just_muse_me | 15.2.3. Life changing
15.2.3. Who is one person who has changed your life and why?
Co-written with justalilcontact | Set St Patricks Day morning
[Follows THIS and THIS]
It hadn't been a particularly long labour at twelve hours, but it was definitely arduous. Chase kept Rogue walking until she got verbally abusive and started growling like Logan. He prayed that it wouldn't be 24 hours plus, and so far some of The Powers That Be up above seemed to be listening. But as they veered towards the thirteenth hour of Rogue's labour, everything seemed to speed up and the next thing Chase knew was the obstetrician was telling Rogue it was time to push. After bouncing back and forth between Rogue's head and lower body to closely (and perhaps irritatingly) scrutinise every move the staff were making with Rogue's delivery, he finally came to a halt near Rogue's face when she threatened to shove the defibrillator up his arse if he didn't quit moving around.
He had delivered babies himself in his own career. Quite a few actually. Not once did he remember the last part going this quick. But maybe it just felt like fast-forward because it was his own baby, his own flesh and blood? All of a sudden, it was very real that he was about to become a dad and a hot panic swept through him causing him to break out into a sweat. His head whipped back to Rogue's face, his eyes wide as he swallowed thickly. This really was it.
"That's it, Marie. Good girl... we're nearly there now. Just a couple more really good pushes and you'll be a mommy," the obsetrician urged, quickly working between swapping some instruments held out by the nurse. Dr Cooper was the same OB/GYN who had delivered Baby Campbell, so Chase had faith in her. He had known her for years since he started working at PPTH, but right now, he wasn't sure he entirely trusted anyone with his wife and baby. He was going to have to suck it up and deal, though, because whether he liked it or not, their daughter was about to be born.
His gloved, shaky hand went to Rogue's sweaty head and brushed her hair back. "Come on, babe," he urged her, staying close to her ear so she could hear him.
Rogue was sobbing, or at least she tried to in between the moaning and groaning and grunting and panting. She much preferred becoming a sweaty mess thanks to hard sex, and not pushing a kid between her legs. But then... they were going to have a daughter! Somehow the last nine months seemed to have gone in a blink of an eye, and Rogue wanted to go back to maybe the fifth month where she had a nice, tiny bump to be proud of and giving birth seemed ages away.
She screamed as she tried to push harder, fisting part of Chase's scrubs top, making sure he really didn't go anywhere. "I can't!" she moaned. "I'm tired... please, just let me sleep..." She wasn't even sure where she was supposed to get all the energy from. "You do it for me."
"I really, really would," Chase insisted helplessly. "But you know I'm a gigantic wuss and there is no way I would ever be as strong as you!" He was shifting his weight from foot to foot, both of which were aching from having been standing for a good portion of the last twelve hours. Maybe more, if you factored in the interrupted cricket match which only sent him to the ground when got a ball in his nuts. His eyes shifted to the foetal monitor which was signalling another strong contraction coming. He wrapped his hands tightly in hers. "Push, babe. As hard as you can. Think of how much you hate those bastards that hurt you. Think of how scared you were when you hurt me. Think of how pissed off you were when I was a committment phobe. Think of our wedding. Think of how you felt when you heard we were pregnant. Think of it all, babe, and use it to find that last bit of strength. She's nearly here. She just needs you to keep going just a few more minutes. She can't do it without you."
There was a flurry of activity around the end of the bed as the contraction hit. "Push, Marie!" Dr Cooper urged. "We nearly have her head."
Chase wanted to get down do the bottom of the bed to see too. His daughter's head! But he didn't... well, couldn't. Not if he wanted to avoid Rogue breaking the bones in his hand.
She was shaking her head, ready to give up. Slowly, everything Chase mentioned flitted through her mind's eye, and she realised just how much they'd come to share in over a year. But the thing that made her find that strength was their first real date of all things. The beginning of their relationship, and finding the love of her life. She screamed again as she pushed, trying to held their daughter through that last little bit. She gripped the Doc's hand tightly, probably still ready to break bones as she tried to draw strength from his as well.
She thought she felt something give, worried that she'd imagined it all until an ear splitting cry was heard, and Rogue opened her eyes to find a tiny bloodied, bawling, mess that was their daughter in Dr Cooper's hands. "Oh, Lordy..." she sobbed, her bottom lip trembling big time. "She's here! Doc... it's our little girl!"
The cry had Chase bursting into tears. It was always okay if the cried. He kept a tight hold on Rogue's hand, pressing wet kisses all over his wife's sweaty face and then tried to step closer to the end of the bed. "Oh god, she's beautiful," he sobbed, spotting immediately that the baby girl had Rogue's dark hair that was already thick over her tiny head. There was a little more chaos as some of the mess was wiped away and dealt with.
Dr Cooper soon brought the messy bundle over, wrapped in a pink blanket and carefully placed her in Rogue's arms. "Congratulations," she told them with a smile and then stepped politely away to give them a few minutes of private space to meet their daughter.
"Oh my god..." was all Chase could manage to get out through a cheek-aching grin and a waterfall of tears. He touched her head and saw the glove covering his fingers, causing a nervous swell in his stomach. If he could've had anything in the world right at that moment, it would be to touch the baby girl's soft skin.
Rogue was staring down at the bundle in her arms, a huge smile on her face. She'd done it! The smile faltered for just a second though as she looked back up at her husband, that question of touch entering her own mind. For now she kept her hands on the blankets. "Take the glove off," she urged the Doc.
Chase stared down at her, a slight shake of his head following. "N-No, I can't," he told her tearfully. "I don't..." He put the edge of his wrist up to his forehead, not having had a chance to wash up yet. He had to face this and it was aching inside. If he couldn't touch her, he didn't know what he would do. A tiny newborn baby with Rogue's mutant abilities might not have control for many years, if at all. Denial felt like an easy bubble to couch himself in.
Rogue pulled her bottom lip between her teeth as her smile vanished instantly. She felt like she was about to cry again as she watched the Doc's face. Her gloves had been discarded somewhere around the eighth hour, trusting that her husband and the rest of the staff were covered enough for her to go without them. Lord only knew she'd been sweating up a storm, even without having to push yet. Now she was drenched, and while she would have killed for a bath... she was too tired. Her gaze went back to their baby girl in her arms, and she smiled a little, awed at the little person that had come out of her. A little girl that was theirs. Her and the Doc's. And now was the big moment they both found out if they could touch their daughter.
Rogue took a deep breath, and brushed her thumb against Mia's little cheek. Nothing. She rest her thumb against the girl's cheek, counting quietly in her head. Three seconds past, and still nothing. She continued to count, waiting for a familiar tug, and still nothing. She lifted her gaze to Chase's face, fresh tears sliding down her face as she realised she could touch their daughter, and it had nothing to do with control.
Chase's breathing was fast and panicked and his heart felt like it was going to burst out of his chest. He also felt so scared that he wanted to throw up. He didn't particularly want to do that in front of a room full of people he knew and worked with, though. He swallowed that lump in his throat back and his eyes latched onto Rogue's bare finger on the baby's cheek. Somewhere along the line, he realised his other hand had gone to the infant defibrillator nearby reflexively. But the tiny girl continued to squirm tearfully in the pink blanket. She kept breathing. Her heart kept beating. Oh god, that could mean Rogue could touch her but he couldn't.
He swallowed again and wet his lips that had dried from the fearful panting. His hands were shaking, so it was a process getting the latex gloves off already sweaty hands. Once his fingers were bare, his hand hovered above the mess of dark, soft hair that was damp and needing a clean. He met Rogue's eyes with a small nod of his head, any words caught somewhere because his throat and his mouth. He couldn't help it. He could still feel the pain from when Rogue drained him and he was scared. The tips of his fingers brushed over his daughter's forehead with a feather-light touch. Nothing. No pain, no feeling like his insides were being sucked out through his pores. He splayed his palm over the baby's chest with a little more pressure in the touch, but still he could feel nothing but the soft wet baby skin. "Oh... god..." he managed to get out with a rush of breath and a sob. "Oh thank god!"
Rogue shifted her grip on the baby so she could touch Chase's covered arm, those tears still streaming down her face. "I love you, Doc. I love ya so damn much. And Mia! Oh, Lordy... she's beautiful. And we can touch her. We can both touch her!"
Chase just nodded, words really failing him. He then shook his head in disbelief as he looked at his wife and daughter. She was really here. It seemed like they had waited so long, yet it was really no time at all. He just carefully wrapped his arms around them both and whispered close to Rogue's ear, "I love you, for being you and everything you've given me. You made me happy... truly happy." He pressed a kiss to the line of her damp hair and just held them, wondering how this feeling could possibly ever dilute. Though, he had it from good source that it never really did.
Word Count | 1,903
Co-written with justalilcontact | Set St Patricks Day morning
[Follows THIS and THIS]
It hadn't been a particularly long labour at twelve hours, but it was definitely arduous. Chase kept Rogue walking until she got verbally abusive and started growling like Logan. He prayed that it wouldn't be 24 hours plus, and so far some of The Powers That Be up above seemed to be listening. But as they veered towards the thirteenth hour of Rogue's labour, everything seemed to speed up and the next thing Chase knew was the obstetrician was telling Rogue it was time to push. After bouncing back and forth between Rogue's head and lower body to closely (and perhaps irritatingly) scrutinise every move the staff were making with Rogue's delivery, he finally came to a halt near Rogue's face when she threatened to shove the defibrillator up his arse if he didn't quit moving around.
He had delivered babies himself in his own career. Quite a few actually. Not once did he remember the last part going this quick. But maybe it just felt like fast-forward because it was his own baby, his own flesh and blood? All of a sudden, it was very real that he was about to become a dad and a hot panic swept through him causing him to break out into a sweat. His head whipped back to Rogue's face, his eyes wide as he swallowed thickly. This really was it.
"That's it, Marie. Good girl... we're nearly there now. Just a couple more really good pushes and you'll be a mommy," the obsetrician urged, quickly working between swapping some instruments held out by the nurse. Dr Cooper was the same OB/GYN who had delivered Baby Campbell, so Chase had faith in her. He had known her for years since he started working at PPTH, but right now, he wasn't sure he entirely trusted anyone with his wife and baby. He was going to have to suck it up and deal, though, because whether he liked it or not, their daughter was about to be born.
His gloved, shaky hand went to Rogue's sweaty head and brushed her hair back. "Come on, babe," he urged her, staying close to her ear so she could hear him.
Rogue was sobbing, or at least she tried to in between the moaning and groaning and grunting and panting. She much preferred becoming a sweaty mess thanks to hard sex, and not pushing a kid between her legs. But then... they were going to have a daughter! Somehow the last nine months seemed to have gone in a blink of an eye, and Rogue wanted to go back to maybe the fifth month where she had a nice, tiny bump to be proud of and giving birth seemed ages away.
She screamed as she tried to push harder, fisting part of Chase's scrubs top, making sure he really didn't go anywhere. "I can't!" she moaned. "I'm tired... please, just let me sleep..." She wasn't even sure where she was supposed to get all the energy from. "You do it for me."
"I really, really would," Chase insisted helplessly. "But you know I'm a gigantic wuss and there is no way I would ever be as strong as you!" He was shifting his weight from foot to foot, both of which were aching from having been standing for a good portion of the last twelve hours. Maybe more, if you factored in the interrupted cricket match which only sent him to the ground when got a ball in his nuts. His eyes shifted to the foetal monitor which was signalling another strong contraction coming. He wrapped his hands tightly in hers. "Push, babe. As hard as you can. Think of how much you hate those bastards that hurt you. Think of how scared you were when you hurt me. Think of how pissed off you were when I was a committment phobe. Think of our wedding. Think of how you felt when you heard we were pregnant. Think of it all, babe, and use it to find that last bit of strength. She's nearly here. She just needs you to keep going just a few more minutes. She can't do it without you."
There was a flurry of activity around the end of the bed as the contraction hit. "Push, Marie!" Dr Cooper urged. "We nearly have her head."
Chase wanted to get down do the bottom of the bed to see too. His daughter's head! But he didn't... well, couldn't. Not if he wanted to avoid Rogue breaking the bones in his hand.
She was shaking her head, ready to give up. Slowly, everything Chase mentioned flitted through her mind's eye, and she realised just how much they'd come to share in over a year. But the thing that made her find that strength was their first real date of all things. The beginning of their relationship, and finding the love of her life. She screamed again as she pushed, trying to held their daughter through that last little bit. She gripped the Doc's hand tightly, probably still ready to break bones as she tried to draw strength from his as well.
She thought she felt something give, worried that she'd imagined it all until an ear splitting cry was heard, and Rogue opened her eyes to find a tiny bloodied, bawling, mess that was their daughter in Dr Cooper's hands. "Oh, Lordy..." she sobbed, her bottom lip trembling big time. "She's here! Doc... it's our little girl!"
The cry had Chase bursting into tears. It was always okay if the cried. He kept a tight hold on Rogue's hand, pressing wet kisses all over his wife's sweaty face and then tried to step closer to the end of the bed. "Oh god, she's beautiful," he sobbed, spotting immediately that the baby girl had Rogue's dark hair that was already thick over her tiny head. There was a little more chaos as some of the mess was wiped away and dealt with.
Dr Cooper soon brought the messy bundle over, wrapped in a pink blanket and carefully placed her in Rogue's arms. "Congratulations," she told them with a smile and then stepped politely away to give them a few minutes of private space to meet their daughter.
"Oh my god..." was all Chase could manage to get out through a cheek-aching grin and a waterfall of tears. He touched her head and saw the glove covering his fingers, causing a nervous swell in his stomach. If he could've had anything in the world right at that moment, it would be to touch the baby girl's soft skin.
Rogue was staring down at the bundle in her arms, a huge smile on her face. She'd done it! The smile faltered for just a second though as she looked back up at her husband, that question of touch entering her own mind. For now she kept her hands on the blankets. "Take the glove off," she urged the Doc.
Chase stared down at her, a slight shake of his head following. "N-No, I can't," he told her tearfully. "I don't..." He put the edge of his wrist up to his forehead, not having had a chance to wash up yet. He had to face this and it was aching inside. If he couldn't touch her, he didn't know what he would do. A tiny newborn baby with Rogue's mutant abilities might not have control for many years, if at all. Denial felt like an easy bubble to couch himself in.
Rogue pulled her bottom lip between her teeth as her smile vanished instantly. She felt like she was about to cry again as she watched the Doc's face. Her gloves had been discarded somewhere around the eighth hour, trusting that her husband and the rest of the staff were covered enough for her to go without them. Lord only knew she'd been sweating up a storm, even without having to push yet. Now she was drenched, and while she would have killed for a bath... she was too tired. Her gaze went back to their baby girl in her arms, and she smiled a little, awed at the little person that had come out of her. A little girl that was theirs. Her and the Doc's. And now was the big moment they both found out if they could touch their daughter.
Rogue took a deep breath, and brushed her thumb against Mia's little cheek. Nothing. She rest her thumb against the girl's cheek, counting quietly in her head. Three seconds past, and still nothing. She continued to count, waiting for a familiar tug, and still nothing. She lifted her gaze to Chase's face, fresh tears sliding down her face as she realised she could touch their daughter, and it had nothing to do with control.
Chase's breathing was fast and panicked and his heart felt like it was going to burst out of his chest. He also felt so scared that he wanted to throw up. He didn't particularly want to do that in front of a room full of people he knew and worked with, though. He swallowed that lump in his throat back and his eyes latched onto Rogue's bare finger on the baby's cheek. Somewhere along the line, he realised his other hand had gone to the infant defibrillator nearby reflexively. But the tiny girl continued to squirm tearfully in the pink blanket. She kept breathing. Her heart kept beating. Oh god, that could mean Rogue could touch her but he couldn't.
He swallowed again and wet his lips that had dried from the fearful panting. His hands were shaking, so it was a process getting the latex gloves off already sweaty hands. Once his fingers were bare, his hand hovered above the mess of dark, soft hair that was damp and needing a clean. He met Rogue's eyes with a small nod of his head, any words caught somewhere because his throat and his mouth. He couldn't help it. He could still feel the pain from when Rogue drained him and he was scared. The tips of his fingers brushed over his daughter's forehead with a feather-light touch. Nothing. No pain, no feeling like his insides were being sucked out through his pores. He splayed his palm over the baby's chest with a little more pressure in the touch, but still he could feel nothing but the soft wet baby skin. "Oh... god..." he managed to get out with a rush of breath and a sob. "Oh thank god!"
Rogue shifted her grip on the baby so she could touch Chase's covered arm, those tears still streaming down her face. "I love you, Doc. I love ya so damn much. And Mia! Oh, Lordy... she's beautiful. And we can touch her. We can both touch her!"
Chase just nodded, words really failing him. He then shook his head in disbelief as he looked at his wife and daughter. She was really here. It seemed like they had waited so long, yet it was really no time at all. He just carefully wrapped his arms around them both and whispered close to Rogue's ear, "I love you, for being you and everything you've given me. You made me happy... truly happy." He pressed a kiss to the line of her damp hair and just held them, wondering how this feeling could possibly ever dilute. Though, he had it from good source that it never really did.
Word Count | 1,903