It was a tortured whisper. But a whisper loud enough for Lynn to hear over the engine’s rumble and for Sandy to hear from her stance by the store’s entrance. 

“Oh my god, Justin, she’s having her baby!” Lynn exclaimed to her son, who sat behind the steering wheel. 

“She who? She’s what? What the hell?” her son, Justin replied in complete confusion. A sharp smack on his thigh from his grandmother, Sadie reminded him quickly of his language. Putting the truck in park, he climbed out of the vehicle and jogged around it. 

“Justin, help me sit her down,” Lynn ordered as she wrapped an arm around Valentina’s doubled-over frame. Justin rushed to help her by wrapping an arm around the girl’s waist and helping her sit. Looking down at her, all he could see was a head full of chocolate curling tresses, held back by a simple silver pin. 

“It’s too soon,” Valentina managed to say through the pain. Her voice shaking and cracking, in distress and fear, no doubt. 

“Should I call for an ambulance, Lynn?” Sandy called as she rushed down the steps towards them. Lynn held a hand up to her, asking for her to be patient. 

“Honey, calm down, let’s sit you down and we’ll time your contractions, ok,” Lynn soothed. 

“Ms. Lynn…” Valentina gripped Lynn’s arm in fear. She was speechless. She wasn’t due for almost five weeks. She wasn’t ready. 

“I know hun, but this baby is ready,” Lynn replied before glancing at her watch. She rubbed Valentina’s back and held her hand. 

“It’s too soon.” Lifting her face to look around, Justin caught a glimpse of this mystery girl. She looked so young, so vulnerable, and yet so strong. Piercing hazel eyes were clouded with tears and pink plump lips trembled. 

“Umm…momma?” a male voice broke both females out of there trance. Silent tears were running down Valentina’s face as she attempted to control her nerves. 

“Hmmm…” Lynn replied without taking her eyes off her watch. A couple of minutes passed, and at the 12 minute mark, Valentina was hit with another wave of pain. 

“Oh my god, she’s in labor!” Justin exclaimed as he watched Valentina’s face grimace in pain. 

“Yes, Justin, she’s in labor. Call Trace, tell her to come get Grandma. We’re taking her to the hospital,” Lynn ordered before turning her attention to Valentina. Justin stood up straight, looking around like a scared child. 

“She came to the store to eat, and your momma and grandma and I made friendly with her. She’s from Franklin dear, and she’s got no one around. Now, man up and do what your momma told you,” Sandy walked around and grabbed Justin’s arm. Pulling him back towards his car, she closed his slacked jawed and explained to Sadie what was happening. 

“Yo T, run on down here to the Gen Store and take Grandma home,” Justin spoke into his cell phone as he nervously paced in front of his car, occasionally looking over at his mom and this chick he knew nothing about. He flinched when he heard her agonizing groan, and turned away from the scene. 

“Run? As in walk?” his best friend, Trace replied from the other end of the phone. 

“Yes fool, I’ll try to explain everything when you get here. But, hurry,” Justin replied ending the call and cautiously making his way back to his mother. He stood there in silence, unsure of what to say. Sandy had brought out two towels and a bottle of water, and told him to go put them in Valentina’s car. Following orders, he walked the things over to the SUV. 

Walking back from the car to where the three ladies sat, his palms grew sweaty as this girl, Valentina, groaned as another contraction hit her body. 

“Oh wow, umm Momma, maybe I should call Paul so he can leave work and help you out with this,” he cautiously suggested as Lynn stood beside Valentina rubbing her lower back. “I mean really, I don’t think I’m cut out for this. I mean, she’s like about to like pop a kid out and you want my help. Yeah, umm, I don’t think that’s gonna happen. But, I’m sure, you know, that umm, Paul, well he would like be a pro.” 

“Oh yeah, because Paul has delivered so many kids himself. Justin, honey, do us all a favor, and just hush. Now, is Trace on the way?” Lynn asked once the latest contraction had subsided. 

“I’m here, I’m here. What’s up?” Valentina looked up as a short, bearded young man jogged up to them out of breath. “Whoa baby! You’re having a kid!” 

“Thank you Captain Obvious!” Justin retorted and smacked down Trace’s pointed finger, aimed at Valentina. 

“Trace, Justin and I are gonna take Valentina here to the hospital. You take my mama home, and just listen out for the phone in case we need anything. We’re going to Baptist Memorial, alright?” Lynn explained before motioning for Justin to help her stand Valentina up. Trace nodded in understanding and rushed to open the backseat door for them. Once Valentina sat in the backseat, Lynn turned to Justin and Trace. 

“She’s got no one, ok? So, Justin, man up. Because we’re gonna be delivering this baby today,” she spoke sternly before walking around to the other side of the car and climbing in. Trace turned to Justin. 

“Who the hell is Valentina? And why the hell are you two taking her to the hospital?” he hissed before Justin could climb into the SUV. 

“I’m just as fucking lost as you are man. I don’t know shit about having kids,” Justin mumbled, running a hand through his short hair in an act of desperation. Trace laughed heartily before clapping a hand on his shoulder. 

“Good luck brother!” he exclaimed before jogging away to Justin’s car, gearing it up to drive on home. 

“So Baptist Memorial, is it?” he asked as he settled behind the wheel and buckled himself in. 

“Yes,” Lynn replied. 

“I apologize for this, and I’m sorry we haven’t met. I’m Valentina Arayo,” her pain-stricken voice called from the back seat and a delicate, manicured hand appeared beside him over the console. Turning in his seat, Justin offered his hand in returned and smiled gently. 

“I’m Justin Timberlake. And sweetie, you’re in labor and you’re apologizing? That’s class right there. Now, don’t worry, we’re gonna get this baby delivered,” he joked smiling warmly and winking at her. Turning back to face the road, the smile slid off his face and the nerves kicked in. 

## Thirty Minutes Later ## 

Justin rolled the car to a stop at the emergency doors of Baptist Memorial. Lynn hopped out of the car and jogged into the building to inform them of the situation. 

“Shouldn’t I be getting off too?” Valentina questioned from the backseat. 

“Well yes, but I think Momma is going to try to get you in a room automatically. Momma and I can’t really just sit in the waiting room without being recognized,” Justin explained turning to look at her. She was leaned back with her eyes closed taking deep breaths and rubbing circles on her belly, in an effort to calm the dull pains. 

Valentina opened her eyes and looked at him in confusion before the true meaning of his words sunk in. “Oh, wow, yeah, I’m such a dork.” 

Chuckling slightly, Justin patted her knee in comfort as his mother returned. 

“Alright sweetie, a nurse is going to come out here and get us so let’s get you out the car,” Lynn soothed. Justin jumped out to help Valentina climb out the car. A nurse walked out the double doors at that moment with a wheelchair in tow, and they eased Valentina down on the chair. 

“I’ll go park the car, honey. I don’t want you walking back through there alone so go in with her,” Lynn spoke jumping into the driver’s seat and quickly maneuvering the vehicle away. Justin had no time to object before she was gone. The nurse began to push Valentina away, and she called out to him. 

“Please don’t leave me,” she begged. Swallowing his fears away, he attempted to grin soothingly. He doubted he’d succeeded, but he’d tried. 

“Not going anywhere,” Justin spoke up and grabbed onto Valentina’s outstretched hand. Walking beside her with his head down, they made their way into a private patient room. Quickly, the nurses had Valentina undressed and into a hospital gown, hooked up to machines that would monitor both Valentina’s health and the baby’s health. 

After about twenty minutes of chaos, Justin and Lynn sat on either side of Valentina’s hospital bed. Justin had a clipboard of paperwork that needed to be filled out and Lynn sat with Valentina’s cell phone trying to contact someone, anyone. 

“Ok, I’m gonna try to fill out as much as I can, ok?” Justin said. 

“Thank you. My license, insurance card, and health information is in my purse,” Valentina offered as she lay on her side. One hand gripping the bedrail and the other gripping her belly. Justin nodded and handed her the purse, from where she pulled out the cards and handed them back to Justin. 

They all sat in silence, a heavy silence. Valentina was only at 34 weeks, and her child would be born premature. The hospital doctors were trying to get in contact with her doctor back in Nashville to figure out what to do. But, since her water had broken already, there was no doubt that she would be delivering a child in the next 24 hours. 

The nurse came into the room and announced that they were going to run some diagnostics on Valentina and her baby. They needed to make sure that everything was normal so they could proceed with a natural vaginal birth. If not, an emergency C-section might be needed. 

“You know momma, some of this stuff I don’t know,” Justin announced as they sat in the room after Valentina had been wheeled out. Lynn looked over at Justin filling out the paperwork, and smile gently. 

“We’ll ask her once she comes back,” she replied. 

“Like allergies? Umm, current medications? Or better yet, baby’s father?” Justin called out some blanks that he had on the paperwork. 

“Oh boy, I have a feeling baby’s father is going to be left blank, dear,” Lynn lamented. Justin looked up questioningly, and Lynn explained some of the things that Valentina had said earlier that let her know that the baby’s father wasn’t in the picture. 

“Momma, she’s only 20,” Justin stated. 

“She’d make you think she’s 40 with the way she carries herself, though,” Lynn replied. “She’s a smart girl, and she’s a strong cookie too.” 

Justin looked towards the door through which Valentina had been wheeled away, and thought. He was really helping a complete stranger deliver her baby. Ha, wait ‘til Jess hears this, he thought. His girlfriend, Jessica was filming in London so he’d have to wait to fill her in with all of this. Almost an hour later, Valentina was wheeled back into the room and her monitors were re-hooked up. 

“Everything good, dear?” Lynn asked once she was settled in. 

“Yes, ma’am, I guess all the cramping I’d felt all day were actually early contractions. The doctor said the baby looks and sounds strong, so we’re gonna do this,” Valentina explained. She bit her lip in worry and smile a little when Lynn’s warm hand covered her own. 

“You’ll both be great, so no worry. Let’s just focus on having this baby, ok? Justin and I aren’t going anywhere,” Lynn reassured her, and Valentina nodded her head before thanking them both. All three fell into a comfortable silence. 

“I tried filling out as much as I could, and the nurse said she’d ask you the rest of the questions herself,” Justin spoke up from his seat. 

“Thank you. Yeah, she asked me them earlier,” Valentina smiled gently. Justin tipped his head in response. 

“So, what brought you to Memphis?” he tried to start a conversation with her. 

“I was driving back from Shreveport, decided to stop for some food at the Gen Store before heading home,” she explained. There was still about 10 minutes between contractions, so she was peacefully resting right now. 

“Definitely commend you on knowing good food,” Justin joked with her, raising his eyes slightly to look at her. 

“Oh yeah, no denying that,” she joked in return. Lynn stood at that moment and announced that she was stepping out to try and get better signal. She was still trying to get in contact with Valentina’s neighbor, Rollins. He was an elderly man that had taken quite a liking to Valentina and Leoni. He’d offer to keep an eye for Valentina as the end of her pregnancy neared. 

“So, Shreveport, huh? What’s there?”

“What was there, you mean. My best friend Leoni was there, but she’s en route to the DR of Congo,” Valentina explained. 

“Whoa! The Congo? Is she in the military?” Justin asked as he thought of the Air Force base located there. 

“No, heaven’s no, she can’t even shoot a water gun and hit her target,” Valentina chuckled thinking of her friend. “She’s a doctor with the UNHCR, so she’s on a mission trip.” 

“Wow, that’s…that’s amazing,” Justin was left briefly speechless. 

“Yeah, she’s my little hero,” Valentina’s smile was tender before it dropped to a grimace. Gritting her teeth, she squeezed her eyes tightly as another contraction came. A squeezing and twisting feeling overpowered her abdomen. Justin stood and gripped her hand, walking her through the breathing exercise that the nurse had explained to them earlier. 

“Ah! This may be my last child ever,” Valentina groaned as the pain ceased and she was able to talk once again. 

“Amen!” Justin groaned as he fell back into the chair. Already, he felt drained and his nerves were frayed. This girl and this child were complete strangers and yet he felt completely attached to them. 

Valentina chuckled before releasing a full belly laugh. Justin looked at her for some kind of explanation; Lynn walked in at the same time and looked confused as well. 

“I cannot believe this. Only this would happen to me, I swear. I get myself into these situations all the time. I have you two, complete strangers, yet you’re not strangers. You’re Justin Timberlake and you, ma’am, are his momma. And you two are with me as I give birth, oh wow,” Valentina managed to explain as she continued to chuckle. 

“Well, hun, I’m just glad to see you smile and laugh through this all,” Lynn explained taking a seat beside her. 

## Two hours later ##

“Valentina, sweetie, is there anyone else I should try to contact for you? Family, friends, coworkers?” Lynn asked as she and Justin alternated the task of feeding her ice chips and holding her hand through contractions. They were now coming a lot more often now, about 5 minutes apart, and she was dilating quickly. She’d just come back from taking her fourth walk around the hospital in an effort to try to hurry the process along. 

“No ma’am, Leoni is out of range probably. We planned that she’d call me once a week, and Rollins, well, he might be visiting his brother in Knoxville. He’ll call back though,” Valentina explained through her next contraction. 

For the past two hours, whenever Valentina wasn’t trying to nap, she was building a good friendship with both Lynn and Justin. It was almost as if they’d known each other for years. She could’ve been a cousin or a family friend based on the warmth and care that they’d demonstrated to her. 

“No family?” Lynn prodded one more time, and Justin glared at her in an effort to stop her questioning. 

“No ma’am, last I heard from my momma was two years ago, but thank you,” Valentina replied. There was an ounce of self-sympathy in her voice. It was like she’d accept that it was just her, her friend, and her neighbor. It was all she had, and it was all she needed. 

“You doing ok, Valentina?” Justin stooped down on the side of the bed that she was facing and smoothed away some stubborn tendrils of hair that had escaped the French braid Lynn had done for her. 

“Call me Val, and no, Justin, I’m not ok. I have a small creature breaking me in half,” Valentina’s quick jump from friendly to bitchy amused Justin greatly. 

“Well, Val, call me J, alright,” he replied trying to mask his amused grin. Valentina glared at him one last time before groaning as another contraction came. At that moment, the cell phone that Lynn held in her hand began to ring. Quickly rushing out to get better signal, Lynn exited the room and left Justin alone with a groaning Valentina. 

Two nurses walked in along with the doctor, Dr. Jackie Nettles. 

“Valentina, I think it’s time we roll you on down to the delivery room. The show’s about to begin,” Dr. Nettles announced as the nurses worked to move Valentina from one room to another. 

“Thank god!” Valentina groaned in relief and let her head fall back against the hospital pillow. 

“I’ll get my momma for you, Val, and I’ll be waiting here for you,” Justin spoke up, his voice shaky and cracking.

She saw Justin step off to the side and allow them to begin to wheel her out. Not seeing him move, she reached out a hand and grabbed his tee shirt. 

“Oh no, Timberlake, you’re not leaving me alone!” she demanded as she pulled him along. If she hadn’t been in so much pain, she might’ve laughed at the look of pure horror that washed over Justin’s face as she pulled him with him. He tried to fight his way away, but the team of nurses and doctors that followed behind Valentina prevented his escape.

Like it or not, he was about to deliver a baby.