Those 4 Months
{A Star Stable fanfic/Autiobiography}
By: Ash Feng
9 months! It was supposed to have been 9 months! Instead, it was 5…
Aiyla Dawnda came into this world as a micro preemie who barely had a chance of survival. She was rushed off to the NICU of the Jorvik City Hospital and put on life support immediately after birth. The doctors don’t have much hope, especially after Aiyla goes through two heart attacks in quick succession the night she is born. Now, it is a race against time as her mothers anxiously wait and pray that their little Aiyla survives.
(I own nothing except for my Original Characters, everything else belongs to Star Stable Online or the original owners. SSO is an online horse MMO RPG made by Star Stable Entertainment. SSE is based in Stockholm, Sweden.
- A. Feng)
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~PROLOGUE~
Linda and Heather Dawnda were overjoyed when they found out Heather was pregnant, happily dreaming of the life they would build together as parents. But their joy soon turned to fear when their baby arrived far too early…
Linda was at a showjumping competition in her hometown* of Dundull, focused on preparing her horse, Meteor, for the event. It was a moment she had worked tirelessly for, yet everything came to a halt when her trainer, Nona, pulled her aside and delivered the news: Heather had gone into early labor.
It felt like the rug had been pulled out from underneath her. Her heart raced as she struggled to process the news. "What?! N-Now? But she’s only 22 weeks…" Linda's breath hitched. Her mind raced, and for a moment, the noise around her faded. Twenty-two weeks. That was too early. Way too early. The risks were staggering! The word ‘viability’ echoed in her thoughts.
She and Heather had only just started imagining the nursery, the tiny shoes, the lullabies. And now they might- Get a grip, Linda, now is not the time to panic! She tried to clear the fog drowning her with a shake of her head, but it was Nona’s sharp tone that cut through her thoughts.
“You need to get your head in the game, Dawnda!” Nona barked. “You’re up next, so quit panicking about your kid being born a little early,” Linda stared at her, her trainer’s words not quite registering at first. Her breath hitched as if the air had thickened. Then, anger surged, clearing the fog.
Linda straightened, her fists clenching at her sides. “My wife is having our baby almost four months too early,” she snapped, her voice trembling with fury. “So excuse me if I’m a little more concerned about my family right now when my kid might die!”
Nona sighed and shook her head in exasperation.“Look, I get it that this is hard,” her tone clipped. “But we all have obligations, and this competition is yours. That’s the reality of professional competition. And if you leave, you forfeit. Doctors deal with early babies all the time. They’ll handle yours, so why don’t you focus on the competition? Besides, you and Meteor have been practicing for months and this is your chance! That scout out there is searching for the next Grand Prix champion and that champion is you!”
“Well then, I am leaving! My family needs me right now, and that’s more important to me than some ribbon or scout!” before the trainer could even open her mouth to get another word in, Linda had already turned heel and stormed out of the stables to her car.
*Hometown: one's present fixed residence