Chapter 8: Initially

"Mom! MOM!" Harry yelled into the phone before I could even say anything...I looked at the clock...3:37 AM!

"Harry! Take a deep breath! Sweetie, you have to calm down so you can tell me what's going on!"

"Sorry, Mom," our older son panted. Then he started to babble. "We're at the hospital Melissa went into labor about 45 minutes ago she wanted to wait until it got 'serious' since that's what we planned but thank goodness I just put her in the car because they said it won't be long and I..."

"HARRY! STOP TALKING!" I shouted into the phone to get his attention. By this time, Darren was awake and getting out our clothes. "Did you call Melissa's folks? They're on the way from LA? Good. We'll call Van and Patrick and the grandmas and grandpas...we'll meet you there as soon as we can. Go, sweetie, and give Melissa a kiss for us."

"Thanks, Mom...I don't know what I'm doing...all our plans are ruined..."

"Get used to it, honey. We love you," I said with a grin, and hung up as Darren leaned down to give me a kiss. "Good morning, GRANDMA!"

"Dare, did you get that? Can you start the phone calls while I..." I trailed off when Darren's last word penetrated my conscious.

Chuckling, my husband pulled me out of bed and guided me into the bathroom. "I know, Rhiannon. You just didn't..." he started.

"...think that far," I finished as the shock started to wear off.

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Van and Patrick had beaten us to the hospital, so they were already in the waiting room, holding hands and talking quietly. When they saw us approaching, both our son and son-in-law rose to hug us.

"How are you guys doing?" Patrick asked with a cheery smile, too cheery for this hour of the morning.

"Oh, I almost gave Rhi a heart attack when I called her Grandma," Darren told them with a teasing grin.

Van chuckled, wrapping his arms around Patrick, and responded, "We've been calling each other Uncle Van and Uncle Patrick for a few days so we would be prepared."

Van's eyes widened as he looked behind me. We all turned to see Harry coming down the hall with a lop-sided grin on his face. At first he just stood and stared at us, and then, as tears of joy streamed down his face, he said, "It's a girl. Nine pounds, six ounces. Twenty-one inches. Ten fingers, ten toes. She's...perfect," he finished in a whisper.

"Oh, Harry..." I exclaimed as we all crowded into a group hug. "How is Melissa?"

"She's good, Mom. Really good...probably won't be up for visitors for a while, but they should have the baby cleaned up and in the nursery in about a half hour if you want to see her."

Darren kissed Harry's cheek, and said, "How about if we take a quick peek and then come back after lunch?"

"That would be perfect, Dad. Melissa's folks should be here by then, too...I just can't believe it...I'm a father. I just hope I can be as good a one as you..." our older son trailed off as he started crying in earnest.

Van, so supportive of his brother, immediately pulled him into a hug, whispering something in his ear. Harry looked him in the eye, and nodded, seeming to gather strength from whatever Van had told him. He started toward Melissa's room, but turned back to mouth, "Love you," to all of us. We all mouthed, "Love you more," watching proudly as our granddaughter's father headed into this new phase of his life.

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We gathered around the nursery window waiting for the staff to bring in the newest Criss. Harry had told us everything but her name, so we were speculating about whether they had chosen any of the options that had been bandied about.

Patrick pointed as one of the nurses carried in a newborn with a pink cap - was that her? She laid the baby in one of the empty bassinets, and then turned to pull a card out of a file. Sliding the card into the slot on the end of the bassinet, she looked at us and mouthed, "Criss?" We all nodded like fools - even Patrick, since he had taken Van's last name when they had gotten married - so she smiled, indicating this was who we were looking for.

We all started raving about how beautiful she was and commenting on who she looked like, when Van sucked in his breath. Patrick turned to him with concern. "Honey, what's wrong?"

"Her name...look at...her name..."

His husband squinted at the card, smiling while he read out loud, "Donna... Josephine...Criss. They named her after you, sweetie."

Van's eyes were filling with tears and he put his hand over his mouth, shaking his head in disbelief.

"I can't believe...why would they..."

Harry's voice came from behind us. "Because, Van Man...you are the bravest, kindest person we know and we wanted to give DJ a legacy of love right from the start."

"DJ?" Darren asked.

"Josephine is her mom's middle name, and Melissa likes initials," Harry explained with a smile. Then our boys hugged each other with such intensity that Darren and I couldn't hold back our tears any longer.

When they separated but were still holding hands, Van said, "Hopefully we'll be able to return the favor."

He grabbed Patrick's hand with his free one, as Darren, Harry, and I all looked at them with puzzled expressions.

"What does that..." Harry started.

"We didn't want to steal your thunder, but now..." Patrick began with a fond smile for his husband.

Van explained, "We started the surrogacy process last week. Hopefully by the end of next year, we'll have someone to name after you. Maybe more than one someone since the odds of multiple births are pretty high for artificial insemination."

My mouth fell open, and Darren wrapped his arm around me, whispering in my ear with a smile in his voice, "Welcome to the next generation, GRANDMA!"