Disclaimer: If you recognize them, I don't own them.
A/N- this was supposed to be a 2 parter but I'm thinking it will be longer. enjoy!
"Can't you go any faster?" Garcia hisses in Morgan's general direction. "Remind me again why we chose a hospital forty-five minutes away from the house."
"We made a mutual decision to give this baby a fresh start- free from Sadie. Not to be cruel to her memory but so this child wouldn't be in her big sister's shadow." Spencer offers Garcia his hand, wincing when she squeezes tightly.
"Pretty Boy, I don't think she meant literally. Do you need me to pull over?"
Reid tries to breathe through his pain. He knows that's it probably one-tenth less than the pain Garcia's going through but either way, it still hurts a lot.
"No. Concentrate on getting to the hospital. I don't want the kid born on the side of the highway." She hisses. "Big pain. Big pain."
Reid tries to remember everything they've learned in Lamaze class. Surprisingly, it's all flown out of his brain. Expert in all- and he can't remember the basics of Lamaze.
It is mildly pitiful.
"Okay, it's over." Garcia exhales slowly. "Think they're around two and a half to three minutes apart." She loosens her grip on Reid's hand and begins rubbing soothing circles around her belly. "Think the squishing's agitating the kid a little. Super active right now." She glares at her belly. "Watch the bladder!"
"Depending on traffic, we're another thirty minutes away." Reid begins to tap a rhythm against the door of the car. "You'll tell us if you think they're coming- won't you?"
Garcia glares at him.
"No, of course not."
Reid bites down on his lip, hard enough to draw blood. This not being nervous thing is harder than he ever thought possible.
"Do you think it's a boy or a girl?" Morgan's question penetrates the silence around them. It's the question that they hadn't wanted to answer- not wanting to get too attached to their baby if something were to go wrong.
"I go back and forth," Reid admits. "All the old wives' tales point in different directions but a majority of them said it's a girl. I think we might just have to wait and see. Unless you have any insight?" He gestures in Garcia's general direction.
"Why does everyone expect the mother to know? I'm as baffled as you are. From the behavior, I can't make up my mind either way." Garcia rubs gentle circles around her belly. "I want a girl though but really, I don't mind what we get as long as they're healthy and we don't give them a stupid name." She glares at Reid.
"You make one bad suggestion..." Reid throws his arms up in frustration.
"You wanted to name our daughter, Misery," Morgan glances back at his partner through the rearview mirror. "Don't think it gets much worse than that, Pretty Boy."
"It sounded pretty at four in the morning," Reid mutters defensively.
"I'm sorry for poking you," Garcia says, reaching for his hand. She gives it a gentle squeeze. "It's not a bad name- just not right for a baby." She tightens her grip on his hand. "Not again!" She begins to breathe rhythmically.
Through the rear view mirror, Morgan and Reid exchange concerned glances.
Her contractions are getting closer together.
Xxx
"We've been relegated to the waiting room," Morgan murmurs, gently trailing his fingers through Reid's hair..
"Only until they get her settled with the epidural, you know she'll let us back in. Remember last time?" Reid rests his head in Morgan's lap. "I think she fears losing control in front of those she loves. Only logical answer I can consider."
They sit in silence.
Reid can't seem to keep his mind off Sadie. She was here so briefly and yet, touched his life so intensely that he was still affected.
It all seems rather peculiar.
"What about the name Carter?" Morgan glances to Reid. "Carter Alyse Morgan. We can call her Cammi."
"Carter Alyse Morgan. Sounds like a banker but I can live with that. I was thinking Charlotte. Maybe Charlotte Alyse? After the spider."
This was the first time that they had allowed themselves to discuss names.
"If we named the kid Charlotte, we could call her Charlie. Charlie Morgan. That's cute." Morgan laughs. "We have two names for a girl."
"What about a boy?"
They pause in deep thought.
"What about Alden James Reid?" Morgan smiles, his fingers lightly dancing on Reid's palm.
"Where'd that come from?"
"That tv over there is playing Little House on the Prairie. Plus...remember we talked about this? The girls get my last name. The boy get yours."
"Oh right. I suppose I could live with the name 'Alden'. Let's hope we can get them past Garcia."
"You're with Penelope Garcia, right?" a nurse asks as she approaches them. "She's resting comfortably and you're welcome to go back anytime. I just need to band you both as belonging to her room. It seems silly- I know- but our first priority is protecting the newborns."
Reid holds out his wrist and watches as she attaches a hospital bracelet to him.
He stands, waiting as she attaches an identical bracelet to Morgan's wrist.
"She's in Room 291. Just go through these doors and it's the last door at the end of the hall on the left."
Reid finds himself grasping for Morgan's hand. This is the first time that they've really been in a hospital since the terrible night that they had found Sadie. Even though it's a happy occasion, Reid can't seem to shake the dread in his stomach. Touching his partner is the only thing that seems to be able to calm him.
"Remember the night Sadie was born?" Reid remarks, pausing just beyond Garcia's door.
"How could I forget?" Morgan laughs. "The worst snowstorm DC had ever seen. We barely made it- she had to push in the elevator."
"I never saw you look so scared." Reid's hand falters at the doorknob. "Do you think we can do this? Actually have a baby?"
"We did it once before." Morgan tightly squeezes his hand. "I think we can." The unspoken words lie between them. They both know- It's the elephant in the room. The one question that's been haunting them since they embarked on a second try.
Would this be the baby to survive?