AN: Here you go, another one. MORE POWERSTONES.
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[Hospital] [7:00 PM] [5th March 2009]
The hospital floor had grown quieter by seven, with most visitors gone and the hallway lights dimmed for the evening. Max rested against the raised pillows while the twins slept in their bassinets beside the bed. Alex sat near her, checking something on his phone when a soft knock sounded at the door.
Before Alex could answer, the door opened and Gina Wilson stepped inside with Michael close behind her. Both wore simple dark coats, carefully chosen to avoid attention, though neither of them could ever truly look ordinary. A bunch of High Table operatives remained somewhere outside the floor, invisible to everyone who didn't know what to look for.
Alex stood immediately. "You actually came."
Gina's expression softened as she walked toward him and pulled him into a tight hug. "You called and told me I had two new grandchildren. Did you honestly think I was going to ignore that?"
Alex smiled and hugged her back before Michael reached them. His father offered a restrained smile at first, then placed one hand against Alex's shoulder and pulled him into a brief embrace that carried more warmth than either man would've admitted aloud.
Michael glanced toward the bassinets while stepping back. "Three children in such a short time... Son. Apparently, subtlety skipped your generation entirely."
Max lifted her head from the pillows and gave him a tired grin. "Finally, somebody from his side of the family is willing to admit he's the problem."
Gina laughed softly as she approached the bassinets. The humor disappeared from her face the moment she looked down at the twins, replaced by something far more vulnerable. She reached toward the baby girl first, though she stopped before touching her and looked toward Max for permission.
Max smiled and shifted slightly beneath the blankets. "Go ahead, Grandma. She doesn't bite yet, although I'm making no promises once she inherits my personality."
Gina carefully lifted the little girl into her arms, gently supporting her head. Her eyes immediately filled as the baby shifted against her chest. "She's beautiful, Max. You both made something wonderful."
Max's usual joke took a second longer to arrive. "Yeah, they're kind of perfect. I'm trying really hard not to become unbearable about it."
Michael stood beside the second bassinet and looked down at his grandson in silence. The baby slept with one fist tucked near his cheek, completely unaware of the man watching him with an expression Alex rarely saw.
Michael reached down carefully and offered one finger. The baby stirred, opened his tiny hand, and curled his fingers around it.
Michael's face softened immediately. "Hello there, little man. I'm your grandpa."
Alex stepped beside him and looked down at his son. "He hasn't been here a full day, and he's already got everybody wrapped around his finger."
Michael glanced toward Alex with a faint smile while his grandson continued holding on. "That's how it should be. Children arrive without knowing anything about the world, and somehow the whole family starts rearranging itself around them."
Alex looked toward Max, then toward his daughter resting against Gina. "Asher already proved that pretty quickly."
Michael nodded slowly as his attention returned to the baby. "Becoming a grandfather once was strange enough. Now there are four of them, and I still don't think I've completely adjusted to the first one." He included Trixie too.
Gina looked over from the bedside while gently rocking her granddaughter. "You're saying that like you didn't spend twenty minutes holding Asher the first time we visited."
Michael gave her a patient look. "I was getting acquainted with my grandson."
Max laughed softly from the bed. "Sure, Grandpa. You were conducting a very serious baby inspection."
The room settled into comfortable conversation after that. Gina sat beside Max and asked how she was recovering, while Michael listened as Alex explained that both babies had passed every examination without complications. Max described the labor with enough dramatic exaggeration to make Gina laugh, although every joke ended with her glancing toward the twins as if she still couldn't quite believe they were hers.
Eventually, Michael checked his watch, and the warmth in his expression gave way to the reality waiting beyond the hospital room. "Well, it's getting late. So, we'll be on our way."
Gina reluctantly returned the baby girl to her bassinet and adjusted the blanket around her before leaning down to kiss Max's forehead. "We'll come to the estate once you're settled. I want proper time with all my grandchildren without watching the clock every few minutes."
Max squeezed Gina's hand and smiled. "Good, because I'm planning to use grandparents for free babysitting once these two discover synchronized screaming."
Gina laughed as she straightened. "That's perfectly fine, although I'm reserving the right to return them after spoiling them beyond repair."
Michael embraced Alex before stepping away, keeping his voice low enough that the moment stayed between father and son. "Enjoy this time while they're small. Work will always find another reason to demand your attention, but these days won't come back once they're gone."
Alex looked toward Max and the twins, his expression softening. "I'm starting to understand that better every day."
Michael gave his shoulder a final squeeze before joining Gina near the door. Within moments, both disappeared into the corridor and back toward the hidden world that rarely allowed them to behave like ordinary parents or grandparents.
Max watched the closed door before turning toward Alex with a tired smile. "Your parents were this close to crying." She made a little hand gesture.
Alex sat beside her again and took her hand. "Babies have that effect on people, apparently."
Max looked toward the bassinets, then back at him with a curious expression. "You know, I still don't really understand what your parents actually do. You keep saying business and all, but there's something unique about them."
Alex's eyes shifted toward her for half a second.
There were several answers he could give. None of the honest ones belonged inside a hospital room with Max recovering from childbirth and two newborns sleeping beside them.
Max continued before he could respond. "Every time they visit, they look like they're on their way to buy a company, fire a government, or attend the world's most depressing billionaire dinner."
Alex laughed softly and adjusted the blanket around their son. "They handle international business, investments, private security, logistics, some politics, I guess, and a lot of things. Think of them as some people keeping the balance of our society."
Technically, none of that was a lie.
It simply left out the part where Michael and Gina Wilson sat at the top of an organization whose influence stretched through the underworld, governments, intelligence networks, law enforcement, military assets, and powerful institutions across the world.
Max nodded slowly while studying him. "So basically rich people business."
"That's one way to describe it," Alex replied while keeping his expression perfectly relaxed.
Max settled deeper against the pillows. "Good, because I was starting to think your mother secretly owned Switzerland or something and your dad is the Godfather."
Alex nearly laughed harder than he intended.
Max narrowed her eyes immediately. "Why was that funny?"
Alex cleared his throat and reached for her water. "Because you say ridiculous things with enough confidence that I sometimes forget they're ridiculous."
Max accepted the glass and took a careful sip. "Excuse you, I'm very intuitive. Someday I'm going to discover your parents own a private island full of gold bars and suspicious helicopters."
Alex looked toward the window while hiding his smile.
Several High Table islands existed.
They own helicopters too.
Max handed the glass back and sighed contentedly. "Whatever they do, they seem nice enough when they're around us. Your mom clearly wants to steal every baby in this family, and your dad has that whole quiet grandpa thing happening now."
Alex glanced toward the bassinets. "They missed a lot when I was growing up. I think they're trying to make sure they don't miss this."
Max's teasing expression softened as she reached for his hand again. "As long as they love the kids and don't teach them weird billionaire habits before kindergarten, I'm fine with grandparents showing up whenever they want."
Alex intertwined his fingers with hers. "I'll make sure Dad doesn't teach them hostile acquisitions before they learn multiplication."
Max gave him a tired grin. "See, that's exactly what I'm talking about. Normal families teach kids baseball. Yours probably teaches corporate warfare during breakfast."
Alex kissed the back of her hand and smiled. "You joined the family willingly."
"I joined because you're hot and caring," Max replied before looking toward the twins with a softer smile. "And you sneaked into my room through the window on my birthday and made me fall for you like one of those cheesy romantic Korean dramas. Then, you helped me gain confidence, loved me like there's no tomorrow and..." She grabbed his shirt and pulled him closer. "...you gave me two beautiful angels. But even so, football and games first... corporate warfare later."
Alex kissed her softly before pressing his forehead against her.
"As you wish, honey," He whispered.
They stayed like that for a few minutes before...
"Okay, it's time for you to sleep. I'll stay and keep an eye on them. So, don't worry about anything and just... rest," He said, pulling back.
Max nodded. "Okay. I could use some sleep."
She lay back and closed her eyes almost immediately.
The exhaustion finally caught up with her now that the room had gone quiet. Within several minutes, her breathing became slow and steady, and the hand resting beside her relaxed against the mattress.
Alex watched her for a moment before turning toward the twins.
Both were still sleeping.
He leaned back in the chair and checked his phone, lowering the brightness until the screen barely lit his face. Several messages had piled up during the day. Most were congratulations from friends and family, while others were work-related messages he had absolutely no intention of dealing with tonight.
He muted the phone and placed it on the table.
For once, everything outside the room could wait.
A small noise came from one of the bassinets.
Alex immediately looked over.
His son shifted beneath the blanket, his face scrunching as though something had personally offended him. A few seconds later, the little boy made another sound and started moving his arms.
Alex stood and leaned over the bassinet.
"Hey, buddy."
The baby opened his eyes for barely a second before closing them again.
Alex smiled and gently placed his hand against his son's chest.
"Mom's sleeping, so let's try not to wake her up just yet."
The baby didn't appear interested in cooperating.
His mouth opened, and the first quiet cry escaped.
Alex quickly lifted him.
"Okay, okay. I get it."
He supported the baby's head against his arm and slowly walked around the room...
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