Chapter 49 – 36 Weeks

6 lbs. 2 oz. of pure love, swaddled tight in his daddys arms as his mother lay asleep in the hospital bed. As soon as her water broke they rushed to the hospital and less than two hours later Carter Houghton Castle made his debut. He had dark brown hair, and his mothers nose, and he didn't make a sound as he entered the world. Kate initially thought something was wrong until the nurses assured her that he was perfect, and when they placed him on her chest for the first time the tears fell so heavily she could barely see him.

Kate woke up to her fiancé cooing at their son, and she lay there silently, observing the two together.

"He's perfect isn't he?" she smiled as he looked over at her, returning the sentiment.

"Kate, I don't know that I've ever seen a more beautiful baby."

"I can't believe we created that."

"We did pretty good, eh?"

She nodded and smiled.

"Your parents are on their way up, your mom text me about 30 minutes ago."

"Good, I can't wait for them to meet him."

Xx

"He is perfect." Jim said as he moved towards him, "Do you mind?" he asked as he reached his arms out.

"Absolutely not. Carter, this is your grandpa Jim." Rick whispered to the sleeping baby as he handed him over to his grandfather.

"Oh my goodness, he is so small."

"A little pre-mature, but weight wise he is absolutely healthy as can be, just over 6 pounds." Kate said.

"How are you Katie?" Johanna asked.

"I'm the happiest I've ever been. I'm tired, and sore, but it was all worth it."

"I cant believe my baby girl is a mother now." Johanna smiled at her, reaching for her hand and giving it a tight squeeze.

"Mom, stop, don't cry." She laughed, squeezing her mothers hand tighter.

Johanna sat on the edge of the bed, looking towards Jim as he held her first grandchild, a perfect little boy. Jim walked over and handed the baby to her and she held him tight against her chest, just rocking him back and forth silently until he started to whimper.

"Here, I think he wants you. You okay to do it alone?" She asked her daughter, who looked a little panicked by his growing cries.

"Actually I'm suppose to call the nurse for help. I don't want you guys to feel pressured to leave, but I would like a little privacy, just so I can relax while learning."

"Oh, of course, I'll tell the nurse she's needed as we head out. Call tomorrow when you get home."

" Of course, thanks."

The nurse came right in to help Kate, and Carter latched on much easier than she had expected. It's like he knew exactly how this was suppose to work, which helped ease her mind.

Rick watched as his son suckled at Kate's breast, amazed by how emotional he was over the situation. Watching the woman he loved, hold their son and take care of him like it was just natural for her.

"Rick, stop staring."

"I cant help it, he's perfect, you're perfect."

She rolled her eyes, "I look like death."

"No, you look like you just gave birth to the most perfect human being I've ever seen."

"Oh gosh, you're going to be one of those obsessed soccer dads aren't you?"

"You think I'm allowing him to play sports? What if he gets hurt?" Rick teased, drawing a laugh from Kate. "All joking aside, I just want him to have every opportunity for happiness."

"And he will. If there is one thing that I'm confident about it's that my son has the best dad around, and I'm going to try and be the best mom around, for him, and for Lex."

"Kate you already are."

Carter let go of her breast and nuzzled his nose right underneath her nipple.

"I think he's done babe." Kate motioned for Rick to pick him up. "I want to go to the bathroom and freshen up, at least brush my teeth and hair."

"Okay, I'll take him. Want me to ask the nurse to take him to the nursery for a bit so you can get some sleep?"

"Actually that sounds great, as long as you'll nap next to me."

"Of course, babe, whatever you need."

When Kate came out of the bathroom, Rick was already cuddled up in the bed, he pulled the sheets back and she made her way to lay next to him. He covered them both up and pulled her into his body tightly. She flinched as he placed his hand over her stomach.

"You okay? Does that hurt?"

"No, just sore. The doctor said that I would heal rather quickly since I'm young and healthy."

"You'll be up and around in no time."

"I already feel fine, just a little sore." She said, raising her hand to stop him from talking before he even spoke a word. "And don't worry Rick, I'll get plenty of rest so that I can heal. You don't have to worry about me all the time."

"How did you know what I was going to say?"

"Uhhh because I know you better than anyone and I know that you are overbearing and protective when it comes to me. Don't get me wrong, I love that you want to take care of me, but I promise I'm going to be okay."

"I know."

"Are you staying here with me tonight or are you going home?"

"Whatever you want. I'd rather stay here but I understand if you want some alone time before we head home tomorrow."

"No," She looked back at him, grabbing his hand that was sprawled over her stomach. "I want you here with me, I don't want to be alone yet."

"Hey, whoa, calm down." He placed a kiss on her cheek, "I'm not going to leave you alone if you need me. I just want to make sure you have your space if you need it."

"Well I don't need my space, not from you at least. I'm scared I'm gonna mess this up Rick. I don't know anything about babies."

"I know the feeling, believe me, but I'm gonna be right here every step of the way. And you'll catch on quicker than you think. I was terrified when we took Alexis home, and even more terrified when it was made apparent that Meredith was not going to make any effort to help. The most important thing to remember is that he needs you and he loves you. You are all he knows, his only safety."

"I already feel like an over protective mom, it's killing me that he isn't with me right now but I know I need the rest before I go home."

"Yeah take advantage of this break, because as soon as we get home, it's a full time job.

Xx

Kate slept for a few hours before the nurse brought Carter back in for a feeding, and that's basically how her night went. She got plenty of rest, which was much needed after two days with hardly any sleep due to her birthday and then going into labor.

The next morning Rick had a town car come to pick them up from the hospital to take them home. Kate was cuddled into the couch, with Carter in her arms when she heard the front door open.

Alexis quietly walked over, a smile stretched across her face when she saw her little brother.

"He's so little." She whispered.

"You don't have to whisper baby, he will sleep right through us talking. And you're right, he is very tiny isn't he."

"Can I hold him?"

"Of course," She patted the cushion next to her. "Have a seat and ill help you out until you get the hang of it."

Kate pulled a pillow off the floor and stuck it under Alexis arm to help her prop it up while she held him.

She must have sat there for over 30 holding him and talking to him while he slept. Kate loved watching them together, seeing how much Alexis already adored him.

"Kate, now that Carter is here, do you think it would be okay if I called you mom?"

"Yes, baby. You can call me mom, I am going to adopt you after all."

"When will that happen?"

"Well it could be a little while, but not too long. You shouldn't worry about it anyway, your dad and I will handle that. As far as I'm concerned I'm already your mom, so you can call me that if you'd like."

Martha walked out of the office where she had been talking to Rick, and he was following behind.

"Ready to go darling?"

Alexis' eyes began to fill with tears, "Do I have to go gram?"

"Just for one more night, just to let Kate and your dad settle in with the baby."

"Martha, she can stay. She isn't going to bother us, plus I could really use her help anyway." She winked at Alexis.

"Really!" Alexis got excited, "I promise I'll be good, and I'll help with the baby."

"Kate.."

"Rick, stop. She isn't going to do any harm, and you know I've been missing her anyways, I could really use her help."

"If you're sure."

"Of course I'm sure."

Xx

Kate lay Carter down in his bassinet next to her side of the bed before crawling in next to Rick and placing a kiss on his bare chest.

"I love you babe."

He smiled down at her, lifting her chin up so he could capture her lips between his.

"I love you more, and thank you for bringing our son into this world."

"You know what we haven't even talked about?"

"What?" he asked.

"The fact that we had literally just got done having amazing sex when my water broke. I mean we hadn't had sex in a while and then bam… Carter was coming."

"I know, we should have asked the doctor about it. I mean I have heard before that doctors tell women to have sex so that they will go into labor, but that's usually when they are already past their due date."

"Yeah, I don't know, just interesting. I am most definitely getting put on birth control before we start having sex again. No more surprise babies for me for a while."

"Yeah, we should plan the next one."

"Well, we need to plan our wedding first, and then we'll talk, but I'd say I need a few more years before I'm ready."

"A few as in 10, right?" Rick teased.

"Right!"

Well, next chapter will be the last chapter, but I am not done with this story. I will probably find a way to continue with these characters but it might be a few weeks before I post that, and I'm not sure how I'm gonna do it. I thought about making it a series of one shots of Carter's first year, but if you all would rather have a continuous story just let me know.

Anyway. 20 reviews and I'll post the next chapter.