Disclaimer: I own nothing.
So 36 chapters in we've arrived at one that can finally just be a little happy for them :) This will overlap with some of the previous chapter, as you'll see. Thank you very much for all your reviews, follows, and favorites!
"Are you sure you'll be okay if Anderson and Alex drink a little when they come over tonight?" Emily asked, unsure. She was moving around in the basement kitchenette of her house, opening the oven to slide a tray of unbaked cookies in.
Penelope snorted from the couch. "You honestly think I care if they get a little hammered?" she laughed. "They finished their first years of college. I think it's okay for them to let a little loose."
Emily shut the oven and threw her oven mitts down. "Eh, okay," she said. "I just don't want you getting jealous 'cause they can drink, and you still have another month before you can touch the stuff again." She snickered.
"Ugh, don't get me started," Penelope muttered, looking down at her vastly protruding belly. She was huge now, feeling like a house anywhere she went. With a few weeks to go before she had her baby, she was more than ready to be done. Rocketing emotions and feeling bloated all the time was becoming more of a nuisance than she had ever imagined. "I'm just ready to have the kid and be done."
Plopping down in the seat next to Penelope, Emily blew her bangs out of her face. "So, speaking of the baby, has she gotten a name yet?" she asked. "I mean, I would rather call her something instead of 'Baby Morgan'….that just sounds boring."
Penelope sighed and leaned her head against her best friend's shoulder. "I don't have one yet," she muttered. "Naming a kid is almost as hard as carrying them."
"Oh, please!" Emily laughed. "Naming them would be the most fun part about it. And you've got the best deal ever! You pretty much get to name the kid whatever you want because you won the bet!" Her demeanor changed drastically with her next words, though. "But, you know, I'm really proud of you."
Frowning, Penelope adjusted her position so she could see her friend's face. "Uh…okay?" she laughed. "What brought this on?"
Emily shrugged. "I'm just saying it," she said. "You've had a lot of shit thrown at you over the months, but you haven't given up. And I'm so proud because you showed everyone you're a force to be reckoned with." She smiled wryly. "You'll be a great mom."
Tears filled Penelope's eyes, and she leaned her head against Emily's shoulder again. "Thanks, Em," she murmured, wiping her cheeks.
"Oh, you're not crying are you?" Emily teased. "I'm not into tears."
Penelope laughed. "Nah," she lied. "I'm not." She paused, remembering she had something important she needed to ask her best friend. "Oh! Before I forget…Derek and I were talking, and we wanted to ask if you would be godmother to whatever Baby Morgan will be called." She smiled.
Emily blinked several times. The words seemed to not register for her at the moment, making Penelope laugh. "I'm sorry," Emily began, "but did you just ask me to be your baby's godmother?"
Biting her lip, Penelope nodded. Emily still hadn't smiled yet, so she was worried she might reject the offer. Instead, her best friend's eyes teared up before she threw her arms around Penelope's neck.
"Yes," Emily sniffled. "I would be honored….as long as you promise not to name the baby something stupid. My mom knew a woman who named her baby Champagne. I swear to God if you do that, I'll kill you slowly and painfully with Metallica playing as I do it."
"Harsh, Em," she joked. "But I'll take that into consideration. I was thinking something along the lines of…" She paused and groaned a moment when a sharp ache shot through her. "Ugh. Sorry. I've been having some sharp pains lately that are —" Before she could continue though, a rush of wetness shot from her legs, soaking her jeans. She froze, unable to move.
Please just be my imagination! she thought frantically.
Beside her, Emily's eyes went wide. "Uh…." she stammered. "Penelope? Have you not noticed that you, uh…your water just broke?"
Panic was finally unleashed with full force within her. "Oh, no, no, no!" Penelope cried, shaking her head. "No, I'm not due for another few weeks. I am most certainly not going into labor!"
Emily leapt from her seat and dashed to the counter to grab her phone. "Penelope, get your ass up! You're having a baby. We need to get you to the hospital…now!"
Fear hit her like a semi truck. Reality became clearer in her head, and anxiety made her shake uncontrollably. Her legs and arms becoming numb and lifeless as she was struck with immobility. "Em, I can't have this baby now!"
Going to stand in front of her, Emily took hold of Penelope's chin and looked her straight in the eye. "I know you don't want to….but I don't care," she stated bluntly. "You are going to get on your feet, we're going to walk up those stairs, and you're going to get in the car so we can go to the hospital, and you can have the little bundle of Morgan joy."
Penelope felt tears well up in her eyes, but she took Emily's hands and allowed her best friend to help her to her feet. As they were heading out of the basement, she turned to Emily again. "We need to call, Derek!" she gasped.
"Already doing it," Emily said as she put her phone to her ear.
Biting her lip as a contraction hit her, Penelope groaned, "Don't freak him out, Em, please! He's got finals, and —"
"I seriously doubt finals are what he's going to be worrying about when he hears that you're —" Emily began before stopping mid-speech. "Yeah, hi?" She frowned. "Yeah, I'm trying to get ahold of Derek. His girlfriend just went into labor. Yeah, okay you tell him that."
Penelope gritted her teeth as Emily fumbled with her keys at the counter. "Who the hell are you talking to? You called his phone, right?"
Emily ignored her as she pushed her out the door and toward the driveway. "Derek?" Emily barked. "I don't want you to panic, but Penelope's water just broke. We're headed to the hospital now." She paused and smirked. "Yeah, champ. You're gonna want to get your ass down here. We'll see you soon."
"Is he coming?" Penelope asked as Emily opened the door to her car.
"Yes, Garcie," she said. "Your knight in shining armor is getting down here right now to —"
"Oh, for Christ's sake don't call him that and go into a narrative!" Penelope snapped as she got into the car. "Just get me out of here."
Snickering, Emily got in on the driver's side. "Yes, ma'am," she chuckled.
XXXXX
"Oh my God, how much longer?" Penelope groaned in annoyance. She still wasn't dilated enough to get her pain medication. "I don't know how much more I can take this." After getting to the hospital, Doctor Cunningham had chatted with her about when she could get an epidural. Penelope's spirits had fallen drastically when she was told every woman's experience was different, and she would just have to wait.
"Quit your bitching, and keep looking at that name book," Emily said, tapping the pages Penelope had open. "You've been in labor for almost three hours and you still haven't picked out a name. Who knows how much longer it'll be, and I wanna know what to call her." She started flipping through the book on her lap. "Ooh! You could name her Morgan…think of all the shit she'll get for that."
Penelope glared at her best friend. "Not helping, Prentiss," she hissed through gritted teeth. "Speaking of Morgan, though, where is Morgan?"
"He'll be here soon," Emily said, nonchalantly flipping a page. "You're freaking out over nothing."
"It's been three hours! It takes three hours to get here!" Penelope growled. "So if logic succeeds in the real world, he should be here by now!" Her fists clenched around the book, her knuckles turning white.
Emily looked up from her own book and sighed, taking Penelope's hand in the process. "PG, I love you to death…" She squeezed her hand and gave her a sweet smile. Penelope frowned at how un-Prentiss like it was. Sure enough, Emily continued. "…but you are driving me fucking nuts!"
Sticking her tongue out, Penelope growled, "Can I just call him?"
"That would not be a good idea," Renee said, entering the room with a cup of coffee and a bag of Sour Patch Kids. She sat on the other side of the bed and opened the candy before handing it over to her daughter. "He just called me."
Penelope's face drained of blood, her cheeks turning ash white. "Oh my God," she gasped, breath coming in faster. "Please, please tell me he —"
"Sweetie, you're freaking out over nothing," Renee soothed, sitting on the side of Penelope's hospital bed. "You didn't even let me finish." She cupped her daughter's cheek and looked her in the eye. "Will you let me finish?" Waiting for a nod from Penelope, she went on. "I don't want you to freak out, but Derek called me because he ran out of gas on the highway. He's waiting for someone to get him."
Penelope's eyes filled with tears. "Is he gonna be here in time?" she squeaked.
"He ran out of gas half way here, so his sister is picking him up," Renee explained. "He'll be here as soon as he can. Fran and Desiree also called me, and they'll be here in about an hour." She smiled. "It'll all be okay."
Even though she bit her lip and nodded, Penelope couldn't help but feel anxious. She wasn't going to be able to do this on her own, and the only one she wanted was Derek.
Emily piped up. "Renee, please tell your daughter she needs to pick a name for this baby before Morgan gets here. The boy has to have some idea of what to call his baby," she muttered, not looking up from her book.
Renee arched a brow. "Well, she could name her Morgan," she suggested.
"I suggested that already," Emily cackled evilly. She looked up from her book and grinned at Renee. The two shared a laugh at Penelope's pout.
Penelope crossed her arms over her chest and popped a Sour Patch Kid in her mouth. "You both can go suck it," she grumbled, wincing as another ache coursed through her body.
Emily patted her arm. "Now, now," she murmured, pretending to be sympathetic. "Don't you fret, my young friend. We're going to be here the whole time. Now open your book, find a few names you like, and come up with a top five list."
Glaring at her best friend, Penelope grumbled, "When can I have the fucking epidural?"
When her mother and best friend shared a laugh, Penelope merely stuck her tongue out.
XXXXX
"How did my stupid older brother run out of gas exactly?" Desiree asked as she plopped down in her seat when she entered the hospital room. "There's a light that starts blinking when it's close to empty. How did he miss it?"
Fran glanced at her youngest with a stern look. "Des," she scolded, "knock it off."
"Oh, I'm inclined to agree with her!" Penelope hissed. "He'd be here by now if he had paid attention to the freakin' gas gage!"
"Hey!" Emily said sharply, tapping her pen against the top of Penelope's baby name book. "What'd I tell you? Pick some names! I'm getting sick of your sh —"
Penelope held up her notepad. "There are three names written down. See? I've got Rosalie, Emilia, and Daenerys." She chuckled slightly at the last name on her list.
"You name your child after a Game of Thrones character, and I renounce every year of friendship we've ever had," Emily threatened.
"That's what you get for being impatient," Penelope sniffed. "The real third name on the list is Sadie, though"
Emily nodded. "Much better," she said, satisfied.
"I don't know," Desiree mused. "I actually kinda like the idea of a niece with a pop culture name. And think of all the shit she'll give Derek when she realizes her name is from a TV show." A wicked grin crossed her face.
Fran shook her head and smiled at the girls' antics. "How're you feeling sweetheart?" she asked Penelope, changing the subject.
"Oh, fine!" Penelope lied, waving her hand flippantly. She gritted her teeth so hard she winced; she needed to keep a smile on her face to convince Fran she was feeling alright.
Shooting Penelope a knowing look, Fran arched a brow. "Sweetheart, I've been around enough people in hospitals to know when someone is lying," she said.
"Yeah, well it's not like I —"
Before she could finish, Dr. Cunningham reentered the room. Her hair was pulled back, and she had on a pair of purple cat-eyeglasses instead of her usual black ones. She smiled. "How are you feeling right now, Penelope?" she asked, going to the end of the bed.
"How do you think?" Penelope griped.
Dr. Cunningham merely laughed. "I'm just going to check and see if I can give you your epidural," she said. "I'm assuming you would rather do this with pain meds than au natural."
"Damn straight," Penelope muttered. "No way am I doing this without it."
The doctor lifted the sheet up to check how dilated Penelope was. Clucking her tongue, she looked back up. "You're ready for the pain medications. I'll be back shortly. You're around seven centimeters now. We've got another three before you have to push." She smiled on her way out the door. "I'll let a nurse know to get in here and give you the pain meds."
Fran rose to her feet and went to take Penelope's hand. "I'm going to take Desiree, and we're going to go get something to eat," she said. "We'll be back in a bit, and hopefully Derek will be here."
"I'll kick his ass if he isn't," Penelope vowed, smiling tightly at Fran as she and Desiree exited the room.
"Honey, I hate to break it to you, but you aren't in a position to be kicking anyone's ass," Renee pointed out. Emily chuckled in agreement, holding out her hand to high-five Renee.
Thirty minutes later, Penelope was beginning to feel the discomfort she was initially feeling transform into excruciating agony. Tears began to burn in the back of her eyes. She'd never felt this much pain in her entire life. She needed it to stop.
"Where's Derek?" she rasped to Emily. "I —"
Emily smoothed some of her hair back from her forehead. "Hey," she murmured. "He'll be here. "Don't you worry. He'll be here soon. Then he can deal with the agony of birth." She smiled teasingly.
"No offense, Em, but the only one who will be dealing with the agony of birth is me," Penelope hissed. "And it hurts right now. A lot."
"Where the hell is that nurse with the epidural?" Renee grumbled, rising to her feet again to look for a nurse. As she reached the door, though, Dr. Cunningham came through, a smile gracing her face once more. A nurse was with her. "Oh, goodness! Dr. Cunningham, Penelope hasn't gotten her pain meds yet. Is there —"
"Wait, she hasn't gotten her medications yet?" Dr. Cunningham cried. She rushed to the front of Penelope's bed and lifted up the sheet to check how dilated she was. "We're at ten centimeters." She snapped her fingers at the nurse. "We need to get moving, please." Glancing to Penelope, she gave her a sympathetic look. "Sweetheart, I'm sorry. You're going to have to start pushing, and we've got to do it now. We don't have time to get you into position and give you the epidural."
Penelope felt tears well up in her eyes. "I have to do this without pain medications?" she whimpered. Fear tickled her spine. This pain was bad, but if she had to push without medication, she was going to experience something far worse.
"I'm sorry," Dr. Cunningham murmured as she slid her mask on. She took Penelope's hand and gave it a squeeze. "You can do it, though. I know you can."
"I can't wait until Derek gets here?" she murmured, her voice timid and soft.
The doctor shook her head. "I'm afraid not," she said, sliding her hands into rubber gloves.
"Please," Penelope begged before gasping audibly in pain. She felt like her back was being beaten in with rusty rods. "Please, I have to wait for him! I — I can't do this without him."
Beside her, Emily took her hand and gave it a squeeze. "I'm sure he'll be in a few minutes, so you can —"
"I'm here!"
The door swung open with a loud bang. Derek nearly jumped into the room, dashing across the floor to Penelope's side. He was sweating and out of breath, his eyes wide and frantic. It was as if he'd run the hundred plus miles from Northwestern to get to her side. Dr. Cunningham positioned herself at the end of the bed while Derek kissed Penelope on the forehead. "Here," he finished.
"You ran out of gas?" she hissed, glaring up at him. "You couldn't see the gas was low? They make lights that let you know when it's running low!" Despite being pissed as hell at him, she was filled to the brim with a sense of relief. At least now she could rest easy knowing that fact.
He flashed her a weary grin, taking her hand. "If it makes you feel any better, my car got towed for free," he assured her.
"Hardly," she snapped. Another wave of agonizing pain blasted through her and she gritted her teeth. A cry escaped her throat, and she sniffled. "Guys, I'm gonna scream pretty soon. We need to get this over with sooner rather than later!" Another pain slammed into her, and she screamed once.
Derek's lips descended upon her head. "Hang on, Baby Girl," he whispered in her ear. "It'll stop soon."
Every attempt at comfort he made did little to quell her fears. The pain she was enduring was starting to take over, and she wasn't sure how much longer she would be able to keep herself from filling the hospital with screams. Her body felt as if it were being ripped in half, her bones feeling like they were cracking and shattering. If she didn't know how it really went, she might have said her baby was trying to burst her way out through her ribcage.
"Alright, Penelope," Dr. Cunningham said, her voice muffled by the mask over her face. "You're gonna start pushing now, okay? I need you to do that for me."
"It hurts!" she cried.
"Then let's get her out, and it'll stop hurting," the doctor replied calmly.
Derek kissed her forehead and squeezed her hand tightly. "I've got you," he murmured. "Hang on, sweetheart."
"This is your fault!" she spat, squeezing his hand even harder. The amusement on his face made her squeeze harder. "Not funny, you jackass!" She gave a fierce push accompanied by a scream.
"Penelope, you are doing so good," Dr. Cunningham praised her. "I can see your baby's head. Just a little more, and you can see her."
Grasping Derek's hand even tighter, Penelope began to curse silently within the constraints of her brain. She was seconds from shouting profanities so all the world could hear her. This was the worst pain she could imagine, and she wanted it done immediately.
"Almost done, Penelope!" Dr. Cunningham cheered, throwing a hasty thumbs up in the air. "One or two more pushes!"
Despite the fact she was cutting of the circulation in his left hand, Derek was stroking her hair back with his free right hand and whispering words of encouragement to her. "You're doing great, Baby Girl," he urged her. "You're doing so, so —"
He didn't get a chance to finish; a small, yet strong cry rang through the room, stopping everyone in their tracks. Even Penelope had stopped cursing to herself in her brain. A ringing began in her ears, blocking everything but that cry out. She saw the doctor motioning to Derek to cut the cord, but she didn't register any words Dr. Cunningham was saying. Derek was taking the scissors in his trembling hands. A ridiculous smile lit up his face when he was done, and the doctor was taking the baby to clean her up. Penelope craned her neck to get a better view of her. To her right, both Emily and her mother were doing the same, tears floating on the surface of their eyes.
Derek returned to her side, kissing her temple in the process. She chuckled and took hold of his shirt collar, pulling him closer. "After what I just went through, I deserve a lot more than that," she said.
He smiled. "Yeah, you do," he whispered, swooping down and kissing her soundly on the lips. She tasted something on her tongue that she hadn't noticed before; a single tear from each of his eyes.
"I love you," she murmured to him. She took his hand and squeezed it. Turning back in the doctor's direction, she smiled as the baby, now wrapped in a blanket, was offered to her.
Dr. Cunningham smiled. "Here she is," she said. "Seven pounds exactly, all ten fingers and all ten toes, and a head full of hair."
"Oh my God! Look at her wittle bitty fingers!" Emily cooed from beside Renee.
The moment the baby girl was placed in Penelope's arms, her whole world changed. Everything became about the small infant she was holding. Her love transferred to her, pulling in from everyone. Her brothers, people she once thought were her friends…her father.
The only people she truly loved were in the room with her.
Tears filled her eyes. She smiled. A small, breathy sigh escaped her lips, stroked the little girl's cheek.
She was the perfect combination of her parents; the dark hair on her head was curly and soft, just like Penelope's, her lips were puffy like her mother's, and her face showed as soon as she grew up she would bear the strongest resemblance to Penelope.
Save for her eyes. They were Derek's, pure and onyx.
The baby's cries were reduced to sniffles. She stared up at her mother with all the innocence a child could bear. Her baby was the most beautiful person Penelope would ever see. No one could take her away from Penelope without losing their hand. She would die protecting her.
While she was enthralled with her daughter, the baby did something that was supposed to be rare.
A smile appeared on her face.
That moment, Penelope knew what her child's name was. The name from her top three list that meant to excel, to rival, to strive. Her daughter was going to excel at everything in life if it was the last thing she did. She would rival any challenge or person that stood in her way.
"Emilia," she murmured. She looked up at Derek and nodded. "Emilia."
Derek nodded and gave her a watery smile. He sat on the edge of the bed and rested his forehead against hers. "Emilia," he repeated.