whirlwind

Thirteen - Family

"Hell! Is it supposed to hurt this much?"

That was the first thing she managed to curse out as another contraction worked its way through her.

"You're pregnant, Cara, what the hell did you expect?"

"Don't sass me!" She quickly snapped at Ben, who was currently holding her hand. She wasn't even dilated enough - meaning she had quite some time before the baby came.

The rest of her group was nowhere to be seen, likely due to the fact that she yelled at all of them to leave her the hell alone for a moment.

"I thought there were drugs for this!" Cara exclaimed, gritting her teeth as she squeezed his hand until her knuckles were white.

Ben laughed, and she shot him a glare.

"There are - eventually."

"Well I would like them now," Cara tried to say, but yet again, he laughed her off.

"I don't think that's how it works."

After their banter, she heard the door open and a nurse come in, checking her over and then her vitals.

"It's about time Mrs. Callaghan," she told Cara with a smile, causing her to furrow her eyebrows.

"Mrs. Callaghan?"

"Oh yes," she laughed as if it were silly. "Your husband and siblings-in-law gave me your information so you wouldn't have to. He said that you would want some alone time with your brother here."

Cara glanced over to Ben and raised her eyebrows but said nothing.

"I'm going to need to know your birthing party,"

"Nicolas and Elizabeth," Cara managed to hiss out, closing her eyes.

The nurse looked at her in immense confusion and she sighed, knowing she didn't quite understand the names.

"My husband and sister in law."

She seemed to understand these words, and she stepped out, gesturing Ben with her as she left the room.

"Good luck, Car. Just remember, you can do this!" Ben shot her two thumbs up and a goofy smile, before leaving.

It made her feel better, though she was still in a complete era of pain. Childbirth sucked.

After a moment, the doors opened, and an extremely worried looking Nicolas darted into the room. She assumed Elizabeth hadn't made it to the hospital yet.

With the way he looked at her, you would have thought she was dying. She did feel like she was dying, though.

"Sit," she murmured after he was just standing there for a bit of time. He nodded silently and took a seat in the uncomfortable hospital chair to the left of her. Once he sat, his hand lifted up to grasp her own, and she smiled.

He brought her smaller hand up to his lips and pressed a soft kiss to it, causing her to smile even more before it turned into another grimace.

Another contraction.

"God, it hurts," She moaned as she tried to shift her weight and sit up a bit.

A look of concern flitted in his eyes and he grabbed her hand and held it tightly.

As he squeezed gently, Cara saw how his knuckles were beginning to turn white from how hard he was holding onto the chair handle with his other hand.

"Are you alright?" She asked, only then realizing how odd it was that she was asking him when she was the one in labor.

"Yes. Of course." He ran his thumb over her hand but gave her an unconvincing smile nonetheless. Cara tilted her head and raised her eyebrows causing him to sigh, knowing that he can't lie to her.

At this point, a band of nurses came into the room and began doing busy work, and Cara didn't even focus on them or their actions.

"It's just... my father... he wasn't... I don't..."

It wasn't very often she saw Nicolas in a moment of weakness or at a loss for words but whenever he thought about his childhood, he was never very good at speaking.

So she spoke for him.

"You know you're nothing like your father." She spoke with a hushed tone. "You will never be anything like him. You'll be a good father. A good father to her. You'll love her."

Like I love you.

Cara shook that thought from her head.

When she studied his eyes once more, she saw them brimmed with tears. "Do you believe so?" He asked, still very clearly unsure.

"I know so. Because if you're not then I'm kicking your ass to the curb." She laughed quietly, lightening the tension.

The corners of his lips curled up, and Cara knew her plan succeeded.

"I have to be a good father then. I can't lose you, now can I?" He reached forward and brushed the hair from her eyes, but it was quickly stopped when Cara involuntarily groaned out in pain.

"Nearly there. Hold on." One of the nurses spoke from somewhere to the right of her, but she couldn't really focus.

"She's already in position. You ready?" The nurse said, and Cara knew she had to pay attention now.

Cara shook her head but began to push anyway, Nicolas holding her hand the entire time.

•••

It had been a good few hours since she began labour, until she closed her eyes, tears falling from her closed eyes as she began to hear cries.

"All healthy. A healthy and beautiful baby girl," the nurse spoke a little breathlessly.

Cara's eyes blurred with tears — this was real.

After a moment, she heard a rustling, and as more tears fell, Cara opened her arms as the brunette woman approached her and placed the little crying bundle in her arms.

She was a small little thing, with a pink hat atop her head, swaddled in a pink blanket. A perfect tuft of blonde hair peeking out, and small, round little cheeks.

Her eyes opened after a moment, still crying, and they were a stunning blue, much like Nicolas'.

Cara covered her mouth with her free hand, resting her against her chest and her free arm.

"You're so beautiful," she whispered, her voice cracking, hoarse and sore after her screaming and yelling.

After all this pain, here she was. Her daughter. Their daughter.

Cara turned to her side to see Nicolas, an unreadable emotion on his face as he looked at their girl.

"Ours," she whispered to him, and his eyes flickered up to hers, tears trailing down his cheeks. "Our Adeline."

Hesitantly, Cara reached forward and brushed his away with her thumb, letting her hand rest against his cheek for a moment.

"Do you want to hold her?" She asked quietly, and he seemed shocked, before he gently nodded, his arms out.

Shifting a bit, she reached forward and set their daughter in his arms, and watched him trace his fingers over her cheeks as if she were glass.

"She looks like you," he murmured softly, looking back to Cara as his lips cracked a smile.

"Really? I think she looks like you," she laughed.

"I think she looks like Cara," a new voice said, and the two looked up to see Elizabeth standing at the foot of the bed, Ben and Alexander flanking her side.

Ben headed over to Cara and grinned, kissing her cheek, and Freya followed soon after before taking her side by Nicolas to marvel at her new joy.

Alexander took his time and leaned over to her, pressing a chaste kiss on her forehead.

"Congratulations, sister," he hummed, and she heard a distinct double meaning in his words. Leaning over even more, his normally calm and composed face turned into a boyish smile.

"I agree with Elizabeth. She does look like Cara. Thankfully so, might I add. Perhaps the Gods are in our favor for once," he mused.

As Cara watched Alexander take a turn holding his niece as the rest of the family marveled over her, Cara couldn't help but think maybe they were right. The Gods had favored them after all.