As Jane silently follows Maura toward her second bedroom, she gets the distinct feeling that time is marching on without her. Maura's life has transformed in so many new, and exciting ways, while Jane has… she shudders, and pushes the thought from her mind. Maura tiptoes to the closed door. She stops before reaching for the knob. She turns towards her best friend with a tired grin.

"Ready?"

Jane does not immediately respond. She takes a moment to collect herself, and paste on a feigned smile. "Lead the way."

As they enter the room Jane is astounded by how much the guest room has transformed. The walls are a subtle grey color. The room feels warm, and inviting, in contrast to the stark, minimalist vibe that once overshadowed the room. Against the wall opposite to the door there is a pair of cribs. Maura surveys Jane's every move as they cross the room. Jane peers inside the crib, and finds a pair of sleeping babies. One with the arm draped across the other.

"I thought that the recommendation was to put them to sleep alone."

Maura nods vehemently, "If that were at all possible I would certainly do it. They absolutely will not sleep separately."

"They are fraternal," Jane recalls.

Jane studies the chunky ginger haired babies. Her lips curl in to a smile, "Did you have to custom order them?"

"You have no idea."

"I wish you had told me," Jane points out.

"I didn't tell anyone until I left for maternity leave. There had been so much heart ache up until that point, I just didn't want to drag anyone else through it."

"How long had you been working on this?"

"I went through nearly two years of various forms of fertility treatments before I finally landed on adoption."

"I didn't know that biology was so important to you."

"In hindsight, it isn't. I thought that I would be doing myself a disservice if I didn't have the experience. It was a lot of unneeded pain. They are perfect."

"Did you know that there were going to be two of them?"

"Their birth mom had not had any prenatal care when she found out that she was expecting them at thirty weeks. She was steadfast in her decision to place them for adoption. That is how long it took the agency to get her in to see an OB/GYN. They called me a week prior to her appointment. They told me what her estimated gestation was, and I wanted time to prepare. My last day at work was their last day in the womb. They had to be delivered via emergency c-section due to the birth mother's pre-eclampsia."

"Were you prepared?"


Maura joins some colleagues at the Dirty Robber for drinks after work. She grins, joining Frankie, Nina, and Kent at a table. They hand her a celebratory drink.

"This is the last one of these that you are going to be having for the next eighteen years," Frankie jokes.

Maura's eyes widen, and that is when the weight of the task in front of her comes crashing down on her. Her panic level anxiety only seems to be temporarily alleviated by alcohol.


"No. Quite frankly I was hungover."

"Hungover? I have never seen you hungover."

"You weren't there," she responds, too quickly, with a hint of contempt in her voice.

The words pierce Jane, like an arrow to the chest. "Maura, I am so sorry."

"Your mom swooped in, and saved the day," she admits.


Maura finds herself stuck to her pillow in a puddle of drool, with someone violently shaking her shoulder to jar her into a state of consciousness.

She begins to open her eyes, and winces in pain.

"Why is the sun so loud?"

"Maura," Angela chides.

"Five more minutes."

"Maura, I need you to get up, and get a shower. I made coffee, and espresso. You are going to need it."

"Can't I just sleep it off?"

"No."

"I can order the baby stuff tomorrow."

"False. I am taking your credit card, and going to the store. You are going to get whatever they have in stock."

This harsh statement brings Maura back into reality. She sits up, and looks at Angela. She looks down, and realizes that she isn't wearing any clothes. Her cheeks burn in embarrassment as she pulls her sheet to her chin.

"How did I get home? Where are my clothes? Why are you here?"

"I don't know. I don't want to know. I am here, because you left your phone at the bar."

"Thanks, can I go back to sleep now?"

"Maura you seriously have to get moving. The adoption agency called. Your baby is actually twins. You have two babies, and they were born a few hours ago. They were born at thirty two weeks gestation, and are some complications."

The level of alcohol in Maura's blood makes her inhibitions far lower than usual, "Shit!"

"Welcome to motherhood, the first shit of many. Get up, and hop in the shower."

"Yes, ma'am."

"After you get out of the shower put on clothes. Coffee, and breakfast will be ready. I will drive you to the hospital. I will go to Target, and gather supplies. If you have preferences now would be the time to speak up. You have a son, and a daughter, shit just got real."


Jane is taken aback by Maura's story. She has more questions than answers. A single peep draws her attention away from Maura's face. Without a second thought she scoops up the chirping infant, and presses the little girl to her chest.

She gently pats her, "Hi, Paisley. I am your auntie Jane. I am so sorry I wasn't here to greet you, when you joined us. I really would like to apologize for not protecting you from your mom, and the large, obnoxious bow that she has tethered to your head."

Maura shakes her head, "You have it too."

"A bow?" Jane furrows her brow.

"The ability to baby whisper. Your mom is the only one who can keep her quiet."

Maura scoops up baby number two, who is silently watching the world with bright blue eyes.

"He seems pretty chill," Jane points out.

"Parker prefers to observe. Paisley insists on being slightly more verbal."

"She's only two months old."