Faye was now 7 centimeters dilated, thanks to Malo’s suggestion, which was successful. The idea had worked perfectly to calm the room down. Instead of forcing the medical staff to bring out the terrifying spinal needle again, Malo had remembered that they didn’t have to rely only the hospital methods when they had access to people who actually knew about Weres medicine.

Faye had calmed down. The wild, unhinged screaming had stopped, and her breathing was finally matching a steady, normal rhythm instead of the short, panicked gasps from before.

Uncle PP arrived and prepared some medicine as an alternative to the epidural. He had come rushing through the doors of the VIP wing carrying a small, dark glass bottle filled with a thick herbal mixture. Faye drank it, and it was what had been keeping her calm for hours. The bitter liquid worked almost instantly, spreading a deep, heavy numbness through her lower back and stomach, dulling the sharpest edges of the contractions without messing with her ability to move.

Princess praised Malo for his suggestion. She clapped him on the shoulder, her chest rising with a massive sigh of relief as she watched Faye’s face lose its tense, pained scowl.

The dude muttered,

"I wish you would increase my salary rather than give me praise."

When Princess looked at him, the boy ended it with laughter because Princess had increased his pay like a week ago.

Princess stayed by her girlfriend throughout the entire time. Faye didn’t want the girl to leave her side. Her fingers stayed locked around Princess’s wrist, tightening every single time she felt a dull ripple move through her abdomen. Even when Princess had to use the bathroom, the Alpha had to leave the bathroom door slightly ajar so Faye could see that she was still around. Princess had to awkwardly sit there keeping her eyes on the gap in the door, answering whenever Faye called out just to make sure she hadn’t sneaked away.

Paye and Eriko came too. The door pushed open softly, and the two of them stepped into the room, bringing a completely different kind of chaos with them.

Paye cried when he saw his sister on the hospital bed. He had spent his whole life making sure his sister never got admitted to a hospital or became sick, but the moment he saw his little sister lying there, he couldn’t control his tears. His face went completely red, his shoulders shaking as he pulled out a tissue to blow his nose loudly.

Malo said Faye wasn’t sick, she was just in labor, but the young man kept crying nonstop. He just couldn’t handle the sight of his puppy hooked up to a heart monitor, even if it was for a happy reason.

Eriko was filming the entire thing, watching his best friend cry as usual. He held his phone up with a huge grin, zooming right in on Paye’s watery eyes and messy face, completely enjoying the entertainment while ignoring the annoyed glares Paye was throwing at the lens.

Kaye and Dina also arrived. They spent time with their aunts. Dina and Faye played board games, spreading a small deck of cards and a colorful board across the hospital overbed table. The quiet clicking of the dice rolling against the plastic helped drown out the dull ticking of the wall clock, while Princess and Kaye played video games on Princess’s laptop.

Princess had set up a small gaming table beside Faye’s bed. The blue light from the screen reflected in her eyes as her fingers tapped rapidly against the keyboard, the familiar sounds of the game keeping her hands busy and her mind distracted from the high stakes of the room.

Henry also arrived. He brought Kali with him. She was inside her backpack, and when Faye saw the snake, she smiled. The little reptile peeked its head out of the zipper tracking, its dark eyes blinking at the bright hospital lights, and for the first time in hours, Faye let out a genuine, happy giggle that made her entire face light up. That snake was her first pup...

Seeing her friends and family made Faye happy. The room didn’t feel like a scary, sterile hospital anymore. It felt alive, crowded, and loud.

It was exactly what she needed to get through it all. It kept the anxiety away, keeping her grounded as the hours slowly rolled by toward the final stretch.

Some people were unavailable, mostly the ones Princess called family. At least her two best friends made it. When Kiara and Beam had slipped into the room earlier, the air had turned freezing cold. Faye had immediately turned her head toward the window, her jaw clenching tightly until the two girls realized they weren’t welcome and quietly left.

For a split moment, Princess felt a little down. The brief reminder of the outside world brought a heavy weight back to her chest.

No one from her side had come to visit. The realization settled in her stomach like a cold stone.

She knew her grandfather wouldn’t come, but her two brothers didn’t even call. Her phone sat completely dark on the side table, not a single notification lighting up the screen.

Princess had sent them a message saying that her pups were arriving soon, but neither of them replied. She had spent weeks hoping that the news of new life would break the ice, but the silence was deafening.

Leo would have, but as usual, he was in a meeting.

And the one who usually replied no matter what situation he was in had read her message but didn’t respond. The little double checkmarks on the screen were blue, proving he had looked at the words and simply decided to ignore them.

And that had once been her favorite brother. The sting of that rejection felt sharp, a dull ache blooming behind her ribs as she stared down at the black glass of her phone.

Faye noticed Princess staring at her phone. She had stopped playing her game, her thumb hovering over the screen with a sad, empty expression.

She touched her and asked what was wrong. Faye’s fingers slid over Princess’s hand, her touch warm and grounding.

Princess stared at her girlfriend. She wanted to tell her, to cry on her chest, but she still felt the need to be strong for Faye. She didn’t want to ruin the happy mood in the room with her own family drama, not when Faye was the one about to go through the hardest part of the day.

Faye pulled Princess down onto her chest and stroked her girlfriend’s hair. She didn’t ask any more questions, she just wrapped her arms around Princess’s neck, pulling her close against her heartbeat.

Princess couldn’t help but silently cry against her girlfriend’s chest. The tears finally spilled over, soaking into the soft fabric of Faye’s hospital gown as her shoulders trembled slightly.

Faye said nothing. She didn’t try to offer fake words or tell her it was fine.

She simply let her girlfriend cry as much as she wanted. She just kept her hand moving in slow, rhythmic circles through Princess’s hair, letting her release all the hidden stress and hurt.

Dina, Henry, and Kaye watched as Princess cried. They stood near the gaming table, their voices dropping into a quiet murmur.

None of them understood why.

Around 8 in the evening, it was finally time for the pups to arrive. The atmosphere in the room shifted instantly as the numbers on the monitor hit the final mark.

The doctor and her nurses guided Faye through the pushing while Princess supported her by staying at her side. Princess stood right at the head of the bed, her hands gripping Faye’s shoulders, letting the girl use her strength to brace herself through each massive wave.

The first pup to come out was a boy, followed by a girl, then another boy, and finally the last boy. The room was suddenly filled with the loud, sharp sound of tiny cries, four distinct voices echoing off the walls one after the other.

Princess was the first to set eyes on the pups. Her breath caught in her throat as she looked at the tiny, squirming bodies, her vision blurring with a fresh wave of happy tears.

She smiled at that moment and got to hold one of them. The nurse wrapped the tiny baby in a warm blanket, placing the incredibly light bundle into Princess’s trembling hands.

She showed the baby to her girlfriend, who looked exhausted and tired.

Finally, they had become parents. The reality of it washed over them in a sweet, heavy wave.

"My little puppies," Faye muttered, She reached out a single, shaky finger, brushing the incredibly soft cheek of the baby before the nurses moved them over to the warming tables to be checked.

After the pups had been cleaned, Princess helped with cutting the umbilical cords. Her hands were shaking as she gripped the medical scissors, making the clean snips that officially separated her children from their mother.

After Faye was taken care of, she was transferred to another room. The new space was larger, quieter, and completely free of the mess from earlier.

Then she finally got to see her babies again. The door opened, and two nurses wheeled in a large clear bassinet containing the four tiny, tightly swaddled bundles.

All the pain and crying she had gone through instantly vanished when she saw them. The memory of the hours of labor, the screaming, and the terror simply faded away into nothing the second those tiny faces came into view.

"Princess, look at them. They are so lovely... our pups," she said. Her voice was barely a whisper, her eyes shining as she looked up from the pillows.

"Yes, our pups," Princess replied as she carefully placed two babies into Faye’s arms while she held the other two. She moved with extreme care, balancing the tiny lives against her chest as she sat on the edge of the mattress.

"Should we say it together?" Princess asked, staring at her girlfriend, whose eyes looked teary. She leaned her head closer, their shoulders brushing in the quiet room.

Faye nodded. She swallowed hard, her gaze locked onto the four beautiful faces sleeping peacefully in their arms.

The two mothers spoke together. Their voices blended perfectly in the quiet space, speaking the words straight from their hearts.

"You four are the love of our lives. Everything we have, and everything we are, is all yours... forever."