Merry Christmas everyone! I have been contemplating the next chapter of MioL. The only thing I know about it at this point is that it will contain a Cam, Sam, Kendra conversation. Anyway, I really wanted to post something since it's been so long and suddenly this came to me. I'm not sure if anyone is interested in a sneak peak into their lives between LCM and MioL, but if you are, this is for you.

I haven't heard from many of you in a long time, so if you liked this, or even if you didn't, I'd love to hear from you.

And again, have a blessed Christmas!

"Ssh…ssh…ssh…baby, it's alright. Come on; please be a good boy for Mommy. If you don't stop crying soon, Mommy's going to be crying right along with you," an exhausted Casey told Gage as she walked him back and forth across the tiny living room of their campus apartment.

Derek had been gone for three days on a road trip with the team, leaving Casey as the sole caretaker for their six month old son. It was Christmas Eve and he was due back at around midnight. It was now eleven thirty and Gage had been fussing nonstop for the last three hours. His gums were swollen and she felt sure they were right in the middle of the beginning of teething. Nothing she had done had worked. She had researched on the web and looked in every parenting book she had, searching for something that would calm the cranky child, but nothing had worked so far. It had been a tough three days and all she wanted was to see her husband walk through the door.

The first semester of university had been trying. They were thousands of miles away from all the family, completely in a different country. It was funny how living with someone for three years had in no way prepared them for really living with that same person. Every little thing was personified ten fold in the tiny little apartment. There was hardly enough room to turn around with all of Gage's various baby needs scattered everywhere.

To say money was tight was an understatement. She was positive that by the time they graduated in four years, she would never want to look at another box of macaroni and cheese or a package of oriental noodle soup ever again. They had taken out student loans to be able to live since student athletes weren't allowed to work and Derek felt Casey had enough on her plate between school and being the primary care giver to Gage. Casey hadn't realized how much time hockey would consume. Add to that Derek's class load and it was completely overwhelming to both of them.

They had no time for friends, which made the fact that they missed everyone back in Canada even harder. Finally, the tears began to fall as she thought about how desperately she wanted her mother at the moment.

Just then she heard the door rattle as a key was placed in the lock. Soon it was pushed open and in came Derek, juggling a travel bag in each hand. "Hey baby," he began before stopping to stare at the sight that greeted him.

He immediately dropped the bags and rushed to Casey, enveloping her in his arms. She took a deep breath, the familiar smell of Derek causing her to sob even harder. It was a mixture of overwhelming stress and relief that he was finally here, all rolled into one huge crying fit.

Casey crying seemed to upset Gage even more, and his whimpering became full fledged wailing. Derek just stood there, his arms wrapped around them trying to figure out the scene that was unfolding in front of him.

Finally Casey calmed to small sobs and hiccups and he felt it might be safe to address the question at hand. He kissed the top of her head and rubbed her back soothingly as he whispered in her ear, "What's wrong baby? Tell me what's wrong. I can't help you if you don't tell me."

She pulled back slightly, her nose red and slightly runny, her face splotchy and her eyes swollen. "I want to go home," she managed to get out before fresh tears started all over again.

"Case, we are home. This is our home now," he told her gently as he pushed the tear dampened hair from her face. "I know it's hard right now, but someday we'll look back on this and be so proud that we made it. It won't always be like this I promise," he told her as he led them to sit on the small couch facing what could only be described as one of the saddest little Charlie Brown Christmas trees ever. Under it were a few present that their family had sent. There were also a few that Derek and Casey and bought for Gage to open. They had both agreed that they wouldn't buy anything for themselves, choosing to use what little they had to try and make Gage's first Christmas as nice as possible.

Derek settled down in one corner of the couch, before reaching up to gently pull Casey down towards him, a still fussing Gage, wrapped tightly in her arms. "Here let me," he said as he took the baby from her.

"Hey buddy," he said as he nuzzled the baby to him. "Have you been giving your mom fits while Daddy was away? I told you to be a good boy. What's the deal, huh? I guess you don't want Santa to come see you tonight, do you?" he asked as he moved the baby away to look into the blue eyes that were exactly like his mother's. Derek could hardly believe that he was already half a year old. Since school had started in September, the amount of time he had spent with his son had steadily decreased and it tore at Derek's heart. He loved Gage more than life's itself and it killed him to not spend more time with him.

Suddenly it seemed to register to Gage that Derek was home and suddenly his whining stopped and a small grin came across his chubby little face.

"Great, he smiles for you and cries for me," Casey said with a roll of her eyes. "I've been walking that baby for hours and you show up and boom, happy baby."

Derek's felt a stab of guilt run straight from his gut to his heart. Casey was doing everything possible to be the perfect wife, mom and student. The problem was, there was no way to be those things. But still, "keener" Casey managed to rear her beautiful head at the most inopportune times. Derek only hoped he could talk her down from such silly notions.

"I don't think it's that Case. He probably just finally wore himself out. Has it been that bad?" he asked quietly, feeling like an absolute failure as a husband and father at the moment. What good was a sweep on the road, if he was leaving his family to fend for themselves while he was gone all the time?

"I'm just tired," she told him, knowing that he was feeling very guilty at the moment. "But I'm really glad your home," she said as she snuggled in deeper to him.

Derek adjusted Gage so he held each of his babies in an arm. "Me too, baby.

I missed you guys so much. Just think, we're half way through the first year and we've survived. Three and a half more years and then we'll be set. I'll buy us a huge house with a big fenced in backyard. We'll put up a huge swing set and build a tree fort. Gage will have all the room a little boy needs and we won't be tripping all over each other and our stuff."

"No matter where we're at, we'll be able to fly back to London anytime we want, even if it's just because. I'm going to spoil you rotten, you've just got to hold on for a little longer," he told her with a sigh. "I'm just sorry I can't give you all the things that you and Gage deserve right now."

Casey looked up at him with a frown. "I know it's been hard but I don't regret any of it for a minute. No matter how much I wish I could go home sometimes, when it comes down to it, I'm so thankful we're here. We're growing and learning and having to depend on each other. If we were back in London, we'd be depending on Mom and George to do those things. I was just having a pity party tonight, but since you got here, things don't look nearly as bleak."

"That's my girl," Derek told her as he pulled her in tighter and placed a soft kiss on the top of her head. "No matter how hard it gets, I wouldn't trade what we have here."

"Look at him Case," he said as he motioned his head towards a now droopy eyes Gage. "How did we get so lucky? I spend all those long bus rides and flights thinking about what he's going to be like when he grows up. Will he love hockey or will he find another passion? Will I do the right things and be the right example so that he grows up to be a good man? Will he be proud that I'm his dad or will he wish…" he trailed of for a moment. "Or will he always wish that Max had been there?"

"Derek," she said, as fresh tears sprung to her eyes. "No one could love this little boy more than you do. He'll know the sacrifices you made. You're his daddy Derek and that will never change."

Derek sniffed and shook his head slightly. "I think I've had all this emotion filled rollercoaster stuff I can stand. So did anything else happen while I was gone?"

"Well, I was going to save this for tomorrow morning, but I guess you can have your present tonight."

"Casey, we promised no presents," he started to protest.

"I promise, this one didn't cost a thing," she told him as she got up off the couch. She went to the cabinet and pulled out the video camera their parents had given them before they left for Boston. Coming to sit back down beside Derek, she opened the screen and pushed play, maneuvering the camera where they could both see it.

Derek watched as Gage came on the screen. He was sitting in his high chair, his face covered in pureed carrots, a grin on his face. He heard Casey say from behind the camera, "Let's show Daddy what a bad boy you've been," she said as she turned the camera to face herself, showing the orange baby food scattered in her hair and smudged on her face. She then turned the camera back to Gage.

"Tell Daddy that you blew your food all over Mommy and then laughed and clapped about it." Gage once again clapped as if on cue.

"That's right, tell," she began but then completely stopped when she heard Gage mutter what she thought sounded like, 'dada'.

"What did you say baby. Say it again," she urged him.

"Da…da," he said again.

"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh," Casey said excitedly. "Say it again. Say it one more time for Daddy. Come on Gage," she urged.

"Da…da," he said and clapped once more.

Derek looked at the screen in awe, words failing him. Finally he looked at Casey, a goofy grin on his face.

"Quit worrying. I think you're off to an okay start on this whole dad thing," Casey told him with a smile. "And all the money in the world couldn't buy that. Our day will come, but until it does, I'm okay with treasures like this."

Derek took a shaky breath before nodding his head in agreement. "Me too, Case. Me too."