Water
As happy days go, a wedding is probably in the top five, your own even more so. But it wasn't my wedding. No, it was my best friend's, and her groom was my husband's best friend. We kind of got them together really. It was a shame our other best friend couldn't make it whilst she was travelling the world. But like my wedding, Laura wanted hers to be very last minute, meaning Nicole couldn't get out of plans she had made. Now when I say last minute, I mean that she had everything sorted out, including dress, location etc. Just not the date. Imagine both me and Shane's surprise when Laura and Nate came by our house asking us to free up Friday the next week to go to their wedding.
Nuts I tell you, nuts. Oh well, at least they had a proper wedding, unlike mine which was in a 24-hour chapel.
As ceremonies go, it was beautiful. As Laura doesn't believe in God, they had it in their back garden, with me as maid of honour and Shane as best man. As I watched them, I secretly yearned for a wedding like theirs. Whilst I was a happily married woman, with my second child on the way, I always wished Shane and I hadn't had a quickie wedding. Every little girl dreams of their perfect wedding, with a poofy white dress, a few bridesmaids in awful dresses, surrounded by friends and family and their father walking them down the aisle. I had an Elvis impersonator, a denim skirt and Laura and Nicole in their diner uniforms. Not exactly my dream wedding.
Our daughter Ana ran around the room at the reception and everyone was in high spirits.
I sat uncomfortably in my chair as Shane made his speech.
"Well, it's thanks to me that these two are together really. If I hadn't been a complete ass, Nate would never have come here and met the stunning blonde he can now call his wife. Actually, I could say the same about my marriage. There are things I could tell you about Nate that would make your skin crawl and your jaw drop. But I won't scare you away yet Laura, I'll wait until my daughter has a future husband that I can threaten with my imaginary gun." He got a few chuckles out of that. My husband wasn't a funny man though, really. Sure he could be funny with me, but that's because he was completely comfortable in his own skin with me, whereas making a speech to a room of his peers had he guy on edge. He could perform to arenas full of people, but that was when he was singing, Shane Gray without a microphone, back-up band the screaming fans wasn't very confident.
After the speech, Laura and Nate had their first dance as a married couple. I had never seen either of them happier. I had a queer feeling of nostalgia. Only a few years prior, Laura and I had both been single and working at a diner; now I was a stay at home mom, and she was rather high up in a record company. It's funny how things change.
My mother was still a huge bitch, but my dad had realised and left her. He wasn't going to file for divorce because he loved her and only left to try and get her to realise how much of a mess she was. It hadn't quite worked yet, but we were both praying. I called my dad at least once a week. I was extremely thankful to Shane for pushing me to go visit, losing my relationship with my dad had killed me.
As Shane and I stood up to dance, I felt a strange, familiar pain in my abdomen. I figured it was just the baby kicking in a funny place so continued in my walk to the dance floor.
"You look so beautiful tonight. Every time I think you can't look any better, you pull something like this out on me. I'm so lucky to have you." He whispered in my ear as we slowed danced to a rather fast song. We were one of those couples.
"Shut up, I'm heavily pregnant, due at any moment, my ankles are killing me, I feel really bloated and I would rather be in bed. No offense to the happy couple of course."
"Of course not." Shane chuckled. "You say all that, and yet, you're glowing. I feel like the luckiest man alive."
And then I felt that pain again, and yet this time it was stronger. I stopped in my tracks.
"Mitch, what's wrong?" And then it hit me, like a train. Well actually, it hit the floor. My waters I mean.
"We're about to be parents again."
"Shit."
"Yeah, think we can get out of here?"
"Well, I hope so; otherwise you'll be giving birth here." Shane quickly helped me over to the dancing newlyweds.
"Hey guys, it was a great ceremony, but we have to leave before I give birth in front of all your guests." I said, Laura's eyes widening.
"Holy crap, do you want us to come with you?"
"No, of course not, you stay here and enjoy the rest of your wedding, and forget about us. We'll phone you when it's all over, unless it's after midnight, in which case, we'll call you in the morning." I winked at her, having more decency than she did when referring to her wedding night. I distinctly remember her saying something along the lines of "he's going to get it good."
"Well, um have fun? I don't really know what to say to someone who's about to give birth. Good luck?" I laughed at her before hugging her goodbye and leaving slowly with Shane, picking up Ana along the way.
There were taxis outside of the place where the reception was being held, lying in wait of the leaving guests.
"The hospital please, and step on it." Shane told the driver as soon as we got in. "Are you okay? How far apart are the contractions?" He fussed.
"I'm fine, and they really aren't that close, but with Ana, they got close rather quickly, so the same could happen this time."
"Okay, I should have brought your overnight bag."
"To the wedding? That would be rather absurd Shane, I'm sure you'll have time to go back home and get it, considering I'll be spending most of my time in a hospital gown. You can go get it after the excitement's over and the baby and I are sleeping." I smiled at him. His face brightened up.
"Oh my God Mitchie, we're going to have a baby!" He said with a beaming smile on his face.
"Yeah Shane, I'm pretty sure you had this reaction eight months ago when I told you."
"But, it's actually here, in a few hours there'll be another little addition to our family." I loved to see Shane like this, so excited to have kids. We had decided to not find out the sex of our baby this time. We knew Ana would be a girl, but we wanted a surprise this time. Shane wanted another little girl to spoil. I wanted a boy to make it equal. "I can't wait Mitchie; can you not pop it out now?"
"No Shane, I'm pretty sure the driver doesn't want placenta and blood all over the place." I laughed. My husband was like a little boy. "You know what Shane? I know why you want it now, so you can start to try again sooner."
"No, of course not. I can't wait to see our new child. My blood runs in its veins. Oh my God, it's like Christmas, but so much better." If you thought this was bad, he was actually nuts when Ana was coming.
"For you maybe, you don't have to go through the pain I do."
"Get an epidoodle then."
"Epidural Shane, epidural. You're not going to be upset if it's a boy are you?"
"Of course not! I'll just be happy to have a healthy baby. Mitchie, I love you."
"I love you too Shane. AHHHH!" I screamed as a contraction ran through my body. "Shit!"
"Is she alright?" The taxi driver asked.
"Yeah, she just had a contraction, sorry."
"Crap, I'll try to get there faster." The speed of the vehicle picked up and the pain lessened.
"Oh my God. And it's only going to get worse." I whined, cuddling myself into Shane's chest. "Why did you have to impregnate me?"
"May I remind you, it was your idea to try again?"
"You should have reminded me of the back breaking pain I had with Ana, don't you know women don't remember it as soon as they see the baby's face?" I said as tears slid down my face.
"Daddy, what's wrong with momma?" Our three-year-old asked as she looked at me worriedly. She was such a cute little girl. She had just the right mixture of Shane and me in her, though, she was blonde, and God knows where that came from. I could tell she was going to become quite the trouble maker. I honestly couldn't wait for her to grow up and to be the mother to her that mine never was. She was a quick learner, and spoke in complete sentences often. She had a whole lot of understanding for a three-year-old.
"Mommy's just in a lot of pain right now. But guess what?"
"What?"
"Your baby brother or sister is coming very soon."
"Really?" She asked excitedly. I was scared she would feel neglected, think that Shane and I didn't like her as much now that we were to have a new addition. But the day we told her, she was the happiest I'd seen her.
"Really!"
"I'm going to be the bestest big sister ever!"
"I'm going to hold you to that Ana. When you start annoying them, I'll remind you of what you just said." I told her.
"Momma, you're no fun." She pouted.
"Well, someone has to be a fun sucker." I said. And then I was hit again.
"It's okay Mitch, squeeze my hand." I grabbed him in a death like grip.
"Shit, can this thing get out of me like right now?"
"We're almost there Mitch."
"Hmm, and then I have many more fun filled hours of pain, wonderful."
After another five minutes, in which there were no more contractions, the taxi came to a stop and I breathed a sigh of relief, quickly leaving and heading into the hospital, leaving Shane to deal with the fare and Ana.
"Hi, I'm in labour." I said to the receptionist. Her eyes widened and she quickly found a wheelchair for me. "Wait, my husband's just coming." I told her before she could even think about wheeling me away or anything of the sort.
"Oh good, he can fill out your papers then." Shane rushed in with Ana and I was wheeled off to the maternity ward. Another contraction hit me half way through our journey.
"Mitch, it's okay, in a few hours this is all going to be over." Shane encouraged.
I was taken to a private room as soon as we got to the ward, thanks to the privileges of being Shane Gray's wife. I changed into a gown and quickly got on the bed.
"Okay Miss... Gray." The doctor said as he entered the room.
"Mrs." I corrected him.
"Sorry, Mrs Gray. Let's see how far along you are." He said before he started to poke all up in my business looking in an area very few people had seen. "Okay, you're at four centimetres right now, I'll get someone to check on you in half an hour to see how fast you're moving." Four centimetres, six more and I would be doing the whole push business. Oh great. But that mean I was ever closer to having another child. The doctor left and Shane came closer.
"Mitchie, do you think you'll be alright whilst I take Ana to the day-care?"
"Yeah, as long as you come back as soon as possible. I need a hand to hold." Shane smiled at me before he made his way out the room with our now sleeping daughter. He returned when the nurse came to check on me. I was five centimetres along at the point. This was going to be a short labour, just like the one I had with Ana.
By around one am, I was at ten centimetres. Time for me to start pushing.
"Okay Mrs. Gray, let's get that baby outta there." He went in down below again, this time he came out not looking so great. "Well, it would appear there are some complications. We're going to have to take you into surgery for an emergency c-section." What? Oh God, would I be able to have kids again? Would I even live? I looked to my left and Shane was literally white.
"What do you mean complications?" He asked the doctor.
"Well it would appear the baby is upside down, so to make sure both your wife and your child come out healthy, I would rather operate." Suddenly I was swirled up into preparations to take me into an operating room. The last thing I remembered was Shane's face. The worry that crossed it made me pray we would both make it.
Shane POV
The hours that my wife was in the operating room for an emergency caesarean were the longest of my life. Why could her labour not have gone without complications? It was during those hours that I began to panic. What would I do without Mitchie? What would I do as a single parent? Could I do it? Oh God, I couldn't live without Mitchie. But I had to for Ana's sake. Mitchie was my world, what would happen to me without her.
I had never been more scared in my life.
"Mr Gray?" A nurse asked, coming into the waiting room where I had been pacing.
"Yeah?" Here was the moment of truth. Would I have a wife?
"You can see you wife and baby girl now." I breathed a sigh of relief. She was okay, and so was our child. Another girl.
I ran to the room I had vacated hours before in panic. The biggest grin ever graced my face when I saw my beautiful wife clutching a pink blanketed bundle. She looked completely exhausted, but managed to look as wonderful as ever.
"Hey Shane, you want to come meet your daughter?" She grinned at me.
"Duh." She passed the bundle up to me and gathered her up in my arms. Her little eyes gazed up at me in wonder.
"Hey baby, I'm your daddy." I felt a tear make its way down my cheek. I had never seen anything like her, well apart from Ana of course. I couldn't believe my luck. I had my beautiful wife and now two daughters. How did I deserve it? I used to be a drunk idiot who let the fame get to me. How was I lucky enough to have a family like the one I had? "She's breathtaking." I whispered. I pressed a small kiss to her small forehead and passed her back to my other half.
"Isn't she?" Mitchie sighed and lowered herself down a little bit more. "You won, we got another daughter."
"Hey, that just means we have to try again for a boy." I said with a wink.
"You're so smooth. So what do you want to call her, considering I named Ana?"
"Umm..." I thought for a second before coming to a decision. "Emilie."
"Emilie? I like it." She said with a grin.
"You need some sleep. It's been a long day for you. I expect you'll sleep for a day." She nodded before passing Emilie to me. I placed her in the cot in the corner of the room. I returned to my wife and placed a kiss on her forehead.
Life was great, just great.
AN: I know I said I wasn't going to write more of this smitchie, but I did. I missed them. I'm not sure how many will read this though, after my name change and stuff, but que sera. Thank you for reading I'm really excited to hear what you all have to say. I like long reviews ;). Also, Sandy (sandy2x400) and I are doing a collab fic which I'm really excited for, so keep your eyes out.