Rachel looked at her watch as she exited the subway nearest to her apartment. Four hours. She'd promised Noah she wouldn't be more than an hour. He was going to kill her.
As she hurried down the street, she wondered what state she would find him in when she got back.
Finn and Santana had reluctantly left their six-month-old daughter, Lola, with Noah and Rachel for the week. Lola had been a very unexpected blessing for the couple, and they hadn't had time to go on a honeymoon after what Noah insisted on calling "the world's fucking scariest shotgun wedding." Rachel had gladly taken the week off work to care for Lola.
However, this afternoon there had been a problem at the theatre, and Rachel, being the consummate professional, had agreed to go in for an hour. Things had snowballed once she got there and she ended up staying until intermission.
Rachel nervously entered the building she and Noah lived in. As she exited the elevator and made her way down the hall she was relieved to note that she couldn't hear either the baby screaming or Noah cursing.
The apartment was almost completely silent when she walked in. Rachel slipped her shoes off, set her bag under the hall table, and hung her coat on a hook before setting out to look for Noah and the baby.
When she found them, she had to take a moment to take the scene in. The TV was playing CNN at a low volume. Noah was laying on the bed with his eyes closed and no shirt on. Lola was sleeping soundly on his chest with her head resting over his heart.
Just as Rachel turned to go find her camera, Noah's eyes flicked open.
"Hey." He whispered.
"Hey. Sorry I took so long."
"S'no problem. Lols and I were fine."
"I can see that. Why are you watching CNN? You hate this channel." Rachel climbed into the bed next to Noah and gently ran her finger down Lola's cheek.
"Girl's got a thing for Anderson Cooper."
"She's starting young. That must be a little bit of Santana coming to the surface."
"At least she won't be as stupid as her pops."
"Noah, that's a terrible thing to say!" Rachel was scandalized. Noah chuckled lowly. Lola made a slight whimpering sound. Rachel and Noah held their breath, but she just brought her had up to rub her face before resting her hand on Noah's chest and snuggling down.
"S'harsh, but true. Finn's my bro, but he's a moron. Doesn't matter anyway. We're not giving her back."
"Excuse me?" Rachel looked even more scandalized than she had before.
"She's awesome. All tiny and warm and cuddly. And she smells awesome. I say we pack her up, head to the airport, fly to some fucking fantastic beach, and never come back."
"I think her parents might object to that."
"Too damn bad. They shoulda thought about that before they left 'er here."
"Assuming I agree to this asinine plan, I think the amber alert Finn and Santana will have the authorities issue when they realize that we've absconded with their daughter might prevent us from reaching our destination. And I personally have no desire to be incarcerated. It's bad publicity."
"Fine." He grumbled before pressing a kiss to Lola's head and breathing in her baby smell as he closed his eyes. "Then we should get one of our own."
"What?" Rachel thought her heart might have stopped. They had danced around the topic of kids in a vague, maybe someday when our careers are off the ground, and we have some sort of financial security, type way. She's been waiting for him to bring it up. She didn't want to pressure him, but she wants to have babies soon.
"Serious, Rach. We've been married for almost three years."
"My career is..."
"Don't take this the wrong way, but screw your career, Rach. There's always gonna be another role and another show and we're gonna end up 40 and kidless, with only a wall full of Tonys to show for it."
"You think I'm going to have a wall full of Tonys?" Rachel asked him with tears in her eyes. Her career is obviously important to her. She desperately wants to be able to do both, be a mother and a Broadway legend.
"Hell, yes, but that's not the point." He opened his eyes and turned to look at her. "You wanna get knocked up?"
In response Rachel gets up and walks into their bathroom. She opens the medicine cabinet and pulls out her birth control pills. She walks back into the bedroom, opens the drawer of Noah's nightstand, pulls out the condoms and throws them in the garbage can next to the bed.
"Once Finn and Santana pick up Lola, I'm all yours." She tells him.
"Fuck that." He says getting up slowly. Noah goes to the spare bedroom, where they've set up Lola's crib, and sets her in it. "Get naked. We've got work to do."
When Finn and Santana show up the next day to pick up Lola, Rachel is in the middle of changing Lola's diaper. Finn immediately went back to see his daughter, leaving Noah and Santana in the front hall.
"So?" Santana asked.
"Worked like a charm. She'll be pregnant by the end of the month."