"Oh, and their little feet were so cute!"
"Baby feet are always adorable, Dear."
"I wish you had been here to see the ultrasound."
"Oh, trust me, Honey, I wish I had been here too. Isn't that right, Nicholas?"
It was easy to see where Nick got his famous smirk, as the same smirk played across his mother's face easily when she threw the sarcastic remark toward her son. It was late in the evening now, and Nick and Judy had both just received more pain killers for their injuries. It was, of course, a simple "coincidence" when Nick's mother arrived just as the medicine went to work, making Judy feel better than ever. Arriving in a glorious finesse only she could pull off, Nick's mother had quickly kissed and hugged Nick in greeting. She had then turned to Judy with a large smile on her face.
"There's my daughter-in-law!" she had sung.
Within minutes, Judy loved Nick's mother; she had even sat up in bed and completely readjusted so that Nick's mother could sit with her. As soon as Nick's mother had become comfortable, and after her and Judy became the best of friends, they sparked up a discussion that could easily be labeled as "the baby conversation of the century." With an internal groan, Nick sunk into his bed that he had returned to earlier and tried to block out the force that was his mother. Now, Nick loved his mother, he really did, but when it came to things that made her happy… well, all hands on deck.
Judy's parents were going to arrive at about 7:30 that evening, which was still an hour away, and the fox and the bunny had already been talking for at least an hour and a half, so Nick was nothing but in for it at this point. Any chance that presented itself, Nick's mother would find a way to shoot a snide comment in Nick's direction, which Nick took with a spoonful of sugar.
"Yes, Mom, that is absolutely right. I would have called, you see, if I hadn't been busy bleeding to death," Nick stated lazily.
"Nick: always the drama queen," Judy laughed with a roll of her eyes.
"Oh, don't I know it, Sugar," Nick's mother laughed.
To describe Nick's mother, she was the definition of beauty; always in some lovely modest sun dress that would no doubt fit her figure perfectly. Time had most definitely been kind to Mrs. Wilde, and she showed that off with elegance. From the way she carried herself, it was clear that Mrs. Wilde was an independent, big-hearted, sassy fox who wanted nothing more than to see her son be happy. To Mrs. Wilde, Judy was the definition of happiness, especially if that happiness was in her son's life. That evening, Nick's mother had not only showed up in a gorgeous purple dress that fell around her amazingly and a smile that could charm any daughter-in-law, but she had also shown up with baby books and some of Judy's favorite snacks.
"These are for you, my Dear," she had said with a smile. "Nick told me you were a carrot farmer, so I assumed on some of these groceries, but I hope they help."
And just like that, Judy was putty in Mrs. Wilde's paw. In all honesty, though, Nick was quite glad that his mother and Judy were getting along so well. It was clear that Mrs. Wilde approved of Judy not only being Nick's wife-to-be, but also the mother-to-be of his children and her grandchildren.
"So, Judy, Honey, tell me how you and Nick met."
"We met through work."
"And you are a police officer too, correct?"
"Yes, I met Nick after he scammed me in an ice cream shop."
The conversation was briefly interrupted by Nick's laughter.
"The most romantic way to meet, I'm sure," he chuckled. "But seriously, Mom, I told you this already."
"Oh, I know," she stated with a wave of her paw. "But I like to hear the story, and besides, Judy could offer me a new perspective."
Judy couldn't help but smile with a nod of agreement. Nick's mother then insisted she continue.
"Well, he scammed me, so then I threatened to arrest him for tax evasion if he didn't help me out with this case that was really bugging me."
"The missing otter case, right?"
"Yes! Wow, Mrs. Wilde, you really do your homework."
"I do indeed, Dear, and let me just say that threatening tax evasion was such a genius move on your part."
"Thank you!"
"Just finish the story, Carrots," Nick rolled his eyes.
"Nicholas, don't rush her! You take your sweet time, Dear."
Another eye roll from Nick as Judy continued.
"We started working on that case and became good friends. I eventually got Nick to become an officer and here we are," Judy smiled.
"Oh, how I love that story!" Nick's mother grinned with a twinkle of love in her eyes. "Now, Nicholas, why am I just now getting the call that four sweet little grandchildren are on their way into my life?"
"Did you want me to call you right after we had sex?"
"Nick!" Judy gasped, her eyes glaring at him.
Nick's mother was unfazed, however.
"I would have liked to have found out when you found out."
"I find out on my birthday. If you had called, I would have told you."
"Someone's grumpy," Nick's mother smirked, which Nick smiled at. "I didn't call because you don't call me on my birthday."
"Mom, I don't even remember when your birthday is!"
"Then why should I remember yours?"
"Fair point," Nick stated with a painful shrug.
Judy laughed as she watched the ordeal. Judy had always had parents who loved her much like Nick's mother loved him, but it was slightly different. Her parents had always been overprotective to the point that they didn't really want her to follow her dreams, while Nick's mother had always let Nick express his wild side. Now, she felt as if she had a second mother who would always allow her to make her own decisions, and that comforted Judy. She knew that she would be bringing four babies into a world where all they would experience was love and laughter, and that was what mattered.
A small knock came at the door before it opened to reveal Bonnie and Stu Hopps.
"We aren't interrupting anything, are we?" Bonnie asked nervously.
Mrs. Wilde jumped to her feet.
"Not at all," she smiled as she extended her paw. "I'm Nick's mother. It's very nice to meet the parents of this amazing young lady."
"Thank you, we are very proud of Jude the Dude," Stu replied, winking at Judy as he did so.
Judy's parents had brought food for everyone, which they happily passed around. The night continued on in bliss as the two families ate and conversed. At one point, Judy caught Nick trying to get up out of his bed and crawl into hers again, so she stood and went to his bed.
"Why did you get up?" he asked after she sat down.
"My leg isn't broken and yours is. You have a screwed up spleen and I don't. I think I can afford to move. You, on the other hand, can't."
"It was that obvious I wanted to get up?" Nick chuckled before taking another bite of the burger Judy's parents had brought him.
Judy smiled and nodded.
"I know you get lonely over here."
She leaned in and kissed his forehead, which he pretended to think was a disgusting action, resulting in Judy giggling.
"They seem to be getting along," Nick stated as he gestured toward their parents, who were all seated at the small wooden table that was located in the corner of Nick and Judy's hospital room. All three seemed to be smiling, eating, and talking about various things.
"Yes, they do," Judy agreed. "I like your mother."
"I figured you would. She's a real animal pleaser."
"And I think my parents have always liked you, but they are a little taken aback by everything right now."
"That's understandable."
"Really? You aren't mad?"
"Carrots, why would I be mad? They are your parents. Of course, they are going to freak out and be worried and hate me for a little bit."
"They don't hate you."
"Even if they did, I wouldn't mind. Life is messy, right?"
Judy smiled at the mention of one of their famous life mottos.
"Life is messy," she agreed.
"And besides," Nick shrugged. "They brought me food, so I'm not complaining. Although, I prefer Griz's meals, ya know?"
"Ha, I do indeed. It's been a while since we've grabbed anything from the diner."
"We'll have to take the kids there one day. Griz would be ecstatic."
Judy grinned at the thought of a massive grizzly bear being excited to see four small fox-bunny babies. She absent-mindedly placed a paw on her small baby bump, which Nick noticed, smiling as he did so.
"So, what's the plan for work, Carrots?"
"Well, I hate to say it, but I'm probably going to be released from the hospital long before you do."
"Ugh, I was hoping you wouldn't bring that up."
"It'll be okay, though."
"I don't like you working alone."
"I'll just be hanging around the offices. I'm not really up for any big cases after this whole ordeal."
"Promise?"
"Promise."
"Okay, then. Hopefully, I'll be out sooner than expected."
"It takes about six to ten weeks for a broken bone to heal, and we'll be able to leave long before that. The scratches and bruises will fade eventually. I'm just worried about your spleen and maybe your ribs."
Nick waved a paw at her and dismissed her words.
"Nah, I'm fine. I'm just a bit sore is all. What does the Chief think about all of this?"
"He thinks we are absolute idiots for going into that building without calling for back-up, but he's glad that all of us are okay."
"All of us? He really cared about the babies too?"
"He has a bigger heart than he lets on, you know."
"I'll believe it when he stops making me tense every time he walks into the same room."
"With those standards, you'll never believe it," Judy laughed.
"Judy, Dear, come here and let me get a look at that growing tummy of yours!" Nick's mother called from across the room.
"You better go before she comes over here and breaks my other ribs thinking I told you to ignore her," Nick snickered.
With a sly smile and another kiss on Nick's forehead, Judy stood and made her way over to the table. Once there, she carefully lifted the hospital gown she was required to wear just enough to show her abdomen. Although both her and Nick had to wear the gowns, they both had clothes on underneath, which they had had Finnick stop by to drop off earlier in the day, as he was the only other person with a key to the couple's apartment (for emergencies). Nick was wearing his boxers and a pair of dark green sweatpants under his gown. For Judy, it was her bra, panties, and a comfortable pair of light gray athletic shorts. When Judy lifted her gown, everyone got a good view of her abdomen that had swollen into a perfect tiny baby bump. For Nick, he also got a good view of Judy's amazing cottontail butt in athletic shorts, which he responded to with a sexual whistle that made Judy yell at him before laughing. Nick continued to stare at Judy's butt as his mother went on about how amazing she looked so far and how happy she was, while Judy's parents commented as well.
That's when Nick saw it: a dark spot on Judy's shorts, just between her legs. Nick was out of bed in an instant, painfully limping his way over to Judy. Everyone looked up at him in surprise, Judy dropped her gown back down, and both she and Nick's mother were telling him to get back in bed. Careful of her broken arm, Nick looped an arm around Judy's waist and pulled her back over to the bed. She squealed as he gently tossed her in the bed and pulled the sheets up to her stomach.
"Nick, what in God's name are you doing–Nick!"
Judy's face flushed a deep shade of red as Nick put one of his paws under the sheets and down into her pants. Not saying a word, he removed his paw and held it up in the air, showing her. The tips of his paw were a shade darker than they usually were, and they were glistening as if they were wet. The color drained from Judy's face.
"I-is that–?"
Nick turned to his mother quickly, his eyes wide and his heart beating rapidly.
"Get a doctor. She's bleeding."