#and of course the episode ending on the gf being told in her hospital room and turning away from her family in response

[thetimelordbatgirl]

Ngl, while I do mock Eastenders at times for how it goes about character exits, Leo Taylor's death hit pretty hard.

[jesslivesau]

jess au @iloveeverythingwaytoomuch

pre show jess: doesn't know anything except that sam told her some fucked up shit and she didn't really believe him much like amelia didn't believe jimmy but what's clear to her is that sam's upbringing was deeply fucked up in what might've been some kind of apocalypse doomsday cult and she can say "sam, it wasn't real" as much as she can til she's blue in the face but it isn't going to change the fact that sam is Deeply Fucked Up by Shit. and it upsets her and confuses her but he does a good job of setting it aside or knowing when to give in and he's such a sweet and Loving Dude otherwise so she just files it away in her bf trauma bank and keeps cheering him on

s1 jess: your bf's CRAZY brother shows up says he needs help finding your bf's CRAZY dad who may or may not have been part of a doomsday cult and you say, bitch i watched the heaven's gate documentary there is NO WAY i'm letting you leave with him, but he's not gonna Stay cuz he insists it's just for one night (and his brother DOES seem relatively stable, like, as a person), so jess insists she'll go too. while she's in the back seat sam tells dean he told her everything dean's like lol. sure. you believe in ghosts, sweetheart? and jess is like no but i do believe that i'll kick your ass if we don't get home in time for sam's interview tomorrow morning. and then the whole white woman thing happens and she's like oh fuck it's REAL but they DO GO HOME and instead of jess dying on the ceiling there's like idk ghost mary on the ceiling or some shit and they NARROWLY escape the fire together andddd idk they can't go back to stanford cuz it's not safe and their apartment complex literally went up in flames. there’s a more complex reason here but idk what it is. maybe it was brady (demon brady) who died or something IDK LISTEN ITS JUST AN AU

anyway all of season 1 when they’re trying to track down john jess is the voice of reason asking why do they need john in the first place? And eventually sam is like listen we don’t need HIM but if he’s got research on where yellow eyes is, that’s what we need. and dean is mad about that and he’s mad at jess and they bicker like crazy. and sam sleeps on the floor because dean is like dude cmon. don’t make me sleep in the same room as you and your gf together. maybe meg gets replaced by meg possessing jess, and she doesn’t get thrown out the window so when they exorcise her she just needs a hospital and then she’ll be ok. and that would explain why she’s in the hospital and not there for the finale, but can meet up with sam & john & dean in the hospital after

s2 jess: sam is so consumed by grief and fear that jess is actually the first one to notice that dean’s spirit might still be still Around. i’m imagining a scene where sam is asleep next to dean’s bed and jess is awake, and she slowly looks around towards dean and you see ghost!dean Connecting with her for the first time

obviously, all the grief episodes keep happening. maybe jess got seriously hurt as well tbh so she goes back to her parents house to recover; there’s an episode where the boys go meet her parents and dean and sam’s Daddy Issues come out in full force. eventually jess is back and kicking ass and slowly getting along more with dean, partially perhaps because of dean’s Grief Response to john’s death, which is that all the anger and hate comes bubbling up, and jess is like i don’t fucking know this dude, but from what sam’s told me, i hate him, which is not something that sam is in a position to Deal With right now. things proceed pretty much along the course

i am considering now if jess could also be a special child. she also has some kind of psychic abilities but i’d have to choose something cool for her. anyway if she IS then that gets her in the town with sam in all hell breaks loose which i think is the best place for her during that arc? i know all the other special children supposedly had to die but maybe her psychic power was to go inviisble or something lmfao i don’t fucking know. anyway dean has his sad monologue but jess either (a) fully shuts down or (b) just goes STRAIGHT to hunt down whatever the fuck his name is. jake? leverage man? that would be dope actually. and then actually dean, sam, bobby, and ellen actually meet her at the hell’s gate

s3 jess: truly does not understand why they’re hunting. gets into arguments with the boys all the time about how this is pointless, if you’re not gonna try and save yourself then why can’t you just put it down and let yourself have this year?? and dean’s a little bit like you know what jessica that makes a lot of damn sense. but it makes sam mad and they argue a lot about it and jess probably takes off halfway through the season. maybe after malleus maleficarum? partly cuz that’s the ep where ruby more or less becomes part of the team and also when she confirms that she can’t save dean from hell. and i just feel like jess would be like i cannot.... Sit Here.... and watch you both drive yourself into the ground. dean, if you’re gonna die, sam’s coming after you. you knew that. you just didn’t want him to go first.

maybe dean hits her lmfao and sam screams at him for it and jess just Walks Away, tearfully

s4 jess: so jess bailed midway through s3, but when dean wakes up and starts making calls in that phonebooth, he calls bobby and bobby hangs up, so he calls jess. and she comes and gets him.

jess and sam are obviously not together anymore, but jess is totally civil with sam and even with ruby. she’s like we can work together, it’s fine, whatever. and this is the season where dean and jess really bond and become a good Team. and cas is just usually confused why jess is Around but eventually gets used to her. i’ve toyed with jess being jewish which would lend a good and also funny perspective to all the heaven and hell stuff

jess heard about hell first from dean, but not the specifics of the stuff that dean told sam, not until after on the head of a pin. she’s their Lore Expert on seals and is trying to identify as many of them as possible so they can put in place safeguards, and maybe that bumps her up against angel priorities for an episode. maybe we get an episode where cas has to Threaten her 00 and he can say something like sam and dean are important..... you are not. remember that. and then [flappy wings vanish]

uhhhh jess’s siren in the siren episode....... is just like a carbon copy of sam lmfao. which is extremely funny and sam and jess will both kind of awkwardly clear their throats and not address that. i guess jess is just fucking stuck with bobby during the finale because the point of her presence is that she’s so USELESS to both demons and angels

s5 jess:  i’d probably add in an early episode where her parents are killed, probably by demons because the demons know they can’t touch the winchesters due to angel shit but they can fuck up jess as much as they want. then when sam and dean temporarily split up jess would go with dean cuz she’s a hunter now and has nowhere else to go and it doesn’t feel right to just sit around with sam. or maybe she also leaves and splits up and doesn’t stick with dean cuz she’s processing her own traumatic shit. at any rate, early in the season there’s a moment where sam is Gone and dean and jess are drinking together and talking about their feelings and they have a moment where they gaze at each other in the eyes and almost lean towards each other.... then jess goes you know what? this is fucking weird and dean is like oh thank god you said that absolutely this is too weird

in The End, it’s revealed that jess was killed and no one will tell dean more information or talk about her until he finds out that she was pregnant when she was killed (presumably with sammifer’s baby)

in changing channels they get put into a telenovela and sam and jess have an tearful emotionally charged confession scene in spanish. this is about when sam and jess finally get back together [cue cheering]

in the chuck eps it’s revealed chuck rewrote it so that jess died on the ceiling in the first book cuz he was like “i just didn’t think it made sense for her to be alive! it was literary symmetry that’s all!”

in sam, interrupted when sam is all high on meds that’s when he says lots of kooky sweet shit to jess about wanting to MARRY her and have a FAMILY together and it’s sweet and also dean throws up in his mouth a little bit having to hear it

in my bloody valentine the thing that jess is hungry for is Family but i do not know the logistics of how

in dark side of the moon jess does die with the boys but it takes a while to find her, tho they eventually do in one of sam’s favorite memories (probably from the first time they met or something). she’s like what the fuck i’m jewish

no, i have no clue how she factors into swan song. she just does, ok. lucifer can snap her neck along with bobby’s

s6 jess: she tried to check in with dean occasionally at the braedens, and actually had dinner with them once but started checking in less and less as the year went on, and it turns out she knew that sam was back and she’d been hunting with him + the campbells and a couple things

when dean finds out he is truly FURIOUS, but jess is like dean i saw you with lisa and ben! i saw you getting better! i saw you happy, i saw you ok, and hell i’ve only known you since you showed up in palo alto five years ago but it was the most at peace i’ve ever seen you, and i couldn’t take that away from you, and neither could sam.

she’s also like yes, dean, he’s different, he’s colder, it makes me sad but who was the one who put up with YOU when you were spiralling after your dad’s death? or when you were all buttoned up after you came back from hell? he did! so show him a god damn OUNCE of empathy, would you!

and when they find out he’s soulless jess is like. hm. and dean is like i TOLD you there was something wrong with him!!! and jess is like i mean.... yeah....... and maybe i didn’t really want to admit it... cuz.... the sex was So good.........

[soulless sam winks at her]

anyway, s6 happens the way it happens and that’s fine

s7: the only important thing that happens in s7 is that Season Seven, It’s Time For a Wedding! is actually about some sort of monster and the only way to kill it is to cast a spell but the spell must be cast by “two warriors joined before god” which means married and cas is awkward about it cuz he doesn’t want to Presume Anything 

and the whole episode is lots of sam and jess being like “i mean, of course, if you want to..... .like, but if you DON’T, that’s also totally fine, of course.... you know.... whatever you’re comfortable with” until finally they’re in the final battle and cas has to marry them the way barbossa does for will and elizabeth in potc and when dean is pinned against the wall by the monster he goes “DAMMIT JESS WILL YOU KISS MY BROTHER ALREADY” and then sam dips jess in a kiss and the monster is instantly obliterated [heart eyes]

i truly genuinely do not remember anything that happens in s7. anyway jess and sam are married now

s8: sam was with jess the whole year dean was in purgatory. they were struggling to get back to normal life after everything. dean is still fucking mad that sam didn’t go looking for him. i assume everything else goes pretty much according to whatever the fuck happened in s8 except jess at one point has to go to bat for benny cuz sam for some reason hates him so much

i’ve been toying with the idea of jess doing the trials not sam but i mean how can i take that away from my Boy

s9: i do not know anything that happened in this season ):

s10: see above

s11: see above

s12: now i never watched s12, but in this au there is no lucifer’s son jack. instead jess gets pregnant midway through the season; cas finds out first because he can sense it and he’s like why does it feel like there’s an extra being in the bunker, and then he spills to dean cuz he can’t keep a secret, and then dean is like “oh shit what are you gonna do” and jess is like well!!!! sam and i.... talked about this. we were.....open to the possibility. and dean is like wtf how could u possibly bring a child into this world that’s fucked up adn cas is like [wipes tear] that’s beautiful

anyway when they come back from some kind of hunt (probably something that involved claire) and sam and jess are in the bunker, sam goes “jess, seeing claire, seeing jody and the girls.... it makes me think.... i wanna have a family with you” and jess hugs him and then cas walks into the bunker with dean and is like “oh, have you told him about the baby?” and everyone SCREAMS at him

and cas uses his annual miracle allowance to just reverse time about 30 seconds so when he enters the bunker he just goes “i have nothing to say” and Fucking Leaves

the baby is born in the back of the impala in the s12 finale, on the way to the hospital. dean is devastated. he’ll have to reupholster the WHOLE THING. sam accidentally names the baby john but they don’t want to tell dean that so they decide to call him jack.

s13-15 gets to be mostly about how cute it is to have a wittle baby in the bunker. cas is the best babysitter because he loves babies and is very powerful so he can protect him. the occultum nonsense in s15 can be about finding a Safe Place for baby jack, no matter what happens to the rest of the world. sam tells jess, you go with him, you’ll be safe there. dean tells sam, you go with them, you’ll be safe there. all of that good good cute family stuff. was it the best idea to have a baby in the middle of constant apocalypses? maybe not, but like, they are ALWAYS in constant apocalypses, so at some point you just have to bite the bullet

anyway. please clap

[hqkj]

she’s here · kaia

date & location — wed. feb 5, 2020 / vancouver, bc. tl;dr — the apa’s welcome a new family member featuring — @maiimitchell, charlie mitchell, emma brown (charlie’s gf) trigger warning(s) — NONE

KJ: Emma was due any day. A walking piñata and the prize inside? His soon to be best little friend, his daughter. Her ankles were swollen to double the size and that in itself was enough of an indicator, right? Over the last few weeks, KJ and Maia had tried to spend as much time with Emma and Charlie as they could without coming off as overbearing or smothering. It was a thin line to walk but as the days counted down to the official due date, it became harder and harder to contain their excitement. No matter how excited he was, however, the young actor still had to go to work. At the present, that is where he was: sitting on the floor of his trailer, waiting for the next scene to get set up so they could shoot. HIs phone vibrated beside him but, lost in his script, KJ didn’t bother looking up. It stopped. It started again. He ignored it. It stopped. A short pulse. Another short pulse. A third. Annoyed, he grabbed his phone. Two missed calls from Maia. Three texts: EMMA’S WATER BROKE. IT’S HAPPENING. BABY COMING.

Maia: Maia knew how scared Emma was about having this baby. KJ and her had been able to take some worry away when they decided to adopt the little girl growing in her belly but there was little they could do to ease the stress of having push the baby out. Maia did her best to distract the younger brunette, bringing movies over to watch with her and trying to make her as comfortable as possible. Today was the one day she’d planned to stay home and finish getting the babies nursery stocked up. Everything their friends had sent them had been washed or assembled and was ready to be put away. She’d just started filling the dresser with fresh onesies when her phone rang and Charlie told her Emma had gone into labour. In a panic Maia quickly called KJ. Emma wasn’t due until the weekend and she wasn’t even sure KJ could get off work at this point. Rushing her way to the hospital found herself in an empty waiting room, pacing the floor as she waited for any more news from Charlie and Emma. In all the commotion these past few weeks they never had figured out how this part went. Did they go into the delivery room? Did they wait here until a nurse brought them to meet their daughter? These were the things the parenting books hadn't taught her and the lack of clarity had her getting more anxious by the second.

KJ: “She’s coming...she’s coming!” Scrambling to his feet, KJ grabbed the nearest jacket - Archie’s football letterman jacket - and practically leapt from his trailer, taking off towards the parking lot. “I gotta go--” He ran into (literally ran into, collided with) the episode’s director, stammering his excuses, praying that the plan he’d set up with production would stand...even a week earlier than expected. “My -- my daughter’s coming!” Not slowing down an inch, he only heard the faint calls coming from behind him, assuring him he’d still have a job waiting for him upon his return. The car ride there was a blur and soon, the redhead was bolting through the front doors of Vancouver General. He was all but shouting Maia’s name, unsure where to find them. Of all the talks that had been had in the days before Lilah’s arrival, a step-by-step hospital plan hadn’t been one. Had they all gone into a delivery room already? Looking around, KJ found a familiar head of messy brown hair, pacing. “Hey hey, I’m here.” He wrapped his arms around her, catching her body mid motion. “How’s Emma and Char? Where are they? Did they go in? Are we gonna go in? What’s happening?” His mind and heard and body were going a mile a minute. He needed to breathe. After a deep breath in and out, he looked down at his wife. “Our girl is almost here.”

Maia: Maia continued to pace, wearing a hole in the linoleum floors.  Her mind racing as she wondered if KJ would make it, if Lilah would have a safe delivery, if Emma was okay. While Maia had been unusually calm in the weeks leading up to this it seemed she was falling back into her old worrisome ways. Her thoughts were interrupted by  the sound of a familiar voice behind her. The thick accent was unmistakable and much needed. “Kaje,” she exhaled softly, her arms wrapping around him as he pulled her close. “You made it! I wasn’t sure they’d let you leave.” For a minute she just hugged him tightly, letting some of her stress melt away. “I don’t know, they haven’t told me anything. Charlie said the doctor was checking her out to see how dilated she is. I don’t know—- we never talked about that. The nurse said in these sort of situations they can take the baby from one delivery room into another where we can be waiting and see her right away. That way it’s not traumatic for the birth mum and the baby still gets to bond with a parent and be soothed after being born. Is that okay with you? We wouldn’t be in the delivery room but we’d get to see her right away.” She knew how Emma and Charlie felt and was sure the less time they spent with the baby today the better they’d feel. “I can’t believe she’s almost here.”

KJ: “No one was gonna be able to keep me away,” he murmured into her hair, their bodies swaying slightly as they took a moment to embrace one another. “Go in with her. Be with Emma, she’s gonna need someone to help her through this. Things are rocky between the two of them, Charlie not wanting to be in the room when it happens is understandable and Emma not wanting me in there goes without saying. I’ll stay with Char in the other room, hang with him, but I feel like Lilah Love should have at least one of us there when she rips into the world. Hopefully Emma won’t mind.” While there was very little about this entire pregnancy/adoption that fell into the traditional category, KJ was still very much a traditionalist and his not wanting Lilah to be brought into the world without the people she would know as her parents present was simply his parental instincts beginning to kick in. “And then you can bring her to me whenever you get the green light. Would you do that for me, babes? I’d feel a lot less anxious knowing you were in there in case something goes wrong.” They said it all the time, the two of them, that they were a team; where one ended, the other began and this was just another perfect example to that claim. Maia could represent for the both of them and if hers was the very first face Lilah saw, the kid would start her life off right.

Maia: Maia squeezed him a little tighter as he told her no one could keep him away from their daughter. It was crystal clear to her that he was ready to be a father and would stop at nothing to be the best man he could be. Pulling back Maia met his gaze, wanting to make sure he was really okay with her going in and being with their daughter "Are you sure? I didn't want you to be all alone out here." She appreciated him wanting to stay with Charlie, she knew he didn't want to be in the room. He wanted to separate the thought of this baby being his mistake and focus on it being the little niece he's going to love the hell out of. "I'll do it, I'll go support Emma and help bring our little girl into this world. But you better be ready to cry and fall in love when I bring her to you," she smiled up at KJ before pecking his lips." Time moved slower as she made her way down the hall to Emma's room, hugging her brother and whispering "I got this" in his ear. She'd never forget the look of sheer relief on his face as he realized his sister was coming to the rescue yet again. "KJ is in the waiting room waiting for you. He'll buy you some coffee." Charlie gave Emma a kiss and whispered some motivational words before heading off to meet his brother in law. Maia was sure she heard the sigh of relief as he walked out the door. Now it was time for Maia to be Emma's rock and get her through one of the hardest things she'd ever do.

KJ: “I love you and I promise I’ll be a bonafide basketcase the second I see her. It’s the least I can do. Now go. Be your superwoman self and give some of that badass energy to Ems. Pretty sure she’s gonna need it about now.” With that, he watched his wife disappear behind a set of swinging double doors. Next time he saw her, she’d have their daughter in her arms. Talk about a mindbending thought. Did KJ want to bear witness to the birth of his first child? Of course. But right now, Team Apa needed to be in two places at once and this was the only arrangement that made sense. Maia and her freakish memory would just have to retell the entire experience in a few days time when the sheer chaos of Lilah’s arrival calmed down. Jill wasn’t even set to fly in for two more days, not expecting the baby to come early. By the time KJ rejoined Charlie in the waiting room - the Kiwi actor double fisting hot vending machine coffees - he could hear Jill’s voice echoing, radiating from the facetime call happening on Charlie’s phone. Exhaustion waved over him the second he collapsed on the seat beside his brother in law. He remained silent, simply listening to Charlie and Jill speak in hushed but excited tones, making plans for when Mama Mitchell touched down. “And KJ.” His mother-in-law’s voice directed at him caused his attention to focus back. Charlie tipped the phone until he saw himself in the bottom corner. Jill wore a large smile, her eyes glassed with obvious emotion. “Congratulations, sweetheart.”

Maia: Maia always said she couldn't love KJ more than she already did, her heart was full beyond capacity because of him. But in moments like this it was like she could feel her heart grow a little bigger just so she could love him some more. "I love you and the next time I see you I'll be bringing you our little girl." Maia beamed up at him before saying her goodbyes and making her way into the maternity ward. At this point Maia saw Emma in an entirely different light. Over the last month Emma had moved from her brothers girlfriend to her babies birth mother to her friend. They girls had spent enough time together lately that she felt honoured to be in the room next to her, talking her through the painful contractions and fears of child birth. It took hours before Emma was finally dilated enough for the nurse to get the doctor. "Just a little while longer, you're almost there. I can see the baby start to crown so I'm going to page the doctor, okay?" The words coming out of the nurses mouth felt too surreal. Before the doctor could arrive Maia typed out a text to KJ. 'It's showtime!' she text him, butterflies spinning around her stomach as she prepared for their whole life to change.  The sweat and tears it took to bring Lilah into the world left Maia feeling a whole new sense of admiration for the mothers of the world. "Is she okay? Did I do okay? Maia--- is your little girl alright?" Emma asked, breathlessly after passing the after birth. Meanwhile a nurse had moved the baby to the far side of the room to clean her up and clear her lungs and Maia couldn't take her eyes off them. "You did amazing! She's here and she looks perfect. They're just cleaning her up, don't you worry okay? You did. You're okay now. You just breathe and relax!"

KJ: Hours passed. He knew babies sometimes took their sweet time making their grand entrance but this was bordering on ridiculous. He knew Lilah wasn’t biologically his but this whole diva act, making everyone wait on her? That was something he would do. This was something he hoped would eventually stop: his bad habit of constantly searching for things about her that could potentially be attributed to him. It more than likely came from that insecurity he felt deep down in his chest, the one he had tried to convince himself didn’t actually exist, the one that picked at the frays of his heart and reminded him that he wasn’t Lilah’s father and that he never would be. Before he could go too far down this rabbit hole, his phone buzzed with Maia’s update. He hit Charlie on the shoulder and showed his screen, both boys instinctively sitting up a little straighter in their seats. It was such a surreal thought, to think somewhere a few rooms down, Emma was giving birth to the tiny little girl everyone was waiting so eagerly to meet. Him especially. About half an hour later, a nurse came in and escorted them into the maternity ward, guiding them to an unoccupied room that had a rocking chair beside the bed before letting him know Maia and the newborn would join them momentarily. Somewhere down the hall, a baby cried and don’t ask him how but KJ knew. “That’s my girl,” he whispered, so quiet he wasn’t even sure Charlie had heard him. And just like that, any nasty insecurities he had let himself buy into vanished. He was officially a dad, he had a daughter...there was no other truth. 

Maia: Exhausted, and rightfully so, Emma leaned back against the bed and smiled up at Maia. “We did it,” she sighed. Emma had put a lot of stress on herself these last few weeks. So many people were counting on her to deliver this perfect baby to KJ and Maia and she was so worried she’d fall short. What if the baby was ugly? What if it was born with some sort of a disorder? All these thoughts and more ran through her head right until she saw Maia grinning ear to ear at her and telling her the baby was okay. “You’re going to make a great Mum Maia,” she whispered once more before the nurse told her to rest. The doctors escorted Maia out to stitch Emma up and prep her to head over to recovery. Her only request was that she send Charlie to her room when she saw him. In other room a nurse cleared the baby, telling Maia she was breathing on her own and had a strong heart beat. When she passed the baby over to her she felt herself fall in love all over again. Looking down she laid eyes on her daughter in her arms for the first time. Her bottom lip trembling from being in the cold air outside the womb. “Oh you’re just like Mama, you don’t like the cold either.” Her eyes were filling with happy tears as she rocked the baby and tried to keep her warm. “Your husband is in the maternity room down the hall waiting for the two of you. You can take your time heading over and a nurse will meet you both there in about a half hour for her first feeding. We’ll show you both how to help her take the bottle.” The nurses soft and sweet voice was appreciated as they tried to help Maia navigate the day her whole life changed.After spending a few minutes just staring at her daughter and memorizing her little face Maia felt it was finally time for her to meet KJ. “C’mon little bug, I think Daddy’s waiting for us.” Maia only got a few steps into the hall when Lilah began to fuss, reminding her that the baby was probably getting hungry. “I know, baby I know. We’ll get you some milk in just a second okay?” She held her to her chest, kissing the soft hair on the top of her head. Rounding the corner she poked her head into the room, her face lighting up when she saw KJ. “Look who I found Little bug.” Lowering her back down to cradle in her arms she showed KJ Lilah for the first time. “There’s Daddy!” She smiled so wide it almost hurt as she extended her arms out to offer KJ the baby. Once she’d passed her off her hugged Charlie and whispered a thank you in his ear. There was a quick congratulations from him before he went off to find Emma and give them some alone time. “Isn’t she perfect?” she whispered to KJ.

KJ: Soon enough, Maia appeared in the doorway, a tiny pink bundle cradled in her arms. The edges of the blanket peaked high enough that, from his vantage point, he couldn’t see her face until Maia was beside him. But once she was there, once his gaze found Lilah’s little face, his normally steady breathing hitched. Her tiny nose, her tiny closed eyes, her tiny mouth forming a tiny O as she cried. And then Maia was extending her arms, offering him his first opportunity to hold his daughter. “Are you sure?” He whispered, suddenly second guessing everything he knew about childcare. Taking a deep breath, he took Lilah in his arms, mimicking the pose he’d seen Maia sporting moments before. The infant squirmed in his arms and all KJ could think was don’t drop her, don’t drop her, don’t drop her. He watched as Maia and Charlie hugged each other and exchanged hushed words, his gaze quickly returning to Lilah who seemed to be calming herself, snuggling into the crook of his arm. She was so small, it was unreal. He could hold her head in one hand and she fit lengthwise on his forearm. Charlie left and Maia returned to his side as he sat on the edge of the bed, allowing his wife to sit in the rocking chair. “She’s beautiful,” he agreed, his eyes welling up as the gravity of reality finally settled upon him. “This is it,” the young man mused, his eyes never leaving Lilah and her perfect face. “Our very first moment as a family of 3.” Only then did he force himself to look away from his daughter and instead at his wife. His smile beamed as he moved to hand her back before he gave into his deep urge to squeeze her way too tight.

Maia: “Mhm, you got this,” she whispered to him. Once she passed over the baby she traced a circle with her palm along his back. Silent words of encouragement that he would be great with their daughter. Seeing KJ hold Lilah and fall as in love with her as Maia was truly made her heart feel so full. She wished she could stop time and hold onto this moment right here for a while longer. “She’s a little fussy. The nurse said she’s going to bring buy a fresh bottle and help us do her first feeding in a few minutes.” Like an allstar dad KJ seemed to have no problem soothing her and getting her to calm down. Pulling out her phone Maia snapped a photo of Lilah snuggling into KJs arms and sent it to the family group chat with the caption, “I think he’s in love!”. As soon as she saw the tears in his eyes she knew she was a goner. She’d be a sobbing mess if he kept this up! “The Apa family are finally all together.” Slipping into the rocking chair she made herself comfortable before KJ passed their daughter back to her. “It’s scary how much I love something so tiny,” she chuckled softly. “Lilah Love, you the best gift your Daddy ever gave me. I’m so thankful for you both!” With misty eyes she bowed her head down and kissed her soft newborn cheeks.

KJ: He heard the snap sound of Maia taking what would go down in history as the first picture he had with his daughter, a sound that made him smile down at Lilah even bigger. He wanted to memorize every single winkle on her face, the shape of her fingernails, the dip of the bridge on her little nose. “Lilah, it’s Dad. Welcome to the family, sweet girl. We’re so glad you’re finally here.” In an afternoon of firsts, her tiny fist gripping his pinky finger perhaps topped them all. Once Lilah was back in Maia’s arms, KJ took his turn to sit back and soak in the scene before him. As adamant as they’d both been about waiting to start their family, he couldn’t deny how right this all looked and felt. Her whispered words to their daughter brought another wave of tears to his brown eyes. Lowering himself, he pressed a kiss atop Maia’s bowed head, one hand resting lightly on Lilah’s, his thumb brushing gentle strokes against the dark brown fuzz of hair she was already sporting. “This might have started off looking like another one of our off-the-cuff decisions but this is exactly--” His words caught in his throat, choking on a quiet sob. “Exactly how our family was supposed to start, wasn’t it? This is how everything was meant to happen.”

Maia: Happening in front of her was the exact moment that KJ was falling head over heals for their daughter. Fortifying the father daughter bond that they’d have for the rest of her life. After growing up without her Dad for the better part of her life she felt so proud and so honoured to have been able to marry a man like KJ and give their kids a father that they really could look up to and count on. “Daddy’s officially out numbered,” she said softly with a little chuckle. In all honesty she could sit there all day happily listening to KJ babble to their daughter. It just made her so happy to sit back and watch them together. Once she had Lilah back in her arms she soothed her until those little eyes fell closed again. It wasn’t love before KJ hovered over her, kissing the top of her head as he nestled in close to his girls. At his comment she nodded slowly. “You were always meant to find us Little Bug,” Maia whispered back to the baby. “You’re the best decision we ever made.” Turning her head she looked at her husband, grinning as she spotted his misty eyes. “I knew you’d be the crier,” she teased him playfully. “I can’t believe we did it. She’s here! She’s here and she’s all ours! This is our life now!” In her arms, wrapped in a pink blanket, was their entire world. The person they would move mountains for and protect at all costs from here on out. “I’m so happy Kaje. This life with you is all I’ve ever dreamed of. Thank you baby.”