I've been really sleepy since the weekend to get anything done. I don't know much about adoption and religion, so please forgive me for all mistakes. Not sure if this turned out well since I wrote it half asleep on my bed. Please let me know what you think. Enjoy!

Day 3

"You ready?"

"Are you ready? You're the nervous one, not me." Holly brought her hand up to Gail's shoulder before running it up and down the length of the blonde's arm in an attempt to calm her nerves. Gail wasn't sure what took over her. She was fine before hopping into the car. During the ride to Gail and Sophie's usual hangout spot, she started to wonder if bringing Holly along was a good idea or not. It might not be a good idea to introduce Holly to the little girl since she would be leaving soon. Something about bringing people into a kid's life – a recently orphaned kid, no less – without the certainty of them staying. Shit, why haven't I thought about this last night? Gail berated herself.

It was like Holly read her mind. She knew what Gail was thinking, maybe this wasn't such a great idea after all. "It's okay, Gail. I can wait in the car or come pick you up once you guys are done."

But Gail really wanted Holly to meet this girl that swept her off her feet in the span of the last couple of weeks. She wanted to explain to Holly how important it was to Gail for that one person's opinions she truly value to witness just how magical Sophie was. But words failed her as it usually does. Okay, a short meeting couldn't hurt, right?

"No, I really want you to meet her."

Holly exhaled loudly and nodded. "Okay."

"Alright, let's go."

They walked the short distance to the bench where Sophie and the social worker Laura, were sitting. Laura pointed towards Gail and Holly's and Sophie's head immediately snapped to her left in order to see Gail. The smile that formed on the girl's face took Gail's breath away. Even after weeks of seeing that million dollar smile, she still couldn't get used to it. She'll probably never get used to it. And she doesn't want to get used to it.

Holly turned to look at Gail, and the look on the blonde's face was something she'd never seen before. She studied Gail's face. There was a look of adoration, kindness. Love, even. At that moment, Holly understood Gail's decision to adopt this child. The emotions Gail worn on her face spoke volumes and Holly was truly glad that she got to witness the bond Gail and Sophie shared. Nobody saw the look on Holly's face. But looking at Gail look at Sophie, Holly, too, had an emotion schooling her features. Pride.

Gail and Holly made their way toward the bench and Laura stood up to greet both of them.

"Hey Laura, hey Sophie, this is my friend Holly. Holly this is Laura, social worker at the home and this kid over here's Sophie."

Laura offered a hand out for Holly to shake and smiled, "Hi, nice to meet you, Holly."

"Hello, nice to meet you too." Holly greeted Laura before turning to face Sophie. "Hey Sophie, I'm Holly, it's so nice to meet you."

Sophie stood up then, whispered a soft 'Hi' to Holly before launching herself at Gail to give her a massive hug.

"Gail! I thought I wouldn't see you this week since we usually meet on Wednesdays."

"I wouldn't miss it for the world, kiddo. Just had a really busy week at work, that's all." Gail smiled.

Sophie nodded. "That's fine, you're here now. Let's go to the playground!" The girl took Gail's hand in her own and hesitated for a moment before grabbing Holly's with her other hand too. Gail smiled fondly at the action. Before the trio got to take a step towards the playground, Laura called for Gail.

"Hey, Gail, can I speak to you? It'll be quick."

Gail turned to look at Laura, then at Sophie and Holly. Holly nodded and led Sophie to the playground. "Let's go Sophie, Gail's going to catch up."

Gail smiled her thanks and took a seat next to Laura on the bench. "If this is about bringing Holly here, I'm sorry."

"No, it's not about that. I just wanted to let you know that the agency is starting to process your application. I want you to be prepared, it'll be a long and hard process. It might not even go through."

"I—I know. I've been reading up, making some changes in my life, trying to get myself ready and I know there's a huge possibility that it might be unsuccessful."

"Many people think that adopting a kid is like getting a pet. They get ahead of themselves, thinking they're ready to raise a child who has gone through so much, and many of them failed to even make it through the interviews and home study without having second thoughts. End up both the adults and the kids get disappointed. I just want you to be absolutely sure this is what you want to do."

"Yes. This is what I want. For both me and Sophie." Gail concluded the conversation in a resolute tone.

Holly saw Gail walking towards them and couldn't help but feel worried at Gail's frown. Holly continued to push Sophie who was on the swing, taking her eyes off of Sophie for a split second to glance at Gail as she stood next to her. "Everything okay?" She asked Gail after returning her attention back to the girl.

Gail smiled and tried to shake her thoughts away. "Yeah, everything's fine. Let me take over." Holly took a few steps back and decided to let it go for now since this was not the place or time to talk.

"Can we stay a little while longer? Please?"

Nobody could resist those puppy dog eyes, not even Laura the social worker. After spending some time at the park, Gail decided to call it a day because she didn't want to take too much of Holly's time away from her. The brunette probably needed all the time she could get to get her affairs in order for her new life and job in San Francisco.

Holly took her eyes off of the group for a second to soak in the nice weather. It was a great day to be out and about. Flowers were blooming, trees starting to take on a more vibrant shade of green and the sun shined brighter to celebrate the beginning of spring. She looked across the street and saw an ice cream parlour. A grin appeared on her face as a thought crossed her mind.

"Hey Sophie, do you like ice cream?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Why don't we all go and have some ice cream at the shop across the street? My treat?"

Sophie jumped in excitement for a few seconds before turning to Laura to seek for permission. Laura looked at her watch, contemplated for a moment before giving Sophie a kind smile in return and then looking between the two adults, "I have an appointment soon, but I'm sure it would be fine if you guys send Sophie back after." Laura seldom offer such freedom, but she genuinely liked the blonde and she's a cop, so that's always a plus.

After saying their goodbyes to Laura, the trio made their way across the street for some sweet treats. Holly and Sophie exerted a serious amount of consideration into the choice of cup, cone or waffle bowl, the number of scoops and the flavours and toppings as if their lives depended on it. Gail grinned widely at the scene unfolding in front of her. It was cute, the two of them looked like they were on a mission, partners in crime looking to create the perfect combination. Gail told herself that this was what she could have gotten if Holly wasn't leaving and Sophie's adoption was successful. It was as if she just got a taste of what her future could have looked like, but once they drop Sophie off back at the home, once Holly leaves, all this would be taken away from her. She immediately shook her head in an attempt to get rid of those thoughts.

After Gail's weak insistence of paying – because Gail Peck would never turn down free food – for the sake of being polite in front of Sophie, they headed to the open area to enjoy their ice cream. After the brunette and the little girl voiced the satisfaction of their choices, they ate in comfortable silence. But it doesn't last long.

"Holly, are you a police officer like Gail?"

"No, I'm a doctor." Holly replied the girl with a smile on her face. Sophie took a while to gather her thoughts and her next question. Gail was worried about the sudden look of seriousness on the girl's face.

"Oh you work at the hospital?"

"No, I work at a lab near the police station where Gail works at to help the officers solve crimes."

"But you're a doctor, just like the ones at the hospital?"

Holly nodded. "Yeah."

"So… why didn't the doctors save my mom?"

The spoonful of ice cream on Holly's was halfway to her mouth when she heard Sophie's next question. She immediately felt Gail tense beside her and put a hand on her knee and squeezed reassuringly, although she had absolutely no idea how she was going to respond to that. Holly then took a deep breath to collect her thoughts, searching for the right words for the 8-year-old. She looked at Sophie and noticed the cross necklace around her neck. It was a gift from Sophie's mother.

"Sophie, do you believe in God?" Holly decided it was probably best if she doesn't explain the cause of death to the little girl.

Sophie brought a hand up to toy with the necklace. "Yeah, mom and I used to go to church."

Holly hoped that whatever she was going to say would be good enough for Sophie. "Well, God saw that your mom was in so much pain that day and he didn't want you to see her suffer, because that would've broke your heart and he decided to take it all away by bringing her up to heaven along with him."

"Yes, it would break my heart to see my mom in pain. Is she still suffering now?"

"No, God's taking good care of her now, and I'm sure your mom is looking out for you, smiling down from heaven because you're so strong. She'll be so proud of you." Holly scooted over to give the girl a hug. Sophie wrapped her arms around her for a long time before letting go. Gail on the other hand, had tears in her eyes and looked away to wipe them dry before they could roll down her cheeks.

Holly was not a religious person, but she respects other people's beliefs too. As a doctor, she look at scientific explanations, facts and statistics. The one time she tried to seek comfort and solace beyond probabilities and data was when her parents died. She tried to pray, though she wasn't sure to whom or what, a desperate attempt for her parents to be okay. She knew Sophie needed it at that moment, needed the strength and faith to pull her through this incredibly difficult time.

When they finally pulled up in front of the home, Holly and Gail got out of the car to say goodbye to Sophie. They each got a hug from the girl, a longer one for Holly and the brunette's heart melted.

"Will I be seeing you soon?"

"Um, I hope so. I'll be leaving town for a job soon." Holly looked at Gail who just remained quiet.

Sophie looked down in slight disappointment. Maybe this wasn't a great idea after all, Gail thought. "Will you come back and visit?"

"I'll certainly try my best. Stay awesome, okay? And do me a favour, look after Gail for me, somebody needs to keep her in line and I think you're the best person for the job."

"Don't worry, I will."

The car ride back to Holly's was quiet. Gail made a beeline towards the kitchen right after the front door opened and took a bottle of beer out of the fridge. She knew where the bottle opener was and quickly pulled the drawer open to retrieve it. After emptying half the bottle down her stomach, she turned to look at Holly, who was staring at her sympathetically because it's Holly, she always knows what's going on and what's running through Gail's head, so she just waited patiently for the blonde's impending outburst.

"I'm great with kids. I know that. But I'm great with kids when I only have to spend hours or maybe a day with them. How am I going to take care of Sophie, to answer her tough questions, to console, to give her strength emotionally when I'm so emotionally stunted myself? I mean, look at what you did today, I don't think I would've been able to come up with what you said, at least not without running away to think about it for hours or even days. And I don't even go to church!" Gail looked at Holly as if her face would reveal the answers she so desperately seek.

Holly walked towards Gail and ran her hands up the blonde's neck and down to rest on her shoulders, giving her a squeeze on both sides. She made sure Gail was look into her eyes before she started talking. "Gail… I know you. I know you'll step up to the plate, you'll make sure you can be there for Sophie, both physically and emotionally. You're so, so strong, Gail. You have to let yourself know that. If you truly wanted something, you never back down and you're willing go to hell and back to make sure you get it. Now, you need to have that attitude if you want to be with Sophie, to make her happy. Because I know you're loyal towards her. And loyalty means a lot to you."

Gail broke away from Holly and started pacing. She took deep calming breaths and stopped her pacing in front of the other woman. "Okay. I'm going to do this. I can do this. For Sophie." Gail added shortly after, "And for myself."

"It'll be alright."

"It'll be alright." Gail nodded and repeated Holly's words to seal it into her brain.

Holly moved closer to wrap her arms tightly around Gail to end her meltdown. Gail immediately returned the embrace and pressed their foreheads together, brushing her nose against Holly's. She smiled as she remembered this was Holly's habit whenever they hugged or kissed.

"Stay," Holly whispered into Gail's ear. "I'll make us dinner."

Gail nodded her head and kissed Holly's cheek. "Okay."

Gail wondered how long more they can stay in their bubble in the comfort of Holly's home before reality kicks in. Tomorrow she'll go back to work and time would start ticking again and Gail really wishes she could spend every second with Holly. She doesn't want to think about the withdrawal she'll have to face once Holly was gone. It could be hours or minutes before they finally broke apart but neither women cared. Gail pulled Holly to the couch and on her lap before she pressed her lips lovingly against the brunette's. Holly turned to position herself better so she could straddle Gail. Things got hot and heavy really quickly and Holly pulled away before it could escalate even further. She gave Gail's pouty lips a final kiss before settling onto her side.

"I like Sophie, she's a great kid."

"She likes you too."

"I understand why you want to adopt her. I see it now."

"See what?"

"The connection. The bond you two share."

Gail pressed a kiss on top of Holly's head to end the conversation. Her decision to bring Holly along today turned out great. She didn't know what she would've done if Holly wasn't there to answer Sophie's questions. She was glad Holly understood the reason why Sophie was important to her. Gail could explain to Holly how much she loves the kid, but it was something to be witnessed rather than to be told.