****Happy SOA day! Thanks for the reviews guys! I promise I will try to respond to all of you, I had been so busy trying to update quickly and slacked a little on that! But it means so much and I still get excited every single time I get one. I love you guest reviewers too, just wished I knew who you are! PS sorry for all the cursing, I had to make her labor believable :)****
Ashley gripped the cell phone tightly in her hand as she waited for Jax to respond. She was anxious about making that call to him, but in her current situation her mind was not processing anything very clearly, except pain, and lots of it. The cramping was only getting stronger, consuming her in full when it would start coming on. Her water had broken and she was filled with fear and unease, extremely nervous for what was lying ahead for her.
"Jax?" She tried again, louder this time, after only getting silence from him on the other end.
"Where are you?" He asked her. Her heart dropped, plummeting her right off her fantasy cloud, back into reality. He knew exactly who was calling and the lack of emotion for her was more than evident in his voice.
"I need help," She tried. She was desparate and for some reason her brain's natural reflex was to urge her towards him. "Please Jax."
"Where are you?" He repeated, sounding like he was moving, because now she could hear other voices around him.
"I'm...I'm," Where was she? She knew she was right outside of Charming, but she didn't really know where she was. Another cramp, or contraction she now realized, came over her and she tried to stay focused on getting help, "My water just broke and it really hurts...I'm alone just outside of Charming and I don't have a car."
"Where's Mark?" She tried to ignore the disgust in his voice and breathed through the rest of the pain until her stomach relaxed.
"I wanted to call you Jax, I wanted to tell you that..." She wasn't sure how to say it, she wasn't sure how much time she had and she really just needed to get him there.
"Ashley?" Ashley almost dropped the phone as she heard Mark's voice come from right behind her. Through all of her pain and trying to talk to Jax she hadn't even heard him come in the apartment. "Who are you on the phone with?"
"Is that Mark?" Jax asked angrily. But she didn't have the chance to respond to him before Mark had ripped it from her hand.
"Who is this?" Mark demanded.
"What kind of shit are you pulling Mark?" Jax shot back heatedly, loud enough that Ashley could hear crystal clear what was said. It didn't make sense that he would ask that, but she couldn't focus on anything, not even the discontent that had taken over Mark's face as well. Mark hung up the phone, staring at it in disbelief, before turning his attention over to Ashley.
"Why did you call him?" Mark asked her, but she wasn't sure if it was a question or an accusation.
"I called you so many times, my water broke Mark, we have to get to the hospital."
"What? Let's go!" He answered, switching his demeanor almost instantly, now in panic mode too. On any other day that would have relieved Ashley, but right now she didn't have time for anyone's bullshit.
The drive to the hospital was probably only ten minutes, but for Ashley it felt endless. Every time Mark had to break for anything, it would only be agony to Ashley, she must have yelled at him fifty times or so to hurry the fuck up, the jostling motion sending her completely over the edge.
Once they arrived at St. Thomas she was brought right in and asked to change into a hospital gown. Even that small task proved to be extremely difficult. Ashley was insisting to anyone who would listen that she needed some sort of drugs, aspirin, anything, and she needed it right away. The doctor came in to check her and found that she was already seven centimeters dilated. He left after telling her the anesthesiologist would be in shortly. Shortly? That meant years to Ashley. Where was he? Why wasn't he coming? What could possibly be more important that this? Didn't he know she needed fucking drugs?!
A nurse came in and had the audacity to hook up some sort of monitors to the baby's head. Just thinking about how the nurse would reach the baby's head was enough to piss Ashley off more. One thing was for sure, she wasn't letting anyone between her legs any time soon once this whole ordeal was over.
"What are you doing that for?" Ashley questioned the asshole nurse who had her arm up her most sensitive area.
"It will let us monitor the baby's heart rate." She advised her.
"It's going to be ok Ashley," Mark tried to soothe her, rubbing her feet. She pulled her feet from his grasp, practically growling at him. Didn't he know she didn't want to be fucking touched? What the hell.
"Don't tell me it's going to be ok, you're not the one that has to push another human being out of their body!" Ashley practically yelled at him. He thought he was so smart, but he knew nothing. What did he know about the task she had to do? He just sat there like the little pansy ass he was, expecting that a little foot rub would be exactly what she needed. She wished that was all she needed. And if these drugs didn't get here soon, she wouldn't mind if someone hit her over the head with a fucking hammer.
And it seemed like Mark had invited everyone to watch her unraveling. Sandy, his partner, and nearly half of his team. There had to be at least four or five agents lingering around, and even more police officers. It was like she was on fucking display. "Is there anyone you didn't invite?" Ashley spat at him when she got the chance.
"Mark, you got a second?" One of the men that Ashley had never seen before said as he stuck his head in the door. Who the hell said he could come in here? Couldn't she get just a little bit of privacy around here? Mark looked to Ashley, a sorry look on his face.
"Go," She ordered him, breathing through the hell that had once been called a contraction. She turned and watched as the machine monitoring her contractions drew a line that would eventually reach it's peak. Once it reached it's peak it would start to get better and she would be able to rest for a minute or two. That's all she wanted to do, watch that fucking squiggle.
When Ashley had called him it was the last thing he was ever expecting. He had been searching for her for weeks, as much as he could, but only reaching dead ends. He had been preoccupied with Abel coming home too, that was something that had given him more joy than he could ever imagine. Wendy had gone off to rehab, hopefully to clean herself up, but one thing was for sure, as soon as she was stable, he was giving her divorce papers. He'd let her get away from the crank for a while first, so she wouldn't have a relapse, she would never be able to use him as her excuse again.
But Ashley, something bugged him about why she called him. Something about her voice. Something she was about to say. It was obvious she was in labor, but why call him? Why didn't she just ask Mark? And why was Mark so pissed? Something was telling him that maybe...maybe it wasn't Marks baby.
The sound of his phone snapping shut just pushed him further out of the clubhouse doors. Thankfully Gemma was watching Abel tonight, because there was something that he had to do. His pace was fast, walking to his bike and he tried to clear his head, he tried to do the math. It certainly seemed very possible. And this whole time he thought that she had fucked Mark right away.
He revved his engine and shot off like a bullet through the parking lot. He was taking a chance, but maybe she was at St. Thomas. He tried to think of other hospitals that were in the area, just in case he wasn't right. But he was certain she would be at one, he could tell she didn't have much time by the sound of her voice.
He burst through the doors of St. Thomas not caring what resistance he would meet, heading straight for the elevator and taking it to the floor he knew so well from Abel's time here.
When the elevator doors opened he was surprised to see the waiting area filled with police. Something told him she was here for sure, why all the cops? Was Mark really playing this dirty? Was he this desperate for a reason to take him in? He barely glanced at the men who were most likely there for him and headed straight for the nurse's station. Thankfully he had some rapport with them already, so hopefully he could get the info he needed.
"Mr. Teller," one of the nurses looked at him with wide eyes, the greeting coming out like a startled question.
"Hey darlin'," He answered trying to remember what her name was as she wasn't wearing her name badge. He decided to flash her a smile, hoping that maybe it would help his case a little.
"Is there something I can help you with? Is everything alright with Abel?"
"He's great," Jax started as he leaned in close to where she was positioning herself behind the counter, "I was hoping you could help me find out if my friend is here, you think you can do that?"
The nurse's eyes shifted back and forth between him and the men that were swarming around. That was all the evidence that he needed.
"Jax Teller," a man that he had never seen before approached him from behind, "You here to visit someone?"
"Actually, my kid is being born right now, so I'm here for that." He glared at the small man, wondering if it was his height that he was trying so hard to over compensate for.
"No, I don't think so," The man told him matter of factly.
"You don't think so what?"
"I don't think you have a baby being born."
"Really," Jax took the man in further, mentally logging his face into his memory, "Do I know you?"
"I think it would be best if you left," The little shit informed him and Jax could see more men coming closer around him in his peripheral vision, but he didn't turn his head, wanting to prove how confident he was.
"Is Mark here?" Jax asked, knowing the answer.
"You need to leave, you're creating a disturbance now."
"I'm not leaving, I'll be right over there on that couch." Jax pointed out which one to make it clear, "And what you're going to do is, you're going to fucking tell me when my kid is born, and you will also tell Ashley that I wanted to be in there with her, but some fucking spineless piece of dog shit wouldn't let me." Jax went over to the couch to sit, crossing his arms and putting his legs up on the coffee table. He could see the men whispering fervently, part of him wondered if they would try to throw him in jail just for the hell of it. But he knew that they couldn't just take him in for talking shit. And he also knew that Mark wouldn't want the whole club down here, or would he? He had to know that he was their number one target. Proud of his new idea he got up off the couch and walked back over to the dumbass that thought he could be so tough with him before.
"Do me a favor, can you tell Mark to come out here and talk to me? Tell him I really don't want to overcrowd this place with my family too."
He could see the light bulb slowly go off in the guy's head as he stood still for a minute before he slowly nodded and headed down the guarded hallway and out of Jax's eyesight.
A few minutes later Mark came out to meet him, looking noticeably anxious, which slightly pleased Jax. He wanted to kill Mark more than anything, but with the amount of cops in this room right now this was definitely not the time, plus he was sure he would want to have the time to do it properly.
"Jax," He greeting with a smirk, "You're looking different than the last time I saw you, taking a time out from your orange scrubs I see."
This fucking prick knew he was safe in here...that's ok, he'd play his game, "That's not the last time I saw you Mark, don't you remember?"
A flash of fear flicked through Mark's eyes, which only caused Jax to smile. "So what is it you want from me?"
"You know what I want," Jax just stared at him grinning.
"Not specifically."
"I want to know if that's my kid, which I know it is, I want to be in there for Ashley, and I want to relieve you of your babysitting duties now that I am on the outside." Jax laid it out for Mark, getting closer to him with every word.
"Don't you think it's a little late for that?" Mark eyed him as he backed up a little from Jax.
"Maybe, but that's not your problem."
"What about your wife Jax? She might not like this plan of yours." Jax wondered what it would feel like to rip the fucker's throat right out of him.
"Mark!" Someone yelled frantically across the room, interrupting their moment and catching both Mark and Jax's attention.
Not long after Mark left, the nurse had come back in to check on Ashley's monitors. Her eyes had open wider as she compared Ashley's contractions to the baby's heart monitor results and she quietly but swiftly left the room, leaving Ashley feeling alarmed.
All she wanted was a drug, something, so that she could process everything that was going on. All she could focus on was the pain. But now this.
"Ashley," the nurse said coming back into the room with a man who looked like he might be a doctor, "This is Dr. Johnson, he's going to give you an epidural, so I'm going to need you to sit up in the bed now." Ashley followed her directions, not concerned at all by the huge needle that was about to be inserted into her spine. Once the epidural was in place, Ashley was able to lie back down, letting the numbness start to take the edge off of what was wreaking havoc on her body.
"Ashley, we are going to have to do an emergency c-section, I don't want you to worry though, these things are very routine," the nurse told her with a caring look in her eyes.
"What? Why?" Ashley felt confused, she had thought she was progressing quickly if anything.
"The baby is having some difficulty through your contractions, we don't want to endanger her and this is the best way."
Ashley didn't even have time to protest as she could feel the drugs taking an effect on her body. Was she supposed to feel this out of it with an epidural?
She didn't know what was going on, but she saw the lights on the ceiling start to move, she could see the nurse steering her bed towards somewhere else. She could sense lots of people. Mark's people. She could hear her name. Ashley. Someone was calling her and she might have seen him but her eyes were blurry. Jax.
***Hope you liked the chapter and I hope you like the direction it's going. Of course you know that I don't like things to be easy ;) But let me know what you think!***