A/N: I'm Kaz's Secret Santa on Tumblr, so this is for you Kaz! Merry Christmas. It's pure fluff. Might have to brush your teeth afterwards.
Also, one of the characters might sound extra familiar. Stole her from rookieD. She lets me babysit the Swarek kids once in a while. I'm their cool aunt that's also a terrible influence, obviously.
(&& thanks to Stacy for being my cheerleader, Nat for being my tennis partner when I can't stop thinking about these fools, and EVERYONE for their awesome reviews on my other stuff.)
Isabella May Swarek was born in May, and she was, as Andy had cheekily named her, the "May flower" to her "April showers," aka the tears shed in pain during her third trimester. Belle, as her parents affectionately called her, had her mother's eyes and her father's charm, already apparent at 11 months.
Although a beautiful nursery had been decorated for her by her parents, they usually made an exception and let her stay in bed with them, especially after tough days at work. Lately, it was happening more often, with Andy explaining to Sam the concept of the "family bed" that she'd read in some magazine or another, which made the child feel more loved and secure.
Sam wasn't arguing. He loved waking up to both of them snuggled next to him, one arm sometimes draped over him. He'd been terrified at first, when they placed Bella on their bed with pillows around her. He was certain he'd smother her in his sleep. Didn't get a wink of sleep the first night. Eventually, though, he couldn't stay up long enough, and he realized that the pillow barrier worked quite well when he woke up in the morning and she was safe and sound, breathing quietly.
This was one of those mornings. He'd woken up early, only to find Bella wide awake and staring at him, fist stuck in her mouth. Andy was facing away from them on her side, snoring lightly.
Sam kissed Bella on the cheek, shifting her so her back was snuggled against his chest as she gurgled. He closed his eyes, trying to go back to sleep. He'd woken up before his alarm, and had full intentions of resting for the extra ten minutes he had before it went off.
Bella cooed, an adorable chuckle escaping her mouth as Sam's stubble tickled her cheek. Sam grinned, rubbing his face against her cheek to get the sound out of her again. Another giggle erupted from Bella, and Andy's breathing pattern changed as she woke up from her slumber, turning around to face them.
She smiled lazily at her two favorite people, moving her leg forward to wrap it around Sam's. "Morning goofballs" she mumbled, pulling Bella close to kiss her head.
Sam opened his mouth to respond but was interrupted by the blaring of the alarm. Groaning, he reluctantly pulled away from Bella and reached for his phone, hitting snooze on the alarm.
He turned around to spend some extra time with his family before he had to drag himself out of bed. Tickling her lightly, he smiled at Andy when Bella slapped her hand against his face as she chuckled again.
Andy leaned over them, placing her weight on her elbows as she kissed Bella's nose before moving down to rub her face against her tummy, which led to Bella chuckling and grabbing fistfuls of her hair.
"Owwww" Andy exclaimed, trying to remove her hair from her daughter's clutches.
Sam helped her out, letting her shift over to lie back against him afterwards. Bella began to whimper, reaching around Andy to get to Sam. "Oh I see how it is" Andy replied, staring at her kid in mock-astonishment.
She groaned and moved away when Bella's whimpers got louder, letting her move close to Sam again.
Sam prodded his tongue against his cheek, eyebrows raised at McNally.
"I'm only your mother who feeds and cleans you" Andy muttered, pulling the covers over her as she moved over to the other side of the bed. "Only carried you around for 9 months"
"Jealous, McNally?" Sam asked cheekily, sitting up as he pulled Bella over to relax on his chest.
He laughed out loud when Andy mocked his tone, muttering to herself as she tried to get warm again. His blaring alarm interrupted his laugh, and he groaned. He had half the mind to call in sick today, what with the crazy snow he had to shovel outside and the long paperwork that awaited him.
Andy turned around and laughed wickedly, happily taking the baby from him as he dragged himself out of bed and towards the bathroom.
She kept Bella distracted as Sam moved around the room after his shower, grabbing clothes and files while also preparing breakfast.
When he was dressed and pulling on his jacket, he came back to the room to say his goodbyes. "I'll see you tonight" he told Andy, leaning forward for a peck on the lips.
"And you too, sweetheart" he said to Bella, humming against her cheek as he left a smacking kiss on it. "I'll see you later"
As soon as he pulled his head back, Bella was reaching for him, whimpering again.
Sam shrugged mournfully before moving away, he was already running late.
"It's okay Belle, we're gonna have a lot of fun without Daddy, right?" Andy soothed, rubbing her hand against her back.
Bella's wails grew louder as Sam moved towards the door, and he sighed and looked back. She stopped crying as she watched him, waiting. He took a few more steps forward and she cried again.
Sighing, Sam moved back to the room, throwing Andy a look as she watched amusedly. He flopped down on the bed, leaning on his forearms above his daughter as he looked down at her. It worked like a charm. Her dry sobs subsided and she reached her hands up to him. "Daddy's gotta go to work, sweetheart" Sam whispered, nudging his nose against hers before kissing her hands.
Bella sniffled, reaching for his ears.
"What have you been feeding her?" Andy asked in amazement.
"Crap about you" Sam shot back, sending her a teasing smile.
Andy kicked his leg, causing him to wince in pain and move away. Sam sighed, moving away. "Okay, I really gotta go"
Bella whimpered again and Sam looked down at Andy helplessly."I got her. Go."
Sending his daughter another worried glance, Sam quickly leaned down for yet another kiss to both, murmuring his "I love yous" before he quickly walked away.
He winced as he heard Bella's wailing continue, but it turned into a smile and affectionate eye roll when he heard Andy talking to their daughter to soothe her.
"We'll go visit him, okay? Bring some snacks for Uncle Ollie. Some healthy snacks, right? Don't tell him this, but he's getting a little round" she added conspiratorially, "Think he might be the new Santa"
Bella's whimpers died down as she listened intently to her mother.
Sam sighed happily. Maybe he could convince Frank to let him out early...again.