I got so many worried reviews, but this chapter is fluffy as hell guys. Like I'm giggling as I write this. So never fear.

Also, there's a TFiOS quote in here. Not to take credit for what's not mind.

The reviews for this story have dropped off a lot. Are you still out there, readers!?

Chapter 11

December

"Are you sure you want to do this, baby?"

He wound a steady arm around her waist and nodded without hesitation. This was always his favorite part of Christmas, and he wasn't going to let it be stolen from him. He pressed a careful kiss to her temple. "But if you'd rather stay in where it's warm-"

"Shut up," she sighed. "Of course I'm coming." She tossed him his coat and pulled her own out too. But instead of pulling it on she just held it loosely in her hands. "Are you feeling alright?" She asked him hesitantly.

He pulled on his jacket before looking down at her. She hadn't asked him often because she knew that he didn't like it, but he couldn't help but soften at the vulnerability coloring her features. He took her coat from her and draped it on her shoulders. "I'm feeling perfectly fine. Still achy, still a little sick to my stomach. But overall I feel great." And he was telling her the truth. He felt fine thanks to her.

She studied his face for a long moment before nodding her approval. "Then let's go. They probably are going to have a lot of no shows with this weather, so I don't want to be late."

"Wait." He grabbed her wrist to stop her. She turned and looked at him questioningly. He smirked and pulled a hat over her curls and leaned in to kiss the tip of her nose.

She laughed and rolled her eyes. "You better still want to be seen with me after I pull this thing off and my hair turns into an afro."

"I love all the Spencers an awful lot, but cold and shivering Spencer might be my least favorite," he explained, tucking his hand into hers and leading her toward the door. "I can't focus on anything other than getting you warm again."

She stopped and tilted her head to the side. She smiled softly for a moment before leaning up to kiss him. "How did I manage to snag you?"

"I think the reverse of that question is the real mystery," he murmured against her lips. "Are you ready to go?"

"Did you take your medicine?" She asked him as she blindly reached behind her to grab her purse and keys from the table.

He nodded, and pulled her back against him, resting his chin against her head. He had just gone through something horrific, but he couldn't help but still feel so lucky every time he looked at Spencer. They relaxed in each other's respective embrace for a long moment before pulling away. He was content to just hold her all night, but if they were going to make it they had to get going.

They walked together into the cold night, the heavy snow and blustering winds hitting them like a brick wall. He pulled Spencer close, doing his best to shield her from the wind. He walked to the driver's side of the truck and held the door open for her, waiting for her to get settled before closing it behind her and walking to the passenger's side of the car. He wished that he could drive, because he knew how much the snow made her nervous. But the medication that he was on made that a very bad idea. "Are you alright?"

She gave him a look. "Question my mad driving skills again and I'll smack you. I don't care how heavily medicated you are." She put the car in drive, focusing on the road in tense silence until they arrived at Philadelphia's largest homeless shelter. Volunteers always put on a Christmas program, mostly geared toward the kids, and he loved it. He had never experienced homelessness, but he had experienced feeling hopeless... like there was no way out. He was finally coming out of the other end of that crushing despair, and he owed it to those who were still there to do what he could to help.

He parted ways with Spencer at the door after sharing a chaste kiss, and watched her make her way to her assigned station, the craft table. She slid her coat off, and he couldn't stop the smile. How did she look so beautiful doing something mundane as taking off a coat? But that was love. He gave her a final glance before walking to the present table.

He spent the evening helping children and parents pick out the perfect Christmas present, knowing full well that this might be the only present that some of them got. There was something about volunteering. Helping people was great, but it gave you a warm feeling inside that you couldn't even replicate elsewhere. He handed a little boy the toy dump truck he picked out and was rewarded with a big, toothy grin.

After two hours the crowd began to wane as families dispersed to their respective beds. He glanced over at Spencer. A curtain of silky curls cascaded down the side of her face and over her shoulders. A little girl was perched in her lap, and the two of them worked on a picture together. Spencer's radiant smile only grew as the girl let out a loud peel of laughter.

He was one hundred percent sure that he had never seen something so precious before. There was something indescribably attractive about Spencer taking care of children. He knew without a shadow of a doubt that she'd be an incredible mother, whether she believed it or not. She had just enough bad parenting to not come out damaged but to know exactly who she didn't want to be.

So, as soon as he saw the little girl vacate his wife's lap he knew exactly what he needed to do. He quietly excused himself and walked over to her. "Can I talk to you for a second?"

She turned around at the sound of his voice, concern in her eyes. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he assured her. "I'm fine, I just- come with me for a second, okay?"

She nodded, so he tucked his hand in hers and led her to some abandoned supply room. "I wanted to give you something."

"Toby-"

He shook his head, cutting her off. "You've been so great. I know I've said this continuously, but try to hear me, alright? I wouldn't have come close to getting through this without you. Not only were you there every single second, but you also gave me the one thing that has a chance at saving me. How can I ever thank you enough for that?"

"You don't have-"

He smiled. "I know you don't think I have to, which makes me want to thank you even more. I was planning on giving this to you tonight, but after seeing you with the kids? I couldn't stop myself from doing it right now." He pulled the jewelry box from his back pocket. "Hanna tried to help me pick it out, but in the end I saw it and knew there wasn't anything else for you."

His hands were shaking as he gave it to her. Partially because he wasn't sure that she'd like it, but mostly because he was just feeling so grateful to her and for her. He watched nervously as she opened it, and smiled at the sound of her gasp. "Toby," she breathed in the most heartfelt voice he had ever heard. "It's too much."

He stood next to her and looked down at the sparkling Scrabble piece with the S etched into it and thought back to the day that made it so significant.

Maybe it was stupid to ask her over, but after his latest episode with Jenna he needed to be reminded that there was some decent people in the world. And Spencer was one of the most decent that he had ever met. He fell in love with her the way you fall asleep. Slowly and then all at once.

But now that he knew he loved her he also knew that he couldn't allow Jenna to touch him. Never again. He had Spencer. He had someone worth fighting for. He never felt like he was worth it by himself, but Spencer was. And if that meant he had to use half the money in his sock drawer to stay in a hotel for a couple days he would do it.

"Glyceraldyhyde. And with the triple word score that's 125 points." She put the end of the pen in her mouth and bit down. She looked at him from underneath her eyelashes. He found her nerves and competitive nature to be completely adorable. And furthermore, she had just played the letter he had been waiting the entire game for in the perfect spot.

"Goofball. With the triple word score and 50 point bingo bonus it's 165 points." He smirked as the realization that he won came over her. Pissing her off was more fun than it probably should be. "We can play again if you want?"

She rolled her eyes. "Let's just watch a movie."

"Aw, but kicking your ass at Scrabble was kind of fun." His eyes dropped to her lips.

"It was not a total ass-kicking. You-" she protested.

He couldn't resist any longer. He leaned forward and trapped her lips in a soft and gentle kiss. He felt like he had to protect her, like he had to keep her safe. But at the same time she made him feel safer than he ever had. She made him feel wanted, and she'd never be able to thank him enough for that. "I love you," he murmured with a smile. It was still new. The novelty of the words hadn't worn off yet, and if he was honest, he doubted that they ever did when it came to Spencer.

"I love you too."

"It's not the fanciest thing, but I thought you'd like the meaning behind it." He shifted nervously. "I saved the receipt, and if you don't-"

She stood on the tips of her toes to kiss him. "You are the most perfect husband there ever was."

"So you like it?" He didn't know why he was so nervous.

"You're way better at this kind of thing than you think you are. I love it almost as much as I love you," she confirmed, kissing him again. "I love you, baby."

"I love you too," he smiled and dipped down to press another soft kiss to her lips.

"Who wants eggnog?" Emily asked happily from the kitchen. She left before she got their answers, because with Emily it didn't matter. She loved Christmas so much, and all of that holiday cheer would be forced down their throats whether they liked it or not.

"What is eggnog anyway?" Hanna asked from the big, fluffy chair she always commandeered when she came over. "Like is it made out of eggs? That sounds pretty disgusting, if I'm being honest."

"And milk and cream and sugar," Spencer muttered distractedly from the couch in front of him. She jerked the game controller up as she shot Caleb's character in the back. "Dead, again? Who's the Christmas video game champion? That would be me."

He laughed and grabbed a strand of her hair, twirling it around her fingers. Judging by the sour look on Caleb's face, he hadn't found her domination and competitive nature as adorable as he had. "Can we put the video games away now? Because Rudolph is about to come on."

"If we were all characters in Rudolph Emily would be Santa Claus!" Hanna laughed. "And Spencer would be a nicer version of that mean elf that wants everything to be perfect."

Spencer shrugged and climbed onto the couch next to him. He wrapped an arm around her as she settled into his side. "Caleb would be the white monster guy."

"Excuse you!" He laughed from the candy bowl. Someone had a sweet tooth tonight. "Why?"

Spencer shrugged again. "There's a bit of a resemblance, don't you think?"

Caleb protested loudly over Toby and Hanna's laughter. Hanna held out an arm for him, and as he joined her on the chair she laughed again. "She's kind of right, baby. You do look a little like that in the mornings." She dodged Caleb's playful swat and turned to Toby speculatively. "Toby, you'd be the little dentist elf."

"I was going to say that!" Spencer laughed against him. He liked the way the vibrations from her laughter traveled through his body. "I don't know why, but it's totally true."

"Eggnog!" Emily announced, gliding back into the room with a tray of drinks. She passed one to him, and he knew it was because it didn't have any alcohol in it. His medication strictly forbade him from drinking, which was fine. He didn't do it much anyway. Spencer grabbed her drink and sat back next to him, leaning against his chest. He was feeling so lucky today, so blessed. He was feeling better, he shared this incredible kind of love with his wife, he had the best friends in the world, and it was Christmas. It couldn't get better than that.

"Okay, I waited long enough for your Christmas beverage, video game loving selves! I want presents!" Hanna demanded, rising from her chair so fast that Caleb, who had been leaning on her, fell over.

He laughed. "You go first then, Han."

She nodded eagerly and started to pull her intricately wrapped presents. She plopped a small box into his lap. He waited until everyone had their presents before carefully unwrapping his. Inside was a small tape recorder. He didn't know why Hanna had thought that he'd like that, and he honestly wouldn't have picked it out for himself, but he couldn't stop smiling as he looked at it. It was perfect.

She tossed a balled up piece of wrapping paper in his direction. "You just seemed like the kind of person that would have a lot of thoughts. Maybe you can unload some and listen to them later."

It was actually incredibly thoughtful. "Okay, can I go now?" He had gotten everyone the same thing, besides Spencer. But he had picked up one for their apartment too. He handed one to each of his friends and Spencer. He sat back as they opened the wrapping paper to reveal picture frames. Inside the frame was his favorite picture of the five of them from Hanna and Spencer's college days. They were sprawled out together in one of the girls' dorms. At the top of the frame Family was etched out in elaborate cursive.

The room was silent for a second before Emily came over and wrapped him in a hug. Caleb and Hanna quickly followed until they were in kind of a dog pile on the couch. "Wait!" Spencer grunted as they began to shuffle. "This calls for a picture reprise." She handed her phone to Hanna, who was on top. She took a selfie style picture, and leaned back into them. It might have been weird, but the five of them sat there for awhile like that, just remembering what it meant to have a family that you chose.