By Tracy (biancaheart@yahoo.com)
Rating: PG
Category: I/K (Sort of), FF
Summary: I hate doing these- somebody else do it.
Disclaimer: I don't own Roswell- woo, woo, woo.
Christmas had always been her favorite holiday.
She had been adopted right before Christmas, on the 23rd of December- along with her brother Max. The holiday had always seemed so magical- so right. A time when everything could be right, happy, beautiful and bright- that was Christmas.
This holiday didn't seem so right, happy, beautiful, and bright.
It was her first holiday alone. Without Jesse.
She turned the ring on her finger, absorbing the feeling the cold metal. She caught glimpses with her alien powers of the day that her husband placed that ring on her finger.
She missed him.
It just wasn't fair. They were young, in love, and things were supposed to go right for them. They were supposed to grow old together.
He had never known her secret. Isabel had never told him. Max, Michael, and the rest of the alien mafia wouldn't hear of it. Too Risky, they said. Too risky to let another person in on the secret. Hadn't in been risky to let Liz, Maria, Alex, and Kyle in? But they had.
Jesse had died in a car accident. Instantaneously. Eerily reminiscent of the way Alex had died. This time, however, there had been no alien interference- it was simply the fault of a drunk driver.
She was a widow.
The day that he died, Isabel had gotten a wonderful phone call. She was pregnant.
Jesse never knew.
She silently patted her stomach, now enormous with baby. A new year, a new Ramirez.
Isabel reached towards the tree, trying to straighten out an ornament. Her new, front heavy body caused her to fall into the tree.
"Careful." A pair of strong arms pulled her back. "You gotta be careful for you and little one there."
"Thanks Kyle." She said, giving him a large hug. "I don't know what I'd do without you."
Kyle had been living with them for about five months when Jesse died. He was going for a psychology degree at the local university. The new house that Jesse and Isabel bought had a separate apartment over the garage. He paid a slight amount of rent and could come and go as he pleased. It was a bit of comfort for Isabel to have someone within the circle of alien fellowship nearby, this far away from Roswell. Jesse had been offered a new job, with an incredible pay raise.
After Jesse's death, Kyle had been her lifeline. He moved into the living room, and slept on the couch- something that he'd been used to, he said, after having Tess live with them, back so many years ago. He treated her like a princess. Kyle ran out for midnight cravings, and held her hand during doctor appointments.
He worked late into the night, pouring over books for his graduate studies. Isabel would fix him coffee, and read a relaxing book to keep him company. When his energy finally waned, Kyle would fall asleep with a book in his hands.
She laughed extremely hard one night when Kyle had fallen asleep over a copy of "What to Expect When You're Expecting".
"No problem, Izzy." He said, stroking her blonde again hair. After Jesse died, she couldn't keep it brown anymore. The brown haired Isabel was somebody else- not this woman who was suddenly alone. "That's what friends are for."
Isabel felt a surge of energy. "Let's bake Christmas cookies!"
Kyle gave her a look. "Izzy, are you sure you're up to it?"
She rolled her eyes. "Kyle, I'm just pregnant. Not sick. It's Christmas and I want to cook! I gave up organizing the Christmas pageant this year."
"If you get tired, you'll lay down?"
A smile crept onto Isabel's face. "Yes."
"Point me toward the dough." Kyle said with a sigh.
***
Kyle was leaning over the oven, taking a batch of cookies out when he felt something cold and moist hit his ear. He reached back and touched the top of his ear, and retrieved a wad of cookie dough.
"Isabel!" He squeaked.
"What?" She said with a smile. "I'm just stirring the dough."
"Stirring the dough, my ass!" He laughed. "I'll show you how to stir
the dough!" He walked over to the dough bowl and took out a lump. "This"
he said, looking at Isabel is how you stir the dough." He shoved the lump
into Isabel's face.
A dough fight ensued, ending with dough everywhere in the kitchen-
including all over them.
Isabel was laughing so hard that she couldn't catch her breath. Kyle helped her to a chair. "You need something to drink?"
She nodded.
She felt a swift wave of pain flow through her body. And she was soaked.
The glass of water slipped out of Kyle's hand when he turned around.
"Kyle….I think I'm in labor."
***
It wasn't supposed to happen this way. Max and Liz were coming next week- and they had more medical expertise than he did- yes, he was going to graduate school, but it didn't mean that he could deliver a doctor- psychologists were supposed to fix the mind, not deliver babies.
"Think Valenti, think." He muttered. He'd read up on pregnancy and deliveries. He was twenty-four years old. He could do this.
He had carried Isabel to the bedroom, and cleaned up the dough from her face and hair, and helped her change into a different outfit- with his eyes shut.
Isabel's contractions were getting closer and closer together. Kyle picked up the phone and punched in Max and Liz's number once more.
"If they're on the freakin' Internet…" Kyle muttered.
"Hello?" Max's voice sounded over the line.
"Hey, Evans. Merry Christmas. Listen, I need your help. Isabel's in labor."
***
Isabel's eyes opened.
She felt…different.
Sitting up quickly, she remembered what happened.
She was a mother.
She remembered pain- enormous pain- and a baby's cry.
It was a boy. Kyle said it was a boy.
She looked over to the other side of the bed.
Kyle was sleeping with her son in his arms. He looked so angelic- they both did. Kyle was still covered in dough, dried chunks stuck in his hair. Isabel ran her hands over his hair, using her powers to clean him off.
Moving swiftly and softly, as not to wake Kyle up, she took her son from her arms.
Tears filled her eyes. He was so beautiful. Two eyes, two little ears, one little nose, ten little fingers, ten little toes…and one….yep, he was most definitely a boy. She could see elements of Jesse in her son- especially in the mouth and in the dark, downy hair that covered his head.
He needed a name.
Kyle had spent ages with her, looking over baby names. She hadn't found one that she liked.
She didn't want another Jesse. Jesse was unique, and special.
Phone calls- she had to call people- her parents, Max, Michael, Jesse's mother…
She gazed down at her son's sweet sleeping infant face.
"Evan" She said in a soft voice. "Evan Ramirez." The perfect name for a combination of Jesse and her.
But Evan needed a middle name- middle names were important. Her baby needed the best of everything. She would make sure that he had that, too-from this moment on.
"How ya doing?" Kyle said, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.
"Great, thanks to you." She smiled. "I've got somebody here that wants to meet you."
Kyle walked over and picked up the infant. Evan's eyes opened, and the dark brown eyes stared up into Kyle's blue ones.
"Did you pick a name?" Kyle asked, staring down at the baby.
"Evan. Evan James Ramirez. Evan because he's an Evans, and James after the man I want to be his godfather- and help me raise him?"
Kyle smiled.
"Merry Christmas, Evan." He said, leaning down and giving the boy a
kiss on the cheek.