Us Before Them

O N E

May 23, 1998

Loud pained screams we're all that could be heard from hospital room 243. Lucille and her husband Negan were waiting for the arrival of their little girl.

At first, Lucille feared that Negan wouldn't be father material... that his bad habits of cussing and his temper would become an issue with a small infant. But, Negan convinced her otherwise when he had found out and got overly excited and starting buying an abundance of baby items. He even bought a onesie that said inappropriate things for a child which caused Lucille to shake her head and make him take them back.

"But it's funny!" Negan whined, holding the small article of clothing in his hands, a saddened and upset look on his face.

"It's not appropriate Negan" she sighs looking at the three onesies that lay out on the table. One reading 'Daddy's lil squirt' with little cartoon seamen. The second said 'I've got front row tickets to the boob show'. And the third said 'My daddy just wanted a blowjob'.

"Babe! Come on" Negan whines like a five year old. He was quite proud of these funny finds.

"No" Lucille stood firm, opposed to the idea of her child wearing these things.

Negan rolled his eyes and grumbled "fucking fine" before grabbing them and putting back in the shopping bag.

"Language" Lucille hollered at him, and to that, Negan replied with a simple flip of the middle finger and a smile so she knows he's only joking.

Now, Negan stood beside his wife's side, clutching her hand tightly as she cried in pain. "You got this babe" he whispered and squeezed her hand.

"Alright, you can start pushing" the doctor said as he got in place. "I'm going to count to three and I'm gonna need a big push"

Lucille took a deep breath and the doctor counted down, at three she did as he said. She squeezed Negans hand tightly, and let out a scream. "Damn baby you got a tight grip" he said

"Shut up" she growled at him and he quickly did just that.

The doctor instructed her to push again and she let out another shrill of pain. "I hate you Negan" she cursed at him.

"What?! What'd I do?" He pouted, but still held his wife's hand tightly.

"You did this to me" she cried.

"I need you to push one more time, one more big push and it'll be over" the doctor said.

"I can't" Lucille cried.

"Yeah you can babe.. you got this" Negan assured.

She took a deep breath and Negan took a chance to look at the mirror that was aimed towards Lucille where you can see the birth. "Awe that's nasty" he muttered quietly. The doctor looked up and glared at him. "And beautiful... you didn't let me finish" he added.

After twenty minutes of pushing, screaming, and crying their baby girl was finally born. Her loud cries filled the hospital room as she took her first breaths of oxygen. Lucille fell back onto the bed, out of breath but smiling at the sound of her daughters cries. Negan was smiling also.

The doctors wrapped her in a small blanket and gently placed the bloodied baby onto Lucille's chest. Negan sat on the bed beside his wife and looked down at his child, whose crying began to seize in her mothers arms. "Would you like to cut the cord?" A female nurse asks, holding scissors out to Negan. Negan nodded "hell yeah" he smiled, and received a slap to the back from Lucille for his language. "Hells a place not a cuss word" he mumbled.