Ellie finished up her baby duties of bottle feeding and burping JJ before handing him off to Robin who happily took him. Jesse's parents had arrived not too long ago and Ellie had been in the middle of a diaper change when they came so she missed her chance to sneak a peek at what food they brought over. But, from what her nose could tell, it had to have been that mac n cheese she would fight Jesse for seconds over.

"Thanks for taking him Robin, JJ was starting to get bored of me." She couldn't help but joke as she eyed her son giggling in his grandparent's arms.

Robin simply chuckled happily before bouncing him around. "It's never the trouble Ellie, you know you and Dina are part of our family."

Hearing those words come from Jesse's mom stung a little. Her heart ached and as much as she wanted to run, she forced herself to smile warmly. "Thanks…"

Thinking back to it now, the only times Ellie had ever gone over to Jesse's place was when they'd have game night every now and then and when she did, she hadn't really interacted with his parents much but Robin and Jack always made sure they had enough snacks and drinks. So, getting to know her best friend's family wasn't what she was used to. Dina's place wasn't even a question either. Ellie rarely accepted her friends' invitations in the first place and there was no way she was going into her unrequited crush's house let alone room. Being the awkward third wheel sucked and she hated seeing her two best friends together romantically because of her jealousy but that was all in the past now.

They'd never be able to hang out as a group of three anymore.

As if Robin sensed that Ellie was starting to spiral down in her head, she spoke up with a suggestion. "Why don't you check up on the girls in the kitchen? I believe we're almost ready for our feast outside. Jack was helping the boys move the food outside."

Thankfully, Ellie heard her. "Yeah. Okay," she pinched JJ's cheek before smiling at him and parting ways. She made her way to the kitchen before taking a deep breath and sneaking up on Dina from behind. "You traitor."

"Oh—" Dina jumped a little when Ellie latched onto her. "Hey you, I was wondering why it was so peaceful."

Ellie rolled her eyes before kissing Dina's neck and breathing in her scent. Her shoulders finally dropped a little, relieving some tension. "Need some help?" She propped her chin on Dina's shoulder before staring at the mixing bowl of veggies in her hands.

Dina just shrugged. "Not really," she mixed the salad around before grabbing a piece and bringing it up to Ellie's lips. "Taste it for me?"

Her fiancé opened her mouth before taking a chomp. She then obnoxiously pulled Dina into a tight hug as she wrapped her arms around her stomach. It tasted great but Ellie needed to distract herself with something, anything. "Mmh… Could use a little more dressing."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Okay," Dina grabbed the bottle and added a little more before tossing it again. After it was mixed in, she brought another piece up to Ellie's lips. "How bout now?"

Ellie ate the piece from Dina's fingers before chewing and humming out loud. After a second, she rocked them side to side before responding. "More."

An eyebrow went up and Dina shot her a look. "Now you're just fucking with me aren't you?"

"I'm not! It needs more."

It didn't. Any more and the poor lettuce would be drowning in Caesar salad dressing.

Her lips curled upward slightly and Dina scoffed at her. "Don't be a dick! Salads are nasty with too much dressing."

Ellie just shrugged before randomly asking, "Where's the best place to keep your salad?"

Sensing something was up, Dina was quick to roll her eyes before brushing her fiancé off in vain. "Don't."

She smirked at her before answering, "The dressing room."

Her fiancé groaned out loud. "Oh god."

Laughing at her reluctance, Ellie had to give her another pun. "I had a great salad pun but unfortunately I tossed it."

A smile cracked on her face but Dina didn't want to admit that was good before shoving Ellie away. "Go away! You're not being helpful."

Unfortunately for Dina, Ellie still had a vice grip on her hips. "Did you hear about the depressed salad? They beet themself up."

Rolling her lips together, Dina shook her head as she grabbed a piece of lettuce and threw it at Ellie. "Okay, that's it. You're banned from the kitchen. Out!"

"Ow hey! Be careful with that salad there! There's a leek in it."

Talia snorted in the distance as Dina's jaw dropped. Maria started laughing and right as Dina was about to throw another piece of lettuce at her, Ellie made her great escape by dodging it and grabbing the salad bowl from her hands. She quickly pivoted around her fiancé before heading outside to the backyard where they were setting things up.

Joel noticed her before shooting her this look. "What'd you do this time?"

Ellie shrugged innocently before speaking with a straight face. "Dina didn't like the great salad puns I thought about even though I was tossing and turning all night."

It took a second to register but once it did, Joel let out a deep sigh. "Just put the salad on the table."

Scoffing at that, Ellie jutted her lips before walking over to the food table. "You know it was good. No one appreciates puns anymore."

Tommy happened to hear the conversation from across the fire pit. He laughed before asking, "I assume you tossed a few too many puns?"

Ellie looked at him dead in the eyes as she placed the salad bowl onto the table. "Not enough." She then made eye contact with Jesse's dad before giving him a curt smile. "Hey, Jack."

Jack simply nodded. "Hey Ellie, Robin stole JJ from you?"

She nodded to confirm his statement. "Yup." She then pulled away from the table before walking over to the fire pit.

Unlike their previous Thanksgiving feasts of a juicy turkey, they opted to roast a whole pig this year. It wasn't a huge pig of course but enough to feed all three families and leave them a decent amount of leftovers. However, considering the amount of other food they cooked such as mashed potatoes, cornbread, ham, salad, mac n cheese, etc, they could probably feed the entire block.

"How's the roast looking Tommy?"

Right on cue, some juice spilled onto the fire, erupting a large puff of fire. "She's pretty much ready, you wanna go tell the ladies?"

"Sure." Ellie turned around and made her way back inside. Once in, she glanced around the kitchen before announcing, "Hey, the pig's almost ready."

"Alright dear, we'll be right out," Maria said first before holding up a bowl of fruit punch. "Take this out for me?"

"Sure." Ellie had a blank face as she walked over and grabbed the punch bowl. As she made her way out, Dina called out to her.

"Hey, wait for me!" She jogged over to her fiancé's side before kissing her cheek. "Hope you like the punch, I made most of it. Extra fruity for you."

Smiling at that, Ellie glanced down at the bowl before poking at Dina. "Extra fruity huh?"

"Mmhmm."

"Okay, calm your tits, babe. I do not need to give our family more black material."

Dina smiled brightly before shrugging innocently. "Mmh, what a shame but that's okay, we got all the time in the world for that."

Ellie rolled her eyes with a scoff. "Oh, brother."

By the time everyone was outside and ready, they started their feast. Joel and Tommy took down the roast pig before slicing it up and handing over a slice for everyone to have. After that, everyone took turns grabbing side dishes and by the time they were all well-fed, Tommy and Joel whipped out their guitars. They started playing some festive tunes and not without Dina pestering Ellie to join them of course. Eventually, Ellie cracked before shyly playing a song.

JJ had to be the most excited one around and Dina had to scoop him from Robin's arms before dancing with him on the deck. She had him standing on her shoes as she held him by his little arms to keep him stabilized. They softly swayed around, off-beat to the song, and when Ellie noticed that, she couldn't stop smiling for the night. Robin clapped along to their dancing and JJ was squealing around louder than ever.

Unbeknownst to the family, Talia sneaked in a couple of photos with their Polaroid camera before taking turns and shooting pictures with everyone around the campfire. They were all happy and high-spirited until JJ finally tapped out for the night. He practically fell asleep on Dina's shoes and his mama had to scoop him up so he wouldn't fall over. She ended up handing him back to Robin for his nap who was sitting with Maria.

They both started gushing about how cute he was as Jack went over to grab supplies for dessert. He brought back a happy helping of smores' and Ellie was quick to roast marshmallows over the fire. After that, Jack whipped out a few bottles of beer before enjoying them with Joel and Tommy.

Talia, on the other hand, was busy divvying up the food into take-out containers. They were all on the same page and she had no intentions of sending back her sister and sister-in-law empty-handed. Meanwhile, Dina was enjoying the night sky, breathing in the campfire scents in the corner. Ellie was quick to join her and she came over with two gooey smores' in hand.

"Hey, want some dessert?"

Dina eyed the chocolatey and melty mess in her hands. "Thought you'd never ask."

Her fiancé quickly handed one over before taking a seat next to her. "Alright, I got a serious question for you Dina."

A smile grew on Dina's face as she took a bite of her smores' before responding, "Shoot."

Ellie leaned in to speak in a quiet voice. "Is it just me or are you fucking tired as shit as well?"

"Pfft—" Dina started busting out loud in laughter before taking another bite of her dessert. Once she finished chewing, she leaned into Ellie's ear before answering honestly. "I'm pretty fucking tired, to be honest."

Ellie groaned at that. "Oh god, we're so fucking old." She then eyed her family before whispering back, "How the hell does everyone have so much energy?"

Dina couldn't stop giggling. "No idea. Maybe it's cause they don't have a baby?"

That made Ellie glance over to where Robin and Maria were. JJ was now coddled in Maria's arms before she smiled and gently brushed up against Dina. "They're his problem now."

Her fiancé laughed even louder. "That's okay, there's milk for him in the fridge so they don't have to bother us."

Smiling softly at that, Ellie leaned into Dina's side. She watched the fire sway around in the fire pit, firewood crackling every now and then as ambers shot up like fireworks in the night sky. It was hard not to think about Jesse, especially with his parents here. It made the void in her chest ache so much more. She was reminded of his absence and his company. She missed his stupid brotherly words and smart-ass remarks. She didn't know what to do with the bottled-up anger inside of her but she was doing her damnedest best not to lash out and take it out on the people around her.

She needed to grow out of that habit.

It wasn't a habit she wanted JJ to have. Despite not having a father, she wanted him to have everything he could have. Her eyes stung, threatening to spill tears before she sniffled and turned her face into Dina's neck. She breathed in her scent, wishing for everything to be normal. It also was her silent prayer not to cry and ruin the fun.

"This is nice."

Dina only reached out to rub her arm. "It is."

Ellie sniffled again before hiding into Dina more. "Fuck."

Dina turned her face before kissing the crown of Ellie's head. "You okay?"

"Yes."

"Ellie…" Her voice was soft and sympathetic.

After a second, Ellie sighed into her skin. "No."

Licking her lips, Dina started rubbing Ellie's arm more firmly. "It's okay to talk about him."

"How can I when he can't—" Her voice rose but she paused to breathe through her nose before speaking quietly. "When he's not here? How am I supposed to be happy when he can't?"

A soft sigh left Dina's lips. "You gotta stop beating yourself so hard."

"I don't know how Dina," Ellie argued back with a pleading tone. She was hurt and mad and her world kept spiraling down no matter how much she stood back up.

Dina pulled away from Ellie to reposition herself. She lifted one leg over the small bench they were sitting on to face her fiancé before cupping her cheek. She then rubbed her freckled skin with her thumb before scooching forward as close as possible and pulling her into a warm hug. She kissed her neck before asking, "Can I ask you something?"

Ellie just slumped and sunk into Dina before mumbling, "Shoot."

"What if…" She started softly before expanding, "Let's say I wasn't pregnant." That comment made Ellie shift in her arms but she continued before her fiancé could cut her off. "I wouldn't have been sick and we could have stuck it out in the blizzard. We wouldn't have needed to call for help either."

Now that supposed situation made Ellie pull back. "What are you—"

Dina wrapped her arms around Ellie's shoulders obnoxiously to keep her in place. "And what if I had been there with you as well from the start when that guy came?"

There was a deep frown on Ellie's face now. "What are you doing?"

She ignored her fiancé before continuing. "We could have both fought that guy together and maybe even have saved Jesse."

"Dina."

"If I hadn't been in the condition I was then, none of this would have happened to Jesse."

Ellie unintentionally shouted her name before pushing her away with an angry yet hurt face. "Dina! Stop it!" At this point, all eyes were on them but Ellie was too upset with her fiancé to notice. "What are you trying to do?" She spat out in an accusatory voice. "None of that was your fault so why are you acting like this?"

"Because it wasn't your fault either!" Dina quickly argued back in a firm voice with a serious look. "Did you know that guy was going to come to the planetarium?" Ellie's mouth opened but she answered for her. "No, you didn't. Did you know that he was dangerous and infected with rabies? No, you didn't. We can go back and forth all you want Ellie but the fact is that you weren't the one who told him to do it. You weren't the one who held a knife up to Jesse's neck!"

Ellie was shocked and she looked confused yet betrayed at the same time. Dina kept her eyes on hers as she continued in a voice filled with raw emotion.

"You can blame yourself all you want but I'm not innocent either Ellie. There are times that I can't even believe what I'm thinking." Her voice cracked a little before she spoke in a softer voice. "You know I love you. I care about you so much that when I get nightmares about that day and think it's you…" Her lips quivered before she continued with a pained face. "That you were the one who got killed instead of Jesse. I wake up in a cold sweat and am fucking glad that it wasn't." Tears were threatening to spill from her watery eyes as her voice trembled. "What kind of friend does that make me Ellie? I've known him longer than you."

Her mouth fell agape and Ellie tried to speak but she couldn't find her words. Instead, she bit her inner lip hard, drawing some blood before pulling Dina into a hug. She squeezed her desperately as if she tried taking back her words before whispering into her neck. "I…" She hesitated but she needed to say those words despite how foreign they were to her. "I'm sorry…"

Some tears fell down her face and Dina sniffled before looking up at the sky and wiping her tears away. "Don't be. I am a horrible friend."

"No, you're not." Ellie practically begged, trying to tell her that she was wrong. "You did nothing wrong Dina."

"Yeah, well neither did you." She snapped back angrily in a sarcastic tone.

That silenced Ellie.

Dina sniffled again before pushing Ellie away. "I need some space."

Ellie wanted to reach out to her but the second she tried to lift her hand, she couldn't. Her arm was too heavy so she just looked away in the opposite direction with shame before whispering, "Okay."

She felt heartbroken. Dejected. Like a lost puppy that was abandoned by its mother with nowhere to call home. What was she supposed to do if Dina left her? Engagements let alone marriages didn't mean everything would be alright. Nothing in her life had ever been permanent and she just couldn't erase that irrational fear that one day, Joel would just up and go, leaving her all on her own again. That's when she sighed before looking up. She finally noticed that everyone had stopped partying and well… she got up before storming away.

The ironic part about it all was that there wasn't really anywhere to go. Dina had gone inside the house and so had she. She probably went to the guest room where they would spend the night and it was too early to face her again.

She ended up heading outside to the front porch.

At least there, she could be alone. She didn't want anyone to see her. They had already seen enough as it is. She sat down on the steps before propping her elbows on her knees. After that, she took a deep breath through her nose and then out her mouth. She repeated that a few times before rubbing her face. She didn't mean to make Dina cry. That was the last thing she ever wanted.

"I'm such a fucking idiot…"

She sniffled before rubbing her face again. After that, she sat there, staring at some random rock on the floor for who knows how long until someone knocked on the door. She didn't turn around but she had a feeling who it was. There were only two people who it could be: Joel or Talia out for her blood for making her sister cry.

"Hey, kiddo…"

And so… it was Talia. Her voice was much softer than she thought though.

"You alright?"

Why does everyone ask her that?

"I made Dina cry."

Talia breathed out softly before confirming. "So you did."

Ellie was so close to breaking down again. "If you wanna have a go at me, now's your chance."

She could hear Talia's footsteps as she got closer. "Oh, Ellie… as much as I would like to threaten you and make you shake at your knees…" She held her comment for a second with sleazy eyes before softening up. "You look like you're already doing it yourself so I'll pass."

Well, she got her there.

"Do you mind if I take a seat?"

Ellie glanced over at her feet before turning away. "Help yourself."

"Thanks."

Talia sat down an arm's length away before mirroring her posture. She looked straight ahead before glancing at Ellie and following her line of sight. A second of silence passed before she started, "Dina's a good kid." She then started staring at the same rock Ellie was. "And she'll always be my baby sister no matter how old she gets or how much she is annoyed by me."

That cracked a small smile on Ellie's lips.

"But… no matter how much I get under her skin, she's the type of woman who will come running to my front door wearing nothing but a unicorn onesie and a slipper in hand if I were to send her an SOS in the middle of the night."

That imagery made Ellie snort.

She finally turned to face Ellie fully with her body before speaking. "My point is that she is loving, caring, and loyal to the people she loves and deems worthy. And… Ellie, you are one of those people." She then reached over to grab her hand and gave her a firm squeeze. "And I trust my sister's judgment so I'll always be there for you and have your back. Besides, we're family now. You can't get rid of this annoying sister-in-law of yours that easily." She took back her hand before patting Ellie's shoulder a few times.

Breathing out softly, Ellie picked at her fingers before turning Talia's way but not looking into her eyes. She was mindlessly staring at her hand and after a moment, she forced herself to look up. She then took a deep breath before asking, "How bad were we?"

Talia's face scrunched and Ellie was reminded of Dina. "Mmh…" She shifted left and right with a slight shrug before holding out her hand and pinching her fingers together. "About that much?"

Groaning at that, Ellie rubbed her face. "I should call it a night."

"Alright, I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Yeah." She dragged her feet along the dirt before standing up. "Tomorrow." She quickly dusted herself off before heading back inside.

Thankfully Talia didn't follow after her yet and Ellie made her way upstairs. Once she had eyes on the door of their room for the night, she rubbed her neck in a nervous tick before standing in front of it. She stood there, thinking about what Dina told her and how she acted. A lot of thoughts were rushing through her head, however, the more she thought about what she should have done or what she could have done, she was driving herself mad.

This was getting her nowhere.

Ellie ended up breathing in and out a few times before hesitantly raising her hand to knock on the door. She thought about turning away and leaving but where would she go? She couldn't leave without her or JJ. Her family wouldn't let that slide, hell, she wouldn't forgive herself if she did leave without saying a word either. She clenched and unclenched her hand before softly knocking on the door. She then leaned in closer enough to speak up in a soft voice.

"Hey… it's me. Can I come in?"

She heard some shifting before hearing Dina's voice. "Yeah, go ahead."

"..." Ellie reached out to grab the door handle. She took another breath before slowly twisting the knob. Once it was open, she quickly laid eyes on Dina who was sitting on the bed before shying away and stepping inside, shutting the door quietly. After it closed, she turned around with her head hung low. She took a few small steps and to her surprise, Dina was the first to initiate the conversation.

"Hey…"

She looked up to meet her eyes. "Hey back…"

Dina looked tired but she just flashed her a small smile. Her eyes were a bit swollen and red but thankfully looked better than before. "I just had a chat with Joel."

Blinking at that sudden confession, Ellie chuckled softly. "I had one with Talia." She then walked closer to Dina until she was right by her side before asking in a soft voice. "Can I?"

Her fiancé just gestured her hand and Ellie took a seat. They sat there for a second in silence before Ellie rubbed her fingers nervously and asked. "Are we… okay?"

That made Dina glance at her before looking away. "I'd like to say we are."

Relief washed over Ellie and she couldn't help but smile warmly. "Me too…" They sat there in silence for another long moment before Ellie started again. "I… I want to get better."

That made Dina turn to face her before watching her silently.

"I want to be better for you… and JJ…" Ellie couldn't say this last bit out loud but she thought it. And myself. "You deserve better, not this mess."

"Ellie…" Dina breathed out a small breath before leaning over to cup her fiancé's cheek. "You're already everything I've wanted and more."

She shook her head. "Look, I'm not perfect, I'm…" She sighed before admitting it out loud. "A pain in the ass."

Chuckling at that, Dina smirked at her. "Glad you finally admit it but you do realize you're still the freckled dork I fell for right?"

Scoffing at her fiancé, Ellie rolled her eyes before turning away. "Whatever."

"Hey…" Dina giggled before cupping Ellie's cheek and pulling her in for a kiss. It was a short peck but she lingered around her lips before whispering in a husky voice. "Still cute." She kissed her lips again with a small grin. "And hot." She claimed her lips again but this time, lingered as she pulled Ellie's body into her own. A light moan left her lips when she eventually pulled away with a soft pop. "Just my type."

There was a smug smile on Ellie's face which she was trying to keep under control. She eventually just shook her head before grabbing Dina's face. "Such a simp." She kissed her lips with a soft yet moist peck.

Her fiancé giggled into it before kissing Ellie more proactively. Their lips parted again and again before Dina eventually licked her mouth and nibbled on her upper lip. "And?"

Ellie sighed before pushing Dina down onto the mattress. "And… we can't have sex here."

Dina just wrapped her arms around her shoulders before pulling her in for a searing kiss. They moaned into it before Dina gently rolled her tongue around Ellie's. She was also the first to suck Ellie's tongue more passionately before releasing it with a wet pop.

"That doesn't mean we can't kiss."

A soft groan left Ellie's lips. "You're killing me." Her hands naturally slid down Dina's sides.

"And you're the one with frisky hands."

Ellie shut her up with another kiss. Dina sighed into it before taking it as an invitation to grope her body. They both ended up grinding into each other's bodies as they felt each other up. Their lips were somewhat swollen by the time Ellie had the nerve to slip her hand under Dina's shirt.

Dina let out a muffled groan before stopping Ellie's hand. "Ellie…" Her fiancé ignored her as she sucked her tongue and bit her lower lip. "El…" Rolling her eyes this time, Dina slapped Ellie's side. "Babe, don't."

"Okay okay," Ellie kissed Dina's lips one last time before kissing her neck repeatedly. "Not my fault you have unfair portions."

"Mmh, I know…" Dina slowly ran her fingers through Ellie's hair before lightly raking her nails across her scalp. "It's the price I pay for being so hot." She then fisted Ellie's hair before pulling her enough to kiss her lips.

It was a fully open-mouthed kiss this time and they both ate it up before Ellie had to pull back from how intense it was growing.

"Now what?"

Dina closed their gap and kissed the hell out of Ellie's lips before pulling away and whispering into her ear. "We make out until we fall asleep?"

A soft sigh was all that Ellie could manage. "Okay."

Her fiancé immediately giggled with a smug grin. However, instead of talking, she claimed Ellie's lips and kissed her more aggressively. Her hands were quick to wander as well and Dina found herself groping Ellie's back and ass. By the time they went to bed, they were left facing the door and Ellie was tightly big-spooning Dina from behind.

When morning came, Talia gently knocked on their door before speaking up in a gentle voice. "Dina, Ellie, are you two awake yet?"

There was no response and Talia carefully opened the door before laying eyes on them. A smile quickly grew on her face as she watched them sleep. Dina was curled up on her side and was still Ellie hugging her from behind with her face buried in her neck. She managed to backtrack a little and sneak in a picture of them which ultimately made her sister twitch awake.

"Mmh…Talia?" Dina mumbled half alert and groggy. "Is JJ awake…?"

"No, he's still asleep." Her sister quickly denied it before adding, "Sorry to wake you, baby sis, I was just wondering if you two wanted pancakes or cereal for breakfast."

Ellie was still unbothered, dead to the world really, as Dina yawned tiredly before mindlessly mumbling a response. "Pancakes are good… Ellie misses Joel's pancakes…"

"Alright, I'll let them know then. Sleep some more okay?"

"Mmh…" Dina shifted slightly before slowly turning around and burying her face in her fiancé's chest. She hugged Ellie tightly before Talia quickly let them be and shut the door.

She fell back asleep in seconds.

They had breakfast not too long after and by the time Dina, Ellie, and JJ were headed back home, they strapped a bunch of leftovers onto Shimmer and Japan. They basically had enough food to last them for weeks, not to mention their family's surprise: a new addition to the family.

Four freaking chickens.