One of Emma's favorite things to do when Regina was here, was to sleepily reach out for her in the morning and snuggle with her until they both woke up properly.
So enormous was her disappointment when she reached out and found nothing but an empty mattress.
"That's not fair," she moaned as she opened her eyes and was confronted with a harsh reality. Regina was no in bed with her.
Emma pushed out her bottom lip. She completely understood that Regina needed to pee a lot these days, but damn, waking up alone really sucked.
Her intention was to lie around and wait until Regina came back from the bathroom, but the sound of laughter coming from downstairs foiled that plan. Regina wasn't even in the bathroom. She was downstairs.
Emma sat up and pulled her legs free of the tangled sheets. If Regina was downstairs, there certainly was no point in staying up here.
She stood from the bed and threw a robe over her tanktop and shorts. Then she ventured downstairs to find out why Regina was laughing in the kitchen.
What she found made her go all mushy inside. Regina was standing by the stove, flipping pancakes. Next to her, Emma's mother stood. She had a hand on Regina's shoulder and the two of them were laughing at some unknown joke.
"Hey guys," Emma smiled. "What's going on down here and why am I not a part of it?"
Regina spun around with the spatula in her hand. "Pancakes, querida. That's what going on. And you're not a part of it because you were asleep."
"Smartass," Emma scoffed. She would have liked to say more about Regina's ass. But her mother was present. So she settled for snickering because Regina had tied her bathrobe above her belly. With the result that her baby bump was sticking out proudly. And very adorably.
"Well, it smells great," Emma said. "Have you been awake for long?"
"Sí." Regina shrugged lightly.
"Oh." Emma wrinkled her nose. "Blueberry giving you a hard time, honey? Did he use your bladder as a squeeze toy again?"
"No. I was giving me a hard time. But now that you mention it, I actually need the bathroom. Could you take over, Mary Margaret?"
"Of course, dear. Just leave it to me."
Regina handed the spatula to Emma's mother and waddled up the stairs. As soon as her footsteps had retreated, Emma turned to her mother and asked: "do you have any idea what she meant by that?"
"I think it is the birth," Emma's mother said as she effortlessly flipped a pancake. "She's getting anxious about it."
"Oh. Yeah, it's getting pretty close now." Emma nodded. Fully understanding why Regina was getting nervous. "Were you able to calm her a little? Please tell me you didn't give her any horror stories, there are so many of them online!"
"Emma." Her mother practically scoffed at her. "Of course I didn't tell her any 'horror stories' as you call them. I am not that silly. No. I told her the story of your birth."
"Oh, god." Emma wasn't so sure that was better.
"I told her about how peaceful it had been," her mother continued, ignoring Emma's comment. "And how much of a support your father was when I gave birth."
"Oh." Emma smiled now.
"He was perfect," her mother said dreamily. "He held my hand when I asked him to. Bathed my forehead and fed me ice chips and juice when I needed it, and when I told him to leave me alone- very loudly- he did that too."
"I hope I can be as perfect a birth partner to Regina as he was to you," Emma murmured. She was well aware that this wasn't about her, but she too was fairly nervous about the birth.
"I'm sure you will be, sweetie. You and Regina are already so good at reading each other. And you are always so attentive to her needs. I don't think Regina could ask for a better birthing partner than you."
"What if I won't know what to do?" Emma asked nervously.
"Well, to be brutally honest, there won't be much you can do." Her mother flipped another pancake. "And it is important that you know that from the beginning. So don't ask her questions like 'what can I do'. Instead ask her what she needs. There's a world of difference on those two questions."
It sounded like basic knowledge, but Emma still nodded and paid attention to every word her mother said. This was important stuff.
"And remember to listen carefully to everything being said in the birthing class you're attending today," her mother continued. "Seriously, I cannot tell you how important it is that you listen. Things that might sound like basic knowledge, can turn out to be very important later on."
"I understand," Emma nodded.
"And take it seriously. All of it. Even if the breathing exercises seems silly. I remember David getting the giggles about it, and I was furious with him afterwards."
"You were?" Emma cringed. She didn't want Regina to be furious at her.
"Oh yes. I was so mad I made him sleep on the couch for a week." Her mother absentmindedly flipped another pancake.
"I definitely won't be giggling," Emma said firmly. She didn't want Regina to banish her to the couch.
"Good. Then you'll do wonderfully."
Emma sure hoped so!
The staircase creaked slightly, and then Regina came waddling downstairs. Still with the bathrobe tied in that adorable way.
"Good timing," Emma's mother said. "I just flipped the last pancake. Emma, you can set the table. Regina, you sit down, honey. You've been on your feet enough already."
Regina sat down without questioning it, and Emma took the opportunity to give her girlfriend a sweet little morning kiss. Once she had done that, she crouched down and put her hands on Regina's belly. "Hello there, Blueberry. How are we feeling today, huh?"
"He's feeling good," Regina chuckled. "Very active."
"It must be all that walking we did with Lily yesterday."
"Mmm," Regina nodded. "I already miss her."
"I'm sure you get to hang out with her again very soon," Emma soothed.
"I hope so. I am so glad she came for the baby shower."
"Yeah. You've told me so a few times." Emma grinned. She was still living high on all the praise she had received for the baby shower. It had been awesome.
"I want to have another one," Regina joked.
"Say the word and I'll arrange one." Emma was not joking.
"Could you arrange for some plates on the table?" her mother asked. "Unless we're going to eat pancakes like wild animals."
"Jeez, mom. Way to embarrass me in front of my girlfriend."
"Well, as your mother, it is my humble duty to embarrass you once in a while."
Regina giggled and looked like she was about to say something teasing in return, but before she got the chance, her phone went off in the pocket of her dressing gown, and she retrieved the device. Lifted it to her ear and went: "good morning, Cora."
Of course. Cora's morning phone calls were still a thing. Cora was still working on strengthening the bond with her daughter, and Emma was pleased about that.
Regina had told her that Cora had sounded a bit sad when hearing about the baby shower. 'I think she had wanted to come', Regina had said, and Emma had told her that she hadn't thought it would be a good idea to invite her.
Regina had agreed to that. Had smiled and said that it was still too soon for that.
A sad truth, but Emma understood. Regina and Cora had only just started nearing each other, and it would still be a while before they could have a 'normal' mother-daughter relationship. Especially after Cora's blunder about having asked if she could be present for the birth.
And so, while Regina talked to Cora, Emma did what she originally had been asked to do. Setting the table.
She had just finished setting the table when her dad and Henry arrived home. They had developed the habit of going on an early morning walk together. Which Emma found to be literally so adorable.
"Sí, the birthing class is this afternoon," Regina said into the phone. "And my next scan is tomorrow. I know, it's one thing after another. Of course. Sí, I will let you know how it went."
This caused Emma to smile, and she was pretty sure she saw Henry looking rather satisfied too. She knew how much he wanted for Regina and Cora to get a better relationship. And they were definitely on the way to that. Their conversations were getting more and more open, and Regina seemed to be smiling more when they talked.
But Regina still addressed her as 'Cora'. And maybe she would continue to do so. Emma saw nothing wrong with that, and she hoped that Cora didn't either. Sure, it had to be unnerving hearing your child address you by name, but the way Emma saw it, Cora should consider herself lucky that Regina was even talking to her.
"Okay. I will," Regina said. "Sí, little one is doing just fine. Lots of kicking. Gave me a pretty solid kick in the ribs just now. No." She chuckled. "I'm fine, don't worry. Yes, I'm resting plenty. How can I do anything else when Emma is breathing down my neck about it every ten seconds?"
"Heyyy," Emma quietly protested. She was not breathing down Regina's neck. Was she?
Okay, maybe she was. A little bit. But she was only doing it to take care of Regina.
"Alright, I'll talk to you tomorrow. Yes. I will. And you tell Malaina I said hi. Great. Bye."
She ended the call and slipped her phone back in the pocket of her dressing gown. "Cora sends her…regards."
"Thank you," Emma's mother said and smiled.
"And how was she?" Henry asked politely.
"She was good. Yeah. She was curious about the whole birthing class thing. I promised to give her an update later."
"That's nice." Emma did so like when Cora asked Regina to give her little updates. That was olive branches that actually made sense. That was Cora trying rather than pushing. Emma could get on board with that.
"I think I want to send her a video of the screen when I have my ultrasound tomorrow," Regina mused. "Don't you think she'd like that, querida?"
"Absolutely. I think that's a really nice thing to do, beautiful girl," Emma answered and gave Regina's arm a little squeeze. "And I think it would make Cora really happy."
"Sí, I think so too. I have a message for you from Malaina, by the way. One of your photos have been sold."
"Oh, really?" Emma grinned. "That's awesome! We should totally celebrate. Can I take you to Tony's later? Spaghetti with meatballs? Lady and the Tramp style?"
"Oooh," Regina cooed. "That sounds good! But isn't it my turn to ask you out?"
"I don't-"
"It is," she interrupted. "And I will. Tonight. Tony's. My treat. No discussion."
Emma knew better than to argue with a pregnant woman. And she certainly knew better than to try and fight Regina on this. She was very proud when it came to this particular topic. Always insisted that they took turns in inviting each other out.
"That sounds like an excellent idea, Regina," Emma's father said. "Then Henry can come and have dinner with us tonight. What do you say, Henry? Dinner and wine while the kids are out."
"We're hardly kids," Emma protested.
"Definitivamente no," Regina muttered and wrinkled her nose as she looked down at her swollen belly.
But Henry merely laughed and said that he would love to come to dinner tonight.
Then they could finally have breakfast. Emma was hungry as usually, and she did not hesitate to compliment the pancakes after having taken the first bite.
"It was Mary Margaret who made most of them."
"That is not true," Emma's mother immediately protested. "I've made three or four. You made the rest."
"They are delicious, Mija," Henry said. "You would make an excellent chef."
"Gracias, Papí," Regina chuckled. "I am glad you like them."
"I need one more." Emma speared another pancake with her fork and pulled it onto her plate. Her third pancake, but she did not care. These pancakes were just so damn good!
"I think Blueberry likes them too," Regina commented. "He keeps kicking me in the ribs."
"That is not nice." Emma frowned. "Want me to come over there and scold him?"
Everyone, including Regina laughed.
"Look at you trying to be a tough parent already," her mother said fondly.
"She won't last even a second when the baby comes," her father predicted.
"Definitely not."
Emma grumbled that they were ganging up on her…
She and Regina didn't do much that morning.
Laid about in the couch and watched television. Regina was feeling a bit tired because Blueberry had been very active that night. Twice, it looked like she was nodding off, but her head would almost immediately jerk up and then she would stubbornly claim that she-definitely-wasn't-sleeping.
Emma had tried to explain to Regina many times that it was perfectly fine if she fell asleep, but Regina was of a different opinion.
"I don't want to sleep during the day when I'm in Storybrooke," she said stubbornly. "Or when I'm with you in general. I don't want to miss out on time with you, querida."
"Which is sweet," Emma said softly. "But seriously, if you're tired, sleep. Please. You're supposed to rest. That's what your app said this morning. It literally reminded you to rest."
"Lo sé," Regina nodded. "But I feel like I'm tired all the time."
Emma scoffed. "So what? As I said, you need rest. You deserve it. You're literally growing a life in there."
"I know." Regina rubbed her belly. "And he just gets heavier and heavier.."
"Aww, little Blue," Emma cooed as she too rubbed Regina's belly. "Little Blue Swan-Mills."
Regina chuckled. "Maybe we should just name him Blue."
"'Blue David Swan-Mills?" Emma grinned right back at her girlfriend. "I don't know, babe, I'm not really vibing with it."
"Are you by any chance vibing with Elena, then?"
"Elena?" Emma repeated, teasing immediately forgotten.
"Mm, it was my abuela's name, remember?"
"Yeah, yeah, I remember! And it is a beautiful name. Definitely."
"Can we add it to the list of suggestions then?"
"Elena Margaret Swan-Mills," Emma said and felt all soft and ridiculous. "I love that, beautiful girl. I think we should chose that if it's a girl."
"Really?" Regina's eyes sparkled.
"Yeah. Really. It's beautiful." She patted Regina's belly again. "Are you a little Elena? Hmm? Are you?" Yep, Elena was perfect if it was indeed a girl. It already felt right to say it out loud.
"Now we just need to come up with the perfect name for a boy."
"Urgh," Emma groaned, head flopping back. "I feel like no name is quite right."
"Sí, I feel the same. It's like… we've come up with good names, but… as you said, it never feels quite right."
"We'll come up with something eventually," Emma automatically soothed…
Sometimes after lunch, they said goodbye to Emma's parents and Regina's father and left the house to go to that birthing class. They had to drive five miles in order to get to their destination, but that was no problem. Yes, Emma had been a bit concerned because the seatbelt seemed to be rather tight across Regina's belly, but Regina had just laughed and dismissed it, so Emma had chilled and switched on the radio like Regina had requested. Ironically, the radio was playing 'señorita' by Shawn Mendes and Camilla Cabello, and Regina had made Emma laugh by loudly singing along to the music.
Emma had felt several things when Regina sang. And most of them had been indecent. She hadn't told Regina that, though. Instead she had smiled when Regina proclaimed that 'el bebé está bailando, querida!'
Emma didn't for a moment doubt that their baby would grow up with much more rhythm than she ever had had.
Then they arrived at their destination. Which was some kind of health center. Regina looked a bit nervous as they walked towards the door. "Do you think I'll be the youngest?"
"Is it important?" Emma asked softly and took her hand.
"It shouldn't, I know that," Regina said nervously. "But I feel self-conscious because I'm so young."
"Hey." Emma squeezed her hand. "So what if you're young? You're probably way smarter than all of them combined."
"That's a bit much, querida." Regina returned the squeeze and smiled now. "I am just being silly. Nobody will care how old I am. And I'm sure all of them are very, very nice."
"That's the spirit," Emma said encouragingly. "This is going to be great. I'm excited. I can't wait to get smarter about the birth."
"Me neither." It didn't sound like Regina was joking. "I feel like there are so many things I still don't have a clue about."
"I'm sure we'll both know lots more after today," Emma assured.
"Let's hope so. Because right now, I feel fairly clueless. All I know is that I'm supposed to push when I feel pressure." Regina laughed dryly. "Qué divertido será..."
"You're going to do so well, beautiful girl," Emma said warmly. "And I'll be there all the time."
"Querida, if the birth turns out to be long winded, I'm expecting you to take breaks," Regina said firmly. "Get rest."
Emma scoffed and wanted to say that it wasn't fair that she rested when Regina could not, but this was not something they had to talk about right now. It could wait. There was still time.
She held the door open so Regina could slip through. Once she had walked inside, Emma followed suit, and soon they found themselves in a circular room. There were plushy armchairs and colorful pillows on the floor and in many ways it reminded Emma more of a room for kindergarteners rather than a place for 'education'.
The room wasn't empty. Four other couples had already arrived. All of the women sported round bellies. One of them looked like she was further along than Regina. Emma was actually a bit worried that this woman could pop any moment. She silently applauded this woman for having left her house. Had Emma been that pregnant, she definitely would have stayed in bed.
"Good afternoon," a woman in her forties called at them and smiled.
"Hola," Regina said, but hastily corrected to: "hello."
"Hi," Emma said.
"So good to see you," the woman said warmly. "We're just waiting for the last two couples. Then we'll do a presentation round."
Emma smiled. A presentation round sounded nice.
After a couple of minutes, the last two couples arrived. One of the couples turned out to be two women, and Emma was pleasantly surprised and happy. It was nice to see representation.
"We're all here," the woman in charge smiled. "Excellent. My name is Laine, and I am here to make you feel a little more confident about the birth. I bet some of you feel insecure and have questions, right?"
Every pregnant woman- not just some of them- nodded in unison. Regina's gaze was glued to Laine.
"Now, shall we do a quick presentation round?" Laine said briskly, nodding to a couple Emma guessed was in their mid-thirties. "Would you like to start?"
"Of course," the brunette woman said. "My name is Paula Wilson, and this is my husband, Greg." She turned her head and looked at the man standing next to her and smiled.
"And how far along are you, Paula?" Laine asked.
"I am thirty five weeks pregnant." Paula put a hand on her belly.
The next pregnant woman was younger. Twenty seven. Her name was Ashley, her boyfriend's name was Sean. Ashley was twenty eight weeks pregnant.
"And my name is Freya, and I'm thirty one," a woman with red hair said. "I'm thirty weeks pregnant and this nervous beanstalk-" she gave the woman next to her a little nudge. "Is my girlfriend Nina."
Emma immediately liked Freya and Nina.
"And what is your name?" Laine asked Regina.
"Regina," Regina answered. "I'm…" she licked her lips and looked a bit nervous. "Twenty years old, and I'm thirty two weeks pregnant. And this is my girlfriend, Emma."
"Hi," Emma interjected.
Next couple to introduce themselves was Zoe and Grant, and then finally, Isabel and William.
"Wonderful," Laine smiled. "Now that we've been introduced, I think we should just get started. Now… do anyone need to go to the bathroom before we start?"
Several of the women, including Regina laughed. But in the end, nobody needed to go to the bathroom.
"Well then, let's get started," Laine said briskly. "Early stages of labor. I bet all of you have read a lot about it already, but it can be hard to separate things, and especially when so many other things are going on, so we'll start with the basic stuff. Please get settled, ladies. I want you to be comfortable."
The pregnant women sat down. Some of them in the plushy chairs and some of them on the floor. Regina was amongst those who chose the floor. Or rather one of the big pillows.
Emma sat down behind her and silently motioned for Regina to make herself comfortable and lean back. Once Regina did, Emma immediately wrapped her arms around her waist so she could rest her hands on Regina's round belly.
"Now," Laine began. "There are three stages of labor, alright? In the first stage, contractions thin and opens your cervix. And I'm sure many of you are tired of hearing that word…"
Some of the women nodded and muttered under their breaths. Regina chuckled quietly.
"This stage has two phases," Laine continued. "The latent phase, when your cervix is slowly dilating from 0 to 6 cm, and the active phase, when stronger contractions dilate the cervix more rapidly from 6 cm to full dilation at 10 cm.
Once you're fully dilated, the second stage starts as your baby descends into the vaginal canal and is birthed. The third stage starts with your baby's birth and ends with the delivery of the placenta."
"Sounds damn simple when you put it like that," Freya said.
Everyone laughed. Emma could feel Regina's belly quiver when she laughed, and she gave her girlfriend a little squeeze. Just because she could.
"It does," Laine agreed. "It sounds very simple, but I won't lie to you, ladies. Giving birth is a process. A work of art, if you will. Now… There are some signs indicating that labor is near: in the final days or weeks before your due date, you may notice one or more signs that labor is near. Not all women experience all of these signs – again, this is very individual – but if you do feel like your baby has dropped lower, for example, or you have some mucousy discharge or more Braxton Hicks contractions than usual, you may be close to labor day!"
Emma listened closely. This was important knowledge, and she didn't want to miss any of it.
Before you get excited about labor starting, though, remember that many of these signs and symptoms can precede labor by weeks. Rather than predicting that labor is imminent, these can just be symptoms of being pregnant near your due date. But let's go over the other signs." She proceeded to tell about the mucus plug. Emma didn't flinch, but she felt Regina squirm a little. Emma gave her a comforting squeeze to remind her that none of this was disgusting and/or embarrassing. All of it was natural and a part of being pregnant.
"You may also experience some discharge," Laine said. "While I understand why this can be alarming- perhaps some of you have experienced bleeding earlier in the pregnancy-"
Zoe and Regina lifted their hands.
"-For you, it will undoubtedly feel extra alarming, but experiencing white, clear or red or brown discharge is completely normal. It is only if it is tinted yellow, green or gray, you have to react. And of course if you experience a heavier flow and abdominal pain."
Emma gave Regina another squeeze and hoped that she wasn't getting nervous.
Next, Laine spoke about Braxton Hicks, and several of the women- including Regina- groaned. She was more than experienced when it came to that.
"Can I ask something?" she said, raising a hand in the air.
"Certainly, Regina," Laine said. "Now is definitely the time to ask questions. Go on."
"I feel like thirty two weeks is sort of early to have strong Braxton Hicks," Regina said. "Should I be concerned?"
Laine smiled kindly. "Not at all. Braxton Hicks can begin any time after week twenty. What you're experiencing is completely normal."
"Thank god," Regina said and let out a breath.
Emma patted her belly lightly and was immediately rewarded with a little kick against her palm.
Regina snickered and told the other's: "the baby is relieved to hear it."
Everyone laughed at that, and Laine asked the women experiencing kicking right now in this very moment, to raise their hand.
All the women raised their hands, and Emma found it to be both startling and very interesting. And funny too. So much baby-activity. It was almost like the babies were paying attention too…
Soon, a topic Emma had waited for came up. 'How to support your partner when they're in labor'.
"As a partner to a woman in labor, your biggest role is to provide support and encouragement during the entire childbirth process," Laine said almost strictly as she looked at each and every one of them. "The best way to do that is to know what to expect, so before it's go time, make sure you understand the different stages of labor, you know how to time contractions and when to head to the hospital, and you've discussed the birth plan with your partner. In the delivery room, you're mom's advocate and her main source of comfort. Stay calm, confident, and supportive."
"Hear, hear," said Nina as Zoe and Paula cheered.
Laine smiled. "Supporting a woman in labor is an incredibly exciting and important role for you. Research shows that women who have support during childbirth are more likely to have positive outcomes, including shorter labor times and decreased medical intervention. Take a moment to think about that."
"Wow," Emma whispered and found Regina's hand. She lifted it so she could brush her lips over Regina's knuckles. A silent vow to be there, be present the entire fucking time. She would listen. Be attentive. She would comfort when comfort was needed, and she would let Regina rage and be upset when that was what she needed. She would let Regina know that whatever she felt was perfectly alright. All the time.
"Your partner is going to be looking to you for comfort, strength, and encouragement during the entire labor and delivery process." Laine's voice brought Emma out of her musings. "And while it will be tough to watch your partner be in pain, you'll likely discover that childbirth can be one of life's most powerful and rewarding moments. It will without a doubt be a moment you will remember for the rest of your life."
Emma swallowed thickly. She was actually feeling a little emotional now.
"¿Estás bien, querida?" Regina whispered.
"Yeah," Emma murmured. "Yeah, I'm fine. Don't mind me. I'm just being silly."
"You're not." Regina turned her head so she could kiss Emma's cheek. "You're so sweet, mi amor."
"Let's talk contractions now, partners," Laine said, clapping her hands lightly. "You may want to time the contractions periodically to get a sense for how things are progressing, but you don't need to do so continuously. Free contraction-timer apps can track things for you. Remember that. Your wife/girlfriend will not appreciate you looking at your watch constantly."
This caused some of the women to laugh.
"Contractions are timed in seconds from the beginning of one contraction to the beginning of the next. Count the frequency of contractions in minutes. Don't get too bogged down with obsessively timing the contractions, however, because it can make the labor seem longer than it is, and it can stress out your partner. And that my friends, is the last thing we want. Even during contractions, you want your partner to be as relaxed as possibly. So no watch-watching and no telling her that her labor is supposed to be longer or shorter. Labor is not linear, and every woman is different, alright?"
"Got it," Emma said, even though Laine probably didn't expect an answer.
"Glad to hear that you are paying attention, Emma," Laine chuckled.
"Me, too," Regina quipped. "But I of course already knew you would."
"Be available to help your partner do whatever she wants to stay relaxed at this point," Laine told them. "Such as watching her favorite TV show, going for a walk, showering, or even taking a nap. This isn't the time for finishing up last-minute projects or doing household chores. Listen to your partner. Don't offer her a bunch of things or remedies unless she asks for it. And don't pace around. Of course you will be nervous, but please remember that your partner will be at a very vulnerable state, and you will be needed more than ever. Perhaps your partner won't be in a place where she's able to tell you what she needs, so it is your job to figure it out. Observe her. Does she seem warm? Offer her a glass of cold water. Is she feeling cold? Offer to draw her a hot bath. The hot water will also help with soothe her muscles. It is crucial that you keep your attention on her during this time, so no prolonged phone calls to friends and family no matter how much you want to. Postpone the celebration until your baby is born. And until your partner is able to celebrate with you."
"Absolutely!" Emma said loudly. She didn't care that she sounded overly enthusiastic. She didn't care that the others were laughing softly at her. The only thing that mattered was that she was paying attention to everything Laine said.
And that she was ready to be there one hundred percent for Regina when the big day came…
To Be Continued…