"Beck..." Jade gently shakes her husband awake "Babe...wake up..."
"Huh?" Beck awakes with a gasp "Jade? What is it? Are you okay? Is it the baby?"
She's three days past her due date now, and both she and Beck have been on high alert for any signs that labor might be coming. Aspen and Chelsea have been asking questions, although they don't really understand the concept of a 'due date'. Whenever they ask when the baby will be born their parents always respond with, 'when he's ready'...and that's causing them to grow even more impatient.
"Yes and no..." Jade admits "I'm having contractions, but-"
"We need to go to the hospital!" Beck insists, throwing the blankets off of his body "I'll call my mom-"
"Woah, slow down. Let me finish." Jade laughs "They're still only twenty minutes apart, the hospital would send us home."
"Right." Beck nods "So, what do you want to do?"
"Go back to sleep." Jade answers him honestly "I just wanted to warn you that it's probably going to be a hectic morning."
"Okay..." Beck yawns "Alright, I'll just send my mom a text real quick so that she has a heads up...then we can go back to sleep."
Falling back to sleep is easier said than done though, at least for Jade. Beck doesn't really seem to have any issues drifting off again, but every single time she thinks that she's found a comfortable position...another contraction hits. After she's woken up for a fourth time, she finally gives up. Feeling a bit defeated she gets up to take a shower, knowing it's most likely the last time she's able to take one for at least the next few days.
Beck is a bit confused and disoriented when his alarm goes off and he rolls over to find his wife's side of the bed empty. Once he remembers that she had woken him up the night before, and why she had woken him up, he begins to panic a bit. Thankfully, he doesn't have to look too far to find Jade. She's kneeling on the ground on her side of the bed, resting her forehead against her arms as she leans against the mattress.
"Hey..." He says to her as he slides out of bed to kneel beside her, placing a hand on the small of her back "How are the contractions?"
"Stronger and a little closer together." Jade admits "Manageable still, but I think we should go soon."
"Yeah, I think so too." Beck agrees, taking note of the grimace on her face "Just let me call my mom and let her know what's going on."
"Will you call work for me too, please?" Jade asks him "I haven't been able to yet."
"Sure." Beck nods, taking her phone off of the charger on her nightstand "I'll do that first."
The school had of course hired a long-term substitute that would be ready to fill in for Jade at a moment's notice, especially once her due date came and went, so if anything Beck's making the call is only a technicality. Laura is thrilled for them, and wishes good luck to both of them before hanging up, and then Beck is able to call his mom to make a plan for Aspen and Chelsea.
They decide, along with some input from Jade, that Beck and Jade should drop them off at school and daycare just like it's any other morning. James and Priya will pick them up in the afternoon and take them back to Beck and Jade's, so that there's as little interruption to their routine as possible.
"I'll get them dressed and fed." Beck assures his wife "Just stay here, okay? And call if you need me."
"Got it..." Jade nods, just as another contraction hits her "Fuck!"
"Are you okay?"
"I'm in labor, Beck." She winces "What do you think?"
"Alright, alright..." He rubs her back gently "You can do this. Just keep breathing."
"Wow, I wish I had thought of that."
Beck tries his best not to laugh as he leaves the room, not wanting to upset his wife any further. He knows it's only the labor pains talking, that she doesn't really mean anything that she's saying. Nothing she says is meant to be funny either, even if it might come across that way to him in the moment.
Apsen and Chelsea quickly notice that Jade is absent from their usual morning routine, but Beck tells them that she's just sleeping in a bit and that seems to satisfy them for the time-being. In the meantime, Jade is able to brush her teeth and double check that everything she and Beck will need for the next few days is packed correctly in their hospital bag.
"Still doing okay?" Beck reappears while the girls are finishing their breakfasts
"Yeah, sorry for snapping at you." Jade responds
"S'okay." Beck smirks as he slides the strap of the duffle over his shoulder "Are you ready to go?"
"I think so."
"Can you walk?"
"Yeah." Jade nods, although she's walking quite gingerly
"G'morning Mom!" Chelsea greets her as she enters the kitchen
"Mornin' Mama!" Aspen grins
"Good morning, ladybugs." Jade chuckles, pressing a kiss to each of their foreheads "Almost ready to go?"
"Wait, you're taking us to school?" Chelsea gasps
Normally Jade has left for work by now, and Beck is the one dropping the girls off.
"Yeah." Jade nods "Well, I'm going to come with Dad to drop you off. I don't have to go to work today."
"Yay!"
As she watches her children finish their breakfasts and pull on their coats to leave, Jade can't help the bittersweet feeling that rushes over her. This is the last time it will be just the two of them, the next time she sees her girls...they'll have a little brother. While that's exciting, it's also a bit sad. They're growing up right before her eyes, and there's nothing she can do to slow it down.
"Ready?" Beck asks, appearing at her side
"I guess so." Jade smiles up at him "Are you?"
"Yeah." He grins "Definitely."
Beck and Jade arrive at the hospital just after 8:30 in the morning, and Jade isn't ten centimeters dilated until 6:45 at night. It's agonizing for her, having to wait so long. She just wants to hold her son, and she knows Beck wants the same.
It's odd for Beck, being back in the labor and delivery wing. Aspen and Chelsea had been born in this same hospital, and not much about it has changed since then. He has changed though. When each of the girls had been born, he had been absolutely terrified. With Chelsea, well, he was a first time dad, and a young one at that. He didn't really know what to expect, both that day and for the years ahead. With Aspen, he was worried about whether or not she would be born healthy, given the habits Alyssa had picked up prior to her pregnancy and that had sent her to rehab for a majority of those nine months. The stress she was putting on her body made the pregnancy high risk, but thank god Aspen had been born with a perfectly clean bill of health.
This time though, he doesn't feel terrified in the slightest. Yes, he's nervous. What soon-to-be father isn't? He wants the delivery to go smoothly and for there to be as few complications as possible. But he mostly feels...excited. Excited to be starting this new chapter with Jade, excited to meet this little boy that they created together, excited to introduce him to his older sisters, excited to start their new life together as a family of five.
"You're doing great." He assures Jade as he squeezes her hand tightly "Just a few more pushes, and then we can meet him."
"You make it sound so simple..." She manages to chuckle
"I know it's easier said than done." He smirks "But if there's anyone who can do it, it's you."
After another four contractions and another fifteen minutes of pushing, Beck and Jade are finally able to meet their son after more than nine months of not-so-patiently waiting.
"It's definitely a boy!" The doctor laughs as he holds the baby up for them to see "Congratulations, Mom and Dad."
"Thank you so much." Beck has to fight back tears as he first lays eyes on the baby "Wow, he's here!"
"Oh my god, hi!" Jade gasps as a nurse places the baby on her chest "Oh I know, we disrupted your peace and now you're out here where it's loud and cold. I'm sorry. I'm your mommy though...it's nice to finally meet you!"
"He looks a bit like Aspen." Beck chuckles as he brushes some of Jade's hair out of her way to get a better look at the baby
"Well, Aspen looks a bit like you." Jade reminds him "So that would make sense."
"I guess so, yeah." Beck smiles "Hey buddy, it's Dad. S'nice to meet you."
"Hey Dad..." Jade picks up the baby's hand and waves to him
"Oh wow, that's so cute."
"He's pretty cute."
Eventually one of the nurses takes the baby from them so he can be cleaned up and examined and so that Jade can be cleaned up as well. She urges her husband to go with the baby, insisting that she'll be fine on her own for the time being.
"He's healthy right?" Beck asks one of the nurses as she takes his son's measurements "At least from what you can tell?"
"We still have to do vision and hearing tests, but yes. His APGAR looks good." She smiles "Seven pounds, nine ounces. Twenty inches long."
"Wow, he's bigger than his sisters were."
"Boys usually are."
"Hey, little guy..." Beck smiles "Feeling a bit better now that you're all wrapped up and warm?"
The infant has definitely calmed down some, and now appears to be resting peacefully. His eyes flutter open every now and again, so he isn't asleep, but he seems content for now.
"Can I pick him up?" Beck asks the nurse
"Of course."
It's been years since Beck has held such a small baby, but he picks his son up as if he's been doing it regularly for years. Moving slowly and carefully so that he doesn't wake him, he carries the baby back over to his mother so that the three of them can be together.
"Still waiting on vision and hearing but they said everything else looks good." Beck smiles as he passes the baby to Jade "He's seven pounds and nine ounces."
"That's what I like to hear..." Jade coos, rocking the baby gently "My little baby bear..."
"He's perfect." Beck says, not taking his eyes off of the baby
"He sure is." Jade agrees "I can't wait for the girls to meet him."
"Me either." Beck smiles at the thought "They're going to be so excited...they'll love him."
His parents will bring the girls up to visit later, once Jade has had the chance to recover a bit from the feat that is delivering a child. For now, it's just the three of them...and that's perfectly okay. It's the calm that comes before the start of the most exciting adventure either of them has ever been on.
"Hey..." Jade looks up at her husband "We made a pretty cute kid."
"We did." He leans down to kiss her "I love you."
"I love you too."