“The sale of my home in California is finalized!” I had told Robbie this on the phone as I cruised faster than sixty-five miles-per-hour to get there in time. I didn’t want to miss it. And when I reached the hospital I almost forgot my helmet: which I went back for…then found that I hadn’t secured my bike and taken the key.

And usually I threw my grey motorbike cover over just for safety, which I did, and then ran a few yards to the automated doors that opened-sesame for me, but then went back to my bike to check if my gloves were on the seat. I’m a mess! And Robbie…I ran back inside the hospital and spoke to an Asian lady with very oval glasses, who couldn’t hide the oddity of seeing a shifter because her eyes were shaped to not accept anything at face value. She was the non-shifting hater.

“I’m looking for the pregnancy wing?”

Her accent was a strong Canadian. “You can find that on the third level. Take the lift which is down the corridor and a first left.”

I was a wreck clinging onto my mobile phone that Robbie only just hung up on. I high-tailed it down the corridor whilst trying to call him back, but no reply after three tries.

When I reached the lift the same lady who was seriously short had my helmet and gloves in her hand. “I’ve been chasing and calling you. These are your things!”

“Oh, thank you!” I took them from her, just in time to see the number on the elevator reach to zero — with the opened door and a few people who got out. I tabbed at number three and the door closed moments later; with the green arrow going up as my slanted head looked at the quickening number change: one…two…and then three!

I got out; ran past a palm tree with a vase the colour of Jupiter and saw Liza.

“Hey, Liza.”

“Sean, glad you’re here! Robbie’s gone into labour and he’s been calling you useless but laughing at the same time. I think he knew you’d be late.”

We walked and talked rapidly with Liza in front and twisting her neck like I needed to hear every single detail. “It’s been real smooth. I know you might be a little squeamish at first. What with not being the sort to witness a—”

I stopped her there. Or I stopped in my tracks and Liza turned to see that the space between us was vast.

“Don’t worry about it!” She came trailing back to collect me. “All you have to do is hold Robbie’s hand and pretend that you’re loving every moment of it.”

“That’s all I need to do? No…nothing…”

“Hold his hand, and then let him squeeze the shit out of your blood circulation. He’ll thank you very nicely later for that.”

We got back to pacing and soon I was outside the door; bursting into the labour room and mentioning once again, “The sale of my Californian house is finalized!”

Robbie drowned that all out with his yells that came close to being shot in the groin.

His face was contorted and unrecognizably red as I ran to his bedside and fought the passing-out-symptom from hearing, ‘Push…push…push!’ Then the baby’s head popped out! And my stomach did the thump…thump…eurghhh! And my hand started to go more numb than ice placed on a pink tongue. But Robbie was in need, and my pain was secondary to his which lasted for so long that I started to think I would join him on that bed and share his turmoil.

I got on the bed next to him, but the doctor said to give him as much room as possible. “Won’t me being on that bed help him?”

“Sean, stay off the flipping bed and give me your hand!”

“Which one?”

“Any!”

I glared at what was now two empty gloves instead of hands. “I think they’re both suited for a burial! Robbie, take my sneakers instead?” I literally offered my right leg to him.

“Enough of the jokes and give me your arm!”

I had made him snigger with that one. But my upper arm and body were fighting to stay upright as Robbie had to give the last of his contractions a boot with his sweatiness, cries of pain, and intense groans that filled every room of the hospital ring.

I was by his side and in his ear screaming, “You can do it, baby! Just…one…more… Pushhhhhhhhhhhhhh!”

* * *

“You need to keep pushing, Robbie! You just have to…no…just a little.”

“I’ve been pushing…and pushing…and I’m out of any more to spare!” The baby was coming into the world, but Robbie had run into a blank wall and needed my assistance in resurrecting just a few more.

And the idea I came up with was to contort my face and squeeze like constipation would not beat me! And even though the nurses and doctors found me hilarious, Robbie saw that out of love, I was sharing the load!

“Push Robbie, push it right out!”

“Heurghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!” Robbie came with one more and I knew it would do the trick. “Heurghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.”

My hand was being murdered again. The room stank of intestines and bodily fluids that he was releasing as his outstretched legs widened to a point where the doctor could pay the baby a visit and help it out gently.

It took a few more painful excursions, but the final ‘Heurghhhhhhhhhh’ gave me the chills as it was replaced with, “Wah, wah, wah, wah!” And then a blanket was quickly wrapped around the crying baby and the nurses took it away with the doctor who attended to Robbie…who had come back from the dead to only go back to see death again.

I kissed him on the forehead and had to close my eyes when the snipping of the umbilical cord got the chop. Then Robbie held his hands out to me for an ardent embrace and I took his whole head and upper body into mine. I kissed his skull and patted the back of his head like a lover, and then caressed his hair tenderly to show him affection.

“I’m so proud of you, Robbie. You did well.” I smoothly rubbed the top of his hair.

Robbie was exhausted, so I helped him to lie back on the pillow that I fluffed out for him. I got him water, but he wasn’t even able to raise his hands to take it. When the nurse came back she checked on Robbie’s heartbeat and temperature.

“How’s the baby?”

“The baby is absolutely fine. We’re just running a few tests to see that the child is healthy and stable.”

“Is it a boy?” Robbie and I asked this at the same time, but my version was stronger.

The nurse answered us both with a, “Yes. So far, he’s weighing seven pounds, and twelve ounces. And by our standards, he’s a very happy boy!” The nurse left me and Robbie in the room alone again.

“A boy!” I rubbed my palms like lotion was working its way into the skin. “A boy.” And what stopped me from saying it a third time was Robbie grinning the happiest I had ever seen him. I was content with it being either. “Are you happy to have a son, Robbie?”

Robbie nodded. “When do we get to see the baby?”

“The doctor is going to bring him in soon.” I sat on the edge of the bed. “Shit…I can’t believe how well I did with that pregnancy. I delivered a very healthy baby, Robbie. Give me a mark out of ten?”

“There was nothing amateur about your pushing skills. I think we need to look for a way to allow Alphas to give birth!”

“I’ll leave that to you.”

“You’d be good at it. I’d record the whole thing and send it to your family. How proud they would be. Sean, why are you staring at me?”

“I never thought it would a beautiful thing.”

“What?”

“Seeing a baby come out your…your…” I was pointing at the location where our son had wailed and cried. “It was like… I wanted to cradle him at the time and say stop crying, I’m here. That’s a big smile on your face.”

“When he comes back, we’ll have to find a name for him.”

“I think Sean the second.”

“If I could get out this bed I’d hit you into sense! We are not naming him that!”

“Why not? I like it.”

“I want a creative name for him. Not an outdated—”

“Sean is a hip name—”

“And it belongs to you. If I said, let’s name him Robbie Junior…”

“I’d be like yeah, let’s go with that.” I began to like winding Robbie up. And what made it worse was he took it so seriously. But that was the fun in mine and his banter. Because in the end he knew it.

“You’re winding me up, aren’t you?”

“No. I truly want to name him Sean, the second.”

“He’s not an heir to the throne.”

“He’ll be one when I’m finished with him.”

“Sean, please show me that you can be more creative than that! I had high hopes for you.”

I grinned and got up from the bed. “How about Lewis Lane?”

“Our last names do not end with Lane.”

“Edward Standard.” He got ready to chuck a pillow that was supporting his back with that one. “Well, you come up with something then.”

“All we need is a first name. The second name comes after we—”

“There’s no after. We made it permanent at the home warming.”

“So, we take your name then?”

I slowly strolled over and gripped the side of his face…then let my finger slide tenderly down to his neck. “We take my last name.”

* * *

“He sure is tiny.” Liza was cradling the new born in her arms and using her ring finger to fumble his tiny nose.

“He weighs nearly seven pounds, that’s not tiny.” I had to back-him-up, he’d be a heavyweight in no time.

“What have you decided to call him?”

“We haven’t come up with anything.”

“Well that’s not true. I have an idea, but Sean won’t be serious.”

“Come on then…tell me your idea for a name?”

“I was thinking of Steven, because it was Lucas’s second name. It just…it just came to me now and I thought I’d see what you think about that one?”

“I love it!” And I genuinely did. What better way to keep the memory of his departed son alive? I went over to relieve Liza, but she found it hard to let go. “We’d take offers over a thousand for him.”

She laughed, and gently passed him for me to hold. And then I walked over to Robbie with baby Steven in my arms; and sat on the bed for Robbie to admire.

We gawped at how small he was inside of that white blanket. An innocence like that forced me to think of my younger sister who would love to know that she was an aunty. I gave Steven to Robbie, and then went out the door to message my dad on the weight and name of my son. And then I let Mark know the news because he had been ringing ever since to find out if everything was ok.

“Congrats, cousin! That’s good news! I’ll come and see the baby in a few days.”

“Yeah, please come. Robbie would like to meet you.”

“No problem. Hey, not to change the subject or anything, but the Alaskan council are constructing a new plan for Betas to find easier employment opportunities.”

“Mark, no politics. I’m just going to go back in there and tell my son that he’ll be having a baby sister real soon.”