Chapter Thirty-Five: Bundle of Joy

Twenty Months Earlier. 1907 Hours, June 10, 2550. Fort Charles Hospital, Cristoff Highlands. "The Angel Gabriel," Planet Sistine. William Hawk's Memories

Willis could hardly believe his good luck. With his wife almost nine months pregnant, his unit had been given a few days of leave. His only wish was that he'd continue having good fortune and actually get to see his child being born.

When Willis finally made it to Cooper's base, she was overjoyed to see him. They hugged and kissed each other, and then Willis stooped to kiss his wife's bulging stomach.

"How's the kid, Coop?" he asked her.

Natalie gave him a smirk. "Kickin' the crap out of me, but fine."

Willis laughed. "What about you? Besides the internal beating, I mean."

"My feet hurt, my back is killing me, and it's getting hard to move around. Other than that, perfect."

"Let's head to your quarters, then, so you can get a rest. Have you had dinner yet?"

"No, but I'm starving. Your kid always wants food."

Sometime during her fourth month of pregnancy, Natalie had told Willis that the doctor could finally tell they were having a boy. Although Hawk would have been happy with a daughter, he was glad their first child was going to be a son.

Once the young couple had reached Cooper's quarters, Natalie sat on the bed, propping her back against the wall. Willis settled for the wooden chair by her desk, just across from the bed, and smiled at his wife.

"What's got you so happy?" she asked him, trying to hide her creeping grin.

"I'm just glad to see that you and the baby are doing well," Hawk answered.

Natalie looked down at her stomach. "He'd better come out soon, because he's starting to get too big for his current home."

Willis stood from the hard chair and came to sit beside Cooper on the bed. She reached for his hand and placed it on her abdomen. The baby chose just that moment to give a hard kick.

"I think he's excited that his father's here," Natalie said.

"Man, if he's that strong now, imagine when he's out in the real world," Hawk replied, pleasantly surprised by his unborn son's greeting.

Natalie rested her head against Willis's shoulder, and he took her hand. The two of them---no, three, Hawk reminded himself---sat there in silence for a while. The whole experience was so new and overwhelming it went beyond what words could express.

Finally, though, Willis broke the silence. "So you want me to go get us some grub?" he asked quietly, trying not to ruin the tranquil moment.

"Yeah, that's a good plan."

"What can I bring you?"

"Hmm," Cooper replied, thinking. "A chocolate milkshake sounds good. And maybe some cantaloupe and pea soup."

Willis made a face. "You sure you want all that together?"

"Get me a sourdough roll, too," Natalie said, ignoring his question.

"Where am I supposed to find this stuff?"

"Check out the PX. There's an ice cream shop in town, too, and it's nearby."

Sighing, Willis got off the bed and stood, mumbling, "Ok."

"Hey, I've had to carry our kid for nine months, and you're complaining because you have to get food?" Natalie said behind him, her voice containing a hint of anger.

Here it comes, Willis thought. When he'd announced his wife's pregnancy to some of the members of his squadron, the men who'd had children before had warned him of crazy hormones. And, seeing as he hadn't been in Natalie's presence since the day he'd found out, this was his first taste of what could be a very interesting few days.

"I'm not complaining, Coop," Willis said calmly, turning around to face her. "It's just that it might take me a while to get back with everything."

Cooper huffed and crossed her arms over her belly. "Just go, Will."

Though beginning to get frustrated, Hawk stopped himself from uttering a smart-ass remark. It's not her fault, he told himself. This is only temporary and she'll go back to normal soon. Still, he found it hard to hold his tongue.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When he finally returned some time later, Willis braced himself for a verbal confrontation; he'd been out for over an hour in an attempt to find all she'd requested. The only good thing was that he'd remembered to get the milkshake last, so that it wasn't all a liquidy mess by the time Cooper received it.

Instead of the rebuke he'd expected, however, Hawk found that his wife was grateful for tracking everything down for her. To say that he was confused at the moment would have been an understatement.

"You're the best husband ever, you know that?" Natalie said to him as she happily ate her bizarre dinner.

Willis grinned, thinking of her earlier assessment of him before he'd left. "Thanks. I try," he replied, wolfing down his own food. All that running around had made him hungry, as well.

With the meal over a while later, Willis and Natalie again sat propped-up on the bed together. Hawk explained what had been going on for him and his squadron since Cooper's departure, and Natalie told him of her predicament---she longed to return to battle with her unit. She confessed that although she was ecstatic about the baby, she felt as though she were letting her unit down by not being in the thick of it with them.

"Don't worry about it, Coop. I'm sure they understand," Willis reassured her.

"I know. They said they were happy for me, but it's still not fair. They're off fighting on Lacino right now, and I should be a part of it."

"But your CO said you'd join them once the baby is born, right?"

"Yeah, but then I'd want to be with our kid." She ran a hand through her auburn hair and sighed. "I wish there was some way for me to be with my Marines and my son." She was about to add more when she suddenly got a look of discomfort on her face.

Alarmed, Willis quickly sat up straighter. "Natalie? What's wrong? Are you ok?"

"Will…"

"What?"

"I think my water just broke."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

They arrived at the base hospital, which was fortunately close by, in twenty minutes. Willis noted that Natalie seemed strangely calm, yet he could feel his own heart thumping hard against his chest. Was it possible for a fit young man of twenty-three to die of a heart attack at a time like this? Hawk decided there was a strong chance that he would qualify.

"State your name and rank," the emergency room tech said when Willis approached the front desk.

"Lieutenant William Hawk," he answered in a rush.

"What's the problem?"

"My wife's going into labor!"

"What's her name?"

"Lieutenant Natalie Cooper."

"How far apart are the contractions?"

Willis blanked. He looked back at Cooper, sitting on a chair in the waiting area. "Natalie?"

"I don't know. Like every ten minutes," she answered.

"Ok. We'll get a room prepped. Go ahead and have a seat, Mr. Hawk."

Sit down? Willis thought. How am I supposed to sit down and wait when Natalie's going to give birth soon! Somehow, though, he managed the feat and sat beside his wife.

"Natalie? How're you doing?" he asked, putting his arm around her shoulders.

"Ok, for now. It only hurts when the contractions come."

"When did you start getting them?"

"While you were gone."

"Why didn't you say anything?" Hawk inquired, surprised.

"They were farther apart, and I wasn't sure yet. I didn't want to freak you out."

Newsflash, Coop! Hawk wanted to say. I am freaking out! But he knew he had to remain calm, at least on the outside, for Cooper's sake. He took a deep breath and gave her shoulder a small squeeze.

"You'll be all right, Natalie. I'm here with you."

Willis wasn't sure if he believed his own words, but the fact that the tech was preparing a room for them gave him comfort.

Minutes ticked by, however, with no indication as to what had happened to said room. Willis wondered if maybe he'd missed the receptionist calling their name.

Walking up to the front desk again, he asked the tech, "Have you gotten to the names Hawk and Cooper yet?"

The tech gave Willis an annoyed glance, then skimmed through a list on his datapad. "Nope. You guys are third in line, though. That's pretty good, considering you just came in."

"Just came in?" Willis repeated, flabbergasted. "We've been here a long time! My wife's contractions are getting closer together!"

"Have a seat, Mr. Hawk. Your name will be announced shortly."

Willis grew increasingly impatient as time continued to crawl, and Natalie was starting to sweat from the effort of keeping the pain to herself.

"Hawk! Cooper!" the receptionist finally called.

"Come on, Coop," Willis said, helping her to her feet. "It's our turn."

"It'd better be," Natalie managed to say through gritted teeth.

Another tech suddenly approached, bringing a wheelchair for Cooper to sit in. At first reluctant to accept the help, Natalie quickly complied when she had another contraction.

While Cooper was placed in a room, the tech gave Willis a pair of scrubs to put on and had him wash his hands thoroughly. Finally, they allowed him back in.

"Ok, Cooper. Take it easy. The father's come back," the doctor said, inviting Willis to stand beside his wife. As soon as he reached the side of the hospital bed, Hawk offered his hand to Natalie. She took it without looking at him; her concentration was fierce.

"Yup, we're getting closer," the doctor said. "Cooper? You sure you don't want that epidural? Last chance."

Natalie nodded. "I'm going natural, Doc."

In the next few minutes, Natalie began getting stronger and more frequent contractions. At first she only seemed to growl when the pain hit, but as the moment drew near, she started to cry out.

"Here we go," the doctor said. "The baby's head is crowning."

"Hang in there, Coop," Willis said to his wife, stroking her hair with his free hand. Natalie was squeezing his other hand hard, and it was starting to get numb. Still, he tried his best to soothe her and muttered various assurances in her ear.

"All right, you two. The head is out!" the doctor announced.

"Hear that, Coop? You're almost done, Natalie. Doing great," Hawk said to her, barely able to contain his growing excitement.

"Just a few more good pushes," the doctor said.

Natalie squeezed Willis's hand so hard that he swore he was going to hear it crack any second. She yelled out in pain, pushing with all her might. Hawk briefly wondered if she regretted not using any pain medication.

"All right! One last push should do it," the doctor exclaimed.

Cooper gave that final strong push, and there was a sudden flurry of activity as Willis and Natalie's child was born.

A piercing scream echoed through the room as the baby began to cry.

"It's a boy," the doctor said, cutting the umbilical cord deftly and handing the infant to a nurse. As the baby was getting suctioned, Willis put a soothing hand on his wife's forehead. Natalie was sweating and weak from the ordeal, but she still smiled up at him.

"You did great, Coop. I'm proud of you," Willis said, smiling in return. Though it appeared that Cooper wanted to reply, the effort was too much. She settled for nodding in thanks at him.

With the infant finally cleaned up, measured, and weighed, the doctor returned to hand the baby, wrapped in a blue blanket, to his mother.

"Congratulations, you two," the doctor said, smiling. "You are now the parents of a health baby boy. I'll give you a moment to get acquainted, and I'll be back to find out what you want to name this little guy."

"Thanks, Doc," Willis replied.

"Don't mention it."

Willis then turned his gaze to his wife and newborn son.

"He's small," Natalie whispered.

"Yeah. Looks kind of fragile," Willis added, leaning his face in close.

"I can't believe it, Will. This is our baby. Our little son."

"He's amazing," Hawk said, staring at his child.

"And he's so beautiful," Natalie commented. She looked up at Willis and smiled.

Willis smiled back and said, "We made one cute kid, Coop."

Despite her fatigue, Natalie managed a small laugh. "You're right." She paused, then added, "I'm really glad you're here, Willis."

"Yeah, me, too." After a moment, Willis looked at her and said quietly, "I love you, Natalie."

"I love you, too, Will," she replied. They kissed, then resumed staring down at their son.

A few minutes later, the doctor who'd delivered the baby came back into the room.

"Well? Have you decided on a name?"

Willis looked at Natalie, and she nodded. They'd chosen the name months earlier, a short time after they'd found out they were having a boy.

"Gabriel Matthew," Willis answered.

The doctor thought a moment, entering the name into his datapad. "Gabriel Matthew Hawk, huh? That's a good name."