Author's note - I'm loving that I had some of you thinking Milo. Nope. I'm a total Luz girl all the way now! Also for the sake of this story...while Mucky unfortunately happened...the Jason stuff did NOT. NEVER in my fanfic universe...hope you all enjoy!

Chapter 1

Four months earlier

Lulu sank down onto the step of the park gazebo. She buried her face in her hands and felt the tears sting her face. The words of the doctor rolled in her head.

"She definitely had a miscarriage."

It wasn't fair. Every time it looked like Lucky was getting his life back together, somehow Maxie Jones came along to torpedo his every triumph. Lulu had agreed with Lucky that Maxie was most likely the person who planted the drugs in his desk at work for Elizabeth to find. And she knew in her bones that Lucky in no way pushed Maxie or caused her to fall during their argument at Kelly's.

But she couldn't really blame Elizabeth, Mac or anyone else for the suspicion they held in their eyes when they looked at Lucky. His offenses were far too recent in their memories. She couldn't fault them for that.

And as much as she knew Lucky had been framed and that he had not caused that fall, as much as she knew Elizabeth's and Mac's reactions were justified, she was just as certain that Maxie was going to use this to continue to keep a toehold in Lucky's life. The baby had been her only card left and even that one was loosing its hold on Lucky. He had been clear for months now that he would only deal with her about the baby and nothing more. She had even laughed at times seeing him walk out of Kelly's without so much as a glance in Maxie's direction. And when he had followed Elizabeth at Mom and Dad's wedding ceremony.

But Lulu had seen first hand how devastated Lucky had been after Elizabeth's two miscarriages and how devoted to her he was during her recovery from them. Logically she knew that was because of how much Lucky loved Elizabeth, but he had mourned those babies as much as she had, and they weren't even his biological children. But this one? His biological child? Lucky would never be able to turn away from Maxie now.

Unblinking, she stared out at the snow covered ground, not really processing all she was seeing. Her mind's eye kept seeing the way her big brother had crumbled at the doctor's words. She wanted nothing more than to take that moment away from him forever. Even if everyone else eventually didn't blame him for the miscarriage, she knew Lucky. He always would.

"Lulu? Lulu?"

The voice was soft, but firm. Barely above a whisper but loud enough to interrupt her thoughts. Blinking, she looked up into the dark eyes of Cruz Rodriquez. She wiped hurriedly at her eyes. A Spencer was never seen crying in public. "Cruz. What are you…how long have you been here?"

Cruz offered a smile at his partner's little sister. He had been cutting through the park to find Lucky. Mac had torn out of the station like a bat out of hell after a receiving a phone call about Maxie. He had figured whatever the phone call was about, Lucky would surely be on the receiving end of an ass chewing from Mac.

"I've been here long enough to know that you shouldn't be alone right now. Let me call your brother and…"

"No!" She grabbed his arm in urgency. He looked at her puzzled. In the months they had known each other she had never once touched him outside of the handshake they shared when Lucky introduced them. "You can't call him right now. Not about this. And not now."

Cruz knelt down in front of her, not removing her hand from his arm. He grasped her free hand in his. If she didn't want him contacting Lucky, it had to be bad. "Lulu?"

Biting her lip and looking to the sky, she drew a ragged breath. "Lucky thought Maxie was the one to set him up the other day with the pills. He went to confront her. They argued and she fell down the stairs at Kelly's." She looked him dead in the eye with an intensity he'd never seen in her before. "She fell Cruz. She fell. Lucky did not push her."

He kept his voice even, much like he did when talking with a witness to an extremely violent crime. "She fell, Lulu. I know Lucky would never push her."

She nodded. "She fell. And she lost the baby." Her voice broke on the last sentence, unable to control her emotions anymore. Sobs racked her body and she curled into herself.

Cruz rocked back on his heels, shell-shocked by her words. A miscarriage? He knew Lucky was not a happy expectant father where Maxie was concerned. He hadn't missed the eye rolls and the way his partner's body tensed whenever she came near him. But this? As unenthusiastic as Lucky was about this pregnancy, Cruz realized he would have never wanted this to be the outcome.

As he watched Lulu sob helplessly, he felt a need to protect her. He wasn't quite sure where the urge came from but right now Lulu needed someone. Lucky wasn't available for obvious reasons. Nikolas was giving the squad hell all day every day over Spencer's kidnapping. Telling himself it was because he didn't do well with any female crying near him and that Lucky would kick his ass if he ever found out he had seen Lulu upset and done nothing to help her, he pulled her gently into his arms and laid her head on his shoulder. Cruz rubbed her head and whispered softly to her the words his own grandmother had used for him while he was growing up. "No grita el pequeño. Todo será fino."

"I feel so stupid." She muttered into his chest. "I couldn't say anything supportive about this pregnancy from the second I found out about it. So why am I crying?"

Cruz smiled at that. Lucky had told him some of the things Lulu had yelled at Maxie. He had even seen the two go at it a few times at Kelly's. It always made for some entertaining dining. "Because someone you love is hurting and you feel helpless?" he guessed. "I know it's a foreign concept the Spencers but go with me here."

She continued on, not hearing his lame attempt at a joke. "I didn't even believe she was pregnant. I thought she was faking it the entire time. I was hounding Lucky all the time to actually see some papers, go to a doctor's appointment, demand a paternity test, anything to get him away from that drug pushing slut's grimy hands. I should be jumping for joy that he escaped her trap. Not crying like a baby in the middle of the park."

He gently pushed her back from him and watched as she wiped her eyes and shoved her hair behind her ears. "Lulu, I don't know why you feel the way you do. I can't answer that one. All I know is that right now Lucky needs you to be there for him. So if all this is necessary for you to be able to do that, then let it all out now. Don't fight it. Don't hide it. You'll be no good for him if you do ok?" She nodded in agreement. "Alright then. Let me take you home."