IMPORTANT: PLEASE READ, OR ELSE YOU MIGHT GET VERY CONFUSED WHILE READING THIS!

Okay, so this is pure FLUFF! I couldn't decide if they should have a son or a daughter, so I wrote TWO stories! They have a daughter in the first one and a son in the second one. ENJOY! As always, I really appreciate your feedback!

—

Lucas woke up when he felt Maya stirring beside him. She took the blankets that were covering her and laid them down on Lucas as he sat up.

"Where are you going?" Lucas asked her as she stood up slowly and rubbed her eyes.

Maya pointed wordlessly at the baby monitor, and Lucas finally heard the crying. He watched her walk sleepily to the door as he leaned back against his pillows. Then he sat up quickly.

"No. Come back." Lucas threw the blankets off himself and got out of bed, walking over to Maya and taking her by the arm. "Go back to bed. I'll go check on her. Turn the monitor off so you can sleep and I'll turn it back on when I come in."

Maya didn't even try to argue. She just turned from him and walked back to the bed. As she rested her head on her pillow and pulled the blanket back over herself, she reached for the baby monitor. She was about to turn it off when she heard his voice and froze.

"Hey, baby girl. Why are we so sad? Come here."

Maya saw the scene play in her mind. Lucas walking into their daughter's room. His face softening at the sight of her. Lifting her gently and holding her in his arms. Whispering to her. Feeling heartbroken at the sight of her crying.

"Shh," Maya heard Lucas say softly. "Shh. It's okay, baby girl. It'll all be okay. Your mama wanted to come take care of you. She feels so sad whenever she knows that you're sad. Did you know that? Shh. Shh."

Maya sat up straighter and listened closely. She had taken the monitor and was holding it in her hands, staring at it so intensely as though worried she might miss something.

"I don't like when you feel sad. There are too many bad things in this world that can hurt you and make you feel bad. But I'm not going to let that happen to you, okay? Actually, I can't promise you that. I can't promise that you'll never be hurt. But listen carefully, baby girl."

She had stopped crying now. All Maya could hear was Lucas' soft, soothing voice.

"Listen carefully. I can promise you this. I can promise that I will never hurt you or cause you to be sad. I will always take care of you and I will always protect you. Just like I have done for your mama."

This was too much for Maya. She got out of bed and walked silently down the hall to their daughter's room. Lucas' back was to the door, so Maya leaned against the door frame and watched her husband.

"My two favorite girls," he whispered, gently lowering the now sleeping baby back into her crib.

As he turned back to the door slowly and quietly, he gasped at the sight of Maya standing there watching him. Maya walked into the room and took Lucas' hand in both of hers when she reached him. She looked into his eyes and raised his hand to her lips before gently sliding his fingers across her cheek. Then she wrapped her arms around him and looked down at their daughter, sleeping peacefully. Maya smiled.

—

They both heard the crying over the baby monitor.

"Your turn," Maya groaned as she rolled over and faced Lucas.

Lucas kissed her once before climbing out of bed. "Anything for you, baby," he said sleepily as he disappeared down the hall.

Maya listened to her son screaming at the top of his lungs. She was convinced that particular trait came from her side of the family, though she would never admit it out loud. She heard Lucas go in to the room and she smiled at the sound of his voice attempting to calm their son.

"Hey, little man," Lucas said softly. "What's wrong? Come here."

By the soft shuffling noise over the monitor, Maya knew that Lucas had picked him up and now held him in his arms.

"Why so sad, buddy?" Lucas whispered. "Shh. It's okay. There's no reason to be sad. I promise."

Maya took the baby monitor in her hands. She loved how gentle and calming Lucas always was. She knew he was hoping for a girl, but Maya was so happy to have a little boy and Lucas loved him more than Maya ever thought possible.

"We're going to have a talk real quick, okay? Man to man." The crying had stopped. Maya now just heard an occasional whimper. "As the two men of the house, we have a very important job to do. Do you know what that is? It's to protect the girls here. Right now we only have your mama, but I hope someday you're going to have a little sister and you'll get to be a big brother."

Maya smiled as she listened. She almost felt as though she was intruding on this private moment. But his voice was too intriguing. Too inviting. She couldn't not listen.

"Now here's what is so special about your mama. She is so strong and so brave. She doesn't need us to take care of her and protect her because she can do it all by herself. But we love her too much to let her do that. So here's what we're going to do. We're going to go say goodnight to her, and then we're going to get some sleep. Does that sound like a good plan? Give me a kiss, little man."

Maya quickly wiped away her tears as she heard footsteps coming down the hall. When Lucas came into the room, holding their son in his arms, Maya looked up at them.

Lucas saw the baby monitor in her hands and he shook his head. "Cheater," he whispered, walking toward her.

Maya shrugged, holding her arms out. Lucas handed her their son and then lifted Maya into his arms, setting her down in his lap as he sat back down on the bed. Maya leaned back against him, closed her eyes, and whispered, "My two favorite guys."