Chapter Eight-Rose

"Breathe, Kori, breathe," Richard said soothingly. "It's gonna be OK, the baby's almost here."

Kori gave a scream of pain as another contraction came. "I-you…you will never be allowed anywhere near me again!"

"Breathe…in, out, in out," Richard said, ignoring her.

"The baby's started crowning," the doctor told them. "Push, Kori."

Kori seized Richard's hand and squeezed it as hard as she could.

"You're doing great, Kori," a nurse assured her.

"Come on, old girl," the doctor agreed. "One more push…"

"I sincerely hope so," Richard muttered. "Kori, my hand! I kinda have to use it!"

Kori sucked in an enormous breath and…

"Congratulations! You have a beautiful baby girl," the doctor announced.

"It's a girl, sweetie," Richard breathed. "A baby girl, just like I wanted."

He tenderly swept Kori's sweaty locks from her forehead and planted a kiss on the top of her head.

"And here is the precious little girl," the nurse stated, carrying the wailing baby, now wrapped in a bundle of pink blankets.

"Oh she's beautiful!" Kori exclaimed, though her voice sounded rather weak. She extended her arms to take her child.

The baby was indeed beautiful. She looked up at her mother with sapphire-blue eyes and just visible under the blankets was a tuft of crimson locks.

"She weighs seven and a half pounds, an ideal weight. She's perfectly healthy, too. You did everything just right, though right now she looks hungry," Kori's doctor joked.

Kori turned scarlet and brought the baby to her chest, rocking her ever so gently as the baby fed.

"And now she needs a name," the nurse prodded, brandishing a clipboard.

"Rose," Richard said firmly. "Her name is Rose."

"That's perfect," Kori agreed, smiling weakly at Richard.

Richard gently pried Rose from Kori's arms and, trembling ever so slightly, held his "daughter" for the first time.

"I love you, Rose Grayson," he breathed, holding Rose's tiny form to his chest. "I love you so much."

"Kori!" Mrs. Anders shrieked, dashing into the hospital room. "I only got the message ten minutes ago. Let me see the baby!"

Richard wore a dazed look as Margaret snatched the baby from his arms.
"I have a granddaughter! Pretty baby," she cooed. "What did you name her?" she demanded.

"We named her Rose, Mother," Kori responded, placing her hand atop Richard's. He gently raised it to his lips.

"I'm going to call your father, dear," Mrs. Anders announced. "And you look terrible, darling, get some sleep." After passing Rose back to Richard, she swept from the room.

Kori's mouth hung open but she didn't respond to her mother's remark.

"I think you're beautiful, sweetie," Richard said, kissing the top of her head. "I know you're exhausted from the labor and all. Don't listen to her."

"I don't feel beautiful at the moment. I could just sleep for days, Richard," Kori moaned. "Let me see Rose." She stretched her arms out to the baby.

Rose was gently enveloped in her mother's soft arms, being held securely and close to Kori's exhausted body. Soon enough, Kori was asleep.

"It's time to take the baby to the nursery," a nurse whispered to Richard, shattering his reverie of he and Kori's future with Rose at their sides.

"Of course," he concurred. "I'll take her from Kori; she'll get freaked out otherwise."

"Yes, Mr. Grayson."

"Come to Daddy, Rosie. The nice nurse is gonna take you to the nursery. That's my girl," he murmured as Rose's tiny features brightened.

"Rose is a very nice name," the nurse commented to the baby, attempting to remove the baby from Richard's arms.

Rose began wailing rather suddenly. She didn't want to be separated from Richard's arms.

"It's OK baby girl. The nurse is a nice lady. She won't hurt you."

Rose, however, continued bawling.

"Why's my baby crying?" Kori asked urgently, sitting up and rubbing sleep from her emerald eyes.

"She doesn't want to go to the nursery," Richard explained, frowning at the baby, whose cries had reduced to whimpers.

"Let me see my baby, Richard," Kori demanded.

Richard obeyed.

"Now, Rose, sweetie, be a good girl fore the nice nurse," Kori cooed to Rose.

Rose was swept up by the nurse, who patted the baby's back.

"And now we have some Mommy and Daddy time," Richard murmured, stroking her still-sweaty locks tenderly.

"I cannot thank you enough for doing this, Richard," she whispered.

"Doing what?" Richard inquired casually.

"You know exactly what I mean," she hissed.

"No I don't," he insisted. "Now get to sleep, sweetie."

"I suppose," she muttered, lying down again.

She was asleep when her head touched the pillow.

Due to an amount of laziness that rivals that of Blake (this über-lazy kid in my French II class who doesn't even do his work) this chapter was long in the making…and it's short. I'm sorry, me duckies….

And remember, you wish you were as cool as I am because I am the happy yellow duck. : )

Queenie