Julianna sighed. ER was doing a live show in a couple of hours and she wasn't allowed to be in it because they wouldn't be able to hide her pregnancy. She sighed and sat on her bed and started crying. George was at the set practicing. She laid back on the bed, rubbing her stomach as she cried softly. She looked to the side of the bed where there was a picture of her and George. George stood behind her and had his arms wrapped around her. Her neck was turned as she was looking up at him with a smile on her face and he was smiling down at her, their lips just inches apart. She picked up the picture and brought it closer to her face. She smiled slightly and realized that as long as she had him, the world would be alright. Whenever she was in his arms, all of her problems dissolved. She longed for his embrace but she knew she couldn't have that right now, so she settled back into his pillow, breathing in his scent.
Julianna watched "Ambush" and was extremely pleased with the results. George had given her a copy of the script so that she could tell if there were any mess ups. There were a couple but they weren't noticeable. Julianna was so tired after she watched the episode that she wrote George a note that said to wake her up when he got home because she really needed to talk to him and it couldn't wait. She taped it to the door going from the garage to the kitchen so he would be sure to find it. She waddled back up the steps and fell into the bed, clutching his pillow and fell straight to sleep.
Around one of clock George crawled into bed. He had found the note and he knew Julianna would be upset if he didn't wake her even though he didn't want to interrupt her sleep. He smiles at her and places his hand on her stomach. He leans over and kisses her gently on the lips. After a couple of seconds, she sleepily wraps her arms around his neck and makes a soft noise into his mouth. He smiles and pulls away from her.
"Hey baby." She whispers. He smiles.
"Hey." He says.
"What time is it?" She asks.
"One." He replies. She nods and pulls him down for another kiss. He chuckles lightly.
"You were great tonight." She says, commenting on the show. He smiles.
"I didn't mess up!" He announces proudly.
"I know." She replies, smiling.
"It wasn't the same without you there though." George says. She smiles.
"Well..I cried about it..but then I figured that it's no big deal and that as long as you come home to me afterwards, I'd be okay." She says.
"You cried?" He asks.
"Only for a couple seconds. Then I looked at our picture," She says, motioning to the picture beside the bed, "and I realized it didn't matter. Not being on that show was worth it if we get to have this baby." She says. He smiles widely.
"Good thinking." He says. She laughs.
"So..did you have fun?" She asks.
"Yeah, it was different. Definitely more challenging." He says. She yawns. He chuckles. "I think you two need your rest." He says.
"Will you stay?" She asks. He smiles.
"Yes." He says.
"Good." She replies and lays her head on his chest, snuggling close to him.
"I love you sweetheart." He says, kissing her hair.
"I love you too." She says and kisses his chest before closing her eyes and falling asleep quickly. He just held her as he thought about his life. He prayed to God that his little girl was really his. He knew that even if she wasn't he would still love her with his whole heart, but knowing she was part of him was important to him.
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Julianna got into the routine of the show, doing everything she could to hide her pregnancy. At first all of her friends had been sort of wary of Julianna, afraid to say anything to her about the pregnancy but they soon fell into their old friendships. At work Julianna and George tried as much as possible to keep their relationship discreet, not wanting to make their co-workers uncomfortable even though they all knew George and Julianna were together.
A 34-week pregnant Julianna walked into a room, where Noah had said George went. She was holding her back as she walked. George had his back to her and was talking quietly to something in his arms.
"George?" Julianna asks. He turns around quickly, startled. In his arms he held a little baby.
"Oh..Hey Jules." He says.
"Who do you have here?" She asks him, smiling. He smiles.
"This is London. She's 2 months old and her parents needed a break, so I offered to take her for a little while." He says. She smiles and walks over to him. London stretched her arm, hitting George's chest as she yawned and then closed her eyes.
"She's adorable." Julianna says. He smiles.
"Here." He says. He shifts closer to Julianna, handing the baby to her. The baby opens her eyes, staring up at the person holding her. She smiles her baby grin and Julianna giggles.
"She's adorable." She says.
"She likes you." George says. Julianna smiles at him.
"I can't wait for Mackenzie." She says, referring to her baby. He smiles.
"I know, me neither." He says. Julianna strokes the baby's cheek with her index finger. The baby turns her head, sucking on Julianna's finger. Julianna giggles. They watch London for a few minutes before George speaks again. "What if she's not mine?" He asks. Julianna looks up.
"You'll be her Daddy." Julianna says sternly.
"Ever since you told me that she might be mine, I've been so sure that she's mine. But there's a bigger possibility that she's Ron's, considering you slept with him more then once before you got pregnant. And now that it's closer to the time that she's supposed to be here, I can't stop thinking about it." He says, hanging his head. Julianna reaches a hand up and touches his face, tugging his head up so he will look at her.
"Please, please don't think like that. I hope and wish that she is yours. I pray everyday to God that she is yours but even if she's not, I know you will love her all the same. I know how you feel about wanting her to be yours. I feel the same way. But if she's not we'll just go on with it and someday have a baby of our own. But I just have a feeling that she is yours. Please don't try to tell me different." She says softly. He smiles softly.
"I love you. And I love her. Even if she's not mine, you're right, I will love her. I do love her." George says. She smiles.
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Two days later, On November 24th, a little after midnight, Julianna shakes George's shoulders in bed.
"George!" She says, shaking him.
"Hmm? Jules, what's wrong?" He asks.
"She's coming now!" Julianna says, clutching her stomach.
"What? She's not supposed to be here for another month!" George says.
"Well she's coming now!" Julianna says.
"Okay, okay. Do you think I could pack you some stuff really quick first?" He asks. She nods.
"Hurry." She says through clenched teeth.
"Okay!" He says, jumping out of bed. She watches as he runs around the room, getting her some clothes and grabbing an outfit for the baby. Then he changes into some jeans and runs out of the room to get their shoes and coats. He runs back into the room with his tennis shoes and coat on. "Alright, here you go sweetie. Slip your shoes on." He says, placing her shoes on the floor. She slides her feet into them. "Now your coat." He says, getting her into her coat. "Okay, can you stand?" He asks. She nods and stands. He grabs the bag and her arm and he helps her down the steps slowly and out to his jeep. She climbs into the front seat with his help and he runs to his side of the car. He hops in, opening the garage door.
"George!" She says. He looks at her and her face is scrunched together.
"Here baby. Squeeze my hand." He says, trying to drive quickly with just one hand as she holds his other hand. She doesn't squeeze very hard, trying to control her pain so he will be able to get there. "Breath...." George instructs. She nods her head, doing her breathing exercises.
"George you have to call Ron." Julianna says. She is now being wheeled up to a room. He gives her a look.
"Julianna..." He says.
"Please George." She says. He nods reluctantly.
"Will you be alright then?" He asks.
"For a few minutes. Hurry please. I need you." She says. He nods.
"I'll be right outside, I'll use my cell phone. What's his number?" George asks.
"Ughh...." She racks her brain. "Um..I think it's 782-987-0124." Julianna says.
"782-987-0124....782-987-0124...I think I got it." He says. He bends down and kisses her quickly. "I'll be right back baby." He says and goes out of the room. He opens up his cell phone, turning it on. He dials the number.
"Hello?" He hears Ron ask through the phone.
"Ron, this is George Clooney. Julianna's in labor." George says.
"She's not due for another month!" Ron says loudly.
"Well...the baby's coming." George says.
"I..uh..alright, I'll get the next plane I can." Ron says and hangs up. George sighs and puts his phone back into his coat pocket. He clenches his fists to his side slightly, trying to calm himself before he goes back into Julianna's room.
"Did you call him?" Julianna asks.
"Yes. He said he would get on the next plane that he could." George says. Julianna can sense the anger in his voice. Julianna reaches her hand out.
"George." She says softly. He looks at her and takes her hand. She pulls him closer. "Please don't be mad at me." She says. He touches her cheek gently.
"Oh, baby, I'm not mad at you. I'm just upset that he is going to rush right out here when he hasn't been here this whole time. And it just makes the reality that Mackenzie might not be mine even more real." He says. She lowers her gaze to his chest.
"I'm sorry." She says softly.
"Hey..shh...no..no. I'm sorry baby." He says, lifting her chin with his finger. He leans foreward and kisses her gently. "Come on, this should be a happy time. Let's make the best of it." He says with a big smile. She smiles back before her face turns slightly sour.
"Oh." She says, squeezing his hand gently. He looks over at the monitor and sees that she is having a contraction. He rubs his hand across her forehead, brushing her hair out of the way.
"It's okay baby." He says.
A few hours later after having an epidural, Julianna's water broke. A nurse ran to get the doctor and George sat with Julianna, helping her breath.
"I quit." Julianna says tiredly. George chuckles.
"I wish you could take a break." He says. She smiles.
"Yeah, well..I think our daughter has a different idea." She says. He smiles.
"I don't blame her. There's so much to see. We'll have to show her the whole world." George says.
"I haven't even seen the whole world." Julianna says. He laughs.
"Me neither, so we're going to have to." George says. She smiles.
"Thank you for being here." She says. He chuckles.
"What? And miss this?" He asks.
"I love you." Julianna says.
"I love you too." He says and her machine goes off, indicating another contraction. "Another already?" He asks, just as the doctor comes through the door.
"How far apart are they?" Dr. Michaels asks.
"Minute or less." George replies.
"Alright then. I'd say your almost ready." Dr. Michaels says. Julianna nods, her contraction has passed. There are other people running around, doing various things.
"Okay baby, you ready?" George asks, smiling sweetly at her.
"I don't have much of a choice do I?" She asks. He chuckles.
"Afraid not." He says. She smiles.
"Okay, I'm ready." She announces. Dr. Michaels smiles from between Julianna's legs.
"Alright. Here we go. On the next contraction, I want you to push." Dr. Michaels says. Julianna nods.
"Alright..here's one." Julianna says.
"Okay..push to 10." Dr. Michaels says. Julianna nods. "Push! 1..2..3..4..5..6..7..8..9..10. Relax." Dr. Michaels orders. Julianna falls back on the bead, wiping some sweat off her forehead. George peeks over her legs and sees nothing yet. He looks at her.
"You're doing great." He says. She smiles. They wait a couple more seconds before Dr. Michaels says to go again.
"Alright, here's another. Push to 10. Push! 1..2..3..4"
"Awww..." Julianna moans, clutching to George's hand.
"7..8..9..10! Relax! She's crowning!" Dr. Michaels says. "Okay, let's go again. Push!"
"Ah God, ow...make it stop!" Julianna cries out.
"Relax!" Dr. Michaels says. "I see the top of the head! This baby's got a head full of hair." Dr. Michaels says. Julianna laughs shortly and George smiles widely, looking around to see if he can see something. He sees the top of the head too.
"I see her Jules." He says quietly. Julianna smiles painfully.
"Push! And just keeping pushing!" Dr. Michaels says. Julianna nods and leans foreward pushing with all her might.
"Ahhhhhhhhhh..." She says.
"Here it comes. There's the head. Suction!" Dr. Michaels orders. The nurse hands her the suctioner and they suction the baby's mouth. She lets out a loud wail. Julianna and George laugh.
"She's beautiful!" George calls out.
"Alright..Julianna lay back. Relax." Dr. Michaels says. Julianna does, grasping George's hand as Dr. Michaels pulls the baby out. "There's the shoulders. Alright..here it comes." Dr. Michaels says. She pulls the baby out. "And here's your little girl!" She says, holding the baby up. Julianna smiles happily and starts crying as they lay the bloody baby onto her stomach. She touches the baby.
"Oh God George, look at her." Julianna says. George smiles proudly.
"She's beautiful." George says.
"She's yours." Julianna says. He nods, knowing it. The baby looks just like George.
"Hello Mackenzie Zoe. How's my girl?" George asks. He is crying as he looks at Julianna. She smiles through her tears too.
"Okay, we need to take little Mackenzie here and clean her up." A nurse says. George and Julianna reluctantly agree. George leans over and smiles, kissing Julianna.
"You did fantastic." He says. She smiles, pulling him towards her.
"She looks just like you. She's definitely yours." Julianna says. He smiles and kisses her again.
"I know. Thank God!" He says, still crying a little.
"I love you George. I love you." She says. He laughs.
"I love you too." He says and they kiss again.
"I'm going to go to the desk and tell them if Ron comes, to let him come in." George says.
"Okay. Hurry." She says.
"I will." He says, kissing her forehead. He goes out of the room and to the nurse's desk.
"Can I help you?" The receptionist asks.
"Yeah. If someone named Ron Eldard comes looking for Julianna Margulies, send him to room 364." George says.
"Okay." She replies. He smiles and turns to go back into the room. When he walks in, he sees Julianna's eyes open. She smiles tiredly. He walks towards her, taking her hand.
"Why don't you get some sleep and when they bring her back, I'll wake you." George says.
"As soon as she gets here, wake me up." Julianna says.
"I will. Now go to sleep." He says, kissing her forehead. She smiles and then closes her eyes, still holding his hand.
About 20 minutes later a nurse wheels in a tiny little bed with their baby in it. He smiles and thanks her quietly before picking Mackenzie up. He gently shakes Julianna, trying to wake her as he cradles Mackenzie to his chest. Julianna opens her eyes and smiles. George smiles back at her and then looks down at his daughter.
"It's so amazing." George says, with tears in his eyes. She smiles.
"I know." She murmurs.
"How can you love someone so much when you just first meet them?" George asks, looking up at Julianna.
"I don't need a DNA test to tell me you're her father." Julianna says.
"Yeah, but we still have to get one." He says. She nods.
"I know." She says, nodding slowly. George smiles and stands up. He leans over her and hands her the baby. Mackenzie yawns and opens her eyes, staring up at Julianna.
"Hey baby. Yeah..you're sleepy, huh?" Julianna coos. George sits down beside her on the bed, touching Mackenzie's foot through the blanket. He watches and smiles happily at his little family. She looks at him, her face lit up with a big grin.
"I love you." Julianna says to him. He smiles.
"I love you more." He says and she shakes her head, still smiling as she looks down at Mackenzie.
"And we love you..yes we do." Julianna coos as she rocks Mackenzie in her arms. There is a knock at the door and the two of them look up. George's body tenses as he sees the visitor. Ron is standing in the doorway, looking in on them uncomfortably. Julianna smiles.
"Hey Ron. Come on in." She says. He nods slowly and walks into the room, walking closer to Julianna's bed but staying a good two feet away.
"What's her name?" Ron asks quietly.
"Mackenzie." Julianna replies. George looks at Mackenzie, not trusting himself to look at Ron. Ron smiles as he looks at the little girl.
"That's a pretty name. Hello Mackenzie." He says. George has one hand under the bed and he is squeezing the mattress to control himself. He doesn't want this man to be anywhere near his daughter or Julianna.
"Would you like to hold her?" Julianna asks. 'Now..why did you have to say that?' George thinks to himself.
"Uh, sure." Ron says, smiling. Julianna sits up a little ways and Ron moves closer to her, taking the baby from her. Julianna lays back and takes George's hand into her own. She gives it a gentle squeeze but he doesn't reply, as he watches Ron with his daughter. Ron looks up at them. "Do you really think a DNA test is necessary?" Ron asks.
"What?" Julianna asks, surprised. George freezes, as he thinks Ron thinks Mackenzie is his daughter.
"Well..it's quite obvious here, who's daughter she is. She looks just like George." Ron says. George relaxes.
"Poor girl." He jokes. Julianna smiles, happy to see him at least relaxing slightly.
"Well..we still need to get a test...to be sure." Julianna says. He nods.
"Yeah." He says. Then he gives the baby back to Julianna. "She's beautiful. Congratulations." Ron says. Julianna nods, pleased.
"Thanks Ron." She says.
"Well..I'm going to give some blood for the tests, then I guess I'll head back to New York." Ron says. Julianna nods.
"I can ask for a nurse to come take the blood now, since we're all here." Julianna says.
"Alright. That's fine." Ron agrees and Julianna presses the button for the nurse. She walks in within 20 seconds.
"Can I help you?" The nurse asks.
"Yes. We um, we need to get some blood work done." Julianna says. The nurse nods, knowing what this is about.
"Alright. Um, I need to go get a pediatrician to get the baby's blood, but I can do the rest." She says. Julianna nods.
"Thank you." She says. The nurse nods.
"I'll be right back." She says and exits the room. Ron just sort of stands there uncomfortably as George takes Mackenzie into his arms. He stands, walking towards the window in the room, trying to give Ron and Julianna some privacy.
"So..how's New York?" Julianna asks, trying to strike up a conversation.
"Good. It's great. So uh, how's the show doing?" He asks.
"It's going great. I'm going to be going on a break for a little bit...so I can stay with the baby. George is going to take as much time off as he can." Julianna says. Ron nods. George is letting Mackenzie grip his finger. He smiles at her.
"Hey Mackenzie. You know what I think?" He asks. She yawns and he chuckles at her. "I think your the most beautiful woman in the whole world, except for your Mommy of course. And you know what..when you grow up, you'll make some man so happy, just like your mommy makes me happy. And I'll make sure to keep you as safe as I can, even though I know I can't keep all the pain away from you. I don't know how great of a daddy I'll be, but I'm going to try my best for you." He says. She is gazing up at his face, sleepily. He smiles at her. "Yeah, Kenzie, you're tired, aren't you sweetheart?" He asks. She shifts in his arms. He picks her up, holding her upright as he places her head onto his shoulder. She makes a soft baby noise and settles into him. He smiles proudly, turning to look at Ron and Julianna who seem to be talking. Julianna glances his way and sends him a private smile. He smiles back just as a nurse comes in with a doctor. George walks over to Julianna's side.
"Alright, so...who do we have here?" The pediatrician asks, taking the baby from George.
"That's Mackenzie." George replies. Her face scrunches up into a ball and she lets out a loud wail as she is separated from George. George smiles. The pediatrician turns her in his arms.
"Hey now, I'm not that bad a guy!" The doctor says, smiling at her. She stops crying but is still whimpering. The nurse starts to draw blood from Ron's arm. George watches the doctor, protectively, as he draws blood from Mackenzie's foot. She starts to cry once the needle is inserted. "I know, I know. You don't like that." The doctor murmurs softly to her. He dresses her as the nurse gets blood from Julianna. The doctor hands the baby back to George who immediately puts her back on his shoulder and starts to shush her. The doctor hands the blood to the nurse, who marks it and places it beside Ron's and Julianna's blood. George hands Mackenzie to Julianna. The nurse starts to get ready for George.
"Well..I better get going. Call me with the results." Ron says, nodding. Julianna smiles.
"Thanks for coming Ron." Julianna says. He smiles and kisses her cheek gently before touching Mackenzie's foot. He reaches over and shakes George's free hand.
"Good luck and congratulations." Ron says and then exits the room.
"Jerk." George mutters. Julianna smiles but shakes her head. The nurse smiles too as she finishes up with George. She then takes the rest of the blood and exits the room. George looks at Julianna. "Was that really necessary?" George asks.
"What?" Julianna asks.
"Him coming." George says. She smiles.
"George..when you called him, we didn't know if it was your baby or his. So he came, in case she was his. You would be even more upset if he hadn't shown at all." Julianna scolds. He hangs his head.
"I'm sorry...he just wasn't here the whole time. You talked to him, what? Twice since you found out you were pregnant? And both of those times he yelled at you. Then he waltzes in here like he owns the place, holds our daughter, exchanges a few words and then leaves. I'm sorry that I don't like it." George says. She sighs.
"I know, I don't like it either, but it had to be done." Julianna says. He nods and takes one of her hands into his.
"I just don't want him to ruin this day." George says.
"He didn't." Julianna says. George smiles and kisses her gently.
"I love you so much, Julianna." George says. She smiles.
"I love you too." She says. He leans his head against hers and they look down at the baby.
"Daddy loves you too, Kenzie." George says, touching the baby's foot. Julianna smiles.
"Yeah..Mommy and Daddy love you so much." Julianna says. He chuckles as they watch their daughter sleep.