A/N: I got the idea for this story from a few fan fics I've read, but the rest of the story is from my imagination. Thank you to those writers for their amazing stories. I hope that this does their ideas justice.
Helen looked around the incredibly small hospital room and groaned. Why can't Vienna have normal hospital rooms like other countries? And what were they doing in Austria anyway? They should have been in Nantucket, where they belonged. The thought made her cry. And then she winced. The pain was getting worse and worse by the minute. Whoever said that having children was supposed to be the happiest time of her life was a complete moron.
Beside her was Joe, holding her hand, speaking words of encouragement. But she didn't want to hear them. She didn't want to hear anything.
"You okay, hon?"
She shot him a look that she was sure he knew all too well; one that meant that she was not in the mood for his so-called sympathy. How would he know about having a baby?
"Am I okay? Am I okay?" She shouted, her voice increasing several octaves. "I'll have you know that I am most certainly not okay, Joe Hackett! I'm stuck in this… shoebox of a hospital room, thousands of miles away from home, big as a house!"
Joe grinned. "Just a small house."
"WHAT?"
"Nothing. It was a joke."
"It's not funny!"
"I know, I'm sorry. But it will all be over soon. Just relax!"
"I can't relax! Don't you get it? I worked so hard to lose all of that weight and now look at me!"
He brought her hand to his lips. "I am looking at you. And you're beautiful."
Her eyes filled with tears. "Really?"
"Would I say it if it wasn't true? You are the most beautiful woman I've ever seen."
"I'm fat, Joe!"
"You're pregnant, Helen! That's the way it's supposed to happen! But once our son or daughter is born, all of that weight will disappear. You'll see."
"That's what you think! I-Ow! Oh! Ow! Ow! It hurts!" she squeezed his hand harder, unaware of the way he winced.
"Honey, honey, please, relax, okay? It won't be much longer." He glanced at his watch. "Now how far apart are the contractions?"
"How in the heck should I know? From Boston to New York!"
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me!"
"Honey-."
"Don't honey me, Joe Hackett! You got me into this mess!"
"Well, if I'm remembering correctly, you had a big part in it."
"Don't you do that!"
"Do what?"
"Blame me for this!"
"I'm not blaming you! I just-."
" You-you…OH! Ow! OW! Make it stop!"
"Another contraction? Already?"
Oh no…
Joe's heart was beating wildly and he'd never felt more helpless. Here he was, an experienced pilot who could land a Cessna (okay, crash-land) in the ocean, but when it came to helping his wife through childbirth, he was completely clueless. With a trembling hand, he pushed the call button repeatedly, sending two nurses scrambling into the room.
"What's wrong?" one of them asked. "Is she ready?"
"Um… my wife, she's…"
"I'M IN LABOR!" Helen screamed.
The nurses approached her at once. One of them glanced at the monitor and the other trying to calm her. Joe's level of helplessness hit an all time high.
"JOE!" Helen screamed. For some reason the sound of his name made him happy, even though his wife was in must have been agonizing pain. For a moment, he wished he could trade places with her. But only for a minute. He'd never been good with pain.
"What should I do? I-I…"
"How far apart are the contractions?" the nurse asked.
"Um, Boston to New York."
Both nurses looked at him, their eyebrows raised.
"Excuse me?"
"I-I don't know, but they're quick."
"JOE! JOE! Where are you?" Helen screamed.
He was beside her in an instant, holding her hand. "I'm right here, honey. Everything's fine."
"We're ready here. We're going to move her into delivery now."
"N-now? You mean it's time?" Joe stammered.
"Stay here for a minute, okay?"
The nurses checked the monitor again and then their watches. "Here we go."
"Wait, you're doing this now?"
"Unless you want your child to be born in here, which I don't recommend." One of the nurses said.
"Would you prefer they move me into delivery after the baby's born?" Helen snapped. "Now shut up and let them do their jobs!"
Joe sighed, trying not to let Helen's words hurt him. He knew it was just the pain talking, but still… He watched, as Helen was placed on the gurney and hooked up to an IV.
"Wha-what do I need to do?"
"Just wait here, okay? Someone will come to get you."
"Oh… Okay."
"And put these on over your clothes. You're going to need them."
"I-Okay… but what about-."
"She'll be fine. Just put those on and someone will be back in a minute."
"Well, can I at least kiss her goodbye?"
"I'm not dying, Joe!" Helen lifted her head from the gurney. "I'm not, am I?"
"Of course not." The nurse replied. "And yes, you can kiss your husband."
Joe smiled and walked over to her, when he leaned down to kiss her, he realized that Prince Charming must have felt this way when he kissed Sleeping Beauty. Although Helen definitely wasn't sleeping. "I'll see you in a few minutes, okay?"
"All right."
And then she was gone.
Joe stood in the room alone, feeling helpless. Everything was going to work out. He just knew it. The hospital was a good one. Doctor Richardson was an excellent doctor and Joe knew that he would never recommend anything less than the best hospital. Still he couldn't help but worry. He held up the blue scrubs, wondering why he had to wear them. He wasn't the patient. He supposed it was to keep germs away. And that was a good thing.
"Mr. Hackett? Are you ready?"
He gasped lightly. Gee, he wasn't anywhere near ready.
"I-No, I'm not."
"Well, hurry up because the baby's going to be here soon and I don't think you want to miss it!"
"Um… no. No I don't. I'm sorry."
He scrambled to put on the scrubs which wasn't easy form the way his fingers were trembling.
"Okay, I'm ready." He announced.
"Follow me."
As he walked down the hallway, a sense of coincidence came over him. He wasn't sure if it was the scrubs, but he liked to think so. "I can do this! I can! I'm ready!"
"Great. Just come through theses doors. But make sure your mask is on tightly."
Once he entered the swinging double doors, his heart began to race. The nurses led him to a small room that wasn't much bigger than last one. The sight of Helen made his heart warm and he lowed his mask and kissed her impulsively before returning it to his face.
"All right, are we ready?"
She squeezed his hand. "Joe, I'm scared!"
"I'm scared too honey. But we'll make it though this. I can't wait to meet our son or daughter."
"Me either… But Joe… OH! OW!"
"What's happening? What is it?"
"We're ready. How are you doing Helen?"
Joe extended his hand. "I'm fine. It's nice to see you, Dr. Richardson?"
"He was talking to me!" Helen yelled.
"Oh… well, she's fine. I think."
"I'm… OH! It hurts! Get it out!"
"Helen, how can you say that about our child?"
"You want to trade places?"
"Um, no, but-."
Dr. Richardson lifted Helen's feet, placed them onto metal stirrups, and asked her to scoot her body down as far as she could. "Okay, are we ready?"
"I-I think so." Joe stammered.
"Okay, Helen, just relax, all right? This baby is ready to come out any second now. I'm going to ask you to push in a minute, okay? Joe, would you like to watch the birth of your first child?"
"Really? I can?"
Dr. Richardson laughed. "Well, of course you can! Come over here."
Eagerly he walked over to where Dr. Richardson sat. "All right, Helen, start pushing as hard as you can."
"OW! OOOHHH!"
"That's it! Keep going. I can see the head!"
"OH, it hurts!"
"Keep going, Helen! You're almost there!"
Joe watched in amazement as the doctor gently began delivering the baby. He saw the head, and the shoulders. And then nothing.