A/N: This is for all of my lovely commenters who asked for a second part to Enough For Her. I thought about it and I was very grateful to have a suggestion in the comments for the second part. This part is dedicated to zkoooo08, thanks for the suggestion and inspiration!
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Maya sighed as she and her lawyer finished the last of the paperwork before the divorce would officially be finalised. It had been a week since the initial filing for divorce and Maya was even more broken than when Carina actually left. Left Maya and their sons to fend for themselves, all alone, in the big world. All that she had promised Maya at their wedding had gone away, faded, into the big unknown.
Mike had figured out that something was bothering his Mommy but he had yet to ask what it was yet. He and Chase were sent to Andy's while Maya dealt with the paperwork and proceedings for the divorce, especially dealing with the kids. Carina had said that Maya was to get full custody, but the judge needed proof of this, in writing. This is what Maya and her lawyer, Elise, were working on that day. Elise said that Maya would have to contact Carina and ask her to provide a statement, whether it be in writing or a recorded message.
Maya, of course, was hesitant to call her ex. The two women had not had a voice conversation in years, due to Carina not telling Maya where she was or not providing a phone number for Maya to reach her at.
Their conversation was forced, and neither knew what to say to the other. Carina knew what she had done; the guilt in her stomach as she talked to the woman she loved. Maya was bottling up her emotions, per usual; it became a habit of hers after her father had forced her to do many things.
Carina and Maya cleared up what they needed to regarding the divorce and it was finalised a month later. Maya had a mix of emotions running through her veins afterwards, but was okay with the way things turned out in the end. Some things just are not meant to be.
"Come on boys, do you want to go to the park?" Florence Jones asked as she finished dressing Chase in some comfortable clothes. She had become close to the two boys, and very understanding of all that they had gone through in the past year.
Mike immediately agreed with the suggestion, putting his shoes on as fast as he could, while Chase laughed and held onto Florence. He loved Florence from the day they met, and was glad to have such an amazing figure in his life, apart from his Mommy.
The door clicked and Maya walked in, seeing the three getting ready to leave. "Going to the park without Mommy?"
"Mommy!" Chase exclaimed, wriggling out of Florence's arms and into the arms of his Mommy, his role model. "You're home!"
Maya kissed Chase on the forehead and cuddled him close. "I will always come back for you, bambino, I promise."
The boys understood what their Mommy meant when she said their Mama was not coming home; Mike was more upset than Chase was, since he was a copy of Carina, but he understood the situation. They spent months together with Maya, as she had taken time off of work to be with them during the adjustment period. There was not a lot to adjust to, as they had gotten into their routine after Carina left.
Florence smiled as she watched Maya and her sons interact, and was happy to know them. She turned toward Maya and placed a kiss on the fire captain's forehead, making Maya blush. "Hi darling."
"Hey, babe. They weren't too much trouble I hope?" She asked, interlocking their fingers together and ruffling Chase's dark brown hair that almost replicated Carina's.
Florence shook her head. "They never are," she replied, earning a nod from Mike. The four of them exited the apartment and headed to the park, only a few minutes from their building.
Maya and Florence kept their hands entwined, while the boys ran ahead once they reached the park; they ran toward the swings while their Mommy sat on a bench with her girlfriend.
They met a year ago at a firefighting conference in Tacoma. Florence was working as a rookie firefighter and immediately became smitten with the fire captain of the Seattle Department. They flirted the entire weekend, something that thrilled Maya. After the conference, Maya thought she would never see Florence again, but was mistaken when she got a new firefighter that just happened to be Florence.
From there their relationship only grew. Florence met the rest of the team and became a part of the family. Maya asked her out after a few weeks, with some encouragement from Andy and Vic. They were happy that Maya had found someone to care for besides her sons, and they were ecstatic when Maya and Florence announced that they had become official. This was eleven months ago and now, with eleven months of a relationship under their belts, the two women were excited to know what their future together has in store for them.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Maya asked Florence, breaking her out of daydreams and back to reality, where she was still sitting next to Maya with the biggest grin on her face that was ever possible.
"Just reminiscing," Florence responded, gently pressing a kiss to Maya's hands where the promise ring was. Florence had given it to Maya on their six month anniversary, promising the blonde that she was going to be with her until their deaths, in the very long future. "Remember when we took the boys to the pool that one time?"
Maya laughed just thinking about the memory. They had gone to the swimming pool with the rest of the firefighters and their children, but Mike and Chase had insisted on going down the biggest slide at the pool. They "claim" that James forced them to go down, but none of the adults bought the lie. Instead of waiting for Mike to be at the bottom, Chase went down right after, resulting in the two boys getting caught on the slide. One of the workers at the pool had to unjam them from the slide. There were no injuries, but Chase's arm was hyperextended because of the incident.
"Yeah," Maya said with a chuckle. "Boys are insane."
"They are, but that's what makes the heart grow fonder," Florence agreed. "Plus, you're an amazing mom to boys."
Maya cocked an eyebrow.
Florence shrugged. "I don't know... you just have a way with boys. You can make them listen to you in seconds. Must be from being captain."
"Thanks, babe."
Florence and Maya sat on the park bench hand in hand, with Maya's head resting on her girlfriend's shoulder. The boys were still playing and they had even found other kids to play with. Maya noticed that one of them was a girl a little younger than Chase; maybe a year younger. But the one thing Maya noticed was that the little girl had blonde hair and the brightest, greenest eyes that could be easily found in a big crowd.
"Flo..."
"What's wrong?" She asked and then followed Maya's gaze to the little girl. Florence noticed the similarities as well, and looked starstruck at the sight of the young girl.
Maya was speechless when her boys came back to the bench, talking to the girl and smiling the entire time. The closer they got, the more familiar the girl looked to Maya. She was unable to speak when her boys got closer, grinning from ear to ear.
"Mommy, this is Felice," Chase said with a grin as he introduced the little blonde girl.
"It's nice to meet you, Felice. My name is Florence, but you can call me Flo," Florence said with a smile as she smiled at the little girl. "Where are your parents?"
Felice turned her head to look toward the playground and pointed toward a brunette woman who was walking with another woman. Maya followed where Felice was looking and saw something oddly familiar about the woman that the little girl was pointing to, but had not put the pieces together.
"How old are you?"
"Four."
"Dove sei nato (Where were you born)?" Maya asked, using Italian to test her theory about who this little girl was.
Felice looked surprised, but answered immediately and confirmed Maya's suspicions. "Sicilia. In Italia (Sicily. In Italy)."
"Chi è tua mamma (Who's your Mama)?"
"La donna alta con i capelli castani (The tall woman with the brown hair)," Felice responded as she again pointed toward the two women. Maya nodded, slowly putting the missing pieces together. Looking closer at where Felice had pointed. "La conosci (Do you know her)?"
Maya looked back down at Felice, blue eyes gazing into green ones that were almost all too familiar to Maya. Mike looked between the two, having understood the conversation, and whispered in Chase's ear. They turned to watch the brunette on the other side of the playground. But she was watching them first.
Felice looked at the boys before running back to the brunette woman, without so much as a word to them.
"What was that about, babe?" Florence asked, not understanding the exchange between Maya and the little girl.
Maya turned to her girlfriend, sighing. "I think she's my daughter," she whispered. "The blonde hair. It's identical to mine, and her eyes... They're her eyes."
"So... what? She just used the embryo without your permission?"
Maya shrugged. "Perhaps. The woman with her... That looks like Gabriela, Carina's ex."
Florence knew that Maya's anxiety was getting the best of her, so she wrapped her girlfriend in a hug and rubbed circles on her back. The boys stood silently, knowing that Maya would not want to be interrupted while going through something like this.
Without warning, Felice began walking back toward the four, the brunette and the other woman following her. When they reached them, Maya's breath hitched and her assumptions were confirmed.
"Ciao, Maya," the brunette said.
At her voice, Mike perked up. He and Chase were sitting on the bench and playing a game with their hands. "Mama?" He asked, voice wavering as he looked at the brunette in front of him.
Florence protectively kept her arm around Maya's waist, using her other arm to keep Mike and Chase close to her. The brunette noticed this and cocked an eyebrow.
"Carina... Hi," Maya said, unsure of what else to say to her ex-wife.
"Hi, I'm Gabriela," the other woman said as she reached her hand out for Florence to shake. "I'm a friend of Carina's."
Maya scoffed. "Friend," she muttered.
"Can we talk away from the children?" Carina asked. "I don't want them to feel upset in any way."
"Fine," Maya said and the two walked away, leaving Florence and Gabriela with the children. When they got to a secluded spot in the park, she spoke again. "Is she mine?"
"What?"
"Is Felice my daughter, Carina, come on," Maya said, annoyed.
Carina sighed, rocking back and forth on her heels. "Si, she's your daughter, Maya."
"You were pregnant when you left," Maya said. "We tried for another baby before Andrew died, and you were pregnant. Why didn't you tell me?"
"I don't know," Carina exclaimed. "I was worried about your reaction and Andrea's death was so unexpected."
"And then you left."
Carina nodded. "Then I left. I could never find the time to tell you, and I know I didn't make it easy for you to contact me."
Maya scoffed. She knew that Carina was going through a lot of trauma back then, but felt betrayed that she had a daughter she did not even know existed. "No, you didn't. And then you just gave me sole custody of the boys. So what? Were you ever going to tell me that I had a daughter?"
"I don't know," Carina said, making Maya scoff again. "I'm sorry, Maya."
"Does she know?"
Carina remained silent.
"Does she know that I'm her mother, Carina?" Maya asked again, this time with more force in her voice. She and Carina had turned to watch the kids playing while Florence and Gabriela talked silently.
Carina sighed in defeat. "Yes," she whispered. "We moved back to the US a year ago, but to Olympia. I came back to Grey Sloan though."
"And you didn't care to tell me this either. You just sent me divorce papers, even though we were in the same state!" Maya shouted, earning a few curious glances in their direction. "I can't believe this. And she knows about her brothers, I'm assuming?"
"She does. She spotted them first thing today at the playground and wanted to play with them."
Maya nodded, following along. It was hard for her to continue understanding. She had always wanted a daughter one day; that is why she and Carina tried for another baby. But now Maya did have a daughter, but one that she missed four years on and never knew about.
"I didn't know what else to tell her, I'm sorry."
"Whatever," Maya said, rolling her eyes. "It's time for us to go home anyways."
Without another word, Maya walked back to her boys and girlfriend, whispering in Florence's ear that they were leaving and they went to get the boys. They said goodbye to Felice and the others before walking back to the apartment. Florence knew better than to talk about the events that had happened, as did the boys, so they watched as Maya paced around the living room for the longest time.
"Mommy...?" Chase asked, innocently. He was still young enough to have a hard time wrapping his head around everything that had happened. "Did you know Felice's Mama?"
Maya sighed, grabbing Chase and sitting with him on the sofa. Mike sat next to her while Florence held his hand.
"Yes, I do."
"Is she our sister?" Mike asked. "She was with Mama."
Maya nodded again. "She's your little sister, bud."
"Did you know about her?"
"No," Maya said, shaking her head. "Your Mama left without telling me. Remember when she went to visit Nonno? Felice was born in Italia."
Mike nodded and started playing with his fingers, pulling at them as if he was nervous. He figured out during the divorce that his Mama had left and was not coming back home; he lost half of his heart that day. A part of him broke in pieces since he knew that his little brother would never remember their Mama and her Italian singing and foods.
"Why have I never met my other Mama?" Chase asked, finally looking up from the floor and into Maya's eyes. "You said that my Mama left when I was little."
"I did, yes, because she did, bambino. She did leave and you were just a little boy, not even two yet. That's why you don't remember her."
"Oh."
Silence flooded the room. Florence kept rubbing circles on Mike's back and occasionally kissing him on the head, a sign showing that she cared for him. They established the best relationship. Mike met Flo when she was at the station one day. It was Maya's day off but she came in to do some paperwork, so she brought the boys. Mike was walking to the beanery to find Andy and Vic, when he ran into Flo. At this point, she and Maya had begun dating, but he had yet to know that. The two of them picked themselves up and Mike was instantly drawn to Flo. There was just something about her and it was fate that they had met.
The next day, Maya returned back to work with Flo. The boys were at school; Mike in third grade and Chase in kindergarten. Maya's co-workers and friends saw that she was a little more moody when they arrived.
"Are you okay?" Andy asked as she stood in the door of Maya's office, where she was hurriedly trying to get work done. "Flo told me what happened."
Maya grimaced. "I'm great," she hissed. "My ex-wife is back in Seattle with a four year old daughter that's mine."
"Do you need anything?"
"I'll be okay. I just wish I knew about my daughter," Maya said. "You know how much I wanted a daughter. It's the whole reason why we were even trying for another child so close after Chase."
Andy nodded. She was there for Maya and Carina throughout the entire process of having kids. It made her happy that they found a great way to have children, without having to worry about anything else. But she knew how much Maya had wanted a daughter. Now she has one, but never got to build a strong lasting relationship.
"What are you going to do about it?"
Maya shrugged. She had not thought about what she would do going forward, but she knew that she was happy with her new relationship and her little family. "Nothing. I'll just let Carina wallow in her mistakes."
"Is that going to be the right choice?"
"It's going to have to be, Andy. I can't have this looming over my head, especially not now. There's too much at stake."
"Of course, I understand," Andy said, smiling softly at her best friend. "What are we facing today?"
Maya saw this as a distraction, one that she was grateful for. Being firefighters always included different jobs, whether they were big or small. She opened a folder and put it on the table, gesturing for Andy to come look at it.
"That's a big case."
"Yeah... A little girl trapped on top of the roof with a blazing fire on all the floors underneath."
While they looked through the case file, the other firefighters were talking in the beanery amongst themselves. Florence knew that Maya would not like it if the others knew her business before she had a chance to tell them herself, so she stayed silent and listened to them talk.
That evening when Maya got home, she and Flo relieved the babysitter and spent some time with the boys. Flo made dinner while Maya helped Mike with his homework and Chase watched TV. Their routine was established and they stuck with it no matter what.
The doorbell rang, pulling Maya away from helping Mike and she went to answer it. The person on the other side was none other than Carina.
"What are you doing here?"
"Oh Maya just get over yourself," Carina said, annoyed as she pulled Felice out from behind her. She was holding a stuffed bear and had a backpack slung over her back. "Felice wants to live with you, if that's okay."
Maya was in shock. "Do you know why?"
"I want my Mommy," Felice said quietly as she clung to her bear and looked up at Maya with her big green eyes. "Per favore, posso vivere con te (Please, can I live with you)?"
"Solo se va bene a tua madre (Only if it's okay with your Mama)," Maya said, looking at Carina for permission. The brunette only nodded and watched Felice run into the apartment and hug Mike right away. Maya watched them before stepping into the hallway with Carina. "Why'd you do that?"
"It wasn't my decision," Carina said with a shrug. "All her's."
Maya shook her head. "I know, but what are you going to do?"
"Go back to Italy. My Visa is expiring anyway. You won't have to see me ever again."
The two stood in silence as Maya took in the information that was being given to her. Carina took a deep breath before turning on her heel.
"Goodbye, Maya," she said and walked around the corner, and away from Maya, who still stood in front of her door, speechless.
Gabriela met up with Carina outside the apartment building and saw her tear-stricken face, giving Carina a soft smile as she hugged her. "Quindi l'hai fatto (So you did it)?"
"Rinuncia a mia figlia, sì (Give up my daughter, yes)."
"Perché l'hai fatto (Why did you do it)?"
Carina sighed. "Because... you should have seen her face, Gabriela. It lit up when she saw Felice," she said sadly. "I took away her happiness once, but this time I just made her happier. Happier with Flo, the boys, and now Felice. She's just so much happier."