Gingerbread #26, Pistachio #9, Green Cheese #26 + fresh peaches + whipped cream
Story: Blaze Mafia Family
Title: Heart
Prompts: Gingerbread #26: a single pea, Pistachio #9: birth, Green Cheese #26: air supply + fresh peaches (be decisive and make long-range plans) + whipped cream
Rating: PG13
Characters: Atlas Blaze, Alicia Montgomery, Edan Blaze, Nicky Nails Blaze, Firebird Blaze
Summary: I’ve mentioned in passing that Edan’s birth was full of complications as well as the trigger that booted Alicia (Edan’s mother and Atlas’ then-wife) out of Atlas’ good graces. Here’s the first part of it. Disclaimer: Let’s just say anything technical I’ve written here about neonatal care would more than likely not stand up to scrutiny by a medical professional. XD
Atlas didn’t have much experience in the delivery room, but he knew the second he saw his son that something wasn’t right. The newborn was so small and there was a bluish tinge in his skin that made Atlas’ throat close. The doctors and nurses stole the baby away before Atlas got more than a glance. He tried to follow them, to get someone to tell him what was wrong, but medical emergencies had a way of smoothing out any social advantages one might have outside of the hospital room. In this case, Atlas was treated like any other uninformed father and barred from the room where they took his son.
He had no choice but to go back to Alicia, who was still too buzzed from all the drugs she insisted the doctors give her for the birthing to really understand what was going on. He couldn’t help but resent her a little for that. Their son hadn’t even been in the world for five minutes and he was already in trouble. She should be out of her mind with worry.
Paloma would have been.
Comparing his second wife to his first was unfair, and Atlas had spent their six months of marriage trying to break himself of the unfortunate habit. Still, the sickly dread that was twisting his stomach while he strained to hear what was going on the next room made it very hard for him to push the thought away.
- - - - - - - - - -
Since no one had been expecting Alicia to give birth for another two months, the family hadn’t been able to get there when she’d gone into the emergency room, but they’d arrived en masse by the time Atlas dragged himself out to the waiting room.
There was a congratulatory cry that faded quickly when they saw Atlas’ pale face.
Nicky made it to his brother first. He grabbed Atlas’ shoulder. “What happened? Is Edan okay?”
Atlas barely shook his head. “Bad heart,” Atlas croaked. “Doctors don’t expect him to live through the night.”
There was a collective gasp of horror and some of Edan’s would-be aunts burst into tears. Nicky, unable to think of the right words, grabbed his brother and hugged him hard. Atlas held on, needing the support of his family like he hadn’t since Paloma.
A small hand slipped into his. Atlas pulled away and looked down at his daughter. It had been clear since day one that Firebird had little tolerance for Alicia and hadn’t been too keen on having a brother, but she looked up at him now as a child that had experienced death before and knew its seriousness.
“Can I see him?” she asked.
Atlas throat closed. “Yeah,” he whispered, squeezing her hand.
Nicky started to ask if Atlas wanted them all to come, but Marie set a hand on his arm and stopped him. They would say goodbye to the child later. Now Atlas needed the strength of his older child to help him deal with the fragility of his younger one.
- - - - - - - - - -
Atlas had seen his fair share of sleepless nights and early morning wake-up calls, so a sunrise wasn’t a new sight to him. But as he watched the shadow over his city being chased away by a new day, he swore he’d never seen a more beautiful one. All those tubes and machines violating his son must be doing some good because Edan was still alive, his heart monitor beeping an affirmation of life.
The doctors had tried to get Atlas to go home or at least go get some sleep in the extra bed they’d installed in Alicia’s hospital room. He’d very politely told them all to fuck off. If Edan was really as bad off as those same doctors said he was then there was no way that Atlas would let the child go without his family by his side for even a second. He’d stayed right by the big bay window looking into the neonatal ICU all night long.
Apparently someone on the other side thought that Atlas’ all-night vigil was worth rewarding. At six this morning, Edan’s doctors had brought over a surgeon. The surgeon wasn’t promising any miracles, but he had experience with heart defects like Edan’s and he said there was a chance that he might be able to fix it surgically. That was, if he lived through the surgery. He was still so small and fragile, the surgeon had made it very clear that complications on the operating table were very possible.
Atlas hated that he had to chance with his son’s life here, but he wasn’t an amateur gambler. He could calculate the odds of Edan surviving a successful surgery that fixed his heart, and he understood that those odds were better than the negligible ones Edan was fighting now. He hadn’t consulted Alicia, just told the surgeon to get it done.
The surgery was scheduled for that very morning. He watched the nurses carefully remove some of the tubes that were shoved into the tiny baby before transferring him from one incubator into another. The nurses wheeled Edan over to the window close to Atlas, presumably to give him an opportunity to say goodbye.
Atlas set a hand on the window, leaning in close. Although Atlas’ profession demanded that he be unabashedly realistic about the prospects of life and death, he couldn’t bring himself to accept that this could quite possibly be the last time he saw his son. Edan would survive this. He was a Blaze. Blazes always survived.
Title: Heart
Prompts: Gingerbread #26: a single pea, Pistachio #9: birth, Green Cheese #26: air supply + fresh peaches (be decisive and make long-range plans) + whipped cream
Rating: PG13
Characters: Atlas Blaze, Alicia Montgomery, Edan Blaze, Nicky Nails Blaze, Firebird Blaze
Summary: I’ve mentioned in passing that Edan’s birth was full of complications as well as the trigger that booted Alicia (Edan’s mother and Atlas’ then-wife) out of Atlas’ good graces. Here’s the first part of it. Disclaimer: Let’s just say anything technical I’ve written here about neonatal care would more than likely not stand up to scrutiny by a medical professional. XD
Atlas didn’t have much experience in the delivery room, but he knew the second he saw his son that something wasn’t right. The newborn was so small and there was a bluish tinge in his skin that made Atlas’ throat close. The doctors and nurses stole the baby away before Atlas got more than a glance. He tried to follow them, to get someone to tell him what was wrong, but medical emergencies had a way of smoothing out any social advantages one might have outside of the hospital room. In this case, Atlas was treated like any other uninformed father and barred from the room where they took his son.
He had no choice but to go back to Alicia, who was still too buzzed from all the drugs she insisted the doctors give her for the birthing to really understand what was going on. He couldn’t help but resent her a little for that. Their son hadn’t even been in the world for five minutes and he was already in trouble. She should be out of her mind with worry.
Paloma would have been.
Comparing his second wife to his first was unfair, and Atlas had spent their six months of marriage trying to break himself of the unfortunate habit. Still, the sickly dread that was twisting his stomach while he strained to hear what was going on the next room made it very hard for him to push the thought away.
- - - - - - - - - -
Since no one had been expecting Alicia to give birth for another two months, the family hadn’t been able to get there when she’d gone into the emergency room, but they’d arrived en masse by the time Atlas dragged himself out to the waiting room.
There was a congratulatory cry that faded quickly when they saw Atlas’ pale face.
Nicky made it to his brother first. He grabbed Atlas’ shoulder. “What happened? Is Edan okay?”
Atlas barely shook his head. “Bad heart,” Atlas croaked. “Doctors don’t expect him to live through the night.”
There was a collective gasp of horror and some of Edan’s would-be aunts burst into tears. Nicky, unable to think of the right words, grabbed his brother and hugged him hard. Atlas held on, needing the support of his family like he hadn’t since Paloma.
A small hand slipped into his. Atlas pulled away and looked down at his daughter. It had been clear since day one that Firebird had little tolerance for Alicia and hadn’t been too keen on having a brother, but she looked up at him now as a child that had experienced death before and knew its seriousness.
“Can I see him?” she asked.
Atlas throat closed. “Yeah,” he whispered, squeezing her hand.
Nicky started to ask if Atlas wanted them all to come, but Marie set a hand on his arm and stopped him. They would say goodbye to the child later. Now Atlas needed the strength of his older child to help him deal with the fragility of his younger one.
- - - - - - - - - -
Atlas had seen his fair share of sleepless nights and early morning wake-up calls, so a sunrise wasn’t a new sight to him. But as he watched the shadow over his city being chased away by a new day, he swore he’d never seen a more beautiful one. All those tubes and machines violating his son must be doing some good because Edan was still alive, his heart monitor beeping an affirmation of life.
The doctors had tried to get Atlas to go home or at least go get some sleep in the extra bed they’d installed in Alicia’s hospital room. He’d very politely told them all to fuck off. If Edan was really as bad off as those same doctors said he was then there was no way that Atlas would let the child go without his family by his side for even a second. He’d stayed right by the big bay window looking into the neonatal ICU all night long.
Apparently someone on the other side thought that Atlas’ all-night vigil was worth rewarding. At six this morning, Edan’s doctors had brought over a surgeon. The surgeon wasn’t promising any miracles, but he had experience with heart defects like Edan’s and he said there was a chance that he might be able to fix it surgically. That was, if he lived through the surgery. He was still so small and fragile, the surgeon had made it very clear that complications on the operating table were very possible.
Atlas hated that he had to chance with his son’s life here, but he wasn’t an amateur gambler. He could calculate the odds of Edan surviving a successful surgery that fixed his heart, and he understood that those odds were better than the negligible ones Edan was fighting now. He hadn’t consulted Alicia, just told the surgeon to get it done.
The surgery was scheduled for that very morning. He watched the nurses carefully remove some of the tubes that were shoved into the tiny baby before transferring him from one incubator into another. The nurses wheeled Edan over to the window close to Atlas, presumably to give him an opportunity to say goodbye.
Atlas set a hand on the window, leaning in close. Although Atlas’ profession demanded that he be unabashedly realistic about the prospects of life and death, he couldn’t bring himself to accept that this could quite possibly be the last time he saw his son. Edan would survive this. He was a Blaze. Blazes always survived.