Disclaimer: Not mine.
A/N: Once again thank you for the lovely reviews. More thank yous are to be found at the end of this fic. Here's the promised epilogue and while it is the end of this story it's not the end per se. Ever wonder what happened with Rory and Tristan during this course of events? You'll soon find out look for Does He Ever Get The Girl? Coming out soon, hehe, I feel like the guy on moviephone. Anyway onto the story! Let me know how you think I did.
Epilogue: Only the Beginning
"You fucking asshole!" Louise screamed at him. "How could you do this to me?"
Jess just laughed. "Funny I remember it was the fucking that got us in the predicament. And I recall you enjoyed it very much."
Tristan swallowed a chuckle and patted Jess on the back.
"Not something you want to bring up right now buddy. Trust me."
Louise resumed screaming incoherently at her husband as they wheeled her to the delivery room.
"I'm fat and my ankles are swollen. It's all your fault." She raged at her husband.
"Louise, you're beautiful." Tristan interjected trying to keep the peace because he was pretty sure that as soon as she got the chance she was going to kill Jess.
"Thank you Tristan." She panted continuing to glare at her smirking husband.
"Hey stop hitting on my wife DuGrey and go find yours."
Tristan rolled his eyes and went off to find Rory who was in the waiting room with their six month old son and the rest of the family.
Jess moved beside Lou and took her hand. She squeezed it so tight he was sure he was going to have bruises to remember this day by.
"Remember to breathe."
Lou grunted. "Remember to breathe, he says, as if I could forget."
As another contraction hit her she moaned in pain.
"I can't do this! I can't be a mom. This hurts and I'm going to screw it up. I want to go home. Take me home! I'm not having this baby. I changed my mind."
Jess tenderly pushed sweaty strands of hair off her forehead and tried to think of something comforting to say. But in all honesty he was just as terrified as she was. Being a father wasn't something he ever really thought of, what if he sucked at it? What if he screwed his kid up as bad as he had been screwed up?
"Too late to change your mind Blondie. We're having this kid."
"No, I'm having this kid. You're being useless."
"Well it's something I'm good at."
"Shut up." She groaned wanting to kill him but at the same time wanting him to hold her and tell her it was all going to be okay.
"Here." He said shoving a cup of ice chips in her hand. "Lorelai and Rory both recommend pelting the nurses with them. That should keep you occupied."
She took the cup and began to pelt ice chips at him instead. "Occupied! I'm giving birth! I don't need to be occupied! I suppose you want me to take up knitting too, seeing as I have all this free time and energy here." She ranted.
Jess ran his hand through his hair and sighed. It was going to be a long night.
It was a long night, full of screaming and swearing, Jess ended up with a black eye from his lovely wife but the end result was this—a baby.
A little baby girl, with her father's hair and her mother's scream, who looked at her parents solemnly as if she already knew everything about them.
"We have a baby." Lou said exhausted and amazed as she held her daughter for the first time.
Jess couldn't even form words at first. Logically he knew this was coming. Sex leads to pregnancy, which leads to birth which equals baby. But seeing his daughter for the first time came as a shock. Looking through his swollen black and blue eye at this squalling red-faced tiny person, it hit him, he was a father—he had a family.
"Here." Louise said handing the baby over to him.
He held it awkwardly because even with the birth of his cousins and Rory's son he still wasn't all that comfortable around babies. But this was his baby—his daughter. He felt as if the weight of the world, her world, had been placed upon his shoulders. While it scared him to the tips of his toes, he didn't feel like running from it, he had his wife and now a daughter.
"Wow." Was all he could say.
"I know." Lou said, yawning, exhausted. "Just think you're a father. We created this little girl."
Jess just nodded.
"Just imagine what she'll be like as a teenager." Lou mused with a throaty laugh.
With that thought Jess felt all the blood drain from his face. This baby girl had half of his genes and half of Lou's. God only knows what trouble she would find.
"Oh god." He moaned. "She's going to be a handful."
"And a heartbreaker. Like us."
"Oh man. What have we gotten ourselves into?"
Lou grinned. "Guess we'll just have to wait and see. Welcome to world Aubrey Marie Mariano. Let's just hope the world's ready for you."
The EndThe reviews for this story have been outstanding. I've been so touched by them and by all the support you have given me that I really wanted to do individual thank yous. So here we go: Ellie: Thank you for being such an awesome beta! This fic couldn't have gotten done without all your help and encouragement. You're the best! Hlf 2002: Your reviews have always brought a smile to my face. I've really appricaited each of them. Thank you for taking the time to let me know you what you thought! Chris: When I first saw your review I was in shock, a Fic Goddess, reviewing my story lol. Your reviews and encouragment have meant the world to me. Thank you so much! Deeta: You're such a sweetheart. Thank you so much for all the reviews. I love hearing what you think. Jessica S: Thank you for the compliements. I'm glad that people could see the potnential that I saw with Jess and Lou. I love your stories and just recieiveing a review from you is a huge compliment. Thanks! Priya: Where do I begin? You've helped me so much with this story. Thank you for letting me bounce ideas by you and for encouraging me. You're such a doll and I adore you—I'd also adore a MiaB update too ;) Nate: Your reviews always helped me to reassure myself that I was going in the right direction. Thank you so much. Bent137: I'm glad that I could make you like this pairing. Especailly since I adore your fics also. Gracie: Another author I was amazed to see reviewing. Thank you so much for the feedback. I'm glad you liked it. And I hope you liked the ending it's not quite fairy-tale happy but it's close. Chevie Jane: Your reviews always make me smile and sometimes laugh. You're such a sweetie. Thank you for all the reviews! Jamie: You're the best. Thank you so much for the reviews. Getting reviews from one of my favorite authors always brightens my day. SweetThing: I loved your "gushing" review. I'm glad you liked the story. Thank you for the feedback! Sleepless-dreams: Thank you so much for your reviews. I'm glad you liked the last chapter. I was nervous about it and your review made me feel a lot better about it. You really picked up on what I was trying to do. Thanks!
For all the reviews and words of encouragement I want to thank: klm111a, Heather, Hi, imoadiet, Nichole, Jewels, BeeBoo, Princess, Moi, JavaKamp, average jane, stari, Looken4CoffeeGod, Vfoxy713, flipgurl320, BTVGodess, Misty, RJ, Enigmatic Faerie, and Ez.