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The call came in just before four in the morning. The robotic chirping of the weird bird ringtone that Harry had for some reason assigned to Samantha's number broke through Louis' unconscious state and he woke, his face pressed into the back of Harry's slightly sweaty neck.
He moved his lips and placed a kiss there and whispered in Harry's ear, "Babe, I think it's happening."
Harry jolted awake from where he'd been sleeping on his stomach and blindly reached out for his phone in the still relatively dark bedroom. "Hello?" Harry said into the phone with his sleep-rasped voice. "Samantha? Oh. Hi Walt. Is it time?"
Louis sat up and wrapped his arms around his husband, hooking his chin over Harry's right shoulder as he tried to hear Walt through the phone. "How far apart are they? That close? Yeah, we'll be there as soon as we can. We're on our way."
Harry ended the call and turned around in Louis' embrace. "Lou, she's almost here. Our daughter is almost ready to greet us!"
Harry's smile was so wide, it took up half his face and his green eyes were glassy with unshed tears. Louis smiled and rested his forehead against Harry's saying, "Let's go meet our first child."
He leaned in and kissed Harry's lips lightly. They both bounded out of bed then, neither bothering with anything other than pulling on pairs of joggers and hoodies over the t-shirt and boxers that they'd each slept in. Harry pulled on socks and laced up an old pair of running shoes while Louis just toed on a pair of Vans, not even bothering with socks. They were out the door with keys, wallets, and phones in hand in less than seven minutes from when Walt had called.
The streets were deserted at that time of the morning, so it wasn't long before Harry and Louis were striding up to the front desk on the maternity ward level of the fancy London hospital that they had chosen after a lot of thought and research. "Samantha Baker's room, please?", Harry asked the receptionist politely. The nurse looked up information on her computer. "Are you family?"
"It's our baby about to be born", Louis spoke up, "Samantha Baker is our surrogate." Louis felt Harry give his hand a reassuring squeeze and turned to meet his smile with one of his own.
"Oh of course, of course. You can head back to room 415, Ms. Baker and her...", the nurse paused to look at her computer, "...husband are meeting with Dr. Tillman now. He's just arrived so I don't think you've missed much." The nurse smiled at them, and by the look of shock and awe that was beginning to spread across her face, she had just recognized Harry and Louis and realized who they were.
Before she could do or say anything else, Louis dragged Harry down the corridor, practically pulling him into a jog. They reached the room just as Dr. Tillman was setting up the stirrups at the end of the bed that Samantha was sitting up in, doing Lamaze breaths as her husband Walt rubbed her back in concentric circles and held her left hand.
"Gentlemen, you're just in time. Go change into some scrubs or put on a surgical dress over your clothes. Everything you'll need is on the shelves in the bathroom." Dr. Tillman motioned behind him towards the en suite door. Harry and Louis went into the bathroom and Louis chose to put a paper robe over his clothes like Walt had done, while Harry stripped his sweatpants and sweatshirt off and pulled on blue scrub pants and a top. "Ooh, I've always wanted to wear scrubs. Do you think they'll let me keep them?"
"Of course, babe. Or we'll just buy them. It's not important. Let's just get back out there." Louis sighed and shook his head fondly. The went back into the main part of the maternity suite to find Dr. Tillman holding a remote and messing with the sound system in the corner of the room. "We've had a request for Fleetwood Mac." Stevie Nicks' voice came over the speakers in the ceiling. Samantha took a break in her breathing to huff out a 'thank you' before another contraction hit her hard. Dr. Tillman walked back over to his patient and lifted the sheet modestly covering Samantha's legs and privates.
"Well, Louis and Harry, your daughter is raring to come out here and meet her new dads."
Dr. Tillman laughed and motioned Louis and Harry over. Louis went to Samantha's other side and picked up her other hand and held it. She squeezed it, hard, as she was evidently hit with another contraction. She looked up at Louis and gave him what he thought was supposed to be a smile, but came across more as a grimace. The puff puffs of her Lamaze breathing seemed to fill the entire room. Harry meanwhile was standing slightly behind Dr. Tillman, sort of crouched down with his hands stretched forward as if he were prepared to catch his newborn daughter out of Samantha's womb if need be. He seemed content to stay there watching everything that was happening "down there" while the thought of seeing his baby come out of Samantha's vagina was mildly horrifying to Louis.
Everything progressed quickly after that. All of a sudden Samantha was dilated the full 10 cm and Dr. Tillman had her reclining back in the bed with her feet in the stirrups telling her to push. A nurse on Tillman's service came in to assist but Harry got to stay where he was to watch everything as it unfolded. Samantha held on to Louis and Walt's hands with a bone-crushing clutch as she pushed, and Harry was giving play-by-plays from his station right behind the doctor. "Sam, sweetheart, you're doing great. Oh Lou! I can see her head! She's got such a lovely head of hair already!" Harry was beyond joy and his teary-eyed smile was almost blinding to Louis. He wanted to go over and hug Harry, but the way that Samantha was holding onto his left hand, he figured she needed him more.
Finally, Samantha gave a final push and Harry was pumping his fist in the air and whooping. Dr. Tillman cleared some mucus from the baby's airway and then she was bellowing out a healthy scream. "Seems like you two may have another singer in the family." Dr. Tillman teased as he snipped and tied off the umbilical cord and the nurse took the baby over to the station in the corner to weigh and measure her and clean her up. A minute or so later, the nurse was headed back over to where Harry and Louis stood with their arms around each other. "Which one of her new papas wants to hold her first?" Harry looked down at Louis and Louis smiled and nodded for Harry to go first. He unwound his arms from around Louis and reached out to take the small bundle from the nurse. He looked down onto the sweet, cherubic face of their daughter, whose crying had subsided. She was opening and closing her mouth and making little gurgle sounds. Louis leaned in and lifted one of her little hands with his pinky; she held on fast and Louis felt his heart melt straight out of his body. He had never loved anyone as much as he instantly loved his little girl. Harry bent down and kissed his daughter's hand where it held his husband's finger and he didn't think he could ever be this happy or filled with love. He lifted his head and turned to look over to Samantha who had Walt's arm around her shoulders as they both looked over at the new parents. Harry mouthed 'Thank You' to Samantha and she smiled and nodded.
Later, family and friends filled the room. Both sets of grandparents, and Louis' sisters had made the trek down from the Manchester area, Gemma had taken a taxi over from her flat, and Liam and Niall had arrived from their respective London homes, within minutes of being called. Louis announced once everyone was assembled that he and Harry had chosen the name Antoinette for their daughter.
During one of the baby's first feedings, Liam had suggested that the four guys sing a song, since Niall had brought his guitar. As if they'd had an unspoken agreement, Niall began strumming the opening chords of "I Want To Write You A Song".
I want to write you a song
One as beautiful as you are sweet,
With just a hint of pain
For the feeling that I get when you are gone,
I want to write you a song.
I want to lend you my coat,
One that's as soft as your cheek,
So when the world is cold,
You will have a hiding place you can go,
I wanna lend you my coat.
Oooh ooh ooh, Everything I need I get from you,
And giving back is all I wanna do...