AN: Thank you for the review, here is the next chapter.

Chapter 3: How are they?

Hours later

When they saw Kelly coming their way, the whole family stood up before Malcolm walked forward a bit so he was in front of them and asked in a worried tone. "Kelly, how are my wife and kids?"

Kelly stopped when she was near them, cleared her throat and opened her mouth to speak. "Baby number 1, your son (Hearing that he now had a son made Malcolm, gasp/sob) Is fine, other than being a little small, I don't see any problems with him."

Brett spoke with emotion as he asked. "Baby number 2?"

Kelly spoke a little more softer towards Malcolm. "Baby number 2, your daughter (Once again made Malcolm, gasp/sob) Has a up hill battle to climb, these next 12 hours is crucial, we'll have to keep a good eye on her."

They all nodded in understanding before Malcolm spoke after clearing his throat. "And my wife?"

She gave him a little more smile, but not by much. "She's exhausted in every way, but she's going be fine, just needs rest, her husband and the support from rest of her family."

They all nodded before Grissom spoke softly. "Thank you, Kelly."

"You're welcome. I've watched this family for years now, and the one thing I've noticed above all is the willingness to fight, and I have no doubt that little girl is no exception, and you bet I'll do everything in my power to get your little girl home." She then looked at Malcolm again. "You may now see your wife, she's asking for you."

After one more nod and thank you, Kelly turned and walked away, and a few seconds later, Malcolm headed for the elevator so he could get to his wife, and as he was on the elevator, he finished his thoughts from earlier.

Flashback

6 years ago

July 22, 2020

Standing next to the preacher at the end of the aisle, surrounded by people he called family, he watched with a smile as the two flower girls, 4 year old Emily and 3 year old Katie, escorted by 6 year old Isabella came down the aisle, next came the ring bearer, 2 year old Ryan Jr., escorted by his parents Andrea and Ryan, which when they got there, Malcolm kneeled down and smiled wider at the little man. "Thank you buddy, high five." The little boy giggled as he gave him a high five, making the rest of the group go aww and chuckle, and once he was standing, older Ryan held his hand out to him. "Welcome to the family."

Which honestly Ryan knew Malcolm was already apart of the family considering who he had married himself, but after today it was more official.

Malcolm nodded with a smile with a proud look on his face as he shook the hand to the man that wasn't only Courtney's Uncle but his 'brother in-law'. "Thank you."

Ryan nodded as they removed hands before Andrea gave him a kiss on the cheek and hug while she whispered. "Congratulations."

Malcolm whispered his thanks before she pulled back, then the family sat down before the rest of the wedding party came down the aisle, which consisted of Lindsey, the maid of honor, escorted by her husband, Kyle.
Luke and Harry, his best men, both of whom walked down the aisle with their fiancées, Olivia and Linda, respectively. And last but certainly not least, Courtney's brothers, BJ, who was with Stephanie, Martin, who was being escorted by a date, and 6 year old Andrew, walking with their cousin, 10 year old Elizabeth.

Then came the wedding march, and everybody who was sitting down, stood up before all eyes were now on the bride, who was being escorted by both of her parents.

As Courtney got closer to her groom, they couldn't keep their eyes away from one another or smiles off their faces, happy that their day was finally here.

When they finally stopped in front of him, Brett lifted his daughter's hand and kissed it before looking at Malcolm and clearing his throat. "Take care of my baby."

Malcolm nodded before replying after clearing his throat with emotion. "With everything I have, sir."

As he moved his daughter's hand towards the man she choose to be her life partner, he replied. "I guess it's time that you start calling me dad."

Of all the names he had called Brett since meeting him all those years ago as a CSI, he never would have thought 'dad' would ever be among them, but now that the opportunity was here, he wouldn't have it any other way, he was happy to call him dad.

Malcolm, still filled up with emotion, nodded again as he took hold of his soon to be wife's hand. "You got it dad."

Of course that word also felt a little foreign to him since he hadn't used it in 14 years, so it will have to be something he has to get use to again.

Brett nodded before looking at his daughter, who had tears in his eyes, not only because of the day, but also for the man she loved, knowing how much that meant to him, and he leaned forward and kissed her cheek. "I love you, honey."

"Love you too, daddy."

After they pulled back, she turned to her mother and they shared a kiss on the cheek. "You too, mom."

"I love you too, sweetie."

When they pulled back, Carly moved to Malcolm and kissed his cheek before cupping it. "I guess that makes me mom." Malcolm started to smile and nod before she smirked. "But, outside of the lab, I don't want to be giving you special treatment when I hear the one word that makes me melt."

They all chuckled while Malcolm nodded with another smile. "You got it, mom."

Carly nodded while she gets a little more serious. "Take care of my little girl."

He made the same promise that he did her husband. "With everything that I have."

After one more kiss on the cheek, Carly stepped back and one more smile to her daughter, she slipped her fingers through her husband's and headed for the first two seats in the front row.

Once everybody was in place, the preacher told them they may be seated while bride and groom took a breath before he asked. "You ready for this?"

Courtney nodded with the happiest look she's ever had on her face as her heart raced. "More than anything."

Malcolm nodded before looking at the preacher with a smile. "Give us the best, sir." He then finished as he looked at his bride again. "My bride deserves only the best."

The preacher nodded with a smile before he continued on with the service, and once the emotional/heartfelt vows were said and the rings exchanged, the preacher said the words Malcolm's been waiting for.

"You may now kiss the bride."

Malcolm cupped his new wife's cheek, which sent his heart racing at the thought of her being his wife now, ran his thumb up and down and whispered. "Gladly."

Once the first kiss as husband and wife ended, they placed their foreheads together, and while everybody was cheering, Courtney whispered. "I love you, husband."

He smiled as he whispered. "I love you, wife."

She sighed. "Husband and wife, I like the..."

He comes in saying the same thing at the same time. "Sound of that."

They smiled at one another and kissed one more time, with another round of cheering.

8 Months ago

September 26, 2026

After celebrating Malcolm's 38th birthday among family and friends at the Bolden residence, Malcolm and Courtney headed back to their apartment, which was the same one he had lived in before they got together, and once they were inside, Malcolm asked. "You want anything to drink, babe?"

As she was walking towards the bedroom to change out of her dress, she responded. "No, thank you."

Once he had his drink, he walked towards the couch and sat down, then grabbed the remote and turned on the 45 inch TV to check which college football games were on, and when he found one he was satisfied with, he started watching it and cheering on the team he liked a little more than the other, even if he wasn't the biggest fan of either, it was just something to watch and he wanted to cheer for someone.

After watching a few plays, Courtney came back into the room, now in her UCLA t-shirt and sweatpants, and asked as she cleared her throat. "Can you mute it for a moment?"

He did what she asked before looking at her, which she had her hands behind her back, so he raised an eyebrow as he asked with a smile. "What's going on?"

She bit her lip as she moved her hands forward, showing him a wrapped up square box, like one you would put clothing in, and said softly. "A gift for you."

Malcolm smiled as he shook his head. "Court, I said I didn't need..."

She cuts him of as she handed it to him. "Please, I think you'll be very pleased about this one."

He took it, then he got a passionate look on his face as he asked. "Is there a reason you couldn't give this to me in front of everybody, is it one of 'those' gifts, something for the both of us?"

Knowing what he was talking about, she silently giggled, but smirked in reply, knowing how far off he was. "I guess you can say that."

He tore the wrapping paper off.

"So, it is something sexy?"

She bit her lip again as she replied, giving him the biggest hint ever. "I guess it all depends on how sexy you think I look 9 months from now."

He immediately stopped what he was doing and looked up at her, his eyes were now watering. "Courtney?"

She nodded with a smile. "Open it."

He looked down at the box and opened it, moving the tissue paper to the side to reveal a baby sized San Francisco 49er football jersey, his favorite pro football team.

He looked up at her again and shook his head. "No."

But she nodded, her smile getting bigger. "Yes, it's true, you're going to be a daddy."

At this point in their marriage, while they weren't exactly trying for a baby, they weren't exactly preventing it from happening either, they just decided to let nature take its course
and if she had gotten pregnant sometime in the next couple of years then great, and if not, then they were going to see if anything was wrong, because whether it happened now or later, a baby was always in their life's plans.

He placed the box on the cushion next to him, stood up, and started walking up to her, looking at her like he fell in love with her all over again, and before she could say a word, his lips where on hers in a passionate kiss, and after they pulled back, he brings her in his arms and holds her to him as he kept whispering 'thank you and I love you' over and over with emotion as she held him and ran her hand up and down his back, letting him have this moment.

When he finally calmed down, he slowly pulled back as she asked with a smirk. "So, I take it you're ok with this?"

He cupped her cheek with the biggest smile she's ever seen. "I'm more than ok with this, are you?"

Courtney nodded with one of her biggest smiles. "Yeah, I'm ready to be a mom."

They kiss again, this time a little softer before he pulls back and kneels down so he was eye-level with her stomach, then places his hand on it and whispered. "Hey little one, this is your daddy speaking. I already love you so much, so you sit tight and get big and strong, and I'll see you when I see you."

He kissed her stomach and stood up, then after taking her hand in his, he lead them towards the couch before he sat down and brought her down so she could sit on his lap sideways while her back was against the arm of the couch before their hands went to her stomach, both amazed that they already feel this much love and joy toward someone they haven't even met yet.

After a moment, he whispered. "I'm going to be a daddy."

Courtney smiled as she ran her thumb up and down her stomach. "And I'm going to be a mommy."

They looked at one another and smirked at the same time. "I like the sound of that."

They chuckled before leaning towards one another and kissed before she whispered. "And I love you."

"I love you too."

They kissed one more time as their attention went back to her stomach, already envisioning a life with him or her.

5 Months ago

December 21, 2026

After Kelly checked Courtney out, she smiled as she asked. "Are you ready to see your little one?"

Courtney nodded with a smile as she shook her husband's hand. "Yes, please."

Kelly nodded before setting up the sonogram machine, then a few minutes later, she was checking it as she moved the Doppler over Courtney's stomach, then paused and said. "Oh, wow."

Both nervous on what Kelly said, Malcolm was the one that spoke. "Is that a good 'oh wow', or bad one?"

Kelly look at the parents to-be and smiled a little wider. "It all depends."

Courtney took that answer with a raised eyebrow. "On what?"

"If you can figure out two names instead of one."

They looked shocked as Courtney gasped. "Twins?"

Kelly nodded as she moved so they could view the monitor as she pointed them out. "Here is baby number 1 & baby number 2." She gave them a moment to process this new information before she cleared her throat and said. "Unfortunately they are at an angle where we can't see what you are having."

Malcolm smiled as he replied while squeezing his wife's hand slightly. "It's ok, we decided we wanted to wait, and we are sticking by it."

Kelly nodded again with a smile. "Ok, I'm going to give you a few moments alone. I'll be back."

They nodded before Courtney spoke. "Thank you, Kelly."

Kelly just gave them one more nod before leaving the couple, and after a few seconds of just looking at their little ones, they looked at one another with tears in their eyes before he cupped her cheek. "Twins, I can't believe it, you're amazing."

She sniffled. "And you're amazing too, thank you."

"No, thank you, babe. I love you."

"I love you too."

They kissed softly before their attention went back to the monitor, falling in love with their little ones more each second that went by.

End of Flashback

Malcolm gets to his wife's closed hospital room, wiped the tears off his cheeks, took a breath before knocking, hearing the 'come in' a moment later before he opened the door, then not a second more to waste, he was right there hugging her as she softly sobbed. "I'm so sorry."

He shook his head and kissed her temple while whispering. "It's not your fault, baby. These things happen, but you know what." He pulls back and cups her cheek as he spoke with a determined voice. "Our little girl will be a fighter, she has you and her grandmother in her, we'll be bringing them both home before we even know it, and remember, no matter what, we are in this..."

She cuts him off with tears still on her cheeks. "Together." Then she whispered. "I like the sound of that."

He softly chuckled at her regular saying before nodding and placing his forehead to hers as he whispered in return. "Me too, and I love you."

"I love you too."

They held one another as they closed their eyes, willing their little babies to be ok because at this point they both meant everything to them and they don't know what they would do if they lost one.

25 minutes later

When Carly hadn't arrived back in the waiting room, Sara got up from her seat and went to search for the older woman, but it didn't really take a genius on where she was, so without any detours, she headed right for the baby nursery on another floor, and when she got closer, she smiled softly at the other woman and whispered. "I knew I would find you here."

Carly gave the other woman a soft smile, and once Sara was close, they share a hug before looking through the glass window, looking at all the new babies that joined the world, and when Sara's eyes reached the 3rd baby on the left, in the front row, the name was 'Derek Lee Cooper', who also had a slightly lighter skin color than his father, she smiled as she asked. "Derek, wasn't that..."

Carl cuts her off with a smile as she looked at her grandson. "Was Malcolm's father's name, and Lee is Brett's middle name, they wanted to honor both fathers."

Sara nodded in understanding before asking after clearing her throat. "And their daughter?"

Carly sniffled, feeling emotional while thinking of her granddaughter. "Lilly Ann Cooper. Lilly was Malcolm's mother's name, and..."

Sara cuts her off as she wrapped her arm around the other woman's shoulders. "Ann is your mother's name, which is yours and Courtney's middle name, I know. And that's a main reason why your granddaughter is going to pull through this."

Despite the seriousness of this moment, Carly couldn't help but chuckle slightly. "Granddaughter, can you believe it? I'm a grandmother."

Sara smiled a little wider. "Yeah, and how does it feel?"

While still looking at her grandson, tears started going down her cheeks as she whispered. "Amazing, as much as I love my children, there is a whole other level of love that you feel...It's kind of hard to explain." She then looked at Sara with a smirk. "You should try it."

Sara chuckled while shaking her head. "I like to wait a few more years before people start calling me grandma, ok?"

As much as her and Grissom want grandchildren, they didn't want their children to grow up that fast, they wanted them to experience life a little more before they settle down with kids.

Carly nodded in understanding, then she cleared her throat and wiped her tears away before changing topics. "Have you talked to your kids yet?"

Knowing what she was talking about, Sara shook her head and looked at her watch. "No, and I said we would before dinner, but it looks like we might have to do it sooner."

Carly nodded again. "If you guys have to leave it's ok, we'll be ok, and I'll let you know if there are any changes."

Before Sara could speak, Brett spoke with a smile. "There you guys are."

They looked to the left to see Brett and Grissom walking towards them, so the wives smiled at their husbands, and once they were near, Sara removed her arm from Carly's shoulders so Brett could wrap his arms around his wife's waist, and as Grissom was doing the same with his wife, Brett kissed the top of Carly's head before whispering with emotion as he looked at his grandson, which made him feel even more emotional thinking of that milestone. "Look at that little guy, what a cutie."

They all nodded in agreement as they couldn't take their eyes off of him while thinking good thoughts about his twin sister, hoping she'll pull through.

45 minutes later

Once the Grissoms made it home, the kids included, which Andrew was with them too, but he was upstairs laying on Isabella's bed since he was still so worried about his niece and nephew, Isabella asked as her and her siblings sat down on the couch while Max was laying on his bed next to the chess table. "What's going on, guys? Is everything ok with the Cooper twins?"

Sara answered her oldest daughter. "Nothing new to report on that front." They nodded before Sara continued, getting back to the rest of the family meeting. "I know you've all been wondering what your father and I need to talk to you about, and I just want to reassure you again that everything is ok, neither one of us sick." Then she smirked. "And as far as I know, there are no other pregnancies in this family at the moment."

All three of them looked down a little sheepishly, indicating that thought had crossed all three of their minds at one point during the day, making both parents chuckle before Sara cleared her throat, but before she could speak again, there was a knock on the door.

Sara and Grissom looked at one another a second later, having a feeling on who it was before William stood up from the couch. "I got it."

They now both looked at their son before Sara said. "William, wait."

But William had already opened the door, and for the second time today, he was shocked at who he was looking at, which this time not only was it Bella, but her Uncle Jeff as well, who was holding hands with a woman he's never seen before.

Bella smiled as she moved a piece of her brown hair behind her ear as she said. "See, I told you, you could trust me."

AN: Find out what's next. Thanks for your patience, reading, and please review.