had to go find her in the kitchen. His safety was her priority.

The little boy nodded, holding the toys in his hands. "Mommy, don't worry. I won't go out."

Blair kissed his cheek and walked into the kitchen.

The mother and son duo enjoyed their dinner. Gifford loved his mom's cooking and ate more than usual. His tummy was already full and round, but he still pointed at the tofu.

Blair touched his big belly. Worried that he would be overstuffed, she shook her head. "No, you can't eat anymore. I'll cook this for you again tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay, Mommy." Blair smiled tenderly. She realized that her son was very obedient. He said yes to almost everything. While she did the dishes, she wondered what kind of man her son would grow up to be. She imagined he would be a very considerate gentleman.

After a while, it was time to bathe. The little boy was shy since this was the first time that Blair was going to bathe him. As soon as she undressed him, Gifford covered his crotch with both his hands and sat in the bathtub.

Blair laughed. "I'm your mom. Why are you so shy?"

The boy giggled and turned his back to Blair.

It was a long and tiring day for Blair. Eventually, she got everything done and tucked the boy in bed. After he fell asleep, she was finally relieved and went to take a shower.

In the middle of the night, a fit of coughing shook Blair awake.

It was from the little one beside her. She hastily turned on the bedside lamp and observed her son. He was coughing violently with his eyes closed.

"Baby, are you okay?" she asked worriedly as she patted his back. She didn't have much experience in taking care of a kid. Not knowing what to do, she was flustered.

She woke him up gently and said, "I'll get some water for you, baby. Don't move."

After drinking some water, the little boy stopped coughing.

However, just as she put the glass on the night stand, Gifford started to throw up all over the covers.

It scared the wits out of Blair. She jumped off the bed and got a bin to catch the vomit.

The little boy threw up a few times until there was nothing left in his stomach. Blair pulled out a few tissues to wipe his mouth. Then, she got a glass of water and asked him to rinse his mouth.

'What should I do? What should I do?'

In a panic, she removed the covers and called Wesley, only to hear the cold, automated voice. "Sorry, the number you have dialed is not in service..." Blair hit her forehead with her hand, feeling stupid. She remembered that Wesley was on a mission again.

His parents were out of town and Niles had moved out to live with Irene.

Left with no other choice, she decided to take her son to the hospital herself. She got dressed quickly and casually tied up her hair.

Then, she took off his dirty clothes and changed him into comfortable ones. Wrapping him in a coat, she carried the boy in her arms and walked down the stairs.

Blair found the key to the car which was installed with a child seat. After buckling him up, she gently caressed the little boy's cheek and comforted him, "Baby, Mommy is taking you to the hospital now. Hold on. Tell me if you need anything."

Gifford nodded weakly, and leaned back in the seat, listless.

Around two o'clock in the morning, Blair arrived at the nearest hospital and registered into the emergency department. She carried the fifteen-kilogram boy in her arms the whole time. When she was inside the doctor's office, she was already sweating profusely, even though she was in her pajamas and an overcoat.

She told the doctor about the child's symptoms. After a simple check-up, the doctor said, "It might have been caused by unhygienic food. But I can't confirm it before further examination is done. I suggest you get him admitted right away and have his blood tested by tomorrow."

'Unhygienic food?' Blair's heart skipped a beat. He had only eaten the food she had cooked today. Was there any problem with her cooking? If it turned out that her son had fallen sick because of the food she had cooked, she would have failed as a mother.

With Gifford in her arms again, Blair went up and down the hospital to finish the formalities. By the time he was put on a drip in a ward, it was already four in the morning.

The little one looked pale and sleepy. He closed one of his eyes. "Mommy, say...good night. I close my...eyes." He spoke inarticulately. It took Blair a little while to take in his meaning.

The needle was taped onto his forehead, since the veins on his head were easier to find. Blair looked at the boy lovingly and planted a kiss on the other side of his forehead. "Good night, my dear baby."

Gifford closed his other eye at once and said, "Good night, Mommy."

Staring at his sleeping face, she held his little hands in hers and rained kisses on them. 'Oh, my little angel. You are such a good boy!' He only cried a little when the nurse inserted the needle into his vein, but he soon stopped after Blair coaxed him. He was quiet the whole time. She was almost moved to tears seeing how sweet her son was.

Blair thought that she should let Cecelia know about the kid's condition.

Considering that it was still very early in the morning, she decided to get some rest and tell the elders later in the day.

'Baby, thank you for coming into my life. I'm so happy to be your mom.'

She lay down beside her son and fell asleep with him in her arms.

After catching some sleep, Blair woke up and took Gifford to get his blood test done before breakfast. Tears threatened to fall out of the little boy's eyes when the doctor drew his blood. Blair felt her heart ache. "I'm so sorry, baby. It's my fault. I shouldn't have cooked all those food for you."

Gifford buried his face in his mom's chest, bearing the pain.

After breakfast, she texted Cecelia. "Mom, are you busy?"

She waited patiently, but there was no reply. Cecelia was probably still busy.

In two hours, the test results came. The doctor read the report and told her, "It's a bacterial infection. He may develop a fever today. Please pay more attention to him."

'Bacterial infection?' "So, it's not because of the food he ate?" Blair asked nervously.