About twenty minutes after Carina was taken back, there was a knock on the door and in walked Cindy, the nurse who had been with them on Carina's diagnosis day.
"Hey," she said, "I just came from the OR, and Carina is doing great. I asked Dr. Cho if I could be there to just observe and bring you updates so I will be back and forth a lot while she is in there. Is there anything you need?"
"No," Maya said, shaking her head, "Thank you so much for being there. It really means a lot to me."
"Of course," Cindy said before looking at Andy, "Sorry, I'm Cindy, one of the OB/GYN nurses here."
"She also has a spouse who had cancer," Maya said, looking at her friend to explain a little more, "She was with us the whole day when Carina was getting her initial diagnosis."
"Nice to meet you," Andy smiled, "I'm Andy. I am one of Maya's friends from the station."
"Nice to meet you," Cindy said, "I'm glad you aren't alone today Maya."
"Same," the blonde said, nodding.
"Well, I am going to go get back to the OR," Cindy said, "I have my cell so if you need anything, just text me, ok?"
"Thank you," Maya nodded as Cindy left.
"She seems nice," Andy said, looking at Maya.
"She is," Maya said, "She...having her to talk to on the day when it felt like our world was crashing in around us was very helpful to me. Her husband had colon cancer ten years ago I think she said, and he is better now. He actually works here in the lab. But knowing there was someone else who knew what I was feeling on that day was...It's hard to explain, but it meant a lot."
"I'm glad you had her," Andy said, smiling at her best friend.
Just then, Maya's phone started ringing.
"Damn it," Maya said, looking at it, "It's daycare. Hello?"
"Hi Maya," Nicole said on the other end, "I hate to call you, but Nora is really upset and she just won't settle down. We gave her her Tylenol, but it doesn't seem to have done anything."
"I'll be right there," Maya said, standing up, "Bye."
"What's wrong?" Andy said.
"Nora is cutting teeth," Maya said, heading toward the door, "And she is miserable. She woke up at midnight last night and didn't sleep well all night and now she is being a bear in daycare. I'm just gonna keep her with me today."
"Ok," Andy said, "Well, I will wait here."
"I'll be back soon," Maya said, heading down to the daycare. She could hear Nora crying as she neared the area of the childcare center, sighing as she walked up to the door. "Hey," Nicole said, walking over to her with Nora in her arms, "I'm so sorry. We tried everything to get her to settle, but..."
"No, I know," Maya said, reaching for Nora, the toddler instantly gripping onto her with a death grip, "She is miserable when she is cutting teeth. I'm sorry she was so difficult."
"It's ok," Nicole said, "Do you want her bag?"
"Yeah," Maya nodded, "I'll probably just keep her with me the rest of the day."
"Ok," Nicole said, "Well, if she starts feeling better, feel free to bring her back. Rowan has been very concerned about Nora, but she has been doing well this morning."
"She is very sensitive to other people's emotions," Maya said, bouncing a little with Nora who was still fussing a little, "Especially people in our family. Hopefully she will be ok with Nora gone. If she's not, let me know."
"Ok," Nicole said, handing Maya Nora's bag, "Oh, how is Carina? Is she in surgery?"
"She is," Maya nodded, "She is doing well so far from what I have heard."
"Good," Nicole smiled, "Well, I hope her surgery goes well and that Nora here starts feeling better soon."
"Thanks," Maya said, "Maybe I'll go see if I can get someone to steal some popsicles for her."
Nicole laughed, nodding as Maya grabbed their stroller, tossing Nora's bags into it before back to her wife's office.
"Mamma?" Nora said as they walked to the office.
"Mamma isn't here right now," Maya said, "But Tia Andy is."
"No, Mommy," Nora said, burying her head in Maya's neck.
"I'm right here," Maya said, pushing the stroller into the office.
"Hi Nora," Andy said, smiling at her as Maya sat back down on the couch.
"Mommy," Nora fussed, starting to cry a little.
"She is very emotional right now," Maya said, "And probably exhausted."
"Ok," Andy said, "No talking to Nora, got it. Do you have someone taking the twins tonight?"
"No," Maya grumbled, "Carina wants me to go home with the twins while she is here which will probably be tonight and tomorrow night, maybe the night after too."
"Oh," Andy said, "I just assumed you would stay here."
"I wanted to," Maya said, rubbing Nora's back as she fussed a little, "But Carina wants to keep things as normal as possible for the twins at home, and honestly with Nora teething, it's probably best that I am the one with them. We talked about maybe having them go stay with someone the first few days Carina is home because she is probably going to be in pain and needing a lot of help, but we haven't made any definitive decisions."
"Well, if you need help finding people to watch them, just ask, ok?" Andy said, "Amelia and I have everyone's availabilities all week who can/are willing to watch them."
"You are the best," Maya said, smiling at her friend, "Thank you."
"Of course," Andy said, "And if you need meals, those can start tonight."
"We have leftover lasagna Andrew made for us last night," Maya said, "But thank you."
"We just want to make sure you guys are taken care of," Andy said, shrugging, "We are your village."
"Thank you," Maya said, smiling at her a little before she yawned.
"Wait, so if this little munkin was up at midnight..." Andy said, looking at her friend.
"Yes, Carina and I were also up," Maya nodded, "I hadn't fallen asleep yet when she woke up, and I don't know that Carina had either. And neither of us went to sleep after she was in our bed."
"Oh Maya, are you sure you don't want me to try to take her so you can nap?" Andy said, looking at her best friend.
"I don't think I would nap now even if I was alone," Maya said, biting her lip, "I...I just...I need to know she's ok."
Tears started falling down Maya's cheeks against her will, Andy moving closer to her, putting her hand on Maya's back.
"She's gonna be ok," Andy said gently, "She has the best doctors and the best care. She is going to be ok." Maya just held Nora close, suddenly very glad she had one of her babies in her arms at the moment.
"Mommy otay?" Nora asked, picking up her head and realizing her mom was crying.
"I'm ok," Maya said, trying hard to stop her tears, "I'm ok. I was just a little bit sad because Mamma isn't here right now and I miss her."
Nora just laid her head down, giving Maya a hug, "Lub ou Mommy."
"I love you too Nora," Maya said, hugging her back, "So much."
Over the next hour or so, Maya spent a good amount of time pacing around the office, partly because Nora was miserably fussy and also because she needed to move her body.
Cindy came and let they know when they had successfully removed everything that needed to be removed, telling them Carina was doing well, and that they were just working on making sure everything was taken care of properly before they started to close. Cindy said it would probably be about an hour before Maya was able to be reunited with her wife.
About two hours after Carina's surgery started, there was a knock on the office door, Travis and Vic walking in with coffee and a box of what looked like donuts as well as a container of fresh fruit.
"Hey," Travis said, setting down the coffee and fruit he had in his hands, "How are things going?"
"They are probably closing her now," Maya said, looking at the clock, "Cindy said it should be about 10:30-11 when I can see her again so they should be almost done."
"Every update we have gotten is that Carina is kicking ass like we all expected," Andy said, taking the coffee from Vic.
"And what is my favorite little bean doing here?" Travis asked, moving so Nora could see him, the toddler immediately reaching for him.
"She's cutting teeth," Maya said, smiling as she watched her daughter lay her head on Travis's shoulder, "And she didn't really sleep last night. I'm shocked she went to you because she wouldn't even let Andy look at her earlier."
"That's because I'm her favorite," Travis said, rubbing her back, "Right Bean."
"My Unca Tee," Nora said, holding him tightly.
"Is Rowan in daycare?" Vic asked, handing Maya the coffee they had gotten for her.
"Yeah," Maya nodded, "Nora was too for a little while, but she is just so miserable that I had to go get her."
"Well, we brought sustenance," Travis said, "There is fruit and pastries. I know you probably didn't eat this morning Maya."
"No," the blonde said, "And I'm not really hungry now."
"You should eat something," Andy said, "You know that once Carina is done in surgery, you are going to want to be with her, but you need to also take care of you. Do it for her if not for you."
"Fine," Maya grumbled, grabbing a fork and stabbing a piece of mango, taking a bite.
They all sat there, Nora staying with Travis, eating part of a croissant and some fruit before curling up in his arms with her fingers in her mouth.
At 10:30, Maya was up and pacing again, looking at the clock every five seconds.
"What if something happened?" Maya said at 10:45, "What if her heart stopped or if she had a blood clot that went to her brain and gave her a stroke or if her body just gave up or if she bled out on the table or..."
"Hey," Andy said, getting up, "No, we are not spinning right now, ok? Carina is fine. Everything is fine. Just breathe ok? Breathe."
Maya nodded, taking a shaky breath before she started pacing again.
"Trav, why don't you take Nora for a walk?" Vic said, not really wanting the toddler to see the blonde breaking down and it seemed like that's where things were heading at this point.
"Ok," Travis said, looking down at Nora, "Bean, do you want to go see the pretty paintings?"
"Mommy," Nora said, wrinkling her eyebrows, looking just like Carina.
"Come here Piccola," Maya said, walking over to Travis and picking her daughter up, holding her close as she paced, the feeling of the toddler in her arms calming her somewhat.
However, as 11 came and went and there was still no word, Maya was clearly starting to panic more which was agitating Nora who had started fussing again.
"Ok," Travis said as Nora started full on sobbing, "Bean, why don't you come here and we will go see the paintings upstairs."
Nora was still crying but went to Travis without issue and he quickly left the room before she changed her mind.
"Something happened," Maya said, hands on top of her head as she paced, her breathing increasing, "Why isn't she done yet? She should be done? Something happened. Oh god, I can't be a single mom. I can't do it. I..."
"Maya," Vic said, getting up and getting in Maya's way, stopping her from pacing, "Hey, look at me ok? Breathe with me. Come on."
It took about five minutes, but eventually, Maya managed to calm her breathing down some.
Just as Andy was about to give her reassurance again, there was a knock on the door and in walked Dr. Cho and Cindy.
"Is she ok?" Maya asked, immediately going to them, "Please, is my wife ok?"
"She is," Dr. Cho said. Vic was glad she was still standing because when Dr. Cho said that, Maya's knees all but gave out and Vic had to quickly grab her.
"Woah," Andy said, getting up also, "Hey, why don't we sit, ok?"
Maya nodded, her two friends helping her sit down.
"Sorry," Maya said, wiping the tears off her face, "Sorry. I'm ok. So, Carina is ok?"
"She is," Dr. Cho said, "She had a bit of unexpected bleeding which is why things took a little longer, but we got it under control and are giving her a unit of blood to combat the blood loss, but she is on her way to recovery. Cindy will take you up there in about ten minutes to see her. Other than the extra bleeding, everything went very well. She has two drains in to help with the swelling, but I am hoping those will be out by tomorrow night. She is probably going to be in a lot of pain for the next few days like we talked about, but we have her on some strong pain killers so that should help. Because of the bleeding, she is probably going to have to stay an extra 24 hours just for some extra monitoring, but we will see how she does. Do you have any questions for me?"
"No," Maya said, shaking her head, "I don't think so."
"Ok," Dr. Cho said, reaching out and taking Maya's hands, "She is ok. Your wife is ok. We got all the cancer out and she is ok."
Maya nodded, smiling a little as more tears started running down her cheeks.
"Alright," Dr. Cho said, "I will be by later to check on how things are going."
"Thank you," Maya said through her tears, "Thank you so much."
Dr. Cho left, Maya fully breaking down as Vic and Andy wrapped their arms around her, providing her some comfort and support. Maya managed to get herself to calm down, taking a tissue that Vic handed her. Just then, the door opened and Travis walked back in with Nora.
"Sorry," he said, "Someone needs a diaper change."
"Here," Maya said, reaching for her daughter, "I can do it."
"Did the doctor come in?" Travis quietly asked Vic as Maya laid out the changing pad on the floor.
"Yeah," Vic said, "Carina is out of surgery and doing well. There was some unexpected bleeding, but she is in recovery and doing really well. Maya can go see her soon."
"What am I going to do with Nora while I go see Carina?" Maya said, realizing that she could not bring the irritable toddler to the quiet recovery ward.
"I will take her if she'll let me," Travis said, "The only plans I had were to do some housework this afternoon, but I will happily give that up to spend time with my bean. I can stay here too, if you want me to so that if she needs you, we are here."
"Thank you Travis," Maya said, smiling at him as she finished changing Nora, "Thank you so much."
"Of course," Travis said, "You know I love spending time with both the girls."
Maya stood up with Nora in her arms, the toddler looking around at all the adults.
"Mamma?" she asked, knowing this was where her mamma normally was.
"Mamma is sleeping right now," Maya said, "Remember, we talked about how Mamma was going to go to the hospital because she was sick and needed to feel better? Well, right now, she is sleeping to help her get better."
Nora looked a little confused, but put her fingers back in her mouth, sucking on them again.
"You are going to stay here and play with Uncle Travis so I can go check on Mamma and see how she is feeling, ok?" Maya said, really hoping the little brunette wouldn't throw a major tantrum, "I can hold you for a little longer, but then you can play with Uncle Travis. You can show him the toys Mamma keeps here for you if you want."
"Mommy," Nora said, holding tightly to Maya's neck.
"I'm right here," Maya sighed, rubbing her back, "These teeth picked a terrible time to come in."
"Is there anything we can do?" Andy asked, walking over to Maya.
"No," she said, shaking her head as she swayed a little with Nora, "I just...I wish there were two of me so I could stay here and give Nora what she needs but also give Carina what she needs. It's moments like this that being a mom sucks."
Just then, there was a knock at the door and Cindy came in.
"Carina is in post-op, and you can come up and be with her," Cindy said, "I can take you up there whenever you are ready."
"Piccola, can you go with Uncle Travis now?" Maya said, rubbing Nora's back, "I need to go check on Mamma. I promise I will come back and see you soon, ok?"
"Otay," Nora said, looking between Maya and Travis.
"Thank you Piccola," Maya said, kissing Nora's cheek, "Trav, her lunch is in her bag and there are snacks and whatever you might need. Nora knows where the toys are and just text me if she gets really bad. I'll try to come back down here soon."
"I've got her, ok?" Travis said, reaching for Nora who reluctantly went with him.
"And I'm gonna hang out for a while too," Vic said.
"I have to go," Andy said, "But if you need me, just text, ok?"
"Thank you all so much," Maya said, smiling at all her friends, "Trav, like I said, just text and I will come back."
"Go see your wife," Travis said, "I've got Nora."
"Ok," Maya said before turning to Cindy, "Ok. I'm ready."
"Come on," Cindy said, "What is going on with your little one today?"
"She's cutting teeth," Maya sighed, "She always has such a hard time with it since she got her first teeth. Her sister, we barely knew she was even teething, but Nora is just miserable."
"Poor baby," Cindy frowned, "And today of all days."
"I know," Maya sighed, "She just wants to be with me or Carina. Luckily, my friend Travis is just about her favorite person so hopefully she will alright with him for a little while. I just wanted to be able to give Carina my full attention today."
"I promise you that Carina will understand," Cindy said as they made their way to recovery, "Plus, today, she is probably going to be pretty out of it so if you are not at her side every second, it will be ok. She has the best nurse in our department for hysterectomy recovery to take care of her."
"Is that you?" Maya asked, looking at Cindy.
"No," Cindy said, shaking her head, "No, I'm not even working today."
"What?" Maya said, very confused.
"I just came in today to make sure that you and Carina were being taken care of," Cindy said, "I know what surgery day is like, and I wanted to make sure you were as informed as you can be. Once Carina is in her room, I am probably going to head home though."
"Thank you so much for being here," Maya said, feeling very overwhelmed, "And for everything you have done."
"Of course," Cindy said as they walked into the post-op ward, "Now, we normally don't let family members in here, but we also make exceptions for special patients."
"Thank you," Maya said as she walked over to where Carina was laying.
"She looks so pale," Maya said, a little bit shocked at how bad her wife looked.
"It's just from the blood loss," Cindy said, "Her color will get better once the blood finishes infusing. She's ok."
Maya nodded, sitting down next to Carina, finding her wife's hand under the blanket.
"She'll probably be waking up soon," one of the post-op nurses said, coming over to check Carina's vitals.
"Thanks," Maya said quietly, bringing Carina's hand to her lips, kissing it gently.
"Mmmm," Carina moaned a little, moving her head back and forth.
"Shhhh," Maya said, standing up and putting her hand on Carina's cheek, calming her down a little bit as her eyes opened.
"Bambina?" Carina said, her voice scratchy from the breathing tube she had in during surgery.
"I'm right here," Maya said, feeling a tear prick the corner of her eye as she smiled at her wife, "I'm right here."
"Is it over?" Carina asked, clearly still out of it.
"It is," Maya nodded, chuckling a little at her wife, "How are you feeling?"
"Thirsty," Carina said, smacking her lips.
"Here," Cindy said, handing Maya a cup with a straw, "Water."
"Here you go Babe," Maya said, putting the straw between Carina's lips, "Take a little sip."
Carina took a few little sips of water before she pushed the straw back out of her mouth.
"You ok?" Maya asked, putting the cup back down.
"Si," Carina said, rubbing her eyes a little with her hand, "How was the surgery?"
"It went well," Maya said, smiling at her wife, "They got your cancer out and everything else they needed to. You had a little bit of extra bleeding so you are getting a blood transfusion to help with that."
"That's why I'm so dizzy," Carina said, closing her eyes again, "I'm gonna go to sleep again ok?"
"Ok," Maya said, laughing a little bit as she stroked Carina's hair, "I'll be right here when you wake up."
"Ti amo," Carina mumbled as she drifted off to sleep.
"I love you too," Maya said, leaning down and pressing a kiss to her wife's forehead, "Thank you for not leaving me alone."
Carina spent the next hour in the post-op area before she was transferred to the room where she would be for the next few days. The Italian slept most of the time she was in post-op, but right after she got to her new room, she woke up in pain.
"It hurts," she groaned, trying to move a little only to realize that hurt more, "Make it stop."
"Ok," Maya said, panicking slightly as she pushed the call button.
Luckily, within a few minutes, Carina's nurse was able to get her some pain meds, Maya just stroking her hair and trying to help her feel better while they waited for the pain meds to kick in.
Once the meds were working, Carina fell asleep again, Maya deciding to text Travis and check on Nora. He texted her back with a picture of the toddler sleeping in his arms, telling her that she had thrown a massive tantrum for about three minutes before she crawled into his arms and fell asleep. He also asked her how Carina was doing.
Maya apologized for the tantrum, telling him that if she kicked up again to text her and that she would come help him with her. She also told him that Carina had been moved to her recovery room and was resting and doing ok.
Maya just sat there with her wife, holding her hand and staring at her, still unable to believe that this was there life right now.
"Is there anything you need?" Cindy asked, startling Maya a bit as she walked into the room, "Sorry."
"No, it's ok," Maya said, not letting go of Carina's hand as she turned to look at the nurse, "Um, I think I am ok."
"Alright," Cindy said, putting a hand on Maya's shoulder, "Well, I am going to head home. Feel free to text me any time. I am on from 7 to 7 tomorrow down in L&D, but I'll try to pop up here and check on you guys."
"Thank you," Maya said, "Thank you for being here today and for...just for everything."
"Of course," Cindy said, smiling at Maya, "And don't forget to take care of yourself too, ok? Try to catch a nap and eat some food ok?"
Maya nodded, knowing Cindy was right.
"Ok," the nurse said, "Well, I am heading home. Rosali is the name of Carina's nurse. She is amazing. If you need anything, ask her ok?"
"Will do," Maya nodded as Cindy left.
Once Cindy was gone, Maya kept her hold on Carina's hand, but put her head down on the bed, the exhaustion of not sleeping at all the night before and not sleeping well for the past week hitting her hard. She told herself she was only going to rest her eyes to get some of the burning sensation from not sleeping and all the crying. However, she must have fallen asleep because the next thing she knew, she was waking up with someone's fingers running through her hair.
"What...?" she said, sitting up only to realize sleeping hunched over was a terrible idea, her back and neck aching terribly.
"Are you ok Bambina?" Carina asked sleepily.
"I should be asking you that," Maya said, wiping her mouth as she tried to straighten her back out, "Sorry. I didn't mean to fall asleep."
"It's ok," Carina said, "You need rest too. I know you didn't sleep last night either and you didn't get the luxury of an anesthesia induced nap this morning."
"No, I did no," Maya chuckled, "But seriously, are you ok? Do you need anything? More pain meds or water or anything?"
"I am ok," Carina said, "The nurse just brought me some grape juice and I'm not in crazy amounts of pain right now."
"I forgot to bring your bag up here," Maya said, realizing her mistake, "I can go get it right..."
"Andrea brought it up when you were sleeping," Carina said, gesturing to the chair, "He said he wanted to be there this morning, but he got pulled into a long emergency surgery. I asked him to go get it because I wanted my phone."
"Sorry I forgot it," Maya said, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, "I meant to grab it, but Nora barely let me leave and I didn't want her to change her mind."
"So, daycare didn't last?" Carina asked.
"Nope," Maya said, "I got her not long after you got taken up to the OR. Luckily, Travis came and brought coffee and didn't have plans this afternoon because he is probably the only person besides you and I she would go to today. I should probably text him though and see how she's doing."
"I think I am going to fall asleep again soon Bambina," Carina said, struggling to keep her eyes open.
"Please do," Maya said, "You need your rest. I might go check on Nora while you are sleeping."
"Ok," Carina said, already starting to fall asleep again, "You don't have to stay here." "I will come back," Maya said, pressing a kiss to Carina's still too pale forehead, "Get some sleep."
Carina was already out by the time Maya finished giving her a kiss. The blonde left the room, going back down to Carina's office where she found Nora and Travis building a tower of blocks.
"Mommy," Nora said, abandoning her toys as soon as she saw who was at the door.
"Hi Piccola," Maya said, picking her up, "How are you feeling?"
"Teef ouchie," Nora frowned.
"I'm sorry," Maya said, rubbing her back as she looked at Travis, "Has she been ok?"
"She had a little bit of a meltdown after she woke up from her nap," Travis said, getting up and walking over to them, "But I put on some Peppa Pig on my phone and that helped. She ate a little bit of her lunch, but she wasn't super hungry, but then Andrew came to get Carina's bag and he went and found her a jello cup and some ice cream and I know you guys don't normally do a ton of sugar with them but..."
"Trav, it's ok," Maya said, shaking her head, "She is also normally not teething and unable to be with me and Carina. Whatever she ate today is fine. Thank you for taking care of her."
"Of course," Travis said, "We had fun. We have utterly destroyed Carina's office, but I promise I will clean it up before I leave."
"Don't worry about it," Maya said, shaking her head as Nora laid her head down on her shoulder, "Do you need to leave?"
"Not if you need me to stay," Travis said, looking at her, "I told you, I have no plans today and I want you to be able to take care of Carina and be there for her."
"I was planning on taking the twins home at 5," Maya said, looking at the clock and seeing it was 3:30, "Can you stay until then?"
"Of course," Travis nodded, "Is it ok if I run to the bathroom real quick though?"
"Of course," Maya said, "Carina is sleeping right now so I figured I could give Nora some cuddles for a little while."
"Ok," Travis said, "Well, in that case, I am also gonna go hit up the food cart outside. Can I get you anything?"
"I'm ok," Maya said, sitting down on the couch with her daughter, "Take your time."
Travis slipped out of the room, Maya looking down at Nora who had picked her head up off her Mommy's shoulder.
"Do you want me to read you a book?" Maya said, seeing there were a few books out on the floor.
Nora nodded, climbing down off Maya's lap and picking up The Gruffalo, a favorite of both of the twins at the moment. Maya picked Nora back up, reading it for the toddler.
Maya basically had the book memorized so she let her mind drift a little bit as she read, thinking about what needed to happen tonight when she got home, debating with herself if she should let Nora sleep in bed with her or not and if she should also let Rowan too because when they let one of them do something, the other one wanted to and she was debating if it would be worth the fight to make Rowan sleep in her own bed.
She finished the book, Nora getting another one for her to read. This one was in Italian, and while Maya had gotten much much better at both speaking and understanding her wife's native tongue, reading it still always felt clunky and hard. But she had read this book before and had heard Carina read it many times so she knew how to read this particular book.
"Did you try to get Uncle Travis to read this book to you?" Maya asked, looking at Nora.
"Unca Tee bop," Nora said, looking at Maya, "'io Dre wead."
"Zio Andrea read this to you?" Maya said, smiling at Nora, "That was nice of him. Remember, this book is usually a Mamma book."
"Mamma?" Nora said, looking around the office.
"Remember, Mamma is sleeping?" Maya said, "She has an ouchie and she has to sleep here at the hospital for a few days to get better, ok?"
Nora frowned but didn't say anything. Maya started reading the book, Travis walking in just as she was finishing up.
"Ah, I see Nora found another person to read her that book," Travis said, "She was very sad I didn't know how to read it."
"This is one of the few Italian books I can read," Maya said as she finished the story, "We have two copies of this one at home and they love it."
"Yeah, I tried," Travis said, "But it was bad and Nora was unimpressed and told me to stop."
"I have been told that many times when trying to read in Italian," Maya laughed.
"I brought you a smoothie," Travis said, handing the cup to Maya, "And you need to drink it."
"Fine," Maya mumbled, taking a sip.
"Me too," Nora said, opening her mouth.
"Fine," Maya said, letting the little girl take a sip.
The three of them sat there for a little while, Travis eating his sandwich while Nora and Maya shared the smoothie. Once she was done, Maya looked at the clock, seeing it was already almost 4.
"I am going to go back and sit with Carina some more," Maya said, "I'll be back down by 5."
"Ok," Travis said, moving to take Nora, "Me and Bean will be playing down here."
"Mommy," Nora fussed as Maya went to hand her over to Travis.
"Please Piccola?" Maya said, "I need to go check on Mamma for a little bit, but I promise when I come back, I will take you and Rowan home and we can eat dinner and you two can take a bath and then we can all cuddle ok?"
"Mommy," Nora said, sticking her lip out.
"Come here Nora," Travis said, seeing how conflicted Maya looked, "Can you help me build a big tower?"
"Please?" Maya asked, "I promise I will only be gone a little bit. Uncle Travis is so much fun to play with. Maybe he can even take you to see the fish in the children's wing?"
"Yeah, we can totally go see the fish," Travis said, "Come on Nora."
Nora sighed but went to Travis.
"I'm sorry Piccola," Maya said, her heart breaking a little bit, "I love you."
"Lub ou," Nora said, popping her fingers in her mouth.
"I'll be back by 5," Maya said, "Seriously Trav, I owe you big."
"Go be with your wife," Travis said, shaking his head as Maya headed in one direction while he and Nora went the other way.
Maya got back to Carina's room, finding her wife just starting to wake up again.
"Hey," Maya said as Carina's eyes opened.
"Hi Bambina," Carina said, "Did you go see Piccola?"
"I did," Maya nodded, "She is grumpy, but she's ok with Travis. She was pretty upset I left again though."
"You could have stayed with her," Carina said, "I am ok."
"I know you are," Maya said, brushing some hair off Carina's face, "But I just...I needed to see you a little more. How is everything feeling?"
"My abdomen is sore," Carina said, "But it's not so bad right now. Everything is just uncomfortable."
"I'm sorry," Maya said, "Do you need anything?"
"Can you just hold my hand?" Carina asked, "I want to feel you."
"I'm right here," Maya assured her, "I do have to go in about an hour to take the twins home. Or I could stay if you want and try to..."
"No," Carina said, "No, you need to be home with the bambine. I am ok here. I am probably just going to sleep all night."
"Ok," Maya said, biting her lip, "I don't like it though."
"I know you don't," Carina said, "But it is for the best. This is going to be hard for Nora and Rowan, but you being home with them will help."
"I know," Maya sighed, "I just wish I didn't have to choose between being a good mom and a good wife."
Bambina, listen to me," Carina said, "By going home tonight, you are being a good wife to me because I know that our kids are taken care of when I can't. I am good here. I have nurses here who can take care of me. The twins need you. You are being a good mom and wife by being home with them. I promise."
"I should be the one making you feel better right now," Maya said, smiling at her wife, "And yet here you are, being amazing as always."
"You are also being amazing," Carina said, moving her head to kiss Maya's hand which had been resting on her cheek.
Over the next hour, Maya helped Carina get some more to drink and a few crackers before the Italian got tried again.
"I am going to go," Maya said, seeing it was nearing 5 pm, "Is there anything you need before I go?"
"A kiss," Carina said sleepily.
"Of course," Maya said, leaning down and pressing a kiss to Carina's pale lips, "Anything else?"
"No," Carina said, "Give the bambine a hug and kiss for me though."
"Of course," Maya said, "I'll text you when I am putting them down, and if you are up to it, maybe we can FaceTime you?"
"Sounds good," Carina nodded, "I love you."
"I love you too," Maya said, "And if you need anything at all, even just to talk, call or text me ok? I promise to answer."
"I need you to promise to try to sleep," Carina said, giving Maya as stern a look as she could considering how exhausted she was.
"I will," Maya said, giving Carina one more kiss, "You sleep too. I will be back tomorrow. I love you."
"I love you too," Carina said as Maya left the room.
The blonde decided to go pick up Rowan first, knowing she was probably going to have to spend some time cleaning up her wife's office. She was really hoping Nora's teething issues would be gone by the following day because if they weren't she knew it was going to be a challenge to spend any time with her wife. However, that was an issue for the following day.
For tonight, she just needed to pick up her kids and take them home. Maya got Rowan who was very excited to see her before going to get Nora from Travis. She found the two of them sitting on the couch, Travis telling Nora a story, no toys to be seen.
"Mommy," Nora said, "'owan."
"Hi Piccola," Maya said, smiling at her. "Unca Tee," Rowan said, running over to him.
"Hi Bug," Travis said, picking her up, "How are you?"
"Benny," Rowan said, smiling as he gave her a hug.
"Thank you for cleaning up," Maya said, picking Nora up, "I could have done that."
"But really, all you should do is take these two home, give them some dinner, and enjoy all the toddler cuddles," Travis said, standing up with Rowan in his arms, "Come on. Let's go."
They all walked out together, Travis helping Maya load the twins into the car.
"Thanks for everything today Trav," Maya said, giving him a hug, "Seriously, I don't think I would have made it through the day without you."
"That's what hopelessly single, non-social friends are for," Travis said, making Maya laugh, "But seriously Mai, I am here for you guys any time you need me. We've got you ok?"
"Thank you," Maya said as Travis gave her a hug.
"Now, take those kids home and relax," Travis said, "And text me if you need help."
"Will do," Maya nodded as she got into her car, sighing as she closed the door.
She glanced back at the hospital as she got ready to leave, her heart breaking a little that she couldn't just be with her wife right now, but knowing that Carina was right, that home was where she was most needed. She headed home, reminding herself over and over again that her wife was fine, that she was safe, and most importantly that she was getting the best care possible.
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