Out of the corner of her eye she saw Nick approaching her, his eyes roving over her naked body. He stepped behind her and slipped her arms around her, his hands moving slowly over her stomach. He bent his head to kiss her- light, feathery touches of his lips over her neck and shoulders.
India watched him in the mirror, feeling like she could practically see the aura of contentment that just seemed to surround them whenever they were together. She turned her head to kiss him when he raised his head. “I love you so much.”
He kissed her, gently at first, and then more passionately as he moved around the side of her, then in front of her. “I love you too…”
She waited for the rest of his statement, even though she knew what was coming. He’d said it at least a million times… he did NOT want to leave. This tour had possibly the worst timing in the world- she was glad the album was doing so well- better than his first solo effort- but the short tour that had been throw together to further promote it could not have come at a worse time – India’s due date was right in the middle of it.
“I just don’t wanna miss this.” he said, kissing her again. “I’ve been there through all of it and now I’ve gotta leave… right when we’re getting to what we’ve been waiting for.”
India sighed, “I know… I don’t want you to go either, but what say do I have? None. Just like you really don’t have much say. If this is what they’re telling you to do, you have to do it. I’ll call you the second contractions start and hope you’ll find a way to be here by the time the baby is born.”
“I’ll be there.” he said, firmly. “If I have to move heaven, earth AND go through hell… I’m not missing it.”
She kissed his cheek, “I know you’ll try.”
“When’s Chas coming over?” he asked.
“After work tomorrow.” India replied, moving away from the mirror to finally put clothes on.
Nick nodded, “Okay, so you won’t be alone for very long.”
“I can survive a couple hours, it will be fine.” She said, slipping a t-shirt on and tugging it down over her stomach.
Nick sat on the edge of the bed, quiet for a moment. “I’m so afraid I’m going to miss it.” he whispered.
India tugged on a pair of stretchy pants, “I know you are… if there’s any possible way, I promise I’ll try to hold on until you get there… but if you miss it… I’ll still know you tried… that’s all you can do. I promise I’ll tell you everything about it… blood, pain, all of it.”
“You could bring the camcorder…” he suggested, smirking a little.
“There is NO WAY IN HELL I’m letting anyone stand around with a camcorder between my legs!!” India screeched.
“Okay… okay… just an idea…” he laughed, having gotten just the reaction he expected.
~~~~
“Handy shelf you’ve got there.” Chasity said, chuckling at her little sister with a bowl of Doritos balancing on top her stomach.
India rolled her eyes, “Handy, yes, but I’m ready to not have it.”
“Tired of all this?” Chas asked, reaching over to skim her hand alongside India’s stomach, in hopes of getting a feel of a kick or tiny punch. She loved to watch India’s shirts move as a hand or foot pushed against her, trying to stretch in the confined space.
“Yeah, I’m just ready for the baby to be here… and not feel like I’m lugging around a hyperactive bowling ball.” India told her.
Chasity nearly spit out the drink she’d just taken, “Bowling ball???”
India nodded, “Yeah… it’s like, I move, and then a split second later, there’s all this rearranging going on in there and then, “thunk” as we get all settled again. It’s terrible at night, trying to roll over from one side to another and get comfortable.”
“Blah.” Chas made a face. “Hearing some of the things you tell me makes we want to reconsider the whole having-a-baby thing.”
“It’s hard… it’s not all cutesy like you sort of expect it to be, or at least, I guess I thought it would be… but really… is there anything else cooler than this? You made a person… I think that’s worth a little discomfort.” India said.
“Yeah…” Chasity leaned down to put her head by India’s stomach, “Hey, baby! We’re ready for you any time now.”
***
“CHASITY!!!!” India yelled from the bathroom.
“WHAT??” Chasity hollered back, unwilling to get up off the couch and miss one second of Colin Farrell on the screen.
“CHASITY!!! IT’S ALL YOUR FAULT!!!” India appeared behind Chasity, speaking so loudly she nearly fell off the couch.
“What?!?” Chasity turned to look at India, a little startled at how pale her sister looked. “What’s going on?”
“You and your ‘we’re ready for you any time now!’… I just had a contraction!” India yelped, whacking Chasity’s arm.
“What? Shit! No contractions!” Chasity said, jumping up off the couch.
“Don’t tell me no contractions… I know what I just felt!”
“But Nick’s not here!”
“No shit… go call him!” India said, easing herself back onto the couch to try to pay attention to the amount of time between her pains.
~~~
“Hello?”
“NICK! SHEJUSTSTARTEDHAVINGCONTRACTIONS!!” Chasity said, very quickly, practically yelling into the phone.
“What?? Chas??”
“Yes! India just started having contraction… wait… Oh, she just had another one! You need to find a way to get home!” Chasity told him.
“Shit… it’s too late to cancel the show tonight… I’ll leave right after the show, though, it shouldn’t be that soon, should it?” he asked, immediately beginning to panic. What if he didn’t make it in time?
“I don’t know, just get here!” Chasity said and hung up the phone, going back to attend to her sister.
***
“Fuck!!!” India yelled loudly enough they could probably hear her all the way across the building and three floors down. The pain was definitely getting more intense, and coming more often, giving her less breathing time between them.
“Calm down, calm down…” Chasity said, smoothing India’s hair back. She was quickly beginning to see that labor wasn’t the crazy-paced ordeal she’d thought it would be, rather it was hurry to the hospital, hurry to get admitted, and then wait… and wait… Nick had called about two hours ago, saying that he was on his way to the airport… and would be there as soon as humanly possible.
“You’re getting close, India…” her doctor assured her.
She growled at him, wincing through the next contraction. He’d said she was close an hour ago, too. She’d thought it would get easier after her water had been broken, but it had seemed to only get worse. She knew her parents were waiting outside for her- her dad probably pacing and worrying about his little girl and her mom on the phone, calling all her friends announcing she was about to be a grandma. She wondered briefly if Nick had called his parents yet or if he’d wait until the baby was born… they hadn’t really spoken all that much since the announcement… she was still waiting for Jane to come around. She knew it bothered Nick that his mother was still being so difficult, but he’d let it go, letting her work it out herself.
“Nine centimeters, India… only one more to go!” The doctor said, then told her he’d be back to check on her in another few minutes.
“You need anything, India?” Chasity asked.
“Just Nick to get here.” she whimpered. God, she was tired.
“He’s working on it… it should only be another hour or so.” Chas said.
“I am so not going TO LAST ANOTHER HOUR…” India said, her voice getting louder with each word as another contraction began.
***
Nick came bounding through the door of the delivery room, just in time to hear the doctor saying, “One more good push!” He gave a quick glance to India- her face all scrunched up as she concentrated on pushing, and moved to the foot of the bed, just in time to see the doctor slowly easing his first child into the world. He could feel himself totally falling in love… tiny head, face scrunched up just like India, tiny body- a little gooey at the moment, but perfect… and… a girl! He had a daughter! He smiled at the sound of her beginning to wail, shocked by the change in temperature and the sudden light.
“You’ve got a beautiful baby girl, India.” the doctor said, pulling her away from India.
India smiled, falling back into the pillows, relieved that was over and that Nick had managed to get there, just in time.
A nurse handed what looked like a pair of scissors to Nick, “You want to cut the cord?”
“Uh…” Nick took them, but wasn’t quite sure what to do with them.
“Aqui… Right here.” The nurse said, pointing to a spot on the umbilical cord, near the baby’s stomach for Nick to snip.
As he went to make the cut, he noticed how badly his hands were shaking. That was HIS daughter the doctor was holding. God she was beautiful. He made the cut, and the nurse quickly whisked the baby away to clean her up and weigh and measure her. Nick went to the head of the bed and kissed India’s forehead, “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”
She smiled at him, “I love you.”
“I love you, too.” He kissed her again and looked up to see where the baby was now, unable to stop the tears that immediately sprang to his eyes as the nurse approached and laid her on India’s stomach.
“Bambina dulce.” The nurse said, smiling at India as she placed her in India’s arms. “Sweet baby… Very beautiful.”
“Gracias… Thank you.” India replied, returning the nurses’ bilingual compliment.
The baby quieted immediately when given to India, snuggling down into the blanket she was wrapped in. Chasity smiled at her sister as she crept out of the room to go tell her parents they had a granddaughter.
India looked at her daughter- the mess of blonde hair going every which way on her head, her perfect face, “I am so in love…” she said quietly.
The baby opened her eyes for just a second, just long enough for India and Nick to get a glimpse of her eyes, then closed them
“Whoa! Did you see that??” Nick asked, of his daughter’s brilliantly blue-green eyes.
“Yeah… wow. They may change, though…”
“I hope they don’t…”
“Parents have been notified!” Chasity said, poking her head back into the room, but not wanting to interrupt.
“Thanks, Chas.” India said, still not looking away from the baby.
“Your parents are here, too, Nick.”
“What?” Nick looked up at Chasity, appearing genuinely surprised. “I called them on the plane… I didn’t think they’d come, though… at least not my mom.”
“They’re here and looking anxious, really.” Chasity said. “I told them all to wait a few minutes though, I thought you two would want to hang out with her a little bit first.”
India finally looked up at her sister, “Thanks, Chas.” When Chasity turned to go, India said, “Hey… you can stay… please?”
Chasity smiled, and stepped back into the room, “So, what are you guys going to name her?”
Nick and India exchanged glances, “Uhhh….”
“Did you think about any names at all?” Chasity asked, then leaned over to kiss her niece.
“Not really… “ Nick said, “We decided to wait until we saw her to decide.”
“We could be hokey like my parents… she was conceived in New York City… she’s already got “C” for a last initial…” India said, then added, “Like… Natalie Yvette Carter…” As soon as she said it, she started laughing.
“No, no… Noelle… Yancy!” Chasity said.
“Nina Yolanda Carter.” Nick tossed out.
India’s stomach was starting to hurt from laughing when she said, “Nelly Yvonne.”
“How about… Norah Yoko?”
“I got it! Nadia Yasmin Carter!” Chasity said, and was immediately greeted by the baby starting to cry.
“Awww… sweetie!” Nick leaned down to touch his daughter’s cheek. “We’re just teasing… we wouldn’t actually name you any of those things.”
“Dulce.”
Nick and Chasity both turned to look at India.
“Dulce… like the nurse said… she is a sweet baby.” India said, her heart melting even more as her daughter continued to nuzzle against her chest.
“Dulce.. hmmm…“ Nick said the name a few times, trying it out. “I like that. Dulce Carter. Nice.”
“Middle name?” Chasity asked.
“Daddy gets to pick that one.” India said, looking over at Nick. “Here, hold her…” She carefully lifted Dulce up and just about wanted to cry at how adorable Nick looked taking their daughter in his arms.
Nick walked slowly over to a chair and eased himself down into it, careful not to jostle Dulce. He studied her intently for a few minutes and thought about it… how she looked, how it felt to hold her… “Nevaeh.”
It took India a second to figure it out, and then she smiled, “Dulce Nevaeh Carter. Beautiful.”
Chasity slipped out of the room quietly, going down the hall again to give the latest update to the grandparents.
India scooted over on the bed a little, still not having the energy to move much, and called Nick over to her.
He stood up and walked over to the bed, handing Dulce to India as he gently sat on the bed and lay down beside her. He put one arm behind India’s head, the other cradled his daughter. “There is no way I can go back on the road now… I can’t leave this. I was about to go crazy missing you… I can’t leave both of you now.”
India put her finger to Nick’s lips. “Don’t worry about it now. We’ll figure that out in a little while.”
Nick nodded and leaned over to kiss India softly on the lips, “You taste amazing.”
India giggled a little, “I love you.”
Just as Nick was replying that he loved her, too… he head his mother’s voice coming from the doorway, “How precious!!”
“Hey Jane…” India said, hoping she’d behave herself and not ruin the perfection of the moments she and Nick had just been sharing.
Jane strode over to the edge of the bed, and looked closely at Dulce. After a few moments, she looked at Nick and said, “She is beautiful… you did good, Nick.”
India smiled at the surprised look on Nick’s face and then turned her attention to her own parents coming through the door, anxious to see their new granddaughter.
~~~
India lay Dulce back in her crib, dizzy from having walked around the room so many times in circles, singing softly and trying to get Dulce to get back to sleep. She folded her arms on the edge of the crib, and leaned over, resting her head on her arms and peered into the crib, watching her daughter- now peacefully asleep. She heard Nick’s footsteps behind her, and seconds later felt his arms come around her and his chest pressing against her back as he leaned over her, his face right next to hers.
They were silent for a few moments- gazing at their daughter in amazement that they’d brought such a tiny, perfect person into the world. The past few days had been a major adjustment- no sleep at all at night, but every time they looked at her, it didn’t matter.
Lincoln, Olivia, and Chasity had been over every day, watching Dulce and giving Nick and India a few moments to nap or just lie in bed, holding each other. Bob and Jane had visited- Jane was quickly becoming totally smitten with her granddaughter, despite her earlier protests. Nick’s tour had been postponed indefinitely –hoping his fans could understand his desire to be at home with his daughter.
India could tell that Dulce had her nose and Nick’s lips… she hoped that her hair would stay blonde and that her eyes would remain the stunning blue-green shade she could never get enough looks at – the color just stunned her. Dulce was beautiful- a perfect, beautiful combination of her and Nick.
Nick heard India sigh, a content, beautiful sound, and kissed her temple. “This is heaven, isn’t it?”