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Claudia Stilinski had been told there was a 5% chance of her conceiving naturally while John Stilinski had been told he’d have almost no chance at all of ever fathering a child of his own, they’d accepted a future where they might one day adopt a child or two accepting that they would never have a child of their own creation; they’d accepted it all with tears in their eyes because John felt like he’d failed his wife and high school sweetheart, and Claudia felt like she’d failed her husband while also grieving the loss of never sharing the experiencing of having the power and strength to carry her own child and feel the little life move and grow within her, they learned to deal with their inability to have a child of their own without begrudging the other for their failures if anything they grew stronger for it.
Accepting their failings and wanting a new beginning they moved to Beacon Hills where John took to being the new deputy with an easiness the towns people appreciated quickly making a name for himself as an honest and fair man, in the beginning Claudia focused her energy on turning their house into a proper home into a place where John could find solace after work, but eventually she worked on making friends and finding her own place in the community.
They grew happy and comfortable with their new dwellings as well as friends.
They’d only lived in the odd little town with more trees than sense for about six months when Claudia fell ill with what they thought at first was nothing more than a bug that was passing through the town, but as the illness continued for two months straight both John and Claudia feared the worse never expecting her doctor to say, `Congratulation’s Mrs. Stilinski, you’re pregnant.´
`Wh-what? ´ John who’d been holding his breath while preparing himself for the worst possible news said half chocking on air that was suddenly rushing into his needy lunges. Hearing the words he’d never imagined ever hearing made him wonder whether or not withholding air had somehow his hearing as well as brain functions, he’s still squeezing the hand of his wife tightly when he splutters out the question again like some half-dead car engine.
`I’m – I’m what?´ Claudia asked voice uneven and tears she’d cried against John’s shoulder still making their way down her pale complexion, his uniform was stained with her snot and tears.
Claudia had been crying on and off for the past week ever since they’d begun to fear she’d suffer through the same horrific cancer her mother had, they’d witnessed the decline and agonizing death of Claudia’s mother years ago and yet it was so fresh in their memories that it was as if it all had happened only a day or two ago, John and Claudia had moved into Claudia’s childhood home to help care for her dying mother and both had agreed that watching someone die a slow and agonizing death from a cancer that had spread from the stomach to various parts of the body was something neither one could bare to do again; Claudia had gone as far as forcing John to promise that if she ever became so severely ill that she could not care for herself that he would place her in a home instead of trying to take care of her himself, he’d only promised to do it after she’d threatened to leave him if he didn’t.
`Pregnant.´ the doctor says with a genuine smile on his face, he seemed as relieved as John and Claudia would be once the news settled inside their brains which had not held any hopeful thoughts since the idea of a future with heavy medication had swept in, `Congradulations you’re pregnant Claudia.´
`She’s – we’re – there’s a baby?´ John ask his mind reeling with the idea that his wife wasn’t sick that she wasn’t going to go through a battle against something John couldn’t fight for her, just the thought that he wouldn’t have to watch his wife die the way he’d watched his mother-in-law go was suddenly mind bugling. There was suddenly hope once more that they would die old and grey, and not only that but that there was now even hope of a couple of grandkids in the mix too and that thought had the eyes of the deputy growing a little bit moist.
`Well, I sure hope it’s a baby and not an alien.´ doctor Hale says with tingle of laughter in his voice. `I take it this was not at all expected or planned? ´ John simply responds by shaking his head as does his beloved wife, of course since settling in Beacon Hills John’s want for at least one child had begun to grow so much so that when he’d been intimate with Claudia he might’ve thrown a wish into the air for a child to come out of it.
`I’m pregnant? ´ Claudia asks still so unsure of what she’d been told, her hand squeezing John’s ever so slightly tighter as if to make sure he was indeed there and this was not just a simple dream, `A-a-are you s-s-sure?´
`Yes, you are pregnant, ´ the doctor says still all smiles, `we double checked to make sure.´ the doctor says before asking, ` Now there’s a fine chance that we could get a good look at your little one, would you like to see him or her today or shall we make you an appointment for a scan….´
`Today! ´ both husband and wife says as one, which is enough to cause the doctor to chuckle causing both Claudia and John to blush slightly.
`Very well.´ the Dr. Hale says while rising to his feet, wearing a beaming smile a pair of bunny teeth peeking out for them to see, `well then, let’s get a look at baby Stilinski.´
John and Claudia follow the doctor their hands remaining intertwined, hearts beating fast and anxiously.
John doesn’t let go of Claudia’s hand not even when she’s down on her back her no longer so flat abdomen with its pale skin and tiny sunflower tattoo uncovered, and if Claudia had asked him to let go of her hand then well John would’ve most likely shook his head for he needed to feel her, he needed to make sure this was all happening that there was indeed a little life growing inside his wife; and perhaps John wouldn’t faint as long as he held onto Claudia’s hand.
John’s might cry tears of joy against the hand he holds when the first grainy image of their child is seen, and he might just kiss his wife with a newfound devotion when the sound of a strong and healthy heart is heard. Claudia laughs with disbelief as she takes in the image on the screen, she can barely take her eyes of their child long enough to accept John’s tearful kiss, and she might just protest loudly when the image vanishes from the screen and she doesn’t settle until she holds her very own image of their son in her hands.
It’s only once they’re in John’s cruiser driving home that Claudia finally speaks to him then again John has spoken enough for the both of them, asking questions that needs to be asked and making the necessary appointments for Claudia and the little baby growing inside, he’d picked-up the prenatal vitamins and accepted every pamphlet that so much as hints about pregnancies, births or newborn babies or even teenagers; John had already made a mental notes to check at the books store for parenting books and so on. Claudia is holding their first picture of their little miracle in her hands, her voice is full of amazement when she finally breaks her silence, and says the very thing that John had been thinking since seeing the little life they’d created somehow, `We’re having a baby Johnny. A real baby.´
`I know.´ John says and his face is hurting because he’s been smiling like a demented fool since they were told that they’d managed to do the unthinkable, `I know.´ They are both smiling like fools at the moment and it’s a pleasant change from all the hours of frowning and worrying they’d spent since Claudia’s morning sickness had hit her.
`Oh my God Johnny, ´ Claudia gasps suddenly a few streets from their house, she does so alarming enough to cause John to slam on the breaks thinking that something was indeed terribly wrong, he turns his attention away from the street and looks at Claudia’s startled face and then the area their baby might be resting at, suddenly he fears that he and Claudia are going to lose their baby a thought that hadn’t crossed his mind once until now and he’s cursing his unlucky heart for allowing it to love the baby that wasn’t even born.
`What? What’s wrong? ´ there’s genuine fear in him of losing their baby and he can’t hide it even when he knows he should be strong for Claudia, but it’s hard when he’s already imagined the future of their baby be it a boy or girl.
`Imagine, ´ Claudia says eyes wide as saucers as if she’s deaf and blind to anything and everything but her own current thoughts, `if you hadn’t dragged me to see the doctor I’d probably give birth on the toilet like those women on TV.´
It takes John’s brain a moment to catch-up with what’s happening, and when it does he can finally breathe.
` I really don’t want a toilet baby Johnny, ´ Claudia says so very seriously that he can’t help but laugh even though he knows it’s not the proper time to laugh at his wife but he does, and he does it loudly and yet she does not yell at him in outrage or hurt, she continues to express her thoughts regardless of John’s reaction, ` I want an epidural Jonny! You know how bad I’m with handling pain.´
~*~
John Stilinski keeps the first image of his and Claudia’s baby with him at all times and shows it proudly to any man or woman ready or willing to see the perfect baby which he and his wife had created, some people might have seen the first image of John Stilinski’s pride and joy more than once and although most people aren’t sure they can even see anything on the picture he shows them the picture none the less proudly and knowingly pointing at the heart and the hands and feet, nose and forehead and so on. While John is eager to show their first image of his baby boy or girl Claudia doesn’t walk around showing people the granny image of her son or daughter, not that she isn’t as joyous about her expectant pregnancy even with the morning sickness because she was thrilled by the baby growing inside of her.
Claudia may not have walked around show the image of her unborn child to everyone as her husband did, but she was eagerly preparing their house and home for the arrival of their first and possibly only child and unlike her husband Claudia’s heart was set on having a son while John simply wished for their child to be born healthy.
John works on the nursery when he’s not at work or trying to catch a few hours of sleep, he doesn’t even complain when Claudia changes her mind about the color of nursery wall for the fifth time, and although John would want nothing more than to buy brand-new never used straight out of the factory furniture for their son or daughter Claudia spends a couple of Saturdays with her friends gathering up things such as an old wooden crib which Claudia had John paint white as well as the changing table which she had found just down the street at a garage-sale, John was however thankful for the money they saved on all the second-hand furniture and clothes when he realizes the unreasonable prices of diapers.
There’s not a scan or a doctor’s appointment John Stilinski isn’t around for, once he arrived at the hospital with a joyrider cuffed in the back of his cruiser which thankfully the Sheriff was willing to overlook.
While John had been prepared for Claudia to have cravings never had he imagined his wife would begin to crave Reese’s’ peanut butter cups the way she did considering how she’d hated the texture and taste of little chocolate and peanut butter treats, but being the dutiful husband desperate to keep his young wife happy especially as he was unable to stay with her as much as the young father-to-be would’ve liked to have John Stilinski would hunt down every-last one of those orange colored packages no matter the hour or the day; if Claudia wanted a Reese’s’ cup then she would have it, and due to his devotion to Claudia’s needs he became known as Mr. Reese’s’ in most of the stores and gas stations he visited frequently in his quests to please Claudia’s appetite.
Claudia is home alone watching the classic Disney movie Bambi while devouring an impressive collection of her now favorite treats when the contractions start, they weren’t bad enough to alarm her and so she continued to watch the movie which in all honesty wasn’t the best movie for a pregnant and highly emotional female to watch, by the time the movie is over and done Claudia is convinced she’ll die before her son is even old enough to graduate high-school and she goes as far as to call her husband to tell him this and in the middle of her nearly hysterical rant about not wanting to leave him alone to raise their baby her water breaks and she cries out, `And I’m going to die John and leave you with our little Bambi, and don’t argue with me Johnny I know this is a sign all of this - the movie the contractions starting and now my water breaking.´
Hearing his wife say she’d been going through contractions and that her water broke was hardly the best thing to hear while in the middle of trying to deal with a drunk-driver, John cries out with shock and disbelief before rushing home to get his wife and drive her to the hospital all the while swearing he will never again allow his wife to watch Bambi.
All those dark thoughts of Claudia are lost once the true agony of labor begins; and by the time her perfect baby with all his ten little fingers and ten tiny toes is placed in her waiting arms all of Claudia Stilinski’s fears of never witnessing his son’s growing-up into the fine young man who’s sense of humor would either be much like hers all of it are forgotten and all she can say is, `Welcome to the world Mechislav Ziemowit Bambi Stilinski, we’ve been expecting you.´
`You’re really going to name him that? ´ John asks and Claudia just nods before kissing the adorable little cheeks of their son, `I can’t even say either one of those names Claudia – and just imagine the shit he will go through because of Bambi ´
`John, he’s perfect, look at him.´ Claudia says her eyes focused on their newborn son and nothing else, John knows then and there that even though she loves him her love for their son was far greater and John understands it all perfectly.
John leans down to place a kiss on the top of Claudia’s head while agreeing that yes indeed their son is perfect, and he does tell his wonderful wife how amazing she is which is the truth.
`Welcome to the world son. ´ John says before kissing the top of the newborns head, `I’m so sorry about your name which even I can’t pronounce, but your mother gave birth to you so I have no say in these sorts of things. Sorry son.´
`That’s right.´ Claudia laughs all bright and happy, `and I shall always use the giving birth thing as an excuse whenever either one of you try and argue with me ever again.´
`Oh my son, we are doomed, doomed I tell yah.´ John says with the same lightheartedness his wife has always possessed.