Delivery

Everyone was hard at work, to rescue the baby whose neck was surrounded by the cord. Edward was frantic, begging the rest of the medical team to please hurry. Carlisle used his vampire hearing to pinpoint the location of the first cut, then offered his opinion kindly to the attending physician. Luckily, Dr. Parker was willing to heed his friend's advice, and the baby was rescued. Soon, they had both children delivered, and Edward was giddy with relief. His huge smile split his face in two, as he held each baby in turn.

"Look at my boys!" he sang, "Such beautiful, big boys! I can't wait for Bella to wake up and meet our sons. Thank you so much, Jim and Carlisle - you both did a wonderful job delivering them." The two doctors beamed their appreciation of Edward's kind words. Laughing joyfully, Edward ran out the doors to the main lobby to share the news with his family. Several hugs and kisses later, everyone headed to the viewing window, to catch a glimpse of the twins.

Edward could not stop smiling. He was fairly dancing on his feet, hopping back and forth from person to person, pointing at his sons. Esme and Elizabeth parked themselves directly in front of the window, so they could stare at the babies. Carlisle and Edward Sr. grinned and winked at Edward, wrapping their arms around him with pride. A nurse came into the babies' room, and held up each boy in turn, to let everyone see them more closely. Another nurse came into the hall, to let Edward know that Bella was waking up.

He ran down the hall to see his wife. Stepping into her room, he slowed down, and stepped carefully over to her. "Are you okay, my love?" he asked. "Yes," she answered weakly, "How are our babies?" Edward's face split in two again, as he laughed with glee, "They are GORGEOUS, my love. You did it! We have two beautiful baby boys!"

"Boys!" she breathed, "I can't believe it! Edward, I love you so much. I need to see my babies!" They kissed and he held her gently, stroking her face, and staring into her eyes. "I can't believe it either. It's just an absolute miracle, my love." He kissed her again, then told her that he would check with the doctor about letting her see their sons.

She was still very weak from the surgery, so as soon as he stepped away, she fell asleep again. When he came back in the room with the doctor, he told Edward, "Let's wait until tomorrow. Let her sleep for now." Edward was wide awake himself, and could not sit still. He gently kissed her forehead, and checked to make sure she was comfortable. Then, he stepped back out to the viewing area to see his sons.

The next day, Bella woke to find Edward sitting in the chair beside her bed, resting his head on his hand, as he snored loudly. She giggled, and tried to sit up, but soon realized that her body would not allow this yet. Looking at the bedside table, she noticed the little bell. She grabbed it and shook it gently. Edward slept on, and Bella giggled again. A nurse stepped into the room, and offered her congratulations on the birth of the twins. Bella smiled with joy, and begged to see them. The nurse looked over at Edward, noticing that he was sleeping, and chuckled. "I'll go and get them for you," she offered.

Bella wished that Edward would wake up. She reached over to ring the bell again, but dropped it to the floor instead. Edward's eyes flew open, and he pushed himself to a standing position, "Are my boys okay?" he demanded. Bella laughed, "Well good morning to you too, sleepyhead." Edward rubbed his face, and looked at her sheepishly. "Sorry love. I was up all night, because I was so excited. How are you feeling?" He came to stand beside her, leaned in, kissed her cheeks and stroked her hair, wrapping it behind her ears.

The knock at the door got both of their attention, so they turned to have a look. Coming in the door were two nurses, with babies in tow. Bella's eyes filled with tears, and her face glowed in admiration. "My babies! Let me see them!" Edward reached out to hold one of them, and brought him close to Bella's face. "Say hello to your baby boy," he crooned, his tears flowing as well.

He asked the other nurse to bring their other son to the opposite side of the bed. Stepping around, she held him up in front of Bella, matching Edward's stance on the other side. Bella wept, and placed her hands on the babies little bellies. They were so adorable! She could not believe that she had carried both of them inside herself. She looked over at Edward, and just exploded with joy. "My darling! Look at our lovely little family!"

He beamed in response. "Well, now that they are out in the world, it's time to give them a name. Have you made your decision, my dear?" They had been discussing names for quite a while now. It was a difficult decision, since they didn't know if they would have two boys, two girls, or a mixed set. Now that they knew it was two boys, it was time to decide. "How about Jack and Zack?" she asked. Edward nodded his head, "I like those names. Good strong names. So, let's pinpoint the full names, darling."

After a while the babies started whimpering, and Bella knew they were hungry. She wanted to nurse them, and asked Edward to help her sit up a little in the bed. Some other nurses came in to help, and Bella was finally in a position where she could comfortably attempt to nurse them. Edward watched in fascination, biting his lower lip, as the nurses showed Bella how to help the babies latch on to her nipple. It took some time and trial and error, but after a bit, both babies were attached at the same time, with Bella holding them like footballs on either side. Edward laughed at the sight, and leaned in to kiss her face quickly. "Look at you!" he exclaimed. Bella was proud, and smiled with joy.

While the boys nursed, Bella and Edward were silent, amazed by their newborn sons. When both boys were satisfied, the nurses showed the new parents how to burp the babies. Now that they were fed, the babies were sleepy, so they were carried back to the nursery to rest. Edward helped Bella lie back down again, and get covered up. They were so content, in love, and blown away with the experience of having twin sons. It was going to be a lot of work taking care of them, but they were both young and strong. They felt a bit overwhelmed, but knew that their family and friends would help, as well as their hired servants.

With all of these things on their minds, they held each others hands, and discussed the future. Bella laughed again, "Edward, we never finished naming the boys!" He chuckled, "Oh my gosh, you're right. Let's see. I remember that you wanted to use Charlie's name for a boy, right? And I want to use Edward for one of them as well." At the mention of Charlie, Bella's face collapsed into tears. "Oh Edward! I wish Charlie could see the boys!" Poor Bella's emotions were pulled in such powerful journeys. Joy and sorrow had to share the same home, and it was a difficult transit. Edward wrapped her in his arms, and soothed her tears, "Darling, I'm so sorry."

There were many such times over the next few days. Bella was busy, nursing the boys, and resting to heal her body from the surgery. Edward had to force her to eat, and kept himself busy helping with the boys, talking to visitors, and walking down the hall to discuss his patients with the other doctors who were covering for him. Esme pulled him aside one day, to tell him to slow down and enjoy his sons and Bella more. He needed to hear this advice, and hugged her with appreciation. "You're right, Esme. Thanks for reminding me."

Bella was in the hospital for quite some time, healing from her surgery. Cesarean deliveries were not often done in the 1920s, so it was up to Edward and Carlisle to enforce the treatments they knew were best. Carlisle examined Bella's stitches closely, and tutted his disapproval on the first day. The stitches could have been much smaller, but at least Bella was healthy. Edward promised that he loved her anyway, no matter what the stitches looked like.

On the fourth day of Bella's hospitalization, Edward was feeding her breakfast, and eating his own on a separate tray. The twins were sleeping in the nursery, so this was a rare time of privacy for the two of them. Dr. Parker came into the room to talk to them about the results of Bella's surgery. While the new parents ate, he gave them advice about parenting, how to deal with the boys healing navels and circumcisions, as well as when the two of them would be able to have sex again. They thanked him for his advice, and continued their meal.

When he left the room, Bella smiled at Edward, "Okay...let's choose the names!" They both laughed at this constant unresolved issue. After a few minutes of back and forth discussion, they had both names ready. Zachary Edward Masen and Jackson Charles Masen were finally named.

A couple weeks later, Bella, Edward, Jack and Zack arrived home. Bella was able to move around now, but was living downstairs in the guest room. She wasn't quite ready for stairs yet. The nursery was upstairs, so the new housemaids were kept busy toting the newborns up and down for visits, diaper changes, baths, and nursing at Bella's breast. Edward came home from work one day, to be greeted with one of his favorite things - Bella nursing one of his sons, while the other was sleeping peacefully at her side.

He stepped into the room, pulling the door shut behind him, and turning the lock. He didn't want the servants to interrupt their moment of peace. Stepping forward to watch closely, he gently smiled at his wife, and leaned in for a warm kiss. "I love you, Bella," he whispered. Both boys were now sleeping, so he placed them in the bassinet at the side of the room. Bella sat up, and fluffed the pillows behind her, as Edward came to sit beside her on the bed. She sat back, and reached to button up her robe, but Edward stopped her. "Let me touch you, Bella," he begged, "I know we can't make love yet, but I miss you so much. I want to kiss you, and feel you." She moaned her assent, and ran her fingers through Edward's hair, pulling him close.