"What the fuck is this?" Brian bellowed as he pulled further down the private road that led to Britin. "Deb said she would drop Suvi off, she never said anything about anyone else coming."

What they had expected to be one singular car parked in front of the large house had turned in to…6 cars, Brian counted quickly. Recognizing Emmett's brightly colored catering van, Brian groaned. "Shit, they are up to something."

"Maybe they just came out to get the house together since we've been gone so long?" Justin cautioned, though he knew that was not the case. Something was definitely up.

"They know we have a cleaning service that comes out every week. Those fuckers planned something, and Emmett is behind it all." Brian shook his head as he threw the car in to park.

"I wonder what it is?" Daphne covered her mouth, trying not to laugh at how bent out of shape Brian was getting.

"Only one way to find out." Justin ventured as he opened the door and jumped out, holding it open as Daphne slid out next to him. He had opted to sit in the back with Daphne for the ride back just to be on the safe side.

Brian stalked around the front of the car as the younger duo trailed his determined path. Reaching the door, Brian hissed when he realized the door was, in fact, unlocked. Journeying cautiously in to the foyer, the three jumped when a wave of noise assaulted their ears.

"SURPRISE!" Everyone jumped out of their respective hiding places, though Brian suspected they had caught them off-guard. Michael stood behind the couch, his hands full of streamers as Emmett tried to appear as if he always hung out on ladders in his spare time. Hanging above the entrance to the kitchen was a large sign that read "Happy Pre-Baby, Baby Shower" as the trio took in all the pink and blue storks, baby booties, and other various baby items that hung from every corner of the Great Room.

Emmett, still hanging midway down the ladder, had his arm wrapped around one of the legs as he clapped enthusiastically. "Emmett!" Brian huffed, his eyes flashing as he made a beeline for the unsuspecting man.

Seeing the look in Brian's eyes, Emmett climbed the ladder until he was perched precariously on top. "Now Brian, where is your party-boy spirit?" His voice squeaked noticeably.

Before Brian could reach the panicking queen, Ben flung his arm around his shoulders and steered him towards the kitchen and away from everyone else. Giving Emmett enough time to scatter down the ladder to find his place safely behind Drew; who seemed to be having a hard time containing his own laughter.

As Ben pulled Brian out of the room, everyone focused their attention back on Justin and Daphne. Shrugging their shoulders sheepishly, the duo smiled in unison as they took in their surroundings.

"What the fuck's going on, Ben?" Brian hissed as he wrenched the refrigerator door open and grabbed a beer, motioning the bottle towards the other man.

Ben knew Brian was mad when he used his name and not the standard 'professor' moniker Brian had been calling him for years. "No thank you. Look, I'm sorry about all of this, I tried to warn them that this would be the last thing you guys would want, but Debbie insisted we all celebrate, so she enlisted Emmett's help." Ben offered.

"But a pre-baby, baby shower? I mean, come on, we just did the transfer this morning." Brian refrained from hollering.

"I know, it's a bit…unbecoming…considering we don't even know if there WILL be a baby from all of this. But, you know, no matter what, their hearts are in the right place."

Brian sighed as he sunk down on to a kitchen stool and took a long swig of his beer. "I know, I know. It's just…I was hoping to NOT make a big deal out of this because the odds are not in our favor. I just don't want them to get their hopes up only to find out it didn't work."

"I understand, I tried to keep the lid on things when Mel was trying to get pregnant because I knew how nervous and excited Michael was. In the end, though, this party will not make anyone any more excited or hopeful than they already are. I'm not going to ask you to have fun, but just get through today and then everything will die down."

"Time for presents!" Emmett's voice carried towards the men, causing Brian to roll his eyes so hard it almost looked painful.

"I'm going to need more beer." He exclaimed as he drained the rest of the liquid down his throat.

"You and me both." Ben grinned as his hand came down on Brian's shoulder with a friendly squeeze. "We should probably head back in there."

"Sure we can't just sneak away for a while?" Brian pointed to the stairs that were nestled in the back corner of the kitchen.

"While tempting, I don't think it would be fair to desert Justin and Daphne like that." Brian reluctantly rose from the stool with a dramatic sigh. Grabbing one more beer from the fridge, he grudgingly followed Ben back out to their friends and family.

"Mommy!" Suvi yelled as she came running down the stairs, followed closely by Jennifer who was trying to still the excited child who had just awoken from her nap. Suvi launched herself a few steps from the landing as Brian intercepted the flying ball of energy that was heading straight for her mom. Suvi looked at him confused when she realized his arms were not her intended target.

"Mommy had to go to the doctors today, Suv. She's can't pick you up for a little while, ok. We have to be easy. No jumping off stairs or furniture." Brian admonished with a laugh as he placed the squirming child to the ground before she ran to wrap her arms around her mom's legs.

Emmett and Debbie played hostesses as they passed gifts to Daphne and Justin who were sitting awkwardly in the middle of the room. Justin tried to silently guilt Brian in to joining them but Brian shook his head, tipping the neck of his beer bottle towards the gifts and planting his feet firmly in to the thick carpet. Shaking his head in both amusement and disbelief, Justin wordlessly promised the brunette revenge in the very near future.

Brian would take whatever punishment the blonde doled out gratefully; there was no way in fuck he was getting in the middle of all those gifts and Debbie's incessant fawning.

Brian was still uneasy about the entire party. Sure, he didn't really like parties of this nature in general, regardless, but this was different. Not only were they not sure if Daphne would even become pregnant or not, everyone kept raving about them having twins. Everyone knew the way they decided to handle the insemination and that twins were a possibility, but what everyone else seemed to forget, and what Brian's mind screamed loudly was that there might not be twins. Hell there might not be a baby at all when all was said and done. And all of these gifts and this whole party would end up being a huge fucking neon sign of a reminder smacking them all in the face if everything didn't work out.

Food and cake were served as Emmett giddily organized a few games for their guests. Drew hung back near Brian, not really talking much, but keeping his distance from the commotion as his boyfriend spun around the room like a virtual ball of excitement. Ted and Blake won one game while Jennifer won another; the object of which Brian had no clue. Michael and Hunter fought over the music selection before Ben took over; while Debbie seemed incapable of shutting her mouth as she waxed poetically about having babies around once more, now that the other children were getting older. The far-off look in her eye, was nearly matched in intensity by Justin's, Brian noted with a heavy sigh.

As the sky grew dark outside, the excitement of the party seemed to die down as well. Suvi lay passed out in Daphne's lap as everyone pitched in to do a quick clean up before leaving.

Brian had other plans, however.

"Don't worry about the mess. I'll hire someone tomorrow to finish up. It's getting late and you guys have a little drive ahead of you. Go on." Brian motioned towards the door as he hurriedly corralled the confused visitors towards the door.

"Are you sure?" Emmett questioned in a horrified tone. "It won't take but an hour or so. Always comes down quicker than it went up." Stopping for a second to think about what he had just said, Emmett giggled before following Drew out the door.

"Absolutely. Drive safe." Brian yelled in to the darkness as everyone started piling in their respective cars.

"Call me if you need anything." Michael yelled back.

Brian nodded his acknowledgement.

"Call me when that stick turns blue…or pink…or whatever the fuck it does. Those little fuckers probably talk to you now." Debbie shouted from her own car as she followed Michael down the driveway.

Shutting the front door, Brian leaned his forehead on to the cool glass as he reveled in the silence that surrounded him. It literally felt like days had passed since they were at the clinic in Allentown. Not hours.

Smiling when he felt a pair of hands on his hips, he remained still as they ventured up his chest. Justin's warm breath tickled his neck as he rested his chin on the brunette's shoulder. "I can't believe you left us to fend for ourselves back there."

"When the vultures descend, it's every man for himself." Brian replied as he turned around, his arms coming up to wrest on Justin's shoulders. "Rule number one."

"Really?" Justin asked as he tucked himself in to Brian's side.

"Yep." Sighing heavily, Brian tugging the blonde along as the two made their way back towards the proverbial scene of the crime as Brian grimaced once more at the over the top decorations.

Daphne was curled up on the couch with Suvi; both were fast asleep.

Justin pulled away from Brian, leaning down to gently shake his friend's shoulders. "Daph, come on wake up. You'll be really sore tomorrow if you sleep on the couch all night."

Daphne stirred, pulling herself up quickly on to her elbow as she looked around at the now deserted room. "What did I miss?"

"Not much, just Brian kicking everyone out." Justin laughed.

Brian shrugged his shoulders.

"Ok, can one of you help me carry her to the cottage?" Daphne asked as she pushed a few stray curls behind her daughter's ear.

"No can do," Brian huffed out as a mirrored look of confusion crossed their faces. "You two can crash here for the next couple nights."

"Brian, the cottage is practically in the backyard. You should know, you're the one who built the damn thing. It's not that far." Daphne exclaimed as she sat up, rubbing her eyes.

"The doctor said you couldn't lift anything heavier than a gallon of milk for the next 48 hours. What if something happens with Suvi?"

"Then I will call you." Daphne stated defiantly as Brian reached down to pick up the sleeping child.

"You know you are not going to win." Brian stated simply as he shifted Suvi on to his shoulder. "You two go to the cottage and grab some stuff for the night or whatever and I will put Suvi in your old room. That bed is plenty big enough for the two of you and everything is still in there from before you moved to the cottage."

Too tired to argue, Daphne conceded. Weaving her arm through Justin's, she laid her head on his shoulder sleepily; her eyes heavy. "Walk with me."

As the two left the room, Brian made his way to the stairs, trying his best to ascend the steps as evenly as possible in fear of waking the small child. Reaching the first room on the right, Brian opened the door. Keeping the lights off as the hallway lights provided enough illumination for him to maneuver around, Brian pulled the covers back on the bed and laid the small child down. Once again, he removed her shoes and decided to leave the option of changing her in to her pajamas to Daphne.

It took only a couple minutes for the two to return.

Hugging his friend once more, Justin headed out of the room. "I'm turning everything off downstairs and locking up. Meet you back in the bedroom."

Brian nodded his head from where he sat perched on the side of the bed beside Suvi who was snoring softly. He watched as Daphne moved around the room with the ease of familiarity.

"Are you guys going to use this room for the nursery?" Daphne asked absentmindedly as she walked towards Brian with a tiny shirt in her hand. As gently as possible, she started removing the child's pink and white stripped tights and solid pink shirt before slipping the night shirt over her head. Brian marveled at the way she was able to accomplish that without waking the girl; years of practice, he figured.

"Nope. The nursery will be right across from our room, next to Gus and JRs room." Brian said in a matching hushed voice.

"What are you guys going to do with this room, then?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well I guess you could leave it as it is and just use it for a guest bedroom. I just figured you would do something with it since we've been in the cottage for a while now."

Picking up a framed picture of Daphne and Justin from prom night that still remained on the nightstand beside the bed, Brain smiled fondly at the image before he shrugged his shoulders. "If we really needed to, I guess we could use this as a guest bedroom, but this is your room; Suvi's too."

Daphne stopped and turned towards the brunette, her hands on her hips. "Brian, you took me in when I found out I was pregnant and almost had a nervous breakdown because I literally felt like I was drowning. You and Justin have pretty much helped me raise my daughter and to top it off, you had that beautiful little cottage built on the property for us. I think you can change the room to whatever the fuck you want." Daphne stopped herself from yelling as she looked down quickly to her still-sleeping daughter.

"Building the cottage was an investment on the property, If we ever sell this place, it would be worth more than what I paid for it." Brian rattled off the tried-and-true answer he had been giving since he brought up the idea in the first place.

Daphne had watched him wave off the act as a veritable business transaction for years, but she had known better. "Bullshit. First of all, you and I both know you will never sell this house and secondly, you built the cottage because I refused to let you help pay for a place to live once Suvi was born."

Brian shook his head. "That's not true."

It was totally true.

"The only thing I could afford on my salary wasn't in a part of town you approved of, so you set out to fix the problem right quick." Daphne challenged.

"That's rich. The only thing in your price range was some shithole in the middle of crack town. Can you honestly tell me you would have rather lived there than in the cottage."

Brian nearly shuddered at the thought of Suvi growing up in the places they had visited in search of an apartment that Daphne could afford.

Daphne smiled warmly at Brian's seriousness. "I love that you are willing to do anything for me and my daughter, and I will never be able to repay you or thank you enough for everything you and Justin have done for us."

Even in the dark, Daphne couldn't mistake the twinkle in the brunette's eyes as he glanced down towards her stomach. "Well, I'd say we are about even."

"This is not my payback." Daphne stated softly. "And don't you even act like its nothing more than that to you, either."

Choosing not to respond to her statement, Brian pushed himself from where he had been leaning against the nightstand. On his way to the door, he stopped briefly to kiss Daphne's cheek; a barely audible "thank you" trailed his retreating form.

Joining Justin in their bedroom, Brian followed behind the blonde, completing his nightly routine of creams and expensive exfoliates before joining his husband in their bed. Justin was busily scribbling in his sketch book when Brian scooted towards him; resting his head on the blonde's shoulder to see what he was drawing.

"It's Daph."

"I can see that."

"Its from earlier today when they were doing the transfer. When they let us watch them transfer the eggs, it was unlike anything I can describe. The look on Daph's face was so open, I wanted to draw it right then and there. This is just a quick sketch, before I forget. I want to paint it eventually."

"As always, I'm sure it will be brilliant."

"Maybe we could get it framed, give it to her once it's finished? It's not for sale though."

"I didn't suppose it would be." Leaving Justin to his drawing, Brian scooted away enough so as to not be any hindrance to his husband's work, but he didn't move far

In the beginning, Brian was very much used to sleeping alone. Even those times when Justin had wormed his way in to his bed, instead of sleeping on the couch, or especially once he had moved in before prom; even sharing a bed then resulted in Brian waking up as close to the edge of the mattress as possible. It was as if his body reacted on its own when he was asleep, pushing away from the contact it was not used to receiving. Yet, as the years wore on, Brian found himself gravitating not away from, but towards Justin when they shared the same bed. What once would have been highly annoying, Brian oddly enough, didn't mind when he woke up to the blonde's leg draped lazily over his own. Little nuances such as these were the very details that both surprised the hell out of Brian, yet also comforted him in a way he never expected.

"Fuck." Justin whispered to himself as he shook his hand. He hated that after all the rehab he had completed, and the years of drawing and painting he had accomplished since the bashing; he still only managed to go 30 minutes before the cramping set in.

Reflexively, Brian reached for his hand and began to knead the tired muscles with his long, magic fingers as Justin placed the sketch pad and pencil on the night stand. Laying his head on the pillow beside Brian, Justin started to feel the effects of the day settling heavy on his chest. "That's it for me tonight."

Kissing the palm of his hand once more, Brian rose up on to his elbow.

"Good. Because…" he started as he leaned down; his lips finding the blonde's ear, "I sometimes have a queer feeling…" he chuckled, causing Justin to shiver when the warm air tickled his neck, "with regard to you, especially when you are near me, as now." murmuring against the pale skin, Brian's lips trailed a scorching path from Justin's ear to his eager lips. Recognized the words, Justin's muddled brain rendered him nearly incapable of intelligent comprehension. "It is as if I had a string somewhere under my left ribs," searching for air between kisses; the blazing trail of his mouth ventured down the other side of his neck, stopping at the sensitive spot below his collarbone as Justin's eyes flutter closed. Letting his head fall back to the pillow. "Tightly and inextricably knotted," Brian stopped just above his left breastbone, "to a similar string situated in the corresponding quarter of your little frame." Placing a tender kiss above his heart, Brian pulled himself up to look in to the piercing blue eyes that held his future so securely. "And if that boisterous channel, and two hundred miles or so of land come broad between us," running his fingers lightly through Justin's hair, Brian recited the last part so quietly, Justin could barely hear him over the blood that was pounding feverishly in his ears. "I am afraid that cord of communion will be snapt; and then I've a nervous notion I should take to bleeding inwardly."

Knowing this was one of the many ways in which Brian felt safest expressing his emotions, Justin knew better than to address the words head on. Instead, he chose to play along. "This better not be your way of telling me you have a bed-burning, maniacal wife hidden in the attic somewhere."

Brian grinned wickedly as his hand slid down the smooth skin of Justin's stomach. "Sorry to disappoint, but the only wife I've got is laying in this bed with me, my dear…"

Grabbing his hand before it ventured any lower, Justin warned. "Call me Jane and the only pulling that hand will be doing tonight is when you are setting up the pull-out bed downstairs."

Grinning wildly, Brian's eyes squinted from the smile that overtook him. "Wouldn't dream of it, Sunshine."

[o][o][o][o][o]

The next two week did, in fact, prove to be the longest two weeks of their lives. Everyone went back to their normal routines as they tried to occupy their thoughts with anything other than babies. Brian returned to Kinnetik and Justin returned to his art.

Daphne's initial dreams of becoming a doctor had morphed somewhat after she became pregnant as she realized she liked the idea of working around kids in some capacity as opposed to the endless grind of a doctors life. She wanted her life to revolve around her daughter, not a hospital. Upon completing the requirements in conjunction with the schooling she had already completed, Daphne took the head nurse job at the private school, the nonsectarian Wheeling Country Day School, that was located a couple miles from Britin.

Daphne had originally struggled with the decision to eventually let Suvi attend a private school after seeing firsthand what Justin had gone through at the private school they had attended. Yet upon visiting the school and discussing with them, in detail, their policy on gay issues within the school and its student's, many of her fears were put to rest. Explaining that her daughter had a rather large extended family consisting of both heterosexuals and homosexuals alike, Daphne had made it clear that any issues would be addressed accordingly, should they arise. Feeling confident, in the end, that not only was this a great career opportunity for her, but that this school would offer Suvi many of the advantages she hoped to provide for her daughter, Daphne had agreed on the spot to both the job and Suvi's eventual place within the institution.

With preschool still a year off, Justin had eagerly agreed to look after Suvi once Daphne started back to work. Setting up an area in his studio once she was old enough, Justin had spent many afternoons painting alongside the girl; her mini-easel and non-toxic paints kept her entertained for hours.

Now, as these two weeks seemed to drag at a snail's pace, Justin found his mind drifting more often than not. Attempting to shift his focus, he had taken to painting the little girls face and digging through her closet and drawers to dress her up as anything from a fairy princess to a safari lion as the two spent hours chasing each other through the house and around the back yard.

[o][o][o][o][o]

"Yes, Deb. I promise I will call as soon as we find out anything." Justin laughed in to the phone, rolling his eyes. Not understanding the concept of having to wait two weeks, Debbie had called once a day since they had returned from Allentown to see if anything had changed. "We love you too. Bye"

Justin returned the phone to its cradle, sitting back down to finish his lunch.

"Suvi, stop picking the vegetables out of the soup. You are supposed to eat them; they will make you big and strong." Daphne corrected her daughter as the small girl's fingers fished around in her soup.

Justin couldn't help but laugh at the girl. Just like her mother, Suvi hated to eat vegetables and whenever Justin made homemade soup for lunch, the girl's bowl often resembled that of her mother's; the lip around their soup bowls would be covered with tomatoes, carrots and peas that they had pushed aside in search of the meat and potatoes hidden in the dark broth.

"Is it really fair to make her eat her vegetables when you won't even eat…" Justin started as he looked to his friends bowl only to see it was empty; void of all contents, vegetables included. "Nevermind."

"Seconds." Daphne sang as she pushed away from the table to fill her bowl once more.

As his friend occupied herself with retrieving her second helping, Justin quickly slid his bowl over beside Suvi's and dumped all her discarded veggies in to his bowl. "Sshhh." He admonished when the girl started giggling

When Daphne returned to the table, Justin pulled his bowl back quickly, his voice raising. "Good job, Suvi. Look, she ate all her veggies just like you told her to."

Eyeing the two suspiciously, Daphne couldn't help but laugh when Suvi covered her mouth with her tiny hand in an attempt to stifle her giggling. "Sure she did."

When the child eventually settled down, her eyes lit up as she climbed up so she was standing on her chair, jutting her hands out towards her mother. "Look mommy." She cried out happily as she wiggled her fingers excitedly. Pink glittery nail polish adorned her tiny little nails.

"Very pretty, baby. I see Uncle Juss is getting better at that." Daphne grinned.

Justin blushed furiously. "Shut it!"

Returning her attention to her lunch, Daphne sighed heavily patting her full belly. "Man, I haven't eaten that many greens since I was pregnant with Suvi."

Laughing at his friend's overactive appetite, Justin picked up the empty dishes on the table and made his way to the sink, not noticing his friend becoming eerily quiet. Her eyes grew large as the color drained from her face; her spoon clattered in to the bowl, sending broth flying everywhere. "Oh my god!"

A/N – I apologize for the longer than usual wait between chapters but with the holiday, plus I was decidedly under the weather for a few days, it was largely unavoidable. But in an attempt to make it up to anyone reading, I made this chapter longer – nearly 1500 words longer – than the other's have been so far. This chapter covered a bit of ground, but I also tried to answer a few questions that some have asked about Daphne/Suvi and their role in Brian and Justin's lives. I'm not giving all the details out at once, haha, but I hope this helped to explain some things you all might have been wondering about. Also, I tried to throw in more Brian/Justin, but please be patient; there will be lots more of them in the coming chapters! Reviews are loved and please keep asking questions…the ones I've been getting so far have really helped in shaping these last few chapters!

-Evelyn