The not-so-fun part of being pregnant... we're closing in on the last few months! :) Enjoy & Review!
Kate woke up and stared at the ceiling. She was exactly 7 months along, and the only way for her to sleep was flat on her back. And it was not comfortable. At least the renovations were over, and they were in their own bed.
"Morning, sleepyhead." Rick smiled down at her. He was sitting up in bed, typing on his laptop. He closed it and set it on his nightstand. Kate frowned at him.
"This sucks."
"I know, baby, I'm sorry," Rick said, placing a kiss on her forehead. "Want help getting up?"
"Yes, please," Kate said, holding her hands out to him. "I really need to pee."
Rick chuckled and pulled her up gently, then walked her to the bathroom. She groaned.
"Oh my god. I feel like I'm on my deathbed with some heinous disease. I have to pee every 30 minutes, I can only sleep a certain way, and I basically have to wear tunics and maternity leggings every day. Or sweats."
Rick smiled, trying to cheer her up. "You wear the hell out of those sweat pants," he said. "If you want, I can check out your ass every time you walk past me, to make you feel good."
Kate shook her head and stood up slowly, pulling her pants up and washing her hands. She made a face. "No way. My ass is about as large as my stomach, I'm sure, and I really don't need to repulse you. God forbid I should punish you in yet another way. I mean, how sexy and fun is a wife who has a huge stomach, can't have sex with you, and doesn't brush her hair most days?"
Rick laughed and kissed her. "Well, you could never repulse me. And if you're in bed, I wouldn't expect you to brush your hair. As for the sex thing... you'll just owe me a lot after the twins are born." He winked and she just shook her head and cracked a smile. "How about I run you a bath? You'll be able to take your time, get all cleaned up and pretty before the baby shower."
"Mhhmmm," Kate nodded, kissing him. "That sounds perfect. Will you use that cherry bubble bath I like?"
"Of course."
Alexis and Madison had planned an intimate baby shower for later that afternoon. The guest list would be their usual small crowd of friends: the Ryans, Javier, Lanie, Martha, and Jim. Jenny had helped Kate pick out the perfect maternity dress, a solid black empire-waisted dress that hit mid-calf.
A few hours after Kate's bath, she sat on her and Rick's bed while Alexis put makeup on her.
"Ta da!"
Alexis handed Kate a mirror, beaming at her work. Kate looked in the mirror and barely recognized herself. Long, perfectly curled ink-black lashes, softly smudged black eyeliner on her upper lash line, bronze eyeshadow that made her deep green eyes sparkle, impeccably contoured cheeks, and some raspberry-colored lipstick made her look like an Old Hollywood movie star.
"Wow, Alexis," Kate breathed. "It looks… stunning! Honestly, I've barely worn any makeup in the last 2 months, and I've felt disgusting for weeks."
"Oh, Kate, you always look pretty," Alexis said, sitting down beside her on the bed. She was wearing a coral dress and her hair was curled, but she had saved the beauty mastery for Kate, wearing just a natural makeup look. "We just need to get your dress on you!"
Kate laughed. "Good luck with that."
Alexis crossed her arms, not having any of Kate's self-deprication. "Pregnancy has made you very negative! C'mon, get up."
She pulled Kate to her feet and opened the closet, taking Kate's dress off the hanger. Kate slipped out of her yoga pants and tank top and stepped into the dress. Alexis zipped up the back and turned her to face the full-length mirror on the door.
The finished product was incredible. Slimming black dress, shiny blown-out hair, gorgeous makeup, and plain black flats. Alexis put her hands on Kate's shoulders.
"You look so beautiful," Alexis gushed, grinning. Kate smiled.
"I feel it too, which isn't easy when you're 7 months pregnant with twins," Kate said with a laugh. She turned around and hugged Alexis lightly, trying not to let her stomach get in the way.
"Those kids are so lucky," Alexis whispered in her ears. She was practically draped over Kate, seeing as how her Betsey Johnson wedges made her at least 4 inches taller than Kate, maybe 5. They broke apart.
"You are already an amazing mom, and I'm almost jealous of the twins," Alexis said with a grin. "I'm officially reserving all babysitting rights."
Kate laughed again. "Of course." She sighed and looked at her reflection again. "I hope Rick likes it. I feel bad that I'm the most unexciting bed-ridden wife ever."
Alexis waved it off. "My dad will have a problem re-hinging his jaw when it hits the carpet."
They laughed together and then heard Rick call Kate's name from the living room.
"Kate, honey? People will be here soon, are you ready?"
Kate took a deep breath. "Coming!," she yelled back. Alexis squeezed her hand.
"Good luck, Mom," she said softly. She only called Kate 'Mom' when it was a deep, important moment, like when Kate was in the hospital for getting in that fight with a gang boss or when Alexis found out Kate was expecting.
"Thanks," Kate whispered back. She let go of Alexis's hand and opened the bedroom door. Rick was waiting in his office, sitting at his desk and reading fan mail like she knew he would be. The second he heard the door open, Rick's eye snapped up to the doorway. They widened, and he stood up, coming around the desk.
"Kate…"
She blushed and stood in front of him. He took her hands and stared at her.
"Holy shit… you look…. Breathtakingly stunning," he said, gazing into her eyes with that look of pure love and happiness. "God, I love you."
He took her face in his hands and kissed her passionately. Kate leaned into the kiss, moving her hands to Rick's back. She smiled when they broke apart, her lips barely inches from his.
"C'mon, lets go open baby gifts and pretend you don't want to be in bed napping," Rick whispered, taking her hand in his. She laughed and together they walked out into the living room, where their friends and family were waiting amongst the pastel-colored decorations and yummy food. Kate just stared at the "Congrats, it's a boy!" and "Congrats, it's a girl!" posters hanging on the wall, letting everything sink in. This was real. In 2 months, there would be two more members of the Castle family.
xxxx
"Fuck it, Rick, let's just speed it up. You order the Indian food, and I'll start jogging in place."
"Yeah, you should get naked while you're at it. I hear sex induces labor."
"Really?," Kate's eyes widened and she slapped Rick's arm. "Great. Pants off, Writer Boy."
Rick laughed. "Baby, we are not doing that."
Kate crossed her arms. "Fine. But don't be surprised when you don't get laid in the next year."
Rick just chuckled and kissed Kate's head before getting up to order them some (non-spicy) dinner. It was 5 weeks after the baby shower, and Kate was officially over being pregnant. She hated being stuck in bed, her swollen everything, her inability to sleep, her HUGE stomach, all of it. She was ready to have the twins and move on. And secretly, she was glad they were having 2, because it meant she most likely wouldn't have to go through this whole ordeal again, at least not for a few years. She and Rick hadn't really discussed how many kids they wanted, but if it was just 2, Kate knew both she and Rick would be happy.
"Kate, is Chinese okay?"
"Yes," she said with a sigh. "It doesn't matter, I'll only be able to eat a few bites before feeling nauseous."
"Yeah, about that….are you sure we shouldn't call the doctor?," Rick said, sitting back down on the couch next to Kate. He looked worried.
"You haven't eaten a full meal in days," he said, taking her hand squeezing it. Kate nodded.
"It's okay, I looked online and talked to Jenny. It's just anxiety about labor mixed with me being sick of getting fat." She winked at him, and he winked back.
"So, Alexis gets in from Egypt early tomorrow morning, I figured I'd pick her up from JFK and then we can get some yummy breakfast to take home to you on our way back," Rick said, massaging Kate's hand. "She decided she wants to stay home with us until the twins come, she's worried about you."
"She has no reason to be," Kate said, frowning. "She should be enjoying her first summer as a college student, having adventures with her friends and doing things you don't want to know about. I feel bad enough that she cut her trip short."
Rick glared at the "things you don't want to know" comment, but then reassured Kate.
"She only cut it short by 3 days. She didn't want you to have any more scares without her. And besides, you're a mother to her. Just like parents worry about their kids, kids worry about their parents."
2 weeks ago, Kate was in a lot of pain and thought she was in labor, so she and Rick rushed to the hospital only to find it was a false alarm and the babies were not ready to be born yet. Kate stayed overnight because her pain wasn't going away, and it scared Rick a little, as well as Ryan, Espo, and their other friends. It turned out she was just experiencing double the usual pain of false contractions because she was carrying two babies, instead of one. She was prescribed some meds and she and Rick went home the next morning, once everyone was give a clean bill of health.
But now, with 3 weeks to go until the due date, Kate was antsy. And try as hard as she might not to, she was driving Rick up a wall.
"I know, and I love her for it, but I'm fine. People have false alarms for labor all the time."
"Yes, but you have to remember, everyone in your life loves you so much, you even getting a hangnail or paper cut worries them," Rick said with a cute, boyish grin. Kate smiled.
"Thanks, honey."
He nodded. "I know you're going crazy, but just keep in mind that at the end of all of this, we are going to have two beautiful children. It's a new chapter, Kate."
"I can't wait," Kate said, her smile growing brighter. "I hope one has my eyes, and the other has yours. And I hope they have your wit and creativity, and my determination."
"And your beauty, don't forget that. Your shiny chestnut hair, your intelligence. And my positivity and fun-loving personality," Rick said, intertwining his fingers with Kate's. She smiled.
"But just the right amount so neither one steals a police horse while naked," Kate said. Rick nodded in agreement.
"Let's never tell them I did that."
Kate laughed. "Okay. As long as you don't tell them about my ice cube trick."
A secretive grin spread across Rick's face. "Never. That is mine."
She smiled and they talked about his newest book until dinner was delivered. Kate kept down almost a whole plate of broccoli beef before throwing up in the kitchen sink. Castle kissed her forehead and set her up in bed, closing the bedroom door so the smell of the bleach he used to clean the sink wouldn't reach her. After the kitchen was clean, he set an alarm for 3 am and tucked himself in on the couch, so his alarm wouldn't wake Kate. Alexis's flight didn't get in until 6 am, but he was going to need time to grab coffee and wake up before driving about an hour or two to the airport.
xxxx
The next morning, he the first thing he did when his alarm went off was go and check on Kate. She was fast asleep, but he was worried about leaving her alone for multiple hours. So he grabbed a change of clothes and left the bedroom through the new door to the hallway. Once in the hall, he took out his phone.
"Ryan? Hey, it's Castle."
"Dude, it's 3:30 in the morning. I hate you right now. Why, man? Why?"
"I'm sorry, man. I'm just worried about Kate."
That woke Ryan up. "Why? What happened?"
"Nothing. But I'm going to the airport to get Alexis, and I'm nervous to leave her alone for a few hours. You live the closest, so I just wanted to ask you to keep your phone on and be ready to come over here if she calls. I'm going to leave her a note, telling her to call you if anything happens."
"Okay, sure. Has everything been going ok?"
"Well, Kate hasn't been able to eat in days, she gets nauseous and half the time, throws up. She tells me not to worry, but I can't help it."
"Well, I'll be here if she needs me." Rick heard wailing in the background. "Hey, I gotta go, that's Amanda. Call me when you get home."
"Will do. Thanks again, man."
Rick hung up and quickly changed his clothes. He wrote a note, just like he told Ryan, and left it on Kate's bedside table. With 2 cups of coffee in him and another in his travel mug, he left for the airport, his phone on the highest volume possible, in case Kate called.
Three hours later, Alexis and Rick came home to find that Rick's worries were unnecessary. Kate was still fast asleep, despite how uncomfortable she looked. Rick threw away the note and texted Ryan that she was ok and he was home.
"Dad, how's Kate?," Alexis asked when he emerged from his study. He smiled at her.
"She's still asleep. Poor thing, these last few weeks have been really hard on her."
Alexis smiled. "Those babies are so lucky. They have a mom who would do anything for them."
"Just like she would do anything for you," Rick said with a smile. He pulled Alexis into a hug and walked her into the kitchen.
"Coffee?"
"Yes, please!"