Welcome to Gaia! ::

Wrapping her in his arms, he slowly rubbed her back and nodded, acknowledging her concerns. He knew she didn't like being the focus of attention, but the good news here was that she would only be for a short while. Bhattacharyya weddings were usually large, but they were more about reconnecting with family and showing off their status. "I know how you feel about crowds and big parties, Csuri. You're just going to have to trust me that I can make this enjoyable for you, alright? I will make sure you are as comfortable as I can, I promise you that. Plus, that means we get to go through a lot of planning. Binders, and cascading tabs, oh and cake testing! You're going to love that. Now, uh, did you want to help me bring the pen and the kittens back in her. Their mama, Queenie, will probably want a break from them anyway." He grinned at her, knowing how much she loved the kittens. Vikram planned to talk to Fatima and convince her to give one of the kittens to Csuri since, after all, she was going to be a Bhattacharyya soon and every one of them had a cat. Plus, Vikram needed a good distraction for her while he was working on plans for the wedding. He already had a few good ideas for things that he could do to make sure that this was an enjoyable experience for her.

Over the last week, Vikram had made some changes to his bedroom to accommodate for Csuri moving in to his room. She still was resisting the idea of actually moving in, but most of her clothes were here now and several of her book collections had moved in too. He had relocated his video game collection off the bookshelf and Csuri had taken it over. He'd also ordered a bunch of books on pregnancy and early child care for them to read to prepare. His closet, which was mostly empty before Csuri, now contained a big portion of her clothing as well. Also his bathroom now also contained Csuri's massive hair care routine routine as well. Vikram didn't mind the changes at all though. In fact, he had been offering every night to bring the rest of her stuff over so that she didn't have to worry about traveling between the two houses every time she needed something from her bedroom at home. But she was still resistant to the idea. Vikram knew his fiancee pretty well though and knew that she'd come around eventually.

Vikram was pretty happy that Csuri seemed to be warming up to his family as well. Her fears about not impressing them and not being accepted by them seemed to have evaporated. Especially after Csuri cooked a big dinner for the family, sharing a secret that only he and a few others knew about her. Mata had been raving about Csuri's cooking and Baba had even offered to procure a restaurant for her, should she want to proceed into the culinary field. There was even a moment when Csuri was sitting beside Vikram while he was gaming and she had gotten into it, helping him spot enemies. Kavi had commented about Csuri and Vikram had disconnected his headset so that Csuri could hear what he was saying. Fatima also was very excited to be getting a sister and routinely talked with Csuri about all sorts of things. Overall, it seemed like Csuri was really starting to fit in with the whole family and she was opening up a lot more. She was even getting to spend a lot of time with their new kittens and one in particular seemed to be especially connected with her.

After around a week of Csuri living with them, they had their first appointment with the obstetrician and Csuri had been super nervous about the entire thing. She'd asked Mata to come along and Mata had happily accepted the invitation. Vikram grinned a little as Csuri was essentially accepting his mother as her own. At the appointment, Csuri was at a loss whenever the doctor questioned her about familial history and he saw the looks exchanged between them. Mata also gave him a look and he knew there was going to be a conversation later. But in the meantime, Vikram's focus was on Csuri and their baby. He held her hand throughout all the testing, lightly stroking her cheek whenever he had the opportunity. A wide grin crossed over his face when they finally got to see their baby, then find out that they were having a girl. He leaned in and kissed her forehead, smiling happily at her. On the ride home, he held her hand as they briefly discussed telling his family about the baby, then said that they would tell her father as well. He had said it was her choice about telling them, since he knew she hated being used as a photo op moment. When she announced that they were having a girl, Fatima immediately burst into squeals. Baba toasted to their baby's health, and even Kavi smiled and clapped.

After the family took turns congratulating them, Vikram looked to Fatima, who nodded and went to grab her tablet. Then Vikram turned to Csuri and said, "I've got a little surprise for you. Are you ready?"

Taking her hand into his, Vikram smiled at Csuri and started to lead the way to the solarium where the kittens were being weaned off of their mother. "I know you're going to enjoy this surprise, my love." Vikram knew about her love of cats, and how much she absolutely adored the kittens. She'd always wanted a cat but couldn't afford one before. And since she was going to become a Bhattacharyya soon, and every Bhattacharyya had their own British Shorthair/Kneazle cat, he'd arranged for one of these kittens to become hers. Since they were very expensive cats and they were well known throughout the British Isles for their lineage, Fatima needed to notate which kitten was being taken and what it was being named. A couple seconds after they arrived in the solarium, Fatima followed behind them, pulling up the information that she'd need. Glancing at his sister, she gave him a nod, then Vikram led Csuri over to the kittens. "The kittens are going to be sold off to their future owners soon, but... not all of them. One of them is going to stay here. With you, well, us," he said, motioning between the two of them. "One of them is going to be your cat. So, Sur, I want you to pick which of these kittens is your favorite."

Fatima smiled when Vikky told his fiancee to pick a kitten, then added in, "Once you've made your decision, Behan, let me know what you want to name the kitten and I'll get their official paperwork filed. I need to start getting the kittens sold off and Vikky said one absolutely had to go to you." Vikram grinned at Csuri, remembering how much she'd squealed when she first saw the kittens. "I told Fatima I'd pay for one of them if I had too-" Vikram started, but Fatima cut him off. "That isn't necessary at all! Family doesn't pay for a kitten and she's already family," Fatima interrupted, crossing her arms over her chest. She then smiled at Csuri and brought her up to the kitten pen. "Go on, Behan and pick a kitten." The eldest sibling beamed at her, happy to be making a lifelong wish of hers come true.

Csuri was officially frustrated. Tatiana was supposed to be born over two weeks ago, and yet, here they were! She was on bedrest, but thankfully Vikram got her a Kindle so she could have constant access to books without having to waddle her way to the library.... though he most certainly would've hopped up and run if she'd asked. When they'd gone to the doctor on her due date, Csuri was annoyed when the doctor confirmed that the baby wouldn't be born that day. What was the point of a due date if the baby wouldn't be born then?! It was stupid. But, of course, Vikram hinted that she was being a little teeny bit irrational.

When Fatima got home, Csuri discovered that the older girl was super excited to meet Tatiana. But even she was no match for Alice, who had texted 47 times in a row once she got off the train (compared to Hesperia's 3). But Csuri was getting really, really over being pregnant. They'd tried all the tricks to inducing labor at home, but no matter how much extra spice she added to her diet, it didn't matter. The doctor had set up an appointment to induce if Tati didn't start to move on her own soon, so Csuri focused on that date instead.

Tonight saw her at the dinner table with the family, eating curry with the spiciest peppers they could have. She'd been having pain off and on for the last few hours, but she figured it was probably (another) wave of false contractions. It didn't help that every muscle seemed to ache all the time. She gnashed her teeth and dug her fingers against the tabletop as the pain hit again, but she tried not to make any sound. The Bhattacharyyas, lovely as they were, tended to be a bit overprotective when it came to her. She let out a shaky sigh as the pain alleviated, rubbing her lower back with a small frown. Pregnancy definitely wasn't for the weak.

Csuri didn't notice everyone at the table passing glances between each other, instead focused on grumpily eating her dinner. Her muscles were in agony, but she was sure that it was another false alarm. Of course, this one seemed more insistent than the others, but she could tough it out. She didn't want to make everyone go to the hospital over nothing... again. Sure, they swore they didn't mind, but she knew that it was annoying to pack everyone and everything for no reason!

Another wave of pain came about, causing her to grit her teeth and try not to whimper. When it relaxed she huffed a heavy sigh, then looked over when Vikram asked if she was doing okay. "I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" she questioned, her voice a little snappier than she'd intended. Fatima joined in, saying the waves seemed to be getting a lot closer together. "Wh-what? No. Pshhh. I'm totally fine. No pain here." Of course, the tears that lined her lashes threatened to fall, but she tried to blink them away.

Despite having been ready on Tatiana's due date, the feelings had fluctuated back to dreadful nerves. Arjun nodded at Kavi, who huffed, but got up. "N-no! We don't have to go. It's probably just... nngh..." She hunched over a bit as more pain took over, making her entire body ache. Okay. Maybe they were right, but Csuri was absolutely not ready. She couldn't have a baby?! She was eighteen! It was something that even full grown adults found difficult! She looked over at Vikram, a single tear streaking down as she tried to push past the pain and worry.

This could not be happening! Csuri wasn't ready to be a parent. She was only halfway through the book on early infancy! Well, okay. She was halfway through her third re-read, but still! The only baby she'd ever held was Hesperia's little brother and he'd cried literally immediately! What if Tatiana did the same thing?! Her breathing was becoming shallow, but Vikram wiped away a tear. He was telling her that she was okay, that they had a top-notch medical team, and that everything had been thoroughly planned. Silver eyes looked over when Chanda said she was calling the doctor and the hospital. "But what if they can't... agh!" Csuri cried out again, this time digging her fingers into Vikram's wrist. Okay. This definitely had to be labor. That was really, really bad.

She looked over when Kavi returned with hers, Vikram's, and Tatiana's go-bag, but he was promptly sent away by Arjun, who was already dialing up someone on the phone. Oh gods above, this was really happening. Vikram stood and Fatima walked over, both helping her get up to her feet. Fati promised they'd get there comfortably, earning a frown. "I don't think you've ever had a contraction." The last word was said through gritted teeth as her body tried to shift to standing. Arjun and Chanda were both dialing on their phones before walking off, probably to the garage.

Csuri leaned in against Vikram as they walked, albeit slower than even her recent normal. It was exhausting to even waddle out of the kitchen. She held tight to Vikram's hand, trying to channel all of his bravery and calm. He was trying to help instruct her breathing like they'd learned in class, but it wasn't helping. "Talk out my stress?!? Are you ******** kidding me?! This is the biggest spiral of our lives!" she cried out, her voice betraying all those big emotions. "We're gods only know how many minutes away from page ninety-seven and you think it's time to be calm?! To ******** breathe!?" She pulled on her hair, but she tried to relax into Vik's calming touches. It took a million times longer than it should have to make it to the garage, having had to stop once in the middle to suffer through another contraction. But finally they made it to the car that Fati was planning on driving. "Oh yea, climbing in. That won't be a nightmare," she grumbled, carefully sitting in the car before scooting in. There was a comfy pillow already there, so Csuri worked on making herself as comfortable as possible. Shaky hands worked the seatbelt. It was way, way too close. She couldn't be on the way to the hospital to have a baby?! She set a hand on her belly, wondering what was about to happen.

As she was tucked gently in the car, Vikram did his best to help make her more comfortable. He held her closely and she stole one of his hands to place it on her belly. There was a 50/50 chance that he'd calm down the wild pains inside of her. Currently, no. Tatiana was intent on kicking up into Csuri's lungs. Vikram brushed through her hair, telling her to talk through her spiral. "I-I don't think there is normal right now! This is like... m-my whole body is cramping and it hurts everywhere!" She clutched his hand tighter, tears lining her lashes. The wave of pain rolled through, but this time she cried out with it. "I'm scared, okay?! I'm really, really scared! Is that what you want?! I can't... can't be a parent!" Csuri cried out as she clutched Vikram tightly.

It didn't take long before they were at the hospital. Almost immediately they were put in a fancy suite. Alice, Hesperia, Sebastian, Ella and a few others stopped by to check up on her, though Alice was the one that didn't leave. About five hours in, breathing wasn't helping the contractions anymore. Mata Chanda sat with her and encouraged her to get the really, really strong meds. The scariest part of that was the giant needle going into her spine. But even then, Vikram held her tightly, whispering encouragements to her. And then she was tucked into bed. Then the biggest problem was waiting and worrying. It was a full day longer before the room got really really busy.

What felt like both forever and no time at all passed and Csuri was handed her tiny baby. She... had a daughter now. She had a mess of short, yet distinctly curly hair, which made Csuri nervous. Was the universe just giving her a tiny... well... her to try and handle? The next several hours were an emotional blur. She was in pain and terrified, her anxiety at an all-time high. They seemed to be constantly bothered by doctors, either for herself or Tati, but everyone else thought it was normal. She did get somewhat comfortable with holding and comforting Tatiana, though she still thought Vikram was better at it than she was. Lots of friends and family came to visit, though it only served to make Csuri more nervous about Tatiana's wellbeing.

After several days in the hospital, they were finally being dismissed. With help from the nurse, Tatiana was buckled into her carseat and the little family climbed in Vikram's car. "You've got to drive safer, okay? She's.. she's so tiny, Vikram!" she implored while a hand was holding tight to the handle of the carseat. Even driving well slower than the speed limit was making Csuri nervous. Thankfully it lulled Tati to sleep. When they finally made it home, Vik stepped around to open the door for her. Csuri was working on disconnecting the seat from its base so she could carefully lift it out of the car. "Alice and Hes are here? To see Tati?" Csuri looked at Vikram, a nervous frown in place. She handed him Tati's bag, then carefully lifted the seat. They were carrying her all the way inside and Csuri's anxiety was spiraling on all the potential things that could happen. Once inside the door, she set the seat down, now carefully wrapping Tatiana in her soft blanket. "O-Okay. I've got her. I'm... I've got her." She nodded, though she was biting her lip nervously.