Chapter 2.

"I can walk you know." Looking towards Kate who was currently behind her daughter rolling her eyes he sighs. She couldn't make things easy could she?

"You either go in a wheelchair or not at all." Glaring across the room she hadn't had a hysterectomy or a c-section so why all the fuss? Okay yes she had surgery but that didn't matter what did matter was that she got to NICU. Still she knew he wasn't going to give in easy nor did she think she'd win the argument. Pushing her hands into the bed she twists her legs out of the bed, winching as she moves. But regardless of how careful she was he couldn't help but worry and fuss. She needed rest not wandering around the hospital but he understood her need to go. He could hardly deny her seeing their baby could he? Suggesting she waited until later after she rested or tomorrow was just not going to be worth it.

"Seriously Duffy be careful." Stepping forward he offers his hands for her to grab as she slowly manages to get off the bed and to her feet. She takes a hold of Charlie's hands, not having much strength just as her mum comes behind her with that darn wheelchair. Giving in, knowing she didn't have the strength to fight them, she allows Charlie to help her sit back down gasping slightly as she bends.

"Stop worrying. Can we just go? please." Her voice was still weak, the exhaustion she felt with everything she'd been through still strong but she wasn't going to let it beat her.

"No I can't stop worrying, you just gave birth and had emergency surgery Duffy." Leaning back in the chair she lets out a breath, trying to ignore the pain been out of bed was causing.

"Yeah Yeah. Can we just go?"

Wheeling her forward now in NICU as expected her tears began to fall once more despite the fact the consultant had just explained how well she was doing and in a day or two she'd be out of the ward. She was still unable to breathe unassisted or eat but her temperature was doing much better but the fact she needed help at all was enough to have Duffy in tears. Now with her in her arms a fresh outburst of tears started once more.

"This is all my fault." Confusion filled her mother standing at her side. How on earth could all this be her fault? Whereas Charlie had a strong suspicion he knew where this was heading causing his own guilt to sky rocket as the memory of him blasting off at Josh whilst she was in labour returned.

" How can you be at fault love? This just sometimes happens, you know that." Her eyes firmly on her tiny daughter, all 4.7lbs of her, she just couldn't meet her mums eye.

"If I'd given up work this wouldn't have happened." Unable to comfort her despite know realising this wasn't her fault if anything his inability to pick a house probably caused this over doing an extra three hours at work. But he couldn't find the words leaving it to Kate to try to speak some sense into her daughter, not before shooting a look towards Charlie.

"Don't be so ridiculous Lisa. Nothing you did or didn't do caused this. She'll be fine, home before you know it." Charlie's silence on the topic was only encouraging her guilt and blame, nothing her mum could say was going to help.

"I'd agree if I had a desk job but I don't and yesterday was hellish. We were too short staffed, I broke the rules. I was in and out of resus and cubicles never mind that I stayed way over my shift. I felt dreadful this morning , I should have rested today but no I still knew better. How is this not my fault?" Finding his voice at last he gets to his knees to face his partner eye to eye.

"Listen to me Duffy, this is not your fault. I know I wasn't happy about you working but this probably would have happened regardless. If anything I put you under too much stress with the move. We can spend hours blaming ourselves but it won't help. Your mum is right she is going to be perfectly fine you just need to focus on getting better yourself."

It was some time later before he'd managed to get her back to her own ward for some much needed rest by which time Kate had long since gone home for some rest herself. Now on his own he considered what to do, get some sleep like Duffy or go back and spend time with his daughter? He was about to go back to his daughter, still without a name when Peter and Megan entered his head. Walking towards his office he was unsure just what they'd been told or how much Andrew had been informed, neither his or Kate's head were really screwed on right earlier on. Not to mention he felt like he owed Andrew a big thank you, he could have easily made things a lot harder today and to be honest he wouldn't have blamed him. It couldn't have been easy for him. Thankfully it was Andrew that answered the phone and not Fiona, someone neither himself or Duffy had warmed to yet.

"Hello?" His voice was distracted, one eye firmly on Megan who'd fallen asleep in the living room.

"Hello Andrew. It's Charlie." Still keeping one eye on his sleeping daughter he tried to pay a bit more attention to the person on the other end of the phone.

"Ah. Everything alright?" Taking a seat in the quiet office he thinks back through the day. Alright was not the word he'd use.

"Yes, well as much as possible. I just wanted to thank you for taking the kids." He wasn't sure how to take that if he were honest.

"That's good...Well they are my children Charlie."

"No I didn't mean it like that. It's just this wasn't the plan." Taking a seat himself now he sighs, understanding what he meant. He was right anyway, it wasn't easy to know your soon to be ex wife, someone he'd been married to for years and had kids with, was been rushed into hospital and it wasn't his place to be there for her anymore. Never mind the fact that the cause of it was because she was pregnant with the guy she'd cheated on him baby, conflicting feelings just didn't cover it. But at the same time all this had made him realise that it still didn't come close to what he'd put her through. She'd only cheated once and got caught out, he'd done it for years with her knowing and putting up with it.

"No I know what you mean. Charlie seriously it's fine I caused her a lot more pain than she caused me. I hope you are all alright. The kids are fine, I've explained that because the baby is early that she'll need a little help so they know when they see her. I think Kate is taking them tomorrow."

"I'm still grateful. Yes she did say something about taking them up for a while. Hopefully she'll be out of NICU by then. I best get back before she realises I've gone. Thanks again."