Somebody Like Me

Wrinkling her nose slightly, Cassie allowed a soft groan to fall out of her mouth, her green eyes peeking towards the empty side of the bed which sat beside her whilst her hand moved to rest against her bump, trying to soothe the wave of pain which had pushed through it. It wasn’t a huge surprise, as her pregnancy had progressed, she had developed a habit of sleeping in a little later than she would normally, and she wasn’t surprised to see that Sergio wasn’t beside her, even if it wasn’t overly late. She was certain that he would have woken up a little while previous.

Pausing for a couple of seconds, she allowed the wave of pain to subside before she gently sat up, her feet settling down against the rug which sat beside the bed. Blinking a couple of times, she gently brushed her hand over her bump once more before she gently moved to push herself up to her feet, pausing as a fluid sensation passed over her legs.

Letting out a small squeak, she gently moved to brush her hand against her legs before she shook her head, her breathing catching slightly. She knew that it was coming, with her due date only a matter of days away, she had known that it would only be a matter of time before she went into labour, but still it had caught her off guard, even if she had been preparing for it. She was still more than a little surprised.

Swallowing a little, she stood still for a couple of seconds, before the sound of footsteps reached her ears, causing her to peek up at Sergio who had padded into the room without so much as a glance in her direction. “I was still expecting you to be asleep” he quipped “I mean, I was going to leave you some breakfast in the oven before I left. Are you sure that you don’t want to lay in a little more?” he posed, moving to pull a clean t-shirt out of his drawer.

Cassie watched him for a couple of seconds, a slightly amused smile pulling at the corner of her mouth, before she took a couple of paces towards him, her hand capturing his as he tried to pull a pair of shorts from the drawer. “You’re going to have to make a phone call” she mused softly, a coy look on her face.

Sergio tilted his head. “What?” he posed softly.

Cassie quirked another soft smile before she shook her head. “You’re going to have to call your coach” she quipped “You’re not going to make it in this morning” she added gently.

Sergio lifted an eyebrow, mulling her words over for a brief second, before his eyes travelled down towards her bump, his expression softening slightly. “Cass?” he breathed softly, his hand gently moving to rest against her bump.

Cassie spared him another soft smile before she nodded her head. “My waters just broke” she mused softly “And that means you’re going to have to give your coach a call before we get moving to the hospital” she added, her hand lightly covering his.

Sergio blinked a couple of times, trying to process her words, before he nodded his head. “O…OK” he breathed softly “I will call my coach and you should get dressed” he added, his voice more than a little awed. He knew that it was coming, for a while, he and Cassie had simply been counting down the days until the baby arrived, but still the idea felt strange to him, even if he was excited about the idea of their little boy arriving. The idea that Cassie was in labour which was one that left him more than a little awed.

Cassie quirked a small smile, not missing the nervousness in his voice, before she took a pace towards him, pressing a soft kiss against his lips. “Come on” she encouraged softly “If we hang around for much longer, there’s a chance I’ll end up giving birth in your car. Is that what you want?” she quipped, offering him a wide smile.

Sergio spared a slightly breathy laugh at her joke before he shook his head. “I’d rather you were in a hospital with somebody who knows what they’re doing” he mused softly.

“So would I” Cassie replied softly “So, take a couple of breaths, get dressed, and then get me to the hospital so that we can meet peanut for the first time” she added, offering him another gentle smile.

Sergio admired her smile for a brief second before he leant towards her, stealing another soft kiss before he stepped away from her, fussing quietly about getting her to the hospital as soon as he could. Cassie watched after him for a couple of seconds, a small amused smile on her face, before she gently brushed her hand over her bump, wordlessly hoping that her labour would pass without any major problems.

~#~
Sipping quietly on the glass of water, Cassie allowed her head to rest back against her pillow, feeling more than slightly tired. It had been a while, after she and Sergio had arrived at the hospital, almost 6 hours had passed, but Cassie knew that they still had a while to go yet, even if Elsa had insisted that she was progressing nicely. She had a feeling they still had a little while to wait until their little boy put in his first appearance.

“How far are we in now?”

Cassie, who’d been quietly staring up at the ceiling, jumped slightly at the sound of Sergio’s voice before she lifted her head, offering him a tired smile. “We’re at nearly 7cm now” she quipped “But, clearly like his papa, he likes to take his time. Where’ve you been?” she added, making a space for him at her side.

Sergio quirked a small smile at her joke before he sat down beside her, placing his hand in hers. “I was talking to your padre” he quipped “I mean, I know that we’ve still got a little while to go before he gets here, but I figured he’d have to get here so I thought I would let him know that he’s almost an abuelo. I’d already called my parents” he explained softly.

“How’d they take it?” Cassie quipped, squeezing his hand as another contraction arrived.

Sergio held onto her hand, mumbling a few soft reassurances, before he quirked a small smile. “They’re pretty excited” he fussed softly.

Cassie offered him a light smile before she gently shifted her spare hand, brushing it over her bump. “We still need to come up with something to call him” she noted softly, her green eyes watching her hand.

Sergio nodded his head. “We do” he mused “But we don’t have to do that right now, do we?” he posed.

“It’d make a pretty good distraction” Cassie reasoned with a small shrug “And I am starting to get pretty bored. You have any ideas?” she posed, offering him another tired smile.

Sergio paused for a second, briefly contemplating telling her not to worry about it, before he shrugged his shoulders slightly. “I’ve got a few in mind” he quipped “I mean, I am still pretty stuck on Noah or Mateo, but if you have something else in mind…”

“I like Noah” Cassie interrupted softly.

Sergio blinked, slightly surprised by her interruption, before he tilted his head. “You do?” he posed “Because if you don’t…”

“I like it, Sese” she enthused warmly “What do you think about Noah Alonso Ramos Gomes?” she added, offering him a small curious look.

Sergio tilted his head. “Alonso?” he quipped, a slightly amused grin on his face.

“I know it would mean a lot to my papa” Cassie fussed shyly.

Sergio quirked a soft grin before he nodded his head. “I think it is a great name, Cass” he enthused “Noah Alonso Ramos Gomes. I like it” he added, his voice warm.

Cassie spared him a soft glance, wordlessly asking if he was certain, before she felt another contraction, something which caused her to let out a soft groan as Sergio pushed himself up to his feet, mumbling soft words in encouragement into her ear.

~#~
“You’re doing so well, Cassie” Elsa fussed from her spot at the end of the bed, her eyes peeking up towards the brunette who rested back against her pillow, trying to catch her breath. It had been a while, after she had arrived at the hospital, almost 8 hours had passed, but at last the moment had arrived for the baby to make his first appearance, something which relieved Sergio, who had steadily grown to hate the sight of Cassie in pain.

“You’re going to need to give it everything you have when the contraction hits” the midwife added.

Cassie, who was trying to catch her breath, shook her head. “I can’t do it” she protested “It hurts too much. Can’t I just stop?” she added, her voice heavy.

“You know that you can’t” Sergio mused softly, his hand squeezing hers “You need to keep going, Cass, for peanut” he added, his voice warm and encouraging.

“You don’t get an opinion” Cassie shot back “You’re the reason I am doing this. You don’t get to talk and you certainly don’t get to get anywhere near me in the foreseeable future” she added, a glare fixed on her features.

Sergio blinked, something which made Elsa shake her head in amusement before Cassie let out another groan, something which drew her attention back towards the brunette. “Alright, Cassie, you need to give it everything you can. On the count of 3, ok?” she posed softly.

Cassie blinked tearfully before she nodded her head, pushing with everything she had for as long as she could before the sound of cries emanated away from the end of the bed, pulling Sergio’s attention away from his girlfriend and towards Elsa who’d moved to wrap the small bundle up in a towel. “Is…Is he alright?” he babbled softly.

Elsa, who’d been quietly cleaning off the newborn, quirked a grin. “He needs to be cleaned up a little” she enthused softly “But he seems to be healthy. Congratulations, Sergio, Cassie, you’re parents” she added as she padded around the bed, gently offering the baby out towards Cassie.

Cassie blinked a few times, trying to get rid of a few tears from her eyes, before she carefully sat up, her arms wrapping around the tiny bundle which Elsa held out towards her. Sniffing, she carefully brushed the towel away from the baby’s face before she let out a soft sob, something which caused Sergio to smile gently. “You’re happy, right?” he posed softly.

Cassie nodded her head gently before she lifted her hand, gently brushing the tip of her finger against the little boy’s cheek. “Hola, Noah” she breathed softly, a tearful smile on her lips.

Sergio watched her quietly before he lifted his hand, wiping his eyes subtly before he ducked towards her, kissing her temple as he mumbled a quiet thank you.