A week later, the family of three was allowed to go home and both women were thrown into the whirlwind that comes with bringing a newborn home. Beca couldn't get up and down easily and for the most part she had to rest in order to heal from her surgery. This left her wife to be the one who would do the lion's share of the work around the house and the baby. Thankfully Pieter had stayed and told the girls that he would leave once they were settled and didn't need the extra set of hands. With him staying in the guest room, Luisa was able to focus on her daughter, leaving Pieter to keeping the house from falling apart.
Two days after coming home Beca had a doctor appointment to check her surgical site and of course the night before Johanna had flat out refused to be quiet for anyone but Beca. Between feedings and just trying to soothe the newborn, Beca got no sleep and neither did anyone else in the house. Luisa had been by Beca's side all night, trying to help where she could and Pieter just went around the house cleaning and handing the girls different things that they needed throughout the night. Beca knew that the next morning would be difficult and that none of the adults were in any shape to be driving so around 3am she texted Chloe, apologizing for the late text, and begged her best friend to help them the next day by just giving her a ride to her appointment. Chloe responded an hour later with an overly enthusiastic of course. Beca wasn't sure when she had fallen asleep, or when her daughter had, but at some point in the early hours of morning they both passed out while curled up on the couch. At 10:30 Chloe walked up the front steps with Aubrey trailing behind her.
"I still don't understand why I had to come with you?" The blonde complained as she joined the redhead at the front door.
"You had to come with me because the baby kept them all awake last night and if I take Beca to the doctor then someone needs to stay and help the two Germans with my precious goddaughter." Aubrey rolled her eyes at the choice to be the one left behind, but then she noticed the sign that was tapped over the doorbell that threatened anyone who rang the doorbell with bodily harm.
"I guess it's good you have a key." Chloe noticed the sign and smiled as she quietly turned the key and unlocked the door. As they walked in the house Chloe could already see all three adults in the living room and a second glance told her that none of them were awake. Aubrey shut the door softly behind them and followed Chloe into the living room. The two women looked at Beca who was out cold, but still had Johanna nested close to her chest and for her part, the newborn finally seemed to have given into sleep. Luisa was asleep next to her wife, leaving her legs to drape over the rest of the couch. Pieter had clearly fallen asleep leaning against the couch, but had since then slumped over and was dead asleep on the hardwood floor.
"Who do we wake up first?" Aubrey scanned all three adults and finally Chloe pointed to Beca.
"We need her awake and dressed and I'm sure she's gonna want a shower before I take her." Aubrey agreed and Chloe gently reached forward and touched Beca's shoulder.
"Beca, you gotta wake up." Chloe whispered as loud as she could without waking the baby, but Beca didn't move. Chloe was about to reach for Johanna when Aubrey stopped her.
"If she feels the baby no longer there she'll panic. We have to wake her up first and then take the baby." Chloe nodded and gently rubbed Beca's leg a little harder than she normally would. Finally, Beca started to stir and when she opened her eyes she almost panicked.
"Beca, it's ok, we're early. You have time before your appointment." Beca took a deep breath and finally relaxed. She looked down at her daughter and started to tear up when she saw the baby was still asleep.
"She was awake all night long." Chloe and Aubrey both felt bad for their friend. They had never heard Beca sound that desperate and tired before. Chloe brushed tears away from Beca's eyes and smiled at her sleep-deprived friend.
"I know she was, so how about you let me take her and you go clean up and get dressed." Beca didn't need much convincing. She kissed her daughter's head before letting Chloe lift her into her own arms. Aubrey helped Beca stand up carefully from the couch before going ahead gently guiding her toward the downstairs bathroom. Beca stopped at the bathroom door and turned to Aubrey with a slightly embarrassed look on her face.
"Could you ask Chloe if she could help me in here?"
Aubrey smiled, "of course I can." The blonde returned to the living room and tapped Chloe on the shoulder.
"Beca needs some help in the bathroom and I think she trusts you since you've already seen her naked." Chloe had to stifle a laugh in order to keep the baby in her arms asleep. She carefully handed the child to Aubrey before heading to help Beca in the bathroom. Aubrey gently sat down in the recliner in the corner of the living room and carefully moved the baby so that she was snuggled against her own chest. She rocked the chair and gently hummed, hoping it would keep Johanna asleep. The baby must have been just as tired because she didn't move at all and stayed sound asleep against Aubrey. Luisa shifted slightly in her sleep and reached over expecting to feel Beca, but she was met with the other part of the couch and that was enough to shock her awake…well sort of awake. She looked around the room with eyes that were heavy with sleep until she finally saw Aubrey holding her daughter.
"Beca?" Aubrey nodded toward the bathroom.
"Chloe is helping her get ready for her doctor appointment. I think she's getting in the shower. You can go back to sleep, I've got her." Her former opponent eyed her carefully, something that normally would have made Aubrey roll her eyes, but she knew it was just a new mother being hyper-vigilant when it came to protect her child. The German nodded and simply let her body fall the rest of the way so that she lying across the whole sofa. Aubrey saw her breathing return to a pattern that could only mean she was sleeping and she would have laughed if she didn't know that all the adults were that level of tired because of an all-nighter with the baby in her arms. Aubrey kept humming and rubbing the baby's back and that seemed to keep her happy for the time that Beca was out of the room. Beca soon returned to the living room wearing some baggy shorts and a tank top, her wet hair up in a bun that Chloe must have done for her.
"Everything still ok in here?" Beca looked at her wife and Pieter who were both dead to the world so Beca turned to Aubrey who smiled.
"So far she has been perfectly happy to keep sleeping." Beca had to smile a little when Aubrey's sentence was punctuated with Johanna beginning to squirm and fuss.
"Give her to me for a minute. I can feed her before we leave and then you can try and see if she'll sleep for you." Aubrey handed the child to Beca who quickly sat down and lowered her tank top just enough to allow her daughter to get fed. Aubrey watched as Johanna latched on effortlessly and began eating while she stared at her mother with wide eyes. Beca all of a sudden didn't seem tired as she cooed at her daughter as she ate.
"Mama has to go to the doctor so you get to stay here with Mommy and Uncle Pieter and Aunt Aubrey. Yes you do. But you need to go back to sleep ok. You kept us up last night and that means that you are tired too. Maybe if you are an extra good girl Aunt Aubrey will sing you something from this century." Aubrey rolled her eyes and Beca smiled in her friend's direction. Johanna finally pushed away from Beca's breast, indicating she was done eating. Beca burped the baby before showering her with kisses.
"Mama misses you already. Be good for Aunt Aubrey and please please please sleep." Beca gave the baby one more kiss before handing her back to Aubrey. Beca looked devastated to let her go, but Aubrey smiled and rubbed her friend's back.
"We'll be just fine mama, focus on your appointment and rest easy knowing that I'll be here." Beca smiled and brushed a tear from her eye before going over to the couch and gently trying to wake her wife. Luisa never really woke up totally, but she turned over and kissed Beca goodbye.
"Werden Sie in Ordnung sein, während ich weg bin?" (Will you be ok while I am gone?) Luisa nodded and snuggled back into the pillow as she answered her wife.
"Ja. Zwischen uns und dem pitbull Ich denke, wir haben sie alle im Griff." Beca smiled and went to grab her keys, but Aubrey stopped her.
"Did she just call me a pitbull?" Beca nodded.
"Don't act so surprised. You are a pitbull. Protective of things you love, powerful, scary when mad, misunderstood sometimes. Besides, she trusts you because you are a pitbull. She knows she could sleep all day and Johanna would be safe because you have her. So take it as a term of endearment and enjoy your afternoon with my child." With one more kiss placed on the baby's head, Beca and Chloe left the house and Aubrey could soon hear a car start up and pull away from the house. She looked down at the baby in her arms that was wide-awake and was getting ready to wail if Aubrey didn't do something. She quickly went upstairs to the nursery and sat in the recliner, careful to place Johanna back in a position where she could feel her skin.
"Ok, I know you just got fed and aren't due for a new diaper just yet, so how about more sleep." The newborn started to fuss and Aubrey panicked for a second. She was good with kids, but something about this moment felt very foreign to her. She rocked gently in the chair and started to hum, trying to think of a song that would lull the baby to sleep again.
"How about I sing a song that reminds me of your mama?" Aubrey looked down at the baby who was looking at her with wide eyes that really did resemble Beca's.
One thing that I know
It will get better
Each and every drought
Ends in the river
If I were a diviner, you'd be awash in rain to cool your fire
Oh to cool your fire
There could be winds of change in my auburn hair
But I'll tie it back for now
And when the bitter breeze carries a trace of fear
We'll persevere some how
We're gonna push on through, pretty girl
Just like we always do, beautiful girl
I know the world can be cruel, pretty girl
You're gonna make it 'cause you've got love on your side
The truth of letting go
Lies in the answer
That when the storm subsides
I'll still be there to hold you
There's beauty in your violence, and the dissonant melody I hear you sing
Oh I love to hear you sing
There could be winds of change in my auburn hair
But I'll tie it back for now
And when the bitter breeze carries a trace of fear
We'll persevere somehow
We're gonna push on through, pretty girl
Just like we always do, beautiful girl
I know the world can be cruel, pretty girl
You're gonna make it 'cause you got love on your side
Pretty girl
One thing that I know
Is it will get better.
Aubrey stopped singing and softly hummed a bit longer until she was sure the child was asleep. She felt an overwhelming sense of pride in her ability to calm the baby and her joy distracted her from noticing the tall German standing in the hallway.
"Any luck?" Aubrey turned her head slightly and nodded.
"She's out."
"Not surprising, you sang very beautifully just then. She will never lack for someone to sing her a lullaby. Not with you all as family."
"I didn't mean to wake you. If you want some mommy and baby time, I'd be happy to go do some dishes or laundry." Luisa waved her hand to dismiss Aubrey as she entered the nursery herself.
"Pieter's snoring woke me and please, if she is asleep then I have no interest in nudging the bear." Aubrey smiled.
"Poking the bear."
"Same difference, no." Luisa leaned against the crib and organized some of the blankets as she spoke to Aubrey in a hushed tone.
"You said that song reminded you of my wife? How so?" Aubrey smiled and looked down at Johanna as she spoke.
"When Beca and I first met, we…well we locked horns a lot." Luisa looked confused and Aubrey tried to clarify.
"We fought a lot, about almost everything. I was convinced she wasn't meant to be a Bella and she was convinced I was an unreasonable leader who wouldn't listen to reason."
"But you were, ja." Aubrey had to admit; on this point Beca had been right.
"I was and Beca came in and everyone loved her, loved her new ideas and I felt like my legacy was slipping away. So we fought and I tried so hard to break her so she would leave." Aubrey would tell anyone who asked, that she still felt guilty over the way she treated Beca all those years ago. The brunette DJ had begged Aubrey to forgive herself, but self-compassion was not Aubrey's strong suit.
"But she stayed."
"Yeah, thank god. We would've lost everything if it hadn't been for her. She wasn't there to ruin my legacy, she was there to build on it and make sure it never died. I'll always love her for that."
"She trusts you more than the others, you know this ja?" Luisa never beat around the bush and honesty came easy for her. Aubrey was confused and Luisa could again see the confusion spread across her face.
"She loves the Bellas, all of you. Chloe and her and are like….sisters as much as they are best friends. The others fill special place in her heart and always will, but you…you are different."
"Why am I different?"
"You challenged her and made her mad. Mad enough to change her perspective and try to see all sides of an argument. You made her question herself and grow. But most importantly, you believed in her. Chloe has always been a good leader, but she needed someone to balance her out, someone like you…someone like my wife. You trusted her to fill your shoes when you were gone and having that decision come straight from you, made her feel like someone believed that she could and would be a success. You gave her what she should've gotten from her parents: you gave her unconditional love by believing she could do something as important as your job. And that is something she'll always love you for." Aubrey had tears streaming down her face when Luisa was done talking. Beca and she had developed a great relationship over the years, but this…was not something she ever thought she would hear.
"You push her and protect her. That's why you're her pitbull. And if she asks, you never heard any of that from me."
"Of course. Thank you for telling me all of that."
"Payback for getting my daughter to sleep peacefully again."
"That was my pleasure I assure you." Luisa leaned over Aubrey and kissed her daughter with a tearful smile.
"She just amazes me; every time I look at her. I just can't believe I am her mother."
"Babies are good reminders of how much goodness there still is in the world. You and Beca have the best bundle of goodness right here, even thought she hates sleep." Luisa brushed a tear away and smiled.
"Thank you. You know, when Beca and I met, hell, before we met, I thought DSM was going to be my life. I would take no spouse, have no children, and just dedicate my life to my work. Then I met Beca and it all disappeared. Now I dream about Sunday mornings with the kids jumping on our bed, demanding breakfast. Vacations to the beach, trips to Germany to see my family. Doing well in our careers so that we can give the kids whatever they need to thrive. In 15 seconds, Beca totally rewrote ever dream I ever had, because all my new dreams required having her by my side."
Aubrey was never surprised at how much Luisa loved Beca, but damn it if it wasn't the most beautiful thing to hear her speak about her wife as through she was a goddess.
"Hearing you talk about how much you love her is really something, you know that right?"
"She's my wife, I'd be lost without her." Aubrey smiled and brushed away another tear and she continued to rock the baby.
"Beca and I didn't always get along, I'm sure she's told you the stories about that, but once we got to know each other, we built a strong friendship and having her find you and fall for you, well, it made me happy to see her find her soul mate. Even if it was with our enemy."
Luisa smiled, "am I still your enemy now?" Aubrey looked at the German and back down to the child in her arms. "No, not since you two got engaged. I could see how much you loved her and how much she loved you and at the end of the day we all just wanted Beca to be happy. You make her happy and you work tirelessly to make her dreams come true and as her friend I respect the hell out of you for that."
"See, this is why I call you her pitbull. You want what is best for her and you'd fight like hell to make sure she got it. Your friendship may have started out on rock ground, but you and the red head would fight to the death for Beca to be happy, even though that meant making peace with me."
"Rocky ground. We love Beca and Beca adores you, that meant that we love you too. That's how friendship works, at least with the Bellas it is how it works. Besides, you and I have developed our own friendship over the years, just like you and Chloe have. We love you too."
"Beca is very blessed to have you all in her life and in her heart." Aubrey smiled. "The same could be said about you and Johanna. Beca always thought she would never be a good mom because of her relationship with her parents and because of their divorce she never trusted the idea of marriage, then she met you. And now here we are."
"I guess life never turns out the way you planned and for a good reason." Aubrey had to agree, none of their lives had turned out exactly how they had planned, but damn it if they didn't turn out beautifully. Luisa went over to Aubrey and leaned down, kissing her daughter gently before mumbling something in German.
"I'm going to grab a shower while you have her. Just holler for me of Pieter if you need anything." Luisa left the room and Aubrey went back to singing softly to Johanna. Soon both Johanna and Aubrey were napping peacefully in the nursery. When Chloe and Beca returned from the doctor appointment Beca's heart melted when she found her daughter sound asleep against her friend's chest. She kissed Johanna's head and then surprised Chloe by kissing Aubrey's forehead before lifting the infant from her friend's arms. Beca placed Johanna in her crib and ushered Chloe out of the room, leaving Aubrey asleep in the chair next to the crib.
"Told you she would sleep for Aubrey. Jojo loves her pitbull." Beca rolled her eyes at Chloe's nickname for Aubrey and Johanna, but she had to admit, Aubrey did seem to have the magic touch when it came to babies….something she would and Luisa would remember as they made plans for any future children. For now, they knew whom to turn to when they needed a babysitter.