Idina's secret was not a secret anymore. Her family had come to check up on her and they had noticed. Aaron was not going to lie to their faces, and he told them the truth and that it had been her secret to keep. She was received text upon texts from her parents. Apparently, before she had been brought home, she had had semi-coherent conversations with them. It must not have gone well because no one was telling her what she had said.

Well, technically they were texting Aaron. Idina was not allowed to see her reflection, or use her phone, any phone, but Aaron was making an exception. She complained and Aaron told her flatly she could recover here with her family or in a facility with visiting hours. He thought she would prefer the former, but if she wanted the latter, he would take her back. She did not want the latter, so she bit her lip and stopped complaining.

Doctors came by every few days. Idina was still in pain, still having moments of fog and memory loss. It was sometimes as simple as walking into a room and forgetting what she was going and other times she had no idea where she was. One time she forgot she was pregnant. Another she had forgotten she had married Aaron all together. Idina was worried. What if she forgot about Walker or Erika? She was on edge, never getting a peaceful sleep since it happened. She just referred to it as it. It was too much to think about.

Two weeks later and the swelling in her brain was going down, her episodes happened less often, and her dreams grew more troubled. Sometimes it was her on the floor. Sometimes she was watching Walker getting hurt. Other times her babies were clawing out of her stomach only to be squished under a boot. Aaron awoke her every time, pulled her out of the nightmare and held her until she fell back asleep. The one night he had been working late Erika had been the one to pull her out. Walked had come and curled up with the two of them and she awoke that morning after a deep, restful sleep with her two children on either side. Aaron had snapped a picture of that too, and it was formed and hanging beside the first picture he had ever taken of Erika and Idina asleep.

There were more now, of Erika and Walker mostly. But either way, there were more.

Erika's birthday was coming up. February 20th. They had no idea what to do. For Christmas, they had only gotten her a few things, things that were semi-reasonable and necessary to help ease her nerves. A Kindle and Amazon gift card so that she could buy herself books. It was a cheaper model, the waterproof Paperwhite so she could read in the shower or bath if she wanted. It had no data compatibility or audiobook ability as those models were expensive enough to make her uncomfortable even though it was nothing to them. They had also signed her up for Driver's Ed. And they bought her a few more pieces of clothes, some nicer items for an occasion since she had nothing but casual wear and her uniform.

Idina was thinking something small. Cake, some people she knew from school, Amanda. Some party games. They would use the backyard and trampoline, sleepover in the treehouse. It could be fun. The basketball court would be done by then, so they could play ball or do something else. Erika said she did not want a fuss made about it. Idina was okay with not making a big fuss, but she would make a fuss. It was Erika's first birthday with them. She would be seventeen.

Idina was suddenly aware of how much they had missed. First steps, words. Sweet sixteen. Whoever had been privy to those probably had not even cared. Or not cared enough in the end. She wanted this day to be special, but she had to respect Erika's wishes.

Aaron came out with a box of medical supplies. He was now her twenty-four-hour house nurse. He administered all her treatments and physiotherapy when the doctors were gone. He did it through kisses and encouraging words. Swallow the pill and we will make out; I will cover every place I kiss in gels and creams. It helped a lot. It was not cold or nonconsensual like it would have been in a hospital or rehabilitation facility. Aaron had the patience for her, even if it was the same routine every day.

He gave her a sympathetic look as he took out a machine. It was for her back. Electric jolts to stimulate her muscles. The doctors were very worried about the bruising muscles on her back. There was no spine damage, but if her muscles could not protect and support her spine, she could hurt herself easily. Apparently, it was safe when applied to her back. The current was not at a dangerous level, just a painful one. It was supposed to stimulate them and encourage them to heal. She had no idea if it was working, but she hated it and the physiotherapist, who came in once a week, insisted they do it every other day.

Idina closed her eyes and sighed. She hated this. The kids were at school, so they would not see her fuss and cry. But Aaron would have to hurt her, then leave for work. He hated it just as much as she did.

They did everything else first. At first, they had tried getting the though stuff over quickly, but it always put Idina in a bad mood and the last thing she wanted was Aaron making her do more. So, the stretched out her muscles, walked around the building, did the small work out she was supposed to do. Idina swallowed the large dry vitamins that scraped at her throat and spend half an hour writing out how she felt and what she feared, Dr. Hawthorne's recommendation. Aaron backed it up. He prescribed it a lot. And who knows, maybe it would help her find the lyrics to a song.

Aaron lightly massaged the bruised area before he started to apply the cups, kissing each area before she sterilized it and applied the gel. Idina had no idea what they were called, but she did not care. They were cold and she was scared. This always hurt.

"You good?" Aaron asked.

"No," she said. "I hate this."

"I hate doing this to you," he said. He kissed her forehead. "You're so brave." He squeezed her hand.

"If I hate this, and you hate this, we can just stop," she argued, as she had all the days prior.

"We can't, Dee. This is supposed to help."

"Just, talk to me," she said, "distract me."

"Of course," he said.

They were sitting on the couch in their room. It would be better if Idina could lay down, but her bump made the prone position impossible.

"One day I'm going to get one of those period cramp simulators and turn it up to ten," she informed him. "While you're asleep."

"I don't expect anything less," he said as he applied the last cup.

She kept her back to him because he did not want to see the small machine, even if she wanted to stare into his eyes. She took his free hand and squeezed it, letting him know it was okay to start. At first, it was just a tingle. Light, like a feather.

Aaron talked to her. He told her about work, or more accurately his breaks. He was getting close to the other therapists and councillors. They had adventures with food thieves and collective payback. Entitled clients who were not any of their clients and who had burst into their break room to tear them a new one about customer service.

"Shit," she said as he turned it up another notch. It stung but soon turned into an ache as she adjusted to it. She squeezed his hand as he turned it up another one and it stung just a tad bit more. "How many more?" she asked.

"Three," he replied.

She swore once more and squeezed his hand. "Just give me a second to rest babe," she said, not quite ready for the next level.

"Want me to move them up all at once?" he asked. It would be over quicker.

"Are you supposed to do that?" she asked.

"Maybe, they said to take your time to make sure you're comfortable." Idina snorted at this. "But they said all I had to do was get it up to ten and keep it there for three minutes."

"Just do it then," she said, closing her eyes and taking deep breaths. One, two- he did it and she cried out even though she did not want to. She squeezed his hand so tightly she was worried she might hurt him, but she could not break her grip until the pain turned into a throbbing ache. She had to try and keep her back muscles calm. Tensing up would not help. She needed to be relaxed so she took everything out on Aaron's hand.

Aaron sang to her as they waited out the three minutes. His phone timer went off and he turned the dial down to zero, then cleaned her back off. He massaged her a bit too, kissing her neck as he did so. Anything she wanted.

"It's all over," he said.

"For today," she muttered.

"You're doing so much better." It was true. Her range of mobility had increased from where it had been a few weeks ago when Aaron had to do everything for her from taking her to the bathroom to helping her sit upright and eat. Now she could get around the house. She was not stuck in whatever room Aaron left her in until he came home from work.

He still had a half-hour until he had to leave, so he held her against him, and they talked baby names. They had already decided against naming the twins after anyone they knew, or anything affiliated with any of their works. These were going to be their only children and they did not want to play favourites and create rifts. They also did not want the boys to grow up with their parent's fame looming over them if their calling was not acting. Like Walker, whose calling was basketball, or like Aaron who had found his true purpose as a therapist. They had some books that were like dictionaries for names. Millions, all in alphabetical order with their origins and meanings. They circled ones they liked, then googled them. If they liked what was produced by a google search, they wrote it down, if not, they left it.

So far, they had narrowed it down to ten for each boy. They were thinking they would each name one, chose first and middle names from the lists. By they had to get twenty down to four, maybe six if they wanted to push it.

It helped that Idina felt like she knew them, knew their personalities. From the way the kicked each other or reacted when they were spoken too. She knew the larger weight on her left side was fussy beyond belief while the strong kicker on her right only seemed to do so when antagonized. Not even born yet at these two were already bickering. Hopefully, when they were no longer confined to the same space, they would get along better.

Aaron brought her pills for the morning. Not her vitamins. The pills. She had gone over every label and read every ingredient. Most of it was over the counter stuff that was not strong enough to do much more than take the edge off because she had refused everything else the doctors had tried to prescribe her.

He laid them all out for her and got her a glass of water. Swallow the pills and they will make out. She closed her eyes and went down the line in a few seconds. She was getting better at it. When she was done, she leaned in for a kiss. She knew she could get one whenever she wanted, but the idea of a reward made everything so much easier to do. Today she did not go for a quick peck. He needed to make up for that infernal torture machine he had just subjected her to.

"You're spending more time with Walker, right?" Idina asked when they were done.

Aaron nodded. Aaron had been granted emergency custody of Walker with Idina in the hospital, and they were currently working to get Idina full custody of Walker until Taye gets out of rehab. She was worried that Walker was going to suffer without his dad around and hoping that Aaron could help in some way. Walker needed a father figure. Especially now.

"I'm worried about him," she said.

"We're doing the best we can," comforted Aaron.

Idina nodded. "This is just so messed up."

Aaron sat back down beside her and pulled her into his lap. "I know babe, but as I said, we're doing the best we can." He kissed her cheek. "You're good at home today?'

"Yeah," she replied. "I've been thinking of going back to the studio soon," she said truthfully. "I'm starting to go stir crazy. But then we would have to announce the pregnancy. Rumours would start if we didn't."

"You do not have to do anything you do not want to do. Let the rumours run wild if you want too."

"I don't want to do that to the projects though. I do not think that fair to them. The studio backed one would be fine, but the indie one would not recover. They are relying on me. I love this project so much. Did I tell you I am playing two characters? It's just so interesting I wish I could talk about it!"

He was smiling. "If you want to go back, we can ask the doctors when they think it will be a good idea. You can do whatever you want about the pregnancy. Just make sure they know I am father, 'kay babe?" he joked, earning himself a chuckle. "I want everyone to know I've slept with you." She snorted.

"Everyone already knows that," she said with an eye roll. "I'm pretty sure I said on a radio station that I check out horoscopes to make sure we were sexually compatible before I agreed to marry you."

"And are we?"

"Are we what?"

"Sexually compatible?"

"You tell me, Sherlock."

"I'd say so," he said with a grin. He hugged her and kissed her cheek. "I have to go to work now, but you're sure you're good?"

"Yeah," she said. "I'll be fine. I have so many books to read anyway. And I am supposed to be doing Pilates, so I've got stuff to do."

"Alright, I'll see you later love. Hold down the fort while I'm out."

"I am the fort, dumbo. Look at me. It's a warzone in there." She put his hand against her stomach where the twins were fighting. He smiled, rubbing her bump. He planted a kiss on it, then told the boys to be good for mommy and that daddy loves them before she followed him to the door and helped him with his coat.

~

That evening they decided to get a dog. The four of them went out to a dog shelter, calling ahead and asking if they could come during a quiet time or after hours and promising extra compensation because of paparazzi. The shelter seemed glad, having many bad encounters with paparazzi. Either way, they were descended upon the second someone noticed that Idina was leaving the house. Everyone wanted a picture of her bruised face and arms, and less than perfect posture.

Walker screamed at them. It was not cute, like when he was little. He was about to blow a blood vessel. Idina kept telling him to stop. This would end up online and people would see it when he got older. He stopped but gave everyone a livid stare.

Aaron drove and managed to lose their stalker paparazzo in the traffic. He pulled into the shelter and looked around. No one was suspicious. They all quickly ran into the shelter.

The family was greeted by a kind employee who showed them all their dogs. They wanted a smaller or medium-sized dog, one that would be okay at home for a while by itself and one that would be good with toddlers. They had told everything but the latter to the employee and she had a good understanding of what they wanted as many celebrities adopted from here.

She brought them to a room where they had chosen some dogs that would fit well with their lifestyle. Walker was quick to fall to his knees and get showered in dig kisses, wanting all of them. Idina chuckled and got down as well, petting the dogs, and playing with them, asking the employees questions.

Walker seemed to like a pug-labrador mix that had black fur and little white heart-shaped mark near his nose. Idina petted him. He was full of slobbery kisses. She looked up at Aaron with a smile. He crouched down and pet the little guy too, which suddenly drew the attention of every other pup and they were berated by about seven dogs all wanting attention.

After a few moments, Idina looked around for Erika. She was sitting cross-legged in a corner with a white dog in her lap. Idina crawled over. The dog was sweet, looking up at Idina with cute brown eyes and a happy expression, tail wagging.

"Aw, cute," Walker said when he noticed.

They all came over and after a few minutes, it seemed like this was the dog they wanted. Aaron and Idina asked all about him. His name was Louie and he was a west highland terrier. He was four years old and was good with children of all ages and did not bark that much despite his size. With something to do, he could be left alone for the day while everyone was at work and school. His old family had left him here, after a divorce and no one wanted the dog, but they had children ages four and three so the shelter knew he was good with young kids even though it wasn't common for his breed. He was nine kilograms. And he was perfect for them.

Idina picked the dog up. "Hey Louie," she said, "I think you're coming home with us." She got a kiss on the nose and a small bark with lots of tail wagging.

While Aaron filled out all the adoption forms, Idina decided they would buy everything they needed here at the shelter. It was more expensive, but it supported a good cause. She picked out some toys, a crate, bed, leash and collar, and a few treats and food. Erika and Walker loaded it into the truck as Aaron and Idina finalized the adoption.

She wished adopting Erika would be this easy, but at the same time, she knew why it was not.

They loaded Louie into the crate and covered it with a towel so that he did not get nervous in the car ride. Walker was grinning and Erika seemed happy too. They had also asked for a list of trainers just in case, though Aaron was semi determined to train Louie as an ESA if possible.

When they got home, the paparazzi were waiting for them, cameras flashing. Aaron sent his family inside quickly with the dog crate. He unloaded the rest of the supplies while the cameramen were outside the gate, asking him questions and taking pictures of him. He said nothing and went about his business.

When he got inside, Idina was sitting on the couch with Louie, who was just as interested in her swelling stomach as Walker was. Idina had her bump exposed and the white furball as sniffing and licking it. They all felt like he knew exactly what was up with the star.

Louie barked a lot, but it was cheerful and manageable. And they did not have neighbours close enough to be annoyed. Erika was smiling and petting him.

The scene made Aaron smile like a maniac with an ear to ear grin. Idina looked up at him, mirroring his expression, her hand in Louie's fur. Walker seemed just as happy. He had decided that Louie would sleep in his room and was setting up the bed there, then he came down to show Louie his bed.

Idina shook her head, smiling. "So is Walker taking care of Louie too?" she chuckled.

"I'll help out," Erika said with more enthusiasm than she generally had for anything.

"I know you will," Aaron said. "Maybe Louie should stay in your room." When it came to night terrors, Walker never had any and Idina had Aaron.

She shook her head. "I don't want the fur," she said.

"His breed doesn't shed that much," Idina reminded her.

"I'm good," she replied.

For supper, they just made oven pizza. They ate it quickly, then fed Louie and spend the rest of the evening playing with him and doing homework. When the dog was tuckered out, Walker carried him up to his room.

"This was a great idea," Idina said. "Now I've got someone to keep me company and to encourage me to work out more." He only needed about twenty to forty minutes of exercise a day, so Idina could take him on two walks if she wanted. Runs once the twins came. Walker could too. Or Aaron and Erika. Everyone wanted to care for the pup.

They retired upstairs. Walker was asleep, the dog asleep on Walker's bed, not the dog bed. Walker had a hand in the white coat, and he looked happy.

"Are we going to allow this?" Idina asked. "I don't want to tell Walker no, but I'm not sure about the dog on the bed."

"Dee, we both knew this dog was going to be spoiled rotten and neither of us has enough heart to say no the kids with a cute dog in the picture."

"True," she said in agreement. Especially now with everything going on. If Louie helped Walker out, what harm would letting him sleep on the bed be? Besides, it was not like he was going to get big. He was maxed size right now.

"I haven't seen you smile in a while," Aaron observed. He took her hand and tucked some hair behind her ear, making her blush through the bruises.

"I haven't felt this centred in a while," she admitted. She gave his hand an encouraging squeeze. She looked back at Walker. "This was a really good idea, I can feel it," she said.

She led him into their bedroom and sat down on the couch.

"Can I look at myself in the mirror now?" she asked. "It's been a while and I kind of saw a bit of myself in the car mirrors anyway, and I'd like to know what the press is seeing from those paparazzi pictures."

"Um," Aaron stuttered, giving it proper consideration. "Are you sure?"

"Is it that bad?"

"Well... I mean I think your beautiful, but I'm not sure if you should see, yet."

"So it is that bad." There was a hint of exasperation in her soft voice. She was trying to keep a level head, but hormones made that hard, especially when she was in constant pain.

"I'm just worried for you Dee. With everything happening and the twins. I don't want you to start stressing out and spiralling about this."

"I won't!"

"Are you sure?" he asked calmly in a serious tone. It snapped Idina out of her state.

"I think it will happen either way," she admitted "I'm a worrier. These two are making it worse," she said, gesturing to her stomach. "I just want to know. I'm an adult, not a child."

"If you were in rehabilitation, they wouldn't let you."

"You've been saying that for weeks. How do you know?"

There was a pause.

"I'm sorry, that was mean," Idina muttered.

"You're frustrated," he said sympathetically. "I've been keeping you locked up."

"You're trying to do what's best for me and since it's you and not a doctor I keep acting like that changes my recovery."

"It does, that's why I pushed for it. I think it is better for you. And Walk and Erika and me." He took both her hands supportively. He ran his thumbs over the back of her hands. "If you think you can handle it, you probably can," he admitted after a minute. "And if not, I'm here for you. I just don't want someone to decide this was a bad idea and send you away for a bit."

"Maybe we shouldn't then," she sighed. "I want to stay here. This is my house for crying out loud." She swore. "I mean ours; I mean, you know what I mean," she sighed.

"Yeah I do, don't worry Chickadee." He dipped a finger under her chin and coaxed her to look up at him. "I think you're so amazing and doing so well. And if you want to, you know yourself well enough to know when you are ready. I trust you, Dee."

"Thank you," she said, even though she was not quite sure why.

"Come, we'll do this together." He led her to their ensuite bathroom and instructed her to close her eyes while he removed the garbage bag he had duct-taped over the mirror. Then he walked up behind her and put his hand over hers slowly taking them down from her face. Her eyes were still closed. Idina took a deep breath before opening them.

Immediately, she looked at Aaron's reflection. His chin was resting in the crook of her neck and tangled in her hair. He had his loving expression as they locked eyes through their reflections. Then she looked at herself. Her face was swollen, black and blue, with a clear line where she had been cut by the toe of Taye's boot. It was similar to the marks on her arms and legs but seeing it on her face was just... it was making it all so real.

With slow movements, she touched her face, tracing the marks on her cheekbones and touching the cut on her lip that was smaller yet more visible than she had anticipated. There was a painful budge on her forehead she thought she had been exaggerating, but it was just as intense as she had imagined.

And her face was going to be everywhere. The shelter employees had been so kind not to stare. She was going to call in an even better tip for them than the one she had left. She could not believe she was letting Walker see her like this, knowing his father had left the marks. Erika did not deserve to have this be the face of kindness in her life.

"Are you good?" Aaron asked after a moment, still trapping her in his embrace.

"I think so," she said.

"It looks a lot better than it did," he said. "I know that's not really comforting, but I kind of think it is."

"I'm sorry you have to see me like this," she said, still talking to his reflection. "It's not fair on anyone." She held his arms as he rocked her back and forth. "How many chances do we have left?" she asked.

"Hm?"

"The twins. How many chances do we have left? This is what, our third scare? How many times until it is not a scare? When does this end?"

"I don't know," he admitted. "We've made it this far. You have just got to hold out till June 2nd, babe. We are almost there. February's a few days away." His hands slipped down to her bump. "We're going to have to sturdy, indestructible children after this," he said, nibbling at her earlobe and making her chuckle. "I believe this will work out and I believe in you. You have made it this far; you have made it through the most dangerous part. You'll make it through the rest of it."

"May I have my phone back now?" she asked with an eye-roll.

"Sure," he said. "Once I figure out what I did with it," he teased. He kissed her cheek and looked back at her through the mirror. "I love you. Nothing will ever change that. I am going to fight tooth and nail for this family. For you, for everyone."

"Don't put that all on yourself," she muttered, turning so that she was looking at him and not his reflection. "It's not good for you to have that burden. We need to share it."

"I agree, but you've been carrying this by yourself for too long. I'm going to carry it, or at the very least you, until we are both able to share the weight."

Idina yawned. "Lets got o bed baby," she said. "I'm tired. My feet hurt."

"Do you want an ice bath and massage?" he asked.

"That does sound nice," she lamented as they made their way back to the bed.

He helped her change because she still did not have the motion to do it herself. He massaged her feet and soaked them in a bowl of cold water he for from the tap. Just as Idina was about to lay down, they heard Louie barking.

"I'll deal-" Aaron started.

Idina interjected. "No, both of us," she said. "I love the crazy dog already."

They walked out into the hallway where Louie was pawing at Erika's door. Walker was standing in his doorway, tired. He was rubbing his eyes and holding the jean quilt.

Aaron and Idina exchanged questioning glances. There could be a million reasons why the dog wanted into the room.

Arron knocked on the door. "Erika?" he asked, "you good?"

No reply. She could be asleep. Erika teetered between being the lightest sleeper in the world and sleeping like the dead, depending on the situation. It was always extremes with her. Aaron opened the door and Louie rushed in. He jumped up onto the bed where Erika seemed to be in the first stages of night terrors and started licking her face and yipping, trying to wake her up. Both Aaron and Idina walked over to the bed and gently shoot her awake so that the dog did not frighten her.

Seemingly satisfied, Louie turned himself around three times in Erika's lap and laid down. Idina pet the dog.

"Good boy," she said, kissing Erika's temple. Then she looked up at her daughter. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," she said steadily.

"Did something happen at school today?"

"No," the girl replied. She had a hand in Louie's white fur too and the dog's tail was wagging and thumping against the bed like a battering-ram.

Aaron put an arm around his daughter, and she leaned into his chest, making both Aaron and Idina smile. She was so much more comfortable now than she had been her first night. Walker came in too, feeling left out. He smiled at Louie.

"He can stay in your room if you want," Walker told his sister.

"I'm fine Walk," she said with a nice smile.

"You sure?" he asked, but Idina shot him a glance that told him to drop it.

Louie started licking Erika's hand, making her giggle. She ruffled the fur on his back and scratched him behind the ears. Idina now felt confident they had done the smartest thing since they started this adoption with Erika. Dogs loved unconditionally unless you were literally the scum of the earth. And even then, a very stubborn and loyal dog might still stick by your side. It would be interesting to see who Louie started to favour as time went on or if he would decide the entire family was under his charge.

Everyone sat there on Erika's bed, playing with the newest addition to their family and losing track of time.

"There's school tomorrow," Idina reminded everyone when she saw the clock by Erika's bedside.

"Boo," said Walker. "I want to stay at home. Who'll play with Louie?" The Westie perked up upon hearing his name.

"I'll play with him," Idina said. "You can walk him in the morning and in the afternoon when you come back from school and play with him then."

"Boo," the kid echoed again, this time in defeat knowing he would not win the argument. Then he yawned.

"Back to bed," Idina ordered.

Walker refused by cuddling close and feigning sleep. She looked over for Aaron to help, maybe to carry him back to his room, but he had a sleepy Erika dozing on his chest. He was wearing an expression like the one she had seen when he had first touched her stomach and first seen the ultrasound. Pure, simple, and unconditional love for another human being. No one was taking this girl away from them.

She figured they could just all stay here, but she was not sure how comfortable Erika would be with that or if there was room for four of them plus a dog.

"Hey," Aaron said quietly to Erika. "Do you want me to stay here or are you good?'

"Stay here," she said, melting their hearts. She hugged Aaron, who smiled and kissed the top of her head. Maybe there would be enough room on the double bed. Not as much as in the master bedroom, but enough.

"Okay," Aaron said. He gave Idina an apologetic look, but there was nothing to apologize for. They were both trapped by their love for the children. Idina and her inability to deny Walker comfort and Aaron with his inability to do the same for Erika.

They all slowly started to adjust, Walker moving to be between Erika and Idina, the former still wrapped in Aaron's arms. It was not the most comfortable for Idina without her body pillow, but she was stuck a perpetual ache anyways so she would barely notice it. Louie scampered around for a bit, sniffing, and trying to figure out exactly where to sleep, but he soon settled for the foot of the bed, underneath Walker's and in between Erika's and Idina's.

n/a I have chosen first names but forgot about middle names, so suggestions? If there are some that work with what I have chosen, I will use those or use your suggestions as a starting point.