My Universe [a Roman Reigns story]

36 From the first moment

Roman POV

I always knew that my wife was so strong. Especially with everything she had already experienced and gone through. But that was nothing compared to seeing her bear the pain of labor. The pain that came with bringing our gem into the world. Not once did Stefanie complain about the pain she felt with each contraction.

She just squeezed my hand and tried hard to breathe through the pain until the contraction was over. And that in a time span of now almost 24 hours since the contractions had started. Time passed slowly. Ruby was still in no particular hurry to meet us.

I felt totally helpless. I could do nothing to help Stefanie except hold her hands and encourage her. I massaged her back or belly whenever she wanted. Or just held her in my arms as she rested before it started again.

When it was finally time to deliver our little one, my nervousness peaked. I took a deep breath to calm my nerves. The last thing I wanted was to pass out when my wife and daughter needed me the most. I put my arm around her shoulders to support her as she pushed, even though that was even more unbearable than seeing her in labor. I would have liked to take away her pain. And I had no idea why she didn't want an epidural.

"Very good, Mrs. Reigns. Very, very good! I can see the head." the doctor said as Stefanie leaned back into my arms to catch her breath.

I tried to stand up to catch my first glimpse of our daughter, but Steffi immediately held my hand.

"Oh no, no, no. You stay here with me. We'll see her together for the first time." she said, her blue eyes sparkling with seriousness.

Of course, I wouldn't have dreamed of contradicting her, so I returned to my previous position.

Not 30 seconds later she had to push again. Steffi grunted and moaned with effort.

"Okay, you're almost there. The head is out. One more time, then you can say hello to your daughter." the doctor said and that was exactly the motivation Steffi needed to get the last bit done.

With one last big push she brought our Ruby into the world. Steffi sank into my arms, exhausted but smiling, as the cries of our little one rang through the room.

"You did it, baby girl! You're so incredible!" I whispered to her as I first gave her a kiss on the forehead and then on the lips.

I saw how exhausted yet incredibly happy she was. I felt the same way, even though she was the real superhero here.

The doctor quickly wiped Ruby a little clean before very carefully placing her on Stefanie's chest. We looked at our miracle and she was without a doubt perfect.

"Hey my little gem. I love you. Thank you for letting me be your mommy." Steffi whispered to the baby as she looked at her closely and then kissed her little head.

"Daddy loves you too. I'm so glad we can finally hold you in our arms." I added as my fingers gently stroked her tiny hand.

"I love you and Ruby so much. I'm speechless...we're parents." I breathed after a few of the best moments in my life.

"I know what you mean, Ro. And we, your girls, love you so much." my wife replied, then lifted her head off the pillow to give me a loving kiss.

A moment later Ruby opened her eyes and we saw her eyes for the first time. They were the same beautiful blue eyes of her mommy. The eyes that had never let me go from the first moment.

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For the next few hours we enjoyed our time as a small family. For me, there was nothing sweeter than seeing my wife with our daughter in her arms. Ruby seemed to be a perfect little fusion of us. While she had Steffi's eyes and nose, she had my hair color and already a lot of hair. And she also seemed to have the shape of her lips from me.

I held her tightly in my arms and absorbed every detail about her while Steffi rested. But instead of sleeping, I saw her looking at us very closely. The content, smitten smile always on her lips.

At some point, a soft knock was heard at the door. I looked at Steffi to see if it was okay for her to have a visitor. She nodded at me.

"Come in!" I called.

"Hello my darlings!" we heard Mom say.

She walked past me, placed a large bouquet of flowers on the bed and hugged her daughter-in-law tightly.

"Congratulations." she said softly, her voice full of emotion.

"Thanks mom. Would you like to meet your granddaughter?" replied Stefanie.

"I'd love to." she said, then came over to me.

She put a hand on my cheek and looked at me proudly.

"Congratulations, son." she said softly and then reached out to Ruby.

"You could have shaved." she then said to me, but then winked before sitting down with the baby in her arms to get a good look at her.

"My goodness! Look at you! Such a little angel, so beautiful. Happy Birthday. I'm your grandma, little one. I'm the one you come to when mommy and daddy don't spoil you enough. I'll take care of it then. That reminds me, I don't even know your name yet," Mom said and then looked up at us.

I sat with Steffi on the bed. Again, I had my arm around her shoulders while she rested her head against my chest. Together we watched Mom bond with her granddaughter.

"Well... Her name is Ruby Olympia Reigns. Ruby is after my dad. His name was Ruben. And Olympia was Mom's middle name. Since my middle name was her first name, we thought it would be a nice way to include the two of them." Stefanie explained the meaning of the name we chose for our gem.

"This is a wonderful idea. And I'm sure they're both proud and honored. Did you hear that, little one? Your name is very special. You carry many great names. Welcome to this crazy world, Ruby Olympia King-Reigns," Mom said, giving Ruby a little kiss on the forehead.