Part 3:

I had morning sickness every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from when I was two and a half months pregnant to when I was three and a half months pregnant. I tried not to make a big deal out of it, but Matt was starting to get more and more concerned about me. I told him no to worry, that it was probably some bad sick bug, but he was having none of it. Typical.

I went downstairs one Saturday morning feeling pretty rough. I had thrown up twice that morning, and I wasn't really feeling any better. I got out of breakfast saying that I would eat something later, as it was the summer holidays - but I only just managed to escape any suspicion. Anyway, I came downstairs that morning to find and Emma talking about me; although quietly so they wouldn't wake me. "I'm really worried Em," I heard confess. "She's been crying for ages for apparently no reason at all, and now she's been chucking up a bit every other morning. She won't tell me what's wrong, so I can't help her. She claims it's a sick bug, but, well, I'm not so sure." "What do you think is wrong then?" Emma asked. "I honestly don't know. She blamed all the crying on an early period and, well, just regular stress, and she hasn't been having sex so she can't be pregnant; I just don't know what's wrong. And it can’t be bulimia – she’s been eating properly and stuff, and it’s only ever in the mornings." "Well, talk to her." "She won't talk to me!" "Corner her, so she has no choice," Emma instructed. sighed heavily. "I just hope nothing's wrong," he mumbled. "Nothing will be wrong," Emma said gently. At that point, I decided to interrupt their little 'moment.'

"Hey," I said, coming down the stairs loudly so they knew I was there. "Hey," grinned at me. "Well, I've gotta get going. I've got an interview with Mariah Carey today - see you tonight babe," Emma said, sharing a kiss with . "See ya babe," he replied. "Bye !" "Bye Em," I murmured absent-mindedly. I wandered into the living room and flicked the telly on, hugging my knees and hoping not to be sick again. "You ok ?" asked, flopping down next to me. "Yeah, I'm all right," I lied. "No you're not; you look a bit sick," informed me, cuddling me. I sighed. " , maybe it'll be a good idea to go to the hospital about this chucking up thing. You've had it for two weeks now." " , don't be stupid, it's probably just some silly sick bug." "And if it's not?" "It is , honestly!" I sat up and turned away from him. I was really annoyed by ; I know that he was worried, but he didn't have to make such a big deal out of it. I was also really tired as I didn't get much sleep the night before and I was pretty irritable because of it. "Don't get stroppy with me young lady!" said warningly. "You don't have to make such a big deal out of it!" "I'm worried about you! I'm allowed to be, aren't I?" "It's just a sick bug!" "It could be more! You haven't been having unprotected sex, have you? How could you be so stupid?!" "I HAVEN'T BEEN HAVING SEX!!!" "DON'T YOU SHOUT AT ME!!!" I stopped and looked away, tears filling my eyes. I hated to see angry; he very rarely got angry, but when he did, watch out. Tears spilling out of my eyes, I pushed past him and ran upstairs to my room - not before going to the bathroom and throwing up again.

Part 4:

" honey?" knocked on my door a couple of hours later. He had known better than to come after me when I was in such a bad mood. "FUCK OFF!" I shouted, hurling a pillow at the door. "Please mind your language." "I'LL SWEAR IF I WANT TO! FUCK OFF!" I felt like complete and total shit; I felt so tired and still a bit sick. I hadn't bothered to get dressed because I felt so bad. I just snuggled further under my covers, sobbing continuously. " , please unlock the door," pleaded. "Why? So you can talk to me about the dangers of unprotected sex?" I demanded. I heard sigh loudly. "I'm just worried . Please, let me in." "Fine." I unlocked the door before climbing under my quilt again. I felt the bed dip slightly as 's weight was added to it.

" , come out. Don't be like that." Reluctantly, I came out, still crying. "I've just been really worried about you," he admitted. "You've been crying virtually non-stop for over two months and now you've been sick and stuff lately. Can't your uncle worry?" "There's no need to worry," I mumbled quietly. "It's nothing." We sat there for a few minutes in complete silence. "Tell you what," said. I looked up at him. "I'll stop worrying if you at least take some neurofen for your sickness and you stop crying. I hate to see you so upset. Deal?" "Yeah," I sniffed. " ...I...I didn't...I never...I mean, about the...sex...I wouldn't without protection." leaned over and hugged me tightly. "I know," he whispered softly in my ear. "I know you wouldn't be that stupid. Now, come on. CD:UK's started. I'll do you some lunch and we can sit and watch it, ok? If you're up for lunch?" "Yeah," I said, as I was starving. He smiled, leaning over and pecking me on the cheek. "Come on, lets go then – I’ll do pancakes it you want them…" "Course I want them! Get going!" I laughed, pushing him out of my room and playfully down the stairs. "Feeling better now?" asked as I finished off my fifth pancake, his eyes wide in disgust as I licked the sugar off my plate. "Eurgh, no, don’t you dare do that," he grimaced, taking the plate away from me and putting the plate in the dishwasher. "What? It saves on washing up!" I said indignantly. I heaved a massive yawn. "Aw, baby, you tired?" he asked me gently. "Mmmm…very." "Hey, come here," he whispered, picking me up gently and cuddling me close on the sofa. "You feeling better now?" “Yeah…much…" I mumbled sleepily. I rested my head on his chest as he gently rocked me back and forth, soothing me to sleep.

Part 5:

My morning sickness stopped about two weeks later when the school term started, and somehow I managed to stop Matt from taking me to the hospital. Him mentioning that, I remembered that I needed to go and have my first scan. I fell in love with my baby the moment it came on the screen. I was four and a half months pregnant when I had the scan. I was told I was having a little girl on the eighth of February. I couldn't help but feel so excited and overjoyed as I saw my tiny baby. Was this how a mother felt?

I still hadn't told . I had started saving my pocket money up for things for the baby, such as a cot, etc. I had twenty pounds a week, so if I saved up for a while, I should have enough. It’s a lot of money, I know, but when I see something I want I have to buy it with my own money – such as a new pair of jeans, etc.

I didn't know what on earth I was going to when my bump got bigger. It was starting to grow; it was pretty small at the moment, so I wasn't fussed - yet. I just prayed big time that it would stay relatively small. "Funny how you stopped throwing up just all of a sudden, isn't it?" commented that night. "I told you I had a bug," I said triumphantly. "Fine, you win," he sighed. I just laughed. I sat up suddenly, my hand on my tummy. "You ok ?" asked, concerned. "...Yeah," I murmured, smiling to myself as the baby kicked again before settling down. "Yeah, I'm fine."

Part 6:

Somehow, I managed to keep the baby from them until I was seven months pregnant. I just wore slightly baggier clothes than usual. I had managed to find a cheap, but lovely cot for my little one, which was now hidden away in the attic. I had mentioned to Emma that I needed a new bra as my boobs had inflated slightly due to the pregnancy, and of course Emma insisted that I had my chest measured when we did the Christmas shopping in London. Emma wanted to watch to make sure the woman did it correctly. She has a thing about this. No chance of getting away. I said that there was no need, but she insisted.

Great; how was I going to hide my bump now? It was plain stakingly obvious when I stripped down. I tried to talk her out of watching, but she just laughed. "Got something to hide, have we ?" she laughed. Yes, actually, I have, I felt like shouting, but I bit my lip firmly. waited outside the curtain. The bra measurer took my old size and went to get some larger ones and left me to strip down. I looked at Emma nervously. "Go on then," she said, slightly irritated. I hesitated before turning around and pulling my top off over my head and taking off my bra. "Turn around," Emma laughed. I rubbed my swollen stomach gently before turning around and revealing it to the shocked Emma. "Oh...my...God..." she gaped. "Em? What is it?" called. "Come and...have a look at this ," Emma stuttered. "No!" I hissed, doing up my bra. Emma glared at me, before staring at my swollen stomach. "What is it - God," muttered as he came through. I turned away, feeling tears stinging my eyes. "You have a lot of explaining to do ," said angrily, narrowing his eyes at me. I could understand why he was so angry. I was fourteen and pregnant! He probably thought that I was some kind of slut and I lied to him. Both and Emma stalked away angrily, like I was some sort of hideous creature they wanted nothing to do with.

The bra measurer gave me my size and a new set of bras, but she warned me that my breasts might go back to my original size after I had the baby. I thanked her, pulled my jumper on, paid for the bras and went to find and Emma. They had just finished picking up all the food in Marks & Spencer’s. "Come on, let's go home; we'll finish our shopping tomorrow," muttered. I opened my mouth to say something, but nothing came out. None of us said anything until we got back to the car. The baby was kicking around a lot. I sighed and rubbed my bump gently. "No way will I get rid of you," I murmured. I sat down in the back seat, watching and Emma climb into the front. sighed heavily and rubbed his forehead. "Why ?" he demanded. "You had to go and get pregnant, didn't you? You lied to me! You had unprotected sex!" "I didn't have sex," I mumbled, staring out the window pointlessly. "Well then, how the hell did you get pregnant?! There's no other way! I can't believe you slept with someone and then lied to me! You're fourteen - you're a child yourself, you can't have a baby!" I flipped at this. "I didn't sleep with anyone!" I shouted at , who was fuming - I could see it in his eyes. "I was raped on the way back home from the birthday party, and I didn't want to tell you because I didn't want to get in the way of your solo carer and I was trying to think about what was best for the baby! How the hell could you think that I would lie to you ?!" I demanded. didn't say anything at first. He just opened his mouth to say something, then he closed it again. A look of shock came over his face as realisation hit him. "You were...r...ra...raped?" he stuttered. Tears were flowing freely down my cheeks by now. I retched open the car door and stormed away, both hands clasped over my stomach, sobbing. I heard call after me and try to come after me, but Emma stopped him. "Give her some space," she said softly. Sometimes Emma comes up with the best ideas. I probably would've ripped his head off if he came after me.

I wandered round pointlessly for ages, holding my bump tightly, tears continuously streaming down my cheeks. People stopped and stared at me. Look at her…probably pregnant with her boyfriend’s baby, he’s left her and she doesn’t know what to do. Well, what do they know. Nothing.

At twelve I went to McDonald's for a Big Mac and a McFlurry. I sat down eating them in the back of the busy cafe, thinking about what I was going to do now. What was I going to do? No way would let me have this baby. I was pretty sure that he understood my reason for not telling him, but as he pointed out, I was just a child myself. I couldn't have a baby; he would make me put it up for adoption. I knew he would.

But I couldn’t do that. I had gone through this pregnancy because I wanted this baby – I wasn’t going to give it to someone else. This was my child, right? I wasn’t going to give my child away. "I thought I'd find you here," a voice said when I was halfway through my McFlurry. I jumped, holding my bump. It was . "Hey," I smiled weakly. An awkward silence followed, broken eventually by . "Can I sit down?" he asked. "Yeah, sure," I said, gesturing towards the empty seat opposite me. took a deep breath and, staring at my stomach, started to speak. " -" "Don't say anything ," I cut him off, those damn tears stinging my eyes. looked at me sympathetically, before fidgeting with the napkin nervously. " , you can't have a baby," said, looking up. "You're a child yourself!" "I know, I know..." "No, you don't! You -" "I DO !" I shouted. "I am seven months pregnant, I made this decision myself, and do you seriously think that I don't know the consequences of my actions? It's my baby - I decide what's best for it." "Yeah, and I'm your uncle and parental guardian and I decide what's best for you!" snapped, standing up and looking at me sternly. I was aware of the entire cafe staring at us, watching our argument unfold. "And I'm telling you now what's best for you - YOU CANNOT HAVE THIS BABY!" roared. "Bit late for that, isn't it ! Tell me I why can't!" I bit back. "It's my life, my baby, it's my choice, and if this is what I want, then I'll get it. That's what you always taught me! Only make choices that you think are right!" "You were always so damn stubborn," muttered under his breath. "This is why I didn't tell you. I knew this was how you would react! I wasn't expecting you to be over the moon - all I wanted was some support, some advice, someone to talk to about all this! Fuck , life's not perfect!" "You never even told me!" "WHY, I WONDER!" I shouted. "You know what , I don't give a shit anymore. If that's your attitude towards me and this baby, then fine." I gathered up my stuff, feeling tears prick at my eyes. "I'll see you around," I muttered. I walked out, ignoring 's calls. He obviously couldn't be bothered to come after me. I obviously wasn't that important. I thought he would understand - I was quite clearly wrong. I didn't know where to go. I needed somewhere to stay; I definitely wasn't going back home. If that was 's attitude, fine. Fuck him. I had to think about the baby, and if that meant walking out on him, then fine. It had started to snow outside. I wrapped my coat tighter around myself, or should I say, us. I placed on hand on my swollen tummy, as if protecting the baby. " !"

I didn't even bother to look back. I ran down the streets, trying to put as much distance between us and . When I finally stopped, there was no sign of him. I heaved a sigh of relief and sat down on the sidewalk, groaning. Where could I go now? I definitely wasn't going back, at least, not right now. I had to show that I didn't give a damn what he thought. All I was worried about was the baby. I suddenly had an idea.

Part 8:

I made my way to the nearest bus shelter and jumped on a bus and, half an hour later, pulled out outside 's house. 's mother's house. My grandmother's house. The funny thing is, I've never actually called her grandma or nana or anything. Just . She didn't seem to mind. I guess she still sort of missed my dad, Darren (her son). He was only fifteen when he and my mum had me. She had wished that Darren had waited until he was older, but she supported their decision and helped to look after me. This was why I chose her. She had seen it all before, and I knew that she would try her best to help me. " ! What are you doing here? Where's ? What's wrong?" she asked when she saw me on the doorstep. I just burst into a fresh batch of tears, burying myself in her jumper. "It's ok darling, come in, you can tell me inside." She cuddled me up on the sofa in a blanket and made me a cup of hot chocolate. I told her everything, from the rape to what had happened at MacDonald’s. She didn't interrupt me, just listened intently. "I think I'm going to have to have a little word with ," she said when I had finished. "Forbidding you to have this baby! Of course you can handle it. Your father was only fifteen, and look how well he did!" "Yeah, me fourteen and pregnant," I muttered. "It wasn't your fault that you were raped honey," said softly. "I'll try and talk to . Until then, you can stay here for as long as you like." "Thanks ," I said weakly. "It's all right," she replied, patting my arm. "You can stay here until you have the baby if you want. We have the spare room and we can do it up all nicely for the little one, and I'm sure that we can do something about your education..." " , I can't thank you enough..." "Oh, tish tosh. Why don't you get some sleep - you've obviously had a very long day." I nodded gratefully and dragged myself upstairs and to one of the spare rooms where I sleep soundly until morning.

Part 9:

Brian picked my stuff up the next morning for me when was out. and I weren't on speaking terms. We had never argued like this before. Sure, there were those little arguments where we fought over who got the big red ball and things, but we always made it up. And they were childish arguments anyway. This was dead serious. had tried so hard to sort out, but he was having none of it. I spent a lot of my time now just crying. I missed so much. had said that I could move in until she had sorted out and I had the baby, as I couldn't be doing with all the stress at the moment. I was so grateful to her. Christmas wasn't the same. sent me my presents via Brian, but that was it. I felt slightly wounded that he could do this, especially when I had spent so long saving up for his - a pair of tickets to see Blink 182 live. And, trust me, it wasn't cheap. My money had been so tight lately because of the baby - I even used half my Christmas money on them. knew how hurt I was and told off big time. But it didn't change a thing. When the school term started, I was excused from school. was going to sort out private lessons after I had the baby. Nowadays, I just spent all day around the house, and I had the feeling that I was starting to get on everyone's nerves. There was no way of hiding my bump now. It just kept getting bigger, and it was really starting to annoy me at how big it was getting. Finally, managed to get round. Brian was out, Emma was doing stuff for MTV, and so there was no way out of it. I was watching TMF when he arrived. "Hey," I called as he walked past the doorway. He just ignored me. I huddled up on the sofa, hugging my knees, one hand supporting my greatly swollen tummy. I had seriously considered suicide, and if it wasn't for the baby, I probably would've done it, I missed that bad. "Why don't you go and sit with while I sort the things out?" I heard say to . I could tell that she was glaring at him, because the next thing did was come and sit beside me with a face like thunder. I turned away, tears flooding down my cheeks. "...Are you crying?" asked after a few minutes. "No," I said firmly. " ?" He cupped my face with his hand and turned me to face him. I pulled away and headed upstairs, my tears in full flow now.

Part 10:

I must have fallen asleep at some point, because the next thing I knew was that and were standing at the bedroom door and it was seven o'clock. "I miss her," I heard say. I kept my eyes closed and pretended to be asleep. "Why don't you talk to her? She just wants to come back home ," said. heaved a heavy sigh. "I just feel so guilty for what I said to her...I just don't know if she could cope with a baby. I mean, she's a child herself. She can't have a baby." "Why not? So far she has coped quite well. She acts far older than she actually is . She's sensible; and responsible." "I know, that's why I feel so guilty," admitted. "Instead of thinking about what she wants, she's been thinking about what's best for the baby...I admire her for that. I miss her so much. It's not the same without her." There was a long pause. "I had better be going mum," said at last. "I'll see you soon I guess." "See you then honey." I heard the two of them go downstairs and the front door open. I couldn't take it anymore. Holding my stomach tightly, I got up and ran downstairs. was just about to leave. He seemed surprised to see me. I flung my arms around his neck and buried my head in his shoulder, bursting into tears. I don't think registered what was happening to begin with, but when he did he wrapped his arms around me and cuddled me, rocking me back and forth. "Hey, hey, hey, ssshhhh," he soothed. "I...miss...you..." I sobbed, holding him tighter. "I miss you too babes," whispered. "D'you wanna come home?" he asked me softly, stroking my hair like he used to. "Oh, yes, yes please," I cried. "I'll go and get your stuff," said gently, slipping past me and into the spare room. "I'm so sorry ," I sobbed. "I'm sorry for everything." "None of this was your fault babe," soothed. "I'm the one who should be apologising. I'm so sorry for being such a fucking git to you. You were raped and everything, and now you're pregnant and I wasn't incredibly understanding about it all. I'm so damn sorry . I've missed you so much - things haven't been the same since you left." "I've missed you too ...I'm so sorry...I was just trying to think about what was best for the baby and...all I want now is to just have this baby and just forget this argument..." "I know, it's in the past now, there's nothing we can do about it. We have to think about what's best for you and this baby," he whispered, resting a hand on my bump and wiping the tears away with the other. I smiled weakly. "I’ve missed you so much," whispered in my ear. "I’ve missed you too," I mumbled, resting my head on his chest. "God, it’s grown since last time," he laughed as the baby kicked. "Hmmm, and it won't stop growing," I sighed, resting both my hands on my stomach. "I'm going to look like an over-sized elephant." "No you don't, you look gorgeous," insisted. "Cheers big nose," I laughed. "You're welcome spotty." "Frog mouth." "Moo-moo. "Goat face." "Over-sized elephant," he teased, causing me to burst out laughing. "When's the baby due?" "Eighth of February, in four weeks and by then I will be an elephant!" I laughed.

Part 11:

"Take care love," said as I put my last bag in the car an hour later. "And don't over-do it!" "I won't," I replied. "And thanks so much ." "Any time love, any time," she smiled. "Bye! And call me when the baby's born!" "Will do! See ya!" "Four weeks doesn't give us long to do up the baby's room," said thoughtfully as we drove down the street. "We'll just have to get our skates on," I laughed. "We? Oh no, you're not doing it." I groaned in annoyance. "No you're not, you're eight months pregnant, and you need to rest." " , I'm not ill, I'm pregnant. It's a condition," I sighed. "This is what I've had to keep telling and Brian." "They had every right to tell you," said firmly. "You'll do yourself and the baby an injury." "Fine," I sighed. I heaved a heavy yawn. "You all right?" asked as I rested my hands on my bump. "Mmmm..." I murmured. "Just tired. The baby chooses to sharpen its footie skills at odd hours in the morning." laughed. "Why don't you get some sleep then?" "Nah, I wanna see Emma and get filled in on what I've missed out on, and besides, the baby's giving me too much hassle," I sighed as the baby kicked around inside of me once again. "Well, it might have settled down once we get back home, and then you can get some sleep." "Thank you ..." reached out and squeezed my leg. "Any time hun," he whispered. " , for heaven's sake, PUT THE BAGS DOWN," sighed as I lifted some of my bags out of the boot. "For heaven's sake, I'm fine," I sighed as he took the bags out of my grasp. I heaved yet another heavy yawn. "Why don't you go to bed once we get inside? You seem really tired babe." "Hmmm, I'll be all right..." I sighed, rubbing my stomach. "You sure?" asked, wrapping his arm around my shoulders and walking me up to the front door. "Yeah, I'll be ok..." "Oh !" Emma cried when the front door opened, hugging me tightly. "Ooh - Emma, careful," I giggled, clasping both hands over my stomach. "Sorry," she apologised, pulling away. "Oh, I've missed you so much," she smiled. "I've missed having someone girly to talk to. I mean, I love being with , but I miss a girl's perspective." "Oi!" "No offence ," she giggled. " , put those bags down, you shouldn't be carrying them in your condition." I sighed. "I'll take them upstairs, ok? Do you want me to unpack?" asked. "No, it's all right, I'll do it tomorrow." "You fancy a cup of hot chocolate ?" "Mmmm, yes please Em." I sat down on the sofa, glad to be home at last. I could have the baby here, we could do up the spare room, Emma would be able to help me choose a name... "I'm glad you're home," grinned, sitting down beside me on the sofa. "I'm glad I'm home too," I sighed, cuddling up beside him. "Here you go ," Emma said, passing me a cup of hot chocolate. "Thanks...so Emma, what have I missed, girl?"

Part 12:

We sat there on the sofa for about an hour, chatting about practically everything, until the topic came to the baby. "When's the baby due again ? It can't be long now," Emma asked. "Four weeks, on the eighth of February," I answered. "And, for my sake, I hope it's a boy," teased. I guess that he had gotten a little tired of me and Emma gossiping. "Oh, sorry babe, if you got tired of me and gossiping, then you should have just said," Emma apologised, patting his arm. "Ah, it's all right. I don't mind - I mean, I know that you've been deprived for over a month," he said cheekily. "Oi!" "Ow!" cried in mock pain as Emma hit his arm. I laughed. "I hate to tell you , but I've been having monthly scans, and I asked for the gender, and it's a girl," I told him. "Why? Why God do you have to be so cruel?" joked, pretending to pray. "So everything's all right with the baby then?" Emma asked, shaking her head at . "Yeah, everything's fine." I yawned again, covering my mouth with my hand. "I just wish that this little s-h-1-t would stop waking me up at odd hours in the morning for morning exercise," I laughed, resting a hand on my bump as the baby kicked. "Why don't you go up to bed and get some sleep babe? You're shattered; get some sleep," instructed, kissing me on the nose. "Mmmm, yes please," I murmured, shifting around the sofa slightly. "Night then," I said, kissing and Emma goodnight on the cheek. "Night darlin." "Night ." I made my way upstairs and to my bedroom. was right - it hadn't changed a bit since I last saw it. My bags had been placed neatly in the corner by . Everything was still in its place; all my posters on the wall, my desk, all my pens and pencils, the aqua blue colour of my room - and had even put my teddy bear Fritzey on the bed. I had had him since I was born, and had promised to get one for my baby. I rummaged around in my bags for my night shirt ( and I had gone clothes shopping when I had stayed for some bigger clothes for me - almost nothing fitted me anymore), pulled it on over my head and climbed into bed, shifting my bear onto the floor next to me. I pulled a couple of the pillows down and rested them either side of me to support my bump as I lay on my side. At last, I was home. I could now have my baby in peace. I was woken up at ten the next morning by the sound of and Emma walking across the landing outside. "D'think she heard us?" "I hope not - I didn't mean to wake her up..." "It's all right, I'm awake," I mumbled sleepily as the door opened. " ..." I sighed as he rested a tray of toast, bacon and scrambled eggs on the drawer next to me. "You didn't have to do that," I said, propping up my pillows. "Think of it as a welcome home treat," he grinned, sitting down next to Emma on the foot of the bed. "You have an all right night sleep ?" she asked. "Yeah actually, really good, I didn't wake up once - must have something to do with being home," I replied, tucking into my breakfast. "I'd better get to work painting the baby's room today," Emma said thoughtfully. "And get all the stuff!" "Mmmm, I bought the cot and the pram a couple of months ago," I told her. "I need bottles, clothes, a car seat and just a few other things now." "God girl, you thought ahead," Emma laughed. "Tell you what, I'll take all three of you girls out clothes shopping for the little babe on Saturday - if mummy's up for it, that is," grinned, gently rubbing my swollen stomach. "Yeah, that'll be fine. I'm just glad to be home..." "We're glad that you're home too ," smiled, kissing my forehead.

Part 13:

As the weeks went by and I got closer to my due date, and Emma ("Sit down ! You are eight months pregnant, you should not be doing this stuff!") sorted out the baby's room and all of the stuff got here on time. By February the second, only my larger clothes fitted me and I couldn't see my feet. Most of the time now and Emma found me sound asleep on the sofa in front of the evening news, as I was so tired. Emma was going away to America for a few days before the baby was due to do some stuff for MTV. I promised that I'd call her if the baby came early. "I told you that I'd look like an over-sized elephant," I told , flopping down on the sofa beside him. He was channel hopping, looking pretty depressed as he had just dropped Emma off at the airport. "You don't ," he said, a cheeky smile spreading across his face. "God, I love her," he sighed as Emma's face came up on the channel of MTV. "Why not pop the question then?" "Well...I dunno...I'd like to, but..." "But?" "Hmmm, I'll think about it." "Ow!" I cried. "What's wrong ?" asked, looking over at me concerned. "...Nothing...it's just kicking pretty hard tonight, that's all..." got up from his seat and sat down beside me, wrapping his arms around me, rubbing my bump. "Don't you dare choose to come tonight," teased warningly as the baby kicked again. "I could do without that!" I was woken up at two in the morning with pains in my stomach. I sat up and rubbed my bump - suddenly, I felt a contraction. Oh no. I sat and waited. Half an hour afterwards, there was another one. Great - it was two in the morning, I had only had four hours sleep and I had gone into early labour. Not wanting to wake , I tiptoed downstairs and phoned my midwife. She told me to ring her back and come to the hospital when my contractions were five minutes between each other and my waters had broken. From what I had described, the birth was problem free so far. If I felt that something was wrong, call her. Go with my instinct. I gripped my stomach as I felt another contraction - they had already sped up to twenty minutes between each other - and turned around to see standing on the stairs in his boxers and a t-shirt, looking at me concerned. "You all right? What's wrong?" he asked. "Well, no, not exactly..." "What's up?" "My contractions have started," I sighed, sitting down on the arm of the sofa. "Oh God," sighed, running a hand through his messy hair and sitting down beside me. "I told you not to come tonight," he joked, resting a hand on my tummy. "Yeah, well, trust her to choose the most inconvenient night," I giggled feebly. must have noticed the note of fear in my voice because the next thing he asked was: "Does giving birth scare you?" "It does a bit," I admitted. "People go on about how painful birth is and...it scares me..." "Hey, I'll be there, ok? I'll help you through the pain," whispered, hugging me tightly. "You don't have to...I mean, all the blood and the screaming..." "I'll cope," he grinned. "I wanna be there for you," he whispered in my ear. "And I will be there. I promise." I smiled. "You'd better get some sleep. A girl can't give birth on only four hours sleep," said, kissing my forehead. "I don't know if I'll be able to sleep through the contractions," I sighed. "I don't mean to whinge, but they hurt." "Why don't ya come and sleep in mine and Emma's room?" asked. "You'll just have to wake me up when your waters break - use force to wake me!" "Don't worry, I will; I know you sleep like a log." "Oi!" I nipped upstairs and quickly changed into my spare night shirt - I didn't want this one getting ruined - and walked into 's room. He kissed my cheek gently before softly pushing me down onto the bed and wrapping me up in the duvet. He then lay down beside me and cuddled me close, stroking my greatly swollen tummy with one hand and supporting it with the other, shushing me to sleep.

Part 14:

I woke up once again two hours later, at four thirty in the morning. was sound asleep, his hand still supporting my stomach. My contractions were far more painful and were only three and a half minutes between one and other. I gently moved 's hand off me and eased myself up. As I sat up, I felt my waters break; I let out a loud groan as my body was overcome by another painful contraction. "Hmmm..." I heard groan from behind me. "You all right?" he mumbled as I gripped the sides of my stomach tightly. "No..." I murmured between short, shallow breaths. "My waters have broken...and my contractions are three and a half minutes between one and other..." "Oh...shit..." groaned, pulling himself out of bed and tugging some clothes on. "You can say that again," I giggled, clutching my stomach. "Oh shit," he grinned, taking my hand and helping me to stand up. He helped me downstairs and into the car and he then phoned my midwife. He told me that they were expecting me. We drove quickly down the roads as there was no one on the roads, me gripping my stomach tightly. "All right?" asked. "Depends what you call all right," I panted. "Hey, it'll be ok," soothed, wiping my brow. "I know...I'm just a little bit scared of the pain..." "I know you are, but it'll be just fine, you'll see. I'll be there, I promise you, and I’ll help you through it." I smiled at gratefully. "Thank you..." Fortunately, it wasn't too far to the hospital - only about five minutes. By then my contractions were about two minutes apart. helped me inside and to the birth room, where I was told that I had dilated ten centimetres and the baby could be born at any time. I just hoped it would be a relatively quick one. stayed by my side during the birth, holding my hand and encouraging me, telling me that I was doing good - he only left my side once to phone Emma that I was having the baby (I had told him to. Don't argue with a woman in labour). He can be such a brave boy sometimes. My baby was born at ten past five in the morning on February the third. She weighed seven pounds six ounces (no wonder I was so damn big! I went back to nearly my old size instantly afterwards - I only had a slight stomach which made me look like I was five months pregnant) and was so perfect. She had my red hair and my big blue eyes ( told me later she looked just like a miniature me). They washed the blood off her and then they handed her to me. I had already decided on the name - Jemima Laura . It had a nice ring to it. I cuddled her close to me, enjoyed the time I had with her. I fell in love with her on sight. "You did good honey," whispered in my ear, kissing my nose and hugging me tightly. I winced slightly in pain; my stomach was still hurting bad. "Sorry," he apologised, pulling away and sitting down on the end of the bed. "Thanks ," I smiled, stroking my baby's head. "You wanna hold her?" I asked suddenly. "Wh-what? Oh no, I'd better not, I might drop her or something -" "Don't be stupid, here," I laughed, passing her to him. He held her awkwardly in her arms, looking down on her. "She looks just like you," he grinned. "A miniature . God, one of you is enough, I don't need another." "You're so damn rude!" I laughed, playfully whacking him over the head. He handed her back to me, kissing her forehead gently. "You know I'll help you to look after her." "Yeah, I know. Thank you so much ..." kissed my nose gently. "Stop it," he laughed. "You've told me enough times already. You know I'll help look after you and this little one." He sat down beside me and put an arm around me, cuddling me close, though careful to mind my painful stomach. I sighed and rested my head on his chest, hugging my baby. "I love you ," I sighed as I began to drift off to sleep. gently took Jemima out of my hands and placed her in her cot. He then resumed his previous position and gently stroked my hair, twisting it and playing with it. "I love you too honey," he whispered before I fell asleep.