Hello my beautiful readers. I know you probably hate me by now but I would like to try to excuse myself. I've been having some, you could say trouble, with my beta reader. And, besides, I'm currently on vacations on the beach so I haven't been writing that much. I hope you forgive me.
I've decided that I will choose my favorite review every time I publish a chapter. So this first 'review of the week' goes to *drum roll*: Snowyangel17. Thank you for lifting my ego like that. I was feeling kinda depressed (I even thought of abandoning this fanfic to be honest) so thank you so much.
UPDATE: THIS CHAPTER HAS BEEN EDITED SO WE CAN ALL BREATH EASY AGAIN :D
Spirit Baby
Chapter 12
Dimitri and Rose arrived at Court in the middle of the night (or day, if you're living on human schedule). He drove the two hours from the Ivashkov's house to their home while she slept soundly next to him. Due to her pregnancy, the doctor couldn't prescribe her anything stronger than an Ibuprofen to ease her PSC, so she thought sleeping was a good way to forget her headache for a while. It was in times like this when Rose missed the spirit bond the most; she would have given anything to just slip into her best friend's mind and forgetting about her own problems.
As soon as they arrived, they went straight to the royal compounds; the couple knew Lissa couldn't wait to see her best friend. It didn't matter if it was the middle of the night. They entered the Queen's living room quietly, just to find that both Lissa and Christian were sitting on a couch, waiting for them.
"Rose, I was so worried about you!" exclaimed Lissa and lunged forward to hug her friend. "When Dimitri called and said you were in the hospital, I...I..."
"I know, don't worry, Liss. Both the baby and I are perfect. Well, kinda," Rose answered, embracing the blonde tightly. When she let go of Lissa, Christian opened her arms to her, like he was waiting for a hug too.
"Missed me, Ozera?" she mocked him, but hugged him anyways.
"Who would I bicker with if you were gone?" he replied.
Out of the corner of her eye, Rose saw Lissa greeting Dimitri excitedly, thanking him for taking care of her best friend.
After some more greeting, hugging, and congratulating- after all, Dimitri and Rose had just found out the sex of their baby- Christian asked a question everyone had different answers to.
"So, Rose, when are you going back to work?" If you're going back, he left out.
"As soon as possible; I'm guessing in a few days," said Rose.
At the same time, Dimitri answered:
"The doctor said to rest; in at least a month."
Lissa put her hands on her hips."I don't want you working in a long time. At least not until the baby is born."
Christian looked at the three of them, puzzled. "Who am I supposed to believe now?"
They all started talking at the same time; Rose didn't want to miss work, while Dimitri wanted her to rest (though he understood he couldn't hold her forever) and Lissa just wanted to put her friend in a box for safekeeping and never let go.
"Forget I asked," the King Consort said at last.
"Christian's right," Dimitri agreed. "Let's talk about this in the morning; calmly and after a full night of sleep."
They all agreed (even though Rose wasn't too happy about it) and parted ways.
….
Three days had passed and Rose was feeling restless. She hated feeling useless. Seeing her husband go to work made her feel guilty for leaving Lissa alone. She [capitalize] was tired of lying in her pajamas, eating donuts all day— something she never thought possible. Yes, maybe she had been having headache and nausea during her free days, but she could handle it.
So she called the guardian that had been replacing her and told her she didn't have to do it anymore, dressed up in her uniform and started walking towards the Queen's home. On her way, she ran into her colleague and partner Max Wilson. He was a tall forty-year-old Dhampir with dirty blonde hair. He greatly considered Rose the daughter he never had.
"You're back, Hathaway!" said Max as soon as he saw his fellow guardian walking towards him. "I heard you encountered some Strigoi and got a concussion."
"I did. Hurts like hell," Rose joked. "But now I'm back! I hope you didn't find a permanent replacement for me."
"I wouldn't dare," he laughed. They had worked together— always had the same shifts—for two years and the both of them loved it.
They started walking, chatting about everything that happened at Court while Rose was gone. They talked about how worried everyone was— the Queen, Max himself, other guardians, even some Moroi— when the news came about the Strigoi attack and the concussion. Rose couldn't believe everything he was telling her; there was no way everyone cared so much for her.
"You're a big celebrity around here, Hathaway. Every single person was concerned about your health. Everyone was talking about you," Max stated.
Rose felt like she had a knot in her stomach. I don't even want to think what will people when they hear about my baby, then, she thought gloomily. She changed the subject; she was getting too nervous.
"C'mon, we'll be late if we don't hurry," Rose said and started walking a little bit faster and leaving Max behind. It didn't last long, though. She hadn't even covered ten meters before dizziness overtook her, forcing her to stop moving and lean on a tree. Maybe she wasn't as well as she had thought she was. Max run to where the brunette was.
"What happened? Is everything okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a...nothing," answered the brunette. She had tried to come up with a good lie but her head was palpitating once again and it was making it hard to concentrate. Stupid PCS. Stupid Strigoi. Stupid headache. "Just forget it."
"Are you sure? I could call a doctor…" he insisted and an alarmed look appeared on his face. She couldn't let him do that for obvious reasons.
"I said I'm fine," Rose said, a bit harshly this time. She stopped leaning onto the tree and straightened herself. She was going to prove he had nothing to worry about. Only as soon as she didn't have something to support herself with, her legs gave in under her and started to fall again. If it weren't for Max, she would have definitely hit the floor. Hard.
"You are so not okay," he said, placing one hand on her waist.
He looked around, wondering what to do. He only had to do it for a few seconds before his answer just walked by him: one of the Court's doctors, wearing a white coat. Max didn't know this guy in particular but it wasn't important at the moment.
"Doctor!" he exclaimed. "Doctor, I need some medical assis—"
Max was cut short by Rose, who placed both of her hands on top of his mouth. "Please, shut the fuck up," she whispered to him, her face deadly serious. "I don't need a doctor. I'll just go to my apartment; I'll be fine, then."
"Wow, easy, Hathaway," he replied. "At least let me take you there. In case you faint on your way or something."
Rose doubted for a second before agreeing; she knew he wasn't going to let her go on her own and she really didn't feel like fighting. All though she let him walk her home, there was no way she was going to let Max hold her hand and help her walk. The brunette forced herself to walk on a straight line and, though it took them longer than what it would normally have to arrive at Rose's house, she managed to do it almost perfectly. Until she didn't.
They were climbing up the stairs— the building didn't have an elevator and the apartment was in the second floor— when Rose head went crazy. She had had a headache during the whole morning but nothing compared to that. It felt like something was trying to rip the brunette's skull wide open with its bare hands. The pain was so intense she had to stop for a minute and hold onto the railing to avoid falling.
"I don't care what you said, Hathaway. You're obviously not okay," Max stated and, in a swift move, he picked her up bridal style. She protested weakly but her eyes were closed.
He climbed the set of stairs left and entered Rose's apartment, which was unlocked. He left her on the couch and kneeled beside her.
"Do you need something?" Max asked her worriedly.
"Ibuprofen; top drawer in the bathroom."
He ran to the bathroom and reappeared a few seconds later, a little box in his hand. He opened the box and took one white pill out. Rose received it eagerly and, without bothering to go for a glass of water, swallowed it.
They stayed in silence for a few minutes after that; Max too afraid to disturb his partner and Rose waiting for the pill to work. It wasn't until it worked and the brunette's headache decreased that she opened her mouth to talk.
"Thanks, Max," she said honestly. "That was a bad one."
"No problem. I'm glad you're feeling better."
Rose smiled at him and took her black jacket off, so she was only wearing her loose, white work shirt. Then, she stood up from the couch and walked to the kitchen, Max on her heels. She grabbed a pack of double-stuffed Oreos, a glass and a carton of milk and started eating.
"Want some?" the brunette asked Max. She was sitting on the counter with cookie crumbles all over her shirt.
"Sure," he answered and took the Oreo she offered. "I'm a bit thirsty,too. Do you mind if I get a glass of water?"
"Help yourself."
Max searched for a glass in the cabinets behind him. He filled it with water and went to sit next to Rose, failing to notice she had hoped off the counter and was walking in his direction— she was having a weird craving for peanut butter— and crushed with her, spilling the whole glass of water on her.
"Fuck, I'm sorry, Ro—" he stopped short when he saw the brunette. Due to the water and because it was white, her shirt looked semi-transparent and clung to her so her baby bump was fully noticeable. "Wow, I think you ate way too many Oreos. That or you're… pregnant."
"I thought I was the one with the concussion," answered Rose smoothly; thank God she had always been a good liar. "You're talking nonsense, Max."
"Am I, really? I'm your partner, Rose; I see you every single day. First, you get sick at work really often. Then, you disappear for a few days— God knows to do what and reappear with a concussion. And I can see your baby bump right now. You can't lie."
I guess there's no denying it now, the brunette thought bitterly.
"You can't tell anyone. No one, Max," she said seriously.
"Do...does Belikov know? I can't believe you…that you cheated. I always thought you two were so happy together," he paused, unsure if he should ask what he wanted to. "I know I shouldn't ask, but…who's the father?"
"No, no, no! You've got it all wrong. Dimitri is the father."
"C'mon, Hathaway. We're not just partners, we're friends. You don't have to lie; I won't judge you," Max insisted.
"I'm not lying! It's…it's a long, complicated story; I don't think I fully understand it myself but he's mine and Dimitri's baby. It's all thanks to the spirit."
"Are you sure?" he asked again. Rose couldn't really blame him; it did sound like a fantasy story.
"I wouldn't lie to you about this. Trust me; I'm telling the truth."
"Okay, I believe you. But you have to explain how is on Earth is this possible." Max was completely confused; what Rose was saying went against everything he had ever learned.
"Fine, but some other time. I'm not feeling like talking that much right now."
"I'll take your word on it, Hathaway. And now I should go. I'm so late; the queen is going to kill me."
"I'll see you later, Max," she said and gave him a short hug. "And one more thing: if you ever tell anyone, I don't care who, I promise, I'm going to find you. And it's not going to be pretty."
Her face was dead serious and even if Max was more than a foot taller, he felt intimidated. Everyone knew about Rose's reputation and he didn't doubt she was going to keep her promise.
"I won't. Trust me."
As always, tell me what you thought. And if you have some ideas of baby names, I'd be happy to hear them. See ya!
