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Enjoy,
Failte
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Darcy stood up and shook Lance's hands off her, "I'm fine."
"You're pushing yourself." He said.
"No, I'm fine." She repeated as she turned to leave.
Lance grabbed her arm, "Where are you going?"
"To the hospital, I want to be there when the baby is born."
"Maybe you should go back to your room. Lie down."
Darcy pried his hand off her arm, "Leave me alone, Lance. I don't need your help." She spat at him, angrily.
Lance watched, shocked, as she turned on her heel and left.
She didn't know if it was the running, or the anger she felt towards Lance at the moment, but she was finding it difficult to breathe. By the time she reached the hospital, Darcy was breathing like she had just run three miles.
"Darcy?" Allura looked up, alarmed. "Are you okay?"
Darcy nodded and sank into the chair beside Allura, "I'm fine, I just need to sit down. How's Romelle?"
"Dr. Gorma took her into a room, he said this could take hours. Sven and Paget are in there with her."
Keith, Hunk, Pidge, Dante, Caleb, and Lance all entered the waiting room just as Paget left Romelle's room.
"How's she doing?" Allura asked Paget.
"As well as can be expected. Dr. Gorma said it is going to be a long while yet, so if we have other things to do, he can contact us when it gets closer." Paget explained.
Hunk and Dante went to the hanger to finish a tune up they had started on Blue. Lance was sent back to Castle Control where he was still on duty and Pidge and Caleb went to work with Koran on the new security system Pidge was programming. After finishing with Bandor, Rankin arrived in the waiting room.
Two hours later, Dr. Gorma entered the waiting room to find Keith, Allura, Paget, Rankin, and Darcy. "I know you're worried and want to wait for the baby, but it will be a while. Why don't you all go wait someplace more comfortable and I'll contact you when it gets closer."
"That sounds like a good idea." Keith said.
Allura lifted her head from his shoulder, "But I want to be here when the baby's born."
"You will be, Your Highness." Dr. Gorma assured her.
Nurse Helene walked past and entered Romelle's room. As the door swung open, they heard some of the things Romelle said to Sven. Keith and Rankin both flinched at her threats.
"Come on," Keith stood and pulled Allura to her feet. "We can go to the rec room, Dr. Gorma can contact us there."
"Alright," she reluctantly agreed. "You coming?" She asked the others.
The five of them made their way to the rec room where Pidge and Caleb were seated at the table playing chess.
"Any baby yet?" Pidge asked.
"No," Allura fell back on the couch. "Dr. Gorma said it will still be a while. He's going to contact us when it gets closer."
"I'm hungry," Keith announced. "I'll go get us some food."
"Yeah, we can put a movie in." Allura said.
"I'll be
right back." Keith left the rec room and
headed for the kitchen. He paused
outside the observation deck when he noticed movement in there. "Lance?"
Lance stood beside the large
windows, looking out over landscape lit by a mid afternoon sun. He brought a cigarette to his mouth and
inhaled deeply. "What?"
"What are you doing in here,
man? We're all hanging out in the rec
room waiting for word on Romelle."
Lance continued to look out the window, "I'm fine here."
Keith crossed the room to stand beside his friend. He noticed the slight shake in Lance's hand and the haunted look in his eyes. "What's up, Lance?"
"Nothing."
"Did you and Darcy have a fight?"
"Not that I know of."
Keith nodded slowly, "She's mad at you and you don't know why."
Lance shifted his gaze to Keith, "I accidentally walked in on her this morning when she was getting dressed, but I can't believe she would be so angry over that."
"Is that all?"
Lance shrugged.
"Come on, join us in the rec room."
"I will. Later."
"Alright, just don't let Nanny catch you smoking inside."
Lance nodded.
"You should
seriously try to give it up, Lance."
"I know Keith."
Keith patted his shoulder and left him alone with his thoughts.
When Lance entered the rec room half an hour later, the lights were down and the televiewer was on. Keith and Allura were curled up on one end of the couch and Rankin and Paget on the loveseat. Pidge was sprawled on the floor with a throw pillow and Caleb was seated in one of the easy chairs. His eyes swept the room and found Darcy in the other easy chair, her knees pulled up to her chest with her arms wrapped around them. Her head was back against the chair and he couldn't tell if she was asleep or not.
"Pull up a seat and watch the movie." Keith said when he noticed Lance.
Darcy turned her head and saw him, his face an expressionless mask in the light of the televiewer. He pulled a chair over from the table and set it by the couch. He sat back and propped his feet up on the coffee table, not saying a word.
They all stayed like that through the rest of the movie. Hunk entered the rec room as Caleb was turning on the lights.
"I'm going to see if Dr. Gorma has any news." Paget said.
"What time is it?" Allura asked as she stretched and leaned back against Keith.
Pidge looked at his watch, "It's nearly five."
"Still no baby?" Hunk asked.
"Nope, we haven't heard anything yet." Keith told him.
"How long will this take?"
Keith shrugged.
"My mother was in labor ten hours with me." Lance spoke up.
"Geez," Caleb said.
"I heard somewhere that the first baby is usually the most difficult. I know my mother said she was in labor with my brother for twenty-three hours." Keith said.
Allura paled as she placed a hand on her stomach.
Keith laughed and pulled her closer to him, "Don't worry, they have some wonderful new drugs."
Hunk raised his eyebrows, "Do you have something to tell us, Captain?"
Allura and Keith exchanged looks. "Now's as good a time as any." She said.
Keith grinned up at his friends, "We're having a baby."
Hunk picked Allura up in a big bear hug and swung her around, "That's great! Congratulations!"
Keith stood, smiling, "Careful there, big guy, that's precious cargo there."
Pidge blushed as he hugged Allura and congratulated her. Lance shook hands with Keith and gave Allura a big, smacking kiss.
"Hey now," Keith teased. "Keep your mouth off my woman."
Lance tightened his arms around Allura and dramatically dipped her back, "When are you going to tell him it's my baby?"
"Alright," Keith pushed his sleeves up. "Let's take this outside, Lieutenant."
Lance twirled Allura out of his arms and brought his fists up, "Outside? Why don't we do this here and now? Or is it because you don't want me to humiliate you in front of your wife and team?"
"You're going down!" Keith tackled Lance around the waist and they fell back onto the couch.
The others stepped back and watched as the two men pulled their punches and performed a mock fight. Lance put Keith in a headlock and made him beg for mercy. When Lance let go and dropped Keith to the floor, the Captain kicked his feet out and knocked Lance flat on his back. Pinning Lance to the floor by the throat, Keith made him promise to never touch Allura again. They both fell back on the floor panting.
"Did you get all your primitive, male aggressions out?" Allura stood over them, her hands on her hips, a smile crossing her face.
"I think so," Keith jumped to his feet and held a hand out to Lance.
Lance slapped it away good naturedly and stood. "When're you due?"
"I'm three weeks along." Allura patted her flat stomach.
"I hope it takes after you," Lance kissed her cheek. "The last thing we need is some goofy looking little copy of Keith running around the castle."
Keith smacked him upside the head, "I was a cute kid."
Lance snorted, "According to whom? Your mother?"
"Speaking of my mother, I think we should call and tell her she's going to be a grandmother again." Keith told Allura.
"Again?" Caleb asked.
"My older brother has two boys." Keith explained.
Lance looked over and saw Darcy curled up in what looked like an uncomfortable position, sound asleep.
"Maybe you should take her to bed." Allura whispered in his ear. "For her first day off bed rest, it has been a busy one."
Lance nodded, but found himself hesitating.
"Is everything alright, Lance?" Allura asked.
"Yeah, I'll take her to bed and then I'll be back." He walked slowly over. She was turned sideways in the chair, her feet wedged between the arm and the cushion, her knees up to her chin.
Darcy felt herself moving, but she wasn't walking. She smelled the familiar combination of soap and smoke that was Lance. He heard her sigh as she snuggled against him. He tightened his arms, enjoying the way she felt.
"Is the baby here, yet?" She mumbled into his shoulder.
"No, not yet."
Darcy yawned, "I want to be there when it comes."
"I'll wake you when Dr. Gorma calls us." He promised.
The fog began to lift from her mind and her surroundings came into focus. Lance was carrying her down the hall towards her room.
"I can walk, Lance."
"I know you can."
"Put me down, Lance."
"No. Enter your code." He stopped outside her door and angled her toward the keypad.
"Put me down."
"I will. Enter your code."
She punched in her code with anger, hitting the keys harder than necessary.
Lance entered her room and dumped her on the bed. "Get some rest."
Darcy stuck her chin out, "Don't tell me what to do."
He ran his hand through his hair, frustrated, "I'm not, it was a suggestion. Get some rest so you can be there when the baby comes."
She was tired, she couldn't deny it. But she would not give him the satisfaction of seeing her give in to it. She stood beside him. "I'm fine."
He grabbed her arm as she tried to walk past him, "No, Darcy you're not. Please, get some rest."
"Why? What do you care?" She turned on him, her cheeks pink with anger.
"What do I care?" He asked, incredulously.
"Yeah, what do you care?" She put her hands on her hips and glared at him. It was easier for her to be angry. "Why don't you leave me alone? Go, be with your friends. Find some other chick to play with."
Lance felt his mouth fall open, "What are you talking about?"
"Just leave me alone, Lance." Her voice cracked and it broke his heart.
"Darc, what happened?"
"What happened?" She repeated, her voice shaking with emotion and exhaustion. "I saw the way you looked at me. I know what you were thinking."
Thoroughly confused, Lance sat on the edge of her bed, "I don't know what you're talking about Darcy."
"I know it's ugly. I know I look like some kind of freak with it, but it will fade a bit with time. Dr. Gorma even said I could have plastic surgery to reduce its appearance even more. But now that I have seen this shallow side of you, I don't think I want you a part of my life anymore."
Lance swore loudly, "What the hell are you talking about?"
Darcy looked down at him, tears in her eyes, "I saw the look on your face when you saw my scar. You were disgusted. I know how ugly it is, I didn't need you to remind me. You've been avoiding me all day, don't stop now. I don't need you Lance. I don't need you to pity me."
Lance stared at her, his mouth agape. "Oh God." He whispered and buried his face in his hands. "Oh God, oh God, oh God, Darcy. I am so sorry."
She watched him, his shoulders shaking. He lifted his face to hers, he wasn't crying, his entire body was shaking.
Very slowly, Lance stood and took her face in his hands, "Darcy, there is nothing, nothing, ugly about you. You are the most beautiful person I know, inside and out."
She felt the tears run down her cheeks.
"I love you, Darcy," he continued. "When I saw your scar, God, Darcy, it was the first time I saw it." He dropped his hands and paced in front of her. "I was there when you came off the ship. You had flatlined and they needed to restart your heart. You were dead, Darcy, dead." He stopped and took a deep, shuddering breath. "I was at your bedside when we didn't know if you were going to wake up. I was there after you woke up. I saw all the medications Dr. Gorma put you on, I knew about the surgery. I saw you in pain and I watched you while you slept. But I had no doubt that you would come out of this alive."
Lance sank down on the edge of her bed again and ran his hands through his hair. He took another breath before looking up at her, "When I saw your scar, it suddenly became so real. I knew it was bad, but it didn't hit home until I saw how bad it was." He lowered his voice to a whisper. "God, Darcy, I…I almost lost you."
Darcy stared at him, taking in everything he had just said. Very slowly, she sank to her knees in front of him. "I'm sorry, Lance." She whispered.
He took her hands in his, "I just…I was scared, Darcy. I thought I was strong, I thought nothing could scare me. But the idea of losing you scares me more than anything I've ever known and I didn't know how to handle it."
"I'm fine, Lance." She whispered.
"I know you are. I just don't know if I am." He admitted.
She stood in front of him and ran a hand through his hair, "We'll be fine."
He put his hands on her waist and pulled her closer, tugging her down until she straddled his legs and sat on his lap. Lance wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly, "I love you, Darcy, don't ever forget that or doubt it."
She turned her face into his throat, wrapping her arms around him. He was still shaking and she could feel his heart racing. "I'm sorry Lance," she whispered. "I'm sorry I doubted you and I'm sorry I said I didn't need you, because I do. I do need you."
He didn't trust himself to speak, instead he stroked his hands up and down her back.
"You're the strongest man I know." She whispered as she placed a gentle kiss on his neck.
"Darcy," he pulled back to look at her. "I want you to stop waiting for me to hurt you."
"What?" She reached up and brushed the hair from his forehead.
"You're waiting for me to hurt you. I'm not going to. I admit I didn't handle things very well today, but just because I was upset doesn't mean I'm going to leave you."
She took his face in her hands and kissed him, "I know that Lance, I just…I just can't help it."
Lance leaned forward and rested his forehead against hers, "I am so madly in love with you." He whispered. "Remember that next time you doubt me. I need you to trust me."
Darcy leaned back and looked at him. He had calmed down a bit and slid his hands down to rest on her hips. Without saying a word, she took the hem of her sweatshirt in her hands and pulled it up over her head.
"What are you doing?" He asked her.
Without answering him, she reached behind her, unclasped her bra and let it slide down her arms.
"Darcy."
She took his hand in hers and laid it flat between her breasts, over the scar, never taking her eyes off his.
His hand shook as he felt the smooth bumps of her scar and the puckered skin around it.
She leaned forward, still holding his hand to her chest, and kissed him. "I do trust you Lance and you aren't going to lose me that easily. It'll take more than a laser to keep me from you."
He closed his eyes, feeling the cool scar against her warm skin. She placed soft kisses on his eyelids. Opening his eyes, he gently ran his finger down the length of the scar. The only imperfection he could find on her. It was the width of his finger and about eight inches long, red and angry.
"I love you." She whispered as she kissed his chin and his jaw.
He flattened his hand over the scar again, feeling her heartbeat beneath. Finding comfort in the life that flowed through her, he slowly slid his hand under her breast and around her, pulling her against him.
They sat like that, holding each other for quite a while. Darcy rested her head on his shoulder, feeling the smooth cotton of his shirt against her skin, warming herself with his body heat. Lance stroked her bare back, trying to calm his nerves and soothe her fears.
He felt her shiver and tightened an arm around her. He reached over, picked up the sweatshirt she had dropped on the bed and pulled it over her head. Her arms felt heavy as she lifted them into the arms of the shirt.
"Come here," he whispered, pulling her down onto the bed with him.
She curled up against him, her head on his shoulder and her arm across his stomach.
"Try and rest," he kissed the top of her head.
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Darcy woke alone a few hours later, tucked comfortably into her bed. She rolled onto her side and looked up at the clock, it was eight o'clock. She had been sleeping for almost three hours.
Rising from the bed, she stretched and searched for her shoes, settling on a pair of worn old blue slippers. She shuffled lazily down toward the rec room, hoping she hadn't missed the baby's birth.
Lance, Keith, Caleb, and Pidge were gathered around the table in the rec room with a game spread out before them. Rankin was seated on the couch reading.
"No baby yet?" She asked.
Lance looked up and smiled, "Nope, not yet. I told you I'd wake you when it came."
"Allura and Paget are in with Romelle now." Keith told her.
"Come here," Lance held his hand out to her. "You can be my partner."
"Hey," Keith interjected. "I'm your partner."
"Too bad,
someone better looking showed up."
"I need a partner to play,"
Keith looked over his shoulder. "Hey,
Rankin, how good are you with Terran trivia?"
Rankin
raised one black eyebrow, "I think I could find it on a map."
"Damn," Keith reached into his
pocket and pulled out his communicator. "Hunk? Where are
you?"
"I'm in the kitchen." Came the response.
"Can you come to the rec room, I need a partner for Terran Trivia Challenge."
There was a pause, "Is that an order, Cap?"
Lance snorted.
Keith scowled at him, "And if it is?"
"You can't beat Lance, he's a fount of useless knowledge."
Pidge laughed.
"Do you want to play or not?" Keith asked.
"Yeah, I'll be right there."
"See if you can find a couple of extra chairs too."
"Aye, Captain."
Keith snapped his communicator shut, "We're going first since Lance just screwed me."
Lance smirked, "You wish."
"Not on your best day, Lieutenant."
Hunk ambled into the room with a dining room chair in each hand, "I want to apologize now, Keith, for getting our asses kicked."
"Maybe we'll get a lot of questions on machinery."
"I think there are three questions on machinery." Pidge said.
They played for almost an hour, Lance was most certainly a fount of useless knowledge. He knew more about Terran pop culture and sports than anyone else and Darcy was able to cover the questions on history and literature.
"I don't think Lance and Darcy should be allowed to be on the same team." Hunk grumbled.
"I know how to pick my partners." Lance teased.
"Isn't your father a teacher?" Pidge asked.
Darcy nodded, "He was a high school history teacher and my mother runs a bookstore."
"So, in other words, everything Lance doesn't know, you know." Keith said.
"Pretty much."
All games stopped when Keith's communicator beeped.
"This is it!" Allura shouted, excitedly. "The baby's coming!"