A/N: Okay, this epilogue got totally out of hand and became really LONG. I'm sorry, I hope you'll enjoy nevertheless:) And hopefully this isn't too difficult to read, there are different times and I put in some horizontal lines to indicate the switches between the present moment (well, not the present moment but four years after the last chapter) and the looks back in time.
Thank you so much everyone who has read/followed/favorited/reviewed, I've truly enjoyed writing Lilly and Scotty and all the others too and it's been lovely to see there are still people around even though it's been a while since this great show. Wishing everyone a wonderful holiday season!
Four years later
Lilly drifted awake, yawning deeply and pressing her face into the pillow before opening one eye lazily; the new day seemed to have dawned and some birds were softly chirping outside. She was tightly snuggled against her husband's warm, strong body, moved her arm to settle it across his chest; Scotty turned his head, pressed his lips onto the top of her head.
"Good mornin', beautiful." He caressed her arm softly, voice still husky with sleep. "How was your first night here?"
"Mmm." She smiled, turned more to her back and let her eyes move over the lovely bedroom before reaching to kiss him. "Very, very good. And luckily the house doesn't seem to be haunted or anything, which is always a plus."
He snorted slightly, glanced at the clock on his nightstand. "Well, thank God for that. It's almost seven thirty."
She nodded, yawning again, feeling quite tired; luckily it was Sunday, so she might be able to enjoy this relaxed morning with him for at least a little while, maybe. Then his words registered and Lilly lifted her head to check the time for herself, frowning suspiciously.
"What, seven thirty? Is she actually still...?"
Just then, the bedroom door cracked open, the sound of little feet against the floor approaching and the blonde chuckled, settling back down. "Never mind."
"Mommy! Daddy!" A small bundle jumped onto the bed, and Lilly had just enough time to see a big smile and a flash of dark blonde hair before their daughter landed on top of them both, drawing muffled groans from her parents. "Wake up! It is mowning!"
"Sure is." Scotty laughed, grasped the little girl and pressed a kiss onto her cheek. "Buenos dias, princesa. Did you sleep well in your lovely new room?"
"Yes!" The two-and-a-half year old girl grinned, giggling as Lilly tickled her side and dropped kisses all over her face. "Mommy nooo! No kissy!"
"What? Are you saying I can't eat you? But you're so cute," she pretended to whine, feeling her heart just absolutely explode with love towards their precious, gorgeous daughter. "Are you hungry, sweetie?"
The little girl nodded. "Mommy, I see unicow! In my sleep!"
"You saw what now?" She frowned, glancing at Scotty for help with deciphering the word; he looked equally confused for a moment, before realization dawned on his face.
"Do you mean a unicorn, honey? The horse with a horn on its forehead, like in the fairytale book we read last night?"
"Uh-huh." The girl smiled widely. "Unicow!"
Lilly did her best to stop herself from laughing, not quite managing it; their daughter still slightly struggled with pronouncing the letter r, which was creating some very amusing and absolutely adorable situations. She tugged the warm bundle closer, closed her eyes, feeling so happy and so very blessed, definitely not for the first time.
When she and Scotty had decided to see if a pregnancy would be possible, she hadn't held much hope, fully sure it would at least take forever to happen if it happened at all; it had taken a while, and the wait had filled Lilly with so many conflicting emotions. Even though she had prepared herself for the very real chance it might be too late, she couldn't help feeling disappointed every time her period started; she tried her best not to stress, to not think about it too much, just focusing on the FBI training and then settling into life in New York. Lack of trying definitely wasn't to blame, as she and Scotty continued to enjoy each other just as much as they had since the beginning of their relationship; she was so grateful to have him by her side for all the big changes, for the transition period of getting used to how things were done at the FBI. It was intense, in many ways similar but also vastly different than the Philadelphia PD, and just like she had suspected, some of their new colleagues did at first speculate about the way she had landed her job; most people were incredibly nice and supportive, however, and the rumors died down quickly, enabling her to truly start enjoying the work, to wrap her head around the fact she was actually an FBI agent now.
Seven months after their Hawaii vacation, she found herself staring at the date on The New York Times one snowy Tuesday morning at her desk, her brain automatically calculating and suddenly realizing her period was nearly a week late; a glance at her calendar confirmed this, but she still put it down to stress, not really daring to hope for anything else. Another week passed and finally Lilly braved her mind, her hands trembling heavily as she waited for three different pregnancy tests to be ready in the bathroom of their apartment; Scotty was in Chicago for an investigation as they were currently working different cases, and while she missed him quite desperately, it also felt easier to be alone to do this, no matter what the result would be, to have time for her wildly swirling thoughts. All three tests were positive, and she needed to spend a long while just sitting on the bathroom floor, trying to regulate her breathing, her mind spinning; then she was slammed with a truckload of terrible worries, already loving the precious little life inside her and feeling so scared over the fact that it was so early, and there was no knowing whether her body would be able to support this baby, no knowing if it was even viable. There was also no denying that no matter how healthy and fit she was, this was considered a geriatric pregnancy and it carried far more risks as a result; after a sleepless night of tossing and turning, she made an appointment with a doctor, just randomly selecting one near the Bureau so she could go straight after work, not knowing what to expect but luckily the older woman was very reassuring, confirming the pregnancy with a blood test and then taking time to listen and soothe her fears. Apart from eating and sleeping well and trying to avoid stress as much as possible, there wasn't much Lilly could do; she had to trust her body to be able to do the job that came naturally to it, crossed her fingers and whispered a quick prayer upon leaving the doctor's office, feeling like she needed the support of a higher power even though she'd never been especially religious. She stopped by at a nearby mall, her legs automatically taking her to a baby store, tears prickling her eyes as she took in the rows of tiny sleepers, shoes and other paraphernalia; a saleslady looked up from sorting a pile of onesies, gave her a smile.
"First baby?"
"Yeah." Lilly chuckled, pinching the bridge of her nose to calm down. "That obvious, huh?"
"You just seemed a little overwhelmed." The woman moved closer, gave her arm a comforting pat. "Let me know if you need any help."
In the end she purchased just one item, asked to have it gift-wrapped and returned home deep in her thoughts, groaning when she almost slashed her finger while chopping some vegetables for dinner; some months ago she had finally decided to tackle her loathing of cooking, learning some simple dishes even though Scotty definitely was the main chef in their household still. Lilly had spent quite a bit of time with his mother too, before they had left Philadelphia and when they visited the Valens family at regular intervals; Rosa had shown her how to make some of Scotty's favorite Cuban and Puerto Rican dishes, the ones that were easy and didn't take long to prepare. Her cooking was absolutely delicious and Lilly doubted she'd ever reach the same level, even though she was slowly getting better and he always praised her efforts highly; she was just happy to be able to put together an edible meal without setting the apartment on fire.
On the following day she was still terribly preoccupied at work, but luckily managed to hide most of it so no one really noticed; Scotty was finally back in the evening, pulling her onto his arms immediately upon closing the apartment door behind him, kissing her deeply.
"Hey, gorgeous. Jesus, it's good to see you."
"You too," she whispered, hiding her face into his neck and breathing deeply. "Missed you. How was the Windy City?"
"Bloody freezin'," he chuckled, shaking his head as they made their way into the living room. "I sure am glad to be home. It smells incredible in here."
"I hope you're hungry." She cleared her throat, checked on the food quickly, feeling quite terribly nervous but also very happy to finally be able to give him the news she was about to share. "Dinner will be ready soon, but before that… I have a present for you."
"Oh." He frowned as she handed him the wrapped box, looking somewhat intrigued. "But it's not my birthday, an' I know you didn't forget it back in March; I remember that little cake you brought into the precinct for me, especially because Vera ate most of it."
"Yeah, yeah; you two bickered about that for days." She rolled her eyes, chuckling, her palms feeling slightly damp as she motioned towards the box. "Just open it, please."
"Okay, okay." Scotty smiled, tugging open the small bow on top of the box and lifting the lid; she kept a careful eye on his face, watched him just stare for a moment, then swallow, his hands clearly shaking as he reached into the box and lifted out the contents. One tear escaped, then more, a strangled gasp leaving him at the sight of a tiny sleeper of soft white fleece, the words 'I Love My Daddy" imprinted onto the front.
"Lil," he whispered, managing to look up and find her eyes. "Oh my God. Is this…are you...?"
"Yes." She sniffled, leaned to kiss him, taking a shaky breath. "I'm pregnant."
Another burst of tears left him and he set the sleeper gently down, then grasped her into a tight hug and spun her around, whooping loudly before framing her face with his hands. "I love you. Christ, Lil, I love you so much."
"I love you too." She leaned against him, tears moving down her face too when he placed his hand onto her belly, connected to their child for the first time; Lilly uttered another silent prayer in her head, a prayer that everything would continue to go well, wanting nothing more than to give him the chance of being the incredible father she'd always known he would be.
Despite his never-ending, amazing support, she remained worried for the entire first trimester, her mind spinning more and more horrible scenarios no matter how much she tried to keep from stressing; once the statistical likelihood of a miscarriage dropped, she managed to relax slightly, then became obsessed with wedding planning, suddenly convinced Scotty's parents would hate her forever if they had a child out of wedlock. He sighed heavily once she confessed her worries, gently reassured her his parents would be fine, and the decision of when to get married was entirely up to the two of them.
"We don't need to rush this, Lil; I want you to have the perfect day you deserve, not be stressed out by time pressures or how you think my parents might feel," he told her, holding her securely, his hand tenderly rubbing her slightly rounded belly. "If you want to be married before the baby comes, then we will do it; I'm up for it anytime, but I'm perfectly happy to also wait until after the birth. An' I think it would be even more special to have our baby there to see us tie the knot."
She nodded, releasing a deep breath, feeling quite relieved; as much as she wanted to marry him as soon as possible, she was still having morning sickness and also felt absolutely exhausted, knowing that in all honesty she wouldn't have enough energy to plan the wedding without completely wearing herself out. "Okay. Maybe next year then."
"Sounds good to me." Scotty pressed a kiss onto her forehead and she relaxed, turning to press her face into his neck, pulling in a deep breath; her hormones created a lot of interesting side effects, one of which was the way his scent was ten times more delicious to her than before, and she really didn't know how that was even possible. She proceeded to kiss his skin, to slowly open the buttons of his shirt before finding his lips, feeling him smile against her; no matter how much of her energy the pregnancy took, she would definitely never be too tired for this.
His parents were absolutely over the moon about the baby, as expected, carefully inquiring about the marriage but not seeming too horrified when Scotty told them they would do it sometime after the birth; that was the end of that conversation, and Lilly felt a lot more reassured when Rosa and Ramiro both hugged her tightly, tears of happiness in their eyes. She was still getting introduced to the rest of his extended family little by little, and some of the older people did comment that the cart shouldn't come before the horse; Scotty again supported her without fail, and when her belly grew, the focus luckily shifted to trying to guess the gender, every well-meaning female in his family and also Celeste and some people at work studying the placement of the bump and offering their opinions. She remained undecided about whether to find out or not; the structural ultrasound went well, calming her as the doctor told them the baby was looking very healthy, but due to its current position she wasn't able to see the gender right now. Lilly took that as a sign they weren't meant to know beforehand; the popular opinion was leaning slightly more towards a girl and Scotty seemed to think so too, grinning as he whispered to her he couldn't wait to meet his mini-Lilly. She rolled her eyes with a smile, not fully sure what she thought herself and not really caring about the gender either; all that mattered to her was welcoming a healthy baby.
She and Scotty decided to put in transfer requests in order to return to Philadelphia at least for now; it made the most sense as his family was there, very eager to help with the baby if needed, and hers was also a short drive away. The transfers came through without problems, their supervisors luckily fine with her having a baby even though she had initially been quite worried about it, due to the fact she'd worked for the FBI for such a short time; settling back into her townhouse was quite emotional, the space so familiar but also feeling completely new as the second bedroom was getting transformed into a nursery now. She tried to help as much as she could, selecting colors and materials and accompanying Scotty for shopping trips, but the pregnancy was giving her bad back pain and the baby was clearly quite energetic, kicking a lot and very often awake at night-time, keeping her up too and making her rather stressed about how the nights would be after the birth. Scotty seemed to be able to calm their child by placing his hand onto her belly and quietly talking to the baby in Spanish; Lilly still loved listening to that, now probably more than ever, smiling as she closed her eyes and allowed the beautiful words fill her mind, able to forget her worries and physical discomfort for at least a little while.
About a month before the due date they encountered a slight crisis as she started to feel absolutely overwhelmed by everything; she was so happy to be pregnant, but that didn't mean it was easy, not by a long shot. The hormones and all the worries stirred up a lot in her, awful memories of her childhood she had buried deep down and tried to forget, making her withdrawn and quiet; Scotty did his very best to try to read her moods, to give her space when she needed it and to gently prompt her to talk when she might want to, but they did clash and had several bad arguments. She loved and appreciated him so, so much but she no longer seemed to know how to tell him that, how to even start talking about all the horrors that were filling her mind; finally he took a big risk and approached her father, despite knowing full well where it would probably lead. Upon finding out, Lilly erupted into a massive fit of rage, shouting and tears in front of both him and Paul when the older man arrived to take her away for a few days, so that they could talk and she could have a change of scenery; eventually she agreed to put some stuff together and go with her father, giving Scotty her best furious glare before stepping out of the door. A little voice in her head was telling her she was being idiotic and he had only acted in her best interest, but she couldn't help feeling angry at this intervention; the old Lilly Rush had made a comeback, the Ice Queen in her just wanting to push everyone away and seclude herself behind the mile-high walls for protection.
Paul took her to a cabin he and Celeste owned on the beautiful Connecticut coast, told her to ask him anything she wanted to know; it was a weekend filled with such deep pain but also healing, both of them crying as they worked through the agony his departure had caused in the 6-year-old Lilly, how the feelings of abandonment had affected her ever since. She released all the anger she had felt towards him for so long, anger for him leaving her and Christina to deal with their alcoholic mother alone, anger for the way she'd had to grow up so fast, never really able to be a carefree child; Paul endured her rage quietly, letting her vent and then just tightly holding her as she sobbed against his chest. They became exponentially closer as a result, so much old baggage getting dismantled and disappearing; Lilly felt a thousand times better and lighter afterwards, absolutely horrified by the way she had treated Scotty and wondering if he'd even want anything to do with her when they returned to Philadelphia, knowing she definitely didn't deserve him after her recent behavior. But of course he was there, meeting her at the door with worry in his eyes and she flung herself at him, apologized about twenty times in a row, crying into his neck for a long time before managing to calm down enough for a conversation.
She told him some of the things she had told Paul, not wanting to burden him too much even though he repeatedly reminded her she could tell him anything and everything; he confessed his own fears over her well-being and over the massive responsibility of raising a child, and guilt threatened to overcome her as she'd never even thought he might be scared too, had just relied on his strength and the way he had seemed to be so okay with everything. They talked for hours, then made love with such unbelievable tenderness; at the end of it all she was more exhausted than she had ever been before, had to call in sick at work and just slept for two days, finally emerged from the bedroom to a delicious dinner Scotty had prepared. She kissed him lovingly and enjoyed two big platefuls, afterwards leaning against him on the couch and staring into the quiet, warm August evening for a long while before looking up at him.
"I love you so much." She touched his cheek tenderly, drowning into his brown eyes, lowered her hand on top of his on her belly. "I think I'm ready to have her now. As ready as I can be."
"I love you too." He kissed her tenderly, raised a teasing eyebrow. "Her, huh?"
"Yeah." Lilly smiled as the baby kicked softly against their joint hands. "Her."
Their daughter arrived two weeks later, the most perfect tiny creature with Scotty's long fingers and full lips, surprisingly light hair and her mother's eyes; Lilly held her securely, just staring at the baby in astonishment, feeling so grateful she was finally safely there after long, long hours of awfully painful labor. He sniffled, gently placing his hand against the pink hat on the little girl's head, equally unable to tear his eyes from her as she was.
"God, she's gorgeous." He took a shaky breath, gently grasped his fiancée's fingers. "What are we goin' to name her?"
Lilly smiled, tracing the baby's silky cheek tenderly; they hadn't really talked about names much beforehand, wanting to meet the brand new little person first. "Well, I thought… it would require you to think of a new nickname for me, but I thought we could call her Bella. Perhaps Isabella, so she can pick the version she wants to use when she's older. It just seems… fitting in a way, something you've called me ever since we got together, and we could transfer it to our daughter now."
"That sounds amazin'." Scotty wiped his face, grinning through his tears. "An' very fittin' indeed for the most beautiful baby in the world."
She brushed some wetness from her face too, squeezed his fingers. "If it's okay with you… Isabella Rosa Valens. Scotty, your mum has been such a rock to me, more of a mother already than mine ever was, and I think it's only right this little one gets her middle name from her incredible grandmother."
"Oh Lil." He covered his face with his free hand, clearly crying. "Mom would be so honored. Are you sure?"
"I'm absolutely sure," she whispered, smiling as the baby whimpered, her blue eyes opening briefly. "Hi, Bella. Hey, sweetie. Mommy and daddy love you so, so much; welcome into the world, little princess."
Scotty pulled in a deep breath, standing and leaning to kiss her lovingly, then the baby's forehead; she slowly shifted herself a little bit so he could settle on the edge of her hospital bed, his arms wrapping securely around them both. She leaned against him with a little sigh, her eyes never leaving their perfect daughter.
"Daddy buy unicow?"
Bella's hopeful question pulled Lilly from her memories, making her chuckle as she glanced at Scotty teasingly, wondering how he'd work his way out of this one. He was an absolutely incredible father, just like she had always known he would be, but he was having quite a hard time denying their daughter anything, firmly wrapped around Bella's little finger, and buying her a unicorn might be a somewhat difficult task.
"Oh sweetheart." He sighed, looking slightly panicked for a brief moment and she bit her lip to keep from laughing. "The thing is… do you remember how we read about unicorns in the fairytale book?"
Bella nodded and he scratched his cheek. "Well, you see… there are no unicorns in the real world, princess, they only exist in books an' the stories people tell. We might be able to find a stuffed one though, would that do?"
The little girl was quiet for a moment; then her big blue eyes filled with tears, her lower lip starting to tremble threateningly as she viciously shook her head. "No, daddy! Real unicow!"
"Oh no," Lilly muttered, trebling her efforts to control herself as their daughter was just so unbelievably adorable, even during the tantrums she threw at a regular basis; everyone had warned her about the terrible two's, but even though Bella was sometimes difficult to calm down, things had still been smoother than she'd expected, so far. "Sweetie, we can't get you a real unicorn, but guess what? This new house is pretty close to a riding stable, and I thought we could go check it out soon; you're starting to be big enough to try riding a pony if you want."
She could literally see the wheels turning in Bella's head, as the little girl tried to decide whether to accept this suggestion or to work herself into a full screaming fit. Finally she relaxed, sniffling, giving a tiny nod. "Okay. Abuelo and Abuela and Gandpa and C come too?"
"We can definitely ask them." Lilly smiled, leaned to press a kiss on their daughter's cheek; Bella was very close with both Scotty's parents and her father and Celeste, whom she called C due to not yet knowing how to say the full name, and she was extremely, extremely happy the little girl had the loving grandparents she'd never had herself.
A baby monitor on her nightstand crackled and she turned to switch it off, sitting up. "All right, sweetie, why don't you and daddy go downstairs to get breakfast started, and I will tend to your little sister, okay?"
Bella nodded, scrambled out of the bed and ran to the door; Scotty grinned, reaching over to kiss his wife softly. "That sounds like a very good plan; I think I'll make some pancakes too in honor of our first breakfast here. Thank you for helpin' wit' the unicow disaster, gorgeous."
"You are very welcome, handsome." She chuckled, reaching for her robe and pulling it on, heading quickly to the bathroom and then to the nursery, smiling as she picked up a tiny baby girl from the crib. Kissing her head gently, she pulled in a lungful of her delicious scent, took her to the changing table. "I think you like your new room too, don't you, little one? You had some pretty good stretches of sleep last night."
The tiny girl whimpered, watching the colorful figures that had been attached on the walls and the ceiling; Lilly changed her diaper, tugged a warm red onesie and pants from a drawer. Sighing softly, she watched the baby, gently brushing her cheek and feeling her heart again swell with so much love; it was still sometimes difficult to believe that she and Scotty hadn't been blessed with just one adorable daughter, but that they had actually been lucky enough to welcome two.
The thought of another baby had briefly crossed her mind for the first time when Bella had been a little over one year old, but Lilly had dismissed it to the best of her abilities, thinking there was absolutely no way she'd be able to beat the odds successfully for a second time; still, the desire to be pregnant again had persisted, gaining more and more ground as months passed. The first year with their daughter had been extremely challenging but also very rewarding, filled with amazement as they watched the little girl change and grow, watched her start to smile and communicate; she wasn't the worst possible sleeper but not a great one either, and she and Scotty were both exhausted, just so thankful for the support system around them. Lilly had returned to work when the baby had been almost four months, after taking some saved vacation time in addition to her maternity leave; she'd absolutely hated the thought of being away from Bella when the baby was still so small, so after they had carefully calculated their budget and available funds, she'd switched to a temporary part-time contract. Rosa and Ramiro had taken care of Bella mostly when she worked, with Paul and Celeste arriving from Haddonfield every Friday to take over babysitting duties; she trusted them all with her life, knew the little girl was in the very best of hands, but getting home and receiving an adorable smile from their daughter was most definitely the highlight of each workday for both her and Scotty.
Finally she'd carefully brought up the possibility of trying to get pregnant again, the desire to carry another baby just not settling; he was all for it, but Lilly still stressed about childcare and college funds and her own well-being, both physical and mental, remembering how hard things had been the first time around. They talked about things in great length, which soothed many of her worries; she definitely wanted Bella to have a sibling, as it could be a source of such great support and Scotty had often told her how grateful he was for his older brother. Lilly had certainly experienced her share of difficulties with Christina, but they had been close as children and were now closer than ever; her sister had managed to stay clean following her rehab and was doing well, holding a steady job and very determined to give Lizzie a good childhood. And now they had Maggie and Finn as well, and Lilly felt every inch like the proud big sister as she watched all three of them progress in their lives; eventually the decision to try again became easy, and she knew that even if the second baby didn't happen, she and Scotty were already so, so lucky to have Bella, as the happy, healthy little girl was truly the biggest blessing either of them had ever received. Another decision came even easier; wedding planning had been on hold due to them both being very busy with work and childcare, but now the time was perfect and she simply wasn't willing to wait for any longer, wanted to marry him more than anything. Rosa helped a lot, carefully making sure to not interfere too much, but Lilly was just grateful for all of her support; she spent a few days searching for her dream dress with Christina and Maggie, happy to have her sisters there for the monumental, important task of buying a wedding gown, another thing she definitely wasn't taking for granted after everything that had happened.
On a beautiful Saturday afternoon in May, a little over three years after the day they'd shared their first kiss, the best man she had ever known finally became her husband in a beautiful, emotional ceremony that would forever be engraved into her heart; their families and friends were in attendance with his side not trimmed down much, as she had met most of his relatives and liked them all, totally unable to decide who to leave out. Afterwards, he surprised her with a honeymoon in Paris; neither of them had been to Europe before, spending the first day recovering from jetlag before starting to explore, staring at the old, gorgeous buildings and the famous sights with wide eyes. And on the second evening, it was her turn to surprise him with what she had discovered just before the wedding; her body had pulled off a complete miracle, faster than she had ever considered possible even in her wildest dreams, and she shared her news with him during an evening walk along the River Seine, laughing as he reacted just like he had last time, whooping and spinning her around before kissing her deeply. The beginning of the pregnancy was again filled with rather terrible morning sickness and bone-crushing tiredness, but overall it felt easier than the first one, her mind so much calmer now, so much old pain gone from inside her; this time, nearly everyone predicted a boy, apparently again reading things from her bump and telling her it looked different than it had with Bella. Somehow Lilly knew without hesitation she was again expecting a girl, however, just smiling serenely when people tried to offer name suggestions or give tips on how to successfully raise a boy.
Their second daughter arrived on a freezing cold January morning, a tiny, dainty and almost doll-like little girl with a huge lung capacity, which she informed everyone of right after coming out, releasing a very loud, determined cry; Lilly burst into tears along with her, extremely emotional and absolutely exhausted after a night of labor.
"Hello, little beauty," she whispered to the baby, soothingly caressing her cheek and the tiny girl settled, staring up at her; once again Lilly felt her heart just splinter from all the love that was in it, so much more love than she had ever thought herself capable of. "Wow, you look just like your daddy, don't you? I sometimes call him dollface, you know, and I think you two can share that nickname now."
"Or perhaps she can have the nickname all to herself." Scotty chuckled through his own tears, tenderly touching the baby's dark hair. "She has your eyes, Lil, same as Bella. Hi, princess; we've been waitin' to meet you for a long time, an' so has your big sister."
Coming up with a name for the baby took a lot longer this time, as nothing seemed to adequately fit the gorgeous, delicate little girl; Lilly didn't really want to resort to the baby name book that was on the nightstand next to her hospital bed, trusting their hearts would find the right one, but despite them both offering suggestions all day long, none felt special enough. Finally Scotty went for a walk in the cold afternoon to clear his head and to think, returned with two takeaway coffees and a wide grin that told her he had come up with something; he handed her one of the mugs and kissed her forehead, then the sleeping baby's cheek tenderly.
"How about Mia? I saw it on today's paper at the coffee shop, in an article, an' it felt… just perfect."
"Mia." Lilly smiled, closed her eyes, an instant wave of warmth and relief filling her. "I love that. And it would suit… do you want to have Elisa as her middle name? I know how important she was to you, so… I'd be okay with it."
He smiled, brown eyes tearing up, remained quiet for a moment before touching her hand. "Lil, I love you more than words could ever say for suggestin' that, an' I loved her very much too, but… she belongs to my past life, an' I have said goodbye to her a long time ago. I definitely want to tell our daughters about her at some point, but I don't think we should use her name; I feel like this little one should get her middle name after the strongest an' the most amazin' woman I have ever known."
She frowned and he leaned to kiss her softly, a tender smile drifting over his face. "A Spanish version of your name: Liliana. Mia Liliana Valens."
Tears escaped her instantly, flooding down her cheeks, a few dropping onto the little girl sleeping on her arms. "Oh Scotty."
"You're incredible," he whispered, gently drying some of her tears with the pads of his fingers. "I know you were so worried about havin' children after everythin' you've had to go through, but watchin' you wit' Bella an' now wit' this little one… they are so, so lucky to have you, and so am I. I'm so proud of you, Lil."
She sniffled, shakily tried to wipe some more tears before looking down to the tiny baby; the name really fit the beautiful little girl perfectly, and he had managed to once again astonish her completely. "You are the best father too, Scotty; I always knew you would be, and you just amaze me every single day. I love you; thank you so much for everything you have given me."
The baby whimpered, flailing her arms in an attempt to get her mother's attention and Lilly returned to the present moment again, chuckling and pressing a kiss onto her forehead.
"I'm sorry, sweetie; mommy got a bit lost in her memories, thinking back to the day you were born. Let's get you some milk, hey?"
She took a seat on a rocking chair in the corner of the room and placed the baby to her breast, holding her tiny hand and smiling at her as Mia ate, her eyes firmly focused on her mother; she was now three months old, smiling a lot and, to her parents' relief, a much better sleeper than their firstborn had been at that age. While Bella looked more like her and was in general quite calm, apart from the occasional age-related tantrums, Mia had truly been all Scotty from the start with black hair, olive skin, a lot of his facial features and a fierce temperament; she really didn't hesitate to let the entire street know when something was annoying her. Both girls still had her eyes, but Mia's were flecked with hints of brown, so it looked like she had inherited her father's eye color as well; rocking gently back and forth, Lilly watched out of the window to the beautiful yard, the blue sky, the nature awakening now and the days becoming warmer as spring advanced.
They had finalized their move to this house on the day before, both of their families and the former cold case team members helping out, and there was still a lot of unpacking to do, some boxes lining the walls in almost every room. Leaving her beloved townhouse had been hard; it had been important to her for so long, held so many memories and was so significant in her relationship with Scotty, the first home for both of their daughters, but with two children it had simply been too small and more importantly had no proper yard space. Bella was still very energetic, just like she had been ever since becoming able to move in her mother's belly; she required several daily treks to a park or a playground so she could run and climb and meet other children, so about halfway through the second pregnancy, Scotty had told her they had to look for a place that was bigger and had more room to be outside. Of course he'd been right, no matter how much she adored the townhouse; with a heavy sigh, Lilly had agreed and they had listed the areas they wanted to look at and what they needed, a child-friendly neighborhood with lots of families and close to good schools with a reasonable commute to work. At first the search had yielded nothing, as people clearly weren't very willing to give up on houses meeting the criteria, and the available ones were way out of their budget; in the end, it had truly seemed like fate had intervened, leading Lilly to this neighborhood quite unexpectedly.
She had given a lift home to a work colleague Sarah after her car had refused to start at the FBI garage, and on the way her eyes had fallen on the most beautiful house, surrounded with so much yard space and some gorgeous, colorful flowers still blooming in the late fall. Stopping the car, she'd admired the house out loud and mused how amazing it had to be to live in a place like that, then swallowed heavily when large van from a moving company had turned onto the driveway; Sarah had nudged her side with a wide grin, telling her this had to be a sign. Nothing else had indicated the house was for sale and they hadn't found it in any real estate listings either; finally Sarah had dragged her over, despite Lilly trying to hold back, not wanting to just assume it was being sold. The owners had been so friendly and welcoming, telling her they hadn't formally put the house on the market yet but would be moving to the West Coast soon to be close to their children; she had ended up calling Scotty, asking him to pick up Bella from his mother and come over. He had loved the house and the neighborhood just as much as she did, the owners happy to sell to a family and naming a price that was very reasonable for the area; a little before Christmas, they had officially become the owners of their first house together, but there hadn't been much time for any moving preparations before Mia's birth, and afterwards Lilly had been tired and emotional, feeling quite run-down with the needs of a newborn and a toddler, so they had slowly started to move their belongings over about a month ago, and yesterday had bid a final goodbye to the townhouse.
Despite having been sad to give up their former abode, she was so happy here, so content; she would be returning to work soon, again part-time until Mia's first birthday at least, and she felt better about it this time around, felt like life was much more settled. Scotty's parents would again be taking care of the baby mostly, while Bella had been enrolled in a daycare close to the house, so she could spend time with peers her age; new adventures awaited everyone, and while they both sometimes were completely run off their feet and struggling to find enough time to do everything, Lilly honestly wouldn't change a single thing about their lives, often tearing up when she thought of the long journey she had completed. Somehow she had managed to transform herself from a young child trying to take care of her alcoholic mother to the best of her capabilities into a police officer, then a detective, an FBI agent, a wife to the most amazing man and a mother to two incredible little girls; so many times she had felt utterly hopeless, totally crushed under the burdens of her childhood, so sure that happiness just wasn't in the cards for her until Scotty Valens had changed it all with one unexpected kiss. And now Lilly Valens had the life she had always dreamed of when she'd been growing up on the unsavory, rather dangerous Kensington street, trying to keep her little sister fed and to protect them both from their mother's anger; brushing some errant wetness from her cheek, she kissed Mia's forehead, once again quietly promising her she and Bella would never, ever have to feel that kind of fear, would get to grow up just being carefree, happy children and nothing else.
Delicious scents were drifting from the kitchen when she made her way downstairs with the baby; the beautiful, spacious first floor was mostly open plan so it was easy to keep an eye on the kids while preparing meals. Bella was immersed in a Spanish cartoon, her eyes glued to the television screen; they had decided to raise their children bilingual from the start, and while Scotty still spoke mainly English at home for his wife's benefit, they utilized Spanish programs, books and music, and Rosa and Ramiro used Spanish with their granddaughters. The little girl already possessed a good amount of words in both languages; Lilly had picked up some Spanish too and was now able to follow and take part in simple conversations, even though she certainly wasn't fluent and still fell off the wagon with anything more complex.
"Stand a bit further from the screen, honey; you'll ruin your eyes," Scotty told his older daughter, grinning as he noticed Lilly and the baby, making his way over to kiss Mia's cheeks. "Good mornin', gorgeous."
Mia gave a big smile to her father, then whimpered as he headed back to the stove; a second later she blew her fuse and burst into full tears, trying to reach for him and Lilly chuckled, kissing her temple soothingly. "Shh, sweetheart; daddy is a little busy with cooking right now, but he can cuddle with you after breakfast, okay?"
"I promise, ángel." Scotty laughed, pouring some pancake mix onto a pan and she headed to the living room, tenderly rubbing the baby's back to calm her down; Bella ran over to them, reaching to grasp her sister's tiny hand.
"Mia! Mia, look, pwincess! Pwetty! No cwy!" She pointed at the cartoon and the baby settled, her attention grasped by the sounds and bright colors of the program so she temporarily forgot her yearning for her father; Lilly smiled, leaning to press a kiss on the top of Bella's head.
"You are the very best big sister, honey. Try to stay on the couch when you're watching TV, okay?"
The toddler nodded, jumping onto the couch and receiving annoyed looks from Olivia and Tripod as their post-breakfast nap was disturbed; Lilly lowered Mia onto a colorful playmat with lots of toys around her before making her way back to the kitchen for some coffee, sighing as her eyes took in all the delicious-looking breakfast foods Scotty had already prepared, kissing him softly, gratefully. He was truly spoiling them, so incredible in the kitchen and never too tired to cook a lovely dinner even after a long workday, although she had taken on some of that responsibility too, especially while on maternity leave. She was getting better and better in the kitchen, expanding the variety of recipes she was able to make in order to provide Bella with a delicious, healthy diet and to make sure Mia received plenty of nutrients from her milk; she never wanted them to experience the hunger she'd often felt as a child, going to bed without any proper dinner so many times, to school without any breakfast.
After finishing the amazing meal, they tackled some unpacking for a while before taking a walk around the neighborhood, admiring the beautiful, leafy streets; Bella bounced happily back and forth, pointing things out to her parents and testing playground equipment in the park. Mia slept against her father's chest in a baby carrier, her rosebud mouth forming a little pout, long eyelashes shadowing her cheeks; she loved to sleep on Scotty, either laying down or being carried like this and Lilly grinned, brushing her hand against their younger daughter's dark hair.
"She's such a daddy's girl, isn't she?"
He smiled, pressing his lips onto Mia's forehead. "I'm glad, because I'm pretty sure there will be a time in about fifteen years or so, when she'll want nothin' to do wit' either of us."
She shivered slightly at the thought of trying to raise two teenage girls, slipped her hand into his. "Well, we'll deal with that when the time comes. Together."
"Absolutely." He squeezed her hand, keeping a careful eye on Bella; the little girl climbed up a small ladder onto the top of a slide, releasing a joyful squeal as she rode down the other side and Scotty chuckled, gently tugging his wife closer and finding her lips in a loving kiss.
"Always together, Mrs. Valens. Always together."