(A/N: Remember how I said that the next chapter should be up in a week? Well, obviously I lied like a rug. Thanks for all of the entries for the name-the-baby-contest! The winner is Shaquasha Johnson! Read on to see the names(s) that she entered. Anyway, after this story ends, there's going to be one more entry in the Food series that's still untitled. After that- hopefully I won't be writing about Eric and Jack as fifty year olds with grandchildren running around, but my inspiration seems to be running that way. Drop a line and tell me what, if anything, should happen next. My e-mail addy is on the first page. Now... enjoy the story!)
Chapter Three- In which a blessed event occurs
"What's wrong, Doctor?" Jack said anxiously. He took Eric's hand and squeezed it tightly.
"Look at the screen." Dr Summers seemed a little shocked and highly amused.
"Hate to tell you, but that just looks like nothing to me." Eric squinted at the screen and then said, "Whoa!"
"What? What are you seeing?" Jack craned his head toward the screen and saw...
his babies. Two of them.
He was suddenly very glad for the table. If he had been standing up, he certainly would have fainted. "There's... two of them!" He started grinning as he looked at Eric. "We're having twins!"
"I know! I would do a happy dance, but you have my hand in the Grip of Death." Eric winced a little as Jack let go with a sheepish "Sorry."
"I know that this comes as a surprise to you, but it's good that we know ahead of time to go into the delivery ready for multiples. It's funny, their hearts are beating in time so that it was undetectable by stethoscope."
"Well, this changes some plans big time," Eric mused.
"I'll say! I'll have to start the lists over."
"Jack, you and your lists. We'll be fine." Eric smiled reassuringly. "Well, doc, any more instructions?"
"Just keep doing what you're doing. No caffeine, watch the stress, and keep on the vitamins and the folic acid."
"One question. These food cravings... they're not unhealthy for the baby? I mean, babies." Jack looked worriedly at Dr Summers.
"No, you seem to be putting on weight at a reasonable amount. In fact, I'd happier if you were gaining a little more weight."
"I think that's the first time anyone ever told me that." Jack winced at the thought of gaining any more weight than he already was.
"So, when are you taking off work?"
"I was planning to at the end of the sixth month, but I'm picking up weight so quickly that I'm aiming at another month or so."
"Okay. Remember, keep your stress levels down. If you feel like something's wrong, no matter how trivial, call me day or night. Later on, we'll schedule your caesarian."
"Why does it need to be scheduled?" Eric asked.
"Because I don't want Jack going into labor. I don't know where the amniotic fluid will go if his water breaks, and I'd rather not take the chance of him going though contractions. Right now, the babies are right on schedule, so we'll see what happens. Any other questions?"
Both men shook their heads, dumbfounded.
"Okay, then. Our next appointment will be in a month. Take care."
As they got up and walked out of the office, the full impact of what they had been told hit Jack fully. He would have fallen if Eric hadn't had a death grip on his arm.
"Hey, are you alright? I can get Dr Summers." Eric looked at him, concerned.
"No, I'm fine. I just need to lie down, for a week or so, until this new development processes in my brain."
"I'm with you on that one."
"Now we have two sets of baby stuff to get, not to mention that it was going to be hard enough to explain to our families that we decided to adopt out of nowhere, but now we're going to have to tell them that we wanted twins." Jack groaned.
"No stressing," Eric warned. "It will work out, okay?"
A week later found Jack turning in his official leave of absence. Since disguising his growing belly with Eric's suits were no longer an option, he simply told everyone that his operation would need more recuperation time than he'd originally thought. Everyone wished him well.
'Yeah, I hope everything goes well, too.' Jack thought darkly.
Jack and Eric were puttering around the grocery store. Jack was wearing a sweat suit, which didn't hide his bulge but just didn't call attention to it. "Okay, what are we looking for again?" Eric asked.
"Marshmallow fluff."
"Which would be..."
"Softened marshmallows that you can spread. Oh, here it is." Jack picked up a jar of what seemed to be white goo.
"You're not going to put that on eggs or something equally gross, are you?" Eric said warily.
"No, you'll actually like this."
At home, Jack set about toasting two slices of bread. He spread chunky peanut butter on one and the marshmallow fluff on the other. Putting the slices together, he cut the sandwich in half and slid one of the halves to Eric. "Try it."
Eric eyed the innocent looking food skeptically. "This isn't like when I had to eat the lox, is it?"
"Nah. This is something that my mom used to make for me when I was a kid. I used to take one of these to school everyday."
"What's it called?"
"Fluffernutter. Take a bite."
Eric picked it up and nibbled on it experimentally. He took a larger bite, noting how the sweetness of the marshmallows contrasted with the peanuts. "Ummph. This is good."
"Told you so. And they keep with no refrigeration. So, are you going to complain if I make this my new favorite craving?"
Eric shook his head as he ate the rest of the sandwich. "But if you still want your ice cream and pickles, I'll get them. Just don't make me watch you eat them."
"Deal."
Later that night, Jack sat up as if he had been shot. Eric, who was on the bed next to him, immediately woke up and said, "What? What's wrong?"
"They... they kicked. Eric... give me your hand." Jack grabbed for Eric's hand in the dark and guided it to the underside of his belly. A minute later, Eric felt a series of little flutters under his hand.
"Wow."
"Wow."
"Eric!"
Eric came running into the room. "What's wrong?"
"I... need to get up! Can you give me a hand?" Jack grimaced as he attempted to stand up again, but failed.
Eric grabbed his hands and gently pulled him off of the couch.
"Thanks. If I'm having this much trouble at seven months, what are we going to do when I actually get ready to deliver?"
"It's okay. Remember that Dr Summers said that you're about the size of a full term pregnancy now."
"I know." Jack waddled to the bathroom, cursing the fact that one or both of the children were sitting directly on his bladder. When he returned to the den, Eric was sitting on the couch, holding a cocoa butter stick.
"Are you ready for your rubdown?"
"Bring it on!" Jack was trying to keep his stomach greased to prevent stretch marks, and the cocoa butter was pretty successful at that. "Ohh... that feels really good." Eric was working the stick in tight circles. "You can stop that never."
As Eric was using his hands to rub in the oil, the door rang. "Now who could that be? We're not expecting anyone." Jack's voice sounded relaxed.
"Whoever it is, I'll get rid of them, okay? Don't move." Eric got up, wiping his palms on his jeans.
"Couldn't move if I wanted to," Jack's lazy voice floated behind him.
As he went to the door, Eric was contemplating how best to get rid of the unwanted visitors. As he started turning the locks, he decided that 'we have malaria' was the way to go.
He swung open the door and was surprised to see Cory and Topanga standing there with Chloe. "Um, hi," Eric said, all thoughts flying out of his head.
"Hi! We were in the neighborhood and wanted to stop by. How've you been?" Cory embraced his older brother.
"I'm good. How about you guys?" Eric automatically stood back to let them in.
"We're good." Topanga put Chloe down and the little girl immediately took off running. "We're scouting for apartments for Shawn and Angela, but we had to come to Philly to talk to Mom and Dad. So we thought we'd come and see you while we were so close. Where's Jack?"
"Sleeping," Eric replied quickly. "So, when are Shawn and Angela coming back over?"
"In about a week, so we're really trying to rush and find something. There's a place open in our building, but it's only a one bedroom, and I hate for them to get something that they'd have to move out of in a year." Cory looked around for his errant daughter. "Chlo, where are you?"
"Here, Daddy!" The little girl said and giggled. Cory ran to get her. Realizing the direction that Cory was heading in, Eric ran to intercept them. Topanga followed confusedly.
Chloe was in the den, standing next to a sleeping Jack. Her head was on his distended belly. "Sounds funny, Daddy," she said when she spotted her parents and uncle.
Topanga and Cory looked at Eric, their faces showing their growing understanding and amazement.
"It's... not what it looks like?" he offered lamely.
***********
"So, we went to the doctor and she told us that the statue was the cause of this," Eric finished.
"So we gave it away to Rachel, which is another story in itself," Jack said. At the moment, the four adults were sitting in the kitchen, which had chairs that Jack could get out of unassisted.
"Why didn't both of you... end up pregnant?" Topanga questioned.
"Because I was the only one to have touched it. That's why I had to be the one to give it away." Jack sighed and put his hands on his stomach as one of the babies fired another shot.
"When... I mean, what were you going to tell everyone?" Cory asked, still looking at Jack's belly in awe.
"We were going to say that we adopted privately after the babies were born. I mean, who would believe us if we told the truth? Present company excluded." Eric grinned at them. Now that he had someone to confide in, he was happy.
"Well, you should probably tell Shawn and Angela. I mean, this is kinda their fault." Topanga looked thoughtful. "And Morgan will want to know, too."
"We're not blaming anyone for this. This is something that we both wanted- children of our own. Granted, this is not the way that we would have gone about doing it, but still..." Jack smiled softly. "And we'll tell them. Soon."
"Tell you what. I'll draw up the papers for you, making you both the official parents of the babies. That way, you won't have to worry about the legal aspect. And I can get some adoption papers, too, in case anyone tries to dig through the records." Topanga pulled a notebook out of her purse and started writing down her thoughts.
"Why would anyone check the records? It's not like we're famous, or even plan to repeat this. This," Jack gestured to his belly, "is a one-time event."
"Well, you never know. I have another question for you. You're not going through Lamaze classes, are you?" Topanga asked curiously.
"Well, we already know that I'm having a caesarian, so there's no need."
"Well, just the same, you should know some breathing exercises. Cory and I bought this video that's all about visualization to get your mind off pain. It's cool. We can bring it the next time we visit," Topanga offered.
"Thanks."
"You do realize that we want to be there for the birth, right? Like you guys were for ours."
"Are you sure that you want a repeat of that? I promise that nurse wanted to kill us all!" Eric laughed at the thought.
"Families do everything together," Cory said, smirking. "Even watching male family members give birth."
"You know that we can go get the statue from Rachel, right?" Jack teased. He laughed as Cory's face lost all of its color.
"Well, if Dr Summers says that it's okay, than it's fine with me." Eric patted Jack's hand before he got up from the table.
"Hey! Where are you going?" Jack asked.
"Might as well start making the phone calls now." Eric picked the receiver, and then set it back down. "Wait a minute. They'll never believe me over the phone. Topanga, you said that Shawn and Angela would be here sometime next week, right?"
"Yeah. They're flying in on Wednesday."
"So, we'll have them over on Thursday, along with Morgan, and tell them then." Eric bit his lip and then said softly, "Think they'll believe us?"
"Along with all of the craziness that is our lives, this is par for the course," Cory grinned. "Besides, I won't let anything happen to my... nieces? Nephews?"
"We don't know. We wanted to be surprised." Jack announced. "Although now, with only two months to go, I could use some advance notice on what to get."
"That part's no sweat. I have some of Chloe's old baby gear that I can give you. That will give you a head start on half of the things, at least." Topanga wrote something else down in her notebook.
"But what if we have two boys?" Eric asked.
"Onesies are unisex. And most of the baby clothing that we got for Chloe was yellow, which is a pretty neutral color."
"Know what? This is actually coming together!" Jack looked mildly amazed.
He would almost change his mind a week later. As usual, he was on the couch, idly flipping channels, when the doorbell rang. Mentally cursing, he laboriously got off the couch and lumbered to the door. Hoping that it was Topanga, he swung it open.
"Hi Jack... oh my god!" As Angela walked into the room with her belly proceeding her, Jack thought frantically that he didn't want to be the cause of his brother's wife going into labor.
"Hi," Jack offered lamely. "How's everything?"
"I thought everything was fine. Um, have you been sneaking lard or something?"
"No."
"I didn't think so. How in the world..." Angela began circling around Jack like he was the oddest thing she had ever seen, which Jack supposed could be the case.
"Remember that statue that you gave us? It has... side effects." Jack patted his stomach for emphasis.
"No. There's no way you're...." Angela started advancing on Jack slowly and put her hand on his belly. Almost immediately, one or both of the babies kicked. Angela pulled her hand back as if it had been burned.
"I... really need a seat." Angela's face turned ashen, and Jack hurriedly assisted her (as best as he could) to the kitchen. They both sighed in relief as they hit the sturdy chairs.
"So, where's everyone else? I know you didn't drive because I can't even fit behind the wheel right now, and you've got two months on me."
"Shawn is running somewhere with Cory. Topanga drove me, but she said that she needed to get something from the store. Does... anyone else know about this?"
"Only Cory and Topanga. And they just found out a week ago."
"Do you know for sure how it happened?"
"Yeah. I was feeling weird a couple of months after you left, so I went to this doctor. She told me the exact name of the place that you bought the statue. Apparently the person who sold it to you should have warned you to keep it away from same-sex couples."
"Ooh. Um. Sorry?"
"Don't be," Jack said warmly. "We're happy. We wanted children. Granted, it I had the choice, I wouldn't be the one with swollen ankles, but it worked out okay."
"Well, if you're happy, and you're healthy, then I'm happy for you." Angela moved to get up, and then sat back down with a laugh. "I was going to hug you, but there will be no hugs from me until this one here is out."
"Do you know if it's a boy or girl?"
"I know, Shawn doesn't. He wanted to be 'surprised'. But it's a boy. His name's going to be Chet II."
"Really?" Jack smiled at the thought. "Well, I haven't even thought of names. Although to continue in the tradition, they'll probably start with the letter C."
"Makes sense," Angela teased. They both jumped when the bell rang.
"Um, stay put," Jack quipped. "I'll be back... eventually."
Before he could get to the door, it opened and Eric came in. "Hey, what're you doing up?"
"I was coming to the door. I heard the bell."
"I pressed it accidentally," Eric said sheepishly. "I actually meant, why are you up and around? I know how hard being on your feet is."
"Angela's here, in the kitchen," Jack explained.
"So I guess she knows now."
"Yeah, and she's being cool. Probably in shock."
"Where's Shawn?"
"With Cory, doing something. Topanga's on her way over here, too." Jack sighed softly as they walked back into the kitchen.
"Hey Angela," Eric greeted his sister-in-law.
"Hi Eric. So... Jack told me about the blessed event. We honestly didn't know about the statue..."
"It's okay, really," Eric reassured her. "So, aren't you rather close to term to be traveling?"
"I'm one week away from my due date. No, the doctor wasn't happy about me moving to a new country right now, but I told him that this had all been arranged long before I was pregnant, and any child of mine would stay put until I was ready."
"We know who wears the pants in your relationship," Jack said, impressed.
"Don't you doubt it," Angela smirked.
The doorbell rang again. The two pregnant people looked at Eric. "Okay, okay, I'm going!"
He answered the bell to see a nervous Cory and a gob-smacked Shawn. "I'm sorry Eric, it just slipped out!" Cory babbled.
"Shawn, you okay there?" Eric asked, seeing Shawn's glassy eyes.
He didn't answer as he moved through the house as if he was sleepwalking. He moved into the kitchen and plopped down next to his wife.
"Hey Cor, what did you do to Shawn? I think you broke him!" Angela called.
In the living room, Eric stopped Cory from following him. "How does something like 'your brother is pregnant' just slip out?"
"He was whining about having to buy all those baby supplies while moving internationally. He kept going on and on about how hard it was to get everything. Finally I said, 'You don't have it half as hard as Jack and Eric. They have to shop for two!' He thought I meant that you were adopting, but I was distracted and said no, that you were having a baby. And... he hasn't spoken since."
"Okay. Once he processes it, he'll be okay, right?"
"Let's go find out."
Shawn was okay, after the initial shock was over. He was so very glad that it was Jack (and Angela) that was going through 'the miracle of childbirth' instead of him. The person who took it the easiest was Morgan, who snorted and said something like "I always knew my family was weird, and this just proved it." But she sent two hand-knitted sweater and bootie sets, one in yellow and one in orange.
A couple of weeks later, Jack was home alone, when he received a phone call. "This is Cory. Angela's in labor."
"Really? Send her our love and tell her we wish we could be there."
"I'll call you back when we have more details."
Five minutes after Jack got off the phone, Eric came in. When he told Eric what was going on, Eric looked excited.
"You know, that will be us soon."
"I know! Two more months to go."
They waited by the phone until Cory called back.
"It's a boy! Seven pounds even. Angela's laughing and Shawn's bawling his head off."
"Did they name him Chet II?" Jack asked.
"How did you know?"
"Angela told me. Give everyone our love."
"Okay. Now we'll be down there for yours, okay? Bye." Cory hung up.
Jack turned to Eric. "Everyone's fine. Boy, seven pounds. Cory said that Shawn's crying his head off."
"Like he can talk. He fainted in the delivery room."
"How quickly they forget."
A week later, Jack was awakened in the middle of the night by a feeling. He automatically put his hand on his stomach, and was surprised to find it rock hard and convulsing. "Oh no, you guys! The c-section's not for another month!" As his stomach rhythmically squeezed, he groaned with the pressure. After the contraction was over, he nudged Eric.
Eric came awake slowly. "You want ice-cream?" he asked groggily.
Jack laughed a little breathlessly as he was seized by another contraction. "No... not now. I'm... in labor." He moaned a little as the pressure in his belly turned to pain.
"What! It's too early!" Eric turned on the light and looked at Jack, who was now panting.
"Tell them that! We need to call Dr Summers!"
As Eric frantically dialed, Jack made his way to the dresser and maneuvered himself into a pair of sweatpants. He briefly debated shoes, but forgot when another contraction came over him. He clutched the dresser and tried to breathe it out while he listened to Eric talk to Dr Summers.
"Okay, bye." Eric hung up and got off the bed. He slipped into some jeans as he explained, "Dr Summers says to get to her office now."
"Moving as fast as I can," Jack said through clenched teeth. The contractions were coming together a little faster now, although thankfully, his water hadn't broken, he thought.
They got out to the car and Eric drove at eighty the whole way to the doctor's office. Luckily the traffic was light, and they weren't pulled over. Eric parked illegally in front of the building as Dr Summers came running out with a wheelchair.
"Jack, hop in," she ordered. "We haven't a second to spare."
They rode up in the elevator in silence, the only noise coming from Jack's labored breathing. When they got to the makeshift OR, Dr Summers explained, "Someone I knew and trusted was flying in to help me deliver the babies next month. As it is, he's on speakerphone. He's assisted me on several special cases. Jack, I need you to change into this." She held out a gown. "You're going to be under local anesthesia. Eric, I'll need to watch the monitor. If any of the numbers drop below the line, let me know. Things are going to happen pretty fast from here on out, so if I seem abrupt, don't take it personally, okay?"
Dr Summers didn't lie. She worked fast and silently, the only sound coming from the phone where an Englishman was giving her instructions. Apparently they had both prepared for this birth. Before Jack realized it, he could hear the cries of one, then two babies. 'My babies,' he thought. He knew that he was grinning stupidly and couldn't bring himself to care.
"And I'm stitching you up and..." Dr Summers muttered softly. "All finished! I'm going to clean up the babies and give them a few tests, and then I'll bring them to you."
"It's over!" Eric, who was standing behind Jack's head, touched his cheek softly. "We're dads!"
"All right!" Jack wanted to scream for joy... after he slept for about twenty years. Although he hadn't felt anything through the operation, the labor before, short as it was, had drained him.
"Eric... here is your son." Dr Summers handed him a blue wrapped bundle. Eric peered at his face. The child was red, bald, and wrinkled, but Eric thought that he was the most perfect thing he had ever seen. He held the child low so that Jack could see. Jack reached out a shaky hand and touched the baby's head.
"Oh, he's so small!"
"Multiples usually are. Actually, he's a little bigger than I thought he would be. Here, let me sit him in the incubator. And now... your little girl."
"Glad we didn't go for the baseball theme in the nursery, " Eric said as the pink bundle was settled. "Hi there, princess. You are going to be so spoiled." Jack chuckled as the baby yawned in response.
"So, have you thought about names yet?" Dr Summers asked.
"Yeah, we have."
Eric took the babies home a day later. They were perfectly healthy. Jack was transported to the hospital after Dr Summers told the doctors there that he had been tragically stabbed in the stomach. Not one of them questioned why the only 'stab wound' he had was a long horizontal cut right above his groin.
When Eric arrived at the house, his family was waiting. Cory and Topanga had agreed to stay for a few days while Jack was still in the hospital. Shawn and Angela were also there, along with their week old son.
"Welcome home, you guys! Aren't they adorable?" Topanga cooed at the babies, still strapped in their car seats.
"Almost as cute as my son," Shawn said proudly.
"So, what did you guys decide to name them?"
"Well, Jack said that he wanted the names to have history and for them to continue with the 'C's. So..." Eric bent down and picked up his son. "This is Cameron Alan Hunter-Matthews." He sat Cameron down and scooped up his daughter. "And this is Campbell Maureen Hunter-Matthews."
"Man, those are long names," Cory commented.
"Look, just because you couldn't come up with a decent middle name for Chloe is no reason to criticize my offspring."
"Ohh, touchy!" Shawn laughed at the look Eric leveled him.
"Anyway," Eric continued, ignoring Shawn. "I have to feed these little ones. Any suggestions on how to feed both of them?"
"Here, I'll take Cameron, and you take Campbell," Angela said. "Chet's asleep, so I can help you just this once."
****
"Hey, I'm glad you're home. Two weeks without you here didn't seem right," Eric whispered softly. At the moment, he and Jack were curled up on their bed, trying to catch up on sleep before one or both of the babies started crying.
"I'm glad too. Know what, though?"
"What?"
"This... I didn't think it would work out, but it did. We're a complete family now."
Eric smiled. "Love you."
"Love you too."