A/N: Here is a chapter filled with mostly fluff before we get into the real "plot" (if you can call it that) of the story. Hope you enjoy! :)
Chapter 1: The Good Life
The morning after Dr. Lawson uttered what, if asked, Callie would probably call her favourite word – remission – Callie woke up to the sound of birds chirping outside of her window.
Rolling over onto her back and squinting up at the ceiling, a slow smile spread across her face as she remembered the events of the previous day – the remission news and Jacob being born. It had been one of the best days of her life.
She continued to smile as another thought crossed her mind. Yesterday might have been one of the best days of her life so far but today, she was pretty sure, was going to be even better. Today felt like the first day of the rest of her life. It was the first day of the life she was going to get to have and, for the first time in maybe ever, she felt like it was going to be a good life.
When she finally got out of bed, it was with a spring in her step.
Stef, Lena, and Jacob came home from the hospital just before dinner. They were greeted in the entranceway by all five of Jacob's siblings.
Jude had wanted to make a Welcome Home banner but Callie had shaken her head no at the suggestion, the reaction surprising her other siblings since she rarely denied Jude anything he wanted. When she explained what she wanted to do instead though, they all, even Jude, had quickly nodded in agreement, understanding.
So, there they were, standing in age order in the entranceway, each holding a sheet of paper with a single word on it.
We
Love
Our
Baby
Brother
At the sight of those pieces of paper, slightly better decorated but essentially the same as the ones from Callie's adoption day, Lena couldn't stop happy tears from filling her eyes. She loved her children more than words could ever possibly describe.
While they waited for the pizza man to deliver their dinner, the family gathered in the living room.
Callie was sitting in one of the chairs, holding Jacob, cooing softly down at him in a hushed whisper, "Hi baby, hi baby. I love you."
From the couch, where he was sitting between Mariana and Lena, Jude bounced, "Can I hold him, now?"
Stef laughed at her son's enthusiasm, "Sure bud…" she glanced over at Callie who was still whispering softly to the baby, "…if your sister will let him go."
"Do I have to?" Callie glanced up from Jacob, her words clearly teasing.
"Unless you want Jude to bounce right off the couch, probably," Stef decided, moving to get up from her perch on the armrest of Brandon's chair, intent on grabbing Jacob from Callie but the girl was already standing and walking over towards the couch.
Callie stood in front of Jude, waiting for her younger brother to get adjusted, before she carefully placed the baby in his arms, not pulling her hands away as she said, "Watch his head."
"I know," Jude nodded, still now, taking the job of holding the baby seriously.
Callie nodded too, slowly withdrawing her hands from the baby, leaving him completely in Jude's arms, but she didn't move from where she was standing, gnawing on her lip as she looked down, watching Jude hold Jacob.
Stef watched Callie rock, almost nervously, on the balls of her feet and she had to suppress the urge to laugh. She got up and walked over to the girl, placing her hand on the small of her back and leaning in to whisper in her ear, "You're hovering. He's okay."
Stef felt Callie relax marginally and she gently guided her daughter back towards her chair. She nudged Callie gently back into her seat and then she stood behind the chair, running her hand slowly over the top of Callie's head, smoothing the fuzz. She watched Jude hold Jacob a minute before she glanced down at Callie, suppressing the urge to laugh again. Poor Jacob, it seemed, was going to grow up with more than just mothers hovering over him.
Early the following morning, Stef walked into the living room, stopping to do a double take. All five of her teenagers were sprawled out around the room – Callie and Mariana were lying on opposite ends of the couch, Brandon and Jude had claimed chairs, and Jesus was lying flat on his back on the ground, his head supported by one of the pillows that was usually found on the couch, the back of one hand flung up covering his face.
"Good morning babies," Stef greeted the group quietly.
Jesus groaned from his position on the floor, not removing his arm from his face as he grumbled, "Good?"
"Rough night?" Stef smiled down at Jesus before she glanced around at the rest of her children. They all looked tired.
"You could say that," Brandon nodded pointedly.
"Do all babies cry that much?" Mariana asked as she adjusted her position on the couch, yawning as she sat up.
Stef glanced over at Brandon as she answered, "Well B actually cried more…"
"More?" Jude's word was spoken in complete disbelief as his eyes widened at the horrifying possibility that the baby might start crying more.
Stef chuckled at her no-longer-youngest son's reaction. She stepped closer to him and ruffled his hair, "Don't worry buddy, I'll run to the drug store sometime today and get ear plugs for everyone. That should help you all sleep."
From the floor, Jesus pulled his arm away from his face and shot a thumbs-up in the air.
Stef laughed at her son's action as she moved over towards the couch, nudging Callie over and sitting between her two girls.
Mariana immediately snuggled into Stef's side, closing her eyes as Stef ran her fingers through her hair.
"Tired Miss Thing?" Stef hummed softly.
"Mmhm," Mariana nodded not bothering to open her eyes.
"How about you, love?" Stef asked, turning her gaze to her eldest daughter, eyeing her carefully, a bit concerned about her not getting the sleep she needed.
Callie shrugged, titling her head so that she was looking over at Stef as she answered, "I think I got more sleep than everyone else." It was the truth, she'd gone to bed two hours before anyone else had even considered climbing under the covers, plus she'd taken an afternoon nap before Stef, Lena and Jacob had come home.
"That's not really what I asked," Stef shook her head, reaching over and placing her hand on Callie's knee, squeezing gently, "Are you tired?"
Callie thought about the question before she shook her head, "No more than usual."
Stef nodded, accepting the answer. Callie being tired really wasn't unusual. "Well, if you need a nap this afternoon, please make sure you take one."
Callie almost laughed, "Oh I will."
Stef glanced around the room again then, deciding, "I think you might not be the only one napping today."
Jesus shot another thumbs up in the air and this time both Callie and Stef laughed.
Stef was just about to ask if anyone wanted breakfast when there was a knock at the door.
"Who is trying to visit us so early?" Brandon groaned, the grimace on his face suggesting just how unimpressed he was.
From the floor, this time Jesus shot a thumbs-down, which made Jude giggle.
"Well…don't you all rush to answer it at once," Stef deadpanned as she got up off on the couch and moved towards the entrance, no one else in the room even moving an inch. Truthfully she agreed with Brandon – she had no idea who would be visiting them so early. When she pulled the door open though, she was suddenly a lot less surprised than maybe she should be. "Mom, you're early."
Standing on the other side of the door, Sharon smiled widely at her daughter, "I got an earlier flight. I couldn't wait any longer to see that grandchild of mine."
Stef shook her head – she was too tired to be anything but amused by her mother. "Come in. Lena's feeding him right now but they should be down soon."
"Oh, I didn't mean that grandchild," Sharon started, entering the house, ignoring the quirked eyebrow as she gave her daughter hug. When she pulled back from the hug, she clarified, "Well, him too, of course. But I meant Callie. Remission! Stef, you must be ecstatic."
Stef shook her head, chuckling lightly, the chuckle eventually being replaced with a soft, wistful, smile, "Ecstatic doesn't even begin to cover it mom."
Sharon returned the smile, knowingly, "Well, where is she? I need to give her the biggest hug!"
Stef pointed to the living, "The entire brood is in there."
Around noon, Stef, Sharon, and Callie found themselves in the kitchen. They were making lunch for everyone. It was just sandwiches but when you were feeding eight people any meal was a production.
They'd set up a production line, Sharon was spreading mayonnaise on the bread, Callie was adding the toppings, and Stef was cutting the sandwiches in half and pilling them onto a plate.
Callie had just handed Stef the latest finished sandwich to be cut when she puffed out an annoyed breath, a familiar feeling overcoming her. Suddenly much too hot, her head feeling like it was on fire, she pulled urgently at the sleeves of her sweater, taking it off, and then she stood there debating whether she should pull her socks off too.
Noticing the now familiar action for what it was, Stef immediately set her knife down and moved towards the fridge, pulling out a bottle of water, unscrewing the cap and handing it to Callie.
Callie took the offered water bottle gratefully, taking a sip and slowly swishing the cool liquid around her mouth, swallowing and taking another sip, repeating the action.
Sharon continued to slowly spread mayonnaise on the piece of bread in front of her, watching the interaction quietly but intently. She waited for her daughter to quit fluttering around her granddaughter before she quirked an eyebrow in the former's direction, "Everything okay?"
Stef nodded, glancing over at Callie who was still flushed and slowly sipping the cold water, before looking back at her mother, explaining, "It's just a hot flash."
"A hot flash?" Sharon scrunched up her brow confused, "Like menopause? That kind of hot flash?"
If Callie hadn't already been flushed from the hot flash she probably would have blushed from the embarrassment. As it was, she ducked her head.
"Mom," Stef hissed, suddenly kicking herself for even bringing the hot flash up. Trust her mother to say the complete wrong things.
"What Stefanie?" Sharon eyed her daughter, "I was just asking because if that's the kind of hot flash you are referring to, I was going to chastise you for putting the word just in front of it. Nobody who's been through menopause would call a hot flash, just a hot flash."
Callie snorted, bringing her hand up to cover her mouth, laughing as she glanced over at Sharon, who winked knowingly at her.
Stef shook her head but relaxed as Callie laughed, reaching over and shoving her daughter's shoulder playfully, "It's not nice to laugh at your mother's expense you know."
"Hey, it's not her fault that you don't get it," Sharon laughed.
Callie nodded in agreement, smirking over at Stef then, unable to stop herself as she teased, "It's okay though, don't worry mom. You're pretty old. You'll understand soon enough."
"You didn't," Stef shook her head in disbelief.
Callie pulled a face, "I kinda did."
Stef reached over and tried to tickle Callie's side but the girl squirmed away from her and she ended up having to chase her around the table, catching up quickly and easily grabbing her with one arm and spinning her around, as Callie squealed. Stef actually did tickle her then, until Callie panted out between laughs, "Stop, please, stop."
Stef tickled her once more for good measure before she let her go, directing her back to her sandwich making station with a kiss to the side of her head and a gentle shove. "Let that be a reminder to you. No one calls me old in my house."
When Sharon laughed, Stef pretended to glare at her, "And what are you laughing at?"
Sharon just shrugged, an amused smile on her lips, as she went back to spreading mayonnaise on bread, handing a finished piece to Callie, offering as casually as she could, "So the hot flashes are from menopause then?"
Stef stilled. She thought that they'd ended that conversation but trust her mother to not be satisfied without an actual answer. She was about to speak when Callie beat her to it.
"Yes," Callie nodded, surprising herself. Being seventeen and in menopause was awkward. Going through menopause before either of her mothers only added to that awkwardness and, so, she rarely talked about it. Something about the way her grandmother had joked about hot flashes had put her at ease though. Besides, there wasn't really any point lying about it – she was in menopause.
"Temporary menopause. From the chemo," Stef clarified. The oncologist had assured them that it should only be temporary and that there was no reason to worry unless it lasted more than a year post-chemo.
Sharon nodded, spreading mayonnaise on the last piece of bread before she offered, "Well temporary or not, hot flashes suck." She smiled over at Callie.
Callie scrunched up her nose, making her thoughts on the matter clear, "Yup."
Putting the twist-tie back on the bread bag, Sharon tilted her head thoughtfully, "You know what you need, kiddo? Some black cohosh. Or maybe flax seed."
"Black what?" Stef crinkled her brow and shook her head at her mother, "Thanks mom but we don't really don't need any of your quack-y solutions."
"Stefanie, my solutions are not quack-y," Sharon shook her head, "But fine, don't take my advice. It wouldn't be the first time."
"Or the last," Stef grumbled under her breath.
"I heard that," Sharon raised an eyebrow and Callie laughed.
Although, as a whole, the group seemed much more lively eating lunch than they had earlier that morning, everyone was still a lot quieter than usual as they sat around the table munching on their sandwiches.
"So, I was thinking…" Sharon started.
Stef looked up from her plate, smirking at her mother as she said, "That's never good."
Sharon just shook her head, rolling her eyes ever so slightly before continuing, unbothered, "You should let me plan a party."
"A party?" Stef asked confused, glancing over at Lena and seeing an equally confused expression on her wife's face.
"Yes. A remission party," Sharon smiled, clarifying her idea.
"Ooh a remission party. That sounds awesome!" Mariana nodded, suddenly very enthusiastic.
"Ya!" Jude grinned, feeding off of Mariana's enthusiasm, bouncing in his seat.
Stef chuckled at her children's enthusiasm, watching Callie carefully a minute, before she smiled over at her mother, "Sure, we can have party."
Callie's eyes widened as she glanced up from her sandwich, "We…we don't need to have a party."
Lena could see how uncomfortable Callie was and she asked softly, "You don't want a party sweetheart? Because I think it's a great idea."
"But…" Callie bit her lip, wide brown eyes searching Lena's face, "…we just had a birthday party."
"Oh sweetheart…" Lena sighed.
Stef jumped in, reaching over and placing her hand on top of Callie's, "Yes we just had a birthday party because…this might shock you…it was your birthday. Birthdays and remissions are not the same thing, sweets."
"Mom is right kiddo," Lena continued, "We always planned on celebrating your remission properly…your brother just showed up a bit early and threw a monkey wrench in those plans. So if your grandmother wants to help plan a party, I think that's perfect."
"I…" Callie glanced around the table, finally accepting what her parents were telling her as Jude grinned widely at her, shooting her a thumbs up, "…I guess…if you're really okay with it."
"Okay with it?" Stef shook her head before she moved the hand that was covering Callie's to the girl's back, running it up and down slowly, "You say that like we all think that celebrating your remission is a chore. Trust me sweets, it's not. Not even close."
"Ya, mom's right. What would be a chore would be not getting to celebrate it," Jesus offered his opinion, winking at Callie across the table, "Do you think they'll let me have real fireworks this time?"
"Jesus…" Stef shook her head at her son as everyone laughed.
When the laughter died down, Brandon locked eyes with Callie across the table, "Do you have any idea how happy you being in remission makes us?" He asked thoughtfully, "Because it's really happy. Definitely celebration-worthy levels of happy."
"Definitely," Mariana nodded.
"Yep," Jude chirped.
"What they said," Jesus agreed.
"There you have it," Stef leaned over and kissed the side of Callie's head, "Your family has spoken. A party is a must."
Callie grinned widely then, feeding off everyone's enthusiasm, agreeing, "Okay." The truth was her siblings weren't the only ones who felt celebration-worthy levels of happiness about her remission. Every time she remembered Dr. Lawson uttering that word, remission, she felt herself smiling. She'd basically done almost nothing but smile since she'd left the cancer center two days ago.
"Plus," Stef added after a beat, "It will keep your grandmother out of my hair."
Sharon narrowed her eyes as her grandchildren laughed.
Shortly after lunch, Sharon found Stef alone in her room with Jacob.
Stef had brought the baby upstairs to change him fifteen minutes ago. Now she was seated in the rocking chair they'd set up in the corner of the room, rocking Jacob gently, staring down at her son in wonder. She wondered if he could already feel how much he was loved. She hoped he could.
Sharon watched her daughter watch her son for several minutes before she cleared her throat and stepped into the room, "I thought maybe you got lost."
Stef looked up, smiling softly at her mother, "No, just squeezing in a little Jacob time. As soon as I bring him downstairs, someone else is going to want to hold him."
Sharon nodded, moving closer to the rocking chair and reaching down to run her hand over the top of her grandson's head before leaning in and planting a kiss on Stef's cheek, "I know I already said this…but he's beautiful."
"He really is, isn't he?" Stef smiled, her eyes back on her son.
Sharon moved back and took a seat on the bed, facing the rocking chair, sitting quietly a minute before she asked, "So…how are you really doing?"
Stef's brow wrinkled in confusion as she glanced over at her mother, "What?"
"Stef, your baby was born the same day that you found out that your daughter is in remission. Those are both fantastic, wonderful, things but…don't tell me you don't feel a little overwhelmed," Sharon quirked an eyebrow. She knew her daughter.
"I…" Stef glanced down at the baby and then back up at her mother, sighing, "I'm so happy mom, I really am. About Jacob, about Callie, about everything. But I also feel…I can't believe I'm telling you this…" Stef sighed, wondering how her mother always managed to get her to talk, as she continued "…it's just…I wonder, what happens now? For months our life has been about two things, getting Callie through treatment and getting ready for the baby. And now…it's almost like I don't know what to do with myself."
"Well…getting ready for a baby is easier than actually taking care of one, so there's that," Sharon hummed, smiling gently at Stef, "And Callie might be in remission but she's definitely not better yet…I mean, she's sound asleep on the couch downstairs right now…and the menopause…poor kid…"
Stef nodded, "It's been a horrible seven months mom…I don't even think you could understand."
"No, I can't," Sharon agreed, her eyes softening as she whispered, "But I can imagine. A sick child is one of a mother's worst nightmares, I reckon."
Stef sighed, "But that's over now. She's in remission."
"Yes, yes she is," Sharon nodded, "And like you said, you're really happy about that. Ecstatic. We all are. But…Stef…those seven months happened and they were horrible and I know you…I know you might want to sweep everything under the rug, pretend that you no longer have feelings about those seven months…but please don't do that. You'll regret it in the long run."
Stef blinked rapidly, watching her mother for several long minutes before she offered quietly, "Sometimes your advice isn't so terrible, you know."
Sharon chuckled lightly at that, getting up from the bed and walking back over to the rocker, kissing Stef's forehead, whispering, "You've done good kid. Your children are lucky to have you as a mother." She reached her hands out, "Now give me that baby. I want some snuggle time with my grandson."
By the time dinner rolled around, the number of people in the house had increased to include Dana and Stewart, who had arrived late that afternoon to meet their grandson.
Jacob was currently sleeping in the baby seat nearby, while everyone else sat around the outdoor table, passing the food around and chatting.
"So how did you decide on the name Jacob?" Dana asked as she scooped the salad that Stewart passed her onto her plate, her words hinting that she was more than just asking for the sake of conversation.
Lena smiled softly down the table at Callie before she answered confidently, "We wanted to name him after his sister." Her mother might have a habit of making her second guess her decisions but Lena was not about to let Dana make her second guess this decision – especially not in front of Callie.
"Well, I think it's a fine name," Stewart smiled at both his daughter and his granddaughter across the table.
"Thanks dad," Lena returned the smile gratefully.
"Oh it is a fine name," Dana agreed, now taking the bowl of pasta from Stewart and scooping the penne onto her plate, "It's just...don't you think that maybe it's too many J names? I mean, you already had two of them."
Stef could feel Lena bristle beside her. She was pretty sure her wife was about to snap and she reached over and placed her hand on her knee, squeezing gently, before she turned her eyes towards her mother-in-law, "Actually, we're trying to be the next Duggar's. We've already filled out the paper work to change our other children's names to Jandon, Jallie, and Jariana. Now we just need to find ourselves about a dozen more children and we'll be set."
Stef's words had their desired effect, as Lena nearly choked on her water, laughing beside her, everyone else, even Dana, following suit.
As the laughter died down, Dana held up her hand, "Okay, point taken. And, for the record, Jacob really is a lovely name, Lena. A good strong name," she looked over at Callie then, smiling affectionately across the table at her granddaughter.
Callie ducked her head, looking down at her plate but the small smile on her face revealed that she was, in fact, pleased.
When everyone had finished scooping food onto their plates, Stewart picked up his glass and cleared his throat, "Can I make a toast before we eat?" He waited for everyone to pick up their glasses too before he continued, "To my newest grandson Jacob. And to my other grandchildren, Brandon, Callie, Jesus, Mariana, and Jude. I'm so happy to get to be your grandfather. And to my beautiful daughter, Lena, and my equally beautiful daughter-in-law, Stef, thank you so much for bringing these wonderful children into all of our lives."
"Hear-hear," Sharon nodded her agreement, the first to reach over and clink glasses with Stewart.
Once everyone had set their glasses back down, there was relative silence as they started eating.
After several minutes of the only noise being the scrapping of forks and knives against plates, Jesus spoke, asking, "Hey Jandon, will you pass the Ketchup?"
Two days later they had Callie's remission party. Sharon, Dana, Mariana, and Jude – with help from Jesus, Brandon, and Stewart – had transformed the backyard. There were paper lanterns strung all around and both a food table and a make-shift tiki bar set up.
Sharon was manning the bar, where she was making slushy drinks - similar to the ones Lena, Stef and Callie had had at the remission-day lunch - for everyone, complete with fancy umbrellas and all. Stewart and Mike were sharing barbequing responsibilities, standing around the grill, where Shish Kabobs, hamburgers, and hot dogs were on the menu. A number of different salads had also been made and dessert would be cupcakes – a throwback to the beautifully decorated cupcakes that they'd had for lunch during Callie's last chemo treatment. In planning the menu, Sharon had asked Callie what she wanted to eat and Callie had laughed gleefully when she realized that she actually wanted something specific. She'd completely forgotten what it was like to actually crave food.
There was a good sized crowd in the backyard, including Wyatt, who had returned from Indiana for school, Rita, and the girls' from Girls United. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves – no one, though, more than Callie. Callie practically bounced from person to person, a smile permanently plastered on her face.
After everyone had eaten, Stef and Lena finally managed to snag Callie alone, dragging her over to the porch swing and sitting down on either side of her.
"Having fun, sweetheart?" Lena asked, smiling at her daughter.
"Yes," Callie smiled widely, "Thanks for having this party."
Stef smiled too, kissing the side of Callie's head as she whispered, "No thanks needed." Pulling back, she bent down, reaching under the porch swing and grabbing the small gift bag that she'd set under there earlier. "Open this," she said as she handed it to Callie.
"But you already bought me a birthday gift," Callie blinked confused at the bag that Stef put in her hands. It had been a really expensive birthday gift and she'd just assumed it was her 'you finished chemo' gift as well.
Stef shook her head, reaching over and tapping Callie's knee, "I thought we already went over this the other day sweets. Remissions and birthdays aren't the same thing. Yes we did get you a birthday gift. And now we're giving you your remission gift."
"O-okay," Callie nodded. She paused a minute before she slowly, carefully, pulled the tissue paper out of the bag. She reached in and pulled out the contents – a square velvet box, the kind that usually held jewelry of some kind. She ran her fingers over the top of the velvet box before she opened it, peering down at the delicate silver bracelet it contained, not saying anything.
"Do you like it?" Lena asked, hesitant, "Because if you don't, we'll take you and let you pick out something different…something you'll wear…"
"No…" Callie shook her head, interrupting, "It's…beautiful." She tore her eyes away from the bracelet and looked over at Lena, her eyes shimmering, "Thank you."
"You are most welcome sweetheart," Lena smiled softly, reaching over to brush her hand against Callie's shoulder, asking, "Can I help you put it on?"
Callie nodded, letting Lena take the bracelet out of the box and secure the clasp around her wrist. Once it was on, she fiddled with the bracelet, gingerly touching one of small spheres that were connected by the chain.
Watching Callie, Stef explained, "There are twelve of them. One for each chemo treatment."
Callie's eyes met Stef's as she swallowed thickly. Sometimes her moms' thoughtfulness still caught her off-guard even though, by now, she knew it shouldn't. The fact that they had put so much thought into this gift, well, it meant more to her than the gift itself. "That's…it's perfect. Thanks."
Stef nodded, reaching up and running her hand over the soft down on top of Callie's head, "We love you so much sweets. So so much."
"I love you too," Callie hummed, smiling as she was crushed in a mama-sandwich. She was pretty sure this was the happiest she'd ever felt in her entire life. It was an amazing soaring feeling.
The night of the remission party, Callie went to bed happy and fell asleep with a smile on her face.
She woke up at 3am covered in a cold sweat. She rolled over onto her back, squinting through the darkness up at the ceiling as she listened for sounds. She expected to hear the baby crying but, besides Mariana's soft breathing from the bed beside hers, the house was eerily silent, leaving too much room for echoes of the dream – the nightmare – that had woken her to reverberate through her brain. She shuddered in the dark as a flash of the much too realistic dream came back to her – Dr. Lawson standing in front of her, a single word dying on his lips, Relapse.
She closed her eyes and tried to push the thought of relapse away, tried to remind herself that it was just a dream, tried to calm her erratically beating heart, tried to will herself back to sleep. Unsuccessful, eventually she blinked her eyes back open, staring back up at the ceiling.
This was the good life…wasn't it?