AN: Another day another chapter.


Bela kicked her feet a bit frowning as she looked up at Charlie who had just returned from the vending machine with two bottles of waters and some candy bars. "How much longer?" She shifted the vase that she and Charlie had made for her mother which was filled with beautiful flowers and put it on the ground to take the water and a chocolate bar.

Charlie shifted, they had already been waiting an hour for some news—any news. But no one had come to talk to them, she didn't want to go far just in case, so it was just water and chocolate bars until they heard that the surgery had been a success. "I don't really know, I didn't ask how long the surgery was going to take. Quinn had begun to describe the surgery and she had gotten a bit queasy. "We're going to need to help your mom out for like a month or two alright? Which means we'll take care of whatever she needs."

Bela smiles at this, "Isn't that what you're supposed to do anyway?" she teased but the smile faded as the worry sets in again. She shifts a bit and slumps in her chair.

Charlie bit her lip, Bela was only ten and she didn't' know how to handle this. She wasn't even sure how to handle it and she was supposed to be an adult. "Do you want to play on my phone? I have—Angry Birds?"

Bela looks up and tries to smile at Charlie's weird attempt to make her feel better or distract her but she wasn't five or two, she just wanted her mom. "What did you wish for?" Bela said crinkling her nose at Charlie's phone. "No one plays angry birds anymore Charlie," she adds after a moment and watches as Charlie fumbles with her phone a blush on her cheeks. "You remember the day I showed up at your apartment? What did you wish for? You had a cupcake out—and I saw a candle was it your birthday?"

"It was," Charlie said quietly remembering her wish. "I wished—I wanted—I didn't want to be alone anymore." Charlie admits after a moment. "I was tired of being alone, of doing the same thing every day with very little changes and coming home to an empty apartment with white walls. I didn't think my wish would show up like five minutes later and turn my life upside down."

Bela mulled that over for a second before a huge grin appeared on her face, "I was the answer to your wish wasn't I?"

Charlie reached over and mussed up Bela's hair causing her to scowl. "Well I didn't know it then!" She smiles and nudges her daughter. "But, yes you were the answer to my wish."

"So if I make a wish do you think it'll come true?" Bela asked biting her lip. "It's nearly my birthday and I just want my mom to be there for my birthday. I don't want any presents, or a party I just want her there."

"Your mom—" Charlie began.

"Don't tell me she's a fighter. I know that Charlie, I just want my mom to get better. This can't be her ending Charlie, you were supposed to be her happy ending." Bela snapped at Charlie whose brow furrowed at her anger. "She's my mom, and I just want her to be happy—I can't remember a time that she was really happy. She just works and spends time with me and comes to my plays but she's lonely. When I asked about you she'd get this smile on her face and she told me that she really loved you. That she loved you more than anyone else. That's why I came to find you so you could fix it, you broke her heart and you needed to fix it."

Charlie closes her mouth, there was a lot that she wanted to say but she didn't know how to begin. Bela was scared, for what the future held, whether her mother would live or die. She wanted to promise Bela that Santana would beat this, it was looking promising but anything could happen and they had both agreed that they needed Bela to be prepared for the worst. She couldn't lie to Bela, "Life isn't fair Bela. I know how much you want it to be, but life sometimes sucks. What I did to your mother—what your mother had to do to protect you, it's one of those things that's not fair. Nothing I will ever do will ever make it right. Even being here right now, doesn't change the ten years where I wasn't here. I know I didn't know, but I should have. I should have tried. It doesn't matter how many times I say sorry it doesn't change anything that happened in the past. All I can promise is that I'll do everything I can to be there for your mom. To be there for you, I don't want to miss anymore milestones. Your mom is fighting to beat this thing Bela and I have faith that she's going to beat it and get better, and come back just as strong."

Bela studies Charlie for a moment and she wants to yell at her some more, to get angry but instead she just slumps against her mother and feels an arm wrap around her tightly. "It's not fair," she mumbles. She had also wished for her family to be reunited and now there was a good chance that she was going to lose it.

"I know," Charlie admits and holds her daughter close.

"When she gets better—"Bela said with a yawn curling into Charlie who unzips her hoodie and places it on top of her in a makeshift blanket. "Promise me you'll ask her out on a date?"

"I—alright—I'll ask her." Charlie mumbles flushing. She didn't exactly understand what it was going to do, she and Santana had dated, they had a kid together was it still dating? They were having sex, well sort of, occasionally. She wasn't sure what dating would entail. She wasn't quite sure Santana wanted to start a relationship, maybe her body and a willing partner but not the full package. She wasn't sure if she was going to be okay with that. "But your mom can say no Bela. If she says no you have to accept that we're not meant to be."

Bela scowled at this, "You'll just have to win her over and do a good job. I want to be a family—I don't like it that you have to leave every night or sleep on the couch. You love my mom and she loves you, it will work out."

"Maybe," Charlie says she can't promise Bela the world, but she'd try her best to make it come true. She didn't want to share custody, she wanted to raise their daughter together and maybe it was time to expand into Philadelphia. Puck finally had enough money saved up and wanted to partner with her in an investment and she really did want to look into the market in Philadelphia. It might even be better for Puck in the long run. She glanced over at Bela and rubbed her arm gently noting that her daughter had fallen asleep on her arm. She sighs and relaxes in her chair and just waits. She's not religious even though her mother had forced her to go to Sunday school for years, but she just wants Santana to get better. It wasn't something that would hurt.


Waking up from major surgery sucked, that was the simplest way to put it. Saying her chest hurt was a mild way to put it, she felt like they had cut open her chest and removed some organs, which was something that they had done and she knew that there was probably going to be an ugly scar. The lights were too bright and the stupid dress thing that they put her in itched horribly. She shifted trying to get up so she could get some water only to have a sharp pain pass through her chest causing her to cry out in pain. She was lucky that no one was there to witness—

"Mom?" Bela asked moving to her side, "Charlie I think she's awake!" Bela said moving to try and hug her mom only to have Charlie practically hold her back.

"Bela you need to be careful she just had major surgery," Charlie lectured stopping her daughter from practically attacking her mother. "We need to be gentle remember?"

"Charlie—" Santana began her voice coming out in a hoarse croak and she coughed and felt the tears spring to her eyes because of the pain. She absolutely loathed appearing weak and helpless but that's exactly what she was. She feels a straw poke against her lips and she takes a few careful sips. Breathing hurt, she didn't want to find out what swallowing huge amounts of water did. She pulls back a bit, her throat feeling a bit better. She leans back in her bed and she's aware that her daughter and Charlie are like staring at her like she's going to break. "Charlie," she repeats again motioning for Charlie to come closer and she reaches up ad pinches Charlie's side causing her to yelp and scramble back. "Don't you ever stop Bela from hugging me!" She informs her bluntly and she feels her daughter immediately wrap her arms around her. It hurt, like a bitch but in the good way. She wouldn't give this up for anything.

Charlie rubbed her side, and stuck her tongue out at Santana who flipped her off and she smiled, she was still Santana. "We talked to your doctor—I'll go find her—but they said that they might have gotten it all. They might do more tests but—he looked pleased with himself." Charlie said rubbing the back of her neck as she watched Bela crawl onto the bed and curl into Santana's side.

"You know Bela, with all her running away, one would think that she didn't want to give me a hug," Santana said dryly as Charlie turned to go and fetch the doctor.

"She was super scared," Bela whispers to her mother and grins when Charlie flushes and turns to look at them. "You should totally hug mom, and then do what you promised."

"Bela?" Charlie said horrified that Bela had thrown her under the bus. Santana was probably a bit loopy from the major surgery she had just had. She couldn't ask her now. "Not now—"

Bela turned to her mother, "You promised too that if you got better then you'd tell Charlie that she was your girlfriend. So tell her and you two can stop being gross all the time when you think I'm not looking."

Santana blinked and looked at Charlie for a moment, "You heard Bela. Though I don't think that she understands that if we start dating we'll probably gross her out a lot more."

Charlie blinked, "You want to—with me?" She flushed when Santana gave her a dry look and Bela stared at her like she had grown a third head. "I mean—"

"You don't really have a choice in the matter. I've seen your attempts at trying to date women Charlie, it's not pretty." Santana said shaking her head as Charlie fumbled getting more nervous by the minute her cheeks growing an increasing shade of red. She wanted to see how this would go but at this point she wanted Charlie to just squeeze onto the damn hospital bed and hold her gently. She pauses when she sees tears in Charlie's eyes and blinks. "Bela—her eyes are leaking."

Bela looks up at Charlie and then her m other, "She's crying mom." Bela whispers slightly confused as to why Charlie was crying it was weird.

Santana raises a brow, "Are you crying because you just realized that you're going to be dating Satan again?" Charlie shakes her head and Santana glances at her daughter for a moment before looking back at Charlie.

"Don't make it weird Charlie," Bela lectures her, hoping to salvage the situation.

Charlie sniffles and wipes her face with her sleeve, "Hospitals just make me cry," she tries and she hears a snort from Santana. "They do!"

Bela tilted her head to her mother, "You know she wished for this," she says further throwing Charlie under the bus. She ignored the look that Charlie was giving her and just continued. "She's like super in love with you mom."

"Is she?" Santana asks her smile growing at Charlie's obvious discomfort.

"Yep, it's almost as bad as how much you love her," Bela laughed when Santana turned to her and narrowed her eyes. "So just—kiss already!"

Charlie shuffled closer to Santana, "We're being peer pressured by our daughter," she points out. "I mean you just had surgery, it can wait so it doesn't hurt—"

Santana rolled her eyes, Charlie wasn't who she remembered her to be but she had gotten used to this version of her and she loved her all the same. "Just get your ass over here," she barks wincing in pain as Charlie practically stumbles towards her. She narrows her eyes at Charlie who slowly smiles and a part of her wonders if Charlie enjoys being bossed around by her, well at least that had never really changed. She feels Charlie press her own lips against hers and she kisses back, it's a small kiss but it's a kiss none the less she's not going to scar her daughter who has a smug look on her face.

Bela hummed and crinkled her nose, this was her happy ending as well. She had both of her parents back but her wish wasn't exactly complete yet. "So—when am I going to get a baby sister?" She asks innocently smiling when both her parents turn to look at her. "Mom's going to get better cause you just had true loves kiss—so you need to start thinking about giving me a sister, or a brother. If I get a brother—then I can totally boss him around." She ignores the shocked look on her parent's faces and continues. "Maybe both so I can have minions?"

Charlie glanced at Santana, "She's your daughter," she mumbles to her.

"I thought we agreed that when she was like this she was your daughter," Santana grumbles.


AN: The epilogue