Clawen • What comes next

|| CHAPTER 51 ||

           

Her face was wearing a relaxed smile, directed at him. Despite everything that was going on, her eyes were shining and not only with tears. She might be covered in sweat and tears, with hair sticking to every surface available. But she was still as beautiful as ever, in Owen's eyes.

As quickly as her face had relaxed into the understanding smile she wore, as quickly did it squeeze together in pain. "I think this did the job" The doctor said, before asking Claire to push one last time. As she pushed again, Owen looked down and saw the doctor slowly pulling out the baby. A smile appeared across the new parents faces briefly, before they both heard the words "It's not breathing". Their heads snapped to look at the other. Both their minds were blank and unable to read the others expression. Claire squeezed Owen's hands out of fear, silently asking him to find out more. He got the hint and stood up before a nurse stopped him. "It's best if you stay back while we do our work" She said with a hand out to stop Owen from moving any further. "I want to know what's happening" He firmly told her, starring her down, with the hope that his height would intimidate her enough to let him move. She closed her eyes quickly as she looked down, before looking back up at him with a sympathetic look. Obviously having been through this, many times. "I know you do. But for the sake of all three of you, you should stay back. We are doing our best" She told him before quickly turning around, obviously trusting him enough to listen to her words.

Owen decided to listen to the nurse. This was no time for ego or anger. He had already displayed too much of the latter in the past couple hours. He sat back down next to Claire, who quickly reached out for his hands. He took them both with force, in need of some comfort. He bent down his head to look at their joined hands before lifting them up to kiss her knuckles. "It's going to be fine" He whispered, partly in an attempt at reassuring Claire, but the words were mostly for himself. He needed to hear someone say it, to tell him that it was all going to be just fine. Everything would be just fine. He kept telling himself over and over again.

The calming words going on repeat in his head, were mostly recycled ones from the first incident. From when he was hiding under the truck outside paddock 11. From when he was hiding behind the jeep with Claire. And the final time, when he was walking out of the hanger with Claire by his side. Except the last time, he actually believed it. Poor him, thinking that his life wasn't meant for destruction. They were the parents of the new world after all. That stuff never ended well.

After lifting up his head to look at Claire, realizing that she must be feeling just as terrified, if not worse. Her head dropped back against the bed, closing her eyes as she let out a sigh. One of her hands let go of his, to reach over her head and let her arm cover her eyes, before a sob made its way out. Her whole body started shaking with the silent whimpers that escaped her mouth. Owen was quick on his feet, standing up and leaning over her. He gently removed her arm from her face to look her in the eyes. "Claire, baby look at me" He half whispered, half cried. Her eyes slowly blinked open, taking a few seconds to focus on him with all the tears in the way. "It's going to be fine" He said joining in with her crying. She closed her eyes again as she started shaking her head. "No Owen...its not" She cried. He leaned down to give her a kiss. Not on the forehead, not her cheek, not her hair, but her actual mouth. Thinking that they both needed some comfortable and familiar feeling in this hard time. They both lingered, not wanting to let go, before they heard a noise.

Both their lips leaving the others with a quick smack, before desperately searching for the origin of the sound. Looking at the end of the bed, they found the doctor holding up a crying baby. Their crying baby. "It's a girl" He said, before carefully standing up to go place it in Claire's arms.

More tears starting running down her cheeks, as the doctor placed their newborn daughter in her arms. For the first time in the past couple of hours, Claire was smiling for real and a happy sob escaped her mouth. Owen sat back down slowly, not wanting to take his eyes off his little girl.

Claire slowly turned her head to look at him. Her smile grew when their eyes met and Owen couldn't help but lean in to give her another kiss. "I told you, it was going to be fine" He whispered, before both their heads turned to look at their daughter.

Neither of them noticed, but the doctor and nurses in the room were quietly watching the two parents. None of them able to hide their smiles.

Half an hour later, the room was cleaned up as well as could be expected and all the nurses left, except one who stayed back with the doctor.

When the door opened Karen and Maisie quickly jumped to their feet, thinking that Owen would be one to greet them. Instead it was three nurses who just smiled at them before closing the door behind them and walking off. Both of them extremely disappointed. But right before they sat down, the last nurse stopped on front of them. "Give them a minute, and I'm sure he will come out to get you" She said, quickly catching up with her co-workers after. They both smiled at her and Karen thanked her before they both sat down to wait for Owen to come out the door.

Inside the room, Claire and Owen were both smiling down at their daughter. "Hello Charlie" Owen whispered, as he remembered the name they chose. Claire's head snapped up quickly to look at him. For a second he thought he might have said something wrong, before her whole face broke into an even bigger smile, than the one she was already wearing. "Charlie" Claire whispered, as she looked him in the eyes, before looking back down. "Hi Charlie" She said with the tilt of her head. Owen leaned closer to Claire and let his head rest against hers. Both of them filled with more happiness than either of them thought possible.

"A girl" Owen whispered against the side of Claire's head. She chuckled realizing that she had barely caught that part of it before. Mainly having focused on the fact that the baby was breathing. He probably hadn't paid much attention to what the doctor had said either, hence his words. "Our girl" Claire whispered back.

The doctor stood up, adoring the parents for a moment before asking "So have we got a name?" Both of them smiled at each other before looking back down at their little miracle. "Charlie" Owen said, turning to look back up at the doctor. "Named after one of my raaa.....dogs" He quickly corrected himself, cringing when he saw the doctors reaction. "Ra-dog huh" He said, waiting for Owen to explain. He sighed. "Raptors. She's named after one of my raptors"

If there was anything that Owen would pay to see again, it was Claire for the first time, Charlie, Echo and Delta and the doctor's reaction at the word raptors.

"Ra...raptors" He stuttered, clearly checking Owen's face to see if he was joking. "Yes, raptors" Owen confirmed. The doctor blinked a few times before the word seemed to sink in. "So like...You worked at Jurassic World then, or what?" He asked. Owen wasn't sure it was the best to have told the truth, knowing that a lot of people would throw blame anywhere near people who had the smallest bit to do with Jurassic World.

Owen sighed and nodded. "I did yes, we both did. That's how we met" He said, deciding against keeping anything back, because he wasn't ashamed of their story. He wasn't ashamed of having worked at the park. Hell, Owen Grady simply wasn't ashamed.

The doctor seemed to just take it for what it was, nodding as he turned around to continue on what he was doing before. Both Claire and Owen thought that was it, that it was just that easy and the doctor was over it by now. They thought wrong. He turned back around with a finger pointed towards Claire. Not an accusing one but it did make her a little uncomfortable. "Wait a minute" He said, squinting at Claire before the realization hit. "You're the one who ran from the T-rex" He then said, not even bothering to phrase it as a question, before he let his hand drop back down at his side. Claire looked up at him with exhausted eyes, but a content smile covering her face. She nodded a few times before looking back down at Charlie. The doctor noticed Owen still looking at him and he simply nodded to show his respect to them both.

Owen turned back to look at Claire and make sure she was alright. She didn't have to look at him to know what he was thinking. "I'm fine Owen" She said, almost a whisper before she finally turned to look at him. He smiled, accepting her answer to his unasked question.

"Here" She said, carefully holding out Charlie for Owen to take. He quickly reached out to take Charlie from her. The smile on Claire's face when she was looking at Owen, her Owen, holding their daughter. No feeling of happiness could compete. Nothing in her 33 years of living, had come close to this moment.

ALRIGHT LADIES AND GENTS – CHARLIE IS HERE AND SHES BREATHING, finally. ;)

Hope you liked the drama my guys! I was going to go the easy route, but decided to give you all a small heart attack.