Hey guys! So I have recently become obsessed with Once Upon a Time and James is definitely my favorite character...well, in season 2 anyway. For this, just imagine that this is after Emma and Snow return from the other world and Graham is alive again (news-they are bringing him back either later this season or next season!) and that they are together.
Also, I am starting a longer story for this show. I will hopefully be starting that in a few days.
For anyone reading my Glee story "Lift Me Up" I have not abandoned it. I know it's been a bit since I updated but I have been busy and I will hopefully have the next chapter(s) up within the next few days as well.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Disclaimer: I do not own "Once Upon a Time" or any of the characters.
"Graham, I'm fine. Seriously, I'll just stay here to wait out the storm." Emma paused as she held the phone to her ear. "Don't you dare come back here now! You'll probably crash your car and force me to raise our daughter alone."
Five minutes later, she convinced him she'd be fine and hung up the phone. Looking out the window, she watched as the horrendous storm raged on and hoped that no one chose to go out in it. She couldn't help but imagine the damage it would do to people if they did just that. She sighed a she leaned back in her chair, and laid her hand on her swollen stomach. She couldn't believe that Graham had come back to life after the curse was broken. No one knew how it happened but as long as he stayed with her, Emma couldn't care less.
She was lost in thought when she heard footsteps coming towards her and when she turned she shook her head. "What the Hell were you thinking driving in this storm?"
James shrugged. "I was on my way back to the apartment but I saw your car. I wanted to make sure you were okay." He paused. "Are you okay?"
She rolled her eyes. "Yes, I'm okay."
"Good." He looked outside. "I think we're probably stuck here."
She shook her head at her father. "If you knew you were going to get stuck here, why did you come in?"
"I knew Graham wasn't here and I was not about to let you stay here by yourself." He looked at her and she sighed.
"Thanks, Dad." She said and stood, walking to look out the window.
James nodded in response and shrugged off his wet coat, hanging it on the hook. Once he rid himself of his wet outer clothing, he walked over and looked at the paperwork on his daughter's desk. He wasn't too happy that she was at the station during the storm, especially being nine months pregnant, but he knew better than to start an argument with her.
As Emma stood at the window, her hand slowly rubbed her stomach. She had been feeling false contractions all day long, and she knew that if Graham he would freak out. She hadn't told him. Now, as she stood stranded in her office with her father, she was starting to get the feeling that these might not be fake.
"Are you okay?"
She looked up and saw James staring at her and nodded. "I'm just watching this storm…it's crazy."
He nodded as well and sighed. "I know. I saw a lot of trees pulled down outside of town. Hopefully everyone stays inside and doesn't try to go out in this weather."
Emma chuckled and saw him looked at her, confused. "That's exactly what I was thinking when you came walking in here."
He smirked before turning back to the paperwork that his daughter had abandoned.
…
An hour later, Emma stood in the bathroom, leaning against the sink. She knew now that the contractions were definitely the real thing…nothing fake about it. She took a few deep breaths as she tried to ward off the annoying pain she was feeling. It wasn't unbearable yet, but she knew it would get there, and by the way she was feeling in such a short time, very soon. In addition to the pain, she also felt extremely nauseous.
She was pulled out of her thoughts when a knock came from the door. "Emma? Are you okay?"
She sighed and took a deep breath before she slowly opened the door. "Yeah…sorry."
He eyed her and shook his head. "No…something is wrong. You can tell me." She watched her carefully, eyes full of concern.
She sighed. As much as she wanted to hide her discomfort from her father to spare him the worry, she knew she had to tell him something. She shook her head. "I just…don't feel well."
At least it was part of the truth.
Immediately he grabbed her arm gently and led her to a chair in the office. Once she was sitting he knelt in front of her. "Tell me what's wrong."
She rested her head on her hand and rubbed her stomach. "I just feel nauseous and uncomfortable."
He nodded and rubbed her back a bit, which she silently thanked him for. "Okay. Hopefully the storm will let up soon and I will get you home. Do you want me to call Graham?"
She shook her head. "No. He'll just worry. Plus, I'm not even sure the phone lines are working right now."
James studied her intently before agreeing. "Are you sure you're okay? Nothing else is wrong?"
She shook her head, ignoring the feeling of guilt for hiding her true predicament from him. "I'm good."
"I'm going to get you some water. Are you okay by yourself for a minute?" He asked her and she nodded.
He stood and walked out of the room in search of the water fountain and some cups. Emma sat by herself and took a deep breath to ward off both the pain and the bile that was starting to rise up her throat. She dug her nails into the chair and tried to make it stop but it was useless and she couldn't even get herself to the bathroom before it came spilling out.
Her eyes were squeezed shut but moments later she felt James put one hand on her back and the other on her forehead. She welcomed the coolness of his hands and let a few tears escape her eyes against her will.
"It's okay." His voice was quiet and calm as he rubbed her back.
She was sick a few more times and felt herself slightly shaking both from the tears that were now falling and the pain she was feeling. James kept his hand on her back but let his other hand move back to pull her hair away from her face. Grabbing a rubber band from the desk, he quickly wrapped it around her blond curls in a loose ponytail. Then he gently brushed his fingers through her locks and whispered calm reassurances to her.
After a few minutes, her retching stopped and he handed her a napkin and some water. He watched as she cleaned her face. "Do you feel better?"
She looked at him and she knew she couldn't lie anymore. Her time was running out and but the way the storm sounded still, she knew it was useless to try and wait. Shaking her head quickly, she let the tears fall freely and launched herself into her father's arms.
As standoffish as she had been when the curse had broken, she was glad that she and James were close now. She was even more glad that he had shown up—she couldn't imagine doing this by herself.
"Whoa." He held her tightly in his arms and moved her slowly away from the mess on the floor. "Emma…what's going on?"
Instead of giving him and answer, she cried out as a painful contraction ripped through her body. James immediately gripped her tighter and ran his hand up and down her back. "Hey, shh. It's okay. Breathe."
When the pain subsided a minute later, she pulled away from his and he looked at her. "How long?"
She sighed. "All day, I think. I just didn't realize it until a little while ago."
He nodded. "It's okay. Come on." He helped her stand and led her over to the bed in the cell on the right of her desk. "Just lay here while I clean up, okay?"
She nodded and laid on her side. He brushed the hair out of her face for a moment, before setting out to clean her sickness off of the floor. As she finished mopping the floor, he thought about the problem they were currently faced with. He cringed every time he heard her whimper or cry out from the pain and he was instantly brought back to the day of her birth.
Shaking his head, he disposed of the gross mess and returned to his daughter, who had shed her pants and draped the blanket over herself. "How are you doing?"
She shook her head quickly. "I don't think I'm going to last much longer." She cried out again, and he grabbed her hand.
"Just breathe, okay?" He felt her hand squeeze his and ran his hand through her hair. "I know this sucks, but you're both going to be okay."
She nodded through the pain and breathed through the contraction. Finally, she looked up at him. "I think she's coming."
"Okay, you have to turn over for me, alright?" He made sure she was focused on him.
She groaned with a slight chuckle. "Oh…I can't believe this is happening."
He helped her turn on her back and sat at the edge of the cot. He saw her tense up in pain and caught her attention. "Emma, push."
She nodded quickly and cried out as she obeyed his order. When the contraction ended, she was still crying and James' heart broke for her. "You're doing great, honey. She's right there; you only need a few more."
Emma pushed again and again until she finally laid her head back on the pillow and shook her head fiercely. "I can't do it. I can't."
James looked at his daughter, and nodded. "Yes you can." He told her forcefully. "You can do this. Now push."
Crying out once more she did as her father ordered and felt the most intense pain she's ever felt. She knew that she was almost done so she pushed again and when she stopped she heard her father's laugh over the child's cries.
"She perfect." He said, tears in his eyes as he held his newborn granddaughter. "She's absolutely perfect."
Emma cried again, this time with a smile on her face. James quickly wrapped her in Emma's jacket and handed her over to her mother. He watched as Emma looked down at her. "Hi baby." Then she looked up at him. "Thank you."
He sat next to her again and kissed her forehead. "You're my daughter. I'll always be here to help you when you need it."
They sat in silence for a bit and saw that the storm let up outside. After James called an ambulance, Graham, and his wife, he smiled at his daughter. "What are you going to name her?"
Emma smiled down at her daughter and then looked up at him, her smile brighter than he'd ever seen it. "Mary James Humbert."
James smiled and couldn't believe that he actually had two grandchildren already. Though it may have been weird circumstances, he couldn't have been happier that he had such a wonderful family. He adored his grandson the minute he called him "Grandpa" and his granddaughter already had him wrapped around her finger and she wasn't even an hour old.
He was pulled from his thoughts when he heard Emma calling him. "What?"
She looked at him carefully. "Are you okay?"
He smiled and nodded. "Yeah…thanks to you, I'm great."
"Do you want to hold her?" Emma asked quietly and shifted her now-sleeping daughter in her arms so she could be handed to her grandfather.
James carefully cradled her close to his chest and smiled down at her. He thought about how he missed the first 28 years of Emma's life and the first 10 of Henry's and vowed that he would be there for everything when it came to the precious angel in his arms. Kissing her head, he smiled.
Although there were many things he wished he could change about his life, this was definitely worth it all.