I WAS HOPING TO HAVE THIS CHAPTER UP EARLIER, BUT MY FAMILY AND I WENT PANNING FOR GOLD IN AN AREA WITHOUT INTERNET AND I COULDN'T BRING MY LAPTOP. SO YEAH. SORRY FOR THE DELAY. I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO SAY THAT I HAVE NOT GIVEN BIRTH, SO I DID A LITTLE BIT OF RESEARCH TO MAKE THESE NEXT FEW CHAPTERS AS BELIEVABLE AS POSSIBLE. SORRY FOR ANY INCORRECT INFORMATION. ALSO, I CAN USE AS MUCH SUPPORT AS POSSIBLE BECAUSE I'M PART OF THE NCIS FANDOM, AND WE'RE GOING THROUGH A MAJOR CRISIS/BREAKDOWN RIGHT NOW. THE CASTLE FANDOM HAS BEEN WONDERFUL TO US, SO IF ANY OF YOU ARE ON TUMBLR, FEEL FREE TO SHOW YOUR SUPPORT. I'M I-LOVE-SHIPPING. THANKS *SMILES*
I DO NOT OWN ONCE UPON A TIME.
"So what do you want to do, Em?" Graham asked once the blonde settled into the hospital bed. Of everything in the Enchanted Forest, Emma noted, this room looked most like anything from the world she grew up in. The bed was automatic, there was a TV mounted on the wall, and the medical equipment seemed up to date. Of course, that was more than a little frightening, considering that very same medical equipment could very well be the only thing between her daughter's life and death. "We could watch a movie. Or I could get you a book." The poor man was so eager to please her, it tore at her heart strings. James recognized that Graham was simply terrified; not that he wouldn't go to the ends of the Earth for Emma or do anything just to bring a smile to her face, but still… James had done the same to Snow when she was bringing Emma into the world. And for the second time since finding out his daughter was pregnant, it suddenly hit James that he was about to have a second grandchild. He supposed he should be grateful that he could still run around with his grandkids without breaking a leg or running out of breath, but it was another reminder of how many years, and how many milestones, he missed out on with Emma.
"I don't know." The blonde's eyebrows knitted together as she tried to recall the details of Henry's birth after having blocked them out for so many years. "I think it would probably feel better if I walked around. It might move her head down a little. I'm not really sure, though. I was handcuffed to the bed when I had Henry."
"We can give that a try." Doc smiled. Graham gave Emma's shoulder a gentle push to help her sit up. He didn't let go until she was standing without swaying. "If it doesn't feel good, you can always come back here."
"Speaking of feeling good," James cut in, "what can we do for her pain later on?" At this, Doc looked down. When he returned his gaze to where it had been previously, there was an apology in his eyes.
"While we have made lots of advances since returning here, pain management is still somewhat hit or miss. We have morphine, which works great on broken bones and such, and I'm not too concerned with using it on that sort of problem because there's a low risk of infection once we stick the IV in for a few minutes. Sticking a giant needle into someone's spinal cord and leaving it in there for hours on end gives me much more anxiety. The risk of infection is much greater and could be potentially fatal."
"So epidural's out." Graham said glumly.
"Yes, and I'm afraid morphine is, as well. It could harm the baby, as will practically every narcotic we have available to us here." Doc explained. While Emma was a little disappointed with the news –she had been hoping there was at least something they could give her, just to take the edge off– she could honestly say she wasn't too worried.
"Guys, I had Henry naturally." She said quietly. "I know what to expect, and I've done it this way before. I'll be fine." Emma sighed at Snow and James' panic stricken faces. She didn't blame them for worrying. When Henry had hit his head a few months back, and he was in pain, that was the worst feeling in the world for her. Well, second to giving him up. To lighten the mood, she said, "Besides, this one seems impatient. I think she'll be out fast."
"Let's hope so." Snow mumbled, then grabbed James' hand.
"C'mon." Graham said. "Let's go for that walk." As husband and wife exited the brightly lit room, Doc called out,
"Stay within this hallway, okay?"
Henry looked between his grandparents, trying to figure out what to say. Finally, he settled on:
"Do you think Mom and Dad want me here?"
"Of course they do." Snow said immediately. "It's just… these next few hours are going to be scary for all of us. If you don't want to be here, you don't have to be. I could call August and have him come over –he can sit with you and watch TV or something until your sister's here."
"No, it's okay. I don't really wanna be in the room for all the gory stuff, but I'll stay as long as I can."
"You have no idea what's going to be happening, do you?" James sighed. Sheepishly, Henry shook his head. No one had ever explained anything to him. "Maybe we should…" James gestured between him and Snow.
"I suppose now's a better time than when his wife's having one. You nearly fainted with Emma."
"Well, yeah, I was in Henry's position." James defended himself. "You may want to sit down for this." He said to Henry.
"Are you okay?" Graham asked as he and Emma meandered down the hall. He brushed the pad of his thumb over the top of her hand in slow, circular motions.
"I know I will be, it's just her…" she trailed off, choking up. "What if she doesn't make it, Graham? Did you see what it did to my mom when she miscarried? And they didn't even mean to get pregnant, and we really want this one."
"I know, Em." He pulled her in close. "But I have no doubts that she'll be fine. There may be a few bumps along the way, but everyone in this family has a knack for surviving anything. Why should we believe our daughter will be any different?" At that, Emma laughed a little.
"I once heard Regina mutter something. She said, 'why are my least favorite people always the most durable?' I think she's changed her mind now, but still…" She swiped at her eyes.
"I'm going to be completely honest here and lay it all out." Graham said, tilting her chin up so he could look her in the eye. "I'm terrified. I don't know how I'm going to be able to stand seeing you in so much pain, and I'm terrified that our daughter isn't going to be okay."
"But you just said–"
"I know what I just said, about having faith that everything will be okay. But we understand each other in a way, Emma. We both were, at least at one point in our lives, very cynical. A little part of that person is creeping back into me. That night, when you and your bug rolled into Storybrooke, something inside me changed. That cynicism, I felt it ebbing away. So yes, there's a tiny little part of me that is scared, but as a parent, it's always going to be there. But deep down, I know she'll be okay." Looking into his chocolate brown eyes, Emma couldn't help but believe him. The moment was cut short however, as another contraction gripped her in its jaws. Emma sucked in a breath. "Em, what is it?"
"They're getting worse." She said.
"Is that a bad thing?"
"It means she's coming, and a lot quicker than Henry did." Then Graham saw it: a different kind of panic. Not the sheer terror of your child being in danger, like the panicking she was doing earlier, but the self-doubt kind of panic, a kind that he hadn't seen in a while. He knew that she was second guessing her ability to be a mother to this baby, and it tore him to pieces. Graham was nervous, too, of course. But he focused on the moment. And at the moment, his daughter and wife needed him to be calm. So that's what he focused on. Staying calm.
"I guess she's impatient." Graham smiled. "But if it's getting worse, we should get back in the room to tell Doc."
"Okay." Emma nodded in agreement. The two walked back. When they entered, they were surprised at what they saw. Henry looked disgusted, like he wanted to vomit, as well as embarrassed. Snow and James looked just as uncomfortable as he did. "What happened?"
"We explained a few things to him." Snow said. Then, to change topics, "I'm surprised you two are back so soon."
"I just got a more intense contraction." The blonde shrugged. "Figured I should tell Doc."
"He'll be right back. He went to tell Grumpy to spread the word."
"Word about what?" Emma asked as she was eased into the bed by Graham. At this, her husband smiled.
"When a royal birth is about to happen, the whole kingdom is told about it. In a few hours, everyone will know about our daughter." Graham explained.
"In a few hours, she might not even be here yet." Emma pointed out. Doc, always with impeccable timing, returned.
"Everything okay?" He asked, worry etched onto his features.
"I think the contractions are getting more intense."
"I'll need to see how dilated you are." He said softly. He draped a sheet over Emma's legs and examined her. As he took off his gloves and threw them into the trash, he said, "You're already at four centimeters, my dear."
"Jesus, already?" The blonde muttered.
"This isn't entirely unexpected, as you know, since this is baby number two."
Emma continued her annoyed rant, "She decides to rush through the easiest part of childbirth. She could've taken her sweet time and I would've been just fine with that." Snow placed a hand on her daughter's shoulder.
"I bet she'll come fast now through the rest of it." Snow said gently.
At this, Emma scoffed. "Since when does anyone in this family do anything the easy way?"