RP: Welcome to the World Who: The de Blacas d'Aulps family (and extended family/friends) When: Tuesday, December 19, 2009, absurdly early morning Where: Marseilles, France What: Genevieve and Adelaide's sister, Eloise, has given birth. Warnings: Absurdly sappy emotions? TBD
May your life be filled with laughter. May your heart be filled with song. May your eyes be filled with beauty. May your soul always know to whom you belong.
It had been an incredibly long day and night, though Gen had no doubt that it had felt even longer for her sister; strong, patient, kind Eloise, who'd kept a smile on her face even when the pain became so strong that tears streamed down her cheeks. This was everything she and Thomas had wanted so desperately for over the years, and Genevieve couldn't be happier for them both for finally reaching this point. Soon, that beautiful baby would be in their arms. Even if there was a small part of her that was jealous of her sister for having reached this milestone successfully before her, it was vastly overshadowed by the sheer joy in her heart.
She'd dozed off and on through the night with her head on Cooper's shoulder, alternating between that and chatting quietly with everyone, her own family and Thomas's. The waiting room had long since grown quiet though as everyone struggled to keep there eyes open.
That was, until Mabel came into the room and gently woke everyone up. "Come along, loves," she called out. "Thomas will be out in just a minute. Mum and baby are both doing beautifully, and no, I won't tell you the gender," she announced once she had everyone's attention.
Genevieve forced herself up, crossing to her mum and embracing her, kissing her on each cheek. "Ellie's doing well?" she asked, despite having just heard that she was.
"Yes, love. She's understandably tired, but there were no complications. The little one just wanted to take their time, is all." Granted, when they'd gotten the call, Ellie wasn't far enough along yet to be admitted to labor and delivery, but they'd all come down anyway to wait it out with her. Eloise had tried to get them all to go back home and wait for word that it was actually time, but they were all terribly stubborn and had insisted on staying.
Smiling, she gave a short nod before going back to sit with Coop. She couldn't wait for Thomas to come out; she hadn't understood their desire to be in the dark about the baby's sex, but she had respected it, and now they would finally know.
She didn't have a chance to fall back asleep before Thomas finally emerged into the waiting room with a tiny newborn wrapped up in the standard newborn hospital blanket cradled in his arms. "Everyone, I would love to introduce my and Eloise's son, Henri Aldrich Mercier." The look he gave the infant was one of pure love, and it made Gen's heart swell with even more joy than she thought possible. She glanced over at her own father and saw him dabbing at his eyes with a handkerchief.
"He's beautiful, Thomas," Gen called out softly.
"Thank you, Genevieve. We know how anxious everyone must be to visit Eloise and Henri, but we're going to ask that everyone go home for now and stagger visits over the next few days. We have a list--I'm sure that surprises everyone--" A bit of laughter rang out at the quip; no one was surprised that Eloise would have a list of visitors. "--and we'll be letting each of you know when to visit. We love every one of you, but we don't want mum or baby to be overwhelmed, and we appreciate everyone understanding."
Slowly, everyone began filing out of the waiting room, some pausing to quietly congratulate Thomas personally and getting a peek at Henri, while being respectful enough to not linger and overwhelm the new father. When it was Genevieve's turn, she smiled down at the infant and the brushed a kiss to Thomas's cheek. "Give Eloise my love, and remind her that I will survive if I'm not first on that list," she teased lightly.
"Of course love. Soon, though, I promise," Thomas assured her.
With one last wistful look at that perfect baby boy, Gen continued on out with Cooper. Hopefully it would be soon. She wasn't sure she really would survive if she didn't get to hold that precious little one soon.