I'm so sorry for the delay. I'm just so lazy when I'm on holidays and the days are just too short... So there has been a little jump in time, I hope you won't mind. And I had more ideas for the end of the scene but this would just have made it too long so I'll probably save it for the next chapter. But I'll stop talking and let you read. Don't forget to tell me what you think of it in the reviews ! They are highly appreciated, I can assure you of that.

Several months later Tom was sitting in the waiting room of an hospital. He could feel Sam squeezing his hand in order to calm him down but his foot was still moving up and down, and there was nothing he could do about it. On the other side of him he could sense Leo, whose feet was mirroring his exactly. They were both physically in that waiting room but their mind were further down the corridor and there was no distracting them from that.

A nurse finally came to them. Leo and Tom quickly jumped to their feet, slowly followed by a much less nervous Sam. But neither one of them was noticing the flagrant lack of enthusiasm of Tom's boyfriend. They were much too focused on what the nurse was about to say. She gave them a big smile and made her announcement with a warm voice. She was mainly looking at Leo who looked just like as he was about to burst. "Your mother is just fine and you now have a living and kicking healthy little sister."

Tom and Leo turned to each other and fell in one another's arm. They couldn't believe what was happening and the joy they were experiencing felt as if it was limitless. Leo had been waiting for so long to have a little sister that he had almost given up. Even with his mother being pregnant he hadn't quite realized he would actually get to be a brother in the end, probably because he had been too busy trying to stay mad at Julia for so long. But now all he could feel was joy and the anger had gone away. Tom, on the other hand, had been too busy worrying about this child never seeing the light of day that he had forgotten that this child might one day actually be living and breathing. Even when the doctors had assured him that everything would be okay and that Julia and the baby were as healthy as possible, he hadn't been willing to get his hopes up. But now this wasn't hopes anymore, this was reality.

Sam looked at them with a small grin on his face. His lack of reaction wasn't because he was lacking interest in Julia's baby but because, unlike the other two, he had always believed in that baby. From the moment Tom had told him about Julia being pregnant, he had had the feeling that everything was going to be just fine, that now was their time to be happy. He looked at the nurse with his charming smile, being the only one left with his two feet on the ground.

"Can we see them ?"
"Of course, she has been asking for you."

Sam put his hand on Tom's shoulder and Tom finally moved away from Leo's arms. He took the hand Sam was offering him and they followed Leo into Julia's room.

But the three of them stopped after entering the room. The picture in front of them was just too perfect to be broken. Julia was in her hospital bed, holding the baby in her arms. She looked tired and sweaty but she was glowing with happiness and her smile had never been more large. Michael had climbed into the bed next to her and he had his arms wrapped around her shoulders. He was staring at his new kid, glowing just as much as Julia. All the drama they had gone through was forgotten. Now they were just that happy family who had just welcomed a new member. A tear began falling on Tom's cheek. He had never thought his best friend might get that happy again.

Julia noticed them as Tom moved his hand to wipe the tear off his cheek. "Hey you."
They all came closer to her bed, too amazed to get one single word out of their mouths. It's Julia who broke off the silence by handing the baby to Leo. "You wanna hold your sister ?"
He didn't say anything, tears were beginning to form in his eyes and his throat was swelling. He just grabbed his sister a little clumsily and fell in love with the big translucent eyes with which she was looking at him. When he raised his eyes, he noticed that everyone was looking at him with friendly smiles. Even if he hadn't shown it in the past months, he was glad they were all part of his family, even if they weren't all linked by blood, and he smiled to show them that. He then turned to Tom, whose eyes were glued on the little human being in his arms, and handed him his sister.

Tom could feel Sam's arm around his waist while he was holding this little piece of perfection, perfect mix of Julia's and Michael's amazing features. He turned his head towards him and he could see that Sam was also thinking about the conversation they had had earlier about eventually adopting a child of their own. Their relationship wasn't there yet but they both hoped she would be soon. Then he turned his eyes to the perfect couple in the bed. "And what's her name ?"

Michael and Julia turned to each other and smiled. It was Julia who told everyone.
"We were thinking about Marilyn, what do you guys think of it ?"
They all laughed but deep down they liked it. This wouldn't be an easy name to live with but this just made perfect sense. It was Marilyn who had brought them all together.
"I love it." Tom simply said.
"Jeez, another Marilyn !"

They all turned to where the voice had come from to find Derek laughing. He looked as if he had been running. "Derek ?" Tom was surprised to see him here. Julia had told him that he had been really nice to her and really helpful with everything she needed, but somehow he wouldn't believe her. This was Derek she was talking about !

"I came as soon as I heard." His eyes fell on the baby Tom was holding and his face froze. "Oh gosh, she is amazing, Julia."

"Do you want to hold her ?" Julia was acting as if everything was absolutely normal, whereas they were all startled by Derek's attitude. Apparently she was the only one who had been allowed to see that side of him.

Usually he wouldn't have acted like that in front of everyone else but today was a special day, he would have all the time in the world to get back his bad reputation another day. So he bit back the snarky comment he was about to make and nodded. Tom looked at Julia with a puzzled look. But she nodded too so he had no other choice but to hand the baby over to Derek, who took her as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

Tom smirked. "I thought the child thing had never ceased to perplexe you."
"Back off, Tom." Derek didn't give him more than a few seconds of a death glare before drawing his attention back to Marilyn and offering her a smile he had never offered anyone before.

Julia looked at all the men in her life. She was glad they were all here, surrounding her with all their love. She was fighting to keep her eyes open and revel in the moment a little bit longer, but the nurse came back into the room and noticed her sleepy eyes.

"It's a little bit crowded in here, what do you say about all giving her a little space and coming back later ?" She took the little girl from Derek's arms and watched them all go through the door, even though none of them seemed willing to go. She then turned her attention back to the bed, where Michael was still holding Julia in his arms. "You too, sir."
"But..."
"There is no but, she need rest and you will have all the time in the world to see her later." She had this stern look that worked on all the patients' families, so Michael complied and kissed the redhead one more time before leaving the room. The nurse was right, now he had all the time in the world to spend time with Julia, he wasn't the other man anymore.

Once he was gone the nurse helped Julia making herself more comfortable and looked at her with a comforting smile. "That's some family you got."
"Yes, they are great." And she closed her eyes, finally getting the rest she needed.