Here's the chapter everybody's been waiting for! Enjoy :)

"Labor?" I exclaimed. "I can't be going into labor. I'm not due for another three weeks."

I felt panic surge through me, and Karolina reached out and grabbed my hand. She squeezed it gently.

"Breathe, Rose," she said. "It's going to be okay. Labor typically lasts hours, and there's a good chance that you won't actually have your baby until tomorrow. Call Dimitri."

I nodded, taking a couple of shaky breaths. Karolina led me into the living room, draping a blanket over my shoulders once I settled on the couch. She handed me my phone, and I held down the power button, murmuring, "Call Dimitri" once the AI popped up. I clicked the speaker button on the phone, unable to bring it to my ear. It rang through to voicemail, and I groaned. I hung up and immediately called back but got the same response.

I probed at the bond, jumping briefly into Lissa's head. I didn't have to be in Lissa's head for long to see that she was in a Council meeting – and a loud one at that. It was one open to the public, and while there wasn't as much chaos as there was when the age law was announced, it was a close call. A quick look into Lissa's head told me that was their topic today as well, but she had managed to keep the crowd somewhat pacified. For a moment, I wished that I could send messages through the bond to her.

Instead, I tried calling her. I watched from inside her head as her phone started vibrating from under her laptop. I knew Lissa usually didn't keep her phone out during Council meetings, so I was surprised to see it on the desk in front of her, but I wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. She shifted her laptop and grabbed her phone, quickly silencing it. She glanced down and saw that I was calling. I watched as she turned slightly in her seat, meeting Dimitri's eyes from where he was standing against the wall closest to her. It made sense that he'd be the closest guard to her. She passed him the phone without a word, and I watched as he took the phone, answering it.

I pulled out of her head as I heard Dimitri speak. "One second, Roza."

The sound on the other side of the phone was muffled, and I faintly heard Dimitri calling for coverage, and a few moments later, he was back on the phone.

"Is everything okay?" Dimitri said.

"I don't know," I whispered. "Karolina thinks I've gone into labor."

"It's early," he said. I could hear the hint of panic in his voice and knew he was fighting to keep it off his face.

"That's what I said. There's still a good chance that my labor will take a while, though," I said.

"I'll leave now," he murmured. "I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Okay," I whispered. "I don't think I can do this without you."

"You're in good hands with my family, Roza," Dimitri said. "Call me if anything changes. I love you."

"I will," I promised. "I love you, too."

As I hung up the call, I slipped back into Lissa's head and watched as Dimitri approached. He leaned down close to her, his lips nearly touching her ear as he told her I had gone into labor. I felt the overwhelming emotions surge through her and into the bond. I jerked out of her head, throwing up a wall. I couldn't handle her emotions on top of my own at the moment.

"Rose?" I turned, surprised to see Karolina sitting next to me on the couch. "How are you feeling?"

I shrugged. "I'm nervous. And I'm not ready. Dimitri and I haven't even picked a name yet. We were going to do it when he got here next week."

Karolina nodded. "It can be a bit overwhelming. It'll pass, though, and soon, your son will be here and in your arms."

"I've had all of this time to prepare, and I'm still not ready," I whispered. "I'm still scared."

Karolina smiled. "I felt the same way before having Paul," she admitted. "I didn't know what I was doing, and I'm not sure I would have been able to get through it without my mom and Babushka by my side. You're not alone, Rose. We'll help you through it, and we'll keep helping you."

"Thank you," I said, tears pricking at my eyes. "It feels like this has been simultaneously the longest and shortest nine months of my life."

"That's how the next few years are going to feel," she said, squeezing my hand. "You'll blink, and he'll be crawling, talking, walking, and it never stops."

I didn't respond, not wanting to mention that I'd probably miss all of those milestones.

We started to time my contractions, taking note as they became stronger and more frequent. Karolina and I had practiced breathing exercises over the past few months, and I used those exercises now to calm my anxiety and breathe through the pain. It came and went, spiking during the height of the contraction before fading into a dull ache. I paced around the ground floor of the house, trying to keep active and keep my mind from potentially going through this without Dimitri.

After spending the first few months not wanting him here, it was pretty ironic that I now craved his presence and was scared of going through it without him by my side. I kept checking the flight information he had sent me, watching as the plane got closer and closer to Omsk. I had never been more grateful to have my best friend as queen. She had been able to pull some strings to get Dimitri on a flight out of Philadelphia in the shortest amount of time possible. Lissa had already texted me to confirm that Dimitri had full access to the helicopter, as originally planned. Karolina would be picking him up from the edge of Baia in a few hours, and based on how my labor was progressing, she'd be taking him to the hospital versus back to the Belikovas. It was progressing steadily, and I was starting to think that I would have less time than I thought, even though Karolina was convinced that I was still hours away. After hanging up with Dimitri, I had called my parents, and they were also on their way.

Dimitri had just landed in Omsk and was still nearly two hours away when my contractions started coming every five minutes, and we decided to go to the hospital. My parents pulled into the driveway as we were walking out of the house, my hospital bag slung over Karolina's shoulder. Olena was coming along, with Sonya and Yeva staying behind to watch the kids. Vika was back at school for another couple of weeks, and none of us had been able to update her on the impending arrival of her newest nephew. Olena drove, with Karolina sitting in the passenger seat. My mom sat next to me in the back, her hand gripping mine, while Abe followed behind in a second car.

Baia didn't have a large hospital, and most of the dhampirs chose to go to Olena for simple medical care remedies, but we had all agreed that going to the hospital was the best option, especially with the early arrival. It didn't take long for me to get a room, and I changed into the hospital gown before being hooked up to different machines to measure everything.

"Hi, Rose," a nurse said. "I'm Anya, and I'll be your nurse tonight."

"Hi."

"I'm going to do a quick dilation check and see how you're progressing," Anya said.

I nodded and shifted in the bed so that I was in the right position for her to check, and I gritted my teeth at the uncomfortable sensation. Anya took off her gloves after she finished her check and made a note on my chart.

"You're progressing very well, Rose," she said. "The doctor will be in soon to talk with you, but do you have any questions for me?"

"Do you know how much longer?"

She shook her head. "It depends. You're almost seven centimeters dilated, and it could be anywhere from a few hours or even another day before you give birth. Are you waiting for someone?"

She met my eyes kindly, and I nodded. "My boyfriend is on his way. He should be here in a couple of hours or so."

She nodded. "You should have plenty of time for that. Let me know if there's anything you need, okay?"

I nodded and climbed out of the bed, resuming my pacing around the room. Karolina set my bag down on the small end table near the window before sitting down in one of the chairs in the room. My mom and Olena stayed in the room with us. They both acted as my support through different labor positions, including one where I knelt over part of the couch with my mom rubbing my back.

As time passed, I alternated between pacing, using the exercise ball in the room, and other various labor positions. Karolina had left some time ago to go pick up Dimitri, and every time Anya returned to do a cervix check, she would inform me that I was progressing steadily and would likely have the baby either very late tonight or very early in the morning. I gritted my teeth and did what I could to hold on until Dimitri could get here.

I had gone back to pacing around the small room when the door opened, and I nearly collapsed with relief when Dimitri walked through it. He pulled me into his arms and held me tightly.

"You're here," I whispered.

"I'm here," he said. "I told you I would be."

I bit my lip. "I know. But I was still scared."

Dimitri pressed a kiss to my forehead. "I've got you now," he said. "And I'm not going anywhere."

I nodded, and Dimitri released me from his arms so that I could continue pacing. Walking helped with the contractions, and I kept holding Dimitri's hand, squeezing it tightly every time the pain spiked. They were consistently getting closer, and as they did, I became more nervous.

"Ready to pick a name?" I asked, trying to distract myself.

"I forgot we haven't done that," Dimitri mused.

"Do you want a junior?" I asked, only half teasing.

Dimitri gave me a look, his lips turning up slightly. "No."

"No?"

He shook his head. "Dimitri Dimitrievich might be a bit much." He paused. "That is if you want to use the traditional Russian patronymic."

I laughed. "Yeah, that is a bit much. I'd like to use the patronymic. It's a part of you, and he is going to be half-Russian. I thought about doing an American middle name, too, but I don't really like that idea."

Dimitri nodded. "Any names you like or don't like?"

I bit my lip. "Do you want to name him after Ivan?"

Dimitri didn't talk much about his former charge, but I knew how close they were despite that. Maybe not as close as Lissa and I were, but Ivan had been Dimitri's closest friend.

He seemed to think it over for a moment before shaking his head. "Not unless you really love that name."

I shook my head. "I don't hate it, but I don't love it either. I want to find a name that reflects both of us and our roots."

"Aleksander is a popular choice," Dimitri said. "It's prominent here and in the States."

I nodded. "I've compiled a list. Aleksander is on it."

Dimitri smiled. "What else is on your list?"

I grabbed my phone and opened my Notes app. I rattled off the names in no particular order. "Nikolai or Nikolas, Aleksei, Roman, Isaak, Maksim, and Luka. I thought about Andre, but I can't take that from Lissa."

Dimitri nodded thoughtfully. "Those are all strong names. Honestly, Roza, I'm fine with anything you choose."

"Really?" I asked doubtfully. "You're giving me full control?"

His lips turned up in a smile. "I suppose I am. At least from the list you just read me. There are a lot of interesting names you could have put on the list."

I made a face. "Yeah, I saw some pretty crazy options when I was Googling it. If we didn't already know a Mikhail, that would have been a contender."

Dimitri smiled. "I grew up here, Rose. I'm sure I've met someone with every name option you've listed."

I stuck my tongue out. "Well, I haven't, so it doesn't count."

Dimitri laughed, but it dropped off after a moment, and I saw him grow almost nervous. "What last name were you planning on giving him?"

I glanced up at him from where I had moved to the exercise ball. "Belikov. There never was another option."

Dimitri nodded, and I saw a small smile on his lips. I knew he would have accepted it without question if I said I wanted our son to have Hathaway as his last name. From the moment I found out I was pregnant, I knew I'd be giving our child his last name. I wouldn't have had it any other way, even if we hadn't gotten back together.

The next few hours passed quicker than I thought they would, and before I knew it, it was time to start pushing. I had moved back to the bed at some point in the last thirty minutes and had slowly moved into a comfortable position for giving birth. Dimitri and I had spent a lot of time weighing the pros and cons of different positions before ultimately deciding to go with what felt comfortable at the moment. I was dreading laying back on my back, so I opted to kneel on the bed instead. Anya and another nurse set up a birthing bar across the end of the bed, which would give me some support when I was pushing. Once I was in position, Dimitri climbed onto the bed behind me, kneeling as well, with his arms supporting me.

When the doctor instructed, I pushed, and when she told me to pause, I did as she said, relaxing a bit into Dimitri's arms.

"You're doing great, Roza," he murmured, brushing the hair back from my forehead where it was stuck in a sweaty clump. He ran one hand over my back, soothing me as I paused through another contraction. "You're almost there."

A string of curse words – some in English and some in Russian – left my lips during the next contraction, and the doctor instructed me to push. I did as she said, breathing through the pain and listening to my body.

"The head is out," she said as she had me pause in pushing. Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes. "A couple more pushes, and he'll be in your arms."

I nodded, fighting through the pain. Dimitri continued murmuring words of encouragement to me as I pushed through the next contraction, and the next thing I knew, a piercing cry was filling the room.

"Congratulations," the doctor said. "You have a healthy baby boy."

The doctor immediately handed me the baby, and I gingerly wrapped him in my arms as I fell back against Dimitri with a sob. Dimitri wrapped his arms around both of us, peering over my shoulder at our son. Dimitri's fingers quickly untied my hospital gown, allowing it to be pulled down enough to hold our son directly against my bare chest.

"He's perfect," I whispered. As I held our son close to my chest, I wasn't sure how I'd ever be able to leave him.

He's here! Any guesses for the name Rose ends up picking? There will be a few more chapters left in the story, but it is starting to draw to a close. Feel free to drop a review, and thanks for reading!