Hello everyone and welcome back!

A/N: Finally, part number 2 is here! Hope you enjoy it, this is basically pure and good ol' fluff. The next chapter will be set in the very near future and then the following will have a little jump in time. Please, Let me know your thoughts on this chapter and the story. Any questions, suggestions, comments, or reviews are very welcome and appreciated.

Thank you for all the support you have been giving me. I wouldn't be able to do these without you guys!

B. M. Adams

Xoxo...

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from R&I, just this plot and OCs


Jane's POV

12/12/2010

The day elapsed blissfully. We arrived home and Ma had a lovely meal prepared. Everyone was cheery and happily chatting. Christmas was fast approaching, and we were discussing all the plans for this holiday season. Ma as always, wanted to overdue, this year more than any other as Tommy was coming back to Boston for the holidays with Lydia and Tj after a couple of years of being living in Seattle. Even though it was hard having him all the way across the country, his relationship with Lydia, having Tj, and the responsibilities that came with having a family had finally made him settle in and focus on his and his family's future. And that alone made the distance worth it, though we would all love for them to be closer. As well, this was an even more special holiday as they would be finally meeting Megan in person and the Tj can get to know his cousins better, they were all quite bigger since the last time saw each other.

Everyone was chatting and engrossed in preparing a magical Christmas, except for Megan, she would sporadically chime in or reply if she was asked something, but she was pushing the food around her plate, something Megan never do, she always had a big appetite, more so when it came to Nonna's food. We all finished eating and started to clean up. It was now around 7:30 pm and Frankie was playing with the kids, Maura and my Ma were finishing the dishes, but someone has been missing for a little, so I decided to go and find her.

Ma left the room when they finished, and now that Maura and I were alone, I walked towards her "I'm gonna go find Megan...Shall we go and talk to her?" I asked her.

"Yes, I think we should," Maura said, drying her hand in a kitchen towel. As soon as we started to walk out of the kitchen we heard Lily calling for Maura to go and play with them "Why don't you go and talk to her, I'm sure you will be able to understand her. Call me if you need me" Maura suggested and seemed fair.

I walked up the stairs and knocked on Megan's door. I didn't hear any reply so carefully I opened the door and picked inside. The lights were off, but I could see a little beam of light coming from the closet. I carefully went in and found Megan neatly folding and putting some clothes away, mostly all her clothes were scattered around the closet, as if she purposely took everything down from the hangers and out of the drawer to put it back.

I knocked on the door "Hey" I softly say, trying not to scare her.

She looked up from her seating spot on the floor of the closet and managed to muster a little smile "Hey" she mimicked what I said before.

"Is there room for one more?" I said. She nodded while she kept on absentmindedly folding the shirts that were scattered around the floor of the closet. I sat down next to her and sat there in silence for a little.

"So, what happened here?" I asked the girl while I picked a shirt and started folding it, copying her folding of the clothes.

She shrugged, not stopping folding the shirt between her hands "It was messy, that's all" she simply said taking another shirt and starting to fold it as well, not parting her sight from the floor. I sighed and knew right there that I had to take the lead and push it a little bit. Knowing Megan, she would not bring this up and would bottle up until at some point, she would break and surely we didn't want that.

"I know it's been a hard couple of days for you" I said, not giving much context of what I was talking about. I left the folded shirt on the side and waited for the girl.

She narrowed her eyebrows, and for the first time since I came, she stopped folding the pieces of clothes scattered around. She looked at me, like expecting me to continue talking.

I took her hand and caressed the back of her hand with my thumb "I know firsts are complicated" I said, now the girl looked even more confused, but still she remained silent.

"Sweetheart, have I ever told you what happened to my Pops?" I asked her.

She kept her eyes fixed on our hands but shook her head "Nope," she simple reply.

"It was the day before my 18th birthday" I started recalling "There was a storm that day and it was already late. But money was tight, and he took on any job he could" I paused and looked at Megan, she was now gripping my hand a little tighter, but her gaze remained fixed on the wooden floor. "He left in the late afternoon but didn't come back" I stopped as I could feel that now Megan had her other hand on top of mine, kind of trying to comfort me. I smiled at her sweet attempt to give me some solace, that was what she would always be my sweetheart, it doesn't matter how much she is battling inside, she would put it aside and make sure you are ok.

"Late that night, we received a call from the hospital. He had an accident coming back home and was in very bad shape" I continued recalling "We all went straight away to the hospital and stayed there the whole night. He was unconscious, though the doctor said he had a good chance of recovering fully. His injuries were severe, but not deadly... Or so they thought" I exhale a little too deeply "The morning came, and everything seemed ok, he was still out cold, but it wasn't until later that morning that Ma went home for some clean clothes for him, she took both Frankie and Tommy, so I wouldn't need to worry about them. While she was gone, all of a sudden all the machines started to go off and an alarm started sounding. I was terrified" I confessed to the girl, whose hands we now starting to feel cold and sweaty.

"The doctor pulled me out of the room, and they started working on him. I was frozen outside the room until the doctor came with his surgical hat on his hand and told me that Pops had a blood clot in his carotid artery that moved to his brain and caused a massive stroke" I was recalling the events with my eyes fixed in the wall in front of us, but then I felt a weight on my shoulder. I noticed Megan had her head leaning against my shoulder and she was sitting closer to me, our legs and torsos touching. I kissed her head and leaned my head against hers. "When Ma and the boys came back they found me sitting against the wall of the waiting room crying… and well, the rest is history" I finished.

We remained there in silence for a little while until Megan's voice came soft, just barely above a hush "I'm sorry, Jane".

I softly smiled and kissed her head "I know is hard to lose someone that is so important to you, more without even having the chance to say goodbye" I assured her. Then we simply remained silent for a few minutes "Would you like to go to tomorrow and pay a visit to them?" I then suggested. I didn't know if she had the chance to visit their graves before, but even if she hadn't visited them before, today could be a representative day to do so.

For the first time since I came into the closet, she looked up from the floor and turned her head towards me, her eyebrows furrowed, like questioning if my proposal was serious. "It used to help me when I wanted to feel close to my Pops…Perhaps bring them some flowers" I suggested with a small smile. There was a little sparkle of hope and gratitude. I knew Megan wouldn't ask for something like this. We didn't know why she was so reluctant to talk about what was bothering her, her feelings, in general, were a topic she didn't like to talk about, even seeking comfort for her was like pulling teeth.

"I thought of going there today" Megan confessed, her head still on my shoulder and her hand remaining in mine.

Her words weren't entirely a surprise, Maura and I thought about it, we knew she would not come to us and tell us that she wanted to go and pay a visit to her parents' and sister's graves, and she would go there without telling us before asking us to take her there, and that was something we needed to address later on. "Why didn't you go?" I managed to ask. I wasn't fully sure how to react. On one hand, she didn't do it and stayed in school, she even came forward and told me, on the other hand, it was worrying that she wanted to take this matter into her own hands when the truth was, even though Megan was so mature and smart, she was a kid that has been deeply hurt and has gone through a lot of pain.

She breathed deeply "I don't want to jeopardize anything, Jane," she said, barely above a whisper. That right there made me understand that she understood, from the last time she had done something like that, that doing so wasn't the answer. It was a step in the right direction, a small one, but a step, nonetheless. As well, I understood how important was to finalise the adoption process. Her words denoted fear.

"Thank you for telling me. I'm glad you didn't go, sweetheart" I said, "Though you don't have to go through any of this on your own, that's why Mom and I are here for. You can always come to us." I reassured the girl who was now leaning further into me. I untangled my hand from hers and moved sideways to face the girl "I can promise you that if at any time you want to talk, about everything or anything, we will be there… always and forever" I said, planting a kiss in her cheek.

She looked at me with glassy eyes "I know. Thank you, Jane." she spoke, for the first time in this conversation, with a staunch voice. She then moved and hugged me, resting her head just below my chin.

I just hugged her tightly, tenderly rubbing her back and plating a kiss atop her head. We stood like that for a little while "Well, my butt is numb, and I think people is missing us downstairs" I said, she softly laughed and untangle from our embrace.

"Yep, you're right, my butt's numb, too" she laughed standing up from the floor.

I stood up as well "Shall we go down, miss?" I invited her, holding my hand out to her.

She nodded and took my open hand, we got down and found the two kids, my Ma, Frankie and Maura, sitting around the coffee table of the living room with a board game out.

"About time for you two to come down," Frankie greeted them.

"Yes, mommy we need you two to play" Lily happily chanted.

I smiled "And what are we playing exactly?" I asked, already noticing the colourful wedges on the table.

"Trivial!" Lily exclaimed. "And it's about Disney movies" She excitedly said.

"Awesome" Megan then chimed in. Sitting next to Lucas in from of the coffee table facing the couch.

Frankie stood up "Ok, so we are making teams" he started explaining "Here there are some numbers, pick one piece each one, but don't open them just yet," He said, passing a little box with little pieces of paper and everyone picked one. "Cool, now let's see who's teamed with who" Frankie said, and we all opened open the little pieces of paper.

"I got a 2!" Exclaimed Megan.

"Yes!" Lucas happily said, "Me too!" He said high fiving his sister. He was also happy because out of all of us, the one that knew the more about Disney was her.

"I have a 1," Maura said. As well Ma had a 1, so that meant Lily, Frankie and I were a team.

"We are gonna crush them!" I said bringing Lily to my Lap.

The girl happily squealed "Mama I want the Belle token" she said, as I picked the Belle token up. Megan and Lucas got the Peter Pan one and Maura and Ma, got the Cinderella one.

"Yes, we are gonna crush them all!" Frankie agreed, tickling the girl on her side, making her giggle.

"We'll see about that Mama" Lucas then said. That kid took his competitiveness from me. And that usually created funny situations while playing games.

My Ma laughed "Put your money where your mouth is, Janie" She joked.

"Ok, team 1, go ahead and roll the dice" Frankie encouraged. Maura then rolled the first set of dice and Megan took the card corresponding with the square they landed on.

"What is the name of Wendy's dog, in Peter Pan?" Megan read.

That was an easy one "It's Nana!" Ma replied. So there went the first wedge to Team 1. The night went by beautifully, the house filled with laughter, happiness and healthy sportsmanship that allowed for some teasing here and there, more so between Lucas and me. Who out of the 5 of us, were the most competitive ones."

Unsurprisingly, Megan and Lucas ended up winning the game. Lucas made a pretty big deal out of that, as he had and as per his own words, he and his sister had won, because together they were the best team. And that was music to our ears. Lily was always really drawn to Megan, from the very beginning. Lucas wasn't and slowly but surely they develop a kind of bond that many people would wish for. I could only smile sweetly at them, and I knew Maura was feeling the same pride and love I was feeling at that moment.

By the time Ma and Frankie left both Lily and Lucas were yawning and obviously exhausted from a day filled with excitement. I took them both to bed while Maura and Megan stayed downstairs putting the game away and picking up bits and pieces left from dinner and our family night.


Maura's POV

Megan and I quickly put the house in order, and I went up to kiss the kids goodnight and tuck them in. Jane was in bed reading on her phone, while I changed into my pyjamas.

"Well, you were right, she is hurting about her family," Jane said as soon as I came out of the bathroom.

I sighed "It's only normal. My poor baby" I whispered, taking my earrings and neckless off and placing them on my nightstand.

"She didn't say much to be honest. But she was seeking comfort" She then explained.

"Which for Megan is a sign for us to push her a little," I said, knowing the girl and her reluctance to pour her problems and feelings onto other people. Something we had to remediate.

Jane nodded and left her phone on her nightstand, sitting against the bed's headboard "I offered to take her to the cemetery tomorrow to see them and bring them some flowers" Jane said.

I looked at her "That is very sweet of you, my love" I said giving her a chaste kiss "I think that is a good idea. Honestly, I don't even know if she has been there before or if she was even allowed to be at the funeral" I sighed, reprimanding myself for not thinking about taking her there before.

Jane ruffled her hair "I feel like we should have taken her there sooner" She confessed "I don't know, I never thought about it" She then said. I could see that she felt bad about it.

I looked at her compassionately "I know how you feel. I thought about it but because she never expressed any desire of doing so. We have been to her house a few times, as well as the beach house, she did express her interest to go to those places. I pushed taking her to the cemetery aside" I also confessed to her, feeling somewhat guilty.

She nodded knowing that we have, perhaps, made a mistake "But we can take her there tomorrow afternoon, give her some time. These are difficult dates for her" Jane said. "I can't imagine how she must have felt spending Christmas, alone and with all that grief and no one to hold her" Jane said, her voice laced with pain.

"But that is never going to happen again" I assured her "She will always have us, and we will be there for her, for anything she needs" I adamantly said, giving another kiss to Jane's lips, though deepening it this time. This was one of the things that made me fall deeply in love with her, her compassion and empathy for people, and her love for our family and the lives we have built together make me fall in love with her every day.

I kissed Jane again "I'll go and say goodnight to our daughter" and went to say goodnight to Megan. I walked to her room, but she wasn't in it. I then walked down and while descending the stairs when I heard the kettle being turned on. She was indeed downstairs, leaning against the kitchen counter with her back towards the kettle behind her and her head hanging low, like looking at her feed with her arms circling herself around the torso.

I knocked on the doorframe to avoid startling the girl "Hey, sweetie" I softly said to the girl, and I decided to be a little bold and directly dive into a little bit of what could be a heartfelt conversation "Are you ok, love?" I said, noticing her demeanour.

The girl breathed deeply and raised her head, directly looking at me, her eyes were glassy, and her face was distraught "No, I'm not" she whispered. I have been waiting for a while for her to say that, and it pained me knowing my daughter was in deep hurt and upset, but her admission is a step in the right direction. I looked at her and simply opened my arms, inviting Megan to dive into my arms.

She didn't say anything else but walked towards me and buried herself in my arms. I hugged her tightly "My love, I can't begin to phantom how are you feeling, but your Mama and I are here for anything you need" I assured her. She didn't say anything but tightened the grip of her hug. I rubbed her back for a little while "Why don't you go to the couch and wait for me; I'll bring us some tea" I suggested. She nodded but I felt reluctance from her to break the hug. She walked to the living room.

I quickly made two camomile teas and bought them with me to the couch. She had the Tv on, barely audible. She was sitting crossed leg, leaning against the armrest. I placed the cup in front of her and she thanked me, sipping from her cup. We remained silent for a little, watching a movie on the Tv. I was absentmindedly drinking from my cup of tea when I saw Megan putting her empty cup in the coaster on the coffee table and she curled up on the couch, placing her head on my lap. I was surprised, but immediately left my cup on the table and kissed her head, tenderly I started caressing her soft hair.

"I…The day the after the accident an officer came to my house, to ask me to identify the bodies" She started recalling and I was horrified to hear she had seen her family's deceased bodies after the accident. I couldn't help but feel even angry at any adult that thought it was a good idea to allow a child to go through that "When I went back home I didn't know what to do" she continued "So, I went to my dad's office and gulped down a bottle of whiskey he was saving for a special occasion"

I was dumbfounded but I allowed her to continue recalling "I thought it would help me forget…but it made it worst" she then said. Throughout her recall she never allowed me to see her face, she maintained herself buried in my lap. Meanwhile, I never stopped lovingly stroking her hair.

"Then Trish came, and she just took me away" Megan then brought one of her hands to her face, wiping a tear away. I felt somewhat useless in that situation, I knew no amount of love or nice words would ease the pain. "On Christmas Eve, Jannet, the girl that was my roommate at the group home, she woke me up in the middle of the night and we kinda escaped from there for a little that night, and we went to visit their graves" she confessed. I didn't comment on what she did, as at that moment; Megan was only a teenager that had lost everything she had, suddenly, and I couldn't hold it against her. She had learned her fair share of lessons.

She took a shaky breath "I wasn't even allowed to go to the… to the funeral" She broke down right there. She turned around and buried her face against my torso. I was not sure what to do, I could only rubbed her back, trying to soothe the sobbing girl. This was a breakdown that was way overdue. Since she came I knew this would happen, it took longer than what any of us expected but she finally allowed herself to grieve. She allowed herself to feel the pain of losing her family, she allowed herself to feel despair, she allowed all that sorrow she have built up just go with each heartbreaking sob that scaped her shaking body.

By the time her sobs subsided a little I helped her to sit right up so I could hold her in my arms. There was not much more than anyone could do than give her as much comfort as possible. "Come here, baby girl," I said, repositioning her in such a way that she was practically curled up on my lap, with her arms around my shoulders and her face buried in the crook of my neck. I could feel hot tears rolling down my neck. She continued to let all her pain and grief for a long time, while I could only tightly hug her against me, planting sporadic kisses on her temple and whispering sweet nonsense in her ear.

I noticed she started to calm down a little after a good 30 minutes "Baby, why don't we go to bed?" I suggested. The girl nodded but took her a little to untangle herself from me. She cleaned the leftover tears from her tear-stained cheeks. As I stood up I cupped her face in my hands "I am so, so, so sorry, Megan" I told her, eliciting new tears in her eyes "I would give anything for you not to have gone through all that" I heartfully said "I wish to have found before and be there for you all along" Kissing her forehead and lingering the kiss a little longer. "Let's go" I whispered. We walked up the stairs and Megan was walking zombie-like in the direction of her room, but I held her hand, pulling her to our room. The girl didn't protest, obviously exhausted.

She hopped on the bed, catching Jane off guard she looked up at me like asking if she needed to say or do something, I shook my head and she pulled the girl close to her, a gesture which Megan gladly accepted. She positioned herself with her head on Jane's chest and one of her arms draped around her middle. Jane rounded her with her arms and kissed her temple "Good night, sweetheart. I love you" Jane said, rubbing the girl's back.

I joined them on the bed, positioned behind Megan. I kissed the back of her head "I love you, baby girl".

"I love you, too" she whispered just before drifting off to sleep. I knew the days ahead would be challenging for all, but for now, with her in our arms, was enough to soothe us off to sleep as well. We will day with anything in the morning.


Please, Let me know your thoughts on this chapter and the story. Any questions, suggestions, comments, or reviews are very welcome and appreciated.

B. M. Adams

Xoxo...