A/N: Amazing. I must have a spare lesson at work!
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Cara had joined them in the park and once she was sure the kids would be okay, Andy ran from the Boathouse and caught a cab to the hospital. She sent Miranda and Roy a text, asking them for their location, but only Roy replied. Andy bypassed the life and took the stairs three at a time. She swing around the corner on the floor she needed and wondered if it was possible to have a heart attack at her age.
"Hi," she wheezed. "Sorry, I'm looking for Olivia Walker, she came in not too long ago with Miranda Priestly?"
The nurse looked at her skeptically and Andy's brain raced.
"I'm her assistant, I need her to sign the release for the Givenchy shoot or I'm toast."
She wondered if it was the desperation, or the wild look in her eyes that finally convinced the woman to give her to room number. In another situation, Andy would have laid into her for giving it up so easily, but for now she had to find her girls.
"Room 12," the nurse said. "She has a personal suite. They're just waiting for theatre to clear."
"Thanks," Andy called, already moving.
She raced down the corridor, finding the room without any trouble. She looked in through the window and her heart melted. Miranda was on the bed, bare feet, and mussed up hair, cradling Olivia in her arms while Roy stood beside her, holding Olivia's hand. He wasn't touching Miranda, but he could see that Miranda was sitting very close to him. She knocked and went in.
"Hey loves," she whispered, not wanting to disturb the peace.
Miranda had been crying, so Andy moved in to envelop them both in her long arms.
"She's in pain," Miranda whimpered, as if the thought bought her pain as well. "There was an accident somewhere. She was being prepped for surgery, but now they've had to delay."
"That's okay," Andy muttered, kissing them both. "Those people are in greater need."
"But they're not," Miranda said desperately.
Roy squeezes Liv's hand and left without another word, standing by the door in the corridor. Andy shifted into a better position where she could pull them both closer.
"Would you love her less if she never moves those fingers again?" Andy whispered.
"No!" Miranda hissed. "What do you take me for?"
"I know you wouldn't, I know that, but that means we can, and will, wait for the people who are less fortunate than we are."
It took Miranda every second in the next minute to come to terms with that, but then she relaxed back against Andy's chest.
"Roy was good," Miranda muttered. "Olivia loves him, and," she looked sheepish. "He kept me steady.
Andy nodded, already planning a massive thank you. She kissed Miranda's temple then Olivia's hair.
"And how are you Little Princess?" Andy asked quietly.
"Hand hurts," she mumbled. "M'anda gives good cuggles though."
"She does doesn't she," And grinned. "Has she been cuddling you this whole time?"
"Uhuh," Live mumbled against Miranda's chest.
"You're so lucky Livvy."
"Yep," Olivia grinned, her eyes rolling a little with the effects of the drugs.
"Have you been sitting the whole time?" Andy asked, directing her comment to Miranda.
"Since I phoned you. They produced needles. She dislikes them immensely."
"Oh sweetie."
And sat back against the pillows, moving her long legs to either side of the bed and pulled Miranda back into her body very carefully. Miranda groaned as she started to get feeling back in her legs, and more so when Andy started rubbing them.
"She's so small," Miranda said absently, brushing Olivia's hair back. "It was so long ago that the twins were this small."
"And we've got two more even smaller," Andy chuckled. "I have no doubt that they'll both end up in here in time, but we'll worry about that then."
"We are childproofing the whole house," Miranda growled. "She should never have been able to reach those knives."
"Okay," Andy agreed, hoping the blame game wasn't going to come next.
"What if Samuel had found the bleach, or, or -"
"Hey," Andy soothed. "Hey, it's okay. She's okay, we're okay and all the kids at home are okay. You're stressed, tired and worried, but we're all okay.
"Miranda?"
They both looked up and saw a man in green scrubs standing at the door. Andy felt Miranda pause for a moment, then slide into being Miranda Priestly with ease, despite their position on the bed.
"Ah, Maxwell, I would say it is a pleasure to see you again, but as it happens -" she shrugged.
"Likewise," he smiled. "I understand I have an appointment with your nearest and dearest?"
"This is Olivia, she is my," she paused. "Our daughter. She was placed in my custody after her parents - my ex-husband Alec and his wife - passed away. They are as dear to me as my own."
"Okay," he said. "I am afraid I haven't had the pleasure," he said, looking over Miranda's shoulder and extending his arm. "Maxwell Smart and yes, I've heard all the jokes."
"Andy Sachs," Andy chuckled. She would have said more, but Miranda beat her to it.
"She is my partner, life partner," she corrected quickly. "Nothing is official, you understand. The press -"
"Say no more," he said. "My staff and I, as always, will be the very model of discretion."
"Good," Miranda kissed Olivia's hair. "Good."
"Well,we're ready for the little one. If you give her a kiss and get her comfortable in bed, I'll be back with my team in a few minutes to take her in."
They waited until he was gone to move, Andy shifted first, sliding out from behind Miranda and easing Olivia out of her arms.
"My arms are shaking," Miranda said quietly."
"Let's get her ready, we'll be okay." Andy said.
Olivia made a few token grizzles when Andy put her down, but Miranda and Andy's faces hovering above her made her relax again.
"Miranda's friend is going to fix your hand baby," Andy explained. "We'll be waiting for you. It won't hurt a bit."
"Am I going to die? Like Mommy and Daddy?"
"No," Andy said quickly, catching Miranda when her knees gave out. "No baby, not at all. You're going to go with the nice people and they're going to make you very sleepy and then you're going to wake up and come back out here with Miranda and me to eat Jello."
"Red Jello?" she asked, a little more alert at the thought.
"All the red Jello Andy and I can find," Miranda promised, bending to kiss Olivia's forehead, her cheeks and finally her lips. "We love you Olivia."
"Love you too M'anda," she muttered, already woozy again.
"I love you too Little Princess Livvy. See you soon."
"Wiv Jello?"
"With Jello cutey pie," Andy chuckled.
She stood, holding Miranda as the nurses wheeled Olivia into theatre. Maxwell nodded to them both, pausing at the door.
"Once we get started, we'll have more of an idea about how long the whole operation will take," he explained. "You're welcome to stay here, but there's a nurse's lounge on the floor above with decent coffee. We have your number and we'll update you as we go."
"Okay," Andy nodded. "Thanks."
They walked to the door with him and watched from the safety and privacy of the room. As the theatre doors closed, Andy felt Miranda trembling and remembered her comment about her arms.
"Are you in pain?" she asked, guiding Miranda to a chair.
"Just exhausted," Miranda whispered, sitting with her hands resting palm up on her thighs trembling slightly. "She is so small, I couldn't let go. I just couldn't and I thought if I -"
Andy knelt before Miranda and took her hands, leaning forward to press a kiss to Miranda's lips.
"It's okay, I understand," Andy whispered, her thumbs making tight circles on Miranda's palms. Miranda let her, and soon Andy was massaging up Miranda's arms and then onto her shoulders as well.
"I think we should hang out here to wait for her update, and we can ring the kids. Once we know more, we'll go for a little walk, and get coffee. What do you say?"
"I say that I had one hundred and one things to do today, but when I saw that blood I didn't even know what day it was. I couldn't think beyond it. I had to trust everyone to take care of it for me."
"That's good," Andy said gently, smoothing Miranda's brow with her thumb. "Don't look at me like that. You can trust Emily and Nigel. Between them, they'll take care of it, you know they will."
"I do not like the feeling of being out of control."
"I know," Andy whispered. "I know you don't."
An knock at the door separated them and Andy watched Miranda clawed back her resolve.
"Enter," she barked without checking that Andy was ready as well. "Yes?"
"Your daughter's surgery, at this stage, looks uncomplicated. Dr Smart will obviously be doing extensive exploration, but he requested I can tell you that he won't be less than an hour. He's going to send me out with another update later."
"Very well," Miranda said, moving to the bed.
"Thanks," Andy said with a smile. "We'll be in the nurses lounge upstairs if we're not here."
"She's okay," Andy breathed once the nurse had gone.
"No, no she is not. She is in surgery. She did not actually update us on the situation."
"Do you trust this Maxwell guy?"
"You know I rarely trust anyone."
"Well, he must be good, otherwise you wouldn't come to him. How'd you meet him?"
"At a benefit," Miranda explained. "Then a number of months later, Cassidy broke her arm."
"Well, he fixed that, I take it?"
"Yes, she was able to go about her life as normal after the surgery healed."
"So," Andy said gently. "Trust him with Livvy too."
Miranda was cracking, Andy could see it. She walked up behind the woman and wrapped her arms around Miranda's middle.
"I need you to hang on," Andy said. "I'm freaking out here; I've never done this."
"Sorry," Miranda muttered, sighing and leaning back against Andy's body. "She will be fine. I had not anticipated such a level of feeling."
"I understand," Andy said, kissing Miranda's neck. "Come, let me buy you a coffee and we'll ring the babies."
"Yes," Miranda said, patting Andy's hands where they rested over her stomach. "Let's do that."
Andy was thrilled when Miranda pecked her lips over her shoulder, but they walked from the room without touching. Andy even made sure to walk half a pace behind, knowing that while the hospital staff might know not to alert the press, the patrons were not so scrupulous.
"I'll bring it to you," And muttered, nodding to a set of easy chairs by the window. "Do you want something to eat?"
"No," Miranda whispered.
Andy made coffee, even knowing it wasn't Miranda's usual fare and messaged Roy to thank him for standing by while she couldn't, and to ask him to find the nearest Starbucks.
"Here we go," Andy said. "I have Roy on his way to Starbucks, but if you can manage a sip or two, it would probably help."
Miranda did as she was told, knocking back nearly half the mug before discarding it.
"Not your best work Andréa," Miranda smirked after a while.
"Hey, I just said I've got it covered." Andy smiled and reached across to squeeze Miranda's hand. "Feel better?"
"Marginally," Miranda admitted. "Thank you."
Andy sat smiling at her, trying to convey her feelings with looks alone and Miranda nodded and winked.
"I think we ought to call home before we get into trouble."
Grinning cheekily, and giggling when Miranda rolled her eyes, Andy pulled out her phone and pushed the speed dial for home.
"Andy? Andy! Is Olivia okay? What's happening? Nick's crying and Cara can't make him stop and I'm scared."
"Easy sweetheart," Andy said breaking into her speech mid breath. "Relax and breathe. Everything is fine."
"Is Mommy there?"
Seeing the break room was currently unoccupied, Andy got up and went to sit on the arm of Miranda's chair. She smiled when she was made to wiggle forward a bit to accommodate Miranda's arms around her hips and she tangled her fingers with her lover's and wrapped her other arm around Miranda's shoulders, locking them together.
"We should be more careful," Miranda uttered, away from the phone. "But," she looked up at Andy with the strangest look in her eye. "I am so glad you're here with me."
Andy died a little inside over how beautiful Miranda was, and what a privilege it was to be allowed to see her like this.
"I love you," And muttered kissing that crown of while.
"Apologies Caroline," Miranda said gently. "I'm right here."
"I'm scared," the girl said again, reminding Andy of just how young they were.
She rubbed her thumb over Miranda's shoulder as she sat and watched the mother in Miranda at work. It was a sight to behold.
"Are you okay Mommy?" Caroline asked after being given the downlow on Olivia.
"Oh Bobbsey, I am fine," Miranda said, a little unconvincingly in Andy's opinion.
"Cara asked if you could talk to Nicky?"
"Alright sweetheart, put him on."
Andy kissed Miranda's hair as Caroline went off to find Nick.
"You okay?" Andy whispered. "Roy will probably be here soon and we're due another update."
"Miranda this is Cara? Nick is a bit upset, I'm not sure what is wrong, he's not talking of course."
"That is alright," Miranda said smoothly. "Andréa is here, that will help."
And smiled at the compliment as they waited for Cara to pass the phone to their crying boy. Her heart broke as they heard a few sobs and Cara's prompting him to take the phone.
"Hey there Little Prince," Andy said gently, wishing she could hold him. Andy looked to Miranda, who shook her head and motioned for Andy to continue. "I know you're scared baby, but it's okay. Miranda and I are here with Livvy and hopefully we'll all be back for dinner, okay? And then we can read Benjamin Bunny before bed."
The little sobs and hiccups tapered off and Miranda reached up to tangle her free hand with Andy's, leaning more into her.
"Nicholas? I promise that even if Olivia is required to remain, one of us will be home to tuck you into bed tonight."
There was a brief pause before Cara came back on the line.
"Miranda? Andy? He seems a bit happier," she paused. "He's gone to get his book," Cara chuckled. "Is Olivia alright?"
"Admittedly, we have not heard much," Miranda said. "They have said that it will take no less than an hour, but we are planning on returning to her room soon for another update."
"Well, let us know what you find out," Cara said kindly. "We all miss her."
"I understand," Miranda said. "We will let you know."
"Alright, I'll speak to you soon then. No doubt you're eager to be back. The kids are fine; Sam and Cassidy are watching a film while Caroline reads. Nick is helping me, or shadowing me rather."
"Is Cass alright?" Andy blushed, glancing at Miranda. "She was a little upset about Liv."
"She's quiet, but seems fine," Cara said. "I can talk to her if you'd like?"
"We will do so when we return," Miranda said. "For now, we must go. Thank you Cara."
They hung up and Andy texted Roy for his whereabouts and to tell him they were going back to Olivia's room. When they returned, it was still empty, but Miranda stood at the bed, smoothing the covers until they were interrupted.
"Hey," Roy said, popping his head around the door. "I come bearing coffee." He brandished the Starbucks cups and stepped in the room. "And I know she'll only be here for a little while, but I dropped into the Townhouse and got her some clothes, books, that sort of thing."
Miranda took a shaky breath when she saw what was resting on top of the bag that he placed on the bed.
"Oh, yeah and that," Roy smiled. "Cassidy insisted."
"Oh God," Miranda breathed, grabbing the floppy, dog-eared, patchy, fluffy elephant and clutching it to her chest.
"I can't do this here," she growled, turning and slamming the bathroom door in Andy's face.
"Miranda?" Andy knocked. "Miranda, open the door." She could hear the water running, but Andy knew that trick too. She'd used it many a time to drown out her sobs. "Miranda open this door right now."
The lock eventually clicked and Andy left a note, seeing that Roy had disappeared, on the bed before going in. Miranda was on the floor, apparently having landed there somehow, clutching the stuffed elephant to her chest.
"I can't always be the strong one," she muttered. "I can't, not even I can do that."
"I know," Andy said. "That's the beauty of having a lover," she remembered Miranda's words from earlier. "A life partner. They get to be there for you when you're not. And I'm here Miranda. I'm right here."
Eventually Andy coaxed Miranda off the bathroom floor and lead her to the chair, sitting down first and pulling Miranda down into her lap.
"Cassidy got this from Jeremy's grandmother, her great-grandmother, when she was two. Since then, she has rarely let it out of her sight. Even now it must go everywhere with her, including their last school trip."
"Aw," Andy chuckled. "That's pretty cute."
"I have looked everywhere for a replacement, for years I've looked but knowing Saskia, she had it made, she has honestly never spent a night without it."
"Until now," Andy said.
Miranda hummed and leant back with a sigh.
"I abhor waiting," Miranda groaned.
"I know," Andy said, passing over the coffee. "Won't be that hot anymore though."
"I will suffer through it," Miranda grumbled.
The initial hour passed and then another forty five minutes before they saw any movement in the hall.
"I think that's us," Andy said, patting Miranda's thigh.
They stood, moving to the side of the room as they wheeled her in, Andy gripped Miranda's hand tightly and she pulled Miranda into her body when she heard the little squeak Miranda made when she saw Olivia hooked up to so many wires and machines.
"Miranda, Andy, everything went well. She came through the surgery perfectly and we've repaired everything we could. At this stage we're going to wait for her to wake up and have a bit of cuddle time before we come back and see what we have. If she has all the movement we need, there's a good chance she'll be able to go home tonight."
"That would be preferable," Miranda said. "The children at home would prefer us to be with them before bedtime."
"I know what that is like," he said kindly. "That was quite a while ago."
"How old are your children?" Andy asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.
"Seventeen and twenty two," he smiled.
"It has been an adjustment to go from having twin pre-teens to having babies again," Miranda sighed.
"I imagine so," Maxwell muttered. "You seem to be doing an admirable job Miranda, if I may say so. In fact, if you ever get a night off, Lauren and I would love your company for dinner."
The nurse made the final checks and Miranda rushed to Olivia's side without answering.
"We'd love to," Andy said with a smile. She pulled a card from her pocket. "Give us a call and we'll set something up."
"Of course," he said. "She'll be coming around any minute, I'll leave you to it. I'll be back later, after she's had a bite to eat."
"Oh," Andy said, smacking her forehead. "We promised her red Jello."
Maxwell laughed and patted her shoulder.
"Good luck," he chuckled. "I'm sure the nurse would accommodate you."
"Thanks."
He left them alone and Andy moved to Miranda's side, her hand coming to rest on the small of Miranda back as she checked on their little girl.
"Beautiful," Miranda muttered.
Andy had to agree.