Summary:

"Oh, come on, Helen, don't tell me you forgot your own birthday."

Helen fakes a glare as both Nikola and Zari approach the bed. "When you've been alive as long as I have, you're bound to forget a few things."

OR

Nikola and Zari surprise Helen for her birthday. Domestic fluff ensues. Companion piece to "counting the ways (to where you are)."

A/N: Hello, everyone! I'm finally back with another completed oneshot for this fic series. I churned this out last minute as a tribute for Helen's birthday. I didn't have a ton of time to edit it since I literally started writing it last night, but hopefully it's good enough. This is more of a companion piece than a sequel to the previous fic, so you don't necessarily have to have read it to understand this one. But I'd recommend it just for the sake of additional context (and cute Teslen hijinks) 😊 Like last time, I've listed the Serbian "glossary" in the end notes.

Anyway, thanks to any and all who stop by to read, I really appreciate it! ❤️

never a wish better than this

She knows something is amiss when Nikola is nowhere to be found.

Nowhere to be found in their bed, to be precise. He rarely if ever gets out of bed before she does, preferring to spend as much time as possible cuddling until she has to pry him off of her. She doesn't mind the extra cuddles, of course. But he'd be content to keep her beside him all day if she'd let him.

So his inexplicable absence is quite odd, if not a cause for concern. Helen rolls over onto her side, inspecting his end of the bed. He's fluffed his pillow and propped it up against the headboard, and when she reaches out to touch it, she finds that it's no longer warm. She then rolls onto her other side and checks the clock on the nightstand. It reads 8:30 AM. Strange. He usually likes getting up at 9:00, thanks to his preference for hours divisible by three.

Suspicion stirring in her gut, Helen decides that she should go search for him. It's unlikely anything bad has happened, but it is likely that he's up to something, and half the time that something involves accidentally blowing up his lab. As much as she's happy to let him use that space as he pleases, she isn't keen on cleaning up yet another one of his messes.

Noises from the hallway, however, stop her in her tracks. At first she isn't sure what she's hearing, but then a familiar tiny voice greets her ears.

"Wanna hold it, Tata."

Nikola's voice answers, muffled but still audible. "It's a bit heavy, mališa," he says. "You can open the door for me."

Helen can practically see her daughter's ensuing pout. "But a'wanna hold it," Zari whines. "Molim Vas, Tata?"

Helen hears Nikola sigh. "Here. How about you carry the flowers."

"Okay!"

"But be very careful. That vase will break and make a mess if you drop it."

"I won' drop it, Tata. I promise."

Helen suppresses a laugh and straightens up against the headboard. The reason for Nikola's unexpected disappearance is clear now. He and Zari left her to sleep in while they planned some sort of surprise. She grabs a book off of the nightstand and opens it to a random page, intending on feigning ignorance when they enter the room.

The door opens a moment later, bringing with it the smell of breakfast. Helen sets the book down and smiles sweetly, taking note of the tray in Nikola's hands and the vase in Zari's. A trio of red roses peeks out over the rim.

"Well, what have we here?"

Zari beams. "Happy birthday, Mama!"

Birthday? Helen blinks in surprise and checks the clock again. Sure enough, the date reads 8/27. Has she really gotten that bad at keeping track of the days?

"Oh, come on, Helen, don't tell me you forgot your own birthday."

Helen fakes a glare as both Nikola and Zari approach the bed. "When you've been alive as long as I have, you're bound to forget a few things."

Nikola makes a face. "Really? That's the best you've got?"

"Well, not all of us have a photographic memory," Helen quips.

"I do!" Zari chimes in. "I mem'rized your birthday!"

Helen's expression softens. "I see that you have," she says. "Are these flowers for me?"

Zari nods. "Uh-huh," she replies, holding the vase out to her.

Helen smiles and takes it, sniffing the roses before placing them on the nightstand. "Thank you, darling. They're lovely."

"Me an' Tata made breakfast too!" Zari exclaims, crawling up onto the bed.

"Tata and I," Nikola amends, handing Helen the tray.

"Nikola," she scolds, "now is hardly the time to correct her grammar."

Nikola crosses his arms. "Someone's got to do it sometime."

"She's three."

"She can already read."

"Tata and I," Zari chirps.

Nikola fixes Helen with a smug grin, and she rolls her eyes at him. "Oh, don't you start."

"Start what?" he says innocently, settling himself at the foot of the bed. "I haven't done anything except prepare this wonderful breakfast for the love of my life."

She snorts. "Now you're overdoing it."

"I put blueb'rries in the pancakes!" Zari interrupts.

Helen glances at the plate in front of her. Sure enough, a stack of blueberry pancakes is sitting there, next to a sausage, two eggs, and a helping of beans. "Thank you, sweetheart," Helen says, leaning over and kissing the top of her daughter's head. "This looks delicious."

"Well, it's nice to know I'm still not getting credit for my work," Nikola grumbles in mock annoyance.

Helen makes a face at him. "I was going to thank you next, but you're the most impatient man on the planet."

"I am not."

"Are too."

"Are you going to eat those pancakes or should I before they get cold?"

Helen rolls her eyes again before returning her attention to her plate. She sets to work on the pancakes, letting Zari steal a few bites in the process. Somewhere along the line, Nikola reaches out and starts rubbing her leg. It's an almost unconscious gesture, one of the many quiet affections that have become second nature to them by now. Of course, sharp wit and playful words have always been their forte. But it was when words gave way to silent confessions that Helen knew for certain that the love between them was genuine. A memory flashes through her mind, of Nikola lying beside her the night she told him that she was pregnant with Zari. They'd talked before then, sharing both fear and joy in equal measure. But when the conversation was spent and they at last settled into bed, Nikola bent his head down and kissed her stomach. Helen remembers him lingering there a moment before pulling her into his arms and holding her gently against him, saying nothing yet everything all at once. Although they've hardly spoken about it since, it's one of her favorite memories of him, and she suspects it will be for the rest of her life.

"You're being awfully quiet."

Helen looks up again. Nikola's hand has stilled just below her knee. "I'm eating, Nikola," she says.

"Yes, but you usually talk while you eat."

Helen smirks. "Perhaps this meal is just so good that it's rendered me virtually speechless."

Nikola scoffs. "Oh spare me the theatrics, Helen," he mutters. "False flattery has never been your strong suit."

She laughs. "Me? Spare you theatrics? Look who's talking."

"What's theetrics?" Zari asks.

Helen smirks again. "It's when your Tata decides to get fussy."

"I get fussy," Zari says through a mouthful of pancake. "M'fussy lots."

"Oh I know," Helen replies, still smirking at Nikola. "I wonder where she gets that from, hmm?"

Nikola huffs and rolls his eyes, but a moment later he starts stroking her leg again.

Helen smiles as she continues eating. Nikola may be a petulant vampire, but he's her petulant vampire, and he loves her. That much she's sure of.

When at last she's had her fill, she sets the tray down in front of Zari, who is now propped up against Nikola's pillow. "You can finish off the leftovers, dear," she says.

A look of utter glee settles on Zari's face. "Hvala Vam, Mama!" she squeals. Helen chuckles and kisses her cheek.

Nikola takes that as his cue to scoot forward, running his hand up Helen's thigh as he shifts closer. "I hope this was a satisfactory birthday present," he purrs. "Otherwise I'll have to make it up to you later."

Helen deliberately lets her gaze drop to his lips before replying. "Careful, Nikola," she murmurs, "there's a child present."

Nikola grins and leans forward, planting a kiss on her mouth. Zari lets out a shriek. "Eww!" she cries. "Why're you kissin'?"

Nikola pulls away, still grinning. "Because I love your Mama very much."

"Kissin' is only for in private," Zari insists, shoveling a spoonful of beans into her mouth.

Helen holds back a giggle. "Where did you hear that, dear?"

Zari picks up a napkin and dabs a spot of gravy on her chin. "Alice told me so."

Helen and Nikola exchange glances. "Ah," she replies. "I see."

"Well," Nikola sighs, leaning closer despite Zari's glare of disapproval. "I suppose we'll just have to save the kissing for in private then."

His grin is positively infectious now, and Helen can't help but grin back. "Yes," she agrees, meeting his gaze again. "Yes, I suppose we will."

A/N: List of Serbian words/phrases (again, apologies if I've gotten anything wrong, I'm not a fluent speaker):

Tata - Dad, Daddy, Papa
mališa - little one
Molim Vas - the formal version of "please"
Hvala Vam - the formal version of "thank you"

I'm not sure if the formalized "please" and "thank you" were necessary in this situation, but since Helen and Nikola are Zari's elders, I decided to go with that just in case.

The title of this fic is also taken from the lyrics of "100 Years" by Five for Fighting.

If you've read the previous fic, you may have noticed that Zari is a bit more articulate than she was before, although she's still three years old. I imagine that the first fic takes place not long after she's turned three, whereas in this fic she's some months older.