For Casy Dee who wanted:
- Connor left with baby for 1st time (ALONE!)
- A hero!Connor moment
-A Supportive!Abby moment
Disclaimer: Primeval and its characters belong to Impossible Pictures. No copyright infringement is intended.
As always, please read and review. :-)
Boys Night In
Connor smiled down at the little tiny bundle in his arms. Abby had finally decided it was time to venture out of the house for a few hours after spending every moment of the two last months with their new addition. She was off with Jenny and Jess for a girl's day out. They had all, him included, insisted she go with them. Connor had to laugh a little, she'd only been gone an hour and had called him three times already. During the last phone call he demanded she go have fun and stop calling him or he was going to turn the phone off and change the locks so he could have some uninterrupted time with his new son. Some guy time, he had told her.
The little boy in his arms stretched and yawned, then promptly went right back to sleep. Connor leaned down and kissed his smooth forehead. He never got tired of looking at his son. His son. The words still made his heart leap into his mouth. This tiny little life was his, part of him, and part of Abby. He continued to rock the baby gently in the glider chair they had got especially for this new little addition to their family. Five years ago, he never would have thought that he could be so utterly satisfied by sitting at home on a Saturday afternoon with no one else around and no telly or video games on. The only thing that would have made the afternoon better was if Abby were there, but he'd insisted. He knew she needed the time away.
Baby Nicky had had a rough go of it when he came into this world a couple of months before. Abby had managed a fairly easy pregnancy, and as such thought nothing of going to the New Years Eve Party at the ARC, even though she was only a week out from her due date. Nothing crazy had happened so far, she hadn't even really experienced any Braxton-Hicks Contractions. The other mums she knew had told her she had been very lucky.
Connor tried to talk her out of it, it was cold out and there was the possibility of snow. Truth be told, neither of them should have been going, but she was determined to get out of the house. She had been mumbling about Cabin Fever for a few days. They made it to the party safely and Connor relaxed a little. The party was fun and eased some of the tension that always seemed to build up around the holidays.
Unfortunately, the ride home didn't go nearly as smoothly as the ride there. The snowstorm that had been threatening to hit suddenly slammed into England. Connor had thought they had enough time to get home, as he didn't fancy spending the night at the ARC. He hadn't had to do that in a while, and he certainly didn't want Abby having to stay in the barracks in her condition.
The snow got worse and worse and Connor had to drive slower and slower. Abby also seemed to get quieter and less comfortable the longer they stayed in the car. Connor was starting to worry. She wasn't usually quiet in the car. She always had something to say about how he was driving. He should be going faster, or slower, he should be in this lane or that lane. It had become a running joke with them. But now she sat in the seat next to him, knuckles white on the edge of it and on the door handle. He had thought she was just tired, or nervous about the weather, but this was more than that.
"Abby, darling, what's wrong?"
She shook her head at him. "I think I'm finally getting those Braxton-Hicks contractions everyone kept talking about."
"You're a week away from the due date, are you sure that's all it is?"
She shook her head again. "No, but the only other option is that these are real contractions and we're stuck in the car in the middle of a snowstorm. I am not having this baby in the car. Guh! Oh, Damn it!"
Connor was next to panicking about now, the car was stuck at the bottom of a hill and the tyres would not cooperate on the ice any longer. To top it all off, his mobile wasn't working as he pulled it out to dial the ARC and see if one of their vehicles could come get them.
"What is it? What's happening now?"
"I… I think…" Abby didn't finish. Instead, she bit her bottom lip hard and cried out as a painful contraction rippled across her belly.
"Abby, baby, please. Tell me what's wrong. What can I do?"
Abby was panting now. "Shut up, Connor. I think my water just broke."
"Ohmygod! Stay here."
"Where the hell else am I going to go," Abby muttered in exasperation.
Connor put the car in park and stopped trying to get up the hill. He leapt from the car and ran around to the boot. He came back with a big overnight bag and several blankets.
Connor helped tilt the passenger seat back a bit; it was already set back as far from the dashboard as it could go.
He wrapped her in a blanket and turned the heat up to the highest setting.
"You remember when I read that book about babies and delivery and you told me there was no way in hell I would ever need to know how to deliver the baby? Well, here's hoping I remember. I've had this bag ready ever since then, just in case. It's got everything we need, other than an actual hospital. It's not perfect, but it'll do in a pinch."
"Connor. I am NOT delivering this baby here!"
"I think he has other ideas, love."
There was another long cry of pain from Abby. "How… How do you know it's a boy? Could… Could be a girl." Abby had wanted to be surprised and so they had not found out the sex of baby yet.
"Only a boy would be this much trouble."
"Sounds about right." Another cry escaped her. Connor knew this was bad, but he pushed that from his mind as he tried to focus. He laid all the seats back to give them as much room as possible. Abby had worn a little black dress that was made of comfortable stretchy material but still looked formal. He pushed the skirt part of the dress up and helped her ease out of her knickers.
"Connor, please. I don't want to have this baby here."
"Abby." Connor paused until she met his eyes. "It's going to be OK. As soon as we can call out, we'll get help here. I know what I'm doing. I read that book about a hundred times. This baby is coming, weather you want him to or not. You need to breathe, and you need to relax. I can do this. Provided there is nothing weird, I can handle it. You're going to be OK; our baby is going to be OK. You have to let me do this, for the baby's safety and yours."
Tears ran down Abby's face, but she nodded. The baby was coming and she knew it. "This is not what I wanted. I wanted everything to be perfect," she sobbed.
"I know. I know sweet heart." Connor tried his mobile again and this time there was a tiny fraction of a signal. He had to shout to make himself heard over the weak connection.
"This is Connor, is Becker or Matt there still? OK, put me through to Becker then. We're stuck… Trace the signal… What? Yes." He glanced at Abby. "We're in the middle of that now. Yes, that's what I mean. It's coming right now. Please, just get somebody here as soon as you can. It's cold, and we need an ambulance. I'm doing the best I can, but an actual doctor would be much appreciated. I can handle the basics, but anything beyond that…" He continued to shout at the phone, trying to fill Becker in on their situation with as much detail as he could. Abby arched her back and gave another cry. He could see the muscles contracting all the way across her belly. "I gotta go!" He hung up the phone, took a moment to give Abby's hand a squeeze, and then he flipped the blanket back so he could assess what was happening.
An hour later Becker pulled up in an ARC vehicle with an ambulance right behind him. God he hoped they were OK. The car was covered in ice, and there was not any visible movement in it as he approached. He held his breath. Suddenly the door opened and Connor stepped out followed by Abby. Connor's shirt was partially unbuttoned but they were both wrapped in blankets. He seemed to be cradling part of his shirt. It was weird. Becker suddenly understood why as Connor, supporting Abby with his free arm approached him. Connor had their new baby tucked into his shirt and jacket, skin to skin. Abby's dress would not have accommodated the same way of carrying the child. This was the warmest possible scenario. The ambulance workers pulled out the gurney from the back of the truck and headed for the new parents.
"Are you two alright, or should I say you three?"
Connor pulled his shirt back to reveal a tiny, healthy baby. "Meet Nicholas Hilary Temple."
He glanced at Abby and they shared a smile before looking back at Becker.
"That is, if it's OK with you," Abby stated as the medics rolled the gurney up next to her and began to lower her down on it.
"Yes – Yeah, that's fine. I'm…" He was speechless. He didn't know what to say. Connor followed Abby to the back of the ambulance and Becker trotted along in their wake.
The ambulance was blessedly warm and toasty. They piled into the back while the medics bustled about checking Abby's vitals. Connor reluctantly took the baby out of his shirt and handed the child to the medics. The baby started to squall a little at the loss of his warm little environment. The medics examined every inch of him and then swaddled him. Connor leaned down and kissed Abby's forehead. She reached up and patted his cheek.
"You were brilliant. As always," Abby gushed.
"You actually delivered the baby?" Becker asked in awe.
"Well, I certainly couldn't have done it on my own. Huh! He read a book." Abby stated matter-of-factly.
"He read a book," Becker deadpanned. "Why… How did you know to put the baby next to one of you for body heat?"
"It's part of how we survived in the Cretaceous. Body heat. Abby's dress wouldn't work for it, so that left my shirt. She fed him, and then I put a cloth nappy that I had in a bag in the boot of the car on him and tucked him into my shirt, and then she curled up next to me and I put the blankets over both of us. It was quite toasty until we had to get out," said Connor.
"You two will never cease to amaze me. How did you cut the cord?"
"I… I kind of had a… uh… pair of surgical scissors in the supply bag that I've been carting around since I read the book. I tied it off with a bit of string for both of them, and then cut it."
"It sounded weird," Abby interjected, smiling up at him, one arm curled around her son and her other hand caught up in Connor's."
"Do you mind?" Becker asked, motioning to the baby.
"Not at all." Abby replied.
Becker didn't pick him up, but he knelt down to get a closer look. He placed his hand on the little boy's head. Nicky's eye's fluttered open, they were baby blue with little flecks of brown in them, a perfect blending of the two people who had brought him into the world. "Hey little man, welcome to the world. It's a bit colder here than you're used to, but I think mummy and daddy will do a great job protecting you from it. I bet you're twice the survivor they are." He pressed his lips gently to the boy's forehead. He stood up as his mobile rang. "It's Jess, I bet they're all waiting to hear what's happened. You two are the only idiots who tried to get home in this mess."
"I tried to talk Abby out of going at all, but, you know how women are. I'd imagine you'd have a hard time keeping Jess from something when she get's determined," Connor defended.
"Yes, but I wouldn't have it any other way," Becker agreed with a laugh.
Connor looked over at Abby. "Me neither," Connor affirmed.
Becker answered his phone and the medic told Connor they were ready to go. Becker said he'd let everyone know and they'd probably meet them at the hospital.
That had been eight blissfully peaceful weeks ago. Things were beginning to go back to normal. Connor smiled down at Nicky and he yawned again. He started to fuss and Connor got up to get the bottle waiting in the fridge. He heated it up, tested it on his wrist and then got the Boppy pillow off the floor so he could feed him in comfort. When Nicky finished he burped him and then changed his nappy about a half an hour later. He sat back down in the glider and repositioned the Boppy. He tucked Nicky back into his shirt just like he'd done the night he was born. He leaned his head back and rocked back and forth. He liked this guy time. It was fun, just him and his son. His son.
Abby arrived back at the flat about an hour later and rushed up the stairs. She had missed her boys terribly, but Connor had been right. It was nice to get out and have a baby free afternoon and enjoy some girl time. She just hoped he hadn't burned the flat down while she'd been out.
She opened the door to the perfectly silent flat and looked around. That's when she spotted them, the two most important men in her life. They were both sound asleep in the glider. It had long stopped moving. Connor had the Boppy around him and Nicky was sleeping safely tucked in the crook of his daddy's arm inside his shirt. His little hand was on Connor's chest on top of the row of buttons and they were both drooling. She smiled and brushed Connor's dark hair from his face. His eyes fluttered open and he smiled up at her and wiped his mouth with is free arm.
"There's my girl. I was just dreaming about you. You looked like an angel, still do."
She kissed his forehead and then leaned farther down and kissed Nick's forehead. "So do both of you. I missed you both so much."
"Did you have fun?"
"I did. But I'm glad I'm home."
Connor pulled her down onto his lap. "I'm glad you're home too." He kissed her properly. "I missed you," he breathed into her mouth. He leaned his forehead against hers and they stayed that way as the sun set.
Outside their little flat, the world spun on, but for the three members of the Temple family, the world slowed to a stop as Abby leaned against her husband's chest and listened to his heartbeat while at the same time feeling the strong heartbeat of her son under her hand. Everything was perfect, as it should be.
So? Did you enjoy the fluffiness? If so, please hit the review button and let me know. It feeds the muse and helps me write more. Thanks for reading.