Prompt: Young Brandon's not happy and runs away.

A/N: I've seen this prompt written by someone else and written very well. I did not want to end up with a similar story so I tackled it from a different angle but it ended up not quite following the prompt. But it's close enough for me.


"Well, Brandon is upstairs packing to run away," Stef announced as she walked into the living room. She plopped down on the couch beside her partner and, exasperated, exhaled loudly. Lena closed the book in her lap, setting it on the coffee table, and turned to look at her.

"What?"

"Our seven year old has just informed me that I am a 'Big Meanie' and that he's running away and never coming back." She could feel the smile on her face but couldn't decide if she was actually amused or just delirious with exhaustion.

"And where exactly is he planning to go?" Lena asked as she rubbed Stef's thigh soothingly.

"Where else?"

"Mike's," they said in unison. The two women chuckled over the predictability. Whenever Brandon didn't get his way, going to his dad's was his go-to solution. Stef sighed, laying her head on the back of the couch and closing her eyes.

"What happened, babe? Why does he want to run away?" Lena accompanied the question with a kiss to her shoulder.

"He and Jesús got into a fight over a video game and they ended up hitting each other. When I broke it up Jesús apologized immediately and sent himself to his room. Brandon, however, doesn't think he should even be in trouble because Jesús hit him first." Stef chuckled wearily and dropped her head onto Lena's shoulder. "I knew this was going to be hard but going from one kid to three… Lena, I'm exhausted." Lena rested her cheek against the top of her partner's head.

"I know. Me too." Stef sighed again and took Lena's hand from her thigh, lacing their fingers together. "So how long are you going to let him think he's running away?"

"Oh, I left the decision entirely up to him."

"You what?"

Stef chuckled again. "Don't worry. He won't be going anywhere. I told him that if he leaves his room before I tell him he can that he'll never get to play video games again." Lena gasped.

"You are a big meanie!" she exclaimed, amusement in her eyes. A bark of laughter came from Stef as she sat up and turned toward Lena.

"Well, someone has to be," she teased. Lena narrowed her eyes but then snorted a laugh and shrugged.

"I'm bad cop all day at work. It's nice to come home and get to be good cop sometimes. Besides," she ran the fingertips of her free hand along the inside of Stef's thigh, dropping her voice to a thick whisper. "You're so good at being bad cop." She swept a slow gaze over her partner's body before finally settling on her eyes. Stef held her steady gaze. Her eyebrows raised and a knowing smirk playing on her lips. She became aware of her quickening heartbeat, taking a moment to savor the wakening of desire. It had been a while, probably too long, since they'd been giving all of their energy to their freshly expanded family.

"Is that so," she finally said.

Lena's gaze slipped down to Stef's lips. "What do you think about being bad cop a little later?"

"I think I can fit that into my schedule." Stef marveled at the eager smile that spread across her partner's face. Sometimes with all the chaos of running a household she forgot how important it was for them to connect this way. She guided Lena to shift so she was sitting sideways on her lap and rested her hands on her hip, pulling her close. With her hand between them on the hard surface of Stef's chest, Lena leaned in, her lips slightly parted. They kissed lightly, teasing each other, delighting in the blossoming tension between them. Aware of their position in the middle of the living room they worked to restrain themselves; occasionally breaking to whisper sweet nothings and rub the tips of their noses together, sure to keep hands on neutral territory. Mostly neutral, anyway.

"Stef?" A tiny voice came from the kitchen doorway, shattering their bubble of romance. They both turned to see their foster daughter standing shyly at the edge of the room. Stef sighed quietly, looking at Lena who wore a sympathetic half-smile.

"No rest for the weary," Stef whispered.

Lena slid back onto the couch after giving Stef one last chaste kiss. "Don't forget about our date, Officer," she whispered back as Stef beckoned Mariana over to them.

"I'm looking forward to it, my love," she said with a wink before moving over to make room between them for the little girl, wishing they could have had just a few more minutes alone together before the inevitable switch back to Mommy Mode.