Part Nine

Amelia
"I'm only thirty five weeks..." Arizona says from the passenger seat of my car. "It's too soon!"

"Hey, he's gonna be fine," I say, grabbing her hand. "Five weeks is nothing," I say in an attempt to calm the pregnant woman down, but I can tell she's still scared of what could happen. Her breathing speeds up as she experiences another contraction. God, this kid is coming fast. It's only been about one minute since her last one.

"Jesus Christ, I feel like I'm going to have this kid in your car!" She exclaims. Fortunately, the hospital's only two minutes away, otherwise I'd be in total agreement with her.

"We're really close to the hospital now," I reassure her. "Exhale for as long as you can, it'll help with the pain," I instruct, quickly. She closes her eyes and follows the advice.

"Amelia, I... I want to push," she says as we pull on to the parking lot. Beads of sweat have started to roll down her face.

"Okay... okay..." I speedily turn the engine off and unbuckle my belt. "Wait here!" I say, getting out of the car as quickly as I can.

"Where do you think I'm going to go?!" She yells, sarcastically, as I close the door. I run towards the hospital and commandeer the nearest wheelchair. I rush back to the car and help Arizona into it. Then, I rapidly move us into the hospital and grab Meredith.

"Page Dr Ryan, right now!" I demand. "I'm taking her up to O&G," I explain as I wheel Arizona towards the elevator.

"Hi, I'm gonna go ahead and assume you're Arizona," Meredith says as we start our ascent.

"Uh huh," Arizona replies, agitatedly.

"Do you want me to contact the adoptive parents?" My sister-in-law asks, gently. Arizona nods her head quickly. "And, your birthing partner?"

"Teddy Altman... Please!" She says as the elevator doors open at our destination. Dr Ryan is already there waiting for us.

"Miss Robbins, come right this way and we'll examine you," he says, with a relaxed smile.

"No time... he's nearly here," she says, frantically.

As we get her into a hospital gown and onto the bed, I can't help but think how strong she's being. I haven't heard her scream once, but I know how much pain she's in. She seems to be putting all of her energy into making sure this little boy arrives safely.

Dr Ryan goes to start his examination, but his eyebrows immediately shoot to his hairline.

"Wow, you're right," he says, surprised. "This baby is coming now!"

Suddenly, Arizona grabs my arm and holds on tightly. She looks incredibly vulnerable. Like she might break if I leave.

"Can-can you stay until Teddy gets here?" She asks with pleading eyes. "P-please?"

"Of course," I say, immediately. I pull up a seat next to her and hold her hand. She squeezes my fingers together as she starts her first push.

...

Teddy
Arizona is in labour. Actual labour. It's taken about twenty minutes for me to get here, I hope I'm not too late! I rush into her room and pale at the sight before me. She's completely drenched in sweat, and her face is twisted in pain as she attempts to push an actual human through her vagina. I shake my head and move closer to the bed.

"Oh, my God, Zo! How are you doing this?" I ask, amazed by her strength.

"Not what I want to hear right now, Teddy!" She shouts at me.

"Right..." I say, realising my insensitivity. "Hey," I smile briefly at Amelia. "Thanks for looking after her."

"No problem," she replies, standing so I can take her place. "I'm gonna be right outside, okay?" She says. Arizona nods quickly before she starts pushing again. She crushes the bones in the hand she's holding onto. Ow, ow... OW! That's definitely going to leave a bruise!

"Baby's crowning," Arizona's OB/GYN says, calmly. Looks like I got here just in time! My friend collapses back into the pillows, and looks at me, helplessly.

"He's nearly here," I tell her with a smile.

"I'm really tired," is all she can reply with.

"I know, honey. I know," I say, sympathetically stroking her hair. "Not long now... Just one more big, big push, okay?"

"Okay..." she whispers, closing her eyes to prepare herself for the final part of the delivery. She starts her last push as the doctor counts down from ten. When he reaches zero, the baby is out and a loud cry fills the room.

I can't help but stare at him. He's really little but really strong, flailing his arms and legs about already, and showing off his lungs with those classic newborn cries. I feel a huge grin spread across my face aimed at the little character.

I turn to my best friend who is tiredly watching the doctor's every move. He does a few initial checks on the infant then puts him on the scale to measure his weight.

"Good news, Miss Robbins," the doctor starts. "It looks as though the baby will be able to go home with his parents today," he says with a smile. A sigh of relief runs through Arizona's body. "He's very healthy, a bit small of course, but healthy: five pound four ounces, a regular heartbeat, and his lungs sound great," he says, swaddling the baby in fresh blankets. "Would you like to hold him?"

"No," she says, quickly. "Can I just... Can I see him?"

"Of course," the doctor says, holding out the baby for me to take. I look at the tiny boy and then the doctor. He motions again for me to take him to show Arizona. Shakily, I take the newborn from him and study the little guy. He's like a miniature, male Arizona. He has a small amount of very fair hair on top of his head, and the same button nose. I'm fairly convinced I've just seen some dimples in those cheeks as well. I lower him in a way that Arizona can get a good look at him. There's a few uneasy moments of silence before a smile makes it's way onto her own face.

"He looks like me," she says through a short, relieved laugh. "He doesn't look like Cohen. He looks like me," she says, fighting back tears, as she looks at me briefly. My chest tightens and I feel myself become emotional. When her eyes dart away awkwardly from the child, I hand him back to the doctor.

"How are you feeling?" I ask my friend.

"Sore, but fine," she smiles, weakly.

"And, how are you feeling... How are you feeling about the baby?" I ask, uneasily. She's been adamant that Ellie and Matt have always been the parents of this child. Of course, everything could change now he's actually arrived.

"He's still theirs," she confirm with a nod of the head.

Arizona
Teddy left about an hour ago to run some errands. She wants to make sure I go home to a clean and well-stocked apartment. Amelia's working a shift, but she's found the time to pop in and out to see how I'm doing. I've mostly been alone, just sleeping and thinking. My emotions are running wild right now, even more so than when I was pregnant. I cry, then laugh at myself, then cry some more. I'm not really sure why I'm laughing... I'm not really sure why I'm crying.

"Arizona," I hear Ellie's voice. She enters the room quickly and sits in the chair next to me. "Are you alright?" She asks, worriedly.

"I'm fine, really," I smile at her. "The doctor's said this would happen," I say indicating to my tears. I push out a breath and try to compose myself. "Have you met him?"

"We have! And, we are so, so in love with him," Ellie beams at me. "God, Arizona, he's... he's just perfect!" She takes my hand and gives me the most appreciative look I've ever received. "His name is Charlie," she reveals.

"He looks like a Charlie," I say with a smile. Suddenly, she wraps me up in a tight hug.

"Arizona... We could never tell you how much this means to us," she whispers. "Thank you."

...

Ellie
Matt has our new baby wrapped up in his arms. I've never seen him so enamoured by anything or anyone before. I flit between signing discharge papers and beaming proudly at my husband and son.

When it's Matt's turn to sign, I take the baby from him. He's so tiny, I'm terrified I'm going to break him. I handle him with ultimate care. As he becomes a little fussy from the transition from his father to me, I start to bounce him, carefully. He soon stops and snuggles back into my arms. From the corner of my eye, I spot a short, pale, brunette doctor watching me. Maybe I haven't quite mastered this...

"How does this look?" I ask, with a nervous smile. "Am I doing it right?" Her eyes widen with shock for a moment, as though I've caught her doing something she shouldn't. But, then her face wears a comforting smile.

"You're doing great," she says, encouragingly. "Congratulations," she says, quietly, before rushing off.

Huh... that was weird...

...

Amelia
The boy looks exactly like Arizona. Hopefully, he grows up to have her wonderful personality, too. I enter her room and see her sitting up, reading through a worn-out copy of The Great Gatsby.

"You're incredible, you know that?" I tell her from the doorway. She looks up from her book and shoots me a confused glance. "You completed someone else's family today... Not many people can say that," I say, impressed by her selflessness. She puts the book to one side and brings her hands up to hide her face.

"That's such a nice thing to say," she says through her tumultuous tears. Oh, God. Her hormones are all over the place. Poor Arizona.

"Oh, hey!" I rush to her bedside. "That wasn't supposed to make you cry..." I say, cursing myself for my stupidity. "I'm sorry!"

"Don't be sorry... I needed to hear that," she says, genuinely. "I'm just a little... a little... e-emotional," she sobs out. I take the space next to her, sitting on the bed and wrapping her up in my arms.

"Come here," I say with a short laugh. "You're kinda being a drama queen, Robbins," I say, light-heartedly. This produces the most wonderful laugh from her.

"Shut up!" She says, playfully. As she rests against my shoulder, I press a soft kiss to her forehead.

Arizona tilts her head to look up at me. Our faces are close. Those beautiful blue orbs dart from my eyes to my lips and back again. No... She's not going to, right? She leans in and plants a firm but gentle kiss on my lips. It's brief but amazing. Against my better judgement, I'm able to react by the time of the second kiss. The third comes softly, before she settles back down to my shoulder. I'm completely frozen.

Um... what just happened?