There was nothing but silent confusion and fear in the room as River stood with her hand held out. The Doctor staired at her wrist, blinking over and over again, hoping that he would open his eyes and it would be an illusion, a trick of the mind. No luck.
River made a noise and pulled her left hand back to join her right, pressing them into her lower abdomen as another onslot of kicks and punches struck.
This baby was not happy.
The Doctor helped her to her chair and knelt in front of her, running a hand through her curls as she breathed deeply, eyes pressed firmly shut and hands still resting over the baby's kicks. Surely it couldn't hurt that bad, could it?
Nervously, he looked from her face to her hands and back before placing his hand over hers, silently comforting her. She slid her hands out from under his and pressed his further into her belly.
Quickly he pulled away, shaking his hand out as the surprisingly powerful kick he had felt stung his palm. River watching him, smiling as if she had played a joke on him.
"What the hell was that?" he asked, still nursing his stinging hand like a child. It didn't hurt for long, but his shock at the strength of the kick hurt his ego a bit.
"Try getting it from the inside, sweetie. That was your baby." River answered, wincing as another kick send pain shooting through her. "And your baby is not happy."
That was all she could manage before squeezing her eyes shut again and taking a few deep breathes.
The Doctor just sat there, not knowing what to do. He didn't know much about this sort of thing, but he was almost sure kicking should not be this painful or this frequent. Maybe something was wrong. Maybe he should take her to the doctor or something.
"Can you make it to the TARDIS, or shall I bring it up?" he asked, simultaneously resting one hand over hers and running the other through her hair.
"What for? Are we going somewhere?" she asked, not opening her eyes, but relaxing a little as she felt his warm touch.
"I'm taking you to the Doctor. Something is wrong."
She shook her head as she let out the breath of air in her lungs through her mouth. "It's alright. Nothing is wrong, really. I just-" she paused to take another breath, "I just spent hours running through that library. The baby didn't like it much. I'll be-"
He placed a finger over her lips to quiet her and then she felt his hands let go of her. His footsteps walked toward the door.
She opened her eyes and watched as he slowly reached for the handle. There was pain in his eyes and she knew he felt responsible for the physical and emotional suffering he'd caused her on that adventure. He'd been an absolute prick and he knew it.
"Doctor." she said softly, causing him to look up at her sadly. River stood and crossed to him, pulling is face to look at her and holding it there until his eyes were on hers.
Tears began to fill her eyes as she saw all the guilt that had been haunting him since his tenth regeneration. She almost couldn't bare it.
"If you love me you'll believe me when I say it wasn't your fault." she began, seriously, never breaking eye contact. "You should never feel any guilt for anything that happened there. You couldn't have known about the Vashta Nerada, and even if you did it wouldn't have stopped me. You know that. If I had to go back and do it over, I'd do it the exact same. Do you understand?"
He watched her face as she spoke. She was genuine in her words. He knew she meant every word, but could he really just let go that easily? Maybe not.
River watched some of the shadows leave his eyes as he listened to her. She knew it would take time, but he would forgive himself entirely someday.
Unable to resist for another second, she rose up on her toes and pressed her lips to his, opening her mouth slightly and letting his tongue run along her teeth. She smiled and nipped at it playfully as it ran along the roof of her mouth. Oh how she had missed him. She'd missed him more than words could say. The smile never left as he tugged at her lip with his teeth, sucking on it ever so slightly. His hand was in her hair, pulling a fistful of curls with aching desire. He had missed her too. He never thought he'd be able to be with her again. But he had her in his arms, and he wasn't about to let go.
As they broke apart, they shared a smile. River laughed as he pulled at his braces with his thumbs, proud of his ability to kiss his wife still.
A particularly painful kick to her kidney sent River doubling over with a cry. The Doctor suddenly seemed to remember they had a situation that needed to be dealt with. He shook himself and willed his hearts and lungs to calm down. He put an arm around her, walking her slowly to the bed to lay down.
"You should rest. There will be time for more fun when the baby has settled down." he said as she settled.
River glared at him. "Oh, now you're just teasing me." she said, punching his stomach gently as another few kicks hit her, causing her to wince.
"This baby is going to either be a soccer player or a boxer. Possibly both." she said as she pressed a hand to the spot and shifted around.
"I love you, River." the Doctor said, unable to stop staring at her. "Are you hungry? Thirsty? Can I do anything?"
She looked at him, hardly believing how lucky she was that he was here to care for her now.
"I'm alright for now. But thank you, my love. It means the world."
He smiled at her and tucked a curl behind her ear.
"Could you stay?" she asked as he stood up strait to leave.
He looked relieved, almost as if he was hoping she'd ask him to do just that.
Slipping off his jacket, shoes and braces, he carefully climbed into bed, trying not to move it around too much.
"I missed you so much. I hated having to lie to you and then hide from you for so long. All I wanted was for you to be with me." River admitted, swirling his hair around her finger as he pressed his ear into her breast, longing to hear the rhythm of her hearts for the rest of forever.
"I missed you, too." he whispered, sneaking his arm across her belly and holding her close to him. "But I was just wondering how you got your mother to give you her special secret room. She never even lets anyone even peak in it, let alone live in it."
"It's because I'm pregnant and I always get what I want." she laughed.
As if on cue, the Doctor felt a kick beneath him. He opened his eyes wide, pulled away. She rolled her eyes and sighed, sitting up on her elbows.
"River, I'm so sorry! You should be resting and I-"
She laughed, "Oh, shut up, you. I am resting." she said laying back down as he grabbed her hand and held it tightly.
They lay on the bed together in silence as reality came back to them.
"Do you think the Lazimi is still..." River started, trailing off as she began to realise the truth of the situation.
"I don't know. I'll do some more work on it once you are well. We'll figure it out."
The silence resumed, causing an ominous feeling to permeate the air.
Neither spoke, nor moved, except when she received another uncomfortable kick or punch. They were becoming less and less frequent and considerably less strong. Soon they would be normal again.
All they could do was wait. And wait, they did.