After eight hours of long, hard labor, Reba finally got to hold her precious little baby in her arms. She pulled back the blanket, expecting to see her and Brock's new addition, but instead saw a tiny devil with horns. It reached out for her, crying Mama! but before it could touch her, Reba woke up from her dream to a knock on her bedroom door.
She opened her eyes to a dark room. Brock was snoring loudly next to her and as she ran a hand over her stomach, she was relieved to learn that she was still pregnant.
The knocking on the door continued and Reba remembered locking it to prevent any peeping Toms. She threw the covers off of her and swung her legs over the side of the bed, going to the door. She opened it to see Henry standing there in his Power Rangers pajamas, sniffling.
Reba bent down and took his hand. "What's wrong, bud?" She asked softly.
"I had a bad dream." Reba noticed the tears that streaked down his face as she moonlight from her bedroom window hit it.
"Aw, I'm sorry, bud. I had a bad dream, too."
He looked up at her. "About what?"
"It doesn't matter." She took his hand and led him in the room. "Do you want to sleep in between me and your daddy for the rest of the night?"
He nodded and climbed into the bed, making Brock stir. Reba slid in next to Henry as Brock rolled over.
"What's going on?" He asked tiredly.
"Henry had a bad dream."
"Oh. You alright, bud?"
The five-year-old snuggled under the sheets. "Yeah."
Brock rolled towards his son, making him roll next to Reba. "Good thing you're here. I was just in the mood for a Henry burrito."
Henry giggled and Reba had to smile. She missed having the little ones climb in bed with her and Brock after a bad dream. Hopefully, the new baby would do the same when it grew up as well. It was one thing she remembered Cheyenne, Kyra, and Jake all doing at some point in their life and she really cherished those precious moments.
During the next few weeks, Reba and Brock began planning for the baby a little more. After Henry went back to Arkansas, the spare bedroom was decorated with a baby circus theme and a small get-together was planned for the family. Reba didn't want a big baby shower, but she thought a nice family gathering would be nice.
On the day of the get-together, Reba decorated the living room with pink and blue streamers, excited to share the news of the baby's gender with everyone. Her belly had protruded a bit more in the weeks of planning for the arrival and it was evident she was with child.
At around six o'clock, after Van, Cheyenne, Kasey, and Elizabeth had arrived, Jake had come downstairs and Brock had come home, Reba was in the kitchen, placing the cake she had ordered on a platter so she could carry it into the living room easier.
"What are you doing?" Brock asked, walking in with his hands in his pockets. "Get away from the cake, Reba."
She looked up at him with an annoyed look. "I'm not going to eat it. Yet..."
He smiled and shook his head. "You excited to find out what the baby is?"
"Well, yeah! I can hardly wait!"
When they went to get an ultrasound done the week before, the technician pointed out that the baby had grown enough to tell what the gender was. Reba asked them to put the answer in an envelope to which she brought to the local bakery. She asked them to look at the envelope and make the inside of the cake either pink or blue, depending on what the baby was. When everyone cut into the cake, the answer would be revealed.
"Well, everybody else is getting antsy, too. Want to do it now?"
"You get the plates, I'll carry the cake."
She took off into the living room and Brock laughed as he grabbed the paper plates, trailing behind her.
"Okay, everybody!" She told her family. "Come here so we can all see when I cut the cake."
"Any bets as to what it is?" Van asked, hands in the air.
Reba gave him a look as Jake said, "I've got five bucks on a boy."
"We're not taking bets. It is what it is." Reba held up a cake server. "Ready?"
The whole family gathered around behind Reba as she took a deep breath, carefully slicing into the cake with her eyes closed. She didn't open them until everybody let out a "Whoo!" of excitement. She opened one eye and then the other when she saw what color the cake was. She smiled and turned to face Brock as he wrapped her up in a hug. The rest of the family joined in and they all held onto each other in a big Hart-Montgomery group hug.
"Are you happy?" Brock whispered into Reba's hair. He could feel her shoulders shaking and he realized she was crying. For once in his life, he was glad about that. For these were happy tears. The best kind.
She looked up at him and nodded. "I am. Are you?"
"Of course I am." He looked at his family. "What do y'all think?"
Van spoke first. "Five bucks the kid'll have red hair like Mrs. H."
Brock rolled his eyes. "Whatever color the hair is, she'll be beautiful." He looked at Reba who still had tears in her eyes. "Just like her mama."
What did y'all think the baby would be? I hope none of you guessed it. I wanted it to be a surprise. ;D Please review!