A Little Twist

The Meeting

Andy was not even close to having her thoughts all sorted out as the truck pulled into the barn. When the engine stopped, Andy turned to the little girl next to her, deciding to focus on her and ignore the looks she as receiving from the rest of the team.

"Alright baby, we're here." She told her daughter with fake enthusiasm.

"You and daddy work here?" She exclaimed, voice full of awe, her little eyes shining bright with joy.

"Yes. Come on, let's go." Andy told her as she unclasped her belt.

She waited for everyone to exit the vehicle before stepping down, holding her hand out to help the little girl down. She had barely gotten the girl out of the truck when she felt a familiar presence behind her.

"Everything ok?" Sullivan asked quietly, placing a hand on her shoulder after making sure that only the three of them were left in the room.

"Yes. I just ignored them all." Andy answered with a tight smile, still holding tightly on the little girl's hand. "It's going to be bad Robert." She added, voice confident but eyes full of fear.

"It's going to be fine." He tried to say in a reassuring tone, squeezing her shoulder one last time before letting go.

They both looked down at Olivia who was taking everything in. Though she was standing patiently at her mom's side and had not tried to let go of her mom's hand, the little girl was looking around, wonder and awe written all over her face. Andy and Robert smiled at their daughter's amazement and at the way she shifted her feet just a little to look behind her, a big bright smile illuminating her face.

"How was that truck tour?" Sullivan asked Olivia, running his hand in her soft curls.

"It was fun!" She exclaimed, before frowning at him. "Ouch daddy. You hurting me." She scolded, pushing his hand away.

"Oh, sorry ladybug." He said pulling a face, as he removed his hand from her hair. For some reasons, he still had troubles remembering that even though his little girl had the prettiest curly hair, it always ended up in knots. "Wanna see what it's like inside?"

Both parents laughed as Olivia nodded excitedly, jumping up and down, the grip Andy had on her hand preventing her from falling.

"I'm just going to get rid of my stuff first." Andy told Robert.

He nodded in answer. "Come on, ladybug. You are going to visit daddy's office now." He said, holding his hand out for her to take.

While Andy had been focusing on her daughter, the rest of the crew had quickly made their way to the beanery. They had spent the whole drive wanting to fire questions at their friend, but the way she had been avoiding them convinced everyone that it was best to just not talk. They had simply tried their very best not to stare at the little girl chatting away, and then fled the truck and the barn as fast as possible.

"This was a joke, right?" Travis asked out loud, as they all made their way up the stairs.

"I don't think so, man." Jack replied, slapping him amicably on the shoulder.

"Wow." Travis said, shaking his head in disbelief.

The whole team busied themselves silently in the kitchen, grabbing glasses, soft drinks and snacks. In barely five minutes, they were all sitting around the table staring into space.

"Just wow." Montgomery breathed out, breaking the silence.

"So, Andy has a kid..." Dean started.