A/N: Again I'm having problems with replying to all of your reviews, but be assured that I appreciate every single one of them!

Chapter 27

"What?" Dave exclaimed, pulling her closer.

"I'm in labor." JJ replied as calmly as she could.

"Oh God, now?" Dave sounded slightly panicked, beginning to feel overwhelmed by the fact that their baby, his baby, would soon be here. "We've gotta get you to the hospital then!"

"Don't panic, Dave, we still have-" JJ started, but was hit by another contraction.

"Damn!" She exclaimed loudly. "Why are these fucking contractions coming so fast?"

"Breathe, Jennifer!" Dave told her, forcing himself to stay calm and focused while everything inside him was raging.

"Don't tell me what to do!" JJ suddenly lashed out on him again, her demeanor somewhat changing every minute. Not understanding what he did wrong this time, Dave simply tried to not let her harsh words affect him, instead focusing on getting her to the car.

"Come on, Jennifer, let's get you to the hospital," he said softly, guiding her to the door.

"But I've gotta to call the nanny first and tell her to stay with Henry!"

"You can do that from the car. Please, Jennifer!" He grabbed her coat and put it around her shoulders.

"But-"

"No buts, JJ. Let's go!"

Never taking his arm off her, he walked them down to the parking garage, and helped her inside his car. Seeing her cringe in pain, he pressed a gentle kiss against her temple.

"Hold on, honey. We'll be at the hospital in no time. I promise," he assured her softly.

"Hurts...," JJ pressed out, making him wince himself.

Quickly getting into the car, he saw her taking out her cell phone once the latest contraction had subsided. He listened to her making arrangements with the nanny to stay with Henry over night, and was glad that it didn't seem to be a problem. Squeezing her hand reassuringly, he pulled out of the parking lot. No more than five minutes later, JJ had the next contraction.

"Damn! Why are they coming so fast? It's not supposed to be happening so fast! I was in labor for fifteen hours with Henry!" JJ cursed.

"I guess our baby's very eager to meet his parents," Dave couldn't help but chuckle. "And what you've felt all day long have probably been contractions already. You've been in labor for hours and didn't even notice. I see a pattern there..."

"Don't joke about it, this is not funny!" JJ yelled at him, breathing through the pain. "Can't you drive faster? I don't want to pop this child out in the middle of the traffic in a car without any help!"

"Honey, I'm here, and I'll help you bring our baby into the world if I have to. But I can't go faster. I'm already breaking every speed limit here. Just hang in there. We're going to make it on time, I promise."

They made the drive to the hospital in record time, with Dave parking right in front of the ER, ignoring the wild gestures of a hospital employee to remove the car from the ambulance area. Tossing his keys over to the stunned man as he walked around the SUV to help JJ out, he called out to him, flashing his FBI badge: "I've got a pregnant woman in labor who's about to give birth any minute. You go ahead and find a proper parking space, if my car's bothering you here." Without another glance, he left the man standing there and jerked the car door open, wrapping his arms securely around JJ's body to get her out of the car, as she suffered from another contraction.

"It hurts so much, Dave. Something's not right. Why does it hurt so much?" she winced, holding on to him and squeezing her fingers into his upper arms. Flinching himself, he thought about the marks his arms would certainly display after that, but was wise enough to not utter a complaint.

"Everything's fine, baby, I'm sure about that," he said instead.

Quickly guiding her through the hospital entrance, he immediately yelled for a doctor. A nurse rushed over, bringing a wheelchair for JJ to sit down and showed them the way to the baby delivery station.

Twenty minutes later, JJ was lying in a hospital bed, hooked up on various machines monitoring her labor, the baby's heartbeat and her vitals. The doctor had examined her, and assured her that despite the short time between her contractions, she was still not ready to deliver the baby.

"It might also still take a few hours," Dr. Hawkes said. "I suggest you try to enjoy the last moments alone," he winked at JJ and Dave. "Call me if you need anything or if there's a problem."

With that, he left the room, leaving them by themselves.

Sitting down next to her bed, Dave took her hand in his and stroked it gently.

"I can't believe this is finally happening," he muttered quietly. "It won't be long and we're going to see our daughter or son." He bent over and pressed a soft kiss to her temple.

"You're not going to leave me, right?" JJ whispered, secretly glad that he was the one to be with her at this time.

"Not for a second, sweetheart. I wouldn't miss this for the world, Jennifer," he answered firmly.

"Now we actually still have time to inform everyone," JJ smiled. "I wouldn't have thought. Would you mind calling Hotch and the team?" she asked him.

Before Dave could say anything in response, however, one of the machines' beepings suddenly became irregular, and then started to slow down.

"Dave!" JJ gasped in shock.

"JJ! What is it?" Dave wanted to know worriedly.

"I don't know. The baby's heartbeat! It's slowing down!" JJ sounded panicked.

Dave rushed outside.

"We need a doctor here, quickly!" he screamed frantically. Dr. Hawkes rushed over, and inside JJ's room with two nurses following him.

"Something's wrong with the baby!" JJ called out as soon as she saw him.

He assessed the situation and examined JJ, while Dave was standing next to the bed, not knowing what to do or what to think, silently praying that everything was going to be okay.

"Ms. Jareau, I need you to calm down, please," Dr. Hawkes told JJ, who was trying her best to follow his order, taking deep breaths and focusing on Dave playing nervously with her fingers.

It didn't take long for him to find out what was wrong. "Ms. Jareau. I want you to stay as calm as possible. Can you do that?" JJ nodded at the doctor's words.

"What is it, what's wrong?" Dave interrupted impatiently.

"Mr. Rossi, the same goes for you. Please don't panic," the doctor said. Continuing as he saw Dave nod as well, he informed them with a few words: "The umbilical cord has wrapped itself around the baby's neck, and we're going to have to deliver your child right away through a c-section."

JJ and Dave both drew in a sharp breath, as the doctor went on. "I'm afraid that's the only possibility to keep your baby from suffocating." He ordered one of the nurses to prepare everything for the operation, while the other one got JJ ready to be transferred.

Unable to say anything, JJ simply nodded again.

"You're in good hands, Ms. Jareau," Dr. Hawkes said. "We'll do everything to keep you and your baby healthy, but we're going to have to work quickly."

Dave leaned down and gave JJ another gentle kiss, this time on the lips. Not giving her a chance to protest, he whispered soothingly: "I'm here, JJ. Everything's going to be all right."

"Don't leave me!" JJ cried out as her bed was rolled out of the room, never letting go of Dave's hand on the way to the delivery ward.

"I won't, I promise. I'm going to stay right next to you."

Once inside, the nurse demanded him to put on protective clothing. As soon as he'd done that, he was back at JJ's side, who was now laying on operating table, holding her hand again and muttering soothing words into her ear.

All of a sudden the nurse monitoring JJ's vitals called out: "Her blood pressure's dropping!"

Dave looked up, worried, and began to shout at the doctor, demanding to know what was wrong, but they ignored him completely, making a quick decision to put JJ under general anesthesia.

Another nurse came over to Dave and laid a hand on his shoulder. "Mr. Rossi, I'm afraid you have to leave now."

"No, I'm staying. I'm not leaving her," Dave screamed beside himself.

"Sir, I know this is hard for you, but you have to wait outside!" She tried to pull him away from JJ, but he desperately held on to her hand.

"Sir, we can't do our job, if you don't step aside!" The doctor interfered, throwing him a warning look. Feeling JJ's hand go limp as she dosed off, he let go of her, never quite comprehending what was actually going on, and staring in shock at the doctors and nurses working around his Jennifer. He never even noticed anymore that the nurse shoved him outside, his mind reeling off a million different scenarios of what could happen.

"We're going to do everything we can for your wife and child, Mr. Rossi. Believe me, it is not the first time something like this happens," the nurse told him softly before going back in.