Hey babes! Back again with the FINAL CHAPTER of this little story. Thank you so much to everyone who's read and reviewed this story as well its predecessor. Your love and support means the world.

But don't worry. We're not done with this quite yet. I do have a number of one-shots planned out for this world. So keep an eye out for those. :)

And now, without further ado, the final chapter.

Enjoy!

"Happy birthday, my handsome boy."

Lifting Adian carefully out of his crib, Skye holds him snuggly against her chest and drops a loving kiss to the top of his head, lingering there for just a moment as she breathes in deeply. The boy immediately curls up against her chest, huffing out a little breath of air as he grips her shirt with one fist.

"Mama."

She smiles and rubs at his back. "Yeah, baby. I'm your mama. Should we get you ready for your big day? It's not every day that you turn a year old." She lets out a heavy sigh. "I can't believe it's already been a year. You need to stop growing up, okay? It's not fair to me and your dad."

Dropping another kiss to the top of his head, she goes about getting his diaper changed and his clothes picked out. She talks to him softly the whole time, before settling herself in the rocking chair to nurse him. She sidesteps Max while she makes her way to the chair, the German Shepherd always keeping a vigilant watch over his boy.

While Adian's started eating actual food now during mealtimes, and will sometimes take a bottle if someone else feeds him before his nap or bedtime, he still much prefers getting his milk directly from the source. Not that she minds too much. She honestly missed the quiet moments like this when she was away from him. She's loved getting to spend moments like this with him again over the last few months. She's definitely way more appreciative of it now than she was before.

Running the back of her finger across his cheek, she smiles and lets out a sigh. Even though it's been a whole year since her son was born, it's still crazy for her to know that she's somebody's mom. She didn't think she'd ever get to this point. But now she has. And she couldn't be any happier.

She rests her eyes while Adian nurses, leaning her head back and rocking the chair gently. This chair is one of the best gifts she received at the baby shower. It has definitely made nursing Adian at night a whole lot easier and more enjoyable for both of them.

"Hey, you all good in here?"

She gives Grant a small smile, choosing not to open her eyes because she is still way too exhausted. "Yeah, I'm good," she whispers back.

"Okay. I'm going to get breakfast started. Anything specific you had in mind?"

"Surprise me."

"Alright. Max, come on."

The door closes and she gets lost in her thoughts again, the smile never leaving her face. It's hard to believe that she's actually in a relationship with that man. She never would have believed anyone if they'd told her that one day she'd be nursing her one-year-old son whose father happens to be the man that betrayed them all while also being in a relationship with said man. But now she can't imagine her life any other way.

Once Adian finishes nursing, she quickly burps him and then makes her way out of the room and down the hall to the lounge, knowing that Grant's already there in the kitchenette.

Sure enough, he's there when they arrive, standing at the stove making them all breakfast, his back to them. Max lies near him but not in the way if Grant needs to move around to get something.

Skye smiles when Adian shrieks happily at seeing his dad in the kitchen.

"Dada!"

Grant smiles as he steps over to them and lifts Adian out of her arms, spinning him around before settling him on his hip. "Happy birthday, Adian."

Adian simply smiles and then throws his arms around Grant's neck, hugging him tightly. "Dada."

Skye laughs quietly at the scene and then moves to grab Adian's high chair from the corner of the kitchen. She sets it up next to where she's going to be sitting at the counter and then pulls herself up onto a stool, resting her elbows on the counter and her chin in her hands.

"So what's for breakfast?" she asks curiously, watching as Grant gently bounces Adian while he cooks something on the stove.

"Pancakes," he answers back, raising his other hand just enough to keep Adian from grabbing the spatula he's using.

"Sounds delicious."

"Oh, they will be." He hands Adian to her as he carries a stack of already-made pancakes over to the counter, pressing a kiss to his boy's head.

"Adian, can you say 'thank you' to your dad for making us breakfast this morning?" Skye asks her son as she lets him stand on her legs for a few minutes.

Adian bounces in his place instead, a wide smile on his face as he stares down at the plate of pancakes in front of them.

Grant smiles at them before focusing on the last of the pancakes.

Laughing quietly to herself at Adian's excitement level despite the hour of the morning, she loops one foot around the leg of his highchair to pull it closer. She quickly gets Adian strapped into the chair, sliding the detachable tray into place and smiles at him.

"You want some pancakes, baby?" She grabs a pancake from the stack and starts breaking it up into little pieces that she drops onto his tray. "You've gotta eat it and tell your daddy how good it is, okay?"

Adian shrieks happily, slapping his hand down onto the tray and pushing the pancake pieces around wildly, some of them slipping off onto the floor. She manages to pick them up before Max can get to them.

Skye sighs as she watches her son. "No, baby, you've got to eat them."

"He will on his own time, Skye," Grant calls to her from the stove. "Be patient. He's never had pancakes before, he's probably just curious."

"I know. But he's had other foods before."

"Not too many, though."

Tearing up the last of the pancake, she drops all the pieces onto her son's tray and then turns to grab a plate for herself, placing two pancakes on it and grabbing the syrup.

"Please don't drown those in syrup," Grant says, his back still to her. It's eerie how he does that. She figures it's just his super-spy genes coming into play. Then again, she doesn't have super-spy genes but she's definitely been developing that sixth-sense as a mom that she's heard about.

"That's the only way to eat pancakes," she tells Grant, proceeding to do exactly what he told her not to do. "Also, I'm pretty sure you can't tell me what to do."

"I'm not telling you what to do. I'm asking you not to do something. Your choice if you do it or not."

"And I'm choosing to do it." She sets the bottle down and cuts into her pancakes, shoving a few pieces into her mouth and smiling. "These are really good, by the way."

"You sure it's not the river of syrup?"

She rolls her eyes. "Don't be dramatic. The pancakes are great." She sighs when she looks back at her son, glad that she hadn't actually gotten him dressed yet. Clearly, Adian had been excited about the new food in front of him, and she's not sure how much of it will actually make it into his mouth by the end of breakfast. There are already bits of pancake stuck in his messy hair and smeared across his cheeks and chin. This is going to be a long day.

.

.

.

Stepping through the doorway of the lounge later that afternoon after Adian has had his nap, Skye gasps quietly when she sees all the decorations hanging up around the room. A giant banner at the far end of the room reads 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY ADIAN', colorful streamers hanging down from the ceiling. Two tables off to the side hold food and presents, the space in the center of the room cleared out, allowing Adian loads of space to walk around and play.

Once they enter the room, everyone that's there shouts out 'Happy Birthday', making Adian smile wide despite the fact that he might not really know what's going on just yet. It's the thought that counts, though.

"There's the birthday boy," Trip says as he and Fitz approach them. Trip immediately scoops Adian up off the floor. "Happy birthday, little man."

"You guys did such a great job with this," Skye tells them with a smile. "It looks amazing."

"Anything for our favorite lad," Fitz replies, reaching out to grab Adian's hand and give it a quick shake.

"Fizz!" Adian exclaims a second later, leaning forward out of Trip's arms.

"Do you see Uncle Fitz, baby?" Skye asks her son.

"Fizz!"

She sighs, looking at her friend. "Guess you're Uncle Fizz, now. At least until he can get that 't' in there properly."

Fitz shrugs. "I don't mind being Uncle Fizz." He reaches out and takes Adian into his arms, talking quietly to him as he carries him to another part of the room, Trip trailing behind him.

Letting out another sigh, Skye leans back against Grant, smiling when he wraps his arms around her and rests his chin on the top of her head.

"Can you believe we're really here?" she asks him. "Did you ever think that we would be?"

"Not at all, if I'm being honest. After what I did to you guys, I didn't think you'd ever want to have anything to do with me."

"If I'm being honest, if it wasn't for Adian, I don't think I'd ever have forgiven you or given you the time of day."

"So I guess we can thank Adian for us being together, then."

She smiles. "Yeah, I guess so."

"Mama!"

She laughs quietly. "I'm coming, baby." She pushes off of Grant and makes her way across the room to where her son is sitting happily in Fitz's arms chatting with everyone as best he can. "Are you having fun?"

She runs a hand over his head, smiling as she watches him babble mostly nonsense to the few people around him. Not every person that resides on base is there, but a good number of them are. She's glad to know that despite everything that's happened, the majority of the agents seem to have come around to the idea of having Adian living on base. She can't say she blames them, though, he's a pretty great kid. Then again, she is a little biased about the whole thing. But that's how it is with most parents out there, usually thinking their kid is the best of all the kids. She's fairly certain that Grant is definitely going to be one of those dads, especially as Adian gets older and his personality really starts developing.

"Have we missed the party yet?"

Skye spins around quickly and grins when she sees the small family making their way into the room, looking a little unsure of what to do since it's their first time there.

"Rose! You guys made it!" She's across the room in an instant, pulling the other woman into a tight hug.

"Of course we did. I mean, I think we almost got shot by automatic weapons when we got close, but we're here."

"Yeah, sorry about that. It's a security measure."

"No, I get it. Now, where's that handsome nephew of mine?"

Skye laughs quietly as Rose pushes her way through the room in search of Adian. "Hey, Owen, hey Matt."

"Skye, it's good to see you again," Owen tells her with a small smile and nod of his head. "How have you been?"

"Overwhelmed. But happy."

"Where's Uncle Grant?" Matt asks, glancing around the room curiously.

"He should be over by your mom somewhere," Skye tells him.

"Okay. Where can I put Adian's present?"

"There's a big table set up with a bunch of presents already on it. You can't miss it."

Matt nods once and then moves through the room, struggling just a bit to carry the large wrapped box.

"I really hope you guys didn't go overboard on Adian's present."

Owen laughs. "You know Rose. She was beyond excited when she found out she was an aunt, I don't think that's ever going to go away. So you should probably get used to the idea of her spoiling Adian."

She sighs. "I guess I can't really complain." She turns around at the sound of her son's laughter, watching him and Matthew playing with some of Adian's toys that they'd brought out for him so he wouldn't be completely bored at his own birthday party. "He's got a pretty good life."

"From what Rose has told me, he's got a better childhood than you and Grant did."

She nods, glancing over at Owen. "That is very true. We both had pretty messed up childhoods, so we knew we wanted to give Adian as normal of a childhood as we possibly could. One that's filled with people who actually love him and will do anything for him."

"Well, from what I can see, you've definitely given him that."

She smiles at him. "Not sure if I've told you this, but you're a pretty cool guy, Owen. Rose is lucky to have met you."

Owen smiles. "Thanks. But I'm definitely the lucky one in our relationship. She's the best. I'm really glad that she and Grant reconciled, that she could be here today."

"So am I." She smiles when she catches Grant's eye, holding up a finger to let him know she'll be there in a second when he waves her over to him. She looks at Owen. "Feel free to mingle and find some snacks. You guys are staying for the night, right?"

Owen nods. "That's the plan. It'll probably be too late to drive back."

"Great. I'll see you later, then." She gives him one last smile before making her way over to her boyfriend and their son, immediately being attacked by a hug from the younger of the two.

"Mama!"

She stoops down to lift him into her arms, pressing kisses all over his face to make him giggle. "Hi, baby."

Adian squirms in her arms and stretches out for the carpet, indicating that he wants to be put back down.

She laughs quietly when she puts him on the ground and he makes a beeline for the nearest person to attack in a hug. The shock on the agents' face has a few more people around them snickering.

"Oh, that boy loves to love," she remarks to no one in particular as she leans back against Grant's chest, breathing in deeply when his arms snake around her waist.

"That's definitely all you right there," he tells her, watching as Adian hugs more agents and then his cousin and aunt. "You've got a big heart too. I don't think I'd be here right now if you didn't."

"But at least you're here," she replies, tilting her head back to look up at him. "We made a beautiful baby boy together who's going to grow up to be an amazing man just like his dad. And you get to be here for all of it."

He smiles back at her, leaning down to give her a kiss. "There's nowhere else I'd rather be than right here with you and our son. I'm not going anywhere, you're stuck with me until the end, whenever that is."

"I'm glad to hear it."

"Oi! Love birds! This is a birthday party, are we gonna eat some cake or just stand around acting like we're having fun?"

She sighs heavily. "Leave it to Hunter to be more enthusiastic about the cake at a one-year-old's birthday party."

"Well, Bobbi did mention that he's like a giant child himself, so is it really that surprising?"

They share a laugh as they move through the room to get things set up so they can sing to Adian and then everyone can have some cake.

.

.

.

Propping the tablet up in front of her on the dresser, Skye rocks back on her heels as she waits for the video call to connect. It feels like it's been forever since she's talked to her parents and she knows they're both eager to talk to Adian as well. Despite the time difference, they promised they'd both be available for a video call whenever.

A few seconds after she requests the call, the camera connects and she smiles at seeing both of her parents on their other end.

"Hey, guys."

"Skye, it's so good to see you. I wish it were in person, though."

Her lips pull down just a little. "I know, mom, me too. But you've both got a lot on your plate keeping Afterlife together and I've got a lot to do here too. We're trying to get SHIELD back in the good graces of the government so we don't have to live in this base forever and my son won't have to grow up as a fugitive due to circumstance."

"That's understandable. And speaking of, where is that handsome grandson of ours?"

"He is right here," Grant says, entering the room with Adian held securely in his arms, a fluffy monkey towel wrapped around the boy's small body. They'd decided on Grant giving Adian his bath that night so that Skye could clean up more from the party and then get the video call set up with her parents.

"Mama," Adian says when he sees her, leaning out of Grant's arms for her.

She smiles and takes him, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "Oh, I love you too, baby. And look who called to say hi to you." She points at the screen of her tablet, laughing when her son shrieks at seeing his grandparents.

"Hi, Adian," her mom says with a small laugh. "Happy Birthday."

"Happy birthday, kiddo," her dad says next, leaning close to the screen and waving. "We love you so much."

Adian squeals and reaches for the screen but Skye manages to pull him back just in time. She smiles at her parents. "Clearly he is very excited to see you. I'm sure you guys would love to keep talking to him, but we should probably get him changed and in bed. We could have gotten on earlier but he was very happy about eating his cake so that was a mess to clean up from the carpet."

"Oh, we understand, sweetheart," her mom says with a soft smile. "We can always talk tomorrow morning."

"That should actually work. I'll call you?"

"Of course. We'll see you then. Bye, Adian."

"Bye, kiddo."

"Adian, can you wave bye?" she asks, nudging her son's arm up into view of the camera.

He waves a little awkwardly at the screen and then she shuts it off, ending the call and darkening the screen.

She breathes in deeply as she turns Adian around in her lap so he's facing her. "Alright, birthday boy, time to get you ready for bed. Should we put you in the cool new monkey pajamas your uncle Fizz got you?"

"Fizz!" Adian shrieks, bouncing on his little legs.

She laughs quietly. "I'll take that as a yes." She carries him over to the changing table, putting a fresh diaper on him before slipping him into the set of pajamas that Fitz got him for his birthday, cartoon monkeys printed all over them.

"Dada!" Adian shouts as soon as she stands him up on the table.

She glances over her shoulder to find Grant leaning back against the wall watching them with a smile. "What's got you so smiley?" she asks, hoisting Adian onto her hip and approaching him.

He reaches out to place his hands on her hips and pull her closer. "I'm just happy. Is that a crime?"

She stretches up on her toes to kiss him quickly. "No, it is not. What do you say about some downtime as a family before we put Adian to bed? Maybe we could watch a movie. There are still many that you haven't seen."

His smile makes her heart flutter. "I definitely like the sound of that." He gives her a kiss before taking Adian from her and making his way out of the room. "What do you think, bud?" his voice echoes. "You want to watch a movie?"

She smiles to herself as she shuts the light off on her way out of the room, following Grant to his room.

Once there, they settle themselves on the bed, Adian lying comfortably between their bodies with Skye's computer open in front of them.

Adian falls asleep quickly once the movie starts, no surprise to either of them. The boy definitely wore himself out at his party earlier, having fun with everyone that was there.

Neither of them has the heart to move him when he's sleeping so soundly in the large bed. Max is curled up right in front of him, also not much of a surprise.

"Hard to believe we actually have a one-year-old," Skye remarks when the credits start rolling. She reaches down to run a hand through her son's hair, smiling at the way his nose scrunches up involuntarily.

"It definitely is that," Grant replies. "He's growing up so fast."

"He really is." She leans down to press a kiss to her son's head before smiling up at Grant. "I'm really glad you're here to see him grow up. And to raise him with me."

Grant smiles back at her, reaching one hand out to brush some locks of hair back behind her ear. "Right here with you and our son, just like this, there's nowhere else I'd rather be."

So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

If there is anything you'd like to see in a one-shot for this universe, let me know. Maybe I'll get inspired if it works for this little world. :)

Until next time,
Jeallybean96 out!