Granada

Epilogue

"Do you have a darker shade of red?"

"Umm... something like this, my prince?"

"Yes, that's perfect" Rúben smiled. "This swimming pool has to be perfect. I want her to look at it the same way she looks at the ceilings in the palace."

"We'll do our best, my prince" the builder said.

"Rúben! Rúben!" someone called behind him.

"Anne? What is it?"

"It's time" she said, trying to catch her breath.

"Now?"

"Yes, now. Come" she urged him before starting to run again towards the palace.

"Is that normal?" Rúben asked as they got closer to his room.

"I'm pretty sure I was louder" Anne chuckled as another scream was heard.

"Make it stop!" Rowena yelled when Rúben and Anne walked into the room.

"It'll be over soon, princess."

"Rowena, I'm here" he said, kneeling next to the bed. "I'm here, my love."

"Rúben... Rúben, it hurts so much" she cried.

"I know it does."

"No, you don't! You men know nothing!"

"We actually don't, no" he chuckled. "But you can do this."

"I can't. I am so tired, Rúben. I just want to..." but she wasn't able to finish her sentence, only scream.

"Can you do something to help with the pain?" he asked the midwife.

"She's already taken as much as it is allowed."

"But it isn't enough!" Rowena complained, squeezing Rúben's hand with such strength he thought she may break it.

"It'll be over soon, you'll see" Lady Rice said.

"How did you do it, mother? How did you do this five times?" she cried.

"We women are stronger than we think."

"I'm not."

"You are, Rowena. You are the strongest woman I know."

"Rúben, this isn't the moment to get chee... bloody hell!" she screamed.

"Princess, it's time to push" the midwife said.

"No, no, no. I can't. I'm not ready. Mother..."

"You are ready. Isn't she, Rúben?"

"I..." he mumbled, flashbacks from his dream coming back.

"Rúben. Rúben" Rowena said, caressing his cheek and forgetting about her pain for a brief moment. "This isn't your nightmare. I may be hurting like hell, but I'm not going anywhere."

"He is the one who should leave."

"What?" both Rowena and Rúben said at the same time, looking at the midwife.

"This is no place for a man, my prince."

"I don't care. I'm not leaving her" he said.

"My prince..."

"He is staying!" Rowena yelled as she felt another contraction coming.

"Alright, then" the woman sighed.

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

"And? What is it?" Rúben asked. Rowena had been pushing for a while, getting more and more tired as time passed, and the baby still wasn't with them.