Disclaimer: Not mine, except what's original...I also don't own the song from "Bonanza" or Frankie Laine's "Rawhide" I also don't own People magazine...
Summary: Chapter 8
Author's Note: Finally I got to post this, i wanted to post it last night but was being weird. So here you go, chapter eight.
Author's Note 2: if you look very closly, you'll see where I got the title for this story...It's kinda funny.
8
"Are you feeling alright Kate?" Gibbs asked a very pregnant Kate one morning when she came into the bull-pen.
"No Gibbs, I don't feel alright okay. My back hurts, and these false labor contractions hurt like hell." Kate spat. Tony looked over at her, his eyes full of concern.
"How far apart are they?" Tony asked.
"Tony, it's not labor, Dr. Baldwin said I'd know when I was in labor." Kate paused and took a breath. She sat down, her gaze not moving from a spot on the floor. In her head, she counted off the minutes. She didn't know it, but Tony was timing too, with the stop watch feature on his wristwatch.
"You're in labor!" he shouted, after Kate contracted twice in ten minutes. He was at Kate's side in a flash.
"I can't be in labor, I have three weeks to go." Kate told him.
"Dr. Baldwin said..." Tony reminded. Suddenly, Kate gripped Tony's hand in a vice grip as a contraction swept over her.
"Tony, it's too soon." she managed to get out, her voice trembled with worry and fear.
"Don't worry," Tony whispered in her ear, "She's strong, she'll be okay." he laid a hand on Kate's belly and felt his daughter move inside, no doubt she was ready to come out. Tony knew that Kate was afraid, hell so was he.
"I'm afraid." Kate whisperd as if she had just read Tony's thoughts.
Tony didn't reply, he didn't want Kate to know just how scared he really was. He grabbed the keys to Kate's mini-van, the blue one he surprised her with just weeks before. He came back into the bull-pen seconds later and cast an expectant look at his boss.
"Go DiNozzo!" Gibbs yelled. He walked over to Kate's desk, and rested his hands on the desktop. He stared at her, his blue eyes taking in her laboring form. Gibbs knew Kate was getting close to having her baby beacause it was the same way his second wife looked when their daughter was born.
"I guess I won't be back for a while." Kate joked, trying to keep the tension out of the air. She was terrified something was going to happen to her baby, and the last thing she needed was to dwell on the fear.
"I guess you won't." Gibbs replied.
Suddenly, Kate stopped talking, all her attention was focused on trying to get past this painful contraction. In the back of her mind, she could hear her boss telling her to slow down her breathing. Automatically, she did as she was told, and soon the pain subsided and she was alright again.
"Are you okay to walk?" Gibbs asked.
Raggedly, Kate nodded and accepted the helping hand up. Slowly, Gibbs helped Kate to her feet and very slowly, they walked to the elevator.
The thirty seconds it took for the elevator to arrive felt like an eternity for Kate. Gibbs guided Kate onto the elevator and pushed the button for the ground floor.
Finally, the elevator reached the bottom floor. Tony met them near the front entrance and both he and Gibbs helped Kate into the car.
"Thanks Gibbs." Kate managed to squeak out.
"Let me know what happens." Gibbs said as the parents-to-be drove off.
The ride was quiet, Kate glared at Tony when he went to switch the radio on.
"You okay?" Tony kissed Kate's hand.
Mutely she nodded and gave her boyfriend a small smile. She laced her fingers with his and after a second, he felt the pressure increase on his right hand. He cast a glance at Kate and immediatly knew she was in pain. He saw her gnaw on her lower lip to keep from screaming out.
"Hang in there Katie, we're almost there."
Not long after, Tony pulled the van into the parking lot of Bethesda Naval Hospital. He helped Kate out of the van and kissed her.
"I love you." he told her
"I love you too Tony." she replied, her voice no bigger than a whisper. Tony had caught the nearly imperceptible catch in Kate's voice, he knew she was scared to death about the health of their little girl, and it was an emotion that Tony shared with his girlfriend.
"Rollin' rollin' rollin'." Tony sang under his breath as he flipped though an old copy of People. Kate glared at him, but he didn't notice. "Move 'em on, head 'em up. Head 'em up, move 'em on. Move 'em on, head 'em up; rawhide!"
"Tony." Kate huffed, she hated that song with a passion. Once again, Tony ignored her and kept singing the awful song.
"Head 'em up, ride 'em in. Ride 'em in, let 'em out. Cut 'em out, ride 'em in; Rawhide!" Once he got to the end of the song, he was having a hard time finishing it due to the laughter that was bubbling inside him.
"Tony!" Kate yelled, she reached behind her, grabbed her pillow and hit him with it. He looked at her, an expression of innocence and pure mirth etched his face.
"What?" he asked.
"Must you sing Frankie Laine?" Kate asked in exhasperation, and exhaustion. She had been tethered to a fetal monitor for the past nine hours. She was tired, in a fair amount of pain due to her wish of a natural childbirth, and worried about her baby girl. Tony's childish behavior and the fact that he kept antagonizing Kate with "Rawhide" and the theme from "Bonanza" wasn't helping anything.
"I'm bored Kate." Tony whined, he closed his magazine and slumped in his chair. "How much longer?"
"Tony, we're not waiting for some overpriced meal at an overpriced restraunt, we're anticipaiting the birth of our daughter! Now stop whining, stop singing "Rawhide" Stop humming "Bonanza"! and give me your hand!" Kate was glad her little rant was over before her contraction took hold once again. She squeezed Tony's hand harder than usual.
Tony's eyes were locked with hers as he stood by her side. Automatically, he ticked off the seconds in his head. Fifty seven seconds past before the strong contraction released it's grip. Kate took a breath in and raggedly blew it out.
"Are you okay?" Tony asked, his voice serious.
Kate managed a small nod. Tony rubbed his thumb on Kate's hand to reassure her that everything was going to be okay.
Ten minutes later, after three more contractions came and went, Dr. Baldwin stepped in to check on Kate and the baby.
"Looks like you've been contracting a while." Dr. Baldwin observed after she did a quick exam.
"Since last night. I didn't think they were real labor contractions."
"Well, you're about five centimeters along. This is usually when we give epidurals."
"No, I want to do this naturally."
"Okay, but if you change your mind, don't wait to long or we won't be able to do it." Dr. Baldwin said, "Both of you are looking good. We'll monitor you closely and before you know it, it'll be time to deliver this little baby. Dr. Baldwin gave Kate a comforting smile. "Get some rest, I'll be back in a bit."
After the doctor left, Tony looked at Kate.
"Katie," he said, "There's something we need to discuss."
"What?"
"Names for our girl."
"Not now Tony."
"If we don't name her, she'll be an outcast for the rest of her life. That's worse than naming her after a food product, like Vegetable."
"Vegetable?" Kate didn't want to ask, but curiosity got the best of her.
"Abby suggested it. You know how those Hollywood wacko's are naming their kids after food products?"
"Yeah."
"Well, Abby thought it would be funny to name our girl Vegetable."
"You've been hanging around Abby too long." Kate grumbled.
Four and a half hours later, Kate and Tony were still deciding on names for their baby. Kate had recieved an epidural an hour before, and now was resting comfortably.
"Tess?" Tony tossed out. He was flipping through the baby name book and randomly picking out names. So far, Kate hated every name he picked.
"Gail." Kate said.
"No way, I dated a Gail once and she smelled weird."
"Okay then, Christina."
"I've got an interesting story about a Christina..." Tony began.
"Tony!" Kate bellowed.
"Okay, here's one; Taylor." Tony suggested.
"Ooh, I like that. Taylor. We could give her Abigail, as a middle name."
"Taylor Abigail DiNozzo." Tony rolled the name off his tongue. "It works." he said.
"Hey, what about my last name?"
"Taylor Todd?" Tony made a face. "Kate, it sounds like a side dish, or worse, a casserole."
"I guess you're right." Kate agreed.
They didn't even have a chance to laugh about Kate's suggestion, because the monitors in the room began to wail like crazy. Dr. Baldwin and Kelly, the nurse, came running in.
"This baby isn't tolerating the labor very well." Kelly said in haste, as she moved the monitor that was strapped to Kate's belly around. "When you have a contraction, her heart rate keeps dropping, it's what we call decelerations."
"Is it serious?" Tony asked. He had his hand wrapped in Kate's.
"It can be. Let's just wait a moment and see if her heart rate comes up." Dr. Baldwin said.
A tense moment went by before anyone dared to speak again. Dr. Baldwin looked at Kate and Tony. Suddenly, the soft whooshing sound of their daughter's heartbeat could be heard once again.
"There we go." The doctor said. She turned to the nurse, "Why don't we do a quick ultrasound to see what's going on with this little girl."
"I'll be right back." Kelly said.
"What's going on?" Kate asked in a fear laden voice.
"It seems that your daughter may have the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck." Dr. Baldwin continued, noting that the first time parents in front of her were very afraid for their child. "This happens more often than you might think. When baby gets closer to being born, the space inside the mother begins to get very tight, so it makes turning and moving about very difficult. Some babies, in the process of turning into the head down position, get tangled up in their umbilical cord. And while it can be dangerous, most of the time we just monitor the mother closely and have no further complications. When Kelly returns with the ultrasound machine, we'll take a look and see if we can get a clear view of what's going on with that baby of yours." Dr. Baldwin gave the weary parents-to-be a comforting smile. "We will take every precaution necessary to make sure your daughter stays as healthy as possible."
Soon after, Kelly returned with the machine. The doctor ran the wand over Kate's belly and the baby's image came up on the screen.
"No cord around the neck." Dr. Baldwin announced.
"That's a relief." Tony said.
"She seems to be pressing up against it whenever mom contracts." Kelly added.
"Is she okay though? I thought that a cord compression can cut off the oxygen." Kate's hazel eyes darted from the doctor to the nurse then to her boyfriend.
"We'll put you on 100 oxygen for the rest of your labor. I'm hoping that this baby won't need much assistance when she's born." Dr. Baldwin said. "The best thing you can do for your daughter, is relax. I know it's easier said than done, but if you relax it'll be better for the baby in the long run."
Dr. Baldwin put Kate on the oxygen mask and said she'd check back in an hour, sooner if there were any problems with the baby.
Kate turned to Tony, once they were alone once more.
"Tony, if something happens to me.." she began.
"Kate, you heard what the doctor said, our daughter is just giving us a hard time that's all." Tony said softly. He brushed a stray lock of Kate's hair out of her eyes.
"I need to say this." Kate looked at him intently, "If something happens to me or this baby, I want you to know I love you. And if you have to choose between me and our daughter I want you to choose the baby."
"Kate."
"Promise me Tony, that if something happens, you'll choose our daughter over me."
"I can't promise that..."
"Tony, I need you to promise me." Kate was insistant, "Promise me, please."
Tony wasn't about to make a promise he was sure he couldn't keep, but once he saw the tears in Kate's eyes, he nodded his head.
"I promise." he said. He knew that Kate was still worried about their baby, and that the thought of their daughter's health being at all compromised scared the hell out of her. He didn't like to hear her talk like that, he didn't like to make promises like that, he didn't like to think that there was any possibility that he'd even be faced with a situation like losing Kate, or his daughter or both of them. As he watched Kate finally fall into a restless doze, he knew in his heart that both mother and child would be okay, but his mind still flashed with horrible scenarios.
"Did you have a good sleep?" Dr. Baldwin asked when she breezed in an hour later. "Lets see how far you are along here." The doctor checked Kate out and grinned when she was done, "You, my dear, are ready to deliver this baby."
"Really?" Kate's eyes lit up.
"Her head is right here. Let me get set up and we'll start pushing."
Kelly had come in with the doctor and turned Kate's epidural down, the medication was quickly wearing off.
"This is it mom." Tony whispered to Kate, his voice too choked with emotion to speak properly. He gazed at Kate as she stared back at him. "I love you." he said softly.
"I love you too." Kate replied.
"Kate? Are you ready to have this baby?" the doctor asked as she took her place at Kate's feet.
Kate nodded and in a moment was bringing her baby into the world.
Twenty seven minutes later, a beautiful baby girl was laid on Kate's chest.
"Hi sweetheart." Kate cried when she saw her daughter for the first time. The squalling, red faced newborn stopped her cries for a second when she heard her mothers voice. "Tony, look at her."
"She's beautiful Kate, just like you." Tony had a hard time talking due to the many emotions that were overtaking him at that moment.
"Would you like to cut the cord?" Kelly handed a pair of sterile clippers to Tony. "Just cut right between those two clips. There you go."
"Welcome to the world Taylor Abigail DiNozzo." Tony whispered to his new born baby daughter. He kissed the top of her head.
"I'm going to take her over to the warmer now and get her cleaned up a little and weighed." Kelly said as she gently picked up the baby. The nurse set the baby on the scale and waited a few seconds, "Five pounds seven ounces." the girl announced, "And she's twenty inches long. Congratulations." Kelly said as she handed a now swadled baby Taylor back to Kate. Kate looked over her baby girl with love in her eyes. Then she caught the concerned look on Dr. Baldwin's face.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
Dr. Baldwin didn't answer, she motioned to Kelly to get the ultrasound machine and the fetal monitor.
"What's wrong?" Kate asked again. She was beginning to panic now, her fear overtaking the joy and admiration she had for her daughter.
"Nothings wrong persay, I just hope you have two of everything." the doctor said, a smile appeared on her face.
"What?" Kate said in disbelief, "How could there possibly be another baby?"
"This one was probably blocking the second twin from view. It happens sometimes." the doctor said as she ran the ultrasound wand over Kate's stomach. Sure enough, another heartbeat could be seen, another profile could also be seen on the screen.
Kate looked over at Tony, an accusing look marring her pretty, yet tired face.
"I'm going to kill you DiNozzo." she said, her voice lilting with the pain of contractions once more.
"Baby B is still pretty high up, so we'll monitor you a while longer before we deliver this baby." the doctor said. She strapped the fetal monitor back to Kate's stomach and grinned. "Relax, this one will be a peice of cake. Besides, you'll have a great story to tell your grandkids someday."
"Assuming he lives to have grandchildren." Kate said icily.
The doctor just shook her head and laughed.
"I have to take her now." Kelly said.
"Does she go to the nursery?" Kate asked, holding her newborn a little closer.
"We'll bring her back to you in about an hour, we just have to give her a proper bath and do a full newborn screening to make sure she's healthy." Kelly said reassuringly. Kate reluctantly handed her daughter to the young nurse. "She'll be okay. It'll give you a chance to relax before baby b is born."
"Okay." Kate said. She hated giving her daughter over to the nurse, but the girl was right, suddenly they had another baby to focus on.
"So I guess we have to think of another set of names." Tony said quietly, once the nurse had taken Taylor to the nursery.
"I guess we do." Kate said, her voice still held a slight bit of contempt.
"It wasn't my fault Kate." Tony said, knowing what Kate was "bitter" about.
"I'm sorry, It's just that.." Kate began, she stopped to take a breath, "Twins? Tony, we didn't plan for this."
"As I remember, we didn't plan for one baby. Come on Kate, twins will be fun. Think about it, twice the love. Twice the smiles, twice the "I love you mommy and daddy's'."
"Twice the diapers, twice the feedings, twice the carseats, twice the expense." Kate added.
"Kate, we can handle this." Tony gave her a reassuring smile.
"Cailey." Kate said after a second of silence. "Cailey Grace DiNozzo."
"Cailey Grace DiNozzo." Tony repeated, he smiled, "It's beautiful."
Thirty minutes after Taylor was born, five pound three ounce Cailey Grace DiNozzo joined her sister. Tony cut the cord and the nurse swaddled Cailey up and handed her to Kate, just as she had done with Taylor. Kate, Tony and their surprise baby Cailey bonded for a few moments, then Cailey was sent to the nursery with to re-join her big sister Taylor. Kelly told the new parents, that once Kate was in her regular room, the girls would be reunited with them.
An hour after Cailey was delivered, Kate was moved to her regular room. Tony was waiting there with a beautiful red rose flanked by two small pink rosebuds. Two balloons that read "It's a Girl" floated up from the floor, and two small stuffed bears, one pink and the other yellow, sat on the small nightstand. Kate couldn't say anything, she just stared.
"They said they'd bring the girls by in a few minutes." Tony whispered. He helped Kate out of the wheelchair and into the bed. "I wanted to get you three something."
"Tony." Kate said, her voice an emotion filled whisper. Tony wrapped his arms around Kate and gave her a hug. He then helped her to the bed and covered her up with the blanket.
"Knock knock." the nurse said from the doorway. She was pushing a bassinette with both baby girls inside. Kate smiled as Taylor was placed in her arms and Cailey was handed to Tony. The nurse did a quick check on Kate to make sure everything was okay and then she left the family to bond.
"Thank you." Kate replied, a happy glow resonated from her weary face. She looked down at the baby in her arms and all at once the tears began to flow again. "Oh Tony, can you believe they're actually here? All those months of worrying and all that time we didn't know what they would look like, and now they're finally here."
"She's got you're eyes." Tony said, looking down at the baby in his arms. Just as he finished his sentance, baby Cailey opened her dark eyes and blinked up into the big bright world. "Buena sera mi bella rosa." Tony said to his daughter. The baby's tiny features seemed to light up, and her little lips curled into a tiny half smile revealing the dimple in her cheek. "Kate did you see that? She smiled at me."
Tony locked his gaze on Kate and shot her a big smile.
"You know something Kate?" he whispered to her.
"What?" Kate answered.
"You are the strongest woman I know. You gave me the most beautiful daughters in the world."
Kate wiped the stray tears from her cheeks.
"It wasn't like I did it by myself Tony." Kate said. She ran her finger along Taylor's gums. "Did you ever call the team?" she asked.
"With all the excitement, I forgot." Tony replied, a sheepish look on his face. He settled Cailey in the bassinette and tucked her in. He turned to Kate, "I'll make sure you're settled first, then I'll go make those calls. Abby's probably pacing her lab by now."
Kate laughed at the thought of her best friend pacing back and forth in her lab like a caged tiger.
Tony stayed until Kate had taken a quick shower and until her platter of food arrived, then he raced outside to call everyone and let them know about the new arrival.
The team sent their congratulations and their surprise at the announcement of twins. They said they were glad everyone was healthy and doing well. They'd be up tomorrow if Kate was up for visitors.
Tony stayed that night with Kate and his girls. He didn't want to leave them, and doubted that Kate would want him to leave.
That night, while newborn Taylor slept cuddled up on his chest, Tony knew his life was perfect. He watched the slumbering baby girl sleep, all curled up, and next to his heart. Her little face was perfect, and her sleep smiles endearing, and wonderous in every way. He looked over at Kate, his strong, beautiful Kate. She had Cailey snuggled in her arms, much the same way he held Taylor.
Kate opened her eyes and sleepily flashed Tony a happy smile.
"Hi dad." she said softly, so as not to wake the girls.
"How you doing over there mom?" Tony asked.
"I love you." Kate said.
"I love you too Kate."