Karev Baby? Again?

Chapter 16

Katie had been getting Braxton Hicks contractions for weeks. She was completely over it. She was currently 38 weeks, completely full term.

Katie was lying on the couch, with her shirt pulled up, watching her baby kick. It was fascinating to see her tiny feet push on her stomach. She gasped when she saw a perfect little imprint. "Oh, that foot looks so tiny." She whispered, smiling.

"But for the love of God, please stop that." She groaned, as she felt yet another Braxton Hick. They were only getting stronger, and they sucked. "If labor is worse than this, they might as well cut you out of me." She sighed, turning on her side and closing her eyes. It usually helped to sleep.

And she did. For a lousy thirty minutes. She woke up to the same stupid pain. "Seriously, leave me alone. You're hurting me." She complained, standing up and walking to the kitchen. Maybe she just needed food. She opened the fridge, definitely not ready for what was to happen next.

She jumped when she felt a liquid gush down her legs. "Oh.. oh shit.." She mumbled, in a state of shock. She shakily reached for her phone, calling her mother. "I- I.. My.. My water just broke??" She panicked, which came out more as a question.

"What?!" Jo replied, standing up out of the chair she was sitting in. "Okay, go take a seat. I'll be there in fifteen. Just relax, you're going to be fine. Deep breaths." She knew her daughter too well. She freaked out over everything, and she had a pretty good reason to freak out this time.

Katie took her mother's advice, sitting on the couch and taking deep breaths. She was terrified. She knew she could go into labor any day now, and Arizona had told her she was likely to sooner than 40 weeks. She had so many thoughts flooding her head. They were soon disrupted by Jo coming through the door.

Jo rushed over to the couch, crouching down in front of her. "Okay, look at me." She waited until she did. "I'm gonna go make sure you have everything you need for the hospital. I need you to just stay calm, okay? We're gonna get you admitted and see how dilated you are. Maybe we'll get to see your girl today." She smiled, squeezing her hands before standing.

Katie tried not to stress, putting her hands on her stomach. She was scared of giving birth, and more importantly, scared of becoming a mom. That was a lot of responsibility, and she wasn't the most responsible person. She took her mother's hand when she came back downstairs and stood up. The contractions weren't horrible, yet. She walked to the car, gasping and freezing when a contraction hit her.

"Breathe. Don't forget to breathe." Jo said, letting her squeeze her hand as hard as she wanted. She rubbed circles on her back. "It'll be over in just a second." She reassured her.

Katie sighed when it was over. If this was only the beginning, she was in for a ride. She sat in the passenger seat, keeping her eyes on the road as Jo sped. She pulled into the ER, helping Katie out again to walk inside. Jo talked to some nurses, immediately getting a room. She was so lucky to have a mom working at the hospital.

She got changed into her gown, sitting down on her bed. She was so scared. She silently watched a nurse put in her IV and heart monitor. "You're all set. Red button if you need any help. Your mom's got a pager for any emergencies. Doctor Robbins should be in soon."

Katie nodded, sinking into her bed. Jo offered her her hand, which she gladly accepted. She held on tight, focusing on her breathing.

Jo knew when Katie was stressed out, she stayed quiet. She'd typically isolate herself, but that was hard when she was in labor. "Hey." She whispered. "I was just as scared when I had you." She smirked. "I was so scared they had to sedate me, so I think you're doing pretty good so far." She chuckled. "I thought that since I didn't have parents, I'd be such a shitty parent. I think your dad almost killed me when I mentioned that... Kate, you've got so many people here to support you and help you out. You're going to be such a great mom. I promise you. You already are." She smiled.

Katie opened her eyes, listening to her. She smiled at her last comment. "I'm so excited.. I just want to meet her already." She smiled, her eyes beginning to water with tears.

Jo pulled her into a hug. "And you're almost there. This is the last stretch." She said, squeezing her tight. "I've already texted your dad. He's going home and installing the car seat in your car. He'll bring it up here too."

Katie nodded. It was unreal that there'd actually be a baby in that car seat soon; like really soon. Eventually, Arizona came in to check how dilated she was. "I already told Sierra." She smiled. "She's so excited for you." She said, after sliding on her gloves. She checked her out. "You're at three centimeters right now, so we've still got a ways to go. I usually don't do epidurals after 5 centimeters, but if you get one now, it probably won't last while you push. I'm just going to leave that up to you."

Katie decided to not do the epidural right now. It definitely didn't feel good, but she knew it was only going to get worse. She wanted to want until she desperately needed it. She closed her eyes, trying her best to sleep while she could.