After everything Jay and Riley have gone through, will the war be the one thing to take away their safe place?
They thought they had it all figured out but as live goes on, they meet new obstacles and have to find new way to fight for each other.
W...
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Jay sat on the carpet in the middle of the living room with Aurora scooted up on his lap as they played some kind of construction game. He had the toddler sitting on his lap, one of his hand resting on her stomach while she leaned back against his chest.
He was trying to teach her something with the cubes in front of them but she wasn't quite understanding what he meant so as usual she simply did whatever she wanted. Jay bought into it, following her lead and immediately forgetting the educational purpose his game had only seconds before.
The couple had been focussing on Aurora's mobility skills as they figured it could be helpful to learn it early on. Jay loved practicing it with her, as he was very creative with his games and always found a way to get the little girl to participate. It also helped that she absolutely loved playing with her father.
She was a real daddy's girl and Riley loved every second of it. Every chance she had, she jumped in her father's arms or lap and hugged him so tightly that Riley wasn't sure she'd ever let go. The little girl always asked for her father's attention or cuddled up to his side whenever they sat in front of the television. Jay obviously loved every second of it and would always welcomed her with open arms.
Much to the couple's contentment, she also very much enjoyed having a big brother figure. If Jay wasn't around or simply unavailable, she used the opportunity to soak up all the love and cuddles she could from Nate. The sweet boy also let her, finding the toddler to be too cute to resist. From the few months he'd been home with the Halsteads, he really found his place in the family and definitely wedged his way into their hearts.
Riley and Nate were sitting on the couch together, watching a show on tv. Riley kept nodding off, getting woken up by the giggles coming from Jay and Aurora. Nate chuckled as she was startled awake for the fourth time in the last twenty minutes. "You can go to sleep, you know. I can watch it by myself."
"No, no. I'll watch it with you." Riley argued, straightening up in her seat. "Are you even watching it?" She questioned, noticing he had his phone in his hands.
He chuckled again, shaking his head. "Nope." She playfully nudged him, "Can I tell you something?" Riley nodded right away, turning to face him. She could tell he was hesitant but she waited patiently for him to open up. "There's a social worker from DCFs who came to see me at school."
Riley was surprised to hear this as she hadn't been contacted beforehand. "Yeah?"
He hummed and nodded in response, the words shared between the two catching Jay's attention. He listened to them while still focussing on the toddler in his lap. "She asked how things were doing here and uh, if I was settling in okay."
"Mmh." Riley hummed, slightly nodding. "Is that all?" She didn't want to be too nosy, but she really wanted to know what he answered.
Luckily for her, Nate sensed it and let her know right away. "I told her things were going well here. I don't think I could've been surrounded by better people. I, uh, told her I was still getting to know you guys - so yeah." He told her honestly, shooting her a smile.
