Baby Boom and a Secret Revealed.
Ten days or so after the birth of Aaron Wilson, a phone call was made to the rehearsal rooms of The Producers, and this time it was the turn of Sam Evans to be running across town to the hospital. Unlike Izzy, Rachel's labour was not without its complications, and Sam was at the hospital for much longer. He remained at her side throughout the whole process, and stayed calm, even when she was turning the air blue, using words that made Sam blush with embarrassment, but had no such effect on the staff; they had all heard labour induced tourette's a million times before. In the end the process would take 30 hours from start to finish, and only then was a tired Sam able to tell the world, with a huge grin on his face, that he had a daughter. The minute that they heard it, everyone in their circle of friends immediately knew what she was called, all saying "Barbra" in unison. The longevity of the labour meant that Leroy and Hiram Berry managed to make it from Ohio to the hospital in time for the birth of their grandchild too; Stevie Evans was at the airport waiting for his mother to arrive when he received the call, his father not being able to get away from work.
The first photograph that anyone saw of the new arrival was one of her with her father, Rachel being sound asleep. They all noted that she had Sam's blonde hair, but Rachel's nose - and from what Sam was saying, she had her mother's lungs too… The birth had been hard on Rachel, and she was kept in hospital for a day or two after the birth; Sam was told that he could take his daughter home, but he knew that Rachel would want to be the one to carry her in, and so with all of the politeness he could muster, he thanked them, but declined. That night he did not return home, but crashed in Mike and Tina's spare room, where he knew that he would get silence, and would be of the least inconvenience to anyone.
When he woke the next day, he saw it was later than he had planned, and he threw on his clothes to run downstairs, intending to grab a bottle of water and a cereal bar; he found Mike waiting in the kitchen for him, however, and he made him sit down and have a proper breakfast. "You are going to need all of your strength and energy to deal with a new baby - and Rachel…" Mike said, and Sam could only nod in agreement.
"I know. This is all so wonderful, and my daughter is so beautiful, but it is still so, so scary Mike. Having someone so small and helpless being entirely dependant on you for everything is just…"
"I still have all of that to come, in due course, but the important thing to know is that you aren't alone in feeling that, and you have help. The rewards are always going to outweigh the stress in the end. You will always be her father, Sam. I am sure that it will all come naturally to you anyway, and if you are ever stuck on what you should do…"
"I call Carole," replied Sam, and Mike nodded, whilst laughing out loud…
There was of course a good deal of publicity around the birth of a child to two figures from the Broadway stage; that there was a photographer waiting for them as they left the hospital, and another waiting for them as they arrive home was no shock. Mrs Evans had been busy, and had the house spotless and the nursery fully prepared, which made Rachel very happy. As she set her daughter down in her crib in her room for the first time, Rachel realised that for a while nothing else was going to matter to her; her career could be put on hold. Sam had talked about pulling out of The Producers, but now that Barbra was here, she was determined that would be the last thing he would do. This was his chance to cement his name on Broadway, just as Funny Girl and Hello Dolly! had made hers. It was not as if she was retiring altogether; she would go back when the Brontë musical got the go-ahead for a Broadway run. Until then, she would be quite content to devote all of her energy to the care of the little girl she had just brought into the world, and to her husband. She still had plenty of time after all to win her first Tony. Even if she never did, then it would not matter a lot in the grand scheme of things….
There would be no further arrivals in November; Thanksgiving came and went. Black Friday saw Kitty out with a determined Tina at the sales in the baby department of Macy's; Kitty made quite the spectacle with her bump, and as usual, Tina was taking no prisoners as she pushed people out of their path. They managed as a result to obtain all of the bargains that Kitty wanted, not that doing so raised any sort of broody feelings in Tina; she did not intend to even consider having children until she turned thirty, and that was a few years away yet. She had a career to build, and unlike a go getter like Kitty, she had to establish herself in the cut throat world of veterinary practice in New York city before she could consider taking time out. Kitty's financial skills meant that she could work less hard for a short while; however, as all of her work was web based, she could carry on working from home throughout her pregnancy; indeed, she had every intention of taking her I-pad into the labour suite with her…
In Boston, David and Mercedes had welcomed Mrs Thompson into their home for the Thanksgiving holiday, but she had a surprise for them; she announced that she would be staying until after her grandchild was born. "I know that I should have told you of my intentions beforehand, but I didn't imagine that you would be too put out by it. I recall all too well what it was like when I was expecting for the first time. I had so much that I needed to do, but finding the energy to do it grew harder and harder as my time drew near. My mother came to stay and help me through my final weeks, and that is what I intend to do."
Mercedes turned to look at David, then replied, "Well, in all honesty, I am grateful; I have noticed how tiring certain things are now, and a helping hand would be good. However, I have no intention of sitting idle either."
"That is okay by me; you can do the lighter jobs and I will take over the heavier stuff. Tomorrow we can all work together to prepare Thanksgiving dinner, and that includes you, David."
"I was intending to help anyway," David responded with a note of indignation in his voice. "And if anyone is going to do the heavy stuff, it will be me; we will get everything done as a team." On that, Mrs Thompson could not find any reason to object…
Kitty went into labour with exactly a week to go before Christmas, and she found that it was nowhere near as easy as she had surmised. Artie had stayed very calm when she had awoken him in a state of panic in the early hours, calling an ambulance, dressing and ensuring that everything required was ready without a problem, whereas Kitty could barely even manage to get dressed. In the end, Artie found himself helping his wife in that task, to ensure that when the ambulance arrived, they were ready. Like Flint, Artie was in the midst of it all, sans camera; Kitty had informed him that if he filmed her giving birth then (a) he would never hold a camera again as she would cut both of his hands off; and (b) he would never father a second child, as she would also cut off his…
Kitty ended up using her tablet to play soothing music rather than work; she could not concentrate for long enough between the contractions, her mind working overtime as she anticipated the next one. Her labour was blessedly a short one, and in no time at all, Artie was proudly announcing the birth of his daughter, Meghan Catherine Abrams. Kitty shamelessly admitted that she had chosen to name her child after two duchesses, and Meghan had come first as the former Ms Markle was a woman that her she admired; she was strong and inspirational, all things that her child would do well to emulate. As for Artie, his little girl was just perfection, and from the way that he doted on her, they all could see that she would definitely end up as a daddy's girl…
Christmas came and went, and soon it was the last day of the year. It arrived to find an increasingly grumpy Mercedes in Boston, waiting for her waters to break; she was now a few days overdue. She was jealous of the three new sets of parents that had already had their child; then again, they had seen the inevitable descent of doting grandparents a week before, except of course on the Upper East Side. There had nevertheless been a pile of gifts for Aaron Wilson from the Bernsteins and his parents, not that Flint would ever let his mother know about it, as it would have horrified all of her religious sensibilities.
As Mercedes waited, there were those for whom the last day of the year meant work. One of those was young Colin, who had worked his way up through the structure in Duane Reed as he continued his pharmacy studies, and was now working as an assistant dispenser; it was good training for the day that he would be an officially qualified pharmacist. He had been rostered to work in his usual branch near home, but when he got there he was asked if he would go to a more out of the way store a little further downtown, as the pharmacist there had both of their assistants off sick. He agreed, and when he arrived at the other branch, he was welcomed, and quickly built up a rapport with the pharmacist. She was delighted to discover that he was training for the job, as it meant that she had no qualms about asking him to make up the repeat prescriptions on his own.
He was doing this quite happily until he came to the final one in the pile, and he stopped short as he read the name and address. If that was a shock, worse was to come when he saw what drugs were on the order, as he knew what they were used to treat. At first it was all that he could do not to just burst into tears, but then he pulled himself together, took a deep breath, and detached himself like a good pharmacist should. That said, making up Seth's repeat prescription was still one of the hardest things he had ever done…
Colin was on his break thankfully when Seth arrived to pick up his medication; the door was open though and he heard his friend's familiar tones as he asked for them, and then repeating the address of the house that they both called home. A lump formed in his throat then, leaving him unable to finish the sandwich he had been eating. He was very glad that he had not been on the counter as his friend had come in; it would have been mortifying to have had to hand the bag over. That was of course if his friend had even stayed to take them from him, and had not bolted straight out the door the moment that he saw him, realising that his cover had been blown and that his secret was out. Colin felt tears forming in his eyes, as he realised that he was now the unwilling keeper of a deadly secret; he let them roll, thinking that he was unobserved….
"You knew one of those people, didn't you? One of the regulars that had a repeat prescription to collect?" came a sympathetic voice, and he looked up to see the pharmacist at the door. He nodded sadly, and she sighed. "They obviously chose to collect their pills here because they never expected you to be here. But you were here, and now you know something that you wish you didn't. I've been where you are now, but that was 40 years ago, when I was fresh out of school. I was, like you, sent to a different branch than usual to cover, and I found myself making up prescriptions for two of my male college classmates, for the early drugs they used to try and fight HIV… Two guys that I knew well, and would never have imagined being in that situation. The worst thing is the knowing, and knowing that you can't tell anyone that you know, particularly them…"
"It was for one of my housemates," said Colin quietly. "I might be wrong, I hope I am, but I think I just made up a prescription for the 'cocktail' of drugs that they use to counter the early effects of MND. He is only a year older than me… What is worst is that now that I think about it, there are actually indications…"
The pharmacist walked over, and placed a hand on his shoulder. "He will tell you in good time, when he is ready. If it is any sort of consolation, I have known people that have lived with the condition, and managed it, for decades…"
Colin nodded, and then the counter bell rang, and the pharmacist was gone to serve the next customer. The afternoon went quickly, but he was still glad when it was finally time for him to head home to his husband. He sent him a text to say that he was on his way, and gave an approximate time, calculated on where he had been working, something he revealed to his husband then. Edward responded at once, and told him that he would have dinner ready; that made Colin smile, not that he actually had much of an appetite though, if he was being honest. A large part of him hoped that Seth was out, or in his room; anywhere but in front of him at the dinner table…
His discovery had changed everything and until Seth was able to confess the truth, their relationship would be awkward. Part of him wanted to take Edward aside that night and suggest that it was time for them to strike out on their own, even if it meant living in a much smaller place in a less desirable neighbourhood. But that would only lead to other problems, not least the reason for their decision to go, which would have to be given to the other four in the house - and Edward would want to know why too…
He entered the house to find Edward on his own in the kitchen, and to his relief he saw the table was only set for two. "Luke and Duncan are at Niff's," said Edward as he walked over to give him a kiss. "Skylar is at the Spotlight working a last minute shift, but he will be home for midnight. Now sit down, and I'll get dinner."
Colin gratefully took a seat, breathing in the smell of the chicken stew that his husband had made; he smiled widely as he saw that his husband had also made dumplings, one of his guilty pleasures. The plate was set in front of him, and he waited out of manners for his husband to join him, his appetite restored. Edward took his usual seat next to him, and kissed his cheek again. They began to eat then in companionable silence, no words needed between them.
Then Seth walked in to get himself a glass of juice. As he poured it, he remarked, "You two are very quiet tonight. Then again, Colin, you look exhausted; busy shift?"
Before Colin could speak, Edward said "He had a long shift in the first place, and on top of that, they moved him from his usual store due to a staff shortage; they moved him to the branch on…"
Everything slowed down for Colin after that. He could not stop Edward saying the street name; it was too late, and the conversation with his husband afterwards would have been a nightmare. He saw the sudden look of horror on Seth's face immediately afterward, the glass falling from his hand as it twitched involuntarily at Edward's words, to shatter on the tiled floor. The noise that it made was deafening for Colin; it was the sound of a secret being revealed, a trust broken. Then Edward was on his feet, asking Seth if he was okay, fetching a dustpan, brush and mop. Colin felt Seth's eyes on him, and he had to look back at him, showing him all the pain that he felt.
Seth's face though was a perfect mask, and he swiftly returned to normality. He was quick to apologise, and when Edward made to clean up, he insisted that he should do it and let him return to his food. Seth then headed back to his room, and Edward made no connection between his words and Seth's accident. Once they had finished their dinner, the young couple snuggled together on the sofa, watching trash television.
Skylar arrived home just before midnight, and made his way upstairs, dragging a reluctant Seth into the lounge so that they could welcome in 2022 together. Colin alone seemed to notice his red rimmed eyes. Then the ball dropped in Times Square on the television screen, and it was time for hugs and handshakes. As Skylar pulled Edward into a hug, Colin found himself being pulled into Seth's.
"I'm not ready," Seth whispered in his ear.
"I'm so sorry…"
"I'm sorry too. And I will tell them soon, I promise…"
Then Edward was pulling Colin from Seth's arms, jokingly asking for his husband back. Seth laughed at that, and then had a fit of giggles as Skylar grabbed him in both arms, and went so far as to peck him on the cheek. Seth knew now however that this was the year he had to come clean. It would be hard for him. He could see how devastated Colin was, and it would be so much harder for the young man that had his arms wrapped around him right now…
As the year began in an awkward fashion for some in New York, in the Thompson household in Boston the actual moment passed by unnoticed. With only half an hour of 2021 left, Mercedes had finally realised that things were at last happening. She smiled a little at the thought that her child had just really wanted to be born in 2022. She had also not needed to say anything to her mother-in-law; her little gasp as her waters had broken had been all that Mrs Thompson had needed to hear to get up from her chair and tell her son that it was time. For his part, David had felt a little stunned at first, but then all of the stuff that he had been mentally preparing for since the day he had found out that his wife was pregnant had come to the fore. The bag that she would be taking with her to the hospital was already packed, and one quick phone call was all that was required to ensure that the nursing staff would be ready for their arrival at the facility.
As the rest of the world was celebrating the arrival of a New Year, David was sat in the back of the car that was taking them discretely to the back entrance of the hospital, where the staff had been told to expect a Mrs Harwood. Thad had been only to happy to allow them to use his name in an attempt to stymie the paparazzi, and ensure that they would not be swamped by them the moment they left the car. His mother had also helped by calling the offices of Mercedes' record company to tell them she was in labour, then giving them the name of a hospital miles out of town, just in case there was a leak there. It meant that they could enter the hospital without any additional stress, although both of them knew that when they left, it would be under the full glare of publicity…
At six in the morning, David still found himself slumped in a chair by his wife's bedside as he awaited developments; her contractions had not speeded up any in the last few hours, and she was actually now starting to doze off. The nurses had informed them that there were a handful of media people outside, but as yet no sign of the television crews. David had only told Thad what was going on, and that was only because the Head Warbler had called his best friend to wish him a Happy New Year just after midnight; on hearing were they where, he had wished them all the best and had then rung off. David now couldn't help but wonder if his best friend had been awake all night like him, awaiting news, or whether he had managed to get himself some sleep… Suddenly Mercedes sat bolt upright and let out a whine, before gasping "They're much faster now; something is definitely happening…"
David pushed the call button then, and crossed his fingers; he would alter swear that the next hour was the longest of his life, longer even than the time in L.A. after the earthquake. The fact that he escaped only with bruised fingers was also nothing short of a miracle. He stayed at his wife's side throughout the process, watching as she brought a new life into the world with awe and pride. The moment that he heard the first cries of his child as they came into the world made his heart swell with paternal pride and happiness. He was a father, and nothing could ever take that away from him now. As he watched the nurses getting their child ready for them to hold, he had bent down to kiss a tired Mercedes, and to thank her for giving him the most precious gift in the world.
Then the nurses were back, and placing a bundle in her arms, and David looked on, smiling at the most perfect little boy that was staring back at him. "Hello there," he whispered. "I'm your dad, and the woman holding you is your mom, the most beautiful woman in the world. We promise you here and now that we will do our best to raise you well, to be firm, but fair, and to always love you, whatever happens, Simon…"
Thad had indeed stayed awake for a while after he had spoken to David, in case the process was swift, but in the end exhaustion had claimed him and he had stumbled into his bed, to fall asleep the moment that his head hit the pillow. He awoke the first day of the year to find a message on his phone, and a picture of mother, father and son. He knew exactly why they had chosen their son's name, and he knew that it would be casing pleasure in the angelic realm too. To call his son after his late brother was just such a David thing to do…
Thad could also picture the reaction of Mrs Thompson, and the smile he anticipated was very much in evidence when the lady met her grandson for the first time later that day. The joy was shared all through the Warbler world, with messages of love and congratulations flooding the phones of David and Mercedes. It was not a complete surprise to David when Mitch and Gabriel arrived that afternoon, the latter stating that he had come in the stead of Thad, who would have come himself that day had he been nearer, but would arrive in just a few days.
Later that afternoon, as a quiet spell hit the hospital, five angels arrived in the room where the young couple and their son were; Kurt, Finn and Blaine headed straight for Mercedes, whilst Wes headed straight over to his best friend, sat by the crib in which his son lay. He said nothing, leaving the words to the angel at his side, David's older brother and the namesake of the new born. "He is just perfect, like his parents; my nephew, the boy I will be guardian angel to…" Simon stopped then, a broad smile on his face; a grin that was matched by the one on the face of the new father…
The new year was going to be one of change for all of them. Most immediately, Santana was leaving Cabaret, as it was impossible to play the role of Sally Bowles when she was pregnant. As her pregnancy progressed her moods softened, a complete reversal of what had happened with Izzy. Her departure meant that the show closed, as Sebastian too was about to embark on a very different role. His drama breakthrough was coming, and he found himself scheduled to play the Prince of Denmark; in some was the part of Hamlet was made for him, the young man tormented by the pain and stress of family life. He was nervous about it though, and he jokingly told Cooper that he might well have been better off if he had chosen to appear in the flop referred to at the start of The Producers, Funny Boy….
The show in question was scheduled for a February opening, which meant that as the year began Cooper and Sam were in nearly constant rehearsal, given the huge amount of choreography for one thing, especially for Sam. He had coped with it though, with a little behind the scenes coaching from Mike; he had managed to shrug off all the comments made by Puck and others about how he had better watch out that he didn't make Rachel too jealous when he was dancing with all those ladies in his big number, I Wanna be a Producer, although he had to admit to himself that she had asked a lot of questions about the women in question. He had replied diplomatically that none of them were as beautiful in his eyes as she was…
Then there was the fact that all of them were aware that in the middle of the year, Nick and Jeff would be leaving, tearing a hole in the heart of the little community in the West Village. It was true that they were only going to London for a year, but with them away, there would be quite the void to fill…
By the time that February rolled in, the changes were beginning to make themselves all too obvious. With so many new parents, the group gatherings that had once seemed so simple were now a massive logistical challenge, given that they needed to arrange sitters, or if they came with the children, then there was the sheer amount of stuff they had to carry for even a short trip. Flint regarded himself as the luckiest of them all, as the nanny that the Bernsteins had insisted upon was a Mary Poppins like presence in his home, albeit without sliding up banisters. He was enjoying his life more than he expected to as a father; if it carried on in the same vein, he imagined himself running to Central Park one day, overwhelmed by the urge to fly a kite… Izzy was happy too, and had returned to work, and her shift pattern. That did mean that Flint had a few sleepless nights to contend with, but any time he had to sit by his son's bedside in the small hours of the morning, he felt no stress, just an enormous sense of wellbeing and calm.
Sebastian and Dave had external childcare too, but they both still felt guilty when they left their daughter with the sitter. She however rationalised the whole thing for them simply. They had to provide for their daughter, and that meant that they had to work. As she said, the love that they had for her was obvious to everyone, and every spare moment that both of them had was spent with her. She could not have hoped to be working for two better parents…
Sam was also spending more time away from his daughter than he would have liked thanks to his show rehearsals, but that was not forever, and once the show had opened he would have much more free time to spend with his family. Rachel had surprised everyone by being quite content to stay at home and be a mom; some had even asked if she was quite well. As the lady in question said, it was all about the priorities, and right now her daughter was the only thing that mattered.
As for David and Mercedes, the former's mother had shown no great hurry to return to Ohio, although she had made a point of assuring the couple that she had no intentions of moving in forever; she would go home once she felt that they had everything set up satisfactorily for her grandson.
Beats observed all of this, and smiled to himself as he observed the tiredness, the stress, the chaos; this was why he had chosen to foster older kids. So far Dante had been no trouble at all, doing well at school, and behaving with the most impeccable of manners. It just went to show what could be achieved when a kid was shown a little love and attention, and more importantly, were taken away from the bad influences around them.
And then there was Ethan, quietly content and occupied with other things. At the start of the month Leo had announced that he was intending to get his own place, as he had decided he would propose to his long term girlfriend on Valentine's Day, and he wanted to have a suitable home in the making. Ethan was not at all surprised, and had been anticipating such a move; he had decided that he was in no hurry to get a new roommate though. It might have bothered him once, but now being alone was actually no problem at all…
As well as that, he had a trip to undertake; his mom had decided that he should be the one to go to Great Ormond Street to hand over the 'cheque' from the Mackenzie Foundation, although they both knew that the money had already been handed over, and this was all about publicity. He had agreed, but only if his face was not splashed all over the media. It would be strange for him to return to England, and harder still when he knew that Drew was in the same country, and not all that far away, but out of contact, and likely to stay that way. When he mentioned the trip, Sebastian suggested that he took advantage of it and head on to Paris for a few days; he was sure that François could be persuaded to meet him and show him the sights. It was too tempting an offer for Ethan to refuse. He was going on a voyage of discovery after a return to places that he knew, and that was as it should be. His one hope was that he might meet Drew by chance, but he knew that the chances of that were very slim indeed…