Hello!
I don't know if you guys realize this but we're coming pretty close to the end. After this there is one more chapter, plus an epilogue. Sad, right? But for now, enjoy these last few moments with our favourite family!

Thanks to Sara and my twitter posse for being awesome. I still don't own glee. But I do own Camden, Nathan and any original characters that appear. Enjoy!

Chapter 10
February 2028

Her baby was turning 8. Rachel chewed her lip as she looked across the table, watching intently as Camden dug into his pile of eggs that were on his plate. He was chatting happily with Finn, his voice clear and excited about what they were going to do today. Him, Finn and Burt, along with Nathan who was in town for Camden's birthday were heading out for a bit of a boys day. They were heading into Columbus just after lunch time to catch a Columbus Blue Jackets game at the arena. Camden had really taken an interest in hockey in the last few months, and the tickets had been part of his birthday gift from Finn and Rachel. She smiled as she watched him getting excited as some eggs slipped from his mouth.

"Swallow first, than talk Pal," Finn chuckled as he scooped some of his own eggs into his mouth.

Camden grinned as he swallowed the mouthful of food he had before speaking once more. "Will I get puck Daddy?"

Finn smiled as he stared at Camden before ruffling his hair. "We'll see Pal. I'm not making any promises but we'll try."

Camden blinked at him for a moment before smiling and turning back to the eggs on his plate.
Rachel smiled across the table at Finn before going back to her own plate of food and finishing up.

They finished up eating, Rachel standing up to clear the table as Camden scrambled up the stairs to get dressed for the day, shrieking about getting his jersey on; another gift from them.

"I can clear the table babe," Finn smiled gently as he stood up from his chair.

"I got it," she smiled."Didn't you say you wanted to catch a shower? I can handle this," she held up Camden's plate before turning on her heel.

Truth was, she kind of wanted him out of her way for a few minutes and the shower would do just that. She was tired, and feeling a little emotional about everything that was going on. She always got a little nostalgic around Camden's birthday, and this year was no different. Blame it on her pregnancy hormones that were in full swing, but Finn's overly attentive nature since she had slipped down the steps of the hotel last weekend was kind of starting to wear her down. She loved him, and she knew he meant well - she was just really looking forward to having a bit of time to herself today - especially after the chaos of the birthday party yesterday.

They had held the huge party at the local jungle gym, mainly for the sheer fact that having it somewhere else was easier as there was little clean up involved along with the fact that their house was not nearly big enough to accommodate the majority of their extended family all the time, let alone the class full of kids Camden had invited.

It had gone well, she had loved watching Camden run around and play with his friends. She saw how easily he jumped from friend to friend, each of them clicking with him well. She loved seeing him in action with his friends. She had been scared a long time ago, when she had first brought him home, that his life would be hard. That people wouldn't accept him for the amazing boy he would and had become. But she had been scared for nothing. Camden was a social butterfly now that he had come out of his shell. He had blossomed and she was so glad she had been wrong all those years ago. The party had been a success, but it had taken a lot out of Rachel, as her body was still achy from the fall and Alice had really been excited by the cake, ice cream and pizza she had eaten during the party.

She rinsed the dishes off just as the doorbell rang at the front of the house. She closed the door before pressing start just as Camden's thundering feet came flying down the stairs.

"I got it Mommy," he squealed.

"Camden! Do not open that door!" She called as she wiped her hands on the dish towel before heading after him.

She found him standing at the front door, looking up at her with his bright blue eyes with his hands jammed in the pocket of the Columbus Blue Jackets sweater he wore. The grin on his face told her exactly how excited he was. She blew out a breath as she opened the door, revealing Nathan on the other side.

"Uncle Nathan!" Camden exclaimed as Nathan stepped into the house. She watched with a tight smile on her face as Nathan wrapped his arms around him, hugging him tightly.

Over the years, Nathan had kept in constant contact with Rachel and Finn, about Camden especially. He tried to make it out for every birthday, and if he couldn't make it on that weekend specifically he usually made it within the few days around it. A friendship of sorts had developed between Finn and Nathan, born out of the understanding that Finn was the best choice for both Camden and Rachel. That, and the fact that three years ago Nathan had met and married a wonderful paralegal named Mallory. And in the last year they had welcomed their first child, Jackson. All three of them had been at the party yesterday until Jackson became too cranky.

"Hey Rachel," Nathan smiled as he ruffled Camden's hair. "Hey Cam,"

Rachel smiled as she closed the door behind him. She followed Camden and Nathan into the house, Camden leading the way as he pulled Nathan to the living room. She laughed when she saw Camden pulling him to where he had stored the Lego he had received yesterday. It had taken Finn and Rachel a good half an hour last night to pull him away from the building set that he had gotten for his birthday, eventually lulling him away with the promise that he could continue tomorrow. And continue he had. Now he was proudly showing Nathan the Batcave set he had started to put together.

She stood back and watched the two of them interacting. Nathan was patient, listening intently as Camden explained in his broken language how he had put it together, smiling big when he proclaimed which spots Finn had helped him with. She got a warm feeling as she watched them together. She was grateful, that they had been able to be adults all those years ago, and she had allowed Nathan to be in their lives. She had once thought her son would never have a father, and now he had one great father and one pretty great pseudo-uncle as well. Nathan was clearly enjoying the one on one time with Camden as he was with him.

"I see he's hit the Lego again," came Finn's voice from the other end of the living room. Rachel lifted her head and smiled when she saw him come into the room more. He approached Nathan and Camden first, tussling Camden's hair before extending his hand out to Nathan. "Good to see you again, man."

Nathan shook his hand before standing up. "You too."

"No Mallory?" Finn asked as he made his way over to where Rachel was standing. He wrapped his arm around her waist and gently patted her bump as Alice kicked.

"She's just outside in the car," he sighed as he stood up. "Jack was screaming the car ride over here from the hotel and she wanted to get him calm before she came in the house," he stated. "He's off his schedule and neither her or him do well when that happens,". Both Finn and Rachel smiled, albeit Rachel did it a little tensely. She had been there, the parent with the screaming child. She wondered how Mallory felt being left alone out there.

"I can see the wheels turning Rachel," Nathan sighed as he ran his hands through his hair. "She kicked me out of the car..."

She nodded, leaning into Finn. who gave her a small smile.

A small tap on the door alerted the group to Mallory's presence. Nathan left Camden with his Lego to go and get the door, returning afterwards with Mallory and Jackson in tow.

Mallory was a petit woman who was no taller than Rachel with fire engine red hair. The baby in her arms shared a majority of her features, but had the same shockingly blue eyes that belonged to Nathan. And Camden.

Her and Mallory were going to spend the day together. She bit her lip as she looked at the woman, suddenly self conscious of the big belly at the front of her body. It was rare that they had alone time together in the past three years, and Rachel was a little nervous. But it would be rude to not spend time with her, since Nathan was leaving her behind to spend time with Finn and Camden.

"Rachel? Earth to Rachel!" Finn chuckled as he patted her hip. She shook her head of her thoughts and turned to her husband.

"Sorry, what's that?"

"I said we're going to take one of our cars to the game. That way you guys can have the rental if you guys end up going out with Jackson." She met Mallory's eyes across the room and nodded.

"Sounds great." She smiled.

It wasn't much longer before the boys got ready to go. Rachel smiled as Camden shoved his feet in his boots and tugged on his coat. He had been raring to go since his head had left his pillow this morning. It was all he could talk about and Rachel was thrilled to see him so excited. She knew part of that was because Nathan had come to his party and was spending the day with him. It was also because he was getting so much undivided attention. She could see the excitement on his face, and that alone made her so happy. So much was changing around him, and she was so glad they could make his birthday so incredibly special.

She walked back into the living room after seeing the boys out to the car. Alice kicked heartily inside of her as she made her way back to the room. Rachel smiled gently when she crossed the threshold, watching Mallory gently bounce the infant she held on her knee.

"Can I get you something to drink?" She asked after a minute of watching the two together.

Mallory looked away from the baby and offered her a small smile.

"Sure. That would be great."

"Is water okay? I think we still have some pop..."

"Water is great. Thank you."

Rachel nodded and went to grab the water.

When she returned, she handed the glass carefully to Mallory before sitting down beside her.

They sat there quietly together, each of them soaking in the silence. The only noise was the babbling of the 9 month old, who was happily squealing while chewing on a teething toy. Rachel smiled at the little boy, watching as he grinned back at her.

"He's quite the happy boy," she commented as her own hands ran over her bump.

"He can be," Mallory laughed. "You didn't hear him in the car on the way here. I'm really surprised either me or Nathan aren't deaf."

"I remember those days. Camden used to scream loud enough to wake the dead. I always felt like someone was going to think I was abusing him. Half the time I was just trying to change his diaper."

Mallory smiled. "I don't know how you did it. Half the time I'm counting down the minutes until Nathan comes home, just so I can have a break."

Rachel's eyes fell to where her hands were running over her bump. She chewed her lip. "I just did it. I was all he had,"

She saw the immediate regret on Mallory's face when the last word left her lips. "Crap. Rachel, I didn't mean..."

Rachel shrugged in response. "It's not your fault. You got the new and improved Nathan. I got the run for the hills Nathan, but the amazing Finn. We're both with who we're supposed to be with and I've made my peace with that..."

"It was still insensitive," she sighed as she adjusted Jackson in her arms. "I think you're brave, you know. I don't know what I would have done if I was in your position."

Rachel smiled gently. "You do what you have to do. I think things turned out pretty well despite how they started."

Mallory nodded as Jackson grabbed for a long piece of her hair and pulled. She gently unclenched his fist from around it before reaching over to give him a toy she had brought with her.

"Are you all ready for your new little one?"she questioned when the baby was thoroughly distracted. Changing the subject seemed like a good enough idea.

Rachel responded with a hearty laugh. "Not even close. We've painted her nursery, that's it. It's been hard this time to get myself going on putting things together. I know it needs to be done, and it will get done. I think on that front I'm a little more relaxed because I have someone else by my side this time. Plus, this pregnancy has taken a lot out of me and just when I was really getting in the swing of things I stupidly tripped down the stairs at the hotel Finn took me to last weekend. He's barely let me lift a finger since." She chuckled, rubbing her belly. "I'm actually surprised he left me here with you."

"Is he excited?"

"So excited. It took a lot to get me on the same level, but now that I can feel her moving, we've had ultrasounds where we've really gotten to see her face and her tiny hands, I feel like I can truly enjoy these last few weeks of being pregnant and truly be excited to have her with us. I just can't wait to meet her now, see him with her. Camden too."

"I loved being pregnant. I worked up until the day before I had Jackson here..." Mallory smiled as she bounced the baby gently.

"That was me with Camden, my water broke at work actually. This one, I've been off fully for the last two weeks. It just got to be too much with the constant pain I've been in. I was able to work for a chunk of weeks, but as soon as I exploded...my entire body seemed to revolt," she joked.

"I get it," she chuckled. "Jackson was 8 pounds even."

Rachel sighed. "Camden was just over 6. They're estimating this one," she ran her hands over her belly as Alice kicked. "Is going to be 8 pounds minimum, and long..."

"A dancer in the making," Mallory smiled.

"I like to think so. Or a soccer player."

When the boys returned home from the hockey game hours later, Camden was passed out in Finn's arms. Rachel and Mallory were just finishing up with watching Gone Girl while Jackson had fallen asleep cuddled up in his car seat. They had ordered pizza for dinner, neither of them had felt like cooking. Rachel smiled as she watched Camden curl into Finn's chest, sighing in his sleep. Nathan moved around her to get to Mallory to help her get Jackson's things together.

"Did you have a good time?" she asked quietly as she ran her fingers through Camden's hair. He shifted in Finn's arms, mumbling something about a goal.

"We had a really good time," Finn smiled as he kissed Camden's head."Did you?"

She nodded her response, laying her head on his free shoulder for a moment.

Shuffling came from the living room as Mallory and Nathan emerged at the front door, Nathan carrying the car seat with a sleeping Jackson.

"We're going to hit the road," he said softly as he looked at Rachel. "Our flight is pretty early tomorrow morning so we should get this little guy into his pack and play."

Rachel nodded, separating herself a little from Finn and Camden, opening her arms and giving Nathan a friendly hug.

"You take care of yourself," he smiled as he pulled away from her. "And let us know when your little girl arrives..."

Rachel smiled and nodded. "Will do." She rubbed her bump comfortingly before turning to Mallory who had been pulling on her shoes. She gave her a hug as well.

"You guys have a safe flight. Maybe we can meet up in the summer at some point?"

Mallory smiled. "That sounds good to me."

They said their goodbyes and Rachel closed and locked the door behind them, before turning to Finn.

"I'm going to get this little guy upstairs," he whispered.

"I'll come with you."

He nodded as he followed her up the stairs. She got to Camden's room first and set about grabbing some fresh pajamas and pulling back the blankets before Finn placed him down on the bed. He sighed in his sleep as she changed his clothes quickly before covering him up.

When she was finished, she stood at the side of his bed looking down at him. Finn wrapped his arms around her from behind for a moment, yawning as he leaned his head on her shoulder.

"When did he get so big, huh?" Finn asked quietly.

"You're telling me," she quietly agreed."8. I can't believe he'll officially be 8 tomorrow."

"Time has really flown," he sighed.

She nodded slowly before pulling out of his arms, not before taking his hand and tugging him after her.

"You okay?" He asked softly as he closed their bedroom door behind him.

She nodded slowly as she wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head on his chest. "Yeah."

He ran his fingers through her long hair, placing a kiss on her forehead as he held her.

"Did you have a good afternoon with Mallory?"

She nodded. "It was fine."

"Rach?"

She turned her head up to look at him, a small smile on her lips. "Spending the afternoon with her just reminded me that I am so glad things turned out the way they did. "

He gave her a look, encouraging her to go on. "She just unintentionally brought up some old memories I've been trying to keep down. But she also reminded me that I got the better end of the deal."

"And what is that?"

"I got you," she whispered as she leaned up on her toes and pressed a kiss to his lips. "I love you."

"I love you too Rach," he smiled as he pecked her lips again and his hands grazed her bump, causing Alice to kick heartily. They both chuckled.

"Welcome Mommy's and Daddy's to Lamaze, my name is Taylor and I will be your guide on this wonderful journey. We're only going to get to spend two Saturday's together, so why don't we jump right to it? I like to start by going around the room and introducing ourselves, give your due date and what you hope to learn in our time together." The older woman smiled at the small group in front of her. "I'll start. I'm Taylor, I'm a registered Lamaze instructor and have been for the last 10 years. I'm not currently pregnant, I just welcomed my fourth daughter in September. I hope to answer all of your questions and get you as prepared as possible for what is surely going to be the best day(s) of your lives."

They were the third couple in. Rachel reclined against Finn's chest as they listened intently to the two couples before them. The first couple, Christine and Cody were on their 4th child but had a story that was reminiscent of Puck and Quinn's, at least to her. The second couple Rob and Janelle were older, and Rachel could just feel the anxiety radiating off both of them. She tried to send them a reassuring smile, but Finn squeezing her hands in his drew her attention away.

"I'm Finn, this is my beautiful wife Rachel," he smiled, "and we're on baby number 2. Alice is due to arrive around the 18th of April."

"And what do you expect to take from our time together?" Taylor asked with a welcoming smile.

Rachel blew out a breath. "I need a refresher. Our older son is 8 and his birth was traumatic for me and I just...I need reassurance that this one will be okay."

"What was traumatic about it, if you don't mind me asking?" Taylor asked softly.

Rachel bit her lip and Finn kissed her hair. "It was traumatic in the fact that I was alone, I laboured for 14 hours before I started pushing and being alone that long really did something for my psyche. Our son had been identified before birth as having a 95% chance of having Down Syndrome, and his biological father ran the moment those words were uttered. So I was alone. And I just don't want a repeat of that," she paused. "But this time I have the best partner possible and I'm looking forward to experiencing this with him at my side."

Taylor nodded before turning to the couple next to them for introductions.

"It's going to be great," Finn whispered into her ear as they listened to the other introductions. "I'm with you every step of the way baby."

She smiled and sighed contentedly as he pressed a kiss against her head.

When introductions were finished, Taylor began the class with talking about the last few, final weeks of pregnancy.

Rachel tried to absorb everything Taylor was telling them. As she moved through topics that she vaguely remembered from her pregnancy with Camden, she felt Finn's arms wrapping around her a little tighter. Especially when a video of a woman in labor was played. She felt Finn take a deep breath as the video played and his face buried in the side of her neck. When the video was over, ending just before the woman delivered, she felt Finn give a sigh of relief. She patted his hands as Taylor moved topics, opting to discuss birth plans.

"Why do you think it's important to have a birth plan?" Taylor asked as she uncapped the white board marker and got it poised to write.

"So you're prepared?" one of the women on the other side of the room put out.

"Good." Taylor nodded.

"It's important so that everyone is on the same page. With my last birth, I felt like I wasn't supported during my delivery because I was alone." Rachel whispered. "My plan was ignored and I was pressured into pain medication by the nursing staff even though I was adamant that I was against it. I want to try and have this one naturally."

When they broke for lunch, she could tell Finn was having a hard time holding on. They walked hand and hand down to the cafeteria that was in the rec center the classes were being held. Rachel needed to stretch her legs from sitting on the ground and she felt like Finn could use a break. The last thing they had watched before they broke, was a video of a live birth And she could tell Finn was rattled. She watched from the table as he grabbed lunch for them, a salad for her and some soup for him before returning to the table. He gave her a hesitant smile when he placed the food in front of her. She watched him intently as he took the lid off the container and blew on the soup gently. She was about to dig into her own food before she stopped and reached across the table to grab his hand.

"What's wrong?" she asked quietly.

When he didn't look at her right away, she ran her thumb over his knuckles to get his attention. "Finn?"

He raised his eyes from his soup to look across at her. "You okay?"

He shrugged, avoiding her eyes for more than a few seconds. "I'm glad we only went with the two sessions..."

"What? Why?"

He put his spoon down and gave her a light smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.

"I don't think I can sit through this a million times. I'm not even sure I want to go back in there and watch the other videos she has for us..."

"Finn..." she paused. "It's just a video..."

"I know it's just a video. But sitting in that room? Listening to Taylor talk about the stages of labor and...babe, I don't know how we're going to do this..."

"What? Finn..." Her brow scrunched as she sighed.

"I don't know how I'm going to be able to watch you go through all of that," he raised his hands to his face and rubbed his temples. "Is there...is there really going to be that much blood, Rach? Is that what it's really like?"

She bit her lip as she looked at him. "Finn..." she contemplated what to say for a moment as she took a bite of her salad. When she was finished, she answered him finally. "Yes. But it's still beautiful even though it's messy and..."

"And you want to do it without drugs? Babe..."

"I have to," she chewed her lip.

"Go through excruciating pain? Rach, if you think for one second that I'm going to let you suffer while I just stand there and hold your hand..."

"Finn!" She grabbed his hand. "I have to do this for me. To prove it to me, that I can do this. I can be present and fully aware and I can't do that with the drugs. The drugs made me foggy and numb and even a little more hysterical that I already was when I had Cam. I just need to feel this. I want to be present when we have our baby." She paused. "Is it going to be hard? Sure. But it's not going to be half as hard to deliver this baby than it was when I had Camden. And you know why?"

"Why?"

"Because you're going to be there, holding my hand and letting me scream at the top of my lungs."

He chuckled as he leaned over the table and pressed a soft kiss to her lips.

"Your faith in me is amazing."

She smiled before patting his cheek. "It's only fair that I return the favor once and awhile don't you think?" She pecked his lips once more. "You've been my rock this entire pregnancy. I'm glad to shoulder it for a few minutes. But for the record, you can have it back now..."

"Is that so?"

She nodded, standing up and picking up her tray. "I am about to have your moose of a baby in a few weeks. Surely you can be the strong one for a little while longer," she winked.

He laughed. "I think that can be arranged." He took the tray from her and threw out their trash. "Come on, let's go learn about how I can help you stay comfortable without getting my face punched in..."

She laughed heartily as he slipped his arm around her waist and led her back to the room to finish the class.

Enjoy!