DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT own any of the characters from TBAA. They belong to CBS. I do however own Monica's special name for Gloria.

God loves you

Enjoy!

"A Child's Reminder"

Gloria frowned as she watched Monica picking at her food. She had noticed her supervisor and best friend's mood change from happy to slightly distant the moment they had left for dinner.

"Monica, are you okay?" Gloria asked, not being able to stay quiet any longer. She had given Monica fifteen minutes to sort herself out. Now the youngest angel was going to do her part to help her supervisor smile again.

Monica barely heard Gloria's soft and concerned voice register in her mind. The Irish angel was too busy gazing at a wee girl sitting with her mother in a booth across from them.

The girl looked a lot like Danni. She was wearing a purple and pink jumpsuit with a pink shirt underneath of it. Her hair flowed down her back like a wave.

As Monica continued to gaze at the young girl, she felt that ache in her heart once again. It was the kind that came suddenly and left a wave of longing in its wake.

It wasn't until the Irish angel felt Gloria's slightly smaller hand on hers, did she turn around to face her charge and good friend.

The Irish angel thought of Gloria as her daughter or younger sister. The two were very close and she loved her very much.

"Aye, little one? Are you all right?"

Gloria nodded as a soft laugh escaped her lips.

"I'm fine. It's you I'm worried about. You haven't said two words since we got here. Are you feeling sick? Are you upset about a former assignment? Are you mad at Tess or Andrew?" The next possibility came out in a slightly more uncertain tone. "Are you mad at me? Did I do something wrong? Did I say something to hurt your feelings…"

The possible reasons for Monica's somber mood came tumbling out of the youngest angel's mouth like a waterfall rolling over rocks.

Monica shook her head. She put up a hand to silence her rapidly speaking pupil.

"No. It's none of the above, Gloria. I Promise you. I'm not feeling sick and I'm not angry at anyone. You didn't do anythin' wrong either."

Gloria nodded. She sighed and the Irish angel could see relief register on her face.

"Then if I didn't do anything, what's made you so sad?"

Monica sighed. She focused her gaze once more upon the mother and daughter sitting by the window.

Gloria followed her supervisor's gaze. As she made the connection, the little angel gasped as realization hit.

"Oh Monica…I'm sorry. I didn't know you…" Her voice trailed off as she watched her supervisor fight to keep her emotions in check.

It was clear that the Irish angel was losing the battle rather quickly.

As Gloria watched her best friend battle with her heart, she did the only thing she could think of. She reached her arms out, wanting nothing more than to take Monica's pain away.

Monica shook her head. She threw Gloria an apologetic look before getting up and exiting the restaurant.

Gloria exchanged a worried look with Andrew before sprinting after her supervisor. She had to make sure Monica was all right.

"All right, I got Italian on wheat, turkey club minus the mayonnaise on rye for our little Gloria and chili for…" Tess's voice trailed off when she noticed two members of their angelic family were missing. "Where are Monica and Gloria?"

Andrew sighed. He glanced out the window before gazing briefly at Tess.

"You know something you aren't telling me." Tess surmised, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.

Andrew sighed in defeat.

"I do, but I can assure you neither Gloria nor Monica are in trouble. There was an incident and they had to sort some things out. I Believe Gloria called it "girl talk"."

Tess sighed.

"All right. But if they aren't back here in the next twenty minutes, it's your halo."

Andrew nodded.

"Yes ma'am." He saluted Tess. This made the superior angel crack a small smile.

"In fact, I'll make sure they come back." And before Tess could stop him, Andrew was gone.

Meanwhile, Gloria had found Monica out by the lake that surrounded the restaurant. She was sitting on a bench, her eyes Heavenward. She was praying quietly, but the little angel could tell her supervisor was in a great deal of pain. She also could tell from the way Monica was shaking that she was crying.

Gloria gave Monica the privacy she needed before making her presence known. She stood close enough to hear what Monica was saying to their Heavenly Father.

"Father, why? Why can't I do the one thing I'm good at above all else? I know angels aren't supposed to parent children, but why if only for a wee while can't I…Sometimes it's so hard for me to leave them once the assignment is done. I feel so alone and heartbroken once I'm through tellin' one of your wee ones you love them. I just…Oh Father, why do I feel like this? Why!" With that, Monica broke down completely.

Gloria was at her side in a flash. She sat upon the bench and pulled Monica in for a comforting hug.

"Shh, it's okay, it's okay. It's gonna be okay. He hears you, Monica. He does. He hears you and He knows you want to mother a child or more specifically take care of one for a longer period of time. The Father knows that. He knows your heart, just like He knows my heart and Tess's and Andrew's. He loves us all and in His time, He will give you what your heart desires. I promise. And in a way, I think He already has."

"Gloria's right." A familiar male voice said from just in front of the two younger angels.

Monica raised her tear stained face to meet the concerned green eyes of her long time best friend and fellow angel. She tried to give him a weak smile, but failed.

Andrew sat down on her other side and put a hand on her shoulder. He then reached over and started combing his fingers through her auburn hair.

After a few minutes of silence, Andrew continued to speak.

"Gloria's right." He repeated. "God hears you and He will answer your prayer. But Monica, look at it this way. While you don't have a child of your own, think of all the children you've touched over the years. Think of all the children whose lives you've made better just by being there for them. By being there and showing them the truth of God's love, you've touched their lives in ways they will never ever forget."

"You really think so?" Monica asked, her tears subsiding a wee bit.

"I know so." Andrew assured her. With that, he cupped her chin in his hands before giving her a friendly kiss on her cheek. "Do you feel better now?"

Monica nodded. She was still a wee bit sad, but she would heal in the Father's time.

"A wee bit." Monica admitted.

This got both angels smiling, but Gloria's smile was brightest of all.

"I'm glad." Gloria replied. "I don't like it when my best friend is upset. I love you, Monica. You've taught me so much about being an angel of God and helping others. But the one thing you've taught me above anything else is that sometimes just listening to someone can make all the difference."

Monica smiled, despite the remaining tears that had coursed down her angelic features.

"Amen to that." She said. She then reached out and pulled Gloria in for a hug. "And thank you, Gloria."

"For what?" The little angel asked, obviously confused.

"Thank you for bein' there for me when I needed you."

Gloria smiled and hugged back all the same.

"You never have to thank me for that. We're here for each other and I would do it again in a heartbeat. You're my supervisor, but even more than that, you're my best friend."

"I love you too, little one. I love you so much." Monica affirmed. She hugged Gloria close before planting a motherly kiss on the top of her head.

Just then, Andrew glanced down at his watch.

"We better get inside before…" His voice trailed off as a familiar and wise voice broke the comfortable atmosphere.

"Before I discover you're over your time limit."

Gloria and Monica looked up to see Tess standing there. Her eyes were narrowed but all three angels could see a grin twitching at the corners of her mouth.

"Tess, we were just about to come back inside." Gloria assured her superior.

"Never mind that, little angel. I have a better idea." She grinned before producing a picnic basket containing the food she had purchased at the restaurant. "Who wants to have a picnic by the lake?"

Gloria's innocent and joyful eyes lit up upon hearing Tess's offer.

"I do! I do!" She exclaimed happily. She gave Tess a hopeful look, causing the elder angel to chuckle.

"Well, that's one vote." Tess replied. She put the basket down and pulled her 'little angel in for a hug. "I'm proud of you, little angel. It was very sweet of you to help Monica like that."

Gloria grinned.

"I'd do it again in a heartbeat. I'd do it for anyone who needed me."

Tess smiled.

"I know you would. And that's one of the things I love about you the most." Tess's tone grew slightly stern just then. "Now, let's talk about the adjustment you made to my baby."

Gloria looked to anywhere but at the look on Tess's face. She was surprised when Tess gave her another hug.

"You did a good job, little angel. I should let you fix my car more often. It beats the job a certain 'angel boy of mine did the last time."

Andrew fained a wounded expression as he took Monica's hand in his and lead her over to where Gloria and Tess were standing.

"Tess, the car was practically dead anyway." He reminded her, trying to defend himself.

"If you want to live to eat that sandwich I bought for you," Tess advised, "you will never mention your job in conjunction with my car EVER again. Am I understood?"

"Yes ma'am!" Andrew exclaimed. He saluted Tess once again. This time, Gloria and Monica both dissolved into a fit of giggles. Gloria more so than her supervisor.

Tess then turned her attention to her 'angel girl. She took Monica into her arms and hugged her close.

"Are you feeling better, angel girl?"

Monica nodded.

"Now I am." She said, truthfully. She then added, "A picnic sounds lovely."

Tess grinned. She was happy Monica was feeling better.

"I'm glad you think so. But something tells me we better get started before angel boy eats all of it right here." She then caught Andrew trying to sneak a sandwich out of the corner of her eye.

The minute Andrew felt Tess's eyes on him, he immediately set the sandwich back down.

"That's what I thought. " Tess said, smirking at him. "Come on you three. Let's get going." With that, Tess led her three angel babies to a spot near the lake.

Once everything was set and Gloria had volunteered to say grace, the angels dug in. A fun and comfortable conversation accompanied the meal and before long, the angels' laughter could be heard for miles around…

A few days later, Monica sat at the same lake, thinking about everything she had been through in the last few weeks. Even though she tried, she couldn't get Danni Blake out of her mind.

The Irish angel had been happy when Danni had been reunited with her earthly father, but a part of Monica still yearned for a child of her own. She loved children so much and nothing pleased her more than when she got to care for them.

But as Monica sat there, Andrew's words of comfort and truth came floating back to her, making her pretty Irish features split into a tiny satisfied smile.

It was then that Monica realized someone was calling her name. She glanced up to see a child running towards her. Her auburn hair was swaying with the breeze. She smiled as she reached the spot where Monica was sitting.

Grinning even wider, she threw her arms around Monica's neck and held on tightly.

Monica returned the hug, even though she was a wee taken aback by the child's actions. How did she know her name?

It was only when Monika pulled away, did she get a good look at the child's facial features. The feature that stood out most to the Irish angel was the wee one's eyes and freckles.

"Danni?" Monica asked, her voice full of surprise.

The child nodded. The grin was still visible on her face.

"What are you doin' here?" Monica asked. She gave the child another hug as Danni made herself comfortable on her lap.

Once Danni was situated, the Irish angel wrapped a loving arm around the wee girl.

"My Mom's back at work and my father's working at home today. We have off school so I asked him if I could come here to hang out. I wanted to see if I could find you." She grinned broadly. "And God answered my prayer!"

Monica was thoroughly confused now. She understood the part about Danni's parents working and the child getting her earthly father's permission to come here. The only thing Monica didn't understand was why the young girl had sought her out.

"But why?" Monica asked, still confused. "Why did you want to find me of all angels?"

Danni gave Monica a look as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

When the Irish angel still looked puzzled, Danni hastened to explain. Rather than become impatient or frustrated, the girl just smiled as she started to speak.

"I wanted to find you so I could thank you."

"Thank me for what?" The Irish angel inquired. "All I did was take you halfway across the state and we didn't even find who you were lookin' for at the time."

Danni nodded, but she wasn't finished yet.

"That's true. But you did something else for me too. You gave me reason to hope again. You showed me that God does answer prayers. But mostly, you showed me that God loved me and He could use me even if I don't know it. I never knew that before. But you made God real to me for the first time ever. And I wanted to thank you."

Monica was speechless. She couldn't believe that this little girl had come all the way across town to find her just to thank her.

"You were there for me when things were scary and you stayed with me. And even though I told you to leave me alone, you didn't leave. That meant a lot to me. I Know I didn't say it then, but thank you." With that, Danni embraced the Irish angel once again before standing up and preparing to leave.

Before Monica could say anything, the child was gone.

Wiping a stray tear away from her hazel eye, Monica smiled as she watched Danni leave on her bike.

"You're very welcome, Danni. You're very welcome."

It was then that the Irish angel realized that Andrew had been right. She did touch the lives of countless children every day.

Sometimes, she would know just how much and other times, just knowing she had done her best was enough.

As the Irish angel stood up, she lifted her eyes to Heaven above.

"Thank you for showing me just how much love a child can possess, Father. Thank you." She then remembered one more thing and added, "And thank you, Andrew. Thank you for showing me that when we least expect it, children are the ones to remind us of somethin' we can't see ourselves." With that, Monica walked down the sunlit path.

The Irish angel knew that if it was in God's plan, she and Danni would meet again. All Monica had to do was have faith and let the Father handle the rest. After all, they were all in God's care and there was no safer place to be.

THE END