Sweat trickles down Colin's forehead. Every time, he thought that now they were finally able to hit the road, something came up, stalling them. First, Eloise stopped by for a surprise visit when she was at the hospital to pick up her boyfriend Phillip who's working there as a laboratory assistant. Then, Phillip came to say hi too, followed by nurse Paola.

And just when they started to leave, walking through the hospital hallways, Elliot made himself heard, signaling his hunger.

Like father, like son, Penelope lovingly thought as Colin straightaway led them to the cafeteria, saying he needed an afternoon snack as well.

But now, they've been on the road at last for twenty minutes, passing through a nice, quiet neighborhood of London. It's another record-breaking, hot late summer day in the UK, and Colin longs to open a window or turn on the air conditioning in order to cool down the interior of the car just a little bit. But Penelope has just told him off, afraid of the prospect of Elliot catching pneumonia or even just the slightest cold in the fresh breeze of air.

Though Elliot was born in the summer just like Charlotte, there is a vast difference in the weather between the months of June and September in London. Was the onesie Elliot is currently wearing really enough at this time of year to keep him warm? The nurse told them it would be alright, but still, the new parents were in doubt. Maybe even the onesie was too much – Colin himself feels like stripping down completely as he's sitting in the driver's seat, sweltering and suffering as they're on their way home through the city with traffic as bad as ever.

It surprises Colin that even though they aren't doing this for the first time, he worries that it may be too hot inside the car. After all, it was standing in the sun for hours in the hospital parking lot, heating it up to an unnerving degree.

He takes a casual look at the rear mirror where his gaze catches Penelope unawares. She's completely enthralled with Elliot who's next to her in his car seat facing backwards. Suddenly, she looks up and their eyes meet in the rear mirror. They exchange a short smile before Colin averts his gaze to focus on the road before him again.

"Colin? Could you take a left turn ahead?" Penelope's voice suddenly calls out to him as they're approaching another intersection.

Colin sees the road sign and instantly knows what she is up to, but he doesn't dare to ask why today of all days. With years of experience in the study of Penelope and the thousand ways her face changes with every emotion she goes through, he's well familiar with that look of utter determination he detects in the rear mirror. He knows he's in no position to question her intentions. And so, he simply makes that turn left and once again parks their car in front of the Brompton cemetery.

The sudden halt woke up Charlotte, who's again taking one of her infamous car naps – a real-life tragedy that only people with little children can truly relate to, as Colin regretfully acknowledges.

"Where are we?" she says sleepily, seemingly lost for a moment, thinking she'd wake up to find her stuffed animals right there with her in her bed. But at least, her pink unicorn is right there with her. She clutches it tightly, her anchor in this weird new life as a big sister.

"Charlotte, you stay right here with daddy. Alright? I'll be right back," Penelope says as she opens the door and gets out.

"Is this where Grandpa Edmund is?" the little girl asks after she recognized her surroundings with the prominent iron gate before them.

"Yes, and Grandpa Archie, too. Remember?" Colin asserts.

"l want to come, too! Mommy, can I come with you?" she pleads for her mother to take her along.

Penelope wordlessly rounds the car. Seeing that the window is rolled down on the passenger's side, she leans inside, getting ready to explain to her daughter why she doesn't think that's a good idea. "I'm sorry, sweetie!" she starts. "I don't think you're going to like this place. So, I think you better stay here and help take care of the baby in case he wakes up. What do you say?"

"No! I don't want to wait," Charlotte quickly gives back, pouting. "And I like it here, I want to say hi to Grandpa. I'm not scared!"

"I know you're not. It's just that... it's just... I'm not...," Penelope carefully weighs in. "Well, I'm not here to visit Grandpa Archie today."

"No?" Charlotte frowns at her. "Then who?"

Penelope searches for Colin's eyes, needing for him to get her out of that sticky situation. Charlotte has yet to learn about Tommy. She was too little then to realize that her mom was pregnant before and that that pregnancy didn't end well. They never told her anything about the fact that there once was a little brother in her life before... whose tomb Penelope has yet to visit for the first time. In her state of mourning, she hasn't been able to come in all these months.

Colin looks at his wife, shrugging and signaling that whatever she's going to say now will be fine by him.

"I'm here to say hi to someone else... Someone who's very important to me. Someone who's... probably just as important to you, too," Penelope tells her, putting a few stray curls behind Charlotte's ear.

"Is it Rusty?" Charlotte asks with a sad undertone.

Her question takes Penelope by surprise. She hasn't thought about that old stray cat for a long time who was the family's first attempt at taking care of a pet. Unfortunately, the cat didn't return home from one of her outings some rainy day the year before. They were relieved that Charlotte never asked any questions concerning his whereabouts back then.

A long sigh slips from her lips, and then Penelope steps away from the passenger door, opening it and helping Charlotte out of her seat.

"Pen?" Colin says as he's getting out, too, leaning against the open door, yearning for fresh air. "Do you want me to come with you? Let me just grab the –"

"Don't worry, I'll be alright," Penelope quickly cuts him off. She takes her daughter by the hand and starts walking away. "Call me if Elliot wakes up and starts to cry. Okay?" She turns back around, blowing him a kiss before she steps through the gate with Charlotte, disappearing from his view.

"Sure thing," Colin says with a smile, lifting his sunglasses to rub the bridge of his nose, wiping away the sweat that's been gathering there. Then, he takes his phone out to check if he missed anything in the past couple of hours. But he quickly shoves it away, realizing he could make use of his situation with Charlotte taken care of and the baby fast asleep. He sets his tired body in motion instead, getting back in the car to sit down behind the wheel, intent on taking a well-deserved power nap.

But it isn't very long before Elliot catches his attention when he starts to wail, forcing Colin to forsake sleep. About time to get used to that anyway, he realizes with a wistful sigh.

oOOo

"Look, mommy! A balloon just like mine," Charlotte points at a colorful balloon that is wafting in the light breeze between the rows of tombstones nearby.

Penelope hesitates for a moment but then walks on, the sandy path leading them directly towards it. Even though she's never been at his grave, she instantly knows where to go, the 'Big Brother' balloon in the far distance guiding her. Charlotte quietly walks next to her, holding on tight to her stuffed unicorn.

Before long, they reach the floating item that would normally look totally out of place in a cemetery. But one look at the rows of tombs left and right reminds her that this is the designated section for all the children who didn't get a chance to live. And the balloon fits right in. There are stuffed animals everywhere, some withered, some looking rather new with their colors still vibrant and fur fabric that's still fluffy and soft and hasn't been exposed to rain or sunshine for very long... photographs of smiling babies... tiny shoes in small translucent plastic boxes... and a photo frame shaped like a heart, containing a sonogram picture.

Penelope has to bite her lips to keep herself from sobbing as soon as she recognizes the jagged white contours of her unborn son Tommy's body on a thermopaper printout from a few yards away. She clasps Charlotte's hand tighter as they approach the tombstone. Grimacing with pain, she gets down on her knees, pulling Charlotte into her side. "Sweetie, do you remember how we talked about Grandpa Archie dying and going to heaven?" she speaks quietly, continuing when she sees her daughter nod, "And do you also remember what we told you about the cemetery?"

"Yeah. It's where people go to bring flowers and commorate."

"Right. We commemorate Grandpa whenever we come here to visit his grave," she explains, feeling a lump in her throat. "And this tomb here… this is where we can come to commemorate a little boy named Thomas… Though, we called him Tommy. Yeah… and he's… he was… your brother long before Elliot joined our family."

Charlotte stays silent for a long moment, trying to grapple with that new information. "Why is he here? Why isn't he at home?" she asks eventually, not taking her eyes off of the decorated gravesite.

"Well," Penelope starts, her voice still creaking. "He was in Mommy's tummy a while ago… way before Elliot was, I mean. And sadly, he passed away… before he was strong enough to live outside of Mommy's tummy."

"Oh," Charlotte says with a disconcerted expression on her face.

"Do you want us to talk about it some more? Or do you have any questions about all of this?" Penelope watches her as the creases deepen on her daughter's forehead, worried she might have ruined her innocent childhood.

"Mommy, I have a question."

"Okay, what do you want to know?"

"Did the delivery man break his box?"

"What? What's up with all the boxes you keep mentioning?"

Penelope listens to Charlotte recap her story time with Uncle Gregory before bursting into laughter. She laughs so hard it hurts her still swollen tummy. And it finally gives her the peace of mind she needed to find closure with getting over her miscarriage with Thomas. He will never be forgotten, but she can be happy with the people in her life that are alive and well. She reminds herself that she has a wonderful and caring husband, a sweet and bubbly daughter – and now a cute and healthy son, too.

She pulls her little girl flush against her, engulfing her in a fierce hug, all the while still carrying a huge smile on her face. She looks at the balloon wafting back and forth in the light wind. It's still true, this is a place to commemorate. But who says that you cannot make happy new memories on a graveyard?

oOOo

Minutes later, mother and daughter re-emerge from the gate, stepping out of the cool shade that the trees are throwing on the cemetery grounds. Penelope readjusts her sunglasses that she's been wearing like a headband, her eyes roaming the parking lot in search of their car that is no longer in the space where she left it.

All the while, a pair of weary denim-blue eyes is watching her, feeling nothing but relief when he notices that Penelope is all smiles.

Colin stands waiting in another corner of the cemetery's parking lot, making use of the sparse shade behind remnants of an old brick wall where he reparked the SUV. In his arms, he's holding his sleeping son.

With his hands full and in no way wanting to wake him up, Colin starts walking towards them, meeting them half-way. Ignoring the presence of his daughter, he murmurs to Penelope, his voice sultry, "Tell me, how do you do it?"

"Do what?" Penelope asks warily, walking Charlotte back to the car, pretending to remain impassive about his come-on.

"Being a brand-new mother of two and looking this radiant and stunning! As stunning as you looked when you were sixteen!"

"You're out of your mind," Penelope brushes him off, though inside she knows he means it. He always does, and she always has her doubts why he would even remotely think that way of her, least of all now.

"I'm serious, Pen," he reassures her as they walk the rest of the distance together, but Penelope stops abruptly to look at him.

"Radiant, huh?" She pauses, weighing her words. "l walk like the Hunchback of Notre Dame and you'd think that with the baby out now most of those vile forty pounds I've put on would have gone away, but, guess what, they're still there! And they make me look like… like… like one of the trolls from that movie that Charlotte loves so much, including the same, high-maintenance hair!" she whines all worked up, pulling at some lose strands of her fiery red hair and seeming like she's about to burst into tears.

"Mommy, are you alright?" Charlotte asks, frowning as she tugs at Penelope's hand, looking up at her.

"Not to mention the fact that I'm sweating. I'm sweating like a construction worker, Colin!" Penelope goes on despite her daughter's concern. She turns around to Colin and buries her face in his shoulder. "And so do you." She immediately lifts her head again and takes a deep breath. "I'm sorry. I'm really sorry! I can't help it. It just comes out," she tells Colin, letting go of Charlotte's hand to pet her head and console her.

"It's alright," Colin counters softly and gives her a peck on the mouth. "I promise, I'll work on my abilities to compliment you.

"It's the hormones, I swear," she tries to rationalize again, leaning forward in order to take Elliot from Colin. "Come on my sweet boy," she coos and walks on.

"Hormones, huh?" Colin asks skeptically as he starts to follow her with Charlotte by his side. He sighs with a slightly fearful look on his face, a vague memory of 'Hormonal-Penelope-from-Hell' surfacing from nearly four years before when Charlotte was born. He better not argue with that strange woman. "Whatever you say, my love!" he mutters quietly, more to himself than for her to hear.

Penelope rounds the car and averts her gaze from the small bundle in her arms, alerted. "Hey, why did you get Elliot out of the car? Was he crying? We agreed you'd call me if he's hungry."

"Relax, babe! He was just hot in his car seat. That's all." Colin opens the passenger door and helps Charlotte get in while Penelope puts Elliot into his seat in the back. Then, he stands up straight again and watches her across the rooftop as she re-does her ponytail that's supposed to help keeping her hard-to-manage hair in check. Holding a scrunchie between her lips, she expertly rakes through her long, curly mane with her fingers and has it fixed in no time.

She is beautiful, he thinks as he's taking her in. And nothing will ever change the way he feels about her… not pregnancy, not her postnatal self-doubt.

He waits until her features seem to have softened again, telling her, "I figured you needed some more time for conclusion… in there." He nods to the cemetery to his right. "And he was just fussing a little bit. I sang for him, I brought him to the shade, and then he fell asleep again."

Standing on either side of the car, they look at each other for a long moment. "Thank you," she eventually breaks the silence and cracks a smile. "Now let's go home. My boobs are killing me!"

"Anything I can do for your boobs? Because I'd love to!" Colin suggests with a wink as he walks around the car to join Penelope on the other side.

"Colin!" she exclaims reproachfully, glowering at him. "I meant the milk let-down. It's hurting so much, you have no idea!" Penelope protectively crosses her arms and flops down in her seat. "Don't you come near my boobs, I dare you."

"And I meant I have some nice, cold cabbage leaves in the fridge at home for you. I bought everything that's suggested in the books. Can't say I didn't do my homework," Colin tells her proudly as he sits down behind the driving wheel. "Shame on you, what were you thinking?" he grins at her reflection in the rear mirror.

"I'm impressed!"

"You ain't seen nothing yet, babe!" Colin puts on his sunglasses and starts the engine. Another glimpse at Penelope reveals that she's frantically wiping away the sweat beads that started to emerge as soon as they both closed the doors. "By the way… If you don't want me to make this a full-on sauna session with the nudity and the sweat gathering in my butt crack, you better let me turn on the air conditioning. Alright?"

In the seat next to him, Charlotte bursts into laughter. "Butt rack… Daddy has a butt rack!"

"Don't worry, Elliot will be fine." Colin turns around to face Penelope, trying to better fend off her doubtful expression. "I'll set it on low, okay?" he relents.

"Butt rack, butt rack," the little girl keeps cheering on as the car starts rolling from the parking lot, gathering speed on its way back to their original route.

"Okay, Charlotte. Enough! Can we talk about something else, please?" Penelope attempts to stop her.

"Yes, Mommy. I know a name for my brother now."

"It's not going to be Butt Rack!" Penelope immediately replies without thinking. Another high-pitched laugh fills the car.

"Noooo, Mommy!"

"It's not going to be Elmo or Humfalumpagus either. I'm sorry," Penelope says with a soothing voice, knowing she just smashed her daughter's dream.

"Noooo!" Charlotte giggles. "You got it all wrong. It's Snuffleupagus."

"Well, I was very close," Penelope says quickly. "But no!"

"That's not the name I want."

"Okay, here's some ground rules," Colin intervenes. "No Sesame Street characters' names, no fruit names, no vegetable names, no geographic names, no…-"

"-… girls' names," Penelope finishes his sentence.

"It's Thomas," the toddler says solemnly.

For a minute, nobody is saying a word. Then, Colin's first to react. "Pardon me?"

"Mommy told me about my dead baby brother Thomas. I pick that name." Penelope and Colin's eyes meet again in the rear mirror, exchanging unspoken thoughts. "When we came to the cemetery, mommy cried. And then she showed me his balloon and his tummy picture and she stopped crying and then we laughed," Charlotte continues to explain her choice, getting more insistent. "Mommy laughed, so it must be a happy name, Daddy."

"I think that's a great middle name for Elliot," Colin concludes. "But let's see what your mom thinks, okay?"

Penelope stares at the baby next to her, contemplating. Some children were being named after their father or grandfather. Would she be able to handle naming her rainbow baby after his late brother?

Seconds later, she knows she will. After all, there's no better way to keep her first son's memory alive…

Slowly, Penelope realizes she's been lost in thought and tries to concentrate on Elliot's tiny fists in her hand again. "Welcome to our family, Elliot Thomas Bridgerton!" she murmurs quietly.

Colin heard her nonetheless. "Sounds just perfect!"

"Yeaaaahhhh," Charlotte cheers and claps her hands.

The ruckus wakes up Elliot, whose blue eyes gape in Penelope's direction, prompting her to break into a smile as she whispers, "Yeah. Perfect."

~ THE END ~