𝟘𝟟𝕩𝟚𝟘
☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆
Natalie was really unlucky when it came to sleep. She hadn't had an easy night since before the accident. Sleeping didn't come easy to her at the hospital. She was in pain most of the time. And now that she was back home, there was a crying baby, her baby. But at least this time she wasn't the only one with that problem. Mark had also forgotten what it was like sleeping.
It was the fourth time that night that Iris was crying. Mark and Natalie were taking turns, not that it really mattered because they both woke up anyway.
"Mark, wake up." Natalie mumbled with her eyes closed. She softly pushed Mark with her hand, making sure that he would wake up.
"I can't." He complained and pulled the blanket on his face.
"But it's your turn." Natalie groaned and rubbed her face, fully woken up in just few seconds. It wasn't like she could hear her child crying and do nothing about it.
"I did your turn, so now it's my turn, meaning it's your turn." Mark mumbled and put the pillow on his face.
Natalie frowned her eyebrows, thinking about what he said. "What?"
"Just... I'll go." Mark said and pulled the blanket off his body.
Natalie turned to look at him ready to get out of bed too. But then they heard nothing. "Wait, she stopped. Why did she stop?" She questioned and they exchanged a look.
Both parents walked towards the baby's room only to find the door half open and then they heard a voice. "Hey, I know it's rough, being out in the world, having no idea what your life has turned into, but you gotta let them sleep. Please." Amber was standing over Iris' crib and she held her little sister in her embrace. She was feeling a little tense. She was scared of dropping her or maybe doing something wrong, it was the first time she had some kind of contact with a baby.
"Amber, honey, why are you up?" Natalie whispered. She wrapped her arms around her robe, feeling cold and tired.
"Shh..." Amber gave them a look. "She's almost out. Sleep little sister, come on."
"Do you want help–?" Mark asked quietly.
"She's out." Amber walked out of the room and closed the door softly behind her. "I was just studying and I heard her, thought it would be nice to let you guys sleep."
"You're studying at 4 am." Natalie pointed out, and made a face at how weird that sounded.
"Yeah, I am catching up because university applications are starting soon, so you know." Amber said and a yawn escaped her mouth.
"Just go to sleep now, okay?" Natalie stroked her daughter's hair. "I love you."
"Love you too." Amber said and locked herself in her room, already asleep before she could even get in her bed.
"Such an angel this kid is." Mark commented as they returned back to their bedroom.
"Of course, she has me as her mother." Natalie shrugged.
"You an angel? I don't think so." Mark said as they lied in bed. Natalie gave him a look and huffed offended. "You, Natalia Turner, are a witch. Because you put a spell on me." He continued.
Natalie made a face and tried to reply to him, but she only ended up smiling. "Wow... just cuddle me."
Mark chuckled and wrapped his arms around her. "Okay, come here. I love you." He placed a kiss on her shoulder.
"I love you too."
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Just the next morning, Natalie was getting ready to go outside for the first time. Arizona and Callie were getting married. So it was a really happy day for everyone. After Callie gave birth to a baby girl, Sofia, and Arizona made up with Liam, it was time for all of them to get together an celebrate.
Natalie hadn't really left the house since she returned from the hospital, she certainly hadn't returned to work and she was going crazy. Mark had tried many times to take her out for just dinner, but Natalie was not ready to leave Iris. It took her many hours of convincing that she could be at the wedding and that Amber could babysit her sister just fine.
Mark had just returned home after visiting Callie. He had some bad news to give to her about the person that was going to get them married, he couldn't make it.
Natalie was oblivious of all that, like she was oblivious of the fact that Callie wanted to cancel the wedding. So she was in front of her wardrobe holding up two different dresses. It was too difficult for her to decide. "Oh good" She exclaimed when Mark entered the bedroom, "which one do I wear to the wedding? Red or purple?" She put each dress in front of her for a second, but as she noticed the look on Mark's face, she put her aside. "What's wrong?"
"There won't be a wedding." He announced. "Unless you talk to Callie. Because you're good at... talking." He gave her a suggestive look and Natalie knew that she had to pay her friend a visit. "And it's the red one, babe, always the red."
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"You realize your door is unlocked?" Natalie entered Callie's apartment, holding Iris in her embrace. Amber was at school, Mark went back to the hospital, so she had to take her with her. Natalie found her friend on the couch crying with many tissues around her. "I could be anyone. I could be... a burglar coming to burgle you. Where is your baby?" She asked and Callie showed her the baby monitor. Sofia was sleeping in her room. "You see her Iris? This is Sofia, you and Sofia are going to be friends."
"I know why they sent you." Callie replied. "And it doesn't matter what you say. The wedding's still off. My mom's right. It's a joke. It's not a wedding and it's not happening."
"Oh, Callie." Natalie took a seat next to her, adjusting her daughter in her embrace. "What are we going to do for aunt Callie Iris?" She asked and Iris looked at her with her big, blue and too wide eyes.
"I can't have a priest. I no longer have a minister. I'm not being given away by my dad. The wedding isn't legal. What's the point? This isn't a wedding. It's not even in a church. It's nothing. It's a couple of girls playing dress up. It's not real. It's not real. J..."
"Okay." Natalie interrupted her. "First of all, you do not need the law or a priest or your mother to make your wedding real. And-and the church is... okay I am not the most religious person anymore, but I think that the church can be anywhere you want it to be... I-in a field... on a mountain, right here in this room, anywhere... Because God is everywhere, right? Not just a church. Now your-your church just hasn't caught up to God yet. Your mother... she hasn't caught up to god yet. And by the way ... she may not ever catch up, but it's okay."
"Mm." Callie huffed.
"It's okay." Natalie repeated. " If you are willing to stand up in front of your friends and family to commit yourself... to another human being, to-to give of yourself in that kind of partnership, for better or worse, in sickness and health, honey, that is a marriage. That is real. And that's all that matters. Right, Iris?" Iris let out a noise, making both women laugh. "Besides ... Callie, I got legally married to a man in a church, once. Look how well that turned out." She shrugged. "Hoping for the second time to be better."
☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆
"You and your stupid ideas." Natalie complained as Mark walked her down the aisle at the park that they had set up for the wedding. After that little speech Natalie gave to Callie, she wanted Natalie to be the one who performed the ceremony. "I could be home with my daughters watching TV."
"Hey." Mark squeezed her hand. "You're gonna be fine. You're doing great." He reassured her as she took her place in the front. "Come on. Okay. Okay. Right here. All right. Okay. You can let go of my hand now." He told his wife and she only frowned at him. "Babe."
"All right." She sighed and let him go.
"You look beautiful." He complimented her. Natalie had chose the red dress, and Mark was more than glad about that, because there wasn't a single colour that looked better on her than red, but in his eyes she looked good with anything.
☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆
"Um, who gives this bride to this bride?" Natalie asked as Callie and Arizona were finally standing in front of her.
"That'd be me." Mark said giving his best friend a wide smile, telling her that he was proud of her.
Natalie took a deep breath and smiled at the two women in front of her and then she started the ceremony. "Uh, we are here today to celebrate love and happiness and loyalty, and well, in my opinion, a little bit of magic..." She added making Arizona and Callie give her thankful smiles. "To bring together two exceptional and beautiful human beings."
"I take you, Calliope Torres, to be my wife, for better or for worse, in good times and bad.
"I choose you to be the one with whom I spend my life." The two women exchanged their vows.
"Okay, I hereby pronounce you wife and wife." Natalie said and they all started cheering as Callie and Arizona shared their first kiss as a married couple.
☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆
Later on at the wedding party, Mark was making some tapes giving a loving speech for his two friends. "I had a patient once who told me about his wedding day and how they asked all the married couples to come to the dance floor to dance together. And then they asked the couples who'd been only married a year to sit down." The cameraman focused on his face. "And then five years, then ten years, 20, and so on, until they got to the last two couples. Uh, two sets of grandparents. Been together 60 years. 60 years with the love of their life. That's gonna be you two at your granddaughter's wedding. Callie... Arizona... Congratulations. I love you." He raised his glass of champagne.
"What about you?" The man behind the camera asked. "Who is your dancing partner for your granddaughter's wedding?"
Mark didn't pause, he didn't need to think. He just pronounced one single name. The name of the person he wanted to spend every dance with. "Oh, that's easy. Natalia Turner."
And as he said that Natalie appeared oblivious of what Mark had just said. "There you are." She kissed his cheek.
"Dance with me." Mark said not taking his eyes off her and the camera was still recording.
☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆
𝟘𝟟𝕩𝟚𝟙
"Hey. Hunt." Natalie was finally back at work, and since she had no case to work with that day, she went to the ER hoping that Owen would have something for her. "Uh, Altman has all my cases and, it's my first day back, and I left my baby for the first time since we got home. I need to remember why I love being a surgeon so much or I'm afraid I will walk out of here and never come back. So you got something for me?"
"Okay. Just give me a second." Owen chuckled.
"Oh, my God." Natalie said as she heard a crying baby. "Anytime I hear a baby cry, it makes me think of Iris. They all sound like her. Wait. That really sounds like her." She turned around and saw Mark standing there with the baby and too many women around him. "What? What are you doing here?" She asked and Mark walked up to her.
"It's bring your daughter to work day." He said and gave Natalie a kiss on the cheek.
"No, it's not." She laughed.
"I bathed her, changed her. I fed her, I napped her." Mark started listing the things he did in the morning, pointing out how bored he was.
"Hi." Natalie whispered and took Iris from Mark's embrace. She gave her daughter a kiss and Iris moved her hands around, showing how happy she was to be with her mother.
"We read a book, played with that little hanging, jingling thing... And it was still only 11:30. I needed some adult contact." Mark sighed.
"Please take this baby away from me." Natalie said needing to get back to work.
"Sure." Mark said and tried but Natalie kept holding Iris.
"I'm serious. Take her, Mark."
"Okay."
"Turner." Owen called out. "You're in luck. Motorcycle crash 20 minutes out."
"Yes." Natalie cheered softly. "Okay. Oh, I love you, but mommy's gotta go to work. Take her, Mark."
"Give me my baby." Mark said annoyed.
"Just physically lift her from my arms." Natalie said at the same tone.
"No, no. It's not that bad." Mark said when Iris started crying. "Mommy's gotta work, cause mommy's a junkie." Natalie looked at him unimpressed. "Go, we love you."
☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆
"Ugh, Dr. Turner, it's so good that you're back." Lexie walked up the the cardio surgeon once she noticed her at the nurse's station. Lexie kept glancing back where Mark was with the baby, but he wasn't alone anymore, Liam had joined him with his own daughter. "Can I ask you a question?" Lexie continued without giving the chance Natalie to reply anything to her.
"Bring it." Natalie said and followed her gaze, noticing how she saw looking at Liam.
"Okay. What is it about guys with babies that makes women go crazy?" Lexie wondered and then the rambling started. "I mean, it's like when you're at the park and you see a guy with a puppy. Now normally, you wouldn't even notice the guy, but then he's laughing, and the puppy's crawling all over him, and then he's... he's tickling the puppy's little puppy belly, and then you're thinking, I wouldn't mind spending the rest of my life with that guy. What is that?"
"Oh, everybody's looking at the baby, and no one's looking at Liam..." Natalie realised. "Except you. Okay, you are looking at Liam, right? Because if you're looking at Mark then we might have a problem."
"I am not looking at Liam." Lexie huffed and walked away.
☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆
"What are you two doing in here?" Natalie asked when she saw Mark and Iris in a room in radiology, in complete darkness. Mark was trying to put Iris to sleep for hours and he had finally succeeded.
"This is the only place she'll fall asleep." Mark whispered and kept rocking Iris in his embrace softly. "Turns out she's as bored with radiology as we are."
Natalie smiled and pulled a chair to sit down next to Mark. She looked at her daughter lovingly and then she looked at him, telling him with just a look that she was more than happy to have a daughter with him. "She's getting so much bigger every second." She commented.
"My girl eats like a champ." Mark said proudly.
"I want to hold her, but then I'll just wake her, and then she'll cry." She complained. "Besides, she, uh, doesn't look like she really wants to move. Looking all comfy in her daddy's embrace." She softly stroked Iris' hand, careful to not wake her up.
"Well, tonight you could be looking all comfy in daddy's embrace." Mark gave Natalie a knowing look.
"Mark, not in front of the baby." Natalie hit his shoulder, but that only made him smile wider. And everything was finally okay for both of them. Their daughter was healthy, their family was getting bigger and it seemed like their life was getting back on track after all those months.
☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆
ᴊᴜꜱᴛ ᴏɴᴇ ʜᴏᴜʀ ʙᴇꜰᴏʀᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ɴᴇᴡ ʏᴇᴀʀ, (ᴏɴᴇ ʜᴏᴜʀ ꜰᴏʀ ᴍᴇ ᴀᴛ ʟᴇᴀꜱᴛ) ɪ ᴅᴇᴄɪᴅᴇᴅ ꜰᴏʀ ᴀ ꜱᴍᴀʟʟ ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ. ᴊᴜꜱᴛ ʙᴇᴄᴀᴜꜱᴇ...
ɪ ᴀᴍ ᴡɪꜱʜɪɴɢ ʏᴏᴜ ᴀʟʟ ᴀ ʜᴀᴘᴘʏ ɴᴇᴡ ʏᴇᴀʀ, ᴀᴛ ʟᴇᴀꜱᴛ ʜᴀᴘᴘɪᴇʀ ᴛʜᴀɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄʀᴀᴘᴘʏ 2021... 2021 ɪꜱ ꜱᴏ ᴄʀᴀᴘᴘʏ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ɪꜱ ʟᴇᴀᴠɪɴɢ ᴍᴇ ʟᴏᴄᴋᴇᴅ ɪɴ ᴀ ʀᴏᴏᴍ ᴀʟʟ ᴀʟᴏɴᴇ, ʙᴇᴄᴀᴜꜱᴇ ᴏꜰ ᴄᴏᴠɪᴅ ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ꜰɪʀꜱᴛ ᴅᴀʏꜱ ᴏꜰ 2022 ɪꜱ ɢᴏɪɴɢ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴛʜᴀᴛ, ꜱᴏ ɪ ᴅᴏɴ'ᴛ ᴋɴᴏᴡ ᴀʙᴏᴜᴛ ʏᴏᴜ, ʙᴜᴛ ɪ ᴀᴍ ɴᴏᴛ ʜᴀᴠɪɴɢ ᴠᴇʀʏ ʜɪɢʜ ᴇxᴘᴇᴄᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴꜱ. ᴀɴʏᴡᴀʏꜱ, ʜᴏᴘɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴇꜱᴛ ꜰᴏʀ ᴀʟʟ ᴏꜰ ʏᴏᴜ <3