The Canary's Lullaby

Chapter Two

Oliver's knuckles went pale as Laurel's grip strengthened. He felt as if he'd been shot in the chest with an arrow as she cursed at him for being so reckless with her and putting her in this situation. "You suck, Oliver Queen! You suck! You've ruined my body and my relationship with my family!" However, he knew that such an outburst was most likely due to her raging hormones. He was vigilant and hopeful as his gaze went from Laurel to the door, keeping an eye out for any sign of Dinah. When last contact with the couple, Dinah was on the train from Hub City; having met with a couple of colleagues.

Urgh! Where is she?!" Laurel exclaimed through gritted teeth.

"I'm sure she'll be here any minute now" Oliver said, more to himself than to the mother of his child.

As Laurel threw her exhausted head against the pillow in surrender, a familiar figure came running toward the door. Immediately, Laurel relaxed her heart rate and her grip on Oliver's hand.

"Hey, sweetie. Is mom here yet?" Sara asked as she came skipping into the room and immediately took her place at Laurel's bedside.

"No, not yet" Laurel sighed.

Oliver nodded without uttering so much as a single syllable as he looked between the sisters. He figured they needed some time alone to talk. The moment he left, Sara left the door open ajar and pulled up the stool to sit closer to her sister.

"Dinah Laurel Lance, in a few hours you're going to be someone's mom. Aren't you terrified?" the blonde asked with wide, crystal blue eyes.

Had the question been asked by someone else, Laurel would've rolled her eyes and delivered the same speech she had given her and Oliver's parents; fighting for the right to make the decision she felt was appropriate for her child. However, because it was her sister and Sara was the only one who was even remotely supportive of her keeping the baby, Laurel's answer was delivered calmly and with a slight smile.

"Of course, I'm terrified. But this is me and Oliver. We've discussed having kids someday and this just speeds the process along by a little bit. We're in this together", Laurel answered as she placed a hand on top of Sara's.

"We all are. And even though Thea is pretty excited, I am determined to be the kid's favourite aunt" Sara chuckled as she gave Laurel's hand a gentle reassuring squeeze.

The blonde's gesture was reciprocated by her sister's even stronger grip on her hand. Laurel's eyes shut tight as she winced through the pain of another contraction; which were only growing closer and closer together.

"It's going to be okay, Laurel. This will all be over soon and the journey will have been well worth it" Sara assured the expectant mother as it was her turn to keep watch of the door.

Meanwhile, Oliver paced the perimeter of the hospital entrance. He rubbed the temples of his forehead with a free hand while the other held his cellphone. He had called Dinah four times and she still hadn't picked up. How long is the train from Hub City to Star City, anyway? He wondered to himself. Just as he prepared to redial a fifth time, he breathed a sigh of relief seeing her burst through the doors.

"My daughter is in labor. She's 19 years old, her name is Laurel Lance" Dinah said, slightly hunched over as she attempted to catch her breath at the counter.

The young, blonde receptionist refused to look up from her screen. Her fingers danced elegantly across the keyboard as she processed the worrisome mother's request. But just before she could answer, Oliver laid a gentle, unexpected hand on Dinah's shoulder.

"Mrs Lance? I can take you if you'd like" Oliver offered.

"Oh, Oliver" Dinah sighed as she engaged him in a quick but warm embrace on that blustery fall afternoon. "How is she?" 

"She's doing fine. Could be any minute now" Oliver answered.

Dinah nodded her relief and understanding as she and Oliver linked arms and made their way into the elevator. As the floor numbers above them lit up with every passing second, the silence seemed to speak volumes. But there was something unusual about Dinah's composure; how she hardly looked Oliver in the eye, however, held onto him as if her life depended on it.

Both their hearts threatened to leap out of their chests upon immediately arriving at the fifth floor. There was no doubt that they were headed in the right direction as Laurel's glass shattering screams echoed throughout the hall. "I. WANT. MY. MOTHER!"

Dinah's heart melted into a puddle on the floor as she absorbed her older daughter's revelation. After months of arguing and fearing that their relationship had been irreparably damaged, it seemed that her little girl still needed her. Now more than ever.

"You should go without me. She doesn't even want me in there" Oliver said with a nervous chuckle.

"But she needs you, Oliver. That is far more important" Dinah reasoned as they picked up the pace of their steps and swiftly made their way to the end of the hall.