Too In Love to Let it Go, Chapter 8
Title: Too in Love to Let it Go
Author: gingerandfair/lavender_love00
Genre: AU/Married!Klaine/future-fic
Rating: NC-17
Word count: 3600/200,000
Spoilers: none
Chapter summary: In which Abby goes into labor.
Prologue (LJ/AO3/Tumblr/S&C) - Chapter 1 (LJ/AO3/Tumblr/S&C) - Chapter 2 (LJ/AO3/Tumblr/S&C) - Chapter 3 ( LJ/AO3/Tumblr/S&C) - Chapter 4 ( LJ/AO3/Tumblr/S&C) - Chapter 5 ( LJ/AO3/Tumblr/S&C) - Chapter 6 ( LJ/AO3/Tumblr/S&C) - Chapter 7 ( LJ/AO3/Tumblr/S&C)
Read Chapter 8 on AO3/Tumblr/S&C
Saturday, June 17th, 2023
Abby clutched Micah's hand and bit down hard on the inside of her cheek, trying to stay quiet as the movie played on. One-Mississippi-two-Mississippi-three-Mississippi-four-Mississippi-five-Mississippi …
"You okay, baby? Maybe a chick flick wasn't the best idea for tonight," Micah hesitantly whispered, kissing her forehead.
"I'm fine," she whispered back, loosening the vice grip she'd had on Micah's fingers. "I'm sorry -"
"Shhh!" An angry whisper sounded behind them. She sighed and rested her head on Micah's shoulder. In through your nose, out through your mouth.
Twelve-Mississippi-thirteen-Mississippi-fourteen-Mississippi …
Twenty minutes, and beads of sweat were popping up on her forehead, her breath no longer coming so easy. Reluctantly, she leaned close to Micah's ear. "Promise me you won't freak out," she murmured.
"Freak out about what?" he whispered back.
"I think I need to go to the hospital."
Micah sprang back from her as if she'd branded him. "What?"
"Shh, baby, the hospital," she whispered. "We should probably go soo-oooof," she trailed off as another contraction hit, her abdomen pulling taut under her shirt. In through your nose, out through your mouth.
"Shhhhhh!" the guy behind them hissed, more insistently than before.
Abby dropped her voice even lower, trying to talk through it. "I've been having contractions on and off all day, and I thought they were just - oooohhh - Braxton-Hicks, but I've been timing them since the movie started and -" she broke off, huffing and puffing. Micah sat beside her, still as a statue, terror in his eyes. "And they're almost five minutes apart now. They don't last for thirty seconds like the doctor said, but they're getting there…" she said when the pain finally abated.
"Oh, shit," Micah said, not even bothering to lower his voice. "Abby, why didn't you -"
"I wanted one more night with you before my life goes to hell," she hissed. "Now let's go."
Micah gaped at her for a moment, then sprang to action. "Oh god, oh god, oh god," he babbled as he fumbling around, grabbing drinks and empty bags of popcorn, slinging Abby's purse over his shoulder. "Oh my god. I don't - Abby - what do we -"
"Will you keep it down?" the guy behind them said, huffing in annoyance as Micah stood up.
"Micah?" Abby threatened, grabbing his hand and dragging him down the row of seats, trying not to trip. She could hear her purse flopping against his side as they went, and it might've been funny if she wasn't hurting so goddamn bad. "You cannot freak out on me right now. I can't do this by myself."
"Okay, I know. I'm sorry. But God, Abby, you could've given me a little warning," he snapped. "You should have told me, we would've stayed home …"
"That's exactly why I didn't tell you," she said, her voice breaking a little as she tugged him into the light of the lobby. "In about 8 hours or something - and god, I hope it's less than that - my life is going to fall apart. I just wanted one last date, one last night of normal before this throws it all to hell." She gestured to her swollen belly angrily as they rushed into the warm evening air.
"Did your water break in the theater?" Micah blurted out as soon as they were outside.
"No. Not yet, thank god," she said, cringing at the thought. "Oh my god, I would be mortified …"
"Okay. Okay. Oh, God," Micah said, taking several deep breaths. His face was white. This was not what she needed right now. "Okay, we need to -"
"Shit," Abby cursed, cutting him off. Her uterus, her back, her torso, her entire body spasmed tight, completely out of her control, as she grabbed for the brick wall of the movie theater. "Oh my God that hurts." In through your nose, out through your - oh, fuck it, just try not to fall over.
"Abby?" Micah asked, his voice trembling. "I - I don't know if I'm ready for this …"
She laughed drily. "And I am? I don't think we have much of a choice here, Micah."
"I know. I know. Oh, god, I 'm so sorry Abby - I just - I don't know what to do," Micah whined helplessly, pacing back and forth in front of her.
"Look," she said, sinking against the wall once the pain had ended, "I'm gonna be fine, people have babies all the time, but I cannot - I cannot do this by myself. I can't Micah," she continued as her voice broke again, tears burning her eyes, "and I know this is scary, but you need to get your shit together and be here for me, because even though you're scared, you don't have to push a baby out of you in the next several hours."
"I know. I'm sorry, come here," he said, reaching out for her, and she let herself be wrapped in his arms.
"Will you call Blaine and Kurt and let them know?" she asked, her voice muffled in his shoulder. "I want to call my mom."
* * *
"God, this stupid collar," Kurt mumbled to himself. He was stretched out on the couch, legs thrown over Blaine's lap, sketching designs while Blaine read.
"What's the problem with it?" Blaine asked, setting his book down and raising his eyebrows at the pile of wadded-up paper on the coffee table.
"I don't know, I just can't get it right. If I knew what the problem was, I'd have fixed it already, honey," he said, a little exasperated.
"Maybe you should take a break. Rest your eyes or something. I could read to you, if you wanted," Blaine suggested, squeezing Kurt's foot affectionately.
Kurt frowned. "Blaine, I'm never going to get this finished if you keep making me take breaks …"
Blaine's phone suddenly buzzed loudly on the table behind Kurt, waking Romeo from the nap he was taking at Blaine's feet. The puppy blinked his sleepy eyes and stretched his paws out low to the ground. "You can at least take a break long enough to answer the phone," Blaine grinned, reaching down to pet Romeo's fluffy white fur.
"It's your phone."
"But you're closer, and I'm stuck underneath you," Blaine whined.
"Oh, fine. Hello?" Kurt asked as he picked up the phone.
"Kurt? I thought I called Blaine - anyway, oh my god, it's happening. I'm freaking out over here, you've gotta tell me what I'm supposed to do -"
"Whoa, whoa, hang on a second," Kurt said, swinging up into a sitting position. "Who is this? Is this Micah?"
Blaine dropped his book on the floor, narrowly missing Romeo's head, and the puppy hopped up onto the couch with them.
"Dude, sorry, yeah, oh my god, Abby's been having contractions all day but she didn't tell me till we were halfway through the movie and she said something about timing and she's talking to her mom now and we're about to go to the hospital - shit -"
"Hey, calm down," Kurt said.
"Okay, okay - wait, what?" he said, and Kurt heard muffled whispers on the other end of the phone.
"Micah?" he asked, shooing a panic-stricken Blaine away.
"Um. Uh, Abby's water just broke," Micah said, sounding terrified. "She's - ew, her legs are all wet and gross - dude, what the fuck am I supposed to do here - it should be you guys here, not me -"
"Micah? Calm down," Kurt repeated. "It's going to be fine. You're going to be fine. Abby needs you right now, not us. You said you're at the movie theater?"
"Yeah," Micah said, his voice shaking.
"Okay, hang on just a second -" Kurt took the phone from his ear, tilted his head back and whispered, Fuck.
"What-what-what?" Blaine was demanding, bouncing beside him on the couch like a nervous kangaroo.
"Abby's in labor, and her water just broke at a movie theater. Now hang on while I handle this, okay?" Kurt snapped, bringing the phone back to his ear. Focus, Kurt. "Okay, Micah?"
"Uh-huh?"
"Find someplace for her to sit. Go back inside, go to the bathroom, get some wet paper towels. Help her clean up. Can you do that?" Kurt asked.
"Yeah. Okay. Yeah, hang on." Kurt heard a clatter, and assumed that Micah had set the phone down. He put the phone on speaker and turned to Blaine, who was holding Romeo in his lap, eyes wide.
"Kurt, the baby's coming. The baby's coming," he said, his voice panicked.
"No shit, honey - but I'm trying not to freak out right now because Micah's doing enough of that for all of us, so just give me a minute, yeah?"
Blaine nodded, his eyes wide.
"Okay," Micah's voice rang back over the phone. "She's clean, sort of. She's also crying. I just - I'm kind of at a loss here."
"She's probably scared, Micah," Kurt said as gently as he could. "I know I would be. Just get her to the hospital. Take a cab, not the subway - she probably can't handle the stairs. You need to get off the phone with me so you can take care of her, okay? Text me or Blaine when you get there and let us know what's going on."
"Okay. Okay. Right. Dude - uh, congrats, I guess. You're gonna be a dad soon," Micah said, the hint of a smile evident in his voice.
"Thanks," Kurt smiled. "Good luck. And send Abby our love."
He hung up the phone and looked at Blaine.
"Kurt. Kurt-Kurt-Kurt, we're having a baby!" Blaine exclaimed, his face nearly split in two with the force of his smile.
Kurt grabbed a throw pillow, held it over his face and squealed, leaning back and kicking his feet in the air. Blaine laughed loud and set the puppy on the floor. He grabbed the pillow with one hand and the back of Kurt's head with the other and pulled him in for a searing kiss.
"What was that for?" Kurt's voice came out high and breathy when Blaine finally let him go.
"I just love you," Blaine answered simply. Kurt blushed - why was he blushing? He'd been hearing that for twelve years - and hopped up from the couch, gliding into the nursery.
Blaine silently walked in behind him, and Kurt leaned back into his chest as Blaine slid his arms around Kurt's waist.
"God, I can't wait to rock her," Kurt said, gazing over at the lavender glider tucked into the corner.
"I know," Blaine breathed. "I can't quite wrap my brain around the fact that there'll be a baby in here in a couple days." They stood pressed together, quiet for a long moment. "We should probably call your family," Blaine finally said.
"Can we wait just a little while longer?" Kurt asked, running his hands over Blaine’s fingers, which were still threaded together at his waist.
"Sure - why?"
"I don't know. I just want to be here for a little bit, with you. We're on the verge of this incredible thing, and I'm just not ready to share it with anybody yet."
Blaine regarded Kurt fondly. "We'll wait as long as you want to."
* * *
Sunday, June 18th, 2023
The texts came at three A.M., the simultaneous beeps of both their phones jarring them from the doze they'd fallen into on the couch.
They both got the same picture of a tiny baby swaddled in hospital blankets, a pink and blue striped hat on her head, eyes closed and lips pursed.
From: Abby
It's a girl! 6lbs, 2 oz, 19 ½ inches long, born at 2:27 AM. Congrats, dads, she's perfect :)
They sat, shoulders and arms and thighs touching, and stared.
"Champagne?" Blaine croaked when he'd found his voice again.
"I don't know if alcohol will make me cry more or less right now," Kurt laughed, swiping at his eyes with the back of his hand. "But yes, regardless. We should celebrate."
"Celebrate we will, 'cause life is short but sweet for certain," Blaine sang before wrapping his arms around Kurt and pressing a kiss to his cheek. "I'll get a bucket of ice."
* * *
The expensive bottle of champagne was empty by four o'clock.
"Blaine, the neighbors," Kurt giggled from the couch as Blaine sat at the piano, banging out a messy version of an old ABBA song.
"I heard about you before, I wanted to know some more, and now I know what they mean, you're a love machiiiiiine," Blaine growled, and Kurt shimmied his shoulders and crooked his forefinger at his husband, motioning him to the couch.
"C'mere, honey-honey," he said with a grin.
Blaine danced his way over to his husband and plopped down on the couch beside him with a loud thud. "Hi," he grinned.
"Hi yourself."
Blaine stretched out on the couch and tucked his head in Kurt's lap, his face buried in Kurt's stomach. "I uff oo," he mumbled into Kurt's t-shirt.
"I uff oo, too," Kurt chuckled, threading his fingers through Blaine's hair. He was silent for a few minutes, just stroking Blaine's head, listening to his content sighs.
"She hasn't signed the papers yet, you know," he finally said, breaking the silence.
"Kurt …"
"She hasn't," he repeated. "I just hope we're not celebrating too early."
"No. No, no, no, don't get all fatalistic, don't ruin this for me," Blaine said, rolling over to look straight up at Kurt's face.
"Not fatalistic, realistic," Kurt said. "I'm not trying to rain on your parade. I'm just saying - this could end badly."
"It's not gonna end badly, Kurt," Blaine said, reaching up to cup Kurt's cheeks in his hands. " Abby called us 'dads' in the text message - it's gonna be fine. Just be happy with me? Please?"
"Okay." Kurt sighed. "You're right, I'm sorry. It's just that everything is too good right now. The bough has to break at some point, right?"
Blaine sat up, blinking as the room seemed to tip a little to the side. "No. It doesn't. Not everything in our lives has to end badly …" Blaine paused. "Look, Kurt, I don't want to fight with you tonight."
"I don't want to fight with you either," Kurt said, looking down at his lap. His voice was small and soft.
"Can we chalk this all up to too much champagne and go lay down and try to sleep for the rest of the morning?" Blaine asked. Kurt nodded, still refusing to look at him. "Okay, good. Hey, chin up."
Kurt lifted his head.
"No matter what happens - whether we bring her home or not - I love you, okay? You are the most important person in my life, and that isn't going to change, baby, no baby, whatever. I told you in our wedding vows that I was in this for better or for worse, Kurt, and I meant that."
"Stop it. You're making me cry," Kurt said, swatting Blaine's arm, then leaning into his side. "I'm sorry. I just - got scared. I am scared."
"So am I, baby," Blaine murmured, tugging him close. "I'm just trying to hope for the best.
Kurt nodded solemnly. "I know you are. Time for bed?"
"Time for bed."
* * *
"She's so beautiful," Abby whispered reverently as she held her baby, tears streaming down her cheeks, blurring her vision. "Micah, we made that. Us."
"She looks just like you," he whispered, blinking fast. "Abby, seriously - she's like your little clone."
She laughed through her tears, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand as the IV tubing dragged along her cheek. "Stop it - you're making me cry harder."
"Abby, honey?" her mom said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "The lactation nurse is here - do you want to try to nurse now?"
Abby looked up at her mother with wide eyes. "Yeah - yes, please."
"Okay, I'll let her in."
Soon the baby was latched and suckling away as Abby sobbed, cradling her daughter to her chest.
"Hey, hey, it's okay," Micah said, pressing a kiss to her bare shoulder.
"Micah, how am I supposed to let her go?" she hiccupped, pressing a kiss to her baby's head.
"I -" he started, then stopped, tugging his hand through his hair. "I don't know. But we have to, Abby. It's gonna be ok. We'll still get to see her and -"
"It's not enough. It won't be enough," she cried, her body shaking with the force of her sobs.
"Shhh, sweetie," her mom soothed, perching on the side of the bed and rubbing smooth circles into her back. "We can talk about your options, but you've been planning for this for a long time, now. I don't want you to make any rash decisions just because you're tired and your hormones are fluctuating, okay?"
A flare of anger rose in Abby's chest, but she fought it down. "O-okay," she said, choking on the word.
"She's all yours for a couple days. Try to enjoy her as much as you can now, sweetie."
Abby nodded, taking a deep breath. She gazed down at the baby, who'd fallen asleep on her chest. "I think - maybe I should try to go to sleep?" she said, taking the tissue that Micah handed her. "I am pretty tired."
"I don't doubt it - you just went through eight hours of labor, Abby," her mom said. "Want me to put her back in her crib?"
"I'll do it," Micah said quickly, and Abby looked up at him.
"Okay," she said softly, lifting her child off of her chest and handing her to him. He clumsily wrapped a blanket back around her and carried her to her crib. Within seconds, she'd squirmed out of her covers, working her hands up to her mouth.
"Micah, honey, come here," Abby's mom said. "I'll show you how to wrap her up tight." Micah returned to the bed after they were done, curling up next to Abby.
"You're a good mom, you know," he said softly as Abby's mom turned out the lights.
"A good mom? Really, Micah? I'm giving her away and I don't even know her name," Abby whispered angrily, flipping over and tugging the covers up to her chin. "I'm going to sleep."
The last thing she heard before she surrendered to her dreams was her mother's gentle whisper, half-reciting and half-singing a long-forgotten lullaby.
"Sleep my child and peace attend thee all through the night …"
* * *
Monday, June 19th, 2023
"Kurt. Kurt-Kurt-Kurt, wake up, wake up!"
"Blggghhh," Kurt said, his tongue sticking to the roof of his too-dry mouth. He squeezed his eyes shut tight and tried to blink. He felt like he'd been knocked out with a metal pole, then he remembered - too much champagne always gave him a horrible headache. "Blaine?" he tried again, confused that his husband was awake and he was not.
"Text from Abby. She wants us to come to the hospital," Blaine said, and Kurt rolled to his side of the bed, only to find it already vacant. He blinked again, looking up to see Blaine hopping on one foot as he tugged the other into a pair of jeans.
"God, my head," Kurt groaned as he dragged himself upright in the bed.
"Got that covered - there's some Motrin and a glass of water on your nightstand."
"You're a saint. Remind me why I had that fourth glass last night?"
"I think that may have been my doing," Blaine said apologetically as he pushed his arms into a t-shirt and pulled it over his head. "You're staring," he smirked, and Kurt shook his head, trying to clear it.
"Yeah. Happens sometimes. Your hair, you know?"
"Oh shit, do I have bedhead?" Blaine asked, darting into their bathroom to look in the mirror.
"It's morning, Blaine, you always have bedhead." Kurt took the three Motrin tablets laid out for him, swallowing them one by one, and smiled at the little stack of crackers Blaine had set out for him as well. Painkillers did a number on his stomach if he took them without eating.
"Thanks for the crackers, honey," he said, rubbing his eyes as he padded into the bathroom behind Blaine.
"Mmm," Blaine murmured in reply, trying to tame his hair. "I figured we could stop for coffee on the way. Oh, and your dad's called this morning already - I texted him and told him we'd call him after we got home."
"'Kay," Kurt said, shedding his sleep shorts and turning on the faucet in the shower.
"Kurt! We don't have time for showers!"
"I always have time for a shower, Blaine. I'm not meeting my daughter for the first time smelling like morning funk and puppy."
Blaine's brow furrowed. "Do I smell like that?
"Probably."
"Dammit, Kurt," Blaine huffed, but he peeled off the t-shirt he'd just put on and shed his jeans and boxer briefs. "Only the bare minimum moisturizing routine, though, okay?" he bargained, testing the water with his forearm.
"Deal."
Chapter 9