A/N: I do not own Winx's Club.
Well here it is the final chapter of my story. I had only intended to do ten chapters but I decided to give everyone one last chapter. I hope everyone enjoys it and has enjoyed my story. Thanks to anyone that has stuck around to read my story and who have given me all the great comments. Also I don't know much about medical stuff so forgive me if something isn't totally accurate.
Epilogue
"You have a beautiful and healthy baby…boy." Dr. Burden said. "Would you like to come cut the cord Riven?"
"You bet." Riven said as he walked over to his newborn son and cut the umbilical cord.
The nurse then weighted him and wrapped him up in a blue blanket. "Eight pounds, two ounces, born at twelve-oh-one am, May fifth." The nurse said before handing him over to Riven, who walked back over to Musa.
"Look Musa, we have a son!" Riven said as he placed the baby into Musa's arms.
"He's so beautiful." Musa said as she held onto him. "Hey little guy, I'm your mommy."
"So what are you going to name him?" Stella asked as she looked down at her new Godson.
"Well I was thinking about Reed." Musa said as she continued to cuddle her baby.
"I think that's a great name." Riven said as Musa handed the baby over to him to hold again.
"So Reed it is." The nurse said as she wrote the name down on her clipboard. "Well, now I'm gonna take little Reed down to the nursery and give him a bath and get him finger printed and everything, and then we'll be back in a little bit for feeding time."
"Okay, you be good now, Reed." Riven said as he handed Reed over to the nurse who put him into a portable bassinet and wheeled him out of the room.
Everyone in the room hugged and congratulated Musa and Riven on the birth of their newborn son.
"I can't believe it Musa, you have a son." Flora said as she hugged Musa.
"Thanks Flora." Musa said. "Man, I wonder when this pain is gonna stop. I feel like I'm still having contractions."
"That's probably just the placenta." Another nurse said as she started to massage Musa's stomach so that she could deliver it. "Hmm, let me just check something here." The nurse said as she lifted up the sheet covering Musa. "Dr. Burden….there's another head."
"What?" Musa and Riven both said at the same time as Dr. Burden came back over.
"What do you mean there's another head?" Riven said. "No one told us, we were having twins."
"Riven, I'm scared." Musa cried as she took a hold of Riven's hand.
"It's okay Musa." Dr. Burden said. "Let's just get this baby delivered first. Okay on the next contraction push with all your might."
"Ah, this is not happening." Musa screamed as more contractions racked her body.
"Keep going Musa, you're doing a great job." The nurse said as she held onto Musa's leg.
"Come on Musa, you can do this." Riven said.
"That's it, one more good push and this baby will be out." Dr. Burden said as Musa gave one final big push and delivered a second baby into the world.
The baby never gave a cry and was quite blue. Dr. Burden quickly brought the baby over to the small examination unit they had and continued to work to help this baby breathe.
"Why isn't he or she crying?" Musa cried really scared now.
"It's okay Princess. Don't worry, I'm sure everything okay." Musa's father said as he came over and hugged his daughter. "This baby is great hands."
"Please tell us what's going on." Riven pleaded.
The doctor and nurses continued to work on the baby and finally after a few minutes the baby finally gave a tiny cry that sounded like a wounded kitten crying out.
"Musa, Riven, you have a baby girl." Dr. Burden said coming over to the couple. "Now she's very small and she's having a hard time breathing so we're gonna take her to the NICU so we can get her some help." Dr. Burden said as the nurses transferred the baby into an incubator and wheeled her out of the room. "I know this is very scary but I need you guys to be patient and let us help her."
"Dr. Burden, every doctor's appointment and ultrasound we've been to, there has only ever been one heart beat, and one baby on the screen." Riven said as he tried to console Musa who had broken down and was now sobbing.
"The only thing is I can think of is that Musa carried her mostly on her back and her brother who is much bigger stayed more up front." Dr. Burden said. "As for the heart beat, it may be due to her size, but we're gonna need to run some more tests." He said before leaving the room to check on the baby girl.
"Oh my God, Riven, our baby is dying." Musa cried into his shoulder.
"No! Don't you say that." He said as he lifted her chin so that she was looking him in the eye. "That little girl is a fighter just like you are and she is going to pull through."
"Riven is right Musa." Bloom said. "So you just need to calm down before you make yourself sick."
"Yes." Tecna agreed. "The doctors here are excellent; she couldn't be in better care. So when the nurse comes back in, let her get you cleaned up and then you should get some sleep before they bring Reed in for his feeding."
"Right." Riven's father said. "You too just need to have a little faith and get some rest; I'm going to treat everyone to some food up in the cafeteria, so you two can do that." Riven's father said as a nurse came in to wash Musa up. "So if you need us we'll be up there."
"Are you going to be okay?" Stella asked.
"Yes." Musa said. "Could you do me a favour, and go by the nursery and check up on Reed?"
"You bet. Now you get some sleep because we're gonna need a name for that little girl."
"Thanks Stella."
"No problem." Stella said before hugging Musa and Riven and following Brandon and everyone else out of the room.
"Okay, let's get you out of these dirty clothes and sheets." The nurse said as she helped Musa out of bed.
Up in the cafeteria, the girls, guys, Musa's father and Riven's father sat at a huge table, nobody was talking and everybody was picking at their food, too upset to eat.
"Do you really think Musa's daughter is going to be okay?" Layla finally asked, breaking the silence.
"She will pull through." Timmy said. "I just know it."
"Timmy's right, everybody. We need to stop thinking so negative and be more positive." Brandon said. "Our friends need us."
"What can we do?" Flora asked.
"Well it's late right now, but first thing in the morning, Stella and I will go buy another crib and fix up the nursery a bit." Brandon said. "Since they have two babies now, they're gonna need another crib and some more boy and girl clothes."
"Perfect." Bloom said.
"I'm gonna call Lily and get her to deliver some flowers." Flora said. "We need to celebrate these babies' births."
"If you will all excuse me, I think I'm gonna go call Riven's grandmother and let her know what is going on and see if she'll come down here, I think Riven and Musa need all the family they can get around them." Riven's father said as he left the cafeteria.
"You know what?" Stella said. "We may have already given Musa a baby shower but she's gonna need a whole lot more for two babies. So why don't we give her a welcome party."
"How?" Tecna asked.
"You guys will stay here and keep her company, Brandon can go pick up the crib and I'll go shopping for the other things." Stella said as she ticked off things on her fingers. "Flora, you can ask the nurses if there's a room we can use and have the flowers delivered there. Musa's father can go pick up some decorations and then Bloom and Sky can sneak out and go decorate the room."
"What about the rest of us?" Timmy asked referring to Layla, William, Tecna, Helia and himself.
"You guys just focus on distracting them." Stella said. "But remember to keep things positive."
"Will do." Helia said.
Back in her hospital room, Musa was trying to sleep but every time she closed her eyes she could see the picture of her tiny baby dying in her arms. No one had come to tell her how she was doing and she had yet to name her daughter.
"Musa, you're supposed to be resting." Riven said as he tried to sleep on two chairs beside Musa's bed.
"Well I cant." She said as she rolled over to face her husband. "I keep thinking about our babies."
"Musa, Reed is fine and our daughter is going to be fine too."
"But no one has come to tell us what is going on."
"I know but think of that as good news. It means she's still up there fighting and they're doing everything to help her."
"Why us Riven. What did I do to deserve this?"
"You did nothing. These things just happen and no one knows why but I believe everything is going to be alright and you're going to need to get all the sleep you can because soon you're gonna have two kids running around your house."
"Okay, but first I think it would be helpful if we named her." Musa said sitting up in bed.
"That sounds reasonable." Riven said as he sat up too. "What do you want to name her?"
"I was thinking Aria."
"Aria?"
"Yeah, it's Italian and means a melody."
"Well if you like it then I think it's perfect."
"Perfect. Reed and Aria then." Musa smiled.
"Do you think you could maybe try and sleep now, at least for a little bit? I'm sure they'll be bringing Reed in to be fed soon."
"Okay I'll try, but do you think you could maybe go up to the NICU and just see if they have any information about Aria and let them know that's her name." Musa asked. "She deserves to have a name on her bed."
"Okay, I'll try." Riven said. "Now lay back and try to sleep. I love you."
"I love you too." Musa said as she closed her eyes and Riven quietly left the room to go up to the NICU.
Riven took the elevator to the sixth floor where the NICU was located. He could see through the little windows on the door where the various babies were being looked after. He couldn't make out Aria but suspected she was the one with the doctors around her.
"Can I help you Sir?" Asked one of the nurses sitting at the desk.
"Yes, sorry, my daughter was brought up here shortly after she was born. I just wanted to see if there was any news about her." Riven said walking up to the desk.
"Are you the father of the unexpected twins?"
"Yes. My name's Riven and my wife Musa is really worried."
"Well so far she's in a stable condition, but I'll see if I can get Dr. Burden to come out and discuss her condition with you."
"That would be great thanks, also her name is Aria."
"That's beautiful, I'll be sure that someone marks that on her incubator." The nurse said before she entered the NICU room.
Riven could see the nurse talking to Dr. Burden who turned to look at Riven through the window before nodding his head and following the nurse back out of the room.
"Riven." Dr. Burden said as he shook Riven's hand. "I hear you're here to see how Aria is doing."
"Yes, Musa is very worried about her. No one has come down to talk to us."
"I'm very sorry about that." Dr. Burden said. "Well Aria is in a stable condition but we've had to put a tube down her throat and hook her up to a respirator to help her breathe. Her lungs aren't very developed yet due to her tiny size."
"Do you think she'll be okay?"
"She's a tough little girl already, but nothing is ever certain in this world." Dr. Burden explained. "We are doing our best to make sure she's comfortable and can hopeful give her lungs more time to develop with the respirator."
"Do you think Musa and I could at least come in and see her for a moment?"
"I'll see what I can do. Maybe in the morning we can arrange something if she does okay in the next few hours."
"Thank you so much Dr. Burden."
"The best thing you and Musa can do right now is get some rest and take care of yourselves and Reed."
"Will do." Riven said before Dr. Burden went back into the NICU and Riven went back to Musa's room.
It was a little while later and the nurse had brought Reed back into Musa's room.
"Hey there Mommy." The nurse said. "I brought this little guy in for a feeding and I know you've had a rough night so I thought getting to hold this little guy might help."
Musa sat up in bed and held out her arms to cradle her baby. "Hey there little guy. How are you doing?" Reed gave a little gurgle and looked up at his mother. "I still can't believe I gave birth to this tiny baby."
"Every mother says that." The nurse smiled. "So where's your husband and friends?"
"I sent him to shower and change." Musa said. "And to pick up a few things and my friends I sent home to rest but I'm sure they'll be back early in the morning."
"We woman can never be totally prepared." The nurse giggled. "When I had my baby, I packed three outfits for my daughter and zero for myself."
"We certainly weren't prepared to have two babies, so I guess we're gonna need another crib, and car seat and everything else you need for two babies."
"Don't worry, those things are easy to pick up and they can share a crib while they're still young." The nurse smiled at Musa. "How about we try feeding now, so that he can start on that growing bigger path."
"Sure, I bet you're getting hungry." Musa smiled down at her baby.
"Yes I bet he is."
And with that the nurse began to teach Musa the best way to feed Reed and gave her a few tips at the same time how she would be able to feed both him and Aria when she was able to come off her respirator.
"Perfect." The nurse said. "Now hold him like this." She said showing Musa how to properly hold Reed to burp him. "And just gently tap on his back until he burps."
Musa did as was instructed and in a few minutes Reed gave a pretty loud burp and even blew a couple bubbles at the same time.
"Just like your Daddy." She laughed.
"Great job. Why don't I show you how to swaddle him back up and he can stay in here with you for a bit, if you would like."
"I would love that." Musa smiled. "I'm sure Riven will want to see him when he comes back."
"I'll bet." The nurse said as she began to show Musa how to swaddle Reed and then put him back in the portable bassinet by Musa's bed. "There we go nice and comfy. Now you just page if you need help or have any questions."
"Sure." Musa said as she laid back in bed and looked at her son sleeping next to her.
Musa woke up hours later to find Riven sitting in her room, rocking Reed in his arms.
"Hey there, how long was I asleep?" Musa asked as she sat up in bed.
"Quite awhile, I came back here from going home and you were passed out and this little guy had just woken up." Riven said as he came closer to Musa and took a seat on the bed beside Musa. "So we just hung out for the rest of the night, well morning really."
"How's he doing?"
"He's great."
"Where's the rest of the gang?"
"Dad went to pick up my grandmother, your dad went to get coffee, and rest of them are around here somewhere." Riven laughed. "I think the girls went up to look at the rest of the babies and the guys are probably hiding somewhere else."
"So any news about Aria?" Musa asked hoping Riven had been given some good news about their daughter.
"The last I heard was she was still on the respirator but she's doing good." Riven said. "Dr. Burden said her color is improving so we just need to continue to think good thoughts." Riven didn't want to mention the part where Dr. Burden said it might be possible for them to see her, just in case something went wrong.
"Right." Musa smiled as a nurse came in carrying a tray.
"I brought you some breakfast." She said. "I figured you would be hungry by now."
"Thanks." Musa said as the nurse placed the tray down on the table positioned over Musa's bed.
"Eat up now." She smiled before exiting the room.
"Do you want some?" Musa asked Riven revealing the tray of eggs, toast and what might be bacon.
"No, I've already eaten, you eat up then I think this guy would like to be fed too." Riven smiled down at Reed.
It was early afternoon when Stella and Flora entered Musa's room. The girls and guys had been in and out all morning.
"Hey there you guys are." Musa exclaimed.
"Sorry about that." Stella said. "I have to run a few errands I forgot about."
"Yeah, sorry my mom called wanting to know what was going on and what was supposed to be done with the flowers from the reception." Flora said.
"But we're all together now." Bloom said.
"Yes, and we got you a little present." Stella said.
"You guys didn't have to do that." Musa said as Stella handed her a gift bag.
"We all chipped in and I went to pick it up." Stella smiled.
Musa opened up the gift bag and pulled out piles of tissue paper to reveal a beautiful red top. "Awe guys, it's beautiful."
"We know, why don't you go put it on so we can see how it looks." Stella said. "And maybe put on these black leggings."
"Okay." Musa said as little confused as she went into the bathroom to change.
"What's going on?" Riven whispered.
"You'll see. Why don't you put the outfit I bought Reed on him." Stella smiled.
Just then Musa exited the bathroom wearing the red top the girls had bought her and a pair of black leggings.
"Beautiful. Now let's just fix your hair, pigtails are great for giving birth in but not for showing off new tops." Stella said as she ran a brush through Musa's hair.
"Stella, everyone knows I always wear my hair in pigtails and who's going to see me beside the nurses who come into the room."
"Well, you need to get up and walk around a bit. You know stretch those legs."
"Okay I guess."
"Come on, we'll all go for a walk. You can show off Reed." Musa said as everyone got up and headed out of the hospital room.
"What's going on Stella?"
"Nothing, we're just going for a walk around the hospital, that's all."
Musa and the rest of the group continued to walk down a few more halls until they reached a room at the end of one of the halls.
"Why don't we go in here and rest for a bit?" Stella said.
"Stella, we can't go in there without permission." Riven said.
"No one will know, come on." Stella said as she opened the door and pushed Musa into the room.
"Surprise!" Musa's father and Riven's father and grandmother said.
"What's going on?" Musa asked as she looked around the room as all the flowers and decorations. There was even a table with a few presents on it.
"It's Reed and Aria's welcome party." Stella cheered.
"You guys. I already had a baby shower."
"This is a welcome party, not a baby shower." Stella said matter of fact. "We are going to celebrate Reed and Aria's births."
"Ah, so like a birthday party?" Riven smirked.
"Call it whatever you want, just sit down and enjoy yourselves."
"Let me have my great grandbaby." Riven's grandmother said as she came over and took a hold of Reed in her arms. "Awe Musa, he's so handsome, yes you are. You're much more handsome than your daddy."
"Ha ha Grams, very funny." Riven laughed.
"I'm just joking. You are as handsome as your daddy was when he was your age. How are you guys doing?"
"We're doing okay; I would surely feel better if I knew how Aria was doing." Musa said.
"She'll be just fine, you'll see." Riven's grandmother smiled as she continued to cuddle Reed.
"Come, have some cake and then we can open your presents." Bloom said as Musa went to sit down.
The group sat around and ate cake and everyone got a turn at holding Reed and talked about how much he looked like Riven but had dark wispy hair like Musa. Musa and Riven also opened the few gifts the girls and guys had bought.
There was some toys for both Reed and Aria, more boy and girl clothes and Stella had made sure to stock up on dresses in every color and style for Aria, and plenty of diapers and baby products. There was also another car seat but this one was in red while their other one had just been in black.
"I wanted to get it in pink but Brandon said red was more your style." Stella laughed. "I figured you could use the black for Reed and the red for Aria."
"Thanks Stella and thanks you guys." Musa said. "It really means the world to me that you're all here for us."
"We wouldn't be anywhere else." Flora said as she hugged Musa.
"Well, since you didn't know what you were having, I didn't get to get your baby gift yet." Riven's grandmother said. "But now that I know you have a little boy and a little girl, I'll have to get started on that right away."
"You don't have to do that Grams." Riven said.
"Oh you hush up now! I'm going to make my great grandbabies some quilts so that they'll be all warm and toasty when winter comes."
"Thank you." Musa said as she got up and hugged Riven's grandmother.
"Musa? Riven?" Dr. Burden said coming into the room.
"Yes?" Musa said, starting to get worried that something had happened to Aria.
"I was wondering if you two would like to come up and see your daughter?" Dr. Burden asked.
"Oh my God!" Musa said. "Yes of course." She said as she took a hold of Riven's arm.
"Come on, let's go." Riven whispered. "You guys will keep an eye on Reed, right?"
"You bet." Musa's father said as he took a hold of Reed.
"Riven, I'm scared." Musa whispered as they followed Dr. Burden to the NICU.
"Why?" Riven asked.
"Cause what if I do something to cause her to get sicker then she already is?"
"You won't. They wouldn't have let us see her if they thought she wasn't well enough." Riven said. "Don't you wanna see your baby girl?"
"You know I do." Musa said. "I'm just nervous."
"It's going to be alright." Riven said as they reached the NICU.
"Okay, I'll just get you guys to go wash your hands and then we'll get you gowned up and you can go see Aria." Dr. Burden said as he led Riven and Musa to a sink.
Riven and Musa quickly washed their hands and put on hospital gowns and gloves and Dr. Burden led them in to see Aria.
"Here she is." Dr. Burden said as he led them over to the small incubator in the back of the room. "She's been doing well and her color has really improved since she was born this morning."
"She's beautiful." Musa whispered as she stared down at her tiny daughter as she slept.
"Just like her mother." Riven said as he kissed the top of Musa's head. "But I think she's going have my hair color."
"That's alright, you have great hair." Musa laughed. "I wish we could hold her."
"I know." Dr. Burden said. "Give it a few days and we'll see how she does. But I can let you hold her hand, if you would like."
"Are you sure?" Musa asked looking up at Dr. Burden.
"Of course. It won't hurt her." He said as he opened one of the little doors on Aria's incubator.
Musa put her hand gently into the incubator and took a hold of her daughter's little hand and rubbed it between her thumb and fingers. "She's so tiny."
"I know." Riven said as he put his hand into the incubator "But she'll get bigger, don't you worry."
"Dr. Burden, do you think we could get some pictures of her, so that we could show our friends and family?" Musa asked.
"Sure. I'll go get the camera." Dr. Burden said as he went to get a digital camera and began to snap some pictures of the couple beside their daughter and then some of just Aria alone. "There, I'll get the nurse to print them off and I'll have them brought down to your room."
"Great thank you so much." Musa said as she hugged Dr. Burden.
"No problem."
It was two days later and Musa and baby Reed were being released from the hospital today.
"So are you happy to be going home?" Riven asked his wife as she packed up her things into her duffle bag.
"Yeah, but I wish I was going home with both of my babies." Musa said.
"Hey now, you remember what Dr. Burden said, Aria needs some more time to grow and get healthier." Riven said as he rocked Reed. "But we can come visit her. Your dad is on his way over to watch Reed while we go up there and see Aria before we leave."
"I know but it's still going to be hard." Musa said as she sat down and Riven handed Reed back over to her.
"Life is never easy." Riven said. "I'm gonna go put the bags in the car, while you finish up that paperwork and then we'll go see Aria." Musa just nodded and began to feed Reed while Riven left the room.
"Hey there princess." Musa's father said a few minutes later as he entered the room.
"Hey dad." Musa said as she got up and put Reed into his car seat. "How are you today?"
"I'm great." Musa's father said. "I showed pictures of my grandkids last night to the guys."
"Dad, the guys don't want to see baby pictures at your weekly poker games." Musa said.
"Yes they do." He laughed. "I'm the youngest grandpa there."
"Hey there, are you ready to go up now." Riven asked as he walked into the room.
"Yeah." Musa said as she handed the diaper bag to her father. "Here's the diaper bag just in case. He's been feed so he should be okay."
"Musa, it's alright, you'll only be gone for a little bit." Musa's father said.
"I know, I'm just nervous."
"Come on, it'll be alright." Riven said as he took her hand and they headed to the NICU.
"Hey there." One of the nurses greeted Musa and Riven as they stepped off the elevator.
"Hello, we're here to see Aria before we head home." Riven said.
"Perfect. Just go wash your hands and I'll get you guys some gowns."
Riven and Musa washed their hands and put on the hospital gowns again and were brought back into the room and over to Aria.
"Hey there little girl." Riven said as he smiled at his daughter as Aria began to open her eyes. "Look Musa, she opened her eyes."
"Hey there beautiful girl." Musa cooed at her daughter. "How are you doing little girl?"
"She's doing great." Dr. Burden said as he walked over to Musa and Riven. "Her lungs are getting bigger and she's been really responding to the medication we've been giving her."
"So she's improving?" Musa asked.
"You bet, every day she gets a little better." Dr. Burden said. "She's a real little fighter. We thought maybe we would try and see how she'd do without the respirator."
"Really?" Riven asked.
"Yes and maybe if she responds okay, then maybe you guys would like to hold her for a few minutes. How does that sound?"
"That sounds awesome." Riven said as he hugged Musa close to him.
"Okay then, let's get started." He said as he called over a nurse to assist him. Dr. Burden began to remove the respirator from Aria while the nurse took hold of a breathing mask in case Aria didn't respond.
"Come on baby. You can do it." Musa whispered as she quietly cheered on her daughter.
The air in the room was tense but a few seconds later Aria took a breath of air and began to breathe on her own.
"Oh my God! She's doing it, she's really doing it." Musa cried.
"Yes she is, she's breathing on her own." Dr. Burden said. "But let's not get too excited. Her lungs still need more time but I think it's safe for you guys to hold her for a few minutes." He said as he motioned for the nurse to go over and retrieve a rocking chair. "Who wants to go first?"
"You first Musa. You gave birth to her." Riven said as Musa took a seat in the rocking chair.
"Here we go. Remember to support her head and just watch out for the wires." Dr. Burden said as he handed Aria over to Musa who began to cuddle and rock her daughter.
"Hey there little girl. It's so great to get to hold you." Musa whispered to her daughter. She continued to rock and cuddle the girl while telling her about all the people who would be excited to hear that she was breathing on her own.
"Can daddy hold her now?" Riven asked after a few moments.
"Sure." Musa said as the nurse took a hold of Aria while Musa got up and Riven took a seat in the rocking chair before being handed Aria.
The couple held their daughter and took pictures of her for about ten minutes when Dr. Burden came back in and said that it was time for Aria to go back into her incubator.
"I know it's tough, but soon she'll be able to go home with you guys." Dr. Burden said. "Just be patient."
"We know." Riven said. "We should take Reed home now and get the nursery ready for two babies."
"It's going to be alright Musa." Dr. Burden said when she didn't say a word. "Go home, take care of your son and get some sleep in your own bed because you surely won't sleep when there's two babies around."
"Okay." Musa said as she blew a kiss to her daughter before Riven led her out of the room.
"Welcome home Reed." Riven said as he opened the door to the apartment so that Musa, her father and Reed could enter.
"Hey guys." Bloom said as they entered the apartment. All of Musa and Riven's friends were there, including Riven's father and grandmother.
"What are you guys doing here?" Musa asked as she sat Reed's car seat on the table and began to unbuckle him.
"Well we just wanted to welcome you guys home and to see how Aria was doing." Stella said as she came over and hugged Musa.
"Well we have good news." Riven said. "Why don't we all sit down?" Everyone gathered in the living room and awaited Riven and Musa's new. "Okay, we are proud to say that Aria came off the respirator this afternoon and started to breath on her own."
"Awe guys that's great." Flora smiled. "We're so happy for you."
"Thanks. We even got to hold her for a few minutes." Musa said and pulled out the picture the hospital had printed out for her of Aria.
"Look at her, she's so beautiful." Stella said. "And she's getting so much bigger."
"Yeah. Dr. Burden said she was improving every day." Musa smiled. "I hope we can take her home soon."
"You will." Bloom said. "Well we have one last surprise for you guys."
"What?" Musa asked. "You've already given us enough."
"We know but we wanted to do this for you guys." Tecna said. "Come on." She said as she pulled Musa up out of the chair and led her and Riven over to the nursery door.
"Okay, close your eyes." Layla said. The group led Riven and Musa into the middle of the nursery and told them to open their eyes.
The nursery was still done in the aqua color with the touches of brown, red and green, but now it housed two beautiful cribs, each made with bedding for a baby boy and a baby girl. There was also now two rocking chairs and changing tables and the closet was filled with clothes and toys for the babies.
"Oh my God!" Musa said shocked as she looked around.
"Brandon did most of the work." Stella said. "We tried to keep it the same as you have it done up but I figured that the babies should have their own special bedding."
"It's beautiful guys. This is too much." Riven said as he hugged each of his friends.
"Well you guys deserve it." Stella said. "Hey Reed, what do you think of yours and your sister's room?" Stella said as she took a hold of Reed.
"I think he likes it." Riven said as Reed began to blow bubbles.
"It's beautiful." Musa said as she hugged each of her friends. "Now all that is missing is Aria and it will all be complete." Musa said as Riven came over to hug her.
"You'll see it won't be long."
Two weeks had gone by and Musa and Riven were busy taking care of Reed and going to Aria every day. Stella had agreed to baby sit for them and was really enjoying spending time with her Godson. Aria's health was improving and everyone had high hopes that she would be able to come home in another few days.
"It's okay Reed, mommy's coming. I know you're hungry." Musa said as she lugged a basket of dirty laundry from the bathroom out into the living room.
Reed was in the living room buckled into his swinging chair that Bloom and Sky had bought for him and Aria, crying his eyes.
"I know, I know." She said as she unbuckled him and carried him over to the couch so she could feed him. "I don't know how I'm gonna do this all when your sister comes home. I'm certainly not going to be able to lug the laundry and both of you down to the laundry room."
Reed just blinked up at his mother as he continued to drink his milk.
"I guess it's time to ask daddy for our own washing machine, huh, what do you think, can you ask daddy for a washing machine for mommy?" Musa laughed as she sat him up to burp him. After a few taps on his back Reed burped and then spit up all over his outfit. "Well, I guess there's one more piece for the laundry."
"Hey Musa, I'm home." Riven called as he entered the apartment.
"Great. You can change Reed's diaper, put him in a clean outfit, take the laundry downstairs and put it in the washer and then when that's done you can put it in the dryer and when it's dry you can fold and put away the clothes." Musa said as she handed Reed over to Riven.
"I don't think we have time for me to wash and dry the laundry." Riven said. "We need to take Reed over to Stella and Brandon's and then head to the hospital to visit Aria before visiting hours are over."
"We need a maid." Musa said as she headed into the bedroom to change out of her dirty sweats.
"We can't afford a maid." Riven called as he took Reed into the nursery and changed his diaper and put him into some clean clothes.
"Well then I need a portable washer." Musa said as she walked into the nursery and began to pack up Reed's diaper bag.
"Those are expensive Musa."
"Well, it doesn't have to be new; I could use a second hand one. It's just gonna be impossible for me to carry baskets of laundry and two babies down to the laundry room."
"Well I won't make any promises but I'll see what I can do."
"Thank you." Musa said as she put Reed into his car seat before they left the apartment.
Musa and Riven arrived an hour later after dropping Reed off at Stella's and telling her not to spoil him too much. When they got off the elevator on the NICU floor a nurse was there to greet them and quickly led them over to see Aria.
"Hey little girl. How are you doing today?" Musa asked as she looked down at her daughter who opened her eyes when she heard her mother's voice.
"She's been really good today. We held off her evening bottle so that you could feed her yourself, so I'm betting she's hungry." The nurse said. "I'll just go get it and a rocking chair and we'll get you started."
"Great." Musa smiled. "Awe look at her Riven, she's getting so much bigger. I swear she wasn't this big yesterday."
"I don't know about that but she certainly is growing." Riven said as he kissed his wife.
"Here we go." The nurse said a few minutes later as she brought over a rocking chair, another fold out chair for Riven and Aria's bottle. Musa and Riven both sat down and the nurse handed Aria to her.
"Hey sweetie, are you hungry?" Musa asked as she put the bottle to Aria's lips and she began to suck on it. "She's really hungry."
"Yeah she's been eating well. She finished every last drop of her bottle this morning and was really content today." The nurse said. "Dr. Burden is actually on his way up to discuss some things with you."
"Is everything okay?" Riven asked.
"Yes, I'm sure it's just about some new medication they want to try." The nurse said.
"Okay." Riven said.
Aria was finished eating when Dr. Burden came up to the NICU to talk to Musa and Riven. "Hey guys." He greeted.
"Hello." Riven said as stood up and shook Dr. Burden's hand.
"How are you guys doing?"
"We doing okay, but we miss Aria." Musa said as she rocked Aria in her arms after burping her.
"Well I can tell that she misses you guys too and I know that she is gonna be a little challenge for her older brother, even if he's only older by a few minutes." Dr. Burden laughed.
"Yeah, her daddy also." Riven said as he took Aria's hand in his.
"Well, I was thinking that maybe it's time Aria got to go home."
"Are you serious?" Musa asked shocked.
"Yes, well it'll be on a trial bases." Dr. Burden said. "You'll need to give her her medication at the strict times and keep her away from too many germs and if anything happens or she gets the least bit worse, you'll need to bring her back right away."
"We promise." Musa said getting excited.
"Okay then I'll go get her discharge papers ready and you can take her home tonight."
"Oh my God Riven, can you believe this, we get to take her home." Musa said as she started to cry.
"I know Hun, it's amazing." He said as he first kissed Musa and then Aria.
The nurse helped to unhook Aria from the machines she had been hooked up to and helped Musa dress her in a tiny pink outfit that was left at the hospital for Aria by a volunteer along with a pink knitted cap to match.
"There we go." The nurse said as she handed Aria to Musa so that she could put her into her car seat.
"It's lucky that Riven put both of the car seats in the car." Musa giggled.
"Well Princess, it's time to go home." Riven said as he signed the last discharge form for Aria.
"Well I wish you guys the very best." Dr. Burden said. "And remember to bring her back if anything goes wrong."
"We will." Musa and Riven both agreed before they shook Dr. Burden's hand again and headed out to go pick up Reed and show off Aria.
Riven and Musa pulled up to Stella and Brandon's place and rang the door bell.
"Stella's gonna freak out when she sees who we have." Musa whispered as she held Aria's carrier out in front of her.
"Reed, your mommy and daddy are back." They heard Stella call as footsteps walked towards the door. "Hey guy, wel…why do you have Aria's car seat?"
"Maybe cause Aria's in it." Musa said slyly as she lifted the blanket covering the carrier to show Stella the tiny girl sleeping in it.
"Oh my word." Stella said. "Come in, come in. I wanna hold that little girl right this minute." Stella said as she pushed the door open wider and Musa and Riven walked in. "Brandon. Come see what I have!"
Brandon came out of the living room carrying Reed in his arm. "Look at that Reed, who Auntie Stella holding? Is that your baby sister?" Brandon said as he showed Reed Aria who Stella was holding in her arms before handing him to Riven.
"Yeah buddy, that's your twin sister Aria." Riven said, but all Reed could do was gurgle and blow bubbles. "You need to make sure you help protect her, okay?"
"I'm sure he'll do a great job." Musa laughed as they all headed back into the living room to visit for a while.
After visiting for a couple of hours with Stella and Brandon, Riven and Musa decided it was time to take Reed and Aria home and put them to bed.
"Thanks guy for watching Reed for us." Musa said as she hugged her friends.
"I guess I called it." Brandon said as he said good bye to his friends.
"What do you mean?" Riven asked.
"Well at Christmas, when we were guessing what Musa was going to have. I said it was going to be twins." Brandon smirked.
"I believe you said, 'maybe it's twins'." Stella said.
"Same thing." Brandon said looking over at his wife.
"Do you guys want another baby?" Stella laughed as she walked Musa and Riven to the door. "I'm giving this one away for free."
"I think we'll stick with the two we already have." Musa winked at her friend.
Fine. Well you make sure to call me tomorrow and let me know how your first night with two babies goes."
"I will." Musa laughed before her and Riven got into their car and headed off back to their apartment.
When they arrived, Riven and Musa both gave Reed and Aria baths in their matching little bath tubs before changing them into new diapers and getting them dressed in some pjs.
"Look how cute they look together." Musa said as they laid the kids together so that Musa could take some pictures of her two babies together.
"We sure do make cute kids." Riven laughed as he picked up Aria while Musa got Reed and put them into their own cribs.
"Two perfect angels." Musa agreed as she kissed each baby.
"Well at least for now they're angels. Come on Musa, let's let them sleep."
"Sleep tight babies." Musa said as she blew them both a kiss and quietly backed out of the nursery.
Riven was already waiting on the couch for her, when she exited the nursery. "Come on, have a seat." Riven said as Musa joined. "I just want to tell you that no matter what happens, that I love you so much and you have been so brave these last few weeks while Aria was in the hospital."
"Awe. I love you too."
"And because I love you and our kids so much, and I know its gonna be rough now with Aria and Reed both home and Aria going to need a bit more attention until Dr. Burden says she's fully recovered, I decided I'm gonna get you that portable washer you wanted."
"Thank you." Musa said as she hugged Riven.
"I can't promise it will be brand new, but I'll get the best I can afford."
"That's all I want." Musa said before kissing Riven.
"Mmm, is someone trying to tell them they're ready to work on number three." Riven smirked.
"Very funny but number three isn't going to happen until number one and two are in college." Musa laughed as she settled down next to Riven.
"We'll see." Riven said as he turned on the TV and him and Musa settled into the couch, content now that their little family was finally all under one roof and would remain there if they had any say in it.
A/N: Well there we go. The final chapter and my story is official finished. I hope you all enjoyed reading it and I'm sorry again at how long it took me to write. It may not be absolutely perfect and probably won't win countless awards but I'm proud of it. So again thank you to everyone out there for supporting me.
Mermaid Gurl