I know, I know, it's neither a Home for Christmas update nor a My Beloved Monster update, but they are on their way soon! Promise! I had hoped to have this up for May the 4th, but as always I'm a bit late on the deadline! Hahaha So enjoy this one-shot set in my Delirium Kisses universe with my geeky, modern Erik! You don't have to have read the one-shots in that collection to understand this one, but it might add an extra layer!

She hadn't even rolled out from under the covers yet but she knew by the tell-tale notes of Across the Stars coming from the piano downstairs what day it was.

May 4th.

Specifically, May the 4th.

She sighed.

Erik's third most favorite day of the year. His first of course (as he told her quite often) was their anniversary because it made a mushy holiday the most precious to him and without her he would probably be holed up in Nadir's basement forever. The second was Halloween and the third was today: Star Wars Day. Before she'd met him she honestly hadn't the slightest interest or knowledge that May the 4th had any other significance than being a normal day out of the year (and if asked, she'd probably still acknowledge it as any other ordinary day) but Erik quite loved it and to be married to Erik was to be married to all of his interests, especially those involved with light up laser space swords.

She stretched and collected her glasses off the nightstand next to the bed and set off downstairs, her hand lightly trailing the banister railing as she went.

"Good morning, Erik," she called as she passed the doorway to the living room on her way to the kitchen. She got a wave from his left hand as he continued playing, his eyes still focused on the sheet music in front of him. She shook her head and continued to the kitchen, grabbing a bowl out of a cabinet and filling it with cereal and milk before sitting down at the kitchen table to scroll through her phone's social media feeds—

Knock, knock!

She already had a spoonful of cereal in her mouth as Erik shouted "Can you get that?", still dutifully playing the piano. Christine pushed herself away from the table and padded her way to the front door hoping a bit too late that it wasn't the postman as she really didn't care for anyone other than her husband to see her in her bike shorts and sports bra. But she was already unlocking the front door and it was too late to grab a jacket to cover up; the postman was just gonna have to deal with it.

"Oh! Nadir, aren't you a bit early?"

Nadir was decked out head to toe in a long brown cloak and held two lightsabers, multiple packs of popcorn, a Star Wars encyclopedia book and a box of tissues with one of the characters face on it, which one it was Christine really couldn't remember.

"I woke up and couldn't go back to sleep and knew Erik was already up…is he around?"

"In here!" Erik yelled from somewhere behind her, piano music still floating through the house.

Nadir nodded and adjusted his load. "Mandy is supposed to drop off Reza later after school, but just to let you know!"

"Ok," she laughed stepping aside so he had room to come in to the house. At least Erik had someone to appreciate his true love with.

Maybe she should be jealous.

She laughed and shut the front door.

She wasn't gonna see Erik at all today at this rate.

The backdoor closed with a slam as the wind wooshed behind her, blowing her hair in her face as she went to lock the door. She had just gotten back in from running down to the supermarket to pick up more litter for Ayesha among a few other things. The tell-tale orchestral score coming from their TV speakers along with her husband's signature added commentary followed by laughter from Nadir alerted her immediately of where they were. Honestly, it wasn't as if she had expected them to move. She set her purse down on the kitchen table and took a detour to swing by the entrance to the den. It was sweet seeing Erik and Nadir get along as if they were the best of friends and not having to hear their bantering over unimportant architectural details.

She didn't even realize she was staring until Erik called out her name.

She blinked and came back to reality. "Hm?"

Erik rolled his eyes and patted the empty space next to him on the couch. "Why don't you come in here and watch with us? We're on the best one—"

"I don't think it's the best one, I rather like—"

But Erik shot Nadir a glare before he got the rest of his opinion out.

Her eyes flashed over to the TV screen where they'd had Disney+ up all morning binge watching the movies. The screen was currently on some scene with a…volcano? Maybe? And fire? She wasn't even sure which movie it was, she had fallen asleep about an hour into it the past two times she'd tried to watch it with him. So instead she came in and gave him a kiss on the top of his head and asked if they'd had lunch while she was out (which they had) and then continued on her way back to the kitchen to make something for herself to eat.

Brrring brrrrring brrrring!

She shut the fridge door with a sigh, pulling her phone out of her back pocket.

Meg.

Weird, she usually would have called before now.

She pushed the green answer button and held it up to her ear, leaning against the counter as she answered.

"Hello?"

"Chrissy!" Her shrill voice rang out on the other end, making Christine pull the phone away from her ear. She laughed, Meg was always excited. "How are you?"

"Oh you know, same as yesterday— you?"

"Oh just fine! This wind is gonna blow my house in though, I swear!"

Christine laughed and continued to chat as she went back to pulling out her sandwich supplies, phone wedged between her shoulder and her ear. The sounds of space guns and music was getting louder and louder in the background. Maybe she should go outside, it was less noisy but it was also kinda cold, but at least she could hear Meg at that point—

"Chris? Did you hear me?"

"Huh?" She said a bit quick. She had gotten distracted and missed out on whatever Meg was saying.

"I asked how…you know…it…was going…."

Oh.

Oh.

She sighed and felt heat rising behind her cheeks. Of course she had let her best friend in on her little project as Meg had started calling it (and she was sure that Erik had told Nadir as well) but it still caught her off guard whenever she brought it up. It seemed like it should be a private matter, something for her and Erik to discuss, but Meg was always so open with everything in her life— really there shouldn't be any embarrassment talking to her about it.

The project was of course the one she'd finally, finally started to put into action a few months ago. She'd downloaded the fertility app and was taken off of birth control and it wasn't as if Erik and herself had been abstaining or anything…but now there was just an extra effort? She wanted a baby so badly and even though Erik didn't exactly openly talk about it like she did, she knew that he did too. He was just so good around kids and she'd always dreamed of having a couple and now they had finally reached a good point in their lives to have children, it was perfect really. There was just one problem: actually getting pregnant. They were doing everything right, she was sure of that, but it just hadn't happened. Yet.

"My app sent me an ovulation reminder this morning, but that's about all the update I've got."

"Oh, Chris…it'll happen! I know it will, just give it some time!"

Yeah, that's what she kept telling herself too.

"Yeah, I know, I'm trying to be patient…it's just frustrating, y'know?" She said, keeping her voice down even though there was no way they could hear her in the den over the TV. She reached for the bag of open chips on the counter, pouring some on her plate.

"I know, I know. I would say I fell your pain, but I don't know if I'll ever have kids. At least not for a while. I can't afford to lose the shape I'm in, my trainer is already on to me about not showing up to cross fit as often as I should plus we're smack in the middle of summer season rehearsals, I don't know what I would do with a kid right now."

She swallowed, nodding along even though Meg couldn't see her reaction. Meg had never been one for kids and it didn't surprise her in the least that she was putting dance before anything. As always, she added in her head with a quiet laugh.

"Hey babe…"

Christine tensed. It had been how many years since the break up and still she felt resentment when she heard that voice. She'd know it anywhere, really.

"Hi, honey…"

There was rustling on Meg's end and then she heard a smooch noise loud and clear over the speaker. She wasn't going to gag, she wasn't going to gag, she wasn't going to gag…

"Who you talking to?"

Christine felt as if she should hang up right then there. She could call Meg back later and just tell her that Erik had needed her for a minute or that the call disconnected or something—

"Christine!"

She should totally hang up. Right now.

"Oh…hey, Christine."

Great, she was too late.

"Hey," she said back, curtly.

There was a long strand of silence until she heard a few muttered whispers and the phone speaker rustle again.

"Sorry, that was kinda awkward," Christine finally said after she took a bite of her sandwich.

"No! Not you, he just said he had a bad conference call from work. Not your fault at all. He's just moody today."

Christine snorted. "I know about moody."

As if on cue, Erik's voice roared out from the den along with the sound fx of the toy lightsabers clashing together.

"What was that?"

Christine sighed, putting her head in the hand that wasn't holding the phone.

"It's Star Wars day…"

"Oh, isn't that a TV show from the 70s? With those red shirt alien guys? I didn't know there was a day for it!"

Christine laughed, shaking her head.

"Close, they're movies and it's May fourth…as in may the fourth be with you." She had to admit, she was impressed that she knew that much.

Another round of plastic hitting plastic followed by a 'Good god, Erik, go easy on me!' and the trumpets from the music on TV was getting to be a bit much for her. She was gonna have to take an Advil and go lay down at this point.

Meg tinkled with laughter on the other end.

"Just think, Chrissy, you could have a mini him running around one day…you sure you wanna sign up for that?"

Christine cracked a smile and sank back into her chair.

"Yeah," she paused and took a glance over her shoulder wear the glow of the toy lightsabers were shining through the entrance into the den.

"I've never been more sure of anything."

"And if he doesn't behave just send him right back across the street…oh and don't let Nadir give him any more Sour Patch Kids, I think he ate an entire bag already on the way home from school—"

"Mooooom…"

Christine laughed, ushering in little Reza, sans backpack, into the foyer with Mandy still lingering on the front steps.

"We'll be fine, I think they're already on the Empire Strikes Again one," Christine directed her words to the little boy (who slowly but surely was becoming not so little anymore) by her side.

He tilted his head and gave her a look that reminded her so much of one she saw Nadir give Erik anytime he made a questionable decision. Runs in the family, she thought to herself.

"I think you mean the Empire Strikes Back," he corrected with all the raw sass that any 8 year old possessed.

Her smile faltered.

"Yeah, that's what I said."

Reza shook his head and took off to the den where he could hear the TV playing and where Erik and Nadir had been since seven that morning.

She brought her attention back to Mandy at the door.

"Thanks again for watching him, I really have a lot to do this afternoon and not having Reza running around my ankles is a relief. I love him but he's a handful at times…you sure you don't need anything?" Mandy's eyebrow perked as she slung Reza's backpack over her own shoulder.

"Yeah, he'll be fine and I've got dinner taken care of so don't even worry about that."

"Ok, well if he gets on your nerves just call me, I'll set him straight—"

"Oh trust me, I don't think he can top what I've put up with all day already," Christine hushed her, shaking her head. "I think sometimes I've got teenagers in there instead of thirty something year olds."

And it was true. Reza was nothing compared to the theories, commentary, and pew pew noises she had lived with so far.

Mandy went back across the street, and she turned back into the house, picking up Reza's coat that he had dropped on his run to the den. She hung it on the banister knob of the stairwell and took the long way back to what she was doing, taking a minute to pop her head back into the den.

Nadir sat in the recliner, a bag of half eaten popcorn tucked by his side and Reza had taken his seat right up against Erik, mouth already running a mile a minute with questions.

"So if Han Solo was frozen in carbonite, how did he breathe? You can't hold your breath for that long can you, Uncle Erik?"

She made eye contact with Nadir from across the room and he gave her a knowing look along with a long sigh that made her think that this wasn't the first time Reza had interrupted Star Wars day with his questions. She was sure that Nadir was probably just thankful his questions were directed at Erik and not at him.

Erik started on his answer and talking about the anatomy of the lungs and the gravity of space and….he lost her. But Reza seemed entranced, soaking in every word he said.

She sat down on the arm of the couch next to Erik and his arm snaked around her waist, pulling her close to his side (never once pausing in his long winded explanation to Reza). She rested her head on top of his and watched the screen for a few minutes, content where she was. Reza was such a nice kid, really and Erik had the patient of a monk around children. He would be such a good father and she could just picture him holding a little baby and singing it sweet lullabies to sleep and kissing all their little fingers and toes and—

"Do you want me to scoot over so you can sit?" Erik's voice pulled her from her fantasies and back to the reality of spaceship noises and robots in front of her.

"Hm? Oh, no, I have stuff to do anyway…" she answered back, lazily blinking and sitting up from where she had been leaned against him. His eyes looked disappointed and she felt bad but she did have things to do and he would probably be watching them again before the week was over anyway.

"Ok," he whispered back and she bent down to brush her lips across his, lingering just slightly as she pulled back.

"Ewwwwww…."

"Reza!"

Erik chuckled into her mouth and gave Reza a playful push with his hand without turning around.

She stood up from where she was perched and gave Erik's shoulder a squeeze. "Maybe I'll come join you guys later, I haven't seen that last one yet…you know the Rise of the Resistance one?"

All three of the boys groaned.

What? Had she said something?

She had to admit, maybe these movies weren't that bad.

Of course, she was just barely following the plot and she had absolutely no idea who half the people were that Erik was trying to explain to her as they watched.

She yawned.

It was late, Nadir and Reza had set off back across the street around 10:30 or so having watched all but one movie and Nadir told Erik he'd come back tomorrow so they could finish, but Erik kept watching anyway. Reza had fallen asleep propped up against Erik's side with Ayesha curled up in his lap and a blue toy lightsaber just barely hanging on in his grasp. Nadir had scooped him up and put him on his shoulder making a comment about how he was getting a bit too big to carry much anymore.

She couldn't miss the way Erik's eyes trailed after them as they left.

It both warmed and broke her heart.

But now it was sometime after midnight and she was laying on the couch with Erik behind her, one of his legs swung over both of hers and his hand draped across her waist to hold her to him. The TV screen was the only light and Aeysha had long since went upstairs, confused as to why her humans had yet to go to bed.

She snuggled closer, resting her head on the couch cushion.

It was kind of charming the way he whispered in her ear all of this information that he knew she would forget before the movie was even over, but she thought it was adorable when he gushed— not that she'd ever tell him he was adorable. He'd probably take it as an insult. Still, it was sweet.

The music was swelling in the orchestra and she mused about how she would like to watch the movie with just the music behind it, like a silent film. Erik hummed in agreement and adjusted his hold on her to better peer over her head. Christine wasn't really sure what was happening, but there were huge waves and maybe half of a sunken ship? A sunken space ship? She went to ask but Erik shushed her, telling her that they were at an important part.

"Important? They're just fighting again—"

"Shhhh! Listen to what they say!"

And so she rolls her eyes and does just that, but her attention is drawn away from the dialogue of the movie and brought to her backside that was pressed against Erik.

She blushed.

"Erik?"

"Hm?"

She turned her head around to look up at him. "Do you like this part of the movie?" She asked, a smirk toying at her lips.

His eyes never left the screen. "Yeah, it's one of the best parts…what are you doing?"

But she was already rolling over to face him, careful not to roll off the couch that really wasn't big enough for the both of them. She propped herself up a little and glanced down before talking.

"My fertility tracker app went off this morning…" a cheeky grin breaking out on her face.

His attention was definitely on her now.

"It did?" He said, pulling her down to rest on top of him.

She nodded.

"And I suppose…?" He trailed off, his fingers toying at a strand of hair that had fallen loose from her bun.

She shrugged.

"But during Star Wars?"

She raised an eyebrow and watched him think it over, his eyes flipping back and forth between her and the screen.

"Guess it would be pretty cool to say our baby was conceived during Bendemption…" he said, already working at tugging her pants away from her waist.

"I'm sorry, what?" She said throughly confused as she wriggled out of her jeans, hands unbuttoning his shirt.

"Oh you know," he was working on his belt buckle now. "He turns back to Ben Solo? Ben-demption?"

She just shook her head and bent down to kiss him, pushing his shirt off his shoulders and feeling one of his hands grasp at her thigh, the other pushing his own pants down.

"It's a good thing I love you," she said as he started to move his kisses down her neck before pulling her close against him and turning them over so that she was under him, legs wrapped around his waist.

He smirked.

"I know."