Boobs, Bottles and Bitches
A/N: Here is the long awaited chapter… Things are about to get crazy…I had so much fun writing( or rather re-writing) this.
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"Come to mommy, there ya go." Her mother cooed as soon as her brother's bundled body was firmly nestled in her arms.
"He is progressing at a tremendous rate. His body weight has increased 0.3 pounds in the last three days alone. Also you will be happy to know he is getting quite a reputation as a lady's man around the NICU. All the nurses have offered to be on "Kidney and Diaper Duty." The nurse gushed before quietly excusing herself for a few moments to get the doctor again.
"Hello little one, will you open your beautiful eyes for mama? Please I love you so much. Yes I do, you are just the cutest little man I have ever seen." She told him, pressing a kiss to his little fingers after he refused to open his eyes for her.
"She must not have seen me then." Jax told her Aunt Gemma, who laughed out loud, before clamping a manicured hand over her mouth.
"I did actually, I was sitting outside in that same waiting room that you and Tara and the boys sat in for hours pacing back and forth waiting for any sign of Piney or your dad." Her mother told him, never taking her eyes off her newest little love. "You don't know this Jackson but I was the first person to hold you beside your mom and dad." Her mother said finally tearing her eyes away from her little brothers' face to take in the eldest Teller boy.
"Even before Piney?" He asked, as he inched closer to the bed.
"Even before Piney." She said before smiling down at her son.
For a few minutes the room was silent as Tommy drowsily slept on Aunt Gemma's shoulder while the boys played thumb war as she watched her mother and brother carry on a conversation all their own.
"Mrs. Knowles, how are you feeling this afternoon? I see you got to hold little Charlie" The doctor broke the calm bubble of the room as he walked in briskly with the nurse from earlier at his heels.
"I'm feeling much better now." Kat said looking down at her little boy, before glancing over at her and then back to the doctor.
"Well that is good. I wanted to talk to you a bit about Charlie, if you don't mind Cheryl taking him back to get some rest and to check up on his kidney development. I assure you I'll have him back to you before I leave." He told her mother as she pulled her brother closer before reluctantly handing him over to Cheryl.
"I'll take good care of Mr. Knowles; he'll have all the girls in a tickle." She assured her mother before setting him in the clear crib and rolling him out the door. As soon as the door clicked shut the doctor looked around the room, first at Aunt Gemma who gave him a steely gaze, then over at the boys whose thumb war turned into a pinching fest before falling on her at her mother's bedside.
"Perhaps you would like to talk in private? Or perhaps wait till your husband gets here?" He asked delicately.
"I'm just going to tell them anyways, I have no secrets from my family. As for Hugh, well I would rather know now then wait and have my mind come up with the worst possible scenario." Her mother snapped at him, irritated that he kept looking at her and fidgeting.
"Okay wel-" He started to say, running a hand down the front of his immaculate white coat.
"Hey honey, I found some strays, thought I would bring them up and give 'em a home." Daddy kidded as he opened up the door and waited till the Vice and President walked through the door until he noticed the doctor standing at the end of the bed, looking all sorts of nervous.
Her daddy's face went pale before he sprang into action running over to squeeze in-between the space of the bed frame and the chair she sat on.
"What's wrong with Charlie? If he needs blood, I'll donate, oh god it isn't his kidneys is it? I can give him mind, no, no that won-" Her daddy rambled on, eyes unfocused.
"Mr. Knowles, Hugh, Hugh I assure you Charlie is just fine. I just wanted to come in and speak with you and your wife about him." The doctor assured him, patting his arm as soon as his face gained some color and his voice returned to normal levels.
"Okay. Whew, all right that's good." Hugh said lessening his grip on Kat's hand.
The doctor once again took in all the occupants of the room before Uncle John got the hint and ushered everyone out, grabbing her hand and leading her out last after he patted her daddy on the shoulder and a kiss to mama's cheek.
"Wanna go see if we can scrounge up some food Little Tara?" Uncle Piney asked, getting her attention away from the oak door, effectively sealing her off from her family.
"What the hell can he be telling them that he wouldn't want us to know? Kat said she didn't mind us knowing." Aunt Gemma fumed as she stalked away from the door and pacing up and down the hallway.
"What do you think he is telling them Uncle Piney?" She asked, swiveling back to look up at her uncle.
"Oh just probably boring baby stuff. I had to learn it all with Opie, nothing to worry your little head about Tara." Uncle Piney assured her before giving a light tug on her braid.
"There probably just showing them how to change a diaper again, because it's been so long since you pooped your pants." Opie added, before breaking into a splitting grin, "Actually now that I think about it, it was only last week." He teased. She missed him by a hair as he took off running with Jax laughing down the hall.
"I'M GONNA GET YOU FOR THAT OPIE WINSTON!" She yelled after his retreating figure as he fell out of sight.
"You are just like your mama." Uncle Piney smiled wistfully at her before he too took off down the hall towards the sound of Opie ad Jaxs' laughter. "Come on Tara, they'll let us know when we can go in. I'll even hold him down for you, but looking at Jaxs' busted lip I don't think you would need the help." He said, waiting for her to follow after him.
Taking one last look at the door, she passed Aunt Gemma who was making her twelfth circuit of the hallway grand prix, with Uncle John and his passenger following closely behind.
"Go on and show those boys not to mess with you. I'll let you know when your mom can see us." Aunt Gemma stopped her pacing to nod her head in the direction of the two rowdy kids being scolded by Piney.
She smiled at her Aunt in thank you, giggled at a drooling Tommy on Uncle Johns' shoulder before she walked toward Opie who looked like he had the fear of an endless plate of vegetables in front of him as Uncle Piney grabbed him around the shoulders and kept him in place.
The crack of the wooden door against the metal frame stopped her in her tracks as it resounded off the walls. Whipping around she saw her daddy walking away down the other side of the hallway before the bang of the bathroom door against the tiled wall of the men's room could be heard.
"What the fucking hell is going on?" Aunt Gemma swore before she grabbed Tommy off Uncle John gave him a look before stalking into the partly open door to her mom's room.
She watched as Uncle John speed walked into the men's bathroom until Opie and Jax were at her side and Uncle Piney followed in her Daddy and Uncle John's footsteps, leaving them out in the hall.
"What hell is going on?" Jax asked looking from the bathroom door where shouting could be heard but not any actual words.
"I have no idea." She said before she left the future President and his second out in the hall as she entered into her mother's room.
"Katherine Elizabeth Fitz you tell me right now what the fucking hell is going on, why is Hugh acting like a menstruating teenager? Is it Charlie? Did the doctor lie and something was actually wrong with him?" Aunt Gemma bellowed at the foot of her Mother's bed, not even noticing her entering the room. Taking one look at her mother who looked spooked with tear tracks running silently down her face she wondered if her Aunt had scared her.
"Gem, I- I –I Can't tell you." Her mother stuttered as she brushed her tears off her snow white cheeks.
"What do you mean you can't tell me? We've told each other everything from the age of nine years old, hell even stuff I shouldn't have told you." Her Aunt shot back, hands on hips.
That was when her mother noticed her standing in the doorway and burst into tears that wouldn't seem to stop.
"Aw sweetie, don't cry. Whatever is wrong we can fix it, we can always fix it. I'll have John and the boys take care of whatever it is that's got you so torn." Gemma tried to soothe her mother, coming around the side of the bed and pulling her into her arms as much as she could as her mother cried harder, if that was even possible.
So there she stood, in the doorway of the hospital room with Jax and Opie at her back as they watched her mother sob into the arms of the Queen of Charming.
Sometime later, after Aunt Gemma noticed them standing in the room she motioned over to the seats where Tommy was sleeping soundly curled up in a ball, as she rubbed calming circles in her mother's back her Daddy walked in looking as mad as ever with her Uncles trailing behind him at a safe distance. He gave one look at her before he told Gemma to get out. That did not go over well; no one bossed around the Queen of Charming, at least that's what Jax had told her once.
"Excuse me, listen here. I don't know what crawled up your ass but Kat is my best friend and if something is wrong I, we, the club can help. "Gemma said trying to reign in her temper as Kat started the water works again.
"WE, don't need or want the clubs help." Her father snapped at Gemma before looking pointedly at the door which was being blocked by the Reapers patch on her both of her Uncles arms.
She could see her aunt gearing up for another battle of wills before her Uncle John called gently to grab Tommy as he motioned over with his right hand for Jax and Opie who were watching the show with great interest.
"But-" She started to protest before she was silenced by the president of SAMCRO, "Enough! Let's just get the kids and give them some time." Her Uncle John said losing his cool before taking a hold of Jaxs' shoulder and steering him out the door. Opie followed with a look of confusion on his face before he turned back to her and gave her a gentle smile before the leaders and their heirs were out of sight.
"I'll be back Kat." Aunt Gemma told her mother whose tears were slowing, if only slightly. "Come on Tara, we'll go get some ice cream." Her aunt told her as she held out her magenta polished nails. She didn't dare tell her aunt that they had already gotten ice cream on the way over here, as she hopped off the seat with her backpack in hand. Aunt Gemma grabbed ahold of her hand and took the bag from her other and swung it over her shoulder.
"Actually princess would you mind giving your aunt and I a minute?" Her daddy asked her, all traces of anger gone from his voice and face as he looked at her.
"Sure daddy, bye mama. I'll see you tomorrow." She said waving goodbye to her mother who smiled timidly at her before burying her face in her hands and wailing.
She left the room and turned right but stopped right out of sight listen, after all Uncle Piney said she made a good lookout and no one would pay no mind to her.
"Tara can stay with you tonight, and only tonight. Kat will be coming home in the morning and I will be picking Tara up before the rooster crows. Have her stuff packed." Her daddy said so quietly that she had to press her ear as close to the door frame without being seen as possible.
"Hugh I don't know why you are so pissed off but I can help." Aunt Gemma said in a final attempt to calm the turmoil that surrounded her friend.
"Don't you get it? I don't your help or anyone else's for that matter. Just make sure Tara is ready when I come to get her." He said before no other words were spoken and she scurried a little ways down the hall before her aunt came sweeping through the door, Tommy pressed against her side as they made their way towards her, taking her hand and pulling her along to the nurses station and the elevators.
"What is going on with Charles Knowles? " Gemma demanded to know as they walked up to the nurse on call, ignoring the looks from Piney and John.
"I'm sorry ma'am but we can't disclose any information unless you are family or a medical professional assigned to the case." She said sweetly before lowering a fussy Tommy to the floor.
"Listen here," Aunt Gemma grabbed the name tag attached to the nurses shirt, "Brittney, I am family and I might not have a medical degree but I got something better, you see this crow tattooed on my chest, that means I own this town and I can have your job in a minute. So just let me know what's in Charles Knowles file." Aunt Gemma threatened the sweet dimple cheeked nurse, who immediately sprang into action and typed away on her computer.
She looked over at Uncle Piney and Uncle John smiling over at them before they made their way over leaving Opie and Jax and a still tired Tommy to man the elevators.
"It says," Brittney began looking up and noticing the other two companions flanking her Aunt and her, "It says that Charles Knowles has gained .3 pounds in the last three days, his kidney function isn't as bad as the doctors previously thought, he should be able to take milk straight from his mother instead of the preemie formula the NICU originally prescribed considering they thought he was born at thirty weeks and not at thirty-two and two days." She finished reading off the screen before looking back up at the Queen and her men of SAMCRO.
"So nothing is wrong with Charlie?" Gemma asked again for clarification.
"Unless his doctors haven't updated his files in the last twelve hours then no, nothing is wrong with him, he is just underweight but that could be because the mother was stressing or wasn't getting enough nutrients." Brittney added on.
"Are you sure or should I get someone else who can read files?" Gemma demanded ice flowing into her words.
"It says the doctors were worried a bit about his lungs but given that they put him on steroids and he can breathe on his own, they see no complications." She told her straightforward, before closing the file and getting up and walking away, but not before throwing a too cheery "Have a good day" over her shoulder.
"Well would you look at that, Charlie is taken it straight from the source, bottles are for chumps." Uncle Piney said delightedly.
"So mommy is like a cow?" She asks her Uncle who doubles over in laughter, followed shortly by her other Uncle to the annoyance of her Aunt.
"Oh god, that was too funny. I wish Tig could have heard you say that, it would have made his night." Uncle Piney told her in-between chuckles.
"Well then what could have made Hugh act like a little bitch? And have Kat sobbing like someone had died?" Gemma asked out loud, as she turned away from the Nurses station and over to the opening elevator doors.
"Isn't it good news that Charlie was born lat-" Her Uncle Piney started to say before the elevator filled with the sounds of three rambunctious children and the thought escaped him.
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Review… I want to hear your thoughts, reactions, theories. Anyone wondering what exactly the doctor told Kat and Hugh?