2085

"Luka! Get back here, please!" Alexander cried, sighing and chasing the three-year-old down the hall. The little boy only giggled in response, ducking into his bedroom.

"We'll be there as soon as we can," he heard Jaden say from the living room. "Alex is just trying to get Luka sorted." There was more chatting but Alex paid it no mind, concentrating on trying to get his son ready to go.

Luka was sitting on his bed when he walked into the room, hiding underneath the thick blanket. Alex stifled a laugh and made his way over. He pulled the blanket from the bed and Luka let out a shocked gasp. "How did you find me?" he asked.

"I'm magic," Alex said. "Now, come on, you need to put your shoes on."

"I don't want to!" Luka cried, crossing his arms over his chest and pouting.

Alexander frowned, squatting down on his knees to face the little boy. "Why not? Don't you want to go meet your sister?" he asked.

"No!"

"But you said you did yesterday."

"Well, now I don't want a sister."

"Why not?" Alex asked, but the boy didn't reply. He let out a huff and moved further up the bed away from him. Sitting on the bed, he reached out for him, bringing the young boy closer to him. "You know daddy and I love you, right?"

"Yeah," Luka said, climbing into Alex's lap and snuggling against his chest.

"We're still going to love you even with your sister around, okay?" he said. "We're going to love you both the same. And when she's big enough, she'll love you too. You'll have someone new to play with."

"How long will that take?" Luka asked in his high pitched voice.

"Only a couple of years," Alex answered.

"But that's so far away!"

"I know, but it will go by quickly," he said. "And daddy and I will play with you while we wait for her to get bigger, okay?"

"Alex, we need to go!" Jaden called from the living room.

"Two minutes!" he yelled back before turning to look at his son again. "Come on, put on your shoes. We have to get to the hospital." Luka huffed again but jumped from Alex's lap to grab his shoes. Alex helped him tie up the laces. They were still teaching Luka how to do it properly and it was taking some time.

Luka grabbed his hand as they made their way from the room and towards the front door of their little house, where Jaden was waiting with bags in his hands. "Come on," the younger man said, limbs trembling from excitement. His soulmate had been like that when Luka had come along as well, all jittery and nervous. Alex had been terrified. He hoped this time would not be a repeat of the first for him.

They were packed and ready in the car before he could even blink. All Jaden had to do was press a button and they were off towards the hospital. Luka played with his favourite teddy bear, not paying much attention to his stressed fathers in front of him.

"How are you feeling?" Alex asked his soulmate. He grabbed his clammy hand, holding it tightly in his lap.

"I'm more than a little terrified," Jaden said. "Abigail's already gone into labour and I don't want to miss our daughter being born."

"We're not going to miss it, Jaden," he replied. "She's only having contractions at the moment. We'll get there in time." Despite him trying to comfort Jaden, even he could feel the worry of missing his daughters birth.

She didn't have a name yet because the couple couldn't agree on one, but she was Alex's biological child. Luka had been conceived using Jaden's sperm and their good friend, Abigail's, womb. This time around, Alex wanted a child of his own, one that would look like him.

Jaden had been the one to propose the idea of Luka to Alex, saying that he wanted a child. Alex had thought about it a little, but had been too scared to bring it up with Jaden. After that, he was desperate to hold a child of his own in his arms. The process had been long, but eventually, they met Abigail, a young woman who was willing to carry the child for them

The young woman had liked them from the start and was honoured (her words) to help the couple have a child of their own. Luka had come along quicker than they ever expected, but the little boy made them so happy. He was always laughing and wanting to play with them. He looked so much like Jaden, with the same hair and eye colour. They even had the same nose, which made Alex laugh for a reason he didn't quite understand.

Abigail had been overjoyed to hear they wanted another child and once again offered up her body to help them out. Over the three years they had had Luka, Abigail had become something of an aunt to the young boy. Luka loved her and always wanted her to come around. She had become like family very quickly.

"We still don't know what her name is," Jaden whispered, bringing Alex back to reality.

"We'll figure it out, we have time," he said. "It might be better to think of one after she's born." Alex was going to have the final say on what they named their daughter, mostly because she was biologically his. Jaden had chosen Luka's name, so it only seemed fair.

The world flashed by outside the windows until they were pulling up to the hospital car park. Luka was munching on a packet of biscuits Alex had given him and Jaden was on the phone to Abigail again. Hopping out of the car, the younger man dragged them through the hallways of the hospital until they reached the reception desk.

"Is daddy okay?" Luka asked while Jaden talked to the receptionist.

"Yeah, kiddo, daddy's fine," Alexander answered. "He's just trying to find where Abigail is."

"Thank you, thank you," Jaden said before turning and grabbing Alex's hand. "This way." They made their way down the halls and past crisp white rooms, Luka babbling away as they went. Abigail was sat in a room with a nurse far down the hall.

"Hi, guys," she muttered as they walked in, face covered in a sheen of sweat. "You're just in time."

The next few hours were filled with screams and sweat and a crying toddler. Multiple times Alex and Jaden had to take Luka outside so he could calm down. They didn't let him in the room with Abigail for very long because he didn't like the sound of her in pain. Every time they left the room Alex was scared he would miss his daughter being born but making sure his son was okay was more important.

Towards the end of it, Jaden was sitting out in the hall with a sobbing Luka while Alexander stayed inside with Abigail. She was holding his hand in a vice-like grip, but he didn't mind, he was too busy focusing on what the doctor was saying. It wouldn't be long before he was holding his daughter in his arms.

A piercing cry rang out around the room and Alex let out a loud gasp. The screaming baby girl was red and covered in things Alex didn't particularly want to think about. The umbilical cord was cut and the baby cleaned. He was frozen to his seat, wanting desperately to get up and hold his child.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a nurse leave the room to get Jaden and Luka. The doctor made her way over to him, his squirming child in her arms. She said something to him, but he didn't hear it, he was too busy focusing on his daughter. The crying baby was placed gently in his outstretched arms.

Tears welled in his eyes as he stared at her. She stopped crying and stared up at him, arms waving about in the air. He laughed and grabbed at her tiny hand. Abigail smiled at him from the bed, a tired expression on her young face. "I'm so happy for you," she said. "I'm going to be the aunt for this one too."

Alexander laughed as Jaden and Luke came into the room, rushing towards him and the baby. "Oh, she's beautiful," Jaden muttered, crouching down next to him and staring at the little girl. "I can't believe she's actually here."

"Neither can I," Alex replied. The baby girl started crying again, the noise causing him to let out a little chuckle.

"Is this my sister?" Luka asked, poking his head around Jaden's arm. He was hugging his toy and staring at his sister with wide eyes.

"Yeah, kiddo, this is her," Jaden said, running his hand down Luka's back.

"She's so red, like a ruby," the three-year-old said, a frown on his face.

Alexander let out a loud laugh. "That's normal, they all look like that," he said.

"Oh. What are you gonna call her?" Luka asked.

He looked over to Jaden, who was still staring down at their daughter with awe in his eyes. "Why not Sarah?" he suggested. Images of his late best friend swam in his mind. She couldn't be there for his Ceremony or the birth of both his children, but she was still important to him. Her name would be fitting.

Jaden looked up at him as he spoke, tears welling in his eyes. "It's old fashioned, but I like it," he replied before staring down at the baby again. "Hi, Sarah, hi." She began to cry in his arms, her tiny face screwing up.

Hours later they were watching her through a window. She was sleeping soundly, small chest rising and falling peacefully. Other babies were crying or wriggling around, but she was dead to the world. Alex hoped her dreams were peaceful.

Luka was sitting on the seats behind, making fighting noises with his toys. They'd left Abigail to rest and would visit her again in the morning to make sure she was doing okay. Alex couldn't thank her enough for everything she'd done for them. They would have adopted if she hadn't come along, which wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but he hadn't realised how much he'd wanted a biological child until he held Luka and Sarah in his arms.

"I'll never get over how small they are," Jaden muttered next to him, one hand pressed against the glass. Alex chuckled in response, not taking his eyes away from his child. "I can't believe she's ours."

"Neither can I," he whispered, grabbing Jaden's hand in his own. Happiness washed over him. He had his soulmate next to him and two beautiful, healthy children, one that was biologically his. "She's perfect. They both are."