A/N: If you didn't see the A/N at the end of my previous chapter/prompt, just thought I'd make your day by telling you that I have a few prompts on Tumblr that haven't made their way over here yet. Will be posting to get you all caught up this week! Also, this prompt and the previous one were posted almost back-to-back, so if you haven't read it yet, you've got two prompts to read. Enjoy!

Prompt: I was wondering if you could do like the tiniest Drabble of Em and Ali finding out they're having another baby? That Ali's pregnant with Sam?

The Test

Alison was hunched over on the edge of the bed, her knees bouncing as she anxiously tapped her feet against the carpet. She rubbed her palms against her jeans and exhaled a heavy breath.

Not many things made her nervous. She'd gone through a lot over the years. It had helped her develop a heavy outer armor. She had learned how to face adversity with her head held high. She had gone through a tremendous amount of growth with the help of Emily's love and the love of their children. And several years of therapy.

Her most recent session had her opening up about her fears and insecurities as a mother, and about whether or not she wanted to carry another child.

She felt the bed shift and then felt a comforting hand in between her shoulder blades.

Emily's warmth was a force in her life that nothing else had ever come close to. Nothing compared to the way she felt about her wife. The brunette was always there to calm her nerves. Every time.

They'd been faced with some incredibly hard times. They'd endured a lot. Even after everything had settled down...after all the torture had stopped...after they'd found their bliss...things still weren't perfect.

They'd talked about expanding their family for a while. They'd been waiting until they'd found some stability, both emotionally and financially. After Alison landed her job as a professor at Hollis and Emily got her position at a prestigious swim academy that trained young hopefuls for the Olympics they'd found a stride...a balance between work and home.

That's when the talks of having another baby had come up. They'd discussed it for months. The girls were old enough that they'd established a certain independence. And Alison and Emily missed having a little one around. Grace and Lily had stopped wanting to cuddle after they started middle school. They missed it.

Emily wanted to carry, so they'd gone through the process. They'd tried several times. The first time it didn't take. The second time it took, but after six weeks they'd lost the baby.

It had been difficult to waver. Emily had wanted to try one more time, but after some routine testing her doctor discovered that she had uterine damage that made it very unlikely that she'd ever be able to carry a child to term. It had gone undiagnosed previously, but they found out it was from ill-effects from the torture she'd endured over the years. Yet something else A had taken away from her.

That had left them with the choice of adoption or giving Alison the opportunity to carry. Emily didn't want to push Alison into carrying another baby. She knew that Alison didn't have fond memories of her previous pregnancy. She knew that having the twins had damaged her psychologically. So she didn't had been perfectly fine with the idea of adoption. Aria and Ezra had gone through the process with their son, Finn. So she knew they could use them as a resource.

They'd been laying in bed looking at adoption brochures one night when out of the blue Alison told Emily that she was open to the idea of carrying the baby. She'd been working through a lot of her past in therapy and she thought she was ready for the next step.

"Are you sure?" Emily had gently taken the brochure out of Alison's hand. She would love any child that came into their lives. She didn't want Alison to feel pressured. "You're sure you're ready?"

"I wasn't at first. But I can't let my past control me forever. There's something about this..." She'd chewed on her lip.

Color flushed her cheeks and she smiled softly. The same vulnerable smile that Emily had seen hundreds of times when they were in high school. The smile that was reserved for her. And her alone.

"I know what happened with Lily and Grace wasn't...we didn't exactly ask for it or plan it. But I wouldn't trade those girls for anything."

"If Grace keeps mouthing off to her teachers I might consider trading her." Their wild child was constantly in some kind of trouble.

Alison laughed. She appreciated Emily's unwavering sense of humor. It helped calmed her racing mind.

"You know, that pregnancy...God, it was so hard..."

"I know." Emily took her hand and peered at her with a soft expression.

It was a look that could only be shared and understood between the two of them. Because they both knew what it was like to have choices taken away from them...to have things thrust upon them that could never be completely overcome. It was something they would live with for the rest of their lives. But they shared that pain. They'd gone through that tumultuous journey together. And in that darkness they had gotten two beautiful bright lights, who were now two beautiful snarky teenagers.

"I've been doing a lot of reflecting about this. And even though the pregnancy with the twins...it...it nearly destroyed me..."

Emily saw her retreating into herself sometimes when she thought back over those memories. But there was something different in her expression tonight. A newfound sense of confidence. It's like she had chosen a direction, and she knew exactly where she was going.

"This isn't the same. I want this. We've wanted this for so long, Em. And I realized that I actually have a choice this time. And it clicked. That's what's important to me. I..." she'd paused and then looked up at Emily, "WE...we get to make the decision this time. And that's the biggest difference."

She had watched Emily with their girls over the years, and she had fallen even more in love with her than she realized was possible. She was a wonderful person and a wonderful mom. And Alison woke up every morning thankful that someone like Emily loved someone like her.

Their family had started out from a broken place, but they'd picked up the pieces together and they'd created something beautiful along the way. And Alison wanted more of that.

She had threaded her fingers between Emily's, interlocking their hands. She'd put her other hand on top of their joined fingers.

"I want to do this for us. I want to have our baby."

Emily had been completely speechless. Alison was constantly surprising her with her courage and the depth of her strength. How was it possible she'd taken for granted just how incredibly resilient the blonde was? She looked at her and she saw the epitome of determination. A fighting spirit.

She was certain she'd never loved her more.

"I love you so much." Emily turned towards Alison with a watery smile. She reached up and placed her palm against the side of Alison's neck, leaning forward to capture her lips.

Alison could feel her emotions in her movements. She could feel it in the way that Emily gently stroked her cheek and brushed her hair aside.

"I love you, too." Alison pulled back, tears of joy in her eyes.

There were moments in life that defined certain unspoken love between two people. There were moments that put them in a world all to themselves, where all there was...all that existed...was their love. Sometimes words were meaningless. Sometimes it was quiet little moments that people shared in which the most powerful exchanges of love were experienced.

Emily gently cupped Alison's face and kissed her forehead tenderly. The warm smile on Emily's face had sparked an even deeper meaning behind Alison's choice. She looked at her wife and she saw pure joy. And she felt pure joy. She looked at Emily and she knew that everything was going to be okay. She knew that no matter what...they were going to be okay.

She had the most loyal woman in the world by her side. It had stripped her of her nerves that night. She knew they'd made the right decision for their family. In an odd way, it had taken the looming pressure of her past off of her.

But that had been months ago. Months before the fertility treatments and the hormone injections and the IVF procedure. That had been months before she'd started hoping and wishing. Months before she'd started picturing their child. What their baby would look like. How much her heart would melt when she saw their baby for the first time...first smile...first laugh. She started picturing what they wanted.

And now she was terrified they wouldn't get it. They'd already had two failed attempts. Could they survive a third? They had spent their entire lives waiting for the other shoe to drop. Any time something good happened in their lives they were inevitably faced with something bad that ripped their happiness away from them.

When they'd bought the test Alison had felt her anxiety rising. The nerves had returned.

She glanced over at the pregnancy test on the edge of the dresser. She'd been shaking so much after she'd taken it. Emily had led her to the bed and made her sit down and take several deep breaths. She didn't want Alison to stress herself into an anxiety attack.

They'd set the timer and had been waiting together. It felt like it was taking an eternity. The last time she'd taken a pregnancy test she'd been physically repulsed at the idea of having a child. But this time she was experiencing a painful worry that she wouldn't have a child.

Emily could feel Alison's tension underneath her touch. She wrapped her arm around Alison's shoulder and pulled her in for a hug. She kissed her temple.

"Ali, relax." She pulled her close. "Whatever the outcome...we're in it together, okay?"

Alison nodded nervously. Her mouth felt dry and sticky. She reached for the bottle of water that Emily had brought to her and took a sip.

"I don't think I've ever been so impatient waiting on test results." Alison curled her toes against the carpet.

"Remember when we were waiting on the girls' placement tests?" Emily tried to take Alison's mind off of the ticking time.

"Don't remind me." Alison scoffed.

Grace had tried to cheat by writing the answers on the back of her water bottle label. It was actually ingenious. If she put half as much energy into her school work as she spent trying to get around her school work she'd be at the top of her class with her sister.

"I thought Lily was going to have a nervous breakdown waiting for those results." Emily reminisced.

Lily had always been their studious child. She was introspective and as sharp as a tack.

"What did we do to calm her down?" Alison asked.

"We rubbed bourbon on her gums and sang her to sleep just like when she was teething as a baby." Emily waggled her brows with a grin.

Alison playfully smacked Emily's arm. She'd forgotten all about when the girls were teething. That had been hell. But it had been worth it. There had been moments that her innocent little babies looked up at her with wide-eyed wonder that she'd never seen before. And it made her feel serene. She couldn't wait to feel that again.

"Pretty sure we bought her a cell phone and told her to obsess over social media like a normal child," Emily said. She shook her head. "That child and her test anxiety...I swear." She glanced at Alison with a lighthearted smile. She poked Alison. "Wonder where she gets that from."

"You know, we've spent so much time teaching them about the importance of rising to the occasion and passing their tests with flying colors. But this is the one test I wouldn't want Lily and Grace to pass."

Emily made a face.

"God, we're almost at the point where we need to sit down and have that conversation with them, aren't we?"

"That's all you. I handled the potty training. You handle the 'don't have sex or else your mothers will kill you' thing." Alison smiled.

"Or...we could teach them to be responsible about it. I'm not into scare tactics. They tend to have the opposite effect on people."

Alison nodded in agreement. She'd certainly rebelled against her parents when they'd told her not to do things. Emily had, too.

"Whatever works. As long as we keep them off the pole and they don't come home pregnant."

"What a charming sentiment. You're such a romantic." Emily rolled her eyes, gently bumping against her with a playful smile.

"They're good girls." Alison felt herself relaxing. Her children had a way to her heart. "You think they'll be okay with all of this?"

They'd spoken with the girls about the fact that they were trying to have another baby, but Lily and Grace had sort of waved it off like it wasn't a possibility. Then again, they were just coming into their own as young teenagers, so they rarely listened to a word their mothers said.

"They'll be fine," Emily dropped her hand to Alison's back and rubbed circles against the tension she was carrying.

Alison reached out and touched Emily's knee, commanding her attention, drawing Emily's eyes towards hers. Her lips twitched. A loving smile washed across her face.

"I really love you, you know." She let out a content sigh.

"Well, I would hope so considering we're married." Emily grinned at her.

She got a lot of joy out of teasing Alison. She liked to see the spark in her eyes when she was flustered.

"Seriously." Alison moved her palm up against Emily's side, her fingers resting against her ribs. "I don't think I realized how little I knew about love before you and the girls came into my life. It's so much bigger than I ever knew. Have I ever thanked you for being so wonderful?"

"You don't have to thank me for loving you, Alison. It is the most natural thing in the world for me." Emily leaned over, their lips meeting for a chaste kiss. "I would do it over every time."

"Maybe with a little less torture." Alison added.

Emily chuckled.

Alison glanced at the timer. She watched as the clock rolled backwards from the sixty second mark. She felt her stomach tightening up in knots. Her heart started hammering in her chest. Her palms felt clammy.

"Breathe, sweetheart." Emily tugged her into another hug, resting her chin on top of Alison's head.

"I can't believe how much I really want this," she uttered under her breath.

It had been different with Lily and Grace. She certainly loved her little girls, but that pregnancy had been hell for her. She felt like she'd been alone on an island in the middle of a hurricane. She remembered feeling like her lungs were filling with water. But this time she felt like she was jogging along a beautiful beach...pushing desperately to reach a perfect destination with Emily in sync with her every step...right beside her.

She reached for Emily's hand just as the timer beeped. Her head whipped towards the test on the dresser, but she looked away at the last second.

"I can't look." Alison shifted her feet and stood up, turning away from the dresser. She glanced at Emily. "Would you..."

Emily nodded, not needing to be prompted. She walked over to the test and picked it up to observe it.

Alison looked at her in anticipation, eagerly rubbing her hands together and licking her lips.

Emily pressed her lips together in thought, tilting her head with a furrowed brow, her eyes narrowed in concentration. Her mouth was twisted. Her nose was crinkled.

"Oh." Alison felt deflated.

"Ali..." Emily slowly looked up at her.

Normally the blonde could read her wife like a book, but there was an expression in her eyes that she couldn't decipher.

"Oh, God. It's negative, isn't it?" Alison dropped her head in defeat. They knew there was a possibility. They'd been through it before.

"Alison..."

"We...we'll try again." Alison cut her off. She reached up, running her fingers through her hair.

She was so consumed by her disappointment that she didn't realize that Emily had moved next to her. She hadn't seen the smile on her face.

"Hey..." Emily touched her cheek to get her attention.

Alison froze in place. She saw a glint in Emily's eyes, a shocked expression on her face. She seemed to be having a hard time finding the right words to say. Tears were pooling in her eyes, but she was smiling.

Emily lifted the test up and Alison took it from her, her heart suddenly beating faster. Because she realized that the tears in her wife's eyes were not tears of sorrow. They were tears of joy.

Alison stared at the positive test, a surprised laugh coming out of her mouth. Her eyes welled up with tears.

She looked at Emily. The brunette put her palm against Alison's belly, knowing a bump would soon be growing.

"We're going to have a baby." Emily laughed through her tears.

Alison reached down and put her hand on top of Emily's hand, holding it in place as she let the news sink in. Their baby was already growing. Their child was already carving out a space in their hearts. It was a glaring reminder that as they went about their daily business...they wouldn't be alone. There would be a little child...a little piece of their hearts coming to life.

She pictured tiny little hands. Baby toes. A button nose. Sweet coos and giggles. And the most kissable little face in the world.

After a few seconds she lurched forward, wrapping her arms around Emily's neck. Joyous laughter filled the room.

"Oh my God! We're having a baby!" Alison hung off of Emily's shoulders and pulled back to press a hard kiss against her lips.

"A little you." Tears were rolling down Emily's cheeks. But she couldn't stop laughing.

"Let's hope this one takes after his or her Mama. I can't deal with more of my attitude reflected back at me." Alison sniffled, her cheeks rosy.

Emily looked at her, and she could suddenly see it. The glow. She wasn't sure how she'd missed it before. She didn't know why she'd doubted that the pregnancy would happen. Alison had been practically glowing for weeks. She could see a beautiful radiant aura around her.

Alison saw the adoration in her wife's eyes. She shot her a bashful smile. It was crazy that after so many years together that Emily could still make her feel like she was back in high school, falling in love for the very first time. She still felt like that young kid crushing on her best friend. She felt loved in a way she'd never been loved.

Their hands naturally linked together. They shared a quiet intimate moment. The air in the room was tangible. Alison took a quivering breath, trying to center herself. Emily cupped her cheek. As always, Emily helped center her.

The moment was interrupted by a loud clatter and two squabbling teens.

"MOMS!" Grace burst into the room. "Lily stole my phone and changed the password, and I can't get past the lock screen."

"I'll give you the password when you take down that picture you posted of me being potty trained." Lily had a smarmy look on her face.

She knew exactly how to get under her sister's skin.

"I only put it up because you put up the video of me crying after a frog jumped on my arm." Grace shoved her sister.

They spun towards their mothers to mediate their fight, but then they saw the tears.

Their faces dropped. They shot each other worried looks and then looked back at their parents. Grace's brow was tight. Lily had her lips pressed into a thin line. They looked just like Emily when they were concerned.

"What's wrong?" Grace's voice quivered.

"Did something happen?" Lily echoed her sister's worry.

"Is it Grandma? Is she okay?" A hint of panic reverberated in Grace's tone.

"Grandma is fine." Emily put her arms up in a calming manner. "Everything is okay, girls."

"Then why are you crying?" Lily asked.

Emily and Alison looked at one another, smiling. Alison nearly bit through her lip in excitement.

She was pregnant. They were having another baby.

"Well...there is something your mother and I need to tell you," Emily said, glancing at the pregnancy test in Alison's hand. The girls hadn't seen it yet. "We've got some good news."

She grabbed Alison's free hand and they gave each other a loving glance.

"Okay, you two are being weird." Lily made a face.

Emily couldn't help but laugh. Her little Lily was ever the cynic.

"You know how we've been talking about expanding our family?" Alison asked.

"Oh, are we finally getting a dog?" Grace lit up in excitement.

"Not exactly," Emily said. Though, that was on the table, too. The girls had been begging for a dog for years.

"Girls..."

Alison moved forward, gripping the test in her hand like a lifeline. She glanced at Emily again before facing Lily and Grace, who were looking at her eagerly.

"Your mother and I...we're..." She felt a fluttering sensation in her chest. A warmth.

Seconds later Emily was next to her, her arm around her shoulder. Alison smiled at her.

"We're having a baby." She held up the pregnancy test. "I'm pregnant."

There was a quiet pause, but then both girls gasped in delight.

"You're pregnant?" Lily's face brightened. Her jaw dropped. She had a huge smile on her face.

"Yeah." Alison still couldn't believe it herself.

"For real? We're going to have a little sister?" Grace asked.

"Or brother," Lily said. She threw her hands up and squealed. "This is so exciting. Finally, a sibling that will much less of a pain in the ass."

"Oh, you wish. This kid is so going to like me better." Grace scoffed. She looked at Alison. "Is that the test?"

"Mmmhmm." Alison nodded, extending it out to Grace.

Grace didn't even bother to grab it from the sterile end. She was too caught up in the moment. She looked at the positive result.

"This is super cool." Grace smiled. She looked at Lily. "Check it out, Lil. Proof that someone else in this family is going to be cooler than you."

"You know she peed on that, right?"

"Ew." Grace suddenly held the test out like it was dynamite, handing it back to her mother.

Grace wiped her hands on Lily's shirt. Lily shoved her away.

"So..." Lily looked at Alison curiously. "Can you feel the baby yet?"

"Not yet. But we'll get there."

"I read that sometimes if you touch someone's belly when they're pregnant that you can feel things. Can we try?" Grace asked.

Alison and Emily laughed. They were overjoyed when the twins reached out to touch Alison's stomach. It didn't matter that she wasn't very far along yet. The sentiment behind the bonding was real.

"That's our little brother or sister in there." Lily grinned, her palm on Alison's stomach.

"What if it's both?" Grace smirked.

"Don't even joke about that." Alison laughed.

But she didn't hate the idea. It wouldn't be easy having four kids, but she wouldn't be upset if it happened. They'd survived the first set of twins.

"This is amazing." Lily looked up at her mothers, a sincere expression on her face. "We know you've been trying..."

"Yeah. And we've been hoping this would happen." Grace added.

"I know we give you guys hell sometimes, but you're really amazing moms. And this baby is very very lucky to have you." Lily smiled.

"To have us." Grace corrected her.

Normally, Lily didn't like it when Grace corrected her, but it didn't bother her in this instance. She leaned into her mothers, wrapping them in a hug. Grace followed suit, embracing them all.

Emily and Alison smiled at one another as they bathed in their family's affection. There was nothing quite like having a home in the hearts of the people you loved most, a safe place in the storm of life. They didn't love anyone in the world like they loved their children. Their lives had only just begun after Lily and Grace were born. And they couldn't wait for the next chapter.

They couldn't wait to see the ways in which this baby was going to change their lives for the better, to complete their family.