Sorry this has taken so long! I got major writer's block, and I've been trying to work
on a bunch of other things so...yeah. But it's here now, and I've added a little bit extra
after the original ending for the TFN contest, for which this was originally written.
This is largely unbeta'd because I've tinkered a lot and I just wanted
to get this out to you; all mistakes are mine.
Thank you for being so patient and for loving on these characters as much as I do.
~ oOo ~
Running For Their Lives
All Bella wants is to make her boy proud. He's a little warrior
and she's desperate to give something back to
those who saved him. But when she almost doesn't make it
to the finish line, a stranger's kindness shows her that sometimes
it's okay to need help. After all, they're not here for fun. They're
running to save people's futures. They're running for their lives.
~ oOo ~
DISCLAIMER: Twilight and its inclusive material is copyright to Stephenie Meyer. Original creation, including but not limited to plot and characters, is copyright to the respective authors of each story. No copyright infringement is intended.
~ oOo ~
Bella
After winding through the busy streets of Brighton, Bella, Emmett, Charlie, Renee, and Harry finally settled on Wahaca as the place to eat.
Harry had a hankering for Mexican, and Bella just liked him to eat; his appetite was slowly creeping back, much to her delight.
"Sit next to me, Em?"
Bella's heart constricted as she watched Emmett smirk and sit Harry on a chair in the restaurant before plopping himself down next to him, reaching over to tug his hat down over his eyes; Harry scowled, but he laughed as he pulled off the hat and tossed it to his mum for safe keeping.
The waitress brought over their menus, making sure to eye up Emmett as she leaned too-far over the table to flash her cleavage.
Bella bit her lip to stifle a giggle at the way he didn't even notice, her heart aching because Emmett was too busy talking all things Marvel with her son to notice the waitress giving him a show. She was left flushed and surprised when he then pulled out a pair of glasses, admitting that he couldn't read a thing without them. If he was good-looking before, he was downright sinful in glasses.
By the time the food came, an enormous selection to share between the table with dishes chosen by everyone and approved by Harry, Emmett had Renee's silent approval as well as Charlie's. Bella's dad followed her to the bar when she excused herself for a moment, her overwhelmed body unable to cope with how adorable Emmett was when he interacted with Harry.
"This guy…he's different, isn't he? He's not like Jake."
Bella frowned and shook her head. "Jake? He's a friend."
Charlie smirked. "Exactly. Emmett…he's different, right?"
Her eyes danced back over to the table, finding Renee and Harry breathless with laughter as Emmett re-enacted the Napkin Head scene from one of Bella's all-time favourite films—The Holiday.
That scene always got Bella, because Harry didn't remember a time where his father was around, let alone have any memories of napkin heads and silly giggles with him.
Then there was Emmett, who'd met Harry less than an hour ago and had already gained both his trust and friendship.
"Yeah, Dad," she finally sighed. "He's different."
~ oOo ~
Huffing a long sigh, Bella stared at the chain disappearing into Emmett's tee, wondering if his dog tags were hidden under the fabric. She didn't want to look at his face because she wasn't sure what she'd find.
Bella knew he was seeing her disappointment. She was powerless to hide it.
"Bella, I…" He trailed off, curling his fingers under her chin to nudge her gaze upward.
Unbidden, tears gathered in her eyes. "I'm sorry, I don't know why…" she laughed without mirth, swiping the moisture from her eyes. "This is stupid. I just met you today."
Ash gray eyes glinted in the dim light of the lamppost, his touch soft as his fingers crept over Bella's jaw to cup her face.
"I feel like I've known you forever."
Bella's heart clenched. "Ditto." Shifting to take the weight off her bad ankle, she sighed and let herself yearn, just for a moment. She let herself believe this wasn't the last time she'd see him, that he wasn't disappearing north to Manchester to run his twenty-second marathon in as many weeks.
Bella let herself believe they could have this wonderful evening over and over. That it was real, and he was hers to keep.
A question she'd meant to ask earlier popped into her head and out of her mouth before she could stop it.
"Why did you come back and help me? At the end of the race," she clarified when he cocked his head slightly.
"I saw you struggling, and I knew how much you wanted to finish for your boy. Your, ah, friend—"
"Jake is just a friend!" Bella blurted, her cheeks reddening. "Jake's just...he's overprotective sometimes. I know he came across a bit overbearing earlier, but it's not like that."
Emmett nodded pensively, his eyes betraying his relief. "Okay. Well, he didn't look like he was going to man up and get you to the finish line." A boyish cheekiness stole across his lips for a moment. "Plus, I couldn't resist the opportunity to see you and talk to you once more."
A quiet, electric current charged the air between them as Bella gazed up at his face, her fingers itching to stroke his beard or dive into his hair.
Emmett's long sigh rippled through Bella as he gave in and lowered his hand before she could maul him, resting it on her waist to pull her against his body. Bella's soft curves melted into his solid chest, the weight of his arms around her comforting rather than restraining; she breathed shakily and hugged him tight, twisting the fabric of his tee in her hands at the small of his back. They'd both spent a good part of the day running, both of them sweaty and in need of hot showers, but at that moment neither of them cared.
"I...I don't have space in my life for a relationship right now," she admitted softly after a few moments, hating herself as the words spilled out against Emmett's chest along with a few hot tears. "Harry's treatment has finished but we're not out of the woods. I don't have enough room in my brain for…" this...for you.
Squeezing gently, Emmett nodded and pressed his lips against the top of her head. "I know. I wish I could say I'm here to stay, but I made Jamie a promise and I plan to keep it."
Pulling back, Bella smiled up at Emmett and soaked in his face; his beautiful eyes, that ridiculously gorgeous beard, and his slightly lopsided grin all combined to create the heartbreakingly handsome face Bella knew she'd miss the second she walked away. She had to walk away, she knew that. Harry and her parents were waiting in the car across the street, Bella's parents averting their gaze while her son snoozed in the backseat.
"I'm going to miss you, Sergeant McCarty." Bella couldn't help but give a nod to his rank, even just teasingly. He'd told her about his time in the military while they ran, Bella fighting pride and misplaced worry for him as she listened to some of what he called his 'less scary' stories.
Emmett smirked, bending to rest their foreheads together for a beat. "I'm gonna miss the hell out of you and that boy of yours, Bella."
Charlie and Renee were patient people, but they had an hour-long drive home and a sleeping boy in the backseat; Bella heard the whir of a car window being rolled down before her mum softly called her name.
Choking back the lump in her throat, Bella gave Emmett one last squeeze before slipping away, planting an impulsive kiss on his beard-covered cheek before hobbling across the road without a backwards glance to climb into the car with Harry.
"Sorry, baby."
"It's okay, Mum," Bella mumbled, fastening her seatbelt and staring resolutely at her lap as Charlie sighed and started the engine.
However, Bella couldn't resist the temptation of looking back one last time. She twined her fingers with Harry's on the seat between them, twisting to peer out of the rear window.
Emmett stood exactly where she'd left him, one hand stuffed in his pocket while the other raised in a silent wave just before they turned a corner and he disappeared from sight.
Determined to squash her regret over not at least taking Emmett's phone number, Bella made herself comfortable, scooting herself into the middle seat when they stopped at a red light so she could have her boy close, even with his booster seat in the way.
As they drove along the coast in the darkness of night, only stars and streetlights to illuminate their way, Bella gently stroked her son's head and reminded herself of what she'd told Emmett.
It was true. She didn't have space, even for a man like Emmett, who Bella instinctively knew it would be easy to fall for.
"I have my boy, and he's who I need to concentrate on," Bella whispered against Harry's head, only loud enough for her own ears.
~ oOo ~
7 months later…January 1st, 2019
A cold breeze whipped over the lake and stirred up the top dusting of snow covering the grass. Bella pulled her coat tighter around her chest, burying as much of her face as possible in the fluffy material of her scarf without covering her eyes; she needed to keep Harry and KC in her sights, of course.
Harry's giggles always made Bella smile, but today he was in particularly good spirits. After a rotten last year with the return of his cancer followed by chemotherapy, the loss of his hair, and countless infections due to his low immune system, he was finally back on track and due to return to school in a week after a year off. His health had improved tenfold, and under the beanie on his head was a crop of chocolate curls. The chilly New Years Day air had turned his cheeks rosy, but he was having far too much fun with his beloved Keeshond, KC, to spoil his fun just yet.
Initially, Bella was mad when Charlie and Renee surprised them with the ball of grey fluff on his seventh birthday in November. KC was nine-months-old and had belonged to one of Renee's friends who could no longer keep him due to her ill health. After making sure the pup was good with kids, Renee and Charlie offered to take him. Within ten minutes of KC and Harry meeting, Bella knew she couldn't tell her parents to find the dog another home; her son was besotted. His smile wider that day than it had been in months.
In the eight weeks since Harry had proven himself a capable and willing assistant in taking care of his new best friend. He did all the feeding, grooming, training, and insisted on being allowed to hold the leash when they took him for walks.
Living a few minutes away from the biggest park in Eastbourne afforded them the opportunity to bring KC over every day; including today, the first day of a new, hopefully cancer-free, year.
Harry was officially in remission as of December 22nd.
From her spot on the thick roots of an enormous, lakeside tree, Bella could see Harry and KC playing in the snow as well as the little bridge to the side of them, where her son liked to play Pooh sticks and race twigs over the little waterfall further down the stream. Even though it was cold, it was a beautiful day to enjoy the park. Charlie and Renee were heading out to visit friends late-morning, so she and Harry had plans to camp out on the sofa and binge-watch all their favourite movies, starting with Deadpool—Bella knew where all the swear words were in the movie and would fast-forward them, much to Harry's indignant disgust.
She was just deciding whether or not she wanted to risk wrecking the kitchen by suggesting they make their own pizza bases for dinner, when she heard a blood-curdling scream.
"Harry?" Bella flew up, almost tripping over a root and falling into the lake in the process, and scrambled around the enormous tree. "Harry, what's the...oh my God…"
Tears immediately sprang to her eyes as Bella watched Harry charge past her, KC following with his little red checked bandana fluttering in the wind, toward the imposing figure trudging through the snow.
"Emmett!"
Emmett dropped into a crouch at the perfect time to catch Harry, who threw himself at the man he'd met just one time with nothing but confidence that he'd catch him. Bella felt her heart take off at a sprint. He's here. Somehow, he found us and he's here.
"Hey, buddy. I didn't know if you'd remember me," Emmett chuckled, his voice thick as he hugged the boy.
"Of course, I remember you! You're my mum's hero." Pulling back, Harry scooped up his dog and introduced KC to Emmett. "Oh, this is KC, my dog."
Emmett gave the little dog a scratch between the ears, both him and Harry laughing when KC's rear leg began wiggling in the air.
"You found his tickle spot," Harry snickered.
It had been seven months since Bella saw Emmett's grin or heard his rich laugh.
Seven long months of sitting up in the darkest hours of the night soothing Harry's nightmares about chemo, or cooling his feverish face with a damp flannel when he was sick, trying to work out if she'd done the right thing by letting Emmett go without exchanging phone numbers.
Seven months of wondering if kissing him before she walked away that night would have been as good as she imagined.
She didn't want to wait any longer.
Emmett's gaze jumped to her when she started moving toward them; his gray eyes widened when she sped up into a jog, her heart thumping hard as she flung herself at his chest, wrapping her arms and legs around him and clinging on as he straightened up.
"Bella," he sighed, holding her just as tight as she was clutching him. Through their many layers of coats, jumpers, and scarves, they felt each other relax and melt into one unit.
With her face buried in the juncture between his jaw and neck, Bella sniffled, "How did you find us?"
"I managed to find your mom and dad's address online. You told me the name of your mom's nail business, so I used that."
Giggling almost deliriously, Bella remembered talking to Emmett about her mum's talent for nail art and the business she ran out of the converted garage under the flat she lived in with Harry and KC.
"Wait...have you...have you finished your marathons? It's the first!"
Emmett was grinning ear-to-ear when she slid to the ground and remembered her son was watching their exchange with a face-splitting grin of his own. "I ran the last one yesterday in Essex, spent New Years Eve with my sisters, then drove straight out here to see if I could find you. When I got to your mom and dad's they told me you were here, so…"
Warmth curled in Bella's belly. "I can't believe you came all this way just to find us."
"Why wouldn't I?" Emmett seemed genuinely puzzled. "Look, Bella, I know we only spent a few hours together, but I can't…" he trailed off, moving to rake a hand through his hair before realising he couldn't get to it because of his beanie. Sheepishly, he stuffed his hands in his hoodie pockets. "I couldn't not come. I needed to find out if you felt the same way I did. The same way I do. We had a connection that day."
Harry's sperm donor, because he hadn't earned the title of 'father' or 'dad,' had never once made Bella feel like she was worth all this effort. Her college boyfriend had barely shown her the time of day between wanting to hang out with his friends and smoke cigarettes that he stole from his parents behind the bike shed.
Emmett had searched for her. He'd obviously been thinking about her, like she'd been thinking of him. And now, he'd come for her—her, and Harry.
He reached out, booping Harry's red nose. "What do you think, buddy? Do you mind if I hang out with you guys a bit?"
Harry shrugged, letting KC wriggle back to the snow-covered ground. "If you guys get all kissy, I'm gonna blackmail you to make me keep it a secret from Nan. She's crazy and I kinda like you, Em. I don't want her to scare you away, but she gives me all kinds of cool stuff for reporting on Mum."
Bella's mouth fell open as she barked a surprised laugh. Emmett just chuckled and nodded. "Sounds good to me, buddy. Now—how about we get a warm drink and catch up? I'm freezing."
"Oh, come on, follow me, Em! Kristen in the café does the best hot chocolate with whipped cream and marshmallows. We come pretty much every day just to have it."
Harry tore off, his faithful pooch hot on his heels, leaving Emmett and Bella in his wake. They exchanged almost bashful smiles.
"I'm sorry if I was out of line putting it to Harry, but I meant it, Bella. I felt something that day, and I've waited long enough to find out if you felt it, too."
With tears gathering on her lashes, Bella admitted, "I felt it. I've thought about you...so often. By the time I woke up the next day I regretted leaving without getting your number."
The quiet swish of the trees above and the trickle of the nearby waterfall was all Bella could hear as Emmett reached out, twining their fingers together before swinging them between their bodies with a soft sigh. His gaze was mesmerising. Bella didn't notice he'd leaned in until their lips were a hair's width apart and his warm breath was fanning over her face.
"I just...can I?"
Bella surged forward and pressed her lips to his, swallowing his groan of surprise even as she smiled against his mouth and fisted his hoodie with her free hand. It was freezing, but Bella felt nothing but the heat of his touch. They kissed leisurely, a gentle sweep of tongues and caressing breaths.
Harry was the proverbial bucket of ice water.
"That's it! I'm gonna tell Nan you're being all kissy if you don't buy me at least one cookie!"
Breaking apart with breathless laughter, Bella and Emmett gazed at each other with wonder and relief.
"If I buy him all the cookies, d'you think he'll pretend he doesn't see when I get kissy with you a whole lot today?"
Snorting, Bella righted her scarf and planted one last kiss on his beard-covered cheek before tugging him by the hand toward the café and her kiss-blocking son. "I doubt it. The kid's a smartass, but he's also a Nanny's boy. He'll tattle on us no matter how many cookies we buy. I just like to humor him."
Pausing, Emmett drew her to a stop. Flicking a glance toward Harry, was now amusing himself while he waited for them by throwing snowballs for KC to catch, Emmett's brows furrowed. "How is he? Did the treatment work?"
It didn't matter how many times Bella said it. Saying the words 'he's in remission' always put a beautiful smile on her face.
Seeing the way Emmett reacted to the news, with a small, boyish fist-pump and a huge sigh, only made the words better.
"We went back to the hospital a week after the race to give them the money I raised. They were so grateful, and I know it will all go on helping other kids like Harry. They have a fund for the children to use for activities while they're sick in hospital, or to help celebrate when they're better." Reaching up to caress Emmett's face, Bella smiled. "If you hadn't helped me cross that line, I wouldn't be able to say now that I ran to help provide for those kids' futures...that I ran for their lives."
"Well?" Harry yelled, breaking up the heavy moment. "Are you coming, or what?"
"Or what!" Bella and Emmett yelled back in unison.
Harry shook his head and stuck his hands on his hips, rolling his eyes at the cackling duo. Looking down at KC, he shrugged. "What're you gonna do, KC? They're all mushy and lovey dovey. C'mon, let's go get our hot chocolate. Well, hot milk for you."
KC offered his little master a lick on the cheek and happily snuggled into his arms as he was carried toward the café. By the time Emmett and Bella had gotten over their giggle-fit, Harry and KC were comfy inside with their hot drinks, and Harry had snapped a picture of them walking toward him hand-in-hand on his children's Firefly flyPhone.
Grinning, he sent it to the number titled 'No.1 Nan' before taking a big chug of his drink, leaving him with a whipped cream moustache.
As soon as Bella walked in and spotted her son, she sighed. "You already tattled, didn't you?"
"Mmhm," he admitted cheerily, holding up the cookie Kristen had given him. "And I don't even need you to buy my cookie."
~ oOo ~
Seventeen months later...May 27th, 2020
"C'mon, Mum! You can do it!"
Bella panted, her aching body protesting the arm she had in the air to hold her phone, but she'd promised to have Harry with her when she crossed the line. He was waiting for her on the other side, but he wanted to cross the line with her, too.
"He's right, babe, you can do it."
Glancing right at the man who'd been her personal cheerleader for the duration of the entire 100k, Bella fought the urge to curse.
"Easy for you to say, Sarge," she wheezed, relief almost bowling her over when she spotted the line up ahead. Her legs were killing her, and her entire body was screaming at her to lay down, but she was so close.
Two years ago, a forty-four kilometer run had almost killed her.
But it had also given her the man at her side—her husband.
Despite the pain and exhaustion of almost twenty-four hours on the move, Bella smiled at the memory of her now-husband carrying her down this promenade toward the finish line.
"D'you want to re-enact our first run, babe?" Emmett asked with a smirk. For a man who'd been out of the military for years now, he was still remarkably unaffected by such strenuous exercise. He was barely even out of breath.
In a mutter too quiet for her son to hear, Bella reminded herself she was carrying extra weight.
"No, Mum's gonna cross it herself this time," Harry told him, adding with a sheepish smile, "Dad."
The mushy look on Emmett's face was just plain adorable. Harry had gone through stages of calling Emmett 'Em,' then avoiding calling him by a name altogether and starting every conversation with 'um,' and now he'd moved on to calling him 'Dad.' Their wedding three months ago had been the catalyst. Talk of Bella changing her surname from Swan to McCarty had invited a conversation about what Harry's surname would be. He hadn't been a Hunter like his sperm donor since he bailed, but Bella hadn't considered that he might want to change names with her.
So, on February 14th, 2020, one McCarty and two Swans became three McCartys.
Soon, there'll be four.
As they approached the line, Bella spotted Charlie, Renee, and Harry hanging over the barricades with Emmett's sisters, Brandi and Carmen, and their families. Emmett quickly unzipped his hoodie before taking the phone from Bella so she could follow suit.
As they jogged over the line hand-in-hand and as close to their family as possible, Bella and Emmett laughed at the looks of surprise and excitement on their faces.
They had the tees specially made for this event. Bella's said 'Adding a new workout partner…' and Emmett's finished it off with 'November 2020' and a picture of a cartoon baby in running gear.
By the time they made it to their family, all Bella wanted was to grab their boy and see how he felt about it all. His opinion mattered to her the most.
He all-but pounced on her the second she was within reach, his ear-to-ear grin soothing her initial fears he'd be upset about the pregnancy.
"Are you really having a baby? I'm gonna get a brother or sister?"
Emmett held back the rest of the family with a soft smile for his wife as she crouched and pulled the sonogram image from her pocket.
"We really are," she confirmed, ignoring the excited squeals coming from Renee, Brandi, and Carmen. "How do you feel about getting a baby brother or sister?"
Harry cocked his head, looking between his mum and dad. "Will I have to share my room?"
"No, son," Emmett snickered. "We were actually thinking we might finally give your nan and grandad their flat back and find a house for us to live in, so you and the baby can have your own rooms."
"And KC can have a garden?"
Emmett nodded, smirking. "I guess we could add a garden to the list of requirements."
"Then it's okay." His smile widened as he sighed, stroking the grainy picture of his unborn sibling before tugging his mum and dad in for a group hug. "I thought I was getting my mum to run a marathon to make her feel good about herself, and help make other kids' lives better, but I ended up getting the best life out of it. I get a dad and a baby, all because my dad was a hero and decided to help you over the finish line, Mum."
Bella and Emmett shared love-filled smiles, laughing into their kiss as Harry announced to anyone in the nearby vicinity that his parents were getting kissy so everyone should just look away before the gross sight made them puke.
~ oOo ~
Six months later…November 27th, 2020
Emmett
"Babe, is this a good idea?" Emmett asked, his brows furrowed and his smile pained as he watched Bella heave herself off the sofa.
"Of course, it's a good idea!" She snapped, immediately looking contrite. "Sorry, I'm just nervous."
Emmett took the backpack from her hand and wrapped his arms around her from behind, his large palms spreading over the front of her bump.
Our son.
Finding out they were having a boy, another gorgeous son, had been arguably one of the top three days of Emmett's life. It was only beaten by the day Bella and Harry became McCartys and the day Bella told him she was pregnant. When their son arrived, Emmett was sure that would also be up there.
"I'm not trying to boss you around, babe, but nobody would think any less of you for missing this. You're thirty-eight weeks pregnant for Christ's sake."
Bella sighed and relaxed back against her husband, resting her hands over his. "I've never missed a race, Sarge, and this is his last one before he switches schools. I need to be there for him."
Even though he hated the thought of Bella forcing herself out into the harsh winter wind to watch Harry race today, Emmett knew he was fighting a losing battle; he knew she was right, too.
Their house search had taken way longer than either of them expected and they were only just this week collecting the keys to their new home. Instead of moving from Bella's parents' into another house in Eastbourne, they'd fallen in love with an adorable three-bedroomed terraced house. It was semi-detached with three good sized bedrooms, a long garden for KC, Harry, and later, the new baby to run around in, and had more than enough space for their needs. It was also only a five-minute walk from the beach and a short bus ride into the centre of Brighton.
He knew moving away from Bella's mom and dad was going to be hard—for her and for Harry—but they were close enough they could visit often; Charlie and Renee already planned to borrow Harry, and the baby once he was old enough, for one whole weekend a month.
A new town meant a new school for Harry. The little boy had been unsure at first, even though he loved the house just as much as his parents, until Bella promised he could have his friends over for sleepovers and that she'd spoken to his friends' parents and they'd offered to have him over, too.
"All right, well, we need to get a move on if we're gonna catch the beginning of the race."
Tilting her head back to kiss Emmett's beard-covered cheek, Bella smiled. "Thank you. I know you're worried about me, but I'll be fine. I'll take my camping chair and keep the jumping around to a minimum."
Cocking a thick brow, Emmett warned, "You mean not jump at all?"
A smirk played on Bella's lips as she stepped away from him and offered a cheeky salute. "Yes, Sir!"
Chuckling and booping her on the nose, Emmett murmured "brat" under his breath and set about fetching Bella's flat-heeled boots; they were the only shoes she felt comfortable wearing this late in the pregnancy.
~ oOo ~
An hour later, they stood side-by-side as Harry sprinted his way to the finish line in first place. Due to the weather, the race had been moved to the indoor track, giving Emmett one less thing to worry about. Throughout Bella's pregnancy, he'd turned into a gigantic worrywart. Everything was terrifying, from the sickness that had plagued her on and off for the past nine months to the way her moods fluctuated from unicorns-and-rainbows happy to depths-of-hell angry within seconds.
He'd seen more tears in the past nine months than the entire rest of his life.
"Oh my gosh, he won!" Bella turned to him with a giddy, rosy-cheeked smile, her dark eyes glistening with unshed—as yet—tears. "Harry won!"
"I know, babe," Emmett chuckled pulling her to him for a hug around her bump. "I saw."
Gently socking him in the stomach, Bella turned back to cheer and wave her Harry McCarty banner some more; their son's cheeks flamed when he heard her cheering and gave her a shy wave.
By the time he wandered over with a bottle of water in his hand, Emmett had managed to calm Bella down—until she got her arms around Harry.
"Oh, H, I'm so proud of you!" She babbled, brushing his sweaty hair off his forehead. His chocolate mane had long-since grown back and he'd even had it cut recently, to stop it impairing his vision when he ran.
Remission suited him. He was over a year cancer free, happy, healthy, and more excited to have a baby brother than anyone could have predicted.
Embarrassed by all her fussing, Harry slid out of her arms and ran over to join the second and third place runners so they could receive their medals. As she watched him grin winningly at the woman hanging the medal around his neck, Bella felt a ripple of pain spreading across her abdomen. Brushing it off, she didn't say a word to Emmett.
Nor did she mention the pains that repeated in increasingly short intervals throughout the next few hours as they took Harry for ice cream. She wasn't naïve enough to think they weren't contractions; she'd already gone through this once, of course. Bella just knew Emmett and Harry were going to turn into big worry-warts as soon as they found out she was in labor. The less time she had to spend with them fussing over her, the better.
But by six p.m., there was no hiding it.
"Are you okay, Mum?" Harry asked with a frown. "You look like KC let one rip, but I can't smell anything."
Whimpering a laugh, she clutched her bump and tried not to let on just how painful this contraction actually was. It stole her breath and held her captive for long enough that Harry had fetched Emmett from upstairs by the time she could speak again.
"Bella, what's wrong?" He dropped to his knees in front of her, cradling her face in one large hand and squeezing her knee with the other.
Raising her watery eyes to his panicked gaze, she managed a weak smile and a heavy sigh. "I think our new recruit is about ready to enlist."
~ oOo ~
At nine forty-six, after eight hours of contractions, Emmett caught his newborn son as Bella sagged back against the cushions and panted, "Is he okay?"
Gazing down at the red, squalling baby boy, Emmett couldn't stifle his mile-wide, watery-eyed, dimpled grin. "Ten fingers and ten toes, love. And he's definitely got his brother's lungs."
Laughing weakly, Bella mustered the energy to lift her head. The sight that greeted her filled her heart to bursting. Her handsome Mountain-Man with their tiny boy.
"Five pounds, nine," the nurse announced once Emmett had cut the cord and relinquished him to be cleaned up and weighed.
Tiny, indeed.
Once Bella had been cleaned up, too, and they'd been moved into their new digs to settle in for the night, Emmett cocked his brow at her. "Shall I go get the boy? He's probably tearing the place apart."
Snorting, Bella stroked her youngest son's downy soft blond hair. "Yeah, go grab him. Mom and Dad are just as impatient."
Emmett stepped out to fetch Charlie, Renee, and Harry, leaving Bella alone with their son for the first time since his birth. Gazing down at his face, she felt tears tumbling over her cheeks. She'd set out to run a marathon and found the love of her life. Because of her boy inspiring her to try, to give the marathon a go, Bella had found Emmett and they now had a wonderful life together with their son—now sons—and their dog.
She'd set out to earn some money for the hospital and ended up getting so much more.
Harry's voice in the hallway preceded his arrival; he rushed into the room, but stopped at the foot of the bed with a small, bashful smile. "How are you, Mum? Did it hurt?"
Humming, she waved him closer and carefully shuffled to give him room on the bed beside her as Charlie, Renee, and Emmett waited by the door, smiles on their faces as they watched the brothers meet for the first time.
"It did, but it was worth it. Harry, this is your little brother."
Harry's smile couldn't have been wider as he reached out to stroke his brother's hand. The baby woke, wide, milky blue eyes finding Harry's face as his tiny fingers wrapped around his big brother's thumb.
"He's cute," Harry whispered. "Do I still get to pick his name?"
Glancing at Emmett, Bella smiled and nodded. "Yeah, unless it's Deadpool. Oh, and it needs to go with 'Jamie' as a middle name."
Throughout the entire pregnancy, Emmett and Bella had struggled with choosing a name. Neither of them wanted something overly traditional or boring, but they couldn't settle on an unusual name, either. The only thing they did know was that they were going to honor Jamie, the friend Emmett lost.
With a soft huff of laughter and an eyeroll, Harry shook his head. "Nah, he doesn't look like a Deadpool. I was kinda thinking…Dash? You know, 'cause it's like running…and it's not common. I've never met anyone with that name before."
Peering at her baby, Bella memorized his tiny features and murmured the name to test it out. "Dash McCarty."
The baby blinked his long eyelashes at Harry, cooing when the boy tickled his blanket-wrapped foot.
"Dash Jamie McCarty sounds good, babe," Emmett supplied softly, crossing the room to perch on her other side. He wound a muscular arm around her shoulders, tickling Harry's hear to make him laugh. "We can call him 'DJ' for short."
With her little family all together on the bed, Bella sighed contentedly and rested her head against Emmett's shoulder. "Baby DJ," she whispered, a fat tear catching in the curve of her smile. "Dash Jamie McCarty sounds perfect."