Omf 500 reviews I cannot believe it, I want to cry, I love you guys all so much and to thank you for your never-ending support here is an update. To think I started this baby with a story about Caleb coming home to find Hanna hot and pregnant in his t-shirt and now here we are. It almost feels like we're coming full circle.

Guest ~ Yep, pronounced just like Mila Kunis' name :)

SoapLover1992 ~ Welcome to the story, you're joining at an exciting time

Haleb is endgame ~ I see you every chapter, your reviews never fail to bring a smile to my face

Guest ~ You're so right, Marlene never delivers what's promised.

Musings on the finale... I really think the mystery plot has been so badly explained tbh. Haleb was so darn heartbreaking and Guest, I'm just like you hun, don't give a f that Haleb cheated. Usually I have morals about this type of shiz but for once I don't care as long as they get back together and Spencer goes back to Toby and takes her ridiculous bod with her too.

Everly's coming guys... but it's not all fun and games and in light of the wedding chapter I've promised you all, I'm going somewhere with the ending of this instalment. Enjoy...

A Measure of Darkness

On a warm September morning, Hanna found herself gnawing worriedly on her fingernails and wondering where Caleb was. He'd walked out the door half-an-hour earlier to drop Logan off at pre-school and then head to work, but Hanna wanted him back in the safe confines of their home where she had absolute certainty as to his location.

And that was for one reason and one reason only.

She was having contractions.

And whilst sitting with Mila and playing with her was distracting her to a certain extent, ridiculous thoughts of having to deliver the baby on her own were already starting to eat away at her… and her fingernails. She wanted Caleb near her and she wanted him near her now.

"Mama," Mila brought Hanna out of her reverie as she pointed at a piece of pink play-dough she'd cut out.

"What shape is that?" Hanna asked her, propping her head on her hand as Mila cut out another chunk. "What is it?" She asked again, reaching out to stroke her blonde hair.

"Star," The little girl said, poking the play-dough with her finger.

Hanna hissed as she felt a wave of pain roll through her. Mila looked up to see why her Mommy was making a strange sound, not sure what to make of it all. "It's okay," Hanna said, smiling slightly as the pain dulled and she breathed out, "Good job, that is a star," She said, reaching for her phone on the table. "Can you make Mommy a square?" She asked her, trying to keep her entertained as she called Caleb.

"Hey babe," Caleb answered on the third ring.

"Hey," Hanna replied, her voice slightly strained, "Where are you?"

"I'm about five minutes away from the office," He said, pulling off the main road. "Is everything okay?"

"No," Hanna breathed, holding her free hand out for a mini rolling pin that Mila gave to her. "I think I'm having contractions," She said as calmly as possible.

"Really?" Caleb asked, indicating off to the side of the road where he stopped the car. He leant his elbow on the central console as he tried to read his wife over the phone.

"Yeah."

"How far apart are they?" He asked, checking over his shoulder before turning the car around and heading straight back towards Rosewood.

"About 30 minutes, and they're not long but I think… I think it's happening," Hanna's voice sounded small, "Will you come home?"

Caleb smiled, "I already turned the car around," He said, "I'll be home soon. I love you okay?"

Hanna ran a hand through her hair before wrapping it around Mila as she walked around her little table and pushed herself in between Hanna's legs, "I love you too," She said before they both hung up. "What's this shape?" She diverted her attention back to her daughter, pointing at the new piece she'd cut out.

"Trangle," Mila tried to pronounce, pushing her finger through the middle.

"Yeah," Hanna cheered, squeezing her waist, "It's a triangle!"

Mila was content to play for a little while longer until she spotted George waking up from a nap and heading towards them. "George!" She called, cuddling and patting his fur until he trotted off to the door and she squirmed to follow him. Hanna slowly stood up and walked behind them, opening the door to the backyard to let them both out to play. It was early September and although Hanna felt fall approaching, she was still clinging onto the coattails of summer with everything she could. Right now, as she labored slowly, there was nothing she wanted to do more than sit outside and enjoy the last of the warm late summer mornings with her precious baby girl.

And that was exactly how Caleb found his girls when he got home. Hanna was lying on her side on a blanket and Mila had propped her back against Hanna's chest as they read a book in the sun. Looking calm as anything, if he hadn't just had that conversation with his wife, he'd have had no idea she was in the early stages of labour. "Han," He called, smiling as he walked over to the pair.

Mila turned her head and looked up, gasping in delight as she saw Caleb heading straight for them, "Daddy!" She squealed, holding her hands up and waving her fingers for him to pick her up.

"Hey pretty girl," He said, scooping her up to give her a kiss, "I only left you an hour ago," He laughed as she held onto him tightly.

"She loves her Daddy," Hanna grinned as Caleb placed Mila back on the floor and turned his attention to his wife. He helped her up from the ground and pulled her into his arms, breathing in her scent and taking in the moment.

"This is it, huh?" He pulled back and asked her, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.

Hanna nodded and smiled nervously, "This is it."

"Two weeks early," Caleb shook his head with a wry grin on his face, "Girls in this family just love to surprise me." Hanna was about to reply when she felt a contraction rolling through her body. She gripped Caleb's upper arms tightly and squeezed her eyes shut, breathing through the long, dull pain. "You're doing good," Caleb whispered, pulling her close and wrapping his arms around her, "So good," He added, rubbing her back.

"They're not too bad at the moment," Hanna said to him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"You want a bath?" He looked down at her, pressing a gentle kiss against her lips.

She nodded slightly as her hands ran around his torso. A bath sounded like heaven but she also really just wanted to be near to him. This was a culmination of everything she'd felt throughout her pregnancy and whilst the anxiety had dissipated somewhat, she still felt an overwhelming need to have Caleb close by. "A bath sounds good," She agreed eventually, "And I need to make sure my bag is ready."

Caleb bit his lip and tried not to roll his eyes, "Babe, you've checked that bag every single day for the past week," He said, holding his hand out for Mila before they began to walk back up towards the house. "Is Mommy being paranoid?" He looked down and asked her as the toddler gripped onto his hand.

"I'm about to push your child out," Hanna retorted with a slightly annoyed tone, "I'm not being paranoid," She added as they slowly walked back inside the house.

Caleb took a breath and reached up to run a reassuring hand along her shoulders, "I know," He said, "I'm sorry." Hanna was clearly on edge right now and he just needed to be there for her.

She sent him a bashful smile before making her way upstairs to their bathroom. At the excitement of having Caleb home, Mila had latched onto him like no tomorrow and refused to let go of his hand as he went about running the bath. Hanna sat on the side of the tub and watched with a smile on her face as Caleb got Mila to turn on the cold tap, "Daddy go in," She said, finally letting go of him as she tried to climb up the side of the bath to play in the rising water.

"This is for Mommy baby," He tried, lifting her waist and putting her back on the ground before she hurt herself by dangling on the edge.

"No," She pouted, reaching for the side.

"Can you help Daddy and get Mommy's towel?" Caleb asked, hoping to distract her by putting his little assistant to use.

"Towl," She repeated, heading over to the radiator where she tried with all her might to pull the material off.

"Babe," Hanna laughed, grabbing Caleb's attention as Mila managed to pull the towel over her head and cover herself up.

"Jesus," He muttered, holding back a laugh as he left the water running and went over to help his daughter. "Mimi, are you hiding from Mommy and Daddy?" He teased her, lifting the towel off her head and tickling her belly.

"No!" She shrieked, giggling away with happiness.

"Were you playing hide and seek?" Hanna asked her, smiling as she ran over to her away from Caleb.

"Mama, go in," She tried again, gripping one hand on Hanna's thigh as she hooked the other over the side of the tub.

"Come here," Hanna said, picking her up and placing her on her lap before she began to pull her tiny white strawberry-covered tank top over her head. She reached for the matching shorts and helped Mila take them off, before the little girl tried to dive straight into the bath. "Hey," Hanna propped her on the floor and poked her belly, "What about these?" She asked, pulling on the tiny underwear Mila was still wearing.

"Pan-ies," She giggled, holding her arms up once she was butt naked to be put in the water.

"They are your panties," Hanna laughed with her, testing the temperature with her hand before deciding it was fine and lifting Mila in.

Caleb shook his head as he picked up Mila's discarded clothes and dumped them in the washing basket, "This was supposed to be for you," He said to Hanna, watching as she reached for the one toy duck they had in their bathroom and gave it to their daughter.

"I know," Hanna sighed, "But it's almost as relaxing watching her having fun," She smiled at him as he came over to her. "It makes me realise why I'm about to go through 12 hours of pain," She whispered as he leant down to push his lips against hers.

He pulled away and her brow furrowed as she felt another contraction start to move through her body. She bit her lip hard and shut her eyes as she gripped Caleb's forearm and squeezed, "Breathe," She heard him whisper as he pressed his cheek against hers.

"I hate them," She breathed once it was over, still clinging onto Caleb and keeping him close.

"I know," He tried to placate her, stroking her cheek, "I know you do, but it'll all be worth it when we get our girl."

Hanna smiled slightly and nodded as she thought about holding her daughter for the first time. The next time she came home, she'd be a Mommy again and there was nothing she was looking forward to more. "I can't wait."

Caleb kissed her one more time before diverting his attention to Mila who was splashing around and enjoying herself, "Hey little hijacker," He knelt down next to the tub and reached out to brush some droplets from her forehead, "You gonna let Mommy have her bath now?"

"No," She shook her head and pouted before holding her duck up for Caleb to play with.

"You're not?" He asked sadly, "But Daddy has to go and do a really important job and I want you to come and help me."

Mila paused as she weighed up whether she wanted to stay in the water or stay with her Daddy, "'Kay," She agreed, "Out," She said, holding her hands up.

Caleb grabbed a towel from the side before he pulled her out of the water and wrapped her up tightly, "Give Mommy a kiss," He said, rubbing her dry as she tilted her head up for Hanna to give her a kiss before he stood up and picked her up, "And say, enjoy your bath Mommy," He told her, helping her wriggle an arm free from the constraints of the towel so that she could wave at Hanna.

"Joy your baf Mommy," Mila tried, happy as a clam when Caleb snuggled her close and kissed her forehead.

"Shout if you need anything," He whispered to Hanna, squeezing her hand before he disappeared with their toddler to let her try and relax and relieve any pain ahead of their big day. "It's time for your baby sister to come," He said to Mila as he took her to her room to get her dressed again, "And right now, the one thing we can do to make Mommy happy," He started, rolling his eyes as he thought about what was probably running through his wife's mind. "Is to get her silly bag ready." He said, "Again."

It was going to be a long day.


Six hours later and Caleb found himself stood in their kitchen with Hanna wrapped tightly in his arms as she breathed through a contraction and squeezed his shirt. "That one was 50 seconds," He said, glancing down at his watch before she pulled back and let out a sigh.

"How regular are they?" Ashley Marin asked with concern etched on her face. Caleb had called her an hour ago and asked her to pick Logan up from pre-school as Hanna had gone into labour. She'd naively thought things were just kicking off, but then she'd taken in the sight of her daughter and it was quite obvious things had been progressing for a little while longer than she'd thought.

"About five minutes apart," Caleb said, lacing his fingers through Hanna's hair as she buried her head against his shoulder.

"Have you told the other girls?" Ashley asked again.

"No," Hanna mumbled against Caleb's top. "I haven't had time."

Caleb looked at Ashley and rolled his eyes. Hanna had had time. She'd just chosen not to. "We're gonna tell them when we're on route to the hospital."

"Yeah," Hanna agreed quietly.

"Which will be in approximately 10 minutes," He pressed a kiss against Hanna's forehead. "I don't want to be here with them getting any closer together," He said firmly when Hanna looked up at him and pouted. With her waters yet to break, she'd been determined to stay at home for as long as possible.

"Is your bag ready?" Ashley said as Hanna separated from Caleb and moved to the fridge.

Caleb bit his tongue as Hanna started to speak, "Yeah," She said, "Although I might repack and just check."

"Babe, we're not checking it for the fourth time today."

Hanna ignored him and pulled out some ingredients. "Mom, can you make them spaghetti for dinner?"

"Of course," Ashley agreed, stepping forward to rest a reassuring hand on Hanna's shoulder. "Do you want to go say bye to them?" She proposed. She could sense her daughter's reticence to go to the hospital but she could also sense her son-in-law's anxiety over the fact that they were still stood in their kitchen. Right now, she was firmly in Caleb's camp and wanted Hanna in the hospital as soon as they could get her out the door.

"Yeah," Hanna agreed, nodding and moving towards the playroom. She paused as she felt a contraction hit her particularly hard and she was infinitely grateful when Caleb appeared and held her.

He waited for her to fully recover before he led her down to the playroom where Logan and Mila were with Ted. "Are you guys heading off?" Ted asked, deliberately leaving out the word hospital. Logan had a slight issue with it at the moment.

"Yep," Caleb said, leaning down to pick Mila up, "Say bye bye to Mommy," He told her, "We're going to get your new sissy," He added as Mila leant across to give Hanna a hug and a kiss.

"Where are you going?" Logan asked with a frown on his face. This whole baby thing was so confusing. He thought his new sissy was in his Mommy's tummy so why did they need to go somewhere to get her. "Sissy is here," He added, pointing at Hanna's belly.

Hanna shot Caleb a 'thanks a lot' look, "Well sissy needs to come out of Mommy's tummy and we have to go away so that she can come out safely."

"How does she come out?" Logan had never looked more puzzled. He gasped as his mind made a revelation, "She comes out of your butt Mommy!" He shrieked and laughed like the typical four-year-old boy he was.

"No," Hanna shook her head as Caleb just laughed beside her, "She doesn't come out of my butt. There's magic at the hospital that makes her come out."

Logan's face dropped, "Hospital?" His lip was already quivering, "No Mommy."

Crap, Hanna thought. One of the boys in Logan's class had just lost his Grandma and he'd told Logan about how she went to the hospital to die. Add to that, she'd caught him watching a very sad episode of Vet School where a doggy had to go to animal hospital and didn't wake up from his anaesthetic and well… the word hospital had seriously bad connotations for the little boy at the moment.

"Hey, shhh," Hanna had just started to lean down to comfort him when she felt another contraction start. This was exactly how she didn't want the kids to see her. "Oh my god," She groaned, reaching for the arm of the sofa and gripping it tightly.

For a second, Caleb stood there unsure as to whether he should comfort his son or his wife, but he made the decision Hanna needed him more and quickly put Mila on the floor before pulling his wife into his arms and cradling her head against his shoulder until the contraction passed.

"Mommy," Logan cried, rushing forward to cling onto her legs, "I don want sissy," He said, "No hospital," He spluttered.

"Lo, shhh," Hanna tried again, "Nothing is going to happen to me at the hospital," She said. Okay, so slight lie – she was about to push a baby through her vagina but aside from that, everything else was going to be completely normal.

"No," He was adamantly shaking his head, "No hospital Mommy, I don't want you to die," He cried. Hanna looked at Caleb helplessly; her mind wasn't in a place where it could focus and she had no idea what to say to him.

"Logan," Caleb said firmly, picking him up. "Mommy is not going to die," He forced him to look him in the eye, "Mommy has to go to the hospital so that we can bring Everly home."

"Logan," Ted stepped in, "Nothing is going to happen to Mommy. But Everly needs you to be a really strong big brother whilst Mommy and Daddy go to the hospital. Can you do that for her?" He asked, rubbing his shoulder reassuringly.

Logan sniffled and nodded, hugging Hanna as tightly as he could one last time before he let go and Caleb guided her out of the room. "That was hard," Hanna said. She hated seeing Logan upset and right now all she wished time would just flash by so that she could be back home cuddling with her new baby girl and her two littles.

"It'll be worth it." Caleb reminded her. Hanna nodded and gripped his hand. "You ready?" He asked her one final time and when she shot him a look, he knew he was about to regret ever asking her that question.

"Can I just repack my bag?"


It took Caleb a while to get Hanna to settle in her room at the hospital, and even then she was adamant about not actually lying on the bed. "Han," Caleb sighed, "I know you're worried and I know you want her here, but can you please try and relax," He said, moving over to hold her in his arms as she paced as much as a pregnant woman could.

"I'm trying," She replied, burying her head against his shoulder as she felt a contraction hit. As soon as Lena had come in to see her, she'd had her waters broken and was well on the way to being seven centimetres dilated. After a slower start, things with number three were starting to move quickly and Hanna was starting to feel all her anxiety come rushing back.

The last time she'd done this, she'd been sick and tired and had no energy. And then when her precious little baby had been born, she'd been taken away and hadn't been crying. God, Mila had tested them as soon as she'd left the womb. "What are you thinking about?" Caleb asked her gently, rubbing her lower back.

"Our crazy water bug," She finally smiled. "I miss her already," She sniffled.

Caleb fought a laugh. Hanna had been apart from Mila for way more than an hour before and now whilst she was in labour with their third baby, she chose to get upset about missing her. "I bet she's missing you too," He said as she squeezed his arm hard.

She groaned against his shoulder and he did as best as he could to press comforting kisses against the side of her head. "They're coming fast," She whispered. He didn't say anything, just held her close and tried to look at his watch to see how long her contractions were lasting.

"They are," He agreed eventually, stroking her cheek. "This is probably your last chance for an epidural," He said, concern on his face. He hated seeing her in pain and he really wasn't too happy that she'd chosen not to have an epidural this time. He got that she didn't want to be drugged up when the baby was born, but seriously… she could be numb from the waist down right now if she wanted, and not be feeling a thing.

"No," She shook her head, "I don't want one."

"You don't want what?" Both of them looked to the door as Dr. Monroe appeared.

"An epidural," Hanna managed to answer before another contraction rose and peaked.

"You're doing good," Lena reassured her with a smile, "Things are moving fast, huh?"

"We were at home for a long time," Caleb shot her a look over Hanna's shoulder.

"He was anxious," Hanna added, grateful when Caleb helped her up onto the bed for Lena to do her examination.

He laced their fingers as he sat down next to the bed, "When you're getting me to read a book on how fast baby number three comes, I'm gonna be anxious," He defended himself.

"And does Daddy feel ready having read this book?" Dr. Monroe asked, shooting him a wry smile as she snapped on a plastic glove.

"You sound like my mother-in-law," Caleb shook his head, "And as I said to her, I don't think you ever feel ready."

"Hanna, do you feel ready?" Lena finished her examination and stood up, moving to the door to stick her head out and call for some help.

"No," Hanna shook her head, closing her eyes as a wave of pain moved through her body again. "I'm not…" She breathed, "I'm not ready for this."

"Tough luck, sweetheart," The doctor said, "You're measuring almost at 10 centimetres and baby girl wants to meet you pretty soon."

Caleb stood up and moved to sit next to her on the bed, resting his forehead on hers and cradling her cheeks in his hands, "I know you can do this," He whispered, letting her rest her hands over his and squeeze when she felt pain.

Hanna whimpered, but nodded slightly and when Lena was comfortable she had all the necessary equipment and staff around, Hanna went with her body and started to deliver their baby girl. She was sat forward, her eyes squeezed shut tightly as she tried to block out any noise and pain and just focus all her energy on her lower half. Clearly though, her body had some memory of the last two times lodged somewhere, because it wasn't long until Caleb was stroking her sweaty hair off her forehead and Dr. Monroe was telling her to stop pushing as the baby crowned.

"She's right here, Hanna," Lena said encouragingly, "You're doing so well."

"You had nothing to worry about," Caleb added reassuringly, "She's so close to being here."

Hanna nodded, but didn't speak as she felt an indescribable pain in her nether regions. It wasn't something she'd ever felt before, but she tried to push the thought to the back of her mind. Caleb was right – she'd had nothing to worry about. Everything had gone to plan and Everly was going to be placed right in her arms.

"One more really big one," Lena instructed.

Hanna gasped and breathed heavily as she felt more pain before an empty feeling, as their new baby girl was delivered and placed immediately in her arms. Her chest was panting as she tried to catch her breath and tears were welling in her eyes as the screaming baby, still covered in blood and goo, adjusted to the new world. "She's here," Hanna cried, still panting as she looked up at Caleb. He held her against his chest and pressed a hard kiss against her lips before they both stared down at their baby girl in awe.

"She's perfect," He whispered as a midwife wrapped a blanket around the baby to keep her warm.

They had some precious uninterrupted bonding time until Lena spoke, "Dad, do you want to cut the cord?" She asked, handing Caleb a pair of scissors.

Caleb nodded and stepped away from Hanna for a second, a huge grin on his face. He was a Daddy again and to another perfect mix of him and Hanna. Nothing would ever beat this feeling.

But as he cut the cord, he noticed the blood and the somewhat concerned look on Lena's face and the surrounding medical staff. "Is… is that normal?" He managed to get out as the blood started to drip onto the floor.

"Cay… Caleb," Hanna's voice trembled and Caleb looked up just in time to see the colour drain from her face. He rushed back to her and held her up, one hand behind her back and the other under the baby as Hanna clearly struggled to sit up.

"Her BP's dropping," A midwife called out as another took the baby from Hanna and handed her straight to Caleb.

"We're losing blood," Lena added as Hanna slumped back onto the bed, her lips blue.

"Caleb," She managed to get out. "I'm... dizzy."

"I… I'm right here," He replied, gripping her hand tightly as an oxygen mask was placed over her face and an IV was inserted into her hand.

Nothing had ever felt so surreal. He'd almost forgotten about the newborn baby in his arms as worry surged through his veins. "Hemorrhage," and "Tear" were being floated around by Lena and the other midwives and he forced himself not to look at what they were doing.

All he saw out of the corner of his eye was an ever-increasing red pool of liquid on the floor.

And all he thought as Hanna lay there, becoming more unresponsive by the second, was that he couldn't lose his wife. Their babies couldn't lose their Mommy. She meant too much to too many people. There was no way on this planet he could lose the love of his life. Right now, against a backdrop of elation, this could only be a measure of darkness that was going to remind them just how precious life really was.


:( I'm sorry, I had to do it. But how adorable is Mila? I just love writing her.

And I know I should be updating Restraints. There's a chapter coming, I promise!

Please review x