Author's Note: I am just really excited about the fact that you all are enjoying this story. I love all of the review and hearing your opinions! Please keep them coming! Enjoy Chapter 8!
Sitting down across from the counter, Regina watched as Mary Margaret scurried around the kitchen in preparation for the shower later that day. Though the Mayor was not particularly partial to having a party in her home, Mary Margaret had insisted. She claimed that it was something to celebrate; however, Regina was still unsure.
"Is this really necessary? This party?" She asked for about the fifth time that morning.
Mary Margaret simply rolled her eyes. "Yes, Regina. Why are you so bent on not having this baby shower?"
"Because my feet are swollen, my back hurts, I look like a cow and I'm too tired to entertain a bunch of women who really do not want to be here." Regina leaned back in her chair and placed both hands on her bulging stomach.
Mary Margaret stopped for a moment and stared at Regina. "Why would you say that they don't want to be here? Of course they do."
"Be realistic. They are coming because you coaxed them into it. Why would they willingly come here to celebrate my having a child after everything I did to them in the past?"
"Regina, they are coming because they know, just like I do, that you've changed. They do want to get along with you, and I'm sure they would if you just gave them a chance."
Regina stared at the young woman stubbornly before replying submissively, "Fine. I'll give them a chance."
Mary Margaret smirked. "That's all I ask." Returning to the preparations, she changed the subject. "Speaking of chances, have you… had the chance to speak to Hook at all?"
Regina's eyes fell as she bowed her head and thought. In her mind she wanted to say, I've wanted to. More and more, she had wanted to speak to him. That night had been just a shock to her; he had simply barged in and began to ramble like a crazy man. She didn't know how to react in that moment. But as she thought about it, she was a little happy about the fact that Hook wanted to be a father to their son; however, forgiving him was a whole different story.
She wanted to forgive him. More than anything, she wanted to. But there was that part of her, that stubborn part of her that didn't want to forgive him. She wanted to protect herself from getting hurt, protect her son from getting hurt if he decided that what he chose was not what he wanted. She didn't want her heart to break again if he chose to leave for a second time.
"Regina?" Mary Margaret repeated, provoking the woman to snap out of her daze. "Have you?"
"Hmm?" Regina hummed, lifting her head and looking over.
"Have you had the chance to speak to Hook?"
Regina shook her head and answered quickly. "No."
"You think… maybe you should? I mean, the baby is due in a month and he seemed really open to being a part of your son's life. Maybe he'd want to be there when-?"
"Hook is not my concern at the moment." Regina interrupted as she shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "My concern is only for my child."
"Regina, Hook's concern at the moment is for that baby too. He seems very determined to do the right thing."
"I'm just trying to protect my son." Regina replied.
"You sure you're not just trying to protect yourself?"
"No." She replied. As Regina stood slowly she cringed at a slight sharp pain in her back. She sighed and placed a hand to it. Trying to stretch slightly from the cramping feeling, she continued. "I'm going to go upstairs and just rest a bit before everyone arrives."
"You feeling okay?" Mary Margaret stared at Regina nervously.
"Yeah. I'm fine." Regina nodded, smiling through the pain. "My back is just really achy today. Just going to lie down for a while." She said as turned and left the room, the pain finally subduing a little.
0-0-0
Regina lied on the bed and stared at the ceiling before trying to close her eyes and relax. The idea of having this baby shower thing was still rattling in her head. She had just grown to trust the Charmings. What made Mary Margaret think that she was ready to deal with other people?
She rested her hands over her stomach and gently caressed it in the quiet silence as she lied there. This was something she needed, just a restful, peaceful moment alone. Though she enjoyed Mary Margaret's company, having time by herself always relaxed her at stressful times.
But even then, she couldn't completely calm herself. Thoughts about Hook, the baby, the town and everything just continued to flow through her mind. Regina felt another rush of strange pain in her back. She squirmed a bit, trying to find a comfortable position, but the pain didn't cease. She didn't understand what was happening and it began to make her a bit nervous as she moaned quietly at the feeling. As it stopped, Regina rolled to her side, kept her eyes closed and tried to rest. It was just the stress of everything, she assumed. She just had to get her mind off of it. Trying to clear her head and get rid of the pains, she dozed to sleep.
0-0-0
Mary Margaret looked up from the kitchen counter with a smile as she noticed her husband walking into the kitchen. "What are you doing here?" She asked with a little giggle as David wrapped his hands around her waist from behind and than kissed her cheek.
"Just wanted to check up on you before the party. How's everything going?"
"Everything is going great." She replied simply. "You should really go though."
"Why?" David asked confused as his wife turned around and place her hands to his chest.
With a light grin she replied. "Because this is a baby shower. Women only." She patted him on the chest and pecked his lips before turning back to finish what she was doing.
"Fine then." David said playfully. "I can see I'm not wanted here. I'll just take Henry and we'll have our own guys' day."
"You have fun with that." Mary Margaret giggled as David sat across from her at the counter in Regina's kitchen.
After a while David looked around with a sudden realization. "Where's Regina? Pretty sure the guest of honor should be here for her own party."
"She's just upstairs resting before everyone gets here."
"How long has she been up there? I haven't seen her down here the since I arrived."
"A few hours actually. Think I should check on her." Mary Margaret set down what she was doing in the kitchen, wiped her hands and smiled at her husband as she passed him to head up the stairs to Regina's room.
0-0-0
"Regina?" Mary Margaret opened the door to the bedroom slowly and peeked in. But as she notice Regina standing up beside the bed, her hands pressing into the mattress and her head bowed, she could tell that something was wrong. She quickly stepped in and went to Regina whose eyes were shut tight. "Regina, what's wrong?"
Suddenly, Mary Margaret felt the other woman rapidly grab her wrist and squeeze as she gritted her teeth, cringed and moaned softly from the sharp pain that was gradually getting worse. She placed her free hand to the woman's back and rubbed it soothingly as the wave passed with a grateful sigh from the pregnant woman.
Once Regina let go of Mary Margaret's hand, the young woman quickly rushed out of the room and to the top of the staircase. "David!" She yelled frantically.
"What?"
"I need you call everyone and tell the shower is off."
"What? Why?"
"Regina's in labor. I need to get her to the hospital now." At that, David rushed into the other room and began to dial numbers while Mary Margaret returned to Regina's side. She said softly but quickly, "Come on. We have to get you to the hospital."
But as Mary Margaret tried to get Regina to move, she noticed the woman shaking her head and crying, frozen in her place. "No, no, no." She mumbled between her sobbed and painful moans from the contractions.
"Yes. It's time, we have to go."
"No." She continued to shake her head. "I can't do this. I thought I was ready but I'm not. It's too soon. He… he can't be coming now."
"Regina, look at me." Mary Margaret stared seriously as Regina rose her head. "I know you're scared. But this baby is coming whether you like it or not, whether you're ready or not." She became sterner. "Now would you prefer to give birth right here or at the hospital?" She paused for a moment as she watched Regina just continue her sobbing.
"I can't." She cried as another painful wave passed through her. "I can't… be a mother. I never could. I don't want to hurt him. I… I… I can't hurt him."
"You are not going to hurt your baby. You love him and you are going to be a wonderful mother to him. You could never hurt him. I know that." Holding her shoulders firmly, Mary Margaret looked Regina straight in the eyes. "You said that you trusted me once. Didn't you?" She watched as Regina nodded her head and tried to breathe. "Then trust me now when I say you need to calm down and listen to me. Having a panic attack is not going to help you or this baby. Okay? Just breathe. I promise you that everything will be alright. I'll be with you every step of the way, Regina. Just as I have." She put her hand to Regina's upper back, held her hand and led her out of the room. "Let's go."
0-0-0
Regina lied in the hospital bed, refusing to let go of Mary Margaret's hand and squeezing it tightly with every contraction she felt. The pain was excruciating within her back and her abdomen; she never believed she felt pain such as this before in her life. Moaning and trying to breath through it, Regina felt a cold cloth pressed to her forehead. She opened her eyes to stare up at Mary Margaret who was then wiping the sweat from her brow.
Mary Margaret watched as Regina managed a breathless laugh while still enduring the discomfort. "What?" She asked her as she placed the cloth aside.
Regina shook her head. "Just the irony of all of this." She continued to smile. "The one person who I despised all of my life, who I swore to enact vengeance on and who I've tried to kill so many times in the past… is the one person who is helping me through all of this."
Mary Margaret smiled back. "Life is funny that way sometimes."
Regina arched her back slightly at another wave of aching. Through her breath, she replied, "Tell me about it." Shutting her eyes and tightening her grip on the other woman's hand, she uttered a painful sigh.
"Just breathe."
Listening to the advice, Regina let out a slow breath. "I don't know if I can do this." She said quietly.
"Regina, everything will be fine. Premature babies are born all of the time. There's nothing to worry about."
"No, I mean this. What if I mess this up again? Revert to my old self, or begin to abuse my magic again, and push my son away." She asked her, looking up nervously.
Mary Margaret place the cold cloth to the other woman's head and replied, "You won't. You're not alone in this. You have me, David, and Emma and Neal, and Henry. And… if you decide… Hook?"
"Please don't bring that up right now. I don't think this is the right time."
"Regina you're about to give birth to his child. I'm pretty sure there is no better time."
She watched as Regina shut her eyes, ignored her and inhaled deeply through her teeth. She exhaled slowly just as Doctor Whale entered the room. "How are we doing?" He asked Regina.
Eyes remaining closed, she replied bitterly, "How do you think?"
Ignoring the woman's attitude, Whale checked all stats on the baby and its mother. He then stood on the side of hospital bed and pressed his hands the certain areas of Regina's stomach. "Well it looks and feels like you are progressing really well and very quickly I might add." Sitting at the end of the bed and propping Regina's legs up, he continued, "Let's just check to see how far dilated you are and we'll go from there."
Mary Margaret watched as Regina cringed slightly at the uncomfortable feeling. She moaned softly. "God, why is this baby coming so fast?"
Mary Margaret, trying to lighten the mood, joked, "He's almost as impatient as his mother."
Regina opened her eyes and glared at her. "That's not funny."
"You know it is." Mary Margaret laughed.
Interrupting the two, Whale announced, "Nine centimeters dilated, Regina. Not much longer now." Removing his gloves and heading for the door, he continued, "I'll be back in a little while."
Her nerves returning with an accompanied contraction, Regina's moans became slightly louder and her breathing heavier. Not much longer. Any moment now. She could feel the words pounding in her head. This was really happening to her. In a matter of minutes, her life was going to change forever. Even then she wasn't sure whether to be happy about that or to fear it. She didn't want to screw it up again. She didn't want this baby to turn away from her like Henry had before. Yes Henry came back, but maybe this baby wouldn't. She couldn't bear that again. All of that fear began to rise up in Regina as she realized that this was finally happening.
She could feel the tears falling from her eyes as the pain increased through time. It wasn't the physical pain; it was the emotional pain that she felt that was causing her to panic once more. Mary Margaret saw this in Regina; her face told it all. Squeezing Regina's hand reassuringly, Mary Margaret whispered, "I'm right here." And she was. She was always there during the pregnancy, now and she would be there with Regina in the future. If she needed help, she would be there. She watched as Regina cringed through more contractions, though she could tell that she had eased her fear a little. At least for the moment.
Within no more than twenty minutes, Whale returned to the room where he found that Regina's labor had increased and that she was full dilated. "Alright, Regina. This baby is ready for you to push."
Regina opened her eyes and stared up at Mary Margaret and then brought her attention to Doctor Whale. She nodded her head, breathing heavily, sweating, and holding tightly to the other young woman's hand.
"On my count."
Regina listened carefully, and when Whale told her, she lifted her head from the pillow and pushed with all of her might. Her teeth clenched and her eyes tightly closed, Regina's loud moans echoed in the room.
Mary Margaret watched with feelings of empathy and nervousness for Regina. She gripped her hand and placed her other one on her shoulder, being the best support she could be. Glancing over at Doctor Whale as Regina pushed, she noticed a change in his expression. She watched his eyes widen.
"Wait, Regina, I need you to stop."
Mary Margaret watched as Regina crashed her head back down in the pillow, her eyes still closed. She looked to Whale and asked him, "Whale, what is it? What's wrong?"
"We have a problem." He replied.
Regina's eyes shot open and looked to Mary Margaret with so much panic. "What kind of problem?" She asked him in between breaths. "Is he going to be okay?"
0-0-0
David found himself in the waiting room pacing back and forth. His impatience was getting the better of him. Emma, Henry and Neal simply sat down in front of him and watched. There was not much else they could do at the moment.
Averting his eyes from his grandfather, Henry looked over to Emma and asked, "Is my mom okay? It's taking a long time."
Emma, stroking her son's hair back, replied with a smile, "She's fine, Henry. It always takes a long time for a baby to be born."
"Oh." He seemed a bit confused, but quickly changed the subject anyway. "Will we be able to see my little brother?"
Neal chimed into this question, "Well, that all depends, kid. They might not cause your mom is having him so early. The doctors might want to take care of him and your mom before they let us visit."
Before Henry could ask another question, the sound of the Captain's frantic footsteps made their way clear towards them. Out of breath and beyond afraid, the pirate stood before them before attempting to run passed David and into the halls to find Regina.
However, Hook was quickly subdued by David's hand pressed against his chest and holding him back from the doors. "What the hell do you think you're doing here?"
"I called him." Emma stood up and walked over to the two men.
"What? Are you serious?" David looked at Emma with some aggravation.
"His son is being born, David. Of course I called him."
"Regina doesn't want him here."
"That's not entirely her choice. He is the father. If he wants to be here, he has the right to." Emma replied sternly.
Hook smirked at the man. "Listen to your daughter, mate. She's a smart lass."
"You shut up." David shoved Hook back.
"David!"
"Emma, I am respecting Regina's wishes. She is currently in a state where I'm sure she does not want to be dealing with him." David looked at the pirate with complete hatred. He had always had a strong dislike for the pirate, even before the entire mishap with Regina. Perhaps it was the fact that he would constantly flirt with every woman that was near him, including David's wife and daughter.
"All I want to do is help her." Hook stepped back with a more apologetic expression.
"Hook, she doesn't want your help! She's hurt and scared. Last thing she needs is you barging into the delivery room and causing her more stress."
"I told her that I wished to be a part of this."
"No. Actually you didn't." David began to calm himself. He looked over at the rest of the family and his daughter standing right there in front of them. Placing his hand to the pirate's shoulder her said quietly, "Come with me. We need to talk." He led Hook away from the rest of them and stood in a nearby hallway.
"What?"
"Listen, I know that you think what you did was to help her, but you what you did only scared her more. You barged into her home in the middle of the night, sweating and babbling that you wanted to be that child's father. You kept trying to force yourself on her and believed that she would just take you back. You abandoned her for months, Hook."
"But, I thought-"
"You didn't think. She's hurt and broken and now she has to deal with a child. She is not going to forgive you as quickly as you may think. You just… need to give her time."
"I don't have time. If I give her too much time, I shall miss my son's life."
"Then just… take it slow with her. Don't' move too fast or scare her away again. Regina is a stubborn woman. She won't forgive you easily and she most certainly won't open up to you any time soon. But, eventually, if you do this right, she might." David smiled at the confused pirate.
Hook shook his head. "I don't know how to do that. I've never… had to with women before. Pirate thing and all."
"Don't worry." David patted him on the back and grinned. "I'll help you."
"Why would you do such a thing?"
David looked over to the pirate with an even wider grin. "Because when this baby is born, technically, we'll be family. And family helps one another out."
He watched as a smiled appeared on Hook's face as they sat down in the waiting room with the rest of their family.
0-0-0
"What's happening?" Regina asked in a panic as she looked up at Mary Margaret who squeezed her hand a little tighter.
Doctor Whale, still focusing on the birth, replied, "They baby is in a breached position, Regina, which means his feet are coming out first rather than his head."
Regina's eyes widened as she signed nervously. "Is he going to be okay?" She asked in a quiet whine.
"I'm going to have to push him back up and turn him around."
"Wait you're putting him back in?" Regina's voice cracked. "No, no, no! Can't you just yank him out like that or something? Please, don't put him back."
"Regina, I have no choice. There are chances that he with die if I don't do this." Tears in her eyes, nervous and afraid, Regina nodded her head. Though the pain was excruciating, she couldn't lose her baby. Whale looked to her and warned, "This is going to hurt, Regina. Brace yourself. On my count. One… two…"
Regina tried her best to brace herself for the pain. On the count of three she suddenly felt the intense pressure and agonizing pain. She couldn't help but scream and cry. Regina's scream echoed throughout the room and out into the halls. As the pain subdued, she felt herself lie back on the pillow keeping her eyes shut, sobbing loudly. She listened to her friend whispering in her ear, "It's done, Regina. It's all done. Everything is fine."
"Alright." Whale looked up to Regina. "Now that the baby is in position, I need you push."
Regina shook her head and replied in between her cries, "I… can't."
"You have to, Regina. This baby can't stay in much longer." Whale said loudly through all of the commotion throughout the room.
Mary Margaret watched as Regina was ready to give up. She continued to shake her head and cry loudly. "Come on." Mary Margaret whispered. "We didn't go through all of this for nothing, Regina. I know you want to see this baby. You're almost there. Just grip my hand." She watched as the panicked woman opened her eyes and looked up with so much fear and pain. She was far beyond scared, but what Mary Margaret said was right. She wanted her son. Mary Margaret noticed her shake her head and then look to Whale who was already beginning to count.
Regina pushed with all the strength she had left. Her teeth clenched, sweet poured from her forehead and brow, and she let out a loud scream before falling back and finally being able to breathe. But she opened her eyes instantly and looked over to where they brought him. But, her face was not filled with joy. She looked to Mary Margaret again with panic in her eyes. "Why isn't he crying?"
Regina watched terrified as the doctors surrounded her newborn so that she could not even see him lying there in the table. They worked diligently as she stared anxiously. Suddenly, the loud screeching cries of the baby were heard, and Regina finally let out a sign of relief. He was finally here after so many hours, painful feelings and fearful moments. She watched as Doctor Whale wrapped the baby up in a small white blanket before picking him up and placing him into a small carrier where he would be taken to ICU.
"He's so small." Regina whispered as she watched him wiggle and cry within the small carrier. Though she only had the chance to see him for a moment, it was all she needed to fall in love with him. She watched as the nurses rolled the carrier away. She knew that he was going to be alright.
Doctor Whale walked to Regina with a smile. "Congratulations. You did well."
"Is he okay?" Mary Margaret looked to Whale with tears also on her face.
"Yes. He is perfectly healthy and fully developed. It took us a little longer than expected to get the little guy to breath and cry, so I wanted him to be sent to ICU immediately just so he's stabilized and has time to grow a bit more before you can take him home."
Regina looked to him concerned. "When can I see him?"
"I'll have one of the nurses come to get you when he is stabilized and when you are rested."
"Thank you." Regina replied, still out of breath as he exited the room.
Instantly after he left, Regina felt Mary Margaret hug her joyfully. "You did it! I'm so happy for you! He's here and he's so beautiful, Regina."
Regina just smiled. She looked to her and kept her grip on her hand. "Thank you." She replied, "For everything. I don't think I could have made it through this without you. So, thank you."
"I'm always here for you, Regina." Mary Margaret smiled. "So, would you like me to get the family?"
"I think… I need to just rest a bit before I have any visitors. It's been a long day." Regina sighed with a laugh.
"Alright." Mary Margaret nodded as she rubbed her hand on Regina's shoulder before heading to the door. She turned around commented before leaving. "Congratulations."
Well that was intense! But yay! The baby is born! Next chapter we get to find out his name, we get see Regina hold him for the first time and we get to see how she and Hook will play out.
I'm sorry in advance if the next chapter is not posted right away. I'm actually moving into college this week and getting all settled in, so I might not have the chance to write.
