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spinningintheshadows · 3 years

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Adventures in Being a Girl Dad™️ || Austin North

Here is 15.5k words of self indulgent hallmark christmas level cheese that I have been working on for four days instead of my actual Austin fic. Maybe I’ll write a part two, I don’t know. This one goes from finding out they’re pregnant to age five.

Warnings: austin being cute af, mentions of sex, mentions of alcohol, mentions of death, mentions of penises I guess, some swearing.

Victoria was sat on her couch, knees hugged to her chest as she stared at the two plastic sticks sitting on the coffee table in front of her. One had two pink lines staring back at her, the other simply said pregnant.If she wasn’t in shock, she would get up, schedule an appointment to take care of it before the news got out to her judgemental family back home, but that wasn’t the case. She couldn’t move, couldn’t take her eyes off of the overpriced pieces of plastic that had just thrown her for a loop.

It wasn’t like she didn’t know who the father was. No, she knew who the father was — all five feet, nine inches of brunette bleached blonde and blue eyes of him. He’d been the first person who didn’t think she was weird, or judge her because she was on the thicker side. He had quickly become her best friend on set where she was a directing assistant.

She’d trauma dumped on him, drunk at two am when he’d made sure she’d gotten home from the bar safely. Told him about how her father had abandoned her mom, her, and her two older sisters when she was four years old to start a new family in another state. She’d told him that her mom had gone completely blind when she was eight years old and suffered for ten years with end stage kidney disease until she passed when she was eighteen. She was just a kid herself, she’d told him. She didn’t know how to live without her mom and since then, every little move she made had been judged by her family. He’d listened to her, let her cry on his shoulder and laughed when she said she didn’t deserve him.

They’d gotten drunk on her birthday, and while the memory was blurry she remembered crossing that line with him that night. She remembered explicitly giving him consent to touch her like that, how he made her feel that night. Like she was loved for the first time in years. She remembered the panic the next morning, hungover and realizing they hadn’t used a condom — mostly because she didn’t keep them in her apartment and they weren’t exactly planning on sleeping together. That morning, she told him how she’d been told at twenty three that she had a less than two percent chance of ever conceiving naturally, that she’d already decided that if she wanted kids in the future she was going to adopt.

The sound of the door to her apartment opening barely registered in her mind as she continued to stare at the tests. She knew that she’d only had sex that one time since she’d been here, knew that she was already closing in on around eleven weeks if she did her math right. How did she not know she was pregnant? Her friend Haven was going to have a field day with this.

“You really should lock your door, what if I was coming to rob you?” It was Austin’s voice that finally brought her out of her thoughts.

“If you walked to the fifth floor to rob me, you deserve to take whatever you want. Elevator is out of service.” She deadpanned, not looking at him.

“Uh, Val told me she sent you home because you were vomiting. I brought you electrolytes.” He tried to joke. “You feeling okay?” A bottle of Gatorade was sat in front of her.

“I’m fine. Come sit?” She said. “I’m not contagious.” Surely, he’d seen the tests when he sat the drink down in front of her. He hadn’t freaked out, so she didn’t really know.

Austin sat beside her, one arm slung behind her and the other putting his phone in do not disturb mode. He was done filming for the day, so instead of sticking around to watch, he’d left as soon as Val had told him what was up with Vix.

“So uh, I don’t know how it works exactly, but I don’t think glaring at the test is going to change the result.” He said. “Looks like that 98% wasn’t on our side.”

“You’re joking.” She sighed. “I just turned your life upside down and you’re joking.”

“I wouldn’t say you turned my life upside down. But I can read, Vixxy.” He told her. “And unless you have some wild sex life that I don’t know about, I think I turned your life upside down.”

“What do you want to do?” She said. “I’m ruining your birthday.”

“You are not. It’s a uh, creative gift that’s technically on back order.” He said. “And what I want to do doesn’t matter. It’s your body, Vix. If you don’t want to have a baby, I’m not going to make you.”

“I uh, before you showed up. I was thinking about making an appointment to uh, take care of it, but the longer I stared at the tests and thought about it, the more I realized that maybe it’s a good thing. I’m pregnant, approximately eleven weeks if I did the math right and that’s terrifying but at the same time, I never thought I’d get the chance. My family is going to roast me alive over this though.” She was word vomiting but he didn’t care.

“I’m not your dad.” He said. “I’m not going to just abandon you with a baby. If you want to do this, I’m all in. I’m not saying we have to date, but I’ll be involved. And my parents? Loren isn’t planning on having kids anytime soon, so they’ll be excited about a grandchild.”

“I want to have a baby, this baby. It terrifies me that in a few months we’re going to be responsible for a tiny person, but we’re twenty six. It’s not like we’re seventeen.” She told him. “I guess there’s no one better to have a kid with. My baby daddy is cute.”

“Since there’s a new person involved now, would you be open to meeting my parents?” He asked. “We don’t have to tell them yet if you don’t want to. But they’re here for my birthday.”

“Let me call the doctor, see if they can squeeze me in.” She said. “But yes, I’ll meet your parents.”

As it turned out, due to a cancellation, they had roughly forty five minutes to get to the doctors office. He held her hand supportively through the whole drive and while she filled out paperwork. Blood was drawn for confirmation, then an ultrasound for dating purposes put them right at eleven weeks, just like Vix thought. They'd both teared up the moment they saw the blurry black and white smudge on the screen, but completely lost it when they heard their child’s heartbeat for the first time. Copies of the scan in hand, Austin linked their fingers as they left the office.

“I want to tell your parents and sister at dinner.” Vix told him in the car. “Maybe we can get them t-shirts or something. I uh, I’ve already decided that they’re going to have your last name. I hope that’s okay.”

“I wasn’t going to even ask about it until closer to February.” He said. “But that’s perfectly okay with me. I’m not even going to lie to you, I think I’ve been in love with you since I met you and I’m not going to push the subject but I’d really like to introduce you to my parents as my girlfriend.”

“Okay.” She said. “But we have to say we’ve been dating longer than we have.”

“Baby, my heart has been yours since I met you in April. You’re having my baby.” He told her. “Holy shit we’re going to be parents.”

“Mhm. Now we have to go find something to tell your parents with. And then we have to go to set and tell everyone because I’m not hiding it from the people I love. I don’t want to post anything about it until we know what they are though. That gives us 9 weeks to keep it in our little bubble.” She smiled.

“Of course.” He said. “Just wanna protect little baby North”

“Fuck, I need to tell the girls on discord.” She thumped her head against the seat. “Haven is gonna lose her shit.”

“I think it’s funny you’re in a discord server that simps over the cast and that they weren’t even phased when you got this job and started hanging out with us.” He said. “It’s like a little window into the fans minds.”

“Oh honey, I’ve only shown you the mild stuff.” She laughed. “We have a whole channel dedicated to you, Rudy, and Drew. They aren’t safe for work.” She pulled her phone out of her pocket and grabbed the ultrasound photos, quickly taking a picture of them and posting them in the main channel.

Vix: so uh, remember how we weren’t phased when I had drunken birthday sex with Austin.

Haven: if you’re not about to tell me you finally made it official with Disney Boy I don’t want to hear it.

Vix: we made it official

Alexis: oh thank god

Vix: also, uh I gave him quite the birthday present for tomorrow 😇

Haven: oh, so he got his dick wet again?

Vix: no that’s after dinner with his parents tonight.

Vix: [photo] uh, surprise. Baby North is coming in February.

Haven: OH MY GOD VICTORIA ELIZABETH ANNETTE.

“So how did they take it?” He asked, glancing over at his girlfriend who was grinning at her phone.

“Haven is screaming. Alexis and Lindz haven’t responded yet.” She told him. “Your mom is gonna cry isn’t she.”

“Probably. Let’s go find them something cheesy to tell them.” He laughed.

They ended up finding t-shirts in a maternity store, as well as a dress for her to wear to dinner. She wasn’t really showing yet, but the dress allowed people to see she was pregnant, which made Austin smile to himself. He, of course, insisted on paying, not giving into her argument about it. They left with several bags after he insisted she get whatever she felt comfortable in. They arrived on set during lunch break, Val and the Pates giving her a look like they were confused as to why she was there when they sent her home sick.

“She demanded I bring her back.” Austin tried to justify, holding back a laugh.

“Vix, you should be at home resting” Val told the auburn haired girl. “You’re sick.”

“I’m not contagious.” Vix laughed. “In fact, it took me by surprise too.” The director cocked an eyebrow at her as Austin walked over to her.

“Definitely not contagious, definitely a surprise.” He said. “Vix and I have some news.”

“Turns out, apparently growing a human can make you sick.” Vix joked. “And it turns out, I’ve been growing one since my birthday.” Austin pulled out a copy of ultrasound to show their bosses.

“Eleven weeks. Baby North will be here at the end February.” He told them. “A surprise for sure, but a very welcome one.” Vix hummed in agreement.

“I don’t mean this to sound rude, but I know it’s going to sound that way. Is this Austin’s baby or is he stepping up?” Jonas spoke quietly, as not to announce it to everyone.

“No. It’s okay Jonas, honestly. I can see where you’re coming from. Uh, Austin made sure I got home from the bar on my birthday, and we uh, had a little drunken fun. I wasn’t supposed to be able to conceive naturally. It was a less than two percent chance. But, here we are. He's the only one I’ve slept with since I’ve been here so there’s no doubt that this is his baby.” Vix explained. “I didn’t even think it was an option until I got home earlier, so I tested and here we are.”

“We’re telling my parents tonight.” Austin said. “We just wanted our work family to know that we’re expecting too.”

— — — — — —

Nerves didn’t really set in for Vix until she was getting dressed for dinner, Austin had already taken the gift bags they’d done up for his family to the car. She’d just finished her hair when he came back in and looked her over.

“You look absolutely stunning. Where did I get such a gorgeous girlfriend.” He said, pulling her to him to press their lips together. “Indiana knows how to make them.”

“That was cheesy. Are you ready? My nerves can’t take much more waiting.” She told him.

“I am. They’re going to love you.” He told her. “Just breathe.”

By the time they got to the restaurant, her knee was bouncing, making Austin rub the back of her hand soothingly. Nervously, she followed him to the reserved area of the restaurant where his family was waiting as he gripped the bags in his hand.

“Sorry we’re late.” He apologized. “Mom, Dad, Loren. This is Vix, my girlfriend. Vix this is mom, dad and sister.”

“It’s nice to meet you.” Vix put on her best polite voice as she greeted them, surprised when Loren jumped up to hug her.

“Oh my god. You are absolutely gorgeous. Why are you dating my brother!?” She gushed. “Way out of his league.”

“Hey. It’s my birthday, you can’t be mean to me.” Austin put on his best pout.

“Your birthday isn’t until tomorrow, baby brother.” She told him. “But seriously your girlfriend is stunning.”

“I know she is, but she’s also super smart, creative, and a genuinely good person.” He said. “We actually have an announcement to make, and I’d like to do it before we order to avoid questions.” He gripped his girlfriend’s hand, giving it a supportive squeeze before smiling at her.

“Yes.” She joined him. “We brought you gifts. You have to open them at the same time though, and Austin’s going to record it.”

“You’re not about to tell us you’re getting married are you?” Loren joked.

“No! No, nothing like that.” Austin said. “Just here, don’t open it until I tell you to.” He handed the bags out, pulling his phone out and counting down from five. It clicked for Loren first, who let out a squeal, dashing back over to hug his girlfriend. As expected, his mom teared up as soon as it clicked for her, while a smile spread across his dad’s face. Karen was the next one to come over to hug them, squeezing them both a little too tight.

“My baby is having a baby.” She sniffled. “Oh my god, this is the best news you could have given me.” Finally they all sat back down at the table, ready to ask and answer a million questions.

“When are you due?” His mom asked.

“Official due date is February 20th. Uh, she was conceived on the sixteenth of May.” Vix said.

“Might’ve been the seventeenth.” Austin said. “No, we went out fifteenth, didn’t get back until like two am on the sixteenth, you’re right.”

“It’s a little concerning you know the exact date.” Loren joked. “Was it like, birthday sex or something.”

“Well.” Vix started. “Kind of. We weren’t exactly intimate yet, and we got a little intoxicated the night before my birthday. Austin made sure I made it back to my apartment okay from the bar and one thing led to another.”

“I was joking but that’s wild.” Loren told them. “And my brother dearest didn’t wrap it?”

“Vix uh, Vix wasn’t supposed to be able to get pregnant naturally. There was a less than two percent chance.” Austin explained. “Which is part of the reason we didn’t find out until now. She’s eleven weeks tomorrow. We just ask you don’t post on social media about it, we’re going to make an announcement when we know what we’re having.”

“That’s fair.” His mom agreed. “It’s not our news to share, but you know you’re going to get backlash for it since it’s still a new relationship.”

“She’s my best friend.” He told them. “Even if she didn’t agree to take the next step in our relationship, I was gonna be there every step of the way.”

— — — — — —

“Are we ready?” Rudy’s voice sounded over the crowd. Vix was officially twenty one weeks pregnant, and they’d found out at their anatomy scan last week what they were having or, her friend Haven did. Haven had enlisted Rudy’s help to plan a gender reveal for the couple, as they had connected when she came to visit over the weekend a couple of months ago. They’d really connected since Rudy and Elaine had mutually decided they worked better as friends, Elaine even pushing Haven to accept his invitation to dinner.

Now, Vix and Austin stood on the beach with their friends in a semi-circle around them each holding a confetti popper stuffed with eco-friendly confetti which had been Vix’s only rule if they were using confetti on the beach.

“The suspense is killing us, can we just do this.” Austin said.

“Yeah you have approximately two minutes until Baby North decides it’s bathroom time again.” Vix confirmed. Rudy rolled his eyes at the couple, looking at his ex girlfriend to make sure she was recording. Elaine gave a thumbs up and he grinned.

“Okay. On the count of three guys.” Rudy said before starting the countdown followed by several popping noises as everyone twisted their poppers. As soon as the color pink registered in both of their minds, he was pulling her to him and connecting their lips.

“A girl.” He whispered. “Mom was right.”

“Mhm. How do you feel?” She asked.

“Nervous, excited. We’re gonna have a daughter.” He kissed her again. “How do you feel?”

“Our daughter is gonna have the best Daddy in the world.” She told him. “Really, you were made to be a girl dad.”

“You think?” He questioned. She just smiled at him with a nod of her head.

“Mhm. You give off this big tough guy persona but I know you’re just a giant softy. Our daughter is already lucky to have you for a dad.” She told him. “Now, baby girl is telling me it’s time to pee again.”

— — — — — —

“And it’s posted.” Vix looked over at her boyfriend who’d also just posted the same video of the last 13 weeks of their lives. From the tests to the gender reveal. The caption was simple — just “an announcement from Vix & Austin.” Almost immediately their phones started going off with notifications and surprisingly most of them were positive. Loren immediately posted it to her story saying “I can’t believe I managed to keep this huge secret. So excited to be an Aunt. Congrats baby brother 🥺.”

“Everyone seems pretty happy for us.” He told her. “Minus a couple. It’s whatever. The majority is positive.”

“Mhm.” She hummed. “She’s kicking again.”

“Can i feel?” He questioned. “She’s gonna stop as soon as I touch you, but it doesn’t hurt to try. She just doesn’t want me to feel her.”

“Be my guest. She’s your daughter too. You don’t have to ask.” She told him. “I think I have my favorite name picked out.”

“Are you going to share with me?” He questioned. “I know you wanted something gender neutral, which is completely fine with me. You seem to rock it.”

“Emerson.” She told him. “Emerson Loren North. My mom told me she picked the gender neutral nickname for me but wanted a more girly middle name but then my dad wouldn’t agree on her middle name choice, which is how I ended up with two middle names.”

“Why didn’t I know you have two middle names?” He raised an eyebrow at her.

“Because I only use the first one most of the time. Have you ever seen me sign my name, baby? The A stands for something.” She told him.

“What is it?” His voice was soft. “You don’t have to tell me, I’m just curious.”

“My middle name is Elizabeth Annette.” She explained. “My mom wanted it to be Annette, but my dad said it was stupid to make me the third generation with it. So she agreed to a second middle name. It was her middle name and it’s my grandmas.”

“Well you don’t have to worry about me disagreeing with you. I think using my sister's name is a great idea. She’s gonna cry, but she’s been our biggest support system. We’ve known she’s a girl for three weeks, and she’s already bought so many bows.” He said. “She’s got them all boxed up for when we go to LA for Thanksgiving.”

“I’ve never been to California.” She sighed. “Hell until I came here the farthest I’d been out of Indiana was Columbus.”

“Can I ask you something?” He questioned. “Just pick your brain for a second.”

“Always.” She told him.

“What’s your dream wedding look like?” His voice was soft, almost a whisper. “I’ve just been thinking about it.”

“Honestly? Something small. Maybe just our friends and family. Small, intimate. Maybe on the beach.” She told him.

“So if I could get my family and the girls here, would you marry me this weekend?” He asked. “I know I sound crazy and we haven’t been together all that long but I know it’s you. You’re having my baby, I want you to be my wife.”

“Are you proposing right now?” She asked.

“Yeah, I guess I am.” He grinned at her.

“Of course I’ll marry you Austin. If you can get everyone here we can do it this weekend.”

“Then I have some phone calls to make.” He said.

By Saturday, his whole family was there, as well as Haven (who was trying not to be suspicious about the fact she was staying with Rudy.), Alexis and Lindz. The girls and Loren had went with her to find a dress the night before and now she was standing in her apartment getting ready to get married. It wasn’t anything fancy, just them, their families, friends and a justice of the peace, but to them it was perfect.

Austin was already teary eyed as she met him on the beach, taking his hand. Yeah, thunder was rumbling in the distance — an early November storm getting ready to move in, but it really just set the scene for the wedding.

“Do you guys want to exchange vows?” The woman asked after her little speech about bringing them together both legally and in the eye of God. Austin and Vix both nodded, and he took a nervous, shaky breath.

“Victoria. Vixxy, my beautiful beautiful girl.” He started “I believe in you, the person you will grow to be, and the couple we will be together. With my whole heart, without a doubt, I take you as my wife, acknowledging and accepting your faults and strengths, just as you do mine. I promise to be faithful and supportive, and to always make our family’s love and happiness my priority. I will be yours in plenty and in want, in sickness and in health, in failure and in triumph. I will dream with you, celebrate with you and walk beside you through whatever our lives may bring. You are my person, my love, and my life. Forever and always.” Vix sniffled, smiling at her soon to be husband.

“Austin Michael, my soulmate, my best friend” she started with a shaky sigh. “From the moment our paths crossed, that Sunday afternoon in April, you’ve surprised me, captivated me, distracted me and challenged me in a way no human being ever has. I’ve fallen in love with you again and again, countless times without reservation. And I still can’t believe that today, today I get to marry my best friend. I promise to be true to you, to uplift and support you, to frustrate and challenge you, and to share with you the beautiful moments of life. No matter what trials we encounter together or how much time has passed, I know that our love will never fade. I know that we will always find strength in one another, and that we will continue to grow side by side. I believe in the truth of what we are, and I will love you always. With every beat of my heart.” His hands squeezed hers softly as he smiled at her.

“Now, will you, Austin Michael North, take this woman as your lawfully wedded wife?” The justice of the peace asked.

“I will.”

“And will you, Victoria Elizabeth Annette Miller, take this man as your lawfully wedding husband?” She smiled at Vix.

“I will”

“So with that, by the power bestowed upon me by the great state of South Carolina, I present to you all for the first time. Mr & Mrs Austin Michael North.” She said. “Austin, you may kiss your wife.”

— — — — — —

“So last family day before I’m an aunt huh.” Loren half joked as she sat down on the sofa at her parents house. Vix was sitting with her feet up, already exhausted from the ten minute drive to her in-laws.

“You should have already been an aunt by now.” She half grumbled. “I’m so tired of being pregnant. But apparently she’s like her father. Taking her sweet time.”

“Have you tried inducing?” Loren asked. She truly felt sorry for her sister-in-law who was now officially two days overdue.

“Oh yeah. Tried it all. Spicy food, walking, sex.” She said. “She’s just comfortable in there using my bladder as a punching bag.”

“We’ve been trying to get her out for a week and a half.” Austin walked into the living room with a glass of water for his wife. “Doc says if she doesn’t come on her own by Wednesday morning, we have to be at the hospital at seven am to evict her.”

“Yeah, Really trying to avoid being induced like that. I hear the contractions like that are terrible.” Vix sighed. “I just want to hold her.”

“Austin was a week and half overdue.” His mom told them. “And the night before we were supposed to go in to be induced, he decided he was ready.”

“I’m growing a mini Austin, I shouldn’t be surprised.” Vix joked. “I’ve been kind of crampy the last couple of days, and at my last appointment I was already dilated to three. I know when I see her it’ll all be worth it but the 9 pound bowling ball with limbs is not happy at the moment.” Austin let out a laugh as he sat between his sister and wife, automatically placing his hand on Vix’s expanded abdomen and rubbing soothing circles in it as if he was trying to get his daughter to calm down.

“Don’t get too comfortable.” Vix told him. “I have to pee and I need you to help me stand up.”

“Yes ma’am.” He stood up. “C’mon Mama.”

He watched as she walked through the kitchen on the way to the bathroom before sitting back down with a sigh. He knew she was uncomfortable and there was nothing he could do to help except hope she went into labor soon.

“Have you guys made your bets on how big she is.” He questioned. “I’m saying at least eight and half pounds. She thinks at least eight.”

“I’m going closer to nine. You were eight pounds, fifteen ounces but you were also a week and a half late.” His mom told him. “Loren was six and a half, glad to see your size difference stayed into adulthood.”

“Oh I’m saying seven and a half.” Loren said. “Twenty inches. I bet she has your long legs.”

“Hey!” Vix’s voice hollered through the house. “Austin! Come here.” With that, he was off the couch and making his way to the bathroom where she was leaning against the sink with her arms crossed, almost glaring at the puddle that was forming on the floor.

“What’s up?” He questioned. “Everything okay?”

“My water broke. Like, just now after I got off the toilet.” She said. “It’s go time.”

“Okay. Let me go get my keys and let everyone know.” He said. “Smile, baby, we’re going to be parents.” He rushed back to the living room, stopping to grab his keys off the counter and found his mom and sister staring at him.

“Is everything okay?” Loren asked. “You look extremely nervous all of a sudden.”

“Everything is great. Start making your bets for when she’s born.” He said. “Vix’s water broke. We’re going to the hospital.”

— — — — — —

As soon as Emerson North let out her first cry, both of her parents were in tears. Sixteen hours of labor and their daughter was finally in their arms. Austin made sure to note the time, because he knew she’d want to know that their daughter took her first breath at 2:47 am. She was all of two hours old now, nestled against her mothers chest nursing while he sent out a mass text to their friends (minus Haven and the discord girls, Vix would want to tell them herself.) to let them know that she had arrived. His parents and sister were all asleep in the waiting room, having not left except to get dinner earlier. He was going to let them sleep a while longer before he woke them up to tell them, then send his sister after Vix’s favorite breakfast.

“What’s the date? My brain is mush. I’ve been awake for nearly forty eight hours.” His wife’s voice brought his attention from his phone.

“It’s the 23rd, baby. She was born at 2:47am.” He told her. Vix let out a laugh. “What’s so funny.”

“My mom would have been fifty seven today.” She said. “This day has been such a dark day for me for nearly a decade. Now, our little girl brought a whole new light to it.”

“How do you feel about a double middle name?” He asked. “It’s your moms birthday. I feel like we should honor her in some way. We can use Loren when we talk about her, but why don’t we give her Annette too. I mean, I’ve been thinking about it for a few weeks. I didn’t know how to bring it up.”

“I mean, you just basically agreed on the name, Austin, if you want to give her a second middle name, then absolutely we can.” She said. “You want to hold your daughter?”

“Of course I do. I’ve been waiting patiently.” He said. “Give her here.”

Austin gently lifted the newborn from his wife, eyes watery again as she let out whine from being moved. Vix watched her husband cradle their daughter in the dim light of the hospital room for a moment, reaching for her phone and snapping a quick photo. Even at this hour, she knew Haven and the discord girls would be awake waiting to hear that she was here.

Vix: good morning friends, I have a very important announcement.

Haven: OH MY GOD SHE’S HERE.

Vix: I have indeed successfully pushed the child out of my vagina. If I decide to do that again, remind me that I nearly broke my husband's hand doing it without pain medicine this round.

Haven: oh my god I can’t believe she’s here. I’m waking Rudy up so he can function when visiting hours start.

Vix: [photo] yeah, making him a daddy is the best thing I ever decided to do. He’s a natural.

Alexis: Do we get to know her name now or??

Vix: of course. Everyone meet Emerson Loren Annette North. 8 pounds 15 ounces. She was born about a quarter til three this morning.

Vix: don’t say anything about her name online until we do. We want to tell Loren in person.

Austin and Vix sat in their little bubble for the better part of an hour and a half, him joining her on the bed as they took in their daughter. Finally he looked at the clock and smiled at her.

“I’m gonna go wake them up. I’m gonna get an earful for waiting until she was four hours old to tell them.” He said. “Worth it to just spend some time with my girls though.”

“We’ll be right here.” She said. With a smile, he got up and walked towards the waiting room where he found his mom and sister awake and on their phones.

“Hey guys.” His voice was barely above a whisper. He came over to sit next to his sister. “Eight pounds fifteen ounces. 20 and a half inches. You guys can come meet her if you’re ready. I’m sure you want to wake Dad up, but we’re in room 418.”

“Yeah, I’ll wake your dad up. You and Loren go ahead.” His mom said, already starting to tear up. “My baby is a dad. I can’t believe it.”

“You’ve got to pick a grandma name now.” He joked. “Vix already laid claim to Nana for her mom though, something about how before she passed she said that’s what she wanted to be called by grandchildren.”

“That’s fine. I’m thinking Gigi or something like that.” She said. “Go, I’ll wake your dad up.”

As they walked back down the hall, Austin turned to his sister with a smile.

“Today’s bittersweet for Vix, y’know.” He said. “We became parents four hours ago. This day has been hard for her for nearly a decade and it’s the day our daughter decides to come.” Loren cocked an eyebrow at her brother.

“Todays not the day her mom passed is it?” She asked. “Because that would be so hard.”

“No, that day is in August.” He sighed. “Today is her mom’s birthday. Makes it nice we chose to honor her with her name.”

“I’m curious to what you named her. It’s not something weird is it? I know actors like to do that.” She told him. He let out a laugh, shaking his head.

“No, it’s gender neutral. Pretty normal I’d say.” He told her.

The moment they walked into the room, Loren was in tears at the sight of her niece in her mothers arms. Austin gently moved the baby so she could hold her, making sure to take a picture of them together. Eventually his parents found their way into the room. While his mother and sister cried and cooed over the baby, his dad placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Well, how does it feel? Your first child.” His dad asked. “Its been nearly 30 years and I still remember how it felt when Loren was born.”

“I’m in love.” Austin told him. “I’m terrified, I don’t want to mess up with her. But I’m so so in love with her. She’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

“There’s no such thing as perfect parents. You’re going to mess up, but as long as you support her and love her unconditionally, she’s going to be just fine.” His dad said. “I’m proud of you.”

“Okay we’ve waited patiently since October, are you going to tell us her name or what?” Loren finally spoke up.

“Okay okay.” Austin said. “You know they say patience is a virtue”

“A virtue I no longer have, baby brother.” She deadpanned. Austin rolled his eyes at his sister before looking at his wife to tell her to go ahead.

“We’d like to formally introduce you guys to Emerson” she said. “Emerson Loren Annette North.”

“Oh a double middle name.” His mom said. “It’s perfect. A perfect name for a perfect girl.”

“I have a double middle name too.” Vix said. “And to be fair, she only had one middle name until Austin found out it was also my mom’s birthday. He suggested adding Annette to it after that.”

“Loren are you okay?” Austin asked, looking at his sister who was crying again.

“Am I okay?” She asked. “I’m holding my perfect little niece in my arms and her daddy just told me that she shares my name. I’m great.”

“And it was Austin’s idea.” Vix explained. “You’ve been such a huge support system for us. You’re the sister I wish I had. I agreed immediately, it just made sense.”

— — — — — —

“Excuse me, Ms. North, who told you that you were allowed to be big enough to do that.” Austin’s voice rang out from the foyer of the house, and Vix could hear the little smacks of her daughter’s hands on the hardwood floor as she made her way to her dad. He’d just gotten home from six weeks in Australia filming a movie, coming home to find that their seven month old daughter was crawling. Vix had warned him, of course, that she was on the move now but he had assumed she was just army crawling like she was attempting when he left. She came out of the kitchen in time to see him scoop Emerson up and pepper her face with kisses.

“I told you she was mobile.” She said. “Videos didn’t do it justice, you had to see it for yourself.”

“I feel like she’s grown so much since I’ve been gone. This is the first time I’ve been away for so long. It sucked.” He told her, bringing her in to give her a kiss.

“She’s got something else to show you.” She said. “Emmie, let Daddy see your mouth.” Vix got a mean mug from her daughter as Austin raised an eyebrow at his wife.

“Top or bottom?” He asked.

“Bottom” she confirmed. Gently he pulled her little bottom lip down to see she had not one, but two little teeth poking through her gums.

“Okay, how do I stop time.” He asked. “Emmie, you have teeth! Stop growing on Daddy.”

“She got them both at the same time. If it wasn’t for your mom and Loren I don’t think I would have survived that. She’s got one coming in on top, but she isn’t acting like it bothers her yet.” She told him. “Dinner’s almost ready and then it’s bedtime for someone in this room.”

“Might be bedtime for Mama and Daddy, too.” He grinned. “Been a long six weeks without you.”

They ate dinner in relative silence, sans Austin talking back to their daughter when she babbled at them like he understood what she was saying. To Vix, it was nice to have all of her little family back together. Sure, their daughter had tomato sauce in her blonde curls and all over her face but the way Austin was laughing as she smushed another bite of lasagna into her face made it worth it.

“Let me take you out tomorrow.” His voice brought her out of her thoughts. “It’s been a long time since we’ve had a date night. I mean, the last time we went out for a night and left her overnight anywhere she was six weeks old and you called Loren like four times to check on her, then we just moved to afternoons. I made reservations at that new place you wanted to try. I talked to Rudy and Haven when they picked me up from the airport, they said they’d keep Emmie tomorrow night.”

“Okay. She’s sleeping through the night so she should be fine. I trust them.” She said. “But I think it’s bath time for someone.”

“I’ll do it. I missed it.” He told her. “C’mere love bug. Let’s get you clean and ready for bed.”

— — — — — —

The first thing Vix realized when she woke up the next morning was that her husband wasn’t in bed with her, which was weird even after six weeks of sleeping alone — because he’d definitely been with her when she fell asleep, naked and cuddled up to his chest. Second, she realized how sore her body was after six weeks of nothing from him and then going a little too hard on their first night back together, but it wasn’t anything a hot shower wouldn’t fix. The smell of coffee was strong as she wandered out to the kitchen in just his shirt and a pair of panties to find him cooking breakfast shirtless and their daughter in her high chair, happily smushing bananas between her fingers.

“There’s Mama.” He said, smiling as she came into the kitchen. “Sleep good?”

“Better than I have in six weeks. Not having the five am wake up call was nice today though, but you just got home. You didn’t have to get up with her.” She said, reaching up to kiss his cheek.

“She woke up at 5:30, I was already awake because I had to pee. She babbled to herself for a half hour before she even whined.” He explained. “Also, I get bragging rights.”

“What do you mean by that?” She questioned as she poured herself a cup of coffee. “What did you do?”

“I didn’t do anything.” He said. “But, Miss Ma’am over there, a week shy of eight months old, said her first word this morning.” Vix almost dropped her cup of coffee at his statement.

“No she didn’t.” She said. “I missed it?”

“Clear as day when I went into her room to get her. Haven’t been able to get her to say it again this morning, but I’m surprised I didn’t wake you up with my excitement over it.” He said. “But, because her first word was in fact “Dada” I get bragging rights.”

“We have to try to get it on camera. The fans will want to see that.” She said. Weekly vlogging had been her idea after Emerson was born, as a way for her grandmother to get to see their daughter grow up from her assisted living facility in Indiana, they’d gained traction with his fans as an inside glimpse into their life. It was raw and personal, an uncut glimpse at their relationship and parenthood journey.

“It’s probably on the monitor.” He told her. “Watching those got me through the trip, honestly. I looked forward to every Monday morning for me.”

“I know it.” She said. “The nurse that works with my grandma said she enjoys them too. Her daughter is a big Outer Banks fan.”

“We should go to Indiana for Thanksgiving. I think my parents want to go Ohio this year, spend it with my dads parents. It’s like a four hour drive. We can take a day and go.” He said. “Your grandma deserves to meet Emmie. She practically raised you.”

“Okay. I’m gonna go take a shower before breakfast. Somebody has my whole body sore.” She teased.

“Was I too rough last night?” He face softened. “I’m sorry.”

“No, Baby, you were just rough enough. It’s just been a while, is all.” She said. “Six weeks is a long time.”

They had a quiet day at home, staying cuddled up on the couch and watching movies while Emerson played in front of the couch. Until about four o’clock when Austin got up to shower and Vix took Emmie to her room to pack an overnight bag, making sure to pack her teethers and numbing gel just in case she needed them. She plopped the baby down in the middle of the bed with a toy while she got ready herself, watching for her husband as she finished her hair, noting the text from Haven that told her that they were pulling in now. Scooping their daughter into her arms, she walked to the bathroom knocking twice before he opened the door half dressed.

“Rudy and Haven are here.” She said. “Figured you would want to say goodbye.” He reached out for their daughter, pulling her to him to kiss her chubby cheek.

“Be good for Uncle Rudy and Aunt Haven.” He murmured. “Daddy will see you tomorrow.” She let out a squeal, smacking her tiny hand against his cheek.

“How does it feel to be bullied by your almost eight month old.” Vix teased, taking the baby back.

“Nothing new, I’m bullied by her mother everyday.” He teased back. “Bye Princess. Be good.”

Vix walked their daughter and her car seat out to their friends, giving them both a smile as she loaded her up for them.

“I’ve packed everything you need.” She told them. “I’ve got medicine and teethers in there if she starts acting like her mouth hurts. The tooth coming in hasn’t bothered her like the first two so hopefully it’s not an issue.”

“She’s got teeth now? When did that happen” Rudy looked genuinely scared as he asked the question.

“Last week. She got both of them at the same time. It was terrible. She’s only ever bitten me and it was on my boob while she was nursing. You’re safe, Toot.” She told him. “There’s frozen breast milk in the diaper bag. Just run it under warm water before bedtime. At dinner she can eat what you eat as long as it’s not hard and it’s in bite size pieces.”

Walking inside after watching her friends pull away with their daughter, she found her husband waiting in the kitchen for her. He looked nice, wearing sleek black skinny jeans and a navy blue button up.

“This feels oddly familiar” his tone was teasing.

“I think that’s because the last time we really dressed up to go out” she started, bringing their lips together quickly. “We were telling your parents about Emmie.”

“Mhm.” He hummed. “But tonight, my love, we aren’t married and we’re not parents. Let’s pretend it’s our first date.”

“We never really had a first date” she pointed out.

“That’s my point. We went from casual sex to preparing to change diapers.” He told her. “Not that I regret how our relationship has gone. You guys are the best thing to ever happen to me.”

“I didn’t know what a loving relationship was until I met you. Watching you become this amazing dad has just been a bonus.” She said. “I don’t tell you enough how proud I am of you.”

“You’re a simp.” He pressed his lips to hers again.

“Damn, I must be a mirror. The simp calling his wife a simp.” She said. “Are we ready?”

“As soon as we take our obligatory we dressed up selfie” he teased. “We look too good to not show ourselves off”

— — — — — —

“Good morning.” Austin’s voice was gravelly telling his wife that he’d also just woke up. “She’s still asleep.”

“Mhm. Rudy wore her out yesterday.” Vix mumbled, placing her head on his chest. “I’m so glad she’s little enough we don’t have to wrap Santa gifts yet.”

“My grandparents are very excited to meet her properly today, though. It’s what? 8:30. We don’t have to be at my parents' house until noon.” His sentence ended with a yawn. “A year ago you were up at six am with leg cramps, do you remember?”

“Those were the worst. Your daughter was kicking the shit out of my ribs too.” She sighed. “Now look at her. Ten months old.”

“Creeping closer to that one year mark.” He sighed. “Wait until Gigi and Pop see what she can do now. Everyone’s been so busy the last month or so that we haven’t really seen each other.”

“It’ll be a cute surprise. Of course our daughter started walking at ten months old. Just like her mother.” She said. “I actually took my first steps on Easter.”

“Surprised the hell out of me, for sure. I watched her walk from the couch to the recliner and I swear my heart stopped.” He told her. “She shouldn’t be this old yet. This year has flown by, I want my little almost nine pound baby back.”

“Well unless you plan on putting another one in me, that’s not gonna happen.” She said. “And don’t get any ideas because this baby factory is closed until further notice.”

“You know I would in a heartbeat. Well, maybe not right now, but maybe when she’s out of diapers” he told her. “But a second one would be nice, y’know. Give her a sibling.”

“Someday.” She told him. “But now, let’s get up and get the day going. I’ll make breakfast if you’ll get Emmie.”

“Absolutely.” He told her. Walking into the room, he found his daughter sitting up, hair a mess and a smile on her face.

“Well good morning, Emmie.” He whispered. “Merry Christmas baby girl.” He scooped her up bringing her cheek to his lips.

By the time breakfast was over, Emmie was excitedly bouncing in her seat, like she knew there was something different about today. Austin quickly wiped her face clean and let her down, watching as she waddled on shaky legs to the living room. He poured another cup of coffee before following her to make sure she didn’t make too much of a mess. Finally Vix joined her husband and daughter, who were sitting in the floor now with Emerson’s chubby hands grasping tissue paper in a bag. While most of her gifts weren’t wrapped, they’d stuck a few small things in gift bags to allude to opening a present and she was having the time of her life ripping the tissue paper out. It brought a smile to Vix’s face, giving her a reason to enjoy Christmas again after nearly a decade.

“I don’t think we would have to get anything for her” Austin’s voice broke the silence in the room. “Just tissue paper in a bag, she’d be entertained for hours.”

“As soon as she discovers there’s something in that bag with it, it’s game over.” She joked. She was right of course, as soon as Emerson saw the stuffed bunny in the bag, it was game over. It was all about the toy, forget all the other presents she had.

“Here.” Austin held two boxes in his hand as well as a small gift bag. “I’m pretty sure the boxes are our pajamas for today. My mom gave them to me last night. Emmie has one too.” He was right, nestled between green tissue paper was a set of Christmas pajamas, which was a tradition to wear to his family’s house on Christmas Day. This year, they were white with Christmas trees and reindeer on them, and Vix couldn’t help but smile.

“And this one is from me.” He said “Merry Christmas, baby.” The gift bag was handed over to her. Inside the bag, she found a jewelry box. She gave him a weird look as she opened it, finding what she could only assume was a wedding set.

“Uh, when we got married we decided on those silicone bands because your hands were swelling and you didn’t want actual rings to get stuck on your hand.” He explained. “I just thought, you aren’t pregnant so that’s not an issue now, and it was time to get you proper rings.” Vix let out a laugh, moving to kiss him quickly before going to fetch her own gift for him.

“I think, we might be too much alike.” She laughed. Inside his bag was a wedding band as well. He laughed along with her, bringing their lips together.

“Thank you. We should probably get ready to head over to my parents. I’ll get Emmie ready, you gather up the gifts?” He said. “I prepped the rolls last night, they should have risen by now, in the fridge.”

“Deal. Make her cute. She’s meeting her great grandparents today.” She smiled.

By the time they were ready, it was nearing 11:00. Emerson refused to leave without her new stuffed bunny, which Austin thought was adorable. She babbled the whole way to her grandparents house, yelling at her dad to make sure he was listening to her.

Walking into his parents house, Emmie on one hip and an arm full of gifts on the other, Austin was relieved when his dad came to help him. Emmie was already wiggling to be put down, having spotted his sister the moment he walked in.

“Okay okay. Here, go see Lolo.” He said. “Wait, guys, she’s got something to show you.” Vix had walked in with the rest of the gifts and the rolls, setting them on the kitchen counter as her husband set their daughter on the floor. Loren was sat about ten feet away, assuming the baby was going to crawl to her.

“Look what Ms. Ma’am learned to do this week.” He told his family. He felt his daughter pull herself up on his pant leg, then with a determined look on her face, started taking shaky steps to her aunt. For how unsteady she still was on her legs, she didn’t fall, but smiled widely when she reached her aunt and plopped herself in her lap.

“Oh my god.” Loren said. “Who said she was allowed to be able to do that?! You just stay little Emmie, ok?”

“I have to agree with you” Vix said. “She’s so independent and high energy. And the sass.”

“So you’re telling me she’s 100% her fathers daughter.” Karen joked. “Austin started walking about three weeks shy of his first birthday, he had a sister to keep up with. I think his sass developed from his sister bullying him every day for the first four years of his life.”

“Hey, at least it was only four years Austin,” Vix joked. “My sister still bullies me, or at least tries to.”

“Your sister isn’t a good person.” He told her. “I’ve met her.”

“Okay well, as soon as your grandparents get here we’re going to do presents.” His mom said. “Let me see my grandbaby for a second.” She scooped her granddaughter up from her daughter.

“Come sit with me.” Austin held his hand out to his wife walking them both over to the couch. The sat quietly, watching his mom walk around talking to their daughter while Vix played with the rings on her finger.

“You didn’t pick these out alone” she said. “You have good taste but not this good of taste.”

“Loren helped.” He confirmed. “She’s all about jewelry.”

“It’s beautiful really.” She said. “Loren helped me pick yours too. I should have been suspicious when she picked the one that matches mine but I was oblivious, Emmie was on the verge of a meltdown.”

“I love you.” He told her. “Just wanted to make sure you know that.” She gave him a soft smile and leaned up to kiss him.

“You know what? I love you too.” She said. “Also, imagine how different our Christmas photo is going to be this year. I was a whale last year, and this year our daughter is ten months old.”

“You weren’t a whale. You were very very pregnant, but not a whale.” He told her. “I think my grandparents are here.”

“And Emmie is gonna wanna nurse.” She said. “I can go upstairs if it’s gonna bother them.”

“Absolutely not. They won’t care, Baby. You’re feeding our daughter.” He said. “Hell, my mom is one of five kids, I’m sure my grandpa was desensitized to boobs a long time ago.”

“Okay. Let’s go.” She sighed. Austin went to retrieve his daughter from his mom while his dad helped bring in gifts from his grandparents. Emmie immediately buried her face into her dads arm as he hugged his grandmother.

“Hi Grandma. Merry Christmas” he said. “It’s really nice to see you.” Vix also hugged the woman, smiling as she greeted her.

“Now, this little one hiding in your arms can’t be my great granddaughter can it? There’s no way she’s that big yet.” The woman told him. Austin let out a laugh, digging his fingers into his daughters side to get her to giggle and look at him.

“I feel the same way, Grandma. Where did my little eight pound, fifteen ounce baby go.” He said. “Emmie, can you say hi to your Great Grandma?” The baby gave a shy smile and waved her little hand at her.

“It’s about snack time for her and you’re a new person.” He explained. “You met Vix last year, yeah? Contrary to her sister’s belief we are still very much in love and married.” Vix nudged her husband as if to tell him to stop as she popped a couple buttons on her shirt and reached for her daughter. As if she knew, a little hand wrapped around her bra and gave a tug.

“Hey now, let’s go get comfy then you can eat, okay?” She murmured. She politely nodded at her husband and his grandmother before going back to the couch and cradling the baby against her chest so she could nurse.

“She’s still nursing?” She heard his grandmother ask.

“Yeah, trying to go to her first birthday. She mostly eats what we eat now that she’s got teeth. Doing this baby led weaning thing, but she still nurses a couple hours after every meal and at bedtime.” Austin explained. “Had to buy a chest freezer for the garage just for what she’s pumped though. I think she said something about donating it if we don’t use it.”

“That’s right.” Vix answered. “There’s a whole organization for mothers who either don’t produce enough, or dried up too fast. Which is nice for women like me, who overproduce.”

Eventually everyone found their way to the living room as Emerson finished nursing, cuddling up against her mom as Austin sat down beside her. Both of them could tell she was ready for her morning nap, so he took her to try to keep her awake through presents.

“Someone is about to be down for the count.” He told his sister, nodding towards his daughter.

“I think we better let Emmie open hers first.” Loren announced. “Looks like we’re about to be down a North.” With a nod of agreement from everyone, Austin helped his daughter open presents, starting the paper and enjoying watching her laugh as she ripped the rest of it off. Vix was surprised to see that there were very few toys, mostly books and clothes she could grow into, but Emerson enjoyed it nonetheless, squealing when her eyes landed on every item that was under the colorful paper.

Everyone took turns opening their gifts, Loren taking a sleeping Emmie while Austin opened his, happy to snuggle with her niece. It took them a better part of an hour to get through everyone but finally there was one gift left.

“This is for you.” Austin told his wife, handing her the box. Cautiously, she unwrapped it giving him a confused look when in the box she found denture adhesive and an appointment card.

“What’s this?” She asked.

“That is an appointment for you to get your teeth fixed. Everything is already paid for.” He said. “I want to see you smile again, Baby. Genuinely smile. It doesn’t matter to me if your teeth are fake or not. You take such good care of them for them to still be breaking and causing you pain all the time and pregnancy just made them worse. So next month, Mom and Dad are gonna watch Emmie for a couple days while you have your surgery, then by Easter you’re going to have your smile back.” Vix felt her eyes water as she looked at her husband before pulling him in to kiss him.

“What did I do to deserve you.” She murmured. “You are the sweetest man I know.”

“I love you, Baby. Merry Christmas.” He told her, bringing their lips together again.

— — — — — —

“How is this even possible?” Austin’s voice brought his wife out of her thoughts. Balloons and streamers of various shades of pink and green filled their backyard, a table with all sorts of food and cake stood against the fence, with another for presents next to it. This was all just confirming what they knew, their daughter was a year old. Soon, family and friends would be arriving to celebrate the toddler, who was napping in her room.

“I know. This time last year we were in the hospital with a nine hour old. Time flew by.” She sighed. “And 24 hours before that I was bitching that she wouldn’t come out.”

“The look on your face when you told me your water broke is forever stuck in my mind.” He laughed “If you could have mean mugged the floor any harder, like it was it’s fault you were going into labor.”

“It’s bad that I miss being pregnant right?” She asked. “I miss having a little baby to take care of. She’s a toddler now, and so fiercely independent it’s not funny.”

“It’s not a bad thing.” He told her. “It’s means you’re being nostalgic. I was thinking about how we found out you were pregnant the other day.”

“I didn't even tell you.” She laughed. “You saw the tests and then said that glaring at them wasn’t going to change the result.”

“Then you yelled at me for joking.” He mused. “For the record, I am so glad that two percent was on our side. Who knows how long it’ll take us to get the next one. Y’know when you decide you’re ready for one.”

“Not now.” She said. “But soon, probably.”

“I’m gonna go get your grandma. I’m sure Rudy and Haven will be here first.” He told her, leaning down to press their lips together. “It’s weird that all your friends made connections and are dating my friends. Just so you know”

“It’s not weird because Alexis and Chase are the only ones where your friends didn’t make the first move” she teased. “It took Rudy almost three months to convince Haven to go on a date with him.”

“Okay, I’ll be back. Have the birthday girl ready?” He told her.

“Of course.” She smiled.

By the time Austin returned, the backyard was full of their family and friends and he could hear his daughter squealing from the kitchen. He made sure his grandmother in law was settled in a patio chair, his mother rushing over to greet them and have a chat with the older woman. She hugged her son tightly before whispering in his ear with a smile.

“Her dad did show up, and he’s already made a couple of snarky comments about Emmie, I’d go find your wife if I were you. Rudy’s holding his girlfriend back from starting a fight.” She told him.

“Okay.” He sighed. “Wish me luck.”

He wandered around the backyard until he found his wife hiding in a corner with Drew, who was trying to calm her down. Austin placed a hand on his friend’s shoulder, looking over at his wife who was clearly on the verge of a panic attack.

“I had to get her away from him before he sent her into a full spiral.” Drew explained. Austin gave him a nod moving so he was standing in front of his wife.

“Drew, can you go get me a bottle of water? I’ve got it from here.” He asked. As soon as Drew walked away he was face to face with his wife, reading her expression with worried eyes. “Are we okay?”

“I don’t know. He made a big deal about finally getting to meet his granddaughter and he’s being so mean.” She said, tears welling up in her eyes. He let out a sigh.

“What did he say, Baby?” He whispered. “I can’t help if I don’t know.”

“He uh, he made a comment about her size. She’s a regular sized one year old, and he said she was fat and took after me.” She sniffled. “And he made a comment about her hair being wild. Like, we can’t help that. She’s got your thin ass hair and my curls.”

“You’re right. She’s well within the weight range for her age, hell if anything she’s on the lower side because she’s tall. But it doesn’t matter, she could be the chunkiest baby on the planet and she would still be perfect.” He told her. “And we’re working on her hair. It’s thin and it tangles and it’s curly as hell. It’s not long enough to put up yet and she’s going through a phase of no headbands right now. She’s perfect because she’s ours. I’ll talk to your dad.”

“Okay.” She mumbled, no longer looking him in the eye. His finger found its way under her chin, tilting her face to look at him.

“Hey.” He murmured. “I love you. He can’t hurt you if I’m here, okay? Just stay right here while I go talk to him and I’ll send Haven over here to you.” He brought his lips to hers, smiling softly as he pulled away.

True to his word, Austin stopped at Rudy and Haven and pointed over to his wife, asking her friend if she’d go sit with her while he handled the situation. He found the bearded man standing and talking to his own father and took a deep breath as he walked towards them.

“Hey it’s Brad, right?” He stuck his hand out to shake his. “I’m Austin. I’m the one married to your daughter, Daddy to the birthday girl.” Surely he could fake nice for a moment.

“Oh, I thought that tall one she walked off with was her husband.” He stated.

“No, that’s my best friend Drew.” Austin glanced back over his shoulder at his wife and her best friend. “I have a question for you though. Why the hell would you make a big deal about meeting your granddaughter, fly from Minnesota to California and then the first thing you do is insult her?”

“I was just making a point. Tori is being dramatic as usual.” Her dad told him. “She never did have control over her emotions.” Austin saw red then. He had tried to be nice at first, but hearing his father in law claim his wife’s anxiety disorder was just her “being emotional” pissed him off. Rudy should have let Haven throw hands.

“First off, she hasn’t gone by that in over twelve years. Her name is Vix” Austin told him through gritted teeth. He was sure his dad was picking up on the tension now. “Second, you said my daughter was fat like her mother. Let’s get one thing straight, Brad, my daughter is well within the healthy range of weight for her age. You insulted her hair of all things. It’s thin, it gets tangled, and it’s curly as hell just like her mothers. It’s not long enough for us to pull back yet, and she hates having things on her head. We are doing the best we can with that. Finally, if I ever hear you call my wife’s anxiety disorder her being dramatic or emotional again, I will not hesitate to hit you.”

Vix’s dad just stood there shocked at the younger man’s outburst. He could feel everyone watching him and he didn’t really care. He wasn’t about to let someone who hadn’t physically or emotionally been present for his wife for twenty three years walk all over her, and he wasn’t going to let him insult his baby girl.

“And one last thing.” Austin told him. “This Brad, standing next to you. That’s my father. As far as I’m concerned he’s Emerson’s only grandfather. He’s been active in her life since the moment she came into this world. She’s got her Poppy, she doesn’t need some low life who gets his kicks insulting her and her mother around. I’m far from a perfect parent. I’ll be the first one to admit it, but I love my daughter unconditionally. She’s never going to have to be talked down from an anxiety attack because of me, that’s for damn sure. Enjoy the party.”

He made his way back over to his wife, wrapping her in his arms and pressing his lips against her head. Vix all but melted at the embrace, trying to calm her breathing again.

“Hey it’s okay.” He murmured gently. “Just stick with me and we don’t have to talk to him the whole time, okay. And if he acts up again, Haven has full permission to punch him.”

“I just don’t understand how someone as nice as my stepmother can be married to him.” She sighed. “I don’t want him around her, but she’s more than welcome to be.”

“If that’s what you want, baby. Then so be it. Now, I think I have grill duty to get to. Where’s Emmie?” He told her.

“Last I saw her, Drew took off with her towards the house. I think he thought it was going to get physical and he didn’t want her to see it.” She told him. “I’ll go get her, I need a moment.”

“Okay. Come back out when you’re ready.” He kissed her head again before they separated with him heading towards the grill and her towards the house.

Realistically, the party went off fairly well. There was another incident of Vix’s father insulting her and a screaming match between the two of them, with Haven about .02 seconds from decking the older man, but when Austin’s father stepped in and firmly told her dad it was time for him to leave, he listened, grumbling about how she was just dramatic and he didn’t do anything wrong. Austin’s mother offered to take Vix’s grandmother back to her assisted living facility twenty minutes away, and by the time everything was cleaned up and Rudy and Haven had left, Vix and Austin were both exhausted. She’d collapsed onto the couch with a beer while he put their daughter to bed, surprised when footsteps came down the stairs a lot sooner than normal.

“She was out before we even got to our book.” He told her as he joined her on the couch. “I don’t think I’ve been this tired since we brought her home.”

“Me either.” She sighed. “It was a day, emotionally and physically, I’m exhausted.”

“I need a shower but I don’t want to get up. I smell like I stood in the grill.” He told her. “And I have glitter in unmentionable places.”

“Welcome to being a girl dad.” She laugh. “The glitter just multiplies from here. C’mon, let’s go take a shower.”

“Then can we be boring parents and go to bed at eight pm?” He asked.

“You’ve got yourself a deal.”

— — — — — —

“Hey,” Vix’s voice was soft as she wrapped an arm around her husbands waist. “You doing okay? I know you were close.”

“Yeah. I’m okay. It hurts, but I’m okay.” He told her. “I just, have all these memories growing up with him. It sucks that Emmie isn’t gonna get to grow up with him, y’know?”

The pair were standing on the smokers patio of the funeral home where they were currently at for his grandfather’s visitation. Their two year old daughter was inside, having chosen to stay with Loren when Vix had decided to check on her husband after he’d gone out to get air fifteen minutes before. He’d been close with his grandfather, she knew that and this was hard for him.

“I get that. I went through that thought process about my own grandfather when she was born.” She told him. “But he got two years with her, baby. Even if the first year was only over FaceTime, he got to enjoy her for two years and he lived a really full life, if you think about it. Five kids, fifteen grandchildren, one very awesome great granddaughter.”

“And another two on the way.” He laughed. “He didn’t even get to find out about this one.” His hand on her abdomen, despite not showing yet. They hadn’t told anyone yet, not even their daughter that they were expecting again. It had once again been a slip up, but they weren’t complaining at all.

“One of your cousins?” She asked, “because I know it’s not Loren.” He gave her a small smile, nodding.

“Yeah, Alex and his wife, Katie.” He told her. “They only told me because she was feeling nauseous and I offered a couple tips to help.”

“Did you tell them?” She asked. She wasn’t angry, of course, just curious.

“I might have let it slip that we’re dealing with the same thing.” He said. “I know my aunt made tuna salad for this meal after the funeral, and I know fish is one of the things that is off putting right now, so this is your warning.”

“We should go back inside.” She told him. He nodded, taking her hand before leading them back inside to greet the many more relatives that had arrived. After hugs and hellos had been given, Vix could see easily that their toddler was getting overwhelmed, lifting the teary eyed girl from her aunt and motioning to her husband that she was going back outside with her. He gave her a nod before coming over to kiss his daughter's face.

“I know, bug, it’s a lot. Go outside with Mama and Daddy will be there in a minute, okay?” He told her, knowing full well that she wasn’t going to handle being with her mom for very long. She was a daddy’s girl through and through. Vix walked out with their daughter, bouncing her slightly on her hip. Eventually, he joined them outside, sitting in the swing beside them as she sniffled into her mothers dress.

“Hey pretty girl, come see Daddy.” He held his hands out to her smiling when she crawled over to him to sit in his lap. She settled her head against him, still sniffling softly. “You know you are being so brave for us today, Emmie. All these new people? They’re your family, just like Pop Pop was, and he sure loved you. Everyday, he asked for pictures of you.”

“And your great grandpa Miller? He would have thought you were amazing. His joy was his grandkids and great grandkids.” Vix continued for him. That seemed to help, to comfort the toddler on her fathers lap.

“Hey, Emmie?” Austin murmured against her head. “Can Mama and Daddy tell you a secret?” picking up what he was hinting at, his wife smiled at him and gently poked their daughter’s nose.

“You can’t tell Gigi, Poppy, or Lolo though, okay? It’s just between Emmie, Mama and Daddy.” She said. “You’re gonna be a big sister right after your birthday.”

“Mhm.” Austin hummed. “Mama’s has your baby brother or sister in her belly. So you have to be gentle, okay? What do you think, Emmie? Is it a brother or sister?” The toddler made a face as if she was thinking before she whispered a “brother” to her parents.

“Yeah, you want a baby brother? Mama has a baby brother, Uncle Caleb. He’s pretty great huh.” Vix said. “And I think Lolo would agree, baby brothers are pretty great.”

“Yeah, I do agree with that. Especially when they know their baby girl is overwhelmed and needs to be comforted.” Loren’s voice came out of nowhere, shocking the couple.

“Loren.” Austin’s voice was almost a whine.

“Don’t worry, Austin.” She told him. “Your secrets are safe with me. When are you due, though?”

“Middle of March.” Vix smiled. “The 16th.”

“Cute.” She said. “Mom sent me out to tell you they’re starting the service.”

“We’ll be right in.” He confirmed.

— — — — — —

“Oh my god, are you okay?” Austin’s voice was rushed and filled with panic as he entered the exam room. Vix let out a pained chuckle and gave him a weak smile.

“Got some bruised ribs, a fucked up ankle. I’m okay.” She told him. “Emmie is in room 11, where’s Parker?”

“Loren was at the house when the paramedic called me. She’s with him.” He said. “Didn’t think bringing a four month old to the hospital was a good idea. What happened?”

“Brakes went out at a red light.” She whispered. “I’m sorry.”

“Hey don’t be sorry.” His face softened. “I don’t care about the car. I care about if my girls are okay. Have you heard anything about Emmie?”

“The doctor came in to talk to me, said she’s got a cut on her head that needs stitches, probably from broken glass. But other than that she’s okay, probably going to have some bruises, but because we’re so anal about their car seats, it did it’s job.” She explained. “They had me sign a paper so they can do the stitches, but they were waiting for you because they have to put her out for them and it’s easier if there’s a parent.” He sighed softly.

“Okay. I’ll be back, then. What are they doing for your ankle?” He questioned

“It’s just fractured, so a boot until it’s healed then a follow up with the orthopedic doctor. I can’t be up on it too much for a week.” She sighed. “Go to your daughter please, I would like to go home.”

When they got home, Austin carried Emmie inside since she was still groggy from being put under while Vix hobbled behind them on her crutches. He made sure they were comfortable on the couch before going upstairs to find his mom and Loren had switched places.

“Loren called. As soon as she said there was an accident, I was in the car. She went to pick up dinner for you.” She explained, handing his son to him. “Are they okay?”

“Emmie has 15 stitches along her hairline starting from her ear to her forehead. The car seat did it’s job. I’ve already ordered a new one too. And one for Parker even though he wasn’t in the car, his extra car seat was. Vix has a broken ankle and bruised ribs. Seeing what the car looked like, they’re so damn lucky.” He told her. “I better get him downstairs before he yells at us that he’s hungry.”

“Hand him over.” Vix announced the moment her husband walked into the living room, making grabby hands for the baby. “Please, my boobs are like rocks.”

“Here, he’s giving me that look. I’ve been getting a lot of dms asking if you and Emmie are okay.” He told her as he handed him over.

“You don’t have to say anything if you don’t want to. You’re a worried dad and husband.” She said. “But if it’ll make you feel better.”

“I’m gonna.” He told her. “And when you’re healed up we’ll go look for a new car.”

Vix gave him a small smile as she fed their son and he typed out an Instagram post, making sure to thank the doctors and paramedics in it. Loren eventually came back with dinner, hugging her sister in law tightly and then snuggling with her niece as she ate.

“Whoever did her stitches did a good job.” She noted. “I bet she hardly scars.”

“They had a plastic surgeon come in. He was really great too. Explained to her in words she could understand, you know. They were going to give her medicine to make her go to sleep and then he was going to fix her head and when she woke up she’d be at home.” Austin sighed. “But man, hearing her cry like that when I walked into the room hurt.”

“Of course it did, Aus. That’s your baby girl and she was scared and hurt and until that moment she didn’t have either of her parents.” His mom said. “Do you remember your first time getting stitches?”

“I don’t.” He confirmed. “I remember getting them in high school, but not before.”

“Well it’s that scar on the back of your head. Loren shoved you into the corner of the cabinets in Ohio. You were probably two years old.” She explained. “That was the first time I had to take either of you to the emergency room. Loren never even apologized to you for it.”

“I’d do it again.” Loren said. “Maybe harder, you were being annoying.” Vix snorted in laughter at her sister in law, getting a glare and harsh tug on her boob from her son.

“When I was four years old I pulled a folding chair out from under my sister. Made her crack her head open on the counter behind her.” She laughed. “She probably deserved it. My sister sucks now and sucked then.”

“What is the age difference between you and your sister?” Loren asked. “I’ve been curious.”

“Two years, five months. She was born in December 1993 and I was born May of 1996.” Vix explained. “She’s never actually been nice to me before in her life. Austin can confirm, when I was pregnant with Emmie she was saying all kinds of rude shit and she started back up when we announced we were having Parker.”

“I was surprised when you told us about Parker, and Loren knew for a month before you told us.” Karen laughed.

“Loren walked in on us telling Emmie, though. She wasn’t supposed to know.” Austin told her. “We were surprised to find out about Parker.”

“That we were.” Vix confirmed. “We were so careful after we had Emmie to prevent it from happening until we knew we were ready. Like, we had just started talking about maybe trying and then I thought Emmie brought the stomach flu home from daycare.”

“You guys should have seen the look on her face when I suggested she was pregnant.” Austin laughed. “I was literally holding her hair back at 4am and was like “you don’t think?” And I got the dirtiest look.”

“I’m sorry Karen, excuse my language.” Vix said. “What he actually got was a dirty look and a “Austin Michael if you finish that fucking sentence you won’t be able to have anymore.” Like six hours later he very timidly slid a clearblue across the counter at me.”

“And I was right!” He told them. “Like his sister though, he was a very welcome surprise.”

“You cried when we found out he was a boy.” Vix teased. “Harder than you cried when we found out Emmie was a girl.”

“Because I was convinced he was another girl.” He defended. “Which I would have been thrilled about, by the way. It took me by surprise the moment the doctor placed him on your chest and said it’s a boy.”

“God, the nurse was so annoying after he was born. I thought you were going to punch her.” She told him.

“If she asked me one more time to sign the paper to circumcise him, I probably would have.” He sighed. “Like, sorry Linda, but we decided way before he was born and knew he was a boy that we weren’t doing that. He’s perfect the way he is.”

“She tried to reason that it would be better for him when he was sexually mature.” Vix rolled her eyes. “Like that’s still well over a decade away and personally, I’ve never been with a man that was, and that’s got me two kids so obviously it doesn’t matter.”

“This is probably way too much information but apparently it, like, desensitizes to an extent. Like, I’ve talked about it with the guys.” Austin told them “I’m the only one who’s not, I guess, in the friend group. Drew and Rudy apparently last longer because it takes them longer because it’s like, not as sensitive.”

“Well I can confirm you’ve never had an issue with lasting.” Vix assured him. “And like I’ve said, you’ve given me two beautiful children.”

“I think.” He started. “If anyone has given anyone beautiful kids, it’s you. You did all the hard work, Mama. Two kids, each almost nine pounds, in labor for more than twelve hours both times. And you did it unmedicated.”

“If we have a third, we’re doing it at home.” She told him. “Because while you’re hot when you’re mean, being threatened with a c section because I’m “not getting him out fast enough” is bullshit. Fuck that doctor.”

— — — — — —

“The bride was gorgeous, but the flower girl was adorable.” Austin told his wife as she nursed their son. They were sitting in a beautifully decorated barn in Ketchikan, watching as Rudy twirled his wife around the dance floor and Henning, who’d taken a sweet spot for the blonde four year old, was dancing with Emmie.

“Mhm.” She hummed in agreement. “Ow, Parker Thomas Michael. Mama’s boob is not a chew toy. Either be nice or we’re done.”

“He’s a biter, huh?” Austin mused, glancing at his son who was definitely looking more like his father the closer he got to his first birthday, now only a week away.

“He’s a sweetheart until he latches on and then it’s chomp the nipple time I guess.” She said “I love nursing, don’t get me wrong, it’s helped me bond with both of them, but I miss alcohol.”

“You’ve spent half of our marriage breastfeeding.” He told her. “I think you deserve a glass of champagne.”

“Maybe.” She hummed, “Gotta let him finish first though and I have to make a speech. I can’t believe Rudy finally convinced Haven to marry him.”

“I mean, it took longer than expected, but not everyone is us and gets married the weekend after they get engaged.” He teased. “And she’s not 24 weeks pregnant like you were.”

“I don’t regret our marriage or how we got married at all. It just fits us. God, can you believe that was four years ago.” She told him. “We’ve done pretty good for ourselves.”

“That we have. I want you guys to come with me this summer.” He told her. “To London, when I go to film.”

“You want to take a toddler and preschooler to London?” She asked.

“Well you haven’t gotten to go with me since before Emmie was born, and that was a technicality because you were working. And right when we were going to take Emmie with us, we found out about Parker.” He explained. “Plus I think they’d enjoy it. Emmie loves going on planes, and Parker did just fine coming up here”

“A flight to London is a lot longer than a flight to Ketchikan, bub.” She said. “We can do it, but we’ll have to have layovers or our kids will be terrible the whole time.”

“I can work it out with the production people.” He confirmed. “Looks like he’s done.”

“Mhm. You want him?” She asked. He held his hands out for the toddler, settling him in his lap.

If you’d have asked her five years ago if she’d be married with two kids at this time, she would have laughed. She’d been twenty five, moving nearly 800 miles from home for a job doing what she loved. She could remember the dm she’d gotten sitting in the airport in Indianapolis, wearing her Honest Society sweatshirt, having tagged the company in her Instagram story. It simply said “Charleston, huh? 👀'' then came the shocking one, when the next message came from his personal account stating “by the way, I’m the only one not busy this afternoon with preproduction, so I have been chosen to pick you up from the airport. Look for the same hoodie you’re wearing.”

She could remember laughing with him on the drive to her apartment, thankful he knew the way because he lived on the third floor. If she’d had known how fast they’d become friends, or that just six weeks later they’d share a moment that would change their lives forever, well she didn’t think she would go back and change it. Especially not now as she was watching that same light brunette pull belly laughs from their son from across the table.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Austin’s voice brought her out of her thoughts, grinning at her from across the table. “You look like you’re in a whole other world.”

“Just thinking. Remembering the day we met.” She told him. “If I had known that day that this is where we would end up, I wouldn’t believe it.”

“I’m glad it is where we ended up.” He told her. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” She hummed. “I’m so glad this is where we ended up, bub. I just can’t imagine spending my life with anyone but you.”

— — — — — —

“Which one do you think it is?” Austin’s voice was barely a whisper as he laid next to his wife in bed. The alarm clock said it was only 11:30, but both kids had been in their rooms since 8:30. Now, little footsteps were making their way down the hall to their room.

“Has to be Emmie, they’re too heavy for Parker.” She told him. “I think she’s just nervous, Baby. Tomorrow is a big day for her.”

“Don’t remind me.” He whined. “I’ve been emotional all day, my sister laughed at me.”

“That’s to be expected Austin. It’s your baby girl's first day of kindergarten. I’d be shocked if you didn’t cry.” She murmured. “But we both know she’s coming in here for you.”

With that, Austin rolled out of bed and stepped into the hallway just in time to scoop his daughter into his arms before murmuring something in her ear as they walked back towards her room.

Vix had to have fallen asleep, because the next thing she knew the alarm was going off telling her it was 5:30 and to get a start on breakfast. She didn’t know if her husband had come back to bed last night, but her question was answered when she peeked into her daughter's room and found him curled up next to her, a hand on her back soothingly. She tiptoed around to him to wake him up, smiling as he wiped the sleep from his eyes and joined her in the hallway.

By the time breakfast was done and the kids were dressed, Austin had successfully packed his daughters lunch for the day. He was trying not to let his nerves get the better of him but everything flew out the window when he opened his front door to find his parents and sister there, ready to see Emmie off for her first day of school.

“How we holding up, Aus?” His sister teased. “First day of kindergarten, I can’t believe that.”

“Me either.” He said. “I’m gonna be nervous until she gets off the bus this afternoon.”

“She’s going to do great” his mom told him. “She’s smart, just like her daddy.”

“Okay” Vix’s voice broke through. “Are we ready to take pictures so we can get our girl off to school?”

Pictures were taken — one of her by herself, one with his parents, one with his parents and Loren, one just of her and Loren and one of her, Austin, and Vix. Then, Austin loaded her and Parker into the car and they headed towards the elementary school. They dropped Parker off at daycare first, then they got to walk their daughter to her classroom, making sure to give her plenty of encouraging words as they said goodbye.

Austin managed to hold himself together until they got back to their car, then it was game over. Vix just smiled at him softly and let him sniffle for a while until she took his hand.

“Hey look at this way.” She said. “We get to do this all over again in three years with Parker.”

“I know.” He let out a watery laugh. “I’ll be a mess then too.”

“I’m sure you will.” She told him. “But nothing is going to beat how big of a mess you’ll be three years after that when we do it for the last time.” Austin froze, turning to look at his wife.

“What are you talking about?” He questioned.

“Remember last week when I went over to Rudy and Haven’s because she was panicking?” She asked. He gave her a nod. “Well, I took a test with her for moral support, just because. And both of them came back positive.”

“Haven and Rudy?” He asked. She grinned and nodded. “Oh my god it’s about damn time, he’s been trying to convince her since Emmie was eight months old.”

“I know we only planned on having the two, but it wouldn’t be our relationship if we didn’t get thrown a curveball once and a while.” She said. “If I did the math right, we’re due the first week of June.”

“I don’t care about when their birthday is, I care that they’re healthy.” He told her. “A third baby, oh my god.”

“Glad we have four bedrooms huh.” She laughed. “Hey, I love you.”

“I love you. More than words can say. Nearly six years of marriage, two amazing kids. A third one on the way. I’m so glad Val made me come get you from the airport that day. I don’t think she realized she was introducing me to my soulmate.”

“I’ve never thought about it like that.” She said. “If that’s what happened, I’m pretty damn glad it’s you.”

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