"So I saw that Bree's adoption papers finally went through," Shannon grinned at Drew in the break room.

"That they did. And she's almost out of here too."

"Excited for her to come home?"

"You have no idea. We've painted her room, Rick built her a loft-style bed, we've gotten her a desk, a dresser, a chair, and a rug, and then we figure we'll let her pick out a couple of lamps, her desk chair, her bedspread and that sort of stuff. Same with her bathroom."

"That's awesome."

"Speaking of which… One awkward area. Teenage daughter. Two dads. Can you find out her preferences of feminine care? I figure we'll stick them in her bathroom to begin with, but after that… Are we supposed to check to see when she's out? Are we supposed to buy them for her when she asks? Are we supposed to give her money to do it herself? We're fine with anything, we're more than happy to go to the store and buy them for her, but…"

"But it's the second to last conversation a teenage girl wants to have with her dad. If I were you I would just be straight with her. You're a doctor, Rick has had female soldiers in the field, it's nothing personal, treat it that way. If you don't act embarrassed about it, it'll be a lot easier."

"I think I'll make her a whole kit this time so she doesn't have to bring it up if she doesn't want to. Heating pad, hot water bottle, Midol."

"A pack of dark underwear. The special feminine wipes are also great. If she freaks out at some point, don't ask, just go and get her a giant candy bar."

"That's a great idea. Teenage hormones are the worst. I can't imagine being a girl through all of them. Anything else?"

"Not that I can think of at the moment, but I'll keep it in mind. I know she doesn't have a ton of clothes."

"Oh yeah, no, new lungs, new house, new wardrobe seems like a requirement. Plus back to school shopping. They have a uniform, but we'll also get new jammies and jeans and underclothes and all of that. It just makes sense."

"How are your families reacting to it?"

"Our siblings are excited. You've probably caught her Skyping with them and the nieces and nephews. I'm not unconvinced that she talks to them more than us. Rick's parents have already said to let us know when she'll be discharged because they wouldn't miss her homecoming. My parents… I don't know. Part of me worries that because they rejected me, they're going to reject her and so I don't even want to attempt, but…"

"You want her to have two sets of grandparents."

"Yeah. She's the best. She deserves two sets of adoring grandparents."

"One thing at a time. She's got two great parents. She's got aunts, uncles, cousins, and one set of grandparents that already love her. Give it time."

The morning that Bree finally was being allowed to go home she got up early, before Drew finished his shift. She packed what few things she had, put on a pair of jean shorts and a tee shirt, and then sat flipping through 'The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe.'

A nurse came in to give her a round of anti-rejection meds along with breakfast. "Last dose here," the nurse grinned. "Ready to go home?"

"Yeah," she took a deep breath. "I'm not entirely sure what to expect, but everyone's been hinting that it's amazing, so… I'm guessing it will be."

"What's the first thing you're going to do when you get home?"

"Flop on my bed." She'd been picturing it for weeks, having chosen her own bedspread, sheets, pillows, and a huge body pillow.

"And the second thing?"

"Explore. They've recently gotten very interested in Ninja Warrior and knowing my dads… We have at least four obstacles in our backyard by this point. We didn't have any when I was at home two weeks ago."

"The first thing you're going to eat?"

"I don't know. We're having a barbecue with our extended family later in the day, so I'll probably try and scrounge from whatever stuff we bought for it." She picked at her breakfast, too full of happy butterflies to be hungry.

"Good luck."

"Thanks. I've already Skyped with almost everyone, so at least they'll be familiar."

Rick came into the room. "Hey."

"Hey. You're here early."

"Yup. Drew's just signing your discharge papers."

"Cool."

Rick walked over and hugged her. "You're coming home!"

She laughed. "I'm coming home."

"Nervous?"

"Maybe a little. But I'm always nervous after a hospitalization."

"This time you still have plenty of summer break left."

"Yeah and I get to start the new school year with everyone knowing I'm never going to have to transition again. Ever." She paused as it really started to hit. "This is my forever family. Even if I have to come back to the hospital, you're gonna be here for me 100% of the way," tears filled her eyes. "It's stupid and I know I'm healthy and my lungs are great and I'm so blessed, but… if something bad happens again, I'm not on my own. I don't need to know every single thing about my health because I'll be coming back to this hospital with doctors and nurses that already know me and parents that know everything they possibly can." In that moment, she dropped her guard and started sobbing. Everything was finally okay.

Drew came in. "Those better be tears of joy."

"They are," she stood up and reached for both of her dads. They, together, scooped her up into a hug between them.

"Daughter sandwich," Rick laughed.

Bree hugged them as tightly as she could with one arm each and then kissed each on their respective cheek, shocked at her own familiarity. "Alright, down." She beamed. These were her dads.

They set her down as requested.

Paul, Shannon, and Nina came in and Paul handed handed Drew the final packet of paperwork, a string bag full of anti-rejection meds, and then reached for Brianna. He hugged her tightly. "You are officially released. But don't be a stranger."

"I won't be," Brianna promised. "Check in appointments, plus that whole 'dad works here' thing."

Shannon got her next. There were tears in her eyes as she hugged Bree. "I love you. I'm proud of you. You can always call me for anything. Sometimes dads, great as they are, just don't get it."

"I know. I love you too. Thanks," she hugged Shannon back tightly.

"You'll have to tell me what you think of your new digs." She'd helped put a bunch of the finishing touches on it, but Bree didn't know that yet.

"I will. I'm sure it's going to be awesome." She turned her attention to Nina. "Are you still my caseworker after this?"

"Nope. I don't even technically need to be here today, but I couldn't miss you finally blowing this joint."

"I'm glad you didn't. You've been amazing. Thank-you so much for fighting so hard for me," she hugged her.

"You're 100% worth fighting for. Never forget that."

"Something tells me I won't be allowed to now," she grinned at her dads.

"Never," Rick promised.

"You three are coming to the barbecue later, right?" Drew wanted to know.

"Of course," Paul confirmed.

"Kenny and I will both be there," Nina confirmed. It was chaos, but things were tentatively going well.

Bree, Rick, and Drew carried her stuff out to the Ford Explorer that would now be serving duty as the family car. Rick and Drew still both had their respective F-250s, but the Explorer was better suited to family life.

"You ready for this?" Drew grinned at Bree in the rearview mirror.

"Yeah."

"Are you sure you don't want me to sit back there with you? Or do you want to sit up here?" Rick offered.

"It's fine. I'm good. This is where I'm meant to be."

While they were driving along streets that she'd been on before, everything felt different. Breathing was automatic and easy. This was her family. Hers. It could never be taken away from her, and she would never want to be taken away.

"Almost home," Rick grinned back at her as Drew turned into their neighborhood.

As they pulled into the driveway, Brianna took a deep breath in as reality once again hit. She'd been here a few times before on passes, but… That was before the official confirmation of her adoption had gone through. Before she knew that this was real and this was forever.

They walked inside together and she led them upstairs. While she'd been to the house, her room had been off limits. It was a surprise. The door was closed and Bree smiled, seeing her name on it.

When she opened it, her mouth fell open. "Narnia." The walls were green with trees outlined on them, her bed was lofted and there was a comfy looking brown velvet chair with a reading light next to it and a white shaggy rug in front of it. She threw herself into the chair, kicked her legs up on the arm, and took a deep breath in of the fresh paint.

"Welcome home," Drew spoke.