"Breath Julianna, breath." Julianna whispered to herself. She held her stomach in her hands as she breathed deeply, in and out. She waited for a few seconds before the contraction passed. She picked up the telephone.
"Hello?" A woman's voice asks through the phone.
"Alex." Julianna says.
"Hey Sis, what's up?" Alex asks.
"I think..you're about to become a new aunt." Julianna says.
"What?" Alex shrieks.
"I'm having contractions. They're about 12 minutes apart. You need to come get me, I can't drive!" Julianna exclaims.
"Oh God! Don't push! Hold it in! I'm coming!" Alex says and hangs up. Julianna hangs up the phone and begins walking up the stairs. She goes into her room, getting her bag and her shoes. She walks down the stairs and goes into the living room, waiting by the door for her sister, anticipating more contractions.
----
Julianna lay on a hospital bed, her sisters and mother beside her.
"Jules, we should call George." Rachel says.
"Not yet." Julianna says.
"He deserves to be here. He said he wants to be a father to this baby and we all know he would want to be here." Alexandra says.
"Julianna....he needs to be here. This is his child. If you were him, wouldn't you be upset if you missed the birth of your baby?" Her mother asked. Julianna sighed, closing her eyes.
"I should have driven myself." She says.
"You would have been killed. Besides, whether you'd admit or not, you're glad we're here." Her mother stated matter-of-factly.
"You're right. I wouldn't want to go through this alone. But I don't know if I could stand to have him here." Julianna says.
"Why not?" Alex asks.
"God...I dunno, he'd just...it'd be hard for me. Throughout all of this, I've tried to avoid him and having him here, in there with me, I couldn't bare it." She says. Rachel shakes her head.
"Jules, he would want to be here, help you through it. What do you think he will think of himself if he misses the birth of his baby?" Rachel asks.
"It wouldn't be his fault." Julianna argues.
"Yes, but he would think it was and he would blame himself forever." Alex adds. Julianna sighs and winces as a contraction hits her.
"Oh." She moans, gritting her teeth. Her mother immediately rises to her side, taking Julianna's hand into her own.
"Just breath." Francesca says.
"Let me call him." Rachel says. Julianna presses her lips together, her eyes closed.
"Not now." Francesca murmurs to Rachel, hushing her. Julianna nods her head, her eyes squeezed shut.
"Call him." She says. Alex and Rachel jump up and they head out of the room together, going to call George. Her mother smiles at her as the contraction passes. She sits down beside Julianna.
"Julianna." Her mother says. Julianna looks at her. "I know that this pregnancy was a big accident, and that you're somewhat ashamed of yourself. I just want you to know, that I am very proud of you." Her mother says. Julianna smiles, tears in her eyes.
"Thank you, Mama." She whispers. Her mother smiles and they hug tightly.
----
"Hello?" George asks, answering his cell phone.
"Hey George, this is Alex, Julianna's sister." Alex says into the phone.
"Oh God, what's going on?" He asks.
"She's in labor. She's about 6 cm dilated. She wanted us to call you." Alex says.
"Are you at Los Angeles Memorial?" George asks.
"Yes." Alex replies.
"I'll be there in 45 minutes." He says and hangs up the phone. Oh God, he was about to become a father. He grins and run towards his jeep.
----
Julianna was laying in her room, trying to rest when George arrived. He stood outside the window, looking in, before Francesca saw him. She exited the room quietly, not disturbing Julianna and she walked out to George.
"Hello." She says, smiling at him. He smiles shortly.
"How is she?" He asks.
"She's doin' fine. She's exhausted right now. She just got an epidural and so she's trying to rest." Francesca says. George nods.
"Uh...does she..want me in there?" George asks, looking Francesca squarely in the eye. The elderly woman smiles.
"She won't admit it...but I'm sure she does." Francesca says. She then turns and heads back into the room. George lingers outside a little while longer as he looks in on Julianna. He takes a deep breath before he pushes his way into the room. Julianna's eyes open when she hears someone walking towards the bed. When she sees him, she smiles tiredly.
"Hi." She says softly. He smiles and stands next to her bed.
"Hey." He replies quietly. "How are you doin'?" He asks.
"We're fine." She says, smiling. He chuckles quietly.
"That's good." He says. She nods.
"Thanks for coming." She says. He smiles.
"I want to be here." He says. Alex and Rachel look at each other and nod, satisfied with themselves.
----
"Okay, I'd say it's about time to deliver." Dr. Parks says, coming into Julianna's room. She nods her agreement.
"Yeah." She says, taking a deep breath. George stands close to her, his hand resting softly on her shoulder, letting her know he was there. Her sisters and mother stand off to the side, not sure if Julianna still wants them in the delivery room. All of a sudden the baby's monitors start going off.
"What's that?" Julianna asks. Dr. Park's face becomes slightly alarmed and she looks under the sheet. She shakes her head.
"What's going on?" George asks, becoming panicked. Julianna looks at the doctor.
"She's got a prolapsed cord!" Dr. Parks says to the workers and they begin to scramble around.
"Oh God!" Julianna says, thinking of her character on ER, having to have a c-section.
"Does she have to have a c-section?" George asks. Dr. Parks looks at them as they begin to wheel Julianna out of the room. Francesca, Rachel, and Alexandra follow.
"I'm afraid so." Dr. Parks says, holding onto the baby's cord.
"George." Julianna whispers. He looks at her. "It's just like.." She whispers. He nods.
"I know. I know. Shhh..it's going to be okay." He says. She shakes her head, tears already falling from her eyes.
"Please God." She whispers. George takes her hand into his.
"It'll be alright. Shhh...shh.." He says, trying to comfort her.
"We'll stay out here." Francesca says. Julianna nods, crying.
"Don't leave." Julianna pleads to George. He squeezes her hand.
"I'm not going anywhere." He says, smiling reassuringly at her. She nods, tears spilling out.
"Don't let the baby die." She whispers quietly. He leans over her as they wheel her into a surgery room.
"You need to get gowned up!" Dr. Parks orders George. He nods quickly.
"I'll be right back, Jules. Don't worry." He says. She nods, letting go of him as he runs off to get scrubs on. He comes back, a cap and gown on. Julianna has her hair in a cap by the time he comes in. She reaches out weakly to him, desperate for a familiar face. "I'm here." George says, bending down over her, his face just inches from his. She is crying softly.
"George." She whispers. George looks down. "If something happens to me, please take care of the baby. Please." She whispers.
"Jules, don't talk like that. You'll be fine, the baby will be fine." George says.
"Promise me!" She says. He nods.
"I promise." He says, he leans down, kissing her forehead gently. Then he looks toward the doctors.
"What are they doing?" Julianna asks.
"We're just making the incision." Dr. Parks answers. George watches as he holds onto Julianna's hand, bent over her yet watching the doctors work. "Stretch, pull right here." Dr. Parks orders her assistant. "Okay, scapel again." Julianna's heart pumps wildly in her chest, scared for her baby's life. "Uterine incision, and stretch again."
"George, what's going on?" Julianna asks, tears slipping down her face.
"I see the baby, Jules." George says.
"It's a boy." Dr. Park's announces.
"Did you hear that?" George asks, his whole face lighting up. She smiles.
"A boy? What are you doing?" Julianna asks.
"Shoulder, flex. And scissors." Dr. Parks says to her assistant as she retracts the baby from Julianna's body. All of a sudden the baby lets out a loud wail and Julianna laughs softly.
"Do you see him? He's beautiful." George says. She looks over at Dr. Park's holding her crying son. She smiles.
"Oh God." She says and a giggle erupts from her throat. George grins as Dr. Park's takes the baby over to the pediatrician.
"He's fantastic, Jules. You did amazing." George says, leaning over and kissing her forehead gently. She smiles as she gazes over at her son.
"My Mom. You need to tell them. They will want to know everything is okay." Julianna says. He nods.
"Of course, I'll go tell them now." George says. She nods and he smiles at her, and walks away from the gurney, watching his son as he goes. He opens the door, stepping outside and walking down the hall. Alex, Rachel, and Francesca immediately look up as they see him come. As soon as they see the blissful look on his face, their faces relax and they smile.
"It was a boy!" George announces happily.
"A boy?" Alex asks. He grins nodding.
"Yeah, they're both fine. No problems, everything's good. He's got a good set of lungs. 10 fingers, 10 toes." George says. They laugh happily.
"I thought for sure something would go wrong." Francesca says. George shakes his head.
"Nope, everything's fine. I'll try and see when you can come see them. He's so beautiful." George says proudly.
"That's great. Now go back to them." Francesca says. He grins.
"Thank you." He says and he hugs them each briefly before heading quickly back to Julianna's room. She is being cleaned up just as their son is being wheeled out of the room. He smiles at him, touching his son's foot briefly before he heads into her room. She looks at him when he comes in.
"What did they say?" Julianna asks.
"Well your mom thought for sure something would go wrong. I told them that he's got 10 fingers and 10 toes and he's beautiful." George says. She smiles at him.
"Thank you for giving me him." She says. He grins.
"So, are we going to let him go nameless, or are we gonna give this boy a name?" George asks, grinning softly.
"I think I'm pretty set on Aiden, aren't you?" Julianna asks. He nods.
"Yeah, I really like that." He says.
"Me too." Julianna says.
"What about a middle name?" George asks.
"Well, I was sort of hoping you would like Aiden Nicholas." Julianna says. George grins.
"Dad would be proud. I love it. It sounds great." George says. Julianna smiles.
"And there's something else I wanted to talk about." She says.
"What's that?"
"I know we haven't really discussed this at all and I don't know what you expected, or what I even expected...but, I want him to have your last name." Julianna says. George's face lights up.
"Jules...I don't know what to say. Thank you." He says. She smiles softly.
"You're welcome." She says. He smiles and she closes her eyes briefly.
"Tired?" He asks softly. She nods.
"Yeah, and sore." She says. He nods.
"You should rest." He says and the nurses begin to wheel her out of the room.
"Where are we going?" Julianna asks.
"Your room." A nurse replies. She nods her head, turning back to George and smiling.
o----------------------o
"He's so beautiful." Julianna says. She has her son to her breast as he drinks leisurely. George sits by, watching happily as Julianna trails her index finger over Aiden's soft cheek. George grins.
"Yeah." He says. They sit silently in the hospital room for a few seconds as they watch their son. "So..there's something I wanted to talk to you about." George says. She looks up at him.
"Okay?" She says.
"Yeah, don't..don't say anything until I'm done. I want you to hear me out." George says.
"Alright..." She says, her voice trailing off. He rubs his hand across his face before speaking again.
"I don't know how you'll take this. I just, I know you think we're going to just trade the baby back and forth. I don't want that, Julianna." Her mouth opens but she closes it, remembering his wish for her to stay quiet. "I want to be with him all the time and I'm sure you do too. I don't know if you've noticed, but I've wanted to be with you...you know, during the pregnancy and everything. I wanted to be, but you kept pushing me away, so I tried to give you space. But I can't do that anymore, not now, not since he's here. I've wanted to be with you for a long time....even before he was conceived." Her eyes widen in surprise. "You never knew that because you were with Ron and I never had the guts to tell you when he was still in the picture. I'm not saying we have to become romantically involved...at least not right away. I just....I want us to at least try to see if we can work something out where we can be together with the baby. I want us to be a family. To live together. We used to be best friends, really close. So we should be able to tolerate each other...and, and I will be there in case you ever get in over your head and you need a break. I just....Can we please try?" George asks, looking at her.
"I..George, I don't know what to say...I never expected this." Julianna says. He hangs his head slightly. She looks at him for a few seconds before she looks down at the baby. She pulls him away from her, fixing herself as she pulls the baby back to her. George watches, his head bent. "I'm not sure what will happen....but....I think I'd like to give it a try." She says. George looks up in surprise. "I know how much you love Aiden and...I ....don't want you to think I'm doing this just because of him. I'm not. I just...I'm not sure what I want, but I'd like the chance to find out." Julianna says. He grins.
"I...I'm glad. I know this is going to be hard. If you want to, we can be discreet about it....I just.....thank you." He says, grinning. She smiles as she looks down at Aiden, shifting him slightly in her arms.
"We don't have to be discreet." She says, looking up at him. "I'm ready to let the world know." Julianna says.
"I'm surprised they don't already." George says.
"Well..they most likely do, considering all the people working here know...someone must have told." Julianna says. He nods.
"Yeah, probably." He says, as he studies his son in her arms.
"So...are we living at your house or mine?" She asks, smiling. He looks up.
"It doesn't matter. I don't care as long as we're together." He says. She smiles.
"We can't let your nursery go to waste." She says. He shakes his head.
"No, it's okay. If you want to stay at your house, that's fine. Really. I don't care." George says. She shakes her head.
"No...there's too many memories there. Of Ron. I don't want to be there anymore." Julianna says. He grins.
"Alright then. My house is now our house." He says. She smiles.
"Yeah." She looks down at Aiden. "Do you hear that Aid? We're going to go live with Daddy." Aiden yawns, one arm moving up and hitting Julianna's chest as he curls farther into her body. She grins and George chuckles, scooting closer to them and touching Aiden's foot through the blanket.
"You make beautiful babies, Jules." He says. She smiles, pleased by his comment.
o----------------------o
"Julianna Margulies reportedly had her baby. Son Aiden Nicholas was born November 16th, weighing in at 7 lbs., 9 oz. According to many of the medical workers, George Clooney was present during the emergency c-section and is apparently the father of Julianna's son. Julianna had a prolapsed cord, causing the baby to be deprived of oxygen and they had to perform a c-section. Baby and mother are both fine." George reads out of the local newspaper. He drops it down onto the table where Julianna is sitting, holding Aiden. She shrugs.
"What else is there to tell? Do they have to recount the whole thing?" Julianna asks. He grins slightly.
"You know the people, everybody's curious. We're probably the best bit of gossip they've had in a while." George says.
"Yeah, nothing big since Celine Dion's son being born." Julianna says. He chuckles.
"Probably." He says as they smile.
o----------------------o
Julianna walked down the hallway of George's house. She passed the spare bedroom where she was currently sleeping at night. Beside 'her room' was the baby's nursery. She paused when she heard George's voice coming from the inside. She peeked her head around the corner to find him sitting in a rocking chair, facing the window as he rocked the baby and talked to Aiden.
"Y'know, even though you were conceived on accident, I am so glad that it happened. It may have been an accident, but it will never be a mistake. Not to me, anyways. You're so perfect, Aid. I don't know what kind of Daddy I'll be, but I hope I'll be one you can love. And I hope someday you'll have a brother or sister...or even two to play with. It may take me a long, long time to convince your Mommy though. Hopefully one day she'll love me the way I love her." George is silent for a few seconds and the baby coos, wiggling slightly as he stares up at his father. George smiles at him. "You came at the perfect time, Bud. You came exactly when I needed you. You came right when I was ready to grow up..and just when I needed to get your Mommy away from Ron somehow. No, that wasn't my plan. I just wanted your Mommy to be happy, even if that meant she had to be with Ron. But I must admit, I didn't want her to be with him, I wanted her with me." George says. Julianna smiles softly as she continues listening, feeling slightly guilty but her curiosity overruling her guilt. "Are you going to help me convince your Mommy that she wants me like I want her?" George asks. Aiden gurgles and George chuckles slightly. "I'll take that as a yes." Julianna decides to make her entrance.
"Take what as a yes?" She asks. George looks up at her, slightly surprised.
"Oh nothing. Just man to man talk." George says, grinning as he looks down at Aiden who yawns.
"Ooh, that's Mommy's big boy." Julianna says cooing at him as she gets down on her knees beside George and leans over the baby. The baby kicks his foot up, making her curly hair sway. She grins.
"He's gonna have fun with that one of these days." George says and reaches over with one hand, tugging on one of her curls. She grins.
"Yeah, I'm going to have to make it a habit of tying it back and not wearing any earrings or necklaces." She says. He chuckles slightly and the baby closes his eyes, settling down. "Someone's getting sleepy." She whispers. George nods.
"Yeah, he is." He says.
"Lemme see him." Julianna says, standing and moving in front of George and bending down. He helps the baby into her arms which causes Aiden to stir. George starts to get up from the rocking chair, but she pushes him back. "Stay there." Julianna says. George sits back, his back up against the chair. She turns her back towards him and she takes a careful seat on George's lap. He chuckles, slightly surprised, as she leans back into him. He looks over her shoulder as he wraps his arms around the two of them and he begins to push against the floor with his feet, rocking them slightly. Aiden yawns and one of his arms swing up, hitting Julianna softly before he sinks into her embrace. Julianna smiles and her body relaxes into George's. He smiles as they rock their child, together.
o----------------------o