Jess leant against the wall, her face draining of colour. She was exhausted. Her ankles were incredibly swollen, her back aching and her stomach hurt. She waddled towards the kitchen, balancing Ethan on her hip as she tried to keep him occupied. 'Shall we make some dinner for when Daddy gets home?' Jess asked. Ethan nodded and giggled. They began cooking some pasta on a hob and a few minutes later George came home, tired after a long shift.
Jess was in the kitchen laying the table when she doubled over in agony. Ethan was stood next to her, helping her when this happened. He ran straight to his father. 'Dada, dada! Mama mama' he shrieked tugging on George's trouser leg. George hurried into the dining room to find his wife hunched over the table rubbing her stomach, and grimacing in pain.
'Let's get you sat down for a minute' George whispered leading her to the sofa. He took the food off of the stove and returned to his wife's side. 'How are you feeling?' He asked.
'Sore' she moaned as another contraction came. 'Can you ring uncle Cal, tell him to come over. Can you ring Charlie as well. Jenny can look after Ethan seen as mum is on her cruise until next week. Ugh this wasn't meant to happen until next week' Jess complained.
George chuckled. 'You can't control it, you just have to take it as it comes' he smiled as he went to grab his phone. He hurried back to his wife when he heard her crying out in pain.
He spoke to Cal and Charlie who both were going to come round to help. Charlie's wife was going to collect little Ethan and keep him overnight so that Jess and George could have some privacy.
Charlie hurried through the door and crouched beside his sister. 'How's it going Jess?' He asked taking her hand.
'Hurts' she whimpered.
'I know darling, but your knight in shining armour has just arrived' Cal joked, making her giggle.
Cal deposited his things by the door before making his way over to his niece. 'Uncle Cal, it really hurts, can you please make it stop?' Jess begged.
'You know better than anyone that it would be impossible. Now I'm going to ask George to run the bath whilst Charlie and I get you and this kit upstairs. We'll get you in the bath for a bit later, but first I want you to try and walk around a bit to ease the pain, Charlie will keep you company until I say' Cal instructed.
Jess gripped her brother's hand tightly as they wandered through the house. He was gently rubbing her back as they went. 'Oh god, this hurts so much' Jess groaned wrapping her arms around her swollen midsection and doubling over.
'Come on Jess, what happened to being unflappable, you're a Hardy for christ's sake' Charlie muttered.
'She's actually a Thompson now, and she's actually a lot braver than us lot' George interrupted with a smile. Jess waddled over to him, wrapping her arms around his neck and bending forward.
'Shall we get you upstairs then?' George asked. Jess nodded biting her lip.
Charlie lifted his sister and carried her effortlessly up the stairs before depositing her on the bed. Cal appeared at the foot of the bed pulling on some gloves. 'Right then Jess, you know the drill, I'll examine you and then we'll take it from there. This time though, I don't want to be stitching up your foot and picking up broken glass so I brought you this' Cal smiled revealing a small plastic cup with a lid, more suited for little Ethan than for Jess.
'Ha ha ha you think you're so ... Funny' Jess muttered sarcastically her breathing hitched as another contraction came.
'Breathe sweetheart, you can do this' George whispered rubbing her back gently. Jess whimpered, gripping his hand and leaning forward slightly. Charlie sat beside her taking her other hand whilst Cal sorted out his things. Tears ran down her cheeks as she gasped for air.
'Don't cry darling, you're doing really well' Cal assured her as he rested a gloved hand on her knee.
'I agree Uncle Cal's jokes are so painful they make you cry' Charlie quipped making Jess laugh.
'I'm going to get you for that, come here' Cal chuckled reaching forward and putting Charlie into a head lock, ruffling his hair.
Jess flopped back into George's arms laughing at the scene happening before her.
'They say laughter is the best medicine' Cal commented noticing his niece relaxing into her husband's loving hold. Cal sat at the foot of the bed. 'Okay Jessica, let's examine you quickly and then you can have a bath to see if that does the trick' Cal explained. Jess nodded biting her lip in anticipation. Charlie sat beside her, holding her hand whilst George sat behind her taking her weight on his chest, wrapping his arms protectively around her and resting his hands on her rigid bump.
'Well you're doing really well, you're already at 6 centimetres' Cal exclaimed.
George kissed her forehead. 'I've got you sweetheart, you are doing really well' he whispered, kissing her neck. Jess leant her head against his shoulder, moving her hand to his cheek before pulling him close and kissing him. She stopped biting her lip as yet another contraction came but she remained close to his face. 'You've got this baby, you are doing a brilliant job' George whispered.
She pressed her forehead against his, letting out a small moan as the contraction peaked. As it faded she continued kissing her husband. 'Geez sis, get a room, its that sort of attitude that got you here in the first place!' Charlie chuckled. Jess slapped his arm playfully.
Jess wriggled towards the edge of the bed prompted more laughter and teasing from her brother. 'Are you planning on standing there laughing all day or are you going to help me up?' She snapped.
'Just ignore her, she's hormonal' George whispered.
'I'm not' Jess replied.
'You are too, but that's why we love you' George smiled helping her to her feet. He slipped his arm around her back and supported her weight as they strolled towards the door. They wandered around the house, slowly and steadily trying to ease some of Jess' pain. When they reached the kitchen, Jess' legs gave way and she started screaming with pain. 'CAL! It's Jess, we're in the kitchen, she can't get up' George shouted up the stairs. Charlie stayed by his sister's side coaching her on her breathing.
'What's going on Jess?' Cal asked crouching beside her.
'I think it's coming!' She gasped. Cal pulled on some gloves and examined her.
'It's alright, it's not coming, you're waters are still intact. Unfortunately, I'm going to have to break them to see if we can speed things up, you're still only at 6 centimetres' Cal explained. He carried her up stairs to the bed and spread some water absorbent sheets before settling her onto it. 'Right, George, I need you to hold Jess's hand tightly and keep her calm. Charlie, can you make sure the bath is nice and warm for your sister' Cal ordered as he prepared some equipment.
Jess whimpered as she saw the equipment he was setting up. She had seen the procedure before and it looked uncomfortable. Cal spread a blanket over her lap before beginning. 'This is going to be uncomfortable for a bit but try and stay nice and still and tell me if I need to stop' Cal instructed. Jess nodded her eyes filling with tears. 'Don't cry darling, I'm going to do my best to make this quick and as pain free as possible' he assured her.
As he began the procedure Jess screamed, a contraction tore through her catching her off guard. Cal paused giving her the chance to calm down before continuing. Jess writhed uncomfortably in her husband's arms. 'Uncle Cal please stop, I can't do this anymore' Jess whimpered gripping the sheets in her fists.
Suddenly she felt a puddle forming between her legs. She gasped. 'All finished now Jessica, now let's get you in the bath and see if that helps' Cal whispered kissing her sweaty forehead.
They helped her change into something more comfortable before lowering her into the bath. Jess gripped George's hand tightly as yet another contraction came. 'Breathe for me Jess, come on, keep breathing, in through the nose out through the mouth' Charlie instructed holding her spare hand. Cal handed her the entonox which she took a few breaths of. She relaxed into the warm water, her eyes beginning to droop out of exhaustion. 'I-I don't think I can do this anymore, I'm too tired' Jess whispered stifling a yawn.
'I'm not sure you need to' Cal exclaimed. He was sat at the end of the bath. 'I can see the head already, you're crowning' he explained. Jess couldn't hide her shock.
'Come on baby, you need to push' George told her squeezing her hand reassuringly.
'Come on Jess, you've got this' Charlie added.
'You know exactly what you need to do, but just take it steady and remember that I am here with you' Cal whispered.
'Hmm, I wonder where I heard that one before?' A voice came from the doorway.
'Mum?' Jess whimpered.
'It's alright darling I'm here' Kate whispered kissing her daughters sweaty forehead. 'How are you feeling?' She asked.
'Sore, but I'm hanging in there' Jess replied.
'Come on Jessica, let's meet your new baby' Cal prompted. Jess sat up, leaning forward slightly as she pushed. George and Charlie coached her through it whispering words of encouragement like 'you can do this, keep going' and 'almost there sweetheart, just a few minutes more' until they were interrupted by a shrilling cry.
'Congratulations, it's a little girl' Cal declared with tears trailing down his cheeks.
'Oh my goodness' George cried, unable to hide his excitement. Jess cried out in pain.
'What about the other one' Jess asked breathlessly as Cal handed the baby to its father.