In the Light

Chapter Forty-Two: A Small Hospital Room

Ruby was sitting up in a small hospital bed when Sam finally came back from the hotel. The room was meant for multiple people, but she was the only one there. Sam gave Ruby a once-over before setting a bag down at the end of the bed and putting some flowers down on a table. He pulled a chair up next to the bed and kissed her forehead before sitting down and taking her hand. "What did they say?"

"Well, they want to keep me here for observation for a few reasons. They said something about my head injury, but I don't remember. The other thing is my ankle." Sam glanced down at her foot. It was wrapped and propped on a pillow. "See, they aren't sure if it's broken because they can take an X-ray. Because I'm pregnant." She'd been trying to hide her smile, but let it loose then, covering her mouth with her free hand.

Ruby was worried that Sam didn't feel the same as her because he just kept looking at her with his mouth slightly open and a blank expression on his face.

He still wasn't saying anything, so she answered the questions he must have been thinking. "I'll stop hunting during the pregnancy of course. I mean, look what happened on this case. I won't risk that." Ruby cared for her unborn child more than herself; it wasn't even a question. "I want to keep hunting after the baby's born, but if you don't want to, we can talk about it. We don't have to think about that yet though. Sam." When she said his name, Sam's eyes focused on hers. "You're a dad. Nine months from now, you'll be holding a baby in your arms - your baby."

Sam's eyes filled with tears and he started to smile. "I'm a dad." Ruby laughed, starting to cry too. "I'm a dad! You're a mom!" Ruby reached out to Sam and he hugged her. "Ruby." He wiped her tears off then moved his hand to rest on her stomach. She put her hand on top of his.

They stayed like that for awhile until Sam said, "Oh, I just remembered. I called Dean earlier. I told him that you were in the hospital, and that he needed to come back right away. He said they were already on their way. I think he said something about a witch putting a spell on Cas. It can't be bad though, otherwise he would have said more."

"That must be why he didn't answer my prayer. You should call them, see how far away they are."

"Okay. Are you good, though?" Sam furrowed his eyebrows.

"Yeah. I'm just - I'm just worried about Cas." Ruby didn't want to tell him how bad she felt.

Sam put the phone on speaker. "Hey, Mom. How far away are you?

"Hey, Sam. About fifteen minutes away."

"Is everyone okay on your end?" Sam asked.

"The answer to that is very complicated. We'll just have to show you. Is Ruby okay?"

"That's a little complicated too. You don't have to worry, though." Sam smiled at Ruby.

• • •

Twenty minutes later, Mary entered the hospital room. "Ruby! You look good, considering." She leaned down and carefully hugged Ruby. She hugged Sam then, tighter. "I missed you. So, tell me what happened."

"I think I want to wait until Dean and Cas get here to tell you. A lot happened while you were gone."

"Of course. Dean should be up in a minute. Don't worry; Castiel is fine." Mary assured her. Ruby had a small smile on her face. It was weird to be so happy, but in so much physical pain.

Dean opened the door a minute later with a baby on his hip. "Cas?!" Ruby shouted. She jolted up, trying to see the black haired baby better. Pain shot through her skull and she got dizzy. She sat back against the pillows quickly, closing her eyes and groaning. "I'm fine, I'm fine. Just - give me a second." She reached blindly for Sam's hand and squeezed it.

With her eyes still closed, she said "So it was a witch you were hunting?"

"Yep." She looked up at Dean who switched baby Cas to his other hip. "She turned Cas into a literal baby just before we could gank her. It should wear off by sometime tomorrow. What about you, Ruby?" Dean raised an eyebrow at her, sitting down at the end of the bed.

"Um. I have a pretty bad concussion, but that's not what they're worried about. My ankle might be broken." Before she could say anymore, Dean interrupted.

"Might be? Why don't they know for sure?"

"Well, I won't let them take an x-ray because" she emphasized the word before Dean could interrupt again "Well, they said it wouldn't hurt anything, but I won't get an x-ray yet because" she took a breath "I'm pregnant."

Mary and Dean looked shocked and speechless - that seemed to be the theme for the day. Castiel, well, he just looked like a baby. Maybe he didn't understand what they were saying. Oh, well.

Mary started to say something when Dean cut her off. "Don't you have to have sex to get pregnant?"

"That is the general idea, yes," Ruby commented.

"We got married," Sam said. "Right after you left to go on the hunt. It was pretty spontaneous. We wanted to tell you in person."

"That's a lot to spring on a person, Sammy," Dean said, chuckling. "I'm happy for you, man." He got up and slapped Sam on the back. He smiled at Ruby. "Welcome to the family, Sis."

Ruby looked at Mary. She was worried that she'd be upset, but Mary was smiling. "I wish I'd been there, but I get it. Being young and in love. I'm so glad you're officially a part of the family." Mary leaned down and hugged Ruby. A single tear slipped down her face and Mary quickly wiped it away.

Sam spoke up. "The good news is that we had someone record it, so you can see it. And, I figured we could cash in a favor from Father Jim and see if we could renew our vows at his church."

Dean noticed that Ruby was crying. "You okay?" He put his hand on her knee.

"Yeah," she laughed. "I'm just really happy."