Ace and Spade
Violet was fifteen months old when I got pregnant again. After a week of non-stop throwing up J decided to call the doctor. I figured I knew why I was so sick but after my miscarriage J didn't want to take any chances. He held my shaking hand as the doctor did the examination, I was so nervous. When she finally did the ultrasound I felt my heart stop as she pointed to the dot on the screen, our baby; actually babies, it was twins. I swear I thought J was going to pass out. I was six weeks along and the doctor ordered me to stay bedridden until I was done with my first trimester; ten weeks of bedrest! J had Johnny set up a bed for me in the living room so I wasn't confined to the bedroom. Violet had started walking about a month ago so I spent most of my time watching her toddle around and play with her shape cube. She was incredibly intelligent and could match the plastic shape to the hole in the cube all on her own. Both J and I had genius I.Q.'s so I knew our children would as well.
J and I had discussed getting a house for a while now. It was well known in the Gotham Underworld that we lived in the penthouse above the club and J wasn't all that liked. He was the most powerful man in all of Gotham and that comes at a price. We had a few safe houses but they hadn't been used in years. J finally decided on an old Victorian that was pretty close to the club yet secluded; he put his men to work on fixing it right away.
The doctor came back to check on me when I was twelve weeks along. She had come by briefly two weeks prior but she only did a quick pelvic exam. I was super excited because we were going to hear their heartbeats and find out what we were having. J didn't want us to know when I was pregnant with Violet but this time I was insistent on finding out. J sat next to me with Violet on his lap and his hand holding mine. I had tears running down my face as we listened to the thump-thump of the babies' heartbeats. When she asked us if we wanted to know the sex I nodded eagerly and felt J's grip on my hand tighten as she told us they were both boys.
Moving day came a month later when my bedrest was finally up. I was still supposed to take it easy so I worked with Violet on her alphabet while J told the boys where he wanted everything to go, his favorite thing to do. It was the first time I saw the place and it was massive! Three stories, ten bedrooms, nine and a half bathrooms, and at least three private acres that J had fenced in so the babies could run around. Our room, Violet's room, and the nursery were on the first floor; the second floor had J's office, four guestrooms, and Johnny's room; the third floor was made into a gym and weaponry floor; the basement had two more guestrooms, a playroom for Bud and Lou, and a theater. The house was absolutely perfect!
After we moved in it took a little while to get adjusted to living in a house. J and I had gotten so used to penthouse living and being right above the club. Violet loved the new house. She was twenty-one months and enjoyed having a backyard and swing set to play with; she made poor Johnny push her on the swings for almost an hour the day after we moved in. I spent most of my days doing yoga while J worked in his office. He had a large window that overlooked the backyard so he could keep an eye on Violet and whichever henchman was watching her. At night, after Violet was put to bed, J would leave for the club and I would spend hours on the phone with Red while we watched stupid soap operas. J was usually gone from ten until two or three in the morning and Red knew I couldn't sleep alone so she would stay on the line with me until he came home or fell asleep, whichever one came first. I wanted to go with him but it was too risky. Only a select few even knew that Violet existed, if some of our enemies found out I was pregnant they could use the kids as pawns or try and take them.
I was six months pregnant when Violet's second birthday came. I had wanted to take her somewhere special with J, like the park or something, but I had woken up that morning with crippling back pain and a horrible headache. It wasn't anything new, being pregnant with twins was a billion times harder than just one baby, but I felt awful. J kept telling me Violet didn't even know it was her birthday, but that didn't help. Instead of the park, the three of us spent the day watching movies and eating pizza and cake; J even stayed home that night to look after me. I wasn't in the mood for any hanky-panky so we spent the night cuddling, something he rarely ever did.
I started having Braxton-Hicks contractions at eight months. They would last about an hour at a time. The first time it happened J was at the club and I called him in hysterics, thinking I was in labor. The doctor explained that they were normal, just my body's way of getting ready for the real thing. Violet was premature so I never got them with her. The pain was horrible and all I could do was try to get comfortable. J ran me a bath and sat behind me while I soaked in the nice hot water. I laid with my head on his chest while he massaged my lower back. It helped a bit but I was still uncomfortable. Because I wouldn't be giving birth in a hospital, the doctor ordered me to strict bedrest to try and keep me from going into early labor like I did with Violet. I was so tired and uncomfortable all the time that I didn't try and fight her on it. I was constantly crying from the pain I was in; J would rub my back but nothing would really help. I just had to let them pass.
I was almost two weeks past my due date when the doctor finally induced me. She wanted to be cautious and wait until I went into labor naturally but I was too miserable to wait. Red had come and taken Violet so we didn't have to worry about her. J and I walked around the house until my water broke, which thankfully did not take long; my long was excruciating but short. I was only in labor for three hours when the first baby was born, his brother following six minutes. I held them both in my arms while the doctor checked them over and let J cut their umbilical cords. He took them from me while I delivered the placenta and handed them to a nurse to be cleaned. We spent the entire night staring at our new little monsters, Ace and Spade.