Eventually, two o'clock rolled around.
"Olivia," Harper said, after peering out of her window, to the parking lot below. "The mobile hospital is here. Do you want to come? See Xander again?"
"Oh, yes, please." Olivia said, getting to her feet. "I have a question, too, though."
"Do tell."
"Would you like to come with me to look for things to put on Serena's baby registry?"
Harper lit up. "I would love to… and I need to get some more things for Xander, anyway. He has a registry that's been mostly bought out by my friends, but there were a few more things I wanted to look for."
"Well, alright." Olivia deposited Serena into Harper's arms. "Will you get your niece dressed, please? I need to get her sling on."
"I've got her!" Harper said cheerfully, giving the baby a hug. "Taking care of her is practice for Xander, anyway."
Olivia busied herself with putting the baby sling on, and when it was on at last, she paused to watch Harper play with Serena while dressing her in warm clothes. She hadn't known her sister for long, but she could already see that she was becoming content. She'd through quite a lot in just the last year alone, it sounded like, things that nobody should have to go through, but she had persevered because that was who she was. The fact that she hadn't rebuffed Olivia and had even invited her to her home was proof that she was willing to bond, and that she was liking it.
This made Olivia happy.
The mobile hospital was exactly what it sounded like, and according to Harper, it was a come-and-go-as-you-please deal, complete with a check-in desk. Olivia had been to many kinds of hospitals over the years, especially during her time on the force, but she'd never been to this kind of set up. It looked like a cross between an RV and a classroom portable, and all throughout, there were different stations for different kinds of things you would undergo at a checkup. It was actually kind of cozy, too.
At the back of the main room, there were separate rooms that Olivia supposed were for examinations. Harper went into one of these rooms to meet her doctor, and Olivia sat in the waiting area with Serena, because she didn't want to intrude. She would join when invited.
Finally, the door to the room opened, and Harper's doctor let her in.
"You must be Olivia." they shook hands. "I'm Doctor Scorsone, and I've been monitoring Harper's pregnancy."
She closed the door and motioned for Olivia to sit in a chair beside Harper's bed.
"Your sister was just telling me everything that's been happening in her life lately."
Harper was laying on the exam table in a disposable gown. Her big belly was exposed, and Xander could be seen moving around. He was impatient. Harper was rubbing her middle, trying to pacify him.
"Just what have you said to Doctor Scorsone so far?" Olivia asked her.
"I told her about Brighton Beach, about Dana and Serena, meeting you and your family, and that I've been in the hospital recently." was the reply. "She even has the records from those visits."
"Good. Have you told her why you skipped last month?"
Harper sighed and turned to Scorsone. "My husband passed away from cancer last month, and I fell apart. I could barely get out of bed."
Scorsone expressed her sympathy. "I'm so sorry, Harper. How are you doing?"
"I'm taking it day by, especially now that Xander has become even more active in the past week. Olivia's been helping me, too."
Scorsone winked. "Big sisters are good like that—I have one. I bet Olivia can help you find something like grief counseling, if you want it."
"I definitely can." Olivia chimed in on cue.
"Okay good," Harper said to her. "Because I do want it. Can we put a pin that?"
"Of course. Now—how about we see what happens next?"
Harper looked to the doctor again. "Can we check on Xander now?"
"Yes." she nodded. "I can see that Xander's being a wiggleworm, but I still need for you to lie still, please."
Harper did, although when Olivia came to stand beside her, the sisters held hands immediately.
Xander was visible immediately, and after Scorsone found the baby's heartbeat, there was a moment's pause before she made a new remark.
"Harper, your boy has company in there."
Harper's own heart skipped a beat, and immediately, she felt like she was going to cry, but she forced herself to keep it together. The last thing she needed was to cry right now.
"My husband loved to surprise me, but it looks like he managed one last surprise." she touched a hand to the side of her middle. "That explains all the extra activity, though—they've been kicking each other, or me, and at the same time."
Olivia patted her sister's shoulder, to keep her from going into shock. "I'm sure you're tired of hearing this, but how are you?"
"Super freaked out—I don't know how I'll have the time to get everything I need for this kid!"
"Alex and I can help you out with that. Do you want to see Xander's buddy?"
"I do, but I just wonder why we didn't see them before…"
"It's more than likely that Baby B was hiding behind Baby A. That kind of thing isn't unheard of, with twins." the doctor told her when she heard the last part of what her patient had said. "Of course, this all means more visits, and coming to my actual office."
The only reason that Harper used the mobile hospital was because even with combined incomes, she and Xander had been somewhere closer to poor than they had been to middle class. That meant that they had qualified for services like this one.
The surprise and responsibility of a second child was hitting her all at once, but at least she had a job, her inheritance, and her widow pension to lean on. All the same, she spoke seriously to Doctor Scorsone.
"I completely understand. Can we please check on the second baby now?"
"Of course. Try to stay still again, please."
Harper's babies didn't appreciate being poked and prodded by the doctor's ultrasound wand, and they demonstrated this by kicking her something fierce. When Harper made a sound of discomfort, Olivia smoothed back her hair and told her of fun things that they were going to do when it was over.
Finally—
"Harper, Xander's been hiding a sister!"
Harper's heart turned over altogether, and she looked at the screen. "Oh, where? Will you show me?"
Doctor Scorsone pointed everything out, even making sonogram prints upon her patient's request.
Harper also continued to hold Olivia's hand. Olivia didn't mind, this, though. She liked seeing her sister in a state besides weepy or gloomy. She would do anything she could to help her stay that way.
And since she was on leave to take care of Serena, she was going to take care of Harper, too. She needed it, and Olivia already knew that Harper wouldn't say no.
This was going to be a fun two weeks.
"Oh, Olivia! Look at these!"
"Those are darling. You should get them."
After the appointment was over, they'd returned to Harper's apartment, where Harper had cried and cried to get her feelings out. Olivia had been expecting this to happen, so she sat with her sister and comforted her. When she was all cried out and cleaned up, Harper thanked her. She had yet to get used to having a big sister around, nevertheless one as patient and as kind as Olivia was.
Presently, they and Serena were at Olivia's favorite baby boutique. She'd spent a lot of time here after adopting Noah, to get new things for him, and now. As it turned out, Harper was registered here, as well, so Olivia found herself helping the registry she already had for Xander. She was also helping her to register for items for Bailey kid number two.
'When in Rome…' was Olivia's thought process upon realizing that this was as good a time as any to start a combined registry for Serena and Diana. She just had to be careful to not get too carried away.
They were currently looking at rows and rows of baby shoes, and Harper had shown her a pair of small shoes with unicorn pattern, wanting to know what she would say.
"You like them, huh?" Harper asked.
Olivia nodded. "Every baby needs at least one pair of shoes to grow into. Plus, buying tiny shoes is fun."
Harper examined the shoes again and decided that she liked them. "Have you gotten any shoes for Diana yet?"
"No, but I will, and I'll get some for Serena, too. Alex will turn to mush." Olivia pointed to the shopping cart that she was pushing. "Put those unicorn kicks in the cart, and see if you see something for Xander."
Harper did as instructed, and began perusing through the area of little boy shoes. In the end, to compliment the unicorns, she found a pair of teeny-tiny shoes with a dragon print, fit for a little prince, dashing off to rescue a princess. As for Olivia, she found two pairs of little girl shoes, one bedecked with rainbows—as Diana was technically Alex's rainbow baby—and the other decorated with shooting stars. All three pairs of shoes ended up in the sisters' shopping cart.
"Harper," Olivia said a few minutes later as they began pricing cribs and changing tables. "You said, when you were showing me your tattoos, that you have connections through the Corps. Are they local?"
"Uh-huh, but I haven't seen much of anyone since the funeral."
"Why's that?"
Harper scanned the price of a convertible crib, and then turned to face her sister. "It was hard enough when Xander got sick—they all started treating me with kid gloves, like my sadness was all of a sudden contagious. After we buried him, those friends did come around to bring food, but…"
"But what, sweetheart?"
"Things just got too hard, and I could only think of myself and focus on the life I was creating—Xander and Zoelle."
"Understandable." Olivia then arched an eyebrow. "Zoelle?"
Harper nodded. "It means alive, and had Junior been a girl, we would have called him that."
"Who decided on which name?"
"I decided with naming our firstborn son after his father because I wanted to honor Xander. He was my best friend for the last fifteen years—practically a lifetime—and now that he's gone, it just works." Harper explained. "Xander came up with Zoelle, and said it was the perfect name for any little girl of ours. He survived war, and together, he and I faced uncertain times, but still made the best of them, even when we didn't come out on top. Zoelle just needs a really good middle name now…"
"I know you'll come up with something, and I love the reasons of how your kids got their first names. They're beautiful."
Harper beamed at the praise, but then furrowed an eyebrow. "What were we talking about?"
"You were explaining why you haven't seen anyone since the funeral." Olivia reminded her.
Harper shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "After mom died, did you stop hanging out with your friends after awhile?"
"Yeah, I did. I needed some time to myself."
"But you came back to them?"
"I had to—I work with them, but... when I did come back, they welcomed me with open arms because they love me."
Harper nodded. "This is the process that I've gone through, but I am ready to start speaking to my friends again. I just might need a nudge or two."
Olivia gave her sister's shoulder an affectionate squeeze. "I'll give you all the nudges you need, but I'm really proud of you."
"Thanks, Olivia!"
Harper hugged her sister, kissed Serena on the forehead, and then headed off to an aisle that was nothing but soft baby blankets. She was bouncier than she had been, and she was even talking to Xander and Zoelle, telling them about what she was doing.
Olivia stared after her, amazed. It was like something had been unlocked.
She also wanted to ask Harper for specifics about her friends, but she did wonder for a minute if she would be down for spending the night with her, Alex, Noah, and Serena. There was a lot to talk about.
Across town, Alex was on the same wavelength as Olivia again. like she had predicted, Casey came asking for her clarification on a few things, but other than that, there was nothing to do—zero fires for her to put out. And it was still a few hours before quitting time. Alex hated being bored.
Things were mundane until Olivia called her to tell her about Zoelle, and about the registries. Pleased to finally have something to do, Alex use the powers of the internet to broaden the registry for Serena and Diana, and then the depth of her pocketbook to purchase a few of the harder-to-get items on Harper's list.
Alex also decided to do some nice things for Harper. She'd found in both being pregnant, and in spending time with Sophia, Casey, and Amanda that pregnant mothers always appreciated being pampered. She'd done this for each of them, and now it was time to pamper Harper.
First, she had a call to make.
"Allie-cat," came Olivia's laughing voice when she answered her phone. "I sent you all the registry stuff like an hour ago! Don't tell me you bought everything out!"
"Of course not, no." Alex gave a cough. "Actually, does your sister have any food-related allergies?"
"Peanuts, as far as she knows."
On the laptop in front of her, she quickly went back a page, away from the recipe for green bean peanut satay. Back to the drawing board.
"I can hear the wheels in your brain turning from here." Olivia said. "What are you doing?"
"I'm looking up things to make for dinner. We're going to have Harper over, alright?"
Olivia laughed again and relayed the message to Harper.
"She's down, and says thank you." Olivia said after a moment. "Anything else?"
"Tell her I'm extending an invitation to stay the night."
"It's like you're in my head." Olivia replied, well aware that her sister was watching her curiously. "I was going to ask her the same thing."
Alex leaned back in her chair. "I can imagine that Harper doesn't want to be alone right now, because she's had a rough couple of days, but she doesn't want to say it directly. She's like you that way."
"She is." Olivia agreed. "Hang on."
Alex heard Olivia and Harper converse for a moment before Olivia spoke to her again.
"Harper says thank you again, and that she's looking forward to it."
"Very good." Alex chirped. "See you at home. I love you."
"I love you, too."
When they hung up, Alex returned to her laptop, this time looking up new, peanut-free recipes. She also looked up decadent gift baskets—this was for her sister-in-law to-be, after all—and same-day delivery princes. Harper deserved the best.
Alex also had a feeling that she was going to be roped into whatever serious conversations that were going to be had, and she was all for helping her see that she had a family to come too, but she also wanted Harper to see that she and Olivia knew how to be fun. She would just be the one to supply it.
But still, every day since finding out that her IVF procedure had taken, she was falling more in love with knowing that she had a family of her own. She loved her life, and her family was why.
Even when she was younger, Alex had never, in a million years dreamed that her family would turn out the way it had. Her had taken a turn after she broke things off with her former fiancé, way back when, and she'd come out as gay to him, and to her parents. After that, she buried had her nose in her work and her career, which led to her crossing paths with the Special Victims Unit of the sixteenth precinct in the Upper West Side.
She'd also met Olivia for the first time. Her life was changed yet again.
Then she got shot, and thereafter followed a dark period during the Witness Protection years, worsening when she had an affair and a miscarriage. She got by one the memories of the people she left behind, especially Olivia, but she left behind the idea of marriage and babies.
Now, she was engaged to the absolute love of her life, she was pregnant with a darling, much-loved, very longed-for baby girl, and she had more children in her family than she could have ever imagined. One of her closest friends was going to be her sister-in-law, and then the woman who was going to become her sister-in-law had turned out be a very delightful person. She loved it all, and she couldn't ask for more.
For once, everything in the life of Alexandra Caroline Cabot had turned out just right.
