A/N: This one is for LongLiveTheHart, on the occasion of her birthday. She's a fabulous person and a wonderful friend, and this story is actually based on something she said to me in one of our many epic PM-based conversations :)

LongLiveTheHart - Wishing you a wonderful birthday, honey, and I really hope you like this :)

Disclaimer: All recognisable characters belong to Leila Gerstein, and other folks who aren't me. Characters you don't recognise as part of the Hart of Dixie canon belong to me, Ultrawoman a.k.a. Ultra.


Two of a Kind (Working on a Full House)

The house was quiet. Zoe and Wade were curled up in each other's arms in bed, finally alone, comfortable, without anything to worry about. It felt good.

There was a good chance they would've been doing something interesting by now, if they weren't so damn tired, but the truth was, Zoe was already half asleep against Wade's chest, and though the thought had occurred to him to try to rouse her for some fun, he really just did not have the energy. Wade Kinsella never thought he'd see a day when that happened, but today might just be it.

Nevertheless, he let his eyes fall closed, sleep just starting to creep in and take him down, when a whimpering sound came through the baby monitor on the nightstand. Before he could ever react, Zoe started to groan.

"No, no, no!" she complained, sounding perhaps a little too much like Lavon, as she buried her face as far into Wade and the covers both as she possibly could.

"Don't sweat it, baby. I'll go see what our boy needs," he promised, kissing her hair as he shifted her off onto the mattress and pillows so she could carry on resting.

Wade was pretty sure she muttered something like thanks and that she would make it up to him later. He really didn't see that happening any time soon, and actually wondered if either them would even remember she said it by morning. It really didn't matter anyway. Parents learned pretty fast not to keep score like that. Some things were just more important.

"When did I become such a damn grown up?" Wade muttered to himself as he did his best to hurry up the stairs without making too much noise.

Tiptoeing into the nursery, he realised fast he needn't have bothered. His son was now a little past the whimpering stage and fast approaching a full-on screaming fit. Wade swiftly picked him up out of his cot, cradling the little boy against his chest and trying his best to soothe him.

"Hey now, buddy. What's all this noise, huh? Come on now, Wil, this is no way to go on. We got females tryin' to sleep in this house. Your momma is wiped out downstairs, and your sister here, she doesn't need wakin' up neither."

Held close in his daddy's arms, Wade was pleased to realise his son was calming down fast, but of course, it was too late. In the next crib over, Wade watch his daughter begin to stir, and then, taking in a deep breath, she let out a real impressive yell. Before he knew it, both kids were screaming and his head was ringing with the noise.

"I'm here, I'm here!" Zoe called as she came running at top speed up the stairs, breathing too heavily as she reached the top. "Okay, we really need an elevator in this place," she declared, finding some kind of energy reserve as she rushed to the crib and picked the little girl up into her arms. "Okay, Jackie. It's okay, baby girl," she promised her, rocking her in her arms. "Come on, your brother didn't mean to wake you up like that, did you, Wilkes?"

"Of course, he didn't," Wade answered for the little boy who was thankfully starting to calm down himself now. "Man, I don't know if we did the right thing, puttin' them in their own room like this."

"Wade, we had to try it eventually," Zoe told him, glad to note that Jackie's crying was now down to a dull roar. "They will get used to it, I swear, it just takes time. This is only their second night, but it will get easier. It's just with two of them, when one gets disturbed-"

"He or she disturbs the other one and it's all-out chaos," said Wade without pause. "Yeah, I know. I swear, Zoe, I could not love these kids any more than I do, but you think maybe next go-around we can stick to one at a time?"

Zoe turned to him with her eyes wider than wide, which was new since they had been half-shut at best up until then. "Next go-around?" she checked. "Oh, no. No, no, no. Trust me, Wade Kinsella, I love Wilkes and Jacqueline just as much as you do, but there is no way we are having any more kids. Two is more than enough."

Wade only smiled and didn't argue with her. He knew better than that. Zoe was fun to go back-and-forth with on some things, most things actually, but not when she was over-tired and had her real serious face on.

A part of him would still like to think they might have a bigger family someday, but truth to say, if this was the extent of their brood, he could deal with that. They were great kids, even if they did have a tendency towards yelling when it was really time for sleeping.

"Okay, I think we're all good here," said Zoe then, moving back towards Jackie's crib and gently placing her down in it.

"Yeah, reckon they can just tell when each other's okay," Wade said just as softly, bringing Wilkes over to his bed and putting him down too. "That's how it works right, with twins and all?"

"There have been studies that suggest twins share a special link. A lot of evidence is anecdotal, and a lot of the things they might do in later life, like finishing each other sentences and liking the same things, could just as easily be more about shared experiences than any kind of psychic telepathy. Still, there are twins who say they have felt each other's pain, which is possible, since it can be psychological and felt empathetically."

Wade smiled fondly at Zoe as he drew her into his arms and kissed the top of her head. "Tired enough to drop right here and still talkin' like one o' those fancy medical journals you love so much. You are one amazin' woman, doc. I ever tell you that?"

"Hmm, a few times I think," she said, leaning heavily against him, her arms barely holding on, "but I could stand to hear it again. Actually, forget it, I'm not sure how much longer I can stand for anything," she admitted.

"I got you, baby," said Wade, scooping her up into his arms almost as easy as he could do with the kids. "Come on now, time to put ourselves down for the night too."

A quick glance into the cribs proved the little ones were sleeping soundly, so Wade crept carefully down the stairs with Zoe held close in his arms.

She was almost completely asleep by the time he reached the bed and carefully laid her down, pulling the covers up to her chin. Slipping into bed beside her, he eased her back into his embrace and she went more than willingly into his arms.

"Love you, Wade," she muttered, wrapping herself around him.

"Love you too, sweetheart," he promised, smiling widely as his eyes went to the ceiling a moment. "You two, too," he told the kids, even though they couldn't hear and would barely understand if they did.

It really didn't matter at all to Wade. Crazy as their lives could be sometimes, he knew how much he loved his family. He had no regrets about how things turned out, not a single one.

The End