Sorry for no update yesterday guys. Long day at work and all! Here is Chapter 37. Shorter than usual today, sorry about that. Anyway, thank you for reading, I hope that you enjoy! Please review if you have a minute. Thanks!
Filip was on cloud nine as he made his way to the waiting room. He shot smiles at every person he passed, alarming some of them, he was sure. It didn't matter. He had an amazing, insanely gorgeous wife. He had a teenage daughter who was, by and large, one of the most awesome kids that he had ever met. He had friends, brothers, that he could count on for anything. To top it all off, he had a healthy, beautiful baby boy. He was pretty sure that he had never been this happy in his entire life.
He stopped, just outside the waiting room, and listened for a moment. He could hear some of the guys laughing and joking with each other. It sounded like that might have a game of cards going. He could hear Kerrianne talking with Gemma and Juice about school and debating the pros and cons of taking home economics next semester. The television in the corner was tuned to some sports network, blaring the scores from games, and Opie and Jax were arguing over whether the Raiders would ever be considered a good team again. It seemed as if the gang was all here.
He opened the doors, and nobody immediately noticed him. He just stood and watched them all for a few minutes. They were all gathered in the middle of the room, leaving the rest of the hospital visitors hovering around the edges, looking either terrified or envious. Tig, Clay, Happy, and Uncer were indeed involved in a rousing game of poker in the center of the room. Piney and Bobby were three sheets to the wind, discussing whether or not Elvis might still be alive. Everybody else was talking, laughing, and enjoying being together.
He couldn't say why, but everything seemed so very different now. It was as if he were looking at the world with different eyes. It wasn't just his daughter, Kerrianne, who was sitting there. Now, she was an older sister; when he looked at her, he saw nothing but potential. When he looked at her, he saw each and every thing she could grow up to be. When he looked at the guys, his brothers, he didn't see a group of idiots, like he usually did. He saw loyal men, who would die to protect each other and who would do absolutely anything for his children, his wife, if it came down to it. He saw Gemma, who was annoying and more than a little bit crazy, but she was also a woman who would go to the ends of the earth for the people she loved. These people in this room, they were his family, and he loved each and every one of them.
Kerrianne was the first person to notice him. It was almost as if she sensed him in the room. As soon as her eyes met his, she was on her feet and rushing towards him. It was only a matter of seconds before her arms were around him. He couldn't help but hug her right back. He was holding his child; his older child. He laughed and hugged her tightly.
"Da, is everything okay?" she asked him, clearly sick of waiting for news.
He just nodded and continued to laugh.
"Am I a big sister, then?" she questioned, becoming more excited by the minute.
"Aye, you are," he told her, unable to lose the grin on his face.
"And Ma is okay? The baby is okay?" she shot at him, nowhere near done with her questions.
"They are both great," he responded.
"So? Do I have a sister, or do I have a bother?" she eagerly asked, becoming more and more impatient.
He looked around and noticed that every eye in the room was on the two of them. He wanted to yell, to shout it to anybody would listen, but he had promised Fiona. Kerrianne needed to know first. She should and would be the first to hear this.
Filip wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close to him again, so that he could whisper in her ear, "You have a baby brother, Darlin."
What he hadn't counted on was the squeal that greeted his news. He should have known, should have remembered that nobody in the world made noises more high pitched than excited teenage girls. She was screeching and jumping up and down and hugging him and crying, all at the same time. Just when he felt like he might throw up, he finally got her to stop.
"Really?" she asked, looking at him for clarification. He just nodded, not sure that he could handle many words right now.
Without a second thought, Kerrianne turned to the waiting masses, announcing to anybody who would listen, "I have a little brother!"
The noise that greeted her announcement was outrageous. There were cheers and shouts of congratulations. The crowd swarmed, eager to hug him and slap him on the back, but they were all held at bay by the glare of a fourteen year old girl. She wasn't done questioning him yet.
"You said Ma is okay?" she wanted to know.
"Ma is great, Darlin. She is getting cleaned up right now and then you can see her," he assured his daughter.
"And my brother is alright?" she continued.
"Oh, he is great. A strong, healthy boy," he told her.
"Is he cute? Who does he look like?" she wondered.
"He is really fucking cute. You'll see him, soon," he promised her. "Ma wants you to come meet him, in a few minutes. Are you up for that?"
"Yeah," she said, "Of course. I am going to go buy an 'I'm A Big Sister' shirt…in blue!"
"Yeah, okay, just be back here in about ten minutes. We should be able to go in and see your Ma around then," he told her. He took his wallet out and handed her money. "Buy some flowers for your Ma, yeah?"
She nodded and turned and made her way towards the elevators, finally allowing the rest of the guys close in. She hadn't gotten too far, before she stopped and turned back towards him, yelling "Da! Does my little brother have a name?"
He broke out of a hug from Juice, and nodded. "Aye, his name is Adam."
Within another moment, he was engulfed in hugs again. Clay handed him a cigar, which he surprised him, as Clay almost never gave away his prized cigars. Happy reminded him of his offer to babysit. Juice was just grinning, looking for all the world like he was the one who had just gotten a little brother. Jax and Opie were standing back, grinning and remembering how awesome it felt to have a son. Tig was complaining that he hadn't managed to have another 'hot daughter'. Piney was passing his tequila filled water bottle around in a toast.
Gemma captured him in a hug, which he returned. "A little boy, Honey?"
"A little boy, Gem," he replied, with a grin.
"How much does he weigh? Who does he look like? When can we meet him?" she peppered him with questions.
"He weighed seven pounds and then some, I don't remember exactly," Filip told her.
"And he looks just like Chibs," came Tara'a voice from behind him.
"Hey doc! I everything okay?" Filip asked, just a little worried.
"Yeah, don't worry, Adam is fine. He hasn't stopped crying since we took him," she told him with a smile. "He is pretty eager to get back to his parents. And he weighed seven pounds and six ounces, Chibs. And he was 20 inches long. You should probably remember that; Fiona will hit you if you don't."
"Aye, yeah, thanks for that," he said seriously. "Fi wants Kerrianne in there first for a while, give her a chance to meet her brother and all, then I suppose everybody else can come in. I don't think that the hospital rules will allow all of you to come in and see him. If only we knew a doctor here."
They all turned to look at Tara, who was laughing. "Like I have any control over any of you. Nobody will say anything, just try and stay quiet and don't break anything. The nurses are cleaning him up right now. He really is super cute. He gives Abel and Thomas a run for their money."
"Looking like this guy? I doubt it," Jax said, coming up from behind him and slapping him on the back.
"You'll see," Tara said, hugging her guy. "Chibs, you can go back in and see Fiona whenever you want. They finished stitching her up, and she should be just about done; she was getting washed up when I was in there."
"Stitching her up? What do you mean? Why did she need stitches?" he asked, panicked.
"Ummm, I am sure if you think about it hard enough, you can figure it out," she said, causing him to groan when he finally understood. She just laughed.
"I brought you some Band Aids for your hand, kind of figured you wouldn't want to bleed all over your cute little son," she said, handing over the bandages.
"Yeah, thanks Tara. You're saving all sorts of lives today," he smirked at her. "I am going to go wash my hands and do what I can with these Band Aids. Send Kerrianne in when she gets back?"
"You've got it, Honey," Gemma told him with a smile. "I am going to call Lila. Now that we know you have a boy, we need to start planning a baby shower. You're helping too, Tara. This little boy is going to need clothes and toys and all sorts of things!"
"Yeah, okay," he said, before turning and whispering to Tara, "Try to keep her reined in, okay?"
They all shared a laugh, before he turned to go attend to his wounds and go see his wife.