April, 1954

In which Baby Marshmallow refuses to follow the schedule.

(Minor content warning for some of the medical worries that accompany a premature baby. Everyone ends up totally fine, but if you want a summary before diving in, there are notes at the end.)


Peggy was folding the laundry when a sharp pain shot through her abdomen. She gasped and dropped the socks she was holding. That was a familiar pain, but it was still a bit early to be expected. She placed a tentative hand to the side of her belly, but the baby inside was still.

"Are you trying to tell me something, sweetheart?" she asked. She waited a moment, and when all was quiet, decided to go on with the laundry and see if anything else happened. There were all sorts of pains and aches this close to the end of the pregnancy, as she remembered well. Best wait and not be alarmed just yet.

About ten minutes later, it happened again, and alright, this could still be nothing, but this was how it had started last time. "Steve?" she called.

"Yeah?" he said, appearing in the hallway from where he'd been unpacking in James's room.

"I think I might be having contractions," she said.

His eyebrows shot up. "Really? Already?"

"I know she's a bit early, but this is what it felt like last time."

"Okay," he nodded. "Alright." She could see the wheels in his head turning. "Okay. Are you thinking we need to get to the hospital right this minute, or do you think we've got time to call Jarvis and wait for him and Ana to come get James? We can take him to the hospital with us if we need to and I'm sure Jarvis would be happy to come get him."

"Go ahead and call Mr. Jarvis," she said. "This did take a while last time. And I haven't packed yet."

Steve went to telephone the Jarvises and Peggy headed for their bedroom. She supposed she should have been more prepared, but there were still three weeks to go. Still, she had time to pack now, and if this turned out to be some sort of false alarm, the bag would still be packed for later.

A third contraction hit while she was packing, a bit harder than the first two, which made her think this probably wasn't a false alarm. The baby shifted and kicked, and she rested a hand on her stomach. "Why the rush, sweetheart? We moved house three days ago." The crib was still in pieces, waiting to be assembled in what was going to be the nursery. "We've got nowhere to put you yet," Peggy said with a smile, though she was sure that if this was it, the moment they came back from the hospital, Steve would have the crib assembled in record time.

"Mommy," James said, shuffling into her room. "Daddy's packing up my stuff again, an' I think he's confused, 'cause we're supposed to be unpacking here, right? Unless we're moving again. Are we not staying here? I like the tree in the backyard."

Peggy laughed. "Don't worry, love, we are staying here. And Daddy's not confused; he's just putting some things together for you so you can spend the night with Mr. and Mrs. Jarvis. Won't that be fun?"

"Oh. But how comes I'm going over there?" he asked. This would not be his first sleepover. The Jarvises loved having him come to visit and thoroughly spoiled him, and Steve and Peggy were happy to take them up on their offer when anniversaries, special date nights, or the occasional clandestine mission were on the calendar.

"Well," Peggy said. "I know it usually comes up with more notice than this, but this time is a bit of a surprise. Mummy and Daddy have to go to the hospital to see about some things with the baby." She was hesitant to say they'd be coming home with a new baby sister or brother for him, just in case he got excited and this did still turn out to be a false alarm.

"For the whole night?" he asked.

"Yes, probably."

"Is Baby Marshmallow okay?" he asked, a worried furrow stretching across his little brow.

"She's fine, love," Peggy assured him.

"An' you're okay?" he asked.

"I am."

"Okay. Then can you come help Daddy pack? He can't find my sweater."

It took a while to find the wayward sweater, by which point the Jarvises had arrived. James hugged and kissed Steve and Peggy goodbye, then patted Peggy's belly and told Baby Marshmallow to be good before getting into the car and driving away.

"He's going to keep calling her Marshmallow after she comes out, isn't he?" Steve said.

"It would appear so," Peggy said. She smiled. "It is rather sweet."

"It is," Steve allowed. He turned back to her. "How are the contractions coming?"

"Still coming. About eight minutes apart."

"Okay. Why don't you go ahead and get in the car? I'll go get your stuff."

"Alright," she agreed. "Oh, and make sure to turn off whatever you put in the oven before you lock up." She smiled. "Don't want to burn the new house down."

He laughed and disappeared inside. Peggy headed for the garage and settled herself into the car. She closed her eyes and leaned back against the head rest, drawing in long, slow breaths. She had done this before. It wasn't as scary as it was the first time, but she'd be lying if she said she wasn't still frightened. She was recalling with more and more clarity how much the first time had hurt. Still. She'd done this; she knew what to expect; and Steve was going to be there. She wondered if Steve knew how much it meant to her, that he insisted on being there. She knew the doctor last time had been quite cross about it, but she couldn't imagine having to go through all that on her own.

"Everything alright?" Steve asked, and she opened her eyes to see him leaning down to look through the window at her.

"You know, you're very light of foot for someone your size," Peggy said. She hadn't heard him come into the garage.

He chuckled. "Thank you. Is everything alright?" he asked again.

"It is," she said, rubbing a hand across her belly as the baby shifted again. "I'm just a bit nervous. Not really looking forward to the time between now and the end result."

Steve nodded. "Yeah." He gave her a half smile. "I wish there was something I could do to help with that."

She smiled at him fondly. "Just being here helps a great deal."

Steve smiled back. "Well, I'm sure not going anywhere." He opened the back door and deposited her bag inside, then rounded the car and slid into the driver's seat. "And this time, I can drive you there myself."

Peggy laughed. "If his time wasn't otherwise occupied in spoiling our son, I'm sure Mr. Jarvis would be very disappointed."

Steve laughed at that and they set off. They had just arrived and Steve was helping her out of the car when her water broke. "Well, it looks like this isn't false labour, then," Peggy said, glad she'd managed to get all the way out of the car first.

"Do you need me to go get you a wheelchair?" Steve asked.

"No. The contractions are still far enough apart. I can still walk." She was hit with a contraction just as she said that, needing a minute before the aforementioned walking could begin.

"You were saying?" Steve said.

"I was saying I can walk," Peggy said, getting her breath back. "With as long as I'm going to be in that bed once I get in there, I prefer to."

He nodded and slipped his arm through hers, and they walked inside. While Steve filled out the paperwork in the front, a nurse helped Peggy change into a hospital gown and get settled in a room. There was a quick exam to confirm that, yes, this was actual labour, then Peggy was left on her own for a bit. She sank back against her pillows, trailing a hand thoughtfully over her stomach. As she'd felt with James, she was very excited to meet this little person who'd been growing inside her for nine months, but she was sad to lose the intimacy of this bond they had. There was a wordless connection, something…If she was feeling poetic, she might say something about being soul to soul, the two of them sharing one body like this. She closed her eyes and rested her hands on her stomach—the baby wasn't moving right now, but Peggy could still feel her, and she sat there and soaked in what it felt like for the last time.

Steve came in and sat with her and massaged her back and legs, holding her hands through the contractions and wiping the sweat from her forehead. A wave of fondness washed over her just looking at him, and she grabbed him and kissed him and made him spill the ice chips he'd gone to fetch. "I love you," she whispered.

"I love you too," he said, running his hands through her hair and kissing her back.

The doctor had said it usually happened faster with second babies, but there was still an awful lot of time to wait, punctuated by the occasional contraction. "You can go and get something to eat, you know," Peggy told Steve as dinner time came and went.

"Well, since you can't eat anything, that would be awfully rude of me," he replied, rubbing a hand up and down her arm.

"I won't mind," she told him.

"I'm okay," he told her, and she smiled, truly appreciating the gesture. "I guess I should have tried a little harder to get that crib set up," he said after a minute.

Peggy smiled. "There were more pressing things to unpack," she pointed out. "And she is rather early."

"Yeah," he agreed with a smile. He rested his hand on her belly, rubbing it softly. "So, you're still pretty sure she's a girl?"

"I am," Peggy said, though, just like how sure she'd been James would be a boy, it was hard to articulate why. "Are you doubting me? I was right about James."

Steve laughed. "I would never doubt you. I was just thinking we hadn't picked a middle name for her yet."

He did have a point. "You see what happens when you come early?" Peggy said, rubbing her stomach and addressing the baby. "All these things that we thought we had time to do to get ready for you…"

Steve chuckled. "We could always go with Marshmallow for the middle name."

Peggy laughed. "While I'm sure James would love that, that might be bordering on cruelty. Michelle Marshmallow Carter?" She shuddered. They'd been planning on naming the baby after her brother, even before they'd known Michael was still alive—Michael if it was a boy, and Michelle if it was a girl. Michael's middle name was Edward, however, and if Peggy was right and this one was a girl, neither of them fancied her middle name being Edwina. That was worse than Marshmallow.

There wasn't really time to decide on one now, however, because the contractions started coming closer and closer together and the nurse declared it was time to move to the delivery room. "Looks like it was faster this time around," Peggy gasped between inhales, earning her a quick smile and squeeze of the hand from Steve. She could only hope this next part went just as quickly.

Once the labour began, however—and, bloody Nora, why had she ever thought it was a good idea to put herself through this again?!—it didn't seem to be progressing any faster than last time. To be fair, Peggy was hardly keeping an eye on the clock, losing herself in a rhythm of pushing and breathing. She did resurface into the rest of the room occasionally, and this did seem to be taking a terribly long time. She felt as though she'd been at this for days.

She held up a hand, and Steve moved his down from her shoulder and latched onto it instantly. "Is this taking longer than last time?" she rasped. He nodded, and the lines across his forehead told her he was trying very hard not to worry about it. She swallowed hard, drawing in as deep a breath as she could manage around the contractions. That was what she'd been afraid of. "It hurts more this time," she said. She knew she wasn't being entirely successful in keeping the fearful tremor from her voice. "Is something wrong?"

"The doc said the baby's not turned all the way around," Steve told her. "She's having trouble getting out."

"Is that bad?" Peggy asked. Did she just have to push harder, or…?

"It's starting to become a problem," the doctor said. He looked up at her. "Pushing harder isn't working, and it could push the baby into a position where the cord is compressed, which will create problems with oxygen flow and circulation."

Peggy's heart dropped into her stomach, her fingers tightening in a vice grip around Steve's.

"We're going to have to go into surgery," the doctor said.

"Surgery?" she heard Steve whisper.

The doctor nodded. "We need to do it now." Over the waves of pain, Peggy could feel the energy of the room changing, picking up speed. Things were moving and people were shouting things about OR Number Three, tachycardia, and various drugs and commands.

"Steve?" she whispered, looking up at him.

Steve was several shades paler than his usual pallor, but he wrapped both of his hands around hers and smiled. "It's going to be okay," he told her. She knew he had no way of knowing that, but she clung to his words all the same. "Everything's going to be fine."

Warmth started flowing into her veins as whatever was going into her I.V. line changed, and there was a jolt and a harsh clanking sound as her bed was detached from the wall. "Mr. Carter," a voice said from somewhere above her. "You're going to have to stay here."

Everything was going blurry as Steve swam into view, still smiling. His eyes were shining. He had such beautiful eyes. He leaned down and kissed her cheek. "I love you," he told her. "You can do this. Everything is going to be okay."

Then he was gone and the ceiling was moving, or maybe she was, and she was just watching the ceiling as she went by. Everything was blurry and heavy and she wasn't sure if her eyes were open anymore. She was tired and fading out but she was still afraid, though her mind was too hazy to quite remember why. Something was wrong. Something was wrong and she was scared and so was Steve, and Steve loved her and she loved him too and she hoped she'd said it out loud in case…in case…in case of something. Something was wrong. But all that pain she'd been feeling was disappearing and she could finally rest, and she was so very tired…

Peggy came awake slowly, feeling heavy and warm and peacefully drowsy. She almost let herself drift back to sleep again, but the longer she was awake, the more something felt different. The bed she was lying on didn't feel right, and she was in it alone. She wasn't at home. Where was she?

She blinked her eyes open to a softly lit, unfamiliar room. More of her senses came back online as her eyes opened, and she smelled something sharp and sterile in the air, and felt something warm and heavy resting on her hand. She recognized the warm heavy thing as Steve's hand, and she followed the hand to the accompanying arm and up to the familiar face. "Hello," she said softly.

He blinked open eyes that had been fluttering unevenly shut and a bright grin lit up his face. "Peggy!" he exclaimed. One of his hands had been resting on something off to the side, and he brought it over to join the one that was already holding hers. "Hey! Hey, how are you feeling?"

"Um," she said, trying to work out the answer. She felt…fine, actually, but there was this lingering sense of something being amiss that she wasn't quite awake enough to put her finger on. "Fine," she said, and that came out sounding more like a question than she meant it to, so she said it again a little more firmly to reassure him. "I'm fine. I just…" What was it that was wrong? The fog of medicated sleep vanished from her mind with a jolt as she remembered, and her eyes snapped open wider and she sat bolt upright. "The baby! Is—aaah!" she cried, her words cut short by a spike of pain through her abdomen, but her worry only increasing.

"No, no, she's okay," Steve said, his hands already on her shoulders and moving her carefully back onto the pillows. "She's fine, but you need to lie down."

Peggy complied, the pain easing as she did so, and only not demanding answers right this second because she needed to catch her breath and Steve had said the baby was okay.

"The baby's okay," Steve said again, moving one hand to come to rest on her stomach. "But you had a C-Section, alright? You need to be careful how you move for a little while."

"She's really okay?" Peggy asked, now that she had her breath back, relegating questions about the C-Section for later.

"She's really okay," Steve said with an encouraging smile. "She was just turned the wrong way around, but now she's out and safe and totally healthy."

"But the doctor said something about tachycardia—" Peggy began, remembering some of the shouted phrases from the delivery room.

"Peggy, that was you," Steve told her. "Your blood pressure was going up because of the way your body was straining to get her out and couldn't." He smiled a little tightly, the worried lines around his eyes from before not quite having disappeared. "You're okay now, though. You both are."

"But he, he said something about the cord and, and cutting off circulation…"

Steve squeezed her hand. "The surgery got her out before any of that happened." He lifted her hand up to his mouth and kissed it. "She's fine. I promise."

Peggy relaxed back against her pillows as Steve's repeated assurances finally sunk in. "Where is she?" she asked. Coming so early and then the surgery, she could imagine her baby sequestered away in the NICU under observation, but she needed to be able to see her and touch her. "Can I see her?"

Steve smiled wider. "She's right here," he said, letting go of Peggy's hand and turning to a wheeled bassinet sitting on the other side of his chair, where his hand had been resting when she woke up. "Come here, sweetheart," he said softly, reaching his arms into the little bed. "Come say hi to your mama."

He turned back around with a bundle in a little pink blanket in his arms. The bundle in question squeaked unhappily at being relocated, and Peggy's heart skipped a beat at the noise. Steve placed their daughter into her outstretched arms, and the baby shifted and grunted and nuzzled into Peggy's embrace. "Oh," Peggy breathed, a knot forming in her throat. "Hello, sweetheart," she said. She kissed her little forehead gently, and the baby blinked up at her and cooed, her bright blue eyes sparkling. Peggy's eyes watered happily, and she felt Steve's arm slide over her shoulders, the mattress shifting under his weight as he sat down beside her. "Oh, I'm going to have trouble saying no to those eyes," Peggy said. She smiled up at Steve. "They're just like yours."

Steve chuckled and kissed her forehead, shifting in a little closer and resting a hand gently on the baby's dark hair. "You say no to me all the time."

"Not nearly as much as I should," Peggy countered. She turned her gaze back to her daughter, who stretched and yawned and it was the most amazing thing Peggy had ever seen. "I'm glad you're alright," she said softly, tracing a finger gently down her little cheek. "You gave me quite a scare."

"So did you," Steve said. She turned back up to look at him. "Even before the doc said surgery, I…" He closed his eyes and shook his head. "I could tell something was wrong." His eyes were watering when he opened them. "Then they started yelling about your blood pressure and her heart rate and…" His mouth compressed into a very tight, thin line. "Just sitting outside the operating room and waiting, I couldn't remember ever being more scared in my life. I was sure I was going to lose both of you."

Peggy took one hand off the baby and twined her fingers through Steve's, squeezing them tightly. She couldn't think of any reassuring words that didn't sound trite, so she simply picked his hand up and kissed it. She'd been on his side of the hospital bed. She knew how he felt.

"I'm here," she said after a moment. She kissed his hand again and smiled up at him. He smiled back.

"I know," he said. He readjusted the arm he had resting on her shoulders, pulling her in closer to him. "But I'm going to keep holding on to you for a while anyway."

"Alright," she told him, smiling warmly. She looked back down at the baby, who had closed her eyes again. "So, what's her middle name, then?" she asked. "I'm guessing they brought you the birth certificate while I was out?"

"They did," Steve nodded. "I told them it would have to wait until you were awake."

Peggy smiled, feeling touched, though it didn't really surprise her that he'd done that.

"So, right now," Steve went on, stroking their daughter's hair. "She's just Michelle."

"Michelle," Peggy repeated thoughtfully. They hadn't been able to settle on anything that sounded just right, but she smiled as a name occurred to her. "What about Sarah?" she asked. She smiled up at Steve. "For your mum."

Steve looked back up at her, his eyes shining. "Really?"

"I think it fits," Peggy said.

He smiled. "I think it does."

Michelle shifted and blinked her little eyes open. "What do you think, sweetheart?" Peggy asked. "Do you feel like a Michelle Sarah Carter?"

Michelle sneezed.

"I'll take that as a yes," Peggy said with a laugh. Michelle shifted again and started making unhappy little noises that Peggy recognized, nuzzling her little head against Peggy's chest. "That sounds to me like the sounds of a hungry baby," she said. She looked up at Steve. "Did the doctor say anything about feeding her?" With James, she'd been able to feed him as soon as he was hungry, but James hadn't required surgery.

"He said you can do it as soon as you feel up to it," Steve replied. "No complications from the surgery or anything like that."

Peggy nodded, shifting a little bit to get more comfortable against her pillows before she untucked her hospital gown and moved Michelle in closer. Peggy laughed as Michelle latched on eagerly. "Well, you're a bit faster about that than your brother was," she said.

She leaned to the side a bit, resting her head against Steve's shoulder and soaking in the feel of her baby safe and healthy in her arms. Steve rested his head against hers, and they just sat there, being together for a little while.

"How long did you have to wait outside the operating room?" Peggy asked, noticing the way Steve's hand was still wrapped tightly around her shoulder.

"About an hour," Steve said. "It was a fast surgery—they said it took more time to stitch you back up than it did to get her out. They checked her over and made sure she was okay, then they brought her out to me while they got you set up in here."

Peggy nodded. An hour didn't seem like all that long, but it could be an eternity when you didn't know what was happening.

"They said it was all routine," he went on. "That it all went as well as it could have, and that they got you both in there before it became life-threatening, so you weren't ever in any real danger, it just…"

"You didn't know that at the time," Peggy finished for him.

She felt him shake his head. "No," he said softly.

She rolled her head up a bit so she could look at him. "I'm sorry," she said softly.

He leaned in and kissed her gently. "Not your fault. And everything's fine now." He kissed her again and rubbed Michelle's hair carefully. "My girls are alright."

Peggy smiled. "I love you, darling."

"I love you too." He smiled. "And I like it much better when you say it this way instead of yelling it down the hall at me when they're wheeling you off into surgery."

"I did that?" Peggy asked, blinking up at him in surprise.

He laughed softly. "You did. I know you were already pretty well sedated and you meant well, but it did not do a great deal to reassure me at that moment."

Peggy chuckled, feeling warmth rise in her cheeks. "I recall very vaguely feeling that it was important that I made sure you knew that," she said.

"Don't worry," he said, smiling at her fondly. "I did."

"Well, I would hope so," she said, and he laughed softly and kissed her again.

They didn't say much until Michelle finished eating, snuggling down to sleep in Peggy's arms with a happy little noise. "What time is it?" Peggy wondered. It had been just after lunch when they came in, but it was dark out now.

"A little after two," Steve said. "I called Jarvis after you came out of surgery and I was sure everything was okay, but since it's late, they're just going to bring James over in the morning." Peggy nodded, yawning as she did so, and Steve smiled. "Considering the day you've had," he told her. "You should probably get some rest."

"Sleep does sound good," Peggy agreed. She was exhausted. And now that she knew Michelle was safe, she could sleep peacefully. She leaned over more onto Steve, resting her head on his chest. With his arms around her, and her arms around their daughter, all the trials of the day faded away, and everything felt right with the world as she closed her eyes.

"I love you, Peggy," Steve whispered, pressing a soft kiss into her hair.

"I love you too," she whispered back.


Summary: Because the baby is early, she is not fully turned around yet. This causes some problems during labor, which frightens both Peggy and Steve, and Peggy ends up having to have a C-section. They get the baby out before she was in any danger, and Peggy and the baby are both fine, and all ends well.