♡Anakin and Padmé Fanfictions♡

Two Halves Make A Whole (Chapter 5)

The rest of December flew by in a flurry of holiday chaos, and New Year's Eve found the Naberries and the Skywalkers sitting on the couch together in the Skywalker's living room, watching the countdown on the TV and waiting for the ball to drop. Or rather, Padmé and Anakin were watching; Luke and Leia had conked out about two hours ago despite their insistence that they really could stay up until midnight.

"Do you think we should wake them up at midnight or just let them sleep?" Padmé whispered.

"Leia's been talking about finally staying up for the new year all day. She'd kill me if I didn't wake her up in time," Anakin whispered back, and she laughed.

So at 11:57, Anakin gently shook Leia awake. "Leia, wake up, it's almost midnight."

Leia sleepily blinked her eyes open and yawned. "What time is it?"

"11:57."

She sat bolt upright and scowled at Anakin. "Daddy, I told you not to let me fall asleep!"

"I didn't want you to stay up so far past your bedtime in the first place, so I figured I'd let you doze off for a couple hours," Anakin said mildly. "Besides, I woke you up in time for midnight."

Leia huffed but snuggled back into Anakin's side and turned her attention to the TV while Luke did the same on Padmé's other side after being woken up as well. At last, the countdown reached the final minute, then the final seconds.

"Five!" all four of them chanted along with the TV. "Four! Three! Two! One! Happy New Year!"

The kids cheered excitedly and the parents laughed at their enthusiasm; Anakin missed the days when he'd get excited about the new year rather than feeling like it was just any other day. Then Leia tugged on Anakin's sleeve and said rather slyly, "Daddy, Auntie Beru says you're supposed to kiss someone you love at midnight on New Year's."

Anakin was suddenly hyperaware of how close to him Padmé was sitting since they were in the middle with the kids on either side rather than the other way around (he suspected Luke and Leia had done it on purpose to further their matchmaking scheme). He glanced at her and saw her looking at him likewise, and she shifted her position ever so slightly and suddenly their legs were brushing against each other and Anakin's heart was racing and his gaze was instinctively flickering down to her lips and—

Mr. Skywalker and I don't want to get married, and that's final. I don't want to hear about this again, okay?

And Anakin suddenly remembered how irritated Padmé had seemed at the mall by Luke and Leia saying they wanted them to get married. He quickly turned his head and smiled down at Leia. "Well, I guess I'll have to kiss you then," he said, leaning down and pecking him on the cheek, which made Leia giggle.

When he straightened back up he saw that Padmé had followed his lead and given Luke a kiss, and just like that the moment between them was gone. Anakin didn't know if he was relieved or disappointed.

---

School started up again on January second, and normal routines were quickly resumed. Leia's sixth birthday was at the end of the month, and she invited the whole class to her princess-themed party. Almost everyone was able to make it and the party was a smashing success, to Leia's delight and Anakin's relief (he was sure kindergarten birthday parties hadn't been such high-pressure social events back in his day). The cake was beautiful: vanilla with purple frosting, decorated with several frosting flowers and tiaras, the words Happy Birthday Leia, and six candles. Padmé had made it; Anakin had been fretting to her about getting a cake for the party because he wasn't an especially good baker but he didn't want to settle for a store-bought cake for Leia's birthday, and she'd immediately offered to make one and refused to take no for an answer. Padmé painstakingly baking and decorating a cake for his daughter's birthday did funny things to Anakin's heart, but he tried not to think about it too much.