A/N - well, here we are. The end. I hope this ties things together for you.
Once again, I have to thank Sara for reading over everything. She is truly the best. And to all of my (nice) reviewers. I appreciate each and every one. And who knows, maybe we'll come back to this universe in a one shot. But for now, I bid adieu. Enjoy!

Chapter 12: Epilogue

April 2029

The intoxicating giggle that was coming from the monitor on her side of the bed caused Rachel to wake up with a smile. She rolled over on to her side, cuddling into Finn as he too was woken by the sound.

"I think our birthday girl is awake," he smiled sleepily as she rested her head on his chest. His hand found the top of her head, pushing her hair back from her face.

"It sure sounds like it," she laughed. "I can only imagine what is making her laugh like that."

"I can think of a few things," he chuckled just as a full blown squeal floated into the room. "We should go see what she's up to."

Rachel nodded, lifting her head off his chest for a moment. "But first," she placed her hands on his cheeks and pressed a soft kiss on his lips. When she pulled away, she smiled at him. "Happy birthday Daddy," she winked.

He laughed and tried to kiss her cheek gently as she untangled from his arms. "Oh come on,"

She laughed as she got out of bed, stretching before pulling her hair on top of her head.

"Our birthday girl awaits," she laughed as she left the room, making her way towards Alice's bedroom.

Finn fell back against the bed and groaned as he covered his eyes with his forearm before getting out of bed himself.

Rachel walked down the hallway and laughed to herself when she heard the giggles get louder. She pushed open the door and the only way to describe the scene in front of her, was that it brought an enormous smile to her face. Alice was standing up in her crib, curly brown hair sticking up everywhere and her cute navy blue pajamas all mused from a night of sleep. But what she couldn't miss, was the absolute look of joy on her little girl's face as Camden danced in front of her, playing with her favourite stuffed hippo and making noises with it that only the two of them could understand. This was a regular scene in her house these days. Camden had some sort of sixth sense about Alice, and would almost always know when she was awake before her first cry or laugh was emitted. It had been that way from the very beginning, and the bond that the two of them shared despite their (what Rachel considered) massive age difference was rather magical. She smiled as she leaned against the door frame, watching them interact and laughing slightly even when Alice squealed in delight.

As she watched them, she was instantly taken back to a moment, not quite like this but just as precious almost a year ago.

She couldn't take her eyes off the little girl in her arms. Everything about her was perfect, from the slight curl in her dark brown hair, right down to her tiny little toes. She was just in awe, this little being was part her and part Finn, and that thought took her breath away. She felt delirious with happiness, albeit a little exhausted as well. The night had been rough, Alice had seemed to inherit some of her brother's genes of impatience when it came to being fed and changed. She was thanking her lucky stars that she had Finn this time around, because he took it all in stride. He was all hands in from the moment she came out, screaming and flailing and hadn't stopped since.

She smiled as she leaned back on her uncomfortable hospital bed as she held the newborn in her arms. She didn't want to let her go; she couldn't let her go. She was too perfect and she was just too much in love and it was just too much to bear.

A gentle knock on the door broke her from her thoughts, and she smiled when Finn popped his head in.

"Hey babe," he smiled, his voice quiet. "Everything good?"

When she nodded, a smile lit up his handsome face as he opened the door wider and walked in, Camden attached to his leg.

He had gone home an hour ago to pick up Camden. They had planned for him to be the first one to meet her, and their parents understood that. Both sets would be by sometimes afterwards. She wouldn't doubt if her father's were already on the way and Finn's were in the waiting room.

She instantly spotted the uneasiness on Camden's features. His eyes fluttered around the room, taking in the sights and sounds of her quiet hospital room. The only noise, really, was the odd smacking of Alice's lips in her sleep, something she found incredibly adorable. Something she had inherited from Finn.

"Camden," she said gently. His eyes flew to hers immediately. "Hey Cam,"

"Mommy," he whispered as he wrapped his arm around Finn's leg, his other hand clutching a stuffed animal. He stood still as he looked at her, his eyes moving between her and Alice. Finn peeled his arm from around his leg gently before getting down to his level.

"Remember what we talked about in the car pal?" he said gently.

She watched Camden bite his lip. "Mommy had baby Alice," he replied slowly, his voice quiet and unsure.

"That's right Daddy brought Mommy to the hospital and the doctors, helped Alice come out of Mommy's tummy. She's right there in Mommy's arms, do you want to go see?"

"Go see," he murmured as he stuck his fingers in his mouth. Finn smiled and kissed Camden's head before standing up and bringing him over to the bed. He picked him up a little so he could see over the edge of the bed to see Alice.

"Camden, this is your baby sister Alice," Rachel introduced quietly. The baby grunted as Rachel shifted her slightly in her arms. "Alice, this is your big brother Camden."

"Alice," he whispered softly. He turned his head to look up at Finn before looking back at the baby. "Baby Alice," he used his free hand to reach out and touch the hand that was sticking out of her blanket gently. The wide grin that spread across his face brought tears to both Finn and Rachel's eyes. "Baby fingers!" he giggled. His eyes glittered as he looked at the baby. "Baby toes?"

Both Finn and Rachel chuckled. "She does have toes,"

He giggled again. "I sit Mommy?"

Finn's eyes flashed to hers as he made his request. Rachel smiled gently and shifted over slightly, wincing as she did so. She saw the concern spread on Finn's face immediately. She tried to brush him off. "Sure baby, right here..."

Finn placed Camden beside her on the bed. "Careful Pal,"

Rachel made sure she was holding Alice securely in her left arm before moving to wrap her other one around Camden. He immediately snuggled into her side, but his eyes never left Alice.

"My sister," he whispered giddily, before leaning over and grabbing the toy he had abandoned. "Hippo for sister!" He held it up triumphantly before holding it out to the baby. "For Alice!" he giggled. The baby's eyes fluttered open, almost as if she knew she was being talked about. Camden gasped and leaned over Rachel's side. "She awake Mommy!" he giggled. "Hi Alice!"

Rachel allowed her eyes to move away from Camden and Alice for a moment, finding Finn's at her side.

"Can I hold Mommy?" Camden asked after a few minutes of staring at her intently. He'd obviously decided she was okay.

"Of course," Rachel said softly. She looked up at Finn for a hand. He turned around to grab the extra pillow from the cupboard and placed it on Camden's lap. He gave them both a questioning look.

"It's so Alice stays comfy," Finn smiled. He walked around and took the baby from Rachel.

"Daddy! My turn!" Camden squealed. "I hold Alice!"

Rachel giggled as Finn walked around the bed while Rachel quickly showed Camden where to put his arms. When Finn placed the baby down in his arms Camden's eyes immediately zeroed in on her.

"She so little," he whispered.

Rachel laughed uncomfortably as she looked up at Finn for a second. She leaned over and pressed a kiss to the top of Camden's head just as the shutter of Finn's camera went off. She looked up and gave him a smile.

He put the camera down and returned it. "This is kind of perfect, isn't it?"

She just nodded as Camden giggled when Alice sneezed. "It's perfect."

"Mama!" Rachel was shaken from her thoughts by the high pitched squeal coming from the other side of the room. She grinned, seeing Alice's amber eyes glittering at her, both of her arms outstretched to her.

"Hi Mama!" Camden laughed. "Alice up!"

"I see that!" She walked across the room and laid a kiss on Alice's messy brown hair before kissing Camden's just as he scampered out of the room.

Alice squealed as Rachel lifted her out of the crib, instantly cuddling into her chest as she crossed the room to the change table.

"Did you have a good sleep?" She smiled as she placed her down on the change table. Alice grinned up at her as she giggled. She babbled her response as Rachel changed her diaper quickly before pulling her pajamas back up. She was just picking her up off the changing table when Alice began to giggle and squeal madly. Rachel turned around to see Finn standing in the doorway to the room.

To say Alice was a Daddy's girl was putting it mildly. From the moment she was born, the two of them had been attached at the hip. Her first word may have been Mama, but Rachel knew that if she could've blended the D sound first it would have been Dada. She lived for Finn, following him around where ever she could while doing her super crawl. Her eyes lit up, much like they were right now, whenever she saw him. And the feeling was mutual.

"There's my birthday girl!" he laughed as he padded across the soft white carpet as Alice giggled again. When he was close enough, Alice leaned out of Rachel's arms, trusting that Finn would grab her.

"Da!" she exclaimed as she settled against his chest, her thumb immediately finding her mouth. Rachel smiled as she looked at the two of them together. Both of them looked so content and happy, it made her heart swell just as a crash came from downstairs.

She closed her eyes and counted to five before leaving the room, attempting not to overreact. She made it down to the kitchen to find that Camden dragged a step stool to the counter and had been attempting to get the box of pancake mix out of the cupboard. In the interim, he had knocked over the steel mixing bowl he had grabbed and it had clamoured to the floor. Taking with it a container of icing sugar Rachel had kept on the counter. Far from the edge.

"Camden, what is going on in here?" She asked calmly as Finn followed behind her.

He stopped his movements before turning around to look at her. "I wanna make breakfast," he said softly as his eyes met hers. "For Alice,"

She sighed as she ran her hand through her hair. She walked slowly over to him, careful of the spilled icing sugar on the floor before reaching to help him down. He immediately looked at his feet, knowing he might get in trouble for doing this on his own. Rachel sighed as she nudged his head to look at her. "How about you help me clean up the floor and then we can make pancakes together?"

He nodded slowly before walking across the room to get the broom to start sweeping. Rachel looked across at Finn, who had busied himself getting Alice her morning bottle.

When breakfast was ready, Rachel let Camden take the pancakes into the dining room while she grabbed the coffee and juice. She chuckled when she heard Alice bang her hands against the tray of her high chair as Camden brought her hers. Did she mention she was exactly like her father? Always hungry. Always excited to eat.

They ate breakfast as a family before Rachel sent Camden upstairs to get dressed for the day. They were having their family over to celebrate (mostly) Alice's birthday, but she had gotten a small chocolate cake for Finn as well. She smiled as she watched Finn attempt to wipe Alice down with a face cloth. She had managed to get syrup everywhere and would require a bath before the party, but they seemed to be having fun together so she didn't have the heart to stop him. As Alice grinned up at Finn with her nose scrunched up and her teeth on proud display Rachel allowed herself to enjoy the moment, as her mind traced back to the first time they really got to see that smile.

She had been inconsolable all day. Alice had been a good baby, an easy baby by anyone's standards for the first four weeks of her life. But today she just wasn't having it at all. Rachel walked the house many times over, gently swaying and rocking the infant to try and get her to calm. She'd changed her diaper, given her a bath, changed her clothes, tried to feed her but she wouldn't take it - she had tried literally everything in her arsenal, everything that had worked with Camden. But nothing would calm the fussy newborn.

"Alice Jayne, I don't know how to help you baby, what's wrong sweetheart?" she murmured as she carried her through the house again before settling on the couch. She whimpered as Rachel sat and as she got comfortable the garage door rumbled to life.

"I think Daddy and Camden are home baby girl. Will that make you happy? Is that what's wrong?" she whispered into her head."Do you miss Daddy? Cause I miss Daddy."

Instead of the usual chaos that ensued when Camden came home from school, the house was relatively quiet. Rachel adjusted Alice in her arms and was starting to stand when Finn came in the room.

"Hey," he whispered, a smile on his face when he saw her holding Alice who immediately gave a whimper. "What's wrong?"

"She's just been all over the place today," Rachel sighed, adjusting the baby so she was leaning against her shoulder. She cradled her head as Alice sneezed. "Where's Cam?"

"Deanna and Molly invited him over for popsicles," he laughed. "I have to go get him after dinner..."

She nodded, biting her lip.

"Here, let me take her..." he sat down beside her and gestured to take the baby from her. "She been giving you a hard time?"

Rachel shrugged. "Not so much a hard time, she's just been unsettled. She slept a lot, but woke up in a weird mood. I think she's hitting a growth spurt or something I don't know,"

"Already?" he looked down at the baby in his arms. "But she's still so little..."

"They grow you know," she yawned with a laugh.

"You're not going to grow up ever are you AJ?" Finn asked as he looked down at her with a wide smile. "You're going to stay my little princess forever..."

"AJ?" Rachel quirked an eyebrow at him for a moment before leaning against his shoulder and closing her eyes for just a moment.

"Yeah. AJ. We decided it was a cool nickname, didn't we sweet pea?" he ran his finger over her warm cheek as she blinked up at him a few times, just before a small smile crossed her features. "Awe, Rach look! She's smiling!" Rachel opened her eyes and looked down at Alice who had a small, graceful smile on her face. Her eyes were wide as she stared up at Finn, and even if she didn't know it yet, Alice was well on her way to becoming a tried and true Daddy's girl. The look on Finn's face made her heart flip. He looked so enamoured, so pleased that he had caught one of her firsts. She even saw a tear pricking the corner of his eye as he held the gaze long after the smile had disappeared and Alice had closed her eyes.

"We made her Rach, isn't she amazing?" he whispered as he continued to look down at her. She leaned over and kiss his shoulder.

"She is pretty amazing," she smiled sleepily.

After breakfast, Finn offered to start decorating the living room while Rachel gave Alice a bath. His attempts at wiping her down with a cloth had been futile, especially once Alice got a hold of it and started to clean him with it. Rachel laughed as Alice babbled to herself in a singsong voice as she slapped her hands against the sudsy water.

"You having fun princess?" she asked softly as she ran the wash cloth over her back. Alice grinned up at her with her classic Finn-like grin as she grabbed for the plastic duck that was floating in the water. She responded with a slap to the water. "Today's a special day baby girl. Today you're one year old!" she sighed as she filled a plastic cup with warm water and dumped it over her shoulders gently to rinse her off. "I can't believe you're a year old already baby. Though you're not technically a year until later tonight," she chuckled. "Seems like only yesterday I was telling Daddy I was pregnant with you, let alone welcoming you. This year has been so amazing," she murmured as she let Alice play for another minute. "You've shown me so much Alice, about the world, about life, about your father even. I knew he was a good man, because he chose to love me and your brother as a package deal, but seeing him with you baby girl...has made me fall in love with him even more. And it's because of you princess. You've done amazing things for our family, for me just by being here. It's been a wild ride these last few months, and there's never a dull moment with you around but that's what I love most about you baby girl. You're never scared, and maybe that's because I was scared enough for the both of us while I was pregnant with you - but that's just it. You've shown me a whole other way to love baby girl and I love you for it."Alice turned and grinned up at her once more.

"Mama," she smiled.

"Mama loves you princess," Rachel smiled as she sniffled. "Now, let's wash your hair so we can get you in your pretty party dress!"

She felt herself getting teary as she dressed Alice in her pretty light blue dress afterwards. She really was growing up, right in front of her eyes. Gone was the small newborn who had fit perfectly in her arms, in her place was a burgeoning toddler. Her little girl wasn't a baby anymore and that thought alone caused her to tear. She had grown so fast it seemed, and had now become this wonderful being that she was so glad she got to call hers. She'd been thinking about it for the last few days as they prepared for the awesome Alice in Wonderland themed party they were throwing, about how much her life had changed for the better since having Alice. Since deciding even, that her and Finn were ready to have a baby together. She had been so scared, so terrified that things would go wrong, Finn wouldn't love Camden anymore, Finn wouldn't love the baby if she was sick and a million other things. But she had been wrong. She should've known he would prove her wrong. He was the epitome of a devoted father to BOTH of their children, making time for each of them every day even if he only had a few minutes. She had to stop herself sometimes when she watched him with both of them, she had to pinch herself that this was her life.

They had decided, somewhere around the time that Alice turned three months old that this was it for them. They weren't going to have any more kids. Their lives were busy with two children who were on two completely different schedules at the time. It had been Finn who had brought it up to her, about how he felt their family was perfect the way it was and she'd be lying if she said she wasn't relieved when he told her that. But now as she watched Alice carefully twirl in her blue dress in the mirror, she wondered if that was the right decision. She quickly shook her head at the thoughts. It was the right decision. Their family was perfect.

"There's the birthday girl!" Both her and Alice turned around to see Burt standing in the doorway, Carole right behind him. Alice squealed as he stepped into her bedroom and as soon as she had deemed him close enough she took a few tentative steps towards him, falling into her beloved Papa's arms. If there was anyone in the world she loved more than Finn it was Burt. Alice had been attached to him from the moment he had held her the day after she was born.

Rachel laughed as she stood up from where she had been sitting on the carpet. Burt had started to smother the baby in kisses as she shrieked in delight while both her and Carole looked on. She walked towards her mother-in-law and gave her a quick hug.

"You guys are here early," she smiled. It wasn't a surprise, really. Burt and Carole were the first ones to arrive 99.9% of the time.

"Well you know, we just couldn't wait. A certain someone has been dying to play with his princess all day..." Carole chuckled. "He wanted to get his snuggles in before everyone else descended."

Rachel chuckled as she watched her father-in-law place Alice down on her feet before taking her hands and walking her out of the bedroom. "Plus I thought maybe you'd need some help..."

Rachel gave Carole another squeeze before smiling. "Of course."

They walked downstairs to find Finn and Camden hanging blue and white streamers around the living room, while Burt and Alice had plopped down beside the few toys Rachel had left in the room for her.
"I guess we're not needed in here," Rachel joked as she turned to Carole. "Come on, I'll show you the cake..."

It was a hot day in July when Alice got sick for the first time. Her shrill cry that emited over the baby monitor shook both Rachel and Finn out of bed, nothing like her normal cry. Being much more attuned to the infant than Finn, Rachel got to her first and has her in her arms before Finn could even comprehend what's really going on.

"Oh Alice," Rachel murmured against her forehead as the baby continued to cry. She held her carefully, the baby shrieking every time she goes to move her. For once, she's glad Camden is gone for the week, spending some one on one time at Carole and Burt's while Finn completes a particularly hard class online.

She kissed the baby's forehead gently, grimacing when she can feel the slight heat that she knows by now is indicative of a fever. Camden had a lot of fevers when he was younger, a lot of them leading to the many ear infections he had in the first two years of his life. She was well versed in fevers.

"What?" Finn asked softly as he placed his hand on Alice's back as she cried. The baby's back flinched when he touched her, and she noticed the sad twinge cross Finn's features.

"I think she has a fever," she murmured as she adjusted her arm that was supporting Alice's bottom.

Finn's face paled immediately as he looked at Rachel.

"It's okay Ally, it's okay," Rachel whispered into her hair as the baby cried. She moved away from Finn, going back towards the bedroom as the baby's cries dulled slightly, coming out as a whimper as she nuzzled her face into Rachel's chest. Finn followed behind her, unsure what else to do.

He watched unsure as Rachel settled on the bed, laying back against the pillow and still managing to hold the baby firmly.

"Can I help?" he whispered. The baby jolted when he reached out to touch her again, causing her to cry.

"I got it. I'm gonna try to feed her, " she whispered.

"Is she going to be okay?" he whispered, his voice lowering just as the baby shrieked as Rachel attempted to get her to latch. Rachel whimpered with the baby as she looked up at Finn. She tried to muster a smile as the baby's cries started up again. "Yeah. It's probably just a cold."

"And that's normal? It's July..." he crawled into the bed beside her, careful not to jostle the baby too much as she was already so fussy. His heart was breaking as he heard her cries dull to a whimper again. "I'll

go turn the air off..."

She reached over to grab his arm to prevent him from getting off the bed.

"I need you here..." she whispered. "Can you hold her? I'm going to go get a lighter sleeper..."

He nodded and took the baby from her, smiling a little when she hiccupped as he held her.

"You okay princess?" he whispered as he cuddled her to him. His lips brushed her forehead, cringing when he felt what Rachel had felt moments ago. His baby was sick and he felt helpless.

"I know you feel crummy baby, I'm so sorry," he whispered. She hiccupped against his shirt, grabbing for the material in her small hand. He kissed her head again as they waited for Rachel to come back.

Rachel returned moments later with a lighter sleeper and a diaper. She changed her quickly on the bed after taking her temperature. Alice immediately began to cry afterwards, and as soon as he could Finn picked her up to comfort her. She in fact, had a slight fever. Rachel nibbled her lip as she looked at Finn with Alice, running her fingers up and down Alice's back.

"What can we do for her?" he whispered as she buried her head in his chest, rubbing her stuffy nose against his shirt. He back down on the bed, getting as comfortable as possible with the baby in his arms.

Rachel sighed. "It's not too high. Unfortunately we can't give her anything for it, just cuddle her and keep her comfy..."

"My poor princess," he murmured, brushing his lips against her head again.

She leaned over and laid her head on Finn's shoulder, looking intently at Alice just as she turned to look at her. Her brown eyes were filled with tears as she clutched Finn's shirt.

"Her poor nose," she whispered as the baby sniffled. "She's so stuffy."

Finn nodded, never taking his eyes off Alice.

They managed to get a little of sleep themselves once they had calmed her down enough to fall asleep. But Finn couldn't sleep. They had put Alice in the bassinet they still had in their room, and he spent the early morning hours laying awake listening to her laboured breathing. She sounded so stuffy and so uncomfortable and that hurt his heart. He knew it was just a cold, and trusted that Rachel knew what to do because he was aware Camden had had a lot of them when he was younger. But it still didn't make it any easier. So when she began to wake up, he was up and had her in his arms before she could fully cry.

"I got you princess," he whispered as he cuddled her.

He took her out of the bedroom and headed to hers, sinking down into the recliner in her room. She refused to take a soother from him, fussing as he tried.

"I'm not good at this like Mama AJ," he whispered as he held her up against his chest again. "What can I do to help you baby? Are you hungry? Should I wake Mama up? Or wait...we have a bottle in the fridge..." she whimpered against his chest. "Or how about a bath? The book said a warm bath might help you, you know...be comfortable. And you love your baths," he whispered. When she didn't make a noise, he carefully held her against his chest as he got out of the chair. He padded across the room to grab her towel and a new diaper before taking her into the bathroom. She fussed as he held her.

"I know, I know. But remember that time the water was too cold? Neither of us liked that, remember AJ?" he chuckled as her hand involuntary smacked his shoulder.

When the water in the baby bathtub was right, he laid her on the bathmat and carefully stripped her sleeper and diaper off before gently easing her into the bathtub. She whined at first, but once she was settled and he started running a washcloth over her tummy, she settled as much as she could.

"There we go baby," he whispered. She looked at him, her eyes drooping with sleep. He could tell just by looking at her that she didn't feel well, but he also felt pretty proud that he had figured out a way to make her calm. He loved bath time, and he was the one who gave her most of them because it was the one time during the day he could spend time with her one on one. "I wish I could do more to make you feel better princess," he whispered as he ran the wash cloth over her arm.

"But it looks like you're doing a good job," he paused and turned around to see Rachel standing behind him in the doorway. She smiled softly as she approached them. "When did she wake up?"

"Few minutes ago," he whispered. "We decided to take a bath so you could sleep," he smiled softly. She leaned over and pressed a kiss to his cheek before leaning over and doing the same for Alice.

Rachel smiled as she watched Camden and Alice playing together on the floor with Blaine, Alice squealing as she gently bopped her favourite uncle on the head with the balloon much like Camden had shown her to do. Blaine was taking it all in good fun as they attacked him with their balloons, the rest of the family was milling about, talking and catching up. She looked up across the room and caught Finn's eye from where he was talking with her Papa. He smiled gently at her, their eyes locking as she walked across the room and curled into his side when she got there. Her Papa smiled as he took a sip of the blue punch Rachel and Carole had made earlier.

"I remember when you were her age Rachel, she reminds both me and your Dad of you when you were her age..."

"And how does that work, cause she is Finn's twin," she chuckled.

"Nah," Finn laughed as he squeezed her hip."She's exactly like you babe," he gestured to where they were playing on the floor. "That laugh?" he pointed out as Alice squealed when Blaine rolled over and "caught" her from whacking him with another balloon. "That's all you. She may look like me, but she's you 100%."

"She's a Daddy's girl though," she laughed.

"Which is also why, she is exactly like you," her Dad interjected.

"Well, I think it's time for...presents," Rachel smiled as she approached where Alice was sitting with Finn eating some of the fruit they had put out for the party. She grinned up at Rachel with her teeth.

"Mama!" she squealed as she picked up a slice of grape, squished it in her hand before holding it out to her.

"Are you eating with Daddy?"

"Da!" she exclaimed as she threw her head back against his chest. Finn winced as her head hit with a thunk.

"Oh, is Daddy eating?"

Alice nodded her head quickly before giggling. "Well, how about we let Daddy finish and we open some presents?" Rachel laughed as she widened her eyes in excitement. Alice copied, clapping her hands in excitement. Rachel gently took her from Finn's lap. She kissed Alice's head as she clapped her hands again. Finn finished eating before getting the family's attention so they could open presents. Camden immediately plopped down beside Rachel and Alice, grabbing one of the presents to pass to her.

"This from Nana and Papa," Camden smiled as he placed the big pink box in front of her. She looked at it quizzically for a moment before looking up at Rachel.

"Member Alice?" Camden smiled. He sat up on his knees and reached over for some of the paper. "like this!" he exclaimed as he pulled. She giggled as she pulled at the paper like Camden showed her. Inside the box was a pink elephant popper.

"I had blue one!" Camden laughed. "It's fun Alice!"

Both Rachel and Finn laughed before taking the gift from Alice and passed her another bag, this one also from Burt and Carole. Inside was enough clothes for the entire year.

"Now this one," Camden smiled as he passed a box wrapped in colourful paper to Alice. "It's from me!"

Rachel raised an eyebrow and looked at Finn. He shrugged. She wasn't aware that Camden had gotten Alice a gift. Obviously Finn wasn't aware either.

"I got it with Nana and Papa," he grinned. "I picked it!"

"I bet she's going to love it, right Ally?"

She giggled from Rachel's lap as she slapped the gift in front of her. Camden helped her tear at the paper and they both laughed once the gift was unwrapped.

"It's Legos!" Camden smiled, showing Alice. "It's Legos Alice! Like mine but pink! Alice like them?"

She grinned over at Camden and smacked her lips, which everyone knew was her indication that she wanted a kiss. Camden leaned over and pressed a sloppy kiss to Alice's cheek as she giggled.

Once all the gifts were opened, though the most beloved gift was definitely the Legos Camden had picked out, Rachel and Finn went to get the cake ready amid the squeals as Camden opened the blocks. Rachel licked her fingers after she pulled the lid off the cake, tasting the sweet icing. She smiled as she made sure, once more, that it was just perfect. Finn wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek as the family's chatter picked up.

"Can you believe she's a year old already?" he murmured as he nuzzled his face in her neck. Rachel smiled as she sank back into him a little bit as he held her. "Where did the time go?"

"It's all gone by so fast," she murmured. She turned in his arms and wrapped her arms around his neck. "But we still have many, many years left..." she smiled, playing with the hair at the back of his neck.

He gave her a crooked smile just as she familiar slap of Alice's hands against the tile of the kitchen interrupted them.

"Mama!" she squealed as she found Rachel's legs, using the jeans she was wearing to pull herself up. Rachel laughed as she reached down and picked her up, placing her on her hip. "Da!"

Finn grinned as he pressed a kiss to her head and then her cheek. Alice giggled.

"What are you doing in here, AJ?"

"Da!" she grinned as she clapped her hands together.

"I think she just wanted us," Rachel smiled. She tugged gently at Alice's dress. "You ready for cake?"

Alice grinned as Rachel kissed her cheek once more.

"Finn, will you get it?" she nodded to the cake she had just been admiring, which was delicately decorated with the image of Alice in Wonderland characters, except the Alice was a brunette. Just like their Alice.

He nodded, moving to take it out of the box.

She gathered the family in the dining room and settled Alice in her high chair as Finn lit the candle.

"Ready?" he called.

"When you are," Rachel smiled as she ran her fingers through Camden's hair. He was insistent on standing beside Alice's chair.

Burt dimmed the lights and the family began to sing happy birthday as Finn brought the cake in. Alice's eyes lit up as he held the cake in front of her as the final words of the song were uttered.

"Blow Alice," Camden laughed. "Do like this," he smiled as he puffed out his cheeks. Alice giggled before trying to copy what Camden was doing.

The family clapped when she successfully blew out the candle with the help of Camden, Rachel and Finn. When it was cut and a piece was placed in front of her, Rachel laughed as she looked at her face. She looked completely unsure of what she was supposed to do.

"Mama?" she asked quietly. Rachel passed the knife she was using to cut to Finn and leaned over to get closer to Alice.

"It's cake baby, look.." she picked a piece of the frosting off and licked her finger. "Yum,"

"Oh, come on Rach..." Finn laughed as he looked at them. The rest of the family had cake so he walked over to the two of them and crouched on the other side of Alice's high chair. He picked up her hand and dropped it slowly into the piece of chocolate cake. Rachel immediately groaned as Alice pulled her hand out and looked at it covered in icing. "What? Rach, you only turn one once," he winked. "Try it AJ...watch..." he swiped his finger along the side of her piece of cake and licked his finger. She imitated what he did, making a face as she did so. She giggled as she licked her hand again, loving the icing. "See, it's good baby girl!"

Finn walked through the lower level of the house, shutting off the lights as he went. Camden was tucked in his bed upstairs with a book as he wound down from the sugar high that he had been on all day. He'd lost the chance to watch a movie when he had a meltdown of non-9 year old proportions as the family left the party. Finn rubbed his face as he neared the bathroom, his lips forming a grin as he listened to the splashes that were telltale signs that Alice was in the bath.

"There's Daddy," Rachel smiled as she ran her fingers through Alice's damp hair. "We were waiting for you..."

"I had to lock up the house," he smiled. He walked over to the tub and knelt beside it, leaning his forearms on the side. Alice chuckled as she pushed her rubber duck forward.

"Will you watch her? I forgot her towel in her room..." Rachel asked as she stood up.

"Course. We can party without Mommy for a second, can't we princess?" She gave him a sleepy grin before going back to her bubbles. Rachel smiled at the two before leaving to go get the fluffy towel.

"Did you have a good birthday princess?" he asked quietly as she played with the water. She gently moved her duck through the bubbles. He could see she was getting tired, and he could smell the lavender bubble bath Rachel had used to help soothe her.

"You don't really understand what it means to have a birthday, do you?" he whispered as he leaned his head on his arms. His fingers danced in the water. "Well one year ago, in a few more hours actually you graced us with your beautiful little face. And the first moment I laid eyes on you Alice Jayne I was sunk. You stole my heart in the same way your Mama and brother did and I haven't looked back since. You make my world brighter, more illuminated. Every time you smile, laugh, do that little butt wiggle that Camden says is your dance moves, I fall deeper and deeper in love with you. You've completed our family baby girl. And I am so proud that I get to be your daddy."

"Dada," she grinned as she lifted her hand to touch the side of his face. "Dada."

"Dada loves you Alice. So much baby girl." he kissed her little hand as she giggled.

Sniffling from behind them broke the moment. Finn smiled bashfully as Rachel walked back into the bathroom more, fluffy hooded towel in hand. She knelt down beside him as he turned to look at her for a moment, her eyes shining with tears.

"Why are you crying? Why's Mommy crying AJ?" he asked softly as he turned back to her. Rachel laid her head on Finn's shoulder.

"You're perfect. You know that right?"

He shook his head.

"Dada," Alice smiled happily before emitting a yawn.

"See, even she thinks so..." Rachel smiled. She picked up the fluffy pink towel and passed it to Finn. "I think our birthday girl is tired,"

Finn smiled as he turned to her. Rachel began to drain the tub as Finn scooped a sleepy Alice out of the tub with practiced precision. She cuddled into Finn's chest as she stuck her thumb in her mouth.

"I think your right Mommy, our baby is tired..."

Rachel smiled as she followed them out of the bathroom and towards Alice's room. Rachel moved ahead and grabbed a diaper and pajamas before Finn made it to the change table. She was already half asleep by the time Rachel slid the zipper of her pajamas up to her chin.

"We did good, huh?" he whispered as Rachel picked her up. Alice snuggled into her chest as Finn ran his fingers through her hair.

"We did," she smiled as she pressed a kiss to Alice's forehead. She laid her in the crib and both of them stood there for a moment just watching her. Finn leaned over and pressed a kiss to her cheek before standing back up and wrapping his arms around Rachel.

"We should leave her to sleep," she whispered as leaned against him.

"I just want to watch her for a minute," he whispered back. "I just can't believe she's already a year old. I just want to freeze time and keep her this little..."

Rachel smiled and patted his cheek. "I love you."

She took his hand gently after a few more minutes and led him to their bedroom. He allowed her to pull him with her, before they came to a stop in the middle. She held both of his hands in hers before leaning up and capturing his lips tightly in hers. When he pulled away, a slow grin came to his face.

"Thank you," she whispered as she came to stand back on her feet properly. He raised his hand to push her hair back from her face.

"For what?" he whispered.

"Everything," she sighed. "You are my everything,"

"You're mine," he whispered as he leaned down to capture her lips with his. "I promised you a long time ago that I would be whatever you and Camden needed me to be..." He was caught off guard by her pressing another kiss to his lips.

"You were you. You didn't have to change. You just had to love us."

"And I do. You and Camden and our little princess. You all changed my life. Forever."

"Forever," she whispered as she looked down at her feet before looking back up at him "Happy birthday Finn."

"Best. Birthday. Ever," he grinned before pulling her into him and kissing her senseless.

Fin.
I still don't own Finn, Rachel or anyone from glee. I do, however own Camden, Alice and the plot.