Sequel to Beautiful Mess

Chapter One

"Mh, Em—"

He was cut off in a moment of passionate fury, wet lips tackling his own, hands skimming down the front of his body and hips grinding firmly against his. When Emma was frustrated, she had a tendency to show it — not that he minded.

Wanting to be in control, Will rolled them over so he was once more dominant, attacking her features with every feeling washing over him; desperation and desire controlling the situation.

Once Lily had learned how to climb out of her crib the year previous, the couple's intimacy had become staggered and unpredictable. No longer could they simply move to their bed on a whim, — now their patterns of love-making were sporadic and unpredictable — they relished every moment they stumbled upon and soaked up each time they had the opportunity to re-explore one another.

Will and Emma had expected their lives to become easier once Lily gained independence; that most factors in their lives would return to the same stable conditions they'd been before they brought a child into the world; Emma would go back to work full time and Will could take over coaching the Glee club once more. But the couple soon found that more independent their daughter became physically and emotionally, the more dependent on one another they all became.

The cliche 'terrible twos' hadn't been quite as horrifying as Emma anticipated it would be. Sure, there were tantrums, and plenty of them; but for the most part, they were manageable. Usually the mother would stand with her arms crossed and eyebrows raised at the screaming ball of a child that Lily would become, her curly red hair strewn around her and feet flailing wildly in the air. She'd wait patiently until the girl could pull herself together, apologize, and then together they'd find a solution for whatever it was she wanted.

Will had generally arrived home around four in the afternoon, where he was typically tackled promptly by the little beast he called his daughter the moment the garage door opened. He'd lift her into his arms and kiss her cheek while she hugged him tightly, her scrawny limbs latching around him so tightly, he didn't even have to hold onto her. Once she acquired more language skills, she asked every day, "Do you love me, daddy?" To which he always responded, "Of course," and let her kiss his nose before scampering back to whatever activity she'd previously been engaged in.

Once Lily returned to entertain herself, Emma made her debut, typically sliding out of the kitchen and winding her arms around Will, pressing him against her while meeting his lips and winding her fingers through his curls.

She'd gone back to work, part time, after the first semester of being home every day. For the next year and a half, she only counseled on monday, wednesday and friday mornings while Lily stayed with her grandparents, the elder Schuester couple — and Emma placed emphasis on couple. If, for whatever reason, Will's father could not be around in the morning, Emma would take the day off, or, on a blue moon, ask Terri if she'd be interested in watching her daughter.

Emma had bounced back from the depression; she wouldn't deny that raising a child was hard on her — toilet training had been a nightmare she eventually left to her husband — but she didn't hate motherhood. She quite enjoyed being able to spend time with her little girl on a daily basis, nurturing and playing with her, singing, reading or cuddling her daughter; she wanted to be a part of Lily's life in the most important role there was.

As Will moved his lips over Emma's neck and her fingers danced along his pelvic bones, they knew how much they depended on this, their time they could spend in one another's arms — the physical reminder of their unfaltering love for each other. It had been almost a full week since they'd last found the time to stow away, with the end of the school year's business and Lily's constant interruption when they thought they'd found a moment to themselves, Emma desperately needed to call his name in a way she only did when they were together; Will needed to bask in the afterglow of their love.

Just as he'd begun advancing the foreplay, a loud shattering of glass had Will pulling his face away from his wife's neck and meeting her eyes as she panted in desire to continue, but knowing where they needed to be as a traumatized cry reverberated down the hall to their bedroom. Will was still in a pair of boxers and climbed off Emma — tossing her the nightgown she had been prepared to put on after changing out of her work clothes when he told her not to bother —and muttered an apology before taking off to the source of the crash.

Emma evened her breathing as she slid into the silky material, not taking time to put on undergarments as she made her way to the kitchen, where Will was tip-toeing around shards of broken glass to pick up his equally broken daughter, who had fallen to the tile in her state of hysteria, sobbing and reeling in guilt.

"Lily," Will said gently, narrowly avoiding a piece of broken cup as he bent to lift the little girl from the floor, "Sweetie, are you hurt?"

It took a few composing breaths before she could shake her head no, burying it in the crook of his neck as he steered around the glass and moved her to the kitchen island, scooting one of the stools over, detaching her from his shoulders and taking his time analyzing her pale skin for any cuts or scrapes she may not have noticed.

"Em? Could you grab the tweezers and a bandaid?" Lily's wide, tear filled eyes met his as he made the request which his wife had turned to comply, "It's okay, sweet-pea..." He rubbed a comforting hand along her arm and placed a kiss on her forehead, "It's okay."

She continued sniffing when Emma returned with the supplies and approached her daughter sympathetically, handing Will the tweezers and observing her baby's face switch from upset to horror when Will bent her little leg towards him and as the sharp metal approached her foot, Lily jerked back and screamed, "No, Daddy!"

"We've got to get the sharp part out, baby," He said, attempting to take her limb back in his hand, but she squirmed on the counter closer to her mother.

Emma sighed, stroking her baby's hair as she pressed her face close to her mother's stomach, "Lily, it's okay, it'll only hurt for a second...I need you to cooperate." When she didn't turn outwards Emma made an empty threat, "If Daddy doesn't do it then we've got to take you to the hospital."

"No!" She cried loudly, hugging around Emma tightly, who nodded at Will to quickly grab her leg while she was distracted. Luckily the clear shard hadn't completely embedded itself into the skin, and after a quick yet gentle pull, Will removed the piece of glass and sprayed the broken skin with antiseptic before placing a pink, cat-themed bandaid over it and rubbing his daughter's back.

"There we go, sweetie-pie, all over," Will smiled sadly, lifting his baby's face off his wife and watching as another bought of tears rolled down her cheeks, "It's okay."

"I-I-I'm sorry," She choked, twisting the fabric of Emma's nightgown before crumpling her face once more, "D-do you s-still l-love me?"

"Oh, Lily..." Emma completely lifted her tiny frame from the countertop and hugged her close, as she tried not so smile at her little girl's high-pitched voice —her 'r's sounded like 'w's and her 'l's sounded like 'y's; but it was more adorable then worrisome at her age — "Sweetheart, a little broken glass doesn't change that I love you. It's okay, I promise." Emma's eyes trailed to the slivers of crystal-hued drink-ware on the floor, "What were you trying to get?"

"M-my cup!"

"Are you supposed to be getting your own food and drink, hm?" Will asked, trying to meet her brown eyes, which were searing more tears of guilt, "Or are you supposed to ask me or mommy for help?"

"B-but your, your door was closed!"

"Oh...right," Will cringed and pulled Emma to him, enveloping both of his girls in a hug, "Okay, Lil. Next time, instead of choosing which rule to break, just knock, okay?"

She nodded, curly hair tickling Emma's chin as the older redhead continued to glare at the mess on the floor, which Will took note of and pecked a kiss to her temple, "You take care of her, I'll clean this up." Her eyes pleaded with him for a brief moment to switch roles, but he shook his head, "She wants you now, Em...I'll take care of the kitchen."

Emma swallowed and nodded, carefully wading around a sea of shattered glass and took her daughter down the hall, "How about a bath, get you nice and cleaned up?"

"No, no!"

She peeled her away to meet the blotchy face, "Sweetheart, what's wrong?"

"Not bath time!"

Lily liked to keep things structured, Emma had noticed, especially over the past few months as her vocabulary had expanded and she was forming sentences, this break in her usual routine would likely cause for an argument, "It's okay...We'll just have extra play time after dinner if you take a bath now. You're not going to have to go to bed after." The little girl clung her legs tightly around Emma's hips, not wanting to give in to the suggestion.

"But..."

"Come on, let's get in the tub." Emma could tell that Lily was about to argue again, so she set the girl down in the bathroom attached to the master bedroom, turned her chin up and crouched to her level, "Lily, I need you to listen to Mommy, okay? We're taking a bath now. We will play after dinner."

The tiny ginger-haired girl continued to protest, stamping her foot and crossing her arms for emphasis as she declared, "But it's not time yet!

Emma huffed, sweeping her bangs off her forehead, trying not to grow frustrated, and started the water, letting it warm before plugging the hole, "I think that, you need to listen to me, so that you can make a good choice and not have to sit in a time out."

Lily pouted, her arms hanging at her sides in defeat, "Even though it's not time?"

Emma nodded back and lifted the powder-blue, ruffly, smock-top off Lily's little frame, "Even though it's not time," She repeated to emphasize the point, undoing the buttons on the girl's white capri pants. "We'll still do all the other normal things before bed, don't worry. We'll still brush your hair and teeth, read a book, sing and cuddle, okay?"

The little redhead sniffled and looked down, "D-do you still love me?"

She paused and placed a hand on either side of her daughter's bare arms, pressing a firm kiss to her cheek and meeting her eyes, "Of course I still love you, Lily," She shimmied out of the rest of her clothes and let Emma lift her over the edge of the bathtub, as her tiny legs couldn't swing over, "I will always love you."

"Daddy?" Lily smiled when Will poked his head into the bathroom ten minutes later, now adorning a shirt and pajama pants, "Want to play in the water?" She asked, moving a plastic shark out of the water and back down with a splash with enough force, it sent sudsy water into her mother's face, making the girl gasp, bringing her hands to her face, "Sorry! Sorry, Mommy, sorry!"

Emma took a towel from a stack on a wicker shelf and patted the soap off her face and smiled down at her daughter, "It's okay, sweetheart. Just an accident; it's only water."

"I'm sorry!"

Will crouched so he was kneeling on the rug-covered tile next to his wife, cupping Lily's damp face and sending a comforting smile in her direction, "It's okay, Lil. Really, Mommy's okay, look."

Once more, the little girl refused to take comfort in their words and let salty tears fall into the bathwater, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry for b-breaking the c-cup and not listening and sp-splashing Mommy—""

Emma sighed and leaned slightly against Will, "I think we're quite finished here," She handed him a fluffy, yellow towel and lifted Lily out of the water and into his strong arms as he dried and held her at the same time, kissing her wet, tangled hair and whispering nonsense into her ears,

"Lily, Lily..." He bounced her lightly, as he'd done so often when she was a baby, "What are we going to do with you, hm?"

Emma led them to the toddler's room, finding an acceptable pair of summery pajama shorts, which were a tad baggy on her thin waist, dressing her slowly, trying not to make too many sudden movements to disturb her any further.

As a flowery top was pulled over her head, Lily took a few steps forward and leaned against Emma, sighing through her tears. Will rubbed the little girl's back and kissed the top of Emma's head before standing, "How about we get something ready for dinner?"

Lily pulled away and Emma stood, capturing her small hand in her own, "Mommy, is it bedtime now?"

She shook her head, "No, honey, that's why Daddy said we're going to make dinner."

"Well how come you and daddy are in jammies, too?"

"Uh," Emma stumbled over her words, meeting Will's humorous gaze and quickly thinking of something to say, "Well, It's a pajama party. Yeah, we'll make some waffles for dinner and then watch a movie, okay, sweat-pea?"

Lily nodded, pleased with the answer, "Can we watch the one where those kids are in the trees and singing about the 'do'?"

After fruit-covered breakfast food and a showing of The Sound of Music, Lily had exhausted herself. As she sat snuggled between Will and Emma, her little head dropped to Will's lap, as he eyed the time while the credits rolled, "Perfect timing, let's get ready for bed," He patted her shoulder while she rubbed at her eyes.

She took her time, carefully brushing her teeth while Emma combed at her curls, gently, as they often caused tears, "All done!" Lily announced after she neatly lined her purple toothbrush in its holder.

Emma kissed her cheek and walked her to the love seat in her bedroom, where she climbed into Will's lap and he read to her, followed by a short rendition of You Are My Sunshine as her eyelids started to flutter shut, "Ready to go to sleep?"

"Can I sleep with you and Mommy?"

Will shook his head, "No, you've got your own bed, Lil," He eyed Emma, knowing that she was hoping to be able to continue what they'd started previously.

She pouted, wrapping her arms around his neck tightly and he stood, pulling his wife up as well so they could tuck Lily into the toddler bed in her butterfly-themed room.

Emma pulled the blankets back and sat on the edge near the pillows as Will settled Lily against them and sat with his knees touching his wife's, "Alright, baby...sweet dreams," He pressed a kiss to her forehead and stroked the side of her face, "I love you."

"I love you too," Lily kissed his hand and turned to her mother, "And I love you mommy."

Running her fingers through her daughter's curly hair, Emma returned the declaration, "I love you, too, sweetheart."

Both parents crossed to leave, while Lily turned her little body to the side, reaching for her security blanket and curled it in her fists, close to her face, letting sleep consume her small figure.

Will closed her door most of the way and drew Emma close to him by her hip; she hung her arms around his shoulders with a deep sigh, "Bedroom?"

"Oh, yes."

He took her hand with a smirk, leading them to close the door, where she soon found her back as his hands moved skillfully up the nightgown she still wore, his fingertips grazing the skin on her upper thighs while his lips matched hers almost painfully and his tongue sought entrance to her mouth by grazing against her teeth.

"Will," She moaned, winding an arm around his neck and grinding her hips against his, "Bed," She gasped as his arms slipped up, wrapping around her waist, allowing her to instinctively twist her legs around him, "Mhm, Will," his mouth traveled south, pressing kisses down her throat as he rubbed his forehead against her chest, his nose gliding against the satiny fabric of the garment covering her. His palms slid back up her nightgown, along her sides, thumbs catching the fabric, sliding it over her chest so he could plaster kisses there as well.

As they continued twirling against the blankets, Emma felt her frustration continuing to increase, rather then dissipate as it typically did once her needs were met. In a moment of a judgment lapse, she murmured in panted breath, "God, I can't stand this."

Will promptly stopped his fingers, tilting his head up with a raised brow as Emma caught what she said out loud, "Oh, no, oh, no, no...not...not, um...don't stop." He repositioned himself to sit straddling her waist, crossing his arms with a playful smirk until her flush increased and she looked to the side in embarrassment, "It's...it's um...just really...frustrating that, we can't do this when we want to. When we need to."

"Ah," He softened, feeling his masculinity back in tact, after fearing he'd lost, quite literally, his touch, "Here I thought...never mind," He chuckled lightly, leaning to brush a kiss across her forehead, "I know what you mean. I've been feeling it too. It's not easy."

"I just...I don't know what to do...Earlier when she...freaked out...I just...I didn't know how to react...I felt so useless, and I felt terrible that I wanted to just stay here with you at first, rather then running out to my daughter...who...needed me," As the conversation switched, so did Emma's tone of frustration and embarrassment to self-anger and disappointment, tears pulling at the corner of her eyes.

"Hey, hey," Will cupped her cheek, "Em, it's okay. I didn't really want to leave you either, but in the end, we both knew where we needed to be, right? And even though we didn't have some sort of...instruction guide to take care of the problem, we were still able to deal with it okay," He placed a kiss on her nose and smiled down at her, hoping to get one in return, "You are not a bad mother. Don't question yourself, sweetheart. We can talk about it later, though, okay?"

"Okay...oh, we still need to do something about this," She breathed, referencing his hands which had returned to below her waist, "Next week summer starts. She's going to be with us all day, every day...and now she's," Emma gasped slightly as Will continued his attempts at distracting her, "C-cognitively aware of what's happening around her...I don't want her —oh! — s-scarred for life."

"Maybe," He said between kisses to her naval, "We can put her in a morning program," His tongue danced against her skin, forcing her hips to buckle, "Or I'm sure my mother wouldn't mind having her—"

"Okay, you were right," Emma breathed, "Let's focus on it later," Her fingers raked through his hair, pulling him up for a long kiss, "I don't really want to think about your mother while we're doing this."

Will laughed and pressed down for another kiss before winding his fingers through her hair, "There's only one mommy I want to think about right now," He purred, nipping her bottom lip, "And I think she's feeling the need to discipline somebody right about now."

"Oh?" Emma's eyes twinkled as he rolled them over, "I'm a sexy mamma, right, Will?" She sang softly, shimming her hips over his, giggling as he envisioned her in a Pussycat Doll getup, "Here," Her thin fingers traveled to the pants he adorned, "Let me loosen up your buttons."

"Mommy?"

Emma looked up from her laptop to see Lily's head poking over the side of the couch, expression miserable, "What's wrong, sweetheart?" She placed her computer on the edge of the coffee table, leaving the incoming freshman schedules a mystery, "Come here," Emma lifted the tiny girl into her arms, pressing a kiss to the side of her cheek, "What's bugging you?"

Lily twisted herself so she was cradled in Emma's arms, looking down sadly, "I miss you," She pouted, moving her head to rest on Emma's chest.

"What do you mean you miss me? I'm right here."

"You're always working."

Emma's heart melted, "Oh, Lily..." Her daughter played with her long, boney fingers, "I'm so sorry you feel that way...Tell you what, though...next week, summer starts, so Daddy and I will be able to spend much more time with you."

"Okay," She said contently, snuggling back into Emma's embrace and moving her hands to the lacy ruffles on Emma's shirt, "Where is Daddy?"

"He had to stop somewhere on the way home," To pick up something for her birthday later in the week, Emma left out while placing more kisses to the top of Lily's head, "He'll be here soon, no worries."

"Is he okay?"

"Yes, sweetie. Daddy's just fine."

"Oh. Are you making dinner now?"

She eyed the clock, unsure when her not-quite-three-year-old had learned to tell read the digital device or understand the concept of hours and minutes, "Honey, how do you know what time it is?"

"Daddy's late."

"Oh, and I always start dinner when he comes home, hm?"

"Yeah," She twisted and slid down Emma's legs, taking a hand and pulling, "Come on, Mommy."

The older redhead stood, following her daughter into the kitchen where she picked the little girl up and placed her on the counter as she ruffled through the refrigerator to heat the meat she'd set aside previously in the day, "Mommy that's chicken?"

"Yes, it is honey."

"But I don't like chicken."

Emma glanced her way, "Since when don't you like chicken?"

"Papa said it come from real chickens. I don't like that."

She huffed, blowing her bangs up and washing her hands before cutting the poultry into strips to cook, "Thank you, grandpa...Okay, look, honey; I don't...I don't know what to say, but it's the same chicken you've been eating your whole life. Nothing about it has changed since papa told you."

"But it's real chicken."

"Lily...we'll talk about it again later, alright? Want to help me with the veggies?"

Nodding enthusiastically, Lily's eyes widened when Emma brought three measuring cups and bags of vegetables to the girl, "I need each of these full, okay? Put one of each into a cup with all of them. Think you can do it?"

"I got to wash my hands first," Lily lifted her arms to be picked up and carried to the sink where she pumped the lemon soap onto her tiny palms and rubbed them into a lather before rinsing them off, "Thank you, Mommy."

"You're welcome, sweet-pea...I'm going to get some rice started."

The garage door was swung open a few minutes later and Will stepped into the kitchen with an warm smile as he witnessed his two girls cooking, "Hey," Emma leaned back into his chest when his arms secured themselves around her middle, "Find everything?"

"Yes," He responded, kissing her neck, "It's in the car, I'll bring it in when she goes to sleep. How was your day?"

"Uneventful...the beast has been restless, though."

"Oh?" Will turned to face his daughter, who was so engaged in neatly aligning vegetables in the glass containers that she hadn't even noticed him enter the room, "Hi, Lily."

She didn't look up until he stood in front of her, "Hang on, I'm busy."

Emma craned her neck from the chicken to see perfectly straight, colorful rows of carrots, peppers, miniature corn, peas and broccoli, "Wow, Lil....those look very nice. But I don't think you should talk to Daddy like that."

"Sorry," Her attention still didn't waver from her project, "Almost done." Setting the last red pepper in the same direction in each cup, Lily beamed and moved so her chin rested on the counter, gazing at the cups to confirm her eccentric desire for their perfection, "Finished, Mommy!"

"Thank you, Lily. These are beautiful; you did a very nice job."

She gave her mother a wide grin and finally focused on her father, reaching her arms out, "Hi, Daddy! Sorry for being sassy. Do you still love me?"

"Oh, baby," He lifted her, kissing the mop of ginger atop her head, "Of course I still love you, sweetie. Did you have fun helping Mommy?"

"Yes, I'm a good girl, see?"

Her arm flailed backwards to the three cups, handles all lined precisely in the same direction and filled to the brim with ingredients for Emma's stir-fry. Will eyed the cups suspiciously, "Why did you make them so pretty, hm?" He asked with a kiss to her temple, testing the near-three-year-old.

She shrugged, "Just doing what Mommy said..." Moving a hand to his cheek and brushing it, Lily added, "You need to shave, Daddy."

He laughed and walked closer to his wife, "Thanks, Lil...Anything I can help with, Em?"

"Not out here, everything's under control." Emma shuffled across the kitchen, "You could help Lily clean up her room."

"How about it, kiddo?" Will bounced her lightly while she nodded.

"Don't worry, Mommy. We'll be done soon!" She squeaked, directing Will to the nursery.

They trekked down the hall and Will was shocked to find a bit of a mess in his daughter's room; she typically put things away as she played — a habit picked up from her mother, no doubt — and was surprised to find Little People in one corner of the room, dress-up clothes in another and an off-white, play crib had been pushed by her wimpy muscles into the center of the room, filled with baby-dolls and stuffed animals.

"I was playing in a circle." Lily explained Will's concern, "I was playing with the Little People and then dressing up and then playing babies and then Little People and then dressing up and then playing babies again."

"Oh, okay...what do you want to pick up first?"

"Hm...Little People!"

She scrambled to her feet and Will dropped to his knees to be on her level, taking a bin off the cubby-rack and placing it on the floor, tossing the figurines into it when Lily's eyes widened and her little arms swooped to cover the hard plastic, meeting Will's expression frantically, "No!"

"Lily, what is it?"

"You're not doing it right!" He was about to question her as to how he could possibly be placing toys in a bin wrong, but she demonstrated the right way in her mind, removing her arms and re-dumping the toys to the floor, "Let me show you..." Each character was placed delicately, standing straight up in the container, "See?"

He blinked several times, "Honey, why is it such a big deal how they get put away?"

Her face appeared ready to crumple into a tantrum, "Because, Daddy! That's how it has to be!"

"Did Mommy tell you to do that?" Will tried to pull her into his hold for a comforting hug but she wanted nothing of it, pushing his arms and continuing the tedious task of standing each person or animal straight in the storage unit.

"It's just how it goes."

Giving into defeat, Will lifted a green-hued zoo structure to the top shelf of Lily's closet, then the white house, not asking for the approval of his little girl before doing so, then moved the toy-crib into the corner with the rest of her baby-toys, leaving the dolls and stuffed animals inside of it.

"Daddy!" Lily huffed, catching sight of this and marching toward him, her hands on her hips, "I want to do this myself!" She ripped a plush bear from the confines of the crib and opened the bench beneath the window that contained all her soft toys (on the left) and blankets (neatly folded by her mother on the right), placing the bear in a stack of others similar to it.

Will sighed, "Sweet-pea, we're just picking up toys. Don't be upset..." He made a second attempt at lifting her, but once more she denied his open arms and turned her focus to the dresses that lay on the floor, folding them as neatly as her underdeveloped motor-skills could allow then stacking them in size-order. Sighing, Will retreated to the kitchen, where Emma raised a brow, having heard the commotion, "I wasn't cleaning up right."

"She really is anal about how things go in her boxes. Takes forever to get all those Little People put away. Don't even get me started on the multi-colored Mega-Blocks."

His arms settled back around her waist, "Is it...normal?"

"Is what normal?"

"...Her...insistence on perfection."

Emma shrugged, leaning back into the embrace, and eyeing the cups of vegetables her daughter had prepared, "I don't know...I guess, I mean, now she's little Miss Independent and wants to do everything for herself, her way...It's the age; or so I've read."

"Mm," Will's lips connected with the base of her neck, "God, I can't believe she's going to be three on Saturday. Where did our baby go?"

"Oh, don't talk about it, I'm going to cry."

He sucked her neck for a moment, running his hands up her sides and grinding his hips lightly against her backside, "Think we can find a moment to ourselves tonight?"

"I hope so," Emma's breath caught in her throat as she twisted to peck his cheek, "I'm going to talk to Lily, keep stirring this for me?" She asked rhetorically, placing a wooden spoon in Will's hands and making her way to her daughter's room, "Hey, sweetie."

Lily looked up, shrinking, "Am I in trouble?"

"No, honey." Emma joined her on the floor, tucking her legs beneath her, "Trying to put your Little People away?"

"Daddy was doing it wrong!"

"Okay, well..." The elder redhead attempted to find a way to compromise with the toddler, "Is there really a right way to put toys away?"

"They are supposed to stand up!"

"Is that a rule?"

Lily looked down, her bottom lip quivering as she placed a black-haired figure in a pink jumper next to a little boy holding a frog, "I don't know."

"Not really, huh?"

"Not really...but...that's the way I like it."

While she didn't want to give in, Emma assisted her daughter in standing the rest of the plastic figurines up, taking the bin and sliding it on the angled shelf, "All done, sweetie?"

"Babies," She pointed a thin finger towards the crib, "I have to put babies away."

"Let's do it then," They worked together, neatly dressing the four dolls into something Lily deemed acceptable and placing their accessories into another bin, which Lily sorted by type, mock-bottles and fake diapers, then placed a kiss on top of each of the doll's foreheads and settled them into the crib, "All done, Mommy!"

"Good girl," Emma pulled her into a hug, stroking her copper curls, "I think that you should say sorry to Daddy for being so rude when he tried to help you."

Her wide eyes pooled with tears, "I'm sorry—"

"No, I'm not mad at you and I'm not yelling at you, Lily. I just think you should tell Daddy that you were a little frustrated and you didn't mean to sound nasty," She patted the girl's back a few times, "Think you can do it?"

Lily placed her hand in Emma's palm, "Will you come with me, Mommy?" As the 'th' was replaced with an 'f,' the mother's heart melted as always, her daughter's innocence still present, even as she aged.

"Of course."

"Daddy?" Lily whined a bit as Will turned with raised eyebrows from the stove, "I'm sorry for being so rude."

He smirked, crouching to her level with open arms, "Come here." She ran across the clean, white tile, throwing herself at him and snuggling into his chest, "It's okay. I forgive you. And before you ask, yes, I still love you."

"Really?"

Will kissed her cheek, "Really, Lily. Ready to eat?"

Once Lily was firmly snuggled into her security blanket that night, Emma was in Will's arms once more, drawing imaginary circles on his abdomen while his hand ran up her arm, stroking her freckled frame while his head dropped to hers, "We need her to meet other kids," He spoke in a whisper, not wanting to cut too deep into their alone time.

"She's going to have a very tough time adjusting...not always able to get her way," She sighed heavily, recalling memories of her own childhood where bonding with other children was difficult, even before the accident.

"Whether or not we'd like to admit it, she is spoiled. Maybe not in gifts or toys but in attention. I mean, the only other kids she's ever even been with are Terri's three, and usually it was just the little one, but she was even two years older...and then your brother and sister's kids, who again...are much older then her...You know," Will's hand crept into Emma's locks, as she remained silent, twisting the silky strands and massaging her scalp, "The new neighbors have a little boy. He can't be to much older then Lily, by the look of him."

Emma crinkled her nose, "Yeah, but he's a little boy. They're just..." She shrugged, "They like dirt and boogers and just...blech."

"Ah, the truth comes out...that's why you were so excited when we found out it was a girl, hm? Less mess?" Will laughed, pulling his wife further on top of himself, "Not all little boys are into those things. Some of them like to play with Little People, and Mega Blocks...maybe we'll have to introduce ourselves sometime next week...set up a play date."

Cringing, the redhead sighed and rested against his chest, "We'll see."

"Emma...you're smothering her."

"No," She pouted, "Well...maybe, but I don't want to see her...tainted."

"Tainted?"

"Her cute, innocent side. I like her the way she is."

"Sheltered?"

"Lily is not sheltered," Emma felt herself growing defensive, unsure why — what he was saying was true, "She's just..." Sitting up, she placed her hands in her lap and avoided eye-contact with her husband, "She's just..."

Will pulled himself into a seated position as well, cupping Emma's cheek so she would engage his eyes, "Sweetheart, I'm not trying to blame you for anything. You know I think that you are a fantastic mother and I'm so proud of you, and our family...and I'm thankful that we're always able to come to conclusions that are beneficial for everyone involved. Let's talk, not get upset over this, okay? Just talk it out." She took a shallow breath and nodded, biting her bottom lip as he continued, "Earlier this week, you said you were going to want her gone for some parts of the day, right?"

"I-I didn't mean it like that—"

"I know, but still...it would be nice to have alone time a few hours a week. Would you be horribly opposed to some sort of morning activity program or daycare?"

"Will, we've gone three years now without putting her in daycare, why would we start now?"

"Because, sweetheart...we can't just throw her into preschool in the fall. She'd be so lost...she needs interaction with kids her own age. If we just throw her in for four mornings a week and expect her to be able to learn something...we're only going to hurt her."

Emma cringed again, "I was hoping we could just continue to keep her at your parent's on the same days..."

"Well," Will was about ready to try again in the morning, "How about we ask Lily? See what she'd like to do...if she wants to go to grandma and grandpa's or maybe make some new friends."

Unsure of what her daughter would want, of how far she was willing to go outside of her own little world, Emma sighed, leaning forward to rest against Will, "I guess," Her movements stilled as her eyes grew heavy; the couple drifted to sleep, both their thoughts plagued with visions of their daughter's future.

Not wanting to flat out tell her daughter that she wanted the little munchkin to leave the couple alone for a few hours a day, Emma started with asking what Lily would like to do for her birthday the following morning, "I don't know."

The older redhead pulled a pair of pink, ruffly shorts over the tiny girl's legs — it was the day before her third birthday and Lily was barely filling out twenty-four month clothes — and patted her knees, "You don't know what you want to do on your own birthday?"

"Can we see Nana and Grandpa?"

"Oh," Emma sighed, her heart aching to venture to Virginia as well, "Honey, not tomorrow...we're going very soon, though."

"Can we see Aunt Annie?"

Smiling sadly, Emma kissed the top of Lily's ginger curls, "Sweet-pea, they live by Nana and Grandpa, remember? We can't drive all the way out there now."

"So we can't see JoJo or Kendal?"

"I'm sorry...It'd be nice if we lived closer, huh?"

"Yeah...well, will you play with me?"

Emma wrapped her arms around the little girl and sighed, "Oh, sweetheart, of course. I was thinking, that if you wanted to, maybe we could go visit the zoo? Or maybe a park?"

Lily's amber eyes widened, "Would you swing with me at the park?"

After mentally cringing at how throughly disgusting public parks were and wondering why she had suggested the idea, Emma smiled weakly, "Of course. And maybe," She wanted to build up the excitement for the day, "Daddy will get you ice cream."

Ice cream was an exceptionally special treat for the little girl. With Emma's anti-dairy policies and desire to feed her child as many organic and healthy options as possible, sugar and sweets were a rarity in the Schuester household.

"Really?"

"Really."

"The kind with the candy eyes?"

"Of course, what would ice cream be without eyes?" Emma laughed and pulled a equally-ruffled, white shirt over Lily's head, then lifted her into the kitchen for breakfast

Lily nuzzled her cheek against her mother's before being helped into her booster seat on one of the high-backed chairs that surrounded the kitchen's island, "Morning Daddy," She greeted Will, who stirred a pot of oatmeal.

"Good morning, almost-birthday girl."

She giggled, "Daddy, Mommy said we could get ice cream and go to the park tomorrow!"

"Really?" He poured the goopy breakfast food into two bowls, one for his daughter and himself — Emma refused to eat it after her pregnancy, when it was all she could eat for so long, "Sounds like we'll have all kinds of fun."

"Yeah! And you can slide with me!"

"Oh, I don't know about that," Will remarked, splashing a touch of soy-milk over the oats to cool them down before placing serving in front of his daughter and handing his wife a bowl full of strawberries that would serve as her breakfast, "I think I'm a bit to big to go down a slide...But I could catch you at the bottom, if you'd like."

He ran across Emma's shoulders before sitting on the other side of his daughter, "Can we get a puppy, too?"

Emma nearly choked, earning a failed attempt at a suppressed giggle from Will, "I don't think so, Lily."

The near-three-year-old shrugged, "It was worth a try."

After another failed laugh cover-up, Will leaned over to press a kiss on his daughter's temple, "You're funny."

"I am?" Her eyes twinkled.

Motherhood was always an emotional roller coaster for Emma, in only ten seconds of conversation, she had gone from shock to comedic laughter and now nearly in tears of her daughter's innocence. Will took notice and shot her a look that expressed his understanding before placing an arm on the back of his little girl's chair, meeting her gaze and smiling softly, "You are."

She returned to her oatmeal, leaving Will to stand and cross a few tiles before resting his arms around his wife, his lips meeting her cheek while whispering, "It's okay to let her grow up."

Emma tilted her face so their lips collided, her breath tasting like fresh berries as he deepened the kiss only slightly, not wanting to disturb their toddler.

"Daddy, your oatmeal's going to get cold!"

He smiled and pulled away, sarcastically thanking Lily for the reminder as the family continued to get ready for their last day of a tight schedule before the summer break began.

The couple groaned simultaneously as their bedroom door creaked all the way open the next morning, having been hoping they'd be able to sleep in before celebrating their daughter's third year of life.

The bed barely moved as Lily hoisted her petite, princess-pajama clad frame up, trying to be as silent and stealthy as possible in order to wiggle between her parents bodies; not wanting to wake them, only snuggle close to the pair.

Neither Will or Emma made any indication that they had heard their daughter entering, only letting silent smiles grace their faces as she cuddled between them, sliding under their mound of blankets and resting her tiny face near Emma's chest and reaching back to place a hand near her father's.

They all fell back asleep, only Will waking nearly two hours later, amused to find Lily flat on her back with her wild, red hair framing her face, Emma curled around the littler girl's body, one arm around her waist while the other was tangled in her own curly locks.

Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, he reached for the iPhone on the edge of his nightstand and silently snapped a photo of his ladies, sending it at once to his long time friend from college — who while a ladies' man, much like Will had been at the time, was still quite single in his mid thirties — with a caption that read, 'Bet you wish you could wake up to this every morning.'

He returned the phone back to its resting place, knowing he wouldn't receive a reply until the afternoon when his said friend awoke after a long night of partying — not everyone gave up habits formed in their early twenties — and stretched back out, mindlessly stroking Lily's curls, smiling in appreciation of the sight before him.

Even three years after the fact, Will still considered his daughter to be a miracle.

It was something he'd never mentioned to his wife, he hadn't wanted to needlessly worry her — but there was a moment in the NICU when the doctors and nurses had worried that his pre-term baby wasn't going to make it past her second hour of life.

She was precious in every way possible — her seventeen-inch frame curled beneath a sterile, white blanket, a tiny pink cap covered her downy hair to keep heat trapped within her small confines — and Will didn't think he'd ever seen anything he wanted to protect more then the bundle before him.

He applied light amounts of pressure to her legs, the nurse had told him that too much stroking would drive Lily's under-developed nervous system crazy, and he didn't want to hurt the infant in any way, no matter how unintentional and loving the gesture was meant to be.

Removing his hands and placing them atop the incubator so Lily could drift back to sleep, Will stood, silently watching her for a few minutes until something didn't seem quite right.

"Um..." He raised his head, spotting a nurse a few feet away, replacing a bag for a feeding tube that belonged to a sick little boy. She immediately rushed to his side, eyeing his daughter who's previously peachy skin was turning a shade of blue that only belonged to cartoon characters.

The monitor tracking her heart rate dipped, beeping loudly, and several more nurses surrounded the baby within seconds.

Will stepped back, trying to process what was happening, unsure if he wanted to stay in the room to see his daughter fighting for her life.

It was only a brief battle, a nurse turned to him with a sad smile, "She's fine. It's called Apnea...it happens all the time. Pre-term babies sometimes forget to breathe, especially in their sleep. That's why we keep her hooked up. All it takes is a little bit of tapping or prodding and she'll snap back to it."

Will returned his own air-intake to normal once he heard that his daughter would be okay, thankful beyond compare that she hadn't faced a more serious complication.

When he found the inner strength to return to the incubator, Will's heart melted at the sight of his daughter's eyes wide awake, her arm reaching in his direction. He choked back tears of joy, relief, and concern, then reached through the hole to grasp her tiny hand between two fingers.

Three years later, Will often found his fingers covering the tiny hand that belonged to his daughter, such as now while she stirred awake, moving her arms above her head with a yawn then facing him with a toothy grin, "Morning, Daddy," She said quietly, reaching a hand to touch his face.

"Morning, baby...happy birthday."

"Oh yeah..." She sat up, squirming away from Emma's hold and moving into her father's, "I almost forgot!" He wrapped his arms around her as she climbed on top of him, spreading across his chest, "Can we wake up Mommy?"

"No need," Emma took her turn to yawn and rolled until she was pressed next to her husband, "Good morning, birthday girl."

"Morning, Mommy," Lily piped, fidgeting until she wormed her way between the couple once more.

Emma couldn't say much, knowing she'd likely break down in tears. She could hardly fathom that it had been three long years since she'd been lying in the hospital, shaking in pain with Will and her sister at her sides, comforting her as best they could. The hysteria that followed the labor, the disappointment that arose when she found she wouldn't be seeing her daughter until almost a full day after she was born...the feelings had quickly disappeared after she'd held Lily for the first time, and her inner-strength really began to grow when she realized her baby could recognize her by the sound of her voice.

Will had gone to the hotel to see the Glee kids off with Emma's sister and check them out of their room, then move their suitcases to the temporary lodging. This was the first time she'd ventured to the NICU alone and while she loved being there with her husband, she was thankful to have alone time with her daughter.

After throughly disinfecting up to her elbows — for her baby's sake, not her own — Emma padded across the NICU tile, hands resting on the cut outs of Lily's incubator as she took a moment to drink in the sight of her child, sound asleep, her monitor's beeping evenly and her little chest rising and falling in time.

"Hi, sweetheart," Emma whispered, reaching a hand through the hole near her daughter's feet and resting a hand on them, "Hey, precious...Are you going to wake up for me, hm?"

Lily grunted, her scrawny arms moving wildly for a moment as she opened her eyes, not focusing on anything in particular.

Emma crouched, while her muscles were still a bit sore, she was willing to risk the pain to make contact with her daughter, "Lily," She moved her hand to the first hole, placing it gently on the side of her infant's face, "It's Mommy, honey."

She turned her apple-sized head towards the sound of the voice, "Look at you, sweetie..." Her arm stretched toward the noise, her squinted, underdeveloped eyes working their hardest to focus. She wrapped her palm around one of the fingers Emma offered, squirming in desire for more contact.

A nearby nurse took notice of the interaction and joined the mother behind the incubator, "She recognizes your voice," The woman in scrubs declared, resting a firm hand on Emma's shoulder, "She knows that you are a very important person to her...she knows that you love her, that you care about her." Emma failed to swallow the lump that formed in her throat, letting a few happy tears out, "You're very blessed...most mothers at this stage only imagine that their baby can recognize them. Yours can." There was silence as Emma composed herself, "Would you like to hold her?"

She nodded, pulling a rocker close to the incubator as the nurse worked Lily out, repositioning the small bundle before resting her in the mother's arms, "How about we just cradle her, instead of kangaroo care...that way she can learn your face."

Lily grunted and fussed, twisting to find a comfortable position; finally doing so, her right arm poked out from the blanket and flailed in midair before finding a contented resting spot on her mother's chest. Her beady eyes blinked continuously as she struggled to gain control over her gaze, her muscles twitching as she finally seemed to see what she wanted to — her mommy's face.

They stared at each other in silence, a smile plastered to Emma's face while the nurse took pictures of the moment.

Lily eventually fell back asleep as Emma hummed quietly and rocked her, speaking nonsense into her thumbnail-sized ears to remind her what she sounded like, pressing gentle touches to her bitty body, and soft kisses to her face.

Emma still liked holding Lily the way she had back then, often before bed she'd pull her daughter into her lap, cradling her and whispering goodnight's, kissing her temples, or singing a familiar tune beneath her breath.

Now as they lay curled up as a family while the Saturday morning sun covered the bed, both parents know they were thinking similarly — back on the events from three year previous, Lily clueless between them.

"Should we get you dressed, sweet-pea?" Emma asked, kissing the top of Lily's head.

"Can we snuggle for just a few more minutes?"

Will felt what was already the hundredth smile of the day creeping up while he extended his arms so they covered both his girls, "You don't even have to ask."

They took their time getting ready, Emma dressed Lily in a new outfit that she'd received for her second birthday, just now fitting. Shortly after, the three-year-old had one of each her parent's hands in her own, smiling and bouncing down the street to the city park, four blocks away.

"There's the slide!" Lily tugged a little harder on Will's hand, "Come on!" Emma laughed, watching as her daughter ran as fast as her little legs would carry her to the stairway that led to the jungle gym, where she stood proudly at the top while Will moved below the bottom, "Ready to catch me?"

"Always," Will called while Lily pushed herself from the top, squealing in excitement as she slipped down the plastic surface, landing in her father's arms, continuing to giggle as he spun her around high, "How was that?"

She hugged him tightly before climbing down, "Again!"

That evening, Lily lay in her mother's arms on their back-porch swing, sound asleep as the sun was setting. Will had made a last-stitch effort to finish putting her new playground together himself, but ultimately relented to waiting until his parents would come over for dinner the next day and his father could assist him.

He placed an arm around his wife's shoulders as they both stared contently at the exhausted little girl in her arms, worn from hours of running, stuffed from an ice-cream cone that was a bit bigger then her small body needed, and overjoyed with the gifts she'd received from her mother and father.

"She's not a baby anymore," Emma sighed, brushing a stray curl out of Lily's face, "I'm going to miss it."

Will cleared his throat, wondering if asking the question on his mind was pushing the subject and mood, "Would you...Do you want to maybe...try for another?" He asked anyway.

She didn't reply right away, clearly considering it — he was sure she'd been thinking of the proposition long before he suggested it.

"Will...I just...I don't know. We've been saying if it happens, it happens...But we haven't been trying and it hasn't happened...Does that mean we do want another? Are we ready for another?" She met his gaze, eyes filled with different questions then she wanted to ask.

"Do you want a baby?" He asked, gently as possible.

"I don't...I don't know. Really, I just...I don't know...if I could...handle it."

His hand curled up to pull lightly on her hair as he finger-combed the ends, "Okay," He smiled, "It's okay."

"D-Do you want another baby?"

Will shrugged, "I'd like one, sure...but that doesn't mean that I'm not happy with things just the way they are now. Another baby could only add to that."

Emma sighed, "I couldn't go back on an extended maternity leave. I just...Don't want to go through that again," Thoughts of the post-partum depression crept to the front of her mind, "I couldn't put a second child through that."

He dropped a kiss to her temple, "It's fine, Em. I'm not trying to push the issue. Just curious."

She rested her head on his shoulder, "This is enough for me," She whispered, "If it's enough for you."

He placed a second kiss on her forehead, "You've always been enough for me."

Thank you so much for continuing to follow this family on their new journey! Hope you're enjoying it; much more to come!

Also — whoever nominated me for various categories on the Glee Awards community at Livejournal, thank you so much, whoever you are! It was much appreciated! And special thanks to crystalspsyche who provided me with information and some inspiration for this story, along with Jaymafans and agtstarbuck for making sure it doesn't suck.

Let's say that the next chapter is coming soon. But we all know soon is relative; if you've read Beautiful Mess, you know I have an awful track record for producing timely writing.

Thank you for reading!