Chapter 1

This chapter clearly happens in the future. Seasons unseen by our eyes. AU. This story will exist in 2 time lines. Timeline A begins with Spring Awakening. Timeline B is season 17.

Timeline B

The buzz of her cell phone woke her from her light slumber. She'd fallen asleep on the couch- with the television on. She'd done it a million time before. It was always easier to sleep with the low sounds of a nonsense show, instead of going to her bedroom alone. But, tonight, it was pure accident. She'd fallen asleep waiting for her husband to come home.

Finally landed. Getting in a cab. Be home soon. Love you. She read his text message and smiled.

Be home soon. It had been a week since he'd been home. She missed him. But she wasn't the only one. As she searched for the remote to turn off the television, she felt the stirring of a little boy by her side. He insisted on being there when daddy got home. But, his flight had been so delayed that they both drifted off to sleep. He was awake. He looked at her with his big eyes and her heart melted. Those eyes that stared right into her soul. They were the eyes of his father. Every time she looked at him, she saw his father. His actions sometimes proved that he was his fathers child. His temper, especially. Then she thought of his mother and her tragic death. As he grew older, would that have a negative impact on who he became? She tried to put it from her mind. He was a little boy. A little boy that loved his mama and daddy.

"Mama, is Daddy home?", he asked sleepily.

She smiled at him. "No", she shook her head, "but, Daddy is on his way. See."

She handed him the phone and she saw the smile on his face as he looked at the screen. "How about we send Daddy a picture of us? So, he knows that we are waiting on him."

"A selfie?" he piped up- sleep clearly fading. It was 1am and he was waking up, ruining their routine.

She looked at him with a puzzled face, "How do you know about that?" He managed to amaze her every day with the things he picked up. He was a curious little boy growing up in New York City. The unexpected was to be expected. He began fiddling with the camera on the phone and handed it back to her.

"What?" she asked then she remember, "Oh. Longer arms." He nodded enthusiastically.

They both made the funniest faces they could as she took the picture. She gave him the phone to allow him to press send. Almost instantaneously, her phone buzzed again. It was a photo of her husband in the back of a cab. It was shadowy because of the time, but you could make out his smile and eyes.

"It's Daddy!", he shrieked. She hushed him and rubbed at his back as she hugged him close, attempting to calm him. He was liable to wake the entire building.

He began to squirm against her efforts. She leaned close to him to whisper in his ear, "Hey baby boy, Daddy will be home soon. Let's try to rest a little bit. Until he gets here." She was hoping to get him to go back to sleep after their long awaited reunion.

He squinted at her. The same confused squint that she gave people when they said something that puzzled her. "Mama, I'm a big boy. Not a baby."

"Oh, you're right. I keep forgetting. You're my big boy." She giggled at him. But, he was right. He wasn't the little baby from years ago. He was 8. He was so much bigger now. She remembers the first time she held him. It was so unexpected. Not at all how she thought her day would be. But, it changed her life forever. And here she was now- his mother. And she loved him with all of her heart. She was so overcome with joy the day she officially became his mother.

Satisfied with her affirmation, he sighed and looked at her with those big eyes. "Why does Daddy go on trips? What if he doesn't come home in time and we've moved? He won't know where we went."

He asked every time. They all hated that he had to travel every other month. But, it was his job. She gave him the same answer every time. "You remember that Daddy and I worked together a long time ago? To help people? Well, now Daddy helps people all over the country. But, he misses us as much as we miss him. And he is on his way home now. We won't move without him. I promise. We aren't leaving until next week."

He looked down at his feet and gave her a sad, "ok". He was a little worried about moving. He was both excited and skeptical of the move. But, they needed a bigger place. Growing boys needed actual room to grow. And their current apartment wasn't the place for them. They sat in silence for a long time. He began to drift back to sleep until the sound of keys in the door made him jump from the couch screaming, "Daddy!". His little feet hit the ground hard as he ran to the door. He knocked over a box of books along the way. She knew what she was about to say was going to come too late.

"Eli, you're too loud. You're going to wake your brother." As the words left her mouth, Noah's soft cries came from the boys room. Elliot rounded the corner of the small hallway with an apologetic look as he took off his coat. Eli was still buzzing with excitement. He was talking a million miles a minute, oblivious to the cries of his brother.

"Hey, buddy. I'm right here. Calm down." Elliot said quietly as he scooped Eli into his arms and gave him a kiss.

He looked at Olivia once more. They locked eyes for what felt like an eternity. But, they broke their gaze as Noah began to cry louder. "Go ahead and get him. I have a feeling we are going to be up for a while." he said quietly to her. He looked back at Eli, "I think we're in trouble with mama…"

Did I throw you for a loop? I'll give you some background in the next chapter. If you all want another chapter...