Baby Paris - love of a lifetime series
Summary: When Paris came to be.
Authors note: as voted by the people!
The discovery happened on an ordinary Tuesday morning, that was the part Y/N would remember forever. Just a perfectly normal morning at home with a one year old determined to turn breakfast into a full-contact sport.
Prince had managed to get banana in his hair, on his pyjamas, somehow on Y/N and inexplicably on one of the kitchen curtains.
Michael had been chasing him around the kitchen while laughing so hard he could barely stand upright.
The house was loud, happy and chaotic.
The exact kind of family life they had always dreamed about.
Which was why Y/N nearly dropped the pregnancy test when she looked down and saw the result. For several seconds she simply stared.
Certain she was reading it incorrectly, it couldn't possibly mean what she thought it meant and her mind immediately began calculating dates.
Doing impossible mathematics and trying to make reality fit something more sensible.
Prince was only a year and a half.
She was still carrying snacks everywhere.
Still occasionally waking in the middle of the night because motherhood had rewired her brain.
Surely she couldn't already be pregnant again and yet.
She sat down on the edge of the bathtub.
Because somehow the overwhelming feeling wasn't panic, it was disbelief. The kind that made your heart race and smile simultaneously.
The sound of Michael and Prince laughing floated down the hallway.
Immediately her smile grew.
He's going to be absolutely insufferable about this.
She found them in the kitchen, Prince was sitting on the floor surrounded by toy blocks while Michael attempted to convince him that stacking them was more productive than throwing them.
Prince disagreed, strongly.
Michael looked up when Y/N entered.
For a moment he didn't understand, then he did and his eyes widened. The entire room seemed to freeze.
Michael looked at the test.
"What?" His voice cracked.
"We're having another baby."
The reaction was immediate, pure joy exploded across his face, the kind of joy that made him look years younger.
He practically flew across the room, Y/N barely had time to laugh before he wrapped her in a hug.
She could feel him grinning against her hair.
"You just told me we're having another baby."
"You look very pleased with yourself."
His expression became suspiciously smug.
He immediately lost the battle and started laughing.
"Oh, I'm absolutely taking credit."
"I think this proves I'm very talented."
"That's not how pregnancy works."
She rolled her eyes while he looked entirely too proud of himself.
The months that followed felt wonderfully busy.
And Michael somehow became even more attentive than he had been during the first pregnancy, making up for the lost moments he had when they were both on tour.
Y/N hadn't thought was possible, but yetā¦
He wanted to know if she was tired.
He would grin every single time, because beneath all the fussing was excitement, pure excitement.
The kind that radiated from him, the kind he couldn't hide.
Every night he talked to the baby.
He'd rest his head against Y/N's stomach and tell stories, jokes, sing songs.
Sometimes Prince joined in, sometimes he simply sat nearby looking deeply confused about why everyone was talking to Mommy's tummy.
The day they learned the baby's sex became one of Y/N's favourite memories.
The technician smiled gently.
"We have a very cooperative baby today."
Michael immediately sat up straighter.
āWould you like to know the sex of your baby?ā
Both heads nodding furiously.
Then she turned toward them.
"It looks like you're having a girl."
Y/N turned toward Michael.
His face was priceless, utterly priceless.
The poor man looked as though someone had informed him he'd just won every lottery on earth simultaneously.
His eyes immediately filled with tears.
The smile spreading across his face was unlike anything she'd ever seen.
For the rest of the appointment he remained completely distracted.
The technician would explain something.
Michael would nod, then whisper, "A girl."
As though he still couldn't quite believe it.
When they finally reached the car afterward, he sat there smiling at absolutely nothing.
He looked at her. "Happy?" His laugh was disbelieving.
"Y/N, I'm getting a daughter."
The words seemed almost sacred to him.
"My little girl, a little you."
And Y/N knew then that this tiny baby already had her father wrapped firmly around her finger.
A few weeks later they decided it was time to tell Prince or at least attempt to tell Prince. The success of that conversation remained debatable.
Prince sat between them on the couch holding a stuffed animal.
"You're going to be a big brother."
Michael pointed toward Y/N's stomach.
"There's a baby in there."
Prince considered this information carefully.
Then attempted to offer the stuffed animal to her stomach.
He seemed delighted by the concept, whether he understood it was another matter entirely.
Over the following months, however, he became fascinated. Every evening he wanted to sit beside Y/N, every evening he wanted to touch her stomach and when the baby finally became strong enough to kick, his tiny face transformed with amazement.
His laughter filled the room.
The baby kicked once more.
Prince shrieked with excitement.
Honestly, he might have been worse.
He would sit beside Y/N with one hand spread protectively across her stomach and simply watch.
Watch Prince react to the kicks.
Watch their family growing before his eyes.
Sometimes Y/N caught him looking at her.
Not speaking, just looking. The same way he'd looked at her when they were young.
Only deeper now, full of history and gratitude.
One evening she finally asked.
"Why do you keep staring at me?"
The answer came instantly, because it was true.
"Because you're beautiful."
His gaze drifted toward her stomach, toward their daughter, the life growing there.
Then back to Y/N. "I don't think I've ever loved you more than I do right now."
The confession settled warmly between them, not because of its romance.
But because of its sincerity, because after years together, after marriage and careers and triumphs and challenges, they had created this.
A son who couldn't wait to meet his sister.
A daughter already adored beyond measure.
And as Michael wrapped an arm around Y/N and Prince curled against her side, the three of them waiting for another tiny kick from the baby girl who would soon change their lives forever, it felt as though every dream they had ever shared was quietly unfolding exactly as it was meant to.
The funny thing about Paris's birth was that Michael had spent months insisting he was completely prepared.
He had attended appointments.
He had proudly informed everyone around him that would listen, this was his second child and therefore he was now an experienced father.
Someone who knew exactly what he was doing.
Which was why Y/N almost laughed herself into labour when her water finally broke and he immediately forgot how to function as a human being.
It happened just after dawn, the house was quiet. The kind of peaceful quiet that only existed before a toddler woke up and began demanding breakfast.
Y/N had already been awake for a while, lying uncomfortably in bed while Michael slept beside her with one arm thrown across her waist. At nearly forty weeks pregnant, sleep had become a thing of the past.
She shifted slightly and then froze.
A second later she sat upright.
"I think my water broke."
The transformation was immediate, Michael bolted upright so quickly that he nearly fell out of bed.
He jumped out of bed, then stood there, doing absolutely nothing.
That finally restarted his brain for approximately seven seconds and then he managed to run directly into a chair.
Y/N laughed despite herself.
Michael pointed angrily, "Don't you laugh."
"You just walked into furniture."
"Our daughter is coming."
"Eventually?" His eyes widened. "Eventually?!"
At this point Y/N was genuinely concerned her husband might be having some kind of breakdown.
The next hour was complete chaos.
Michael packed and repacked bags that had already been packed weeks ago.
Called the hospital twice.
Attempted to leave without shoes.
Then returned because he had forgotten his bag.
Meanwhile Y/N calmly timed contractions and wondered how the man who had performed in front of hundreds of thousands of people could be defeated by a hospital bag.
Thankfully Katherine arrived to take Prince.
The little boy was still sleepy and clutching a stuffed dinosaur when his grandmother scooped him into her arms.
Michael stroked his chubby cheeks.
"You're going to meet your baby sister soon."
Prince looked intrigued, then immediately became distracted by the dinosaur.
Katherine smiled knowingly.
Michael hugged his mother tightly.
Perhaps a little too tightly.
"She's had one baby already."
"Stop looking like you're being marched into battle."
Y/N laughed all the way to the car.
The laughter disappeared several hours later, because labour was proving difficult.
Longer and harder than expected.
The early excitement eventually gave way to exhaustion.
Morning became afternoon.
Afternoon became evening.
Michael remained beside her throughout all of it.
At first he hovered, fussed and then panicked, asking medical staff approximately four thousand questions.
Until finally, midway through a contraction, Y/N grabbed his hand.
And fixed him with a look.
"I need you to get it together."
Another contraction gripped her, she breathed through it and then looked at him again sharply.
His eyes softened,"I know."
"I need you to lock in, applehead.ā
For a moment something shifted.
The fear remained, of course it did.
But it settled beneath something stronger.
Determination. Love. Partnership.
He squeezed her hand gently.
For every single moment afterward.
He held her hand through contractions.
Supported her when exhaustion threatened to overwhelm her.
Spoke softly into her hair.
Reminded her she could do this.
Reminded her how strong she was.
Reminded her how much he loved her.
Hours later, when Y/N was convinced she could not possibly continue, Michael leaned close enough for his forehead to touch hers.
Tears burned behind her eyes.
His own eyes were suspiciously wet.
"Our little girl is almost here."
Those words carried her through the next contraction.
When the moment finally arrived, it felt as though the entire room held its breath.
The most beautiful sound either of them had ever heard.
Unable to move, unable to speak.
The tiny crying baby being lifted into the world seemed almost unreal.
The words echoed endlessly through his mind.
The nurse carefully placed the baby against Y/N's chest and both parents immediately fell apart.
There was simply no other way to describe it, tears streamed freely down Y/N's face.
Michael wasn't doing much better, his hands trembled as he reached out, the baby's tiny fingers instinctively wrapped around one of his.
Any remaining composure vanished.
A broken laugh escaped him, followed immediately by tears.
The baby settled slightly against Y/N.
For several minutes neither parent could stop staring.
Much later, once the room had quieted and the initial whirlwind had settled, Michael sat carefully beside Y/N's bed holding their daughter.
The sight alone was enough to break Y/N's heart.
He looked utterly enchanted, as though someone had handed him a star.
The baby slept peacefully in his arms, completely unaware of the effect she was having.
Michael couldn't stop smiling.
Couldn't stop looking at her.
Couldn't stop touching her tiny hands.
Everything seemed miraculous.
"You've been staring at her for forty-five minutes."
Michael looked offended. "So?"
"So I think we should probably give her a name."
His eyes immediately brightened.
The one she knew far too well.
He looked down at the baby.
"I've always loved Paris."
For years he'd mentioned it occasionally.
The city had always held a special place in their hearts.
Some of their happiest memories existed there.
Long walks along quiet streets.
Tiny cafƩs hidden from tourists.
Days where they could almost pretend they were ordinary.
And if Y/N was being completely honest...
There was a very good chance this baby had indeed been conceived there.
The thought made her laugh.
"I'm pretty sure that's where she started."
Michael burst out laughing, the sound filled the room, warm, bright and happy.
Then he looked back down at his daughter, his expression softened.
"Paris." He whispered it.
The baby stirred slightly.
Y/N felt tears sting her eyes all over again.
She reached over and touched their daughter's cheek.
His smile grew impossibly wider.
Then, leaning carefully across the bed, he kissed Y/N.
Filled with the overwhelming knowledge that they had done it again.
A daughter sleeping peacefully in her father's arms.
A future stretching endlessly before them.
And as Michael sat there whispering "Paris" every few minutes as though he still couldn't believe she was real, Y/N watched the two of them and thought there had never been a more beautiful sight in the world than a man utterly and completely in love with his little girl.
A/N: thoughts? should I release Blankets birth?
As ever, thanks for being here ā¤ļø
