31The months passed in a blur, punctuated by doctors appointments, shopping trips and the occasional patient. Allison was put behind a desk for the majority of the time; neither she, nor Greg, nor Amy for that matter, was willing to risk one of their patients threatening the health of the babies. June arrived, and with it brought three events – the first being Amy's acceptance to Harvard as an official pre-med student. She entered the conference room on the day the letter arrived with a surprisingly less-than-ecstatic attitude.
"Are you nervous?" Chase asked, leaning over Foreman's shoulder to read the acceptance letter.
"No, I'm not nervous." Amy answered in a small voice, grabbing the letter back and reading it through for what felt like the hundredth time.
"So what's with the lack of enthusiasm? I mean, this is you we're talking about – you get excited when you beat Chase or me at I-Spy." Foreman asked. Amy surprssed a smirk and looked secretively over Foreman's shoulder into her dad's office. House and Cameron, as they were still referred to around the hospital, were sat on his sofa discussing the latest patient that the team had treated. She was a 25 year old woman, who had twin sons at home. They had managed to save the patient and she was making a full recovery but the case had hit just a little to closely for comfort – for both of them.
"Hello? Earth to Amy?" Chase snapped his fingers in front of Amy's face and she swatted them away.
"I got too excited about the twins. I forgot that I'm gonna miss most of their first eight years cos I'll be too busy with school." Chase smiled sympathetically, but Foreman – ever the practical one, answered almost instantly;
"Harvard isn't that far away? You'll be home on holidays, and it's not like you're gonna be the other side of the country. Stop stressing and enjoy the success! Harvard's not an easy school to get into."
"Except when you're an 18 year old genius." Chase added. Amy giggled.
"And," Foreman continued, "now that you have your car you could drive home some weekends." Amy had turned 18 a fortnight before Greg and Allison married; ten days after they found out Allison was pregnant. As a birthday present and a thank you for all the effort she had put into the wedding, they had bought her a car; which she adored.
"I didn't think of that." Amy replied. "Thanks." She smiled gratefully and each of the male doctors returned the grin. Amy had been living in New Jersey for almost two years and they had grown to think of her as not just a valued member of their diagnostics team but also as a kind of baby sister. Just like Allison had in the first few months that Amy had been working with them, they had grown to trust and like her, and she them.
On several occasions they had covered for her when she spent her lunch break hiding on the roof with one of the many hospital employees who found her startling intelligence coupled with her good looks just too attractive a chance to resist. Of course, Chase and Foreman had taken it upon themselves to 'discuss' with the lucky guy just exactly what would happen to him if he dared to hurt her.
"Just remember to come back and visit us when you're in town, ok?" Chase reminded.
"How could I not?"
June 15th saw the the second major event of the summer; a surprise baby shower. It was Greg's idea, which warranted most of the surprise. He and Amy had spent weeks arranging for friends and family to come down for the occasion; including both sets of expectant grandparents.
Neither Greg's nor Allison's parents had been exactly thrilled when Amy had inadvertantly let it slip that a baby was on the way before the wedding had taken place. Amy had struggled in the face of the four imposing older people, trying to explain that the wedding wasn't just to legitimise the child, or children as it had later transpired.
"I knew it," Gloria Cameron had sniffed, dabbing dramatically at her eyes with a hankerchief. Her husband, Michael Cameron had threatened to kill Greg, and then noticing Amy's shocked face had been quiet for the rest of the discussion. Greg's father had been outraged.
"I thought we raised him to have more sense. This is your fault." He accused his wife. "Putting up with his crap, letting him have his own way. No wonder he went and got his the girl pregnant."
Amy had listened, infuriated for what felt like hours, until finally she could take it no more.
"Firstly; Greg and Allison are in love. Secondly; she's barely 12 weeks pregnant and they have been planning this wedding since May, so it can't be to cover up the baby. And thirdly; you're all being incredibly rude and selfish. You're going to be grandparents and you haven't even considered how fantastic that is!"
All four had accepted that silently, though they had taken it upon themselves to remind Amy that they already had a grandchild. (In fact, Gloria and Michael Cameron had six grandchildren, courtesy of Allison's older brother and younger sister.)
The icing on the cake had come a month after the wedding; when the couples had recieved copies of the ultrasound pictures in the mail; showing their grandson and grandaughter. Allison had conference-called with her mother and her mother-in-law for almost three hours that night, discussing Amy's choices for the names of the babies. Both had been more than ecstatic with the choices; it turned out that Allison's great great grandfather on her father's side had been named Benjamin, while Greg's great-aunt Elizabeth had (for reasons unknown to anyone in the family) been nicknamed Lucy for her entire life.
Allison had spent the majority of the shower in the lounge with her old school friends, and new friends from the hospital, cooing over adorable baby-sized clothes and shoes and swapping pregnancy and childbirthing tips with those of her friends who had children themselves. Blythe House had been particularly entertaining; sharing dozens of stories of Greg as a baby with the group.
Greg, however, had spent the shower in the kitchen with Wilson, Chase, Foreman and the two expectant grandfathers; smoking cigars and living up to the stereotypical image of fathers in the 1950s.
"This is just too cute." Allison said, holding up two romper suits; identical except for colour; one was yellow and one was pale green. They both had teddy bears embroidered on the front.
"Who are they from?" Greg asked, and Allison smiled as she read the tag.
"Foreman's girlfriend."
"She seemed nice." Greg said absently, surveyeing the pile of presents that was currently burying their dining table. On the top of the pile were two baby-sized stethoscopes; a joke gift from Cuddy. Her real gifts were two fluffy white teddy bears, one with a pink bow and the other a blue one. Even he had to admit that they were adorable. Allison shook her headwinced, pressing her hand against the side of her 9 months pregnant belly. She was only two weeks away from her due date, though it looked as if she was two months over.
"Ben or Lucy?" he asked, covering Allison's hand with his own. He marvelled at the way she was able to tell which twin was which.
"Both." Allison winced. "Kicking each other."
"Hey guys?" Greg said quietly, leaning down to speak to the bump. "You have to do me a favour, and stop kicking each other. It's hurting your mother. You have plenty of time to fight when you're out of there. Ok?"
"It might be sooner than expected." Allison said, leaning forward slightly and rubbing her back.
"What?" Greg almost yelped, alarmed. "It's too early, you have another two weeks to go."
"I don't think they care." Allison grimaced as an unmistakeable contraction swept over her.
And so the third major event of summer occurred. In the early hours of June 17th, after 27 hours of labour, Lucy Adele and Benjamin Matthew House were born.
Quick update...and I would LOVE reviews, as always. :)