A/N: I've had a few requests for a Spalison prompt and one very sweet person who offered to even pay me for it. I'm not really great when it comes to exchanging fics for cash, so I'm actually doing this free of charge unless people feel like donating to my Ko-fi (in my bio and on my Tumblr). No pressure.
The prompt ended up being an Emison within a Spalison within an Emison…AU future-ish prompt? I don't know if it's exactly what the prompt-requester really wanted, but I tried to roll with it.
This one is rated M-ish.
Prompt: Please write a Spalison prompt! Imagine if like one of the girls (probably Spencer) is still next door to Em and Ali, and Ali is alone when she goes into labor with Sam. Em is out with the twins and Alison knocks on Spencer's door and is like "the baby is coming now! I need a drive!" Maybe even ending up having the baby in the car.
Labor of Love
Alison couldn't move. Her entire body was drenched in sweat. She was panting so hard that she thought she might pass out. She gripped the sheets and cried out, her back arching and her muscles tensing.
She tried to remember her Lamaze exercises as she worked to regain control of her lung functions. Another one hit her and she was right back where she started. She was seeing stars.
She finally got her bearings after a few minutes. Her body relaxed against the mattress.
Emily crawled up from under the covers, a huge smile on her face. She saw the serene look on Alison's face. She moved up to kiss her, their lips gently meeting for a soft peck. Alison could feel the smugness radiating off of her wife.
"Don't you fucking gloat." Alison warned her.
"I told you I could make it a trifecta." Emily winked at her. She threaded her fingers into Alison's hair.
When Emily looked at her with such soft affection Alison felt like she was melting. Every time Alison looked into Emily's eyes she could see her wife falling even more deeply in love with her, and it made Alison feel the same.
Emily had a way about her. She had the biggest heart that Alison had ever seen. She looked at the world in a bright and peculiar way, which is what Alison loved about her. She loved her sunny optimist. The brunette had her dark days, but at her core Emily wanted to believe in the good in the world. It's one of the qualities that made her such an amazing mother and partner.
"How are you feeling?" Emily kissed the side of Alison's jaw.
She moved her hand down to Alison's swollen belly. The baby was a week overdue, and Alison had about had it with their son overstaying his welcome in her uterus. Emily had taken the week off of work because she knew he could come at any moment. And she wanted to make sure they had everything ready for him. She also wanted to make sure her wife's every need was attended to.
"Normally I'd appreciate all this attention, but I've only got so much stamina." Alison touched Emily's bare waist.
"I know. But the doctor said that stimulation could help induce the labor."
"She also said that I should eat spicy foods and walk around a lot, and that just gave me heartburn and made my feet swell." She pushed her lips out in a pout. They felt bruised and swollen.
"Luckily this comes with minimal side effects." Emily winked. "Ready to go again?"
"I never thought I'd say this, but my vagina needs a break. I need to recharge my battery. Just plug me in and let me power up." Alison splayed her arms out and huffed out a sigh.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Her head was still spinning. It was amazing that after over ten years of marriage Emily still knew how to take her breath away.
The bed shuffled. Something warm tickled her stomach. Emily's lips were so tender against her skin that Alison could feel the love in her motions. Alison opened her eyes and smiled down at her.
Emily loved kissing her belly. She loved feeling connected to their son. Emily gently kissed her baby bump again and put an open palm against Alison's stomach. She peered up at the blonde.
"I can't wait to meet him." She rubbed circles against Alison's skin.
Alison loved how nurturing she was. She had such an unwavering amount of love in her heart, especially when it came to their children. She watched quietly as Emily spoke softly to their baby boy. He usually came to life when he heard his Mama. Alison loved feeling him dance around in excitement, because she felt the same way about her wife. She felt like dancing every time she was in Emily's orbit.
"Do me a favor and tell your son he needs to vacate these premises immediately." Alison laid her palm on the other side of her belly. It was hard and tight and still gleaming with sweat.
"You heard your mother." Emily spoke softly to her unborn son. "It's time to come out."
They felt a flutter of movement as the baby moved around. After a few seconds, he was still.
"Now he's just mocking me." Alison sat up.
No matter what position she was in she was uncomfortable. The baby felt like he was taking up every inch of her body. She looked down at her stomach. She was retaining water. She frowned.
"I look like a balloon." She pouted.
"A beautiful shiny balloon." Emily rolled over and propped herself up on her elbow. "One I must say that I enjoy playing with."
"Seriously, I'm hideous. How can you find me attractive right now?" Alison poked her belly.
The insecurity had gotten harder for her once the mood swings had started, but Emily never once faltered in her stride. She had watched Alison's body change and grow, and she was in awe of it.
"Because you're carrying our son. You're giving him life." Emily slowly sat up. She cupped Alison's cheek. "You…" She pecked her lips, "…are the most beautiful mother…" Another kiss, "…and lover I could have ever asked for."
Blood rushed to Alison's cheeks. Her entire body flashed in heat. No matter how low her mood seemed to get, Emily always knew exactly what to say to make her feel better. It was the magic of her wife.
"You're just saying that so I don't get sad and eat my weight in pickles and ice cream." She'd started craving weird things in her seventh month of pregnancy.
"If you want pickles and ice cream I will go out and buy every carton of Ben & Jerry's and all the Gherkins in the store. You just say the word."
Alison smiled at Emily's determination. She knew how lucky she was to have the brunette. Emily had been the calming center in the middle of the chaos of pregnancy. But even before then, Emily had always been sensitive to her needs. She was the most nurturing person Alison had ever met. And she was lucky enough to have her every day for the rest of their lives.
Alison grasped Emily's cheeks and pulled her in for a kiss. She gently held Emily's face as their eyes met.
"You're so sweet." Alison's nose brushed Emily's.
"And you are…" Emily took her time eyeing Alison's body, "…very aesthetically pleasing."
"Oh my God, you dork." Alison fell back against the headboard in laughter. "Who says that kind of thing?"
The teasing smile on Emily's face slowly faded into a genuine look of adoration. Alison loved seeing the subtle changes in her eyes. Her eyes told the full story of what was going on in her head.
Emily splayed her hand against Alison's stomach and slowly moved it up against her body. She took her time appreciating her curves. Her palm landed against the side of her neck. Her fingertips curled against the top of her spine. Alison felt sparks of pleasure shooting throughout her entire body.
When Emily touched her Alison could tell that it wasn't just hormones or pheromones or that they constantly craved one another. It was that her pregnancy had opened Emily's eyes further to her inner beauty, something Alison had trouble sharing, because it made her vulnerable. But over the years she'd learned to let Emily in. The vulnerabilities that had come with marriage, and especially pregnancy, had brought an additional layer of intimacy between them.
"I mean it, Alison." Emily reached for Alison's hand, threading their fingers together. "All I see when I look at you is your strength and your endurance and your sensual prowess. And it's the sexiest thing in the world. You are always beautiful in my eyes. Always."
When Emily told her she was beautiful, Alison believed it. She knew that once she was holding her son in her arms, Emily's son…it would prove to be worth it.
"Have I told you lately how much I love you?" Alison put her palm against Emily's neck.
"I think I heard you shout it a few times in the middle of the first time…"
Alison playfully smacked her. Emily was being so cocky, which she loved. And truthfully, she'd earned the right to be cocky. Because she was amazing in all aspects.
"I'm serious." Alison slid her hand up against Emily's jaw, tracing her fingers against her strong jaw line. "You're so wonderful. I really love you, Emily. I wasted so much time not telling you that. But I want you to know how much you mean to me. I wouldn't be the woman I am today without you…without your love. You…" She felt a knot in her throat, but she managed to swallow it, "You never gave up on me. After everything I did…you're still here."
She blinked back her tears. She'd spent years thinking she wasn't worthy of love, least of all Emily's love. But Emily was determined to love her, and because of that Alison was able to open herself up to her love...and she'd been able to return that love to her wife tenfold.
"We're not kids anymore." Emily reminded her. "You're not that person anymore. I'm not who I used to be either." She reached up and wiped away a trace of a tear underneath Alison's right eye. "My dad taught me a long time ago that relationships require work, and that when two people are truly in love…" She cradled Alison's cheek, "There is no such thing as giving up." She smiled warmly at her wife. "I will always be there for you."
"Me too." Alison nodded in agreement. She sighed happily. "You're the best thing that ever happened to me. You deserve the whole world."
"I've got it." Emily's entire world was Alison.
They met for a kiss. It started out innocent. It was slowly becoming something more when an alarm pierced the air and startled them.
Emily rolled over and reached out to grab her phone. Her eyes widened when she saw the time.
"Crap." She sat up, wrapping the sheet around her body. "I've got to pick the girls up from soccer practice."
"We should make them walk. It builds character." Alison reached for Emily, trying to pull her back into their embrace.
Emily sat up and leaned over, grabbing her pants off of the floor. She quickly threw her shirt on. She twisted back around and gave Alison a kiss on the forehead.
"To be continued." She touched her cheek. She put her hands on Alison's stomach and pressed her lips against her baby bump. "Don't you dare make your big debut without me." She ordered her unborn son, not knowing at the time just how foreshadowing those words would be. She looked at Alison. "I'll be back in half an hour."
Emily rushed out to go pick up their twins. Alison couldn't get comfortable in bed. Her back was killing her. She hadn't slept in days. Emily stayed up with her a lot, giving her massages and trying to help with her discomfort. Alison really felt her absence when she wasn't around.
She got up and put on a nightgown. She stopped and peered at herself in the mirror. She held her stomach in her hands, observing her side profile. She really couldn't see what Emily saw in her. She looked bloated, blotchy, and tired. She rubbed her back, quietly deciding that making herself some tea might help with the stiff muscles.
She made the mistake of leaving her phone on her nightstand.
By the time Alison got downstairs she felt like she had run a marathon. The muscles in her back twitched. There was a stabbing sensation radiating in her lower back. There was a fraction of a second she wondered if she was going into labor, but it didn't feel like it had when she went into labor with the girls, so she assumed it was just regular pregnancy pangs.
It wasn't until she was turning the stove off and pouring the boiling water into her cup of tea that she realized she was wrong.
She felt something drizzling down her inner thighs. It started with a slow trickle, but then a strange popping sensation opened up a floodgate and the drizzle turned into a gushing flow, soaking the kitchen floor. She looked down at the giant puddle, trying to comprehend what had just happened. Her water hadn't broken with the twins. The doctor had to do it at the hospital.
Alison stared at the wet floor in shock. The absurdity of the timing made her laugh. Emily had barely left her side all week. It was such a cruel ironic twist of fate for her to go into labor the second she was gone. It was the equivalent of a watched pot never boiling.
"Oh…Sam." She put her hand on her stomach. "You have got to be kidding me. Your mom just left."
The sensation of the knives in her back started to hurt more. Alison waddled towards the stairs, hoping to get to her phone, but before she could make it up the first few steps the first wave of contractions started. They hit her from out of nowhere. It knocked the wind out of her, forcing her to sit down against the step and breathe through it.
It progressed extremely quickly. Alison gripped the banister railing and huffed out, trying to remember her Lamaze techniques.
When she heard the front door open she felt a flood of relief.
"Emily!" She called out.
"Ali?" The voice calling back was not her wife's.
"Spence!" Alison managed to huff. "In here!"
"Hey, I'm sorry to barge in like this. Violet said she left her math book here when she was studying with Lily. I…" When Spencer rounded the corner she saw her cousin on the floor. "Oh, my God…what happened? Are you okay?" She rushed to Alison's side. She glanced up the stairs. "Did you fall? Are you hurt?"
A contraction hit her, a wave of pain. Her belly hardened and she groaned and reached for Spencer's hand. The brunette let Alison clamp down on her hand. Alison squeezed her hand so hard that Spencer lost feeling in the tips of her fingers.
"Hey, breathe." Spencer touched her face. She was sweating.
"My water broke." Alison's voice was strained. "I think he's coming. It's happening…too fast."
The whites of Spencer's eyes flashed.
"Oh, babe…come on, we need to get you to the hospital." She slipped her arm underneath Alison's arms and helped her to her feet. Alison nearly fell over, but Spencer kept her steady. "Hey, I've got you. Come on."
"Emily…"
"Where is she?" Spencer led Alison towards the door.
"She'll come home. She won't know." Alison's head felt fuzzy. All she could think about was how terrifying doing this without Emily would be. She glanced at her cousin, grateful for the timing of her visit. "She went to get Lily and Grace…"
"My phone is in the car. We can call her on the way." Spencer reached into her pocket and pulled out her car keys. "How long ago did the labor start?"
"Just a few minutes, but it feels like it's progressing really…ow." She felt a painful jolt in her back.
"Just focus on your breathing."
Alison didn't remember the walk to Spencer's car, but she was faintly aware of Spencer holding her up and telling her to breathe. Spencer supported her every step of the way.
Spencer popped the trunk of her car and hauled out a large seat cover. She put the blanket under one arm while supporting Alison with the other.
"I feel another one coming." Alison's breaths were short and quick.
She slid to the ground, Spencer falling with her, refusing to let her go. She kept her from crashing to the cement.
They leaned against the side of the car. Alison parted her legs and put her palms against her knees and lowered her head and grunted as the sharp pain radiated from her back to her abdomen.
It's like her son had decided he didn't want to wait a minute longer. She felt a crushing pain in her pelvis.
A warm palm clasped the back of her hand and gently squeezed her fingers.
"You've got this, Ali. Just breathe." Spencer encouraged her.
"I can't." She felt defeated. She felt alone without Emily. But having Spencer by her side kept her from giving up completely. "I need my wife. I need Emily."
Spencer nodded. She pulled the car door open and leaned inside. She grabbed her phone and yanked it out of its docking station. She dialed Emily's number.
o ~ O ~ o
Across town Emily was looking at the clock on her dashboard. She didn't like being away from Alison, knowing that she could go into labor at any minute. She didn't want to miss the birth of their son. And more importantly, she didn't want Alison to go through it alone.
She had texted the girls over five minutes ago that she was waiting in the parking lot. She was starting to get impatient. She grabbed her keys and shoved them in her pocket. As she was opening the door to get out of the car the keys slipped out of her pocket and into the seat.
She didn't hear her phone buzzing as she shut the door. She didn't see the picture of her and Spencer at the beach two summers back flashing on her caller ID.
"Mom!" She heard Lily's voice echoing across the parking lot.
She spun around and saw her daughter walking towards her…without her sister. Lily was still in her soccer uniform.
"Hey. Where is your sister?" Emily asked.
"I don't know. I texted her and told her to meet me here. My phone is dead, so I don't know if it went through." Lily adjusted the strap on her bag.
"How was practice?"
"It was fine." Lily shrugged.
Lily was her introverted child. She had to push her to talk. Grace was the polar opposite. She talked about everything, sparing no detail. Emily wondered what her son would be like. Maybe he'd be a mixture of the girls. An introverted extrovert.
Her phone lit up from inside the car again. Emily felt something change in the air. Something didn't feel right, but she couldn't put her finger on it. Her initial instinct was concern about Grace and the fact that she was missing.
"We need to find your sister." Emily looked around the deserted field.
They walked away from the car. She had no idea that her best friend was losing her mind in an attempt to try and reach her.
o ~ O ~ o
After the third call and the sixth text, Spencer tried a different approach. She tried calling Lily first. Her phone went directly to voicemail. She tried Grace's next. After twenty seconds of ringing she heard Grace's sassy voice,
"Hey, it's Grace. You know what to do. Leave a message after the…" It beeped in the middle of her sentence.
"Grace, it's your Aunt Spencer. I'm trying to get in touch with your mother. Your mom is in labor. You've got a baby brother on the way, kid. Call me as soon as you get this."
"They're not answering?" Alison looked at Spencer pitifully as she ended the call.
"I'm sure everything is fine." Spencer bit her lip, though she was flashing back to every single thing that had gone wrong in their adolescence. "We'll find them."
Alison's sadness quickly changed to irritation when she felt another stabbing pain in her abdomen.
"I'm creating a life here and my wife and daughters have skipped off to God knows where…" She complained. "And my son thinks he's funny…trying to pop out at the worst possible time." She glanced down at her stomach and addressed her son sternly. "Listen here, buddy, you have waited this long. You can wait a little bit longer. Your mommy does not find this amusing."
"Just calm down." Spencer rubbed her arm. "Your labor just started. You probably have plenty of time."
"God, this is nothing like the twins. I can't tell if I'm dilated or not."
"Every birth is different. If he's ready to come out…he's ready to come out."
"Oh, no he's not. I'm not doing this without Emily." Alison refused.
She pulled her legs apart during a painful contraction. Spencer rubbed her back, trying to soothe her pain. After it passed Alison faced her.
"I need to know if I'm dilated. Can you…"
"You want me to look?" Spencer made a face.
"Well, I certainly can't."
"I…" Spencer twitched squeamishly. "I'm not a doctor."
"You're smart enough to be one."
"You know I have a thing about blood…"
"Oh, come on! You've had two kids!"
"Yes, but I didn't watch it. And this isn't exactly a sterile environment…"
"Just woman up and look at my fucking vagina!" Her voice was so loud that it echoed throughout the air.
The heard a shuffling noise and looked over and saw a little boy on his bike. He looked terrified. Spencer and Alison glanced at one another.
"Hey, Jake." Spencer smiled nervously. "Everything is fine. We're fine here. Why don't you just head back to your house?"
He looked at the older women in confusion, but started peddling away. Spencer looked around to make sure the coast was clear. Then she lifted Alison's gown. She took a very quick look and then pulled Alison's gown back down.
"Nothing yet," Spencer said. "We're in good shape. You just need to relax and br…"
"If you tell me to breathe one more goddamn time I'm going to throttle you."
"Okay, well, nice to know the mood swings are still consistent." Spencer muttered under her breath.
"I'm having a freaking baby here!" Alison argued.
"I know." Spencer was trying to be sympathetic. She was trying to stay calm for Alison's sake.
Spencer grabbed the seat cover that she'd dropped when Alison started falling to the ground. She picked it up and shook it open.
"What are you doing?" Alison's eyes widened, terrified she was setting up some strange picnic area for her to give birth in the middle of her driveway.
She couldn't let that happen. Her bare ass would be the talk of all the neighborhood sharing apps.
"I don't want to give birth in the middle of the street!" Alison screeched. "I'm not going to spread eagle for everyone in town to see."
She could see the headline now,
"Expectant mother flashes neighbors. Terrifies local children."
"I know." Spencer put her hand on Alison's shoulder. "It's not for you. It's for the car. I just had it reupholstered." She draped the cloth over the seat and the floorboard. "Toby just got us the covers so when we take the dogs to the lake they don't shed everywhere…"
When she turned around to help Alison into the car she saw the disapproving look on the blonde's face.
"What's wrong?" Spencer questioned.
"Are you comparing me to your dogs?" The shock of it briefly made her forget about her labor pains.
"Alison, you're actively oozing things out of your body. I remember how messy labor is." Spencer uttered caustically. "You're lucky I'm not making you put on a diaper." She helped her to her feet. "Come on, Mama."
She helped Alison into her car and then rushed around to the driver's side. She quickly climbed in and yanked her seatbelt on, clicking it in place.
Alison yelped from the passenger's seat. She hissed through her teeth as another wave of contractions started.
"How close together are the contractions?" Spencer questioned.
"Non-fucking-stop." Alison clutched her stomach and arched her back. "Fuck, why did I agree to do this again?" She moaned.
"Just…think about your focal point. What did you pick to focus on during your childbirth classes?"
"That's not going to help me right now."
"Why not?"
"Because Emily is my focal point!"
"Close your eyes." Spencer ordered. She took one hand off of the steering wheel and put it on top of Alison's hand. Alison did what she was told. "Take a really deep breath and hold it." Spencer glanced over and saw Alison inhaling deeply. She held it for five seconds and then let it out. "Now, think about the very first time you saw Emily."
Alison nodded, her eyes still closed. She could see her sweet innocent little friend Emily Fields standing outside her house. She looked so young. It was long before their lives had become so complicated. She was caring and kind and full of hope.
"What was she wearing?" Spencer asked.
"She was in her swim gear." Alison smiled. "I remember thinking that blue looked so good on her."
"Good. What else?"
"Her hair…it was still damp. She had it pulled back in a ponytail. I remember when I walked over to her she still smelled like chlorine. She smelled clean. She introduced herself. She was very soft-spoken. And when she shook my hand I could feel how smooth her skin was. I remember feeling an impulsive urge to kiss her."
Spencer smiled. She could picture it. Alison had always had a mean streak in her, but she was really soft around Emily. She could picture her two best friends meeting for the first time. She could see the young girl that Emily had once been. Soft and unblemished. She'd grown over the years, but she still remained one of the kindest souls that Spencer had ever known.
"Her cheeks were so cute. And her eyes...God, I got so lost in her eyes. And her lips were..." She bit down on her lip and grinned, imagining exactly what those lips had done to her over the years. She tried to focus on the pleasure she'd felt with Emily earlier. She knew that sexual pleasure was supposed to help with labor pain. Maybe that's why she hadn't felt it until Emily left. Maybe Emily had taken her pain away. "Spencer, I can't even tell you the things those lips can do..."
"Wasn't expecting it to take this kind of plot twist, but okay..."
"She's incredible. She really is. Sometimes I look at her and I ask myself how I got so lucky. We were just two kids talking about spirit week one day. And now...she's the love of my life." Alison took a deep breath. She couldn't see it, but Spencer was smiling. "I think I knew when I met her. I knew I wanted it to be her. She was so cute and nervous. And so nice. Just the way she looked at me…I knew she was special." She sighed. "She still is special."
There was a beat of silence.
"Spence?" Alison let out a deep breath. She opened her eyes. They were watering. "Tell me she's not going to miss the birth of our son."
"She's Emily." Spencer squeezed Alison's hand. "She'll come through. She always does. You know she'll find a way…"
"She's the only reason I survived the girls' birth." Alison felt something clutching in her chest. She felt like her heart was aching. "What if she's not there? What if something goes wrong?"
"It's going to be fine." Spencer rubbed her hand. "Look, we've survived much worse…right?"
Alison closed her eyes, trying to send a mental message to her wife to check her damn messages. She couldn't imagine Emily separating herself from her phone.
She hadn't accounted for Emily accidentally getting locked out of her car, nor for one twin to be missing and the other's phone being dead.
o ~ O ~ o
Grace was walking out of the bathrooms next to the soccer field when she realized she had a missed message from her aunt. It was rare that she ever heard from her Aunt Spencer, so it struck her as odd. She walked towards the parking lot as she hit the play button.
When she heard the news she squealed in excitement. She tried to call Lily, but her phone went to voicemail. She ran the grounds trying to find her and spotted her with their mother walking towards the closed concessions area.
"MOM! LILY!" They spun around when they heard her.
"Grace, what's wrong?" Emily mistook her frantic excitement for fear.
"Mom is in labor!" Grace reached them, her phone flailing in the air.
"What?" Emily exclaimed.
She grabbed Grace's phone. She saw the missed call from Spencer. She hit the button to call her back.
Spencer answered after two rings.
"Spence, it's Emily…"
"Hey, she's okay. We're heading to the hospital. We should be there in five minutes."
"When did it start? How far apart are the contractions?" Emily grabbed the girls' arms and motioned for them to follow her back to the car.
"Pretty consistent. Her water broke about thirty minutes ago."
"I want to talk to her…" She heard Alison's voice in the background.
There was a shuffling noise and then Emily heard a stifled cry. Emily felt it in her heart. Her wife was in pain, and she could feel it on an emotional level. The connection they had ran so deep that Emily had a visceral reaction when her wife hurt.
"Ali?"
"Emily…" She could hear the relief in Alison's voice. She could also hear the fear and the agony. "Em…he's coming. You have to be there. I can't do it without you."
"I'm coming, baby. I'll be there. I promise."
"Another contraction is coming." The line went quiet and Emily could only hear the sounds of her labored breathing and her whimpered cries.
It killed Emily that she wasn't by her side. She wanted to be there. She wanted to hold her and kiss her and caress her face. She wanted to take her pain away. She wanted to look into her eyes and tell her how much she loved her.
"I love you, Ali. You can do this. Just think about our boy…"
"Mmmhmm…" Alison muttered out a pained response.
Spencer took the phone from Alison.
"We're pulling into the parking lot now."
"The girls and I are getting in the car. We'll be there soon."
They both rushed off the phone. Emily grabbed the door handle and yanked on it, but the door was locked. She reached into her pocket…only to realize that the keys weren't there.
"Son of a bitch." She felt a rising panic in her chest. "You have to be fucking kidding me…"
"Oh…swear jar." Grace's face lit up.
"Read the room." Lily smacked Grace's shoulder. She grabbed Grace's phone. "We can just take an Uber."
"Right." Emily nodded.
Lily had inherited her practical nature from Emily's father, and Emily was thankful for that every day.
"Oh…um…the closest one is twenty minutes away." Lily frowned.
"Forget that…" Emily scoffed.
They were nearly half an hour away from all of her friends. She knew she had to think quick. She looked around the parking lot until her eyes landed on a large rock. She rushed over to grab it. A broken window was a small price to pay to make sure she was by her wife's side when their son was born.
"Whoa, mom's gone rogue." Grace lifted her brows with a laugh.
"Stand back." She ushered her daughters away from the car so they wouldn't be near the shattering glass.
She lifted the rock and reared back. Before she could ram it into the window she heard someone shout at her. She heard footsteps against the pavement.
"Put that down and step away from the car!"
They turned around and saw a security officer rushing towards them.
"I'm going to need you to step away from the car, ma'am."
"It's my car." Emily explained. "My wife is in labor. And I think I locked my keys inside."
The cop looked at her skeptically. He looked like he'd heard every excuse in the book. Emily could sense his doubt.
"Listen, I'm telling you the truth…"
The officer looked at the twins and then at Emily, who was still holding the rock.
"Put it down." He ordered again.
"You don't understand…"
"I said put it down! Destruction of property is a violation of…"
"It's our property!" Grace snapped. "Did you not hear what she said? Our mom is having a baby!"
"Yeah, if anything, you should be offering us a ride to the hospital." Lily jumped in.
"Girls." Emily tried to shush them. She knew they were freaked out, but she couldn't afford for them to make the situation worse.
She was already freaking out. The longer this took, the longer she'd be away from her wife, and the more likely she'd miss the birth of her son.
"I can't just take this at face value. I'm going to have to run the plates to verify before I can do anything else. I need to call this into the main office."
"Oh my God. Don't you have some teenage shoplifters to apprehend or something?" Grace complained.
"Grace…not another word." Emily glared at her.
"Let's sort this out in my office." The cop offered.
"I don't have time for that. I can't miss my son's birth…"
"I'm sorry. I have to follow protocol."
"This is my car. If you just let me get in…I can show you the registration…"
"I'm not going to let you break into this vehicle, ma'am…" He grabbed Emily's arm.
"This is such fucking bullshit." Emily dropped the rock, but she didn't fight him. "Girls, call your aunt back. Tell her that I'm dealing with Rosewood's finest." She growled the last word. "Just hang tight, okay?"
The officer hauled Emily away. Grace immediately tried to call Spencer, but Spencer didn't answer because she was helping Alison into a wheelchair.
Lily started pacing by the car.
"What are we going to do?"
Grace furrowed her brows. She saw the security guy's 'campus patrol' car sitting in the shade. The door was open. The lights were on, which meant he'd left the keys inside. Grace grinned.
"Come on." She grabbed her sister's arm.
"What are you doing?" Lily frowned in apprehension.
"Improvising!" She rushed into the car, hopping into the driver's seat. As she expected, the keys were still in the ignition. "Rookie move."
She touched the steering wheel and looked up at Lily, who was staring at her in shock.
"Get in loser." Grace smirked. "We're going to the hospital."
"Grace…this is…"
"No time for judging me. Let's go. Mom needs us."
"I was going to say 'genius', but okay." Lily rushed over to the passenger's side.
"Wait. No. I take it back. Say it." Grace shut the door. "Say all the things."
Lily rolled her eyes.
"Do you even know how to drive this thing?" Lily asked.
Grace shrugged. She put the car in gear and then they peeled out of the parking lot. Neither the cop, nor Emily heard the car's engine as it drove by the office.
Emily felt like screaming. She felt like crying. She felt like hitting the cop and making a run for it. She didn't care if she ended up in jail tomorrow. As long as she was by Alison's side today. Her wife needed her. Her baby needed her. She paced around the tiny office in frustration while the little paper-pushing man scribbled something down and picked up the phone.
All she could think about was the cries she'd heard on the phone earlier. All she could think about was her promise that she'd be there. She couldn't miss her son being born. Alison needed her.
She knew at the very least, she had Spencer. She hoped the young lawyer was keeping Alison calm.
o ~ O ~ o
Fate had a funny way when it came to their friendship. Because when Spencer and Alison arrived at the hospital the last thing they were expecting was to run into another familiar face, but as Spencer wheeled Alison into the emergency department they ran into Hanna.
"Hanna?" Spencer questioned in confusion.
"Oh, hey." The blonde put her phone down and looked at her friends.
"What are you doing here? Is everything okay?" Spencer asked.
"Cami sprained her wrist. She punched some kid in the car pick-up line." Hanna shrugged it off like it was just a normal thing.
"Why am I not surprised?" Spencer rolled her eyes.
"The kid was some boy who was hitting his girlfriend. Her dad and I told her to aim for his nuts next time." Hanna looked at Alison in concern. "What are you doing here?"
"Oh, you know, I just have a little tickle in my throat." Alison hunched over and grabbed her stomach.
"Well, it is flu season…"
"I'm having a baby. What does it look like?"
"Oh." Hanna nodded. Then her eyes brightened. "Oh! Oh my God! He's coming? Like…right now? Wow! You and Emily must be so excited! Where is she?"
"On her way," Spencer said. "She should be here any minute."
But the minutes ticked by, and Emily didn't show.
Five minutes later they were checking Alison in. Fifteen minutes later she was being admitted to the birth and delivery floor. As each passing second went by Alison became more noticeably upset. She didn't have much time to fret, because her labor was progressing so rapidly. She was past the point of being able to get an epidural for the pain. She dilated quickly. The nurses rushed her into the birthing room.
She kept looking around the room, expecting Emily to walk in at any moment. She didn't know that Emily was just as much of a wreck as she was. She was practically pulling her hair out.
Spencer held Alison's hand as she cried. She didn't want to deliver her son without Emily.
"Where is she?" She sobbed. "What if something happened to her? What if she's hurt?"
"Hey, you can't think like that."
"Spence…" She clutched her cousin's hand. "Will you stay with me? Please?"
"Of course. I'm here, Ali. I'm not going anywhere."
"I'll see if I can get in touch with her." Hanna sat down a cup of ice chips next to Alison's bed.
She walked out of the room. Spencer reached for her phone, too. They had been calling Emily non-stop.
Hanna stood outside Alison's room. She was in the middle of leaving a message for Emily when she saw two familiar faces running down the hallway.
"Aunt Hanna!" Lily called out. "Where's mom?"
"Oh, thank God." Hanna breathed a sigh of relief as she hung up the phone. "Hey, girls. Your mom is fine. She's fully dilated and should be having him soon. Where is your mother?" She expected Emily to be right behind them.
"Mom got pinched by the fuzz." Grace scowled. She was still pissed.
"Stop watching gangster movies, for the love of God." Lily mumbled.
"She…what?" Hanna asked.
"Some campus cop caught us trying to break into her car…" Lily explained.
"Whoa…back up. Why were you breaking into her car?"
"Because mom accidentally locked her keys inside. We couldn't get a ride, so she was going to bust the window, but a cop caught us. He wouldn't let her go."
Hanna's head felt like it was spinning. It definitely sounded like Emily. She was a woman who would do whatever it took to get to her lover's side.
"Did the cop bring you here?"
"Um…" Grace had a smirk on her face. "Kind of?"
Hanna had seen the guilty look on Grace's face thousands of times before.
"What did you do?" Hanna frowned.
"We took his car."
"You what?" Hanna tried not to screech. She didn't want Alison to overhear.
"He left the keys in the ignition. We just wanted to be here for mom. We didn't want her to be alone." Lily looked at Hanna sadly. She looked just like Emily when she was worried.
"Oh, Jesus Christ." And Hanna thought her daughter was trouble. "Okay. Well…so now we know where your mom is. You two just…go into the waiting room. Cami is there with her dad. I'll figure things out with your mom. We don't want your mother to hear about this and stress her out in the middle of labor…"
Before Hanna could finish they heard Alison screaming from inside the room.
"My wife is where?"
There was a loud crash. A bedpan flew out of the room.
"It sounds like she knows." Grace glanced down at the bedpan.
"This is not acceptable! Your ass is about to be soo fired!"
"She's taking it well." Lily laughed nervously.
"Waiting room." Hanna ushered them away. "Now." She quickly paced into the room, where Alison was mid-rant.
"No, you listen you shriveled little limp dick fuck…I am in labor and if you don't let my wife go I am personally going to find you and use my child's umbilical cord to strangle you!" She shoved the phone back at Spencer and started screaming when another wave of contractions hit.
The nurses exchanged looks. One tried to calm her down.
"Hey. Easy." Hanna walked over to Alison's side.
"Some fucking idiot rent-a-cop thinks my wife is some war criminal. I swear to God, I'm going to sue…"
"Sue who?" Hanna asked.
"EVERYONE!" A crippling contraction had her doubled over. She moaned and looked at Spencer. "Spence, please…fix this. I don't care how you do it. Just get her here. GET HER HERE NOW!"
Spencer had an intense look on her face. Hanna could see the determined lawyer mindset creeping to the surface. She started barking orders to the person on the other end of the phone. Her voice was calm and courteous, but at the same time it was vicious and terrifying. Spencer knew exactly how to get what she wanted.
"…and if you don't release her right now my entire law firm is going to take you for everything you've got." There was a pause and then a dark laugh. "Go ahead and try. But first, do me a favor. Google the name Spencer Hastings-Cavanaugh." Another pause. "That's right. One in the same. Now you know who I am? You know who my mother is?"
The argument seemed to be cut short. A few minutes later she was off the phone.
"They're on their way." Spencer calmly put her phone away and walked back over to Alison's side. She grabbed her hand.
"Thank you," Alison said with tears in her eyes.
"Mrs. DiLaurentis-Fields, you're almost fully dilated…" The nurse said.
"No. No I'm not." Alison shook her head. She wasn't ready. "Just…hold it closed for a little while. My wife is coming…"
"Ali…what are you going to do? Cross your legs and refuse to push?" Spencer asked.
"Yes! That's exactly what I'm going to do!"
"Mom?" A timid voice came from the doorway.
Alison's anger and frustration melted away when she heard Lily's voice. She looked up and saw Lily and Grace staring at her from the doorway. The chaotic scene of the delivery room seemed to be overwhelming for them.
"Hey." Alison forced a tired smile on her face. She waved them over and they both bolted towards her bed and engulfed her in a hug. It helped soothe Alison's pain. She reached up and swiped some of Grace's hair out of her face. "When did you get here?"
"A few minutes ago. Aunt Hanna said we can wait in the waiting room, but we were worried. We wanted to check on you and the baby." Grace touched her mom's arm.
"Everything is fine." Spencer assured her nieces. "Your mom is being a real trooper."
Alison shot Spencer an appreciative look. She had been the opposite of a trooper. She had been a terror. And she knew it.
"Is the baby okay?" Lily asked.
"He should be here very soon." Spencer spoke up again. She knew that Alison had exhausted all of her energy, and she needed to save what was left for the pushing.
"Well, we're here if you need anything." Lily put on a brave face. She had Emily's protective instinct.
"How exactly did you two get here?" Alison furrowed her brows in thought.
Hanna made a strange noise. Spencer looked over at her in confusion.
"We um…kind of drove." Lily looked down at her feet, nervously rubbing her sneaker against the ground.
"By yourselves?" Alison asked in alarm.
"In a stolen police car…" Grace looked nothing like her sister. She looked proud.
"Excuse me?"
"Heh." Hanna gripped the twins shoulders, turning them around. "They're clearly kidding. Come on girls. Let's not upset the hormonal pregnant woman…" She led them out of the room.
Alison lowered her head with a quiet sigh.
"Oh my God, this is a disaster."
Spencer touched her shoulder. Alison looked up at her.
"There's no such thing as a perfect birth plan." Spencer reminded her.
"I highly doubt many other women in labor have had a wife who was nearly arrested and two delinquent little felon children cruising the hospital."
"Well…this is Rosewood. You'd be surprised…"
"What was I thinking?" Alison's stomach tensed up when she felt another contraction. She yelped out a cry. "What if he comes out wearing a stripped jumpsuit and handcuffs? What if he's just like the rest of my family?"
"He'd be so lucky." Spencer rubbed Alison's shoulder. Alison glanced at her with an appreciative look on her face. "Just focus on him right now, Alison. The rest will work itself out. You're not alone in this."
Alison nodded. She gritted her teeth and worked through several more waves of contractions. Seconds felt like hours. Minutes felt like days. She lost all track of time. Her body was exhausted. She could feel the sweat drenching her hospital gown. Her face was hot and red and her head felt like it was going to explode.
She heard someone screaming from another room. At least, she thought it was someone from another room. It was only when she felt Spencer's hand on her forehead and her voice speaking quiet soothing words that she realized it had come from her.
She knew she would soon forget the agonizing moments of the labor. She had with the twins. But the suffering in the moment was one of the most excruciating feelings in the world.
When the doctor came in and told her it was time for her to push Alison completely lost it. Because Emily still wasn't there. She frantically grasped Spencer's hand and looked up at her helplessly.
"I can't." Alison cried. "I can't do this without her."
"You have to. You can't wait any longer. It's dangerous…for you and for him."
"No…" Alison had tears streaming down her cheeks.
"Hey, Ali, look at me." Spencer grasped her cheeks. Alison weakly lifted her head. "You are one of the most badass women I know. You had two babies in one go last time…"
"Because I had Emily with me. She's my strength..."
"You make each other strong. And this little boy…" Spencer wiped the sweat away from her forehead. "This little boy is equal parts you and her. So that means she is here with you. Your son is all the strength you need right now…"
"Alison, you have to push." The doctor peered up from between her legs.
"My wife…"
Sweat was rolling down every inch of her body. She couldn't focus. She could barely speak. The room was spinning. She was passing out.
But then she heard something that rejuvenated her.
"Ali!" It was Emily's voice. The brunette came rushing into the room so fast that she nearly slipped on the floor. She almost tripped over her feet to get to her wife's side. "I'm here!" She moved next to her and immediately reached out to touch her forehead. "Ali, I'm here." She pressed a hard kiss against her forehead and threaded her fingers through her damp hair.
Alison felt a wave of relief. It was almost as if Emily had immediately taken on the burden the second she walked in.
"You're late." Alison laughed through the pain.
"Well, you know…traffic was a bitch. Plus I almost got arrested…"
"I know. I'm going to kill you for that later." She squeezed Spencer's hand with one hand and Emily's with her other. Her face softened. "But I'm so glad you're here."
Emily reached across the bed and took Spencer's hand.
"Thank you," she said softly.
"Always." Spencer squeezed both of their hands and then gently pulled away.
She knew that Emily had it from here.
"Hey, good luck." She touched Alison's leg.
"Thanks. For everything. I love you, Spence."
"You, too." Spencer replied.
"Sorry I threatened to kill you and made you look at my vagina."
"What?" Emily laughed.
"Long story." Spencer chuckled. "You guys are kind of busy right now. We'll have a drink and talk about it later."
She walked towards the door. She stopped when she reached the doorway, turning back to look at Alison and Emily. Alison was peering into Emily's eyes, focusing on her, hanging on to her every word. Emily was staring right back, encouraging her, stroking her face. She took a moment to appreciate the love between them. She'd watched it grow and flourish...and face challenges...and overcome challenges. She had watched two of her best friends fall in love. Madly. Deeply. Truly. She had watched them discover what family meant to them over the years.
She had become part of that family. She loved her friends dearly. They'd had their ups and downs, but nothing in life was perfect. The important thing was that they were there for one another when it counted. Alison and Emily never faltered in that respect. They always found a way to each other, no matter the circumstances. It was a love worth more than anything in the world. And soon, their son would be surrounded with more love than he'd know what to do with.
A/N: I'll be moving a series of prompts over here from tumblr this week, so keep an eye out.