Los Angles, California, September 22nd, 2241
The early morning hours of September 22nd would forever change Christopher Pike's life. The thirty-three year old Captain experienced many accomplishments in his thirty-three years, but this surpassed them all. It was almost midnight, as he sat in the comfortable seat near the window. It had been a long day, starting the morning before. The sound of a page going off in he hall, made him look away from the window and towards the door. A small whimper shook him out of his haze, and he looked down at the bundle in his arms. He smiled softly, as he rocked the bundle back and forth.
"Shh, it's alright," he said.
He thought back to the encounter he had, earlier that morning:
Standing in the sterile room, dressed in hospital scrubs, he watched as a young woman walked over to him. She looked up and smiled at him, before looking down at the bundle in his arms.
"And here we go to daddy!" she cooed, handing him the most precious gift in the world.
He smiled gratefully at the nurse, before looking down. What he saw, nearly stopped his heart. Wrapped in a pink fluffy blanket, was the most beautiful girl in the world. He had tuffs of red hair, and despite the red splotches on her newborn skin, she was like a porcelain doll. She waved her little arm up at him, making the cutest little noise as he held her.
"Look at you. You are the prettiest little thing," he said, as he held the little girl close.
The baby stared at him, her eyes slightly wide and her little mouth moving. To Christopher, it looked as if she were talking to him, saying hello right back at him.
Now, later in the day, he finally had his little girl back in his arms. Annabeth teased him for already being wrapped around her little fingers.
"She's gonna be a Daddy's girl for sure," she said, as worry flashed in her eyes, before she smiled again at the two.
It had been almost twenty-four hours since his daughter arrived in the world, and she still didn't have a name. It was up to Christopher to name the sweet child, since Annabeth lost the bet on what they were having.
"What should I name you? Elizabeth?" he said, looking down at the little girl.
She shook her little fist at him, and he wrinkled his nose. "No, you don't look like an Elizabeth. Claire? No, you don't like that one either.." he said, as the baby squirmed in his arms.
Christopher sighed, looking up at the night sky. He smiled, shifting the baby so she could see the view from his arms.
"You see all those lights out there? See how pretty? Not as pretty as you, but they sure are something. Daddy works up there, among the stars, and planets. When you're old enough, I'll take you up there and we can see the stars together," he said, as she took a hold of his finger.
The baby cooed as he spoke, naming all the constellations up in the night sky. He told her about the planets he'd seen and the galaxies that swirled in the deep, dark skies of space. How he loved her so much, despite the fact that she would be a day old in two hours. How one, little person, changed his entire life so quickly. Children were the last thing Christopher ever thought about, between his busy schedule in Starfleet and his dating life. He and Annabeth were only together for four months, before she got pregnant. Now, it was a year later, and they were both parents to this precious gift.
"You got most of my looks- you poor thing. But you have your mother's hair and I think you'll have her eyes. I think I need to keep you away from all the boys. You'll be a real heartbreaker," he said, looking down at the baby.
Suddenly it dawned on him. The perfect name for his perfect baby girl. He looked up at the sky and searched until he saw it. Smiling, he looked down at the baby, who started to doze off again.
"Andromeda Rose. That's what we'll call you. You're beautiful like the Andromeda Galaxy and you'll definitely be a princess," he said, as her eyes closed.
He sat there a little while longer, watching as his baby- Andromeda- slept in his arms. Quietly, he got up and placed her in the bassinet, before moving back to the chair to get some sleep. The next morning, he woke up to the sounds of Annabeth holding their baby. She was feeding her, whispering to the little girl.
"You're the most beautiful little girl I've ever seen. Yes you are!" she cooed, brushing her fingertips across her forehead.
Christopher stood up and stretched his stiff joints, before walking over to the hospital bed. Annabeth looked up at him and smiled softly, before looking down at the little girl.
"Did think of a name? The nurse wants to put it on her birth certificate, " she said.
"Yeah. Last night before I put her down for bed," he answered, sitting down next to her.
Annabeth nodded, "Let's here it. What are we going to call this little beauty?" she asked.
"Andromeda Rose," he said, a small smile gracing his face.
Annabeth's smiled wilted when she heard the name. She had hoped for a classic name- Isabella or Ruth- not a name after a goddamn galaxy and stupid constellation. Even Rose would've been a wonderful first name. But she lost the bet, thinking that they were having a boy. She masked her disappointment and smiled, looking up at him.
"That's a beautiful name, Chris. Andromeda Rose Pike. We can call her Andrea for short," she said.
Christopher only nodded and Annabeth sighed, "Did you call your friends? From the Academy?" she asked.
Christopher knew how Annabeth felt about the Academy and the Federation. She disliked the idea of going into space, and warping off into the unknown. She was an English teacher, who was once approached by Starfleet to teach English to Cadets from other countries and planets. With her strong dislike of Starfleet, Christopher was surprised that they even made it through their first date. All of Christopher's colleagues placed bets on how long they would last. Never in a million years, did they expect a baby out of it.
"I contacted a few. They send their congratulations and hope to see photos soon. They also gave me as much time as I need off," he said.
Annabeth nodded, "So, how long do you plan on staying Earthside?" she asked.
He sighed, "For a while, Anna. I'm not going to stay here for a week and then zip right back up to the ship. This is my first child and I want to be there to experience everything. I can't just leave you two down here alone," he said.
She nodded and smiled softly, "Good. I want you here too. They say children grow up so fast. It would break my heart, if you had to miss any moment of her life," she said.
In next several hours, the nurse came in and out, showing Annabeth how to feed Andrea and how to change her diaper. While the new mother slept, Christopher sat by the window and held his baby girl. The sun was setting and the day was coming to an end.
"I can't believe you're a day old. I think you've gotten bigger," she said, as Andrea held onto his finger.
She cooed and Christopher felt his heart clench, amazed at how deeply in love he was with this small life in his arms. Annabeth shifted on the bed, rolling onto her side facing away from the two.
"I wish you could talk, Andromeda. I feel silly talking to you. You probably don't understand a word I'm saying," he said softly.
Andrea kicked her feet and tried to focus her blurry eyes onto his face. He smiled at her, as he pulled the blanket over her.
"Wait until you see your room. We'll have to paint it pink now, since Mommy and I didn't know what you were. Or maybe purple. Daddy put stars on the ceiling, and the glow when the lights go out. So every night, when you go to sleep, you can see the stars. And when I'm away, you'll now that I'm up there among them. That's what I do, baby. I fly with the stars in a ship. I promise that when you're older, I'll take you with me on a trip and we can watch them whizz by. You'll love them. And when I'm back here on Earth, we can watch them from the backyard. I'll have to get a telescope of course, but we can watch them twinkle. I'll even show you the constellation I named you after," he said, as she shifted in his arms.
As Christopher talked about stars and space, Annabeth laid in the hospital bed facing the wall. She was awake, listing to him talk. She wept quietly, as he promised their one-day-old, a lifetime of space. The Academy would always be part of Christopher Pike, but she hoped to god that it wouldn't take her daughter as well. It was the last thought on her mind, before she fell into a fitful slumber.
"You're a day old, Andromeda," Christopher whispered, a few hours later.
It was midnight, September 23rd 2241. Standing up, he carried his princess back to her cot and laid her down. He needed to get some sleep, for they would be going home in a few hours. He pulled the blanket up to keep Andrea warm, and stood by, watching her until she fell asleep.
He then went back to the chair and sat down, kicking his shoes off. He pulled the itchy hospital blanket over his legs and settled down into the uncomfortable chair. He couldn't wait to take his princess home and start his new life with her. But for now, he needed to sleep. He had the rest of his life to watch his baby girl, and he was looking forward to it.