Totti10 - Maybe that feeling's got something to do with the fact that I am ridiculously predictable? You never know you might be surrised! The birth was one of the first things I wrote when I started this fic but I've just written some dialog between Dylan and Rita that's given me another (completely different) idea so there's still time for me to change my mind!
Just a little filler chapter for now :)
"You could have waited for me inside" Connie said as she walked into the office, holding the door open for Rita to follow her inside before sitting down beside her desk and gesturing for Rita to sit down too.
"I wasn't waiting for long" Rita said honestly as she carefully lowered herself into the chair opposite the clinical lead, she'd changed from her uniform whilst she'd been waiting for Connie, and had a much needed cup of tea.
Connie nodded, "how is she?" she gestured to Rita's bump.
Rita smiled and gently ran her hand over her stomach, the thin fabric of her tshirt smoothing over the gentle curve of her bump, "she's doing okay, she was sucking her thumb when Dylan did the scamn."
Connie returned the smile, "and how are you?"
"I'm okay" Rita nodded, "better now I know she's doing okay in there, I don't...it's been so busy this morning I didn't, I couldn't remember if I'd felt her moving, I didn't know if she hadn't moved or if I'd been so preoccupied with other things that I hadn't noticed her."
"You did the right thing" Connie reassured her, "any time you're worried about anything you find one of us or you take yourself to maternity, I'm sure nobody would complain about taking the time to reassure you that everything's okay."
"Thank you" Rita dipped her head, her fingers still running over her bump before pausing as she felt something.
"Is everything okay?" Connie saw Rita's hand falter on it's repetitive journey over her stomach.
Rita's smile grew slightly as she nodded, feeling her skin twitch slightly beneath her fingers, "I think she's got hiccups."
Connie smiled and shook her head slightly, "I want you to take the rest of the day off" she told Rita, "go home, put your feet up and take things easy and starting tomorrow I'd like you on light duties only, I know this is a busy ED and it's going to be hard but I want things to be as easy and stress free as possible for you. If you want to start your leave earlier than…"
"No" Rita interrupted, "No, I erm, I want to keep working."
"Are you sure?"
Rita nodded, "yeah, I'm 35 weeks, I can keep going until 37, I'd rather have the time off once she's here."
Connie nodded again, "okay, well, as I said I want you to take it easy, take your breaks, don't be thinking you're letting anyone down if you need to sit down for 5 minutes."
"Thank you" Rita said softly, over the past few weeks Connie had noticed just how tired Rita seemed to get, she frequently found herself calling the nurse into her office to 'go through some paperwork'. Occasionally they did do paperwork together but more often than not they simply sat drinking tea together and talking about anything and everything just to give Rita time to put her feet up and recharge her batteries for 10 minutes. Everyone was surprised at how well the pair now got along, professionally and personally, even Rita and Connie could never have predicted how much they'd have had in common. "You were right though" she added.
"I always am" Connie laughed, "but what about this time."
"Only working days, I don't feel quite so exhausted now I'm not doing night shifts."
"Ah that" Connie laughed, "yes, I hate to say it but I told you so." It had been a few weeks since Connie had told Rita she wouldn't be rota'd onto night shifts anymore, Rita had protested, insisting that her pregnancy didn't affect her ability to do her job adequately at any time of day but Connie hadn't listened, convinced Rita would thank her eventually.
"I don't think you quite realise just how tiring they are until you don't do them any more, I guess you get used to them."
"I'd agree" Connie nodded, "and if you need to only work days because of childcare when you come back after your leave then we can work around that, just let us know when you've decided what you want to do."
"Thank you" Rita nodded, "Dixie's offered to help and Dylan seems to be showing willing now so…"
"Well as I've said, we can talk about it nearer the time, so why don't you get off, get your feet up and make the most of your day off."
Rita smiled as she stood up, one hand still stroking her rounded stomach, "thanks, I'll see you tomorrow."
"See you tomorrow."
The weekend arrived quickly, and, despite Rita's wishes for a lie in, her baby woke her a little after 7 by bouncing on her bladder, forcing her to reluctantly leave the warm comfort of her bed. "Almost two hours" Rita mused as she glanced at her clock on the way to the bathroom, "thanks." There had been times over the past few weeks where Rita's daughter had found her bladder almost every hour, and she was grateful for every minute of undisturbed sleep she got.
She thought about having a shower before she went over to Dylan's before deciding instead to have a long soak in the bath. Her large bump made getting out of the bath somewhat difficult but she had plenty of time to figure out how she'd remove herself from the warm bubbles.
"Right Missy" Rita ran her hand over her bump once she was settled in the bath, "are you listening to me?" She smiled when she felt a kick against her hand, she knew it was coincidence, her daughter simply reacting to her voice but she couldn't help but think it was a sign the baby understood her. "You are not to grow any more okay? I'm uncomfortable and it can't be pleasant for you all tucked up in there. I don't want to fall out with you before you're even born, I'm sure there'll be plenty of time for that once you're a teenager so just trust me yeah? The size you are now, that's plenty big enough."
"I suppose we'd better try and get out" she told her bump after spending almost an hour in the bath, she'd become a master at using her toes to pull out the plug, once the water cooled, replacing it once an adequate amount of water had drained before turning on the hot tap to refill the bath, all without having to sit up. "Come on" she managed to roll herself onto her hands and knees in the bath, the first stage of her tried and tested method of, eventually, getting out of the bath, "we've got ready to go and see your daddy, that'll be nice won't it?"
She paused on her hands and knees for a moment, the water supporting the weight of her bump and taking the pressure off the base of her spine, "we could ring him though" Rita began talking to her bump again as she slowly rocked backwards and forwards, an action her midwife had told her would help the baby's head drop into her pelvis, "tell him I'm too comfortable in the bath to go over." She felt the baby kick again, "no, you're right, I'd have to get out of the bath to get my phone wouldn't I and that defeats the object. Okay, let's do this." She rocked back onto her heels so she was kneeling in the water before slowly pushing herself to her feet, "I don't think we should have any more baths" she told her bump as she carefully turned so she could sit on the edge of the bath, holding onto the sink for support as she swung first one leg over the side and then the other, "you're not making it easy for me to get out are you?" She coninued talking to her baby as she heaved herself to her feet, "maybe we'll start going swimming instead, if I can't get in and out of the pool then we really will have problems won't we?" She laughed to herself, pulling a selection of towels from the radiator and wrapping herself up before making her way back into her bedroom to try and find something remotely comfortable to wear for the day ahead.