A/N: I was given this prompt on Tumblr. The prompt asked for Grandma Sharon, and I figured why not go to the very first moments of becoming a grandmother?
Sharon walked into the hospital room, trying to contain the excitement that coursed through her veins from the moment she received the call that made her take the first flight she could get to the East Coast.
Emily was lying on a hospital bed, her hair sweaty and a painful expression on her face. As soon as she noticed Sharon, she uttered a whiny 'Mom' and sent her hand forward. Sharon hurried to her side and took her daughter's hand. It was 30 years earlier that this same hand reached for her for the very first time.
"Hey, sweetheart, how are you doing?" She asked, brushing away a sweaty strand of hair that stuck to Emily's forehead.
"You never told me it would hurt so much," Emily whined and Sharon smiled.
"It's gonna be worth it, I promise you," she said softly. "Did you ask for an epidural?" Emily shook her head and Sharon arched her eyebrows.
"I wanted a natural birth, like you had," Emily explained.
"I didn't plan on having a natural birth, Sweetie," Sharon said. "I didn't reach the hospital on time."
"Both times?" Emily grinned. Sharon nodded.
"Are you sure you can deal with the pain?" she asked her daughter.
"Mom, I'm a ballerina. My toes prove that I can deal with pain," Emily retorted. Sharon smiled. Her daughter has always been stubborn as a mule. They discussed Emily's birth plan over the phone, especially when it became clear that Emily would be having the baby on her own, after Emily's long-time boyfriend decided that he was not ready to be a father and broke up with her. Sharon was surprised at how well her daughter seemed to cope with the situation, and she couldn't help but admiring Emily's determination. Being with Emily in the delivery room was not part of the birth plan, but Emily changed her mind as soon as she realized she needed to share the moment with someone, and her mother was the first person she could think of.
Going through an unmedicated birth turned out to be harder than Emily imagined, but with her mother by her side, who held her hand, wiped the sweat off her face, and supported her through every step of the delivery process, it was a bit easier.
The high pitched cry rang out and filled the room, making both Sharon and Emily's hearts skip a beat in awe.
"It's a girl!" the doctor announced and Sharon felt tears springing out of her eyes without any warning. She looked at her beautiful daughter, who was still holding her hand and seemed relieved and elated at the same time.
"How are you feeling?" she asked, her voice shaking as she tried to control her emotions.
"Amazing, Mom. Thank you so much for being here with me," Emily said and smiled tiredly.
"Do you want to cut the umbilical cord?" the doctor offered, and Sharon turned to look at her daughter.
"Do you want me to?" she asked and Emily smiled and nodded, releasing her mother's hand so she could walk over to the other end of the bed.
Sharon could barely contain the flood of emotions that came over her as she saw the pink baby. She was beautiful, and it took her a moment to take a hold of the scissors that were handed to her by the doctor. He instructed her what to do, and she took a deep breath before she brought the scissors to where the doctor placed a clamp and cut the cord.
"What does she look like, Mom?" Emily asked.
"She's beautiful, Emily. She looks just like you when you were born: big eyes, dark hair, cute nose; she's perfect," Sharon said and returned to Emily's side as the nurse wrapped the baby in a blanket.
"Here is your mother," one of the nurses said as she lifted the screaming bundle and placed her in Emily's arms. Sharon wiped her eyes when she saw the emotional look on her daughter's face when she bent down and kissed her baby's head. She knew that look too well; she knew that she had it on her face too when she saw her children for the first time after their births. It was the look of utter love. She could feel the same expression taking over her features too.
After a few minutes, the nurse came to take the baby for weighing and general checkup, while Emily was wheeled out of the delivery room and was taken to the maternity ward.
It was about an hour later, when a nurse came back into the room, wheeling the baby's basinet with her and placing it next to Emily's bed. Emily looked at her daughter with tears in her eyes before picking her up from her basinet and cradling her in her arms.
"She's so beautiful, Mom," she said.
"She is, sweetheart," Sharon replied, a big smile plastered on her face. "Mind if I take your picture and send it to your brothers?" she asked, Emily nodded and Sharon pulled her iPhone out of her pocket and snapped a few photos of Emily and the baby, then quickly texted them to Ricky and Rusty, letting them know that they both became uncles.
"Mom, can you send the photos to dad too? Emily asked, and Sharon froze for a second before she nodded.
"Do you wanna call him, maybe, and tell him over the phone?" Sharon suggested.
"I don't think I can handle talking to him right now," Emily admitted. "I want him to know, I'm just… Now that my child is going to grow up rejected by her father, I feel angry at dad. He left Ricky and me the same way, and it hurts, you know?" Emily's eyes were full of tears and Sharon wrapped her arm around her daughter and pressed a kiss to her temple.
"I'm so sorry that you have to deal with this, honey." It was the only consolation that she could offer her daughter. Emily shrugged and wiped her tears away.
"You know, Mom, you didn't even get to hold the baby yet," Emily said when she calmed down. "Do you want to?"
"Of course," Sharon said and Emily gently moved the baby from her arms to Sharon's. The baby opened her eyes and her gaze focused on Sharon. A big smile spread across her face and her eyes lit up as she cradled her beautiful granddaughter in her arms for the first time.
THE END
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