I have this out a whole day early...kudos me! So the day has arrived...!
Chapter 21 – This Wasn't In the Book!
Friday, 9 July, 2010 – Week 34
Edward staggered to the door of Bella's apartment. His tie was pulled low on his shirt where his over anxious fingers had tugged at the knot. The top two buttons of his shirt were undone, the cotton scratching at his throat. It had been a long day that started with a six am conference call with Shanghai that had not gone well at all. Chinese bureaucracy had pushed his nerves to the limit and that was before the monthly Head of Department meeting where, despite bringing in more revenue that his colleagues, he was still grilled by his boss about surviving the recession and that job cuts were the norm at the moment. As five o'clock ticked by, all he wanted was to be at home with his very pregnant girl. Instead, he battled peak traffic and made his way across the Brooklyn Bridge, which did nothing to help his already frayed nerves. This was why he lived in Manhattan.
Pushing his own key into the door, he swung it open and channelled his inner Fred Flintstone.
"Honey, I'm home!" Edward bellowed.
"Uncle Eddie!" The force five hurricane that was Cassidy Whitlock came hurdling from the kitchen and grappled her arms around his legs.
"Umph." Edward wobbled for a few moments until his equilibrium returned. He scooped Cassie up into his arms, perching her on his hip. "Cassie, my own little ray of sunshine. How was school?"
She screwed up her face. "It was okay. Bobby Muir tried to kiss me. Boys are yucky." She screwed her face up impossibly further.
"Yes we are yucky. Hold up, he tried to kiss you." Cassie nodded her head. "Tried to kiss you how?"
"On the lips. He said he seen his daddy and the nanny doing it so he wanted to try it too."
Edward barely held back the guffawing laugh that was rumbling in his chest. Poor Mrs. Muir. "Did you tell Auntie B?"
"Yep, she said that it's okay because Daddy isn't going to let me date until I am thirty so I should get in some kissing practise when he is not around."
"You're Auntie B said that huh? Well when a guy kisses you like that again, before your daddy lets you date, you punch him, right into his nose. A real gentleman will always ask first, okay?"
"Sure, Uncle Eddie. Can I tell Daddy you said that when I get in trouble for hitting?"
Sure, sure, Cassie. Now where is Auntie B?"
"She's getting changed. We're doing some yoga. Auntie B needs to stretch."
Edward nodded, it would explain the mats that were laid out on the ground and some sort of god-awful panpipe music was playing. Bella had taken up yoga when her bump had really started to grow. When she had been pregnant with Cassie, it hadn't been a big thing, but now she used it to ease the pain in her legs and back from carrying Bob.
Bella waddled out into the living room. Her maternity yoga pants were looking a little tight on her as it was but the t-shirt that was currently stretched to distortion across Bob made her look completely massive. Edward valued his life so there was no way he was voicing that particular thought. Bella waddled up to him, placed a quick kiss on his lips.
"Hey honey, how was work?"
"Shit."
Bella bugged her eyes and motioned to Cassie, who was distracted with SpongeBob Squarepants.
"Sorry, crap but now I'm home and have seen you, my day just got infinitely better."
"Flattery gets you everywhere Cullen." Edward smirked and wiggled his eyebrows. "Not there!" Bella smiled sweetly before making her way over to the front of the TV.
Edward smiled to himself at the little picture of domesticity in front of him. Cassie and Bella were sitting on their respective mats, legs crossed – well as crossed as an eight and a half month pregnant person could – deep breathing. Edward could smell something tomato-based cooking in the oven. The girls were happy, there was about to be food on the table and, thankfully, it was Friday and there was no way he had to get up early the next day. Instead of interrupting the concentration of the girls, Edward chuckled to himself and headed towards the bedroom for a shower and to climb out of the suit he hated to wear these days.
x-x-x-x
Edward wandered back to the kitchen and living room area. The shower had just what he needed to wash away the stress of the day. His mind had wandered away from work and to the things that they were going to do this weekend. Though, Bella wasn't up to much, and the July heat and humidity stopped them from doing anything too energetic, Edward was looking forward to spending some time with Cassie. Bella had plans to spend a relaxing Saturday morning getting a mom and baby massage while Edward took Cassie to the batting cages so she could expend some of that six-year-old energy and not drive Bella completely up the wall.
Right now, however, Bella was sitting on the floor, one leg out straight and the other bent in so that her right foot met at her left knee. She pulled it up towards her shoulder. Cassie, had wandered off, her attention span probably only able to handle the first twenty minutes of Bella's yoga DVD. Edward managed to keep his chuckles to himself as he watched Bella, awkwardly, get to her knees before dropping to her hands in some kind of frontward bridge. The position had awoken something in Edward he had been working very hard to suppress; his now obvious arousal.
Bella winced as she stretched her back. Usually her cat-like back stretches gave her some pseudo-blissful high as her back and muscles all cracked back into place, relieving the knots that built up from carrying a ten ton bowling ball.
"Hey, are you alright?" Edward rushed forward and helped pick her off the floor.
"I'm okay. Bumpy has been moving around a lot these past few days." Bella rolled her shoulder and leaned into Edward's embrace. "He's moved down so he's not sitting so high."
Edward nodded against her "Engagement."
"I thought we agreed to burn the baby bibles." Edward chuckled. "Good news is that the nausea has stopped, the bad news is that Bumpy is sitting right on top of my bladder and is happy right now to use it as a head-butting pad."
"Doesn't engagement mean that Bob is ready to come out?"
"Not necessarily. Cassie engaged two weeks before I went into labor. I think we are safe for a week at least. Plus, I have no other signs. Don't worry, hot stuff, there will be no midnight runs to the hospital just yet."
"Well you just let me know. I would prefer it if it was the real thing, though. None of that Braxton-Hicks thing."
Bella laughed. "That isn't really a joke. I had Braxton-Hicks for a week with Cassie. Jasper rushed Alice and I to the hospital three times before he finally got wise. It was a case of the boy, or girl, which cried wolf. I nearly gave birth on their living room floor after Jasper refused to believe that I was really in labor and proceeded to sit down and watch a baseball game."
'Well, feel free to call wolf whenever you want to. I promise, on pain or death…or a kick to the balls…that I will run you to the hospital for every twinge."
"You are just saying that so I won't withhold your dinner. I wouldn't worry. I know the difference now, sort of." Bella reluctantly peeled herself from Edward's arms. "Can you get Cassie and I will start plating dinner?"
Edward nodded. He found Cassie in what was designated her room in Bella's apartment. It was not a typical six-year old's bedroom. While Cassie loved her dancing and occasional dressing up in pink tutu's, she was really a tomboy at heart. A kid's baseball bat and glove sat in one corner and in her room at home, she had a variety of weird and wonderful 'pets' that had been brought in from various places, including Central Park. Cassie was lying on her bed, still clad in her yoga gear.
"Hey Munchkin, you ready for dinner?"
"Yep, Uncle Eddie."
She made no move to get up from the bed. "You better move or you know your Auntie B will have eaten it all."
Cassie had the good grace to look horrified before she dissolved into giggles with Edward. They wandered through to the kitchen, managing to curb their giggles before Bella could catch on. They found Bella, not dishing up her wonderful lasagna as expected, but instead braced against the kitchen island, a look of pain on her face.
"Bella!" Edward exclaimed, rushing to her side. "Are you okay?"
She held up a hand to silence Edward. Seconds that felt like minutes passed and Bella stood up and tried to flex her back out.
"I'm fine. Bumpy is being really active today. He just gave me quite a short kick to the back."
"So you're okay?" Edward was rubbing soothing circles on Bella's back as she melted into the touch.
"Yeah. It knocked the wind out of me a little, that's all. That feels good, just a little lower down." Bella caught sight of Cassie standing a little out of the way. Her eyes were wide in fear. "It's okay, Cassie. You know how babies kick and move when they are inside my tummy? Well I think your brother is going to be a soccer player. Come here, Munchkin."
Bella drew Cassie into her side and placed Cassie's hand on her stomach in reassurance that everything was okay as Edward rubbed out the last of her knots in her lower back. "Now how about dinner?"
x-x-x-x
Bella and Edward lay in their bed. Cassie had been bathed and was safely in bed and probably dreaming of batting cages. Bella was lying on her side, a pillow between her legs and one supporting Bumpy. Edward was massaging deep circles on her back. He had been oddly quiet during the rest of dinner. Bella wasn't concerned. Edward often drifted off into his own world when he was trying to work some things out in his head. She knew from the look of him when he got home that it had been a bad day at work. He would talk when he was ready to.
"Bella, you still awake?"
"Mmmm." Bella mumbled through her drowsiness. She was on that delirious cusp of asleep and awake.
"What happens? What happens after Bob is born?" Edward whispered. If the room hadn't been so quiet, Bella would haven't of heard him.
"What do you mean?"
"Well you give birth to a child. Surely that can't be the end of it? Do we all just go back to normal life? What about you?"
Bella sighed. She wondered when this would come up, surprised it hadn't come up earlier. Labor and surrendering the child seemed to be the part of surrogacy that people struggled most to get their head around.
"Well, Alice and maybe Jasper will be in the room with me. Jasper got very freaked out by the fact there was a baby coming out of his sister-in-law's vay-jay-jay that he fainted and had to be taken out. You can be there, of course. I mean; you don't have to be. The joys of giving birth aren't all that joyous. In fact, it's all very messy."
"I don't think I could stand to see you in that much pain, Bella. It's hard enough just letting you go so I can go to work. Maybe I can keep Jasper company in the waiting room?"
"I'm sure he would appreciate a cigar buddy. He's not to good with the blood and gore and he seems to get a bit freaked out at even the remote chance of seeing his sister-in-laws...bits" Bella chuckled to herself. "When I was having Cassie, they set up a mirror so Alice could see the crowning without leaving me. Jasper had been popping in and out , it was a long labor and between Alice and Jasper they took shifts with me. Jasper came in looking for an update and I swear he stopped dead when he seen the mirror and screeched in a soprano voice I would be proud of, 'that's my sisters vagina'. He kept his eyes covered when coming in until someone told him it was all clear. I would have laughed if I wasn't in so much pain."
"What next?"
"Well after Bumpy is born and cleaned up, he goes straight to Alice. I go off to recovery where, if I remember correctly, I ride out a wave of hormones before dropping off in a coma of sleep. I went into labor with Cassie in the middle of the night and was in labor for fourteen hours. I was exhausted." Bella took a second to adjust her position as Bumpy moved. She caught the look on Edward's face. It was still drawn, his expression blank. "Because Bumpy is my second, I will be home in a couple of days and Bumpy will go home with Alice and Jasper."
"What was it like the first time? With Cassie?"
Bella took a deep breath. Those days and weeks after Cassie was born was not something that Bella liked to remember.
"I'm not going to lie, Edward. It wasn't easy. Your first instinct when you give birth is to hold your baby and I couldn't do that. The hormones were driving me insane. I would fluctuate between a Prozac-addict happy to flood of tears in the drop of a hat."
Bella felt herself shudder at the memory went through the wave of emotions almost as if it were happening right there in front of her. The nurses suggested that I pump breast milk to help regulate the hormones. Alice wasn't impressed but she eventually caved after a hospital shrink suggested that maybe I should consider a short course of low dose anti-depressants. Pumping milk helped but I still wouldn't hold Cassie, I knew if I did, I would never be able to give her up."
Edward stopped rubbing Bella's back and instead circled her in his arms as if to protect her from her memories. It was mostly kept under wraps when Alice or Jasper were around her. They had just been given their dream and Bella wasn't going to let her mood swings and depressions spoil it for them. A lone tear trickled down her cheek at the loneliness she felt.
"I went to stay with Alice and Jasper, to recover, because I had stayed with them for the majority of the pregnancy. That was a mistake. Alice would watch me like a hawk with this look on her face that I couldn't stand. I have a time period where I can decide to keep the baby, if I changed my mind. I never would have, I don't think, but Alice used to walk around as if she was terrified that I would and that I would take Cassie away from her. Every time I heard Cassie cry, I would want to rush to comfort her."
Bella's hands twitched as she lay beside Edward. Her body's unconscious way of remembering with her. Maybe this trip down memory lane wasn't such a good idea but Edward had to know what to expect.
"I couldn't even watch Alice change her. I just stayed in my room, barely holding myself together. I was a mess; the house was so tense. Jasper struggled with all the emotions running around the house and it was stressing things out even more. He wanted to he happy and excited aboyt Cassie but he could also sense my pain better than Alice could."
The bitterness crept into her voice but Bella quickly quashed the thoughts in her head. "Eventually I couldn't take any more and left. I went to stay with Joanna for a couple of weeks. School was finished and I had planned to take the summer off before starting to job hunt anyway. I really just needed my mother and Joanna was all I had."
Edward's arms tightened as he heard the tell-tale sniffle of tears. "I'm so sorry, Bella. I can't even imagine. It's like giving up a child and seeing it every day."
Bella nodded against him. "I'm just glad you never will have to." Bella hands clasped tightly at Edwards as they held her. The worst of the memories were over but still his presence comforted her.
"Joanna was amazing. I was worried that she would be conflicted. She should have been with Alice, helping her cope with a new addition to the family but instead she was with me, helping me to put myself back together. I would stay in Forks while she went to New York to visit Alice. She would come back with pictures and I would speak to Alice over the phone. After about a month, I thought I was back to normal and I wanted to get back to New York. I had a niece and I was missing out on those amazing first months. I found an apartment and started job hunting. It took about a week of being in New York again before I went to visit Alice and Jasper. I finally held Cassie. I can't even describe how scared I was. In the end it was okay. I had this massive rush of love and my heart literally swelled at the tiny bundle in my arms. She must have sensed my strange arms because she woke up and started screaming. I quickly handed her off to Jasper and afterward I realised that the urge to run to Cassie when she cried was gone. I didn't have this yearning to feed or change her. Watching Alice and Jasper with her made me understand the gift I had given my sister."
"Then why do it again?"
Bella smiled. "Alice is my sister, I would do anything for her."
Bella tear laden voice was full of such conviction but Edward still didn't understand. Emmett was his brother but there was no way he would put himself through that heartache again just to help him. Edward wanted to argue further but the sniffling sounds had grown louder so now wasn't the time. Instead, he held Bella as her crying subsided and she slowly fell asleep.
Saturday, 10 July, 2010 – Week 34
You could ask Edward, in the coming days, what it was that woke him but he would never be able to tell you. Instead he could tell you he woke briefly with a sense of foreboding that sent a chill to his spine. He thought the feeling had more to do with Bella's admissions earlier that night and it had led to his vivid dreams. Fighting his body back to sleep, Edward reached for Bella only to find her usual side of the bed empty but still warm. Bella not sleeping through had become a usual occurrence over the last week as she entered the last stage of her pregnancy. Bob being a big baby was only making things more uncomfortable for her. Usually she moved from the bed, worried her fitful sleeping would disturb him. Usually he found her holed up on the chair he had moved in front of the fireplace in his apartment, curled up with a book, reading to Bob.
Edward grabbed his robe from the back of the bedroom door and tip-toed towards the living room. He didn't make it very far. The sound of lapping water from the bathroom distracted him. Pushing the door open, he found the room cast in a low, mellow light from the ten or so candles that were lit on the vanity and sink area. Bella was submerged in a filled tub, her hands running lovingly over Bob's bump.
"Bella, what the..."
Bella held a finger up to her lips, cutting him off, and motioning Edward over to the tub. He obeyed and swatted by beside her.
"What is going on?" Edward whispered.
"I'm having contractions."
Edward flew upright again. His whole body tensed, muscles ridged, head moving rapidly as he glanced around the room, searching for answers in the candlelight.
"What do I need to do? Do you want me to call an ambulance? What about Cassie? Oh shit, I need to call Alice and Jasper. They left the number at the hotel right?"
Bella chuckled as she let him run through his thoughts out aloud. Finally he looked down at her.
"Oh shit, are you in pain? Can I do anything for you?"
"Yes, you can do something for me. You can shut up, take off your robe and join me. The contractions are at about ten minutes apart so we have lots of time."
"You sure it's safe?" He motioned to the bath. "You know, for me to get in?"
"Edward, I wouldn't have suggested it if it wasn't." She leaned forward and motioned for him to get in behind her.
Edward stripped out of his robe and boxers before awkwardly climbing in behind Bella, cradling her between his legs. She grasped his hands and held them against her bump as she rested her head on his shoulder, blissfully relaxed.
"So what now?"
"We chill out, wait until the contractions are about five minutes apart. Then we call Alice and Jasper, get Cassie up and go to the hospital. I've already paged Dr. Grace to tell her that I am in labor so she is ready."
"Are you in pain?" Edward voice was hoarse with concern.
Bella freed a hand and cupped Edward's chin behind her, near tearful at his worry. "Nope. It's like having cramps. Nothing I can't handle plus they don't last long. Here," she moved his hands to lower on her bump, "Feel that?"
Edward smiled. He could feel a fluttering under her skin. "Was that a contraction?"
"Yep. They're not really strong at the moment but when they are, you can even see them moving along the bump. It's like a bad sci-fi movie special effect."
Edward and Bella lay in the bath until the water cooled. Edward helped Bella from the water and insisted on drying her off, he gave her shoulders and feet a quick massage. He dressed in some shorts and a t-shirt. The air-conditioning of Bella's apartment kept the worst of the oppressive heat of July out, but it was Six AM and he could already feel the warmth of the day creeping in. He set to work making a light fruit salad breakfast while Bella dressed. It was slightly surreal. He had always expected to be running around like a headless chicken with Bella puffing and panting beside him as they broke traffic law rushing to the hospital. Turns out that labor was a bit of an anticlimax.
Around Seven, Cassie woke up. Bella had spent the hour either curled up with Edward while he read to her or walking slowly around, only pausing to take a breath after each contraction. After Cassie was up and dressed, Edward made chocolate pancakes for he and Cassie while Bella sipped on fruit tea. Bella sat down and explained what was happening and that they would be going to the hospital soon and Mommy and Daddy would join them. Edward was just finishing up the dishes when Cassie came padding through to the kitchen, her face all screwed up in disgust.
"Uncle Eddie, Auntie B had a toilet oopsie and needs your help."
Edward jogged through to the bedroom, not quite sure was constituted as a toilet oopsie at this stage. Edward found Bella sitting on the bed with her underwear clenched in hand.
"What happened?"
"My water broke. I can't get my underwear on 'cos it hurts to bend down."
Edward chuckled at the frustration in her voice. Somehow he doubted that this would be the most embarrassing thing he would have to do over the next couple of days. He had just managed to get Bella to stand up and the last of her underwear up her legs when she gripped his shoulders tightly. He counted off in his head the gap between Bella's grasp and letting out her held breath.
"That was about a minute, hon."
"Okay, that means the contractions are about six minutes apart. Time to go I think. Can you grab my bags and Cassie while I page Dr. Grace again and ring Alice?"
After sending a page to Dr. Grace, Bella dialed Alice's cell phone."
Six rings passed before the phone clicked over.
"Hello, Alice's phone." A husky Southern voice drawled.
"Jasper! Sorry, did I wake you guys?"
"It's okay, Bells. What's up?"
"Can you wake Alice and put me on speaker?" Bella waited for the tiny echo that meant that she was on speakerphone. "Morning, guys. I have some, um, news. I've gone into active labor and am about to go to the hospital. You guys might wanna start for home."
Alice squealed in the background before snatching the phone up. "Trust you to go into labor early! Are you okay?"
"I'm good, Alice. Edward is here and he is just rounding everything up. Contractions are still six minutes apart so you should have a couple of hours to get here." Bella could here Jasper thumping around in the background, packing no doubt, while Alice sniffled down the phone. "Don't cry, sweetie. You haven't missed much except Cassie telling Edward I peed myself."
"Happy tears, Bella. Happy tears. Hold in there and we'll be back as soon as we can. Thank you for doing this and I love you so much, B."
"Drive careful and I will see you in a few. Love you too, sis."
x-x-x-x
After Edward had put several towels down on his passenger seat to protect the Volvo's previous leather from amniotic fluid. They took off into the early morning Saturday traffic. The ride to the hospital was uneventful apart from Bella having to convince Edward not to pull over with every contraction so he could pant through them with her. Alice had called just as they were leaving Brooklyn to say that they were just leaving the hotel and that Bella was to keep her legs crossed until they got there. Bella could imagine Jasper carefully sticking to the speed limit despite Alice's pleas for him to go faster.
Nurse Perry had met them at admissions and escorted them through to Bella's room. Dr. Grace had been called in to assist with a difficult delivery but she would be on call if needed and would be there for the birth.
"Right, Bella, I need you to get changed into a gown and then we are going to run through all the usual checks and get your IV in place. You've elected for an epidural, correct?" Bella nodded. After the exhaustion and the pain with delivering Cassie, she had learned her lesson. "The anesthesiologist will be down shortly to put that in. Any questions so far?"
"No, I'm all good."
"Okay, I'll be back in five minutes and we'll check you over and get you all hooked up. Do you want me to take the little one to the crèche?"
Cassie nodded. She was finding all the grown-up stuff a little boring. The nurse took Cassie by the hand and left Edward and Bella in the room. When she returned Bella was propped up on the bed and Edward was sitting in a space beside her. Nurse Perry dropped the bottom portion of the bed and pulled the stirrups out. Without being told, Bella raised her legs into them. Edward kept his eyes on Bella. He may have seen her naked many times before, but this just seemed so intrusive. Instead, he kept his eyes on Bella as she grimaced in discomfort.
"Excellent, Bella, you are about six centimetres dilated. It shouldn't be too long now. The doctor is going to put in a walking epidural for you so you will still be able to walk around until it gets too uncomfortable for you. You have to have one of us with you at all times, okay." Bella nodded, biting her lip in nerves. "It can make your legs a bit numb so we just need to keep an eye on you."
x-x-x-x
It had been an hour since they had been admitted and Bella was attempting to get some rest. Watching her in pain as they put in her IV and then the epidural was hell on Edward. Luckily within minutes of the epidural she started to perk up. They had been up and walking around, helping Bella to the bathroom and rubbing her back through the contractions. There was no update from Alice and Jasper yet and when he had tried to phone them a few minutes ago, their phone had just rang and rang before flipping over to their voicemail. He had phoned Emmett and Rosalie shortly after Bella was settled and they had come down to take Cassie away from the hospital and to the batting cages, like Edward had promised. Rose had assured Edward that as soon as they needed to bring Cassie back, he just had to ring and they would be there in a heartbeat.
x-x-x-x
Another ninety minutes had passed and there was still no sign of Alice or Jasper. This was making Bella anxious. While the epidural had numbed the pain somewhat, Bella could still feel how close the contractions were together and knew that time was running out. Edward had tried to reassure Bella that maybe they had just got caught in the traffic on the George Washington Bridge but nothing helped; Bella knew how important it was for Alice to be present for the labor.
They were interrupted as Dr. Grace entered the room, dressed in deep blue scrubs for a change.
"Bella, my favourite surrogate. How are you doing?"
"I feel like I'm pushing a bowling ball, but apart from that, just dandy."
Dr. Grace laughed, glad to see that Bella was at least attempting to relax. Her nurse had already explained that Alice and Jasper were still MIA and there was no idea when they would arrive.
"Right, Bella, let's see how far along you are. Feet up." Bella complied. "Looks like you are fully dilated. I'm sorry, Bella, but we have to move you up to the birthing suite. Bob doesn't look like he wants to wait."
"Wait, no, we can't. Alice isn't here. I need Alice."
"You're not alone. Edward will come up with us until Alice arrives and I will have one of my nurses send them right to us when they get here. We need to get going, I'm sorry."
Bella nodded feebly. The sides of the bed were raised and a porter came into the room to wheel the bed. Edward hung back as Dr. Grace caught his waist.
"Edward, I need you to keep her calm. Get her to focus on her breathing and pushing. The last thing we need is for her stressing over where Alice is."
Edward nodded. He was nowhere near ready for this.
They caught the next elevator to the next floor. Bella was in the room; the bed cranked up so Bella was sitting upright. Her face relaxed as soon as she saw Edward, all draped in scrubs and a mask.
"You would have made a sexy doctor, you know." Bella joked as a monitor beside her beeped.
"Bella, you have another contraction coming and I need you to give me a couple of short, sharp pushes." She paused for a few seconds. "Okay, now."
Bella pushed hard twice before the contraction passed and she slumped back on the bed. Edward had tried to focus on Bella's face as she squeezed his hand but the distress he saw was hard to watch.
Michelle had picked up on Edward's tension. "Edward, why don't you toe off your shoes and get in behind Bella? I need to you grasp her legs behind the knee and help her pull them back."
Edward nodded nervously. He could do this. He eased himself in behind her. Bella's body relaxed into his, her head lulling on the curve between his shoulder and collarbone.
"You're nuts if you think I am ever doing this again, by the way." Bella whispered to him, a joking smile on her face.
Keep her relaxed. Edward repeated in his head. "That would be a shame. Think of a child with your beautiful eyes and my amazing brain power."
"I was thinking more your stunning green eyes, beautiful face and my creative genius."
"I think we might need to keep going until we get both combinations, don't you think?"
"Ha, if you're willing to give birth to them!"
"Okay, Bella, here comes another one. I need short, sharp pushes again. Edward, I need you to pull back on her legs to help her brace, okay?" He nodded. "Push, Bella, push."
x-x-x-x
"Ahhhhh." Bella bore down on the last of the contraction and thumped down onto Edward's chest. "I'm so tired, Edward."
"I know, love, I know. It's nearly over." He looked to Dr. Grace for confirmation.
"He's right, Bella. You're starting to crown. You won't feel the pain like last time, okay. The epidural will take care of that but you will feel some pressure. I need you to push, to get Bob's head through and one final push and he will be out."
"You can do it, love. I'm right here."
"Where is Alice? She and Jasper should be here by now. Can you phone them?"
"I need to be here, hon. You need me here."
"No, really, I'll be fine on my own. Just call Alice, please." Bella pleaded. Her voice was hoarse from screaming through her contractions."
"Edward's right, Bella. You need him here. Nurse Perry will go and call Alice for you."
Edward handed it over to the nurse and went back to holding Bella.
"We're going to push again and I need you to push deep and hard this time." She counted down. "Push!"
Bella pushed with all her strength. Edward braced her legs and helped her bear down. After what seemed like several minutes, Bella stopped, mid scream, after she felt that tell-tale popping as the pressure of the head was released. Edward watched from his vantage point as Dr. Grace checked the baby over, using a bulb to suction out the nose and mouth.
"You are doing amazing, Bella. We have the baby's head. I need one last push from you to clear the rest of his body, okay. This is the last one, I promise, so make it a good one."
Bella squeezed down on Edward's hands and pushed, her scream of effort filling the room. Edward barely noticed the nurse come back into the room. Neither did he notice her pale face or how her hand shook as she set the cell phone down on a shelf in the room. Instead, he was distracted by the slipping sound followed by the sweet, high-pitched cry of a newborn baby boy.
"Edward, do you want to cut the cord?"
"No!" Bella yelled out. "Jasper. Jasper is meant to come in and cut the cord." She looked around the room, catching Nurse Perry's eye. "Where are they? Did you get them on the phone? Are they in the waiting room?"
Nurse Perry shook her head. "I never got to speak to them and they aren't outside."
"Bella, someone needs to cut the cord now."
"Edward..." Bella whispered.
Edward managed to extract himself from behind Bella and walked over to Michelle. He managed to avoid the pink elephant of Bella's exposed lower half and instead focused on the newborn in front of him. The baby was covered in some kind of white film, his face all scrunched up and his fists balled as he cried out. There was a soft downing of dark, matted hair already on his head but Edward couldn't make out the true colour.
A clamp had already been put on the cord and Michelle handed him a pair of surgical scissors.
"It doesn't hurt the baby. Bob won't even know he's been cut free. I need you to cut along here." She drew an invisible line with her finger.
Edward cut the cord away in two strokes. Straight away, Bob was handed to Nurse Perry and taken away to be checked-over.
"Now, Bella, I need you to give me a few more pushes." Bella nodded through her confused haze of just where her sister was. "Edward, you may want to move back up that end of the bed and hold Bella's hand. The after birth is never pleasant."
After ten minutes, it was all over. The nurses were cleaning Bella up and moving her onto a clean bed. Edward stared down at her in wonder.
"You are the most amazing woman I have ever met, Bella. I can't believe that you are mine."
Bella smiled up at Edward, her face showing signs of exhaustion. "Thank you so much for staying with me through this."
"There is nowhere I would rather be."
Michelle walked over to the bed, checking vitals and that everything was in place. "Do you want to hold the baby, Bella?"
Bella's eyes glanced side to side, not sure how to answer. The machine beside her beeped, showing her accelerated heart rate. "I don't know. Alice is meant to be the first to hold him. I don't know, I really don't know."
"Bob is asleep, child birth is exhausting. Why don't you hold him before we take you both downstairs? Alice can hold him when she gets here and when Bob is awake."
Bella nodded, still so unsure of what Alice would think of her holding Bob first. A nurse brought the blue bundle over to them. Both of them were so deeply enthralled with the capped bundle in their arms that they didn't notice Nurse Perry leave or walk back into the room. Nor did they notice the brief, murmured conversation that took place between them.
Dr. Grace walked back over to them, her face blank despite the happy occasion.
"Edward, there are some people outside the room who want to talk to Bella."
"Is it Alice and Jasper?"
Dr. Grace shook her head.
"If it's my brother and sister-in-law, tell them I will be out in a minute."
"It's not family. They are State Troopers."
Bella looked at Michelle in confusion while dread filled Edward's features as his mind ran through the possibilities of what State Troopers would want with Bella.
"I'll go."
"They are in the waiting area. We're going to take Bella down to her room and Bob will go off to the nursery for a few hours."
Edward fell back into a chair as he slipped his covered shoes back on before heading out to the waiting area. He could see two tall men with their back to him. They were dressed in typical trooper uniform, their hat in hand.
"I believe you were looking for Isabella Swan?"
A huge thank-you to mommyof3boys and Leanne who both proof read the labor scene of this. You are shining stars and full of such encouraging words. Writing this has put me off ever having kids...teenagers should be made to read the Labor and Delivery part of baby books...birth-control right there!
Thank you to Charmie77 and Tina32899 who beta'ed and made awesomely wonderful suggestions about this chapter. Plus they let me chat inately on IM when the need takes me!