Chapter 9

Week 36. Kensi was now considered full term and she was so grateful. She was so over being pregnant. In those 4 short months, the couple had bought everything, read every book, and done everything imaginable to prepare for their little bundle of joy. Buying clothes was a little hard considering they didn't want to know the gender, but everything else had gone seemingly perfect. Kensi had even started repairing her relationship with her mother.

"Are you ready to meet Ocean?" Deeks asked one night as they were laying in bed together.

"More than ready. I can't wait to see what he'll be like."

"You, you mean she."

They'd been doing this for weeks. Kensi thought Ocean was going to be a boy. Deeks thought Ocean would be a girl. They'd use gender specific pronouns just to mess with each other.

"Either way, boy or girl, I'm very happy that we get to meet Ocean in just a few more weeks. I'm excited to be a mom. It's kind of weird to say that, though, because most people my age aren't having babies. But I am eexcited to meet the baby."

"Me too."

Little did they know they'd be meeting Ocean much earlier than they'd expected. About 3 hours after they'd gone to sleep, Kensi woke Deeks up.

"Deeks, I think it's time."

"What?" He said, still in a sleepy trance.

"I've been having contractions for about an hour and I think my water broke."

"Ok, um, do you want to go now?" Hs asked, trying to stay as calm as possible.

"Not really. Usually first babies take a long time. I kind of just want to wait here for a little while. Maybe at least until daybreak.

Deeks looked at the clock and discovered that it was almost 2 am. About 4 hours until daybreak.

"Ok. Do you want to take a shower? Or a bath?"

"A shower. With you."

"Ok."

Deeks took off his shirt and shorts, leaving him in only boxers. He then walked to the bathroom to start the shower. Kensi followed suit, taking off her clothes, and following him into the bathroom.

Once the shower was ready, and they were fully undressed, the pair climbed into the shower. Kensi rested against Deeks and let the warm water flow on her aching back.

"Are you nervous?" Deeks asked.

"Yeah, I am. But I'm also excited. I love this baby so much already, I can't imagine how much more I can love them."

"Me too."

The pair stayed in the same position until the water started getting cold. They turned off the water and then dried off. They got dressed in some fresh clothes, for Deeks that was shorts and a shirt, and for Kensi that was a pair of sweats and one of Deeks' shirts. They climbed back into bed, and continued talking about the arrival of their little bundle of joy.

"Do you think they'll have blue eyes?" Kensi asked.

"I think I'd be fitting if someone named Ocean had blue eyes, but I think they'll have your hair."

"Really? I want them to have your hair. I love blondes."

"And I love brunettes."

"Maybe they'll have dirty blonde or light brown."

"Maybe. Is your birthmark genetic?" Deeks asked, referring to her eye.

"No, it's not, but I guess it's possible that they could have it. It's mostly random."

The pair continued to talk for a little while, until they fell back asleep. Kensi woke up again around 5, due to the increasing intensity if the contractions. She decided to try and go back to sleep, because she knew that she would need all the energy she could get.

Finally around 8 am, Kensi decided now was the time to go to the hospital. Luckily, Roberta was willing to drive them. She said it wouldn't be safe for Deeks to drive because he's so worried.

"So, I have to go to work, but I'll back around 6. Just call me if you have the baby before then." Roberta said, as she dropped them off at the hospital.

"Ok."

"Good luck." And then she drove off.

Deeks and Kensi took all of their bags into the hospital with them and checked into Triage.

"So you said your water broke around 2?" The nurse asked.

"Yes. I had been getting contractions for about an hour before it broke."

"Ok. I'm just gonna check you to see how dilated you are."

"Ok." She said quietly, silently protesting because she knew it would be uncomfortable.

The nurse put on a pair of gloves and then put Kensi's legs in the stirrups. She quickly checked Kensi's cervix and said: "You're actually almost 7 centimeters dilated. I'm impressed that you're not screaming by now. You're almost in transition."

"Oh, wow. I mean they're painful, but bearable. I thought I was maybe 4 or 5. Not 7."

"We're gonna get you to L&D real soon."

"Ok."

"Wow, this is happening like now." Deeks said, starting to let his anxiety take over.

"Yeah , I know."

The nurse and a few orderlies came back in after about 10 minutes and transported Kensi and Deeks up to their room.

"The doctor will be in in a few minutes. Just sit tight." The nurse said and then left.

For some reason, Kensi was feeling a strange urge to get up and walk around, so that's exactly what she did. Luckily the nurse had let her keep her pants on, so all that was showing from the gown was her back.

"Deeks, can you rub my back?"

"Uh, sure. Where do you want it?"

"Lower. Like right below where my kidneys are. Just jab your thumbs in."

"Won't that hurt?"

"Just do it." Kensi said, not leaving room for argument as she was getting another contraction.

Deeks did as he was told, and it actually worked. Kensi didn't feel as much back labor with that contraction.

"Hello Ms. Blye. How're you doing?" The doctor asked as he walked in.

"As good as I can be, I guess. I feel like the contractions aren't as painful as they should be."

"Everyone is different. Your pain tolerance could be very high. And maybe the contractions aren't that strong. That most likely means you haven't hit transition yet."

"Do you know when I will?"

"Usually around 8 centimeters is when transition starts."

"Oh."

"I'll come back in, in about 30 minutes to check your progression."

"Ok."

Kensi continued to walk around and stop during contractions. Deeks continued to rub her back and speak soft words of encouragement. It wasn't until about an hour later that the contractions started to feel different. They were coming closer together, lasting longer, and they were much, much stronger. They were also bringing a strange pressure with them. Kensi knew she was now in transition.

"Do you want anything? Water? Ice chips?" Deeks asked, softly.

"Thank you, but no. Right now I just need you here with me."

"Ok."

Deeks glanced at the clock and noticed it was only about 10am. They'd been there for less than two hours and Kensi was already so far ahead.

The doctor came in again in another hour and Kensi was 8 centimeters dilated. She just wanted this whole process to be over. She was so done being pregnant.

Another hour passed and it was noon at this point. Still no baby. Kensi was getting tired, and she just wanted to give up. She'd been in transition for nearly two hours and the contractions were painful and long and she couldn't do anything about it. They'd offered her an epidural but she'd been adamant about not wanting one. She wanted to do this naturally.

"So, I have a proposition. The baby is starting to get tired and it's having decels during every contraction."

"What does that mean?"

"The baby's heart rate is slowing down with every contraction, instead of speeding up or staying the same. That's not what we want to see. What I can do is one of two things. We can either prep for a c-section right now while it's not an emergency or we can give you Pitocin to try and make you progress faster."

"I really don't like either of those options."

"Well, there is technically a third option, but it's extremely painful."

"What is it?"

"I can pull your cervix back with my fingers as you push, and it should get the baby to completely dilate the cervix."

"I want that."

"Are you sure? It's really painful, and there's more of a risk of tearing due to how fast the baby comes down and out."

"Yes, I'm sure. I want an all natural birth. This will allow me to have that. Or at least as natural as possible."

"Ok. We'll start with your next contraction. I'm going to pull on your cervix and you need to push. Don't scream, because that wastes air. Do you want something to bite on?"

"Yes."

The doctor motioned for Deeks to grab a rolled up towel that was sitting on the table next to the bed. Deeks picked it up and put it in Kensi's mouth. She bit down, when the doctor started pulling her cervix. She pushed for 10 seconds, took a 5 second break, then pushed again, and continued this until the contraction was over. The doctor stopped and Kensi was able to breathe again.

"You're now 9 centimeters. You're making progress."

"That hurts like hell." Kensi said as she pulled the towel out of her mouth.

"Most women say on a scale of one to ten this pain is an eleven."

"Yeah, I'd have to agree with them."

The same pattern continued for about 5 contractions until the doctor was finally able to stretch Kensi's cervix to ten centimeters.

"Ok, now that you're fully dilated, I don't have to pull anymore, but you have to push."

Kensi simply nodded her head and pushed. Deeks held one of her legs up with one hand and held her hand with the other.

"Kens, I can see the head. You're doing so good." Deeks said, trying to sound encouraging.

"Ok, Kensi. Just give small, short pushes. Just ease the head out." The doctor said.

Kensi did as she was told, and within that contraction, the baby's head was completely out. The doctor pulled the cord off the baby's neck, and instructed Kensi to continue pushing, even without a contraction.

Next thing anyone knew, there was a screaming baby being lifted up and put onto Kensi's chest.

"Oh my god." Kensi cried, shocked and amazed at what had just happened.

One of the nurses rubbed a towel down the baby's back, and the baby continued to scream, with fresh lungs.

"Ok, so looks like you tore a little bit, but it will only require a few stitches. I'm going to wait to repair it until you deliver the placenta."

Kensi simply nodded her head, still mesmerized with the new life on her chest.

"What is it, Kens?" Deeks asked, as he gently kissed her cheek.

Kensi looked down in between the baby's legs and announced: "it's a girl!"

"Really? Ocean Rose."

"Yeah."

Deeks put a nervous hand on Ocean's back, trying to comprehend the fact that she was real.

"Congratulations." A nurse said.

"Thank you." Deeks said, on behalf of both of them.

About 10 minutes later, the cord was clamped and cut, and then Kensi delivered the placenta. After that, the doctor stitched Kensi up, but luckily gave her some local anesthetic.

After about an hour, Kensi was finally willing to let Deeks hold Ocean.

"She's beautiful."

"Yeah she is. Even though she's not biologically yours, she kinda looks like you. She has the blonde hair and blue eyes."

"Yeah, and I'm shocked that she has the same birthmark as you. What are the chances?"

Ocean ended up having the Nevus of Ota just like Kensi, so she had one light blue eyes and the other was dark blue with a grayish ring around the iris.

"I can't believe she's finally here, and with us." Kensi said, staring at the tiny human in Deeks' arms.

A/N: Now that my school's been cancelled this week, and possibly for more weeks to come, I should be posting more chapters soon. Stay safe and stay healthy, everyone. Self-quarantine or practice social distancing if possible. Don't buy 20 packs of something you really don't need. Buy what you need and leave some for other people who also need it. Remember, we're all in this together. Be kind to others. :)