The Thirteenth Child (9/9)

[hemrage]

Return to PART EIGHT

PART NINE



Everything moved so quickly.

Jared heard the door open behind him, was aware of someone – he thought it was Claudette – taking the second child from between Jensen’s legs, and then he was pushed to one side, out of the way as the doctor took his place.

Jared didn’t even think to ask whether he had another daughter or a son, his focus intent on Jensen. He knelt by the side of the bed, stroking Jensen’s face, pushing stray strands of sweat damp hair behind his ear. Even like this Jensen was beautiful, and he didn’t know whether he’d ever told Jensen that. That he was beautiful. Why had he never said it? Did Jensen even know that Jared loved him?

He heard the doctor curse as needle and thread were produced. “I’m going to have to stitch him up as soon as the third baby is out, Jared. This would be a lot easier if he would wake up to start pushing again, but I think a combination of blood loss, pain and exhaustion have gotten the better of him.”

Jared watched, horrified, as another contraction rippled through Jensen’s much abused body.

“There’s a very real danger of the baby getting distressed if it’s not delivered soon.”

“So what can you do?”

The doctor scowled, placed a hand on Jensen’s stomach and began pressing, feeling for something. “It’s not unheard of for there to be hours between multiples being born, but I don’t think Jensen can wait that long while he’s bleeding like this.”

The doctor produced a small monitor and attached it to Jensen’s chest, got another and attached it to his abdomen. “The deep tone you can hear is Jensen’s heartbeat, the high pitched, rapid tone, is the baby’s.”

“Isn’t it too fast?”

The doctor, eyes trained on the area between Jensen’s legs, hands doing something down there that Jared didn’t want to acknowledge, sounded much more relaxed than Jared thought was normal for a situation like this. “Not too bad, actually. Jensen’s is a little slow, but then his blood pressure is really low right now.”

Jensen’s eyelids fluttered, but he didn’t wake and Jared didn’t feel like he could blame him for his retreat from consciousness right now. Would join him if he could. “Are we going to get him to hospital now?”

“There isn’t time Jared. He delivered your son and daughter within thirty minutes of you calling me. We probably wouldn’t even get him down the stairs, much less to the hospital.”

The doctor turned from him, blood covered hands retrieving items from the case that had arrived with her.

“You may want to hold him down. There’s a good chance that he’s going to wake up during this, my hope it that he won’t but… well, you need to keep him still Jared.”

Jared turned his body so that he couldn’t see what the doctor was doing. This, he truly believed, would be the stuff of many sleepless nights ahead and he didn’t need to give insomnia more ammunition.

---

Jensen’s unfocused eyes snapped open and his body twisted as he attempted, futilely, to pull away from whatever the doctor was doing. Jared held him down, forcing his body to remain still. Forcing Jensen to suffer whatever it was Jared could not bear to witness.

Tears flowed freely from Jensen’s eyes and his mouth opened in a silent scream. Jared wanted to join him. Wanted to run from the room and escape this nightmare.

It seemed like a lifetime before Jensen’s body sagged, his eyes fluttering closed once more.

The doctor spoke, but Jared didn’t hear her words. He was too intent on watching his husband, checking for the continued rise and fall of his chest, listening for the soft breath from his mouth.

Whatever the doctor had to say could wait until he was certain Jensen was merely asleep.

---

Jensen was moved to another room in the house, their bed was completely destroyed and a replacement would be found as soon as possible. There’d been so much blood Jared could see it when he closed his eyes. The doctor still insisted that a hospital wasn’t necessary and since Jensen had woken, quiet, but not as withdrawn as Jared had expected him to be, he accepted that professional opinion.

“How’re you feeling?”

Jensen’s laugh was broken, his voice all but wrecked by the screaming he’d been doing earlier. “Like I’ve had my insides ripped out… Oh, hang on, that’s what happened, right?” Jensen showed him a little mercy then, taking his hand and squeezing. “I’ll survive, Jared.”

Jared climbed up onto the bed next to him. Those words had a startling effect, releasing something, tension, pressure – terror – and now he just wanted to be close. As close as he could be.

---

“So, daddy, what did we have?”

Jared smiled, “I think you need to see for yourself.”

Claudette was standing at the door, two children in her arms. She approached Jensen, handing him first one and then the other. “Your daughter, and your son. He’s loud.” Jensen laughed at that and looked at each of his children. His daughter, alert and watching, his son, asleep. “You’ll need to feed them in a little bit, but all in all it’s a good job we had some formula on hand.”

Jensen nodded and then grew quiet, making assumptions about the absentee that he didn’t want to voice. His youngest wasn’t here and …

While he’d been intently focussed on the babes in arms he hadn’t noticed Claudette leave the room, or return. Jared leant over him, “Give them to me, Jen. I think you need to meet the little one who caused you so much bother.”

Jensen handed his oldest children to their other father and waited for Claudette to give him the smallest of the three. His youngest. He eagerly accepted the little wrapped bundle. “He’s a carrier Jen, like you.”

Jensen stared then. Silent tears slipping down his face that he couldn’t be bothered to wipe away. As much as his son and daughter would need him, this little one would need him more. Would need guidance that no-one else would be able to provide.

His children would need him – and he would be there for them.

“Jared.”

“Yes.”

“I think, in a few years, when these three are older, I’d like more.”

“We’ll see Jensen, we’ll see.”

Jared, for his part, wasn’t sure he could ever go through that again.

---

Return to MASTER POST

Comments

[anifsemaj.livejournal.com]

Very nicely done! One could wish that Jared had been willing/able to address more of Jensen's fears along the way, but I love that he did actually realize he was not handling it the best it could be and that Jensen had real reasons to fear childbirth!

[darth-firefly.livejournal.com]

This was incredible. Excellent work!

[nickgregfan.livejournal.com]

EXCELLENT!!!!!!

[ramame.livejournal.com]

I loved reading it , just great how you told the story from Jensen's side, and how they ended up as a family............

[serendip50.livejournal.com]

Lovely picture.

I love how you turned the story round so that Jensen realised it wasn't dying he was afraid of but not being around to care for his children. He could and would be the decent parent he never had...Such a heartfelt sentiments.

And Jared, for his part...He truly has shown his love for his Jensen....And after having witnessed Jensen's horrific time giving birth is considering not having any more children at all...haha...wonderful symmetry.

Life is strange and wonderful sometimes. Well done. xx

[alaine1910.livejournal.com]

I do love your stories - Fantastic

[randomflamingo.livejournal.com]

This is a beautiful story and the baby pic is too adorable.

[wusswoo.livejournal.com]

Aww that was a lovely story, I loved the angst and misunderstandings at the beginning it made the ending all the more sweet. Plus have you seen a cuter picture?

[calijirl5150.livejournal.com]

Beautiful story - I feel for the poor third baby though- sounds like being a "carrier" gives you no rights & that's a kin to slavery :(

Would LOVE a PDF or word doc if possible for my Blackberry - that's how much I enjoyed this :)

[nong-pradu.livejournal.com]

Awww. That was so damned sweet, after all the angsty-worrying. I'd somehow forgotten about the multiples in this, but was happy to enjoy your handling of it all over again.

Thanks so much for sharing this. It was really great.

[janes-membrane.livejournal.com]

I adored this fic when I first read it in spn_hardcore. You do mpreg angst so well. I would love it if you revisit this story and add more installments or timestamps to it. <3

[fifimom.livejournal.com]

I never read RPF but somehow I found myself reading this one and then I couldn't stop. It's very different and very good. Thanks for sharing.

[mini-moue.livejournal.com]

That was a really interesting premise. I love the idea of a "third gender", the Carrier, and how this would effect society, and the life of someone born of that gender. Very thought-provoking. It did make me want the story to be longer, with even more background detail - but I'm greedy that way, lol. I wanted more info on Jensen's Carrier (poor, nameless creature) and I kind of wanted something horrible to happen to Jensen's dad and his arsey family but I appreciate that you'd still be writing it now if I had my way! Jensen eventually ended up safe and lucky with Jared and his babies, but it made me wonder about all the other poor carriers, who wouldn't be that lucky. See, you've made me think too much with this! Which is, I suppose, the highest compliment you can give a writer - it stayed with me afterwards. :-D

[dewil55565.livejournal.com]

this was so good thank you for writing it.

[jayfray18.livejournal.com]

Mpreg is my one BIG weakness in fanfic - and yours are some of the best out there.

Jensen's fears were so realistic - any woman who has had a child will tell you that.

Beautiful m'dear:)

[xwacky.livejournal.com]

I've said it before that there are very few mpreg stories I would read, yours is one of them. I love it that in this, you explored the fears of child bearing. You even touched upon a person's choice in regard to pregnancy, explored the determination and guilt associated with such choice. Too bad Jensen's choice was taken away from him in the end, but that's the expected result given the world and circumstance you created here. It's great that all is well in the end, that Jensen survived the ordeal, and three little angels arrived (the picture is beyond adorable), but I can't help feeling it's bitter sweet.

All in all, it's wonderful to read something from you again!

[aythia.livejournal.com]

I loved this story, wonderful mix of angst and adorable moments. I also very much liked the world it was set in, the details around it all. It was really really well written :)

[spn-j2fan.livejournal.com]

I loved this story! I never knew I had a mpreg kink until I started reading Desperate Times! You really do such a good job with it!

It amazes me what a great job you do making me feel strongly about the characters. I HATE Jensen's dad, I LOVE his next oldest sibling, even if she is a little too blunt. :) I was FURIOUS when Jared announced the pregnancy to everyone, but then I took a step back afterwards, and could kind of see his side, too.

I thought Mark and Misha were an excellent addition, something to show that there could be balance.

And the picture at the end...awwww!

Thank you for sharing. I loved this from the moment it started in prompt fill! If you do decide to write a timestamp, I would love to see Jensen anxiously trying to get pregnant again, and Jared slowing him down. :)

[agustin1982.livejournal.com]

I understand why Jensen fear with his pregnancy>< really so much pain and hurts~~~

But the baby look so cuteeeee^^

[lovetheguys.livejournal.com]

I just read all of this in its entirety and am blown away, as with all your stories. You're an incredible writer!

Love,
Robin

[pollyspn.livejournal.com]

Great story!!! I loved it!!

Congrats and thanks for sharing it!!

Brazilian hugs...

[lenastockton.livejournal.com]

Just wanted to come back and say how much I enjoyed this story. You really think about the 'mechanics' of things that makes AU stories like this believable. Great job.

[vanster23.livejournal.com]

I loved this in the hardcore meme, and love it even more now, all fleshed out :) Thank you so much for writing this, and for that much needed happy ending! (I'm a sucker for them, too)

[ramona4jake.livejournal.com]

awesome story - so that's what you were doing while 'neglecting' the other 2 of your stories !! ;o)

love it !!!

[apieceofcake.livejournal.com]

Loved it, thank you :-)