- finding out that you were pregnant wasn't on your bucket list
- you had been feeling ill for a week and a half, but you initially thought it was just a stomach bug
- however, when the nausea continued, Rafe talked to Sarah and she suggested buying a pregnancy test to rule it out
- he came with you to the drug store, holding your hand the entire time
- even though he seemed calm and collected, he was freaking out on the inside
- his father had never been the role model a parent should be to their kid, making Rafe doubt himself about what kind of father he would be to his son or daughter
- once home, you took the pregnancy test and set it on the counter, waiting for the results
- Rafe held your face in his arms and whispered sweet nothings to you, reassuring you that he would love you and he would be there for you regardless of the result
- when the moment finally came and your water broke, he was oddly calm and collected
- he took care of your hospital bag and helped you into his truck, speeding down the Outer Banks roads towards the hospital
- once you were taken in the room, the nurses having checked on you and having told you it would be a while until you could start pushing, he didn't know what to do with himself
- he hated the waiting period because that meant you had to endure hours and hours of pain and that didn't sit right with him
- he was there for you every step of the way, helping you breathe when contractions would hit, helping you bounce on the wall, massaging your back to ease some of the pain, running his hands through your hair just like he knew you loved, always having ice and water on hand
- after 10 hours of constant pain, it was finally time for you to start pushing
- he held your hand through the entire process, whispering dozens of words of encouragement, kissing your forehead and praising you for doing such a good job, urging you to keep going for just a little bit longer and you would finally meet your baby boy
- when you both heart the cries of your baby, you started crying of joy because you had done it and it was over while Rafe kept kissing you all over your face and praising you for being the strongest woman he had ever met and being so proud of you
- the nurses called for him, asking if he wanted to be the one cutting the umbilical cord
- he let go of you with a sweet kiss on the lips and joined the nurses, listening to their instructions carefully and doing as he was told
- when your baby was all cleaned up and wrapped up in a blanket, the nurses put him on your chest
- you never thought you could feel a love so strong as what you felt when you finally held your son for the first time
- his eyes matched that of his father, the eyes which you had grown to love immensely over the years
- looking at Rafe, you saw that he was staring in awe at your son, tears threatening to escape his eyes
- "Do you want to hold him?" was all he needed to hear before sitting next to you on the bed and preparing himself
- once you positioned your son in his arms, he swore his heart could have exploded right then and there
- the love he felt for the little human he had helped create with the love of his life could consume him because of how intense it was
- he had always thought he could never love anyone else as much as he loved you, but holding his son in his arms was a feeling he couldn't even begin to describe
- as you looked at your partner and your son, you knew you were the luckiest girl in the world to embark on this journey with Rafe
- your baby boy couldn't have been luckier to have a father like Rafe
- someone who would give his life for the sake of his son
- the perfect father in the world
