Hope you enjoy this one. Please R&R. Thanks xx

8 months later.

Jac was sitting at the nurses' station on Darwin, behind the desk, writing notes in a patients file and observing scans on the computer screen. A few moments later, somebody approached the desk in front of her and as she lifted her head up, she couldn't believe who it was.

"Michael! Hi… I haven't seen you since… Florida, I think, right?" Jac exclaimed.

"Yeah, sorry, since that time, I've already been to Florida twice again, and we've been busy as hell on AAU, I couldn't make time to come and say hello, I'm sorry…" Michael explained.

"No it's fine, well I haven't contacted you either so… anyway how are things?" Jac asked.

"Great… the kids are coming back to Holby," Michael replied, with a smile on his face.

Jac couldn't believe the news, "that's…. wonderful…" she uttered.

"Hey uh…. I just came by to hand these notes to Ms Effanga, she's been doing some CT work on AAU, could you pass them on? Please?" Michael asked, politely.

"Yeah, fine, don't worry…" Jac answered back, as she took hold of the notes.

"You're the best… see you around…" Michael told her smiling, as he winked at her. Jac smiled back and sat there watching him walk away. Just seeing him again, evoked feelings from the past. She decided. She had to tell him the truth… the whole truth.

…

At half past one, it was time for Jac's break. She bought a tea and decided to go breathe some fresh air, outside but from the back side of the hospital. She was looking forward to some quiet time by herself, without any distractions, to think.

She walked outside, but as she looked around to see if she could find somewhere to sit down, she saw Michael a few feet away, alone, smoking a cigarette.

"Hey…" she began as she walked up to him. "Didn't know you smoke…"

"Hey Jac…" he said as he turned and saw someone standing next to him. But he had to give her another look, her huge baby bump caught his eye.

"And I didn't know you were building a family…" he added. He hadn't noticed her that morning, since she was sitting behind the desk.

"I asked you first…" Jac told him, trying to avoid answering his question.

"Well just occasionally, in times of stress… kids are supposed to arrive this week but Annalese told me, there's been a delay and they'll be here in the next few days…so yeah, life couldn't be better…" he said, ending sarcastically, as he inhaled another breath of smoke.

"Oh I'm sorry to hear that…" she commented.

"So, what about you?" he asked her, pointing at her belly with the cigarette in between his fingers, before he let it go on the road and crushed it underneath his foot. He thought it wasn't appropriate to smoke beside a pregnant lady, even though they were outdoors.

"Uh… yeah… wasn't expecting this actually…" she told him, as she held her belly with her hands. She tried to zip up her grey hoodie on her deep blue scrubs, but she couldn't hide the truth. She couldn't hide it anymore.

"Well… hope you and whoever you're with, will be happy, congratulations…" Michael added.

Since Florida, Jac had become a bit close to Michael, more than she was to anyone else, so she thought there was nothing wrong, if only Michael knew the truth.

"Well actually… it's just me… there's no one else around…" Jac said slowly.

"Oh, so he just left you? That's a shame… listen if you ever need anything, just tell me…" Michael offered, as the good friend he was.

"Right, thanks…. Look… Michael, there's something I need to tell you…" Jac blurted out.

But just as she was about to share what was on her mind, Michael's phone went off.

"Yeah, Spence," Michael answered his phone, "Okay I'll be right there…"

"Sorry, I have to go, it's an emergency on AAU… whatever it is, it can wait, right?" he told her as he hung up.

"Yeah sure…" Jac replied, stunned that something had to pop up at that particular moment and interrupt everything.

"I'll catch up with you later…" he said as he turned, almost running to get down on AAU.

'No Michael, it can't wait any longer…' she told herself, as she was left alone.

…

Later that night, Jac took a shower and decided to make a cup of tea, and get to bed early. She was feeling tired than ever these days; she was getting bigger every day, she only had 3 weeks to go. And today, she was feeling a bit different. She felt slight pain, but she just assumed it was the baby moving. She hadn't felt anything since that morning, so she thought everything was okay.

As she poured boiling water from the kettle in her favourite mug, she heard the doorbell. She wasn't expecting anyone. She checked who it was through the camera, and realised it was someone familiar.

"Michael, Hi…" she told him as she opened the front door.

"Hey…uh… hope I didn't wake you up, I'm sorry I know its late, but I just finished my shift and I thought I'd come check up on you…" he told her, standing in the doorway.

"No, it's fine… but I'm not a little girl you know…" she told him.

"Okay…. I'll leave and see you tomorrow then…"Michael joked, as he turned to leave.

"No, come in, you can stay," as she grabbed him by the arm and led him inside.

He followed her inside and he soon made himself comfortable on her sofa in her combined kitchen and living area.

"Hmm, nice place you got here…" he complimented her house, as he looked around.

"Thanks… I was making tea, would you like anything? Tea, coffee? Or a drink?" Jac offered.

"Well since you're offering, a nice, warm cup of tea would be nice, thanks" Michael replied.

"Wow! Is this you?!... and Joseph?!" he asked, astonishingly as he held a photo frame, he found on the side table beside the sofa. It was a picture of Jac in a swimsuit by the pool. She looked really young.

That was the only picture of her she had in her living room, so she knew what he was talking about, "Yeah, that was taken when Joseph and I went to Dubai…"

"You and Joseph have been to Dubai? Heard you two were a thing once…" Michael commented.

"Yeah we went looking for Faye… kind of a long story…" implying she didn't want to talk about it.

Jac soon made another tea and handed him the cup, as she sat down beside him.

"Excuse my…" she told him as she held her dressing gown between her fingers. She was a bit embarrassed in front of Michael but pyjamas were that piece of clothing she felt most comfortable in, while being pregnant lately.

"No, it's okay… I don't mind…" Michael replied as he sipped his tea.

Jac drank her tea, and both of them fell silent.

"So…uh… you're willing to do this all by yourself?" Michael asked her, about what she had told him that morning. He had the idea that her boyfriend had left her when he found out about her pregnancy.

She felt a sharp pain across her lower abdomen, and decided to keep her mouth shut about it.

"Well I'll try…" she responded, trying to change the subject.

But like two minutes later, she felt the pain again. She couldn't take it any longer.

"Um, would you excuse me for a bit?" she told him as she got up and headed to the bathroom.

…

Michael got up from the sofa and took both empty mugs into the kitchen.

Jac on the other hand, turned on the tap and washed her face with cold water. She felt the pain again, she couldn't keep straight this time, she almost fell to the floor. But it only lasted for two minutes and she felt okay again. But things were getting worse. She felt a warm liquid between her legs, and soon realised what this was. She felt the contractions again, this time stronger, which led her to let out a little cry of pain.

Michael thought he heard some noise, and rushed to the bathroom door. He knocked, "Jac, is everything okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine… everything's fine…" she yelled back. Jac soon emerged from the bathroom.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Michael asked her again, he wasn't convinced.

"Yeah, yeah don't worry…" Jac replied, she wasn't feeling anything at the time. But just as she and Michael headed to the living room again, she let out a loud cry of pain this time. The pain was getting worse.

Michael turned around and was shocked to see Jac like that. He rushed to her side and grabbed her from underneath her arms.

"My water's just broke…." She told him, as she bent forward in pain.

"Thought something was up…. Come on… let's get you to the hospital, have you packed your bag?" he didn't let go of her.

"Yeah… it's in the hall… wait so you're taking me to the hospital?" Jac asked him, finally standing up on her own again.

"Well we don't really have a choice here…" Michael told her.

"Okay so you're gonna be driving and I'm gonna be alone in the backseat… what if it wont wait, n you'll have to stop the car anyway?" All crazy thoughts were going through Jac's head.

"Owww…" she felt another strong contraction.

He grabbed hold of her again, "Okay so what do you suggest we do?" he asked confused.

"Call an ambulance, for God's sake!" Jac yelled, "Michael, I need to lie down…" she yelled, grabbing his shoulders firmly.

"Okay, okay, I'm on it…." He let go of her, and sat her down. He moved the coffee table out of the way and made space in the living room. Jac had a spare blanket on the sofa. He placed it on the floor and rested cushions and pillows against the sofa's height.

"Come on, now lie down and press your arms against the sofa, " he told her as he lay her on the floor, with her back resting against the sofa. "Are you comfortable?" he asked her, making sure she had enough support behind her back.

"Yeah, I'm fine…" Jac said between breaths.

"now just breath… and try to calm down…" Michael told her as he took out his phone to call an ambulance.

"Ambulance please… yeah uh… my… uh… wife is about to deliver, like now… try to hurry… 950 Kings' Cross, thanks" Michael ended the phone call.

"Oh so I'm your wife now?" Jac asked him, trying to take her mind off everything.

"So what did you want me to tell them? It was the fastest way to tell them to hurry!... uh where do you keep warm blankets and a first aid box, just in case?" Michael asked her.

"upstairs, first room, top cupboard…" she replied, trying to breath and keep calm.

At her words, Michael ran upstairs as fast as he could and got essential stuff the paramedics may need.

"Where is that damn ambulance?!" Michael was starting to lose his patience. He ran to the front door and opened it slightly, so the paramedics could walk in straight away.

"Michael!" Jac yelled from the other room. Michael ran to Jac's side in the living room.

"I need to push!" Jac shouted, tying her hair into a bun.

"That's impossible, it has only been like half an hour since you've gone into labour!" Michael couldn't understand.

"I said, I need to push, I can feel it!" Jac yelled at him.

Michael rolled his eyes, "Okay… don't take this wrong way, I'll check you over as a doctor and not as your friend…" he told her, as he took off his jacket and observed her.

"how much?" Jac asked him, as he checked.

"I'd say 7 to 8 cm…" Michael added.

"This baby…. Is coming now!" Jac cried in pain.

"Are you serious?! We can't do this here! The ambulance hasn't arrived yet!" Michael could not believe this was happening.

"Oh, we're both doctors for God's sake! Don't tell me you don't know how to deliver a baby!" Jac shouted at him.

"Yeah, but the last time I stepped into a delivery room was back when I was in med school!" Michael knew what to do, but still it wasn't his area of speciality.

Jac couldn't take it any longer, she grabbed his shirt from his neck and pulled him towards her, "Listen to me…. We're in this together… you've got to help me, Michael… please…" she was almost crying.

When he looked at her face, he felt sorry for her. He had to help her. "Okay fine… let's do this…" Michael said as he observed her between her legs again.

"Can you see the head?" Jac asked.

"Yeah, I can see it…" he told her. He had to use his hands now.

"Owwww….what the hell are you doing?" Jac screamed, he hurt her.

"Sorry, I'm trying to take the cord from around the baby's neck… if you tried to push, it would've suffocated…" Michael explained, "okay, it seems fine now, are you ready?... on 3…"

Jac nodded in approval. She followed Michael's instructions, "1, 2 and 3…" Jac held her knees and pushed as hard as she could.

"Okay… stop…you're almost there but it's stuck at the shoulders…. Try again on the next contraction…" Michael instructed.

Jac did as Michael said, and with two more pushes, it was safely delivered. Michael was ready to catch the baby in his hands, "It's a boy!" he exclaimed while smiling at Jac.

"Ah, really?!... wait why isn't he crying?" Jac started to worry.

"Wait I'm trying to get his breathing rhythm sorted…" he told her as he cleaned his nasal passages, and finally loud cries filled the room.

"Go to mama…" he smiled at him, as he passed him over to Jac. While Jac held her son in a warm blanket, Michael clamped the cord with tools he found in Jac's first aid box and cut it, waiting for the paramedics to arrive and deliver Jac's placenta.

"He's adorable…" Michael told her, smiling at him. Jac couldn't help it, she started crying.

"He saw his daddy first…." She said with a tear rolling down her cheek.

"Huh?..." he asked, smiling, confused.

Jac crying replied, "He's yours Michael… he's your son… he's our son…"

And Michael, stunned at the news, looked at Jac confused, and looked again at the new born in his mother's arms...

To be continued...