Silver Lining

Delivery

After Regina's panic attack, Robin suggested she saw her therapist again and tried to work things out with herself. Seeing the sheer fear in her eyes sent chills down his spine, but he understood the panic he experienced during those moments wasn't even half of the one she felt. Even though her relationship with Leo ended almost 3 years prior, Robin realised she could not fully move on and certain fears still haunted her.

Regina had been seeing her therapist for over a month, not wanting to cancel the sessions due to her advanced pregnancy. Even though she was to have the baby in a matter of days, Regina still took it upon herself to care for Ava and the household. Robin had already filled in the paperwork for his requested paid leave from the hospital, as he figured the baby might come earlier than expected and did not want to have Regina on her own at any point.

Regina woke up to a delicious smell coming from the kitchen, so she peeled herself from the comfortable bed and wobbled towards Robin, standing behind him and wrapping her arms around his waist.
"Good morning, bump!" Robin giggled, earning himself a playful slap from Regina.
"You did this to me, so I don't want to hear it." Regina smirked. "I'm going to wake Ava up and bring her downstairs for breakfast," she continued.
Robin turned around, gently grabbed her arm and directed her towards the kitchen counter.
"Or you could finish this fruit salad and I'll carry her downstairs," he said.

Robin went to Ava's room and smiled when he saw the sleeping mess of his daughter. The positions she slept in resembled Robin's more than Regina's, so she did not quite have the poise and composure of her mother while she was asleep. Her long hair was covering the entire pillow, forming knots each time she turned. Her lips were slightly parted, letting out the most adorable snore Robin had ever heard. Robin sat on the edge of her bed, gently tickling her tummy.
"Time to wake up, princess. Mommy is waiting for us downstairs," he said, picking up a sleeping Ava and making his way to the kitchen.

"The little gremlin does not want to wake up." Robin laughed, placing Ava on the couch.
He walked behind Regina, wrapped his arms around her baby bump and kissed her neck, just like she did to him minutes before. After a few moments, Robin suddenly stopped and felt her bump again, realising it was incredibly contracted. Gently grabbing her arms, Robin turned her so she was facing him.
"Are you alright?" he asked with concern in his voice.
"I am fine, it has been like this since we went to bed, almost 9 hours ago," she replied.
Robin stepped back and rubbed his forehead, trying to ignore his wife's total lack of knowledge regarding pregnancy and labour.

"Regina, I do not want to scare you, but I am fairly certain the baby will be here pretty soon, he said, watching her eyes widen in shock.
"I... I thought it was going to be more painful. I have been uncomfortable for weeks, and this is not too different. I-I have been through worse, I did not realise," she said.
"Oh, love. Wait until we get to the pushing part, that is going to be when you will curse my entire existence," Robin laughed. "Come on, let's get you comfortable. I want to check your progress and see where we are," he said, guiding her towards their bedroom.

Regina laid down on the bed and Robin sat between her knees, pulling on a sterile glove. "This is not going to be comfortable, but I need you to relax," he said before inserting his fingers to check her cervix.
After a few moments, Robin removed his hand and threw away the glove.
"Woman, you are going to kill me. You have been in labor for 9 hours before I noticed and you are now 7 cm dilated. Were you going to tell me that something was wrong before or after giving birth?" He sighed.
"I am going to take Ava over to our neighbours so we won't have to explain how babies come into this world just yet," he said.

Regina wanted to answer, but only managed to groan in pain before trying to bring Robin closer to her. The pressure she could feel during the contractions finally started to get to her. Robin could see her shifting uncomfortably, so he quickly made Regina lean into him until the contraction passed.
"How frequent are they?" he asked after her body relaxed.
"About 10 minutes, but they are getting more painful," she whimpered.
"I want you to walk a bit now, it will help speed up the process. Do you want me to start a bath? It might relax you a bit, and I need you to have enough energy for the next part," Robin asked.
Regina simply nodded, trying to muffle her whimpers. Even after having spent so many years next to Robin, away from her ex, Regina could not allow herself to complain about the pain she felt. To her, it still felt like something that completely stepped over the boundaries.

Over the next hour, Robin pampered Regina and went overboard to make her as comfortable as possible. After spending a while in the bath, Robin made her pace around for a bit. Her contractions came one after another, making Regina hold her breath to subside the pain and instilling panic in Robin, who tried to get her to breathe as they had practiced many times before.
Several moments later, Robin sat her down on the bed and resumed his place between her knees.
"You made it, love. 10 cm dilated, time to start pushing. When the next contraction starts, I want you to push for as long as I tell you."

A quarter of an hour later, the baby's head started to crown. Robin made her breathe through her contractions, letting the entire head slide out, so she would not tear. After pushing her son's shoulders out, she still had to put in some effort before Robin could grab him.
"Robin, I can not do this anymore, I am not feeling well," she whimpered.
Letting a contraction pass without pushing, and collapsing on the pillows behind her, Regina almost gave in to the awful nausea.
He knew she would reach this point, but he still needed her to push for just a bit more. After all, he imagined her yelling at him and throwing fireballs if he dared to touch her. However, she was much calmer than he expected, focusing all of her energy into the birth of their child.

"I am not good enough for this," she cried.
Robin thought for a moment, as he really needed her to push a little more before he could pull the baby out.
"Here, give me your hands," he said.
Reluctantly, Regina straightened her shaky arms towards Robin.
"We are going to catch him together," he said with a smile.
His words were a breath of fresh air for Regina, making her focus again and put all of her strength in the last few pushes.

As Roland's legs slid out, he was caught by both of his parents and quickly placed on his mother's chest. Robin cut the cord after it stopped pulsing and cleaned his son's airway, without taking him away from Regina. After delivering the placenta, Robin helped Regina position the baby so he could latch onto her breast and took a few photos of them. Robin sat next to her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and nuzzling his face into the side of her neck.
"I am incredibly proud of you." He said, looking up at her.

"I just... never thought I would have this," she said, finally letting a tear slide down her cheek.