Wish you were here
“Dawn, you gonna get that?” Buffy called after the second ring of the doorbell. Not getting an answer, she sighed and pushed herself up from the chair she had been sitting on, groaning a little when the familiar pain shot through her back. It had been getting worse in the past couple of weeks, and she was still only seven months pregnant. ‘Just two more months to go’ Buffy thought to herself as she walked through the house ‘You’ve made it this far, you can do it’.
As she walked up to the front door, she heard the sound of Dawn’s music from upstairs. The doorbell sounded one more time, and Buffy reached for the doorknob.
“Alright, I’m coming.”
Buffy opened the door and smiled at the man outside before giving him a long hug.
“I thought you weren’t coming for another month at least?” She asked as she stepped aside to let Giles into the house.
“Well, I thought, rather safe than sorry, you know.” Giles followed Buffy into the living room and they sat down on the couch. “You can never be too sure about babies, and I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
“Well, I’m glad you’re here.” Buffy smiled at her former Watcher.
“As I am to be here.” He smiled back, before getting serious again. “Is everything alright? Nothing wrong?”
“Giles, we talked yesterday morning.” Buffy giggled. “Nothing’s happened since then.”
“Just making sure.” Giles gave Buffy an affectionate smile. “I know I’m being a little... overprotective.”
“It’s OK. Thats’s what grandparents are for.” Buffy replied. They both realized what she had said at the same time, and looked at each other.
“Did you just...” Giles started.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to...” Buffy said at the same time, and they both laughed.
“OK, let’s try this again.” Buffy said. “I’ve been thinking a little. It’s not very likely that my dad’ll be around, you know, at all, and with mom gone... I just... I mean, you’ve been like a dad to me for the past six years, and I would really like it if you wanted to be a sort of... surrogate grandfather to my baby. If you want to, of course.”
“Well, of course I want to. I would be honored.” Giles replied. “I just didn’t want to take anything for granted.”
“Take for granted all you want. You are a part of this family whether you like it or not.” Buffy smiled a little before continuing. “So, are you here to stay, or...”
“I’ll be here until the baby is born. Then I’ll have to go back to England for a little while, finish up some business.” Giles said.
“OK. So you’ll stay here, in Sunnydale I mean, after that?” Buffy asked, a little nervous.
“I just closed a deal on a flat yesterday, so I should hope so.” Giles could hardly finish the sentence before Buffy had flung her arms around his neck.
“Thank you.” She mumbled.
They sat like that for a little while, until Buffy pulled back, giving Giles a frightened look.
“I’m scared.” She said in a small voice.
“You don’t have to be. People have babies every day, everything will be fine.” Giles tried to comfort her.
“No, not that.” Buffy shook her head. “Or, well, that too, but more what’s after. What if I’m a horrible mother?”
“You are going to be a wonderful mother. Trust me.” Giles said in earnest.
“How can you know that? I can’t even take care of Dawn, how will I be able to take care of a baby?” Buffy had tears in her eyes.
“You do take care of Dawn, whatever made you think otherwise?” Giles asked, frowning. “Did Dawn say something?”
Buffy shook her head.
“No, she’s been real supportive. Everyone has, actually.”
“Even Xander?” Giles asked, suspiciously.
“Even Xander. He’s actually been the one to help the most.” Buffy laughed. “He’s been the one who have been the subject of my weird cravings, running to the store at every possible hour.” Giles joined in the laugh.
“And how is everything, I mean besides the pregnancy?” Giles asked.
“Good. My boss is really nice, she said I could have six months off with full pay, which is good.” Buffy said.
“And... have you heard anything...” Giles didn’t finish the sentence, but they both knew what he was talking about.
“Not a word. It’s like he’s disappeared off the face of the earth, or something.” Buffy sighed. “At least I know he’s alive... or undead or whatever.”
“How can you be sure?” Giles asked, curious.
“It’s just, I think I would know, if something happened to him, I mean. I feel like there’s this bond between us.” Buffy said, not sure how to explain it.
“I think that is only natural. After all, this child is a part of you as much as it is of Spike.” Giles said.
“You haven’t heard anything either?” Buffy asked and Giles shook his head.
“No, I’m sorry. Every contact I have are keeping their eyes open, but as of now, nothing.” Giles saw the disappointed look on Buffy’s face and decided it was time for a change of subject. “So, how are Willow and Tara’s preparations for the birth coming along?”
“Great. They’re pretty much done, just have a couple of classes left.” Buffy replied.
“Good, good. And you are still planning on doing it here?”
“Yes, Giles.” Buffy knew that Giles wasn’t fond of the idea of a home birth. “Anna, the midwife who teaches the class Willow and Tara are taking, have assured me it’s just as safe as it would be in a hospital. If anything goes wrong, and I’m not saying it will, doctor Harrison said we could call her. Besides, I’m still a little worried.”
“About the baby not being human?” Giles asked.
“Yeah. I know I joke about it, but sometimes it really hits me.” Buffy gave Giles a pleading look. “What if something is wrong with my baby?”
“Nothing is wrong, Buffy, you have to believe that.” Giles put a supportive arm around Buffy’s shoulders. “It’s not good for the baby if you worry all the time.”
“I know.” Buffy sighed and leaned her head against Giles’ shoulder. “Sometimes I just can’t help it.”
“Just try not to think about it.” Giles suggested.
“So, where are you staying? You wanna sleep here?” Buffy asked, and Giles chuckled.
“As comfortable as this couch is, I think I would be better off in a hotel.”
“No, I didn’t mean here. Willow and Tara moved into their new apartment a couple of weeks ago, and we made my old room into the nursery.” Buffy got up and headed for the kitchen, motioning to Giles to follow her. “I moved into mom’s room, and I got some new furniture, so we put my old bed and some other stuff down in the basement.” Buffy opened the basement door and they walked down the stairs. “You can stay here.”
Giles looked around the basement. There was a bed, a desk and dresser and even a rug on the floor.
“Besides, I’d be more comfortable if I knew you were in the same house.” Buffy said.
“Then of course I’ll stay.”
*****
Buffy was woken by a sharp pain in her lower back and stomach. She knew that it was possible that it was just false labor, and that even if it wasn’t there was no rush, so she decided to go back to sleep after glancing at the clock on her bedside table. 12.05 A.M.
A couple of hours later, another wave of pain woke her. When the pain was gone, Buffy realized she needed to go to the bathroom. Just as she sat down, she felt a rush of fluid leave her body, and realized her water had broke. Knowing there was probably still a lot of time left, she decided to go downstairs and get herself something to drink before waking Giles and Dawn. As she was pouring herself a glass of water, another contraction hit her, this time so powerful it made her drop her glass in the sink and double over. As the pain subsided, Buffy leaned against the counter and slid to the floor.
The sound had obviously waken Giles who came into the kitchen minutes later. When he saw Buffy on the floor, he hurried to her side.
“Buffy, is everything alright?” He asked, concern in his voice. Buffy nodded just as another contraction hit and she cried out in pain.
“What’s going on?” Dawn, who had just walked into the kitchen, asked.
“Dawn, go call Willow and Tara, tell them to get here right now.” Giles told the confused teen as he helped Buffy to her feet. Dawn finally realized what was going on.
“But it’s not supposed to happen for another three weeks. Is something wrong?”
“No, Dawn, nothing is wrong.” Giles tried to calm her. “Babies arrive when they want to, not when someone tells them to. Now, go call Willow and Tara while I get Buffy upstairs.”
Dawn ran to the phone and Giles helped Buffy up the stairs. Halfway up, Buffy had to stop and hold on to the railing as another contraction ripped through her. Finally, they made it to her bedroom and Giles helped her to lay down. Buffy breathed heavily and Giles sat down on the bed, taking Buffy’s hand in his. He got a faint smile in return.
“I didn’t think it would hurt this much.” Buffy said, laughing a little. “I mean, Slayer here.”
“And I am sure that will help, dear, but I’m afraid the pain is inevitable.” Giles tried to sooth her.
“Yeah, kinda picked up on that. Oh, God.” Buffy squeezed Giles’ hand to keep her mind off the pain, but it wasn’t very successful.
“When did the contractions start?” Giles asked when Buffy released his hand, and he stretched his fingers tentatively.
“I’m sorry, did I hurt you?” Buffy asked regretfully.
“It’s fine, dear.” Giles tried to smile despite the pain in his hand. “So, how long?”
“I woke up at midnight, but I didn’t know if it was the real thing or not, so I went back to sleep.” Buffy bit her teeth together and grabbed the headboard of the bed as she was overwhelmed by another contraction. Giles looked at his watch.
“Well, the contractions are only a few minutes apart now, and it’s 7.30 in the morning. It appears you slept through a lot of it.”
“Is she OK?” Dawn had come into the room, and Buffy smiled at her.
“I’m fine Dawnie. Did you get a hold of Willow and Tara?”
“Yeah.” Dawn nodded. “They’re coming right over, and they were gonna call Xander too.”
“Giles, could you get me some water?” Buffy asked. “I think I kinda broke the one I got.”
“Of course, dear.” Giles placed a kiss on Buffy’s forehead before heading into the bathroom.
“Dawnie, come here.” Buffy said and Dawn sat down on the bed. Buffy took one of her sister’s hands in her own. “Are you sure you want to be here? You don’t have to.”
“Are you kidding?” Dawn laughed a little. “That’s my niece or nephew in there, I wanna be here for everything.”
“OK, just wanted to make sure.” Buffy smiled at her sister before her expression became pained again.
“Does it hurt a lot?” Dawn asked as the contraction subsided.
“You could say that.” Buffy managed a smile.
“Another one?” Giles asked as he came back, putting a glass of water on the bedside table.
“Yeah. They’re getting worse, too.” Buffy replied, sitting up a little in the bed to take a sip of the water. “I hope Wils and Tara get here soon.”
As if they had heard her, the front door was opened and then slammed shut.
“Hello? Where is everybody?” They heard Willow’s voice from downstairs.
“Up here.” Dawn called back and soon the two women were in the room. Willow rushed to Buffy’s side while Tara went into the bathroom.
“Hey, sweetie, how you doing?” Willow asked. Buffy smiled at her before she was once again hit by a contraction. “How long has it been going on?”
“I woke up a little after midnight from the pain, but I went back to sleep again.” Buffy said. “Then I woke up a little while ago, and now they’re pretty close.”
“OK. Just breathe, you know, like in class. Tara’s gonna check how far we’ve gotten, OK?” Willow squeezed Buffy’s hand as Tara came back from the bathroom with a large bowl of water. “Giles, why don’t you go outside for a little while, we’re gonna get Buffy ready, OK?” Willow said.
“Right, I’ll be outside, call me when...” Giles blushed and left the room, closing the door behind him.
“OK, sweetie, can you take your shorts off?” Tara asked and Buffy pulled her pajama shorts down as far as she could reach, letting Willow finish taking them off.
Willow came back to Buffy’s side with a class of some sort of liquid.
“Here, sweetie, drink this, it’ll help with the pain a little.”
Buffy nodded and reached for the glass, but before she could take it, she was overcome by another contraction, more powerful than the previous, and she couldn’t keep from crying out.
“Did your water break yet, honey?” Tara asked from where she was kneeling at the bottom of the bed. She grabbed a blanket and put it over Buffy’s lower body, giving her some privacy.
“Yeah, a little while ago.” Buffy responded before drinking down the contents of the glass Willow had handed her.
“OK. I think we got here just in time.” Tara said, and Willow gave her a questioning look. “She’s fully dilated, and I think she just went into active labor.”
“What does that mean?” Dawn asked from where she was sitting on Buffy’s right side.
“It means it’s time to push.” Willow said, turning her attention back to Buffy. “Can you do that sweetie?” Buffy nodded. “OK. I just need to check the baby’s heartbeat, and then we should be all set.” Tara handed Willow a stethoscope and Willow placed it on Buffy’s stomach. “Everything sounds great.” She said before putting the stethoscope away.
“Dawn, would you get Giles?” Tara asked, and Dawn left the room, returning a couple of seconds later with Giles, Xander and Anya in tow. Xander joined Dawn on Buffy’s right while Giles went to the other side where Willow was sitting and Anya stayed with Tara.
“Hey, Buff, didn’t think you could do this without me, did ya?” Xander smiled at Buffy, and she returned the smile before crying out as another contraction went through her.
“OK, sweetie, when the next contraction hits, I want you to push.” Tara said, giving Buffy an encouraging smile, and Buffy nodded again. Xander took one of Buffy’s hands and Willow the other, offering her support. Buffy shook her head.
“No, I’ll hurt you.”
“It’s OK, Buff, we can take it.” Xander said.
“Thanks, guys.” Buffy said as she felt another contraction wash over her, and she pushed as hard as she could.
“That’s good, sweetie, keep pushing, just a little more.” Tara encouraged her. When the contraction was over, Buffy leaned back, breathing deeply.
“Great, sweetie, I can see the baby’s head, I’m just gonna need a couple more of those, and it’ll be over, OK?” Tara said, giving Buffy the thumbs up. Buffy smiled before another contraction took over her body.
“Good, the head’s almost out, just a couple more, sweetie.” Tara’s words kept Buffy going as another contraction took over only seconds after the last one subsided and she pushed again.
“OK, the head and shoulder’s are completely out, I just need one more good push, sweetie.” The next, and final, contraction hit and Buffy used all the strength she had left.
“It’s a boy.” Tara said before the cry of the newborn sounded through the room.
Buffy exhaled and leaned back, letting her grip on Willow and Xander’s hands loosen. It was over.
Tara cut the cord before cleaning the baby off and wrapping him in a blanket. She stood up and went to the top of the bed, handing Buffy her son.
Buffy looked in amazement on the tiny creature in her arms. Her son. He opened her eyes, and she was hit by two blue orbs that she had become so familiar with over the past couple of years. Spike.
“I wish you were here.” She whispered.
squawks
05/18/17 04:16 am
pj! I remember wishing one of your stories would be finished seriously about a decade ago. Amazing. I just tried an old password I used to use and amazingly got in too. Memories!
pj
03/20/17 01:20 am
10 yrs later, i finally rem my username and password. Pari, you rock. Hope you are well.
Rabbit_moon1
12/23/16 01:12 pm
I donate every month. Please donate to keep this site up!
AudryDaluz1
10/06/16 08:34 am
Great post.
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:45 pm
And anyone else who loves this site, it's worth mentioning there's a nifty little "Donate" option just below the shout box here! ;)
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:43 pm
Just wanted to take a moment to thank Pari and all the mods for maintaining such a great site!
05/18/17 04:16 am
pj! I remember wishing one of your stories would be finished seriously about a decade ago. Amazing. I just tried an old password I used to use and amazingly got in too. Memories!
pj
03/20/17 01:20 am
10 yrs later, i finally rem my username and password. Pari, you rock. Hope you are well.
Rabbit_moon1
12/23/16 01:12 pm
I donate every month. Please donate to keep this site up!
AudryDaluz1
10/06/16 08:34 am
Great post.
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:45 pm
And anyone else who loves this site, it's worth mentioning there's a nifty little "Donate" option just below the shout box here! ;)
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:43 pm
Just wanted to take a moment to thank Pari and all the mods for maintaining such a great site!