AN: This covers several "firsts," and speeds up a little bit. I think this story will have forty chapters total.
Still off the Key of Reason
Chapter 30: Overjoyed
"John's leaving the show next week, so the producers have brought in a new guy to play Barnaby. He's been rehearsing with us, getting to know the cast. He's actually very talented, though he does tend to tucker out a bit quicker than John. I'm sure that'll change as he gets used to the pace of Broadway."
Rachel pushed the stroller past the snow leopard exhibit, babbling away.
"We're also changing one of the dance numbers around, so mama's been very exhausted, hasn't she? I know you've noticed, James. I'm glad you decided to take me to the zoo today. I would've just slept the day away had you not suggested it."
It was hot, and Rachel was tired, and she couldn't stop the words shuttling out of her mouth if she tried.
"Maybe we can find mommy." Rachel mused, peering over the shade of the stroller. "I bet she's swimming with the polar bears. Mommy's crazy, isn't she?"
James choked an abrupt laugh.
Yes. Yes she is.
Rachel kept winding the stroller through the zoo. She smiled when James's short laughter drifted up to her at random intervals. It was like he was laughing at nothing-gurgling and high pitched. He couldn't seem to keep it going for more than a fraction of a second.
Rachel stopped outside the sea lion enclosure and angled the stroller so that James could see the animals. Sure, he was only four months old, but maybe he'd recognize them.
He was Quinn's child.
"Did you know that James is the name of Barbra Streisand's husband?" Rachel babbled, leaning over to check that James wasn't too warm or being blinded by the sun. He kicked his legs up and swung a fist through the air.
"I know!" Rachel enthused. "I can't wait to show you all of her movies. I know you've seen Funny Girl, but we'll need a repeat viewing to make sure it sticks. Wouldn't it be fabulous if you married somebody just like Barbra? We could-"
Rachel cut herself off, distracted by that thought. She mulled it over until it became weird because of age gaps, and incestuous because of course she was the next Barbra.
"Or you can marry whomever you like." Rachel amended. She pushed away from the sea lions because James just seemed to be staring absently through them. "A nice girl or boy."
James cooed quietly. Rachel nodded.
"I know, baby boy. Mama shouldn't have worn heels, right? You know mommy called me a moron this morning?" Rachel scoffed to herself. "She was rubbing my feet and she called me a moron for walking around in heels."
A little stuffed Pooh Bear went tumbling out of the side of the stroller and James gurgled absently. Rachel paused to pick up his toy and dust it off.
"We don't throw things, Jimbo." She danced the bear over James's tummy and he smiled and swatted at it.
After visiting the polar bear enclosure and sitting on hers and Quinn's bench-a zoo tradition-Rachel pointed the stroller towards the veterinary fieldhouse.
"James, I really miss coffee." She sighed wistfully. She wound the stroller around a group of people blocking the path. "I've been drinking tea and decaf, but it's just not the same, you know? You probably don't know, actually. You're not very fond of milk, are you?"
James lolled his head to look around.
Rachel nodded. "Yeah, that's right. You'll probably love chocolate milk though. It runs through mommy's blood. Then one day, when you get older, I'll take your chocolate milk away for a week and you'll know how incredibly difficult it is for me to live without coffee. Until then, nobody understands, James."
Rachel rambled right up to one of the fieldhouse doors. She pushed right past the "Authorized Personnel Only," continued into the lounge, and smiled at the technicians she recognized.
"Someone has visitors!" One of them called.
Rachel was bent over the stroller checking on James when arms wrapped around her from behind. She laughed and staggered and held Quinn's hands over her stomach.
"My babies!" Quinn enthused, nuzzling Rachel's neck.
Rachel spun in her arms and kissed the corner of her mouth. Quinn was in a pressed white blouse and black slacks with her hair pinned neatly back, always delighted when Rachel visited her at work. She leaned over the stroller and kissed James's cheeks.
"Where's your white coat, babe?" Rachel wondered, watching her wife tickle James's tummy. "How has your day been?"
"His eyes are turning hazel." Quinn mused, distracted.
Rachel smiled and tapped her fingers lightly along Quinn's back. "What have you been doing today, bear? Where's your coat?"
Quinn glanced down at her blouse. "I spilled chocolate milk all down the front."
Rachel laughed. "Oh, baby."
"But we were working on a red panda this morning." Quinn sat back from James and met Rachel's eyes excitedly. "He had gastric torsion, which is like- it's like bloat, and the stomach fills up with gas and twists and becomes excessively stretched, but he lasted through the surgery so I think he'll be alright."
Rachel grimaced at the description.
Quinn suddenly lit up even further. She gripped Rachel's arms and smiled widely. "Guess what we're getting from the Pittsburgh Zoo."
Rachel smiled wryly. "An aardvark."
Quinn shook her head.
"A…rhinoceros." Rachel knew it would be a bear of some kind-she could see it in Quinn's eyes. But she'd always indulge Quinn's games.
"No."
"A dolphin."
Quinn laughed. "We have no water, Rachel."
Rachel shrugged and tipped her head to the side. "An ostrich."
"No." Quinn bit her lip, searching Rachel's face.
"A platypus."
"No."
Rachel chuckled. "What kind of bear are you getting, baby?"
"Yes!" Quinn rocked forward excitedly. She squeezed Rachel's hands. "A black bear named Sonny."
"Exciting!" Rachel grinned.
James's gurgly laughter came drifting out of the stroller, stealing Quinn's attention away. She got up abruptly to fetch something from a table on the other side of the room. She held it up, and Rachel saw that it was a balloon animal-a blue dog. Or tiger, or bear, or anything with four legs and something shaped vaguely like a head.
"I got it on my break earlier." Quinn explained, kneeling in front of the stroller. Her voice rose in pitch when she addressed James. "Have you and mama had a nice day, Jimbo?"
Rachel hummed. "We've had a lovely day. He told me that mama should be allowed to drink coffee. And that mommy shouldn't call mama a fool for wearing heels that make her legs look unbelievable."
"Mama is a fool." Quinn shook her head at James.
She bounced the balloon animal along his tummy and then recoiled when he shrieked with sudden laughter. She rubbed at her ears and looked at Rachel-wide eyed and delighted. Rachel was deafened.
"That's it, baby!" Quinn encouraged, laughing along with James.
His shriek turned into a gurgly belly laugh, and it was loud and joyful and the most contagious thing Rachel had ever heard. She pulled out her phone automatically and started recording because he'd never managed to keep up a laugh for more than a few seconds before.
Rachel would make it her ringtone.
Quinn's face was turning abnormally red as she laughed, and Rachel made sure to get it in the shot. She sank onto the floor with Quinn, who danced the balloon dog over the edges of the stroller.
James thought it was the greatest thing in the world.
Several technicians and a veterinarian stood in the doorway and watched them. Quinn snorted and tipped sideways into Rachel, and James shrieked even louder as they toppled together to the floor.
~ooooooooooooo~
By nine months, James had perfected his baby babble and was working on developing his palette. His absolute favorite food was mushy bananas and he'd learned to respond to "No" when he scattered Cheerios on the floor-or threw them from up in his high chair. But that didn't stop him doing it.
He seemed to enjoy watching the dogs scrabble around to eat them all up.
Rachel sat at the kitchen table with a small jar of mushed, mixed fruits, preparing to introduce them to James. He refused to open his mouth, choosing instead to puff out his cheeks and swat wildly at the spoon. Rachel already had a streak of mushy peas staining the front of her sweater.
She sighed, plastered on an enthusiastic smile, and held up the spoon. "Look, Jay! Mama will eat it."
Rachel impulsively put the spoon in her own mouth. James went wide-eyed, like what she'd done was scandalous. It wasn't the taste so much as the texture that made Rachel want to vomit. She picked up an extra bib from the table and covered her mouth and spat it all back out.
"Rachel, stop eating the baby food." Quinn chided, amused. She sat at the breakfast bar looking over patient reports.
Rachel coughed. It was actually making her eyes water.
"I'm sure he can't wait to try it now." Quinn drawled. She threw a crumpled up ball of paper at the side of Rachel's head. "Do you need water, baby? A mint? A bucket?"
Rachel wiped the bib repeatedly over her mouth. Her gums felt like they were coated in slime. Cornelius nosed at her knee and she shook her head.
"You do not want that, Seal." She said hoarsely.
James laughed. His head bobbled around, focused on Rachel's face.
"Baby." Quinn prodded.
Rachel finally turned to look at her-red faced, eyes shining.
Quinn smiled softly. "You look like you're crying."
"I am." Rachel choked. She batted her hands over her cheeks until her face felt a bit cooler.
"Baby food is not for grown-ups."
"Shut your face, bear." Rachel caught her breath and focused back on James, who sat patiently in his high chair watching Rachel have a small breakdown.
"See James, tasty!" Rachel enthused, collecting another spoonful.
Quinn snorted loudly.
James had a single eyebrow lifted. He probably didn't know he was doing it, but he looked dubious of whatever Rachel was saying. He opened and closed his mouth and pointed at the spoon.
"Ga! Am ga!"
Rachel nodded sagely. "That's right, baby. Can you open your mouth for mama?"
James opened his mouth widely. He closed his lips sloppily around the spoon so that about half of the fruit ended up on his cheeks, and Rachel wiped around his chin with the bib. James chomped exaggeratedly. He furrowed his brows and scrunched up his face, but seemed to find nothing wrong with the new food.
Rachel went for another spoonful when James swallowed and opened his mouth again.
"Am! Mama!"
There was a small crash from the breakfast bar-the stapler falling to the floor-and Rachel froze with the Thomas the Tank Engine spoon in the jar of baby food.
"Ama!" James pounded his palms against the tray.
Rachel looked wildly around and found that Quinn was now at her side. "Did he-was that-he said mama, right?"
"Or ama." Quinn whispered, studying James carefully.
Rachel reached over and brushed the fluff of blonde hair off his forehead. "Can you say it again, Jay? Mama. Ma-ma."
James laughed, pleased that he'd garnered both of his mothers' attention. "Aga."
"Mama. Mommy." Quinn enunciated.
James watched her silently, wide eyed and smiling.
"Say mama." Quinn laughed. "Please Jimbo? Mama ate baby food for you."
Rachel opened her mouth to respond at the same time as James.
"Mama!" he declared, bouncing a little in his seat. "Maaaaaaga."
Rachel had never been so proud.
"He said it!" she exclaimed. She looked quickly around for her phone, but Quinn was twelve steps ahead, seizing the video camera from the counter.
James pressed his palms to his cheeks and sighed, suddenly bored.
"One more time, baby boy." Rachel entreated. She sat forward and held James's small, sock-clad feet. "Ma-ma. Just like that."
"Urrgh." James stuck his arms out to the side and bounced in his seat. "Mama. Ama."
Rachel squealed quietly.
"He's trying to take off." Quinn observed, watching James wave his arms.
He stopped and sighed again, looking around like he was bored. He puffed his cheeks out and tipped his head back and watched Rachel and Quinn warily. Quinn smiled and wiped the bib over his mouth, and he stayed perfectly still.
Rachel was so excited that she completely forgot all about the slime she'd ingested five minutes ago. Her baby boy's first word. He was an absolute genius.
~ooooooooooooo~
"He's so fast." Quinn panted, crawling past the coffee table on her hands and knees. She glanced behind her and barked like a dog, and Rachel smiled from where she was sprawled out on the couch.
"He's like a little…cheetah." Quinn breathed.
James trailed behind her, swaying unsteadily. He'd get little bursts of energy where he could shoot forward and nearly catch Quinn, but most of the time he just tipped over.
"Don't hurt your knees, baby." Rachel told her wife.
Quinn wiggled her butt as she scurried past again.
James copied her, gurgling and shaking his body until he lost his balance and rolled over onto his back. Barnaby and Quinn both bounded over to investigate. Barnaby snuffled at his kicking feet while Quinn blew on his tummy. She tickled his sides and helped him roll back over, and then crawled off behind the couch. James crawled after her.
Rachel shut her eyes against their noise. Cornelius was a warm weight on top of her, and she listened out for any signs of alarm.
It was mostly James laughing, Quinn barking, and various animals snuffling and knocking things over.
"Ow." Quinn whined after a particularly loud thump in the wall.
Rachel smiled absently. "Careful, bear."
"I think he's tuckered out." Quinn yelled after a moment.
"Then bring him back in here. It's naptime anyway." Rachel threw an arm over her eyes to block out the light.
Quinn didn't appear in the living room with James, and Rachel couldn't hear anything.
"Rachel." Quinn called right as Rachel was dropping off.
Rachel sighed.
"Raaachel."
"Bear, I'd help you, but I somehow got stuck to the couch." Rachel answered.
Quinn's voice grew more urgent. "Baby, come here. You'll want to see this."
Rachel contemplated just ignoring her again. Knowing Quinn, she'd probably found a caterpillar crawling through the hallway. Rachel heaved a sigh and rolled off the couch anyway. She landed on her hands and knees and stood up slowly to make her way to the hall.
Quinn kneeled-disheveled, with raw knees and palms-holding James's hands while he stood in front of her.
Rachel instinctively slowed, like James was a wild animal she was trying not to disturb.
"I think he's ready to take a step." Quinn whispered, delighted.
James bounced on his knees, swinging from her hands. He laughed loudly and smiled at Rachel, soft blonde hair falling into his eyes. Rachel crouched at the end of the hallway.
Quinn kissed the top of James's head. "Can you walk to mama, Jay?"
James hummed enthusiastically.
Rachel glanced around to make sure no dogs would come barreling through to knock James over-no cats would be pouncing from up above. Cornelius was stalking around the living room, and Rachel narrowed her eyes and moved further into the hallway.
She held her arms open and beckoned. "Can you walk over here, baby?"
Quinn sat up on her knees and let go of James's hands. He swayed precariously and reached his arms in Rachel's direction.
"Maaa!"
Quinn hovered behind him, ready to catch him if he toppled sideways onto the thin rug over the hardwood.
"Come on over here, baby." Rachel encouraged. "Come see mama."
Quinn blindly pulled her phone out of her pocket, focused completely on James. He lifted his leg really high and took a step, and then took a few rapid steps to prevent himself from falling forward. He stopped about halfway to Rachel and laughed in her direction.
"Come on, James. I'll give you banana." Rachel offered. "You know banana, right? Nana?"
Quinn snorted. "You don't have to bribe him, Rachel."
"Naaa." James declared, before laughing his little belly laugh. He sighed and took the last few steps to Rachel. He lost his balance and tripped sideways, and Rachel caught him and wrapped her arms around him and squeezed tightly.
She kissed his neck until he squealed, and then set him back down. He caught sight of Charizard behind Quinn and went crawling off in that direction. Quinn intercepted him and tickled his sides.
"King James can walk!" she declared, letting him swat at her hands.
He rolled himself back over and crawled after Charizard when Quinn let him go. Rachel sat on the floor of the hallway next to her wife and watched him.
Quinn stopped recording and met Rachel's gaze. Rachel just smiled, totally content.
"My knees hurt." Quinn complained after a moment.
"You're getting old."
"I'm younger than you are."
Rachel reached over and ruffled Quinn's hair, and Quinn ducked away. "But my knees are timeless."
Quinn chuckled. "You're so full of it, little bear."
James squealed with laughter when Barnaby knocked him over and snuffled at his stomach.
Quinn sprawled backwards across the floor. Her hair splayed out and her shirt rode up, and Rachel crawled over and lay down next to her. Quinn wrapped her up and kissed all over her face.
"Old like elephants, baby." Rachel rubbed Quinn's stomach.
Quinn hummed.
"Until we eat nothing but chocolate pudding, right?"
~ooooooooooooo~
James's first birthday party landed on the Saturday before Easter. Quinn set out Marshmallow Peeps and chocolate eggs and giant solid chocolate rabbits and called them appetizers. Party food. Rachel managed to scrape together some sandwiches and chips and finger foods at the last minute.
All of their friends came-Santana and Brittany, Blaine and Kurt with Simba, Puck, Sam (who flew in from San Diego), Tom and his son, Tina, and a few of Rachel's co-stars. Quinn gave all of them chocolate rabbits.
James started crying about half an hour into the party, and it only escalated until he was red-faced and screaming.
"Maybe he doesn't like being surrounded by people." Rachel suggested to Santana. They watched Sam swing James around like an airplane, which seemed to quiet him for a moment.
Santana smirked. "Just like Sunny Delight, then."
Rachel didn't actually know where Quinn had gone.
James shrieked into Sam's shoulder.
"Whoo! That's supersonic, Jon Bon!" Puck applauded, cotton balls jammed into his ears.
Sam rubbed James's back and danced in a little circle. "Do you like bouncing? Bouncy-bouncy? How about puppy dogs?"
James palmed Sam's cheek while he cried-fluffy blonde hair sticking to his face.
"Kitty cat?" Sam kept trying. "How about bears? Rawr!"
James silenced himself abruptly. He leaned back from Sam's chest and studied his face, eyes wide and reddened. Sam smiled and wiped some of the sticky tears from his face.
"That's what bears say, right?" Sam encouraged, bouncing James slightly. "Rawr!"
"Awr." James echoed seriously.
Santana scoffed and elbowed Rachel. "You know that's your wife in a tiny, tiny package, right?"
Rachel smiled.
"Awr!" James squealed.
Sam looked delighted with what he'd accomplished.
Rachel turned and studied Santana, who'd been watching protectively over Brittany all morning. She smirked and sipped from her juice.
"So when were you planning on telling us?" Rachel wondered innocently.
Santana narrowed her eyes.
Rachel smiled. "You know exactly what I'm talking about."
"Look, Berry, if you've finally snapped and lost all your marbles-"
"I'm just happy for you." Rachel leaned back against the wall and side-eyed Santana. "We need more little babies running around."
Santana looked like she was wavering between punching Rachel's face in and breaking down into tears. She coughed and nodded shortly, and Rachel smiled widely. Containing herself was so hard.
"Give me a hug." Rachel requested, opening up her arms.
Santana rolled her eyes.
"Brittany's pregnant. You have to give me a hug!" Rachel demanded again.
"God, Berry, chill."
Rachel opened her mouth again, but Santana sighed heavily and shook her head and shuffled over so that Rachel could give her a hug. Rachel squeezed tightly and rocked from side to side, pleased that it made Santana so uncomfortable. Santana was lucky she wasn't shrieking and dancing around the living room.
"Where's your damn wife?" Santana muttered into her hair. "She needs to put you back in your cage."
Rachel pulled back. She probably needed to find Quinn.
"If you require any assistance at all, let us know." She told Santana.
Sure, her baby was nearly being thrown through the ceiling by Sam and she didn't actually know where her wife was, but she could be helpful at times. Santana nodded-trying not to smile-and pushed her away, and Rachel veered off towards the bedrooms.
She passed the empty nursery and quietly entered the master bedroom. Quinn was lying on the bed next to Cloud-disheveled and getting white hair everywhere. Her eyes were shiny and her cheeks were red, and Rachel silently crossed the room and lay down opposite her.
She brushed a hand along Quinn's arm and softly tapped a warm cheek.
"Sorry. I'm coming out in a minute." Quinn murmured, holding Rachel's hand near her head.
Rachel frowned. "Tell me what's wrong, baby."
Quinn rubbed at her eyes. "It doesn't matter."
"Of course it does." Rachel nodded resolutely. "What's wrong? Did somebody say something?"
Quinn shook her head.
"So there's nobody I need to punch? Are you sick? Do you need a bucket?"
Quinn reached over and pressed her palm over Rachel's mouth. Rachel smiled.
"You know Potter the otter?" Quinn said quietly. "The one I did radiotransmitter placement surgery on a week ago?"
Rachel hummed and kissed Quinn's palm.
"He…died." Quinn said in a small voice. "They called-called me this morning. The incision was infected, but that wasn't-apparently that didn't cause it. He had a heart problem. I don't-it's not-it wasn't even a necessary surgery. I've never killed anything before."
Rachel shifted closer to Quinn. She tapped her wife's jaw so she'd stay focused.
"You didn't kill anything, bear."
Quinn blew out her cheeks.
Rachel studied her. "If I jump off a cliff after drinking a cup of coffee, does that mean the coffee is what kills me?"
"Have you…been drinking coffee?" Quinn asked thickly, confused.
"No, baby." Rachel smiled slightly. "You were putting a transmitter in his…head, or leg, or whatever. You-"
"It was abdominal surgery." Quinn said quietly.
"In his abdomen." Rachel amended.
Quinn rolled until her face was pressed against Rachel's shoulder. "I think I did well."
"I'm assuming inserting a transmitter into his abdomen has nothing to do with his heart." Rachel tugged on Quinn's hair. "Unless-I don't know-is that where the heart is? Do they have lungs?"
Quinn chuckled. Her nose pressed against Rachel's arm. "Yes. Otters breathe air, Rachel."
"And they have stomachs too, right?" Rachel feigned confusion. "And eyes? How many legs do otters have? Eight?"
Quinn snorted into Rachel's sleeve. She propped herself up on her elbows and attacked Rachel's neck with kisses. Rachel laughed loudly and tried to shove her away, but that only encouraged Quinn to climb on top of her. Quinn laid still, dead weight on Rachel's body.
"They have six legs, actually." Quinn said sagely. "Otters are insects."
Rachel hummed. Then she laughed, just because it would rock Quinn up and down.
Quinn rested her chin on Rachel's chest and sighed. "We should get back to the party."
"I have something to tell you first." Rachel whispered. She wiped the last remnants of tears from Quinn's face and then rested both hands on Quinn's head.
Quinn wrinkled up her nose.
Rachel smiled fondly. "I want another one." She said before she could overthink it. Before she could strategize and come up with any tact at all. "Another little baby. And I'd-I think I'd like to carry it."
Quinn stared, rising and falling slightly with each breath Rachel took. She picked her head up slightly and searched Rachel's face.
"Don't cry, bear." Rachel chuckled softly.
Quinn shook her head. She smiled widely and pawed at her own eyes. She scooted forward and kissed Rachel and laughed against her lips.
"Raaachel." She whined after a moment. She held Rachel's cheeks and squeezed them together. "Bring me our baby."
"We can't keep him away from the party for too long. Everybody will follow him in here."
Quinn nodded. She rolled away so that Rachel could stand up, and then swatted at Rachel's butt as she walked away. Rachel paused halfway across the room, scurried back to give Quinn another kiss, and then hurried into the hallway.
She spotted James with Sam on the couch. Sam was eating a banana and breaking little bits off for the baby. James crushed them in his chubby fists and wiped them down Sam's shirt.
"Rachel?"
Rachel paused at the quiet voice coming from behind her. She spun around and grinned brightly at Simba. "Riff Raff!"
Simba smiled. He looked up at her behind black-framed glasses, curly hair falling into his eyes.
"Are you enjoying yourself?" Rachel wondered, bending over to straighten his bow tie. "Quinn will come out soon to play with you."
Simba nodded shyly. He produced a sheet of construction paper from behind his back and held it out to Rachel. "I made, um, a picture. For James. I used my crayons. It's you and Jay and Qui-Auntie Quinn."
Rachel gasped quietly. She handled the paper reverently and studied it with a smile.
There was a baby-a ball with yellow crayon hair and no limbs-sitting on the back of a red dog, probably Barnaby. The next person-with brown hair, brown eyes, and a microphone in hand-was only slighter longer than the baby. Rachel tried not to take too much offense.
The Quinn drawing was holding the Rachel's hand. She was as tall as the paper, with yellow crayon hair.
Rachel leaned forward to give Simba a hug. "I love it. Thank you, honey."
"You're welcome." Simba murmured.
"Quinn will love it too. I'm going to drag her out now."
"My d-daddy said to tell you to hurry up because they-they want cake." Simba dug his hands into his pockets and glanced over to where Blaine and Kurt were sitting in the living room. Kurt waved innocently at Rachel.
Rachel ruffled Simba's hair. She made her way over to Sam and retrieved her baby, and instructed Sam to change his shirt before he got banana all over their apartment.
Quinn was sitting cross-legged on the bed when Rachel returned. James giggled and waved his chubby arms in Quinn's direction, and Rachel put him on the bed and watched him crawl over to mommy. Quinn scooped him up and ran her hands through his fluffy hair.
James shook his head around, tipping against Quinn's chest, and then palmed both of Quinn's cheeks.
Rachel sat on the bed and handed the drawing to her wife. "From Simba."
Quinn examined it and pointed at the drawing of Rachel-only slightly bigger than the baby. "I see he did it to scale."
"I'll take away your cake, bear."
Quinn grinned. She bounced slightly on the bed and James laughed. He stuck his fingers in his mouth and played with the clasp on his stripy overalls.
"You really want another of these…monsters." Quinn questioned, eyes dancing over Rachel's face.
Rachel simply smiled and nodded.
Quinn dropped a kiss to James's head. "It'd be nice to grow up with a friend." She mused softly.
Rachel tipped her head. "Baby…"
"They'd be…built in best friends." Quinn continued, letting James play with her toes.
Rachel was melting.
Quinn smiled at her. "I need one who looks like you. She'll be loud and perfect and annoying and small-"
"Hey. Shut it, baby." Rachel scooted forward and prodded Quinn's thigh.
"And she'll sing all the time." Quinn complained, rolling her eyes. "And she'll just smother me with hugs, and I'll never be able to get away from her."
Rachel bit her cheek.
Quinn scrunched up her face, and James watched-wide eyed-and tried to copy her. "I'll be surrounded by them, James. And-God-the kisses. It'll be endless."
"Stop it, baby." Rachel pouted.
Quinn groaned exaggeratedly and tipped onto her side, taking James with her. He shrieked and rolled around on his back.
"God, the pouting." Quinn complained. "Ugh. I hate-"
Rachel pounced on her-sick of her antics-careful not to land on James. She ended up draped halfway across Quinn, hands tangled in Quinn's hair to hold her still. James and Quinn laughed loudly beneath her.
"You're smothering me!" Quinn whined breathlessly.
Rachel snorted. "It's time for you to be quiet, honey."
James batted at one of Rachel's forearms. "Mama!" He chuckled and grinned with his mouth wide open.
"Push mama on the floor." Quinn whispered loudly, smiling at Rachel. "Push her, Jimbo."
Rachel gasped. She jammed her fingers into Quinn's ribs. "Quinn. I'm going to be carrying your baby."
"One just like you." Quinn nodded. She lolled her head to the side and smiled fondly at Rachel.
"Really?" Rachel raised an eyebrow. "Because you were complaining two seconds ago."
"Just like you, Rachel." Quinn repeated.
"You won't be smothered?"
"I want a baby just like you."
Rachel pressed her lips together, satisfied with that. And charmed. She snuggled into Quinn, who wrapped an arm around her back and another around James.
"Ommy." James declared, puffing out his cheeks.
Quinn copied him. James palmed Quinn's cheeks so that she let all the air out, and then shrieked with laughter when she did the same to him. Quinn poked Rachel's cheeks until she puffed them up with air, and James promptly slapped his little hands against them to get them to deflate.
"Baby, I'd like cake." Quinn whispered after a few minutes.
Rachel sat up and smiled. She tapped Quinn's lips and brushed the blonde hair off her face. "You told our baby to push me off the bed."
"I don't remember that." Quinn shook her head, refusing to meet Rachel's gaze.
"That's convenient."
"Rachel." Quinn said sagely.
Rachel hummed.
"Let's have another baby."
Rachel smiled and scooted off the bed and held a hand out for her wife. "Let's start with cake."