Author's Note: So I'm posting this on the world's crappiest wifi connection, but it's done, and I won't make you wait until I'm back home to post! So, thank you all for your reviews on the last chapter, you're all the best!

While considering Rachel's big offer, I didn't need much more than a good night's sleep and another brief conversation with Brittany before calling Rachel to let her know that I'd do it, that I'd sing onstage and let people truly hear the voice behind Show Your Brave. Although I was definitely more than anxious about it, I was also kind of exorbitantly excited. It wasn't that I even wanted to ever sing professionally on stage, the unexpected change in my life path was far more fulfilling for me than that would have ever been, but there was definitely something to be said for the quick high than performing in front of an audience used to give me. Of course, knowing that I'd be singing something that I hadn't even performed for my wife until the morning I agreed to do it meant that even more work piled on top of what I was already doing, and for the next two weeks, my time spent at the piano nearly equaled that spent at the laptop. I tweaked notes, I worked on my pitch, and I nearly reduced myself to tears on multiple occasions at how much of myself I was pouring into every single word that I sang.

On the second Friday of April, I got up, as usual, to check my email, and while Brittany took Annie to school, I found myself back at the piano bench running through the song for probably the thousandth time. Given that we had a busy weekend ahead, it was probably one of the last opportunities I'd have before I had to go give a preview to Rachel and her people, so I just needed it to finally sound the way I was hoping. We were two weeks out from the big night, and I knew that the time was running out for final adjustments. Considering how fitting the new song was, especially since I had sort of started playing with it on the day I finally named the project, I didn't want to swap it out for something else I'd written, and I didn't want to perform a watered down version of what I knew it could be. Closing my eyes with my fingers dancing over the piano keys, I let the music course through me, sharpening a few notes, and when I sang the final verse, belting it out like my life depended on it, for the first time, I knew that it was as close to perfect as it was ever going to get.

"That was it." I opened my eyes at the sound of Brittany's clapping as she entered the room. "By far the best version I've heard."

"Yeah?" I turned around, smiling lazily. Even though I'd felt pretty damn good about it, it was always so nice to hear what Britt had to say. She was always honest with me about my music, and her nod of approval was definitely valuable.

"Totally. Rachel might regret asking you to sing, because not only are the words incredible, but your singing had basically always the most awesome in the entire world."

"You have to say that." I laughed as she sat down on the bench beside me and pecked at the keys. "You're my wife, it's the law or something."

"Maybe, but it's still true. I don't even think you understand how excited I am to see you up there."

"Oh, I do. You know how much I love watching you perform." I rested my head on her shoulder and she wrapped my arm around my waist, letting her hand fall to rest on my stomach.

"You've gotta go upstairs and get ready, if we're going to make it to class on time."

"I know. Are you nervous?"

"A little." Brittany confessed, giving me a soft smile. "I know I've got nothing really to worry about, but it feels like a big step, actually doing baby stuff."

"Yeah. I'm sorry that I've had us wait so long and now it feels like a bigger deal than it needs to be. I just wasn't ready."

"Honestly, I'm glad we did." She leaned down and placed soft kisses over the fabric of my shirt, despite already having said multiple good mornings to the baby. I loved it, I absolutely loved it more than anything, and I pressed two fingers to Brittany's cheek, silently telling her as much. "I feel better and better the bigger you get, and now the next twelve weeks are going to fly by. I can't even believe that we're in the third trimester now."

"Crazy, right? When I was so sick, I thought this pregnancy was never going to end, and now, I don't know, I'm like a little sad about how close it is. Who would have thought that me, of all people, would kind of secretly love being pregnant?"

"Me." She lifted her head, kissing my lips and placing her palms flat against my sides. "I knew you'd love being able to do this for our family, and you look more beautiful than you ever have while doing it. I know what you mean about feeling a little sad though, and it's normal, but man, when we get to hold this baby...I mean, I love holding you both like this, but I seriously am so excited about having a baby in my arms again."

"Yeah, I'm anxious for you to be able to hold them too. Seeing you hold our baby is one of my favorite sights in the world." I set my hands over hers, curling my fingers around them. "And obviously, I'm also excited for it to not feel like a gigantic task just to change my clothes."

"Don't try to convince me that you should go to birthing class in your pajamas. You're starting to sound like Annie." Britt joked, standing up and taking both of my hands, helping me off the bench. "C'mon, I'll help you."

"Well, then we'll definitely be late." I smirked, letting her lead me up the stairs.

Of course, I did manage to dress myself without Brittany's help, I wasn't actually invalid, just kind of lazy. Because the weather was beginning to warm up, and I desperately needed both the exercise and the fresh air, we'd decided to walk up to Gramercy, soaking up the first rays of springtime. I was actually really nervous about going to class, since even though we'd gone to a different type of birthing class before Annie was born, it was completely different thinking about a giant head coming out of my vagina, instead of worrying about how Brittany would feel while undergoing the same thing. Natural childbirth was going to be a bitch, there was no denying that, and as we walked, Britt squeezed my hand tightly sensing my apprehension, and causing me to relax slightly.

When we walked into the room at the birthing center where the class was being held, I was pretty impressed with how relaxing it was. Because Dr. Singh had been affiliated with Beth Israel back when Annie was born, we'd gone to that class in a room that looked like it could have been a high school classroom, stark white walls, linoleum floors with tiny area rugs to sit on, a vaguely antiseptic scent. But this place, it was different, and similar to what we'd seen of the delivery rooms, lavender grey walls, low lighting and plush carpets. Brittany grabbed us a stack of literature (even though we probably already had it all, it couldn't hurt to double up), and a cup of maternity tea for me before she sat down on the floor where two other couples had started to form a circle, placing the pillow she'd brought from home against her body and patting the floor between her legs. I smiled goofily at her before settling myself in that spot and leaning back into her body, sipping the the hot tea as I let her fingers work at the persistent knot in my lower back.

"Ugh, thank you." I moaned a little bit, arching slightly at the pressure, and I laid my head on her shoulder, looking up at her face. "That feels so good babe."

"Your muscles are so tight." She frowned, and I set my free hand on her thigh, sort of bracing myself . "I wish I knew how to make you relax."

"I'm trying, I really am. It's just been like, jitters, for months. Pre-pregnancy jitters, something is going to go wrong jitters, you know."

"I do, and you know I feel them too, but I just want to put you in a room full of marshmallows and soft music and let you clear your mind?"

"Marshmallows? Why marshmallows?"

"Why not? They're like better tasting clouds, how could you not be relaxed in a room full of marshmallows?"

"Okay, fair enough." I giggled, kissing her chin, since it was the only thing I could reach in my position. "Find me a room full of marshmallows, and I'll gladly go rest there for a while."

"Don't tempt me, you may come home one day and find our bathtub full."

"Which wouldn't surprise me in the slightest."

Breaking free of my Brittany bubble and looking around, I actually smiled at the five other couples that had gathered and settled. Dr. Singh led the small classes of her patients herself (and expected the other doctors in her practice to do the same), something I appreciated as both a patient and someone who was building a concept from the ground up. She hadn't created the center to make a ton of money and then detached herself, she'd built it because she actually believed in her methods and was a damn good doctor (not that I was at all biased because she'd saved my wife and daughter or anything). It wasn't long before she came into the room, sitting cross legged on the floor between Britt and me and an extremely peppy redhead and her khaki clad husband, dressed more casually than I'd ever seen her, in just jeans and a nice blouse. Nervous energy coursed through my body, and a hand immediately clasped mine without question, Brittany's thumb working circles on the inside of my wrist.

"Good morning everybody!" Dr. Singh announced. "I know that you all know me, and I know each of you, but why don't you all go around and introduce yourselves."

"Hey." I spoke first when the doctor looked at us to start. "I'm Santana Lopez-Pierce."

"And I'm her wife, Brittany." Britt chimed in, giving a small wave before returning her hand to circle where the baby was moving with a grin. It was one of those things neither of us had ever tired of, introducing ourselves as each other's wives, especially when it had anything to do with our kids. "Dr. Singh delivered our daughter almost five years ago, so this is baby number two for us, but Santana's first time carrying, and also our first time dealing with this method of childbirth."

"Lucky you." The tall brunette across from me laughed and gave what I hoped was a teasing glare at the man knelt down behind her, who kept sneaking glimpses at his Blackberry. "You've got a partner who's actually been through it, and gets on a different kind of level why you're acting like a complete psycho."

"Britt's the best." I shrugged, kind of wanting to brag, but knowing I would totally be the most annoying one in the class if I did. I'd leave things like that up to Rachel.

"So were you, babe." She grinned, and I blushed a little bit.

"You know, this is a big part of our method here." Dr. Singh interrupted our little gush-fest. "It has nothing to do with the gender of your partner, or whether or not they've given birth themselves, it's about connecting with one another. Obviously, the woman giving birth is actively involved in what's going on, but there's no reason her partner can't take an active role as well. In fact, childbirth can also be a really intimate experience in your relationship as a couple."

"We are so going to ace this class." I whispered to Britt, and she laughed softly.

"My beautiful perfectionist. I'm pretty sure we don't get a grade." She whispered back, quickly kissing behind my ear. "But if we did, we totally would. No one knows about connection the way we do."

The others went around and introduced themselves, and Brittany gave me a well timed kiss to the shoulder and dug her fingers just a little bit harder into my lower beck each time she knew I was going to roll my eyes at something that was said (because she was totally internally rolling hers too). Kyra, the redhead who was sitting on the Dr. Singh's other side was just having the perfect pregnancy, with absolutely no complaints whatsoever, or at least in her words. Her husband's face told a completely different story, and I bit back a laugh. I was happy to be pregnant, there was no denying that, I loved growing our Bug inside if me, but still, pregnancy in general is no picnic. Even if I hadn't been sick for weeks, even if my hands and feet weren't swollen and my back didn't ache, I was still carrying around another person, that takes a toll on you physically and emotionally. I wasn't the only one who resisted scoffing at perfect Kyra, Brittany pressed her chin against my back, because even her great pregnancy had it's pitfalls, and Deanna, the woman across from us who's husband had finally put away his Blackberry, caught my eye, her own dancing with the same shut up expression that I was all too used to giving.

Once Dr. Singh went through her spiel on preterm labor (during which, Brittany's arms tightened around me and the doctor was obviously avoiding looking at the two of us), and how to tell Braxton Hicks contractions from true labor, I was eternally grateful that we didn't have to watch that damn video of a woman giving birth that we'd seen in our first birthing class. Instead, she had us face our partners much in the way Britt and I did when we meditated at home, an exercise that the me of five years ago totally would have made fun of in public, rather than thinking it was kind of a nice way to start the class, expressing our love for each other and for our unborn child. Following Dr. Singh's instructions, Britt rested her hands above mine where the baby was moving, and let just our pinkies graze, occasionally hooking them together.

"Okay." Dr. Singh looked around the room, once we'd all kind of shuffled into the position we'd been asked to. "You may think this has nothing to do with childbirth, but we do things differently around here, and before we can go any further, I want each of you to share something that you appreciate about your partner. For most couples, things get stressful and hectic at the end of a pregnancy, during childbirth, and with a newborn in the house, so this is an important foundation for the next few months of your lives. "

"I'll go first." Britt said softly, her forehead close to mine, but not quite touching it. "Thank you, Santana, for carrying our new baby, for keeping them safe, for being an amazing mother to our Annie, for being an incredible wife to me. And most importantly, for sticking to your convictions about doing things this way, because I'm so proud of you for that."

"Thank you, Brittany, for helping me get to a point were I could sit in a room like this and not make fun of the weird hippy love stuff." I started, and the corner of Britt's mouth turned up. "And to the point where I actually like this hippy love stuff, because I really love the idea of this experience being about the two of us. And thank you for making me feel like I was capable of carrying our baby, because I never would have felt that way without you."

Quickly touching my lips to hers, I let Brittany brush a stray strand of hair from my face and settled back in between her legs for the next part of the class. Again, I glanced around the room at the other pairs, waiting for them to finish their own declarations to each other. Dr. Singh was right, I absolutely knew firsthand the stress that came with having a baby, and she, along with the counselors in the NICU had encouraged Brittany and I to do little things for each other during the difficult times after Annie's birth, something I truly believe benefitted us so much more than we realized at the time. Glancing over my shoulder, I smiled at her again, and she laced her fingers with mine over my naval, as Dr. Singh smiled and nodded as the others finished up.

"Alright. Now that we're all on the same page with remembering how important your partner is to you, let's talk about what I'm sure none of you are really looking forward to, the actual act of giving birth naturally."

"I bet Kyra is." I whispered to Brittany. "It's sure to be beautiful and magical, and not at all painful."

"She's probably imagining her vagina opening like a flower as we speak." Britt stifled her laugh against my shoulder.

"I love you for quoting Friends right now."

"Well, I figured in case you were nervous talking about this, it might help."

"It does." I smiled. "Thanks."

"Now, ladies, I'd be lying to all of you if I told you that the pain wasn't going to be that bad, or that there's any one method that will help you get through it. It's different for every single person, but the biggest, most important thing is that you remember to breathe, and you focus on the end result. After the pushing, the pain and the possible screaming is over, the baby you've waited nine months, or probably even longer for will be in your arms. That's the most important thing you can set your mind on."

"Yeah, remind me of that when I feel like I'm being torn from the inside out." I mumbled into Britt's neck.

"I will, but please stop reading firsthand accounts of childbirth on the Internet."

"Just trying to be prepared."

"And that's why we're here, with a licensed medical professional."

"Aren't loud noises in the delivery room detrimental to the baby?" I couldn't even resist sucking my teeth when Kyra said that, and Britt let out a tiny giggle in my ear. I mean, seriously, this woman was beyond ridiculous. Go ahead, Katie Holmes, have a silent birth, and maybe you should make sure your baby isn't born at the same time mine is, because I was pretty sure I'd be screaming Spanish obscenities loud enough for her baby to hear in utero, in a different hospital, maybe in a different country.

"There are different theories on that." Dr. Singh said diplomatically. "But in the research I've done on the subject, mothers who hold in their intense emotions during delivery actually bring on an increase in their stress levels, which is detrimental in it's own right."

"Well, there will be no worries about that from me." I told Britt, chuckling a little. "I'll scream enough for both of us."

"Babe, look at her." Britt breathed into my hair. "You are way tougher than her. There's actually no possible way that you're going to act like more of a diva in there than she will."

"Okay, fair. I mean she does have a ring on that's gotta be at least ten karats. Is she a rapper's wife? Or trying to cut a bitch? Because even then, it's kind of unnecessary." I didn't even hold back my eye roll, and Britt snorted loudly, causing everyone to turn and look at us.

"Sorry." She muttered, and I could feel her skin heating up in embarrassment.

"It's my fault." I told everyone. "I'm just nervous and Britt was helping calm me down. We'll stop and focus."

We did manage to behave for the rest of the class, mostly because I had too much respect for Dr. Singh to be rude. The thing was though, all the things that I thought would help me feel calmer about the actual act of giving birth, considering that I'd been so distracted by the thought of something terrible happening while pregnant I'd barely had time to consider, actually made my anxieties rise. As Britt guided me through the breathing exercises (more meditative and focused than Lamaze), and the doctor talked about why the rooms had double beds, so Britt could climb up and hold me during the early stages if labor, I tried to picture our baby, tried not to picture my insides twisting in agony, and mostly, tried not to think about the fact that I didn't do well with physical pain, and how much I didn't want my wife to have to get all tough love on me if I started begging and pleading for some kind of relief. Somehow, I managed to be polite and say goodbye to everyone when the class ended, but I felt like I was in some kind of a daze when we made it outside.

When Brittany asked if I was alright, I brushed off her concerns. Really, I just needed a little time to process my emotions before I could talk about them, as was typical of me, and she understood that, concern briefly flickering in her blue eyes before she pressed a lingering kiss to my temple and wrapped an arm protectively around my ever expanding waist for our walk home. It was calming to breathe in the spring air, and I was grateful that would really have time to stew in my emotions with the afternoon we had ahead of us. Opening the door, Liz was sprawled out on our couch with a textbook, having let herself in after her bus ride from Boston. Barely missing a beat, she basically rolled off the couch and launched herself at me, placing her hands on each of my sides, looking very much like Susan was she surveyed my body, before engulfing my fully in a hug.

"Tana, you look so good!" She gushed. "You're huge, in the best kind of way! How are you feeling? How's the baby? Do you need anything?"

"I'm fine, Lizzie." I laughed, kissing her cheeks like the good big sister-in-law I was. "I'm so glad you're here."

"So am I! I really needed a weekend away, and I needed to see Annie, and see for myself how you were doing, since it's basically all Mom talks about."

"Nice that I'm chopped liver." Brittany teased, but the lopsided grin on her face gave away how thrilled she was that no one could stop talking about the new baby Lopez-Pierce.

"Shut up, Britt." Lizzie moved toward her sister, and Britt squeezed her tightly. "When you're lugging around my godson, I'll hug you first."

"It's your goddaughter." Britt corrected, and Liz looked at me.

"I still say it's a boy." I shrugged. "But Britt's convinced otherwise."

"You know Mom and Mari have a bet, right?"

"Of course they do." Brittany laughed, and I rolled my eyes.

"They're probably betting on how many times I've used the bathroom today. With all the money they bet, they're going to end up buying these kids a damn Toys R Us."

"What's the latest tally of who thinks what?"

"It's me, Maribel and Rachel who say girl. You, Santana and Mommy say boy. Quinn refuses to answer, which means she thinks boy, because she won't give San the satisfaction of being on her side."

"So we're winning!" Lizzie clapped her hands. "Can't we do the wedding ring test to get a real result?"

"No." I said firmly, shaking my head as I reached into my sweatshirt to wrap my hand around the band. "Absolutely not."

"She's superstitious Liz, you know this. And besides, if we really wanted to know, we'd just ask Dr. Singh."

"I know, I know. I'm just excited to find out."

"Only three more months." I rubbed my belly, pressing my sister-in-law's hand against it as the baby gave a hard kick. Her eyes widened and she broke into a grin. "Besides, this kid lives in my body, I should know, which means we are totally right."

"Sure, just ask my mom. She was convinced Liz was a boy, and unless there's something no one is telling me, she was wr-ong." Britt sing-songed, wiggling her butt in a sort of pre-victory dance. "Trust me, me and our baby chat, I'm sure it's a girl."

"Oh really?" I raised my eyebrow, challenging her. "Care to wager?"

"We share money, we've already established that we can't make bets with each other."

"Who said anything about money?" I smirked. "I can think of something way better to bet."

"Eww, gross." Lizzie feigned gagging. "If this is some sort of weird sexual currency thing, please save it for your own time."

"Why does everyone always think we are talking about sex?" I whined, dropping down onto the couch.

"Because you usually are?"

"Not even true." I huffed. "And also, we don't use sex as a pawn. That's like rule number one in our marriage. I'm talking about the one household chose we both hate more than anything."

"Dishes!"

"Exactly, babe. Loser does all the dishes for two months. And that starts after I recover, because if you choose not to let me do things, that so doesn't count."

"Deal." She laughed, dropping down beside me and pressing a kiss on my lips to seal it. "That's how sure I am."

"Oh my God." Liz groaned. "You two are seriously worse than our moms, betting dishes on the sex of your unborn child. You should be ashamed."

"We should be." Britt nodded. "But we're totally not."

After Liz had showered and changed into clothes other than the ones she'd worn on the bus, the three of us went to get Annie at school. She was totally bouncing off the walls as she showed her aunt the classroom, introduced her to Callie, and finally, excitedly dragged her over to meet Thoreau and Chris. As we got into a cab, to go over to go uptown, her excitement was still bubbling forth from her, and I smiled, content to listen to her stream of chatter even as we walked into Pottery Barn Kids. Lizzie was kind of the cutest thing as she wandered around the store, her little niece just about attached to her hip. At my sister-in-law's age, and even at three years older, when we'd first gone shopping for things for Annie, I never would have been such a good sport, let alone have been the one who suggested the shopping had it not been for my own kid. She was so excited, so honored to be the baby's godmother, of rather, one of her godmothers, since we'd picked the two most important people in my life to be Annie's, I'd wanted Liz and Quinn, the two most important in Brittany's, to be the godparents of our new baby. Our kids had two mothers, we both figured two godmothers was perfectly acceptable.

"Mama! Mamí!" Annie cried out excitedly, running toward us with Liz hot on her heels and her hands full. "Look what we found! Unicorn towels with horns! And they got them in my size and baby size! Can we get them? Please?"

"Well, bebé." I took the pink towels out of her hands and smiled to myself at how adorable they actually were. "What if the baby is a boy baby?"

"Boys can like unicorns, Mamí." Annie looked at me like I was absolutely insane for thinking otherwise. "And boys are 'llowed to wear pink, just like I got a blue dress on and I'm a girl."

"She's right, you know." Britt laughed in my ear. "And it's a towel. Even if you're right and it's a boy, which you're not, we don't have to bring our son out in a unicorn dress or anything."

"They're great, Annalise." I kissed the tip of her nose, and then she moved so her face was close to my stomach. Obviously, we were raising Annie without being hetereonormative and gendernormative, so if she wanted to put her possible baby brother in pink, it meant that we were actually doing what we'd set out to do. "It'll be so awesome for you two to match."

"You hear that, baby?" She giggled, kissing twice below my belly button. "We get to match, and we get unicorn towels. That's the best thing ever!"

"If that's not proof you're doing an awesome job, I don't know what is." Lizzie beamed, lifting Annie onto her hip as I tossed the towels into the cart Britt was pushing.

"Thank you," I said quietly to Liz. My own prejudices were difficult to quell, Britt was so much better about it than I was, but a compliment like that, knowing other people, even if it was just Brittany's sister, seeing how hard we tried, meant so much to me. "Mija, ready to go pick out what we're going to do in the baby's room?"

"Course, Mamí. That's the best part. 'Cause they're not big and can't get a Wizard of Oz room like me."

"No." Britt laughed, kissing Annie in her sister's arms. "That's something special for you, but we can still pick them our something super special, and just as exciting."

"Okay, let's go!" Annie clapped her hands, and I held the side of the cart as Britt pushed us in the right direction.

It was over an hour and approximately sixteen million choices before we'd finally settled on a sea animal theme for the nursery. Not only would the colors go great with Annie's old furniture and the new glider, but also, I liked the idea of a sea theme, since I'd sang The Little Mermaid to Britt on the night we'd decided to make Bug a reality, and also, Britt loved gay sharks, obviously. I had totally forgotten how much stuff was actually needed (and we hadn't even made a trip to Home Depot for paint, or Buy Buy Baby for other necessities), but our cart was filled with sheets, bumpers, blankets, freaking lamps, like our baby was going to switch on the light and read Crime and Punishment, and all kinds of decorative accessories. When we finally made it to the register, my feet aching from a long day, and Britt rubbing my back as Annie rode in the cart getting irritable because she was hungry, Liz whipped out her credit card to pay.

"Put it away, Liz." Brittany ordered, slapping her hand away as she dug into her purse for one of ours.

"Britt, I'm buying this stuff. You guys don't want a shower, it's the least I can do."

"Not happening." I shook my head. "You go to school all the time, you work part time bartending to pay for what your loans won't cover. You're not buying our over the top expensive baby crap."

"Over the top baby crap for my nephew...or niece." She added when I shot her a look. We wanted Annie far removed from the great gender debate, although the smug look on my wife's face both when our daughter came with the pink towels and when she asked if we could get ladybug bedding seemed proof that Annie was, either subconsciously or not, on her Mama's side of the issue. "Please?"

"Nope." Britt popped her p and elbowed her sister as she slid her American Express card into the cashier's hand. "When you're the youngest, hottest District Attorney that Boston has ever seen, you can buy us whatever you want. Until then, it's really important to us that you don't waste your money. The more you spend, the more you have to work, and the less time you have to study. You know we are personally vested in your career choice."

"Ugh, I swear, it's like having two extra moms with you guys. Fine, but I'm buying Annie the biggest ice cream cone I can find."

"Yay!" Annie perked up from where her head leaned against the handlebar of the cart. "Thank you, Auntia Lizzie!"

"Well, no one said you couldn't buy the baby ice cream." I groaned teasingly, making a dramatic show of rubbing my belly.

"Okay ice cream Annie and for Santana." Liz laughed.

By the time we got ice cream, and made it home, we quickly stacked the new baby things in the nursery (and by we, I totally mean Brittany and Liz, with a little help from Annie) before leaving the house again for dinner. I was exhausted and would have been totally happy with peanut butter and jelly in my pajamas, and sneaking in maybe a half hour of work, but Liz never had time to come see us when there wasn't some kind of event, so I powered through. When we made it to La Mela, the only restaurant that I actually thought was good in Little Italy, I sat down, taking Annie onto my lap for a little while, feeling like I hadn't really gotten my snuggle time with her for the day. She hugged me tight, resting her already sleepy head against my chest, and I just listened for a few minutes to the conversation between Brittany and Lizzie. When we ordered the food, I finally put Annie down in her own seat before buttering bread for the two of us, and out of the corner of my eye, catching the looks that the waiter was sending in Liz's direction.

"Liz." I kicked her leg under the table and cocked my head in his direction. "He's totally checking you out."

"No, he's not." Liz shook her head. "Stop."

"Britt, back me up on this one." I requested, and Brittany gave a subtle glance to the waiter and broke into a grin.

"He totally is!" She said just a little too loudly, and her sister buried her face in her hands. "Ooh, let's get his number for you."

"Oh my God, you two have just gone from mom status to grandma status, trying to set me up with the freaking waiter. Not happening."

"I take offense to you calling us grandmas." I reached across the table and cheekily pinched Lizzie's cheek. "C'mon, he's cute for you, and it's about time you move on after Christian."

"I live in Boston." She weakly defended.

"We're not asking you to marry him, Lizzie. But you're kind of uptight sometimes and you could really use some...you know." I raised my eyebrows suggestively, casting a quick glance to my daughter who was engaged with her crayons.

"Clearly that works so well for you." Liz shot back. "A long distance relationship with a waiter really isn't my thing."

"New York to Boston is hardly long distance, maybe he's the unknown love of your life, and he could be in medical school for all you know, waiting tables like you tend bar."

"Man, you really are a grandma, Santana. Look at that handsome potential doctor there, Eliza. You ought to snap him up right quick and get to baby making."

"Oh, please. I don't sound like that. We just have your best interests at heart, and know that you have terrible taste in men."

"And what if I told you I was dating someone that I'm pretty sure the two of you would actually like?" She nearly mumbled, and Britt's eyebrows shot up.

"What?" My wife shrieked, causing Annie to look up from her drawing and about five waiters to look strangely in our direction. "Why don't we know about this?"

"Hmmm. I wonder." Lizzie rolled her eyes for probably the dozenth time of the day. "You two always react so well to anyone I'm dating. Especially Santana."

"Tell. Us. Everything." Brittany ordered, leaning closer to Liz for the big reveal.

"Ugh. Fine." She feigned complaint, but I could see her nervous excitement. Clearly, things were more serious than she seemed to be letting on, and had definitely been going on for a decent amount of time. "His name is Max, we met in class at the beginning of the semester. He's from Pittsburg, and he wants to be a human rights lawyer."

"Ooh!" Britt clasped her hands together to resist clapping them. "Step up from Mr. Corporate Lawyer. Someone who actually cares about others."

"And what's his deal?" I narrowed my eyes, not convinced.

"Oh, here we go." Liz sighed and Britt giggled. "I've already warned him that my sister-in-law will try and threaten him, but really, he should be afraid of my sister if he messes with me."

"Hey, I would totally take anyone who tried to hurt you." I pouted, and Britt leaned over to give me a quick kiss.

"Right, you're six months pregnant, still only weigh like a hundred-thirty pounds and waddle when you walk. Scary." Liz did some kind of jazz hands and Brittany gave her a stern look before flicking her. "Anyway, he's a really nice guy, he treats me well, and respects that I have my own career ahead of me. As much as I may regret this, I'm ready for him to meet everyone, and was hoping I could bring him with me to the benefit."

"You so chose that because Santana will be distracted and won't embarrass you."

"I'm not embarrassing." I gathered Annie's crayons up as the forgotten about waiter set down our plates. "Right, mi amor?"

"No way, Mamí. You're the best!" Annie said loyally, and I kissed the top of her head.

"Wait a few years, Annalise. You'll see."

"Liz, don't." Brittany warned, then blew Annie a kiss. "Your Mamí will always be the best, baby girl."

"And my Mama too!"

"Thank you sweetheart."

"I'll get you a ticket for him." I promised Liz. "But don't think I'll ever be too distracted to give your boyfriends the eye. You know how much you mean to me, Lizzie. I just don't like seeing you get hurt."

"I know, Tana. And I appreciate that, so much. But I really do think you'll like Max, and if know he's going to love you three."

"Psht, who doesn't?" Brittany scoffed, and while she cut Annie's meatballs, I totally took the opportunity to steal some of her eggplant and put it on my own plate.

After dinner, we ended up calling it an early night, with Annie falling asleep in Brittany's arms on the cab ride home, and Liz immediately retiring to the guest room with her textbooks and her cell phone ("To call your boyfriend." Brittany had teased). Britt and I laid in bed for a while, me on my side with her fingers working into my back again, just reconvening on baby class, shopping, Liz's love life, and the fact that the garlic from dinner was giving me wicked heartburn. Once Brittany fell asleep, I watched her for a while before turning on my back and setting my attention to my own thoughts. As tired as I was, I couldn't fall asleep, and after over an hour of spiraling further and further into anxiety about giving birth, I started gently placing kisses on Brittany's neck. I wasn't one of those women who'd wake my wife up because I needed a snack, that I could handle on my own, so Britt knew that when I woke her from sleep, it was usually for one if two things; sex (which was happening more and more frequently) or the urgent need to have a conversation. It probably, no, definitely could have waited until the morning, but I wasn't going to sleep until I got it out, and I knew that she'd want me to wake her up rather than stew in it.

"Britt." I whispered in her ear. "Britt, are you awake."

"Mmhm, give me a second." She rasped, knowing that since we'd come up with the code of me kissing her neck to wake her, it wasn't a life or death situation. Waiting, I rested my head against her chest and sighed as she started slowly running her fingers through my hair. "What do you need?"

"Just can't sleep." I shrugged against her, trying to twist my body so I could look at her face.

"You're thinking about June, aren't you." She asked, and I nodded slowly.

"I'm just...I'm so scared Brittany."

"Tell me what you're scared of honey."

"Everything." I confessed shakily, fisting her long t-shirt. "What if I can't do it?"

"You can." She said simply, and I shook my head.

"No, no. I know I can do it, obviously. I mean, I have the right parts to deliver a baby. I mean, what if I can't do it right? What if I feel too vulnerable and say horrible things to you when you won't let them give me the drugs? What if I ruin what's supposed to be some kind of beautiful, intimate experience?"

"Hey." She cupped my cheek and kissed me softly, letting our noses rub together. "I know that you have all these expectations for how things are going to go in there, but if we've learned anything, it's that things never go the way they're expected. Do you know what the only two things I care about are when you give birth?"

"What?"

"You making it to full term, and you acting however it is you need to act to get through it. I don't actually believe that you're going to say anything horrible to me, but if you do, I know it's only because you're scared and hurting and don't know how to handle all those intense feelings. No matter what, you and me are in this together, and that's intimate enough for us. San, baby, I don't think being in the delivery room is going to be like we're on a date, and you're going to rub my leg under the table or whisper your undying devotion to me." She laughed softly and I felt a smile grace my lips. "You're going to yell and scream and cry, and that's okay, because I'll hold your hand, and I'll kiss you and I will whisper my undying devotion to you, since I know that will help you feel more secure and less vulnerable. And you're going to look in my eyes, and you're going to feel that I'm your anchor. I know things are going to be different this time around, but when I was terrified, that's what got me through, seeing your eyes and hearing you tell me that you love me. There's really nothing in the world more intimate than that."

"It's really gonna fucking hurt, Britt."

"Yeah, I know. I'm not trying to minimize it at all Santana, but after the things you've been through, you're so strong, and I know that you're going to do so well. I know that you're afraid of demanding drugs, but I've made you a promise once, and I'll promise it again. No matter what you say, no matter what you do, I'll never break a promise I've made to you, especially one as important as this."

"I really meant what I said today, that I appreciate how glad I am that this is about both of us. The idea of you doing your magic Brittany thing makes me feel a lot better. I swear, if you wanted a ridiculous ten karat ring, I'd totally buy you one, I love you so damn much."

"Maybe you should scrap your awesome song and rap at the benefit them, because you know I find your rapping skills crazy hot, then after you yell at me in the delivery room you can buy me some ice to make it up to me, you weirdo." She teased, twisting her ring on my finger.

"Shut up." I laughed, her teasing making calming me down.

"I love you, no matter what, Santana, and I know that you love me no matter what. That alone means that were going to be awesome together in there."

"God do I hope so."

"We always are, San, always." She held me tight in her arms, kissing my face, my eyelids, and the top of my head until I managed to finally fall asleep.