The tiles are cool underneath Grace, on her hands. It helps, but only barely, her stomach still churning, her head still aching. Her back is against the wall, the toilet facing her like some taunting, necessary evil. Beckoning her back to puke up her guts again. Hot tears run down her cheeks, and her arms cross over her stomach, not much changed yet. She does not want to throw up again.

"Here," Peter says, entering the bathroom again with a glass of water. He sits down next to her, putting the cup to her lips as if she couldn't do that herself. When he turns to put the cup on the sink, she rests her head against his shoulder, her own shaking a bit as she cries.

"I'm such a baby," she sobs. "I'm about to have a baby and I'm a baby."

She can hear Peter trying not to laugh. "You're not a baby."

"Look at me!" she shouts, sitting up. "I'm in tears!"

"Your hormone levels are all out of wack right now," he points out, his expression softening a bit.

"I'd be crying even if they weren't," she huffs.

"Well, you're sick. Some people cry when they're sick."

"Yeah, babies."

He chuckles. "You're not a baby. Promise."

"Don't make promises you can't keep," she mumbles, leaning her head back against the wall and closing her eyes.

"I learned that lesson a long time ago, and I can definitely keep this one." He rests his hand on one of hers, knowing she won't move either of them just to hold his hand right now. "I promise I mean it."

"That doesn't make it true," she argues.

He chuckles again. "I mean, from my perspective, this just gives me the perfect opportunity to be there for you and dry your tears."

"My baby tears?" Grace asks, irritated. "The tears of the baby that I am?"

Peter sighs, but he's clearly still amused. "Fine, then. You're a baby." Then, he nudges her with his shoulder. "But I know you're gonna be a great mom, too."

She turns to him, irritation melting away into a sort of softness — that feeling she felt when she looked at that positive test for the first time. "Yeah?"

"Yeah," Peter replies, the feeling coming back to him, too. "And this kid is gonna have it made."

"Yeah they will," Grace says with laugh. Then, her eyes widen, and Peter hurriedly grabs her hair as she leans over the toilet once again. He looks away, scrunching up his nose.

~~~~

Grace sits on the couch, watching Pepper, May, and Morgan running back and forth, making sure everything's ready. She was helping before, but they ushered her to the living room, and her feet were already tired, anyways. Peter is somewhere in the backyard with Happy and Rhodey.

Not five minutes later, their first guests arrive. Grace is happy to see them, especially because she knows she doesn't have to stand to greet them.

"Oh, my gosh!" Bucky exclaims, walking over to her as Sam hands Pepper their gifts. "You swallowed a mountain!"

Grace laughs, playfully rolling her eyes. "Yeah, that's what happens when you're pregnant."

"I think she looks more like a hot air balloon," Sam says.

"A giant hamster ball."

"A giant beach ball."

"But hamster balls have living things in them. That's a much better analogy."

There's another knock on the door, and Grace sighs. "Thank gosh someone is here to end this conversation."

Wanda walks in the door, and Grace starts to get up to see her, but she rushes over. "No, no, stay where you are!"

"I can stand up, Wanda," Grace says with a laugh.

"I know, but you don't have to." Wanda sits on the couch next to her, smiling. Bucky takes the gift bag from her hands and passes it to Morgan in the other room, while Wanda looks at Grace's stomach. "Has she been kicking today?"

"Not yet today, but all night last night."

Wanda grimaces. "Oh, no."

"It's fine. Everything is fine. I'm perfectly content right now. I totally don't want to go into labor this very second," Grace deadpans, and Wanda laughs.

"Please don't," Peter says, walking into the room, Rhodey behind him. "I'm not mentally prepared for that."

"And little Tasha has longer to cook, anyway," May points out, passing through.

"Bake at 350 degrees for nine to ten months..." Rhodey jokes.

All the guest trickle in for the next half hour, bearing gifts of diapers, baby wipes, bottles, bibs, and clothes. Pepper sprung for the rocking chair while May and Happy covered the stroller and car seat. Wanda bought three outfits because she simply couldn't choose just one. Sam bought a Captain America binky and a onesie that says, 'My Uncle is my Favorite,' while Hannah and Harley's gift included a, 'Best Aunt Ever,' shirt for Morgan. They brought up Ellie's bassinet and high chair, as well as a new mobile and oodles of advice. Ellie and Sammy bring a lot of smiles and laughter.

They play games, eat food, joke, laugh, and reminisce, all having a good time. By the end of it though, Grace is exhausted. Peter drives home, gifts in the backseat. They'll have a few things to integrate into Tasha's nursery, which Grace painted early while she still could. It's decorated like a fairy garden.

Peter moves all the gifts into it after ushering Grace to bed, and, just before he joins her, he looks around the room, a smile on his face.

He can't wait to be a dad.

~~~~

Peter spots a guy trying to get away out of the corner of his eye and fires a web at him, all while dealing with two more guys in front of him looking for a fight. Burglars, trying to rob a bank. He may be an Avenger now, but this is definitely not above his pay grade. Not to mention the fact that it's super fun. Though, it would be better with Grace...

As if on cue, Can't Help Falling in Love starts playing in his suit, and Karen says, "Grace is calling."

He webs a light fixture then backs up, using momentum to kick the guys he's fighting. "Answer her."

Instead of the, "Hello," he's expecting, he hears his wife's tense voice saying, "Peter."

He fires a web at another guy, now incredibly
concerned. "Yeah?"

"I think..." she starts, and he can her breathing heavily "... I think I'm in labor."

His eyes widen. "You're sure? This isn't like last time?" Three weeks ago she thought she was, and he raced home in the middle of a downpour.

"No, I-I'm sure," she stutters.

Peter sighs. "Well that's fan-freaking-tastic."

"Your words say one thing but your tone says another," she rushes out.

Peter fires another web, trying to contain the chaos around him. "I'm in the middle of stopping a robbery right now."

"You're kidding."

"Wish I was." He kicks a guy in the face.

"Oh, my gosh, Peter," Grace says. He can hear her breathing again, probably pacing and trying to think. "Okay... Okay... I'm gonna drive myself."

Peter's eyes widen again as he webs a guy to the wall. "Absolutely not."

"What else am I gonna do, have the baby on the floor by myself?" she demands.

Peter shrugs a bit. "I mean... at least lay on the couch."

"Peter, this is not funny!"

"You'll find that funny later when everything is fine — because it's gonna be fine," he assures her, even as he's panicking himself.

"I don't find it funny right now!"

"Call your mom, May, and Happy, and have them drive you. I'll swing over to the hospital as soon as I can. Do not have that baby without me."

"I can't exactly control what Tasha's gonna do, Pete. Already taking after her namesake," she mutters.

"Well, you tell her I said to wait until I get there," Peter replies.

She snorts. "Yeah, I'm sure that'll make all the difference."

"Get the go bag, call your mom, and I'll be there as soon as I can, okay?" he says. "I love you."

"I love you, too," she breathes, and then the call disconnects.

Peter turns to the three burglars left. "Alright, guys, I got a wife that's in labor with my first child, so we need to wrap this up, okay?"

~~~~

Happy was about to lose it, so May was calming him down as he drove while Pepper and Morgan were in the back with Grace. She was breathing, fighting pain, praying.

"If Peter doesn't get here..." she'd said, her chest tight at the thought.

"He'll get here," Pepper assured, holding Grace's hand. "Just breathe."

When she'd been checked into the hospital, he still wasn't there. It's been a long fifteen minutes of waiting and pain, and he's still not here.

"Mom, I will not have this baby without him," Grace says, less panicked now, but knowing she'll feel better once he's here.

"You could be in labor for up to a day, Grace, don't worry."

"A day?!" she exclaims. She knew that, read it somewhere, but now that it's actually happening... "I'm not doing this for a whole day!"

Pepper looks sympathetic. "You can't control it, honey."

Grace looks down at her stomach, at Tasha. "As soon as your father gets here, you better be ready to go. I mean it."

"What, you're gonna threaten her out of there?" May asks, chuckling.

"If that's what it takes."

Luckily, after half an hour of waiting, Peter arrives, running into the room in his Spider-Man suit, a nurse trailing behind him. "Grace!"

She's relieved at the sight of him, watching him rush to her bedside. "Yeah, I'm here, still waiting. Ready to go home." She looks at her stomach again. "You hear me, Tasha? Dad's here, let's go."

Peter takes her hand. "Good to know she waited for me."

"Well, there's nothing to wait for now, and I want her out." She suddenly looks down at his hand in hers, covered by his glove. "Are you seriously wearing the suit to our daughter's birth?"

"Well, I wasn't gonna stop at home to change."

"May, please go tell Happy to bring Peter some clothes."

She laughs. "On it."

Grace turns back to Peter, still holding his hand. "This is it," she says. "Today's the day."

He smiles, squeezing her hand. "Today's the day."

She's smiling, too. "We're about to be parents." Her smile drops. "Oh, my gosh, we're about to be parents." Unfortunately, another contraction hits, and Peter's hand nearly breaks.

~~~~

Six hours later, Natasha Virginia May Parker-Stark has entered the world.

"What a name," Pepper had said when they told her.

"Well, we're only planning on having two kids, so we had to fit all the girl names in," Grace had replied.

Pepper raised a brow. "And what if your second kid is a girl, too?"

"Um... Benjamin is also a girl's name," Peter offered, causing Pepper and Grace to laugh. That was months ago.

Now, Peter, Pepper, Morgan, May, Happy, and Rhodey are standing in Grace's hospital room, looking at the small baby in Grace's arms. Rhodey, Pepper, and May are talking quietly, looking at the sight with smiles, while Happy is saying something to Morgan. Peter looks down at Grace, smiling until he sees a sort of sadness in her eyes.

His brows furrow in concern, and he leans down to her. "Are you alright? What's wrong?"

"I- I'm just thinking..." she starts, looking down at Tasha "... like, I'm holding her, and I don't..." she takes a deep breath "...how could I not want her? How could I just give her to you and walk away and never see her again? I don't understand... and I... I wish Dad was here."

Peter's expression softens, and he puts an arm around her, rubbing her shoulder. "It's alright... It's alright. I wish he was here, too."

"And-And Nat."

"I know," he says, kissing her temple. "I know... But you did great, okay? She's beautiful; she looks just like you. And you're gonna be the best mom for her."

She tears her eyes away from Tasha to look up at him. "You really think so?"

He smiles. "I know so. She's yours."

"She's ours," Grace amends, turning back to her, fast asleep, small.

"Yeah, she is. Look at that nose. That's a Parker nose if I've ever seen one. And her eyes are as blue as yours."

Grace smiles. "I almost wish she would open them again."

"Me, too," Peter agrees. "But she needs sleep, and so do you. I'll hold her while you rest, okay? Don't worry."

Grace nods. "Okay." She leans down to Tasha. "I love you." As she hands her to Peter, she looks at him, a sleepy smile on her face. "And I love you, too, Peter."

"I love you, too, Grace." He looks down at Tasha in his arms. "I love both of my girls."

Morgan walks over, getting up on her toes to see, and Peter smiles.

"If you shoo everyone else out, I'll let you stay and sit down so you can see her better."

Morgan rolls her eyes. "Deal."

~~~~

After a largely sleepless night, the Parker-Starks had breakfast, and Grace retreated into the nursery to hold their newest addition while Peter cleaned up the kitchen. Now that he's done, he goes into the nursery, finds it empty, then turns into the bedroom, smiling at the sight of Grace sitting in bed, holding their two week old daughter.

Grace looks at him. "The rocking chair was getting uncomfortable," she explains.

"You want me to hold her?" Peter asks softly.

She hesitates, grimacing a bit. "Would it be selfish of me to say no?"

He chuckles. "Scoot over."

Grace does so, giving Peter room to sit next to her, one arm around her and the other near his daughter.

Grace smiles. "She's beautiful."

"Looks just like you," Peter agrees.

"She definitely does has your nose."

"Well, she's got your eyes — that's for sure." They're insanely blue, somehow brighter than even Grace's.

"Maybe she'll have your hair," she says, and Peter chuckles. They sit in silence for a while, looking down at Tasha in wonder. She thankfully falls back asleep, and Peter sighs.

"Are we going shopping for baby clothes today?" he asks.

"Yes."

He thinks for a moment. "I think we should take out a set amount of money, and that will be all we can spend."

Grace turns to him, protesting. "But what if there's too many things to buy."

"She doesn't need a wardrobe," Peter reasons with a laugh.

"Just let me spoil her before it will make much of a difference."

"Grace-"

"I was spoiled, you know, and look how I turned out. Pretty good, if you ask me."

Peter laughs. "That's because Pepper stopped your dad from going overboard."

Grace hesitates, then concedes on that point. "Okay, maybe. But I just think that we don't need to limit ourselves to how much we can buy."

"You know she'll grow out of it all before she can wear it."

"Then we'll buy some bigger sizes."

"She'll have a whole closet full."

"Yes, she will," Grace agrees, looking back down at their daughter fondly. "Dad would've just bought her the whole store, you know."

Peter laughs again. "Oh, I know. He'd spoil her even more than you."

"You can't tell me you wouldn't give her the world if you could."

"Of course I would," Peter replies, with no hesitation. "But I don't think we should waste money on clothes she'll never get to wear. She'll grow faster than you think."

Grace frowns. "I don't want her to."

Peter sighs. "Neither do I."

"Not that I don't want her to stop waking us up in the middle of the night."

"Oh, yeah — I'm all for her growing out of that."