Accidents and Emergencies

Audrey nervously tapped her fingers on the cold, leather doctors table as her and Alex impatiently waited for their doctor to walk through the door. No words had been exchanged between the couple except for when Alex commented on the size of her growing stomach which obviously didn't please Audrey. She had always been self conscious about her weight and now with everyone saying how cute and round it was, she couldn't help but to hate how much weight she put on in just a couple of months.

The second Doctor Roseboom walked through the door, both of them shot up to greet her. "How's everything going?" She smiled sweetly. While it was a young pregnancy, she was entirely pleased with the young couple and their decision to keep the baby.

"Other than morning sickness? Fantastic." Audrey rolled her eyes. She thought that by her second trimester she'd be done with it, but it still stung every morning at six o'clock on the dot. The dogs even made a habit of waking up and following her to the bathroom while a half asleep Alex listened to her from their bed. So far, he helped as much as possible, but since she was only thirteen weeks along, there wasn't much to do other than sit around and hope for the best. They hadn't told anyone other than the band and crew as they feared for the worst. The doctor said they'd be out of the woods by now, but they could still have complications. Hearing that word scared them both shitless.

The whole routine went as fast as usual as the jelly was smeared over her stomach in and awkward fashion for the ultrasound. Once again, they heard the baby's heartbeat and it made both of the proud parents light up and cry a few tears of joy. "I have to record it this time." Alex smiled as he pulled out his phone and recorded the sound of the baby's tiny heartbeat.

Doctor Roseboom raised her eyebrows at the two who were in absolute bliss. "Everything looks fine and healthy. Your baby is on the right track for a May delivery." She smiled wide at the two. "Would you like to know the sex?"

Audrey and Alex exchanged glances, puzzled on the answer. They could always wait in agony until May which seemed a long ways away or they could find out now so they wouldn't have to over analyze the ultrasound photos. "We.. Wanna know?" Audrey grabbed Alex's hand as he nodded.

"I'm okay with that. As long as it's happy and healthy then I'm good with knowing." Alex squeezed her hand a little tighter as her palms sweated.

The doctor turned the machine and pointed to their child. "Congratulations, you're having a boy!" In that moment, Audrey started to shake with happiness. Alex teared up and you could tell how badly he wanted to say something, but he was lost for words.

"Thank you." Audrey shook the doctors hand before she left the room. The second she was gone, Alex pressed his lips against hers, feeling greater than he had in months. They wanted to brag and celebrate with their friends and to tell their parents. They also wanted to jump up and down with glee.

Alex held the girls face in his hands and smiled as tears rolled down her face. "Baby, we're having a boy." He started to laugh out of happiness. Audrey nodded her head and pressed her forehead against his. "I can't believe this." He chuckled once more. While neither of them expected to have a child while they were in their early twenties, it was still something to be amazed by.

"Can we go tell the guys?" Audrey said as she started to pull her shirt back down and hopped off the table. "This boy is gonna have a load of uncles." She raised her eyebrows and shook her head, she was unable to imagine what Jack would be like around their growing son. In eighteen years, he'd probably become his Uncle Jack's best friend and that was one scary thought.

"They're probably at the venue-- Fuck, we're late for sound check." Alex grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the clinic. Since they were in Baltimore, it was a quick ten minute drive to the venue, but they were running twenty minutes late due to their freak out.

The couple got to the venue as fast as possible, never letting go of each others hand. They smiled like fools as Jack's Mannequin blasted through the car. Not only was the band some safety net for the two of them, it also put them in an even better mood than they were before exiting the doctors office. Upon arriving, they ran backstage and gathered the boys around, but tried not to show their excitement.

Vinnie sighed as they all waited for Alex and Audrey to start making a list of reasons why they were late. Everyone looked a little annoyed seeing that it was a hometown show where all of their friends and families were going to attend. They wanted to hang out and be with them before they went on, but the delay was making that a little difficult. Audrey being the girl she was decided to raise her eyebrows at the group of twenty-somethings, acting like she was more pissed off than imaginable. They weren't having it and neither was she. Instead of someone raising their voice, she finally pulled out a picture from the ultra sound and held it above her head. "Congrats, boys. You're going to be uncles to a little baby boy." She smiled and winked as their jaws dropped.

Needless to say, they were about as happy about the entire situation as they were. While a lot still needed to be sorted out, like telling their families and the drinking and touring, they all shared a special moment together. There were hugs to go around, pats on the back, and cheerful yelling. There wasn't a single one of them that didn't chime in and try to name the unborn baby -- of course, all of them wanting it to be named after them. They laughed and talked before getting around to continuing with soundcheck.

After the show, all of them rushed off backstage and sat down in bliss, knowing that a hometown show was a damn good way to end a long tour. Now they had a few weeks off for the holidays before heading overseas. "Are you even allowed to go with us next month?" Rian asked Audrey, eyeing her stomach.

"Why wouldn't she be?" Carla, Zack's mom, rang in from behind all of them. With her came a long line of parents, siblings, and friends, all wanting to know why Rian was asking such a question.

Rian shrugged as he got up to hug everyone. "Work." He gulped silently and threw his arms around his parents as everyone in the room did the same.

"Mom, dad," Audrey greeted her parents with tears in her eyes, "I've missed you two so much." Normally she didn't get all sappy about seeing her parents, but with the emotional day it had been, it was great to see the two people that had been there for her. Everyone talked for a few minutes and caught up and just as everyone was being cleared out so the boys could shower and take down the set, Audrey pulled on their arms. "I think you two should stay for a couple minutes longer." She sighed as she looked over at Alex who was telling his parents to stay also. "And maybe all of you should sit down for this."

The parents eyed each other with caution as they sat down on a now sweat drenched couch and looked at their daughter and son. The rest of the crew stayed behind to watch what was about to go down even though no one really wanted them to be there. "So," Alex started, not knowing that they were going to tell them right then, "uh, Rey?"

Instead of straight out telling them, she handed them both little blue boxes. The four parents looked scared, not knowing what was going to happen. It was rare that either of them bought presents for their parents, so what was the catch now? "Open 'em." Audrey bit her lip and waited in silence as Isobel and Katherine ripped the ribbons off of the top. Inside there were blue baby shoes with a copy of the sonogram picture from earlier and it was just then they saw "Baby Boy Gaskarth" written in the corner and their jaws immediately dropped. Katherine's eyes swelled up with tears while Isobel stared at her son, unable to speak.

After a few moments, Alex cleared his throat and spoke up. "Are the tears a bad thing?" He grabbed Audrey's hand, hoping for the best.

"No, no, not at all." Katherine finally stood up, along with Isobel and the fathers. "Our babies are having a baby." She smiled as more tears fell down her face.

"You two are just so young," Peter sighed. "But I am happy for you." He placed a hand on Alex's cheek and smiled, knowing that he would do the best that he could to raise a child and be on the road. The parents hugged the two and congratulated them. While all four parents felt the sting of being a grandparent, they were already rambling on about what they were going to buy for him in the upcoming months.

Audrey laid her head against Alex's arm as their parents went outside to wait for them. "I love you, you shit head." She laughed.

"Hey now, poop head -- and I love you too." He kissed the top of her head and lingered. "I also love you," he poked her belly, making Audrey jokingly swat his hand away.