Hey, guys! And I know, again, I haven't updated anything since, like, last Sunday, and haven't updated this since last month, but I had the excuse of school, and of course, the opera, which I now miss, oddly, coz back then I couldn't wait for it to finish...
Anyways, now, I have no excuses - Friday is my last day of school, and although my dad is planning on limiting my netbook time, I will still try to update as much as I can in that two and a half week period! :D
Now, I had mixed feelings about posting this chapter... honestly, penultimate chapter? It's hard. I really didn't want to write this - although it was one of the cutest EVER... it was hard coz I knew next chapter is the last... well, kind of. I have plans to write a Christmas one-shot spin-off, specially for the holidays! And I also have a couple of other RWCDC/LWMS spin-off ideas, that I'll post sooner or later... so, YAY! ;D
Right... sitting comfortably? Then I shall begin. And I know y'all are already super excited by the title of this chapter! ;P
I don't own Sonny with A Chance. :)
Chapter 55 - The Birth
Chad's POV
Sonny's pregnancy is the most testing 9 months of our relationship.
The whole experience is scary. Sonny is always ill or angry or crying, and I always have to be there for her. It's tiring. It's worrying. It's scary.
But of course, I wouldn't change it for anything. I still love her more than anything in the world, and every day, I remind myself that I am one day closer to being a father to a little baby boy or girl. Something tells me though – it's going to be a girl. I can just feel it.
I'm not complaining. I can't wait to have a girl. Something tells me, she'll be as beautiful as her mother. If she has her mother's eyes… I swear, I'll fall in love all over again.
Finally, the due date arrives. (*gasps and checks when Sonny actually conceived…*) January 21st. I made sure I was free today, so I'm here if and when) Sonny's water breaks and she has to be taken to hospital. I've spent the last few months preparing myself for this very day – I didn't want to be one of those guys who passes out when the woman is giving birth. I want to actually be awake for the birth of my first child, thank you very much.
Right now, I'm tucking into some cereal while surfing Google about childbirth, avoiding the videos section. I don't think I wanna watch those…
I hear a shuffling around upstairs, and check my watch. It's 7:00am (I know… early for me). I should really get Abby and Josh up and ready for school…
Just as the thought crosses my mind, a little patter of footsteps taps its way down the stairs, and I walk out into the front hall to see Abby, stepping down each step clumsily, with her face down and her hair over her eyes. I wander over to her and cradle her in my arms, and when I hear a soft sneeze coming from her nose, I realise.
She's sick.
"Ch-Chaddy…" She mumbles, shivering like she's outside on a winter's night, and I cuddle her tightly, "I d-don't feel very w-well…" She sneezes, looking up at me with tired, teary eyes. I feel her forehead, and pull my hand back right away.
"Sweetie, you've got a temperature." I tell her, and her eyes brim with tears.
"I feel s-so c-cold…" She cries softly, weeping quietly into my shirt. I continue to hug her, stroking the back of her head as she coughs and sneezes, and I lead her back up to her room. There is no way I'm letting her go to school like this… she looks awful. Well, she still looks cute, but like a poisonous kind of beauty. She looks so ill, so weak.
Just as I reach Abby's room, with her bundled in my arms, a door down the hall swings open, and a large (yet still beautiful) Sonny Munroe-Cooper walks out, turns towards me, and looks at me with a tired smile. She possesses that same poisonous beauty – like a wilting rose, a wounded dove. I just can't wait for when she's finally given birth, and she looks like she did 9 months ago. Beautiful. Happy. Healthy. Hopefully she won't have that same weary, given-up look in her eyes.
"Hello there." She smiles, before she notices an almost-asleep Abby and gasps, "Is she okay?" She asks, dropping her voice level.
"She's not well." I whisper solemnly, "She's got a temperature… I won't send her into school today."
Sonny sighs, "Alright. Well, I'm gonna go down for some breakfast…"
"Oh, no, no, no…" I stop her, "You wait for me to put her back to bed… I'll get you some breakfast."
Sonny chuckles, "I may be pregnant, but I can still do things for myself."
"I know you can." I say with a wink, "It's just not very gentlemanly to make you do it."
Sonny smirks. "You are too good to me." She says, wandering over and kissing me lightly on the cheek. I blush a little, before kicking open Abby's door and placing her carefully back into her bed. I kiss her softly on the forehead before leaving the room, to where Sonny is waiting on the landing.
"M'lady…" I say, bowing and holding my hand out for her, and Sonny laughs and takes the hand, following me carefully down the stairs. I keep turning back to check if she's okay, trying to make sure she doesn't fall and hurt both herself and our baby. That would be disastrous.
Arriving in the kitchen, I seat Sonny like she's the Queen of England, before rooting around in the cupboard for some sort of breakfast for her. I begin to pour her some cereal, at which she squeaks a rejection. My eyes roll up to the ceiling… Sonny and her strange food cravings.
I offer Sonny a slice of toast as Josh wanders into the room, and when she rejects the poor slice with a sulk. Josh swipes the slice off her plate in a nano-second, shoots me a wink, and dashes out of the room.
"Ah, my brother…" I say, watching him, "The human trash can."
Sonny giggles like a little girl, before sneaking an apple out of the fruit bowl on the table. I fake a gasp.
"I thought you didn't like apples!" I say.
"I didn't…" She mumbles, before shyly looking down at her baby bump, "…Yesterday."
"Right…" I say, "Well, an apple a day keeps the doctor away! Although, that expression isn't exactly helpful today…"
Sonny shakes her head. "In that case, I'mma put this back… need something unhealthy so that the doctor will come."
I smirk, "Sonny, Sonny, Sonny… you sure have some strange logic."
"Yes." She grins as she watches me grab the bacon from the fridge, "Yes, I do."
Sonny's POV
A few days pass, and the baby doesn't come. Chad stays with me every day, just in case I begin labour so he can take me to hospital. Eight days, we've been waiting. It's January 29th now; eight days since the due date, and I'm starting to worry. Has the baby died inside me? I would be so upset if it had… or maybe it's just not ready to leave?
Whatever's wrong, Chad can't hang around for it every day. This morning, he had to leave for an important meeting for some movie he's set to do in September, after the baby has been around for a while. So, because Chad can't be with me for if I go into labour, he's invited Tawni round to "Sonny-sit" me. I know. Weird.
Tawni's really taking extremely good care of me. She's been reading up on all this stuff, just like Chad has, ready for the day when I do finally go into labour. That is, if this damn baby ever plans on coming out.
"So…" Tawni says, walking into the living room (Is that what Americans call it?) with two cups of coffee in her hands. "How you feeling?"
"Huge." I say, making her almost choke on her coffee, "Bloated. I just want this kid outta me! It'll be so much nicer when I can actually hold her."
"Or him." She points out, but I shake my head. Ever since I had those dreams about "Rebecca"… I've just had a hunch that the baby will be a girl. A beautiful little girl… how amazing will that be? Imagining what she will look like, be like, grow up to be… so exciting! I'm carrying a life inside me… it's so perfect.
"Alright, I'll be right back…" Tawni says, "Need something to eat."
"Bring me something, would ya?" I ask her, and she nods and smiles, before walking into the kitchen. I watch her go, before feeling a pain in my chest. Contractions. They've been so frequent today… I'm getting scared.
And then… the worse bit comes.
Tawni's POV
I leave Sonny alone in the front room just to get a snack, and then hear her voice, soft and weak, before it builds up to a screams.
"Tawni!" She yells, "I need to go…"
"Go where?" I ask, my eyebrows creasing.
"Hospital!" She screams, "I think my waters have broken!"
Chad's POV
"Alright, Chad, thanks so much for your help…" The director of my next movie shakes my hand with a grin. "We'll send you the script soon, and start filming in September, to give you a chance to warm up to your baby and all…"
"Thanks." I say.
"Oh, and congratulations." He says, "I'm sure you and Sonny have a great future ahead with that baby."
"Thanks." I repeat, smiling him a goodbye before making my way out into the parking lot and into my car. Just as I put the seatbelt on, I feel a rumbling in my pocket, and fish my phone out to see I'm being called by Tawni.
"Hello?" I answer.
"Chad!" Tawni yells. I can hear the occasional scream in the background, and start to panic.
"What's going on? Is Sonny okay?"
"I'm with her, in the car," She says. I gasp.
"You're talking to me AND driving?"
"I…" Tawni sighs, "…might be…"
"Tawni, what the hell is going on?" I yell, and she sighs.
Sonny thinks she's going into labour… you need to get to the hospital right now!"
I suddenly feel numb. My grip loosens and the phone slips out of my hands and into my lap. I hear the faint sound of Tawni calling my name. I pick up my phone again, my hands shaking, "I'll be there as soon as I can." I tell her, before hearing my wife cry out, "Tell Sonny to stay strong for me."
"I will…" She says, before hanging up. I drop my phone back into my lap, before reaching for the steering wheel, my arms shaking, my heart thumping. The baby… is coming. My – our – baby is finally here…Those long, long months of waiting… now they're finally over.
She's coming. Rebecca is on her way.
I arrive at the local hospital about an hour later, rushing through the door. I notice the eyes in the room all turn to me, but ignore them and head straight for the front desk. I slam my palms down on the desk, in front of twenty-something red-haired woman who looks up at me, looking bored. Her face lights up when she sees me, but she tries to stay calm.
"I need to know the room that Sonny Cooper is staying in right now!" I demand. She raises an eyebrow at me, and I remember my manners.
"Sorry, I'm Chad Dylan Cooper." I say. She blushes a little, but I ignore it. "Sonny Cooper, she's my wife, and she's giving birth right now… I need to know what room she's in."
"Oh, let me check for you…" She says, turning to the computer and typing something in. "It's just loading…" She says nonchalantly, "By the way, for the record, I miss Mackenzie Falls sooo much."
I laugh, "Those were the good ol' days." I'm not lying. Those were the days I met Sonny, I messed with Sonny, I first dated Sonny… I wouldn't change a thing though. Our relationship is beautiful, special… there were a lot of bumps in the road, but we were meant to be together – nothing was to stop fate, in this case.
And now look at where we are.
"Okay…" The girl says, scanning the computer, "Sonny Cooper… in the Maternity Ward, Room 247b. Just follows the signs down…" She points to left, "…that way."
I thank her with a smile, which makes her grin. Huh, must be a fan.
I charge down the halls, eyes set on the signs above my head.
Rooms 100-149a.
Rooms 350-399c.
Childrens' Ward.
Cafeteria.
Damn it, stupid signs! Where the hell is this stupid maternity ward? I grip my hair, letting a quiet, but angry yell, before taking a few deep breaths and looking round once more.
And there it is.
Maternity Ward, Rooms 200-249b.
Thank God. (Yes, he's being thankful. No blasphemy here)
I follow the arrow pointed toward the ward, step through the doors, and there it is. Third room down the blue-green-painted hallway, a white-ish door. Room 247b. I hear a scream coming from it, and sigh.
Sonny's room.
Nico, Grady, Zora and Connie are sat outside on white plastic chairs, each with anxious looks on their faces. I pass them, open the door to the room, and bite my lip when I see my beautiful wife, lying on a bed, wearing some sort of sheet. Tawni is next to her, gripping her hand, telling her she can do it as she screams and shouts and pushes. All eyes turn to me, apart from Sonny's, who are up the ceiling as she continues to cry out.
The midwife (who I've met before), Melissa, takes my hands and tells me what to do as Tawni gets up and leaves the room. I sit in her seat, right next to Sonny, who turns her head and smiles gently.
"You're here." She breathes.
"Yeah…" I say, "There were… difficulties… but I wasn't gonna miss this for the world."
Sonny smiles – a weak smile, but a smile nonetheless. And then, she begins to scream again. The doctor looks to me, gesturing for me to comfort her.
"It's okay, Sonny…" I say, taking her hand in mine, and she squeezes it with an incredible force. "I'm here, I've got you… just keep breathing… just think about what's gonna happen next. You, me, and our little baby girl. Or boy. Breathe, c'mon, Sonny… breathe…"
"You're… you're not… gonna leave… are you?" She asks between breaths and shrieks.
"Of course I'm not." I say, "I'm not leaving this room until this baby is born!"
"I love you." She mumbles, squeezing my hand tightly, and I squeeze it back.
"I love you too." I say, "So, so much…"
Sonny laughs feebly, before the crying and yelling and screaming continues, for several minutes. And then, the miracle moment when the doctor comments that he can see the baby's head comes, and a few minutes later, a small crying figure wrapped in a little pink towel is placed in my wife's arms.
"Congratulations…" Dr Edmonds says, "…you've just got yourself a new baby girl!"
I look down at the bundle of life in Sonny's arms, and my heart does a back-flip. The little girl has sparkling blue eyes, and a few light-blonde hairs are poking up, sticky against her slightly-bloody head. She has my genetics for hair and eyes. But that's okay though – she's got Sonny's beautiful face. And I'm sure that sparkle in her eyes is Sonny's.
"Have you got an idea for a name?" Melissa asks with a smile.
"Rebecca." I say, before I realise the words slipped out of my mouth, when Sonny and I haven't even discussed it yet. But when I look down at Sonny, she's beaming.
"I was thinking the exact same thing." She whispers. Her gaze drops to the baby – Rebecca – who is now softly weeping, and giggles. "Want to hold her?" She asks me. I gasp, before a small ghost of a smile creeps onto my lips.
"I'd love to…" I turn to Dr Edmonds, "That is, if I'm allowed."
"Of course you are." The doctor says, "Just be very careful with her."
Sonny passes me Rebecca. I take her in my arms, taking care the whole time. She's so light, yet so heavy… like holding a little puppy. She's so fragile, so soft… it's hard to believe this moment has finally come. This is the first time I've held my baby girl…
She's my baby girl. My daughter. Rebecca Cooper.
And then, her eyes flicker a little, close, then open and look right up at me. And after, the most magical thing happens.
She smiles. A big, toothless grin. She giggles a little, babbling, and my heart skips a beat.
She sure has a mother's beautiful smile. Not to mention her irresistible charm.
"She's perfect…" I breathe, passing her warily back to Sonny, who has a shine in her eyes from the tears of joy that have yet to fall. There's a knock at the door, and Tawni pokes her head around the door, inquisitive.
"Is it okay to come in?" She asks. Sonny ushers her into the room with her right hand, her left keeping Rebecca steady as the baby lets her eyes flicker shut. Tawni enters, followed by Connie, Nico, Grady and Zora, who all tip-toe in carefully to not startle Rebecca, who seems to be having her first snooze. A smile creeps up onto each of their faces, and a universal "aww" wakes Rebecca, who's eyes flash open and dart around before resting on Sonny. Sonny giggles, gently rocking her in her arms, which makes Rebecca giggle again before her young, half-open eyes wander around the room. They land on each of her visitors, who wave and chuckle and say "hi" in a babyish way. Sonny passes Rebecca to Connie, who rocks her, humming the same song Sonny said she used to sing to her.
"She's so cute…" Grady is the first to say anything to us, and the others nod and make sounds of agreement as she's passes gently from one person to the next.
"What's her name?" Tawni asks as Zora hands her over.
"Rebecca." Sonny says with a proud smile, which earns a lot of "Aww"s and "How cute!" and "It's so fitting…"
Everyone stays for a few more minutes, cooing and grinning and falling over themselves at the new-born beauty, before Dr Edmonds says that we all have to leave, and that I have to come back tomorrow morning, to pick up Sonny and Rebecca. I take a picture of the mother and daughter together on my phone, to show Abby, because she asked me to do so, and save it as my wallpaper before leaving to get back home and get everything sorted for Rebecca's arrival home tomorrow.
The moment I get home, Abby dives at me and begs to see the picture (Obviously, she's healed from her cold last week). I show her my wallpaper on my phone and she pretty much dies of sweetness.
"She's so CUTE!" She coos. Even Josh agrees.
After that, we make our way to the spare room we've decorated in the last few days, for Rebecca. It's painted in a billion coats and shades of light pink, and a small cot that used to belong to Abby is placed in the corner, next to a pile of soft toys that Abby gave up for her little niece.
"I'm gonna be an auntie!" She says as we continue to sort the room, "This is soooo cool!"
I hang up a mobile that Sonny picked out, with little butterflies and stuff, above the cot as a finishing touch, before calling it a day and collapsing into bed, for my last official night without a baby in the house. And soon enough, the night is over, morning has come, and I have to get to the hospital to pick up my wife and our baby girl.
Now, I'm sat in the driver's seat, watching my wife kiss and cuddle our baby in her lap. And that means I'm driving very carefully, because if I were to crash this car I might be the cause of the death of my little child before she's even had a chance in the world.
"Will you loosen up?" Sonny looks up at me and laughs, "You look like you're gonna die if you get something wrong."
"Well, I might not…" I say darkly, looking at Rebecca with one wary eye, keeping the other solely on the road for any possible accidents, "…but she might."
Sonny laughs, "C'mon, Chad, you've been driving for seven years now! You've got this in your stride. Just take a couple of deep breaths… don't close your eyes, though."
I click my tongue arrogantly, smirking a little, "No duh, Sherlock."
Sonny chuckles and rolls her eyes before Rebecca starts crying for the first time this whole journey and she has to calm her down. Luckily, she is a natural at stopping babies from crying (sorry but here I just thought of Making Babies Cry xP) and Rebecca is back to her toothless-smiling self.
Huh. She definitely is gonna be like her mother.
The second we step through the door, Rebecca curled up sleeping in Sonny's arms, my little tornado of a little sister storms through the kitchen door, Connie in tow. It looks like they were making something – cake, judging by the flour and cocoa powder coated over Abby's face. Yeah… she's never been an expert in the kitchen.
Abby drops the spoon of cocoa she was previously licking clean and races towards Sonny, clapping and squealing.
"I wanna say hi! I wanna say hi! I wanna say hi!" She chants, making Rebecca shuffle uncomfortably in Sonny's arms. Sonny hushes Abby, who stands perfectly still, like an obedient puppy.
"If you wanna say hi…" Sonny whispers, crouching down, "You'll have to stay reeeaally quiet, okay? So you don't wake her up."
Abby's face lights up and she nods, and I start to panic, out of fear that my overactive sister will drop my baby girl.
The second she gets to hold Rebecca, though, it's like she's a changed girl. Rebecca is placed gently into the excitable eight-year old's arms, and she stares down at her, still, like she's on a mission.
"She's so cute…" She mumbles, and Sonny giggles.
"You were like that, a while ago."
Abby's eyes light up as she watches the day-old girl in her arms yawn. "She's sleepy!"
"Well, then, maybe you should take her to bed!" Sonny grins. Oh, heck, no!
I skilfully snatch the baby from Abby's arms, smiling apologetically. "Why don't you go finish what you were doing with Auntie Connie, and I'll take Rebecca to bed. Say goodnight?"
Abby pouts, "It's only noon!"
"Actually…" Sonny cuts her short, "I need to feed her, so you guys stay down here, I'll feed her and put her to bed."
Finally relaxed that Rebecca isn't going to be dropped by my accident-prone sister, I hand her over to Sonny, who takes her upstairs to her room, followed by me. Sonny tells me to wait outside the room while she breastfeeds Rebecca, and I do so. I stand outside the room and just… think.
Then I hear Sonny cooing and squeaking and Rebecca makes a little babbling noise, and a grin creeps up onto my lips.
This is going to be… perfect.
Sonny's POV
"Why don't you go finish what you were doing with Auntie Connie," Chad tells Abby, gripping onto Rebecca for dear life, "and I'll take Rebecca to bed. Say goodnight?"
Abby pouts. I can tell she is already attached to her little niece. "It's only noon!" She complains. Chad bites his lip – I can tell he's scared Abby may accidentally hurt or drop Rebecca. Haha, the faith he has in his family is warming…
"Actually…" I interrupt them, finding Chad a loophole, "I need to feed her, so you guys stay down here, I'll feed her and put her to bed."
Abby shrugs and agrees, following Mom back into the kitchen. Chad is slightly more reluctant to leave Rebecca. He eagerly follows us up the stairs, and stands right outside the door while I breastfeed Rebecca.
It's quite a strange process, breastfeeding. Something I'll sure have to get used to. But hey, if it's what's best for my baby girl, it's what she gets.
After I've done, I invite Chad back into the room. He opens the door, barely letting it make a sound, shutting it quietly behind him.
"How is she?" He asks, looking down at the girl in my arms, whose eyes flicker shut.
"She's about to sleep, I think." I whisper, placing her carefully into her crib. It used to belong to Abby… it's so cute!
Chad comes up behind me, putting his arm around my back and stroking it. It feels so comforting…
"I was worried you wouldn't show up…" I confess, biting my lip, "When I was in the hospital… I was really scared, and just wanted you there with me."
Chad smiles sadly, "Well, hey, I arrived, didn't I?"
"You did." I giggle, rested my head into his chest, "And for that, I'm glad."
He looks down into the crib and his face lights up, and I know how he feels. We're finally a family. A real one – with a child.
It feels special. It feels right.
It is meant to be.
"I love you." I hear him say.
"I love you too."
:) Well, I hope nothing there made anyone uncomfortable - the breastfeeding or the birth or anything... I guess most of us may go through it, someday...
Plus, I've never done either of those things (*snort* obviously...) so, they're probably not accurate, but oh well ;D I just hope it was FLUFFY enough for you all! :D
REVIEW PLEASE! :D
Love you all xox
~Amy x