Judy couldn't help but smile as she watched her youngest daughter, fuss over Harper's hat, she seemed far more nervous than was necessary for a simple checkup. "It's only her first set of shots Charlie, she will probably cry but that's alright. We're doing this to protect her and make sure she stays healthy," Judy explains, in a soothing tone.

"I know," Charlie mumbles under her breath. She understood why they were doing this, and she agreed with her mother that Harper needed to get vaccinated. That didn't mean that she liked the idea of Harper being in pain, even if it was just a little pinch.

Judy hummed, and leaned in so she could take a look at her darling granddaughter for a moment and then she turned her attention to Charlie, "Have you given any thought to going to a social? You didn't say no when I asked about it earlier, and I know that Harper is taking up quite a bit of your time, but I don't mind watching her for a night while you go and mingle!"

"I thought about it, but I don't think it's a good idea. Harper is the most important person in my world right now, and I think I might get upset if an omega tells me to get rid of her so we can have our own family. Harper is my family and I would need an omega who accepts Harper as family." Charlie explains looking at her mother.

Judy blinked and smiled, despite her disappointment that Charlie had gotten an omega, who wasn't her mate, pregnant, her daughter had stepped up. She was doing her best, "Obviously," she states. "I would hope that you wouldn't just mate with the first person that you see. Anyone who would tell you that she's not their family isn't someone you want to mate with. I don't care how pretty she is, or how successful. Harper's been through enough."

Charlie nodded, at least her mom was on the same page even if she was certain that her mom was probably going to start introducing her to omega's who she had vetted. "Mom, Harper and I will be—"

Before Charlie can finish her thought, and ease her mothers concerns, Santana strolls into the office, and looks around before spotting them and heading over. "Sorry, I'm late," Santana says with a simple shrug of her shoulders. "Hey Mrs. Fabray."

Judy blinked and glanced over at Charlie who looked rather pleased that Santana had shown up, and she tilts her head slightly. She knew that she had asked Santana to be Charlie's friend, but this still seemed off. "Santana, what are you doing here?"

Santana shrugged her shoulders and took a seat beside Charlie and looked at Harper, giving her a finger to latch onto. "Charlie begged me to come, wanted my medical expertise, so here I am."

"I don't remember any begging," Charlie points out, she had asked Santana yesterday during their study session.

"There were tears," Santana continues on as if Charlie hadn't spoken.

"You two have been spending a bit of time together?" There was a hopeful note in her voice as she said this, Santana would make a wonderful mate for Charlie. She was successful and she would certainly push Charlie in the right direction, whether she wanted to go in that direction or not.

"Santana forced her way into my apartment, so she could tutor me for the GED, she's the reason it's going so well and I'll be writing it soon," Charlie explains. "I asked her to come, just for a second opinion of sorts."

"I don't know anything about babies and all my electives have been surgical based," Santana reminded her. She had been forced to ask a friend who had been interested in pediatrics what she should look out for. "Maybe I'll learn something today. Hey Harper," Santana greeted Harper who had spat out her pacifier and began to coo at her.

Judy flicked her gaze between Santana and Charlie for a moment before smiling, they looked like a family. With Santana in the picture she probably wouldn't have to worry as much about Charlie.

~ O ~

"I can't believe you're a bigger baby than Harper," Santana teased smiling at Charlie who looked rather embarrassed.

"It was a big needle," Charlie retorted lamely, flushing as Santana's smile grew at her discomfort. "Harper was scared! I just did what I had to as an alpha."

Santana laughed and shook her head, and leaned against Charlie's arm. "Growling at the doctor who is giving your daughter a vaccination is a sure way for an accident to happen if you surprise him. Harper barely noticed at all."

Charlie puffed out her cheeks and looked at her mother, hoping for a bit of backup. "She's right Charlie," Judy agrees with Santana immediately. "But Harper took her vaccinations like a champ, she didn't even notice."

Charlie grows quiet and looks down at Harper, "I know I'm overprotective, but Harper's already been abandoned by Mack, because she met her alpha." Charlie looked at Santana, "If my mate had a kid by another alpha, I would never tell her to get rid of it."

Santana swallows, she didn't have a child from another alpha. But it was good to know, "Well you aren't human shaped garbage like Mack and this so-called alpha is," Santana shook her head. "Harper is lucky to have you, even if you are way too overprotective. What are you going to do when she's older and starts to date?"

Charlie immediately made a face, "I can ban her from that right?"

Santana exchanges a look with Judy who laughs, "No, you most certainly can't. By that time you're going to need to trust that you raised her right Charlie, I know it will be hard, but she's an omega, one day she's going to meet her alpha. She's going to want to be with whoever that person is, and you're going to have to accept it."

Charlie puffed out her cheeks at this, that was not what she wanted to hear, and she turned to look at Santana hoping for a small bit of backup.

"Your mom's right," Santana agrees.

Charlie crinkles her nose and looks at her daughter, "You're on my side right Harper?" But instead of being cooed at Harper makes a face, before the smell of death hits Charlie's nose, and she groans. "Thanks Harper, thanks." She was outnumbered by omegas, and for the first time in a long time Charlie felt at peace. But the little voice in her head knew that this wouldn't last and eventually the other shoe would drop. "We need to find a place where I can change her, it's going to be awhile before we get home, and I don't want her to get a rash. That can't be comfortable."

"We just passed a woman's bathroom, do you want me to—" Judy begins but Charlie shakes her head and looks around, and takes the baby bag from her mother and quickly makes a beeline to the bathroom, leaving her with Santana. Judy pauses and looks over at Santana, "Santana?"

"Yes?" Santana asks, tearing her eyes away from Charlie to look at Judy.

Judy is quiet for a moment, before she simply decides to ask the question that had plagued her. "Are you her mate?"

Santana hesitates for a moment, she hadn't even told her mother that Charlie was her mate. Quinn had made it clear that she truly didn't approve, but that had more to do with the fact that Charlie was avoiding Quinn again. "Your daughter has made it clear that she doesn't want to mate. And despite my attempts, she's managed to keep her pants on around me. Honestly it's a bit offensive."

Judy's smile nearly broke her face, "Welcome to the family Santana."

Santana blinked and immediately looked away, she wasn't part of the family yet. But at least someone was welcoming her, "I'm not there yet, she's pretty adamant that she doesn't want to mate, period. Still, I need you to stay out of it, she's warming up to me, and I'm managing to work my way past her walls."

Judy nodded, Santana had already done so much and if there was anyone that could get what she wanted, "Just be patient with her, but I can see that she really likes you. If you do need any help, I am her mother."

"I'll keep that in mind," Santana says with a grin. "Though you should probably talk to Quinn, she's raging that Charlie's currently not talking to her. She really needs to lay off, and just be supportive. That's what she needs right now."

Judy nodded as she spotted Charlie coming out of the bathroom holding Harper, "I'll talk to Quinn about it. Just be patient with her."

~ O ~

If there was one thing that Santana hated more than anything, it was when other people were late. When she did it was fun and understandable, but when other people did it—nothing irritated her more. She sighed and pulled out her phone so she could check the time. She had been five minutes late, but Charlie wasn't home. It was a first for her and she had to wonder where they were, traffic hadn't been that bad. She immediately shoots Charlie a text, hoping that the text message sound doesn't wake up Harper.

Santana frowned, maybe she should have bought Harper a new toy or something. She had been doing an amazing job at getting Charlie to strip in front of her. "Positive reinforcement," Santana mused mostly to herself as she waited for Charlie to text her back. As babies went Harper was adorable and devious, and it was mostly aimed at Charlie. Charlie was still struggling with her sleep, and she was finally considering allowing her to babysit while she was around. It was a step in the right direction and hopefully Harper kept behaving. The sound of the elevator going off causes Santana to straighten up and immediately attempt to fix her hair.

But instead of Charlie, it's a woman who smells somewhat familiar and is making her way towards Charlie's apartment door, carrying a couple of envelopes in her hand, and Santana immediately narrows her eyes as the woman slows and stops in front of her. "Charlie's not home." She didn't even know who this woman was, and yet—something about her pissed her off more than Charlie being late and not picking up her texts did.

The woman looks at the door, "Well do you know when she'll be home, I want to see my daughter and I have some things that I need to go over with her."

Her daughter— "You must be Mack," Santana's lips twist into a sneer. She expected a more putrid smell, after all she was just human shaped garbage.

Santana's change in demeanour is enough to get Mack to glare at her, "And you are?"

"Doctor Santana Lopez," Santana said she hadn't graduated yet, but what was one month. "Charlie's mate," she adds, this woman felt wrong and she had no idea why she felt the urge to compete with her. Charlie was hers, they were mates. The fact that Mack had given birth to Harper was inconsequential, she was inconsequential.

Mack tilted her head ever so slightly as she flicked her gaze over Santana eyeing her up, before snorting. She had beaten up girls like her back in highschool, "Oh look at that, the pothead is moving up in the world. But you wouldn't be in my face if you were actually mated."

"We would be if you weren't such a garbage human being, who abandons her daughter. Charlie's been focused on keeping your daughter alive, and you know what as much as I want to get my sex on with her, I can respect that," Santana snaps back. "As for pothead? She hasn't touched the stuff since you dumped a child on her, also who the fuck cares if she likes pot? If it was really a problem then you're an even worse person than I thought you were. Who leaves a newborn with a drug addict?"

Mack frowned, the last time that she had seen Charlie, it was clear that she hadn't managed to pull herself together. Her apartment was absolutely disgusting, and Charlie certainly didn't have a mate. But here was this fancy omega doctor getting in her face and attempting to lecture her on Charlie. This woman didn't know Charlie like she did. "I think it's rich, coming from someone who has never been mated to Charlie. You think she's going to let you be a fancy doctor when you mate? An omega belongs at home raising the children, and supporting their alpha. The alpha is the head of the household, they provide. You might be pretty, but the last thing Charlie needs is an uppity omega that she can't control."

Something in Mack's disgusting spiel hits her a sharp slap, and she narrows her eyes. "You mated with Charlie?"

Mack smirks, she could hear the waver in Santana's voice. "I rejected the bond, how could I not? You think I want to be with a gamma? She's such a faker, pretending to be an alpha."

Santana is stunned by Mack's words, and she's not quite sure what Mack was getting at. The term Gamma was meant to be derogatory, in most cases it was launched at Beta's who were trying desperately to be alpha's. However, when it was launched at an alpha, it was usually meant to ridicule an alpha who had been sexually assaulted. Though her mind quickly focuses on the fact that Mack had just admitted that she had mated with Charlie, however brief that bond was, she had seen something in Charlie's past. Before she can say anything or even think of saying anything the elevator dings.

"Come on Harper, it'll be okay I promise. Santana's probably waiting for us and she'll give you a look over to make sure that you're okay. You like Santana don't you? I li—" Charlie looks up from where she was fretting over Harper who had a low fever, and spots both Mack and Santana who are now looking at her. She immediately frowns at Mack, "What are you doing here?"

Mack pulled away from Santana and moved to look at her baby and swallowed, she'd gotten so big since she'd seen her last. "Birth Certificate and social security card, they arrived in the mail. I convinced Strando that you needed it. He's waiting in the car."

Charlie immediately stepped away from Mack not letting her get close to Harper, the action causes Mack to look at her. "She's not feeling well and you abandoned her Mack, you don't get to just waltz into her life whenever you want."

Mack closes her eyes, giving up her child had been the hardest thing that she had ever done. She takes a breath, Strando would get pissed if she spent any longer. "I've got to get going, look here is her birth certificate and her social security card, you can start filling out paperwork yourself now."

"Thank you," Charlie says curtly, taking the documents and stepping aside immediately so Mack can be on her way. She waits until she hears the elevator doors open and close before looking at Santana, "Did Mack say anything to you?"

Santana looks up at Charlie for a moment there is concern in her eyes and she immediately looks away. "I called her a garbage human being, then you showed up. Harper's running a fever?" Santana said immediately, changing the subject as her medical training kicked in as she took a look at Harper.

"Yeah, that's why I was late, I had to go to the pharmacy, my phone died. I'm sorry."

"She did just get her first set of vaccinations so the fact that she is having an immune response is a good thing, do you want me to stay the night?"

Charlie nodded immediately, "Please? I don't know what to look out for, and you're here. You can sleep in my bed."

"I don't mind at all," Santana said dismissively, normally she would have jumped at the chance to share a bed with Charlie, but her mind was filled with so many questions and she wasn't sure how to even begin approaching Charlie she instead chooses to focus on the most pressing matter. "I lied, Mack said that you mated."

For a moment all the muscles in her body tense and she turns to look at Santana, searching her face, but she doesn't see scorn or rejection on Santana's face, just curiosity tinged with hurt. "She rejected the bond," Charlie admits after swallowing the lump in her throat. "I don't remember much from that night, I was drunk and possibly super high, and well I've never been attracted to Mack, so I can't really remember much or why I thought sleeping with Mack was a good idea. What else did she say?"

"Nothing, she just called you a pothead, but I already knew about that," Santana lies, it hurts she wants to press Charlie but she wasn't sure how to ask her about Mack's accusation that Charlie was a—that Charlie had been sexually assaulted. Maybe it was something to check in with Judy about, if anyone knew it would be Judy.

Charlie frowned for a moment, before nodding, and opening the door to her apartment.