I grab my stuff and head down to the locker room. Of all days to take forever, he chooses this one. Sidney finally comes out and he smiles at me.

“Hey I need you to do me a favor. Can you go back in there and tell Geno his wife is in labor?” I say smiling. His jaw drops and he stares at me for a moment before going back in. A moment later Geno comes out and he looks panicked.

“Now?” he asks. I nod my head and smile. He grabs my hand and drags me to the car.

“We need to stop by the house and get my stuff,” I tell him.

“Quinn we go to hospital now,” he says sternly.

“No Zhenya I need my stuff. It’s fine, we have time.” He looks at me for a moment before heading in
the direction of our house. We’re almost there when I get my first contraction.

“Ow,” I whisper. Geno steps on the gas and we get to the house in record time. I feed Luka and grab my hospital bag and ipod. I get back in the car and Geno races to the hospital.

“G slow down,” I tell him. Another contraction hits and I grip his hand tightly. We’re almost there when I hear sirens go off.

“Perfect,” I mutter. Geno swears in Russian then pulls over. The officer knocks on his window and he rolls it down.

“No way. Evgeni Malkin! I’m a huge fan!” he exclaims.

“My wife is having baby,” he tells him.

“Like right now,” I add.

“Oh man. Okay. Can you sign this quick before?” he asks. I roll my eyes and Geno signs the ticket pad.

“Well good luck with the baby! It was nice meeting y’all.” He walks back to his squad car and Geno pulls back into traffic.

“Perks of being Evgeni Malkin,” I say smiling. He shakes his head and smiles.
We get to the hospital and I get settled in. Dr. Jefferson checks my cervix and tells me I’m about 5 centimeters dilated. The contractions were painful but manageable but I knew it wasn’t going to last. Me and Geno are talking when the door knocks. I look up and see Matt and Elias standing there.

“Hey guys,” I say smiling.

“Okay you’re smiling, so you’re not in active labor yet,” Matt observes.

“Not yet. 5 centimeters dilated,” I reply.

“Are you getting an epidural?” Elias asks.

“Nope.”

“Wow. Look at you go,” Elias says impressed. Another contraction hits and I try to breathe through it.

“What are your contractions at?” Matt asks. I look at my app on my phone and mentally calculate.

“Every 5 minutes lasting about 40 seconds,” I respond.

“Oh you’re getting close,” Elias says excitedly. We continue to visit but it was getting harder and harder to maintain a conversation through my contractions. I was very uncomfortable and had started pacing to distract myself. Another contraction hits and I grip the bed rail for support.

“Ow they’re starting to really hurt,” I tell them.

“Do you want a popsicle?” Elias asks while eating one. I shake my head and continue to pace.
Four hours later, Matt and Elias had left to check on their patients and I was officially in the transition stage.

“You’re at 8 centimetres,” Jefferson tells me. I had been in labor for 9 hours and I was ready to get this show on the road. My contractions were about 3 minutes apart and lasting for 60 seconds. Geno was sitting on the bed with me rubbing my back while I breathed through the pain. I had my headphones in and was trying to concentrate on the Led Zeppelin song I was listening to. I felt uncomfortably warm and sweaty and I was starting to feel nauseous. I was exhausted already and I hadn’t even started pushing yet.

“How many kids do you want?” I ask him.

“Lots,” he smiles. I cringe at his answer and another contraction hits.

“Fuck,” I say through my teeth. I’d like to think I have a high pain tolerance but it was starting to get unbearable. I was starting to feel claustrophobic so I asked Geno to stand in the corner for a while. Two hours later Jefferson checks my cervix and smiles.

“Looks like you’re at 10 centimetres. It’s baby time,” she says smiling. They move me to the delivery room and I immediately start to feel pressure and I can tell I need to push. Geno sits behind me on the bed and I grip his hand for support.

“Okay Quinn, here we go,” Jefferson tells me. I feel another contraction so I start to push. I feel a second wind so I push as hard as I can. I feel so much pain that I don’t even realize how hard I’m squeezing Geno’s hand. I stop pushing and lean back panting.

“Quinn you’re doing great, I can see the head,” Jefferson tells me. I catch my breath but I soon feel another contraction so I start pushing. I feel my body straining and I want to give up. I stop pushing and lean back against Geno and start crying.

“Come on, you’re almost there. One more big push,” Jefferson coaches.

“Вы делаете хорошую Куинн, вы можете сделать это (You’re doing so good Quinn, you can do this,)” Geno tells me. I feel the urge to push again so I give it everything I have in me. Jefferson catches the baby and Geno cuts the umbilical cord. The baby starts crying and Jefferson places him on my stomach and I start bawling. I prepare for one last push and deliver the placenta. The nurse takes the baby away and I start crying harder. After getting weighed and having ointment put in his eyes and ears, he’s wrapped then given back to me. I stare down at him and large salty teardrops run down my face.

“I’m so happy you’re here,” I say sniffling. I get moved back to my room and they take baby Malkin to the nursery to get his pediatric exam. I’m sitting on the bed leaning against Geno when I look at his hand and noticed his pinky is deformed.

“Oh my god Zhenya your finger!” I exclaim. He looks embarrassed and tries to hide it.

“Is nothing,” he replies. I suddenly realize that was the hand I was squeezing in the delivery room.

“Oh my god did I do that?”

“Quinn is fine.”

“Stand in front me.” He obeys and gets up and stands in front of me. I grab his hand and in one swift motion set his finger. He winces and pulls his hand away. A nurse comes in and smiles at us.

“Can I get I get you anything?” she asks warmly.

“Actually yeah, could you get me a finger splint?” I ask. She looks confused at first but nods her head and leaves.

“I’m so sorry,” I sadly. I couldn’t believe I dislocated his finger. I feel my eyes start welling up and soon I’m full on crying.

“Quinn is fine it not hurt. Don’t cry,” he says while wiping away tears. I was exhausted and I had so many hormones going through my body, all I wanted was my baby. My wish is granted when the peds nurse that Matt was dating comes in holding my baby. She hands him to me and I look down at the tiny human and smile.

“He need name,” Geno tells me.

“Nikolai,” I say smiling. Geno smiles and kisses my head. Nikolai Evgenievich Malkin was born at 3:27 a.m. on September 17, 2013 weighing 6 lbs. 11 oz. I feel my eyelids getting heavy but I don't want to let go of him.
"You should sleep," Geno suggests. I stare at the sleeping infant and reluctantly give in. I hand Nikolai to Geno and lean my head back.
“I just need to close my eyes for 5 minutes,” I tell him. I was exhausted and it felt like my body had been ripped in half. I close my eyes and drift into an exhausted sleep.

Notes

Enjoy!