CHAPTER 39
The next day Amy woke up before Sheldon; her hair was disheveled and her vision was blurry, since she wasn't wearing her glasses. She felt confused, her head was spinning. She wasn't sure if everything that happened yesterday was real or just a dream. Her entire body felt very sore and she had the feeling that something was missing.
Amy ran her hand gently on her belly, realizing what she was missing. "Nicky ... I have to see him". The events of last night weren't a dream. She remembered the feeling she experienced when her son was born and the moment when she heard him crying. Her son had the sweetest face she had ever seen, and her first cry was the most beautiful sound she'd ever heard.
"Sheldon!" Amy woke her boyfriend up; he was still sleeping on the couch. Sheldon sat on the couch, rubbing his eyes with both hands. "Mmm" he said as he stretched his arms and yawned.
"Hello Leonard! Could you please ask Amy what color does she want for the walls of Nicky's room, but... don't tell her that I asked you, because I want it to be a surprise". Raj with his unmistakable Indian accent, called Leonard, early in the morning. "Perhaps she'd like a soft shade of green or baby blue or... both. Better yet… teal. I love that color!".
"Raj, I'll ask her later. Penny and I just left her room a couple of minutes ago, but Amy and Sheldon were still sleeping. They looked exhausted. I didn't have the heart to wake them up." Leonard admitted.
"Yes, you're right and ... talking about the baby… Did you see Nicky? Is he getting better? I'm going to visit them in the afternoon. Now I have to make sure that Nicky has the prettiest room in the world." Raj added. He knew that neither Sheldon nor Amy have the time to decorate the baby's room at the moment, so he decided to help them. It made Raj feel that he was somehow contributing to Nicky's wellbeing. Also if he wasn't an astrophysicist, he would be a party planner or an interior designer.
"Penny and I are on our way to see the baby. He's still in the Neonatal Care Unit and ... there he is! Hey Nicky!" Leonard greeted Sheldon and Amy's son. He was thrilled to see him. "I'll call you later!" Leonard said goodbye to Raj.
Little Nicholas was already twelve hours old. He continued in that incubator that provided him warmth and oxygen in the Neonatology Ward. He was wide awake and struggling to remove the oxygen catheter from his nostrils, with his tiny hands. He looked a bit annoyed of being in the incubator.
"Awww! Look at him Leonard! He is so cute; he is the most adorable baby in this room. In fact he's the most adorable baby on Earth, and… he's quite big if you compare him with all the other babies in the incubators! Hey Nick! I'm your Aunt Penny. Do you remember me?" She warmly greeted Nicholas. Her eyes had a watery sparkle as if she were about to cry.
"Penny… now that I see him closer I think he's identical to Sheldon. That's really impressive. Don't you think? I hope Nicky's an improved version of him; like a Sheldon 2.0, but without the annoying personality of his father. Right Nicky?" Leonard smiled, he was joking.
"Yes, the resemblance is obvious. Although Nicholas is the cutest! Isn't he?". Penny melted just seeing the baby. "Poor thing, he looks so helpless. I hope he gets better soon. I'm dying to hold him and give him thousands of kisses."
Leonard couldn't help but imagine that someday Penny would feel the same way but… talking about her own baby, their own baby. Just the thought of that scene made Leonard immensely happy.
"Penny, anyone who listens to you will think that you also want a baby, just like Nicky. Do you… want a baby? If you want… a baby, you know I 'm totally willing to..." Leonard was speaking with a nervous tone in his voice; he was interrupted by Penny immediately.
"Well, I'm not saying I want to have a baby right now. No, no, no! But if everything is as great as it's been lately… maybe within a year or so, you and I might start a family together. I've thought and the idea of marriage or... having a baby isn't as scary as I thought before. So, if we are still together within a year, I guess we should think about the possibility." Penny admitted honestly. Apparently her biological clock started tickling with Nicky's birth.
"Penny ... are you pro… pro... proposing? " Leonard stammered. "Nicholas, you're my witness. Penny proposed to me!. I can't believe it." Leonard had always waited for a moment like this. He was about to cry of happiness.
"Leonard honey, I'm just saying that spending my life with you, sounds like a sweet plan. That's all!" Penny tenderly kissed Leonard on his cheek. "And… if Sheldon and Amy just had a baby as cute as Nicky... Well, just imagine our kid!" Penny had a joyful smile.
"Yeah, our babies will be smart and beautiful" Leonard held Penny's hand as he said this. Penny smiled, keeping her eyes on Nicholas.
Sheldon woke up when he heard Amy saying his name. He felt as if he hadn't slept a minute and his back really hurt as well as his entire body. Sleeping on the couch wasn't comfortable at all. He stretched his arms and yawned, he was still very drowsy.
When he rose from the couch and rubbed her lower back that felt very tense, the little koala bear he'd bought for Nicholas almost fell to the floor. Sheldon managed to keep it from touching the ground.
"What's that?" Amy asked when she saw the cuddly koala toy. She knew Sheldon was pretty fond of koalas.
"Oh, this is for Nicholas, I bought it yesterday, at the hospital gift shop; when you asked me to leave your room for a moment because you wanted to talk to Penny in private. It's a gift for his birthday… and I like it!" Sheldon approached to Amy and handed her the stuffed animal. "They had teddy bears too, but you know bears are scary" Sheldon frowned.
"It's nice, I'm sure Nicky will like it… a lot". Amy looked at him with eyes full of worship, and started saying: "Sheldon, do you know you're the best? I love you so much; I can't stop loving you more and more each day. I know everything's been so difficult for you too. I could never repay you for what you've done for us." Amy hugged Sheldon tightly, joining her lips with his in a deep and sincere kiss, with all the love she had for him.
Suddenly Sheldon remembered that he had a gift for Amy. He still kept a little blue velvet box in his messenger bag. Sheldon sat on the bed, grabbed Amy's right hand and stroking her ring finger with his thumb, he said:
"Amy... yesterday was a very important day for several reasons. First of all, Nicholas was born that day, and that's certainly the most important event of our lives; plus… I don't know if you recalled it but... four years ago, on November the 24th, you and I met". Sheldon swallowed hard and continued talking. Amy stared at him in silence.
"I… was planning something special for our anniversary." Sheldon started to search the contents of his shoulder bag, looking for that little blue box, but Amy took his hand and stopped him.
"Sheldon, honey, you don't have to do anything special for me or give me a gift. Everything you've done is more than enough. Nicky is definitely the best gift I could have on our anniversary. Anyway, we'll have time for anniversaries and celebrations when our baby is healthy and with us. I want to see him, now!".
Amy was right; the gift that Sheldon kept on that little blue box would have to wait. It wasn't time yet. Sheldon nodded, he agreed with his girlfriend.
"Yes Amy, let's go! I want to see him too. It's almost 10 o'clock and we overslept. I must confess I'm missing him already" Sheldon admitted.
Amy's heart jumped in her chest the minute she saw her son after so many hours apart from him. The first time she looked at his face for a couple of minutes in the delivery room, she fell in love with him. It was love at first sight. To be honest, Amy had loved him long before he was born; even before she confirmed she was expecting him.
The baby was in the incubator but he was awake when his parents came to visit him. Amy and Sheldon washed their hands carefully. The nurse took Nicky out from the incubator and gently placed him in his mother's arms. Amy held him against her chest and affectionately kissed his forehead. Sheldon looked fondly at Amy and the baby; they're what he loved most in his life.
Nicholas was recovering faster than expected; although he was a late preterm baby, he had the weight and length of a full term newborn, so his condition was probably Transient tachypnea, the Neonatologist explained Amy and Sheldon.
Now, his vital signs had stabilized and since his respiratory rate was in the normal range, the doctor told them it was time to feed him. If Nicky's oxygen needs remain stable and he adapts to breastfeeding; soon he would leave the Neonatology Care Unit. It was great news for his parents.
The nurse gave Amy some indications on how to breastfeed for the first time. She explained how to hold the baby properly and told her that some newborns need time to adjust to nursing in the first attempts, especially when they're premature.
With great anticipation, but mostly with fear of not being able to do it right, Amy pulled Nicky to her breast, as the nurse guided her. The baby boy looked for his mother's breast immediately and started suckling firmly, as if he had done it before, by instinct. The sensation was very strange to Amy, but the feeling was also very comforting.
Amy kept looking at him and smiling, with the back of her hand, she stroked his forehead and his cheeks. She could smell the scent of Nicky's skin, maybe it was baby powder, she couldn't clearly distinguish it; but it was a very mild and sweet smell.
"He's hungry!" Sheldon said while looking at Nicholas. He was smiling when he saw how the baby clung to his mother's breast. Amy nodded; she had the sweetest look in her eyes.
Everything was worth it, because it had brought them to this moment, Sheldon thought. He kneeled in front of the chair where Amy was sitting, holding her baby. Sheldon's finger gently stroked the baby's hand. Strongly Nicholas grabbed his father's index finger with his tiny hand.
"Ha, ha!" Sheldon laughed with his signature giggle, which always sounded like a sigh.
Nicholas spent one more day in the incubator, and then he was transferred to Amy's room where he spent two extra days under observation. On his fourth day of life, his breathing problem was completely overcome; Amy was breastfeeding him without difficulty and he even had gained 2 ounces. It was time to go home.
"Yes Mommy, we're going home today!. Yes, I'll send you more pictures of Nicholas. He's sleeping now. Of course you can talk to her… I love you too." Sheldon was talking to his mother on the phone while Amy cradled Nicky in her arms. Sadly, Mary Cooper had suffered a sprained ankle three days before his grandson's birth and for that reason she couldn't travel immediately from Galveston to Pasadena.
"Hello Mary! How are you feeling?. I hope you feel better from your sprained ankle. You have to meet the baby. We miss you!" Amy chatted with her mother in law.
"I miss you too and I can't wait to meet my grandbaby!. I'm flying to Pasadena tomorrow; so wait for me. I'll help you with anything you need. By the way, how is my Shelly Bean behaving?" Mary Cooper was always motherly and sweet with Amy. She had grown increasingly fond of her since she met her.
"Sheldon's been wonderful; I have no complaints about him." Amy admitted, smiling at Sheldon while he took a picture of her and Nicky.
Sheldon was very proud to know what Amy thought about him: "I'm the best father in the world. Did you hear that Nicky?" Sheldon joked as he sent the photo of Amy and Nicholas to his mother.
"See you tomorrow!. Have a nice flight!. Nicky and I send you a kiss" Amy said goodbye to Mary Cooper.
"Bye Mommy, say hello to my Meemaw. I love you!" Sheldon was happy to know that soon his mother would come to Pasadena and meet her first grandchild.
Amy got up from the bed and gently placed Nicholas, who was sound asleep, in Sheldon's arms. "Here you go. It's your turn now. I'm going to take a shower, Leonard and Penny will be here at any minute" she said. Although it was hard to be appart from her baby, even for a minute, Amy knew that Nicky was in the best hands when he was with Sheldon.
Nicholas was peacefully sleeping as his father rocked him gently in his arms. Sheldon was looking out the window and trying to determine, according to the weather outside, whether or not, cover the baby with an extra blanket.
When someone knocked loudly on the door, Nicky grimaced, showing his annoyance with the noise. He was about to wake up and cry. Sheldon lulled him back to sleep.
"Shhh!, Leonard! Please don't knock on the door so hard, you'll wake Nicholas up! Amy is taking a shower now; we're almost ready to go home" Sheldon said as he continued looking out the window; he didn't really pay attention to the intruder.
"Mhmm , mhmm. Good morning!" An unfamiliar female voice made Sheldon turn around quickly. Obviously, the person who knocked on the door wasn't Leonard.
"Good morning! I didn't expect to see you here!" Sheldon was surprised when he saw Amy's mother, standing in front of him. Mrs. Fowler had the same harsh gesture as usual. She adjusted her glasses still looking at Sheldon, who evidently felt very nervous and uncomfortable with her presence in the room.
"Is that my grandson?" Mrs. Fowler asked him. No emotion in her words.
At the moment Sheldon would've liked to answer: "Of course this is your grandson! Do you think I would hold in my arms a baby that's not my son? Mrs. Fowler, you are truly infuriating". He didn't say that. Sheldon simply replied "Yes, his name is Nicholas".
The silence and tension in the room reached unimaginable limits. Sheldon hugged Nicky, trying to calm himself down. Surely the baby could feel the nervousness and concern of his father, because in a couple of minutes, he opened his eyes and started crying.
"Shhh! Shhh! No, don't cry Nicholas! Daddy's here! Why is your mom taking so long?" Sheldon tried to comfort his baby.
Amy's mother approached them and stared at Sheldon and Nicky. "He has your eyes. Certainly, he looks a lot like you!" Ms. Fowler told Sheldon.
"Yes, that's what people say. But… I think he's beautiful like his mother" Sheldon added. Fortunately, Nicky wasn't crying anymore.
By the time she left the bathroom, Amy felt as if she were in the middle of a thriller, when she saw her mother at the hospital room. "Mother, what are you doing here? How did you know it?". Amy had so many questions in her mind.
"Amy! Yesterday I received an unusual phone call; it was one of your friends, a nice girl with a very squeaky voice that reminded me of a little squirrel mixed with Tinkerbell. She told me that my grandson was born. She informed me everything that had happened in these days and I ... I knew I had come and see you."
