Fated (A Chris Evans Series)

Today

"C-Chris, my w-water broke."

Chris stared at Denise with his mouth agape. Everything he'd read, everything Dr. McCullough and their parents had told him in preparation for that very moment- all that information had sailed into the unknown, getting itself lost in the stormy seas of Chris' thoughts and emotions. Denise's water broke, so that meant all those contractions she'd said were Braxton Hicks were actually the labor contractions. She was having a baby today; Jack was coming today; he was going to be a father today. He couldn't believe it, it was finally happening- he was going to be a father.

"Okay-" Chris swallowed. "Okay, you're going to breathe and we're going to get through this." He said and Denise frantically nodded, taking short, sharp breaths. "Slower, sweetheart, and deeper too." He advised and she nodded again, following his instructions. "You're okay, just don't freak out. Don't freak out," he repeated, but this time to himself and under his breath.

Chris' mind couldn't help but flit to his memory of the movie 'Inside Out'. He was imagining his five emotions sitting up in his mental faculties freaking out; all the red alerts flashing and all the sirens wailing as they screamed in absolute panic. It would've been easy for him to give the wheel over to Fear, to let Fear control him and bring forth a panic attack of his own. But he didn't do that because he remembered what he promised he'd always do and that was to take care of Denise. He needed to be strong for her, to remain calm and reassuring. Denise was the one having the baby after all, not him. He had to get over whatever he was going through so he could help her get through what she was. She was scared and it was his job to make sure she wasn't. He was her husband and the baby inside her was his son, it was time for him to step up and become what the two of them needed him to be.

"When was the last time you had a contraction, baby?"

"I don't know," Denise shook her head, tears filling her eyes. "I don't- Oh my God, I don't know." Chris squeezed her hands, reminding her to stay calm and breathe. "Are we going to the hospital?" She asked and he nodded, gesturing for her to sit while he headed for the walk-in to grab the go-bag and something for her to change into so she didn't have to sit in amniotic fluid. "Oh God," she whimpered, starting to cry. "I don't want to do this, Chris."

"I know you're scared, Denise," he called out as he searched her dresser for something clean and comfortable. He pulled a pair of her underwear from the top right drawer, then scrambled to find a pair of sweatpants in the bottom drawer. They looked like they were his, and they probably were considering he was the one who did the laundry- but he was in too much of a rush to bother finding hers. "But it's going to be-"

"Contraction." He heard her call and quickly rushed out to look at the clock; it was 6:42AM. "Oh my God," she whimpered, grasping at the sheets as she tried to breathe through the pain. "It hurts," she cried and Chris watched her with an aching heart. "I can't do this, Chris," she looked up at him once the pain subsided; it only lasted sixty seconds, but it felt like an hour for her. "I can't have this baby, I can't do it."

"Hey, stop." He descended to his knees in front of Denise, lowering the go-bag and the sweatpants on the floor beside him. "Do you remember when we were watching The Office and it was the episode where Pam was having Cece and she was freaking out? Do you remember what I said to you?" He quizzed and she nodded, chuckling as she sniffled. "And do you remember what you said in response?" He asked, suppressing his urge to smile.

"Fuck off, Chris?" She answered and he nodded, laughing.

Denise remembered that moment very clearly, which was understandable as it only happened a couple weeks ago. Chris had told Denise she was going to follow in Pam's footsteps and have a complete breakdown, doing everything she could to postpone giving birth. They knew he was probably right, but also, that she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of being right hence why he said it in the first place. He wanted to have leverage, something he could use to pull her away from her breakdown. Denise hated being wrong, so if Chris had that to use against her- maybe she'd try and hold it together.

"So are you going to prove me right and freak out, or are you going to stay calm and keep that streak of being Mrs. Always Right?" He asked and she playfully slapped his arm, biting back her smile. "That's what I thought," he quipped then kissed the back of her hands before getting to his feet, scooping both go-bag and sweats up with him. "Okay, let's get you to the hospital. We'll call your mom on the way, and-" He glanced at the clock; 6:47AM. "I'll call my mom when her plane lands. I'm really hope she gets here before you start pushing, 'cause I'm going to need her around for that."

"Why," she teased him, "are you going to freak out?"

"I'm already freaking out, but I'm staying calm for you." He told her and she smiled, which quickly faltered when the ache in her lower back increased. "Here, get changed." He passed her the sweats that she immediately knew weren't hers. "I'm going to go fill Dodger's food and water bowl before we go, I don't know how long we're going to be there and I don't want to have to leave your side to come home."

"These are your sweats," she told him and he chuckled, wincing. "Oh, fuck it," she staggered to her feet and slowly made her way to the ensuite, stopping when a contraction hit her. Chris glanced at the clock; Denise's contractions were about five and a half minutes apart. She hunched over as much as her belly would allow, using the chaise in front of their bed for support. "Oh God, the pain is getting worst." She breathed slowly as Chris walked over, rubbing her back soothingly. "I fucking hate you for getting me pregnant." She bit out of agony and frustration, earning a soft chuckle from Chris; it was not the first time she'd cussed at him while pregnant.

"I'd say 'never again', but you already promised we would have two." He reminded her and it was like her pain increased at the thought of having another baby. "I'm holding out for Charlotte, or Charles if we have another boy. I hope we don't, 'cause I really want a girl and I don't think you want to have a third child. Can you imagine if we had a third child and-"

"Please stop talking," she begged then squeezed her eyes shut, taking slow, deep breaths.

"Right, I'm sorry." His hand ran up and down her back, which helped a little. "I know it hurts, but just think of how cute our baby is going to be," he told her then kissed the back of her head. "You good?" He asked after a while when she straightened up; she nodded. "Okay, c'mon." He walked her to the ensuite. "I'll be back to help you downstairs." He told her and she nodded again. "Hey," he stopped her before she could close the door, a wide grin on his face that made her smile too. "We're going to meet our son today," he said.

"We're going to meet our son today," she confirmed with a nod.