The words, paired with his colleague's grave expression, sent a chill through Aaron. He rushed forward, grabbed the hand of this colleague he had barely spoken to, and cried out in panic:
"Velma! Did something happen to Velma?"
His colleague looked at him and sighed, then patted his shoulder. Aaron knew that gesture well. He had made it many times himself. His heart sank, and despair filled his eyes.
I have to. I have to... Aaron gritted his teeth, but before he could decide what to do, his colleague spoke with a sigh:
"Don't worry. Velma's all right. She's exhausted, though, and she's fallen asleep.
"But the baby..."
Aaron heard none of the rest. Fireworks burst through his mind. He felt weightless, as though he were walking on clouds, with nothing but the roar of joy in his ears.
Velma's all right. Thank goodness, Velma's all right...
The corners of Aaron's mouth slowly rose into a radiant smile, though his eyes remained vacant. He looked as if the news had stunned him senseless.
His colleague frowned and waved a hand in front of his face, calling a little louder:
"Aaron? Aaron!"
The muffled voice seemed to come from far away. Lost in his joy, Aaron failed to respond, so his colleague raised his voice and shook him as he shouted:
"Aaron!"
The relentless calls, together with the shaking, finally pulled Aaron back to himself.
"Ah! What is it?"
Seeing that he had come around, his colleague let go. Without saying anything more, he gave Aaron a sympathetic pat and said:
"You should go see Velma in a little while."
With that, his colleague left.
Aaron paid him no mind. All he could think about was that Velma was safe. He hurried to her and looked at her sleeping form. Only