Author's Note:
I got a review saying that I always give Stef all the credit, well, I love Stef and yes (i've said it before, several times) she is my favorite and every single one of my stories has her in it. I do like Lena as well but Stef is the one I look up to. They both make their fair share of mistakes but honestly, I feel Stef's are far more well-meant than Lena's.
In this particular case the reason for this was actually in the show itself. This story is meant to be their history and I don't want things to be inconsistent with the show. I had already ended chapter fifty with Stef, Lena and Brandon in the house and then the episode New York (409) aired where Lena was talking to Mariana and she said that the moment Stef walked into the house with them, Mariana just ran to her and so that's how this came about. My original idea didn't include any of that.
There are some things I already posted that ended up not conceding with the show like the fact that Lena was apparently seeing someone when she met Stef but in my story she was single; or the fact that they only got this house after the twins were already with them and they were already talking about adoption. However, as the amazing meyouthem123 pointed out, Brandon mentioned in Highs and Lows (407) that he had lived in that house longer than any of the other kids, implying that they had already moved in before the twins arrived so maybe I can just get away with that one.
Anyways, back to my point, I do love Stef and while I have given her a fair share of mistakes in other stories, I do tend to give her the better parts just because it makes me happy. These are my stories and while I'm glad you guys enjoy reading them, I do write what I want to.
Enjoy,
Junebug.
Stef groaned as she rolled over sleepily at the noises coming from the room across the hall. This had been happening for over a week now and the sleep-deprivations was like having an infant all over again.
"I'll go." Lena mumbled groggily as she shoved the covers aside and got out of bed, taking a moment to glance at the clock that read two-fifty-seven before heading across the hall to where their foster kids were whispering. "Hey." Lena said softly as she watched the two young children huddled up on one bed.
"Mariana can't sleep." Jesus said as he moved over a bit to give Lena some room.
Lena smiled at him before turning towards Mariana and tucking a few strands of wet hair behind her ear. "Hey sweetheart, what's wrong?" She asked gently.
Mariana just shrugged as she crawled out of her covers and onto Lena's lap, snuggling close as Lena's arms wrapped around her.
"Bad dream?" Lena asked as she gently rocked the six year old in her arms.
The three of them sat in silence for a few minutes - Mariana curled up on Lena's lap and Jesus struggling to stay awake next to them.
"Why don't you go on back to bed baby." Lena suggested as she lovingly stroked the young boy's hair. "I got your sister." She offered assuringly.
Jesus glanced at Mariana momentarily, waiting to see if she protests but when the girl didn't so much as twitch he wished them both goodnight and then headed back to his room.
Lena continued to rock Mariana and hummed softly to her and she couldn't describe the feelings she felt for the little girl that had captured her heart from the moment she walked in through the door. A good twenty minutes later Lena began to feel the dead-weight of the child that was once again asleep. She kissed her softly on the head before laying her back down on the bed. Mariana's had was still in hers and as Lena watched her breath softly she decided that she wasn't going to leave. Instead she climbed into the bed next to the girl and wrapped her up in her arms and soon the two of them were fast asleep on the single bed.
Lena didn't expect the nerves she was felling as she picked up her phone and dialed the number. Stef had taken all three kids swimming and Lena was home, supposedly looking over lesson plans but she had one thought stuck in her head from the moment they decided to throw a party and she knew she had to do something about it.
"Frank." Lena swallowed a lump in her throat as her girlfriends father answered the phone. "It's um… it's Lena." She said nervously.
"Oh, hi." Frank said, somewhat unenthusiastically. "Are Stef and Brandon okay?" He questioned, wondering why this woman was calling him.
"Yes, they're fine." Lena stated quickly. "I was actually calling to invite you to a party this Sunday afternoon." She said, hoping she sounded more welcoming than she felt. As much as she would like to never meet Frank again she knew that for Stef's sake she had to help get them back together. Though Stef would never admit it, Lena knew that Stef missed her father and so did Brandon. If both Lena and Frank could learn to at least be civil to each other then maybe Stef could have at least some contact with her father.
"A party?" Frank repeated nervously, obviously uncomfortable with what the party was for and what kind of a party it might be.
"We... Stef and I, we are fostering a pair of twins just a bit younger than Brandon and we just thought it would be fun to throw a little party for all three kids." Lena explained and when Frank remained quiet she added. "It's nothing fancy, just family and friends in our backyard for a barbecue." She explained.
Frank wasn't sure exactly how he felt in that moment. He couldn't deny that he was touched that this woman he didn't particularly like had invited him to their party but he couldn't believe just how much he'd already missed in his daughter's life. Not only had she continued her relationship with Lena but they'd obviously moved in together and how had more children - despite how temporary they might be.
Lena waited awkwardly for some sort of response from the man but he was still far too caught up in his own thoughts to reply. "Anyway, the party is on Sunday at noon; I will text you our address so if you feel like swinging by I'm sure that Stef and Brandon would be happy to see you."
The two hung up after Frank stuttered a quick thanks and as Lena put down her phone she wondered whether or not she'd done the right thing. She knew that Stef missed her dad but she also knew that she was a strong-willed, hot-headed woman just like her father. Maybe this party wasn't the time or place to bring the two together for their aim was to welcome their two new friends and surround them with fun and friendly people. If Stef and Frank ended up in a huge fight then not only might their relationship be completely destroyed but Jesus and Mariana may also never settle completely.
The day of the party finally arrived and the house was bursting with excitement from the moment everyone woke up. Lena had taken all three kids to get new clothes to wear and Mariana was the only one who insisted on a somewhat fancy dress while both boys opted for shorts and t-shirts. Lena herself decided a strappy, flowy dress and Stef was going for jeans and a t-shirt.
Lena began with breakfast while Stef drove down to the airport to pick up her mother who had already warned them that she was coming armed with presents for everyone.
"Pancakes." Brandon yelled when Lena asked what they wanted for breakfast.
"Chocolate chip pancakes." Jesus added, jumping up and down as though he'd already eaten a bagful of candy.
"Okay." Lena smiled." Jesus where is your sister?"
"She was trying on her dress when I came down." Jesus said with a shrug.
"AGAIN?" Brandon asked, feeling exhausted just thinking about it.
Lena smiled as she thought about how Mariana had paraded around in the dress for the last three days making sure that everyone admired her. Neither mom had the heart to tell the girl to stop for the smile on her face was priceless.
Jesus shrugged once again as he stuck in hand into the bag of chocolate chips that Lena had pulled off the shelf.
But as the day wore on, Lena became more and more nervous for she hadn't actually told Stef about inviting Frank for several reasons. First of she wasn't even sure that the man would come and so she didn't want to get Stef's hopes up unnecessarily or anger her unnecessarily for that matter. She also hadn't said anything because if he did show up and if Stef was happy about it then it would be a present surprise for Stef and definitely great for Brandon and Lena didn't want to ruin that.
Finally at around noon the doorbell began to ring constantly as first Mike then Cathy, Lucas and Haley and then several others began to arrive for the party and with each and every doorbell Lena would hold her breath waiting for Frank to show up and to see Stef's reaction.
And Lena didn't have to wait long for right when Kelly, Jenna and Garret showed up, Frank was right behind.
