A/N Hey all, I really struggle with chapter 85, I just finished it this past Wednesday. So, I have Christmas Day publishing covered. I've started working on Chapter 86, and I'm struggling with that. I hope to have it finished in time to publish on New Years Day. Chapter 87 or 88 will be the last weekly chapter published. After that, I'll be going to my four to a six-week publishing schedule. There are several Mary Sues in this chapter. I used some of my wife and I's experience through two labors and deliveries. No points for guessing where. Enjoy.
Chapter 84
Wednesday 24 June, 7:30 PM
"Of what?" said Leonard, sitting down next to Penny.
"Isn't it obvious?" said Penny. "I just don't know if I can go through with this."
"Penny, you don't have a choice," said Leonard. "It's a bit late to try and stop it when you're having contractions."
He saw the tears start to well up in her eyes. "Hey, hey, you don't have to cry," said Leonard. "I'm sure you'll do just fine. We've been practicing, remember? And, Dr. Samuels will be there, along with all the nurses, to help us."
"Leonard, you don't know that," said Penny. "Besides, what if something goes wrong with the delivery? What if something happens to the babies? I don't think I could handle that now."
"Penny, Dr. Samuels said the babies are fine," said Leonard. "And, as I said, she'll be there during delivery. We've had the tour, you know the hospital will have everything they need if something isn't quite right."
"What happens if we can't handle the twins?" asked Penny, tears still in her eyes.
"We have Louise," said Leonard. "I'm sure the gang will be there to help where they can. It will be all right."
"But, what if I'm a bad mother," said Penny sadly.
"Don't worry, you have me, and I'll be a good father," said Leonard with a grin. "That will offset how bad you are as a mother."
Penny looked at Leonard and chuckled. Then she started giggling, uncontrollably.
"Well, that was a quick change," said Leonard.
Penny smiled, "Leonard, it can't be all that serious if you're joking about it. I was being silly, wasn't I?"
"A bit, but I think you're just nervous about it," said Leonard. "You'll be fine look at how you handled Halley. And, we'll be together to help each other along. Howard and Bernadette will be there to help us, as will Amy and, in his own way, Sheldon. We have Louise, we'll be fine."
"But, I'm nervous about it," said Penny.
Leonard grinned, "So am I. But, while I am nervous, I'm really excited to see our daughters."
Penny nodded, "Yeah, I'm pretty excited too. I can't wait to meet our daughters."
Penny smiled and laid her head on his shoulder.
Leonard put his head on Penny's and said, "Do you remember, the first time we were here? This place was the first time we were along with each other. You were even naked here and I was probably more nervous than you."
"You didn't see me naked," said Penny.
"I didn't say I saw you naked," said Leonard. "I said you were naked when I was in here. You were in the shower, and I was standing by the door, more nervous than now."
"Oh, Leonard…" Penny stopped. "Hold on, here comes another one." Penny was quiet until finally she looked at her phone and said, "Fourteen minutes, fifteen seconds and it was 55 seconds long."
"How about we head back out to the living room?" said Leonard.
Penny bit her bottom lip and nodded. Just as they got to the door, there was a knocking, "Leonard, Penny, are you in there?" they heard Howard say.
"Yeah, we are, why?" asked Leonard.
"Sheldon wants to know."
"Coming out," said Leonard.
"What's up?" asked Howard.
"Nothing really," said Leonard, as they walked back out to the living room, followed by Howard.
"What were you two doing in there?" said Sheldon. "I hope not trying to have coitus."
Leonard leaned over to Penny and said, "It's been going on for an hour. Before they get stronger and longer, do you want to tell them, or do you want me to?"
"Are you sure they are contractions?" said Penny.
"Yes, you had another one, that makes four," said Leonard. "Let's announce it, then if it isn't, we just wait some more."
Penny smiled, nodded, and said, "Let me tell them."
Sheldon spoke up, "Do you two want to join our conversations or just have your own?"
Penny just smiled and said, "Leonard and I have an announcement. I think I'm in labor."
Amy and Bernadette went to Penny, all excited and Bernadette asked, "Are you sure?"
"Not really," said Penny. "Remember the ones I told you about last Sunday? Well, I've had four now, if I get a few more, then I'll know."
"How far apart are they?" asked Amy.
"About fourteen minutes," said Penny. "It's been a bit more or a bit less."
"That's normal and you have plenty of time," said Bernadette. "I went in and they told me to go home and not to come back until I was under five minutes."
Penny looked thoughtful, then said, "I would go with that, normally. But, Dr. Samuels told me to call her as soon as my contractions started. She was a bit miffed at me for not calling her on Sunday. Don't forget, between the twins and my high blood pressure, I think I might be a bit more of a high risk than you. So I should call her."
Penny got up and walked over to the kitchen, while Amy and Bernadette talked. The guys weren't saying much and Leonard got up and went over to Penny. He heard her talking to who he assumed was Dr. Samuels. She answered a couple of questions with a no or yes, and finally, Penny said thank young and hung up.
"What did she say?" asked Leonard. "Do we need to leave?"
"She said to call her when I get to eight minutes between contractions," said Penny. "So, no, we don't have to leave. She said I may not get to that point until like five or six tomorrow morning since this is my first pregnancy."
The two of them walked back to the group and sat down.
"I'm assuming you don't have to leave yet," said Bernadette.
"No, Dr. Samuels said we have time," said Penny. "We can stay until we normally do… here comes another one… but I don't have to go in until they are eight minutes apart."
Leonard had started timing, while Penny continued talking.
"She expects me to be at that point sometime around five or six in the morning. So, I have a ways to go yet."
"Is it because of your high blood pressure?" asked Amy.
"Yeah, that and the fact I'm having two," said Penny. "She wants some extra time to make sure everything is good and they are both in the proper position."
It was quiet for a few seconds, then Penny said, "Okay, it's over."
"That was 55 seconds and fourteen minutes and fifteen seconds apart," said Leonard.
"Well, just don't go breaking your water here in the apartment," said Sheldon. "And I don't want to see a mucus plugin here either."
"I'm surprised you know about breaking water and mucus plugs," said Penny.
Sheldon looked disgusted and said, "I saw one, and I had to go get towels to clean up the fluid when my sister's water broke when had her first baby."
"Okay, enough about contractions, mucus plugs, and breaking water," said Penny, rolling her eyes. "Let's get off of the subject of me being in labor and let Leonard tell us his news about the experiment."
Penny then sat back and listened to Leonard explain how the new tests showed more reactions than they planned and why. And, also, explained how many universities were asking questions and wanting to know if they could help with the research.
Wednesday 24 June, 9:30 PM
There was a bit of a scramble as everyone left for the night. Howard drove home with Halley and Michael, with Raj following. Amy drove to Leonard and Penny's house, with Penny and Bernadette, while Leonard drove home alone. Sheldon was just happy there was no amniotic fluid or mucus plugs left in the apartment.
Leonard got back to the house first and had the lights on when the women came in. Amy and Bernadette made sure Penny was comfortable in her recliner before each of them got a glass of wine for themselves and a glass of cranberry juice for Penny.
Leonard started an argument when he said he wanted to stay up with all of them. The women shooed him away, but he said he wanted to stay with Penny. Finally, Bernadette pointed out that she and Amy couldn't be there all night, so he would have to get up later and stay awake. Since he was bound to be up for a while after that, "… with Penny being in labor and all," said Bernadette sarcastically he should take advantage of getting some sleep now, while the two women were still there.
Leonard didn't have an answer for that, especially after Penny said, "Go ahead sweety, get a nap in, you'll be with me until they're born, right?"
Leonard left for the bedroom, while the women talked. Penny was still rather early in her labor and the contractions weren't very intense, so they mostly sat around talking. Amy and Bernadette tried to keep Penny calm, talking about anything, except labor and babies. At two AM, Bernadette mentioned that she had to get some sleep and Amy was yawning. Penny and Bernadette convinced Amy to stay in the spare bedroom. Bernadette went home and Penny locked the doors and turned off the lights. While Amy prepared for bed, Penny climbed the stairs.
Getting to their bedroom, she saw Leonard sleeping and felt bad about waking him, but she wanted a bath and didn't want to chance getting in and out by herself. She woke Leonard and explained what she wanted to do. He ran the tube with lukewarm water, then helped Penny into the tub. She leaned back, told Leonard not to talk to her, and closed her eyes, the water feeling very relaxing. She would have probably fallen asleep if the contractions would just quit happening.
After the next few contractions woke her up, she opened her eyes and just spoke with Leonard. She held out her hand and he held it. They take about their journey to this point. Their first meeting in the hallway, the beginnings of their friendship, their first kiss, their first date. Getting together and then breaking up and the awkwardness that followed. Getting back together, getting engaged, and then getting married, twice.
Leonard finally helped Penny get out of the tub and dry off. Penny noticed a slightly bloody discharge, but Dr. Samuels had warned her of this, so she wasn't concerned. Leonard helped Penny to the bed, then laid next to her. They started talking about their jobs and how they had changed since they met. As they talked, happy or sad events would come up and they would laugh and have their eyes fill with tears, depending on the event. All through the talk, Penny's contractions continued and they were getting longer, stronger, and closer together.
Finally, at 4:30 AM, after another two contractions Leonard said, "I think it's time Penny, the last two were just under eight minutes apart."
Penny got a scared look on her face, then relaxed, "Okay Leonard, should we call Dr. Samuels?"
"Yes, we should," said Leonard. "You go ahead and call her. I'll get your bag and wake Amy up."
While Penny called Dr. Samuels, Leonard took Penny's bag out to the car, then woke up Amy. Amy wanted to go with them to the hospital, but Leonard suggested she get back into the bed and get some sleep. If she wanted to come to the hospital, he thought it best to come around ten AM. He also asked that she call the others and tell them the same thing, before giving her a key to the house.
He went back upstairs and found Penny getting dressed.
"Did you talk to Dr. Samuels?" asked Leonard.
"Yes, I did," said Penny. "She said to go on down to the hospital and ask for a nurse named Althea Davis. She's the RN that is assigned to us."
"Don't forget, we'll have to call security," said Leonard. "The lobby is locked and they'll let us in. I have the number on my phone." Penny was dressed and Leonard smiled at her, "Are you ready?"
She smiled back, nodded, and said, "Yes, I am. Let's go meet our girls."
With that, they walked down the stairs, got into their car, and left the house.
Thursday 25 June, 9:30 AM
It had taken Leonard and Penny fifteen minutes to get to the hospital, the same as their test runs, and they had been there for four hours. After arriving, Leonard completed the check-in they had started with their class, while Althea had put fetal monitors on Penny's belly, started the IV, and found the twins were in good shape, had regular heartbeats, and did not show any stress. She also checked Penny and found she had dilated to four cm. Dr. Samuels soon arrived and said everything looked good and they would do a monitor check every thirty minutes.
For the first three hours, Penny had been walking around the room, and every half hour Althea had come in and did a check, with the babies still looking good. Meanwhile, Penny's contractions had gotten stronger, to the point where Penny was using the breathing techniques to cope with the pain of the contractions. An hour ago, they had put Penny on the birthing table, as it provided some support for her and was easier to check on the amount of dilation. Leonard was by her side, holding her hands, although, with the latest contractions, he was rethinking that idea. She had crushed his hands during the last couple of contractions.
Penny had on a nursing bra, and nothing else although she was covered with a sheet. She felt a bit exposed as various aides and nurses, along with Althea and Dr. Samuels would come in, stick their hands in Penny, and announce how much she had dilated. The pain was causing her to rethink the no drugs idea, but Althea pointed out that getting an epidural could delay the birth and Penny wanted it over with quickly. Dr. Samuels came in and explained she was now eight cm dilated and she was now in the transition stage. With that, Penny could expect the contraction to be even stronger, and closer together on her way to being fully 10 cm dilated.
Leonard was not in good shape. His crushed hands hurt and he was feeling bad about the pain Penny was in. But he was not going to abandon her. If it would help her, he would let her crush his arms, in place of his hands. He helped her with her breathing and encouraged her, telling her what a good job she was doing. He would run to get ice chips for her or put the straw up to her mouth if she wanted water. He had told her the gang was out in the waiting room, they had come early, and were excited to hear about the twins being born. And, they had promised to stay until they were.
The pain from the last contraction had been very hard on Penny. She had yelled and grunted, while still doing her breathing. She had also said she felt like pushing. Althea and Dr. Samuels both told her not to push.
"Why?" cried Penny. "Just let me push."
"Penny, you can't," said Dr. Samuels. "You have to wait until the cervix is fully open. It's only at 9 cm right now, fully open is 10 cm. If you push now, with the cervix only at 9, you could delay the birth, or hurt the baby."
"No, I do want to do that," gasped Penny.
"Then just do your breathing," said Dr. Samuels. "Besides helping with the pain, it helps to decrease your urge to push."
Leonard was standing behind Penny, rubbing her shoulders, and said, trying to relieve some tension, "You can do this Penny, you've been practicing."
Penny turned her head, "Where are you? Leonard where are you?"
"I'm behind you rubbing your neck," said Leonard.
"Well, come over here to my side," growled Penny.
Leonard walked to the side and Penny, with anger in her eyes said, "Don't tell me what I can do. You don't know how difficult this is and how much it hurts. This is your fault, you did this to me, so you don't get to tell me what I can and can't do." With that, she closed her eyes and started a breather exercise.
Leonard looked crestfallen, but Althea walked up next to him and whispered, "Don't worry, they all get like this. It's a way of coping with the pain." She patted his shoulder and he nodded. He went back to rubbing her neck, worried about how she was going to react the rest of the way.