Silas kissed Sidney back and smiled, resting their foreheads together. "I have not known a lot of women being born into the Flint bloodline, most are by marriage... but the Flint women... They are stubborn, strong-headed, and generally pains in the asses. She takes after the women in our family it seems." Silas said with a smile as he set his hand on the top curve of Sidney's stomach.
"But, she will be beautiful, and she will not be dating until she's thirty-five, at least." He was dead serious when he said this, too.
"You've met my sister and mother. Believe me, she could be getting it from my side as well," Sidney said with a smile.
Marc cleaned off Sidney's belly of the gel. "I need you to go pee in a cup and change into a gown. I want to do an internal exam as well just to check how things are going inside. So let's get you off the table."
"Off the table, on the table," Sidney sighed as Marc and Silas helped him down. Marc gave him a cup and a gown. "Back in a few."
Marc turned to Silas as soon as Sidney was gone. "Okay, real talk. How has he been feeling? Has he mentioned any cramping or anything?"
Silas shrugged his shoulders slowly, looking down at the tips of his shoes for a few moments "He has been complaining a lot about the weight gain, and his hip being messed up..." he thought about the second part of the question and shook his head "He does not complain about cramps or anything of that nature..."
Silas rubbed the back of his neck and looked at the ultrasound screen where their daughter was once swimming upon it happily "Is something wrong with the baby, or Sidney?"
Marc chewed on his lip. "I'm worried about him. The baby is already in position to be born. And I mean right in position. I think this might be it for him working. I think I want him on bed rest now because I think she is going to try and make an appearance soon and I'd like to try and prevent that."
"You're going to have to get some help with the twins. Because he's going to try and do too much with them."
Silas frowned, leaning against the exam bed a little heavily "It is too soon for her to come. She is not ready yet." Silas said quietly, biting on his own lip as he inhaled and nodded his head - he knew Marc would not be telling him this if it weren't serious; they would do what they had to to keep their daughter, and Sidney safe for the duration.
"I will make sure to hire someone, and I will start working less as well... I do not want anything happening to my daughter, or my husband."
Sidney waddled back in, carrying his clothes and the jar. "I am pretty sure I just flashed the whole hallway. Is my ass hanging out?"
Marc took the jar and Silas took his clothes. "People around here have been trying to get a look at your ass for years. I'm sure they loved it. Up we go."
Sidney grunted a little as he got on the bed with help. This time he had to put his feet in the stirrups, wrinkling his nose. He hated these things. Marc's fingers were slightly warm with lube when they pressed in and Sidney winced, reaching for Silas's hand as Marc checked him out.
"Hmm," Marc sighed and pulled back, cleaning Sidney up and helping him sit back up. "It's time to have a chat, Sid. This baby is ready to be born and it is way too soon for that. Your body is prepping for that and we need to keep that from happening. You're dilated already and she's in position to be born so as of now you are on complete bed rest. You can get up to pee and briefly shower. The rest of your time will be spent in bed."
Sidney's jaw dropped and he put a hand on his belly. "What? But I'm only seven months."
Silas wrapped an arm around Sidney's shoulders and kissed the top of his head lightly "She just is very eager to be with us... it seems." he had no idea about any of this stuff, just what Marc and Sidney would say to him about pregnancy - even if this was their second time around, he was still clueless as the day he was when they were told that they were having twins.
Silas rubbed up and down Sidney's arm and sighed quietly "I am going to hire a temporary nanny to help with the twins and I will be working a lot less hours to be home with you more as well. We do not need you stressing over this, Sidney... We need you and our daughter to make it through this safely."
Sidney looked down at his belly, holding it protectively. He had been on bed rest for a short period with the twins but that had been more that it was hard for him to move. This was different. He sniffled and wiped at the tears that were forming in his eyes.
"Okay. I'll do it for her." Sidney leaned against Silas, feeling like he had been kicked in the gut. "Did I do something wrong?"
"No," Marc said immediately. "There is nothing that you did to cause this. You've taken excellent care of yourself and done everything right. Some babies are just born early."
Silas kissed the top of Sidney's head and continued rubbing his shoulder and arm "She will not make it to full-term, though... will she? I mean, if she wants to come early... she still will... and we cannot prolong it - even with more bed rest?" Silas asked curiously.
He truly hated feeling like the uneducated one in the room - while it was true he didn't have much of a formal education, Culinary School aside, he tried keeping up with what Marc and Sidney spoke about, it was just difficult since he had no medical knowledge and definitely didn't know much about babies except for how to make one and how to raise one... or two.
Marc nodded. "We want to keep her in as long as possible. If Sid goes into labor and his water doesn't break, we might be able to stop the contractions. But if his water breaks then she's going to be born. Depending on how early she might be in the neonatal unit for a bit before she can come home. Hopefully she'll make it long enough that won't happen. 34 weeks is our target."
Sidney exhaled shakily. "34 weeks. We can do this."
Silas nodded and kissed the top of Sidney's head "Yes we can." he whispered against Sidney's temple.
After that, Marc released them with a long list of instructions on Sidney's future as a bed rest patient. Silas drove them home and got Sidney into bed. He sighed quietly as he rubbed Sidney's stomach "I know this is not ideal, and I know you would rather be active and moving around... but this is the best for our daughter." Silas smiled sadly as he looked down at Sidney's stomach.
"I have never been around a little girl except for Marc and Kris' children... I am worried about how I will be as a father for her - The twins are easy... toss them around in the air and they are happy and giggling... Is it different with a girl?"
"I don't know. I was older when Taylor was born but I was still only 8 and when she was older she did a lot of stuff I did. I think we'll be learning about little girls together." Sidney turned onto his side, reaching an arm back. "Can you please hold me for a bit? I'm feeling ... lost. I need you."
Silas nodded as he slipped off his sneakers and pulled his shirt and jeans off, leaving himself in just his boxers. He climbed into the bed with Sidney and pulled the covers up over both of their bodies; he spooned behind his husband and wrapped an arm around his stomach, resting his chin on top of Sidney's head "I'm right here." he whispered and kissed Sidney's head lightly.
Silas rubbed the mound of Sidney's stomach lightly and frowned - this was not an ideal situation for either of them, but it was where they were at and it was all Silas could do at the moment - hold his husband and just be there to support him in anyway that was possible "I will make sure that our daughter, and you, get through this safely... It will not be long before 34 weeks is here... and hopefully she will not try to escape before then. But you have to be open, and honest with me, Sid... about everything that you are feeling... even if you think I will freak out - I still need to know."
Sidney nodded, pulling Silas's arm around him tightly. In the quiet of their bedroom, Silas could keep the world away by holding him and just for a little while Sidney wanted to pretend that his husband could do just that. His body was a ticking time bomb that could go off at any moment and Sidney just wanted to forget. He closed his eyes and sank into the warmth of the bed and the comfort of Silas's arms. Right now he was safe and protected.
(Go ahead and jump to whenever)
The last remaining weeks of Sidney's pregnancy seemed to be slowly rolling by. Sidney was agitated, cranky, and wanted to kill Marc for suggesting bed-rest - even if it was mandatory and being used as a safety precaution to keep their daughter safe from a premature birth. Silas understood Sidney's agitation and tried to help out where he could.
By letting Sidney sometimes go out to the couch, so long as he stayed put - he was able to interact and be with the family more often. Silas also ended up staying home from work, instead of just going for a few days or hours at a time; it was hard for both of them, Silas and Sidney were both two active people who did not enjoy being bound to the home when they knew that there was work to be done - Yes, they were still workaholics.
The duo were fast approaching the targeted thirty-fourth week of Sidney's pregnancy, and they were both relieved. They had a birth plan all set out, Marc agreed to let them do it at the thirty-four mark because of how miserable Sidney truly was, and it showed in not only Sidney's behavior, but their daughters as well - she was more restless than the twins had ever been, keeping the couple up all night and day with strong kicks, punches, and headbutts to every organ Sidney had inside of his body.
They were now only at the thirty-third week of pregnancy, and today was bath day for Sidney. They kept the bathing schedule pretty regularly, only bathing once every three days - they both hated it, especially Sidney because of how 'disgusting' he felt between the days that he didn't take baths. And Silas, because he couldn't make it any better; a bath a day would have been too much strain on Sidney's body and they both knew it.
Wiping his hands on a small towel, Silas came out of the bathroom wearing a pair of tight boxer briefs "Alright hun, the bath tub is full and at the right temperature... Ready to get that belly moving forward?"
Sidney sat on the edge of the bed, clutching the covers as his belly cramped. He made a face and let out a slow breath. He'd been having false contractions for the last four weeks, making bedrest even more fraught with nervousness. He kept waiting for them to edge over to real contractions but so far they hadn't and he only had to get through one more week and then Marc promised he would induce labor. He had given Sidney shots to help their daughter's lungs develop so she would be ready and Sidney was still holding steady, dilated at 2 just like he had been since he started bedrest.
Silas came out of the bathroom and Sidney looked up at him, finishing breathing through the false contraction. "I'm ready. I feel so gross and sweaty today."
Silas nodded as he walked over to Sidney and grabbed both his arms in one hand, placed his other arm around Sidney's back and then hoisted his husband up to his feet carefully "That is because you have spent the last two nights underneath a comforter the size of Mt. Olympus, and have been tossing and turning all of last night." Silas said as he started walking Sidney toward the bathroom - a line of towels already laid out on the tiled floor.
"Alright... Just going to ease into the tub." It helped that they had a huge garden tub, almost a Jacuzzi in size - Silas and Sidney, even in his state of pregnancy, still fit perfectly in the tub together, without a drop of overflow water over the rim. Silas eased Sidney onto the towel that was keeping the tub floor from being slippery and slick and then eased himself down next to his husband, "There, better?"
Sidney groaned in relief, relaxing in the water. This was the only place he felt comfortable at all these days and he only got to do this every three days. He would be in the water all the time if he could. He closed his eyes, letting himself enjoy the heat and warmth of the water.
His belly contracted again and this time he let out a gasp, clutching Silas's arm. He felt pressure - a lot of pressure - and then he bent forward, curling around his belly as his water broke. It wasn't like last time where he was asleep and didn't realize it. This was a rush of water and pressure and *pain*. Sidney couldn't breathe or talk to tell Silas what was going on.
Silas' first thoughts - of course - were to panic. He was not good with Sidney being in any pain, it hurt him too much as well. He grit his teeth against the grasp on his arm "Sid... Sid you gotta breathe, baby." Silas tried to sound calm, he wasn't exactly sure he succeeded as he scooted closer to Sidney and wrapped an arm around him.
He could *feel* the contractions, they were that strong and coming that quickly "Okay... Okay you have gone into labor... Way too soon... So not where we wanted..." Silas knew he was panicking and he also knew he needed to keep it together. Luckily he had his cellphone nearby, should anything have happened when they were in here to begin with.
Silas dialed Marc's number and put it on speaker phone, leaving it near the tub edge as he moved to kneel in front of Sidney. When the doctor answered the phone, Silas breathed a sigh of relief "Sidney's water just broke - we are in the bathtub... I am not sure what to do here!" Silas practically shouted down the line to Marc.
Sidney couldn't hear anything. He just felt pain and pressure and a desperate urge to push. He planted his feet and curled around his stomach and bore down, pushing with all of his might. He had no idea what was going on, no clue that Silas was on the phone with Marc, that Marc was shouting orders to Silas. He barely even realized that Silas was there. All he knew was that he had to push and he had to push *now*.
"You need an ambulance!" Marc shouted into the phone. "What is he doing? How far apart are the contractions? I'm getting an ambulance sent to your place now. Make sure your front door is open and unlocked."