A.N. So the long-awaited moment, at least for me. Everything is wrapping up nicely, I think. Any questions left behind should be brought out in the open. I'd like to fix as much as I can.

Golden Roads II: Money Matters (as the sequel is called) Will start posting with the epilogue. So make sure to check out my profile to see it.

As always, much of my writing is based on detailed internet studies and very little personal experience. If anything is glaringly wrong it is because I've never had a baby myself. Lol.

Chapter 20

Born Again

They weren't allowed to paint, so Anita had opted to decorate the nursery with reusable wall stickers. They came in all shapes and sizes, the little tiger cub was by far her favorite of the animals. She was almost done, everything was almost perfect, done in yellow and ice blue and baby pink. The furniture was all a standard white, and sturdy enough to hold a few more babies in the years to come. Except, perhaps, for the plush rocking chair that Roger had surprised her with a few days before. It sat in the corner covered in a pink fluffy material.

Anita was setting the last things in place, folding onesies and stacking diapers, when the first pain started. It wasn't a bothersome feeling, really, just a short jab that went away so quickly, she thought she might have imagined it.

The second jolt wasn't quite so pleasant. She groaned, rubbing the spot where it hurt the worst, hunched over. It, too, passed quickly, but she still felt a little sore. Anita watched the clock after that, counting the time that had passed between each blast.

By the fifth round she was sure. "Oh," she moaned, still rubbing her stomach. "Roger! Roger!" she called, wandering about the house the moment it stopped.

She finally found him sprawled across the bed, snoring. Anita hated to wake him, he was working late into the night to help clear out the land on the mountain, despite the crew he had hired to do the work.

Anita shook him lightly, "Roger? Roger its time to wake up."

"W-what?" he groaned, turning his head in her direction. "What's wrong?"

"The - oh dear. I think my water just broke all over the carpet."

He blinked several times while that sunk in. "Baby," he said sharply as he sat up.

She nodded helplessly. Roger jumped into action with a crazed kind of gusto. He shoved his feet into the first pair of shoes he came across, sans socks, and rushed out of the house to start the car. She was holding the keys when he rushed back in a few seconds later.

He calmed down a bit after that, but he was still flustered and jumpy. "Jack!" he squawked a few moments later, rushing up the stairs to wake him up.

Anita changed clothes and rechecked her bag while he ran about. She knew she had everything, but there was still a nagging feeling that she was leaving something important behind.

Jack scrubbed his eyes when Roger brought him down, clutching Puppy and wearing his untied shoes on the wrong feet. She meant to say something, but another sharp pain shot through her, robbing her of the ability to speak.

"What's wrong with Mommy?" Jack asked, clearly concerned.

Roger jumped a bit at his voice, "Mommy's having the baby!" His voice had a false kind of excitement to it, the kind of voice you use to tell little kids that Brussel sprouts taste amazing. "We have to go to the hospital, now, and it might be a long time before we can come home."

Anita felt for Jack, she did, he would be forced to stay at the hospital for the twenty or so hours it would take to have the baby, just because they were new here and had no kind of support system.

"Come on, Roger. Let's hurry, okay?" she said as softly as she could. She really didn't want to frighten the little boy more than she had too.

"Oh. Oh yes," he agreed. Roger really was off his game today.

The ride to the hospital was thankfully short, more of a skip than any kind of journey. Traffic slowed them, but even then within fifteen minutes they were sitting in the parking lot, a half a dozen other cars lingering around them, and an ambulance pulled in at the emergency room.

As it was only a little before two, they got to bypass that entrance and take the main door. Jack happily pressed the button on the elevator, and they shot up three floors to the maternity wing.

The sound of crying babies and beeping machines was everywhere as they moved to the front desk to get they're room.

The kind faced girl behind the counter, gave them a world-winning smile. "Hi! I'm Denise, how may I help you?"

Roger didn't seem fazed by her questioning, but Anita wonder what other kind of assistance a full to bursting pregnant woman could get in the maternity ward. "We need a room, quickly. She's having the baby," he answered gesturing to her.

"Ooh! There's a free room right there," she said happily, pointing to the door right to the left of the desk. "What's your names? Do you have a booking?"

Anita held back a painful groan, breathing through her nose and causing Roger to give her another frightened look. "Darling, it should be under Darling."

"Of course! Go ahead and get settled then. I'll send someone in. Oh," she added, finally noticing Jack when Roger hoisted him back off the floor. "Is this your little one? He's adorable."

"Er, yes. Is it all right if he stays in the room with us? We don't have anyone to take him," Roger asked. They had been worried that Jack might have to stay outside.

Denise just grinned. "Take him in. You might want to call someone though. Birth is a little scary, you know. But here," she pulled a giant lollipop wrapped in blue paper. "A gift for the new big brother."

Jack tucked his head into Roger's shoulder. "Thanks," he said, taking the candy and putting it in his pocket. "Come on, Nita."

Anita held up a finger, signaling him to wait until her current contraction passed. "Okay…" she groaned, straightening up.

They're room was very standard, an exam style bed in the center, a hospital recliner and sparse furniture scattered around the two sets of monitors. One corner of the wall was devoted to an incubator and baby equipment.

Roger set Jack down on the hard chair, and lent a hand to get Anita changed and into bed.

"Roger, you need to go call our mothers," she reminded him once she was leaning against the pillows. "I've got Jack, if you can get me my bag," she pointed to the diaper bag on the floor. "I brought his books."

He was reluctant to leave her, but Roger did as he was asked, placing Jack on the bed with her and finding the books she wanted. He smiled at the ones she'd chosen to bring, some of Jack's favorites, but hers too.

"Which one are we going to read first?" she asked, smiling despite the torture her body was already putting her through.

"Dip!" he said excitedly, pulling out the one he was talking about. The little Dalmatian on the front had its butt stuck up in the air, wagging its black tipped tail.

"Okay, then," she said, as if she hadn't expected it.

o.O.o

Roger drug his feet on the way out of the room, and asked Denise where he could find a phone. She pointed him in the correct direction, still all smiles.

To get to the phone on the floor, he had to pass the nursery, a long glass wall showing off nearly a dozen sleeping babies. As he watched, captivated by the tiny beings, a nurse removed two of them, a boy and a girl, and stepped out of the room.

She walked up to him. "Do you need something?" she asked, not nearly as friendly as Denise.

"No, mine's not here yet. Are those twins?"

The girl glanced back at the babies, "Yes. We get a lot of them around here. Must be something in the water." She said it almost like a warning, and then she was gone.

Roger watched her disappear into another doorway before he remembered he was on a mission and couldn't stand around all day.

He dialed his mother's number, worried how she might react. He certainly hadn't expected her to sound so excited.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Mom."

"Roger? Oh, goodness. Is it the baby? Is everything okay? What about Jack?" she fired off questions so rapidly he didn't have a chance to respond.

"Yes, yes," he cut her off. "Everything's okay, but Anita just went into labor."

Bella made an excited little squeal, and said something to someone else, her voice muffled from the distance. He assumed it was Gretchen listening in. "Finally, I was getting worried. She's a week late… Have you called May, yet? I need to get Philip…"

"No, not yet. Why do you need the pilot?" he asked warily, but he already knew. The whole lot of them would be crowding the waiting room when by the end of the evening.

"We're coming, of course. Your father said that he'd have James fired if he took off on such short notice, but I've got that all worked out. Gerald won't be firing anyone unless he wants his wife to be jobless." He couldn't see it, but Roger could imagine the victory smirk on his mother's face. "Don't worry about housing us though, dear. Joseph booked rooms a week ago. He's coming too, something about saying 'I told you so.'"

Roger groaned, "That's great. We'll see you in a bit then, can I leave calling May up to you then? So you can give her all of the details?"

"Yes, yes. Do get back there, Anita's going to need a hand. I do hope your paying the babysitter well for the next few days."

Roger took a breath, letting the pause answer for him.

"Roger! Tell me you didn't leave Anita by herself to have the baby and watch Jack!" Bella huffed at him. "Go! Get off the phone. We'll be there soon."

Roger did as he was told, hanging the phone back up and scurrying back to Anita's room. She seemed to have finished all of the books she had brought, or else Jack had gotten bored, as he was busily playing on the floor.

"Sorry that took so long, I'm afraid just about everyone's coming," he said when Anita noticed his presence.

Anita didn't look surprised. "Bella said as much the last time I talked to her. Surely your father didn't change his mind?"

"About the job?" he asked, confused. "How often to you call my mother?"

She shrugged. "Weekly? Sometimes more. Oh! The doctor came, finally. He says I'm only four centimeters dilated though. We've still got a while."

Roger nodded, taking the seat beside her, as they waited, and waited, and waited some more.

o.O.o

"Uh, Mr. Darling," Denise called, poking her head in the door. "I think your family has arrived."

Roger breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank god." He got to his feet quickly, taking Jack with him, and stoked Anita's hair with his extra hand. "Let me take him out, I'll be right back. You don't want anyone do you?"

Anita shook her head. "No, just, just hurry." She gritted her teeth as another contraction ripped through her, they were growing so close together, it was almost time for the real business they were here for.

Jack was more than happy to get out of the room, although he was clearly frightened for Anita too. "Is Mommy okay?" he would ask every time she curled up and moaned. How she had been able to bite back actual screams for so long, without any kind of pain relief he wasn't sure.

"Come on, Jack. Grandma's here to see you. Mommy's got to push the baby out now," Roger told him as the made their way to the waiting room where everyone was standing around.

May was the only one that didn't come running up to him once he had rounded the corner. Bella took Jack swiftly out of his arms, snuggling him close while the boy whispered about all the pain the baby was causing his mommy. Joseph slapped him on the back, laughing, and Jimmy and Stephanie bounced around excitedly.

James, who was truly the last person he wanted to make eye contact with, parted the crowd easily. "Roger," he said gruffly.

"Yes, sir?" he asked, fighting the urge to shiver under the big man's intense gaze.

"How's my little girl doin', Roger? She's a tiny thing, and making babies is a big ordeal."

"Uh," he tried, but no words came to him. "She's - She's okay. I've got to get back to her, it's almost time to push."

"Then get going!" his mother added helpfully, nudging him away. "I swear he's petrified," she laughed.

James nodded at him. "Good," he muttered watching Roger bolt around the corner and disappear once more.

o.O.o

The doctor came back in just a moment after Roger returned, sliding his wheeled stool into place. He wolf whistled, which made Roger decidedly uncomfortable. "Yep, time to get going. Next good one, I need you to give it a good push, okay?"

While he waited for something more important to do, the doctor shifted her blanket in a better position for him to see, and dragged a tray full of scary instruments to his side.

The break last only just enough time for him to get settled when the furthest monitor spiked and a new contraction started.

Roger had already taken his place at her side, Anita's hand wedged firmly into his and her nails biting furiously into the back of his hand.

"Okay, go," the doctor instructed, staring at her nether regions.

Anita put all her effort into that first push, Roger wanted to focus on the actual act, you only got to witness your first birth once, but that was very hard when the black spots started flashing in his eyes and his hand suddenly felt like it was going to fall off. Certainly tiny little Anita didn't have enough strengthen to cause that much damage though.

"Come on, push this little bugger out, now," Anita's cheery young doctor encouraged. "There you go, come on."

Over and over again they had to listen to the same nonsense while Anita struggled, growing more and more tired. And at long last, he announced good news. "One one ought to do it. Just got to free her other shoulder and she's all yours."

That information seemed to spurn her on. Anita gave it one more shove, and suddenly there she was, they're little girl. She was big and bluish gray in color, but her screaming filled the whole room.

"Rachel," Anita sighed, and then she slumped backwards.

"What happened?" Roger shouted, shifting out from under her dead weight. "Is she okay?" The doctor looked perplexed too, checking all of her monitors. There wasn't any excess blood, and her heart beat was steadily racing on, her chest rising and falling with each breath.

After a minute, she groaned, blinking up at him. "Why - Why am I laying down?" she asked in a tired voice, referring to her bed being straitened out. "Did I faint?"

The doctor looked relieved. "It looks like it. Just exhaustion then, you should be fine," he assured them, muttering something to one of the nurses about running tests. "Your baby seems just fine too," he added before they could ask. "She's got good lungs."

Anita just smiled, unconcerned about her own issues. "Can I see her?"

"Just a second," he said with another one of his winning smiles, jumping back to his feet and hurrying over the bed where they had the baby stretched out under the heat lamp.

She continued to scream herself hoarse. Obviously Rachel didn't care much for her new bright, loud world.

When she was mostly clean and warmed up, one of the nurses handed her over, nestling her carefully in Anita's arms.

"She's very pretty," Anita acknowledged. "She has your nose, I think." Rachel blinked up at them, still whimpering pitifully. She had lots of dark hair sticking up every which way that seemed to have a strange reddish tint.

Roger stroked her cheek so softly he wasn't sure he had brushed her at all. "She's perfect, of course," he said quietly before he kissed Anita's sweaty forehead. Glad that it was finally over for the moment.

Now he had to look forward to the next, a few years in the future.

A.N. Dip's Grand Adventure is a short story I wrote for my cousin. :D