Close To You

Chapter 6

"Hey, hey, HEY!" Sean scolded, taking the box from Ellie's hands. She looked at him, confused at first, then finally bursting into laughter.

"What'd I do? You act like I just committed a felony."

"I don't want you lifting up anything, Ellie. Not while you're...well...how you are."

"And how might that be?"

"Well..look at you!" Sean exclaimed, pointing at her bulging belly. She laughed harder.

"Husband, dearest, I'm carrying a baby, not some other-worldy disease!" She lowered her voice. "Hon, I appreciate the concern, I really do, but I'm not helpless. I can do a little for myself. After all, it's not like I was offering to help you move the fridge or anything." Sean stared at her in disapproval for long moments before finally nodding and letting her go along on her way. They had been moving into the new house for the past week or so, and so far, he had not let her lift anything lighter than a bag of pillows, though she was constantly making it clear to him she wasn't a baby herself. She was currently a little under a week due, and Sean had been worrying twenty-five hours and a minute a day over her, despite her telling him that she was fine. He didn't believe her. He'd seen pregant women before, and the crazy things they do and say. After all, he had to take himself and the cat from the house for nearly a week when she was in her second month from fear she would kill the both of them as soon as she looked at them. He looked around the house they had chosen and smiled. Ever since he had first met her, the only thing she had talked about was how she wanted to have a large Victorian home somewhere and, while those don't usually run rampant in southern Florida, he had managed to find one, but only at a very hefty penny. As he had told her when he surprised her with it, she had better become very fond of it because their great-grandchildren would still be paying it off. The good thing, he had reasoned, was that it was still very close to where they had both once lived. In fact, it was actually closer to the beach than either of their houses had previously been, which was an added bonus considering how frequently Ellie liked to visit the seafront.

The sudden sound of Ellie's cry brought him from his self-imposed reverie. Rushing to her side, he bit his lip as she clawed painfully into his arm.

"Ellie, honey, what's wrong?"

"I...I think I'm in labor."

"What?!"

"I can't help it, Sean, but we're gonna haveta get a move on here."

"Can't you wait? At least wait 'till I get your bags." She grabbed his hair and held his head to look at her stomach.

"Tell HIM that!"

"Him? Is there something you're not telling me?"

"Sean, just get the car, would you?"

"I...yeah. Yeah, okay, I'll be..I'll be right back."

* * *

"Come on, Ellie...breathe...that's it, just breathe. Yeah, baby, you're doing fine. That's a girl." Ellie looked up at the nurse in front of her.

"Listen to him, telling me to breathe. HE'S not the one having to go through all this." The nurse smiled at Sean, who was wincing from Ellie's remarkably strong grip on his hand. Another contraction hit Ellie, making Sean bite his lip again. "Oh, God, Sean, I should kill you! You did this to me!" He winced again, trying to be patient. After all, she was the one that probably felt like she was excreting a basketball. He kissed her hand, then nearly panicked when the nurse told Ellie that now she would have to push. He'd seen countless movies where it happened, and several film strips in health class, but never had he been in a delivery room, and this scared him greatly. Nonetheless, he knew he had to be there for her, even if he would pass out halfway through the grand event.

"AHHHHHHHH!" She screamed, nearly breaking Sean's eardrum. "Damn lamauze classes...why don't they tell you it hurts this much?!"

The nurse smiled at her when she popped her head up from her spot on the stool in front of her. "They never do, honey, believe me." She screamed again, and the nurse informed her of the progress she was making. With one last, agonizing moment, the loud squaling of a baby could be heard. They held it up to Sean, smiling.

"Come on, dad, cut the cord." Taking the pair of scissors they handed him, he nervously clipped them where they had showed him, and smiled when he realized he'd done so and not blacked out. Moments later, the tiny squalling bundle of pink flesh was handed to Ellie, wrapped in a soft white towel. The nurse grinned.

"Congratulations, you have a perfectly healthy little girl and a very adorable one, too," She added before laying a hand on Sean's shoulder. "So how's it feel to be a daddy?" He shrugged, still smiling.

"Strange. I'm not sure how I feel." The nurse laughed, then left the parents alone with the quieting baby.

"Sean look!" The baby immediately took her daddy's finger around her tiny hand, and Sean, though he wouldn't admit it, couldn't have been happier. He knew then and there that she was going to be a daddy's girl, and that she would probably talk him into anything, but that meant nothing to him right now. With his free hand, he pulled the sweat-soaked hair from his wife's face, kissing her gently.

"You did it, Eleanor. I'm so proud of you, I really am." She smiled at him, then looked back down at the baby.

"So what are we going to name her?" Sean thought for a moment, then looked around for inspiration. While preparing for everything else, they had admittedly never considered names. The baby cried out suddenly, making Sean jump.

"She sounds like a skylark!" He said, laughing.

"You want to name her after a bird?" Ellie asked, laughing until she nearly cried. Sean shook his head slowly.

"No, no. What about Skylar?"

Ellie thought it over for a minute, then nodded. "That's a pretty name. Next?"

"I have no idea that's your call." Ellie, too, looked around the room, trying to think of something that sounded well with their now-chosen first name. "How does Jade sound?" Sean thought, then smiled.

"Skylar Jade Waltman...has a ring to it, doesn't it?" Ellie laughed and agreed.

"It most certainly does."