Although the doctor had confirmed what Maggie suspected, she was still in shock as she headed back home to the apartment she and Jason shared with their son. Their seven month old, to be exact. She couldn't believe she had gotten pregnant again so quickly - how were they supposed to handle two babies only a year apart? Jason was waiting for her in the kitchen when she arrived, trying to soothe an upset Mikey. As expected, he held his arms out for her and calmed down once Maggie picked him up. "Was Mommy's little guy upset?" she asked.
"You okay? You were acting kinda cagey before you left, muttering about errands," Jason replied.
She nodded, heading towards the nursery to lay the baby down for his nap first. Once Maggie was sure he was asleep - and would stay that way - she made her way to the living room, where Jason awaited her on the couch. She sighed and sat down next to him. "You remember that morning in the kitchen after Mikey kept us awake all night and instead of tired, we were giddy and took advantage of it?"
He nodded. "Yes. What's this have to do with this errand you were on?" Jason pressed, already suspecting the answer in the back of his mind.
Maggie laughed. "Everything. I'm pregnant again, Jason - six weeks along. We're going to have another baby."
His eyes widened as he tried to work out what she was telling him. "Really?"
"Really. Are you okay with this?" She was excited but also worried. These babies would only be fourteen months apart.
"Okay? Okay doesn't even begin to cover it, Maggie. I'm thrilled," Jason reassured her, pulling in for a crushing hug.
"Oh, Jason. Are you sure?"
He pulled back to look at his wife. "You're not completely happy about this, which is understandable given the circumstances. Yes, it's not ideal but we can make this work."
"I got pregnant again only five months after giving birth. But back to back pregnancies isn't the end of the world, and maybe they'll be close. They could be friends!" Trying to look on the bright side was working - maybe they'd even have a girl this time. "If it's a little girl, could we go with the name we had picked out for Mikey?"
"We could but we still have seven months to talk about it." Jason laughed. "Another baby! Maggie, I'm so happy to be adding another one to our brood."
She giggled. "I can't believe you just said brood. Jason, just pull me up if I get scared again, will you?"
"Always." Their celebration was interrupted by the baby waking up, and she hurried into the nursery to grab their son.
"We're going to have two of them soon," a happy Jason observed as she tried to calm Mikey down.
The baby started babbling excitedly once he was in his mother's arms, and Maggie melted. She wouldn't mind another boy, truth be told, but she wanted Mikey to have a little sister.
Of course, this pregnancy wasn't exactly easy - she had to take care of the baby and deal with everything by herself when Jason was drafted (Maggie had never been more terrified in her life) but fortunately, he was home only weeks before her due date. And in the wee hours of the morning, Maggie delivered Carol Anne with her husband by her side. "The name we chose for Mikey doesn't seem to fit her. She's not a Katherine," Maggie told her husband as she watched him talk quietly to their newborn.
"No, she isn't. That's not quite it."
She only had to think for a minute before the name came to her. "What do you think about Carol? Carol Anne Seaver."
"What do you think, baby? Are you a Carol?"
When Carol gave a small kick, Jason laughed. "Carol it is."
"And you better enjoy the moment because I'm not doing this again," Maggie murmured.
"That's what you said when you were in labor with Mikey," he pointed out.
She glared at Jason. "Don't test me, Jason Roland Seaver. I only spent five months out of the last two years not pregnant.
He held his arms up in surrender. "I won't." He grinned at her, excitedly looking forward to Mikey and Carol's first meeting.
And of course, Carol wasn't their last child as Ben came along just five years later and Chrissy followed twelve years after that. Neither had any idea their family wasn't complete yet but for the moment, they were content as a family of four.
