[Sam260]

Silas yawned widely and laid his head against Sidney's stomach "When do you expect them to be out of the NICU?" he asked drowsily, his head still dropping from one side to the other, or chin down to his chest. Even as he was having coherent conversation, he was still falling asleep - and wasn't that just weird to see.

[hockeypreg2]

"It will all depend on how well they gain weight and whether they have any setbacks," the nurse said. "They are doing very well considering they were premature. Very little problems, only the one, Maia, had lung issues at the start and she isn't even on oxygen now at only three days. They're very strong babies. You gave them a very good start, Mr. Flint."

Sidney stroked his hand through Silas's hair, so happy to hear the nurse say that to Silas. He knew how hard it was for him when Calla was in the NICU and how much he needed to know it wasn't his fault she was there. It was even less of Silas's fault. Triplets always came early and were small, but theirs were healthy and strong.

[Sam260]

Halfway through the nurses conversation about the triplets, Silas was already out like a light, chin to his chest, arms wrapped loosely around his stomach and half-snore/half-snort sounds emanating from his open mouth.  Because of the surgery, he hadn't quite gotten his energy levels back and it was understandable.  They had removed a lot of his internal workings to save his life, and he had lost a lot of blood in the whole process.  Even his skin had a bit of a pale tone too it, even as he was starting to get better.

Sidney got Silas back up to his room and with the aide of two muscular orderlies they got Silas back into the hospital bed, all without waking the man up from the much needed rest that Silas so clearly needed.

--------

Days seemed to come and go as Silas stayed in the hospital.  The doctor overseeing his care was worried that he hadn't gotten his strength and energy back a week after being in the hospital - despite the fact that Silas was sitting up more, moving more, and just in general being his normal self again, he was still slightly weakened and got tired quickly.  Sidney wasn't all that worried, he knew that having multiples took a lot out of a person, and add a complicated pregnancy and birth to that, it was understandable that Silas would be exhausted still.

Gio came every day with good-to-eat food for Silas and Sidney both, since the duo spent every morning after the kids went to school up until an hour before the kids bedtime, at the hospital together.  It was just like they were in the dating, we've just moved in together, phase all over again.  Having no kids, pets, or any distractions, they were able to talk a lot more - adult conversation that did not include school grades, homework, what we should have for dinner or what movie should we watch before putting the kids down for bed... Of course, some of those conversational pieces did come up as well, but that was par for the course for two father's of six kids.

Marc and Kris came by every other day to see how Silas was doing, and to see how the triplets were doing - After a week of being in the NICU, they had been moved from there and into the step-down unit.  Which meant they were stronger, healthier, and had put on a good amount of weight.  Alexander now weighed just a little over five pounds, and Maia and Megan were topping the preemie charts at 4.8 pounds each.  Neither of them had any health issues, which was a blessing for Silas and Sidney.  And today the triplets were being moved out of the step-down unit and into a maternity ward room with Silas - the room was much larger than most, simply because their were three of them and the Flint's needed the space in order to care for their children.

Sidney was allowed to stay with him overnight in this room, but because of the other three children at home, he only stayed overnight twice a week.  It was difficult to be separated at night, for both of them, but they were making it work.  Especially now, two weeks later, that Silas was capable of moving around a lot better and without the assistance of a nurse, orderly, or Sidney.  Today was a special day though - they hadn't brought their three oldest up to the hospital, yet, to meet their siblings - only to see how Silas was doing and talk to their Adda.  But today they were all coming up to meet the triplets for the first time - Silas and Sidney were both slightly worried about how they would react - Calla especially, even though she had finally come to terms with their being an addition of three kids in their lives, she still was not happy about not being the youngest of the Flint brood.

Silas sighed as he sat in the glider chair, pushing himself back and forth slowly as he fed Megan and Maia their lunch - it was close to lunchtime and Silas was eagerly awaiting Gio's arrival with some good food to eat.  Sirius was also bringing Theo, Titan, and Calla up at lunch time so it would be a bit of a more neutral setting between the six kids as they met for the first time -- No Flint could resist good cooking as a 'medium' to cross bridges "I'm still worried about today." Silas said as he looked up at Sidney who was feeding Alex from a bottle - their youngest son was not feeding from Silas properly, so they had to stick with donated milk and Silas' own milk in bottles,.

[hockeypreg2]

Sidney rubbed Alexander's back gently, trying to convince him to eat a little more. He ate well but he was a lazy eater. He got bored and would stop eating even if he was still hungry. The girls were much more relentless when it came to eating. They didn't like to be interrupted even to switch side so it was easier to feed them at the same time.

"I'm nervous too." Sidney agreed. "They were very excited when I left this morning and Calla was actually a bit upset that she couldn't just come with me when I came this morning. I'm going to take that as a good sign. We can only hope they feel that way when they actually get here and see them."

[Sam260]

Silas smiled a little, proud of their oldest daughter for finally being more interested in being a big sister "Well, we all know Theo will be thrilled to meet his sisters, but most importantly his new baby brother... Titan is still on the fence about it - being the middle child does that.. He wants to side with Calla, but at the same time he wants to side with Theo, who also happens to be his twin brother." Silas said with a slight shrug.

He looked down at Megan and Maia "You know, you two are heavy... You could stand to lose a few pounds." Silas said with a teasing smile on his face. Maia didn't seem to like her Adda's joke much, spitting up a bit of the milk she had just swallowed "Oh gross!" Silas groaned and looked up at Sidney with a frown on his face "She got ick on me!" his bottom lip jutted out in a pout.

[hockeypreg2]

Sidney laughed and handed him a spit up rag. "Just clean up and get used to it. Remember how much Calla used to spit up on me at first? It was pointless to wear a shirt."

There was a knock on the door and Sidney looked up to see everyone, Sirius and the kids as well as Gio. "Oh wow. Hi guys."

"We ran into Gio in the lobby," Sirius explained, holding one of the bags for Gio.

Calla came running into the room, skidding to a stop when she saw Silas nursing Megan and Maia. "Adda? What are you doing?"

[Sam260]

Silas managed to clean himself up with the rag, all while holding Megan and Maia as he had been. It helped that he had them resting on an extra huge pillow, but he still had to support their bodies throughout the feeding process. Silas smiled at Calla as she came over to him "I'm feeding your sisters their lunch." Silas said quietly.

Maia and Megan both seemed to be finished now, and with such perfect timing too. He was starting to feel lightheaded from nursing and being hungry. "Alright, I need some help getting up." Silas said, looking to the three adults of the room.

Sirius was quick, setting the bag of food down on the table in the room and then coming over to lift Maia up from the pillow and Silas' arms with a gentleness that a man of Sirius' height and size shouldn't even know "Hello there my sweet little niece." Sirius said with a smile as he brushed his thumb over her cheek. He set Maia against his shoulder, spit-up rag over his shoulder and gently started rocking and patting her back.

Silas was able to get up after that, doing the exact same as his brother, just with Megan. Theo and Titan came further into the room, Titan taking his position up next to Calla, and Theo scooting his way closer to Sidney to get a better look at his baby brother "So... This is Alexander?" Theo asked curiously, reaching out to touch his baby brother's small foot.

Gio remained quiet, silently watching the Flint family interact with each other as he set the Styrofoam boxes of their lunch out on the table - they usually ate buffet style when at the hospital, able to pick and choose what they wanted to eat. There were plates, cutlery, cups and drinks that Gio provided - all from Saucer II, so at least they knew the food was excellent, especially when prepared by Gio. "Food is ready." Gio announced, looking toward the family, but more specifically his eyes on Sirius, a light blush tinting his tan cheeks - he was so in love with Sirius that it was obvious to anyone, except for the man himself.

[hockeypreg2]

Sirius brought Maia over to Gio, smiling at him warmly as he kept gently patting her back to get her to burp. "You should stay for lunch. An extra set of hands would go far with the whole crew here today."

"This is Alexander," Sidney said to Theo, smiling at his oldest son. Alexander was still lazily eating his bottle, pulling off every so often to gum his fists instead of eat. "He doesn't eat as fast as the other two so he's still having lunch. Want to help me feed him?"

Theo nodded and Sidney shifted over a little so Theo could climb up on the chair with him. He had Theo take the bottle and lightly tickle Alexander under the chin to get it to take it again while Sidney held him. Theo smiled softly as Alexander began to eat again, opening his eyes to look right at Theo.

"He's looking at me!"

"He is," Sidney said, kissing the top of Theo's head as he smiled down at his sons.

Calla climbed up on the glider so she could look at Megan a little better, her eyes wide. "Adda, she's so small. Can I hold her?"

[Sam260]

Gio smiled shyly up at Sirius, but he nodded his head "Sure, I'll stay and help out with the lunch service. It is a specialty of mine." Gio said quietly, his cheeks growing even redder. He couldn't seem to help himself, he placed a hand against Sirius' back and the other he used to gently rub the bottom of Maia's foot "You're so good with her." Gio said quietly, voice reflecting his awe and admiration for the tall muscular man.

Theo couldn't help but to be completely enthralled and enraptured by his new baby brother. Alexander continued eating and just staring at Theo, as if he couldn't take his eyes off his big brother - it was a miracle, actually, when the bottle was completely emptied and Alexander seemed to grow fussy, trying to suckle more milk out of the empty vessel. "I think he wants more food, daddy." Theo said, looking up at Sidney.

Titan, however, was starting to feel a little left out - everyone was focused on a baby, even Calla, who was supposed to stick by his side and not fall for the 'cute baby' routine! They had discussed this at home, that they would stick together and ignore their new siblings, but Calla had gone ahead and ruined their plans. Now he was stuck just sitting on the bed, staring in disbelief at the rest of his family. and *UGH* what was up with that creep Gio, fawning all over *HIS* uncle!

Silas looked at Sidney a bit skeptically about Calla's request, but at Sidney's subtle nod, Silas turned back to Calla and nodded his head "Sure baby, but I have to help you hold her - it's because she's so small and very fragile. Understand?" Silas asked as he sat back down on the glider, and got Calla situated in his lap.

Calla was being extremely delicate with her new baby sister, sitting in Silas' lap as still as possible as the duo held onto Megan in their arms together. "She's very small in our arms, Adda. Are you sure we won't hurt her?" Calla asked quietly, worry tinging her voice as she tilted her head back to look up at Silas.

[hockeypreg2]

"Babies are easy at this age," said Sirius, looking at Maia with a soft smile. "Titan, come here. You can hold Maia."

Titan looked at his uncle with a scowl but came over, letting him settle them both in his lap like Silas had Calla and Megan. He looked at the baby and touched her small hand, surprised when she grabbed his finger, squeezing it tightly. He actually smiled a little when she looked up at him, dragging his finger to her mouth. Sirius met his brother's eye and winked at him, nodding down at Titan and Maia.

Sidney tipped Alexander up on his shoulder to burp him, lightly tapping his back. "There is another bottle on the counter over there if you want to grab it, bud. Maybe he'll eat some more for you."

Theo scrambled out of the chair to go get the bottle, bringing it back and climbing back up. This time Sidney settled Alexander on Theo's lap so he could hold him while Sidney held the bottle. The room was surprisingly quiet as all three older kids were entranced by their younger siblings.

[Sam260]

While the three siblings, and the parents and Sirius all seem entranced with the newborns... It was Gio who was more entranced by Sirius and his gentle nature toward the baby and Titan - he wished he had this. A family, a loving family, who gathered together for things such as births and weddings. He had no family here in America, all he had was this seven people in his life, but he was finding that they were more than enough to soothe that inner turmoil.

After several minutes of silence, Maia was the first to start sniffling and crying. Soon starting Alexander and Megan's tears and upset "I think it is time we get them to sleep. They are get very fussy when they are tired, and they are always tired a few minutes after eating." Silas said helpfully, but loudly, to carry over the loud sounds of their three children crying.

Getting Calla off of his lap carefully, while still holding Megan in an arm, Silas stood up and carried Megan over to the wide crib that they were using for all three triplets. Sirius extracted himself carefully from Titan and brought Maia over, laying her in the middle of the crib and next to her twin sister. Then Sidney brought Alexander over after he was finished with his second bottle and burping, all three triplets snuggled together and now covered by a quilted blanket that Meg, their grandmother, had made for them.

"There, they should fall asleep relatively quick now that they are together. I am starving, let us eat!" Silas said as he took Sidney's hand, giving it a small squeeze and a gentle smile. Their three older kids quickly went over to the table where Gio and Sirius helped them get plates of food - Sirius helping Calla the most so she picked out the proper foods for her sensitive palate.

Silas held Sidney back and waited a few moments "I love you, Sid... More than you will ever know." Silas said quietly, pulling his husband close to his chest and tilting his husband's head back so he could plant a firm, loving kiss on the shorter man's lips "Always and forever, babe."