Thank you for well wishes! My home was not damaged – just debris. But it was good we left as the people who stayed said it was terrifying. Bright note – I found time to do some writing. I hope you like this and like the idea I had for the babies names. Enjoy! xoxo
(xxxxx)
Spencer sat next to a rectangular box with a smile on his face. Through the glass a small baby, covered in cords and tape, held tightly to his finger. The baby was barely larger than Spencer's hand. His little chest rose up and down.
"Now that is one handsome little dude."
Spencer turned around to see Derek standing behind him. No one had seen the babies yet as the trauma of the day's events left everyone shell shocked. After much pacing, Derek finally snuck off to find Spencer and see the twins.
"He's strong too," Spencer said softly as he turned his attention back to his son.
Derek glanced at the box on the other side of the boy.
"This must be the little princess," he said more than asked.
"Yea, she's having more difficulty breathing than little man," Spencer said with catch in his throat.
Derek peered into the incubator. He watched as her chest rose more rapidly than her brother's. She was also tinier. If he guessed she was probably only 3-4 pounds. She was smaller than the cabbage patch dolls his sisters used to play with.
"How's Emily?" Derek asked as he looked away from the little girl.
"She's sleeping. They believe they have given her enough transfusions at this point. She's still in ICU, but her health has been reclassified as stable. The doctor believes if not tomorrow, the next day she should be able to relocate to a regular room," Spencer replied as he stroked his son's head gently with his finger.
"That's great news. Will she be able to see the babies?"
"Once she's in the regular room she should be able to make trips down here to see them."
Derek nodded. There was an awkward silence as he tried to think of what to say to Spencer. This kid seemed to have the worst luck in history. For such a sweet kid, he couldn't catch a break.
"You holdin' up alright?" Derek finally asked.
Spencer shrugged, but Derek could see him fighting back the tears.
"I know this doesn't mean much, but I want you to know how incredibly strong you are," he began.
Spencer's eyes shot up to Derek in surprise.
"Seriously kid. You have dealt with a ton of shit and yet you keep pushing forward. I admire that more than you'll ever know. There have been so many times that I've wanted to give up and just quit. Just disappear from it all," he said looking down at his feet.
"But then I see you … I see all the courage and strength that you have. I see you continue to bounce back when life throws lemons at you and it gives me the will to push through. You are one hell of a human being Reid and I envy your perseverance."
Spencer was stunned. He had always looked up to Derek. Saw him as the cooler, stronger older brother and yet here he was listening to Derek praise him. He didn't know what to say.
"Don't say anything," Derek said, as if he heard Spencer's thoughts. "I just wanted you to know that and also know that I'm always here for you. I may not be the best at sharing my emotions, but you are my little brother and I would do anything to protect you and your family."
With that, Spencer stood up and wrapped his arms around Derek. He hadn't even realized that he'd started crying again. When he pulled back, he laughed to see that Derek, too, was crying. They wiped away the tears and smiled at one another, before both focusing on the babies again.
(xxxxx)
Emily's eyes fluttered open. The room was fuzzy and she heard an annoying beeping sound. She tried to sit up, but found that to be difficult and somewhat painful. She wasn't sure what happened. She heard someone talking to her, but the words were muffled.
The room was slowly coming into focus and she started regaining her senses. She tilted her head to the left and saw a machine with lines and numbers. She turned her head to the right and saw Spencer leaning over her bed. She felt his hand gently touching her hair.
"Where am I?" she asked in an almost inaudible mutter.
"You are in the hospital. You had to have an emergency C-Section," Spencer told her calmly.
She let his words sink in and her eyes grew larger as it all came back to her. She had been at home, felt a lot of pain in her abdomen, and she remembered lots of blood.
"The babies! The babies?" she said anxiously.
"They are alright. They are safe in the NICU. The doctor said in a few days you should be well enough to see them," Spencer said with a smile.
They're ok?" she said as a tear slid from her eye.
"They are ok and they are beautiful. They can't wait to see their mama," he said squeezing her hand lovingly.
Emily looked at Spencer. The circles under his eyes were practically black and blue. The whites of his eyes cracked with red. His skin pale and his hair disheveled. She reached up and placed her hand on his cheek.
"You haven't slept," she said softly.
Spencer didn't reply. He just smiled before kissing the palm of her hand.
"Get some rest," she said gently, but sternly.
Spencer chuckled and grabbed hold of her hand again.
"You get some rest too. Those babies want to see their mom," he replied.
Emily nodded before a yawn took over. She felt Spencer kiss her hand before she closed her eyes and quickly fell back to sleep.
(xxxxx)
Three days had flown by. Spencer bounced between the NICU and visiting Emily. Usually when she was asleep, he'd spend time with the kids. When she was awake, he'd switch with whoever was visiting and go back to her room while they stayed with the kids.
Finally, the doctor had given Emily the ok to take a trip down to the NICU to see the babies. She was wheeled into the room and greeted by J.J. who had taken up baby duty. She had a big smile on her face as Emily got closer.
"Perfect timing, they both seem to be waking up," J.J. stated.
Spencer stopped the wheelchair in front of the incubators. Before he could protest, Emily stood up and peered into both. Her eyes welled up with tears.
"Hello, my beautiful babies," she said as her smile stretched across her face.
Emily turned to the little girl and slid her hand into the incubator opening. She gently rubbed the little girls tiny hand which opened and closed around her finger.
"Hi beautiful girl, it's mommy," she said softly.
Suddenly, the little girl's eyes began opening. She seemed to be aware of Emily's presence. Spencer swore to this day that upon hearing Emily's voice, their daughter smiled. After a few moments, she moved over to her son's incubator and began the process of introducing herself to him. J.J. and Spencer watched side by side, with their arms around each other.
"Have you chosen their names yet?" J.J. asked.
"Not yet. Emily wanted to see them first. We will decide tonight what their names will be," Spencer replied.
"In that case, I'm going to hit the road and gather up the gang. We will want to be there for the announcement," J.J. said excitedly.
She gave both Emily and Spencer a kiss on the cheek, said her goodbyes to the babies, and eagerly left the room. Spencer walked over to Emily and stood behind her, cuddling her in his arms. His chin rested on her shoulder as they watched their son wiggle and kick his tiny legs.
"Can you believe it? Those amazing creatures are our children," Spencer said in awe.
"I still can't wrap my head around you and I, let alone being a mom," Emily said with a smile in her voice.
Spencer kissed the side of her head and gave her a gentle squeeze.
"So, what do you think we should call them?"
(xxxxx)
Spencer and Emily decided they wanted to keep the babies names a secret until they were released from the hospital. It took nearly two months, but they were finally deemed well enough to come home. On a cold Saturday night, just before Christmas the team came to Spencer and Emily's house for dinner.
Without their knowledge, Penelope organized a baby shower since they never got the chance to have one for Emily. The living room was filled with boxes and bags in different blues and pinks. Penelope sat holding girl Reid, while she and Luke cooed over her. J.J held boy Reid, while Henry talked to him.
Rossi stood in the kitchen talking to Derek and Spencer, while Emily played a game of peek-a-boo with Michael, who was being held by Will.
"Uncle Spencer, can you please tell us the babies names now? I don't know what to call my cousin other than hey you," Henry said popping up over the couch.
The group laughed, making Henry beam. Spencer nodded at Emily and they walked to stand in front of the group.
"I wanted to stick to traditional names like Sophia or Matthew, while Spencer wanted to go more literary with names like Arthur or Louise," Emily began.
"After much debating, we both decided to find a name that described their personalities," Spencer said. "I chose our daughter's name and Emily chose our son's name, but we both agreed on them."
"So, who is this beauty?" Penelope asked in a baby voice.
"That little lady is Matilda, which means strong. She has had quite the battle and her strength amazes us every day," Spencer said.
The girls awed.
"It's so nice to meet you Matilda. I'm your Aunt Penelope and I'm going to spoil you rotten."
"Who is this?" Henry asked excitedly.
"That little guy was hiding behind Matilda and we didn't even know he was there at first. Besides being a surprise, he is a blessing. Therefore, his name is Bennett," Emily said.
"Hi Benny, I'm your cousin Henry. I'm going to teach you how to play baseball, do magic tricks, and fight crimes like Spiderman," Henry said as Bennett let out a coo.
"Now that we've been introduced, let's begin opening up these presents!" Penelope said as she handed Matilda off to Rossi.