Meeting The Families- Part One
"Don't you think this is just a little weird?" Alex asked as she took a seat on the couch next to JJ late one Friday afternoon. "I mean I know we're got the world's like most complicated family back-story and what not but seriously, this whole weekend plan seems like a whole new kind of crazy."
"What are you talking about?" JJ chuckled as she watched Henry playing with his blocks on the floor.
"Mum really?" Alex exclaimed in disbelief. "Are you serious right now? Mom's picking up her ex-girlfriend, her wife and daughter at the airport and they're spending the weekend here with us. You don't find that even a little weird?"
"Alex," JJ couldn't stop laughing. "No it's not weird," she shook her head, still laughing. "Maura and your mother were really good friends, they were so young when they dated. Plus I met her and her wife and they're great people. You're going to love them."
"If you say so," Alex shrugged, leaning her head back against the back of the couch. "I still say you guys are nuts."
"Yes well you already knew that," JJ said, checking her watch for what must have been the 20th time in the last hour. "I wish your Mother would have let one of us go with her."
"I'm sure she's fine," Alex replied, turning her head to check on the blonde. "Like she said just because she's pregnant doesn't mean she can't drive to the airport on her own," she rolled her eyes. "She's so stubborn."
"Kind of like someone else I know," JJ laughed, earning a glare from the young brunette.
"Hey! I'm on your side here," Alex gave JJ a playful shove. "What's the plan this weekend anyways?" She asked, figuring it would distract the blonde for a while.
"Well tonight is just going to be us here. We'll order pizzas and just hang out," JJ explained. "Then the team is going to come over tomorrow night since they were hoping to spend some more time with Jane and Maura. Is Spencer still going to come tomorrow?"
"For sure," Alex nodded. "She wants to meet everyone because she thinks this whole thing is a little crazy too," she laughed as JJ pushed her.
"Were the girls upset you were missing the sleepover tonight?" JJ asked as Henry pulled himself up on the couch to sit between them.
"They understood," Alex shook her head. "I wouldn't be surprised if they just showed up sometime tonight though since they're just at Spencer's."
"Oh most likely," JJ laughed. "Liv is probably dying to meet Maura."
"Of course she is," Alex agreed, hearing a car pull into the driveway. "Sounds like they're here."
"Sounds like it," JJ grinned, grabbing Henry and standing from the couch as soon as the front door opened.
"Jen, we're back," Emily called as she led Maura, Jane and Amelia into the house, Jane carrying all the bags since she wouldn't let Maura or Emily help.
"Hey guys," JJ greeted, smiling as she approached the entryway carrying Henry and Alex following closely behind, looking slightly nervous all of a sudden. "How was the flight? Everything went okay?"
"Everything was fine, thank you JJ," Maura smiled. "Your house looks gorgeous. Thank you so much for having us."
"Please we're happy you all could come," Emily was the one to reply, still thrilled that their visit was planned so quickly and easily after their trip to Boston. "And I'm so happy you all get to meet these two," she gestured towards her kids. "This is Henry," she tickled the little blonde's stomach, who giggled before reaching out for the brunette. "And this is Alex," she waved the teen closer. "Alex this is Maura, her wife Jane and their daughter Amelia."
"My Mom told me a lot about you. It's nice to meet you," Alex greeted politely, holding out her hand for Maura to shake, watching as the blonde had to practically shake herself out of a rather shocked state.
"Oh. Wow sorry," Maura shook her head. "I'm sorry you just…it's very nice to meet you too Alexandra," Maura reached out for the teen's hand, smiling a big smile. "You look…you look just as I imagined you would."
"Oh yeah?" Alex raised an eyebrow in a very Emily-like manner. "And how's that?"
"Just like your Mother," Maura laughed. "Just as I remember her," she couldn't control the smile on her face. "Amelia, darling come here and say a proper hello."
"Hi," Amelia waved shyly as she came out from where she had been hiding behind Jane's leg.
"Hi Amelia," Alex knelt down in front of the little blonde. "It's nice to meet you. I heard you like to read a lot so I got some of my favourite books out and pulled out some games we could play this weekend too. Does that sound like fun to you?"
"You can call me Mia," Amelia blurted out instead of an answer, a big smile on her face. "That's what my Mama calls me."
"Alright," Alex nodded with a laugh. "Mia it is."
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The Rizzoli-Isles' and the Jaureau-Prentis' were really hitting it off. From the moment Emily returned with Jane, Maura and Amelia the families had been talking about anything and everything, Amelia spending quite a bit of time playing on the floor with Henry, while also taking some time to sit with Alex, who she seemed fascinated with.
"So Alexandra have you been thinking about colleges yet at all?" Maura eventually asked after everyone had finished dinner and they were relaxing in the family room. "Do you know what you want to do? Or where you want to go?"
"Geez Maur, the kid isn't even a senior yet," Jane teased the blonde, throwing Alex a wink that made the teen laugh. "I'm sure she's got enough pressure without you asking."
"It's okay," Alex laughed, liking Jane and her teasing personality. "I'm not entirely sure what I want to do yet, but I really enjoy writing so I've been thinking a lot about majoring in English, though I haven't quite decided yet. I play soccer too and I'm not bad so I may continue that if I can."
"She's being modest," JJ interrupted. "She's a great player, though she was benched for a couple games since her appendix almost burst in the middle of a game."
"I threw up in the middle of the field and everything," Alex told them proudly. "But I'm back now and my coach seems to think that with my grades and the way I play I should have all kinds of schools scouting me, which is great, but also a little nerve-racking," she continued. "I don't know for sure where I want to go because I don't really know how far away I want to be from everyone here and then there's my girlfriend to consider."
"You don't have to make any decisions right now," Emily reminded the teen. "We will support you no matter what you decide and we will make sure you get to see the kids if you decide to leave home," she assured her before turning towards Maura. "We think she's Ivy League bound, and it's very likely that Spencer is too."
"Spencer is your girlfriend?" Maura asked Alex.
"Yes," Alex nodded, a big smile on her face. "We've been together for over a year and she's my best friend. She actually lives across the street and she'll be here for dinner tomorrow night so you'll get to meet her," she explained. "Spencer is crazy smart and involved in just about everything so she'll get in everywhere she applies, but we agreed we would make our decisions without telling each other."
"That seems like a very mature choice," Maura smiled. "If you ever need to visit any schools in Boston though you are more than welcome to stay with us."
"Yeah Maura's a great tour guide and she knows just about everyone if you need some connections," Jane grinned. "I can take you out and show you all the cool places to hang out."
"Thanks," Alex laughed. "I just may take you up on that offer sometime."
"Good, because we would love to have you up; all of you," Maura told them. "Especially after the babies are born. I would really like if we could all see each other. I'd really like to see you more," she looked to Emily.
"Of course," Emily was quick to agree, a big smile on her face. "I want that too."
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Caught up in all the talking, it was late by the time everyone had retreated to their rooms for bed, Alex agreeing to bunk with Amelia who she let have her bed while she took the trundle bed that Olivia and Zoey usually slept on. Though she was tired, the teen struggled to fall asleep, tossing and turning while listening to Amelia's soft snores coming from the bed. Getting frustrated, Alex eventually decided to venture downstairs for a glass of water, hoping she would be able to fall asleep when she returned to her room.
Not wanting to wake anyone, Alex was careful as she made her way downstairs, leaving the lights off until she reached the kitchen where she flicked on the light and nearly jumped out of her skin.
"Maura!" Alex exclaimed, keeping her voice down as she held a hand over her heart, which felt like it was going to beat right out of her chest. "You scared me! What are you doing down here?"
"I'm sorry," Maura looked guilty. "I couldn't sleep so I just came down to make a cup of tea. Did I wake you?"
"No, no I just came down for a glass of water," Alex shook her head. "I couldn't sleep either. Mia's passed right out though."
"She's a pretty heavy sleeper," Maura nodded with a laugh. "Jane's the same way; she fell asleep as soon as we laid down, I don't know how she does it, although she doesn't have to worry about trying to get comfortable the way I do," she put a hand over her stomach. "The bigger I get the more difficult it seems to get comfortable."
"Yeah Mom said the same thing," Alex smiled, grabbing a glass and filling it up from the tap. "I remember when Mum was pregnant with Henry she hated sleeping alone, so when Mom was away working I would stay with her but she would move around so much, it was awful," she laughed. "You want to sit for a while?" She gestured towards the dining room table.
"Sure," Maura agreed, taking her tea and following the teen towards the table. "You know this is still so strange for me, meeting you I mean. When your Mother first told me about you I always wondered what you would be like; what you would look like. You're so much like your Mom was at your age, although she really wasn't athletic at all."
"Yeah she's still not," Alex laughed, taking a sip of her water. "When did…" She hesitated, wanting to ask questions, but not sure if she should. "When did my Mom tell you about me? I mean did she tell you before she…did you know before…"
"She sent me an email when she was pregnant," Maura interrupted, understanding what the teen wanted to know. "She told me everything that happened, and I immediately called her and told her I would return to the States to help her but she didn't want me to," she explained. "She insisted she was fine and it was already 6 months pregnant at the time and had decided she was going to put you up for adoption; I actually think she had already met your parents by then. I didn't see her again until after you were born. I was living in France at the time and she just showed up at my door one night."
"Really?" Alex was surprised. "What was…what was she like? I mean I just…I don't really know anyone else who knew her back then, you know?"
"It was pretty difficult for her," Maura replied, watching the teen carefully, not quite sure why she was asking all of these questions. "She was confused and she missed you and she kept doubting her decision," she figured honesty was the best policy. "You know there was actually a moment where I thought maybe we could go back to the States together and get you back; raise you together," she shook her head sadly.
"Oh…" Alex opened and closed her mouth a few times. "How come you…why didn't you?"
"Because I remembered that we were just kids and we didn't know anything about raising a child," Maura reached out, placing a hand over Alex's. "Your Mother made the best decision that she could for you and she gave you the best chance at a great life that she could at the time," she continued. "All of our lives would be very different if we had made a different decision."
"I think about that sometimes," Alex nodded, biting her lip in a way that reminded Maura of her Mother. "If Mom had kept me we wouldn't have Mum and Henry, she probably wouldn't have joined the FBI so we wouldn't have any of her team and I most likely wouldn't be going to private school, which means I wouldn't have met Spencer."
"And if I had convinced your Mother to change her mind then I wouldn't have Amelia or Jane, and I cannot imagine my life without them," Maura told her, a smile on her face as she thought about her family. "I think we all ended up where we were supposed to."
Nodding, Alex seemed to think for a moment before asking her next question. "How come you and Mom don't see each other anymore?"
"You know I'm not really sure," Maura admitted. "Once your Mother moved back to the States we were hardly ever living in the same place at the same time. I went to Medical School and she was working towards the FBI; life just got in the way and we lost touch," she explained. "Seeing her now though," she shook her head. "It seems like such a gift. And I am so happy to get to meet you."
"It's really cool getting to meet you too," Alex grinned. "And Mia seems like a great kid and I really like Jane too," she said, making Maura laugh. "You know there's something else I really wanted to ask you."
"You can ask me anything you like, though I can't promise that I'll answer," Maura told her.
"What was my Mom like when she was my age?" Alex asked, still grinning.
"Oh," Maura laughed, expecting something more serious. "Well she was…she was amazing," she told her. "She was incredibly smart, fiercely loyal and kind…really kind. She put on this tough façade most of the time but I knew her…the real Emily," she shook her head. "She cared about things no matter how many times she said she didn't and she would do anything to protect the ones she loved; I know she spent a lot of time protecting me."
"From what?" Alex asked, slightly confused.
"Teenage girls," Maura shrugged. "I was never very good at fitting in and I really wasn't like the other girls my age," she explained. "I was teased a lot, although I never seemed to understand it. Emily always defended me."
"Of course I did," Emily interrupted, startling the pair who hadn't heard anyone come down the stairs. "You were my best friend; no one messes with my best friend," she smiled, placing a kiss on top of Alex's head. "You two know it's the middle of the night right? What are you two doing up?"
"Oh we were just getting to know each other," Maura replied, smiling as Emily threaded her fingers through Alex's hair. "Neither one of us seemed to be able to sleep. Did we wake you?"
"No, the two little munchkins jumping on my bladder did," Emily told them. "I went to check in on Henry and I saw the light on down here. You two are going to be very tired tomorrow if you don't get some sleep."
"Aw Mom it's the weekend," Alex whined, though she was smiling.
"Yes but as we have guests there will be no sleeping until noon tomorrow missy," Emily reminded her, placing another kiss on her head. "I've seen you without sleep, it's not a pleasant sight."
"Your Mother's right we really should get to bed," Maura agreed with her friend. "We'll have time to talk more tomorrow. I'll even tell you some more stories about your Mom."
"I look forward to it," Alex grinned, standing up and placing a kiss on Emily's cheek. "Night Mom. Night Maura," she said, leaning down and giving the blonde a quick hug.
"Goodnight Alex," Maura replied, watching the teen head for the stairs before turning towards Emily who was watching her with an amused look on her face. "I'm sorry for keeping her up, we just got to talking. She's a wonderful girl Emily."
"I know," Emily agreed holding out her hand for her friend to help her up. "Now come on you goof, let's get you back to your wife, it's time for bed.
