13 – Will you please sleep with me?
"Mom? You here?" Rory called as she entered the Gilmore house.
"Living room." Lorelai called back, and Rory made her way there.
"Hey you." She said, giving her mother a kiss on the cheek before sitting down next to her on the couch. "What're you watching?"
"I don't know." Lorelai replied.
"You don't know?" Rory frowned.
"I was watching a rerun of Friends, but that ended about an hour ago." Lorelai explained.
"Why didn't you change the channel?" Rory asked.
"I can't reach the remote." Lorelai complained, stretching her arm out to demonstrate the fact.
"Why didn't you sit up so you could get the remote?"
"I'm way too comfortable." Lorelai said. "And let me tell you, after these past couple of weeks, if I find a position I'm comfortable in, I'm sticking to it." She giggled a little. "Dirty."
"Mom!" Rory exclaimed, getting the remote and changing the channel. "What about when you need to go to the bathroom?"
"Then I will go to the bathroom. But right now, I'm comfy." Lorelai reasoned. "And I knew you'd be getting home soon, so it all worked out OK."
"What if I hadn't had the day off tomorrow? I wouldn't have been here until late tomorrow night."
"Well, if I had known that you wouldn't be home until tomorrow, then I would of course have called Sookie or Luke and asked them to come over and change the channel." Lorelai said, checking her watch. "Luke should be here pretty soon, anyway."
"Is he bringing food for me too?" Rory asked.
"I told him you'd be here, so I guess." Lorelai replied.
"Great." Rory watched the TV for a moment. "So, this is a new record."
"Record of what?" Lorelai asked.
"I've been here for a whole five minutes, and you haven't complained yet." Rory explained. "I haven't been able to talk to you on the phone for the past two weeks without you whining about how tired you are of this."
"I do not whine." Lorelai argued. "Do I?"
"You've been whining a lot lately." Rory told her.
"I'm sorry, hon, I'm just going crazy here." Lorelai apologized. "I mean, did anyone bother telling this kid that he was supposed to be here two weeks ago?"
"It's not two weeks yet, is is?" Rory asked. It was February 16th, and Lorelai's due date had been February 5th, something Rory had been reminded of every time she had spoken to her mother since that day.
"It will be on Sunday." Lorelai said. "The 19th."
"Didn't the doctor say they would give you something to induce labor if nothing happened by then?" Rory wondered.
"Yeah, but that's three days away." Lorelai complained. "I want this done now."
"Well, have you tried those things in the pamphlet the doctor gave you?"
"Almost." Lorelai nodded.
"Almost? Why almost?" Rory frowned.
"Well, there's one in there that kind of requires assistance." Lorelai said, getting the brochure from the table next to the couch.
"What do you mean assis... oh." Rory found the paragraph her mother was referring to.
"Exactly!"
"But how would sex help to induce labor?" Rory wondered. "Isn't that what started this whole thing?"
"Don't ask me, but it's in there." Lorelai shrugged. "See, here's where it comes in handy to have a partner when you're having a kid."
"You could always ask..." Rory said, letting her mother finish the sentence herself.
"No, I couldn't." Lorelai shook her head. "Could I?"
"It is partly his fault you're in this position in the first place." Rory reasoned.
"You don't think it would be weird?" Lorelai asked.
"Maybe a little." Rory said truthfully. "But at this point, do you care?" Lorelai sat in silence for a while.
"You're right, I don't!" She said a moment later. "I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for him, so he should help me, right?"
"Right!" Rory agreed. "Just, I don't want to be in the room when you ask him, OK? That would be too embarrassing."
"I think that can be arranged." Lorelai nodded. At that moment, they heard the door open and close.
"Anybody here?" Luke's voice came into the living room.
"Go, go!" Lorelai ushered Rory up from the couch.
"Now?" She whispered.
"Might as well get it over with." Lorelai reasoned.
"OK, call me when you're done." Rory headed for the stairs, but turned before walking up it. "Not done, done, you know, just... done."
"Honey, we're not gonna do it right here on the couch." Lorelai assured her.
"Right, good." Rory hurried up the stairs as Luke came into the room.
"Hey, was that Rory running upstairs?" He asked, setting down a paper bag on the table.
"Yup." Lorelai replied, looking in the bag. "Yummy, chili fries."
"And why did she run upstairs when I walked into the room?" Luke continued as Lorelai seemed to have lost interest in the subject.
"Oh, I wanted to talk to you, so she gave us some privacy." Lorelai said as if it was obvious.
"What did you want to talk about?" Luke asked.
"Well, you know how today is the 16th, right?" Lorelai started.
"Right." Luke agreed.
"And this little guy was suppose to make his appearance eleven days ago." Lorelai continued.
"I am aware of that, yes."
"So, my dilemma is this; I have tried everything, and I do mean everything, to get this baby out of me." Lorelai explained.
"Are you sure that's good? Don't babies get here when they're ready?" Luke frowned.
"It's OK, the doctor gave me this brochure with different methods of starting labor when you're overdue." Lorelai showed him the brochure.
"So you've tried everything in here?" Luke asked, looking at the pamphlet.
"I have tried almost everything in there." Lorelai replied.
Luke continued to look through the brochure. Lorelai could tell the moment he spotted the sex advice, because his eyes widened.
"I hope you're not asking me what I think you're asking me." He said, putting the brochure down on the table.
"But Luke..."
"Because the answer would be no." He cut her off. "We... couldn't."
"Why not? It's not like we haven't before, evidence present." Lorelai argued and pointed to her stomach.
"But we're not... it would just be weird." Luke said.
"Maybe, but quite frankly, I don't care." Lorelai heard her voice get higher. "I am desperate, Luke. Haven't you heard me complaining over the past week?"
"I have, and I understand, but we still can't."
"You owe me!" Lorelai pulled out her last card. "This is your fault, you have to help me."
"Lorelai, I just... can we not talk about it?" Luke refused to meet her eyes.
"Will you please sleep with me?"
"No!" Luke would have laughed at the conversation if it wasn't for the fact that Lorelai now had tears in her eyes.
"I get it, you don't want to." Lorelai knew that she was being silly, but damn it, she was very hormonal at the moment! "I'm fat, and ugly, and hideous. Why would anybody want to sleep with me?"
"No, that's not... Lorelai, look at me." She reluctantly looked up at him, and he wiped a few tears away from her cheek with his thumb. "You are not ugly, or fat or hideous for that matter. I just feel that, if we do this, it would change our relationship. Maybe complicate it even more, and it's pretty complicated as it is, don't you think?"
"I guess." Lorelai admitted, sniffling a little.
"Are we OK?" He asked, and she nodded slightly.
"Just so you know, I will keep complaining, and now you don't get to tell me to stop!"
"Complain all you want." He replied.
"OK, good." Lorelai nodded. "I'm hungry."
"Then let's eat." Luke stated.
"Rory, hon, you can come down now." Lorelai called.
"Why did she go upstairs?" Luke asked again.
"She didn't want to be here when I, you know, she thought it would be too awkward." Lorelai explained.
"You discussed this with Rory?" Luke asked, looking horrified.
"Of course I did, I talk to Rory about everything." Lorelai replied calmly.
"But, you can't... I mean, that's..."
"You two done talking?" Rory cut Luke off as she came into the room.
"All done, sweetie." Lorelai patted the couch next to where she was sitting. "Let's eat."
xxxxx
"Lorelai, Rory, it's good to see you." Emily greeted as Liesel escorted them into the living room. "Lorelai, how are you feeling?"
"Like I'm about to pop any minute." Lorelai replied.
"Well, no wonder." Emily noted. "Why don't they do something at the hospital, this can't be good."
"They will, mom, they just have rules and things that they have to follow." Lorelai explained.
"To wait two weeks? I think that's ridiculous." Emily stated.
"Well, that's just the way it is." Lorelai concluded, sitting down on the sofa.
"And you've tried everything the doctor told you?" Emily asked.
"Yeah, pretty much." Lorelai nodded.
"Pretty much? What does that mean?" Emily looked at Rory.
"Well, there is this one thing that you sort of have to be two to be able to pull off." Rory told her grandmother.
"Rory! I thought we agreed not to talk about that here?" Lorelai said.
"I said I wouldn't bring it up, but Grandma asked." Rory shrugged.
"What is the problem, Lorelai? I do know what sex is, you know." Emily intervened.
"So not a sentence I ever wanted to hear from my mother." Lorelai complained.
"Well, you're here, so I must have done something right." Emily winked at Rory, showing her that she was teasing Lorelai. "They used that back when you were born too, Lorelai, I think it has to do with the movement or something."
"Ah, bad visual, bad, bad visual!" Rory shook her head as if to try to get rid of the images.
"Really, mom, can we just drop the subject, please?" Lorelai asked.
"Well, what's the problem with that? I'm sure Luke would be happy to oblige." Emily noted.
"Grandma!" Rory exclaimed, looking at her grandmother in horror.
"What?"
"Mom, just let it go, OK?" Lorelai pleaded.
"You can at least talk to him about it." Emily continued. "God knows we'll all be that much happier after the baby's born."
"I did talk to him, OK mom?" Lorelai surrendered.
"And he said no?" Emily looked surprised.
"Yes, he said no." Rory replied, as Lorelai seemed to zone out.
"Well, you can always try again." Emily reasoned.
"I actually don't think that'll be necessary." Lorelai said quietly.
"What do you mean?" Emily wondered.
"Because I think my water just broke." Lorelai announced, pressing a hand to the side of her stomach. "And, also, ow!"
"Your water broke? Right now?" Emily asked in horror.
"Yes, mom, sorry I didn't get off the good couch first, didn't really have a lot of warning."
"Are you OK?" Rory asked in concern.
"A lot of pain, babe, a lot of pain." Lorelai replied.
"Well, shouldn't the contractions start way before the water breaks?" Rory wondered. "You haven't had them all day and not told me, have you?"
"No, honest, they just started." Lorelai promised. "I've had some tension in my back for a couple of days, but I just thought it was natural. It's been a while, you know."
Emily, who had been sitting staring into space for a moment, suddenly came back to reality.
"Richard! Get the car!" She called through the house, and a moment later, Richard appeared in the doorway.
"What's all the commotion about?" He asked in an annoyed voice. "I was on the phone with Taiwan."
"Lorelai's in labor, we have to go to the hospital." Emily told him.
"She's what? But... now?" Richard stuttered.
"Yes, now, dad, sorry to drag you away from Taiwan." Lorelai said.
"OK, I'll get the car, you two get her outside." Richard instructed, suddenly taking control of the situation.
"Right, let's go." Emily said as Richard had left the room. She helped Lorelai up with Rory's assistance, and they walked towards the front door.
"Ow! Ow, ow, ow!" Lorelai stopped halfway, moaning in pain. "Rory, if I ever talk about how great it would be to have another kid, remind me of this moment, OK?"
"I will." Rory promised. "Can we keep going?" Lorelai nodded and they started walking again, this time making it all the way to the car.
"Everybody in and buckled up?" Richard asked from the front seat.
"All done, Grandpa." Rory replied, squeezing her mother's hand. "You OK?"
Lorelai just nodded, her eyes closed against the pain. Richard pulled out of the driveway and down the street. When the contraction subsided, Lorelai looked at Rory.
"Do you have your cell with you?"
"Yeah, it's right here." Rory pulled it out of her pocket.
"Great, I left my purse back there." Lorelai said.
"Right, call Luke." Rory realised, pressing the speed dial on her phone. It rang a few times before Luke answered.
"Yeah?"
"Luke hi, it's Rory." She said, not sure how to start.
"Rory, hey. Aren't you at dinner with the grandparents?" She could practically hear him frowning over the line.
"We were, but now we're sort of on our way to the hospital. Hartford Memorial." She explained, hoping he'd get the idea.
"The hospital, but why..." He was quiet for a moment. "I'll be right there."
"He's on his way." Rory told her mother as she hung up.
"He'd better hurry, I don't think this kid is very patient."
xxxxx
"Lorelai, hi, my name is Sally and I'll be your nurse." A short, blonde woman said with an annoying smile.
"Great, can you get me some drugs?" Lorelai replied, getting a frown in return. "I'm in a lot of pain here."
"Well, first I have to examine you, see how far we've gotten." The nurse explained. "Do you think you can change into this robe, or do you want some help?" She held up a hospital gown.
"I think I'll manage, thanks." Lorelai said, taking the gown.
"Then I'll just wait outside for a moment." The nurse left the room and Lorelai started undressing, glancing at the watch as she did. It had been fifteen minutes since Rory had called Luke, he should be there soon.
She put the gown on and went to open the door a little.
"All done." She told the nurse who was waiting outside.
"Good, then let's see what we've got here." The nurse helped Lorelai back to the bed. "How long have the contractions been going on?"
"I guess pretty much all day, but I haven't noticed them." Lorelai said. "They just got painful about twenty minutes ago."
"And that's when your water broke?"
"That's about it, yeah." Lorelai nodded.
"Well, if you'll just lie down, I'll do a quick examination." Lorelai obliged. "Oh, my." The nurse said a moment later.
"Oh my? Oh my what?" Lorelai asked nervously.
"Seems like you're just about ready to deliver." The nurse explained.
"What? No I'm not, I just got here, I need drugs and..."
"Well, this baby doesn't care about that." The nurse cut her off, getting a phone off the wall. "Yes, hi, I'm taking Miss Gilmore into delivery room five, I need a doctor as soon as possible. Thank you."
"No, but wait." Lorelai tried, but the nurse didn't listen, she just rolled the bed out of the room and started down the hallway.
"What's going on?" Emily asked, her, Richard and Rory having joined the procession down the corridor.
"I'm taking your daughter into the delivery room, mam." The nurse replied.
"The delivery room? But we just got here." Emily argued.
"I tried that too, mom, it didn't work." Lorelai piped up from the bed.
"She's ready to have this baby, no matter what you say." The nurse said. "Now, is anyone going in with her?"
"Yes, Luke is going with me, but he's not here yet so we have to wait." Lorelai knew she sounded unreasonable, but she didn't care.
"Sorry, Lorelai, you're going to have to do this without him." The nurse replied before turning back to the others. "Is anyone coming with us?"
"I'll go." Emily offered, seeing Rory turn slightly green. "Luke will be here any minute, anyway."
"Thanks, mom." Lorelai said gratefully.
"If you'll just go with me, and Dr. Summers will take care of Lorelai. We'll be in room five." The nurse told Rory and Richard before taking Emily to get scrubbed in.
"Hi, Lorelai, I'm doctor Summers." A woman in her fourties said. Lorelai hadn't even noticed her.
"Hi." She managed a half smile.
"So, let's go have a baby, shall we?"
"I guess so." Lorelai nodded and the doctor rolled the bed into a room right in front of them.
"OK, all settled." The doctor said, connecting a couple of monitors to Lorelai's stomach. "You OK?"
"Apart from the excrutiating pain, pretty good." Lorelai joked.
"Well, I'll just do an examination, and then we'll get you an epidural, that sound good?" The doctor pulled a metal stool up to the end of Lorelai's bed.
"Sounds heavenly." Lorelai replied.
"OK, can you move down a little, I need to take a look at how it's going down here." Lorelai obliged, letting the doctor do the examination. "OK, I have good news and bad news." The doctor announced when she was done.
"I'll take the good news first, please." Lorelai said.
"The good new is that it looks like we'll be done here very soon." The doctor started. "The bad news is that I can't give you anything for the pain."
"What? But I need something, I can't do this otherwise." Lorelai felt panic rising in her chest.
"I'm sorry, but even if I do give you an epidural, this baby will already be here by the time it takes affect." The doctor gave Lorelai an apologetic look.
"OK, you don't understand, I need this..." Lorelai looked up as the door opened to reveal her mother. "Mom, tell her that I need some drugs."
"What's going on?" Emily asked, taking Lorelai's hand in her own.
"I was just explaining to your daughter that it's too late to administer an epidural." The doctor explained. "The baby has moved into the birth canal and it's only a matter of minutes before it will be here."
"Mom, tell her." Lorelai pleaded, tears in her eyes. "I can't do this, I need something... and Luke, he's not here, he's supposed to be here, tell her."
"Lorelai, listen to me." Emily took her other hand in hers. "You can do this, and you will, just listen to the doctor.
"When you feel the next contraction, I need you to push, OK Lorelai?" The doctor told her, but Lorelai just shook her head.
"No, I can't, I need Luke to be here, he's supposed to be here."
"There's a contraction coming up, you need to push." The doctor insisted.
"Lorelai, you're not doing Luke any favors by not doing what the doctor says." Emily tried to tell her. "It's not good for the baby."
"OK, Lorelai, push!" The doctor said, and she did. "OK, good, you can breathe."
Lorelai leaned back in the bed, looking pleadingly at her mother.
"Is he coming, mom?"
"He'll be here soon, darling, he'll be here soon." Emily soothed, stroking Lorelai's hair. As if he had heard her, the door burst open and Luke came rushing in.
"I'm here, I'm here." He rushed to the bed.
"Just in time, too." The doctor noted. "OK, Lorelai, here's another one, push."
Luke took the hand that Emily wasn't holding. Lorelai took a deep breath before pushing as hard as she could.
"That's good, keep going." The doctor instructed. "And relax."
Lorelai breathed deeply, leaning back in the bed.
"I can't, it hurts too much." She cried.
"You can do this, Lorelai." The doctor encouraged her. "I can already see the baby's head, just a couple more of those and we'll be all done."
"I can't." Lorelai insisted.
"You can do this." Luke told her. "You have to, I'm right here, you can do this."
"And push!"
Despite the pain, Lorelai did as she was instructed, trying to block everything else out.
"Good, the head's completely out." The doctor told her as the contraction ended. "Another one and your baby will be here."
"Did you hear that? Just one more." Emily said, and Lorelai nodded.
"OK, one last time, push. A little more, keep going... and it's a boy!"
Lorelai slumped back in the bed, all energy gone.
"It's a boy, Lorelai, look at him!" Her mother said, squeezing her hand.
"I told you." She mumbled, looking at the tiny baby the doctor was holding up. "He's beautiful."
"He's perfect." Luke corrected.