An authors note...I had originally planned to skip ahead a few months and post a more angsty chapter, but per request(I'm talking to you, Megan;) I decided to stick with a slightly lighter theme and ease through the winter months instead of skipping over them completely. If this small little arc is something you would like to see more of, I will gladly continue it in the next chapter, before moving on. Hope you enjoy this snippet and remember, requests and reviews are always welcome:)

Disclaimer-Glee is the property of FOX, the creators and the writers.

Let It Be

Alicia often wondered if February in Ohio would be considered the winter equivalent to the dog days of summer. If not already...then it ought to be.

The excitement of the holidays was long over. The novelty with the new toys, those that hadn't been broken yet, had since faded. And regardless of what the groundhog had or hadn't seen, there was still going to be six more weeks of winter.

"What do you guys want to do today?" was currently one of Alicia's most frequently asked questions. It wasn't an easy task finding activities her two, very different, boys could agree on...and that almost never had anything to do with Artie's disability.

The Abrams, Alicia especially, vowed to never exclude Artie from anything. If he wanted to try something, they'd find a way to accommodate him. When he wanted to play in the first big snowfall of the year, Art was there to help him to the ground and move his legs so he could make a snow-angel. When the family went out to clear the path and drive, Artie was given a shovel and expected to do his part...which usually consisted of him holding the shovel to the ground, while Alicia pushed him from behind...both of them laughing the entire time.

Of course there were always precautions and preparations that had to be made to make sure he didn't get too wet, or too cold...especially since the lower half of his body was no longer able to regulate temperature. But that usually proved to not be too difficult, as long as he was dressed properly, wasn't out for very long, and took frequent breaks to warm up or dry off.

"I wanna go play hockey."

Okay, then there were answers like that...

"Movies, popcorn and hot cocoa."

Alicia couldn't help but smile at Artie's usual request, but it was Art's suggestion that really got her attention. "Or we could start on that room upstairs."

"Yeah," Artie seconded, bouncing enthusiastically.

Alicia's eyes widened in surprise. "But I don't have anything," she balked in protest, and by not anything, she meant absolutely nothing. In fact, she'd only gotten as far as clearing out the space and having the carpet steamed.

"Which is exactly why we need to get a move on," Art quipped playfully as he ran his hand over her protruding belly, "She'll be here before we know it."

Blinking rapidly in an attempt to control the moisture that was pooling in her eyes, Alicia smiled lovingly at all of her boys. Her watery gaze met Art's and suddenly his arms were around her. There was an unspoken understanding between the two.

It was the reason she wouldn't let herself get too excited. The reason they hadn't told anyone of pregnancy until she began to show, well after the critical first trimester. The reason she'd put off preparing for their daughter's arrival for so long.

Life has a cruel way of kicking you when you're already down...and they'd already lost one child through miscarriage and almost lost another seven months ago, in that horrific car accident. Plain and simple, Alicia Abrams was afraid to jinx herself, her family, or tempt fate in any way.

After a gentle squeeze and kiss to the top of the head, Art broke the embrace and smiled at his beautiful wife. "If you already know what colors you'd like, I can take the boys with me to hardware store to pick up some paint, while you go look for furniture..."

"Wait. I wanna go pick things out too," Artie interjected pleadingly.

Alicia smiled warmly at her son, though her eyes were peering skeptically. "Are you sure Sweetie?" The rhetorical question was met with an emphatic nod, and in that moment Alicia berated herself for getting rid of all of her baby stuff after the miscarriage...but really, the doctors said there was little to no chance she'd ever get pregnant again. "There are a lot of things to look at and a lot of decisions to make. We may need to go to a bunch of stores before we find everything we're looking for...," the rest of her words trailed off unfinished...and it's slushy and sloppy and cold outside..."

"That's okay, " he assured her as he prepared to transfer from the couch to his chair, "I really want to help."

Her expression soften the more Artie's brightened, and even Andy's whine of protest, "Awww...do we have to go shopping?," wasn't about to change that.

Overlooking the objection for a moment, Art flashed Alicia a pointed smirk, "It would be nice to do this together...as a family project..."

"It would," she whispered, nodding in agreement. There was a strong kick to her abdomen that made Alicia grin from ear to ear and think...maybe it finally was time to let herself be happy again.