Chapter Text
The sun was setting.
Lucy was sitting on the patio at the back of their house, watching Zoe chase Kojo around in circles. Zoe was four now, and Kojo certainly wasn’t getting any younger. He looked like he was struggling to get away from her because of his age and fatigue. Lucy suspected he just wanted to make her laugh.
They’d adopted Kojo when Zoe was two. He was ten when they adopted him, given to them from a friend who couldn’t look after him anymore.
Since they assumed Zoe was unlikely to have any siblings, given how long it had taken to get pregnant with her, they thought a dog was a reasonable replacement for a sibling. Less fighting, if anything.
But then, when Zoe was three, the fertility clinic called Lucy and told her she needed to use her frozen embryos, or renew her storage contract. She spoke to Tim, and they decided to give it one more try. They implanted the three embryos.
Two of them took.
They found out a month later that they were having twins.
Tim cried during the first ultrasound. So did she.
She heard footsteps behind her, and turned as best she could, to see her husband come up behind her.
“Hey Luce,” he said softly, pressing a kiss to the side of her temple, and placing a blanket over her.
“Hi,” she replied, smiling. He helped her up, pulling her to her feet, and then wrapping his arms around her, supporting some of the weight of her belly. This pregnancy hadn’t been any easier than the last; at 30 weeks, she had started maternity leave 2 weeks ago, and Dr Marsh had put her on modified bedrest.
“Zoe looks like she’s keeping Kojo on her toes.”
Lucy chuckled, and Tim nestled his head into the crook of her neck. “I think he’s letting her win.”
“Eh, she’s pretty fast.”
Lucy rolled her eyes, and leaned back into him further, sighing in relief as her weight fell further back onto him.
At that exact moment, Zoe noticed that Tim had reappeared, and abandoning Kojo in favour of running flat out toward Tim. He stepped away from Lucy just in time to catch her, swinging her up and around with the momentum she flung herself with.
“Daddy!” she screamed, wrapping her little arms around his neck.
“Hi, sweetheart,” he murmured, kissing her cheek and picking her up.
“I mithed you.”
He laughed. “I was only gone for five minutes, Zozo. Had to get Mommy a blanket so she and the twins can stay warm.”
He saw Lucy wincing a little bit, her hands pressed to her lower back, and reached out to help her lower back into the chair with his free arm.
“Doethen’t matter, Daddy. Mithed you.”
He smiled, smoothing back her hair. “I missed you too, baby.”
Lucy just watched them, her hands protectively rubbing over her belly, an absentminded smile on her face.
It felt like a dream, watching her husband with the child they’d thought they’d never have while she was pregnant with the other two that would complete their family.
If Lucy and Tim four years ago could’ve seen them now, they wouldn’t believe it was a reality.
Zoe scrambled out of her dad’s grasp, and Tim set her down on the floor. She moved toward Lucy, her little hands reaching out for her mother, and Tim helped lift her into Lucy’s lap. By then, Kojo had wandered over and was settled at Lucy’s feet.
“Be careful, Zo,” he warned. “You need to be gentle with Mommy and the babies in her belly.”
“Mama!” Zoe clapped her hands together, and Lucy smiled a tired smile, pulling her daughter in close and pressing exaggerated kisses to her cheeks, her nose, her eyelids and the top of her head.
Tim knelt beside them, placing one hand on Zoe’s back and one hand on Lucy’s belly, smiling when he felt the twins kicking. Lucy winced a little at some particularly hard kicks, and Tim raised an eyebrow, but Lucy just waved him off.
“I’m good,” she replied. “I’m good. Just some particularly hard ones.”
“Not contractions?”
Lucy sighed. “Not contractions. I promise.”
The last appointment they’d had, Lucy had been 2cm dilated, which, especially because she was having twins, meant immediate bedrest - or in her case, modified bedrest - and strict vigilance. Tim was watching her like a hawk whenever he was home, monitoring her for any signs of distress or pain. Kojo had also not left Lucy by herself. Not even when she went to the bathroom.
“Okay,” he said quietly, not pushing any further.
Zoe put her hands on Lucy’s belly, talking in toddler talk about anything that came to her mind. After a minute or so, one of the babies sharply kicked where Zoe had her hands, and she flinched, squealing a little and pulling her hands away. Kojo looked up.
“What happened?” Tim asked.
Lucy ran her hands through Zoe’s hair. “Baby A kicked her.” She guided Zoe’s hands gently. “It’s okay, sweetie. It’s just the babies kicking. They want to say hi.”
Zoe felt the kicks again, giggling and looking up at Lucy as she did. Tim and Lucy smiled back.
After another twenty minutes, Zoe was getting wiggly, so Tim helped her down to the floor, and pulled Lucy upright, his hand tight around her waist as he led her down the hallway to their bedroom.
Zoe sat beside her in bed, nestling into her side. Tim watched them both, before reaching for one of the picture books they had in their room for when Zoe wanted a story. Kojo lay on the floor on Lucy’s side of the bed.
“Hey,” Tim said, passing Lucy the book. “How about you read her a story and I’ll get started on dinner?”
Lucy looked up at him with big, puppy dog eyes. “Come sit with us for a little bit.”
He sighed, and smiled. “Okay.”
He climbed into bed beside them, pressing a kiss to Lucy’s head and then Zoe’s as Lucy began to read.