PSA: i've never had a kid, nor know anyone who have given me personal details on birth (i'm adopted, so i can't ask my mom lol). keep this in mind when you read this chapter—it's the main explanation for a lot of the skipping around during the labour process. the knowledge I do have either is from TV shows (not reliable) and research/exposure over the years from school/others.
They say that the first time you hear your baby cry, it's the best and worst sound in the world. Best because that's your baby and they're alive and they're breathing and they're really here. Worst because well, they're crying and you want them to be happy and to not know sadness. As much as the latter is a wish, it's impossible to maintain. Jay had promised his daughter long before she was due that he would try to make her life one of the happiest in the whole world. He loved her so much and never wanted anything remotely traumatizing to happen to her. Of course there were many situations out of his control yet he and Hailey would try their absolute best.
It's what parents did for their kids. Well the good ones, anyways. They always wanted the best and worked to provide that for their child. They loved them without reason, supported them no matter what, and would always be a safe place. Jay and Hailey agreed on a lot of things; thankfully parenting styles also happened to be one of them. The only thing they had a hard time being on the same page about, however, was the colour of their daughter's eyes. Half of the time Hailey said blue, while Jay said green. The rest it switched. They were hardly ever in agreement about this one fact and had roped their friends and Jay's brother into the discussion.
It's not like one eye colour dominated over the other, unlike with hair. It was likely that their daughter would have brown hair, or at least light brown, because brown dominated blonde. But as both Hailey and Jay had light-coloured eyes, they were unsure about which would be passed onto their child. Jay hadn't made it a bet yet, but he was pretty tempted to.
Although the morning Jay was about to joke about the bet over breakfast, it was the morning that Hailey started having contractions at four a-m. They rushed to the hospital at around nine, checked in less than an hour later and both Jay and Hailey were anxious from that moment on. Hailey, clearly in a lot of pain, tried to smile through it but failed miserably. Jay provided ice chips, back massages and hand squeezes without prompt. Seeing Hailey upset made him upset because he couldn't do a thing to take away her pain.
Their doctor was called in the early afternoon. She showed up with a smile on her face and a knowing look. "It's going to be baby time soon, I can feel it!" Dr. Trasse said cheerily.
"Better now than later," Hailey replied with gritted teeth. Jay squeezed her hand once—for Hailey. Since their wedding, whenever they held hands Jay had started squeezing once, gently. One for the person in his life that he loved like no other. Hailey had started doing it back a year into their marriage; now it was just a habit. Jay would soon be able to add another squeeze—making it double—when their daughter was born because then there would be two people he'd bring down the world for.
Labour was slow, as it typically was for first-time moms. Kim and Stella had warned Hailey about it, and advised epidurals. Not against supplemental drugs, Hailey went for the more comfortable way out which made things a little more bearable. She ended up joking with Jay and Dr. Trasse and only groaning slightly with each passing contraction. By early evening, though, things had sped up increasingly fast and it was time to push.
Jay positioned himself by Hailey's head, leaving tons of room for the extra nurses and Dr. Trasse. He gripped her hand and held her shoulders as best he could to help her sit up a bit better. Even though Hailey had dilated to ten centimetres faster than predicted, pushing took longer. It was nearing eight in the evening and the baby still hadn't made her appearance.
Hailey pushed one more time, then collapsed back on the bed. "I don't know how much longer I can do this," she said sadly, looking up at Jay. "I just want to sleep."
"I know Hails, you will soon," he replied, pushing her hair out of her eyes. "Only a bit longer and then our baby girl will be here. You've wanted this for so long; we both have. Remember when you asked me to get you pregnant in the summer? Who knew we'd be here, in the spring?" He let out a quiet chuckle. Hailey just nodded slowly, then stared up at him with her baby blues, the ones that melted his whole soul. The ones Jay knew he'd be doomed if his daughter had, because then he really would never be able to say no to her. A dangerous game indeed.
"I love you," Hailey whispered to him.
"I love you more," Jay whispered back.
Luckily for Hailey, once she got back to pushing it didn't take much longer for Dr. Trasse to call out that she could see the baby's head. She directed Hailey when not to push, so that the baby would come out with the most ease and least pain for Hailey. Jay peered over Hailey's leg and watched his baby girl be brought into the world. It was the most amazing thing in the world. Some fathers might find it horrifying but Jay didn't. It was natural and he was in awe.
When their baby cried, tears could also be seen streaming down Hailey and Jay's faces. Jay's gaze travelled between his newborn daughter and his wife, thinking that they were the most beautiful people in the whole world. They were his whole world, and he would do whatever it took to keep them safe. "I am so proud of you," Jay whispered, pressing his tear soaked face against Hailey's hair. His hand still gripped hers and she squeezed once tightly.
Hailey tried to say she loved him, but the words got caught in her throat. She winced slightly, as Dr. Trasse told her to relax her legs slowly, then out of nowhere her daughter was placed on her chest. From the angle she was lying down at, Hailey couldn't really see the baby but Jay could. Jay stared at her squished up newborn face and her tiny fingers and body that thrashed a little because it was cold in the real world. One nurse on the other side of the bed rubbed the baby with a towel to warm her up, while the other cleaned her face off so that she could breathe. "Is she okay?" Hailey asked anxiously, as Jay hadn't said anything yet.
"She's gorgeous," came Jay's reply. He reached out his other hand and stroked his baby girl's cheek. "Hailey, she looks just like you."
"Did she open her eyes?" Despite all the people, Hailey managed to get her arm in place to support the baby on her chest, letting go of Jay's hand to hold her head.
Jay shook his head. "Not yet." He didn't care what colour eyes she had; if they were her mom's he knew that the baby would be wrapped around his finger in no time. Actually, regardless, their daughter would have so much power over him, it wouldn't even be funny. Hailey would laugh, their daughter would laugh but Jay certainly wouldn't be; okay maybe in the end but not in the moment!
Dr. Trasse stood up and offered a pair of scissors to Jay. "Did you want to cut the cord?"
Jay nodded, and quickly used his sleeve to wipe his eyes. "Yes," he answered, trying to stop his hands from shaking. He took the scissors as Dr. Trasse showed him where to cut on the baby's umbilical cord. Once he did, the baby was free to be moved to the small set up across the room where she could be examined and swaddled up. From where he was standing, Jay could see his daughter and be there for Hailey, so he stayed put. "I love you," he whispered to Hailey, who smiled back at him, a mix of pain, awe and shock on her face still. Jay pressed a soft kiss to her lips and hugged her gently with one arm.
The next hour was spent delivering the placenta (which took less time that Hailey had originally thought) and then getting the little girl to breastfeed. It was a challenge and Jay cringed for Hailey's sake during most of the process, but in the end they both got it while Jay watched. He couldn't provide nutrients for his daughter, so instead Jay decided to wipe Hailey's tears and hold their daughter's tiny hand.
Once the baby was done feeding and fell fast asleep. Jay gently transferred her to the bassinet next to Hailey's bed. It had plastic sides and a card at the end had all of Hailey and the baby's information. The only thing missing was a spot for her name because even though they were pretty certain about what to call her, it wasn't official yet. Jay took the opportunity with a sleeping baby to go out and get Hailey whatever she wanted to eat. She earned it, and now didn't have to worry about what was going in her body to their baby.
However, Hailey just wanted to sleep. She gulped some water and then dozed off while Jay got some deli food from downstairs. He got extra in case Hailey woke up later and was hungry. Then, while Hailey slept, Jay took to texting everyone an update. It was early in Chicago, so Jay didn't expect replies but he couldn't wait a minute longer. First was his brother then their friends:
Jay: You're an uncle! Baby girl made her big debut at 8:03 this evening. She and Hailey are doing well, will update once we've all had some rest.
Will replied almost instantly. He had been keeping an eye on his phone during shift after Jay's initial message that morning. Unless he was in surgery, he had one hand on his phone waiting for it to light up with a notification from Jay.
Will: That's awesome brother, I'm so happy for you! Got any pictures?
Jay: sent an attachment. Best one I've got that she looks cute in.
Will: She definitely got saved by getting Hailey's looks. Know what colour her eyes are yet?
Jay: Very funny, but I'll agree about that. We can't quite tell yet, they're a mix between green and blue. She's mostly been asleep.
Will: Well she's very cute.
Jay: You got some spare time to visit tomorrow? I'll make sure Hailey's good, but she seems chipper.
Will: Yeah, I'm off at twelve. No rush, I can come whenever. I can't wait to meet my favourite niece.
Jay: Your only niece.
Will: Lol yep. Anyways, you get some rest and I'll maybe see you later. Congratulations, Jay.
Jay: Right. Thanks Will.
The text to their friends was similar to what he sent Will, minus the uncle part. He also decided to just send the picture with the original text, instead of making everyone ask for it.
Jay: Baby Girl Halstead's here! Hailey is a champ and the baby is sleeping now. Not sure who's awake right now but I will update more later.
Adam: Boy am I glad I looked at my phone when I got up to get some water. That's fantastic man, congrats! Let me get Kim up.
Sylvie: I'm still on Oregon time from my visit two days ago, so I'm up too. Jay, she's absolutely adorable! I can't wait to meet her in person. Matt's going to be so jealous he can't.
Matt: I definitely am. You'll have to give her all the snuggles from me. But hey, I'll be back next month for good! Congrats you two.
Jay: We can't wait for you guys to meet her. Hope to get discharged tomorrow or later tonight if Hailey and baby continue to do well.
Adam: I showed Kim the picture and she said 'congrats!'. Isla and Mak can't wait to meet their new cousin.
Stella: HALSTEAD. I love her! Shay can't wait either. Wait let me show Kelly.
Jay: We've got 3 under one at this point now, Good luck to us.
Severide: No more guys night out, huh? She's adorable Halstead. I was annoyed at first that Stella woke me up when I have shift tomorrow but this is a good reason.
Jay: Thanks for that man.
Severide: Anytime ?
Sylvie: Let us know if you guys need anything! I'm without kids so I can drop by whenever, with whatever you guys need.
Jay: Appreciate that Sylvie. I'll let you know, although Hailey probably will say 'nothing'. Gonna try to get some rest, talk later.
Jay shut off his phone and slid it onto the table next to him. He stood up and glanced at the sleeping infant next to Hailey's bed. He was still in shock that this was his baby, the baby that he made with the woman who made his whole life worth living. The person he trusted with his life, and would always follow blindly, no matter what. He couldn't believe that he was a father now; Jay Halstead was locked down with a wife and a kid. The thought made Jay smile yet he honestly should've seen it coming the second Hailey Upton—make that Hailey Halstead now—walked into his life at the bank crime scene. She fixed every part of him that had been destroyed by Erin leaving, and then built him up. They had been through so much but if this moment was what it was for, then Jay would go through it all again. He loved Hailey and his daughter and he couldn't wait for the rest of his life with the two of them, as a family of three.
she's here guys! you can all celebrate with Upstead (and cry with Jay). I was planning to announce her full name in this chapter but decided to be mean and make you wait. don't worry, it's not long because chapter 11 should be out tomorrow. until then 3 - find me on tumblr at thedefinitionofendgame. thanks for reading!