Mari's notes: Sammy & Ilna - I'm still a little giddy from Angie's birth and the incredible amount of fun and joy it brings me to be here in this amazing world with two of the best friends I could ask for.
REALMcRollers - We are overwhelmed with the response to Aloha Baby Girl. Thank you all for the love and support. REAL Steve & Catherine thank you, too as does Miss Angeline Elizabeth McGarrett. Here, today is an Oblivious co written with Sammy for today's marathon story. Thanks Ilna xoxo for the title!
Special thanks to NewH50Fan for the shirtless Steve OBLIVIOUS suggestion.
Sammy's notes: Mari & Ilna-seems like just yesterday we started planning this marathon. Can you believe it was almost a year ago? Time flies when you're having fun with really fantastic people.
REAL Worlders- Even though real life doesn't afford me the time I would need to fully respond to each review individually please know that every word is cherished and appreciated by me. You guys are the best.
OBLIVIOUS: Dad Bod
Catherine gently placed the baby into the bassinet and smiled at Steve as she climbed back into bed. "Come sit by me for a minute." She patted the bed and he joined her. He'd been so attentive to both her and Angie, rarely leaving their side since they arrived at the hospital. "You can go shower, we'll be fine."
He looked hesitant.
"Steve. Go." She pointed to the bathroom and gave his shoulder a little shove.
"Yell if you need me." He pointed between his wife and daughter. "Either of you."
He grabbed his go bag from its spot in the corner and disappeared into the bathroom. Less than five minutes later he emerged dressed in cargoes and holding a clean t-shirt. He was about to pull it over his head when the baby let out a squeak.
He dropped the shirt and moved quickly to pick her up when the squeak became a cry. "Hey, hey, hey, are you hungry? Here you go." He passed her to Catherine just as a young nurse with Chrissy on her ID entered.
"I'm going off in fifteen, do you …" she froze when she looked up from the chart, her eyes landing on Steve's bare torso.
Catherine stifled a laugh and it came out as a snort. "We're fine," she told the twentyish brunette who was staring openly at Steve as he grabbed the shirt and pulled it on, unaware of anything but Angie.
"Excuse me?" Chrissy blinked.
"The baby and I. You came to see if we needed anything before the shift change, right?" She was struggling to compose herself, knowing if she started to laugh she'd have to pee and she didn't want to move if the baby needed to be fed.
"Oh, um, yes. Uh good, that's great." Chrissy looked at Steve and her ears pinked. "Ah, sorry. I'll leave you to yourselves." She backed out of the room with her eyes glued to the floor.
"What?" Steve raised his brow when he noticed Catherine's expression.
"That McGarrettitis flare up." She tilted her chin at the door and ran a hand over the baby's soft hair. "Mommy will fill you in later."
"Catherine…"
"Steve. She was practically struck speechless."
He shook his head. "She was speaking, Catherine."
"After a full thirty seconds. The no shirt thing put her over the edge." She winked. "And you're even more …"
His chin dropped and he grinned, knowing what was coming.
"... adorable than ever holding Angie." His expression made her smile. "C'mere, I think she just needed to be held." Addressing their daughter she said, "Go to Daddy, sweetie."
Taking the baby and placing her against his chest, Steve patted her gently, a smile that outshone the sun gracing his face.
Nurse Tina Able smiled sweetly at her colleague. "I've got this, Mikayla, go back to the station."
Mikayla Simmons was blatantly staring at Steve and shook her head at the senior nurse's instructions. "Are you sure? I can … I mean if you want to go, I can help the commander."
"Oh, no, I'm quite sure. I've got it. Go ahead." The experienced maternity nurse chuckled and stepped up to the bassinette.
"Always remember girls need to be wiped from front to back. We don't want any UTIs. And here's how we keep the umbilical stump clean until it falls off."
Catherine watched Steve's face. He was paying as rapt attention as he would in a mission briefing. He hadn't paid the younger woman any mind.
"Have you ever changed a diaper, Commander?" The nurse deftly maneuvered the tiny legs up as he wiped Angie's bottom. "You're pretty good there."
He nodded, his eyes glued to his daughter. "My sister has a daughter so I've changed diapers, just not on anyone so … Joanie wasn't this little ... I mean she was, of course, but we didn't meet her till she was almost seven months old …"
Nurse Able finished checking the umbilical stump and passed the re-diapered baby to Catherine. "Then you're more of a pro than a lot of first time fathers. Equipment's the same, just tinier. I see so many dads who've never held a baby, let alone changed a diaper. You're one up in the game." She helped Catherine get settled in a more comfortable position. "How's that, Mommy? Are we comfy?"
Catherine nodded and smiled at Steve when the baby latched on and began to feed. "We're great. Thank you." She ran a finger down Angie's soft cheek as she ate.
"Excellent. Remember to keep track of how long she eats and from which side, and I'll be back later." She patted Steve's arm and stepped out of the room. While she understood the fuss among the younger nurses and aides, the handsome task force commander was probably more focused on his wife and baby than any father she'd ever seen.
Late in the morning, Catherine woke to Steve gently speaking. For a second, she blinked because he wasn't facing her, but realized with a soft smile, he was talking to the baby.
"Okay, we got this. Here we go, just like last time, remember?" he said as he bent over the bassinette. "First we're gonna assess the situation. Alright, the SIT-REP here is we have a poop diaper so we wipe as much as possible with the diaper itself," he said as he did so, his hands gently moving as he continued in a soft, soothing tone, "then we fold it underneath."
He cleaned her with the wipes, being sure to go from front to back as the nurse had reminded him.
"Now we put a fresh diaper under your butt." He nodded before adjusting her position. "And make sure you're dry before securing said diaper." Carefully avoiding the umbilical stump, he winced slightly when she made a small mewling cry. "Okay, it's okay, we're all done." He quickly finished fastening the diaper tabs and gently lifted her into his arms.
Kissing the soft baby cheek, he whispered, "I've got you. It's okay, you go back to sleep. Daddy's got you. I promise. I'm not going anywhere."
The look in his eyes when her hand closed around his finger was one of such awe and wonder - of such absolute love, that Catherine's heart swelled for the man she'd walked beside more than half her life. He whispered, "I'm never going anywhere," and in that moment she loved him more than she even thought possible.
Sensing she was awake, Steve caught her eyes and smiled. "You wanna hold her?" he offered.
"I want to watch her daddy hold her," she murmured sleepily.
"Good, 'cause we were discussing letting you sleep a little more 'til the next feeding."
A soft tap on the door had them both looking in that direction as a woman with a huge smile and Disney-patterned scrubs peeked in. "Hi there! Catherine Rollins and Steve McGarrett?" she confirmed.
They said, "Yes," simultaneously.
"Ah, I see why the nursing students all want to … nevermind." She chuckled. "I'm Ebony, your lactation consultant. I understand according to the nurses …" she consulted her notes, "Angeline here has been latching on and eating well?"
Catherine nodded as Steve said, "She got it right away. She's very smart."
Ebony hid a grin. "Looks like she is. So what we can do right now is go over the breast pump and how that works."
"Yes, please," Catherine said. "I'm going back to work after my maternity leave, so even on days I can bring her along she'll be fed bottled breast milk when I can't nurse."
"Perfect. And this is an excellent pump."
Steve grinned. He'd researched every pump on the market to find the most efficient one.
"This lets you store milk, and gives Dad here a chance to help with feedings. When's her next meal?" she asked.
"Right about now," Catherine said and pushed up to a more upright position.
"Then how about we let Daddy do this one? What do you say, Steve? Wanna give it a try?"
He shifted the baby to his left arm and sat down.
"Are you kidding? l can't wait."
"Let's have Mommy feed her for a few minutes first. If she's super hungry she'll be less inclined to try something new."
Steve passed Angie to Catherine and the baby settled and began to feed as Ebony explained, "When you're bottle-feeding a newborn, I recommend a slow-flow nipple. A baby older than a few weeks is very unlikely to forget how to nurse just because you give her an artificial nipple, but if the flow is too fast, she may get impatient when she has to work harder at getting milk from the breast. Starting off with the slow-flow helps avoid that.
Your baby associates your smell and touch with nursing. It's a good idea to have your baby's caregiver give them at least one bottle before you go back to work. Now that she's had a little feed, let's give it a try."
She helped Catherine adjust her top and placed the pump against her breast. "I know this may feel a little strange at first, and we can collect into a bottle or bag but you have to pump out the breast fully because once your actual milk comes in, the thinner foremilk is meant to hydrate and the hindmilk to nourish. It's thicker. If you don't pump fully, little miss here won't get the proper nutrition …"
When she was finished, Catherine handed the pump to Ebony to place on the tray.
"Okay, Daddy, offer a small amount at first. Tickle her with the nipple until she opens her mouth. Don't try to force it. That's perfect. Most babies under six weeks take a bottle easily. Older ones sometimes get set in their ways and don't want to alternate or give up the breast right away."
Angie rooted at the nipple for a few seconds and then latched on. Steve beamed like he'd won the lottery. "There she goes! What did I say? She's brilliant." He bent to kiss her head before turning the thousand watt smile on Catherine, who was watching him teary-eyed, a soft 'o' shape to her lips.
She sniffed and nodded. "Brilliant."
"You catch on quick." Ebony nodded at the baby. "Both of you. You'll be able to tell exactly how much she's eating with the bottle, and the instructions for cleaning it and the pump are right on the tray. Any questions?"
"I'm sure we'll have a hundred," Catherine said. "But not right now. Thank you so much."
"Yeah, thank you." Steve didn't take his eyes off Angie as Ebony left her card for any post-discharge questions, wished the family luck and left them alone. Placing the bottle on the tray he lifted the baby, patting her gently until she burped before passing her to Catherine.
"Future Admiral McGarrett reporting for duty." He grinned at her smirk.
When she looked up, Catherine saw his expression had changed, he was watching her with a slightly furrowed brow.
"What?" she asked, her head tilted in question.
"Pumping. Does it ... hurt?" He winced slightly.
She shook her head. "No, it just feels ... odd. But so does nursing her at this point, so ..."
"Because if it hurts," he jumped in, "I mean, I want to help, I want to be able to help you and I really love being able to feed her but if pumping hurts ..."
She placed a hand on his. "Steve. Please don't … with that face. I just pushed a person out of my body so how the pump felt," she gestured towards it, "isn't even on my radar."
"Sorry." He looked genuinely contrite.
She reached for his hand and linked their fingers. "Don't be. I appreciate you asking, but I'm all good. Sore. Jenna said, 'hit by a truck'." She smiled. "That was pretty accurate and since you actually know what being hit by a vehicle feels like …" She shrugged. "I love you. I'm fine. Nothing a few Tylenol and holding our daughter can't fix." She pushed upright and kissed the baby's cheek again. "Right, Angie?"
The door opened and "Where's my favorite niece?" preceded Carrie into the room.
"Carrie!" Catherine's face lit with a smile. "Come and meet her."
"Hey, where's John?" Steve glanced at the door.
"Parking. I may have hopped out before the vehicle came to a full and complete stop." She grinned. "I'm sorry I couldn't hang any longer last night, I was due on duty." She wrapped Catherine in a hug. "How's my bestie?"
"Great. I'm great. Here." She held the baby up. "Meet Angie."
"Oh my God, she's gorgeous." She made a grabbing gesture. "Gimme something to put over my hardware. I need to hug her right now."
Steve passed her a thick burp cloth to protect the baby from her medals and insignia and she placed it on her shoulder. "Okay, come see Aunt Carrie, beautiful girl." Swaying slightly, Carrie shook her head. "Jeez she looks like you, Cath." She turned to face Steve. "If that means she's got your personality, God help us all, McGarrett," she teased.
"Hopin' for the best of both, Stagler. Which means she'll be able to bust you."
"Ha! Oh, wait, do I see a tiny cleft like your daddy's?" She ran a finger over the little chin.
"Absolutely." Catherine beamed.
"Congratulations!" John entered the room with a huge balloon and digi-blue wearing bear. He hugged Steve and kissed Catherine's cheek before peeking at the bundle in his wife's arms. "Hi, Angie. Your Aunt Carrie did a dive and roll out of the car, so I'm bringing up the rear."
"Wanna hold her?" Catherine offered.
"When she's a few pounds heavier and not as breakable looking, definitely," he said with a laugh. "She's beautiful, guys."
"Don't be a goof, sit down," Carrie said and when he did, she placed the baby in his arms.
"Okay then, hey, kiddo. Aren't you really, really tiny." He sat bolt upright as he held the sleeping baby.
"See, not that fragile," Catherine said.
"Of course not, she's a warrior like her parents." Carrie grinned and sat on the side of Catherine's bed. "So, do you feel like crap? Because you look way better than you have a right to."
"And that's why you're my BFF." She smiled. "Carrie, we have a question for you."
"Anything, you know that." She sobered and took her friend's hand.
"I … we can't think of anyone we'd want more … for Angie's …"
Carrie's eyes widened slightly and she uncharacteristically didn't utter a word.
"We'd like you to be her godmother, Carrie."
"Oh." The blue eyes filled as her hand squeezed Catherine's. "Oh, Cath," she whispered. "Really?"
"Absolutely." "Definitely." Catherine and Steve said together.
"No one's been my friend longer, known us as a couple longer, even before we were a couple. You've understood us and supported us from day one. And we know you'll be there for Angie."
"I'm … wow. I'm flattered and honored and I love you." The women hugged and when they separated, Carrie's smile morphed into a playful smirk. "I even love you, McGarrett." She stood and hugged him.
"Back at ya, Stagler." Steve grinned at their falling into the 20 year old pattern of bantering. He held her at arm's length for a second. "Promise you won't corrupt my kid?"
"I'll promise no such thing." She hugged him a second time, then faced her smiling husband and took the baby from his arms. "Oh, baby girl, we are gonna have soooo much fun. And I have soooo much to tell you about your parents. But for now …" She kissed the baby's cheek. "Aunt Carrie and Uncle John are gonna let you and Mommy get some sleep. Daddy, too, if Mommy can talk him out of standing guard." She winked and Catherine nodded.
As Carrie and John made their way down the hall they passed a group of nurses gathered around the security desk giggling about something they were looking at the station's computer screen.
Normally Carrie wouldn't have paid much attention but there was something about the image on the screen seemed familiar to her. It only took a moment of searching her memory to realize where she'd seen it before.
It was a picture that had appeared about a year ago in the local papers.
Steve, soaking wet, t-shirt plastered to his chest, dragging a suspect out of a downtown fountain.
"It should be against the law to be that hot," one of the nurses growled.
"That's one guy who definitely didn't get dad bod while his wife was pregnant," a second voice chimed in.
"I made five trips into that room today and couldn't catch his attention even once," another groused.
"His wife is gonna be out of commission for a while," a young blonde nurse said as she leered at the screen. "If I could just get him by himself for a few minutes … "
Without breaking stride Carrie said, "If you got him alone and stood in front of him buck naked he'd still be completely oblivious."
When she and John reached the elevators she pushed the down button then turned back towards the group.
"He loves his wife." She smiled. "He has since the day they met."
A loud ding signified the arrival of the elevator car. Carrie turned with a flourish, took John's hand and together they stepped in.
As the elevator doors were closing she whispered to her husband, "Make sure to remind me to bust McGarrett about this tomorrow. For right now, let's let the new family sleep."
# OBLIVIOUS will return
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