A/N: Enjoy!
"NiNi! We're back!"
Hearing his father's voice echoing around the hallway as they entered the house made Will feel as though he had been transported back to his childhood. This was the house he had grown up in before his dad had been transferred to Pittsburgh, and even fourteen years later, it still looked and smelled exactly the same. The shoe rack still sat by the inside of the door, shoes gathered haphazardly around it; not once had the rack ever served its purpose of keeping everything organized. A little further inside sat the beat up hall table that his mom had inherited from her grandmother. It had seen plenty of life in their family alone, being carted from New Orleans to Pittsburgh and back again, and even now that it was just his parents living in the house, it seemed to carry twice the usual array of random household items.
They had spent just three nights in Pittsburgh after returning from Hawaii, before repacking their bags and boarding a flight to New Orleans to spend a few days in the South with Will's family. JJ was wearing a little thin, but she knew how much Will was looking forward to seeing everyone, and so she hadn't complained.
Hauling his duffel over the threshold as his dad brushed past him to help JJ with her bag, Will looked up when he heard his mother come bustling into the room.
"Billy!" Janine gushed happily, positively beaming as she reached up, her thin hands cupping her son's face. Will grinned, allowing his mom to pull him down and kiss each of his cheeks. "We've missed you so much, my boy. I'm so happy you were able to come down for a bit over the holidays!"
"I've missed you too Momma," he chuckled. He stepped aside, dropping his bag by the stairs as his mom made her way over to JJ and pulled the younger girl into a warm hug.
"So good to see you again, god, I don't think Bailey-Rose has gone five minutes without mentionin' your name since she found out y'all were comin' down," Janine said with a laugh. JJ chuckled with her, sidling up beside Will as William dropped her bag down next to Will's. "Come into the kitchen, I'll get you guys a drink"
"Are they here? Are they here?" came Bailey-Rose's excited shriek from the main living area of the house as they made their way through. "Mamaw, is Auntie JJ here?"
Janine laughed, bending down to catch her granddaughter as she ran towards them. "What about your Uncle Will?"
"Hi Uncle Will!" Bailey-Rose said excitedly, bouncing up and down on her feet as Janine tried to hold her steady. "Hi Aunt JJ!"
"Hey B-Rose!" JJ replied, mustering up the strongest smile she could. She obliged when the younger girl raced towards her for a hug, kneeling down and giving her a tight squeeze. Bailey-Rose giggled, clearly thrilled to be with her favourite person once more.
"Hey, hey, where's my hug?" Will said, feigning hurt. Bailey-Rose laughed, breaking away from JJ and bounding over towards her uncle, leaping into his arms. He swung her up, making her squeal with laughter as he gave her a tight squeeze. "Crazy munchkin, how are ya?"
"I'm good!"
"Uncle Will, Uncle Will!" came the excited crows of Will's two other nieces, five year old Pippa, and two year old Charlotte. Will lit up, setting Bailey-Rose down on her feet as the two little ones raced towards him.
"Full house right now son, hope you're ready to play uncle of the year," William said with a laugh.
"I'm always uncle of the year, isn't that right Lottie?" Will replied as he scooped up little Charlotte and pressed a kiss to her cheek. "Where are your brothers? Are they outside?"
"Yeah!" Charlotte cheered. "We go p'ay?"
Will laughed, nodding enthusiastically as the two older girls jumped up and down excitedly. "Shall we go outside and play on Mamaw and Papaw's swing set?"
"Yeah!" the girls cheered. JJ had to laugh as Bailey-Rose grabbed his free hand and pulled him towards the back door, Pippa hot on their heels.
"You ok there JJ?" Janine asked gently, approaching JJ with a concerned look in her eyes.
"Yeah," JJ said, giving her future mother-in-law a soft smile. "I'm just tired"
"Why don't you go on upstairs and freshen up? I know the type of clientele you tend to find on flights to New Orleans, it's not always pretty," Janine said with a chuckle. "Go get settled in, I'll let Will know when he comes back inside"
Nodding her thanks, JJ slowly turned and left the room, heading back out to the entryway. Their bags were nowhere to be seen so, figuring Will's dad must have carted them upstairs for them, she made her way up to Will's old bedroom on the second floor. Even though she had only visited this house on one other occasion, she knew her way around the long hallways that ambled their way through the old colonial style home.
Pushing on the door at the end of the hallway, she let herself into the room that had once been Will's whole world. While the wallpaper had long since been taken down and the bed had been upgraded to a queen, there were still little touches around the room that reminded her it had once been home to an eight year old boy.
Closing the door behind her, she let out a sigh, slowly crossing the room and taking a seat on the edge of the bed. As she sat down, she felt the weight of everything she was holding back settle deep in her stomach again. Dropping her head to her hands, she took a deep breath, forcing herself to keep her composure. She was here, with Will's family, ready to celebrate some downtime. She wasn't going to let her own mind ruin it.
"Uncle Will?"
Grasping the chains of the swing, Will leaned forward slightly so he could see his niece's face. "Yeah B-Rose?"
"Is Aunt JJ ok?"
Even though he knew Bailey-Rose was a bright and inquisitive child, Will still couldn't help but be surprised at how perceptive she was. Stepping around the swing, he crouched down in front of her, letting out a gentle sigh. "She's... she's just a bit sad at the moment"
"Why?" Bailey-Rose asked curiously.
"B-Rose... did your momma and daddy tell you what happened to JJ's daddy?"
Bailey-Rose shook her head, looking down at her uncle with wide eyes. Behind Will, Sam was chasing Pippa and Charlotte around on the grass, growling like a monster as the two little girls shrieked with laughter.
"Well... JJ's daddy died. Right before she went to the Olympics," Will said softly. Bailey-Rose's eyes widened.
"How?"
"He got very sick. And the doctors couldn't make him better," Will explained slowly. "He went to heaven. And JJ... she's very sad about it"
"I would be sad too if my daddy died," Bailey-Rose said softly, looking down at her feet where the toes of her shoes were dragging in the grass. She glanced up, her hazel eyes filled with genuine empathy. "Do you think it would be ok if I go and give her a hug?"
Will broke into a smile, reaching up to pat his niece's cheek. "I think she would appreciate that very much"
Bailey-Rose smiled, sliding off the swing as Will got to his feet. Will took her hand, leading her past where her dad was playing with the other kids, across the backyard and into the house. As he stepped through the sliding door, his mom looked up from where she was busy setting up the table for dinner later that evening.
"Momma, have you seen JJ?"
"She went upstairs, Billy. I think she needed a minute after your flight," Janine said warmly. Will nodded, making his way past her and towards the stairs with Bailey-Rose still clutching tightly to his hand.
When they finally reached his bedroom door, he knocked once, before slowly opening the door and poking his head into the room. JJ turned as he came in, giving him a wan smile which brightened slightly when she saw Bailey-Rose behind him.
"Hey. I'll be down in a sec," she said softly.
"It's ok. Bailey-Rose wanted to come up and see you," Will replied, nudging Bailey-Rose forward as they came into the room and closed the door. Giving his niece a smile, he leaned down and whispered in her ear. "Go on"
Looking at JJ with wide eyes, Bailey-Rose slowly closed the gap between where she was standing and where JJ was sitting on the bed. She stood before her for a minute, her little face filled with sincerity and empathy that was astounding for her young age.
"Aunt JJ... Uncle Will told me what happened to your daddy," she said softly. JJ felt a lump rise up in her throat, but she quickly swallowed hard against it. Bailey-Rose gave her a sad look, her eyes shining bright as she jutted her chin up towards the older blonde. "I'm real sorry that he had to go to heaven... that's really sad"
JJ couldn't help but bring her hand up to try and stem the tears that wanted to flow at the little girl's sincere expression. Moments later, however, Bailey-Rose was clambering into her lap, her skinny little arms wrapping around JJ's neck and effectively knocking down the barrier JJ was trying so hard to hold up. The tears began to flood down her cheeks, and all she could do was hold the young girl in her lap, grateful and moved by the empathy she was able to show beyond her years.
The bed dipped beside her, and then Will's arms came around both of them, his lips pressing to her temple in an offer of gentle solace.
"Thank you, B-Rose," JJ choked out, giving the little girl a tight squeeze. "I really needed a hug today"
Bailey-Rose giggled, lifting her face from JJ's shoulder. "I can give lots of hugs!"
JJ let out a watery laugh, relaxing as Bailey-Rose tucked her head back down and snuggled her once more. Next to her, Will's heart couldn't possibly have been any bigger. With Bailey-Rose's blonde hair and loving adoration of JJ, it was as if the three of them were a family. And he only hoped that the love everyone had for her would help her move past the grief that was threatening to swallow her whole.