Isaac Dauterive arrived into the world quickly on the last day of August. The sun had just started to set as his first cry rang out into the hospital room. Mia knew she had been feeling strange all that day, hardly daring to believe it was actual labor pains and not just benign ones. She was nearly ready to start pushing as soon as the nurses ushered them into the delivery room.

Mia wondered why people volunteered to give birth. It was the absolute most painful experience of her entire life.

He was so small, barely the size of a loaf of bread, with the tiniest little hands and fingers, and a thatch of thick dark hair. He was the absolute most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

Later, once Mia and Isaac were cared for and settled in for the evening, Bill was able to hold his new son. Isaac slept peacefully in his father's arms, swaddled up tight in a white blanket, with a thin blue hat rolled over his round head. Bill had never seen something so precious, or so perfect.

Bill remembered how excited he was every time he saw his friends' new babies, when he saw Joseph and Bobby and Anthony all for the first time, and even baby Arthur. He was so happy for his friends, because he knew how happy they must have been feeling, and how proud they were to have brought something so wonderful into the world.

Leah had left a few home cooked meals in the fridge and a fresh blackberry pie on the counter. She and the others even packaged up some of the leftover wedding food that Mia and Bill never got to eat.

Hank, Dale, and Boomhauer had stopped over to see the new baby a day or two after the Dauterive's arrived home. Mia took this opportunity to nap alone in the bedroom while everyone else sat with Isaac in the living room.

"He sure is cute, I tell you what," Hank cooed to the baby in his arms. Isaac slept calmly as he was shifted between all of his father's friends.

"Wow, Bill… Who knew you could actually make something so...not hideous?" Dale gazed in awe at Isaac's little face. He had lifted up his sunglasses cover to get a better look.

Bill agreed with him. "He is definitely the greatest thing I have ever done."

"When are you having the next one?" smirked Dale.

"Don't start."

"It's something, isn't it?" Boomhauer asked quietly, "bringing a life into this world…" He looked softly down at the sleeping baby, deep in thought.

"I still can't believe he's really here. I've wanted him for so long, and now he's here. It's crazy they let you just take a real living person home."

"You're going to be a great father, Bill," Hank said proudly, "You've really come a long way just in the past year. I knew you could get your life together if you put your mind to it."

"It was easier to focus on bettering myself when I actually had a reason to. And now look at me, I'm a father…"

Raul and Gilbert came by later to see their new little cousin. Raul scooped up the bundle effortlessly, as he had many prior experiences holding the babies of his sister and his cousins. Gilbert sat on the couch timidly at Raul's side, never having been around babies much and not knowing how to act around them.

"The Dauterive blood certainly runs strong," Gilbert noted, as he peered over Raul's arm at Isaac, who was dozy but awake.

"No way. He looks like my family," disputed Raul.

"In flesh tone, perhaps, but that formidable brow has been carefully passed down the Dauterive family tree for many a generation."

"He's got our big eyeballs, doesn't he, Mia?"

"And our distinguished jaw," Gilbert indicated to Bill.

"Do you want to hold him?" Raul asked Gilbert.

"Oh, I'm going to have to decline... Perhaps another-"

"Come on. He's your cousin. The last of the Dauterive's or whatever you and Bill are always talking about."

"I've never held a- a baby before. I was the youngest Dauterive, I-"

Raul tisked and budged Isaac over into Gilbert's lap before he could protest any further. Quickly Gilbert bent his arms in place to support the baby comfortably. He sat stiffly, afraid to move even an inch.

"I was the same way when I held Mia's, I mean, my nephew," Bill told him, "I was afraid I was going to break him."

"Kids are pretty pliable. Made out of rubber," assured Raul. Gilbert chuckled nervously.

Gilbert looked down in admiration and amazement. Bill rarely in his life had seen Gilbert so impressed or at a loss for words.

After a moment, Gilbert spoke.

"This little one is certainly something, dear cousin...I must say, you did well…"


Luanne and Lucky brought Henry home a few weeks after Isaac was born. The two of them decided to name him after Hank, as he was such a big part of their lives and had done so much for them.

When they told Hank what they named their new baby, Bill could have sworn he saw a tear at the corner of Hank's eye.

When Bill returned to work, he animatedly shared pictures of Isaac with everyone who came in for their routine haircut. He even stuck a picture in the frame of the big mirror in front of the styling chair. Every day was spent in anticipation to go home to his family, to be with his wife and son.

The barbecue sauce was selling better than ever, and it was mostly through word of mouth advertising. Bill was called away with Gilbert for a business related meeting in Dallas again. It pained him to leave his family for those few days, and was sorely considering skipping out, but Mia convinced him to go. She insisted that she and Isaac would be fine, and they had Leah and Anthony to keep them company.

As time went on, Isaac grew bigger and was reaching more developmental milestones. Sometimes Bill would use the baby carrier and wear Isaac against him as he stood in the alley with his friends, along with Boomhauer who would wear Anthony in the same fashion. Mia and Leah would take their babies on walks in their strollers together, and would often hang out with Luanne who would bring Gracie and Henry with her.

When December came, McMaynerberry held a Christmas in the Woods event which was a popular attraction to the area. A trail through a small forest was hung with Christmas decorations, including lights, garland, and ornaments. Christmas booths lined the forest path, in which costumed craftspeople and artisans displayed and sold their work. Mia and Bill made plans to go see it one weekend, bundling Isaac up snugly in his stroller for the walk.

It was sunny and the temperature was mild, making for good sweater weather.

"Jackie says they have homemade donuts at the end," Mia said as they pushed off down the trail.

"I'm looking forward to that."

The festive decorations and the thatched roof cottage booths were pretty to look at. There were many different crafts and artisanal goods, like sculptures and ornaments made from hand carved wood or blown glass, homemade soaps and candles, embroidery and quilts, Native American jewelry and trinkets, knitted clothing, and there was even a chocolatier booth selling different chocolates and candies.

Mia and Bill lingered beside the stand offering beach glass mosaics, admiring the skillful handiwork put into every piece. There were a rainbow of colors pressed into tiles, picture frames, mirror frames, and wall art.

A voice called out Mia's name a short distance beside them. Mia turned her head towards the sound and immediately she froze, right as two ghosts of her past materialized on the crowded path.

Standing tall and broad was Aaron, hair cropped differently than Mia had ever seen it, his eyes widened in surprise. At his shoulder was Carly, her black hair trussed in careful curls, her heart shaped face open and smiling. They, too, were pushing a stroller, with little Camille bundled in a pink sherpa blanket.

"Mia!" Carly spoke again as they approached her, grinning. Mia simply stood rigidly, still surprised to see her.

It was so strange to see them both for the first time in almost two years… people she had seen every day for a large part of her life, people who were once so deeply ingrained into who she was, people who had ruined her to her very core.

"Wow! It's so great to see you!" Carly chirped brightly, as if Mia never caught her naked and cheating with Aaron before.

Aaron hesitated a pace or two behind her, apparently not sure what to do with himself. He wouldn't look Mia in the eye, instead casting his eyes uncomfortably anywhere else.

Mia still hadn't moved or responded. Isaac was laying in the stroller, now kicking his legs, the blanket rising and falling with them.

"Oh! You had a baby!"

Carly drew closer to get a better look.

"He's so cute! What's his name?"

Mia swallowed.

"Isaac."

Carly looked delighted as she peered down at the baby, who was only vaguely aware of her presence. She drew back, still smiling, either not noticing or ignoring Mia's discomfort.

"Hi!" She chirped again after she caught Bill's eye. "I'm Carly. I'm, well, Mia and I were friends for a long time."

"Hello," Bill waved politely.

Carly beamed and turned back to Mia. "It's so funny running into you here! It's been so long, hasn't it?"

"Yeah… two years, almost."

"I mailed you a letter to the vet's office a while back… Did you ever get it?"

Mia hesitated. "Yeah…"

"Oh." Carly looked a little taken aback. "Oh! You're married?" She was looking at the ring on Mia's hand, which was perched precariously on the stroller handle.

"Yep." Mia suddenly felt rude for her short replies, especially since Carly was being so cheerful and friendly. She decided to offer a little more conversation. "We got married in August."

"Wow! Congratulations!" Carly looked at Bill again, seemingly looking him over, and smiled as if in approval. "I'm so happy for you."

"Thanks… So, where are you living now?"

"Oh, we moved to Durndle last year. It's closer to Aaron's commute, and I got a better job there, too!" She smiled again. "Are you still in Arlen?"

"Yes. We have our own house. Nice street on the upper west side…"

"That's great! Sounds like a good place to raise kids."

They all stood there in what still seemed like an awkward air to Mia, but Carly still grinned like they were all having a lovely time.

"Well, we won't keep you! If we stay still for too long, Cami starts to fuss. We better get moving." She looked a little sad now. "It was nice seeing you, Mia. I'm glad to see you're doing well."

"Thanks, Carly…"

Carly waved a perky goodbye and pushed her stroller past Mia and Bill. Aaron gave them an awkward nod as he passed, then snapped his eyes forward, his jaw set.

Mia stood rooted to the spot, absorbing the interaction that just took place.

"So…" Bill began, not sure how to proceed. "She seems… Nice."

"She's very nice." Except when she's fucking your boyfriend behind your back.

Mia slowly steered the stroller around after giving them a head start. She hoped they wouldn't run into each other again.

She walked quietly next to Bill while Isaac enjoyed the ride.

"Are you okay?" Bill asked her.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just… weird, seeing them. But I don't care about it. I'm not like, mad or anything."

"Will alpaca wool socks make you feel better?" He pointed towards a booth they were drawing level to.

"You know, I think they might." She smiled up at him and he kissed the top of her head.

Mia was in better spirits again after they finished the Christmas trail. At the end was a booth selling homemade donuts, just as Jackie had told her.

"You and Isaac go sit, I'll get in line and get us some," Bill said, motioning her to the picnic tables.

Mia found an empty table along the perimeter in the pleasant sun. She sat happily with Isaac, talking to him as she adjusted his binky. It looked like he was going to fall asleep soon; hopefully he wouldn't be ready to eat until they got home.

She saw a figure approach her out of the corner of her eye. It was shocking that it was Aaron, again, though this time by himself. Mia was able to get a true look at him now as he stood awkwardly near her. She saw the the things she remembered about him, like his straight nose and rosy cheeks, and his narrow eyes that looked different now, less cold and uncaring than what she remembered.

"Hey," he said in a constricted voice. He was slouching himself smaller, his hands stuffed in the pockets of his jeans. He looked nervously down at the ground, though his eyes occasionally drew up towards where Mia sat.

"Hi."

"You look good."

She wasn't expecting that.

"Thanks."

It was strange for Mia to see him so timid and at a loss for words. For as long as she had ever known him, he was always boisterous and outgoing, frequently talking over people to make himself heard.

Aaron cleared his throat.

"I just wanted to tell you I'm sorry."

"For what?"

She wasn't trying to be belligerent; it was just that he had wronged her in many ways for a very long time.

He exhaled a breath and rubbed the back of his neck, probably wondering if this was a bad idea after all.

"For, you know...cheating." He paused, and when Mia didn't respond he kept going. "And I know I didn't treat you the best. I said some pretty, uh...pretty mean things to you. You didn't deserve that."

Mia wasn't sure what to say. She appreciated him coming to her and apologizing, but it was two years out and the damage had long been done. However, she was also long over it...she hadn't given Aaron a thought for so long now, especially since she met Bill, and now she was married to him and had a baby with him. Her life with Aaron was a lifetime ago…

"Thanks for saying that."

He nodded.

"I'm glad to see you're happy now. And I mean it, you look good… I mean, you always did. But you still do, too."

He looked into her eyes, perhaps a little sadly. He really did seem sorry.

Bill had returned now, announced by the crunching of gravel. He looked curiously at Aaron but didn't say anything.

"I better get going," Aaron mumbled, "Bye, Mia."

He nodded to Bill before turning away and setting off.

Bill handed Mia her donut, which was a lovely shade of crispy golden brown and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar.

"What did he want?" Bill asked lightly.

"To apologize, I guess."

"Huh. Are you okay?"

"Yeah. It's no big deal. Just interesting." She bit into her warm donut, which tasted absolutely wonderful. "It's weird seeing my past when I hadn't thought about it in so long."

"I know what you mean." His mind went to seeing Lenore in that cocktail lounge all that time ago, after years of not seeing her at all.

He noticed he wasn't bothered at all by Mia's tall and handsome ex boyfriend skulking around her just now, when in the past it probably would have rankled him greatly. The ease with which he was able to move on from the situation was strange to him, but he also felt good knowing he was overcoming his personal hang ups.

Better late than never…


The next several months were more incredible than Bill had ever imagined. For nearly his entire life he had dreamed of having a family, having a beautiful wife and child, and now he had them. What was especially gratifying was that he felt like he deserved them, that he put in enough hard work and self reflection to make him worthy of such a fulfilling and wonderful life with them.

Isaac was growing and developing rapidly, seemingly doing something new every day. He reminded Bill so much of himself, how strong and tenacious he was as a child. Bill could see Isaac playing football when he got older... perhaps as an offensive lineman like he was.

They attended the first birthday party of Arthur, and the first birthday party of Anthony the following month. At the end of summer it was time for Isaac's first birthday and the party Mia was planning. She decided on a car themed party, as Isaac was especially drawn to cars and anything on wheels lately.

The backyard was decorated and ready, with added touches like red, yellow, and green balloons arranged to look like stoplights, a new sandbox with different toy cars and construction vehicles tossed in for the kids to play in, and a sheet cake frosted with what looked like a race track. There was lots of food, of course, and lots of friends invited to celebrate Isaac's first year.

All of the neighbors came: The Hills, the Gribbles, the Boomhauers, the Souphanousinphones, and Raul and Gilbert. The Kleinschmidts also came, as well as a newly pregnant Jackie, Tom, and Arthur.

The babies all played together in the sandbox, Arthur, Anthony, Henry, and Isaac, all sitting in a circle with their dump trucks or monster trucks, making piles of sand or digging out holes. All of them were the best of friends, even at such a young age. It pleased Bill to see the children of his friends and his own son forming a lifelong bond, like what he and his friends had together. He had to smile when he imagined those boys lined up together in the alley some day.

The adults stood together in the yard, talking together, eating the party food or rummaging through the cooler for drinks.

"This pasta salad is so good, Mia," Minh praised.

"Thank you! My mom always asks me to make it for our family gatherings."

"Look at all the babies," Nancy murmured in amusement, looking on at the sandbox. "They play so nicely together."

"They're best friends, aren't they?" Mia grinned to Leah, Jackie, and Luanne.

They watched as Isaac dumped sand into his dark, curly hair. Mia sighed, but knew not to pick that battle right now.

Nearby stood Bill gathered with his friends.

"Babysitting doesn't seem so hard," Dale mused, noticing how quiet the kids were, "I wonder if I could work that into a business opportunity. People pay big money for child care…"

"This is what life is all about, I tell you what," Hank proclaimed as he surveyed the birthday party, "Good friends, good neighbors, a propane grill, and a cooler full of beer."

"Yep."

"Yep."

"Mmm-hmm."

"It's too bad the four of us couldn't have raised our kids at the same time," Dale shook his head.

"Just have another one," Boomhauer suggested with a shrug.

"Well, Hank can't, because of his narrow urethra," emphasized Dale, and Jackie looked over at them quizzically.

Hank scowled.

"I think the four of them will be like the four of us… A force to be reckoned with," Bill joked.

"Your nephew Arthur is going to be the Dale of the group," Dale claimed, "He seems to be the smartest of the bunch."

Hank looked annoyed. "Now what makes you say that?"

"Well, for starters, he's the only one not eating sand."

They watched the mothers hurry to the sandbox and brush the sand off of the other boys' tongues.

"All right," Mia suddenly announced, slightly weary, "Let's do birthday cake!"

Isaac was placed in a high chair, with streamers hanging down from the tray. Everyone sang a joyous rendition of 'Happy Birthday', to which Isaac giggled as he looked around at all of the attention he was being given.

The big cake was to be cut for everybody, and a smaller cake was for Isaac to smash his hands into. Mia placed the smash cake on the high chair tray and immediately both of Isaac's little hands plunged right into the center. Everybody laughed as they watched him make a colorfully frosted mess.

Later, after Isaac was cleaned up and all the cake had been eaten, he fell asleep on his mother's lap. The day's excitement tired him out. And by the looks of the other sleeping toddlers, he wasn't the only one.

Bill sat together with Mia on a hanging swing as she held Isaac, her body against his, her head on his shoulder. His friends and neighbors were all still happily convened around the yard as the sun slid lower down in the sky. It was a gathering of his most favorite people in the world, his neighbors, his friends, his wife and son. Never had he felt more at peace.

He had been lost for so long, so aimless, so lonely. He had never dreamed of a better life than what he was living now. It was true fate that he had met Mia, and that they had fallen in love with each other, and that they had begun a new life together. She gave him a purpose again, she made him see things in himself he had long forgotten were ever there.

He had always wanted to have a home, a home with a family and with love…

Wrapping an arm around Mia and his peacefully sleeping son, looking serenely at the brilliant sunset, he thought about the home he now had, and he knew…this must be the place.


I am so glad you read this entire story! I worked hard on it and I'm proud to have seen it to completion.

My second fic, Nothing But Flowers, follows the story of Boomhauer + Leah! I hope you'll check it out.

Thank you so much for reading!