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“What’s wrong?” Skylar asked.
“Her water broke.”
Skylar’s face lit up. “Oh my gosh! Adelia!”
Adelia motioned toward the stage. “I can’t go up there.”
Franky jumped up. “I’ve got this!”
He raced to the front, disappeared offstage, and returned, carrying a handheld microphone.
“Miss Allen would love to stand center stage and accept her award,” he said as he walked back the aisle, “but her baby has decided she should go to the hospital now.” The audience gasped, and the room filled with cheers and applause. “But before you go, would you like to say a few words?”
Adelia nodded at Franky and took the microphone.
“Thank you to the Academy for this award. I have a list of people I need to thank, but maybe I’ll let Franky say those for me when I’m done and skip to the most important ones.” She took Oliver’s hand in hers and looked up into his eyes. “My husband, Oliver, is my biggest fan, my cheerleader, my support, my sounding board. My life has been so much better since the day we met.” She turned toward Skylar. “Thanks to my dear Schultz family. I couldn’t have asked for more wonderful people to have in my life. And to my parents, who have taught me all they know and raised me to fight for what I want. I’ve wanted to tell Margaret’s story for years, and the doors kept closing on this one. But I stuck it out and found the right producers, the right person to write this screenplay, and the pieces fell into place.
“Margaret once said, ‘Nothing attracts me like a closed door. I cannot let my camera rest until I have pried it open.’ That’s how I felt about this film and telling the story of this amazing woman, who lived such an interesting and incredible life. She saw so much. She not only told the big picture story, but she got close and saw beyond the photograph to the people. She sought to understand humanity and show that through her photographs. And that’s a beautiful thing. Thank you.”
The audience applauded, and Adelia’s heart was bursting with joy at this amazing moment. And then she felt the twinges of her first contraction.
“And now, I have to go have a baby.”
The room filled with laughter, and Adelia was rushed out of the building, where their car was waiting for her. Oliver pulled her into his side and kissed her forehead, and she smiled up at him.
“This kid definitely has a mind of his own,” Adelia said through another not-too-bad contraction.
“He’s been surprising us since we found out you were pregnant, so this seems about right.”
“But he’s not due for two weeks. What if it’s too early?”
“Everything will be okay.” He leaned in and pressed his lips to hers.
She loved Oliver’s kisses. She’d been addicted to them since the very first one in his little guest room in the house on the cul-de-sac. Her hand slid up into his hair, and she kept him there a little longer. When she had kissed him thoroughly, he leaned away with a goofy grin on his face.
“What was that for?” he asked.
“Because I love you, and I need you to know that before we get to the hospital, since I may say some things to you and about you that I have no control over.”
Oliver laughed and rested his forehead against hers. “I love you so much. You have no idea.”
The car pulled up to the hospital not long after, and Oliver ran inside, returning with a wheelchair.
“A wheelchair? Really?” she asked as she climbed out of the limo.
“Yep! Let’s go have a baby!”
The next evening, Adelia awoke from a nap after eighteen hours of labor and delivery and visits from family and friends. She felt a little more herself after a few hours of rest. Through sleepy eyes, she noticed several colorful bouquets on the window ledge as well as two Oscar statues—one for Best Actress, the other for Best Picture—and she smiled. What a strange and wonderful night it had been.
Her gaze turned to Oliver, sitting in the chair by the window, holding their son, just staring at his sleeping form. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.
“Olly?” she said softly.
“Hey, you’re awake,” he whispered. “Do you need anything?”
“Just you and Orin.”
Oliver carefully stood and walked to her side, transferring their son into her waiting arms. He sat down on the edge of the bed beside her and brushed her matted hair back from her face.