Chapter 2

"Mm...Quinn?" Santana slowly stirred awake, reaching out to place her hand over Quinn's forearm, "You smell that?"

Quinn stretched and rolled onto her side, opening her eyes to find Santana already awake, inhaling softly, "Eggs, bacon..." she paused to take in a bigger breath, dreamily sighing as she whispered, "Coffee."

Santana gradually sat up, swallowing down the drool that was pouring into her mouth, resting her hand over her belly, the babies practically doing flips, "I love Rachel." She whispered and carefully swung her legs over the bed and pushed herself into a standing position.

"It's only eight." Quinn noted as she crawled out of bed too, going around to greet Santana, reaching out to take her hands into her own, "She's still an earlier riser." She smirked and tugged her closer, "Did the babies let you sleep?"

"Yes, for most of the night." Santana answered with a small nod looking down at her belly.

Quinn smiled and rested her hands over Santana's stomach, "Good." She quietly answered and then leaned in for a good morning kiss.

Santana simply brushed her lips against Quinn's and then slipped by her, quickly heading for the bathroom, "I gotta go!"

Quinn sighed and nodded, watching her wife waddle to the bathroom. She grabbed a hoodie and headed downstairs, her mind wandering about how much their sex life had declined ever since Santana hit her second trimester. Her mind was lost in thought all the way to the kitchen, until she spotted Rachel busy in front of the stove, quietly humming to herself as she prepared a giant breakfast.

"Wow." Quinn smiled, her voice earning Rachel's attention, "You really outdid yourself."

Rachel grinned and spun around, her face beaming with pride, "Eggs, bacon, toast, pancakes..."

"Coffee." Quinn winked and pointed to the coffee pot where her mug waited to be filled, "God, we love when you visit, Rachel." She honestly stated and swiftly made herself to the counter to fill her cup, "Santana will be down any second to indulge. Where's Chloe?"

"Cleaning the driveway." Rachel answered. "How is Santana feeling today?"

"She's feeling starved." Santana answered and rounded the corner, licking her lips and taking in a huge whiff of all the food Rachel had made, "All of this needs to get into my stomach ASAP."

"Go ahead and start, baby." Quinn smirked, patting her shoulder as she walked by her with her mug full of coffee and headed to the garage, poking her head out to see that Chloe was using their snow blower to clear the driveway . She slipped on some shoes and headed out, waving as Chloe headed back towards the garage, finishing the last little bit, shutting the machine off when she made it to the threshold of the driveway, "Thanks, Chloe, you really didn't have too. Santana usually pays the neighbour kid."

Chloe smiled with a wave of her hand, "Rachel was barking orders. I had to get out of the kitchen."

"Understandable." Quinn lightly laughed, "Well she's finished and Santana is already awake and probably eating. Come inside and join us?"

"Yes, yes." Chloe nodded and stomped some of the snow from her boots and proceeded to follow Quinn back into the house.

When Quinn arrived back in the kitchen, she found Rachel watching Santana with a disgusted look on her face, the blonde hiding her smile behind her coffee cup.

"Stop judging me!" Santana scolded and slid a butter knife into the mayonnaise jar and began to spread it on top of a pancake, "It's all for the babies."

Rachel's hand slowly slid over her mouth, shivering with revulsion as Santana cut a piece of the pancake up and happily chewed it, mayonnaise and all.

"She poured hot sauce on some ice cream the other night." Quinn smirked before finally taking a long drink from her mug.

"Pregnancy is strangely fascinating." Rachel mumbled and looked over when Chloe entered the kitchen, finally smiling at the sight of her girlfriend, "Breakfast is ready!"

"Smells delicious, Rachel." Chloe smirked, "I'm glad I decided to be productive elsewhere instead of getting in your way." She teased and then began to pull the hoodie off that she was wearing, the static cling of it, pulling her shirt she had on underneath up with it, revealing a healthy six pack, which Quinn observed and Santana took notice of.

"Keep your clothes on, Chlo! Some of us are trying to eat!" Santana shouted through a mouth full of food, her eyes narrowing in on Quinn, a jolt of insecurity running through her.

"Sorry." Chloe mumbled, allowing Rachel to help her get situated.

"Are you three going to eat or are you just going to watch the pig consume it all and laugh about how much weight I've gained in the past six months." Santana grumbled.

"I assure you, no one is laughing at you, Santana." Rachel informed her and began to hand out plates to Chloe and Quinn, keeping one herself. "You are eating for three-"

"Blah blah blah. I know the speech by now." Santana stated, slightly pouting as she kept on eating, not making eye contact with anyone as they filled their plates and finally joined her at the kitchen table.

Quinn sat next to Santana, observing the slight change in her energy and attitude, "San?"

"Do you want to sit next to me or next to Miss. Abs of Steel?" Santana questioned and nodded to Chloe, "Sorry, I'm not some sexy fire fighter with biceps for days and an ass that won't quit. I'm sure she'd happily give you the calendar she's in for free. What are you, Chloe? Miss July?"

"I-I'm not sure-" Chloe stammered, "Well this is awkward, Santana."

"Santana..." Quinn began.

"You are absolutely stunning, Santana." Rachel jumped in, "You are carrying twins. You yourself could pose in a calendar if you wished."

Santana sniffled and quickly wiped a tear that had fallen from her eye, shrugging Quinn's hand off of her shoulder. When they first found out she was pregnant she never imagined the whirlwind of emotions she would be dealing with and as the due date arrived things only seemed to get worse. She couldn't wait until these babies were out of her and she vowed she would never ever put her body through this ever again.

Quinn sighed and locked eyes with Rachel, unsure of what to say or do.

"Santana, why don't you make a grocery list and we send our girls out to pick everything up, while we stay here and have a relaxing day inside? I noticed some of the baby clothes in the nursery last night. Would you like to go through them together?" Rachel tried, wanting to cheer Santana up.

Santana let out a small defeated sigh and carefully stabbed at some of the scrambled eggs on her plate, finally nodding, "Yeah, sure. I've wanted to sort through them anyway to get rid of the ugly ones. These twins are going to be stylish."

"Okay." Quinn slowly nodded, "Chloe and I will go on a shopping trip."

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Almost an hour later, Quinn pulled Santana to the side, the two standing at the garage door, while Chloe and Rachel were in the garage, giving them some privacy.

"San?" Quinn quietly began, reaching out to take her hand in her own, giving it a small squeeze, "Are we all right?"

Santana averted her gaze, her head tilting down and away from Quinn, her shoulders giving a small shrug, "I don't feel like talking about it right now."

"When I get back then." Quinn informed her, her tone leaving no room for discussion, "You can't always blame your hormones."

Santana sighed and gently pushed her away, "Just go buy me some more mayonnaise and send the little Broadway diva back in here."

"I want a proper kiss first, before I go." Quinn sternly stated and tapped her own lips.

"Quinn."

"Santana." Quinn softly said, taking a step forward, brushing some hair from Santana's pouty face, "You are my gorgeous wife. I love you so much and I hate that you're obviously doubting my affection towards you, so if you won't talk to me about it, please let me show you how much I love you."

Santana rolled her eyes and let out a small breath, nodding and waving Quinn forward. Quinn slid around to her side so she had better access, slowly and eagerly pressing their lips together, happily sighing when their lips finally met. She reached up to cup Santana's cheek so she couldn't pull away so quickly, keeping the kiss unhurried, soft and steady.

After a few long minutes, Quinn pulled away with a small smile, her eyes still shut, "I miss this."

Santana bit back a small smirk, pressing a kiss to her cheek, "I have cravings...go."

Quinn gave her one last kiss, "I love you."

"Love you too." Santana replied.

As Quinn turned to leave, Rachel entered the house, smiling at the couple, "Chloe is waiting in the car." She gave Quinn a small hug, "Have fun and I'll make sure to take care of Santana while you're away."

"Please." Quinn smiled, "Have fun." She waved and then disappeared outside.

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Rachel sat on her knees with a bin full of baby clothes in front of her, Santana sitting on the other side, the room quiet as they sorted through some of the outfits gifted to her.

Rachel pursed her lips with thought, trying to think of something to say, knowing Santana was struggling, but it was already hard enough to get Santana to talk about her feelings when she wasn't six months pregnant, the thought of getting her to open up while she seemed to be emotionally and physically exhausted had her contemplating the idea.

Her eyes slowly scanned the nursery, using it as a distraction. The walls were a light grey, with accented whites and blacks. Even though they were having girls, Quinn and Santana didn't want to decorate with traditional "girl" colours and decided to keep things as neutral as they could. The letter T hung over the crib Santana was sitting beside and the letter J hung over the one Rachel was near, her mind wandering more into her own thoughts as to what those letters stood for, since the baby names were still a secret and nobody would find out until the day there were born.

"Is Quinn irritated with me?"

That finally pulled Rachel from her thoughts and her eyes snapped back to focus on Santana, her dark gaze narrowing in on her.

Rachel tilted her head to the side and placed one of the outfits aside and then crawled over to Santana, resting her hand on her forearm, "Oh, Santana. Absolutely not. Remember, it was a long time ago, but she's been through this too. She understands how overwhelming it can be, plus you're carrying twins."

Santana silently nodded, shifting to try and get comfortable, letting out a small breath, "I know. I just – I hate feeling like this, Rach." She quietly whimpered. "I thought pregnancy was going to be different. I thought I'd be glowing and happy and cute. Instead I feel ugly and I'm always uncomfortable and when I'm trying to be intimate with Quinn, I just – well I can't!"

"Santana, Quinn loves you no matter what. She would do anything for you, you know that. And I know for a fact that she wants to be intimate with you. She just doesn't want to make you feel uncomfortable."

Santana sniffled and rolled her eyes, "And now I'm crying again!"

"Oh, San." Rachel whispered, wiping some of her tears away, "I think you need to just let Quinn take care of you. Don't fight it, don't over think it. Let her be your wife."

"By just lying on the bed like some sort of giant whale!?"

"Santana!" Rachel scolded and grabbed her face, forcing her to make eye contact, "You are a glowing stunning pregnant woman. You are homing the lives of two beautiful children who are going to come into this world and be overwhelmed with love. So reach deep down inside and try and muster up some positivity, because dare I say it, but I am actually missing Snixx right now!?"

"Snixx?"

"Yes!"

"It looks like I fucking ate her, Rach!"

"Oh my goodness, Santana!"

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After Chloe and Quinn arrived back home with the list of grocery items Santana had wanted, Rachel and Chloe had said their goodbyes and took a cab to the train station and headed back to NYC.

After a quiet dinner, Santana and Quinn headed up to bed early, Santana lying in bed watching television while Quinn took a shower, not really paying attention to whatever show was playing out on the screen and instead on her own thoughts.

When Quinn stepped out of the en-suite she carefully watched her, feeling guilty for how she was behaving lately.

"Q?" came Santana's raspy voice, reaching for the remote to turn the TV off. "I'm sorry."

Quinn's face softened and she walked over to sit on the edge of the bed, "You don't have to apologize for anything, Santana."

"But lately...lately I feel like I've been an awful wife."

"Santana stop. This isn't like you." Quinn began to explain and crawled on the bed to lie next to her, "I understand right now you can't exactly control your emotions, but if there is anything I can do that will make you stop doubting my love for you, please tell me. I hate seeing you like this. I want nothing more than to make you feel happy and wanted and loved."

"Honestly, Quinn. God, this pregnancy is making me feel so insecure." Santana confessed.

"How about... you just lay here and let me ease your mind?" Quinn quietly asked and shifted closer to her, sliding her hand under her shirt to rest on Santana's bare stomach. "I know you miss your abs, but right here under my hand, are two precious gifts you are carrying for us. You are protecting our children, Santana and that is the sexiest thing I could ever ask you to do for me. For us." She said and leaned down to press a kiss to her shoulder. "You married me and now we are starting a family together. It's my dream come true." She pressed a few kisses to her neck, until she reached her ear, "In sickness and in health, till death do us part. You are mine forever and nothing will ever change that."

Santana's eyes fluttered shut, snaking an arm around Quinn's shoulders, pulling her a little closer, tilting her head a little to the side, allowing Quinn more skin access.

"I love you." Quinn whispered, brushing her lips across her jaw until they were hovering over Santana's lips, waiting to see if she would be the one to initiate the kiss.

Santana relaxed into the mattress, sliding her other hand up to cup her cheek, brushing her thumb gently back and forth against her skin, "I love you too." She replied and finally leaned up to press their lips together.

After a few minutes, Quinn slowly pulled away, resting her forehead against Santana's, the two of them breathing heavily, "I'm going to take care of you, okay? Just relax and let me love you, Santana."

"Okay." Santana whispered with a small vulnerable nod, her fingers sliding up the back of Quinn's neck, tangling in her hair, letting all her tension release as Quinn took her time and pampered her.

It seemed like it had been forever since she had felt this confident and sexy and Quinn had made good on her promise and brought all those feelings back for Santana. Quinn took her time and by the end of the night, Santana had tears of joy in her eyes.

"Thank you, Quinn." Santana whispered into the dark, not letting go of the blonde curled up into her. "Thank you." She breathed and finally fell asleep with a small smile on her face.

Quinn pressed a kiss to her cheek, watching her peacefully sleep until she faded out into her own slumber as well.

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Three months later...

"I can't believe this is it!" Quinn said with joy as she pushed Santana through the hospital hallways in a wheelchair, "They're finally coming."

"I needs some drugs and imma need them now, Quinn!"

"I know, baby. We're getting you there." Quinn promised and came to a stop in front of the nurse's station, giving their names and information, it thankfully not taking them long to get a room and get set up.

Once Santana was hooked up to everything, the nurse offered them a friendly smile, "The doctor will be in here shortly."

"Thank you." Quinn smiled and sat on the edge of the bed, holding Santana's hand, "San?"

Santana looked up at her and nodded, squeezing Quinn's hand a few times and then she shook her head, "I can't do this – Quinn – "

"Yes you can. San, you have an epidural, the nurse said you're five centimetres dilated, all that's left to do is to push."

"Something doesn't feel right." Santana said with fret, her eyes darting all around the room, the beeping of the monitors and the smell overwhelming her senses. "Did you call Mami and Papi? Does Rachel know? Is your mom coming?"

"Santana, just relax." Quinn calmly said and pressed a kiss to the top of her head, wrapping her arms around her shoulders and letting her lean into her, humming quietly. "Your parents' plane is about to land, Rachel and Chloe will be here tonight and my mom is flying in tomorrow morning."

Santana let out a slow shaky breath and nodded, trying to take comfort in the closeness of Quinn, "I thought I'd be in more pain." She quietly mused.

Quinn slightly pulled back to look down at her with a small smirk, "Epidural does wonders, huh?" she leaned down to press another kiss to her forehead and ran her fingers through hair, sensing the nervous energy surrounding her wife, her heart fluttering with unease for her, wanting to somehow get her to relax, "Santana, this is the start of a new chapter for us."

"I know." She whispered, trying her best to relax, not used to this anxious feeling at all. She usually faced life head on with bravery. She was a Lopez, she had no problem fighting her way through life, but somewhere along this long road of pregnancy her fearlessness had hid on her and she just hoped that it would come back, because she had two babies to raise and she would be damned if they weren't going to be fighters like herself and Quinn. She even closed her eyes, mumbling a silent prayer for her alter ego Snixx to pass down any valour and courage she was willing to give to the twins.

"All right."

A new voice pulled them each from their own thoughts, the tall blonde doctor smiling brightly at them.

"How are the mommies to be?" She asked and walked over, pulling up Santana's chart.

"Nervous and excited."Quinn answered.

"I want them out, get them out now." Santana demanded, "Ahora ahora!"

The doctor sweetly smiled, pulling on some gloves and then walked over, "In time, Santana. I know it's been a long nine months." She said and sat on a chair and began to examine Santana, feeling around, "We still have a few centimeters to go, so I want you to lay here and relax and hopefully soon you'll be holding your baby girls."

"How soon?" Santana questioned.

"An hour, give or take. It all depends on your body." The doctor said and finally stood up, tugging her gloves off.

"Podemos acelerar esto!"

"Santana." Quinn lightly laughed giving her hand a small squeeze and looked up at the doctor, "She's had a rough time carrying."

The doctor nodded with understanding, "I'll send a nurse in to check on you. In the meantime, enjoy the miracle of pain medication."

"Says the woman with no babies inside of her." Santana grumbled her restlessness increasing.

"See you two soon." The woman smiled and then disappeared.

Almost two hours later, Santana was huddled into Quinn, not in pain, but she was groaning out of frustration, "Quinn, why haven't I delivered yet? I hate waiting. They should be here!"

Quinn gently ran her hand up and down Santana's back and arm, hugging her close, simply nodding. Her too getting anxious from just sitting here waiting.

"Hi, ladies." The doctor briskly walked back into the room, smiling at them, but Quinn could read the look on her face and she was about to give them some news, "All right, Santana. I know you were prepared to push these babies out, but I'm afraid we're going to have to get them through C-section."

"Wait, what?" Quinn asked all her movements pausing. "That wasn't the plan."

"I know, but Santana hasn't dilated any further and these babies want out. It'd be different if there were only one, but with the two of them in there-"

"Quinn." Santana whimpered.

"Everything will be fine." The doctor assured, "There are some risks that aren't worth taking and delivering these babies through cesarean is the safest way."

"Is Quinn still allowed in the room with me?" Santana asked her voice raspy and tears starting to form.

"Yes, we will wheel you down and prep you and then get Mama all gowned up and she'll see you in the delivery room, okay?" The doctor explained, "If you have any more questions, I will happily answer them on the way."

"I'm going to be awake while you slice into me?" Santana questioned the monitor she was hooked up to starting to beep.

"I promise you won't feel a thing." The doctor said, "Santana, everything will be all right. You're in a hospital, surrounded by professionals."

Santana shook her head, her hand latching onto Quinn's forearm, "Quinn."

"I'll be with you the entire time." Quinn said leaning down to gently take her face in her hands, "It's okay. It's a small change of plans."

Santana nodded, her fingers wrapping around Quinn's wrists, digging her nails into her skin, whispering, "I'm scared."

"We're in this together." Quinn nodded pressing a few kisses to her lips, "I'll go get my gown on and see you as soon as I can, okay?"

"Okay." Santana said, not ready to let go of her yet. "Okay." She nodded and sniffled.

"Okay, Santana. Let's go and get you situated." The doctor said.

Not long after, they were in the delivery room, the doctors and nurses ready to start, Santana nervously lying on the bed, with Quinn standing next to her, holding her hand tight.

"Okay, here we go." The doctor said and then began to make a slow incision.

Sometime later, the doctor pulled the first baby out, handing it over to a nurse, Quinn smiling when she heard the cry of life.

"San, Santana! Do you hear her?" Quinn questioned, standing on her tip-toes, wanting to take a peek, but she also didn't want to disrupt anything. Her excitement however quickly vanished when the monitors Santana was hooked up to started peeping like crazy and Santana's hand went limp in her own. "Santana!?"

The doctor looked up, remaining calm as she worked on delivering the second baby, "She's losing too much blood."

"What?" Quinn questioned her heart starting to pound. "What's going on? You said this was safer!"

"Someone needs to take Quinn out of the room."

"No!" Quinn demanded, "I'm staying." She said through tears trying to stay by Santana's side as they pushed her away, "San! San!" but all she could see through the crowd of nurses was Santana's limp body and monitors going off, and soon there were two babies crying. It was all starting to overwhelm her and she backed up until she was leaning against the wall trying to control her breathing as what was supposed to be the most joyous day of her and Santana's life had seemed to be turned upside down.