ON HOLD | Adjustments | Station 19

8. Sound Of A Beating Heart

"I didn't think you'd be awake now," Maya said as she wandered into the kitchen after she heard a noise coming from that direction. "It's late. Almost 3 am in fact," she noted, checking the time on her watch.

Maddie turned her attention away from the sandwich that she was currently making, "I know. I just couldn't sleep," she told the older blonde.

"Hmm, I see that," Maya chuckled as she looked over at the counter. "What are you making?" She wondered.

"PB&J sandwich. I got hungry," Maddie explained, placing the two slices of bread together and cutting it in half.

Maya chuckled and noted the stressed expression on her daughter's face. "Are you nervous about tomorrow- well I suppose it's more like today?" She asked.

"Sort off. Yeah. I guess," Maddie mumbled, taking a bite of her sandwich. "What if something is wrong with it?" She asked, throwing the knife into the sink that followed through with a loud noise that was surely enough to startle Carina who was asleep in the next room.

"Mads. Your mama is asleep. Try and be quieter at least," Maya raised her eyebrow slightly and shook her head. "Alright, two things. First of all, you have to stop referring to the baby as it," she noted, chuckling slightly. "Remember, they're a tiny human that is growing inside of you right now,"

"Well, what else am I suppose to call you them?" Maddie asked, scrunching her face up in confusion. "They're not even born yet." She added.

Maya moved over to the counter and leaned against it. "You know when I was pregnant with you, I gave you a nickname right up until the day you were born. You were my little peanut," she told her.

"Wow, that's ironic that I'm eating a PB&J sandwich now," Maddie couldn't help but giggle.

"I know, and oddly enough that is one thing I always craved," Maya said as she chuckled. "You might want to find a nickname. You can't refer to the baby as it for the next several months,"

Maddie rolled her eyes and continued to chew on her sandwich. "Alright, fine. How about Gremlin? I mean it feels like death when I throw up, the name suits well and all," she smirked.

Maya let out a laugh and shook her head. "You can't refer to your baby as a gremlin," she stated.

"Why not?" Maddie said as she dramatically huffed. "Sure it's going to make my body feel like that. How about the devil's spawn instead? That's quite catchy," She offered, smirking further.

"Maddie!" Maya exclaimed, shaking her head.

"What? I do!" The teenager insisted.

"You cannot refer to your baby like that," Maya scolded her daughter lightly. "How about something nice, like Bean or something?" she offered.

"You cannot refer to your baby as that. Maybe a nice name, like bean or something?" Maya suggested to her daughter.

Maddie snickered slightly and an amused smile appeared on her face. "Sure, kidney bean, broad bean... Oh, I know, baked bean!" she exclaimed playfully.

"Jelly Bean?" Maya suggested, rubbing at her temples as she felt stressed out even after having this conversation.

"Meh. I suppose Jelly Bean works," The blonde teenager agreed as she shrugged her shoulders.

"It sounds better than gremlin. A lot better," Maya noted, shaking her head slightly. "Okay, and the next thing I'm going to tell you. You don't need to be worried, so just... Relax, alright? Everything is going to be okay,"

"But what if there is something wrong?" Maddie asked anxiously.

"Okay, well, now if there was something and that's very unlikely, then they have the best doctors to help you at Grey-Sloan. Remember that mama is one of them and she won't let anyone slack or they'll face the wrath of her Italian temper," Maya explained as she smirked. "So, no matter what happens tomorrow. Just try and relax and not stress okay? It's not good for the baby,"