A Chance to Love - 9 of 11

Another Wedding and a Baptism

Pastor Jim arrived with a marriage license and a Notary in tow. "Is there still time?" he didn't know if he was too late.

"Let's go have ourselves a hitchin'," Dean put an arm around Pastor Jim and shot the meddling nurse an evil eye as the four of them walked into John's room.

Sam closed the door behind them. John was awake. "Thanks for coming, Pastor Jim," John spoke. "I wasn't sure you could make it."

"You can depend on me," Pastor Jim stepped closer to the bed. He rolled the table closer to the bed and put the marriage license on it. "First we have the legal aspect to attend to. If you and Jo can sign this, then we can allow the Notary to go back to her job."

Jo woke up and signed on the license, as did John. The Notary signed, dated and stamped the license. Then, she congratulated John and Jo.

"Now for the wedding," Pastor Jim announced. "Neither of you have to move, for this is a simple ceremony."

John and Jo relaxed back into bed. "First, John, please repeat after me--Jo, I'll love you forever."

John's energy was waning but he looked into Jo's eyes and pledged," Jo, I'll love you forever."

"Jo, I need you to repeat after me--John, I'll love you forever."

Jo whispered through her tears," John, I'll love you forever."

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

Dean snapped a picture of the two of them kissing. Then Pastor Jim took a picture of them with Sam and Dean. Dean wanted to get one with John, Jo and Pastor Jim. He was trying to schoo Sam away when Jo grabbed Sam's hand. Her face was no longer smiling. Sam bent down and she whispered into his ear," Something is wrong. I need some help."

Sam nodded and said," How about one of just Dad and Pastor Jim?" Sam uncovered Jo and there was blood on the bedding.. "It's going to be okay," he whispered into her ear as he lifter her up. "Can you cover Dad back up, Dean?" Sam nodded to the bed. Dean caught a glimpse of the blood but didn't let on to John that it was there. Sam was already out of the room with Jo in his arms. Dean saw him at the nurses' station and pulled the curtain so his Dad wouldn't see. Dean took a picture of Pastor Jim and his Dad like he'd planned.

"We need some help here," Sam tried to keep his voice from sounding panicked. A nurse's aide came around, saw the blood, and grabbed a gurney. Sam laid Jo down and she clung to his hand as she was raced down the hallway. "I'm not going to let go," he promised. Jo's face showed pure fear, a fear that no one could take away.

Pastor Jim asked for some time alone with John. Dean told them he would go find Sam and Jo.

Dean opened the curtain as he stepped out to the nurses' station. The nurse he'd been battling was standing there. "Where did they take Jo? Is it Maternity or Emergency?"

The nurse made some phone calls and sent Dean to Maternity. Without directions, Dean ran down the hall following the signs to the elevator. The board in the elevator told him where to go. He didn't reach the Maternity Ward before he saw Sam running down the hall by a gurney towards him.

"What's going on?"

"They are going to do an emergency C-section," Sam kept clinging to Jo's hand. "I am staying with Jo. Can you go tell Dad?"

"You'll do fine, Jo," Dean brushed her hair back. "Remember, you're a Winchester now." One concerned look toward Sam and Dean was on his way.

They got into the Operating Room area and some medical person tried to make Sam let go of Jo. "I'm going with." he firmly stated.

"Are you the father?"

"The father is in ICU. I'm her support person," Sam shot him a look that he was not in the mood to be messed with.

"You'll need to scrub up and put on surgical attire."

"Whatever I need to do," Sam agreed. He leaned toward Jo," I will be right in. I need to scrub up and then I'll be in there with you. I'm not going anywhere." He watched the automatic doors close behind her and went to scrub up.

Dean came back to John's room while he and Pastor Jim were in the middle of a prayer. He quietly waited until they were done, standing against the wall with a bowed head.

When Pastor Jim was done, Dean came to John's bed. "Dad?" He could see that his Dad was fading. John opened his eyes and looked at Dean. "Jo is having an emergency C-section right now. Don't worry, Sam is with her. They will let us know as soon as they have any news." Then he turned to Pastor Jim, "Feel like performing a baptism today?"

Pastor Jim just nodded.

Sam got in the operating room as they were preparing for the surgery. They had a chair for him at Jo's head. "I'm right here," he said. Jo just held eye contact with him. She concentrated on his eyes because it was all she could see of him and it was the only familiar sight in the room.

The doctor announced that he was making the incision. He announced when he was cutting into the walls of the womb. They heard a small cry before the doctor said," You have a son, Mrs. Winchester."

"John, his name is John," Jo said between tears of both joy and sorrow. She told Sam, "You need to get him to John. He needs to see his son." Sam asked the neonatal team if Baby John was healthy. They said he was. Sam wanted to take him up to ICU to see his Dad. The team said they still needed to do some things to Baby John like they do to all newborns.

Sam asked if they could do it in his Dad's ICU room. He told them how serious it was. They agreed to have a few members of the team come up with him.

Then, Sam asked the doctor how long it would be before Jo could go visit her husband in ICU. The doctor didn't give him a direct answer. "Look," Sam finally laid it on the line," the neonatal team is coming up to her husband's room because his time is limited. Either you can let me take a gurney with her on it to ICU or I will carry her up there myself."

The doctor said they seemed to have the bleeding stopped. He still needed to get her stitched up and she would be in tremendous pain unless they doped her up. Sam asked him to skip the pain medication, have it sent up to John's room to give her when her epidural started to wear off.

"This isn't how we do things in this hospital." the doctor was angry.

"I'd rather do it another way, too," Sam replied. "But Mr. Winchester would like to see that his son and wife are doing well before he goes to heaven."

The doctor said he'd arrange for her to be brought up. Sam decided to stay with Jo. He scribbled 'His name is John' on a sheet of paper and sent the neonatal team up to ICU with the baby.

Sam stayed with Jo until she could be moved. Once on gurney, a maternity nurse came with them to ICU.

Dean was the first to see the incubator in the hall. He opened the glass doors and yelled," John Winchester is in here!"

The team rolled the baby into the room and parked the incubator by John's bed. "He's healthy as far as we can tell. We were asked to do our usual baby cares up here." The head lady doctor told Dean. "Here is a note."

Dean opened it and then laid his hand on his Dad's shoulder. "Dad, you need to wake up to see your new son. Jo has named him John."

John's eyes opened and Dean asked the lady doctor if John could hold the baby. She understood the situation and nodded. She took Baby John out and laid him on John's chest. John looked into the little baby face and started to cry," He's perfect." Dean took a couple pictures. While John was concentrating on the baby, Dean asked the doctor about Jo.

"I think she's okay," the doctor replied. "The man with her was persuading the doctor to let her come up here as soon as she was done getting stitched up. He's kind of demanding."

"That's my Sammy," Dean grinned.

Sam was still dressed in surgical attire when he came into the room with Jo. They wheeled Jo's gurney to John's bedside. Sam tried to be gentle as he transferred her from the gurney to John's bed.

"I love you," John said when she was laid beside him.

"We have a wonderful son named John," Jo whispered. "I love you, too."

Dean snapped a picture of the three of them. Pastor Jim took the camera and took a picture of the five of them. They were the Winchesters.

Pastor Jim asked what Baby john's middle name was. Neither John nor Jo knew. "That's alright. I can baptize him without a middle name." He took out a little bottle of holy water. The lady doctor from the neonatal team took the camera. She took a couple pictures of the very short baptism.

"Who are the godparents?" Pastor Jim asked.

"Sam and Dean are his Godfathers," Jo was quick to reply.

John had his eyes closed. One of the monitors went off. A nurse came in and pushed the silence button. "In a few moments, the other alarms would sound but I will shut the sound off. You can stay as long as you like."

Sam touched his Dad and told him that he loved him. Dean did the same.

Jo plead with John not to leave her--not to leave Baby John. "I never had enough time with you. There are so many things I forgot to say." She heard his final breath leave his body. "Goodbye, my love. Rest in peace." Then all she could so was cry.

The doctor took Baby John and did the eye drops and measurements. The maternity nurse pushed some pain medication into Jo's IV. Jo laid by John until his body started to turn cold.

"It's time to go make sure you are okay," Sam gently told her. "Dad is gone now."

"Don't we need to call someone?" Jo asked, confused.

"Pastor Jim will take care of all that needs to be done," Sam assured her.

She kissed John one last time, told him she loved him, and told him goodbye.

Sam and the maternity nurse transferred Jo back to the gurney. "I'll be to see you after they get you settled in," Sam squeezed her hand. "I need to stay with Dad for a little bit."

She nodded teary-eyed. She was crying before the maternity nurse got her out of the room.

The neonatal team was in the corner with Baby John. Dean was holding John's hand. Sam took John's other hand.

"Thanks for being my Dad," Dean kissed his forehead like John used to do when the boys were little. The tears started to come and he walked to Pastor Jim.

"I'll watch over Jo and Baby John," Sam's voice caught in his throat. "I hope to one day be the Dad you were."

He laid John's hand back down on the sheet and kissed his forehead.

Sam walked over to Dean and Pastor Jim. "I'll make the necessary phone calls," Pastor Jim offered. "Do you want your Dad to be buried by your Mom in Lawrence or in Nebraska?"

"I think Nebraska would be best." Sam replied," I think it would be easier on Jo."

"But what about Mom?" Dean asked.

"Dad isn't even the one who put the headstone there. Mom isn't there because there wasn't a body. Maybe we could bury Dad's wedding ring by Mom's headstone."

"That was his wedding ring to Jo, too," Dean found a glitch in Sam's plan.

"Could Mom's headstone be moved up here?" Sam asked Pastor Jim.

"I don't know. But, you could put one here for your Mom and lay your Dad to rest beside her. " Pastor Jim was thinking on his feet. "You would want to get a family plot so that Jo could be buried on the other side of your Dad."

"Okay. Nebraska it is," Dean decided.

"That's all you need to decide for right now," Pastor Jim told them. "I will arrange for the funeral home. I will stay here with him until the attendants arrive. Do you boys have a place to stay?"

"We'll need to find a hotel until Jo can go home," Sam answered. "I had better go check on Jo. Dean, do you want to find the hotel or come and check on Jo and Baby John?"

"I think I'd like to go play with a baby right now," Dean said. "I could use a pick me up. Even spit up would be good right now."

"Thank you, Pastor Jim," Sam hugged the man who used to take care of them and was always there for them and their Dad. "We will call you later to let you know what is going on. Do you have a place to stay?"

"I'll just find a hotel. I'll stay in town as long as you do, and then I will need to catch a ride home with you, if that is okay."

"You are always welcome in our home," Dean stated.

Pastor Jim took the chair next to John's bed and started to speak to his long-time friend, even though it was just his body.

Sam and Dean headed to the Maternity Ward. Jo was settled into a private room. She was out cold from the painkillers. They asked at the nurses' station about Baby John. Then, they waited in Jo's room for the nursery to bring Baby John in.

Sam picked him up first, he was swaddled in a blanket and asleep. He seemed so tiny. Sam gently transferred the sleeping babe to Dean. Dean smiled when he looked into the angelic face. It wasn't easy to find something to smile about after the day they'd had.