To Fly Free: Resolve

Chapter 28 - Birth

Notes:

Here's the new chapter, Sorry it took so long!

Warning for this chapter: contains labor and birthing scenes and a panic attack. Short chapter summary in end notes for those who skip.

Once most everyone had shuffled out of the room, leaving only the two Kindaichis, and the three managers, Shoyo got to work. He washed his hands, helped Kindaichi Hana up onto the makeshift bed, then pulled on some of the blue rubbery surgical gloves. He draped a blanket over Hana's propped up knees, glad that she was wearing a long flowy dress today and not pants and a shirt. The managers began setting up the candles in out of the way places and the lanterns they had gathered to cast as much light as possible around the room.

Pausing upon seeing the pensive look on Yutaro's face, Shoyo addressed the nervous teen. "I will explain everything I am doing in as much of a professional manner as possible." He assured him, but the boy's eyebrows remained pinched together. He smirked. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm one hundred percent gay." He spoke bluntly, igniting a little giggle from the girls, including Hana. Yutaro blushed.

Shoyo nodded sharply and turned to Hana. "Right, since your water has broken we can assume you are in the active labor stage already which means over the next little while you will get more regular contractions and your cervix will continue to dilate, which is what I'm going to check on right now. Is this your second child?" He asked.

Hana nodded as she shifted to help him slide off her undergarments. "Yutaro is my only other." She confirmed.

Shoyo nodded, talking about what to do for the next little while as he checked on the progression of her cervix dilation, effectively avoiding an awkward moment. "The first time going through childbirth is almost always the longest. Expect baby number two to come a lot quicker. That being said, we still have a ways to go. Since it's been a few years since your last time going through labor I'll remind you to keep hydrated, try to remain upright as much as possible for the next while as the gravity will help you along, and let me know right away when you start feeling the urge to push." He instructed, ignoring the very blushy Yutaro who was clutching at his mother's hand and the three nervous looking managers off to the side.

Shoyo helped smooth Hana's dress back down over her legs, then assisted her in sitting up. "If you have any questions or concerns let me know immediately."

Hana smiled gratefully. "Thank you Shoyo-kun."

Hinata nodded, then turned to the managers and gestured for them to follow him where he sat down on the other side of the room to explain to them what they could expect for the next few hours and how they could best help out. Yachi looked a little green, but her expression was determined, while the other two both looked purposefully blank.

~

Four hours later, Hana sat propped up on the table bed, one hand clutching her son's and the other gently rubbing her stomach. Her pretty face was twisted in pain as another contraction ripped through her and she realized she really wanted to start pushing. "Shoyo-kun!" She called out to where Shoyo was sitting. He immediately got up and headed over.

"Everything alright?" He asked.

Hana nodded. "I'm feeling the urge to push." She informed him.

Shoyo immediately sprung into action, pulling on a new pair of gloves and checking her dilation. "Okay, you're in the transition phase. You're going to have to resist the urge to push for a little bit, you're not quite dilated enough yet. Try to focus on something else whenever the urge hits. Wiggle your toes, squeeze your son's hand, or have a conversation with him. Just don't push yet alright?"