Something didn't feel right. I was sitting at the kitchen table, eating a bowl of cereal, when the feeling hit. It was another contraction, but this one was different. It was too…wet.

"Soul…" I called uncertainly.

"What?" Soul called back from his room.

"It's time." I called back. Soul walked out of his room and into the kitchen.

"Time for what?" he asked obliviously.

"Soul," I began, my words clipped. "It's time."

Soul's eyes narrowed for the split second it took him to figure out what I meant. "Oh…Oh!" he gasped. "It's time…Blair, it's fucking time! Get Maka's bag and let's go!"

We were at the hospital in seconds. I tried not a grind my teeth from the pain that was escalating by the minute.

"Get Stein." I bit my lip hard, drawing blood. Soul practically carried me to the maternity ward. When he got there, he kicked open the door.

"We're having a baby!" Soul yelled, gaining the attention of everyone in the room. Nygus and Kim came running over, shouting orders.

"Kim, get the room ready. Stein, I need you here, stat!" Kim ran off. I sighed with relief. It was going to be over soon. Nygus rushed me over to an empty bed and set up the stirrups.

"Soul, don't leave. Please-," my pleas were cut off by the scream I couldn't contain. I reached for something, anything, to hold on to and caught Soul's hand. He gripped my hand as if his life depended on it.

"It's okay, Maka. You're going to be fine. Nygus and Stein are going to get you a spinal block and the pain will go away." Soul looked expectantly at Nygus, but she just shook her head.

"No time. She's already at ten centimeters. This boy is coming now." My heart sank. I would have to endure this pain longer? "I know this is rushed, but Maka, it's time to push," Nygus told me as gently as she could. I was confused and scared and did the first thing my instinct (and my nurse) told me to do. I pushed.

"Come on, Maka, he's almost here!" I heard Kim call, and looked to see her standing beside Nygus at my feet. Stein was checking my vitals every five minutes. The pain was almost unbearable, but I just kept pushing, pushing through the pain, pushing to bring my son into the world. Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse, the pain was gone and the pressure had almost stopped. Nygus held a small newborn baby boy in her arms. She handed a pair of scissors to Soul, and he cut the umbilical cord. Nygus muttered something about the placenta, but I wasn't listening. The only thing I could hear was the glorious sound of a baby, my baby, our baby, crying. I looked around the room, searching for the source of the cry, but everything was moving in slow motion. I barely caught a glimpse of him as Stein walked out the room, carrying him.

"Where did they go?" I asked, desperate to see my baby. "Where did Stein take him?"

"Benjamin was just born, Maka. He needs to go to the nursery to get cleaned up and to sleep," Kim answered me, smiling. Benjamin, my little Benjamin.

"Why couldn't I hold him?" I asked, thinking of my dreams of holding my son for the first time.

"He's a little premature, Maka. We need to make sure that he's okay first. But I promise that you can be the first to hold him when all the tests are done," Nygus told me. I smiled at her. I was so tired.

"Can I take a nap?" I asked, afraid I might not wake up.

"Of course you can."

"Thank you." With that, I drifted off into a world where I was holding my son, and Soul was smiling, and everything was right.

I woke up about three hours later, according to the clock on the table. Soul was asleep in a chair beside me. I smiled at him, raised myself off of the hospital bed, and walked out of the room.

I have to see him, I thought, letting my socked feet lead the way. Soon, I was standing in front of the nursery, looking around for my little man. Then I saw it.

Benjamin Michael Evans was written on a card, stuck in a slot in front of the little bed. Ben was sleeping, his small hands curled into little fists. I couldn't wait to hold him, to kiss him, to love him. He was mine, and I was so proud of the little fighter. He'd been through so much.

"You know, it's really cool to see my name written on that little note card." I flipped around to see my weapon standing behind me.

"Soul! I thought you were asleep. And I thought you hated your last name," I added, getting confused.

"Yeah, but that little guy doesn't. As far as he knows, it's the best last name in the world."

"That's because it is the best last name in the world," I retorted playfully. Soul smiled, but it faded after a few seconds.

"What if it was your last name?" he asked, so quietly I almost thought he was talking to himself. He wrapped his arms around my waist.

"What?" I asked, turning to look at him.

"I love you," he said, looking into my eyes. They filled up with tears as I stood there in his arms, feeling completely safe for the first time in months.

"I love you, too." Oh, it felt so good to finally tell him that. After nine months of craziness, after twenty minutes of pain to bring a miracle into the world, I had finally told him.

"Maka, I took your first love, your first kiss, and your virginity." I slapped him when he said the last one. He looked up at me through his long eyelashes. "Will you take my last name?"

I smiled, blinking back the stupid tears that wouldn't seem to stop falling. I wrapped my arms around his neck, bringing my lips to his ear.

"Yes," I whispered, and brought my face to look at him. He pulled me closer and gently pressed his lips against mine, reminding me why I fell in love with him. Yes, he was an ass sometimes. Yes, he could be really immature. But he was the sweetest man I'd ever met. He could sweep you off your feet without a broom, just as he'd swept me off mine. I thought back to what I'd told Ted the day I'd bought the first pregnancy book.

"How does it end?"

"They end up together."

Yeah, that seemed about right.

"Maka, would you like to meet your son?" Kim asked, walking into the room. She was wheeling a clear, plastic bed in front of her. Inside, my baby slept peacefully.

"Yes, please," I answered, reaching out for him. I got out of bed and walked to the rocking chair in the corner. Kim carefully laid him in my arms. He was so small, just over seven pounds, but he was long. 21 inches to be exact. I smiled down at him, ruffling his white hair softly. He opened his eyes to show me two gleaming blue ones staring back at me. Kim noticed the look on my face.

"Don't worry, Maka. They'll change. All white babies are born with blue eyes." I sighed in relief. I wanted him to have my green eyes, or better yet, Soul's red ones. Ben started to fuss, so I began rocking back and forth, soothing him. Soon, he began to quiet down.

"Where's Soul?" Kim asked, looking around. I smiled.

"He went out to get something for us to eat. He's exhausted, poor thing." Kim rolled her eyes.

"He didn't do anything!"

"He stayed with me, worried for me, and cried with me when Ben was born. What guy wouldn't be tired?" We both laughed. I looked down at my little man.

"So I heard he proposed to you," Kim began, giggling a little, "Outside the nursery. All the nurses are talking about it."

I soft smile graced my lips. "Yes, he did."

"You said yes, right?"

"No, I only had his baby. No way am I going to marry the man," I said sarcastically, earning another laugh from Kim. She reached over and touched Ben's head.

"You two made one beautiful baby," she sighed, not taking her eyes off my child. I smiled.

"I know." Continuing to rock him, I softly began to sing a song my mother used to sing to me. I remembered all the words, even all the right notes.

"Baby mine, don't you cry.

Baby mine, dry your eyes.

Rest your head, close to my heart,

never to part,

Baby of mine.

Little one, when you play,

Don't you mind what they say.

Let those eyes sparkle and shine,

Never a tear,

Baby of mine."

Ben was fast asleep now, but I couldn't help but keep singing. I almost felt like he needed to hear my words. I let the lyrics swell from my lips, forgetting about everyone else in the room.

"If they knew sweet little you—

They'd end up,

Loving you, too.

All those same,

People who scold you.

What they'd give,

Just for the right to hold you…

From your head,

Down to your toes.

You're not much, goodness knows.

But you're so,

Precious to me,

Sweet as can be,

Baby of mine…

All those same,

People who scold you.

What they'd give,

Just for the right,

To,

Hold,

You…

From your head,

Down to your toes.

You're not much,

Goodness knows.

But you're so,

Precious to me,

Sweet as can be,

Baby of mine.

Baby of mine…"

"Wow, I never knew you had such a beautiful voice." I jumped as Soul entered the room, holding two bags from Wendy's. The smell of the chicken nuggets made my mouth water. "You know what?" He asked, grabbing my attention again.

"What?"

"You look just like a mom."

"I am a mom," I said, laughing. Soul shook his head.

"God, a mother at seventeen. You're pushing the envelope." I laughed again.

"A dad at eighteen. Who's pushing the envelope now?" Then I got an idea. "Would you like to meet your son?" I asked, copying Kim. Soul's eyes widened, and he nodded. I rested Ben in his arms. Right then, he looked like a father, a real one, for the first time. The reason I say "real one"? He looked scared shitless.

"He's…mine," Soul mumbled, holding our son. He pressed a kiss to the top of Ben's head. "Benjamin Michael Evans." He looked at me. "Soon you'll be Maka Evans. Hmm… It has a ring to it."

"A ring I like," I said, crawling back into bed. Soul took my seat in the rocking chair.

"So, things are going to change, huh?"

"Yeah, but it'll be okay. We're a family now, and families stick together." I had never believed that sentence until that moment. But now, I see that two people really can stay together, no matter what, and my proof was the two boys sitting next to me.

It's finally done! I did it! I finished a story on fanfiction! I'd like to thank everyone who review once again. I know that list will grow with this final update, and for all those future reviewers, I'd like to thank you, too.

So, what did you guys think? Hit? Miss? Come on, did you really think they weren't going to end up together? After all that foreshadowing? I told you the ending was predictable. But that's okay, because I freaking LOVE how I ended it.

Now, I will be starting the sequel soon, just...not right now. I do have a life, and to finish this story four days after starting it was jsut redonkulous. No, redonkulous is not a word. Yes, I will use it anyway.

I hope you guys will stay tuned for the next installment, because you get to meet Ben (and the rest of the cast) in an alternate universe to the one I used in "Soul and Maka's Playlist". In that story, Ben and Claire were born after Soul and Maka had already gotten married. I don't even know if Claire is going to make an appearance in this story. Probably. It wouldn't be fair to write about her brother and not include her.

Some notes on the next story:

It will be a collection of oneshots depicting Soul and Maka's day-to-day lives as parents

There will probably be some fight scenes (this story was severely lacking them. But what was I supposed to do? Have Maka fight a kishin with a big ass bulging belly in her way? No!)

There will be a time skip. Like, a time skip of six months to a year.

That's all I have to say. I guess all that's left is to say Tah Tah For Now! See you next time. Bysies!