Chapter 46

"Would you stop moving?" Donnie laughs.

"I can't help it!" I laugh. "It tickles."

He shakes his head. "You begged me to paint your toenails."

It's Saturday night, and Donnie and I were supposed to have date night, but the moment I arrived, it started to snow. It soon covered the roads, making it unsafe to drive. So, we decided to stay in, make dinner, watch a movie, and paint my toenails since I'm so big that my belly keeps me from reaching my feet. So, I begged him to make my feet look pretty. And the loving boyfriend he is, he obliged.

Donnie puts on the last coat on my pinky toe and dips the brush back into the bottle and twists it closed. He sets the bottle on the table beside him and turns back to my feet and blows on my toes while keeping his eyes on me.

Why does that look sexy? Oh, I know. It's because he's wearing his damn hat backward. He knows how much that turns me on.

A chuckle vibrates from his chest as if he knows what I'm thinking.

I go to kick him, but he senses it and wraps his warm hands around my ankles, holding me in place. "Don't, or I'll tickle you until you piss your pants," he teases.

"You're so mean." I give him a sly look.

Persistent knocking at the door makes me jump.

"Yo! Are you done doing the dirty?" Ash says from behind the door.

"Fuck off!" Donnie yells back.

"Ah, come on," Ash whines. "I'm bored. I've been stuck in this house since it started to snow."

I laugh and Donnie rolls his eyes and rolls off the bed, walking toward the door. But he stops midway and looks back at me. "Do you want me to make him go away?"

I shake my head, still laughing.

Donnie scowls at me when he goes to the door and opens it. There stands Ash weaning a pair of gray sweats, a white T-shirt, and with wet hair. Looks like he just got out of the shower.

"Aren't you supposed to be on a date with Tia?" Donnie asks, holding onto the side of the door with his hand gripping the top of it because he's so tall.

"Yeah." Ash strolls into the room. "But it's level three, so we can't go anywhere," he explains and plops on the bed beside me. He rests his head on my belly and listens to the boys moving around.

"Wow," he whispers, "they're pretty active today."

I rub his head. "Yeah, they were kicking the hell out of me when Donnie was taking to them earlier."

"That's because they love my voice and they know I'm their daddy," he says proudly as he walks to the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

Ash glances up at me. "How's Mama doing?" he asks.

"This mama is good," I respond.

"Good. I've been worried about you," he says, sounding relieved.

I frown. "Why?" I ask, still rubbing his hair. He used to love it when I did that when we were kids.

"You've been under a lot of stress, and crabby as hell."

I tug on his thick hair.

"Ow, fuck," he whines.

"You try carrying around two humans inside you, constantly pushing on your bladder every hour. I have to wear panty liners because a little pee leaks out," I snap.

"Okay, yeah, that's TMI," he mutters, sitting back up at the same time his phone goes off. I happen to see Tia's name flashing on the screen.

He answers the call and smiles back at me. "What's up, mamasita?" he says while walking out of the room.

"Tell her I said hi!" I holler, and he glances back at me and grins.

I hear the sink running when I clutch my stomach, feeling a wave of pain shoot through my body. The past few hours, I've been experiencing the same kind of pain, but now it's more intense.

"Oh, fuck," I groan as another wave of pain comes full force. I lean forward, wanting to get out of the bed and run into the bathroom because it feels like I have to take a shit.

Right as Donnie emerges from the bathroom, I shout out in pain. He immediately runs to my side. "Shorty, are you okay?" he asks, grasping my hand with worry written all over his face.

"I-I think it"s time, Donnie," I manage to gasp out between contractions.

Panic spreads across his beautiful face.

"Oh, fuck! It's too soon!" He grabs his hair and paces the floor.

Another scream comes out of me, and Ash comes rushing in. "What's going on?" he says, panic lacing his tone while still holding the phone to his ear.

"She's having the babies," Donnie says, his voice higher.

"What the fuck are you waiting for, then? Let's go to the hospital!"

"We can't!" Donnie yells back. He walks over the window and points. "Level three, remember? There's no way the paramedics are going to make it in time."

"Would you stop yelling?!" I snap back and then the pain returns.

Oh, holy hell.

Donovan

Holy shit.

I'm about to deliver my own kid.

Kids, in this case.

Shit, I'm not prepared for this. So here I am standing and looking at my girl like a fucking idiot, not knowing what to do.

And then a loud voice yells in the room.

"Donnie! Snap out of it!" Tia snaps over the phone.

I shake the doubts from my head.

"You're going to have to deliver your sons," she says.

My breathing hitches and my heart starts to race, ready to burst out of my chest as reality sets in. I remember Shorty telling me that Tia has been learning about how to deliver a baby because, as she predicted, Shorty wasn't going to have a normal pregnancy.

Fuck, I hate it when she's right.

"You need to grab towels and put pillows behind her back. I will walk you through it," she says in a softer tone.

"Donnie?" Tia calls out in a calm tone.

"Yeah?" I say, turning my gaze to her on the screen. She smiles but then anger fills her face. "Get your ass moving!"

Right.

I scramble around, trying to find towels and anything I can to keep my girl comfortable.

As the contractions intensify, Shorty's cries fill the room, echoing off the walls. With towels against my chest, Ash is already propping pillows behind Shorty. I run toward Shorty and listen to Tia as she instructs me to lay the towels down. Then I run back into the bathroom and grab a warm washcloth and place it on her forehead.

Suddenly, my instincts kick in. "You"re doing great, baby. Just breathe. We"re here for you," I whisper, my voice shaking with emotion.

With each passing minute, the pain becomes unbearable for Shorty. She squeezes my hand tightly, almost cutting off my circulation. Tears stream down her face as she fights through each contraction.

"Dude, what is with the screaming?" Titan's voice carries through the hall until he reaches the room. "Are you decent?" he says with a chuckle. "Are you—holy shit!" he gasps. "Is she having the baby now?" His eyes widen in horror.

"What do you think?" Ash says.

"Ahh!" Shorty screams, and she throws her head back against the pillows. I have to hold back from crying when she squeezes the hell out of my hand.

"Goddamn," Ramsey mutters from the doorway, but I can't worry about them because Shorty lifts her head, almost hitting me in the process. Her eyes widen in fear and she cries, "I have to go to the bathroom."

"Okay, I'll take you." I start to get on my feet when Tia yells, "No she doesn't! She has to push."

"Would someone call 9-1-1, for fuck's sake!" Tia demanded.

"On it!" That was Ramsey.

Oh, fuck, this is happening.

I'm going to have to deliver my boys.

Sadie

Holy shit.

A pain I've never felt before now has taken over my body, and there isn't a damn thing I can do about it.

By the agonizing look on Donnie's face, I know I'm hurting him, but I can't seem to care since I have to push two babies out of my vagina. Not one, but two.

Fuck my life.

"This is your fault." I grit my teeth as I stare at Donnie's bright blue eyes. "You just had to knock me up with two babies! Ahh! Fuck!" I scream and cry at the same time.

God, I don't remember being in this much pain when I had Sophia.

"It's okay, baby, just breathe," he coaxes, but it doesn't provide me with any comfort.

"Why is it so fucking hot in here?" I gasp in between breaths.

"Get a fan, Ty," Ash orders. He runs out of the room, and a few minutes later, he comes back with a mini fan.

"Dude, what the hell is that?" Ash questions.

"It's a fan," he says, looking at Ash like he's an idiot.

"Ramsey." Ash looks at him. "Can you grab the one in my room?"

Ramsey comes back and plugs in the tall fan and blows it on me.

Another contraction hits, and that's when I feel it.

"Oh, shit," I groan. "He's coming!"

"Fuck!"

"Holy shit balls!"

I don't know who says what, but I hear the panic in their voices, which does nothing to settle my nerves.

I hear Tia telling Donnie to get in between my legs, and Ash to sit behind my back so I can be in a sitting position. Ash moves behind me and rubs my back.

Donnie pulls off his hoodie by grabbing it at the top and tosses it on the floor. Now he's in a T-shirt.

"Okay, baby, I need to remove your pants, and then I need you to keep your legs open," he tells me.

I lift my ass up so he can remove my pants and underwear. He throws them on the ground beside me and gets into position on his knees in front of me.

I'm exposed, and I've never felt this vulnerable before. Donnie has seen me naked, but this just feels too intimate.

"Holy shit," Ty mutters under his breath, and I can't seem to care that he's just seen my vajayjay.

As if Donnie forgot they were in the room until then, he throws the sheet over my legs, covering up my crotch.

"Dude! What the fuck? Get out of here!" Donnie yells.

The guys scramble out of the room and close the door behind them. "We'll wait for the ambo!" Ty yells, and then I hear feet pounding down the stairs.

Donnie turns back to me and gives me a small smile. "Are you ready, baby?" he asks me in a soft tone, making me cry.

I bite my lower lip and nod.

He returns the nod and lifts the sheet off me but keeps it draped over my hips to give me privacy.

"Okay, let's bring the boys into this world," he says with a shaky voice.

"Get into position, Donnie," Tia instructs.

He does what she says.

"Okay, Sadie, push girl," Tia encourages.

"Baby, I need you to push," he says urgently.

And so I do.

I push again.

Again.

Again.

Finally, after what seems like an eternity, I feel a surge of relief as our first son's cries pierce the air.

"Shit, he's here!" Donnie exclaims, tears of joy mixing with the sweat on his face.

"Okay, wrap him up in a towel," Tia chokes out.

"We need the guys, D," Ash says.

Donnie nods while cradling our son in his arms and quickly cuts the umbilical cord.

Ash calls out to the Ty, and he walks back in. "I need you to clean him up and hold onto him until I deliver my other son," Donnie tells Titan, who walks up and takes my son, covered in goo.

"You got it," Titan says and goes to the bathroom to wash him off.

Donnie turns back to me and rubs my legs in a soothing manner. "Okay, baby, you ready for baby number two?" Donnie says with a broad smile.

"You got this, Shorty," Ash whispers against my sweaty temple.

"Push, baby," Donnie encourages.

"Donnie, I can"t do this anymore," I cry, clutching the bed sheets tightly.

"Yes, you can. We"re going to get through this together," Donnie reassures me, his voice trembling.

As my contractions intensify, Donnie repositions himself between my legs. "You"re doing great, baby. Just a little more," Donnie encourages me.

My screams fill the room as I grit my teeth and push with all my strength, tears streaming down my face. And then, with one final push, Donnie"s hands are once again covered in blood as he cradles our second son against his chest.

Donnie looks up at me with his eyes welling up with tears. "He"s perfect," Donnie says.

The tears keep coming, and I cry. But they mix with the sound of my giggles.

"You did it, Shorty. You did it," Ash whispers, giving me a gentle squeeze.

"Oh, thank god," I gasp, collapsing against Ash"s chest with relief.

The twin"s little cries are the best sounds in the world. But the joy is abruptly shattered when Donnie"s face contorts into a mask of pure, unadulterated horror, his eyes locked in a catatonic stare between my legs.

My own panic rises, and I quickly ask, "Donnie, what"s wrong?"

"Something isn't right," Donnie says quietly, almost as if he's talking to himself.

"What is it?" Tia and Ash ask at the same time.

"Ram, take the baby," he commands with a shaky voice.

Ram doesn't hesitate and takes our son from Donnie. I look up to see his beautiful blue eyes widening in alert.

Donnie takes a deep breath and gets back in position.

He spreads my legs wider and freezes. "I see—" Donnie starts to say but Tia interrupts him.

"See what?" she snaps. "What the fuck is happening right now?"

"I see feet," Donnie says.

"Wh-what?" I pant, waiting for him to clarify.

"Did you say feet?" Ash asks.

"There's a third baby?" Ty says as he walks back into the room, cradling one of our sons.

Donnie raises his gaze up at me, and the look of fear in his eyes sets me over the edge.

"Wait, does that mean...does that mean what I think it means?" I ask, horrified at the thought that I could be right.

"The baby's breech," Donnie explains.

"Oh, fucking hell," Tia says.

Donovan

Fucking hell is right.

I've read about it in one of the birth books I started reading ever since we found out we were having twins. They said it's common for twins to be breech, but I never thought it could happen to us, but what the fuck was I thinking because since when does anything normal happen with us.

"What are we going to do, D?" Ash asks, but my eyes are glued to my girl, who looks like she's about to pass the fuck out.

"She needs a C-section," Titan says over my shoulder.

"How do you know that?" Tia asks the question I was thinking.

"It happened to my sister."

"Donnie, the baby needs to come out like five minutes ago," Tia says in a shaky voice.

"And how do you expect me to do that, Tia?" I snap, already losing my shit because I know what could happen if our third baby isn't removed from Shorty's belly. He or she could die.

And I sure as fuck am not going to let that happen.

"You're going to need to cut her open, D," Titan says at the same time Shorty pants and whimpers in pain.

"Wait, what?" Ash asks, voice torn with fear.

"For one, because of the storm, the ambulance isn't going to get here in time. And secondly, just what I said. He has to cut her open in order to save their baby," Ty continues in a soft tone, holding one of my sons close to his chest, wrapped in a towel.

"Wait one fucking minute, he can't cut her open. Are you insane? Let's wait for the ambulance to come. They can help her," Ash tries to reason.

"No, he's right," Tia says. "Titan, what does he need to make this happen?" she asks him.

"Wait, hold the fuck up." Ash stands up and grabs the phone to look at Tia.

"Ice, hand sanitizer, or alcohol will do, towels, and a knife since there's probably not a scalpel around here," he says flatly.

"Okay, okay. I'm going to call the ambulance on the second line to check on their status. Until then, you have all those things. Ash, can you—" Tia starts to say but Ash cuts her off again.

"No! He's not going to fucking cut her open, Tia," he snaps.

"I'll check in with the ambulance to see where they are."

"We're running out of time, Ash," she says softly but with a slight tremble.

I'm hearing the words, but my eyes remain glued on Shorty, trying to read what she's telling me. Without having to hear the words, she's telling me to do whatever I need to do to save our baby, even if it means she may not survive it.

"Do it," Shorty's lips tremble, tears coating her flushed cheeks, and she groans in pain, fighting through it.

My strong girl.

"Ash, go downstairs and bring the bottle of vodka and a knife," I instruct, but Ash fights me on it.

"No! Fuck that."

"Ash, just do it." My words were a low growl, seething with frustration. It took every ounce of self-control I had not to lose my shit.

Ramsey quickly springs into action, walking briskly to the closet. With one hand, he reaches for a plush comforter and sets it down on the floor. He carefully lays our son on the comforter and runs out of the room to retrieve the supplies.

"D, are you fucking serious?" Ash yells.

I turn to face him. "We're running out of time! Just get the shit so I can save my kid!" I roar.

He rears back. "Are you telling me you're going to be okay with cutting up the love of your life with a dirty knife and no anesthetic? Are you seriously going to put her in that much pain?" he asks in disbelief.

I close my eyes.

"She could fucking die!" Ash screams in pain.

"And she'll die if I don't do anything!" I yell back.

Pain shoots me in my chest, and I want to cry.

No matter what I decide to do, I could lose one of them. But if I do nothing, I could lose them both. Am I prepared for that?

Shorty cries uncontrollably while trying to maintain her composure. However, she manages to say, "It"s okay, baby." Her words only add to my despair, and my heart sinks.

Ignoring the rants of Ash and Tia, I focus on the girl in front of me. I have to try, even if it is impossible. Fear makes my voice tremble as I speak. "I have to do this."

Shorty nods weakly, trusting me. The atmosphere in the room is suffocatingly tense as I gather my wits and prepare myself for the daunting task of delivering my child safely and saving the love of my life at the same time.

Just then, I notice Ramsey entering the room, carrying the supplies we need.

I take a deep breath, trying to steady my nerves. "Okay, baby, are you ready?" I ask, my hands shaking as I pick up a sterilized knife.

Shorty nods, her face contorted in pain as another contraction rips through her body. With trembling hands, I raise the knife to her stomach, ready to make the first incision, when the sound of sirens fills my ears.