Little Lennon Danielle Oliver turns her parents' world completely upside down, but in the absolute best way possible.
Beck and Jade are both utterly obsessed with her. They don't care that for the time being she needs all of their immediate attention always, or that she wakes them up every three hours in the middle of the night. She's their daughter and she's perfect and they couldn't be any happier.
For the first few weeks of Lennon's life, their guest room seems to have a revolving door of people going in and out of it. Beck's parents visit as do both sets of Jade's, which had been arranged but is still a bit overwhelming for the new parents who are still trying to get adjusted to their new routines and schedules.
"How did you come up with the name?" John asks them as he rocks his granddaughter gently in his arms "I mean obviously Danielle came from your name and from your mother's, Jade. But how'd you come up with Lennon?"
"We didn't start to talk about names until we knew she was a girl," Jade explains "and the first time we ever really sat down to talk about it I was playing music off of my phone. I just shuffled a playlist of a bunch of random songs that I've just been compiling over the years, and Jealous Guy was the first one that played."
"And I said, 'Hey, what if we named her Lennon?'." Beck adds as he wraps an arm around his wife's shoulders
"And we both loved it." Jade smiles up at him "We already knew she's take me and mom's middle name, and there were a few other options that we threw around for first names. But we kept coming back to Lennon."
"It's a beautiful name." Angie smiles as she strokes the baby's cheek "And very fitting."
Cat visits as soon as she returns from Europe, with Robbie and a huge basket of baby gifts in tow. Tori and Andre also fly in from Los Angeles to visit for a few days, and it's the first time since their sophomore year of college that all six of them have been together in one place.
"Look at this perfect little angel baby." Cat coos as she adjusts Lennon in her arms "You and me are going to be the very best of friends, Miss Lennon. I can't wait."
"As her mother and as your best friend, I'm offended." Jade chuckles
"I'm her godmother, remember?" Cat reminds her friend "We have a special bond unlike any other."
"Right..." Jade nods, exchanging a look with Beck "If you steal our daughter, I'm going to retract our offer of making you godmother."
"I won't steal her." Cat assures them "I'm just going to spoil her absolutely rotten and give her whatever she wants."
"Alright."
"And as her godfather, I'm going to make sure she gets a proper music education." Andre adds
"C'mon, shouldn't that be my job?" Tori asks him as she takes his hand and intertwines thier fingers "I'm the music teacher here."
"But I'm the fun uncle."
"I'm also a fun uncle." Robbie cuts in "I have connections. I can help her meet any celebrity that she wants."
"Cat Valentine is her godmother, I think she's got the celebrity thing covered."
"So, are we just going to ignore the fact that Tori and Andre are holding hands?" Jade asks "I know my daughter is cute and everything, believe me. But when the fuck did that happen?"
"'Bout a month ago." Andre smiles at Tori
"It was inevitable." Tori adds, kissing him on the cheek "It was just a matter of when."
"Well good for you two." Jade smirks
Lennon begins to fuss and squirm in Cat's arms, immediately causing her to panic.
"Oh c'mon, Lennon." She sighs as she rocks her gently "We're supposed to be best friends, remember? You can't cry when I hold you!"
"Someone's hungry." Beck says as he stands up to retrieve the baby "There's nothing you can really do to help her."
"I want to feed her!" Cat insists
"You can't." Beck laughs "At least not yet."
"Why not?"
"Because I breastfeed her." Jade tells her
Andre and Robbie exchange a nervous look, and Tori notices.
"Oh will you two relax?" She laughs "It's a natural thing."
"Well yeah." Andre nods "But..."
"But what?"
"I dunno."
"You won't see anything." Jade assures them with a coy smile as she drapes a blanket over her shoulder "We're both fully covered over here."
Beck hands the baby off to his wife so she can feed her and then sits back down next to her, replacing his arm around her shoulder. He can't help but laugh at how uncomfortable both of his friends still look.
"I can't wait for you two to have kids of your own." Beck chuckles
"Same." Cat adds, shooting Robbie an impatient look that he barely even notices
Jade has to keep herself from laughing. Cat and Robbie have been together for close to seven years at this point. She's had many discussions with her friend about how badly she wants to get married and have children of her own, but Robbie doesn't seem to be on the same page as her yet.
"Doesn't that hurt?" Andre asks her "I mean, the kid is chewing on your boob."
"Um, she doesn't have teeth yet." Jade reminds him as she chuckles a bit "So she's not chewing, she's sucking. And it hurt at first, but I'm used to it now. It just feels normal."
"I don't know how that could ever be normal."
"Good thing you'll never have to do it then."
"It's not straight." Jade informs her husband as she rocks gently back and forth in place
"It looks fine to me." Beck shrugs
"Okay, well I'm telling you from down here that it doesn't." Jade sighs "And no one will see it from up there, they'll only see it from down here."
"Okay, fine." Beck reaches up and adjusts the star on top of their Christmas tree ever so slightly "Better?"
"Much."
Even though they know she won't have any memory of it, Beck and Jade want to make sure that Lennon's first Christmas is special. They had just finished setting up and decorating their Christmas tree, and are now moving on to the stockings.
Their apartment doesn't have a fireplace, so every year they hang their stockings on temporary hooks on the wall next to the Christmas tree. For the past six Christmases or so, there's only been two stockings. Both red, one with a white 'J' embroidered in the middle, and the other with a white 'B' embroidered in the middle. They've hung side by side every year, but now they're going to be hanging slightly further apart.
"Look at this Lennon." Beck coos as he pulls the new stocking out of the box "This one is for you!"
The new stocking is white and has a red 'L' embroidered in the middle. They decided they wanted something to contrast the difference between their's and her's, so they inverted the colors. If they have any other children, their's will also have the same inverted colors.
Jade watches with a smile as her husband walks over and hangs the 'L' stocking in between the 'J' and the 'B'.
"Jade, Lennon, and Beck." She says proudly as he walks back over to them
"The Oliver's." He adds proudly before kissing his wife "Feels right, doesn't it?"
"It does." She agrees "And someone seems to be enjoying herself so far. Isn't that right, Len?"
Lennon has been awake and content the entire time that they've been decorated. Now at six weeks old, she's infatuated by all of the bright lights, and by her mommy's voice as she's been singing along to the Christmas music that they're playing.
"Are you a happy baby, Len?" Beck coos as he tickles his daughter's stomach, causing the baby to giggle "Oh look at that pretty smile, Mommy."
"She loves to smile, doesn't she?" Jade laughs "Just like her dad."
When Lennon was born, Beck decided that he wouldn't take any new acting jobs for at least six months. Jade told him he didn't have to, but he wanted to be home with his daughter so that he didn't miss any part of her growing up. However, when Lennon is three months old he gets some amazing news. He's been nominated for an Oscar. His World War II movie had been released at the holidays and done phenomenally at the box office, but also caught the eye of the Academy. So when Lennon is four months old, she gets to fly on a plane for the first time.
The flight is miserable for everyone. Although they're flying private, that still doesn't stop Lennon from crying almost the entire time. She can't help it. There's pressure in her ears and she's uncomfortable. Beck and Jade try everything: feeding her, letting her drink water out of a baby bottle, rocking her, sitting her in different positions. But nothing works. They're all relieved when they finally land in Los Angeles.
Lennon stays with Beck's parents during the ceremony. Jade had wanted her to stay with her mother and step-father instead, but Beck insisted she go with James and Priya because he was the reason they were in town in the first place. He assures his wife that they'll make sure Lennon sees all of her grandparents before they return back to New York, and Jade agrees to the conditions. It's the first time she's left Lennon with anyone but Beck, and she's nervous about being away from her even if she is with her grandparents.
They walk the red carpet together, Jade in a strapless black evening gown and Beck in a matching black tuxedo. When it comes time for them to do interviews, all anyone wants to talk to them about is the baby, and they're more than happy to gush.
"Date night for Mom and Dad tonight, huh?" One interviewer chuckles as he flags them down on the carpet
"Certainly is." Beck chuckles "It's the first time we've gone out without her, though. So it's a bit odd."
"Lennon, right?"
"Lennon Danielle." Jade confirms with a grin
"How's she doing?"
"Happiest baby alive." Beck chuckles, exchanging a grin with his wife "Not on the plane ride here, but every other time."
"She's happy and healthy and we couldn't be any happier." Jade agrees
"I bet she'll be even happier if her dad brings home an award tonight, huh?"
"I doubt she'd care." Beck chuckles "Then again, she does like shiny things so..."
"Well, good luck to you tonight."
"Thank you very much, sir."
Beck and Jade mingle with a few people they know from the industry, past and present co-stars, directors they've worked with, or simply just other actors and actresses that they admire. Eventually they find their way into the theater and to their seats and wait for the show to begin.
"Deja vu." Beck laughs as they take their seats
"A bit." Jade smirks before kissing him on the cheek "But this time, its your turn."
"We'll see about that."
Beck's category is going to be one of the last of the night to be announced, so he tries his best to enjoy himself as they watch the rest of the award show. His movie wins one award on its own for best screenplay, but his colleague loses his award for best supporting actor. Beck's not sure how his category will play out, but he's trying not to get his hopes up. He doesn't need the award to validate anything, he's very proud of the movie on its own without any nominations. People enjoyed it, it made them feel something, that's all he cares about.
Then finally the time arrives. The actor who won the award for best actor the year before walks out on stage holding the golden envelope. Whoever's name is in that envelope will return to the show next year to present the award to the next actor.
"Good luck, babe." Jade whispers in his ear before giving his hand a reassuring squeeze and flashing him a reassuring smile "I love you."
"I love you too." He tells her, kissing her forehead before turning his attention back to the stage
The actor on stage reads the names of the nominees and the movies that they're nominated for. Beck smiles and nods to the camera when they show him as his name is read, but he continues to hold tight to Jade's hand.
"And the award for Best Actor goes too...Beck Oliver, for One Step."
It takes a moment for Beck to register that he won. He had prepared himself to start clapping for whichever other nominee actually won, so initially that's what he does. But then Jade is cheering and pulling him to his feet and he realizes that his is the name that had actually been announced. He grins proudly as he kisses her, then begins making his way to the stage to accept the award.
"Wow, this is surreal." He admits as he takes the statuette in his hands and stands in front of the microphone "Thank you to the Academy, for obvious reasons, y'know. Thank you to my cast mates and to our amazing director and the whole crew who worked on the film. One actor does not make a movie, it's a team effort and there's no way I would be standing on this stage without all of you. I also want to thank my parents, for supporting me and this dream of mine even when you thought it was crazy. We've had our moments, but I know you're watching right now and I want you both to know how much I love you. And to my grandparents who have always been my biggest fans, no matter what. I also want to thank Irwin Sikowitz, for giving me the tools I needed to be successful and encouraging me to pursue this against all of the odds. But most importantly I want to thank my wife, Jade. And our little baby girl, Lennon. My world is nothing without you two in it, and this award is nothing compared to either one of you. I love you both so much, thank you for always loving me and supporting me in everything that I do. Have a great night everybody, get home safe."
The next morning, Beck posts a picture on Instagram that will eventually become the most liked post of the year. Jade holds Lennon on her lap and is smiling up at the person behind the camera, but Lennon holds the Oscar statuette in her hands and is smiling as she hugs it. He captions it, 'Lucky doesn't even begin to decsribe it.'
"Lennon!" Beck exclaims as he chases his daughter across the apartment
Since learning to crawl, it seems that she's always on the move now. Beck and Jade can never turn their backs on her because once they do, she's already in another room by the time they've turned back around.
"Where do you think you're going?" Beck laughs as he scoops the baby up into his arms "Huh? Are you trying to make a break for it?"
"Mama." Lennon babbles, looking at Beck as if he should have obviously known where she was going
"Soon." He tells the baby as he carries her back to her play mat "She'll be home soon."
Jade had gone to meet with Mona and a director about a possible new project. Beck was more than willing to stay home with Lennon because he very rarely gets one-on-one time with her these days, as he's started working again too.
"Look at this, Len." Beck says as he sits the baby on the floor next to her laugh and learn baby piano that Andre had given her "You press these and they make noise."
The baby giggles as she smacks the plastic keys and makes the piano make noise. Beck is so content to just sit there and watch her play, knowing that she'll never be this young again.
"Helloooo" Jade singsongs as she enters the apartment
"Mama!" Lennon squeals as she begins crawling towards the door
Lennon Oliver is without a doubt a complete and total mama's girl. She barely spends any more time with Jade than she does with Beck, so that has nothing to do with it, but the two of them have had a very special bond from the very beginning. When they visit with friends and family Lennon is content to snuggle and play with whoever, but she always prefers her mama.
"Hey Bub." Jade grins, picking the baby up off the floor and smothering her with kisses before resting her on her hip "Did you have fun with Daddy?"
"We always have fun." Beck assures her, walking over and greeting her with a kiss "How'd the meeting go?"
"Oh, I'm not doing the movie." Jade tells him as she kicks her shoes off and carries Lennon back to her toys
"What?" Beck follows her "Why not? Mona said she thought it would be perfect for you."
"It would have been, if it was with any other director." Jade sighs "The dude was a total prick to both of us, not to mention he's incredibly conceited. The way he's headed, he's going to end up losing money by making that movie."
"Oh wow, yeah maybe it's best you don't take it then."
"It'll be great for some up-and-comer to get herself an iMDB credit or something, but I'm not going to waste time I could be spending here with my family on that asshole."
"Jade!"
"What?"
"She's starting to talk, I thought we were trying to cut back on the swearing?"
"I didn't realize cutting back meant stopping completely." Jade chuckles "Besides, she only knows the one word right now anyways."
"Oh, I'm aware." Beck laughs "All I heard while you were gone was 'Mama? Mama? Mama?'. It's kind of cute."
"Mama!" Lennon exclaims
"See?"
"Aw, I missed you too, Bubs." Jade smiles as she kisses Lennon's cheek "Don't worry, I'll make sure any projects I take from now on are well worth it."