"I can work with that...And what do you mean by some reason for my grandson to look like you with the little fluff of hair and now that I am seeing closer, he also got your green shade in those teal eyes, Barbara?", James replied, "Did it have to do with the other Guardians helping you curing the disease? I distinctly remember your mother's family, and her folks didn't have that shade of strawberry blonde, and as we knew, Mr. Mears had the brown hair side, and Nora's mom had the blonde hair like Nora, and yeah, we know that Victor's folks had black hair, and dark blonde hair, with genetic balding from his father.".
"Yeah, it's related to the Guardians and what they did for Nora in terms of a treatment.", Barbara nodded. "It's odd, but according to them, not entirely out of the realm of reality at least.".
For a few moments, James processed his mind and then exhaled deeply, "I'm not going to ask too deep as I think I know what you mean by Jackson having all three in him...And from Thomas calmly not asking either, I suppose he got used to Gotham being...well, unusual and special since the Guardians came on the scene, this is normal for him.", glancing at Thomas.
Thomas chuckled, "You're not wrong about that, and of course, having two wives taught me much more about seeing love as a universal thing, as one of my grandsons Sean is gay, and my daughter Stormi partially intersex, and of course, seeing my wives as bisexual, as much as your daughter and Nora is with Victor, and I suspect my other grandsons, Dick and Damien may be a mixture of straight demisexual.".
Nora replied, "Hadn't any luck yet with dating for those boys, huh?", and Thomas sighed softly, "With Dick being my 'ward' grandson, even if he has parents, he's practically a Wayne, and of course, Damien being the heir of my son and daughter in law, it's like, I believe, in Damien's words, ' "It is hard to tell between the kids practically wanting material things, and the kids who wants to fit in, and the kids who wants to make a connection either emotionally, physically, or mentally." '. So, yeah.".
That was the understatement of the century for Damien, considering his situation, as the scent of hormones in high school was hell on his panther instincts, and for him, managing it wasn't easy, but he got through it by doing it a day at a time. At least the manor became a sanctuary as his panther instincts knew that everyone there was essentially mated or related to him in small or big ways.
James replied, "At least we got the wonder of having a grandson in common, Thomas, and yeah, it took me a bit to get used to the new norm, but honestly, now, I couldn't imagine anything better, especially this moment.", with a chuckle, glancing at Jackson who gurgled and giggled at his grandfather tracing his little foot, before his belly grumbled hungrily, now whining with a hungry search at his momma.
"I think he likes you, Dad.", Nora chuckled as she gently brushed Jackson's hair, "Okay, okay, dinner's coming, sweetheart.", as Victor helped moved her shirt off to her shoulder in an angle, with Jackson being adjusted to Nora's breast, and latched into it, suckling hungrily as everybody smiled.
Thomas replied with a smile, "Well, looks like my work's done...Jackson got a very good appetite. Call me sometime to give him his infant shots later. Night, guys.", as he gathered up his bag, bringing along the trash bag of the afterbirth and the remains of the cord from the swathed belly button.
Nora smiled, "Thank you, Thomas...Tell the others we say hi, and we will send some adorable pictures of our baby boy soon after he finishes eating.", and Thomas nodded, "Will do. And you're welcome. He's sure going to be loved.", with a chuckle before leaving.
Barbara smiled as she gazed at their son, "And we will be there to love him well...", and Victor replied, "I can more than agree with that, Barbara.", with a smile as he was gazing at their son, "And we love you, Nora...You did great...".
Nora smiled tiredly yet lovingly, "I love you all. Was worth the pain. Welcome home, Jackson Alexander Fries-Gordon.", gazing at their son who just cared about having his meal at the moment, even if he murmured contentedly at the four kisses on his forehead.
And so, married life with a newborn began, with Jackson being mostly well-behaved with occasional mischievous or cranky moments, a month passing peacefully of adjusting work schedules and life schedules, and now recently of the last weekend of September, Victor had to go for a science convention/competition over in Central City, Ohio, as some of his lecture class students are competing there, and he wanted to know what kind of inventions are in the convention.
Of course, it wasn't easy for Victor as he couldn't stop missing his wives and his amazing, perfect son, but gratefully, text messages, pictures, and an occasional video call helped for the whole week, and now, after the convention/competition was finished, with some pride for one of his lecture class students who won second place, and with some joy to finally pack, Victor is heading home, as of right now, unknowing of the exciting news that is revealing to be proof that Barbara is pregnant.
Nora heard the familiar sounds of Barbara putting away her office desk bag and such from the garage entrance into the kitchen as she is nursing Jackson, watching tv on steady volume, hearing the refrigerator door open and close, and then a few moments later, she heard the clatter of something hitting the floor, but not breaking, and she carefully yet quickly got off the chair, keeping Jackson still at the nipple, and came into the kitchen to see Barbara puking up in the deep kitchen sink, "Barb!", reaching to rub her wife's back, "Are you alright?".
"Fine... fine...", Barbara groaned. "Think something didn't just agree with me there...", she said. "You sure?", Nora asked as Barbara gave a small chuckle, "Well, it's either that or what we might have suspected beforehand...".
Nora widened her eyes in hopeful surprise, "Really?", and Barbara replied, "I've been throwing up the last few days at work, and your cooking was great for lunch, but I guess snack time at the cafe nearby was either good or making me sick at the smell of it...I...I may have brought a pregnancy test on the way home after I had enough of the cafe...", as she cleaned up her mouth with a glass of water and a towel, looking sheepishly excited, even if she's looking also a bit miserable after that mess, using the faucet to wash it away.
"Oh, yes! Oh, oh, we can surprise Vic with this, come on, let's get you to the hallway bathroom, and see if you're pregnant!", Nora exclaimed excitedly, jostling Jackson slightly from his meal, as he gave a disgruntled and cranky squeak, glaring at his momma, and she smiled sheepishly, "Sorry, sweetheart...Back you go...", readjusting Jackson back to another nipple, latching immediately, grateful that his momma is wearing a loose tank top with open pockets to the nipples.
"I can handle myself, Nora.", Barbara told her. "You let Jackson have the priority. I'll be fine, it's still fairly early; enough time to be able to check but certainly not enough to the point where I need help everywhere...".
Nora chuckled, "Right...I forgot about your stubbornness for a moment there. Okay, I'll be on the couch. You go do the test. I'm just excited and hopeful for you, Barb.", kissing her on the lips warmly before walking back to the living room, taking a seat while minding Jackson as he was determined not to let go of his meal.
Barbara's voice chuckled, "I love you too, Nora.", and then the tv's chatter was heard only, as Nora distantly heard the sound of the hall bathroom door opening and closing, and a few minutes passed.
Barbara came into the living room, sitting next to Nora as she laid the waiting pregnancy test on a coaster of the living room table, biting her lip, "I'm so nervous...", and Nora replied, "I never saw you this nervous with any of our college exams...I think the closest was when we reunited in the entrance door landing before Dad walked us down the aisle to Vic for our wedding. Relax, take deep breaths...settle those nerves...You are a natural with Jackson.", giving her wife a loving, reassuring smile.
"I know... I think it's more the excitement and all... plus, wouldn't want to disappoint Jackson by not giving him a little sibling...", Barbara chuckled as she scratched underneath his chin.
Jackson gave a snuffle as he opened his eyes a bit at his mama in Barbara, still suckling at his meal, through he's slowing down a bit.
Nora chuckled, "I think he'd make a brilliant big brother...What do you think, girl or boy?", and Barbara smiled, "Part of me wouldn't mind a boy since I got tons of practice already with Jackson, but most of me is hoping for a girl.".
"Somehow I think Vic wouldn't mind a girl as he knows how to handle us through some issues that would be the same as an infant girl, like being picky with food and having cranky moments.", Nora grinned, and Barbara giggled, "I think you're right...", before hearing the beep of the pregnancy test on the table.
Barbara took a deep breath, and went to reach out, picking it up, bringing it back to herself, and she took a look before she gave a sob of joy and a blinding smile, "I'm pregnant, Nora! Double plus 3 weeks...That means it would have been any of those nights back in Jackson Hole, or afterwards here at home...Three months along...God, I'm pregnant...", as it's one of those digital pregnancy tests that she took, while she stroked her belly, realizing the slight body fat she was gaining was actually the baby bump growing.
"Guess that means no patrolling for some time...", Nora teased as Barbara chuckled. "Probably means a slow down at the job too, that's for sure...", she responded.
Nora nodded, "Yep. At least we got friends in high places to take up the slack for you, Barb...Hey, I got an idea. How about cooking up a favorite dinner meal for Vic, and we hide that under the napkin when he goes take it to cover his lap, and then bam, he sees it?", with a grin.
Barbara widened her eyes, "That's brilliant, Nora. I'm in.", and Nora smiled, "Great...Let me get this rascal burped and put to bed. You open up the personal cookbook, and we decide on something of his favorites.", getting off the couch as she saw that her son is finishing his meal.
"You got it, Nora.", Barbara smiled, "I can't wait to see his face, and hug him and kiss him so much. I know we had texts, photos and an occasional video call, but it's not the same.", and Nora shook her head, "Nope, it's not the same.", with a chuckle as she is eager to see and hold him again, and of course, kiss him and all.
Meanwhile, it is about 7 hours and some between Ohio and New Jersey, and Victor is in a third of the way home, hoping that he'd make it in time for dinner, having been at a diner for lunch on the route, along with a couple of bathroom breaks. He can't wait to hold and kiss his wives and read a story to his son.
Victor honestly was wondering if perhaps he should've taken a flight instead, save a bunch of time after all, especially after how much he had missed his wives.
It was one thing with a usual day of lecturing his students in the classroom or working in his basement lab, and he would see his wives in the afternoon, or on his off days, but it's another thing with a whole week of traveling and seeing the convention/competition, and sure, he is so grateful with the technology of video calls and such on his cell phone, but it's not the same.
It made him ever more excited for the future since he ain't taking his wives and son for granted as he couldn't imagine life without them, for it made his life even more enriching, for the outing taught him a valuable lesson.
At least his car is very reliable, having it for some good years, and to be honest, technically, driving is less expensive than a plane ticket in a way, as from Ohio and back to New Jersey is only essentially a day trip, maybe 2 days if sightseeing and such on detours, as it's only a shorter trip, compared to a literal cross-country trip from, say, New Jersey to San Francisco.
'Just stay focused on the road.', Victor thought to himself as he kept driving; though he knew if it was starting to get too late soon, that he'd probably need to pull into a hotel or something for the night. Either way, he had a plan, and he was trying to stick to it. Of course, sometimes the best plans don't work out the way one would want.
He was soon coming up on a four-street, and he saw a modern station wagon with a moving van behind it on his left, waiting for him to pass, taking the right of way as it was the law, and checked on his right, trying to see past the tree around the corner, putting his car into sight of any coming cars, and for one split moment, he thought he was good as he kept on, trying to keep his eyes open on a swivel as he drove straight before he saw it coming in the corner of his eye, and he turned his head, and the last thing he saw before everything became black and in a spin of pain, horror, chaotic shock, was his wives smiling at him, with his son reaching for him in Nora's arms, and the last thing he thought, 'I'm sorry. I love you all.', as it seemed so slow-motion for him when it happened so fast in real life.
It was almost a flash of time for the passengers in the nearby station wagon as they witnessed the accident firsthand. "Holy shit!", the red-headed woman screamed as the blonde-haired woman was quickly getting out of the car. "Harley, where the hell are you going?!"
"Checking on the drivers, Red! Call 911!", the woman shouted back. The red-haired woman nodded, standing by the car, looking at their sons, "Stay there, Jason, Tim!", as she rang her phone, seeing the two helper men of the moving van behind them coming out, "Go help her! I'm calling 911!".
The men nodded, heading to help Harley, and the phone picked up quickly, "Hello, this is 911. Who is calling, please?", and the red-haired woman replied, "My name is Pamela Isley-Quinn, and there has been a car accident in front of me and my family! My wife and two men in our moving van is checking on the drivers...It looks so bad...".
"Where are you, ma'am?", the 911 responder asked, and Pamela replied, "On the intersection of Landis Valley Rd, on the route of US-222, in Pennsylvania...God, I don't remember the town name we passed through!".
One of her sons answered, "Eden, Mom! It's Eden!" as he peeked out of his rear window seat, and Pamela nodded, "It's Eden, Pennsylvania!", and the 911 responder replied, "We're ringing the closest hospital, and we're sending ambulances and police to your location. Keep on the phone and see if the drivers are still breathing, and don't do anything to endanger themselves unnecessary more than right now.".
"One of them isn't breathing!", Harley shouted as she was checking the man who caused the accident in the first place. "Looks like one of them isn't breathing...", Pamela explained to the operator. "My wife is a doctor... well, psychology, but she's had some basic medical training.".
The operator replied, "Ah, that's bad, but good on your wife's help there. And the other driver?", and Pamela called out, "What about the other one?!". One of her moving van helpers, Fred called out, "He's still breathing!".
Pamela responded into the phone, "The other driver is breathing.", and the operator replied, "Where did it happen? You said it was a car accident.".
Pamela explained, "The one who is breathing was having the right of way, and I saw him look both ways, and he went on, and then the other car came into him, hitting into the right side of the car...really hard...The other car didn't seem to brake at all...I think the guy who isn't breathing was drunk...", before hearing the distant sirens, "I hear the sirens a mile off!".
"Should be some first responders at least.", the operator said. "I do not believe it's the ambulances but they're on their way for sure. Might take them just a bit longer though.".