The Lightman's almost arrived in the maternity ward waiting area in a rush. It was surprisingly quiet there though so they came to an anxious halt. Gillian told the boys to find a seat. They had their tablet with them to watch movies or play games, so long as it was quietly, and they went dutifully to a group of chairs against the wall and took a seat each. Cal bee lined the reception desk and Gillian followed after him, half her attention on her children, half her attention on her husband.

"I'm lookin' for Emily Resnick," Cal asked the nurse politely.

"Are you family?" The woman asked while she typed the name into the computer.

"I'm her Dad," Cal clarified.

"She's in room three oh four," she responded with a smile.

Cal thanked her and pushed away from the desk. Gillian caught his arm as he turned. "You go on and I'll wait with the boys."

"I'll be a minute," Cal told her. "See the lay of the land."

Gillian nodded and went to sit with her sons and Cal headed up the hallway again. The tablet was supposed to be for both the boys, a Christmas present, but Lewis tended to hog it. He was playing Sonic the Hedgehog Revival. It was the same game as it always was, similar graphics too but clearer. There were new harder levels apparently. Gillian thought about demanding her turn on the device but figured she could snatch it one night when the boys were in bed. That was the only place they couldn't carry it, was to bed, and the bathroom, or school. But every other time it was up for grabs, though their parents tried to limit the amount of time spent glued to its screen.

Within five minutes Cal was back. He took a seat next to his wife and she turned to him immediately. "This is it," he gave a bright grin. "She's still five minutes apart but the docta's pretty confident."

"Did someone call Zoe?"

"Yeah Ajay called everyone before he called us."

Gillian nodded. "When will she get here?"

"Said she'd get the next flight. Should be bout an hour or so."

"She should make it in time," Gillian noted. "What about his parents?"

"Well they're furtha away," Cal pointed out the obvious. "But they said they'd head out."

Gillian nodded again, satisfied. "Is there anything we can do?"

"Not me luv, I've been banished to the men's waitin' room to pace. But she'd like to see you."

"Ok," Gillian got up eagerly and Cal watched her amused. She could deny it all she wanted, could even justify it by saying she wasn't with Cal when Emily was growing up, but Emily was so her daughter too.

Cal leaned over the seat his wife had just vacated. "What are you playin'?" He gave Lewis a nudge, while twisting his 'Y' hand at the wrist.

PJ

Cal sort of paced. He would have called it hovering. He didn't really want to be listening in or anything, because that was just too weird. His daughter was having a baby right now. Was at this moment, pushing another human being out of her... Cal turned and wandered down the hall a few meters again. He was avoiding passing close by her door on purpose. He really didn't want to hear anything. At all. But he also had this twitchy need to be close because he knew all too well that births could be complicated. It wasn't like he could rush in and save a life with his crack medical knowledge... but being closer just felt better.

The boys were still playing their games. There had been a bit of elbow shoving that Cal had cracked down on hard. He wasn't in the mood and they were in a public place and their sister was having a baby. It probably didn't seem like a big deal to them but it was to everyone else. So they had to be good. They'd already talked about that in the car on the way over. The sharp sound of heels running against the linoleum floor made Cal turn again, curious. It was Zoe. She had a heavy bag in one hand and her purse had slipped from her other shoulder. She looked worried. Cal approached her quickly. "You haven't missed it," he grabbed her bags and ripped them away.

"Which room?"

"There," Cal indicated with his head. "Three of four."

Zoe reached the door, already pulling off her coat and pushed against it. Cal closed his ears too late against the sound of his daughter calling out in pain. That. That is exactly what he didn't want to hear. He put Zoe's bags down in the hallway and went back to his random wandering. It must be close now. His stomach squirmed with nerves. Geeze. He was going to be a grandfather! Emily was thirty-two and Lewis was eleven, Owen six and it was time. He knew that. Now he was going to have a grandson.

He heard a groan that was loud enough to make his head turn sharply and then it was quiet again. He approached the door, sensing that it was over and waited, then realised he looked like a stalker. He wandered away again. Paced back and forth. All right, now he was pacing. He tracked back and forth, his body tense with waiting. No one was rushing into the room, no alarms were being sounded. Everything must be ok. Then the door opened and Gillian came out, beaming and Cal pounced, grinning.

"Baby boy," Gillian confirmed softly.

Cal grabbed her for a hug that was meant to comfort him more than her. "Everyone's all right?" He pulled back to see her face.

She nodded, still smiling. "Everyone's fine. And Zoe got here in time."

"Yeah I saw her," Cal indicated the bags against the opposite wall.

Gillian squeezed his hand. "Emily did so great."

Cal nodded, proud. Of course he was proud but he was also a little worried. His baby girl had a baby boy of her own now. He wanted to lecture, tell her to be a good mother, put her baby's needs ahead of hers but he knew it wasn't necessary. Emily was not the kind to be selfish. She worked hard. She had in school, when she was practising law, and she would now with being a mother too.

"Let's go tell the boys they're uncles now."

Oh geeze that was weird too.

PJ

"Hi," Cal greeted softly, crossing the room to the bed where his daughter was holding a white wrapped bundle in her arms. She looked up and gave him a smile. She was glowing and Ajay was standing over her, beaming proud. Cal put his hand on his daughter's shoulder and leaned in to see the baby. "Who's this little guy?"

"Ethan," Emily answered.

"Ethan," Cal echoed.

"Want to have a hold?" She offered and Cal scooped the baby up easily. He adjusted his grandson into the crook of his arm and used his other hand to pull down the blanket around his face to see better. Dark hair and wrinkled skin. About how all babies looked after they had just been born. The baby gave him a frown of protest. "Hi, all right," Cal cooed, feeling Gillian at his shoulder leaning in. "I'm your Pop, Ethan." He tried the name out again. "That's a good name."

"Noah," Ajay added. Cal looked over at him. "Ethan Noah," Ajay explained. He gave a type of shrug. "Kind of a family name."

"Ajay's brother was called Noah," Emily expounded.

"Ethan Noah," Cal repeated. "Lovely. What do you think Ethan?" The baby attempted to wave an arm but was swaddled nice and tight so couldn't really move. "Forget how small they are," Cal noted.

Gillian gave him a smile. "He's beautiful," she told Emily.

"Here," Cal indicated he was going to give the baby to Gillian. She put out her arms and he handed the tiny bundle off. He turned back to his daughter. "So we'd offa to come help out and all but it seems you're gonna be ovawhelmed for a while." Zoe was staying for a week or so and Ajay's mother probably would too. Cal and Gillian were the only ones who actually lived in the general vicinity.

Ajay gave an audible sigh. "Oh yeah."

"But thanks Dad," Emily told him.

"Afta everyone leaves. Gives a call if you need somethin'. Take advantage."

"We were thinking about cashing in on all that babysitting," Emily joked.

Cal gave a slight laugh. "Knew that would come back to haunt me. Only when the kid sleeps through the night," he warned.

"Where are my little brothers?" Emily suddenly asked.

"Oh they're grafted to a gamin' device."

"They're coming in, in a second," Gillian corrected. "He's really precious Em," she gushed again.

"And he had the decency of arriving in the middle of the day, not two am, like some otha babies I know," Cal leaned over his wife to brush a finger against the baby's soft cheek.

The door opened and all heads turned. It was Zoe. Cal still couldn't get over how old she seemed. But then again, it had been years upon years since he'd seen her last.

"Hi," she murmured, coming into the room again. She held the door open. "Found some strays," she directed at Cal. Lewis and Owen traipsed in after her.

Owen went straight for his mother. "Can I see?"

"Yeah," Gillian whispered. "But you have to be a bit quieter remember? The baby's not used to so many noises."

"Oh yeah," Owen noted lowering his voice. Lewis came up beside him and Gillian bent a little so they could see into her arms. Not far though, the boys were getting tall; it was more for Owen's benefit. "What's his name?" He tapped his fingers together.

"Ask Emily," Cal suggested, stepping back from the bed to give his daughter some space now the room was filling up. After Lewis was born and everyone started to visit, he had felt claustrophobic, and he was allowed to leave the room. Gillian was trapped in bed.

"Ethan," Emily answered. She finger spelled it for Lewis who nodded. Zoe had moved to the window and leaned beside it. She didn't seem surprised so she must have already been told. Cal caught her eye and gave her a smile. It was still slightly strange.

"Can we have a hold?" Owen asked, blue eyes bright, leaning around his mother to see his big sister.

"Yes of course," Emily answered warmly.

"I want to go first," Lewis spoke up. "I'm the eldest."
"And Owen asked first," Cal countered. "Nice try."

"Take a seat Wen," Gillian told him, turning towards the guest chair. Owen sat himself, his legs dangling.

"You have to make sure you keep your arms nice and strong," Cal warned him. Gillian put the baby carefully in his arms and crouched in front of him, making sure the six year old had the two hour old securely. Lewis got in closer to not be left out. "When are they lettin' you outta here?" Cal asked his son-in-law.

"After the second feed," Ajay answered. "They want to make sure the baby gets the hang of it. He had a bit of trouble with the first one."

"Lewis was the same," Gillian noted.

"So was Emily," Zoe added.

"Hee, the baby's all wiggly," Owen noted.

"My turn," Lewis demanded.

"Had enough?" Gillian asked her youngest. Owen nodded so she took the baby back and Owen got up. Lewis took the vacated seat and Gillian handed Ethan over again.

"And when's your Mum gettin' here?" Cal asked Ajay.

"She got on a flight about twenty minutes ago," he looked at his watch.

Cal did a quick calculation in his head. "I can pick her up if you'd like?" Ajay, Emily and Ethan should have left here by then. They'd be settling in at home.

"That would really great Dad thank you," Emily spoke up.