Oh my gosh, last chapter! Well...sort of. There's also the epilogue! But first...we have to get through the last chapter! Let's see what Brock and Suzy (oh, and Bella, of course!) are up to now!

For the Love of Brock

Chapter Ten

The next month saw another exciting occasion: Brock's birthday.

Suzy made sure she wasn't working on that day. She wanted to be home to celebrate with him, and give him a very special gift. Bella, who had just returned from another visit with Zane, was equally as excited, and had made her own gift for Brock.

Brock, however, wasn't as lucky as Suzy. He couldn't take off from work just because it was his birthday. There were still sick and injured Pokémon to take care of. He did love his job, however, so Suzy knew he didn't really mind working on the day. Besides, he would be home in time for dinner, and that would be the first part of Suzy's gift.

Brock always seemed to be the one who made dinner, so for that night, Suzy was taking care of it. She didn't think she was as good of a cook as Brock, but she wasn't incompetent. She had a few good dishes in her arsenal, and she was going to take them all out for the evening. Bella, of course, was her special helper in the kitchen. The little girl loved to fetch ingredients and measure them. She, too, wanted to have a hand in making Brock's birthday dinner.

"Is Daddy gonna be supwised, Mommy?" Bella queried.

"I definitely think so!" Suzy giggled.

"And he'll like it?"

"He'll love it," Suzy replied, humming delightfully as she continued to cook. While she stirred the pot, she couldn't help but to keep looking at her left hand and smiling. She loved the way her engagement ring sparkled in the light. It was easily the most beautiful piece of jewelry she had ever seen in her life. And it made her so excited about the future.

"Suze! I'm home!"

Gasping, Bella darted right out of the kitchen, leading Suzy to giggle and shake her head. The little girl was so intent on helping out, but as soon as something better came along, she was quick to bolt. And for Bella, Brock was better than a lot of things. She really loved him. This, too, brought a smile to Suzy's face.

Brock walked into the kitchen, smiling at Suzy. In his arms he held Bella, who had her arms wrapped around his neck and her head resting on his shoulder.

"She was helping me cook, until she heard the door open," Suzy informed her fiancé. "Then it was bye-bye Bella!"

"Aw, you were excited to see me?" Brock crooned, smoothing down Bella's hair. "Is that it?"

"Yeah," Bella murmured, rubbing her cheek against Brock's shoulder.

"You're so cute," Brock chuckled. "So, what's for dinner? I wasn't expecting to see you two tearing up the kitchen!"

"It's a surprise," Suzy trilled, looking over her shoulder. "So no peeking!"

"Oh, what is this, a special birthday dinner?" Brock realized, his eyes lighting up.

"Of course!" Suzy giggled. "And it's just about finished. So, why don't you and Bella have a seat at the table?"

Nodding his head, Brock carried Bella into the dining room, sitting her down and kissing her atop the head. Suzy, of course, witnessed the whole thing by looking over her shoulder and watching with a smile. It warmed her heart in the best way possible.

Brock really made an amazing second father for Bella.

XXX

Once dinner was eaten and the dishes were washed, it was finally time for Brock to open up his presents. Bella, of course, strongly insisted she go first, and Suzy was not about to tell her little daughter no.

"She's extremely persistent," Suzy sighed laughingly as Bella handed a piece of paper over to Brock.

"Ah, she's just excited is all!" Brock chuckled. "Let's see, what did you give me, little girl?"

He flipped over the paper and examined what was drawn on it. It was three people standing beneath a big, yellow sun: two taller ones, obviously meant to be adults, and a smaller one with very long, yellow hair. Brock, of course, knew what it was, but he waited for Bella to explain it herself.

"Look, Daddy!" Bella exclaimed, getting up on her knees and pointing at the first person in the picture. "That's you, and I'm in the middle, and then that's Mommy!"

"Yeah, this is such a beautiful picture, doll!" He exclaimed, lifting the little girl into his lap and giving her a big hug. "I love it so much. Thank you, sweetheart."

Bella giggled and hugged him back. Suzy watched with a smile on her face as her fiancé and daughter snuggled.

"Bella, can I give Daddy my present now?" Suzy asked.

"Yeah!" Bella chirped, jumping off of Brock's lap and running over to her mother. Smirking, Suzy reached over and handed Brock a long, dark blue box, one that would have usually contained a bracelet.

"You got me jewelry?" Brock asked with a snicker.

"No!" Suzy quickly refuted. "Come on, you haven't even opened the box yet!"

"Just an innocent little guess," Brock hummed.

"Open it, Daddy!" Bella cheered.

"Do you know what's in here, little girl?" Brock questioned.

"No," Bella chirped. It was true. Her mother hadn't shown or even told her what was in the box. It was a surprise for her, too. And she wanted to know what it was!

"You can open it," Suzy urged him, her dark eyes sparkling.

Nodding his head, Brock removed the top of the box. Once it was off, his body became rigid, and his mouth slowly fell open. Bella blinked and looked up at her mother, who was smiling sheepishly.

"S-Suzy…" Brock breathed, his voice shaking.

"Mmhm."

"Is this…this is real?"

"Of course it's real!" Suzy laughed. "Where else would I get…that?"

"I…don't know."

"Mommy, what's in the box?"

Suzy smiled down at Bella, who looked beyond confused at this point. Lifting the girl onto her lap, Suzy hugged Bella from behind and asked her young daughter, "Bella, how would you like to be a big sister?"

Bella's eyes widened at this, and now her own jaw dropped. "Yeah! I wanna be a big sister, Mommy! I wanna!"

"Well, that's good, then!" Suzy breathed. "Because that's my present for Daddy!"

Bella blinked at this. "What's that mean?"

Giggling, Suzy patted the top of Bella's head and replied, "It means I'm going to have a baby, sweetheart!"

Bella's entire face lit up. She sat up and wrapped her arms around her mother's neck, giggling and squeezing the woman.

"YAY!" Bella shrieked, bouncing up and down. "I'm so –cited, Mommy!"

"I can tell!" Suzy choked, carefully separating Bella from her now-sore neck. "And I'm glad."

Sliding off of her mother's lap and onto the floor, Bella looked excitedly between the two adults before squeaking, "I'ma tell Vulpix!" Once she ran off, still giggling, Brock looked up at Suzy, his face still reflecting an expression of shock.

"Suzy…" He murmured once again.

"Yes?" Suzy asked softly, raising her eyebrows.

"H-how long…?"

"A month," Suzy replied. "It happened a month ago."

"You mean…when we…"

"The night we got engaged," Suzy answered, nodding her head. Brock still looked stunned. He wasn't moving a muscle. Glancing down at her feet, Suzy softly added, "I…I never thought I'd get pregnant again. I thought Bella was my last chance. I'm just as surprised as you are. I thought I was way too old to have another baby. But…here we are."

Suzy was so busy looking down that she didn't take notice of Brock rushing towards her and engulfing her in a tight embrace. Looking up, Suzy's dark brown eyes widened as Brock kissed the top of her head before nuzzling it lovingly against his cheek.

"Brock?"

"I'm so happy," Brock breathed, his arms tightening. "I love Bella like my own. She's my daughter, no matter what. But I still wanted us to have our own child together. More than anything."

"So…you are happy?" Suzy questioned. She knew Brock had already said it…she just wanted to make sure.

Chuckling, Brock pulled Suzy to her feet and gave his fiancée an extremely passionate kiss, still hugging her tightly before he separated for air. "Happier than you could ever know."

They were already engaged, so the next thing Brock and Suzy needed was a baby! So now they're getting one :)

Next up: the epilogue! Get excited for it, guys :P