Chapter One
Doctor Spencer Reid could not be happier with his life, than what he had been in the past four years. At only 31 years old, he was a valued member of the FBI's behavioral analysis unit, five months married, and already had a baby on the way. The day had finally arrived where he and his wife were able to find out if they were having a boy or a girl. Spencer had made sure that he was going to be home for this doctor visit, instead of somewhere else in the country hunting down what his wife would call crazies.
"Keirsten, are you feeling okay?" Spencer asked, looking at the red headed woman who was sitting silently next to him.
Keirsten blinked a bit before looking up from her rounded stomach. "Of course I'm okay, why wouldn't I be?"
"I've never seen you this quite while we're waiting for the doctor. Is there something on your mind?"
"Not really. The baby just decided to keep moving so much throughout the entire night, that I barely got any sleep. I'm really tired, and could go for a nap right now."
Spencer couldn't keep from smiling. "I guess we better get used to sleepless nights now. Once the baby gets here, we can say good bye to the idea of sleep for the rest of our lives."
Keirsten raised an eyebrow some. "In that case, next time the baby keeps me up all night because it won't stop moving, I'll keep you awake too."
"Fair enough."
"Keirsten Reid!" a waiting nurse called out at the open door.
Spencer grabbed Keirsten's hand and gave it a light squeeze. "Are you ready for this?"
Keirsten nodded some, as she got herself out of the chair. She brushed a strand of her hair out of her face, and gave a light yawn. "I am if you are."
Spencer stood up beside Keirsten, and followed her over to the nurse and through the opened door.
"It's good to see the both of you here again instead of just one. The BAU is keeping you busy I'm guessing Doctor Reid?" the nurse asked.
"Pretty much. It seems like I'm out of town every other week. I never really took the time to realize how much time I spend away from home until Keirsten and I got married."
"It must be hard on both of you. Keirsten, nice try sneaking past it like that, I know you hate it, but it's time to step on that scale and check your weight."
"Hate is the understatement of the year with that. Keirsten has despised scales for as long as I've known her," Spencer said as he watched his wife slip her sandals off and step on the scale.
"There aren't many people who do like the idea of stepping on a scale. The things can either be our best friend, or our worst enemy," the nurse claimed.
"At least there's someone who understands that," Keirsten stated looking over at Spencer.
"Keirsten, you've gained three more pounds than you usually do. Normally you've only gained five pounds between visits, this time you've gained eight," the nurse claimed.
"Do what? I don't understand, I've been watching what I eat, and Adalynn helps keep me active with getting me outside to walk her, or play fetch with her. Not to mention, while I'm at school teaching, I never get a chance to relax."
"Don't worry about it Keirsten. Remember, some of that weight you're gaining is the baby growing as well. Not all of that weight is you," the nurse stated. "Now then, go ahead into exam room three, and we'll check your blood pressure."
Keirsten got off the scale and slid her sandals back on. "I still can't believe I gained eight pounds in a month..." she claimed walking into the exam room.
"It's not a big deal Keirst, so what if you gained three extra pounds? It doesn't make any difference to me or anybody else."
"He's right. Now, you know the drill, hold up your arm so we can check your blood pressure," the nurse ordered.
Keirsten sighed softly, and rolled up her sleeve before holding out her right arm.
The nurse put the blood pressure cuff on Keirsten's arm, and started to pump it up. "So, today is the big day where you find out if you're going to be having a boy or a girl. Any idea on names just yet?"
"We haven't talked names much, we decided to hold off on that until we know the gender. All we know, is the middle name is either going to be Louise, or Louis," Spencer claimed.
"Any particular reason behind that choice?" the nurse asked. "Your blood pressure is normal."
"My best friend's name was Louise..." Keirsten claimed as the blood pressure cuff was removed.
"That is a touchy subject, let's not get any further into it," Spencer said noticing the look of depression coming to Keirsten's face.
"Got it, I won't dig any further with that. Your doctor will be in shortly," the nurse claimed before walking out of the room.
Spencer helped Keirsten up onto the examination table. "Are you getting excited about this?"
"I would be if the baby wasn't kicking my bladder right now."
Spencer laughed lightly and placed a hand on Keirsten's stomach and got down on his knees some "Hey now, I think it's time for you to settle down in there."
Keirsten smiled lightly. "Get up here so I can kiss you."
Spencer looked up and stood back up with a grin, his hand still on Keirsten's stomach. "Now, why would you want to do something crazy like that?"
Keirsten shrugged looking up at her husband. "Not sure. I'm just crazy in general I guess."
"You must be to have married me, and then carry our kid."
Keirsten shook her head laughing some. "Would you just kiss me already?"
Spencer smirked before leaning over and pressing his lips against Keirsten's.
The door opened slowly as the doctor walked in on the two. "Okay now you guys, doctor in the room."
Spencer broke the kiss and looked over. "Hey now, there's been a doctor in this room for the last five minutes."
"Fair enough I suppose. But right now, I'm the top dog in this room," the woman claimed. "Keirsten, you're starting to show more finally. Ready to find out if you're having a boy or a girl?" the doctor asked as she started to get the ultrasound monitor ready.
"We've been ready and waiting for this day for awhile now," Keirsten said as she started to lay on her back.
"Well then, I guess you can stop waiting," the doctor claimed as she grabbed the wand of the ultrasound. She prepped Keirsten, and checked to make sure the machine was ready to go.
Keirsten looked up at Spencer, before wincing a bit when the wand came in contact with her bare skin. "That thing is always so cold. I'll never get used to it."
The room fell silent as they listened carefully to the sound of a tiny heartbeat. Keirsten glanced over at the monitor, before looking back at Spencer. Sometimes, she still could not believe how lucky she was to have him in her life.
"That's odd now..." the doctor claimed, breaking the silence.
"What is? Is the baby okay?" Spencer asked looking away from Keirsten, and to the doctor quickly.
"Everything is fine. I just can't believe I missed this in the last few visits. There's another heart beat."
Keirsten looked over at the monitor quickly, then to the doctor. "Wait, do what?"
"You guys are having twins. I just don't understand why I'm not hearing the second heart beat until now."
"That might explain the extra three pounds Keirst."
"How was it missed before now?" Keirsten asked curiously.
"One baby hiding to where we can't hear it, but now they aren't being so shy. Who knows, things like this happen all the time," the doctor claimed.
Spencer ran his fingers through Keirsten's hair gently. "Wait til everybody hears about this."
The doctor turned her attention back to the monitor, and turned the screen on. "Okay you two, time to see the little ones. It might be a little harder now to tell the genders, depending on how both of them are positioned in there."
The room fell silent again, minus the sound of the fetal heartbeat. Keirsten reached for Spencer's hand when she felt it rest upon her shoulder, and took a deep breath as she kept her eyes focused on the screen.
"There is baby number one, front and center. Might not be too hard to see, that... baby number one is a boy," the doctor announced.
Keirsten looked up with a small smile. She gave Spencer's hand a light squeeze and returned her attention back to the monitor.
"Now then, I can see the head of baby number two, covering the face a little with it's hand. From the looks of it, baby number one, has a... sister."
Spencer looked away from the screen, and leaned down to place a kiss on Keirsten's forehead. He was falling in love with this woman more and more with everything she did. This was no exception.
"So Keirsten, a quick question. How have your panic attacks been lately? I know when you first started coming in, they were come and go," the doctor stated.
"It's been awhile since I've had a panic attack. I don't remember when the last time was that I had one," Keirsten claimed.
The doctor nodded some, furrowing her brow.
Spencer continued to run his fingers through Keirsten's hair. The last thirteen months had been pretty eventful. This time last year, Keirsten had joined the BAU for one case that had them dealing with a killer, in Keirsten's hometown, where her former friends were being killed. The unsub had been caught, but not without Keirsten being beaten and put in the hospital. Not even a month after their wedding back in June, Keirsten was being arrested and sent back to Dallas, Texas for a trial, having been accused of pulling the strings in the series of murders. The trial was won, but the full turn of events had left Keirsten with almost severe anxiety problems.
"You've been avoiding everything that could bring on your attacks, correct?" the doctor questioned as she shut off the monitor.
Keirsten slowly sat back up, and lowered her shirt over her stomach. "The only stress for me now and days, are parent teacher conferences. Not many parents wish to admit that their kindergartners can be little trouble makers."
"Just remember now, too much stress on you, and you could go into labor way too early. We'd like to avoid that happening," the doctor claimed.
"She knows the minute she has a panic attack now, that I talk to my boss and work cases from the office so I'm closer to home," Spencer claimed.
"Well then, everything is good. The babies are growing and developing well. Now, you two can go home. The nurse will have the sonogram pictures for you up front. Doctor Reid, could I speak with you privately while your wife gets those?"
Spencer nodded some. "I don't see why not. Go on ahead to the car, I'll be there in a minute."
Keirsten got down from the table. "All right, I need to make a quick stop to the little girls room anyway. One of them is really giving my bladder a good kick."
Spencer waited until Keirsten was out of the room and turned his attention to the doctor. "Is something wrong with Keirsten or the twins?" he asked, folding his arms over his chest.
"Has Keirsten been doing okay like she says she is? As far as panic attacks and stress levels go."
"I think so. I'm not sure what happens when I'm not home with her though, why?"
"Each time I ask her about anxiety issues, her heart rate spikes."
"You think she's lying about them then?"
The doctor shook her head. "I'm not saying that at all. She could be having them and not realize it. How is she sleeping lately? Any nightmares, or waking up in cold sweats in the middle of the night?"
"When I'm home, no. Again, not sure if she has them when I'm out of town."
"I want her to see a sleep specialist. There's one that will monitor brain activity and heart rate while she sleeps. Might take two weeks to do them. The first series of tests, I want you present, sleeping with her. The second, will be while you're on a case, get someone else to take her to the specialist and drop her there to make sure she makes it."
"I don't understand what you're getting at."
"Her panic attacks could be happening when she's asleep at night, and you aren't home. She might be keeping this from you so you don't worry too much. However, the sooner you find out about if it's happening or not, the better. As I said before, these panic attacks could cause her to go into early labor, and I'm sure you'd like to avoid that just as much as I would."
Spencer sighed lightly. "I would. What's the phone number?"
The doctor reached into her pocket and pulled out a business card. "I always put one in my pocket when Keirsten comes in, hoping I'll be able to get this to you, but this is only the second time you've made it to an appointment."
"Thanks. I'll give them a call as soon as we get home and Keirsten is taking her nap. I want to see what all they'll do to her before setting the appointment, and then talk things over with her."
"Well, good luck to you there. Hopefully you will make it in with Keirsten again next month. Now, get out of here."
Spencer nodded as he placed the card in his pocket and walked out. Getting Keirsten to willingly see a sleep specialist, was not going to be an easy task.
