I am putting a pause on that other story. I can't make it work right now.

This story is basically my practice for a birth scene. I just thought it would be nice to share it with you.

//

Louis walked down the hall, humming out a song while lightly swinging his briefcase. "Another day at work; beautifully completed." he happily stated as he reached the elevator, "I can't wait to get home!" He pushed the 'down' button and waited for the elevator to arrive. 'Maybe I'll write something for my blog...' he pondered, 'or maybe read a book...maybe I can watch a DVD?'

He snapped back to reality as the elevator chimed at its arrival. The doors pulled back to reveal a man standing in the corner, wearing a baggy hooded jacket and a pair of sweat pants. 'Must be a jogger...' he thought while he entered the elevator, pushing the 'ground floor' button on his way in. The doors closed and the elevator began its decent from the twenty fifth floor.

//

Louis couldn't help but stare at the other gentleman in the car, scanning the grey hoodie and the secrets it held. "Do you mind?" the other man asked, causing Louis to blush. "S-sorry," he apologized, "I couldn't help it...isn't it a little hot to wear that outfit?"

"It's none of your business!" the hoodie-wearing man exclaimed, "You know nothing, jerk!" The business man held up his hands in defense, saying, "I'm sorry, I was curious..." The hoodie wearing man grunted and tried to press himself closer into his corner of the room. Louis swallowed hard, and then shifted his attention to the front of the elevator, daring not to anger the other man anymore.

But then, the elevator started to shake, causing the two to gasp and drop to the ground. The sounds of machinery shutting down and gears screeching filled the air, making Louis cover his ears. He glanced at the other man, noting that he kept one hand on his stomach while the other on his head.

As soon as the noises silenced, Louis asked the other man, "Are you alright?" The hooded man yelled back, "No! Hell is rattling all around me; you think I'm ok?!" He then stood up and waddled to the elevator panel, hammering the ‘ground floor’ button, yelling out, "Come on, move! Move dammit!"

"The elevator's stuck! It won't move!" Louis yelled out, then crawled to the panel and tried the emergency phone, sighing in relief to find a tone. "Hello? Hello?" he called into the receiver, "Anyone listening?"

"Yes sir, good afternoon." a gentle, female voice chimed at the other end, "May I ask of your name and number of occupants in the elevator?" Louis coughed and replied, "There is me, and another man. I'm Louis Greene and..." he put a hand over the receiver and asked, "What's your name?"

"Billy Frost." The hooded man spat out as he walked to the other side and sat down carefully. "The other man is Billy Frost." Louis finished into the receiver, "What's going on out there?"

"We're sorry for the inconvenience sir, but there was a malfunction in the elevator mechanics; we are trying our best to fix this problem as soon as possible." The voice reported, "Please keep calm, and do not try to exit the elevator. Call back if there is any problem that develops overtime. Thank you, and have a nice day."

Louis sighed and hung the phone back up, reporting, "Well, we're stuck here until they fix the elevator Billy." But Billy snorted, replying dully, "I'm stuck with your lame ass? Great; not a way I want to spend an afternoon."

Louis frowned a bit, and then the memory of Billy holding his stomach crossed his mind. "Say, why did you hold your stomach?" The businessman asked, "Are you sick? Or is something wrong?" But when Louis stared at Billy more, he noticed that his belly was huge; a curve outlined in the hoodie's material. "S-stop staring at me you jerk!" Billy yelled out, "Or better yet, drop dead!"

"Are you pregnant?" Louis asked, "Or do you have a balloon under that skin?" The other grumbled and yelled out, "Yes! I'm pregnant! Nine effing months I carried this! So what?! You wanna start something about this?!" But the businessman stared at him, and then brightened up, saying, "That's wonderful! You must be a caring mother to carry the baby so long! Or do you have more than one?"

"Piss off Louis." Billy hissed as he placed his hands on his enlarged belly, "Caring my ass; I'm only doing this because I can't get rid of it. This thing inside of me...all it did was bring me pain! Sleepless nights because of nausea, none of my clothes fit, I've been stared at, and felt up by a bunch of bastards! To top it all off, the bastard that gave this parasite left me alone to raise it!"

A harsh silence fell on the two, Billy glaring at the wall while Louis stared at him with a shocked expression. "Billy..." Louis squeaked out, "You poor man..." But the pregnant man spat out, "I don't need your stupid pity! I've done this alone for nine months; I can be done with it all when I put the thing up for adoption!"

A slap made Billy shut up, a slight stinging in his cheek. He shifted his head to stare at Louis, staring into the face of an angry man. "You are a bastard." the businessman spat out, "You must be one of those type that don't care about the lives of others, even your own family." He backed away from Billy, adding, "It would be a fitting punishment for you if you lost the baby during birth."  He then settled into an opposite corner of the elevator and stared at the wall next to the doors.

//

Minutes turned to hours as the two waited for the elevator to move. Neither man said anything to each other, keeping their gazes from the other's body.

'Stupid bastard.' Louis thought, 'He was given the ability to create, and he hates it like the plague. He would probably kick the baby as soon as it was born. Asshole.' He tried to shift his thoughts to other ideas, but it all ended up returning to Billy the bastard. Then a buried memory popped up in his head; one of Louis with a little girl in a Sunday dress.

"Uh...uh...Louis?"

He snapped back to reality, and then turned his attention to Billy. But his expression shifted from anger to surprise, as he realized that Billy looked like he was in pain while a puddle of water began to form under his pants.  The frantic man kept prodding his large belly, his fear and pain growing to the point of hyperventilation. "It can't happen now!" Billy yelled out, "Not now!"

"Keep calm Billy," Louis commanded as he raced to his side, "Your water broke, so it's time; no one can control when the baby wants out. Now, have you taken a Lamaze class?"

"N-no!" Billy stuttered out, his face twisted with pain, "I haven't! I couldn't find one! I don't know how to birth a kid; I was gonna have a C-section!" Louis smoothed back Billy's hair and said, "Alright, you're going to feel these rushes of pain called contractions. You just need to breathe the way I am going to demonstrate to you. You will breathe like this until you are dilated."

"D-dilated!?" Billy asked as another contraction sent a wave of pain, "What do you mean?!" The businessman ran a hand over Billy's hard stomach, rubbing it gently as he explained. "It means you need to spread your legs in order for an opening in you to widen...say to ten to twelve centimeters. I'll explain the rest when we get there; just concentrate on breathing."

The hoodie boy just huffed and puffed, yelling out at each contraction. "Damn it, just like I showed you asshole!" Louis cursed, "You never listen, do you!?" But Billy answered back, "Shut up! JUST SHUT UP!!! AAAAHHHHHHHH! I'M GOING TO BLOW UP!!!"

"It's not like you're a balloon!" The businessman screamed out, "Just shut up and breathe! And don't kick me; I gotta remove your pants!" Billy glared at the other man, hissing out, "If you even touch my pants, I will kill you!" But Louis yelled back, it’s for the baby! You can't have a kid in your pants, stupid!"

In a quick motion, he pulled the wet sweatpants and threw them against the door, then pulled off the kid's underwear. "You pervert!" Billy screamed out as another contraction hit, "YOU EFFING PERVERT! I WILL KILL YOU!!!" But Louis only checked on him, announcing, "Three centimeters; a long way. And stop yelling at me. You can try and give birth on your own; I don't mind sitting with a corpse. Hell, two corpses would be just as fine."

The laboring man froze at the comment, cold sweat forming on his head and neck. "I can die from this?" He asked, and the other nodded, adding, "Blood loss. Heart attack. A variety of things punk. People give a little to get a little; even if it means their own lives."

Billy gasped, tears forming in his eyes and slithering down his cheeks. "You wouldn't let me die, would you?" He asked, but Louis coldly replied, "You would throw away your own kid to an orphanage, so I would have no problem watching you die."

"Ok, ok, I won't put the kid up for ad-agh!-adoption!" Billy promised, "I'll listen to you! Just please, get it out of me!!!" Louis glanced at him, then said, "That baby is not an 'it' any more, it is either a he or a she. Which is it?"

"A he..." Billy said, "It's my son...my son...AGH! HELP ME!!!" Without a moment's hesitation, Louis rushed to his side and began to coach him. "Alright, just concentrate on your breathing, like I said before. Do it just like I showed you."

 Billy obeyed and breathed like Louis showed him, hissing at each contraction. "Alright, keep doing that; I'm going to check how far you're along." He nodded and allowed the stranger to look at his dilation. "Five centimeters." he announced, "Quite an improvement, but we're not done. Keep breathing."

//

Hours passed as the two kept trying, Louis checked while Billy breathed. The opening kept spreading wider and wider, until it was close to ten centimeters.

"Alright," Louis instructed, "You are at nine centimeters, so I'm going to tell you how you're going to give birth." Billy nodded, allowing Louis to continue. "When you reach ten, you are going to push on each contraction that hits. You will keep pushing for ten seconds, and then you will breathe until the next contraction hits. You will keep doing this until the baby is born. When you are at ten centimeters, I will have to put my fingers inside you."

"I-i-inside!?" The younger man repeated, "Why?" The older man answered, "If I don't, the cord is going to wrap around the neck; think of it as a noose for your kid." Billy nodded rapidly, saying, "Whatever just tell me when it happens!"

Louis nodded and checked him, then announced, "You're at ten centimeters Billy! Brace yourself!" Billy gasped loudly as he felt the stranger inside him, more tears pouring from his eyes. "I'm finished; the cord is unwrapped." Louis announced, "Now you got to push on the next contraction! Ready?" The other man shook his head, screaming, "NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! I CAN'T DO THIS ANY MORE!!!" But the businessman yelled out, "Yes you can damn it! You got this far; you're in the final stretch!!!"

Billy gritted his teeth, and then nodded.

"Good, now push!" Louis ordered, and Billy obeyed, pushing all of his body into one action. "Relax! Ten seconds are up!" Louis commanded, "You're doing great! Get ready for the next one!"

"I just want this over!!!" Billy screamed out hoarsely.

"PUSH!"

Billy pushed again, sending his body into more levels of pain. "Relax and breathe!" the businessman ordered, "Great one, you're almost done. Just keep going, and push!"

"AUGH!!! I'M GOING TO SPLIT IN HALF!!!" The younger man screamed out, hammering his fists on the cold floor, "I can't take it anymore!!!" But Louis slapped the floor, yelling out, "Shut up damn it; we're too far, no turning back! Now Push!!!"

"NRGH!!!" Billy grunted, feeling his organs ready to spill out of his lower half. "I see the head! It's crowning!!!" Louis exclaimed, "Next one should be the last one! NOW PUSH!"

"GET OUT OF ME KIDDO!!!" Billy screamed as he pushed one last time, spilling the newborn into Louis' hands. Without hesitation, Louis dug around his suitcase and pulled out a letter opener and a bottle of rubbing alcohol. He quickly doused the knife in the alcohol and cut the umbilical cord in a quick swoop. Then he took off his jacket and wrapped it around the newborn, holding it out to the expectant mother.

"It's...it's not screaming..." Billy panted, "Why isn't it screaming? Is it dead?" But as if on cue, the baby began to wail out, bringing a sigh of relief to the two of them. "A healthy son; you got to be proud of this..." Louis said as he gave the baby to its mother. Billy only looked at his newborn, new tears forming. "To think I wanted to throw you away..." he croaked, "Oh, I am such a bastard."

"You were a bastard." Louis corrected, "Now, you're a mom. Don't fuck it up."

///

"Sir, I am glad for your patience." The voice on the other end of the receiver piped up, "We are almost finished with the repairs." Louis grinned and said, "Great. But could you call an ambulance for me. Billy Frost was pregnant and just had a kid."

The voice on the other end silenced, and then stuttered, saying, "We will call an ambulance immediately." Then the phone clicked, allowing Louis to hang up.

He turned to Billy and said with a smile, "Good news; they're almost done with the repairs and you'll be delivered to a hospital." Billy grinned as he held his new son in his arms. "Good." he uttered, "I'm so glad. I want to thank you for everything you've done in here..."

"No problem Bill." The businessman answered as he sat next to him. "Life is a beautiful thing to me."

"But I have to ask..." the new mother started, "How did you know how to deliver a baby? And why did you have a bottle of rubbing alcohol and a letter opener in your briefcase?"

Louis froze at the question, and then tears formed in his eyes, the crushing feeling of despair on his mind. "Billy...you don't have to suffer what I suffered in my life..." he began. “You don't have a husband for your kid. You don't have to suffer the feeling of your kid being taken from you."

Billy stared at him, allowing Louis to continue. "I was married at one time; she was a lovely woman. I witnessed and helped with the home birth of my daughter; Eliza Greene. We were happy, almost to the point of being drunk of happiness. Then my wife divorced me for no reason, and left me with nothing. I'm living alone in a studio apartment, wondering if my ex-wife would allow Eliza to call me..."

"As for the letter opener and alcohol...they were parting gifts for me...this was my last day here. I try to keep a positive attitude...but...but..."

Louis choked up, tears falling freely as he began to break out in choking sobs, his entire body shaking. "I have nothing now..." he croaked, "I have no reason to live now!!!"

"Dude...Louis..." Billy cooed, "You did something great here. You do have a reason to live. Come live with me; I can't exactly raise this kid alone." But Louis shook his head rapidly, saying, "No...No; I would be a burden."

"Louie..." the new mother comforted, "Please? For the baby? For me?"

The ex-businessman looked towards the new mother, eyes red and wet with salty tears. He looked down at the baby as it slept in Billy's arms, then he looked up at Billy. "Really?" he asked, and Billy nodded. With new tears, Louis loosely curled his arms around Billy, quietly thanking him.

None of them notice the elevator started to move again.

//

Sorry about it being rushed. As I said, it is my first birth scene, and it has gotten really late over on my view point. I welcome all forms of judgment.