Everyone was standing -except Sam who was sitting- in the staffroom on a Friday morning, getting ready for the day ahead. At 20 weeks pregnant, Sam was enormous. She was no longer fitting in maternity scrubs so she had to wear her own clothes to work and she was becoming exhausted. Thankfully, it was her last day at work so she would have plenty of time to regain her energy when she didn't have to worry about working five or six days a week.
"Guys, don't forget about the meal at the Shanghai restaurant around the corner for Sam's last day at 5:30pm." Tom announced. "And we're paying for the buffet with drinks included." He added and everyone cheered. Tom had decided to take Sam with her colleagues to a Chinese buffet because it was her favourite takeaway and she deserved a treat considering she had only had the one Chinese takeaway throughout her entire pregnancy.
Soon, everyone left to get on with their jobs leaving just Sam, Tom and fletch in the staff room.
"You feeling alright? You only had a slice of toast for breakfast." Tom stated as he pulled his scrubs on whilst Sam sat on the sofa drinking a glass of water.
"Yeah, I'm just saving my calories for tonight." Sam stated.
"Me too, I'm gonna pig out big time." Fletch stated proudly as he flicked the kettle on. "Anyone want a cuppa?" He asked and Sam shook her head.
"No thanks." Tom replied as he put his stethoscope around his neck.
"Suit yourselves." Fletch muttered.
It was just an hour into everyone's shifts and unfortunately, an agency nurse was getting on everyone's nerves. Though for her, the feeling was mutual against some of the staff. Annie was covering for another nurse who was on sick leave for a few days and she certainly hadn't made an impression on anyone, least of all Sam because she appeared to be watching every move that the pregnant doctor made. Sam let out a sigh of exhaustion as she sat down at a chair at the nurses station when she saw Annie looking at her disapprovingly.
"If you've got a problem with me, just say it." Sam ordered.
"I don't know what you mean." The nurse lied unconvincingly.
"You've been giving me looks all day." Sam stated.
"Well have you seen yourself?" Annie muttered but Sam heard. "Look, you can't perform CPR, you won't go near any patients with vomiting or diarrhoea and you take frequent breaks. You shouldn't even be working!" She stated loudly, drawing the attention of most of the ED staff. Tom was about to step in because he was worried that Sam might start crying however, Sam rose to her feet and stood right in front of the nurse with her arms folded across her chest.
"Right, let's just get this straight: I'm a doctor and you're an agency nurse so you listen to me, not the other way around. Don't you dare speak to me or another member of staff like that again or I can assure you you'll regret it." Sam warned.
"Is that a threat?" Annie protested.
"Annie, my office. Now." Zoe ordered.
"What? I-"
"Now." Zoe repeated and the nurse rolled her eyes before she slowly padded over to the boss's office.
"Sam you legend!" Fletch smirked as he gave her a pat on the back.
"Yeah, I thought you were gonna cry." Tom laughed and Sam squinted her eyes at him.
"I'd hardly cry about a pathetic woman like her." Sam stated as she sat back down in her chair.
"I'm just gonna go and get a cup of tea from the staff room, want anything?" Tom asked.
"Yeah an apple and a bottle of water please." Sam replied.
"Anything with more than a few calories in?" Tom pushed for Sam to be eating more.
"Two apples?" Sam queried and Tom raised his eyebrows at her. "Fine. Do me some toast please. With marmite."
"Good girl." Tom smirked before he walked off to the staff room.
"He makes me sound like a dog." Sam huffed as fletch gave her shoulders a quick massage because he knew it helped her relax a little.
"He's just looking after his family." Fletch stated. "I'd do the same." He added. "Anyway, who's looking forward to a Chinese buffet tonight?" He teased.
"See? Now you're making me sound like a dog." Sam moaned.
4:30pm
"Does anyone know where Sam is? I haven't seen her since lunch." Tom queried at the nurses station.
"Haven't you seen her?" Cal smirked.
"No." Tom replied confusedly.
"She's crashed out on the sofa in the staff room." Cal stated.
"And Fletch put a blanket over her." Robyn added.
"For how long?" Tom asked curiously.
"I think Zoe found her about an hour ago, she told everyone to keep the noise down for her." Charlie stated and Tom smirked.
"Right, thanks guys." Tom smiled as he headed over to the staff room. On the door was a note written in black marker on a sheet of paper saying 'QUIET PLEASE' that was clearly in Fletch's handwriting. Tom entered the room and closed the door behind him. He went over to the sofa where Sam was peacefully sleeping and he realised that she had her yellow stethoscope in her ears, with the chest piece going under her black jumper, on her bump.
He found it funny that she hadn't slept at work throughout her entire pregnancy, yet on her last day she had fallen asleep. Within seconds, her eyes opened and looked at her husband.
"Have a nice nap?" Tom smiled as she sat up and he sat next to her.
"I didn't mean to fall asleep." Sam stated as she pulled the stethoscope out of her ears. "I just laid down 'cause I felt a bit dizzy." She stated.
"That will probably be because you've barely eaten anything all day." Tom stated. "Why don't you have a small snack now?" He suggested but Sam shook her head.
"The Chinese is only in an hour." She stated after glancing at the wall clock.
"Well considering it's probably low blood sugar, why don't you just have a glass of orange juice to keep you going until then? Please? For baby E?" He fluttered his eyelashes at her and she smirked.
"Fine." She huffed so Tom got up to pour her a glass of fruit juice from the carton in the fridge. He had just closed the fridge when he heard her gasp so in a panic he turned around.
"What? What is it? Are you okay?" Tom asked quickly as he placed the glass on the side and ran over to his wife who had her hands on her bump.
"Shush." She ordered as she grabbed his hands and placed them on her bump.
"I don't understand." He stated.
"Wait." She ordered and after a few moments of silence, Tom felt a little jolt from under Sam's stretched skin. They both broke into grins as they felt one of their babies give it's first proper kick.
"I bet it's one of the boys kicking." Tom stated and Sam squinted her eyes at him. "Just joking." He protested as he got to his feet. "Right, here's your juice." He stated as he handed her the glass. She quickly downed the small glass of orange juice in one before she handed the glass back to her husband.
"Wash that up for me, I need a wee." Sam stated as she began to head for the door.
"Surely it didn't go through you that quickly!" Tom laughed.
"Obviously not." Sam said defensively before she continued on her journey to the toilets.
5:35pm
Everyone was sat around an extra large round table in the Shanghai Chinese buffet restaurant with the drinks in front of them. There was Sam and Tom with glasses of lemonade, whilst most of the other people had beers or glasses of wine. There was Zoe, Tess, Max, Charlie, Robyn, Iain, Dixie, Jeff, Ash, Big Mac, Noel, Louise, Cal, Ethan, Rita, and of course, Fletch who was sitting next to Sam.
"Right, I don't know about you lot but I'm starving." Tom stated as he got up to head to the buffet. Everyone, including an eager Sam, followed and soon returned with their plates filled with food.
"I've got a joke for you lot. Sam's obstetrician thinks she's going to be on bed rest for about two months." Fletch smirked and Sam playfully elbowed him.
"I agreed with him about the bed rest." Sam stated sternly. "It's the best for our babies so I'm sure I'll manage. I'm allowed to go for walks and things like that and besides, I'll never be bored with you lot visiting me all the time. Hint hint." Sam smiled and fletch laughed.
"Can you imagine five teenage versions of Sam and three teenage versions of Tom living in the same house?" Max joked.
"Yeah well I bet they won't be as nearly as disgusting and as annoying as living with one of you." Robyn stated.
"I wasn't a stroppy teenager, I was a sensible one." Sam argued.
"So that's why your year 11 school report, that was in some stuff I found the other day, says that you put little or no effort into subjects such as drama or music because you saw no point in them. I'm pretty sure that makes you a stroppy and arrogant teenager." Tom smirked as he took a bite of a crispy duck pancake. Sam looked down at her plate causing everyone to smile because she had backed down. "Although, I have to admit you have had a pretty good pregnancy." He stated.
"Meaning?" Sam queried because from her point of view it had certainly been far from easy. Constipation, heartburn, headaches, aches and pains were not enjoyed.
"Meaning I was expecting you to be severely hormonal but you're actually pretty composed." Tom stated.
"If only Nat was like that." Fletch sighed.
"Cmon fletch you've got kids, tell us the secrets to avoid raising the next toe-rag." Tom said.
"Um shouldn't you be asking me that?" Louise asked and everyone at the table looked at her confusedly. "What? I have to deal with little kids all day in reception. Don't we Noel?"
"Um... Not really Louise no." Noel admitted and Louise glared at him.
"Well then if you're looking for a babysitter, Louise is always available." Dixie joked and everyone laughed as Louise threw a strop.
"Right, none of this being polite because we're in public crap. I'm gonna eat as much as I possibly can." Fletch stated as he stood up with his empty plate and headed up for more.
"Well said." Sam concluded as she too stood up and then waddled after him.
"Right, now that she's gone you can dish the dirt." Cal stated.
"Dish what dirt?" Tom queried.
"Oh c'mon, she can't be this normal all the time when he's pregnant with octuplets. She's got eight times the amount of hormones in her, and I bet she's thrown a few tantrums." Cal stated.
"No, honestly. She's been fine." Tom stated. "She's a bit stubborn when it comes to cleaning the flat up but she really isn't much different than her normal self." He said before he returned to his meal.
"Tom, I'm sorry about the paternity leave situation." Zoe said solemnly.
"Zoe, there's no need to apologise honestly. I know it's not your fault." Tom replied. He had been given very limited paternity leave compared to Sam's leave becuase the board were only coughing up for one locum doctor for Sam, they wouldn't provide a second to cover for him.
After everyone had reached capacity with just a little bit of room left, they moved onto dessert and Sam had a bowl with a slice of cheesecake, two profiteroles and a scoop of chocolate ice cream.
"I can't believe you're going. We're really gonna miss you." Robyn stated.
"I'm only going for a few months." Sam stated. "Besides, you can always come and see me, I'll only be upstairs on maternity in a months time." She added.
"But still!" She squealed. "Who's going to stand up against the violent patients?"
"Tom can." Sam smirked.
"Um, you shouldn't have been standing up to violent patients anyway." Tom stated as he glanced at Sam's bump.
"Oh c'mon, it just gives me more padding." Sam joked as she placed her hands on her bump.
"So, got any names in mind yet?" Jeff asked curiously.
"Yep. Sam junior, Tom Junior, fletch junior, Jeff junior- I'm joking!" Tom shrieked as he received a glare from his wife.
"Jesus you've got a scary death stare." Fletch stated and Sam smiled to herself.
"I quite like Samantha though." Tom suggested.
"That's my name." Sam argued.
"Yes, but everyone calls you Sam. We could actually call one of our daughters Samantha." Tom stated.
"But just think, most people find it really difficult to decide on one name from so many different names but you can pick eight names." Fletch stated. "And do not make the mistake of calling your son Adrian." He warned.
After a while, everyone had finished eating and people were coming to the end of the current drinks. Tom looked at Sam who was slouched in her chair trailing her fingers over her bump.
"Right, I do believe we'd best be heading off." Tom announced.
"Yeah, I've got a rendezvous with my sofa, a bottle of beer and the TV remote." Fletch stated before he downed the rest of his pint. Everyone began to get up and pull their coats on whilst Tom went up to pay the bill. "Come here you." Fletch said as he held his arms out.
"No. No hugging or I might just burst." Sam stated as she pulled her cardigan around her and put her handbag on her shoulder. "And I need to use the little girls room before we go." She added before she waddled off to the toilets.
Everyone crowded around outside so that they could say a final farewell and good luck to Sam when she finally came back out.
"You took your time." Max stated bluntly.
"You try emptying your bladder properly when it's there's eight things inside you moving about. It's like they can push a stop and start button." Sam remarked as Tom put his arm around her shoulders.
"Right, you have to let us know when the babies are on their way." Robyn stated.
"I'll tell Zoe, and she can tell everyone." Sam stated
"Although you'll probably hear Sam screaming." Tom joked and Sam gave a small sarcastic laugh.
"Good luck Sam, you'll be a great mum." Iain said reluctantly.
"Thanks." Sam replied before she watched the man walk away.
"C'mon, I don't care what you say, I'm getting a hug." Fletch stated as he wrapped his arms around Sam and hugged her without squishing her too much. Soon, Sam pulled away from his hold and straightened her top out. "Don't forget I'm always there for you, just gimme a call okay?"
"Will do." Sam nodded and the group soon dispersed leaving the married couple and fletch.
"Fletch, can you just wait with her for a minute and I'll go and get the car? We can give you a lift home." He offered.
"I would argue that I can walk to the car park but I honestly can't be bothered after eating all of that." Sam admitted.
"Right, I'll be back soon." Tom stated as he brought the keys out of his pockets and then quickly walked back to the hospital's car park.
"I can't wait to be an uncle." Fletch smiled.
"Mm. But I can wait to be a mum." Sam muttered.
"Let me guess, you just want them to stay inside of you?" He asked and Sam reluctantly nodded. "Don't worry, even mums with one baby feel exactly the same." He said reassuringly as he put his arm around her shoulders.
Tom was sitting on the sofa with Sam's feet on his lap as he massaged her swollen ankles.
"So, what on earth are you going to do for the next month?" Tom queried.
"Start packing our stuff up probably. I'll need to pack my bag for the hospital. And I might pop down to the new home to see how they're getting on." Sam stated as she stared at the ceiling whilst she rubbed her bump.
"No going to the new home, not until it's finished." Tom warned and Sam rolled her eyes. "And if you do start packing, take it easy yeah? Don't go lifting anything heavy." He added.
"I won't." Sam huffed. "Don't you think it's odd how there was only the little kick earlier and there hasn't been anything since?" Sam queried.
"Maybe you should stop rubbing your bump. You might be massaging them to sleep." Tom joked quietly, but he saw the look of concern on Sam's face. "Do you want me to get you a cold glass of water? See if that gets them moving? It did earlier." He suggested and Sam nodded so he moved her feet off of his lap and went to get her some icy cold water from the fridge. "It'll probably work best if you drink it all in one go." Tom stated as he handed her the glass so she drank the water as fast as she could, ignoring the sting it was causing in her throat whilst Tom knelt besides her on the floor next to the sofa. "It doesn't matter if it doesn't work, it's still only early days." Tom said softly as he gently rolled Sam's shirt up and then placed his hands on her large bump. He gently smoothed his hands over her skin to help Sam to relax a little when after a minute of silence, he felt something push gently against his hand.
Sam's face lit up as she felt the movement within her.
"It feels weird." She smiled.
"I'm sure you'll get used to it." Tom smiled back as he pushed against Sam's skin to see if he could tease his sons and daughters to kick back. They didn't, but with a little pressure, he could feel them moving about a little bit. "Just think, in a couple of weeks we'll be in our new home. And hopefully, a few months rather than weeks after that, we'll have our little babies to bring home with us." He said softly.
"What's going to happen when they're discharged at different times?" Sam asked. "Because chances are, that they will all come out at different times. If they leave the hospital that is."
"We'll face that obstacle when we get there." Tom stated. "But don't forget that you're going to need to take it easy. You can't recover from a c-section over night." He stated.
"I know, I know." She mumbled. "How about two nights?" She joked and Tom shook his head at her. "Do you know how annoying it is that I can't see my feet?" Sam remarked as she lifted her head from the sofa, but she still couldn't see them because of the sizeable bump in the way.
"Yeah, you might want to cut your toenails by the way, they're beginning to curl they're that long." Tom smirked.
"Really?" Sam asked worriedly as she tried to sit up but Tom pushed her back down.
"I was joking." He stated and Sam closed her eyes as she rested her head back on the sofa. "I got a new rose oil moisturiser for you the other day, I don't suppose you fancy a bump rub do you?" He asked hopefully. Sam opened her eyes and saw that it was something that Tom clearly wanted to do. Presumably to bond with his babies because he had no where near as much contact with them as Sam did.
"Yep, okay. But be gentle, I've still got god knows how many plates of Chinese food in here." Sam stated proudly as she pulled her top down and then patted her bump. Tom happily helped her up so that she could go and lie down on their bed.
The duvet had been placed on the floor for more room and Sam was lying flat on her back on the bed in just her bra and a pair of shorts.
"Have I ever told you how beautiful you look?" Tom smiled as he climbed on top of her and sat on her thighs with most of his weight on his legs on the bed rather than her. He had stripped down to just his boxers because the heating had made their flat hot, and it was more comfortable than sitting in jeans.
"Yes. So many times that it's beginning to get annoying." Sam stated. "And you had better have warm hands." She warned. Tom nodded as he rubbed his hands together quickly, before he picked up the bottle of moisturiser. He squeezed a little blob of it in his hands, rubbed them together to warm them up again before he began rubbing Sam's bump from the top.
"I think I can feel one of their heads." Tom stated.
"You can, that's Baby H." Sam stated. "She's the smallest one in the very top of my uterus." Sam explained.
"What? Do you know where all of them are?" Tom asked curiously.
"Only her and baby A because he's right at the bottom. And I can feel where they are by palpating but I'm not sure who's who apart from those two." Sam stated.
"What so this, is baby A?" Tom asked as he put his hand at the very bottom of Sam's bump and pushed down but Sam squirmed.
"No, that's my bladder." She stated.
"Oh... Sorry." Tom laughed a little bit as Sam tried to get comfortable again before she put her head back on her pillow and closed her eyes. "You know, we've always tried to be as open as possible together." Tom began slowly and Sam opened her eyes because he sounded like he was going to say something serious.
"Yes." Sam replied quietly.
"Well, can we... Talk about intercourse?" He asked awkwardly. "Because I know how tired you are and how much stress you're under. But sometimes when I think you're in the mood for something like that, I'm scared to act on it because I don't want to force you into anything. And I know we haven't done anything for a while, we don't have to but... Well just, could you talk to me about what you want? Please?" Tom asked.
"Yeah sure. Sorry, I didn't realise you felt like that." Sam admitted.
"It's alright." Tom said softly so he continued to massage Sam's bump.
"Well, I know we can't do anything of that sort when I'm on bed rest because Mr T said I can't but we've still got a month until then and... Well yeah I have been tired but hopefully that should get a bit better becuase I haven't got to work anymore. I do want to make love with you it's just... I'm a bit worried about it being uncomfortable." Sam admitted.
"Well, when you're in the mood, we can try a few different positions and see what's best for you." Tom suggested. "Does that sound okay?"
"Yeah. But you'll have to wear a condom." She stated. "The prostaglandins in your semen can cause my mucus plug to start to wear away and I do not want that. It might cause early labour." Sam stated.
"Of course. That sounds brilliant to me." Tom nodded and he felt like a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders because he wasn't sure how Sam would react when he brought the topic up. He massaged all of the moisturiser into her bump properly, before they both had a cuddle and went to sleep.
Thanks for reading this very long chapter! Please review :)