Laughter. Sunshine. She remembered everything as if it were yesterday. It was one of the days that would change their lives forever—the day he asked her to marry him.
He decided to take her to see the cherry blossom trees since they were in perfect bloom as well as being her favorite flora.
She dreamt about how they danced among the falling, soft, pink petals when he suddenly got down on one knee and spoke words that would forever be etched into her heart.
—————
Todoroki and Momo were able to sleep for a couple more hours until Momo was awoken from her dream by a sharp pain.
Her whimpering instantly awoke Shoto, and acting on instinct, he held her close and comforted her.
"It's okay, sweetheart. It's okay. I'm here."
After the pain subsided, she lightened her grip on his arm and panted heavily.
"Th-that w-was more painful.."
The midwife checked Momo's progress once again.
"You're at about 5 cm. You're halfway there."
Momo let out a disappointed sigh. "W-what time is it?"
Todoroki wiped the sleep from his eyes as he looked over at the clock.
"It's 1:45 a.m."
Momo had now been in labor for the past 12 hours, and she already felt as if she couldn't take any more.
"Mrs. Todoroki, maybe you should try to get more rest. You're going to need your strength." The midwife implied.
"No, no. I'm up. I feel like I need to move around anyways." She threw the blankets off of herself as she slid off the side of the bed.
"I'll come too."
"No, Shoto. You should get some sleep."
"No, I'm not leaving your side." He insisted.
Momo sighed in defeat. She put on her robe and headed out of the bedroom, making her way out onto the front porch. Shoto followed, bringing a thick blanket with him.
Once outside, Momo sat on one of the steps as he wrapped part of the blanket around her shoulders. He then sat next to her, wrapping the other part around himself and leaned against her shoulder.
"This is crazy. Where did the time go? Just yesterday, it seems like you and I were teammates against Mr. Aizawa for our finals. Now, we're married and having our first child together.."
Her words trailed off as she closed her eyes contentedly.
"Thank you for putting your faith in me." Momo said as she leaned her head against his.
"I've always had faith in you. I have more faith in you to do this more than I ever have, Momo." He gently kissed the top of her head.
Momo's lips formed into a small smile. Her brief state of bliss was interrupted by another sharp pain.
Shoto grabbed her hand and held her close.
The midwife peeked her head out the door.
"Mr. and Mrs. Todoroki, I would suggest coming back inside now. It's freezing. I'll prepare some tea."
"Okay, thank you." Shoto thanked the midwife and helped Momo back inside.
Once the tea was ready, he grabbed a cup for the both of them.
"Thank you, dear." Momo accepted the steaming cup of tea as her husband sat next to her.
The midwife sat in a chair across from them.
"How are you feeling, Mrs. Todoroki?"
"I'm okay. I'm feeling cozy and slightly more relaxed now. Thank you for making tea. Shoto, could you please light the firepla—"
"Already on it."
He walked over to the fireplace and tossed flames onto the wood with his left side before she could even finish her sentence.
"Oh no.. it's happening again!"
Momo sat her cup down and held her belly.
"Breathe through it. You've got this." The midwife instructed. Shoto quickly finished lighting the fireplace and rushed back by her side.
Momo tried her best to relax and breathe her way through the contraction.
"You're doing great, Momo."
Her husband said to comfort her. He wished he could do more. He felt so helpless, but his comfort and support was all that she needed.
—————
It was almost 3 a.m. The midwife didn't expect baby Todoroki to make his appearance for at least another several hours, but to her surprise, things progressed much more quickly than she had anticipated.
By 4:30 a.m., Momo's contractions were only a minute or two apart. It was time.
Shoto had aided her into getting comfortable in their bed for the delivery, but she switched to standing on the side of the bed for pain relief.
He massaged her back through each of her contractions.
"I don't think I can do this!" She stated as she climbed back onto the bed.
"Yes, you can. You're so strong, and you're doing so well. He'll be here soon." He encouraged.
—————
Momo buried her face into her husband's shoulder as another excruciating pain overtook her.
"That's it, Mrs. Todoroki! Just a little more."
Shoto placed his hand behind her head and kept her as close to him as he could. Momo continued to follow her instincts.
"What a head full of hair!" The midwife exclaimed.
After a few more unbearable pains, Momo relaxed and collapsed against her husband's chest.
"He's beautiful!" The midwife exclaimed as she gently cleaned the newborn.
She looked at the clock and documented the time of birth.
"5:17 a.m."
After she had cleaned up the baby, she handed him over to Momo. Happy tears streamed down her face as Shoto wrapped his arms around her.
"I.. I'm a father!" He exclaimed.
Instantly, Momo knew that every pain was worth it. Every second of waiting these past 8.5 months were worth it. Despite being born 2 weeks early, their baby was healthy.
"H-hi, baby boy. I'm your mother, and this is your father. Welcome to the world. We're so happy you're here."
Shoto wiped his tears and placed his finger into his son's hand to which he tightly grasped.
"He's got such a strong grip! He's strong just like his mother." He stated.
"Do you have a name for him?" The midwife asked the new parents.
They exchanged smiles.
"We're going to call him Hino." Momo stated with a smile.
"That's perfect. It means 'sun field', right? That'll match his bright red hair."
Momo giggled until she felt another sudden sharp pain.
"Momo, sweetheart? What's wrong?" Shoto asked, concerned. He immediately took Hino from her arms as she continued to wince from the pain.
The midwife rushed to examine Momo to find the problem. Her complexion faded from its usual slightly tan color to ghostly white.
"Th-there's another head!" She exclaimed.
"W-what?!" Momo gasped as she tried to catch her breath.
"Mrs. Todoroki, I'm going to need you to listen to me closely. Did you know you were expecting two babies?"
"N-no! Absolutely not! The ultrasounds always only showed us one baby.. OW!" Momo gripped the bedsheets next to her tightly as pain surged once again throughout her body.
—————
By 5:23 a.m., the midwife had good news.
"The head has been delivered. All that's left are the shoulders and body. Hang in there, Mrs. Todoroki. You're doing such a great job."
"I-I'm r-really r-regretting this home birth.." She joked before another contraction surged through her.
She gathered her remaining strength to bring her second little one into the world.
"Mr. Todoroki, I'll take Hino if you'd like to catch the baby." The midwife stated as she offered him a pair of gloves.
He was stunned at first but immediately ran to quickly scrub his hands and put on the gloves.
"One more, Mrs. Todoroki. Your baby's almost here! Give it all you've got!"
With one last effort from his wife, Shoto caught their second child in his hands.
"I-it's a boy!" Happy tears again began to flow down his cheeks.
"Momo, we have two sons!"
Momo smiled weakly through her exhaustion. Her body was finally able to fully relax. Her work was done.
"T-there's not any more, r-right?" She breathed.
The midwife felt around her abdomen. "No, ma'am. There's no more."
"Thank heavens.." Momo said, relieved.
As the midwife helped Momo get cleaned up, Todoroki gently cleaned their second son.
"Hello there. Your mother and I weren't expecting you, but we're so happy you're here with us and your older brother."
"Shoto, can you bring him here to me?"
He held little Hino in one arm and their second son in the other. Momo gently took the infant and swaddled him close.
"What should we name him?" She asked her husband.
"What about Rei?" He suggested.
"Rei. I love it." She began to gently stroke his cheek and white hair.
"They're absolutely beautiful and perfectly healthy, Mr. and Mrs. Todoroki. Congratulations!"
It was now 6 a.m. and the Midoriya's had made their way to the Todoroki's home.
Knock knock knock
"Momo? Todoroki? We're here." Izuku stated.
The midwife opened the door and escorted them inside, and they all headed towards Shoto and Momo's bedroom.
"Good morning, you two. We decided to come by to check how you were—"
Ochako stopped in her tracks. There lay Momo with one tiny infant in her arms and the other was in Todoroki's. She gasped before crying happy tears.
"T-twins?? You had twins??" She squeaked.
Momo nodded. "Yes, I did. It was unexpected. Please come closer. Meet Hino and Rei."
Izuku gently guided Ochako closer to the bed while Eri followed behind.
"I-is it okay if I hold him?" Eri asked shyly.
"Of course. Here you go. This one is Rei."
Eri gently cradled the baby boy. "Wow!" She exclaimed.
Todoroki handed Hino to Izuku who was quite nervous at first since this was the first baby he had ever held, but he got the hang of it quickly.
"Hey there, little guy. I'm your Uncle Izuku and that's your Aunt Ochako." He said quietly to the peacefully sleeping baby.
"They're perfect, Aunt Momo." Eri stated as she handed Rei back to her.
"I can't wait until my baby sister gets here!"
"It'll be just a week or two right, Ochako?"
She nodded. "Yep. Any day now." She said nervously.
"H-hey. I have a question.." She whispered into Momo's ear.
"What is it?"
"How bad did it.. hurt?"
Momo tried to hide the complete truth as to not scare or worry Ochako.
"W-well. It's not.. comfortable, but once Hino and even Rei were born, I knew it was worth it. I'd do it again for them. Hino was born much slower than Rei. The midwife said it's because Rei was the second baby. Hino.. took some effort. It was about 45 minutes before he arrived. Rei only took 8 minutes!"
Ochako attempted to mask her concern. She knew that firstborns usually had the longest labor/delivery process.
Because everyone is different, she had no idea what to expect when it was her time to deliver.
"We had better get going so you two can get some rest. Congratulations you two! We'll see you guys soon." Izuku stated as he, Ochako, and Eri all waved goodbye and headed back home.
"Congratulations again, Mr. and Mrs. Todoroki. If you need anything, please feel free to call me, and I'll be right over."
"Thank you so much for all you've done." Shoto thanked the midwife before she left the two to be alone with their new miracles.
He snuggled in bed next to his wife. They had switched holding infants so they could spend time with each child.
"They both have your hair. Hino's is red and Rei's is white." She gently stroked both of their sons' heads.
"They have your nose." He smiled.
"They couldn't be more perfect.. what are we going to do about the nursery?" Momo asked.
"I'll assemble another crib tomorrow. For now, let's get some rest."
• • • • •