Disclaimer: I don't own, or claim to own Cold Case or anything to do with it. If I did, well, I wouldn't be posting my stories on here, now would I?
It wasn't until after midnight that Lilly Rush got home. She hung her coat up in the closet and collapsed on the couch, allowing her cats to curl up next to her. Not even ten minutes later, someone was tapping lightly on her door. "What now?" she asked herself quietly, leaning her head into the back of her couch, almost too exhausted to move.
She finally stood up after hearing a few more impatient knocks on her door. "I'm coming already," Lilly said, more to herself than the unexpected visitor, as she made her way to the door. Her first reaction after opening the door was to slam it in the visitor's face, but then she saw the baby in her sisters arms.
"I need help, Lil," Christina said, her cheeks wet with tears. Lilly opened the door more, and allowed her sister to enter her home. Lilly was silent, afraid of what she would say if she opened her mouth. She didn't want to talk to her sister, but she wasn't going to kick her out, not with a baby. "I can't do this alone, Lilly. I... I have no money, and I don't even know what I'm doing. Please, I need you," Christina cried, her arms holding the baby close to her to try to warm the infant up after being outside in the cold wind.
Lilly sat down on the couch without saying a word and Christina did the same. Lilly didn't even couldn't even look at her sister. First, she stared up at the ceiling, waiting for Christina to say something. After a few moments of silence, Lilly glanced at the infant in her sister's arms. "What's her name?" she asked quietly.
"Ashley Marie," Christina said, smiling at the girl in her arms. "She's only ten days old," she added. "She deserves to be taken care of properly, and I can't do that. Not right now," Christina explained as tears began flowing out of her eyes.
"You can stay here. I can help until you can take care of her on your own," Lilly said, still not looking at her sister. If it was just Christina, Lilly wouldn't have even let her in, but she wasn't going to punish her niece for Christina's mistakes.
"Thank you," Christina continued to cry, hugging her daughter close. "I'll look for a job this weekend. A night job. And I... can I leave her with you at nights? She sleeps really good. Hardly ever wakes up crying or anything. And..." Christina spoke quickly, not quite sure how she was going to make it work.
"That's fine," Lilly said quietly. "I can watch her nights and maybe weekends."
"Thank you. I won't screw it up this time," Christina promised.
A/N: Let me know what you think by reviewing! I know it's short, but the chapters will get longer.