14. Stella

Chapter 14

Stella

E ight hours later, this whole ‘being in labor' situation gets old.

Old.

This baby needs to come out and this needs to be over. And it's crazy that I feel this way, considering I'm not even in pain. But I still can't help feeling nervous. Is labor really supposed to take this long? Lucy and Mica and said they were both in labor for about an hour or two each and it was over.

And I'm still here.

We've been gone so long from the ranch house that the cleaning bot had to be remotely programmed to not feed the cats. Coco and Boots are in the waiting room, with their cage opened. It's sad that they can't join me here, in the med lab but those are the rules.

I'm wearing a short, loose nightgown that opens at the back and I've been able to waddle to the restroom a few times. I've read a few chapters in my latest favorite black market original planet romance novel. Then I watched a few episodes of a Hyrrokin reality show that Rake has me hooked on. But now I'm left with a large belly and softly beeping equipment.

I knew labor was going to happen in the middle of the rainy season. Yes, I was going to have my baby on Tarvos in a Hyrrokin med lab. It's not like my due date was a surprise. I went into labor right about when predicted. But knowing it was coming soon and having labor pains hit me hard while the building was shaking with wind, thunder and lightning are two different things.

And of course, my water broke in the middle of the living room.

What a mess.

I look over at my husband, who is tapping on a glass screen that scrolls with the Hyrrokin language, which thankfully I'm able to read.

Rake is so handsome.

When I first met him, over six months ago, he was driving to pick me up on the platform to the transporter station and I thought he was terrifying. And now he's my beloved husband. At first I thought the black horns bursting out on the top of his forehead, the white fangs and the barbed tail were horrific attributes but now I consider them powerful and striking.

I can tell that he's older than most of the other males I've met because of the crinkles at the corner of his dark eyes. I never thought I'd marry someone twelve years older than me, but I think it makes him calmer and more mature.

I basically proposed to him and we walked to the tiny courthouse in Fire Creek, where Erid officiated our vows. That was when I decided I would be giving birth, not on New Earth, but on Tarvos, in the middle of their rainy season. I went in with eyes wide open.

But I am very lucky that there's a med lab right here. I'm sure other pregnant Hyrrokin on the planet probably can't leave their domicile during the storm, and they're doing this naturally. There's nothing wrong with natural childbirth, which has been happening since the dawn of time, and there are still women to this day all over the four sectors, from all species, who prefer that over modern technology, but I'm not one of those women. I'm a wimp. I can't handle the pain, so the fact that there is a med lab right here that I know is going to have the best pain relievers that money can buy is an amazing gift.

The storms rage outside, but inside the room, it's just him and I and the hum of the equipment. Soft music plays in the background, but even that can't mute the squeak of windows and beams.

I'm doing my best to not remember the storm we had to get through to arrive here and to focus on Rake's complete trust in the construction of this building.

And I'm here with my new husband, Rake Flagstone, who is treating this labor and delivery as if this son is his. He's amazing and has been since the moment we met and doesn't seem bothered by the fact that I've grown huge and can now barely get around.

I calmly think of all these thoughts because the pain relievers have held steady all these hours and I'm chilling on the med lab bed, waiting to be fully dilatated and ready to push—as if I'm having my nails done or something.

"Now it's like I'm at a day spa. All I need is a glass of champagne. Well, not that I've ever had champagne because that's only made on the original planet, but I've heard that it's supposed to be for special occasions."

Rake laughs. "I'm happy you think this is special because the med lab is providing me with an updated health plan. The med bot says you need surgery."

"Holy crap. Is that why this is taking so long?"

Gray smoke puffs from his red nostrils. "Yes, I'm also receiving a message from your human doctor who has conferred with our med lab and the doctor agrees it's necessary. It's a procedure called a C section."

"An emergency C section?" I take his hand. "Don't worry, I've heard of this. It's sort of common amongst humans."

He hands the tablet over to me so I can look at the messages. "Is this really necessary?"

"Remember, my doctor said that this is one of the things that could happen. I've had friends who have had to have this done. My mom had to have a C section when she had me. It just means that I'm not progressing like I should and instead of me having the baby where I push it out, they're doing the surgery and will take it out."

He winces. "Yes, this is how it sometimes happens with the animals we raise."

I hand the tablet back to him. "I'm ready. Let's see our baby."

Rake is there with me and sits by my head. He washed up carefully and wears a mask over his face and is dressed in special surgery clothes and there's a blue film over his hands.

This med lab has a med bot who has been very kind. It mainly seems to say words and phrases that were downloaded by my human doctor.

This is the first fully human birth on Tarvos. I learned that the first human to have a half human, half Hyrrokin baby on Tarvos was Riley Anderson. That was documented at least and as a result all the med labs on Tarvos were able to upgrade with human attributes. So since then, The Hyrrokin medical community understand humans much better, but a fully human birth is new, and they consider me an interesting test subject.

The human Obstetrician we hired from New Earth is one of the best. She's wonderful, and helps me long distance, she also works for our military and is used to intergalactic tech. This is the first civilian birth she has assisted.

The surgery shield covers my whole body at first, to get me prepped and then uncovers my head and shoulders. I am awake throughout the whole procedure, and feel no pain, just tugging.

In a short amount of time, robot arms hold my baby aloft. I hear the cries of the baby and tears immediately form in my eyes, and I look up and see an expression of wonder on Rake's harsh face. He leaves my side and the med bot gives him the ability to cut the umbilical cord.

I have to admit, I was worried he would be disgusted by the appearance of a human baby without horns, claws, or tail and no red skin. Our son will never have the ability to flash Flame.

Rake holds the baby and gazes down at him with wonder and joy. And then he brings the bundled baby close to me, and puts his tiny face, right next to mine, and then I kiss my baby. Tears are stream down my face, because to me, he looks perfect.

"He's perfect," Rake agrees.

We name him Gavin Flagstone.

I spent a whole twenty-four hours underneath that surgery shield for wound closure and rest.

The baby stayed in an incubator. He was perfectly fine, but Gavin did have what they called pneumonia, because of a tiny bit of embryonic fluid in his lungs.

When I woke up the next day, I understood why that time under the surgery shield was so important. The surgery wounds were completely healed. And now it's a week later, and I'm walking around almost feeling like myself again.

The rains were still awful and we had to be careful when we returned to the house, but we were able to pack up the cats in the cage and our bags and the baby, and make it back unscathed.

And now we are back home, in the same bed and rooms as before but this time with a new baby. The nursery is next door. Completely set up. Lucy and Mica helped me with that, which is wonderful. Gryce double-checked that I was stocked with every imaginable baby supply before we were in lock down.

Rake watches in amazement as I breastfeed. Gavin has blue eyes and the beginning of what I think is going to be blond hair. I've been learning how to pump extra breastmilk and save it so Rake can feed the baby too. And because it's the two of us both here and I've learned that my new husband wants to be fully part of the raising of this baby. He changes diapers. He holds the baby and feeds the baby. He still cares for the cats. He's…a full partner.

It's wonderful having Rake here with my every minute of every day when we first take the baby home. I've been lucky that I've healed up so quickly, but learning how to breastfeed is hard and getting used to the baby's sleep rhythms is hard too. It's good to not be doing this alone and it's time for the both of us to bond with our new baby.

I look at him while he's holding Gavin with such care, thinking how much I love this man. I want to say the words out loud but for some reason they are still stuck inside.

Yes, I married him and therefore I'm tied to him for life, but I find myself still holding back. We haven't had actual sex yet with penetration. And I haven't said I love him.

There are so many variables I'm still uncertain about.

I'm just a very deliberative person when it comes to relationships.

My mom married my dad after a whirlwind courtship only to discover that he was a narcissist and was cheating on her for most of their five-year marriage. And I have no relationship with my father, as if he'd never had a daughter. It's so strange to me. My mother has said that she didn't see any of that coming, and that she fully thought my dad loved the both of us and that he'd be a good father and husband. But it didn't turn out that way long term.

I believe Rake is a good father and his family will be kind to Gavin, but what if I'm wrong?

And then Rake does something cute, like insisting on changing Gavin's diaper, or wanting the baby to nap with him in his arms…and my worries temporarily melt away.

"Okay," I tell him. "I'm recording this. This is live for your mom. Are you ready?"

He rolls his eyes. "Yes."

And I turn on the screen and hit record because everyone wants to see the new baby, but no one can come and visit yet because of lockdown.

My mother wants to come too, but she has to wait until the season ends.

Coco and Boots are being cute, running around the room and getting into the recording too.

I put down the screen and we go downstairs. We eat food from the food dispenser. And then we go back upstairs to watch lots of shows. "You're right, I tell him, this is like a long vacation."

"Exactly. It's only time pure I get time off because we have all the animals sheltered elsewhere. I can't even get to them. We stock up everything that they need. Everything is on shutdown. Everyone is on lockdown. We can't go anywhere to visit anyone. I can't work."

"You can't Yeah."

"And so instead we rest."

"Does everybody stay at home?"

"All Hyrrokin have the legal right to choose who they're going to be in lockdown with meaning you can't be forced into a lockdown. That's illegal, because that's like prison. So that was established long ago, in ancient times. You have chosen to be here during lockdown with me and I have chosen to be with you. It would be illegal for me to force you to stay here on lockdown with me."

"Ah, I get it."

"I usually stay with family. And, yeah, I used to stay at the main house, and now I stay here. That's it. But it has become popular to do lockdown in vacation destinations. There are places that pop up that exist just for people to luxuriously ride out the rainy season. There are ultra rich people who hate the rainy season and instead will book an intergalactic cruise of the Nebula on a luxury spaceship which lasts a month and be completely off planet during rainy season. The Fire Lord spends his rainy season in his mansion. The Queen locks down in her own royal estate. There are even public shelters. No one is left out. Erid's job as Sheriff is to make sure of that to the best of his abilities, everyone has a place, so that when the rains first start, hopefully there is no one left with nowhere to go, so then we can all just go into lockdown and ride it in comfort and safety. That's the goal."

I rest on the bed next to him, listening to the rains, with our sleeping baby between us, perfectly content and soon, my eyes close too.

I wake up one morning and the rains are over.

The suns are shining and when I look out the front window, I see ranch hands out working, picking up fallen branches. "I see Lorn outside," I exclaim.

"The rainy season is officially over," Rake agrees. "I still don't want you walking all over outside because it's slippery and dangerous, especially next to the barn. Give us a day or two to clean up debris first, then we'll be back to normal."

And minutes later there's a hover craft landing on the front lawn.

"Who's that?" I question.

Rake stands next to me and then moves to open the front door. "I have no idea."

We stand together on the porch and watch as it lands and the bottom ramp opens.

My mother steps out.

I squeal with joy and hand off the baby to Rake and then race down the porch steps and across the lawn and up the ramp. In moments we're hugging and I'm filled with so much joy. "Mom," I cry. "Mom."

Sometimes you don't know how much you need your mother until she's there.

"Love you baby girl, but where's my grandson."

I laugh and take her to meet my husband and her grandchild.