I've had this chapter planned since about halfway through the BYOR and it has been sitting on my phone ever since and I am so happy it is finally out in the open! I'm actually surprised I managed to update this story so fast with all the college stuff I'm doing this is a real accomplishment and hopefully a sign that a good writing streak is starting.

We'll just have to wait and see though!

Enjoy!

-DFD

Chapter 2

The alarm on his phone woke him promptly at six in the morning. Padme was still curled into his arms, making him for a split second reconsider leaving, but if he didn't go now, he doubted he never would. Planting a kiss on her bare shoulder, he made to turn to get out of bed. Padme moaned as he moved and she was quick to turn his way, wrapping her arm across his chest and her legs over his thighs. "No." She murmured, "Stay. It's too early."

Anakin sighed and detangled himself from her before kissing her lips lightly, "Sorry, Angel." He said, "But if I don't go now, Rex'll never forgive me for leaving him at the airport."

"He can take a cab. And you can do your guys weekend thing another time."

Anakin laughed and kissed her once more, "I'll be back before you know it." He said, "I love you." Pulling the cover over her shoulder, he retreated into the bathroom to quickly get ready for the weekend. After a quick shower and throwing on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, he took one last glance at Padme as she slept before picking up his duffle bag and jacket and walking out the door.

He was nervous as he rode his motorbike. He feels somewhat bad about lying to Padme. He isn't going to spend the weekend with Rex- he isn't even back from tour yet. Instead, he is going up to Naboo. The ride up will take up a good part of the day and it will take another to get back home. His mind raced with the hundreds of ways this trip could go wrong, but he had to do it. For Padme. The duffle bag slung over his shoulder had been packed days in advance with his best suit and an expensive bottle of wine. He knew this day was coming and he had spent hours meticulously planning out how all of this would happen. He had a mental list of small talk prepared as well as explanations for everything he could think of that would be asked of him. He only hoped things went well enough that he wouldn't leave empty handed.

By the time he pulled into the cheap motel it was already after eight at night and his palms were sweaty. After checking in, he laid out his suit, taking extra care to smooth out all the wrinkles in it before hanging it on the bathroom door. Peeling off his sweaty shirt, he dropped it to the floor, pacing several times as he tried to calm his nerves before deciding it was pointless to calm down and opted to climb into bed instead. Still in his jeans, he rested his head against the pillow, his eyes on the ceiling for a few minutes before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small blue velvet box and opening it. The ring inside was beautiful. Better than the first ring he had gotten her. He had been saving for it for months but he had already known this was going to happen ever since all the chaos in their lives ended. Anakin smiled as he stared at the center diamond, tilting it in the case and watching as it caught the light. This time everything would be perfect and that started with going about all of this the right way. It started with being the perfect gentleman and asking her parent's permission to marry her.

He had only seen her parents on two occasions in the last two years and neither of them went well at all. Despite his best efforts, he had never completely won her parents over and both of them had their reservations about his part in their daughter's life. Her father was the more vocal about these concerns but they knew from her mother's silence and how she watched Anakin carefully that she wasn't happy about this relationship either. Both instances hurt Padme greatly and both resulted in him sitting up late with her as she tried to convince, mostly herself, that their opinions didn't matter. But he knew that they did. He knew how much she wanted her parents to accept him and how she would want them there when they did get married and there was nothing that was going to stop him from at least trying.

Closing the case, he held it tightly in his hand before putting it back in his jeans. He was absolutly terrified he would lose it- always afraid that when the moment came he would forget it or put is somewhere and never find it. To prevent that, he's been keeping it in his pocket so he always knows where it is. If he is being honest, its a wonder Padme never noticed it when they had sex, but then again whenever the mood strikes, they don't really pay attention to anything else and they can't seem to get their clothes off fast enough. Anakin lets out a slow sigh as he closes his eyes. He doubts he will get much sleep, but as long as he gets some, he should be fine.

[][][][]

Padme finishes the chart for her morning tumor surgery as Dorme returns from one of the patients who finds fault with every little thing in the room. "I thought you'd be at lunch with loverboy by now." Dorme said as she leaned back in a chair.

"No, he's having a guy weekend with Rex." She said, "He just got back from his tour and Anakin is treating him by taking him out drinking and maybe a stripclub or two."

Dorme raised a brow, "And you're okay with that?"

She nodded, "I wasn't at first, but he did promise to make it up to me when he got back."

The devilish smirk on her face made it clear what Dorme was thinking, "Really?"

Padme let out a sigh, "Yes. And for us that is probably a nice romantic dinner followed by binging old TV shows."

"And sex." Dorme added, "No need to be shy, we all know what happens when you two are in an on call room alone."

Padme returned her gaze to the chart, not seeing a point in arguing with Dorme. "By the way, Thank you for the birthday gift." She said, "It… was very nice."

Dorme gave a mock bow, "I wanted to get something both you and Anakin could enjoy, I'm glad it all worked out."

She shook her head and asked herself yet again why she let Dorme in on her sex life in the first place.

[][][][]

Just as he expected, Anakin got very little sleep last night. He spent most of it waking up every few hours before struggling to fall asleep again. But that combined with the fact it was nine when he got up, meant he got at least five hours of sleep, which was at least something. Anakin took an extra hour in the bathroom when he got ready in the morning. Taking a slightly longer shower and shaving as close as he could without cutting himself as well as checking his suit again and smoothing it out before he finally put it on. He took extra care as he fixed his hair before he reasoned he looked as decent as he could look. Taking a deep breath, he grabs the bottle of wine and rides for Padme's Parent's house. They didn't live too far from the motel but as he turned onto the street, he cursed himself, knowing he had already made a mistake by just showing up without any warning. But pulling into the driveway, he couldn't turn back now. With a deep breath, he smooths over his hair again and makes his way up the porch and knocks. He fiddles with his hands, unsure if hands in the pocket is too lax, or if he his jacket should be buttoned or not. Shifting his feet awkwardly, he curses under his breath for being this nervous. He's a surgeon. He cuts into people's hearts and one false move could kill them. This shouldn't be so hard. Asking the parents of the woman he loves for their blessing to marry should not be this terrifying. And yet it is. It is the most terrifying thing he's done and this has to go perfectly.

He heard Padme's mother on the other side of the door telling him to wait a moment and he soon saw her silhouette through the stained glass of the door. As the door opens, Jobal smiles at him a moment before realizing who he is. "Anakin?" She asks, startled by his arrival, "What are you doing here?" She asked.

Anakin rubbed the back of his neck, "Hello, I, uh… I was hoping to talk to you and your husband, actually." He said, "I-I know I'm probably the last person you want to talk to but-"

Jobal held her hand up to stop him, "No, no, its… Fine." She said, it was obvious she was only saying it out of curtesy but he smiled and handed her the bottle of wine he brought.

"Uh, Padme's mentioned several times you two are a couple of wine connoisseurs. This is one of the best Alderaani wines I've had." In truth, Padme had described them as 'wine snobs' but he would never say that to her parents.

Jobal accepted the wine and ushered him inside. Their house was large and lavish with paintings and pictures of memories hanging from the walls. Padme's father, Ruwee was seated in the living room. When he looked up to see who their guest was his eyes narrowed .

"Anakin." He said, his tone bitter as if the name left a bad taste in his mouth.

"Mr. Naberrie, sir." He greeted, "I apologize for coming unannounced."

"What do you want, boy?" He asked.

Anakin took a seat across from Ruwee and biting back on how being called 'boy' bugged him. "I love your daughter." He said, straight and to the point and felt his confidence boost knowing he means it with every fiber of his being, "I love Padme. And she means… more than anything to me. I love her. And I want to spend the rest of my life with her. I…I'm here because I would like your blessing for us to marry."

Ruwee sat back in his seat, crossing his legs as he took in his words. "You didn't come for my permission last time," He scoffed.

Anakin nodded his head, "I'm aware of that, sir." He said, "I'm also aware that you still see me as the boy who broke her heart." Anakin wiped his hands on his pant legs, "I'm not that boy anymore." He said, "I'm not as aggressive, or impulsive anymore; I've worked hard to be a better man- the kind of man your daughter deserves. I'm not perfect, but if she'll have me, I'll do everything in my power to make her happy." His eyes darted between Ruwee and Jobal opposite him. He saw how Jobal seemed to let her guard down and how she watched her husband. If anything, Anakin hoped he at least had her mother, but her father was certainly the harder of the two.

Ruwee shook his head, "No." He said, "You do not have my permission."

Anakin leaned forward, "All due respect, sir; but why? What can I do?"

"Nothing." He said, "My mind is made up."

"Ruwee." Jobal placed her hand on her husband's thigh, "Can't you see how much he cares for Padme?" She asked, "This young man came all the way here to ask us. I doubt Padme even knows he's here." She turned her head to him and Anakin shook his head.

"She doesn't know. She thinks I'm spending the weekend with a friend."

Jobal turned back to her husband, "Lets at least consider it." She offered before turning back to Anakin, "Why don't you stay for lunch? That way we can have some time to get to know you better since the last few times we've seen you things hadn't exactly been… ideal."

He nodded his head, "Of course, I'd love to." She smiled and left, going for the kitchen to probably start on lunch.

With Ruwee eyeing him, and not knowing what else to say to the man, he figured it was best to stay quiet rather than risk saying something and ruining everything. He had no idea where to look and rather than stare blankly ahead, he made it look as though he was admiring the pictures on the walls. In truth he couldn't tell much from the distance, but it at least felt less awkward.

After several minutes, Ruwee stood and left him in the living room alone. Anakin heaved a sigh and allowed himself to relax a little. He could hear the two of them talking in the kitchen and he knew they were arguing over his proposal. He couldn't help but try to listen for something that would indicate which way the conversation was going, but at the same time he was almost afraid to hear it as well. What would he do if they said no? He would still propose, but at the same time it could also drive a rift between Padme and her parents. He could also wait, but they'd been together for two years- three if he counted the year they were married- and he knew this time they were ready. They weren't just jumping into something, they live together, they work together; they have everything down from which side of the bed they sleep on to how to handle arguments. They were practically married in every sense but in name. And all he wanted was to make it so.

Standing up, Anakin walked over to the pictures on the wall to actually see what they were of. He recognized some of them from the pictures Padme had back in the apartment. There was one of her and Sola at the Lake House, school photos, pictures from family vacations; on the end he saw two nearly identical pictures of Ruwee and Jobal in hospital rooms. The first one he saw, Ruwee had his arm wrapped around Jobal's shoulders as she held a baby girl in her arms that Anakin knew had to be Sola. In the picture next to it, Ruwee held a baby Padme as he sat on the side of the hospital bed with Jobal and a young Sola. Ruwee's eyes were focused only on Padme as he smiled at her.

"That's my favorite picture." Anakin nearly jumped when he heard Ruwee speak. He had not heard his approach. Ruwee took the last few steps to stand beside him, "I made a promise when both my girls were born." He said, "I promised that I would do anything for them. That their happiness means more to me than anything." Both men looked at the picture, neither turning to see the other's reaction, "Padme is my baby girl." He continued, "Whenever I look at her, I still see this little six pound, four ounces baby who used to sleep on my chest while I watched football." He said, "I still see the five year old girl who brought home a bird with a broken wing and asked me to help make it better." He turned his head to look at Anakin, and their eyes met, "She's my daughter. I don't want her to get hurt again."

Anakin nodded his head, "I don't want to hurt her again either." He said, "Sir, I understand your reservations-"

"Do you?" He asked, "Your not a father. You can't understand until you hold your child in your arms and know that that child is yours. That you helped bring this beautiful life into the world. And that it is now your job to protect it. You can't understand."

He nodded his head again, "You want whats best for Padme." He said, "That much I can understand. I want the same. I want her to be happy, to be loved, to have everything she wants; and if I can do it, I'll do it. I'd do anything for her. She just has to tell me what."

Ruwee turns to face Anakin fully, sizing him up and looking for any falter in his words before he nods his head, "Jobal gives you her blessing." He said, "And I'm still not too sure about you, but… Padme is not the type of person to do things without a reason and she certainly wouldn't stay with someone unless she truly cares for them. And so, you have mine as well." Ruwee held his hand out to Anakin, and the two shook hands, Ruwee squeezing his a little too tightly, "But mark my words, if you hurt her, I'll castrate you."

Anakin smiled, "Believe me sir, that is the last thing I want."