Bruce walked into the kitchen, which smelled like melting chocolate.
"Tina, I wanted to see you."
"To taste one of my s'mores? Or something else?"
Tina gleefully munched one of her award-winning s'mores while Steve scowled at his mushy confection.
"Your AFP levels are really high, and I wanted to check…something out."
Bruce looked away and shifted his weight a little. Steve's expression immediately melted into one of worry, and a touch of fear. Tina swallowed nervously.
"Okay. Let's go."
…
Bruce attached the sensors to various points on her belly, hooking them up to the large computer.
"This is a Doppler scan. These are going to let us hear the baby's heartbeat," he explained, "Since we can't see the lil fella. Or little lady. It's pretty cool actually," the scientist smiled.
Tina and Steve grinned at each other despite their worries.
"It sounds awesome," Steve said.
"I always forget you didn't have these prenatal scans in your day. It was just wait and see what happens," Tina mused.
"Which, thanks to Dr. Erskine and his serum, is still kind of the situation here," Steve reminded her.
Bruce flicked something on the screen, and a little choir of beeps echoed around the small room. Steve's eyebrows shot up and Bruce laughed.
"Yeah I know, it's loud. And this particular machine is not exactly meant for this, but with a little fiddling, it should work. Let me separate Tina's heartbeat…that'll be the slowest one."
He waved his hand and a new bar appeared on the screen with a large sound wave on it. He pulled the volume down to mute and stared at the remaining bar. The beeps were still echoing.
"That's annoying. Damn machine," he murmured, fiddling with a few levels. Bruce split the wave in two, muting one, then the other. Finally, something appeared to dawn on him and he laughed, adjusting another level.
"Okay," the scientist announced, rubbing his palms together with a somewhat mischievous grin. "Here's the baby's heartbeat."
The beeps were fairly quick, but consistent. Tina closed her eyes and listened in wonder. Something wet fell on her arm, and she was surprised to find silent tears streaming from Steve, his eyes wide and his jaw dropped in awe.
"That's our baby," he mumbled. "Oh my god."
Tina squeezed his hand, smiling up at him.
"And," Bruce continued, still grinning like he hadn't gotten to the punch line yet, "Here is the other baby's heartbeat."
A second set of beeps took over, coming a little faster and bit less regularly.
"The…other?" Tina stared at Bruce in utter disbelief.
He chuckled again, nodding.
"I'll give you two a minute," he said as he exited the room.
The silence, only interrupted by the two babies' overlapping heartbeats, was stifling.
"Twins," Steve said in a monotone.
"There's two," Tina confirmed, somewhat tremulously.
Steve ran his hands through his hair, pulling on it. He concentrated on taking controlled breaths. His brain felt like it was stuck on one repeating loop. Twins. Oh god there's two. Twins. Twins. Two babies, two, two, two, two.. He had been actively working to wrap his brain around having one child, becoming a father once, but two? Two kids? Two babies to take care of? Twice the responsibility, twice the worry. Twice the labor for Tina. She sat beside him, expression unreadable. Her fingertips tentatively rested on her belly. Steve knew he should say something to her, but he couldn't think straight.
"Tina?" he asked cautiously.
She looked up at him, fear and joy competing for dominance in her eyes.
"Steve…we can do this right?"
Steve's throat seemed to have closed up. He couldn't think. What do I say what can I do how can I do this what do I do how can I make it all perfect what do I do-
The Captain climbed into the tiny bed next to his sweetheart, pulling her onto his lap. He held her like a bird in his hands, gently, ever so softly. Steve placed his hands under hers, waiting for the baby-no…babies, he corrected himself- to kick. After a moment, he was rewarded with a tiny nudge against his hand. He chuckled softly.
"I wonder which one that was," he wondered quietly.
Tina looked up, her unanswered question still hanging in the air. She bit her lip.
"Hey," Steve rubbed her back, "it's okay. We can do this."
"We can?"
"Yeah. I mean, we aren't tag teaming the kid, two on one anymore, but two on two is more fair anyway. Plus we have backup," he added, "and if the Avengers can't handle two infants I don't know who can. We're not all alone. We wanted more than one kid eventually anyway, right? This is two for the price of one," he joked. "Two kids, and only one period of morning sickness. That's a plus."
"Yeah," she said weakly. A nervous giggle escaped her. "Pepper is gonna have a field day organizing coordinating outfits for these two."
"I wonder if they're identical or fraternal."
Tina shrugged.
"Maybe Bruce can tell us?"
Steve sighed.
"Well. I guess the problem of deciding which room to use for the nursery just got solved…we'll use both."
"We still have to pick out colors," Tina reminded him.
"I'll do one and you do one. How's that?"
"Fair," she agreed, "But it's your job to tell everyone that it's twins. Because I did it the first time."
Steve groaned.
"You always seem to get your way, don't you?"
"Hey, I'm carrying double trouble, don't you even start!"
"Double trouble," he repeated, chuckling.
There was another period of quiet, but this one was pensive, thoughtful, rather than stressed.
"This is kind of awesome," Tina decided at last.
Steve laughed.
"It's gonna be crazy…but I think it'll be really fun."
Natasha kicked the door open and leapt onto the foot of the bed, eyes ablaze. Clint ran in behind her, with the somewhat wearied look that must come with chasing an assassin around all the time.
"WHAT? You two are having twins?! Holy god!" she screamed. "Eto bezumiye! Vy volnuyus? Dvoye detey!"
"Yeah, Tash, it's crazy and I'm sure they are a little freaked out over the fact that there's two babies, but maybe they wanted a minute alone?" Clint said, attempting to pry the still-rabid Natasha off the bed.
"You know," Tina said as a side comment to Steve, "she could be yelling about rainbows and puppies, but The Black Widow screaming in Russian is always terrifying. No matter what she's saying."
"I guess our minute is over," Steve sighed as Thor and Tony bounded through the door.
"What was Natasha just saying?" Tony demanded.
"She said something about twins!" Thor boomed, giving Tina a questioning look.
"Hey, guys, you're not all allowed to barge in here! Natasha, for the last time, stop eavesdropping!" Bruce pushed on Thor's thickly muscled arm to no effect.
Pepper grinned and began making notes on her Stark Industries phone as everyone started yelling at once. New things needed to be planned, much to her delight.
"Jesus, Steve! You damn overachiever, one kid wasn't enough to prove how huge and manly you are? You had to put two in there? You have no pity for your tiny wife, do you?" Tony said, smiling with true happiness despite his sarcastic words.
"This is an exciting thing! I shall help with the babes, if needed," Thor announced.
Steve rolled his eyes and pressed Tina's head against his chest, effectively plugging her ears. Then, he put his free hand in his mouth and gave an ear-splittingly loud whistle. The commotion stopped immediately. Tina cleared her throat.
"Alrighty, Doc, anything else? Or are we done? Cuz I'd kinda like a snack."
Steve scooted out from behind her.
"Clear out, team!" he said in a tone somewhat like his Captain-voice.
Tina sighed as Bruce unhooked everything and helped her off the bed.
"It doesn't matter how many times I hear you use that tone," she said dreamily as Steve wrapped his arm around her shoulders and walked out, "it still turns me on."
"You're a weird kid, you know that?"
"Do the thing," she begged, stopping in the hall, "Say my favorite!"
"No," Steve grumbled, steering her towards the kitchen, "that's silly."
"Pleeeease?"
"No. I thought you were hungry? Let's go eat something," he said evasively.
"Steve?"
Tina turned the sad-puppy-eyes on full power, batting her lashes and putting on her best pleading face. Steve scowled for a moment before he gave in with a deep sigh.
"That's cheating," he commented, "that face."
"Steeeeve?"
The soldier obediently cleared his throat.
"Avengers, assemble!"
Natasha, Clint and Tony all had to step outside so that he didn't hear them laughing themselves silly. Unfortunately for them, they also missed Tina's swooning sigh.
"Ohh….that is so hot."
Victory- reviewers. I originally planned on just one baby, but you guys asked for 'em and here they are! Twins for Captina :) So do you think the babies are identical? Fraternal? Boys? Girls? We shall see...
I know it's been SUPER fluffy lately, next chapter I promise some substance...it's just...fluff is so fun to write!
Reviewreviewreview! Because it makes me happy...and a happy Abby is a fast-writing Abby ;)