Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Dark Angel or Supernatural characters. For this fic I changed the DA time line. The pulse has already hit and Alec is out of Manticore in 2009. The characters of Lexi, Jake and Jackie are from a Supernatural AU Verse that I write. Sorry this as taken me so long to post but I hope you like it. Thanks to everyone that has been reading this story and thanks for the reviews. Reviews would be great!

December 21st

Dean hears the church bells ringing out the hour as morning light streams through the open french doors that lead off their bedroom to a wrought iron balcony. They had fallen asleep again with the doors open, he has to remember to close them at night. He feels Lexi shift against him, then a light press of her lips to his cheek. "Hey."

"Hey, yourself." He whispers his voice rough with sleep. He returns her kiss softly wrapping his arms around her as he rolls on top of her pulling her legs up against his sides. She giggles and protests at first until she feels his hand slid inside her panties, his thumb rubbing her clit in slow circles. Dean slid two fingers into her, her breath hitching as he began thrusting his fingers inside of her. Dean raised his head up off the pillow ready to kick some ass when he heard the bedroom door creak open. He swore the twins were gonna send him to an early grave. He quirked an eyebrow when it was Lexi that came through the door. He groaned laying his head back down on the pillow, it had only been a dream. He turned his attention back to Lexi who was carrying a tray. "Is that food?"

"Yeah."

"Why are you bringing me food? What did you do? No, wait, what do you want me to do, Lex?"

"Why do you assume..." She asked innocently placing the tray over her husband's legs, "Can't I do something nice for my husband?"

Dean looked down at the tray and back to Lexi, "Is this?"

"Yeah, you're favorite." She smiled pushing his hair back off his forehead, "Western omelet with extra cheese, hash browns, bacon, white toast with butter and strawberry preserves and black coffee."

Dean smiled at Lexi before leaning over and kissing her. He had to admit she was good. She knew exactly how to twist him around her finger. "You want some?"

"No, I already ate."

"Lex, c'mon you're eating for two now. You barely got a bump."

"You forget, I was exactly like this with Jake. I didn't start getting big until I hit six months."

"Oh, yeah. You looked like you had a beach ball shoved under your shirts. Anyway, tell me what you want me to do."

"I want you to get a Christmas tree."

"Lex, that's a luxury we can't afford. You know damn well they're selling half dead trees for ten times the amount they were before the pulse."

"I didn't say BUY one. Take Bobby's chainsaw go in the woods and get a tree. It's Ben and Alec's first real Christmas. We NEED a tree."

Dean was about to protest further but the words died on his lip as he looked at Lexi. She had that look on her face, the LOOK, the innocent wide eyed one that always made him cave. "Fine! I'll do it but you owe me some sexual favors."

About an hour later Dean walked out of Bobby's woodshed, chainsaw in hand, to find Lexi, their three boys and Sam and Jackie waiting for him. Dean raised his eyebrows smirking, "Well isn't this like a Norman Rockwell painting."

"Dean, I think you mean Thomas Kinkade."

"Shut up Sammy."

Sam smirked but said nothing. He knew Dean's surliness was all for show. If his brother didn't want to do something, he simply would flat out refuse. Although being in close quarters with Dean and Lexi these past few months, Sam had noticed subtle changes in his brother. He wouldn't say that Dean was totally domesticated but Sam had to hand it to Lexi, she sure did know how to wrap Dean around her little finger. He shook his head as he watched Dean fussing over Lexi demanding that she stay behind. Well, one thing was for sure, Dean was still overprotective as hell. "Dean, I'm sure she's fine to walk."

"Shut up Sammy! She's not your pregnant wife!"

Alec was getting antsy. He wanted to stretch his legs and run, maybe even climb a tree or two. It had been awhile since he had been able to do so. He listened to his Dad and Mom bicker over whether or not she should even come with them when he lost his patience. Alec looked up at Dean growling, "Get your ass in gear Dad! We're loosing daylight!"

Dean blinked, he could feel his blood pressure rising. He couldn't believe the balls on the little shit. What pissed him off even more was that Alec was looking at him with that shit eating grin on his face, Dean's shit eating grin. He was gonna kill this kid, though it appeared he didn't have to, Lexi had beat him to the punch. She was kneeling so that she was eye level with Alec and speaking in that hissing tone which Dean knew all to well. If he wasn't pissed as hell at Alec he'd feel sorry for the kid.

The group trudged into the woods once Alec reluctantly apologized to Dean. After what felt like hours later Sam and Dean dragged a six foot pine tree back to Bobby's. They were huffing and puffing while Alec and Ben gleefully blurred around them. The tree was heavy as fuck but there was no way Dean was going to let two nine year olds show him up. He knew damn well that the twins were fully aware of this as they smirked in his and Sam's direction every chance they got.

The boys helped Sam, Dean and Bobby set up the tree while Jackie and Lexi got dinner started. All three were excited but the twins were still foggy on why they needed one. Jake was the one to explain as only a three year old could. He looked up at his older brothers wide eyed and said in a hushed voice, "It's where Santa puts the presents."

"Presents?" The twins asked simultaneously.

Dean smirked running a hand through both boys' hair. "Yeah, well you only get presents if you've been good boys. Now I know Ben and Jake have been good but what about you Alec?" Alec crossed his arms looking down right mutinous causing Dean to laugh. Not just a little chuckle but a full body laugh. "I'm only messing with you kiddo. You've all been pretty good."

December 22nd

Lexi woke up in the wee hours of the morning knowing something wasn't right. Her thighs felt warm and sticky and there was a coppery smell in the air. She knew she would find blood on the sheets before she even turned on the light. She took a deep breath reaching over to turn on the lamp. Once she saw the blood on the sheets she attempted to keep calm and evaluate her symptoms like she would with any patient that came into the emergency room. She couldn't do it. All she could think of was that she was nineteen weeks pregnant and her daughter would not be able to survive outside the womb yet. It took her a moment to realize that Dean was not in their bed. Her panic stricken brain suddenly remembered he had been watching television when she had told him she was going to bed. He was probably fast asleep on the couch or he couldn't sleep and was watching infomercials. She was woozy, probably from the blood loss, and braced herself against the wall while she made her way downstairs. She found Dean exactly where she thought she would. He was on the couch watching television, he turned to look at her when he heard her coming down the stairs, the smile on his lips faltering as he took in the blood soaked t-shirt she was wearing. He rushed over to her not bothering to hide the fear and panic he was feeling. "Lexi, what's wrong?"

"I'm not sure. You need to take me to the hospital now."

Dean nodded as he rushed to get his car keys and cell phone, he stopped momentarily looking up at the stairs, he thought of telling Sam what was happening but decided against it. He would call him as soon as he got Lexi to the hospital. He helped her down the front steps then into the Impala only stopping briefly at the driver's side door. He closed his eyes taking a deep breath, his hands were shaking so bad, he knew he needed to calm himself down. "Get it together, Dean." He whispered to himself before getting behind the wheel.

Sioux Falls Hospital

Out of all the things Dean Winchester has done in his life, marriage is the most difficult. It's not because he doesn't love his wife, he loves her more than he could ever express into words. He never realized that marriage was going to be so much work but it's work that he's willing to do. Right now he'd do anything, ANYTHING, to make sure Lexi and their unborn daughter were going to be okay. Hell, he'd even sell his soul again if there was a demon that would be willing to deal.

Dean liked being married. It was something that he never thought was in the cards for him. But here he was three and a half years later still married and happy. With a kid no less and another on the way. They weren't married for long before Jake came along. Lexi was already five months pregnant when they went down to Mexico and got hitched. He still doesn't quiet understand why she wanted to be with him. When she was a teenager he understood, he was exactly what her parents didn't want for her. But now?He had nothing to offer a chick like her, he was an unemployed drifter that got by on credit card scams and high stake poker games. Not exactly up to scratch to be the husband of a doctor. Anytime he's spoken these words out loud to her or told her he didn't want this life for her, Lexi would roll her eyes and say, 'I don't need anything but you and I love you.'

How many times had he come back to her bloodied and bruised? He had no idea, it was too many times to count. She would be there cleaning and patching him up without questions; usually followed by sex and food or food and sex. It didn't matter what order it came in, it was the kind of comfort that he needed from her. In some twisted way Lexi reminded Dean of his mom. Not in an Oedipus sorta of way but in the fact that she was kind and made him feel like he wasn't a terrible person. She made him feel loved. He wanted to be normal for her so bad but like everything Dean touched it turned to shit and she eventually left him too.

He threw himself into the job then. He even went and dragged Sam back in. He used finding Dad as an excuse, the truth was, he really just didn't want to be alone. Then when Lexi came and found him a little over four years ago, he wasn't unhappy about it. At the time, he told himself she was just another job and if the fringe benefits included sex so be it. He didn't expect to get back with her because when had Dean Winchester ever got what he wanted in life?

Somehow, they did get back together and she gave him a family. He liked having a family of his own. He liked having someone to come home to, someone to help him forget the horrible thing he had just killed. Lexi did that for him. She gets him like no one else ever had. She gets the pop culture references, laughs at his stupid jokes and she doesn't tease him about the fact that he likes to read. He still keeps that little tidbit hidden from Sam. Sam assumes the stacks of books they brought with them belong to Lexi. Lexi knows when to press him to get him to talk, when all he needs is for her to sit with him in silence and when he needs some time to be alone. Sure, she knows all the right buttons to push to piss him off but Dean knows all her buttons too. They didn't have a perfect marriage but who really does? They had their issues but they had more good times than bad so far. For Dean, that was a win in the plus column. He really didn't know what he was going to do if something happened to her.

Dean sat in the waiting room with his head in his hands. The emergency room staff had rushed Lexi into an exam room and would not allow Dean to go with her. He had no idea what was going on with his wife and daughter, the not knowing was driving him mad. He kept telling himself everything was going to be okay. Lexi wasn't going to miscarry this time, not this far into the pregnancy. Honestly, he really didn't want to think about if she did. He tried to shake the thought from his mind but it kept creeping back in front and center. He rubbed his temples trying to reassure himself that if it was that serious someone would've came and talked to him by now.

"Dean?" Dean took his head out of his hands and blinked at his younger brother. He didn't hear Sam approach or take the seat next to him. "You okay?"

"Sammy what are you doing here?"

"You called me about an hour ago, said you were at the hospital with Lexi. Me and Jackie thought one of us should come sit with you and bring Lexi some clothes. Jackie's cleaning up your room for you."

Dean opened his mouth but nothing came out. He bit down on his bottom lip nodding instead. He could feel Sam's concerned eyes burning into him as Dean willed himself not to look at his brother. He took a shaky breath whispering, "No, Sammy. I'm not okay. I brought my wife here cuz she's bleeding and I have no fucking idea what's going on. I can't go through this with her again. You have no idea what it was like last time Sammy. She was only 8 weeks along then. This time..."

"Dean, she's not..."

Dean turned towards Sam staring at him. "You know what I do every night before I go to sleep Sammy? I lay my head on Lexi's stomach and I talk to Stella. I tell her, 'Daddy loves you.' and 'Daddy can't wait to hold you.' She moves and kicks when she hears my voice now. My daughter knows the sound of my voice and...fuck I don't even know what's going on back there with them."

"You guys picked out a name?"

"Yeah, last week. Lexi wanted something to do with New Orleans. I suggested Stella. Stella Elizabeth Winchester, same middle name as Lexi."

"Stella for 'A Streetcar Named Desire'. I like it." Sam reached over giving his brother's shoulder a squeeze, "Everything's gonna be fine, Dean. You're going to hold your little girl and she's going to have you wrapped around her finger in no time."

Dean rubbed his face and sighed. He wanted to believe what Sam said but he wouldn't be able to relax until he saw for himself that his wife and daughter were fine. It had been almost two hours without any word. He didn't like sitting on his ass and doing nothing, he was starting to get antsy and had half a mind to just bust through those doors to find his wife. He didn't think that would go over so well but he just couldn't sit there any longer. He turned to Sam telling him he was going to get a cup of coffee but before he could stand, Sam was up heading for the coffee machine.

They sat there for another half an hour drinking what was supposed to be coffee when someone finally came out to talk to Dean. He looked up when the man in green scrubs called out his name. Dean stood on shaky legs but didn't walk over to the man, "Yeah? That's me."

"I'm Dr. Callaghan."

"My wife..."

"She's resting right now. She has something called cervical insufficiency."

"What does that mean? Is she okay?"

"Her cervix has begun to dilate and efface. Since she is only nineteen weeks it can cause a miscarriage."

Dean felt like the air had been knocked out of him. He suddenly couldn't breath and he felt Sam grab his arm as he helped him sit back down. He stared at his hands intently while trying to breathe normally. It took him a few minutes to calm down but when he did he looked at the doctor saying quietly, "No. No, you have to be able to do something. She can't...not at this point."

"I'm going to perform a procedure called a cervical cerclage. It entails going in and placing sutures above the open of her cervix. We'll remover the sutures when she hits thirty six weeks but after the procedure she's on strict bed rest for the remainder of her pregnancy."

"Can I see her?"

"Yes, follow me."

Dean followed Dr. Callaghan through the Emergency Room quietly. He didn't feel like making small talk anyway. He was scared shitless at the moment but he kept telling himself she was going to be fine. One little procedure and some bed rest, that wasn't so bad. No matter how much he told himself that it didn't quell his nerves. He had to put a brave face on for Lexi though. He took a deep breath and plastered a smile on his face when he walked into her exam room, "Hey, baby girl, how you feeling?"

"Better I guess. Did the doctor talk to you?"

"Yeah," Dean nodded sitting on the edge of her bed. He laced his fingers through hers giving her hand a slight squeeze, "you girls are gonna be fine."

Dean Winchester was not a religious man by any means but he found himself praying anyway. He just hoped if there really was a God that he had his ears on at the moment. He was sitting besides his wife's hospital bed with his head in his hands, the only sound in the room was the heart monitor's steady beat. The doctors had told him the procedure went well, there were no complications. They were keeping her overnight just as a precaution. After tomorrow, she was on strict bed rest for the reminder of her pregnancy. Four months. How was he supposed to keep her stress free and off her feet for four months? There life was nothing but stress. They were supposed to leave for the safe house in two weeks. Dean knew it would be a risk to take her there but he didn't think staying at Bobby's was a good idea either. He took another look at Lexi and knew he couldn't take the chance moving her to Connecticut. He made up his mind right then and there. Dean Winchester was a HUNTER. He was done hiding like some little bitch. He was going to hunt down Lydecker as if he was just another monster and put a fucking bullet in his head.