A year ago.

3

Mandy lays in the chair next to the Candace's resting place. It was now dark. Mandy was extremely upset with what had happened with Lip, but she held it in because she wanted no negative energy around cadence. For once she couldn't focus soulfully on lips life, and had to give all her attention to Candace who she couldn't live without .

So she was surprised when she saw the door open and lip entered. He had a shameful look upon his face. Mandy stands up from the chair without thinking. "Your back?" She asks trying not to smile and show she cares.
"I wouldn't really leave" he tells her . Looking down at the floor.
"You don't have to be here. It's not an obligation really. I'm capable of taking care of her." And shrugs. "This is what everyone expected for me anyway, not for you though" she laughs. She had done that. She always doubted herself.
"I'm not my father" he says.
She gives him a small smile. "I know."
Lip walks over to Candace. He glances over her watching her breath in and out. Mandy does the same.
"She's beautiful isn't she?" Mandy asks him.
"Yah." Lip says examining her. His eyes glued to her face.
"She's got your eyes you know." This time he looks up at Mandy who has a huge grin. He's smiles back at her feeling an unusually amount of happiness.
" she's definitely got your lips, and I'd bet she's got your smile as well." He tells her. She doesn't answer him for a few minuets.

"I don't want her to grow up the way we did." She tells him
"We didn't turn out that bad did we?" He Asks with a laugh.
"Lip you should be in class right now. Instead your in the hospital with your ex and daughter where the doctor Isn't here because he's probably out getting a fix."
When she says that reality hits him like a comet.
"Your right. We've got to protect her. But we aren't our parents mand, we're gonna do this right. " he puts his hand on her shoulder to reassure her. Now she can't help but shed tears as She clings onto him. He quickly wraps his arms around her embracing her in a tight hold. She smells his familiar smell and feels at home once more.

-

Lip and Mandy had both squeezed and fallen asleep in the small chair next to Candace. The next morning lip wakes up first. At first he's startled but once her realizes where he is he lets himself relax. He stills his body in attempt not to wake Mandy. He rests his head on the top of her he's stroking her hair as if he was calming her. When he opens his phone he has multiple messages from Amanda, Fiona, Ian, his buddy from the class he hadn't shown up to. He holds the button down until the phone turns off , then he moves it to the side table.

Just then he sees Mandy begin to wake up. He moves the hair from her eyes when she turns to look at him. "Good morning." He tells her with a soft smile.
"How's Candace?" Is the first thing she says in her sleepy voice.
"Around 3 they gave her another dose of the antibiotic and her fever went down a little. Today they are doing the blood transfusion, and tomorrow they are sending her home with a 10 day antibiotic" Mandy seems exited to her about her little girls progress. Just then is when they hear babbling coming from the corner. Mandy quickly pulls herself up and dashes over to where the baby is sleeping. She scoops her to and cooes over her, holding her tightly in her arms. Lip comes up behind them examining her. "Mommy loves you baby girl" Mandy tells her daughter in a baby voice, only to remember Lip was behind her. She blushes. Lip laughs. He had never seen Mandy as the mothering type, but apparently she was a natural. "You can't take her back to the milkovich house Mandy." Lip tells her.
"Your insulting my family ? Anyway I have no place left to go, it's not like being Around frank is much better." He says insulted.
"Come stay in my dorm with me." Mandy laughs
"College isn't the place for a baby." She tells him
"Either is a whore house" he argues. She knew he had a point.
"What about studying, and partying, And sex?" And asks.
"Nothing like that's as important as Candace Mandy." His voice is sure. But Mandy still had her doubts because of the way he had felt the last time they lived together.
"Are you sure?" She asks once more.
"More then anything in my life." He tells her.
She lets herself lean back into his chest.

Mandy and lip sit back on the hair together. She sat partly on him, and rested her head on his chest. She cradled cadence in her arms. Lip plays with Candace's hair on her hair.
"She's got quite a head of hair doesn't she?" Mandy says with a small laugh as she watches lips fascination with it.
"That's definitely all you." He's says as he ruffles Mandy's hair.
"Maybe she'll have cute little curls when she's older." She says running her fingers though his hair. Lip lets out a small laugh looking down at Mandy's face. "Your so beautiful" he tells her. She tries to stop it but her heart begins to melt.
"Stop it." She says
"In not kidding, you look just like her." After that Mandy just looked down at Candace with no reply. That was the best compliment she had ever received.

Several minutes passed before they spoke again.
"Ian texted me, he said he's gonna come and see her soon" Mandy tells lip.
"Alright, cool." Lip says content with the plans for the rest of the day. He had wanted to stay with Mandy forever. It was different from when they were together, he was so scared to commit to her or give in to the fact that she actually cared for him. Now the step had taken itself and all he wanted to do with be by her side through everything.
"Have you talked to Any one today?" She asked him.
"I shut my phone off" he told her casually.
"You should call Fiona, Ian told she she was worried about you." Mandy tells him.
"I don't want to have to talk to her yet, I just want to stay her with you guys." He tells her giving them a squeeze.
Mandy pulls the blanket over them and again starts to play with Cadence's fingers. She had now fallen asleep. "If you don't call her soon she's gonna send out a search party" she laughed.
"How bout we go over there after we get out tomorrow? " lip tells her. She shakes her head she was dreading telling Fiona because she knows how she felt about her.
"You don't have to be nervous." He tells her feeling the vibe off her. "Fiona is going to be surprised at first, but when she knows she won't be the one responsible for her she's going to be ecstatic for us. He kisses the top of Mandy's head to calm her.
"I want her eyes to open." She says looking at the sleeping baby
"Me too" Lip replies.