"Thomas, stop. You're driving me crazy." Minho ordered.
Thomas looked up at his friend in confusion.
The Asian huffed and motioned to Thomas's leg, which was bouncing up and down rapidly.
Thomas swallowed harshly and forced his leg to still, he swallowed again and curled his hand against his leg.
"Look, there's nothing to be nervous about." Minho said, trying to calm his friend down.
At that moment, a grating, nails-on-chalkboard like scream rippled through the air.
Thomas jolted, then let out a grunt. He should be in there, Brenda needed him.
"Okay, maybe there is a little to be nervous about. But Grace is a good doctor, she'll take care of Brenda. Isn't that right, Jorge?" Minho asked.
Thomas looked at the Hispanic man, who nodded. But he looked just as worried as Thomas was. Brenda was his surrogate daughter after all.
Another cry pierced the air, but to Thomas's sort of relief, it wasn't Brenda's. But even then, Thomas could hardly breath. He still didn't know if they were alright, something could of easily gone wrong.
A few minutes later, an eternity later to Thomas, Grace walked out.
"Is she okay?" Thomas asked quietly, almost afraid to hear the answer.
Grace smiled and nodded.
Thomas gulped. One worry gone. "What about the baby? Is it okay, too?" He asked.
Grace's smile spread even wider across her face, wrinkled by age "Yes, it was a healthy delivery." She announced.
Around him, cheers were sounding off. Several of his friends -who gathered to try and keep him calm (Yep. That didn't work), and witness the first birth in Paradise- smacked him on the back.
"Congratulations, Daddy." Frypan said jokingly.
Thomas just grinned, relief coursing through his veins, causing him to relax the muscles he didn't know he tensed.
"Well Thomas, would you like to come in?" Grace asked.
Thomas nodded, like that was even a question. He got up and eagerly stumbled on his half asleep legs into the hut, his hut, Brenda's hut, their hut, what ever you'd like to call it.
Minho and Jorge were on his heels.
Thomas paused at the door soaking in the scene.
The moon light streamed in through the small window, landing on his wife of a little under a year.
Brenda looked exhausted to say the least: Dark rings under her eyes, her hair a mess, her face covered in sweat. But a sweet smile was on her face and a tiny bundle of blankets was in her arms.
Thomas was sure he never had seen anything look so beautiful in his life.
"Well Hermano? Are you going to tend to your wife and baby, or are you going to stand there and gawk?" Jorge asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.
"Yea, move already. I wanna see what you and Brenda conjured up." Minho said.
Thomas walked over hesitantly, before sitting on the bed next to Brenda.
She smiled at him weakly before moving the bundle into his arms. "It's a girl." She croaked, her voice probably raw from screaming.
Thomas shifted the newborn around in his arms so he could see her in the moonlight.
The baby was sleeping, no doubt just as exhausted as her mother, soft snoozes coming out of her mouth.
Minho and Jorge stood beside the bed, leaning over Thomas's shoulder. But Thomas was too entranced to acknowledge them.
With a tiny mewl, the baby awoke and her eyes fluttered opened showing off the newborn blue color that, most likely, would disappear in a few months. She blinked up at him then yawned and went back to sleep.
Minho said something to Brenda, something about it being a good thing the baby didn't take after her shuck ugly father, but Thomas didn't listen very closely. He was to busy studying every inch of his daughter's face.
From the small patch of brown fuzz on her head, past the curl of her eyelashes and her tiny nose to the tiny dimple on her chin. She was wrinkly and her face was red as an over-ripened tomato.
but when Brenda asked. "Isn't she beautiful, Thomas?"
He said. "She's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."
After a few minutes, and, let's be honest, some heavy prodding from Brenda. Thomas begrudgingly passed her off to Minho.
Thomas had never seen his friends eyes soften as much as they did when he gazed at his "niece", and he most definitely had never heard Minho coo. He told her just how much he was going to spoil her and how he was going to teach her how to irritated Thomas to death when he wasn't around to do it himself.
Brenda giggled, squeezing Thomas's hand.
Finally, Minho passed her to Jorge.
The Hispanic man said nothing, just rocked her softly in his arms. Tears rolling down his face as he looked at his "granddaughter" with loving eyes.
"Alright, boys out. The baby needs to eat." Grace said.
Jorge smiled as he passed the baby to Brenda. "She's beautiful, Hermana." He said.
Brenda smiled, carefully tucking her daughter into her arms.
Thomas went to get up, ready to follow Minho and Jorge out of the hut.
"No Thomas, you can stay." Grace said.
He blinked, then sat down. Grateful that he didn't have to leave Brenda alone for one more minute.
"Yeah, I mean what's there left to see? You've already mapped out that maze, ya stupid Shank." Minho said with a cocky smirk, causing Jorge to cackle and Brenda to snort.
Thomas turned red and flipped his friend off when Brenda wasn't looking.
The Asian just laughed and walked out, Jorge following.
It took a few minutes, but with Grace's help Thomas got Brenda and the baby comfortable so the new mother could feed her baby.
Grace walked out immediately, sensing the new parents needed some privacy.
Thomas sat up against the headboard, Brenda was between his legs leaning up against him with a pillow on her lap helping her hold the baby in place.
Thomas closed his eyes, wishing the small moment of tranquility would last forever. He leaned forward opening his eyes and pressing a kiss to Brenda's forehead. "Thank you." He said.
"Thank you? For what?" Brenda asked, confused.
He rested his chin on her head. "For bringing one of the best things that ever happened to me into my life." He admitted. Now that he said it out loud, it sounded more cheesier than he would of liked. And although he couldn't see her face, he assumed Brenda felt the same from the slight shaking of her shoulders.
"And am I one of those best things that ever happened to you?" She asked after a few minutes.
He grinned. "Of course."
She nodded. "After all I went through for you, I better be." She said.
He chuckled. "Come on, I'm trying to be sincere, and you're teasing me."
"I just spent several hours in labor, I have a right to tease you." Brenda retorted.
Thomas laughed this time, a long and boisterous laugh that almost never past his lips. He leaned back against the headboard with a content sigh.
Silence descended on the small family, only to be broken a few moments later.
"Listen, I know we agreed on Maria if we had a girl." Brenda began. "But now that we can see her..."
"It just doesn't fit." Thomas finished.
Brenda nodded.
Another small pause.
"So what do we name her, then?" She asked.
Thomas shrugged. "Beats me." He said.
"Thomas." Brenda scolded.
He chuckled. "Alright, I'm thinking."
They went through a few dozen names, each just not fitting.
The baby had finished eating a while ago. And now, Thomas had his arms around Brenda and was gently cradling the babe in his arms, she was sound asleep and judging by Brenda's blurring words, she would be too in a few minutes.
"Not Teresa." Thomas said shaking his head. "It still hurts to think about her." He said in a strained voice.
Brenda sighed softly. "That's what I thought." She said.
Thomas looked out the window.
The sun was coming up, coating their lovely paradise in a warm golden glow, making the dew on the grass and leaves shine and the waves on the ocean shimmer.
"Paradise." Thomas murmured.
"Huh?" Brenda asked.
"Let's name her Paradise." Thomas suggested.
Brenda paused thinking it over, after all, if the babe got into as much trouble as her parents did it would be a very well used name. "Paradise." She said to herself, testing how the name felt on her tongue.
At that moment, the baby opened her eyes and let out a mewl, causing both her parents to laugh at the irony. The baby soon settled back into sleep as the sun rose higher.
"I think she agrees with her name what about you?" Thomas asked. But all he got from Brenda was the soft sounds she only made when she was fast asleep.
Thomas smiled and kissed her forehead, then arranged his daughter more comfortably on the pillow when he was satisfied that she wouldn't fall he leaned his head against the headboard. "Paradise it is then."