Unlike her birthday, when Shelby woke on Mother's Day, Rachel was still tucked into her side, "Happy Mother's day Momma" Rachel smiled when she saw her Mom stir.

"Thank you baby" Shelby grinned, pulling her daughter close.

"Want me to make breakfast for you?"

Shelby shook her head, "not yet, can we just lay here a little while longer?"

Rachel hummed in contentment as she nuzzled closer to her Mom, "yeah. Yeah we can."

A quick glance at her phone told Shelby that it was still early so she kissed Rachel's hair, beginning to hum quietly as she trailed her fingers up and down her spine, not surprised at all when the teen quickly fell back to sleep. "I know you think you'll need to make today special for me" Shelby whispered quietly to her sleeping daughter, "but I promise you, just having you here, just being able to hold you and remind you exactly how much I love you, well, that's more than enough for me."

"Momma" Rachel whined when she woke a while later, still in Shelby's arms, her Mom still trailing her fingertips along her spine, "why did you let me fall asleep?" she pouted.

Shelby chuckled and kissed Rachel's forehead, "because you were obviously tired Baby, you wouldn't have fallen asleep if you weren't, and I fell back to sleep too, I haven't been awake long."

"But I wanted to make you breakfast." Rachel sighed sleepily, "Aunt Amy's taught me how to make omelettes."

"Well how about we have them for brunch instead?" Shelby suggested.

Rachel yawned and stretched in Sheby's embrace, "Okay Momma."

"Do you want to get up now or are you okay for a little while longer?" Shelby switched to combing her fingers through her daughter's hair.

"Now" Rachel sighed, "I gotta pee."

"Why don't we have a lazy day?" Shelby suggested, quickly realising that her daughter was still tired. "Once we've eaten we can come back up here and watch a movie or something and maybe order takeout for dinner tonight?"

"Yeah" Rachel nodded, nuzzling into Shelby, "okay."

"Come on" Shelby chuckled, gently patting Rachel's thigh, "go pee and then we'll go downstairs and eat."

"I've got you a gift" Rachel yawned, "it's in my bedroom."

"You didn't have to get me anything" Shelby gently reached out to brush Rachel's hair from her face.

"I did" Rachel insisted as she sat up, "it's the first year I've physically had you here to celebrate with, and you, you've changed my life Mom, I, I know I won't ever be able to thank you for that but…"

"Rachel" Shelby gently put her hands on her daughter's cheeks, "everything I've done for you, I've done because I love you. And you never, ever have to thank me for loving you okay?"

Just like she had for Shelby's birthday, Amy had taken Rachel out, made sure she had cards and a gift for Shelby, she knew it was the first mother's day Shelby would be spending with her daughter so Amy wanted to make it special for her sister As Shelby headed downstairs, Rachel took out the card, flowers and gift bag from where she'd hidden them in her bedroom, "Mom" she got Shelby's attention as she stepped into the kitchen.

"Oh" Shelby gasped when she saw the flowers, "these are beautiful, thank you!"

"Happy Mother's Day" Rachel smiled as she passed over the card and gift. "I love you."

Shelby put everything down on the worktop and pulled Rachel into a tight hug, "I love you too Baby."

Rachel nuzzled into Shelby as her Mom held her close, she'd never get enough of being held by her Momma. "Do you want to open your gift while I make us omelettes?"

"Sure" Shelby smiled, dropping a kiss to Rachel's hair before breaking the hug. "Let me put these flowers in water and then I'll open it." She arranged the flowers in a large decorative jug on the windowsill before opening her gift, smiling at the 'world's best Mom' mug she unwrapped. "Oh Rachel" Shelby was sure it was something most Mom's owned, she knew Amy had one, her sisters in law had one and she was sure her own Mom had several, both in 'Mom' and 'Nana' varieties. But receiving one herself almost had Shelby in tears.

"Do you like it?" Rachel asked as she took out ingredients from the refrigerator.

"I love it" Shelby smiled, "I'm going to have my coffee in it as we eat."

Rachel smiled, still getting used to not constantly being told that she's useless, "what would you like in your omelette Mom?".

"I'll have whatever you're having Baby" Shelby returned the smile as she sat at the table, she loved the mug and the flowers were beautiful but the biggest and the best gift Shelby received was seeing happy and settled Rachel was now. The girl who, just a few months ago, wouldn't even dare mention that she was hungry, who had such a limited diet that Shelby had worried about making her ill by giving her a varied diet, was now moving confidently around the kitchen as she cooked for them both.

"This is amazing Rach" Shelby smiled as she ate, "whenever I make omelettes they're either a bit runny in the middle or so over cooked they're like plastic."

"I over cooked a few at first too" Rachel admitted, "but Aunt Amy made me keep trying until I got it."

Shelby smiled, "maybe one day you can show me how to make them this well" she suggested as she took another bite of food.

Rachel's face lit up, "I'd like that" she said softly.

Rachel's smile only grew every time she saw Shelby take a drink from her new mug, blushing slightly as Shelby complemented the food again once she finished. "What do you want to do today?" Shelby asked once Rachel had finished eating too, "do you want to watch a movie or…"

"Could we go out for a while?" Rachel asked shyly "nowhere fancy, just like to the park or something?"

"Sure we can" Shelby smiled, "do you want to go now?"

Rachel shook her head, "maybe in a little while, can we…" she held out her arms, hoping Shelby would oblige, she didn't know why she wanted to cuddle so close to her Mom but she just wanted to be held for a while.

"Of course Baby" Shelby left the dishes on the table as she stood, holding out her hand to Rachel, "let's go cuddle on the couch."

"Thank you" Rachel sighed happily as she tucked herself into Shelby's side, Shelby pulling the blanket from the back of the couch and wrapping it around them both.

"You don't need to thank me" Shelby kissed Rachel's hair, "we can cuddle whenever you want." Shelby frowned slightly when she felt Rachel's fingers fiddling with the hem of her pyjama top, "are you okay?" she asked as she stroked Rachel's back, she didn't know if Rachel realised what she was doing, Shelby had quickly realised that Rachel found the simple action comforting, but she usually only did it if she was tired or overwhelmed.

"I don't know" Rachel whispered, "I just…" she shrugged slightly, "I just wanted you to hold me."

Shelby pulled Rachel closer, tightening her hold on her daughter, "I've got you baby. I'm not going anywhere." It was just a few moments later when Shelby felt the unmistakable dampness of Rachel's tears in the crook of her neck, "oh Baby" she whispered, pulling Rachel onto her lap and rubbing circles on her back, letting her cry until she was ready to talk.

"I'm sorry" Rachel whimpered as she tried to calm herself down.

Shelby reached for the tissues on the coffee table and wiped at Rachel's eyes, "you never need to apologise for how you're feeling sweetheart, not to me, if you get upset then that's okay."

"I, I wanted today to be special for you."

"Oh Rachel" Shelby kissed her again, "being able to do this, being able to hold you and comfort you, just having you here with me, that makes every day special, I've got you, I don't need anything else."

Rachel was silent for a minute or two before telling Shelby, "I used to hate it" she whispered, "especially when I was younger and everyone would be making cards and crafts but I didn't have anyone to make them for. But now, now I've got you and I, I know I'm crying but I'm so, so happy Mom. I used to dream about what it would be like to know you, but this, this is so much better than that."

Shelby smiled and wiped at Rachel's tears again, kissing her forehead before telling her, "I'm so glad you're happy here Baby. I used to dream about you too, but you my darling, you are every bit as beautiful, as clever, as kind, as perfect as I imagined you would be."

"I love you so much Mom."

"I know" Shelby kissed Rachel's head, "I love you just as much."

Shelby held Rachel close, rubbing circles on her back and humming quietly until she calmed down, "I'm sorry" Rachel whispered.

"Oh Baby" Shelby put her hand under Rachel's chin, gently lifting her head to look her in the eye, "you never have to apologise to me for your feelings, no matter what those feelings are, no matter how you feel, you can always come to me. I will laugh with you, I will wipe away your tears, I will help you calm down, I'll be whatever you need me to be Rachel, I will never judge you and I'll never dismiss your feelings okay?"

"Okay" Rachel whispered, tucking her face back against her Momma's neck, she'd never really felt this before she came to live with Shelby, the unmistakable feeling of safety that came from being held in the arms of someone who loved her unconditionally. "Can we still go to the park?" Rachel asked quietly once she felt a little calmer.

"Of course" Shelby ran her fingers through Rachel's hair, "shall we get dressed and go now? It's a nice day, we could get ice cream."

Rachel smiled and nodded, "I'd like that."

"Okay" Shelby wiped at Rachel's eyes for a final time,"let's go and get dressed then."

It didn't take them long to get ready, and Shelby couldn't help but smile when she saw Rachel had teamed Amy's jeans with a tshirt Shelby was sure was her own, her smile growing as she realised that, although the tshirt was still a little big for the petite teenager, it didn't swamp her the way it would have a few short months ago. She didn't know why her daughter preferred wearing other people's clothes when she had plenty of her own, but Rachel was happy and neither Amy or Shelby minded her 'borrowing' their clothes, so she wasn't going to make a fuss about it.

"Okay?" Shelby asked when she felt Rachel take her hand as they walked towards the park.

"Yeah" Rachel looked up at Shelby and smiled. "I am."

Shelby gently squeezed Rachel's hand, "good."

They walked around the lake hand in hand, conversation flowing easily between them as they spoke about their plans for the summer, the upcoming nationals competition and anything and everything that came to mind. Shelby found herself thinking back to their first trip to the park together when Rachel had been scared and overwhelmed and too anxious to let herself have fun. But now she was like a completely different girl, she was open, she was laughing and she was happy and knowing her baby was happy was the best feeling Shelby had ever experienced.

"How about we make a pitstop? Get an ice cream or something?" Shelby suggested as they reached the cafe.

Rachel smiled and nodded, "I'd like that, thanks Mom."

Rachel's smile only grew when she realised her Mom had ordered a large ice cream sundae with two spoons for them to share. It was such a simple thing but it was something Rachel knew her fathers would never have done with her and it only made her love her Mom more. She felt a little overwhelmed sometimes by how loving her Mom was towards her, but she knew that was okay, that her Mom didn't mind her being scared or overwhelmed and Rachel knew she'd never stop feeling incredibly grateful that she had, not only her Mom, but a growing family of people who loved and accepted her for who she was.

"Mom?" Rachel frowned when she saw Shelby glance at her phone, "is everything okay?"

Shelby looked up and smiled, "everything's fine" she reassured her, "it's just your Aunt" she showed Rachel the message Amy had just sent her, 'We're going to go out for dinner later, wondered if you and Rach wanted to join us? No worries if not xx'

"I…" Shelby saw Rachel looked unsure.

"It's your call baby, if you want to go out, that's fine, if you'd rather just go home then that's okay too."

Rachel bit her lip, "I, I love Aunt Amy but I, I think I just want to be with you Mom, is, is that okay? If you'd rather go out then… "

Shelby kissed Rachel's hair, cutting her off as she heard her beginning to get worked up. "I'm happy with whatever makes you happy Baby." She picked up her phone again, sending a reply to Amy, her sister replying again almost instantly.

"Is she mad?" Rachel asked nervously.

"Of course not" Shelby handed her phone to Rachel, letting her read the messages.

Rachel frowned slightly, she knew her fathers would never have allowed her to even touch their phones, never mind read their messages but Shelby never hid anything from her, she hadn't even told Amy that Rachel was the one who didn't want to go out, had simply told her sister, 'Thanks for the offer but I think I want to be selfish and keep Rachel to myself today xx' And, just as Shelby said, Amy's reply showed no sign of anger at being turned down. 'No worries, hope you're both enjoying your day, God knows you deserve it. Give that Pretty Girl a big squish and a kiss from me and tell her I love her xx' "She's not mad?" Rachel whispered as she handed the phone back.

Shelby shook her head, "not at all". She wrapped her arms around Rachel and pulled her close, kissing her head before telling her, "that's the hug and the kiss she wanted me to give you. And here's a reminder that Amy loves you Rach, she wants you to be happy just as much as I do, and if that means we don't go out to dinner but we go home and eat takeout in our pyjamas then she's okay with that."

"Can we really do that?" Rachel asked, "eat takeout in our pyjamas I mean?"

Shelby reached out to tuck Rachel's hair behind her ear, "do you want to do that?" Rachel nodded shyly, Shelby's hand cupping her cheek, "then we can do that Baby."

"Could we go home now?" Rachel asked, "well, once we've finished the ice cream."

"Sure" Shelby smiled, "we can put our pyjamas on, and cuddle up and watch a movie, and then later, we can order takeout, whatever you want."

Rachel took another spoonful of ice cream as she thought for a moment, "can we get Chinese food?"

"Absolutely" Shelby smiled, "so let's eat this so we can get home and pick out some movies." Shelby recognised the look on Rachel's face, knew the teen wanted to ask something but felt a little nervous, "what's wrong Baby?"

"Could we read for a while when we get home? I started Swallows and Amazons last night and I…" she shook her head, "this is meant to be your day, we can watch movies if…"

Shelby shook her head, "I'm your Mom, and knowing you're happy makes me happy, if you want us to read to when we get home then I'd be only too happy to read with you."

Rachel tucked herself into Shelby's side, "I love you Mom."

"I know" Shelby kissed Rachel's hair, "I love you too."