A/N: Girlish squealing and flailing available upon request. Thank you SO MUCH for reading this far, for encouraging me to get to that 100th chapter and for laughing with me along the way. I still have a ton more planned for this story, so hold onto your hats Moss fans!

"It's not fair."

"Linds."

"I'm pregnanter than her! And she gets to sit in the hospital and hold her brand new baby and I'm still sitting here at home with blimpy ankles and insomia and a toddler just walkin' around in my stomach and kicking me in the lungs."

"Honey."

"Why can't I just give birth already? I'm so overdue I can't see straight and that was after the doctor switched my due date and I really want to just be done."

"Linds. Stop."

"I'm cranky."

"You're supposed to be."

"I'm wasting my maternity leave sitting here still pregnant."

"Linds, the baby will come when it comes. Get over here."

She sighed and walked over to the couch letting him pull her down into his lap. His arms wrapped around her and he kissed her forehead softly.

"I know you're frustrated. I know nothing I say right now can make you less frustrated, and I think you have every right to be frustrated."

"But?"

"But nothing. I just need you to know that I'm commiserating with you even if you don't feel like I am."

"I know you are. I don't want to be grumpy. I really don't. I'm just so…"

"I know," he said, rubbing her arms. "Do you want to get distracted?"

She arched an eyebrow.

"In what way?"

"Well I was thinking I could go to the store and get a lot of junk food since you're allowed to eat that right now, and I could come back home and maybe we could play some Mario Kart and then maybe do one of those five hundred piece puzzles, and maybe a paint by number and then maybe alphabetize our DVD's and then-"

"Let's just start with the junk food and the video games," she chuckled. "See how far we get."

"Alright. Should I leave now?"

"Yeah."

"I kinda like having you right here though."

"I'll be here when you get back."

"Alright," he said, untangling himself from her and standing up. "Colton, you want a snack?"

"Cheetos!" he chirped from his spot on the floor where he was diligently completing a coloring book.

"Cheetos it is. I'll be right back."

He took his coat and left while Lindsay giggled and ran her hand over her stomach. She might be anxious to give birth, but she knew she was going to miss the feeling of the baby moving inside her, even if it did keep her awake or make it hard to breathe sometimes.

"Mama?" Colton whispered, grabbing her face and leaning in close.

"What?"

"I can't wait for my Cheetos."

She snorted a laugh and pulled him into her arms, kissing his cheek.

"Do you know that I love you?"

"Yep."

"Do you know how much?"

"Forever and ever and more and more," he answered automatically.

"I'll always love you, no matter what. And when the baby gets here you might feel a little left out, but I still love you. You're my first baby."

"Not a baby, mama."

"I know. But you used to be and you were the first one I ever had. You're my first big boy too."

"Oh. You love the baby?"

"Yes, I do."

"Me too," he said with a nod, leaning down to kiss her stomach. "I take care of baby?"

"Yeah. Me and daddy are going to need your help. You get to be the big brother. That's a hard job. You have to be a good example."

"What's that?"

"It's like when daddy shows you how to do something so you can learn."

"Oh. I teach the baby?"

"Yeah."

"I do good job mama."

"I know you will," she said, yawning and running her fingers through his hair. "Hey, how do you feel about getting a quick hair cut?"

"Okay."

He hopped off the couch and went into the kitchen, dragging a chair into the middle of the floor before she caught up to him. He sat down backwards in the chair and she found a comb, a spray bottle, and the scissors. He'd stripped his shirt off, used to this haircutting routine simply because they had to do it so often. She'd gotten quite proficient at it and set to work quickly, snipping here and there until they had acquired a pile of curls on the floor and the hair that remained on his head look virtually untouched.

"All done," she said, ruffling his hair to make his curls into loose waves more like Adam's.

"Mama, when I have beard like daddy?"

"Oh, not for a long time."

"But I big boy."

"I know, but you have to be an old boy first."

"Okay."

She put his shirt back on him and was sweeping the floor when Adam returned.

"Here ya go bud."

"My Cheetos! My Cheetos! Mama, look, my Cheetos!"

"I know," she chuckled as she finished cleaning up.

"I eat now?"

"Yeah, but don't spill on the floor."

He skipped happily into the other room, holding his snack against him as if it were gold.

"Is that our fault?" Lindsay asked as she watched him.

"Could be. Is that bad?"

"Probably not."

"How am I in fourth place? FOURTH! This does not happen to me!" Lindsay said as her go-kart flew past the finish line, just a pixel away from being in third.

"I don't know babe, maybe just bad luck. I mean, you totally saw the bridge coming and still managed to fall into the lava."

"And then that stupid cloud set me down right in front of Bowser who had star power and blew me right back into the lava."

"This is the worst day of your life."

She smirked and settled back against him, waiting for the game to start up again. He had known exactly what she needed to relax her mind and she hadn't thought of the discomfort in hours. Colton was asleep on the floor next to them, his coloring and Cheetos long forgotten, his head pillowed on his sock monkey.

"Do you need to move or are you okay?" Adam asked, tucking her hair behind her ear and kissing her cheek.

"I'm okay. Could you do me a huge favor though?"

"What's that?"

"Stop jabbing me in the stomach with the controller."

"I knew this wasn't the best gaming idea," he said. "The baby kicked my thumb off the joystick."

She snorted a laugh and he tickled her side.

"Get your mind outta the gutter."

"Stop sayin' things that are so guttery."

"Is that a word?"

"My mental spell check says yes."

"Well alright then."

The next race started up and they both button smashed, determined to finish better than last time.

"Yeah, Peach's got it!" Adam mocked as a pink kart drove past him.

"Yeah, if it is syphilis."

"Linds!"

"What? You think Bowser has her up in that castle doing nothing?"

"You're depraved."

"You think Mario is a girl in disguise!"

"Have you heard his voice?"

"Yeah, it sounds like you when you get nervous."

"Excuse me?"

"It's okay, I know you're a boy."

"Wow."

"Watch out, bananas on the jump."

"That's how I know you love me."

"I do what I can."

"Drop back into second, I fired a blue shell."

"You so love me back."

"It's mostly self preservation."

"Either way."

They continued to race, Lindsay being so overcome with laughter at one point that she had tears streaming down her face and couldn't finish the course, making Adam do it for her.

"It wasn't that funny babe."

"I don't even remember what I'm laughing for," she mumbled as fresh giggles bubbled out. "What did you say?"

"I don't know," he chuckled, brushing the laughter tears from her face.

"I can't stop."

"No kidding."

She'd never before been so blissfully unable to breathe before and the laughter continued despite her best efforts to settle down. Adam had started in too, not because of what was said, but because of how delighted she was with it. In these moments he fell desperately in love with her again, to the point where his thinking got fuzzy and all he could see was her smile and all he wanted was for this moment to never end.

Her laughter stopped suddenly and her face changed to one of surprise.

"What?"

"Either I laughed so hard I peed or my water just broke. And I have amazing bladder control so um… want to help me up?"

"Are you serious?" he asked, standing up and helping her to her feet.

"I don't know."

"What should we do?"

"I'm going to waddle over to the bathroom because I actually do have to pee for real and you can pace across the floor until I'm done."

"Alright."

She moved into the other room while he cleaned up their junk food and Nintendo mess on the floor, taking a minute to move Colton up to the couch where he would be more comfortable.

"We'd better go," Lindsay said, one hand on her back as she tried to slide into her shoes.

"For real?"

"I just had the mother of all contractions and I'm pretty sure I'm going to need some drugs."

"Okay. Okay, what do I do?"

"I don't know, I'm just supposed to stand here in pain, I don't know your cues."

"We need someone to watch Colton, right?"

"That would be the first priority, yes," she agreed, amused at his state of panic.

"So I should call… uh…"

"Call Faye, she can be here the fastest," she answered, referring to Colton's sometimes babysitter that lived down the hall and spoiled him rotten because she had no grandchildren of her own.

"Right, that makes sense."

"I'm going to go and get the bags. Are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine."

She smiled and walked over to him, placing a hand on his arm.

"Adam, it's okay. It's going to be fine. All you need to do is hold my hand."

He nodded and leaned down to kiss her.

"I'm alright. I just don't want you to not be okay."

"I'll be alright. I'll be cursin', but I'll be alright."

"That's the game plan?"

"I think it's good. Because at the end we get a baby."

"Yeah, we do," he said, the thought calming him and allowing him to think straight.

"So I'll get the bags and you procure child care."

"I'm glad you're on my team Linds."

It was a long labor, despite being pretty far along upon arrival at the hospital. Things seemed to slow down in the sterile environment, and they had probably clocked two miles walking around the maternity ward. They were both exhausted and nothing seemed to progress until she'd been in active labor for almost ten hours. All of it meant nothing though, once it was over.

She'd missed this moment the first time around. She'd been too far gone then, passed out from blood loss and unable to even see him until he was hours old. This time everything went in slow motion. From the first few pushes until she knew the baby had arrived, from the "It's a boy!" to the new bundle being placed on her chest, his cries soft before his eyes opened and he stared at her- the first thing he ever saw. They contemplated each other quietly for a moment, breathlessly on her part.

"Hi, Benjamin," she greeted, watching as his hand fanned out in newborn greeting. She leaned closer and breathed him in, knowing no elixir quite as sweet.

"You look like your brother," she whispered, tracing over his face with her finger. He grunted back at her and then he was being lifted away from her to be cleaned and warmed. She slumped against the pillows and felt a kiss on her forehead.

"You're amazing," Adam said, his voice thick with tears. "You actually did that."

"Did I hurt your hand?"

"Nah. I did almost hit the floor though. I don't like seeing you in pain."

"It wasn't so bad," she lied. "He's here now."

"And he's perfect. I'm so proud of you. Thanks for making me a daddy again."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

The nurse quietly brought their bundled Benjamin back to them, placing him in Lindsay's arms once again.

"Hey son," Adam said, leaning over to look at him. "He really does look like Colton, doesn't he?"

"Except he's really bald," Lindsay chuckled. "We're pretty good at this baby making thing, aren't we?"

"We're definitely not bad," he agreed, moving from his chair and up onto the bed next to her. Wordlessly, she transferred the baby to him, watching how his face changed and he nearly cried again. It was another moment she had missed before that she hadn't even thought of until now. Adam as a father, with his child was quite possibly the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. The way he looked at their baby, his eyes filled with love and reverence and tears, how she could feel the pride radiating off of him, all of that went straight to her heart. Smiling, she leaned her head on his shoulder and settled her arm around them.

"He's perfect."

"Yeah, he is."

"And wonderfully chubby," she added, stroking his round cheek.

"It was the Twinkies you had for dinner last night."

"Probably."

They spent the next half hour sitting just like that, talking to each other and Benjamin, wondering who and what he would be, absorbing every second with their son.

"You want me to call Faye and have her bring Colton down?"

"Yeah."

"And then maybe call some anxious grandmas?"

"Probably."

He stood up from the bed, then handed Benjamin to her.

"I'll be right back."

He kissed them both and headed out into the hallway, needing to stretch his legs a little.

"Hey little boy," Lindsay said, adjusting Benjamin in her arms so she could look at him better. He was awake and looking around, squinting unhappily at the light. She curved her hand into a shade over his forehead and he seemed to relax a little. He gave her a long, slow blink and she unwrapped the blankets a little. He stretched and she caught his hand, marveling at how tiny it was, but how she could already tell he had his daddy's hands.

She pulled her knees up closer to her chest and rested him against them, holding his hands and staring into his eyes. When she had done this with Colton she had seen such adventure behind his eyes, his whole personality shining back at her. With Benjamin it was a quiet contemplation, an old soul. He was reading her as much as she was reading him. He blinked again and she kissed his forehead before grabbing her cell phone off the side table and dialing.

"Hello?"

"Hey Aust, guess what I'm doin'?"

"I would guess that you're sittin' there starin' at your baby?"

"Bingo."

"Well now are you going to tell me what you had?"

"It's a boy."

"I knew it!"

"You did?"

"I can read you really well Linds. I've known almost as long as you have."

"You have?"

"I was about ninety percent sure. What's his name?"

"Benjamin Ryan."

"Named after his daddy. How big was he?"

"Seven pounds even. He's so cute, Aust."

"Cuter than mine?"

"I plead the fifth on that one. Junior's a heartbreaker already."

"Our boys are going to take high school by storm."

"Don't talk about high school, he's not even an hour old."

"How are you feeling?"

"I'm tired. Really tired. But otherwise, totally over the moon."

"I can't wait to see him. Can I drop by in the morning?"

"Yes please."

"I just got mine to sleep so I am going to go grab a few hours. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay. Goodnight."

"Hey Linds?"

"Yeah?"

"Love you."

"Love you too."

They hung up and Lindsay smiled at Benjamin, who was still staring at her. He was so peaceful it was no wonder he had waited so long to come. He had been happy right where he was.

"Alright, Faye's going to be here soon," Adam said as he came back into the room. "And the grandmas have been called and I have listened to their squealing."

"You're such a good man," she said with a smile as he kissed her.

"I do my best. How's everyone doing in here?"

"We're just sitting here. I'm pretty sure he's a genius."

"How's that?"

"I dunno. He's our kid."

"Oh that makes sense."

He smiled and sat back down, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her hair. Never in a million years would he have pictured himself here, so happy and so loved. He never thought he deserved it. And now here he sat, the father of two boys, two sons, that he was responsible for raising into honest, hardworking men. The enormity of his role weighed on his shoulders, but it was a weight he embraced, looking forward into the future and knowing what great men they could be.

It was a few minutes later that the door opened again and Faye entered, carrying a very sleepy Colton.

"Hey buddy," Lindsay greeted. He looked at her and smiled, rubbing his eyes while Faye settled him on the ground.

"I sleepy, mama."

"I know you are. It's past your bedtime."

"I can see the baby?"

"Yeah, come over on this side so daddy can lift you up."

"That my brother?" he asked, once he had settled between them.

"That's your brother. Do you want to hold him?"

"Yeah, I know how. I be careful."

They moved Benjamin carefully, both impressed with how expertly Colton held him.

"I can talk to him?"

"Sure, if you want to."

"Hi brother Ben. I Colton. I bigger. I teach you Legos okay? And cars," he said with a smile. "Mama, I like this brother. We go home now?"

"No, we've got to stay in the hospital tonight. But the nurses brought in a bed for you so you can stay here too. Do you like that idea?"

He nodded vigorously, so vigorously in fact that it disturbed Benjamin who started to cry.

"Oh no! I sorry, I sorry. Benny, I sorry, no cryin'," Colton said, frantic and near tears himself.

"It's okay bud, sometimes babies cry. See, he's all better," Adam assured.

"You're going to be a good big brother," Faye added for extra measure. "I think you've already got it down pretty well."

"I gonna be the best," Colton said seriously.

"I should get out of your hair for tonight, but you'll call me if you need anything, right?" Faye asked, leaning down to hug Lindsay.

"We will. Thanks for taking him."

"My pleasure. Bye Sir Colton."

"Bye Lady Faye."

She slipped out the door and Benjamin started to fuss again.

"Why he cry now daddy?"

"I think it's because he's hungry."

"It bedtime."

"I know. Babies get hungry at weird times."

"He has to wait for breakfast?"

"No, mama will feed him right now. Why don't we get you into your jammies?"

"But I hold Ben."

"Maybe you can hold him again before you go to sleep, but let's let mama feed him now, okay?"

"Okay. I be back Ben."

Morning dawned with the winter sun breaking through the fog and filling up their quiet hospital room. Adam woke first, rubbing his eyes and looking down at the treasures in his arms. Lindsay was spooned up against him, Colton against her, and Benjamin in his bassinet, pulled as close to the bed as it could get. Colton's hand rested on the plastic side while Lindsay had managed to get her hand all the way in, her fingers just barely grazing Benjamin's pile of blankets. A ray of sunlight came through the windows, landing on all four of them as if the heavens had blessed them. He smiled a little, wanting them all to wake up so they could start their first full day as a family of four. But at the same time he was enjoying this moment, knowing that he was the only one in the world that would see it so perfectly. Still though, he turned very carefully and grabbed the camera, snapping a few pictures of the moment.

Lindsay stirred in his arms, blinking a few times before she really woke up.

"Good morning."

"Mornin'."

"I love you," he said, brushing her messy hair away from her face.

"I love you too."

"How many times did you get up last night?"

"Only twice. He ate for about ten minutes then fell back asleep. Colton woke up both times though and couldn't remember where he was, so I just brought him to bed with us."

"He did seem a little forlorn over there on that cot by himself."

"Yeah."

"How are you feeling?"

"Less tired than I thought I would. I'm still exhausted, but my mental acuity is better. I think I'll sleep better at home."

"Probably. You should go back to sleep right now. Even if it only ends up being a few minutes."

"Okay."

He watched her as she drifted back into sleep, and he couldn't stop the few tears that trickled down his cheeks. He'd always been determined to be a good husband, a good father. Providing and guiding as his step-father always said. He strove for it every day, making decisions based solely off of that. And sometimes he was afraid of failure. But right at this moment, looking down at the three people who were loved more than any other three people in the world, he was assured that he could not fail. It was impossible, because every morning may not start out just like this, but every morning gave him this feeling, and that is what saved him.