HARLEM - NEW POLITICS

CHAPTER TWELVE

"Harry," she had said one night at approximately 10pm, we had just had dinner, and Drew and I were watching our favourite television series.

"Yeah," I looked away from the telly for a minute, she was standing in the corridor, holding onto her bulging stomach.

"I think my water just broke," she said, her eyes wide with fear, and possibly excitement.

"Mum, couldn't you wait until the end of Perception?" Drew groaned, looking toward Rose.

"Well, shit." I exclaimed, getting up, "okay, okay! Let's just stay calm and- wait, what do we do?"

"I would highly recommend the hospital." Drew replied, casual as ever. I had forgotten everything we'd practiced in the labour drills, and I was now just some bloke thrown into a situation I probably couldn't handle. Snapping out of my trance, I walked over to Rose, and put my arm around her waist.

"Drew, get my keys - God, I wish you were older so you could get the car 'round." I sighed, but my eyes widened as an excruciating yell came from Rose, I swear I yelped like a scared dog afterward. I helped her walk to the car, and seated her in the background, while Drew tried to keep me focused on the road.

"Dad! The light's green!" he said, and I had to try and not wince at the honking of the horn behind me.

"For crying out loud, can someone tell this woman to put a sock in it. Bloody hell, have some consideration -"

"DAD, TURN LEFT!"

"- My wife is in labour, you inconsiderate -"

"HARRY!"

"Gawd blimey, this woman. Will me some road rage!" I argued, but silenced as Rose shot me daggers from the backseat. After a very eventful drive to the hospital, I realized I had a PhD, and I could've probably done the whole thing at home. Nonetheless, we ran in there - Rose screaming in pain every once in a while - Drew rapidly flailing his arms so that someone would take notice of us.

They asked what was happening and although I thought it was pretty self-explanatory, they did anyway.

"She - wife, in pain!" I couldn't really form a proper sentence, I was half just trying to breathe correctly and not collapse.

"BABY!" Drew finally exclaimed, elaborating on my lack of speech.

One of the men picked her up, and started carrying her to the delivery ward - or I supposed - bridal style, Drew and I just trailed behind them like two lost little sheep. Rose kept screaming in pain, and I could practically hear the paramedic's inward sighing every time I yelped like a dog from behind them. Putting her up on a hospital bed, a couple doctors swirled around her, and shut the curtains in my face. Obviously taken aback, I opened them and peered inside, only to be confronted by one of the paramedics.

"Family only." He said.

"I'm her husband -" I raised my hand, only to find the wedding band wasn't on it, I raised my other one and he saw it on one of my fingers. With a careful look, he grabbed my arm and pulled me inside. Rose's legs were spread wide, I was a bit alarmed by that, considering I was the only one who had ever seen her like that. She arched up, an ear-piercing screech erupting from her lips, that was my cue to get next to her.

"Just squeeze my hand when you're feeling pain," I smiled softly, and she managed a small smile as well, before giving my hand a deathly squeeze. Both of us were screaming in pain after that, she kept repeating the process until I swear my hand was numb and my voice hoarse.

"I CAN'T FEEL MY HAND!"

"I'M SQUEEZING BABIES OUT OF MY VAGINA!"

"MY HAND STILL ACHES!"

"TALK TO ME AGAIN WHEN YOU'RE GIVING BIRTH!"

One of the doctors dragged me out, giving me the scolding of a lifetime.

"Mr Holt, you're causing her distress."

"SHE PRACTICALLY BROKE MY HAND!"

Right after that, I heard it - the sweet, melodic first cry of our little gems. That's when I (politely!) shoved the doctor out of the way, and dashed through those grotesquely blue curtains.

"Sorry I squeezed your hand," she spoke, as the doctors took both of the little babies to the incubator.

"Sorry I yelled so loud," I took her frail hand in mine once more, "you did it, love. You squeezed two human beings out of your thing."

She laughed, "It was surprisingly less painful than I imagined."

"Not the way you were screaming, one would've sworn you were - oh right, you were." I mentally face palmed, but laughed anyway.

A couple minutes after, a smiling, blonde woman wearing all white came toward us, holding the two little gems in her arms. Jude was wearing a little blue onesie, with a tiny little baby hat on his little head, and Aubella had a pink onesie, with a similar pink little hat on her head. Rose beamed as the nurse passed Aubella and Jude to her. I couldn't help myself, because Harry Holt is an emotional Nancy, I started crying.

"Harry, are you crying?" she asked, adding a faint giggle.

"Shut up, I know I'm a Nancy." I wiped at my eyes with the back of my hand.

"You're my Nancy," she spoke, softly, but so, so beautifully, "do you want to hold him?"

"Yes please," I smiled, I smiled a tear-filled-eye smile down at the little human being in my hands. His eyes went open and they were this magnificent green, and the little hair on his head was just as dark as mine. He was a marvel, this little boy - aged only 15 minutes - was a marvel, and he was my little marvel. He was our little marvel. I looked over to Aubella, and Rose. They were both so beautiful, Aubella's eyes were the colour of the Mediterranean Sea, and they shone like the whole galaxy lay behind them. Rose's sparkled like she had just done everything on earth, and it was the most magnificent sight I had ever witnessed.

A/N

this was kinda fun to write :D

harry's such a sap i'm laughing