It has been quite some time since my last attempt at a fanfic – so please be gentle!
I do not own any part of YYH.
Second Chances
Chapter 1: A Hero Is Born…
"Excuse me, ma'am… A friend of mine is in labor. Could you direct me to her room?"
The old woman at the front desk looked over her bifocals at a beautiful young man with long, red hair. She smiled and nodded, slowly standing up. "Take this hall down to the elevators, and take the elevator to the second floor. Take an immediate right, and the signs should direct you to the front desk there." Kurama smiled and thanked at the old woman, waving as he began his journey to find the hospital room.
Once he reached the elevators, he immediately recognized an old friend waiting for an available one. "Why, Hiei.. what are you doing here?" He placed his hand on the fire demon's shoulder. "Hn. We both know we're here for the same reason. I'm obligated to be here." Kurama chuckled, "Obligated, my friend?" "Yes. Obligated." Hiei crossed his arms and effortlessly removed Kurama's hand with a small shoulder shrug. Kurama shook his head, smiling. "So, Hiei… How have you been? It's been almost five years since we last spoke." Hiei glanced at him and looked back at the floor. "Yes, I guess it has been quite a while. I… I've just been really, REALLY busy. That's all. Now then… What about you? You've probably been living a wonderful human life, haven't you?" "Doing much better, now that Mother is finally doing well." Hiei closed his eyes, rolling them out of sight of his friend. "You've always had a soft spot for humans…" Kurama smiled. "Yes, I suppose I have."
The light above the elevator door came on and a second later the doors opened. Both men stepped inside, and suddenly they heard someone yelling, "STOP! WAIT FOR US!" Kurama held his hand in between the doors as they bounced back open, eager to see who was making their way to the elevator. Hiei sighed and crossed his arms once again, disappointed to see Kuwabara clumsily making his way to the elevators with Yukina trailing behind him. Kurama chuckled at Hiei's discontent, and greeted the couple as they boarded.
"Kurama! Hey, man! How's it goin'?" Kuwabara laughed and hugged him, picking him several inches off of the floor. Yukina giggled as Kurama's eyes seemingly popped out of his head, and glanced to see Hiei hiding behind the two men. "Hello, Hiei. I hope you're doing okay. I was worried when you didn't respond to the last letter I sent you," she said as she hugged him. "Oh… W-well, I.. I've been really busy in Makai. I haven't had much time to do anything but work." She pulled back from him, smiling. "That's okay. I know you're really busy! Just make sure you let me know you're still alive every few months, okay?" Hiei cracked a small, almost nonexistent smile, "Okay."
When the elevator reached the second floor, Kurama led the group to the front desk of the maternity ward. The woman sitting behind the desk looked awfully familiar… "SHIZURU! WE'RE HERE TO SEE KEIKO!" Kuwabara loudly announced. Shizuru poked her head above the top of her computer screen and held her index finger to her lips. "Little brother, you need to learn to be quiet!" Kuwabara turned red and quietly whispered, "Sorry! I'm just really excited!" Yukina giggled at Kuwabara's embarrassment. Kurama politely waved at her, and she smiled back. Shizuru just shook her head, smiling. "She's the fourth door on the left. Go in while you can, because she's almost a 10."
Seconds later, Yusuke came around the corner with a large Styrofoam cup full of ice chips. He stopped immediately when he saw his old friends. He seemed tired, but his happiness quickly replaced the awareness of his lack of sleep. After hugging everyone, he sat back and laughed. "You all came… You don't know what this means to us! Come on in!" He motioned for them to follow him into the small hospital room.
Keiko was laying on the bed, talking to Botan in between contractions. She was hooked up to many different monitors, and the sound of the baby's heartbeat was loud and quite clear. She looked happy despite her exhaustion, and her smile grew even larger when she saw her old friends walking through the door. "Oh my goodness! I'm so glad you all made it! I was afraid we would have to do this alone.." She smiled and waved everyone in. Yukina rushed up to her and hugged her. "Congratulations, Keiko! Thank you for letting us be a part of this!"
Kuwabara and Yusuke took over the two plastic chairs in the small room, slightly away from everyone else, gathered around the hospital bed. "So, Urameshi.. You ready to be a dad? 'Cause I'm not ready for you to be a dad!" He smiled at his tired friend. Yusuke laughed, "I guess it's too late to back out now! Hell yeah, I'm ready!" he paused, and smiled sadly, "Especially after we lost the last one…" Tears rolled down his face and he quickly wiped them away, trying to crack a smile. Kuwabara placed his hand on Yusuke's shoulder, "Hey, man… it's okay. We were there for you then, and we're here for you now." Yusuke sniffed, staring at the tiled hospital floor. "Thank you."
A nurse came in and excused the others from the room for a moment while she checked to see if Keiko had dilated to a 10. "Well, Mrs. Urameshi, I believe you're ready! I'll go get the doctor, and we'll transport you to a delivery room." Keiko smiled nervously, readjusting her pillow. She hadn't even felt the contractions for a few hours thanks to the epidural. Hopefully it lasted throughout the delivery! The nurse left the room, and only Yusuke and Botan came back in. "OH, KEIKO! I'm so excited to see Baby Urameshi!" Botan squealed, jumping up and down. Keiko and Yusuke laughed. Yusuke gently kissed his wife. "Is it time yet, Keiko?" Botan asked anxiously. "Yes. They're going to move me soon to the delivery room, and within an hour or two, we can finally meet this little boy or girl!" Keiko smiled and closed her eyes, laying her head back on the pillow. Yusuke rubbed his wife's large belly and lovingly looked at her, resting in the calm before the storm. Botan left the room to help everyone move to the waiting area.
"So, we're finally here? We're actually gonna have a baby that poops and drools and cries?" he laughed, still caressing Keiko's belly. "Oh, Yusuke!" She placed her hand on his. "Yusuke, I'm afraid…" "But why? We've almost got that kid in the world! It's too late for regrets, you know.." "No, it's not that." "Then what is it?" She paused a moment, sliding her hand back down to her side. "I'm afraid that this baby is in danger… I had a dream that Koenma came to you and asked you to continue your job as spirit detective. You had to leave us, and something… terrible… happened." Yusuke shook his head. "Don't worry about bad dreams now, dammit. Let's just focus on the positive for now so we can get this kid out!" Keiko nodded, and at that moment the doctor and his team came in and prepared her for transport to the delivery room. Yusuke quickly changed into his scrubs and followed his pregnant wife into the swinging doors of the delivery room.
About half an hour later, Baby Urameshi had arrived. She was laid on Keiko's chest as Yusuke cut the cord. "I love you, Yusuke!" Keiko cried, treasuring the moment. Yusuke exclaimed tearfully, "I love you too!" After Keiko and the baby had been cleaned up and settled in the new room, Yusuke ran out to his friends in the waiting area, still dressed in his blue scrubs. "IT'S A GIRL! IT'S A GIRL! SIX POUNDS, FOUR OUNCES AND EIGHTEEN INCHES LONG!" He shouted happily, hugging each of them. They bombarded him with questions like "What's her name?" "Who does she look like?" "Is she okay?"
He simply replied, "Why don't you follow me and see for yourselves?" Everyone agreed, and followed him up to Keiko's new room. She looked peaceful holding the small, pink bundle. She smiled weakly at them, waving them in. "Everyone, say hello to Hana Urameshi!" She held up the bundle so everyone could see her face – she looked exactly like Yusuke. Botan was snapping pictures with her cell phone along with Kuwabara, and the others cooed and delighted over the new addition to the Urameshi household.
After a few hours, everyone had dispersed but Botan and Yusuke. Atsuko had even showed up for quite a while to see her new granddaughter. Botan was sleeping in the chair in the corner, Keiko was asleep on the bed, and Yusuke was holding his daughter, relishing in her presence. He couldn't stop staring at her. He remembered his mother had said, 'I hope she's a big pain in the ass like you were!' He had no doubt she would follow in his footsteps as a troublemaking heartbreaker. His cell phone vibrated on the bedside table, and he picked it up, still holding onto a sleeping Hana.
"Hello?" He whispered, attempting not to disturb everyone.
"Yusuke, this is Koenma. I need your help…"
Please read and review! All comments are welcome, and if I get some good reviews I will continue to write another chapter.