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There was a lovely little hill on the outskirts of Lebanon, not too far from the Bunker. The grass was lush and green, and wildflowers always grew there, and there were a handful of trees around to provide shade when needed. In the spring, Castiel enjoyed going there to spend time with the bees as they pollinated the wildflowers. In the summer, it was a favourite spot for either Dean and Castiel or Sam and Eileen to enjoy some quiet time together. In the winter, it was a favourite spot for their little family to have fun with skiing and tobogganing and epic snowball fights.
It was autumn, the leaves of those scattered trees dancing in the wind, already having changed colour to nature’s fire. The air was crisp but not too cold just yet. Eileen and Sam still had the chance for a picnic before the weather got too bad.
Their set-up was a little different from a typical picnic. For one thing, Eileen was pretty sure most people didn’t pack machetes and pistols along with sandwiches and pasta salad and fresh-picked apples. Sure, hunts had been a little less frequent since Chuck’s defeat, but they both knew well enough that the moment you let your guard down was the moment everything went south.
In addition to the added munitions, they had one other addition that made it out of the ordinary. While they had the usual picnic basket and blanket and such, Eileen also had a decently-cushioned folding chair. She felt a little weird about sitting up that much higher, but she covered it up by joking to Sam that she could finally look at him without having to crane her neck.
It’s not like she had much of a choice in the matter – not that she would have gone with another option if she had it, anyways. She’d gotten used to being a bit uncomfortable – more than a bit uncomfortable, in some cases – in the past four and a half months.
They didn’t talk much while they ate; having food in the mouth made it harder for Eileen to lip-read, and their hands were usually full of food and plates and such. Eileen was fine with that; it’s not like they didn’t converse plenty all the time anyways. She had laughed a little as Sam unpacked their food – she was still getting used to how much she needed to eat, and how hungry she got, now that she was pregnant.
The wedding six months ago had been a Party – yes, proper noun. The Bunker had been full to bursting with hunters and psychics and angels and witches and a couple of stray demons? Honestly, Eileen still wasn’t keen on questioning it too much. Sam and Dean had vouched for them, so that was good enough for her. Mildred had even managed to make it out, and had insisted on having a dance each with Dean and Castiel before the night ended.
Eileen couldn’t remember smiling that much in her life, nor could she remember Sam ever smiling that much before. It had actually been Sam that had brought up the idea of having kids.
They’d been in the library, just reading for pleasure and not for research. He’d looked wistful as he traced his fingers over the initials carved into the table, pausing over the J.K.
“I hadn’t ever really thought about it before,” he’d said, with that self-conscious expression he wore too well. “I mean, I wasn’t ever against having kids, and I’d wanted for so long to have a normal life, and I just kind of figured that that was part of it, but I wasn’t necessarily gung-ho about it. But then there was Jack,” and his eyes went soft and the bitterness vanished from his small smile, “and that was the best feeling I’d had in a long time. That I could teach and care for and help someone find their way in this world, and I could have a family, with all that that entailed.”
Eileen had smiled then, and cupped his jaw with her hand. Her thumb found its favourite rubbing spot on the curve of his cheekbone.
“Honestly, I haven’t thought about it much either. I’d spent so long hunting that I never thought it was a good idea to bring a child into this life, and so long being pitied by people who didn’t even know me that I never had anyone I’d want that with anyways.” She had tugged him gently closer and kissed him, both of them smiling into it. “But now, and with you? I don’t know that there’s anything that I want more.”
Her food finished, Eileen relaxed in her chair and tipped her head back, relishing in the cool autumn breeze on her skin. She grinned to herself; she couldn’t wait to see the look on Sam’s face when she told him. She’d wait for a moment longer, just to enjoy the moment for a bit longer.
She was pulled from her light dozing by a soft touch against her wrist. She opened her eyes and looked down to see Sam tying off a daisy chain bracelet on her arm. Jack had figured out how to do that at some point and had been excited to show his dads how to do it, too. Eileen hadn’t realized that Sam had practiced.
An image of him tying off a much smaller daisy chain around a tiny little wrist popped into her head. Her breath caught in her throat. Apparently, it was loud enough for Sam to hear, as he looked up at her attentively as soon as it happened.
“You okay? Do you need anything?” he asked, the concern clear on his face.
Eileen smiled. It had been a bit tough for the past four and a half months, given Sam’s tendency to hover when he was concerned and her own tendency to get stubborn and insist that she could handle things by herself. They never fought about it, not really, but there were several times that they’d had to take a step back and find some kind of compromise.
“I’m fine.” She turned her hand over and laced her fingers with his. “My ultrasound was yesterday.”
He knew that already, given that he had driven her there. She had wanted to surprise him with the results, so he hadn’t come in with her and she’d made him wait for a full day before he got to find out. Not because she wanted to make him squirm – okay, a little bit because she wanted to make him squirm – but mostly because she’d been so surprised herself that she needed the time to wrap her head around it.
Sam’s eyes widened. “What did the doctor say? There’s no problems or anything, are there?”
Eileen nudged his shoulder playfully. “I told you yesterday, everything’s fine.” She dragged his hand over to her rounded belly, over top of where she’d last felt their child kick. “I don’t think I asked you – would you prefer if they were a boy or a girl?”
Sam shuffled closer on his knees. “It doesn’t matter to me. Daughter or son, I’ll love them either way.” He pressed a kiss just above her belly button.
“What about both?”
Eileen grinned as Sam’s head shot up and his eyes went wide. She watched his mouth move, trying valiantly to form words. The most he got was halfway through a double-u, before his jaw simply dropped open and his eyes jumped back and forth between her face and her belly.
His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. “Both?” She didn’t have to be able to hear him to know that his voice was quiet as he asked.
She nodded. “Fraternal twins.” She held up two fingers next to her cheek, then swiped them down and over to her other cheek. “You remember earlier when we were joking that I looked, like, super-pregnant because I’m so short?”
“Oh my god,” Sam said, his muscles jumping under his shirt in a way that very clearly showed he was laughing. “We’re going to have twins?”
“We’re going to have twins,” Eileen confirmed. It was her turn to laugh as Sam pushed himself up and pulled her to him in a tight hug. She wrapped her arms around him a second later and pecked him on the cheek. She could feel him shake against her, and at first she thought nothing of it, as she assumed he was still laughing. It wasn’t until she felt dampness against her cheek that she realized he was crying.
She pulled back so that she could see his face. “Are you okay?”
Despite the tears still sliding down his cheeks, Sam smiled so wide and bright at her that she thought it would eclipse the sun. He kissed her deeply while one hand slid down to rest on her belly again, fingers splayed wide. As abruptly as he began the kiss, he ended it, grinning wildly once more.
“We’re going to be parents,” he said.
“We are,” Eileen agreed indulgently.
“We’re having twins.”
“Yep,” she said, popping the P.
Sam laughed again. “We’re going to spoil them so much.”
Eileen elbowed him. “Maybe you will – someone has to be the strict parent, laying down the law.”
“Nope,” Sam shook his head, still grinning. “You’re gonna be just as bad as I am. They’re going to get away with so much, you won’t be able to believe it.”
Eileen laughed and tugged him forward by his collar into yet another kiss. Yeah, Sam was right; they were going to be complete and total pushovers for their kids.
Could anyone blame them?
