Three days later, once Birttany wasn't in so much pain, we got to bring Alice home. At two, Kylie didn't know how to react to this new person in her home. Brittany giving her all the attention, "She seems a little sad," Brittany pointed out one day while Kylie was sitting watching cartoons, "She's tired, B, she was up all night singing to herself, fighting sleep." I was trying to convince Britt, and myself, because Kylie really did seem a little gloomy. When Alice was around two months old, Kylie, with help and determination was almost fully potty trained. She was also talking more, saying "Mami, baby" and of course, "Cookie". Brittany felt better about putting her in preschool or daycare, but she still had anxiety about leaving her for more then four hours. Turning twenty nine was a big milestone. I was married with two kids and a great job, my life was amazing. However, Alice got very sick and my birthday plans with Brittany got cut short. Alice screamed and cried the whole way to the hospital, Brittany cried, she hated seeing our girls in so much pain of any kind. Three h ours and me being angry, complaining and yelling, we finally got an answer about Alice. I had no idea a baby so little and young could get a chest/lung infection. Birttany was sure it was because of her breast milk, and after reassruing her it wasn't, she calmed down. The doctor had told us it was because her lung weren't fully developed, and that the air in our hours, coming from the vents, wasn't safe. Hearing your child has a lung infection is crushing to hear, together we decided that we would get air filters and open windows more often.
We celebrated my birthday the following weekend, leaving the girls with Rachel for the night now that Alice had gotten better enought to leave the house. Brittany made me dinner and we ate in a comfortable silence, then we took a nice, relaxing bath in the dark with candles. We made love for hours, finally falling asleep in eachothers arms. Kylie was still coming to school with me, eating lunch with me and talking to her best friend. Nicole told me she thought she was ready to come out, but was still having second thoughts. She also told me she had a girlfriend, over in the next town, who she was very happy with. I felt the need to talk to Brittany that night about Nicole after the girls were alseep, "Do you ever wonder what the girls will be when they grow up?" I asked softly, Alice still asleep in our room, "What do you mean?" She hummed, "Like, sexuality.." I breathed out. We talked about it for a half our before i fell asleep and Alice needed to be fed. Unlike Kylie, Alice began to get her first tooth at five months old. I believed we had an aline for a baby, but after reading i found it was normal for babies to develope early. Alice also needed to see a lunch specialist, getting tests done every month. Kylie was begining to say more words and i even began teaching her spanish, after a few weeks of practicing she could say "Tia" and "Si". Soon, i felt Brittany emotionally pulling away from me. She seemed sad, and hardly spoke to me. I looked to Rachel for advice, she had this problem with Quinn when she had their third child. Turned out, my beautiful wife was going through post-pardum depression. Her hormoes were talking over, causing her to emotionally pull away from me. I didn't know what to do, she didn't have this problem with Kylie. After hours of talking to Rachel and Quinn, and reading articles, i knew what i needed to do.
One day, when Brittany was really distant, i decided to send the girls to Rachels and spend some alone time with her. "Baby?" I whispered softly, "We have some alone time to talk," I sat next to her in bed, letting her open up to me. Brittany did open up and just started to cry, explaining how she felt like she didn't love Alice like she loved Kylie. That was normal, both Rachel and Quinn said it was normal for her to feel that way. I explained that to her and she calmed donw, soon falling asleep in my arms. I was happy when Brittany overcame her depression and we were our happy little family again. Alice went to the doctor often for a lung check up, and she was making great progress, and her lunch were starting to look like a normal five month olds lungs. At seven months old, Alice started crawling, and beginning to start baby babbling. Kylie watched her little sister carefully, "Baby," She pointed ot Alice, crawling toward her toys, "My toys," she yelled, grabbin them before Alice could. I watched Brittany gently disapline our two year old, having her give the baby kisses on her head. Britt amazed my everyday, she was a fantastic mother t our girls. Nicole called me one afternoon crying. She told me her parents and things didn't go so well. Her dad kicked her out and her mother didn't dare look at her. I went and picked her up, letting her know everything would be alright eventually. She stayed with us for a long while, Kylie and her played for hours, and she was so damn good with Alice. I was falling in love with Nicole, her personality was so bright, and she seemed so happy for once in her life. Soon i found myself reading about adoption and all the legal things that needed to happen. But first, i needed to talk to Brittany, and then, if things went well with Brittany, i would talk with Nicole. Brittany felt the same way i did about Nicole. Since her parents already disowned her and she had bene living with us for about a months, we were sure the courts would side with us. We both had sable, very well paying jobs and two happy daughters at home.
When Nicole's parents sighed the legal abandoment papers and adoption papers, we just waited until everything was legalized, we cleared out the basement and built her her own room. Since the upstairs was for the babies and the playroom was already taken. Nicole started calling us "Mami" and "Mama", the occasional "Mommy", when she was sick or really wanted something. Alice was ten months old when Nicole legally became ours. Brittany and I had a fourteen year old, a two and a half year old and a ten month old. Things began to calm down after all the legal stuff was done and Nicole stopped worrying about being taken away. All the girls seemed happy, Brittany and I included, but we were also busy planning Alice's first brithday and Nicole's whos was two weeks after. Weeks after both girls birtday, we let Nicole's girlfriend stay over. We trusted her enought to let her keep her door closed, that was until i walked in on my daughter having sex, scaring the both of us for the rest of our lives. After that, her door came off and her girlfriend was no longer allowed to stay the night. Kylie, and nearly three, was walking and talking, she could have real conversations, nearly. "She's ready, Birtt." I sighed, "No, she's not, she's almost three, she still needs me." She pouted and i ran my hand through my hair, "She can't stay home forever, and Alice still needs you, Kylie doesn't breast feed and she hasnt for almost half a year." Brittany glared right in my eyes, her death glare. "Just think about it, okay?" She nodded and i kissed her cheek, going to do some work. I knew Kylie was ready, i just hopped Brittany would realize it too.
