Nola smiled, "I'd appreciate any kind of company as long as I don't get cabin fever...I hate being stuck inside by force..", kissing him on the lips, when she felt pain, moaning and gasping as the first contraction came, and Sweet replied, chuckling, "Are they asking for attention again?".
"No...Something's wrong...It's too early! I...I can't be in labor right now!", Nola wrenched in pain, tears in the corner of her eyes, as she can suddenly pinpoint the contractions around one of the babies, still not knowing that her incoming baby is not in danger by being presumably 6 months old, too fragile to survive the outside world without the support of an incubator when they are actually full term.
"Shit!", Sweet cursed as his mind started to race with both what to do medically as well as concern being that it was his wife and child at stake at the moment. "Okay, take a few deep breaths, let's just take this, one moment at a time!".
Moses replied quickly, "Carry her, son! Let's head back to the healer center as they got incubators there!", as he helped pick up Nola into Sweet's arms, and then ran as best as they could, ahead of their son who is steadily running, not wanting to jar his wife or the children too much into danger, turning back to the healer center.
Nola took deep breaths as she moaned and gasped at a contraction every few minutes, her hands clenching into her husband's tunic and shoulder, "It hurts, Joshua...I'm scared!", and Sweet replied, "I know, Nola...This must be the surface childbirth mode for this one...We will save them, Nola...We got incubators to keep them warm and safe, we will have the best functional one for our baby...".
Nola nodded. "Please... I can't lose them...", she whispered as Sweet kissed her forehead and squeezed her hand, "You won't, we won't lose any of them, I'm positive...".
Nola can feel the determination in her husband's tone and felt a bit better to know that she isn't alone as she would need the support in this situation and took another deep breath as she moaned in pain.
It only took a few minutes to make it to the healer center, as Sweet took his wife to the nearest available room of the maternity/delivery wing, with the healers preparing the incubator on Atlantean power, with Jerika preparing the bed, with Moses coming in with a tray of hot water, towels, food, and such.
"Rest her here, Jojo. I'll have to see how far she is.", Jerika replied as Sweet carefully and quickly laid Nola as she gasped and moaned in pain, while Jerika took to take a blanket over her legs, removing Nola's sarong and undergarments, checking on her.
Jerika replied, "She's halfway dilated. Did the water bag break yet?", and Sweet replied, "No, it hasn't.".
"Okay. Let's just help her be comfortable...There's no bleeding or anything since it isn't a miscarriage...But this is going to be a long while.", Jerika nodded.
"Is that a good sign then? Maybe something isn't as wrong?", Moses suggested as Sweet shook his head, "No idea; won't know for certain until it's here... just praying that maybe it's just a slightly quicker birth and all; that the triplets all are mostly grown, and we might just need some extra provisions with them to make up some missed time.".
Nola moaned at another contraction, taking a deep breath, looking at Sweet, "I hope you're right, Joshua...But this hurts...Is this normal for a surface childbirth of timing?".
Jerika assured her, "It is...Now, you better save your energy...Good thing that the center got a cafeteria.", and Nola nodded, managing to eat some slices of fruit from the tray that Moses brought closer to her.
Upon hearing the news that Nola is in labor, the planned mission is decided to be postponed a bit longer, due to Bucky insisting that it's better not to worry when not knowing how they're doing as Nola is one of the family, and so, it took three hours before Nola cried out for the first time in pain as the water bag broke and the contractions increasing in pace and intensity.
Jerika looked, checking, "You're just of 3/4 dilated, Nola! Couldn't be much longer now.", as Sweet held her hand, feeling with a slight wince to realize that Nola's strength is stronger than his strength somehow, probably thanks to the adrenaline and pain.
"Now I know how Sia and Abraham felt!", Nola groaned, fighting the urge to push as she ain't going to disobey her new mother figure's orders, and Sweet brushed her wet hair back, "We're all here, Nola...I'm scared too, but I know you are strong, and damn your age, as you can do this!", glancing appreciatively at his father at the other side of the bed, carefully fluffing the pillows and adjusting the bed, and his mother, as she's clearly determined to be the midwife to help deliver this baby as it's her first grandchild.
"Just a bit more, Nola... just a bit more...", Sweet whispered as he squeezed her hand again before Nola cried out with pain. "That was a rough contraction; even I can see that!", Jerika told them.
Moses replied, "That means full dilation is sure to be close!", with a nod as he gently wiped Nola's forehead with a towel, giving Nola a warm smile. Nola gave him a small, tearful smile, even if she's riddled with pain, her husband's right...Her newfound family is here with her, and it warms her heart with so much joy and love as she long missed this ever since she lost her first family in her ex-first loves.
A half hour passes, with Nola crying out in pain from the increasing contractions every two minutes, managing to drink some water, and then at the half mark of the clock, Nola gasped in surprise and pain, "Oh, gods, I feel them pressing on my hips, moving into the canal!".
Jerika looked, "Yes, you're in the clear! Push! Give your baby a nudge into the canal!", and Nola, upon another contraction, pushed, crying out in pain, taking deep breaths as she half sat, half laid, looking at the blanket blocking the view, "Ma, can you please move the blanket? I need to see for myself...".
"Well, I suppose that's fair as the sun's going down due to the fact that we're long into the afternoon, and I'd need to see better.", Jerika nodded as she removed the blanket, and looked, "Keep breathing and push! It's gonna be a while yet!".
Nola obeyed her, gritting her teeth between pushing upon contractions and crying out in pain, clutching into Sweet's hand, and it was two hours before she shouted in pain and frustration, getting tired, "Is it coming?!", and Jerika replied, "Oh, yes! Barely, it's peeking slowly! Steady now, Nola!".
Sweet laughed, "We're almost there, Nola! You can do this!", and Nola panted, taking deep breaths, with tears, "Please tell me that the baby's headfirst!".
"Can't tell from the peeking yet! Breathe, Nola!", Jerika told her, and Nola nodded, taking deep breaths, and then grunted as she cried out loudly in pain, pushing, as her loud cries became into yells of pain, as it lasted another half hour before Jerika gasped softly in joy, looking up at Nola with tears of relief and happiness, "Oh, oh, yes, it's coming headfirst with a beautiful patch of black hair like us! The head's not tiny or fragile, it's practically a full-formed head, almost halfway out!", as they were so scared that it'd be a preemie, especially Nola.
"Fully formed?", Nola whispered as she cried again from another push. "Don't know if we need to worry too much about it being premature...", Jerika gave a small laugh. "That'll probably take a load off everyone's shoulders...".
"We're not out of the woods yet here, Mother!", Sweet reminded. Jerika nodded, "Yes, of course, my son. Steady pushes, Nola!", and Nola took deep breaths, steadily pushing as she yelled in pain, clutching harder into Sweet's hand as it was more painful with the head and shoulders stretching her beyond, lasting another half hour.
"Good, good! Two more pushes should do it for the last of the shoulders!", Jerika encouraged, and Nola panted tiredly, "I...I can't do it...", tears in her eyes.
Sweet caressed her face, "Hey, hey, look at me, my beautiful hummingbird...We're so close to having our baby into the world, and I want to see them as much as you do...You can do this.", with a loving and determined smile, and Nola looked at him for a moment before nodding, "Okay...I love you, Joshua...".
"I love you too, Nola...Now bring our baby with all you can.", Sweet nodded, and Nola smiled before taking deep breaths, and then pushed, grunting as she shouted in pain, barely seeing her new mother helping deliver the baby almost from sight, feeling the shoulders pop free, and with a final push as she shouted in pain, she finally felt relief as she dropped back into the pillows, panting, sweaty and such.
And then came the most beautiful sound of her life, an echoing cry of life as she looked tiredly yet happily as Jerika announced with a beaming smile, "It's a beautiful girl, and she's absolutely healthy, not even a speck of prematureness anywhere!", as she held a wiggling, shivering, wailing bundle of life, with Moses handing her a new towel to fold around their new granddaughter to keep her warm.
Nola sobbed in relief when she heard the last part and was overjoyed to hear that she has a girl...a healthy girl...She looked over to see her husband crying with tears, staring at the same sight, "Joshua...I did it...We did it...She's okay...", with a wide smile as Jerika walked around the bed to hand the crying newborn baby into Nola's arms.
Even with the speckles of goop, blood, and such, their daughter was already so beautiful with that soft, fine patch of black hair, having almost like a light ebony skin tone, a shade darker than Nola's skin tone, but lighter than Sweet's skin tone, with Nola's nose, Sweet's dimples, and as Nola shushed her daughter gently and lovingly, kissing her forehead, murmuring, "Mommy's here...It's okay...", the newborn's eyes fluttered open to reveal Nola's bright blue eyes.
"She looks wonderful...", Sweet sighed. "No sign of prematurity...", he said as he shook his head in amazement. "Something to do with the Heart?", he asked Nola as she nodded, "Has to be... I just wish it gave me a sign that this was going to be fine... I was so scared for hours that she wasn't ready...".
Sweet replied, "Well, maybe the Heart was more focused on the map and the glowing path.", with a shrug, before smiling softly as he gently caressed the newborn's head, almost dwarfing his big hand, "She's beautiful like you...She got your eyes and nose...".
Nola chuckled, "She's also like you too, Joshua...And looks like another fact is true that some things can skip a generation, for she's like her grandparents with her patch of hair.", with a smile.
Moses laughed, "Indeed. So, are you going with your pre-chosen name for her; Rirra Mosi Sweet?", with a smile, and Nola looked down at her daughter. She certainly popped out of nowhere, surprising her parents, and then her eyes widened slightly before smiling as she realized that Mole might have had a tiny part in this as he is part of the Heart's heavens and all, being a Atlantean friend and hero.
"You have something else, my beautiful hummingbird?", Sweet asked softly and curiously as he saw the expressions changing on his wife's face, and Nola looked at him, "I hope you don't mind, Joshua, my teddy bear, but I was thinking Gabriella for a first name in honor of Mole.", with a gentle smile as she heard names from Jacques sometimes when she was thinking of a name for the third child.
And now, it looks like the third child has become the firstborn, and now as Nola is not feeling any more contractions or any notion of any other signs of labor, she felt that her remaining two babies are on either side of her womb, showing that her daughter was in the middle between them.
"I like it...", Sweet said. "Mole would've liked it too, I'm sure...". He then paused for a moment, "How are you feeling?"
"Pretty good...", Nola admitted. "Strange... the contractions have stopped...". Sweet looked curious and surprised, "May I check?", gesturing with his crystal, and Nola nodded, "Better to be safe than sorry.", taking a note from her husband.
Sweet smiled lightly, and then went to lean in, breathing warm air on his crystal, and pressing it to Nola's baby bump that has decreased somewhat in size, but still big, scanning, and he blinked in surprise, "I guess our daughter is the lucky one who got the boost to being full term, as our other children are still 6 months along, and they're alright...And do you want to know the genders now since I'm checking?".
Nola was surprised to hear that the other two babies are still developing as of now, and she exhaled warmly, "Well, there's no fairness if you don't tell your own wife that you are checking upon.", with a smirk and a quirked eyebrow.
"Touche.", Sweet chuckled, and smiled, "Well, looks like we are going to be parents of a boy, and a second girl.", and Nola smiled widely, so happy to hear that they have a son and a second daughter, "Looks like we got our wishes then next to this surprising little one. Rirra Mosi Sweet and Jivin Daniel Sweet.", as Sweet removed his crystal from the baby bump, feeling hearty kicks.
He laughed, "I believe you're right, Nola. They are saying yes to those names already...", as he then turned his attention to their daughter, Gabriella, "And as for your middle name, Gabriella...", humming thoughtfully for a moment before smiling, "How about Nilah? I hear it means success.", as N is the first initial of his wife, and she worked hard to give birth to their daughter which came out as a successful first time of childbirth.
"Perfect... Gabriella Nilah Sweet... looks so fitting for her.", Nola said as Sweet took a deep breath. "I really need some rest...", she admitted as Sweet nodded, "Yeah, stressful day, I'm sure... to be fair, I could use some too with how much I worried as well.".
Gabriella gurgled, looking at her parents before her belly grumbled hungrily, and Nola chuckled, "You deserve a good meal after all, my sweet Gabi.", as Jerika helped take off her bra, and Nola adjusted her daughter to her breast, latching into the nipple instantly as she began to suckle.
Jerika smiled wryly, "Like father, like daughter.", and Sweet blushed, "Ma!", as Moses laughed warmly, "We will leave you two, and besides, I think the extended family would want to hear the good news as they must have been worried for you and little Gabriella.".
"Thank you, Poppa...", Nola smiled, and glanced at Jerika, "Ma, I'm glad that you helped.", with a grateful smile, and Jerika nodded, "Naturally. I would never shrink from such an occasion.", with a smile at her beautiful granddaughter, and she joined her husband, leaving the room, after making a quick job of taking out the placenta and recovering Nola's legs with the blanket.
Nola whispered, "I still can't believe that she's here, Joshua...", settling back to sleep, keeping a warm, secure hold on their daughter as she fed upon her breast.
"Just rest easy, Nola... it'll all be good. Let's focus on Gabriella for a few months and then we'll deal with the twins in due course... then we'll all be happy together.", Sweet whispered.
Nola smiled sleepily, "Yes...we'll live happily ever after...", kissing him softly on the lips, and fell asleep, and Sweet smiled, brushing his wife's hair back gently, and kissed his daughter's forehead softly as she was focused on her first full meal.
Indeed, the extended family of the Thatches, the Nedakhs, the Ramirez/Barnes was beyond relieved and happy when they heard the good news from Jerika and Moses, and seeing that they were stressed waiting and worrying, Kida was polite enough to say that the mission will be beginning in the new morning.
The Sweet family was lucky that they got a nursery complete the previous month, interconnected to Sweet and Nola's bedroom, through Nola was insistent to have the bassinet in the room for night feedings, and she told Kida about needing maternity leave, and Kida was all too understanding and happy for it, as Sweet and his father is now taking over healer duties.
The small group headed off in the new morning, with the magical blueprint map guiding the way, and since they don't know how long it would take, they are planning to be careful all the same with camping out at night and riding all day with breaks for meals and stretching their sore muscles of sitting and such.