Pretty Little Liars: 16 & Pregnant (Sequel)

Morning Madness

The Next Morning
Aria's Pov

I'm woken up by the sound of my alarm, which I turn off within a few seconds. I sit up in bed as gracefully as I can with my ever-growing bump, Ezra rubbing his eyes in preparation to do the same. The only difference from every other weekday morning is that Piper is asleep between us. Neither of the girls have slept in our bed for so long, with the exception of Stella a few months ago when she was sick. But Piper—its been well over a year.

"Hey Pipes," I gently shake her awake "Time to get up." She stirs slightly, although her eyes stay closed.

"Wake up P," I continue "You have to get ready for school."

She groans, covering her face with her arms "Mom?"

"Yeah?" I ask.

"Can I not go to school today?" Piper replies "I didn't sleep very good." I almost tell her that she has to go to school, but then I think of how off she's been lately, and how she came into Ezra and I's bed last night. Maybe a day off could do her good.

"Okay." I reply "I'll stay home with you."

"I can stay home alone." She says "I'll be okay."

"You've only been home alone a few times," I frown "And never for the entire day."

"But I don't want you to miss work," Piper says "Soon you'll be missing work for a long time when the babies are born."

"What's one more day?" I say only half-jokingly, knowing I shouldn't be thinking of it like that. Piper opens her mouth to respond, but then closes it again, before muttering a simple 'okay'.

"I'm gonna go wake Stella up and then I'll bring you both something to drink." Ezra states "Green tea?" Piper and I both agree easily. She may look more like her Dad, but little things like this remind me that she's definitely mine.

"Why didn't you sleep well?" I ask her.

"I just had a bad dream." She answers quietly "And then I couldn't sleep very well after that."

I brush the hair out of her face "Do you want to try and go back to sleep?"

"No," She shakes her head "Can we go downstairs and watch a movie?"

"Wanna watch one in here?" I ask, motioning to the tv on the dresser.

"Okay." Piper replies easily.

We take a little while to agree on the same movie, Piper wanting to watch Blended, which we've seen about a million times, and me wanting to watch The Book Thief. Eventually, we decide on The Age of Adaline, just as Ezra comes back into the room with two steaming mugs.

"Thanks Dad," Piper says as she's handed her green tea.

"No problem Pipe." Ezra smiles, walking to my side of the bed. He gives me a peck on the lips before handing me my mug, then crouches down so he's face-level with my bump.

"Morning babies," He says "I love you both so much."

I glance at Piper, who smiles timidly at the sight of her Dad talking to her unborn siblings. It seems like not too long ago that it was Piper who was in my belly.

"Okay, I better get back downstairs and make sure Stella's still eating cereal. I told her she couldn't eat a popsicle for breakfast but I have a feeling she might see my absence as an opportunity to do it anyway." Ezra says lightly "I'll see you two after work, have a fun day."

"Have a good day at work, I love you." I reply.

"Bye Dad!" Piper waves.

By the time Ezra and Stella leave, we're already far enough into the movie that we're both completely captivated, Piper especially. So much that when I look over at her, I'm not even sure she notices. I study her for a moment or two, wondering what's been going with her lately. She's growing up, undeniably, but there's something else going on aside from that. I decide not to bring it up once again; she seems so content right now.

By the time the movie is over, Piper is asleep again. I smile at the sight of her sweet sleeping face, reminding me of when she was little. Quietly as I can, I get out of bed and go downstairs, which isn't near as easy as it sounds with my bump. I swear every morning it's bigger than when I went to bed the night before.

Once I'm downstairs, I head straight to the kitchen, suddenly ravenously hungry. That's another thing about this pregnancy; it seems I always want something to eat.

"Okay, what are you two hungry for?" I say to my bump, rubbing it gently. I'll make breakfast for Piper and I once she's awake, but until then I need something to hold me over.

"I could really go for some Cheerios." I continue, grabbing the box from the cupboard. I feel a fluttery kick from inside my belly, smiling as I pretend that it was in response to my Cheerios comment.

"24 weeks in a couple days." I say to stomach, sitting down at the table with my cereal. It's still hard to believe that I'm pregnant, and even more surreal to think that I'm having twins. Once they're born, Ezra and I will have doubled the amount of kids we have.

Piper comes downstairs, looking slightly disheveled and still half asleep.

"Good morning Pipey," I smile, opening my free arm for her to come give me a hug.

"Good morning round two," She corrects as she rubs her eyes "We already said good morning today."

"That is true," I chuckle "You must have really been tired." Piper just nods.

"I was thinking waffles for breakfast?" I say after a moment.

"Yeah!" Piper exclaims, suddenly seeming awake.

"Okay," I laugh "Wanna help me make them?"

As my eldest daughter and I stand in the kitchen together making waffle batter, I can't help but feel a little nostalgic. I don't know why, because it's not for the past, but for the present. Like I miss this moment even though I'm still living it. Bringing two new babies into the family is going to change our lives immensely, and even though it's for the better, I know that times like this will soon become few and far between. Quality time spent solely with one of my kids won't be as easy to come across, especially with two newborn babies, but I know I'm going to make it work. I refuse to become too caught up in life that I forget to take time and enjoy what matters most to me.

"Mom can we add chocolate chips?" Piper asks as she tastes the batter.

"Yeah, if we have any." I smile.

"We do!" She replies, rushing to the cupboard "I was eating them the other day."

After she dumps them into the bowl, I pour some batter into the waffle maker. Piper gets the syrup and whipped cream from the fridge, looking as excited as I feel. She's her fathers daughter when it comes to a lot of things, and her love for breakfast foods is definitely one of them.

Piper's Pov

"I think it's almost done!" I say, crouched down to the height of the waffle maker. I turn around to face my Mom, almost continuing to talk until I see the look on her face.

"What's wrong?" I ask feebly, going over to her.

She holds her stomach as she leans against the wall "I-I just..."

"Mom?" I walk over to her, tears welling in my eyes.

"Ow," She winces, looking down at her baby bump as she slowly sinks to the floor "Piper...I-I think you should call 911."

"What's going on?" I ask, tears now rolling down my cheeks.

"Please," She lets out a pained breath "Call 911."

I run over to the table and grab her phone, my hands shaky. As the phone rings, I cry even harder, not knowing what to do.

"911 what is your emergency?" A voice says.

"M-my Mom needs an ambulance," I sob "She's pregnant and there's something wrong. I don't know what it is but s-she's on the floor and she's in pain."

"We'll send someone right away." The woman on the phone replies "Your Mom will be okay, don't worry."