"A purpose of human life, no matter who is controlling it, is to love whoever is around to be loved." – Kurt Vonnegut

It was another day for Marceline, but she noticed that she wanted Key-Lime Pie yogurt more than usual. Kip was on Son duty for most of the day, so he asked Quinn to keep Marci company, since the tall man had the day off. This was the first time Quinn's been alone with Marci while she was heavily pregnant, so she wasn't surprised when she caught him staring at her swollen belly like it was the most terrifyingly fascinating thing he's ever seen or how he'd always volunteer to fetch whatever she needed to prevent her from getting up. He even offered to carry her to the bathroom, but after he helped her off the couch, she forbade him from going anywhere near the bathroom while she was in there.

Marceline thought that the urge to empty her bladder was why she had to go to the bathroom, but it was actually a forewarning. Her water broke and her first thought was that she was having a miscarriage so late in her pregnancy. She tried not to let her anxiety get the best of her, but she couldn't stop the lightheaded feeling that overcame her and she managed to grip the sink to prevent collapsing. The sound of things clattering to the floor altered Quinn and he almost broke the goddamn door down to see what the commotion was. She managed to tell him that the baby was coming and where the pre-packed hospital bag was before Quinn was loading her into her car.

Quinn alerted all the Sons at the clubhouse or riding around Charming to rally at St. Thomas because Marceline was having her baby, the urgency to get there being amplified by the ginger's pained groans. One by one, the Sons caught up with Quinn and got in formation to act as escorts to the hospital. By the time they got there and Kip opened her door, Marci was on the verge of becoming hysterical. She was bawling and struggling to breathe evenly. She blubbered to Kip that she was afraid she was going to lose the baby or that she was afraid that she wouldn't be able to push it out and he couldn't calm her down like he usually could, so Chibs stepped in, but his efforts were fruitless as well.

Marceline had triggered an Anxiety Attack that no one could pacify. On that night, while a team of doctors swarmed Marci and were simultaneously trying to calm her down while prepping for the delivery of her baby, Kip earnestly wished that Zane was still alive because he would've known what to do.

~.~.~.~.

Marceline woke up in a quiet hospital room and it only took a second for her to remember why she was there to begin with. She had her baby today, though she couldn't remember anything after getting to St. Thomas. She slowly sat up in bed and firstly noticed her no longer engorged belly, then she saw Gemma sitting in a chair next to her bed.

"Hey, sleepy head." She smiled. "Everything went perfectly. The baby's all here and you're okay."

"I missed my own delivery."

"They had to do a C-section to get the baby out." Gemma's hand went to rest low on Marci's stomach and that had to be where the incision was because the spot was still very tender, but not sensitive enough for Gemma's touch to put her in agonizing pain. "Everyone's in the waiting room and Eddie's in the hall. I told the doctors you didn't wanna see the kid yet."

"…is it a boy or a girl?"

Gemma smiled, her eyes glimmering with happiness. "A girl. I bet she's beautiful, Marci."

"Did they already…?"

"She's still here and she's still yours." Gemma kissed Marci on the head before she stood and went to the door. "Be right back." A minute passed before Kip entered the room and he was smiling at Marceline.

"How do you feel?" He asked as he sat beside her.

"Like a deflated balloon."

"Gem said you wanted to see the baby?" He questioned and she slowly nodded. "No fighting me on the wheelchair this time."

~.~.~.~.

"Did you see her already?" Marci asked as Kip pushed her to the NICU section of the hospital.

"It's a girl?" He asked in amazement, trying to stop himself from smiling so much. "I stayed in the waiting room with the rest of the family. I wanted to wait to see what you decided to do before I saw…her."

Kip rounded a corner and they passed the huge window where over a dozen babies were waiting or sleeping in their pink or blue incubators. They searched the rows of newborns, but couldn't find one with Telford for a last name, so Kip waited for a nurse to come out of the room to ask if they could see their daughter. After scanning the bracelet around Marci's wrist, the nurse went to fetch the baby in question, rolling her out for them to see.

"Here she is." The nurse smiled as she parked the incubator next to Marceline. Inside, there was a newborn baby wrapped in a pink blanket with a head full of cinnamon-colored hair, peacefully snoozing. "She's six pounds, seventeen-ounces and twenty-inches. She's healthy, happy and just perfect. Would you like to hold her?"

"No." Marci quickly answered, trying to roll away from the small child. She turned to a confused Kip. "Take me back to my room."

~.~.~.~.

"You okay?" Kip asked as he helped Marceline back into her bed. She quickly wiped the tears from her eyes, but shook her head. "Marci, talk to me."

"She looks just like Rosemary. Her face is just...all Rose."

"She looks exactly like her Mom and I've seen your baby pictures." He told her, but she didn't seem to believe him. He sat on the bed next to her and grabbed her hands. "Marci, I just…whatever you decide to do, I'm gonna be right here with you."

"Why?" She questioned him in a sharp tone. "Why did you ask me to give you another chance when you could've stayed away from me and all my baggage? Why did you decide to be a father-figure to Bentley? Why are you playing House with me? Why did you decide to take on all this extra shit?!"

A sob escaped her lips and she took her hands out of Kip's hold to wrap them around her chest as the tears poured from her eyes. He went to hug her, but she pushed his hands away.

"…just pack your bags and go. You don't need to deal with all this. I won't be mad at you, I swear. Just…just go, Kip."

"Where are we going?" He didn't have to go to a maternity class to know that a woman would be out of it after birth and everything must've just come crashing down on her in the last few minutes. The last thing on his mind was leaving her because he couldn't go through that again, especially not now after he was rebuilding something special with her like he always wanted. "I'm not losing you again, Marceline. I can't. And Bentley's just as important to me as you are. We're in this together. I'm here for you."

~.~.~.~.

Later that night, Marceline found herself back at the NICU and a brunette wearing purple scrubs was walking through the rows of newborns, waving at Marci though the large window.

"Can I see my baby?" She asked as the nurse approached her.

"Of course, just let me scan your bracelet." Marceline held her wrist out to let it be scanned by a handheld device from the nurse, then the women went back into the room full of babies, rolling one of the incubators to Marci. "Here's our little Jane Doe. All the other new parents have been admiring her when they come to see their newborns and she's gotten so many compliments. Any ideas on a name?"

"Mairi Liùsaidh* Telford." Marci answered as she traced the baby's cheek.

"That has to be the most beautiful name I've heard all day." The nurse admired as she scribbled notes down on the child's chart. "Have you had enough time to think about putting Mairi up for adoption?"

Marceline stared at the baby for a long minute and slowly, the child opened her eyes for the first time. She saw her Dad in those eyes and hers filled with tears as she made the connection. "I've made up my mind."

~.~.~.~.

"Marceline?" Kip called and Marci picked her head up to look at him. "Everyone's dying to come up and see you."

"See us." She corrected him and he noticed the child cradled in her arms. "You were right. She looks exactly like all my baby pictures."

"You're gonna keep her?"

"Yeah." She nodded with a smile. "Wanna hold her?"

"Can I?"

"Of course, Kip."

Marci wasn't surprised when Kip got as close as he could so that there would be minimal distance between her arms to his. She settled Mairi in his arms and adjusted them to support her head and body. Just like any man who's never held a baby, he was cradling Mairi like she was a football. For a moment, Kip was just hunched over the newborn as if he was trying to shield her from the world, then he carefully shuffled over to the cushioned armchair next to Marci's bed. He scooted closer to the edge and kept looking at her, but not saying anything despite the questioning look in his eyes.

"What?"

"Am I doing it right? I feel like I'm holding her wrong. You were doing it better."

"That's because I know she's a baby and not a football or a bomb." She giggled.

"She's so tiny." He smiled down at the baby. "I don't think she likes me too much. She's kinda glaring at me."

"The nurse said she's been doing that to everyone, despite how many compliments she's been getting, so I don't think she's a people person."

"What's her name?"

"I thought she was gonna be a boy because of you. Thankfully, I had one feminine name in mind. Kip, meet Mairi Liùsaidh Telford."

"Hi, Mairi." Kip beamed at the child in his arms. "Your Aunt Jasmine is downstairs pitching a fit about not being able to see you. She's already obsessed with you."

"Please tell me she didn't say she was gonna go Colombiana."

"Twice. Is that bad?"

"Very." Marci shook her head with a smile. "Can you go get my Dad and Bentley, then Jasmine before she hurts someone?"

"Yeah, of course."

~.~.~.~.

"Bentley's asleep, didn't wanna wake him." Chibs whispered as he quietly entered the room and sat next to his daughter, putting a hand on her shoulder. "How are you, dovey?"

"Pretty happy, to be honest." She honestly admitted, looking down at her baby in her arms. "Da, she's so perfect."

"It's a girl?" He asked and she nodded, moving the blanket away from her face so Chibs could get a good look at the newborn child. "Christ in Heaven…she's beautiful."

"Cut the waterworks, Da. You're gonna make me cry." She playfully scolded. "Sons do not cry."

"To Hell with that."

"Don't you wanna hold your granddaughter?" She asked and Chibs excitedly nodded. He got closer to her and Marci transferred the baby into his awaiting hold. Chibs was properly holding Mari much better than Kip was and he put his finger into her little hand to let her grab onto it.

"Oh, she's smilin' at me. It's just like the day you were born all over again. Bet she's been givin' the nurses the evil eye too."

"Dad, I wanna get this outta the way right now."

"What's that?"

"I'm gonna have to move out, me and the kids."

Chibs frowned. "Why would you say such a horrible thing to your dear ole Da while he's holdin' his first granddaughter?"

"Dad-"

"You're all fine at home. I'll move out to give ya' some space, but you and the kids can stay there."

"We need more space than that, Da. Bentley's growing up and he can't keep sharing a room with his Mom. And now, we need a nursery for Mairi." She explained. She didn't want to leave her Dad either, but she had a growing family to think about. "I'm not packing up and leaving tomorrow, but it's gotta happen, Da."

"…you're right." Chibs agreed with a sigh. "Dovey, if you need help, you tell me. I know you wanna be independent with you and your wee ones and that's fine, but I'm still your father and I can help out. 'Least I could do is get ya' on your feet with the new place."

"You can help however much you want, Da."

They ended up staying with Chibs for the rest of the year and got through Mairi's first birthday as well as Bentley's 7th.

Gemma and Donna easily found a three-bedroom house for Marceline and the kids. The rent was almost dirt cheap, there was a school bus to get Bentley to and from school every day and the commute to Freddy's tattoo parlor was an easy 20-minute ride.

Just like when she came to Charming, all the Sons helped move Marceline into her new home. She wanted to ask Kip to move in with her, but she didn't know if she should. She was raising another man's baby and while she hated Asher, there was only love and care in her heart towards her daughter. The problem was that she didn't know how Kip would feel about it. He took on the role as Bentley's father-figure on his own, but Mairi wasn't an orphan and they both knew who her parents were. Besides that, she didn't want to lose what she had with Kip, the relationship they built since she came back, so she kept her mouth shut.

For the first few days that Marceline and her kids were settling into their new house, things functioned as they usually did. Gemma was coming over more often to help out with Mairi, which Marci greatly appreciated because she could have more time to handle Bentley. The last thing she wanted was for her son to feel like all her attention was going to his sister now, so she made an effort to show him as much affection as she could. Bentley seemed enamored by the new baby though. He liked feeding her and he would sit next to her cushioned rocker and play the chair's lullaby or gently rock her when it was nap-time. He wanted to watch her more than anything, just like he's done to Marceline.

Kip's presence was just about the same as it was before the move. He'd stay overnight when he could and he'd usually have some time in the afternoon to be with Bentley when he got out of school. He was still learning how to handle Mairi, always fearing that he was being too rough with her when he wasn't, but he didn't complain about being thrown up on or changing dirty diapers. In some weird way, Marci felt like he was happy about it.

When Marceline noticed that Kip was sleeping over most nights and found his laundry mixed with everyone else's, she clung to the hope that Kip was making a transition from his house to hers.

*Liùsaidh: a female given name, equivalent to English Lucy; Germanic and French meaning 'Fame and war'