A/N: Hey again! Here I have come back with another fluffy chapter of this family. I hope you like it!
Donna and Avery are more excited than Harvey that day. They had been invited to the wedding of one of their colleagues from the firm and had little chance to refuse.
Donna had already made her makeup and hairstyle, and her emerald green dress was waiting for her in her dressing room. She knew it was better to help her daughter first, who was super excited to wear her blue dress full of glitter, so she will first help her little redhead.
Both are in Donna's dressing room. Avery is already wearing her dress, sitting on a stool in front of the large mirror she has there, as her mother is making her some braids on her hair.
"Mommy..." she says with a huge smile, looking at herself in the mirror.
"What, sweetheart?" Donna asks, looking for her gaze in the mirror.
"When I grow up, I want to be like you," Avery says with great enthusiasm, raising her gaze to find her mom, who can't help but smile.
"Do you wanna work in a law firm?"
"No, that's not!" Avery giggles. "I want to have a daughter like me!" the girl says, as if that were obvious and Donna can't help but giggle at her daughter's response. She also hears Harvey laugh at the other side of the door.
"Is there nothing you like about your mother?" she asks, feigning anger.
"Everything, mommy! You are the best!" Avery tells her, changing the tone of her voice to sound too convincing. That 7-year-old girl had inherited all the skills of her parents.
"You are the best." Donna smiles at her as she adjusts her last hairband and puts her hands on her shoulders. "Do you like it?"
"I love it, Mommy!" she says, clapping enthusiastically.
"You look so pretty!" Donna bends down a little and gives her a kiss on her cheek.
"Do you know how I would look even prettier?"
She squints her eyes. "What are you thinking?" she asks, looking at her kid through the mirror again.
"Could you make my nails, lips, and eyes?" she makes a puppy face, staring at her mother for a few seconds." Please mom, please!" she begs, with her hands attached and her eyes closed with strength.
Donna crouches in front of her and holds her hands with hers. "Maybe, maybe, if you give me a kiss or a hug..." she tells her, and Avery, in less than a second, is giving her a very sweet kiss on her cheek. "I have another cheek, you know?" the girl chuckles and gives her a kiss on her other cheek, while she wraps her neck with her arms. "You're so pretty," Donna murmurs, hugging her against her body.
"I would look prettier with some polish!"
She separates a little from her and gently taps her nose with her finger, which makes the girl smile. "I'll make your fingernails and makeup, but you should know that you're beautiful with none of that, too."
"I know, Mommy!" Avery hugs her by her neck again. "Thank you, mom," Avery murmurs in her ear. "You are also pretty without makeup."
Donna is pretty sure she will melt right there. "I love you so much, honey."
"I love you too, mommy!" Avery responds, squeezing her mother's neck tighter.
Within a few minutes, Donna had selected the light colors she had of nail polish and offered them to her daughter, who, after analyzing it for several seconds, as if it were a really important issue, chose light pink. So Donna made her fingernails with that color and now came the most complex part: getting the girl to stand still while the nail polish dries.
"Leave your hands still for a while, okay?"
"Yes!" she says, moving her hands, and she giggles when she realizes she is moving them. "Ouch!" she says and covers her mouth with her hand, which makes Donna chuckle tenderly.
"Put them on your legs and I'll put some shade on your eyes." Avery nods, completely still. "Please close your eyes." Avery does it, and Donna carefully makes her eyelids with one of her brushes. "Open your eyes."
Avery opens her eyes and smiles at the sight of herself. "Can you put a glow on my lips too?"
"Yes, here I have it." She says, showing her a light pink lipstick. Avery celebrates, clapping her hands until she realizes she must leave them still, and giggles again. Donna puts some lipstick on her lips. "Do you like it?" her mom asks, closing the lipstick.
Avery looks in the mirror and nods exaggeratedly with a smile. "I love it, Mommy! Thank you!"
"You don't have to thank me. I love doing these things with you!" undoubtedly, her face full of illusion and happiness was one of her favorite things in the world.
"Now my shoes!"
"Here they are!" Donna says, reaching them.
"I'll put them on!"
"Do you let me put them on for you?"
"But I can do it, mom!" Avery snorts.
"I know you can… But, your nails."
Avery lets herself be defeated. "Ok."
Donna puts them in silence and, before helping her get off the stool, she puts her hands on her legs. "I have to put on my dress now. What do you say about going to show dad how pretty you are?"
"But I wanted to put on my shoes! I already learned!"
"You've already learned and you're the best at doing it! But the polish needs to be dried so that later the nails look nice. You will do the next time, okay?"
"Okay," Avery says, but her face is still furrowed.
"Now you give me a smile?" Avery shrugs and smiles just by curving the corners of her lips a little. "I want a real smile!" Avery sighs and smiles a little more. "Bigger!" Donna asks her, and she does. "Bigger!" Donna repeats and her daughter's smile becomes huge. "That's how I like it." She smiles at her and Avery laughs. Donna kisses her cheek and helps her down off the stool.
"Thank you, mom!" Avery yells, running out of the dressing room, looking for his father, who is waiting for them in the living room. Avery brakes, and knowing that her father was looking at her, she turns on her axis with a smile.
"You are so beautiful, sweetheart!"
"Do you like it, daddy?" she asks innocently. "Mom made my nails." She tells him, showing her nails. "But they have to dry."
"I love them!" Harvey genuinely smiles at her.
"She also put makeup on me," Avery says and closes her eyes for Harvey to see, which makes him smile again.
"You are the prettiest girl in the world!"
"I know, Dad!"
Harvey represses a laugh, and as his wife does, he thinks the girl is the perfect mix of both. "Do you sit with me to wait for mom?" Avery nods and sits next to him. Harvey wraps her shoulders with his arm and watches her braids. "I love those braids too!"
"Thank you, daddy, but let's play something."
"What do you want to play?"
"Put the game of colored lights on your phone!"
"Simon?"
"Yes, that! I like it when we play that together, and I have to leave my hands still now."
Harvey smiles. "Ok, let's play as we wait for Mommy." Harvey turns on his phone screen and opens the game app his daughter had asked for, they spend several minutes playing, and Harvey is always impressed with his daughter's memory, which she often remembers better than he does. He is truly immersed in Avery and in the game, but he can't help but be distracted by seeing Donna entering the living room: she wears an emerald green dress up to her feet, with a cut on her right leg, a tall neck, and uncovered back, slightly tall heels, her hair picked up to the side, some makeup, eyeliner and red lipstick, his favorite. He is pretty sure that his lower jaw has fallen and he can't believe that even after so many years, his wife still does that to him.
"Green, red, red, blue, red, yellow, green dad! Put it on!" Avery says.
"Put it on you, honey." Harvey gives the phone to his daughter, who enters the colors before forgetting them, while he stands and walks toward his wife. "You're beautiful, Donna." He murmurs, putting his hand on her lower back, bringing her closer to him.
"I can't believe you still look at me this way after so many years." She blushes a little and rests her elbow on his shoulder.
"You've seen you? If Avery wasn't so excited about her dress and makeup, I wouldn't let you leave here." He murmurs against her shoulder's skin and Donna feels her knees lose stability.
"Harvey..." she murmurs and separates a little from him. "The kid is here, and we should go to that wedding even if you don't feel want to."
"I know, I know," he responds, with some frustration, and gives her a kiss on her shoulder.
"You haven't understood, haven't you?" she can't help but smile at the sensation of his lips rubbing her skin.
"I lost!" Avery's high-pitched, frustrated voice interrupts them and they both turn their heads to look at her.
"Don't worry, Avery. I lend you my phone in the car and you play again."
"Now we have to leave. Do you want to go to the bathroom first?"
Avery sighs, still a little frustrated, stands up to return the phone to her father, and, without saying more, goes to the bathroom.
"Do you need help with the dress?"
"No mom, I can by myself!" she yells.
"Be careful with your nails," Donna replies to her and before she finishes speaking, Harvey clings her to his body, giving her a kiss that disarms her. "You are also very handsome." She mutters against his lips. "Every time you wear a bow tie, you remind me of our wedding."
Harvey smiles."I use them for you."
Donna smiles, completely in love. "I know and I love it." Now it's she who gives him a kiss and at that moment, they listen back to Avery, so with frustration, they separate and prepare to go out. Donna makes sure she has the lipstick in her purse because, after that kiss, she will have to settle it in the car.
Later, they are at the wedding and the sun is falling; they are in a vast park and several servers pass by with food and champagne glasses, to one side there is a bar to order other types of drinks, and several people stand and others sit in small livings, while the children run from side to side. Donna is watching Avery play with Mike and Rachel's kid while Harvey had gone for a few drinks.
Harvey offers her a margarita, and she smiles. "Thank you." She says, grabbing the glass. Harvey kisses her cheek, and she smirks at him. Harvey hugs her by her shoulders and they enjoy their drinks, watching her little girl playing with some flowers. Avery runs out to where the adults are, without looking up, and hugs someone's leg, thinking it was her dad.
"Hey, kid." Someone says.
Avery looks up, and her eyes fill with tears. Frightened, she lets go of that man and looks for her parents with her eyes, pouting.
Harvey quickly crouches down to her height. "Hey, kid… What's wrong?"
Avery can't say anything, just hugs her dad by the neck and Harvey stands up with her in his arms.
"I was wrong." She says with shame. Donna smiles tenderly and caresses her daughter's back.
"It's okay, Avery," he whispers to her.
"I'm sorry, dad."
"There is nothing to forgive."
"I thought it was you."
"We are all dressed the same. It can happen. Don't worry."
Donna stands behind Harvey, looking for her daughter with her gaze. "Nothing bad happens, kid." She says, running the hair she has stuck on her face with tears. After so much running, some strands had come out of the braids. "They are all dressed the same, but Dad is the most handsome of all. Or not?" she asks her in the ear and Avery giggles.
"And the best!" Avery adds.
"I agree." Donna smiles.
"You are the best," Harvey tells her daughter, squeezing her tightly with his arms and making her laugh.
Avery wraps her father's neck for several minutes. Harvey swings his body, caressing her hair while her mom gently strokes her back, and that's how she calms down.
"Let's go to the bathroom to wash your face? So you can play again. Do you want?" Donna asks her.
Avery nods. Harvey smiles at her, gives her a kiss on the forehead, and leaves her on the ground. Avery shakes hands with her mom and they go to the bathroom together. Harvey just watches them leave with a huge smile.
Would you let me know what you think about this? :) see you in the next chapter!