Woman in White

Part 29

July 26, 2014 — 5:30 PM
      Today is her due date and she still finds herself pregnant. She had been crying on and off all day, asking him if she did something wrong since their little girl isn't here yet. He finds her in the rocking chair in Avery's nursery, looking out the window with the little stuffed bunny they got for their daughter clutched in her hand. He walks in and squats down in front of her. "Hey." He whispers as he rests his hands on her bump. "Hi." She sniffles as she wipes a tear from her eye.
     "Kate, what's wrong?" He asks her. She looks down at him and sighs. "I just want her here, Castle. I want to hold her and kiss her. I want to know that she's okay." She cries and looks back out the window. He lifts one of his hands to grasp her free one. "Look at me. Please?" She complies with his request. "She's okay. She's kicking and tumbling around. It just seems that our little girl got her mother's stubbornness and wanted to remind us that she doesn't follow our time table." He tells her. It makes her laugh.
     "I think you mean her daddy's stubbornness." She corrects him. "You're the one that held out for four years." He reminds her. She squints her eyes, "Technically it was only a year and a half because those first few years I didn't have feelings for you." She reminds him. Castle shrugs, "Whatever you say, love." He presses another kiss to her bump and then stands, "How about I draw you a bath?" He suggests. She smiles, "Yeah, just give me a little bit longer in here, okay? I don't plan on coming back in here until she's born so I wanna savor it."

July 26, 2014 — 8:02 PM
     She's finally relaxing in the bath that Castle drew for her when she first feels it. Cramps. Similar to the ones she felt during her period, but these ones wrapped all the way around her belly and lower back. She feels her skin tighten. The sensation only lasts a couple of seconds, but it's enough to catch her off guard. "Castle!" She calls out. He rushes into the bathroom, "What's wrong?" "I think I just had a contraction." She tells him. He sits on the edge of the tub and rests his hand on her bump.
       "Really? How long?" "A couple of seconds, but it was definitely stronger than the Braxton Hicks I've been experiencing." She tells him. "Okay, when did Dr. Chasefield say to go to the hospital?" He asks. "She said to go in once they're three to five minutes apart, last for a minute each, and have been that way for an hour." She tells him. "Okay, let me go grab the stopwatch and I'll start timing them." He tells her. She uses his help to get out of the bath and dresses in a pair of underwear and one of his t-shirts.

July 26, 2014 — 11:29 PM
The contractions are becoming more intense. They're now ten minutes apart and lasting for 30 seconds each. They've been walking around the living room and Castle even grabbed her yoga ball for her to bounce on. Alexis sits on the couch, timing Beckett's contractions while Castle supports his wife. She's swaying on her yoga ball with her hands on her knees and her head hanging down when another contraction hits. "Castle." She mumbles. He kneels in front of her, wraps his arms around her back, and lets her wrap her arms around his neck.
He gently presses his fingertips into her spine as she nods against his shoulder and Castle signals for Alexis to start timing her contraction. The one thing Beckett asked for early on was silence. She's always wanted silence when she was in pain. It allowed her to process the pain quicker and easier than if there was noise and distraction. When she sits up straight, Alexis stops the stopwatch. "42 seconds." Alexis says. "Almost there. Just gotta get them closer together." Castle whispers as he tucks a curl behind Beckett's ear and she nods.

July 27, 2014 — 2:12 AM
"That one was a full minute." Alexis tells them. "It's been an hour, Kate." He adds. An hour of one minute contractions that are five minutes apart. She looks at both of them before nodding, "Let's go." She whispers. Castle springs into action while Alexis stays with Beckett to support her if she has another contraction. "Can you hand me my phone, Lex? I need to call Dr. Chasefield." Kate requests. The redhead nods and grabs her stepmother's phone as Castle emerges from the bedroom with their bags, pillows, and car keys.
Once Beckett ends the call with Dr. Chasefield, who gives her to okay to go to the hospital, Alexis helps her stand. "Let's go have a baby." Castle says as he opens the door for Beckett and Alexis. They make their way to the parking garage where Castle loads their stuff in the trunk before sliding into the back seat with his wife while Alexis takes and keys and drives them to the hospital.