TW: This chapter contains self-harming in some parts.
It was Christmas day, the most wonderful time of the year, however, the youngest member of the DeLuca-Bishop family had different thoughts as she currently sat staring at herself in the mirror.
Looking down at the fresh cuts on her legs. She couldn't help but feel numb against the thoughts she had inside of her house and the worry that she feared the most.
She was fourteen, not even fifteen yet and she couldn't even figure out what to do... How the hell was she supposed to take care of a baby? She was still a kid herself.
Finding the piece of razor blade stuffed inside her drawer at the back, she dug into her skin as the blood trickled down her legs.
Quickly pulling herself together, she needed to put on an act before anyone got suspicious. She needed to act excited for this day full of gifts and family, and festivities.
Maya opened her eyes slightly and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes as she turned to face her wife who was smiling at her.
"Mhm... Merry Christmas," The blonde smiled before she rolled over to face her wife.
"It's so quiet," She added.
"It is," Carina chuckled lightly.
"Merry Christmas, my love," The brunette added.
"Maybe we should take advantage of the peace and quiet?" Maya grinned, looking at her wife.
Carina laughed lightly as she slapped her wife's chest playfully.
"As much as I like the sound of that. I give it less than ten minutes before our daughter comes and bombards us wanting to open her presents," The brunette reminded her.
"A lot of stuff can happen in ten minutes," Maya said, wiggling her eyebrows seductively.
"Let me give you my Christmas present," She added as she smirked.
"Oh? Now that. I do like the sound off," Carina said intrigued.
Maya smirked as she moved towards her wife, lunging herself towards her as the two of them got lost between the sheets and passionate kisses.
"Mom! Mama!" A voice on the other side of the door spoke aloud.
Maya let out a groan and flopped back down onto the bed.
"I told you," Carina said amusedly.
"Well, that was nice while it lasted," Maya sighed.
"Are you guys awake yet?" Maddie questioned from the other side of the door.
Carina leaned over to look at the alarm clock and laughed as it brightly pointed out it was barely even 6 am yet.
"Even despite her teenage mood swings, she still doesn't fail to wake up early just to open presents," Maya remarked, shaking her head.
"Can I come in? Wait... You guys are both dressed, right?" Maddie continued to question.
"She isn't gonna give up," Maya stated.
Carina chuckled amusedly and she shook her head.
"We're both dressed, kiddo. Come in," Maya called aloud.
The door was swung open as the excited fourteen-year-old launched herself onto the bed between the two women.
"Oof!" Maya let out a grunt of discomfort.
"This is certainly different from what we saw last week," She added as she chuckled.
"Merry Christmas, Bambina!" Carina exclaimed brightly.
"Merry Christmas, kiddo," Maya smiled, kissing the top of her daughters' head.
"Although, it would have been great if you could have stayed in bed just a little longer," She teased.
"It's Christmas! We've gotta open presents!" Maddie exclaimed.
Maya chuckled and ruffled her daughters' hair.
"I'm very well aware of what the day is and besides, what makes you think that you have any presents? Santa doesn't deliver to kids who don't behave," Maya teased.
"Mom! I told you that I don't believe in Santa anymore," Maddie whined dramatically.
"And I know there are presents already out there with my name on because I went and looked," The teenager said smugly.
"She got you there Maya," Carina chuckled lightly.
Maddie grinned widely before she proceeded to bounce up and down on the bed excitedly.
The teenager deserved an oscar for the performance she was giving right now.
Neither of her Moms' was non wiser about anything.
"Come on, get up! Get up!" Maddie exclaimed.
"I need coffee... A lot of coffee," Maya mumbled as she turned to look at her wife.
Carina nodded in agreement with her wife.
"Tia Andy already has a pot on ready," Maddie told them.
"Ah, wonderful!" Carina exclaimed.
Begrudgingly, Maya and Carina were both dragged out into the lounge where the tree was full of presents underneath for them all, while Andy was ready with fresh mugs of coffee for both women.
"Hey, guys. I thought you might both be in need of caffeine," The women chuckled, handing them both cups.
"See? I told you that Tia had coffee ready for you," Maddie told them, slumping down on the floor in front of the tree.
Maya chuckled and accepted the coffee mug gratefully from her best friend as she moved to sit on the couch along with her wife who joined her.
"Seeing her like this reminds me of when she was five and she sat in the same exact position, waiting to open presents," Maya smiled at the bleak memory of her daughter.
Carina smiled between her wife and daughter.
Continuing with her performance, Maddie sat staring up at the tree as she attempted to fake her excitement about opening presents when in reality all she felt was the anxiety above all.
"So, where shall we start?" Andy questioned, gesturing to the pile of presents.
"Alright... So, the pile over here on the left is from both your Mama and me," Maya began to explain.
"Why is it all so organized?" Maddie questioned.
"You're not kidding," Andy piped in amusedly.
"Well, they don't call your Mom the queen of the clipboard for no reason, Bambina," Carina said, winking at the teenager who laughed.
Maya scoffed and playfully glared at her wife sitting beside her.
"As I was saying and that pile on the right is from your aunties and uncles," The blonde continued to explain.
Maddie made an attempt to rip into her presents straightaway, exchanging thank yous and hugs as she made her way through them all.
"Oh! I almost forgot, there's an extra gift," Carina said in realization.
The brunette jumped up from the couch and ran into the bedroom to grab the gift, handing it to the teenage girl.
It had only arrived a couple of days ago in the mail and Carina was completely shocked to have received it, especially when it was addressed to her daughter with the address from Italy.
"Who is it?" Maya wondered.
"My Papa," Carina told her.
Carina's own father was a sore topic, Maddie was yet to meet the man but from previous stories that she had heard, the man wasn't exactly the easiest to get along with.
"Oh," The blonde said.
Maya had no idea about this gift and was just as shocked to hear about it.
"Oh, cool," Maddie smiled as she ripped open the wrapping paper and smiled when she saw the gift.
It wasn't anything special but a cream-coloured bear but it meant something to Maddie that a man who she didn't know had sent her a present.
"I love it," The teenager smiled.
"Maddie! Come and move everything before I trip over something!" Maya called out to the teenager who seemed to have abandoned all of her presents in the middle of the lounge.
Carina chuckled lightly as she watched her wife run around manically with a trash bag to stuff all the wrapping paper in.
Christmas was definitely a hectic time!
"Alright, guys. I had better head off to work," Andy said, shoving her backpack over her shoulder.
"It sucks that you have to work on Christmas," Maya sighed.
"I know... But you never know what might happen," Andy said, nodding in agreement.
"I'll see you all later. Have a good day!" She waved, walking towards the front door.
"Bye, Andy!" Maya smiled, waving slightly.
"Ciao," Carina said.
"Maddie, if I have to ask again then all of your new presents will be going in the trash!" Maya warned half-heartedly.
That made the teenager quick enough to run into the lounge, gather up her gifts in her arms and head towards her bedroom.
"Well that was easy enough," Maya chuckled.
"What time are we heading out to your Moms?" Carina questioned.
"My Mom said that dinner will be ready for around 2 so an hour before that should be good," The blonde told her wife.
"Okay," Carina smiled in agreement.
"Are you nervous?" She questioned her wife.
Maya paused from what she was doing which was posting an update on her social media account and looked at her wife with a furrowed eyebrow.
"What do you mean?" The blonde questioned.
"It'll be the first Christmas with both your mom and brother. Your family together," Carina reminded her wife.
"No... It'll be nice and I know that Maddie will be excited to see Toby as well. He's probably grown so much since we last saw him," Maya replied to her wife.
"That's true," The brunette agreed.
"I didn't know that your Dad was sending a gift," Maya said, shoving her phone into her pocket.
"Neither did I until I arrived a couple of days ago in the mail," Carina told her wife.
"I completely forgot about it," She added.
"It was nice of him," Maya said with a smile.
The blonde knew how difficult things were between her wife and her father-in-law, so it was nice that he made an effort at least with their daughter.
"Yeah... I'll call him at some point," Carina nodded in agreement.
"Are we ready to go? We're going to be late!" Maya exclaimed, waiting by the front door with gifts in hand.
"Yes, yes, yes!" Carina agreed as she picked up her brown long coat and put it on.
"Maddie, hurry up! We've gotta go!" The older blonde continued to call out for her daughter who they were waiting on yet again.
The teenager in question came wandering out of her bedroom and huffed loudly.
"I'm coming! Tell me again, why I can't bring Lizzie with us?" The younger blonde asked.
"Becuase you're baby cousin will be there," Maya explained, motioning her daughter out of the apartment.
Maddie was in a slight sulk now because not only was she not allowed to bring Lizzie with them but she also wasn't allowed her phone so she couldn't even text Aaron to wish him merry Christmas.
"She'll be okay for a couple of hours, Bambina," Carina told their daughter.
"Right, she will, now come on, hurry up and lets' go!" Maya exclaimed, pushing her small family out of the door.
"Is it me or does Mom seem overwhelmed?" Maddie leaned in towards Carina and questioned in a whisper.
"Your Mom just wants to make sure we're there on time, you know how she is," Carina chuckled lightly, motioning her daughter towards the elevator.
"Alright! Have we got all of the presents?" Maya questioned, peering into the back seat of the car where they all lay on the seat as they parked up outside of Katherine's house.
"We've got them all," Carina agreed, briefly looking at them in the rear-view mirror before she stopped the car.
"Okay, great. Mads, you pick up Toby's present, I'll pick up Mason and Chloe's and then Car, if you can grab my Moms..." Maya rambled on.
"Oh! Don't forget the cards!" She added in a panic.
"Maya, breathe, Bella," Carina placed her hand on her wife's hand reassuringly.
Maya took a deep breath and smiled at her wife slightly.
"I... I don't deal well with Christmas," The blonde admitted.
"I know, but I'm here. You're okay, my love," Carina told her wife.
"Now let's head inside before your Mom wonders why we're sat outside in the car," She chuckled.
Maya nodded, unbuckling her seatbelt and opening her door before she climbed out. Maddie hopped out of the back of the car and was quick to dash up the stairs to open the door to her Grandma's house.
"I'm here. You're okay," Carina repeated in reassurance as the couple headed towards the door.
"Hi! Merry Christmas," Katherine greeted as she opened the door to them all.
Maddie smiled and leaned in towards the older woman to give her a hug as Katherine was more than happy to accept it.
"Merry Christmas, Grandma!" Maddie exclaimed.
"Merry Christmas, Katherine!" Carina smiled, wrapping a single arm around her mother-in-law.
"Hey, Mom. Merry Christmas," Maya said being the last one to give her Mom a hug.
"Sorry, we're late," She added.
"Don't worry about it. Your brother isn't even here yet," Katherine chuckled.
"Come in, come in, it's cold outside!" She exclaimed, motioning them all inside the warm cosy house.
"The house looks great, Katherine," Carina complimented as she looked around the house which was decorated with a lot of Christmas decorations.
She couldn't help but notice numerous pictures of the whole family. Photos of both her children and grandchildren, along with an additional photo of their wedding day not too long ago.
"Would any of you like a drink? We have alcoholic and non-alcoholic," Katherine offered out a variety of drinks.
"Uh, I'll take a beer please," Maya said.
"I'll just take a can of soda, please?" Carina asked.
"No problem," Katherine said, nodding in agreement.
"Maddie? What would you like to drink, sweetheart?" She asked the teenager.
"I'll have a soda please, Grandma," Maddie said as she looked at the older woman.
Katherine smiled and grabbed the appropriate drinks for them all out of the kitchen before she walked back into the lounge and passed them around.
"So, have you had a good Christmas morning so far?" The older woman questioned, taking a seat on the couch.
"It's been nice," Maya said.
Carina nodded in agreement with her wife and smiled.
"I bet you've been spoilt haven't you sweetheart," Katherine smiled as she looked at her granddaughter.
"I have. I had a lot of cool stuff," Maddie agreed and smiled.
"Oh! That sounds like them," Katherine noted, hearing a car door shut from outside.
It wasn't long until the small family were all inside the house as Chloe carried Toby inside while Mason brought in the gifts.
"Uncle Mase!" Maddie exclaimed, throwing herself at the man.
"Hey, kid!" Mason grinned, wrapping his arms around his niece and squeezing her tightly.
"I swear that you grow taller each time that I see you," He added as he chuckled.
"Maybe you're just shrinking," Maddie said cheekily.
Mason laughed in agreement and shook his head.
"That's probably it," The man agreed.
"Hey, Maya! Hey, Carina!" He said, turning his attention to his sister and sister-in-law.
"Hey, Mason!" Carina greeted her brother-in-law.
"Hey, Mase!" Maya smiled, hugging her younger brother.
"Merry Christmas!" Chloe smiled, waving to them all.
"Merry Christmas," Maya replied.
"And here's the little man himself," Mason said, gesturing towards the little boy in his partner's arms.
The blonde gasped slightly when she spotted her nephew who had grown a fair bit in the amount of time they hadn't seen him.
"Oh, my goodness. Look how big you've gotten!" She exclaimed as Chloe handed her little boy who was none the wiser about what was going on around him.
"Yep. Time's definitely going quick!" Mason chuckled before he went and said hello to his Mom.
"He's grown loads!" Maddie exclaimed as she stared at her baby cousin.
The whole thing freaked her out. How was she supposed to deal with that?
"Soon enough you guys will have another one of your own," Chloe said.
"Yeah about that..." Maya laughed nervously.
The two wife's shared a glance with one another. Katherine let out a small gasp.
"You guys are having another baby?" The older woman asked.
"Not yet. Not yet," Maya insisted as she laughed.
"But eventually, yeah," Carina told them.
"Oh, my! That is wonderful!" Katherine said as she smiled.
"That's great, guys!" Chloe grinned.
"Congratulations!" Mason said, embracing them both in another hug.
"Hey, so this time next year, there'll be another addition to add to the clan," He added.
Oh, if only they knew.
"Yeah. It seems that way," Maya agreed as she smiled.
The whole family sat around the table, Christmas hats on their head as they all laughed and enjoyed spending time together as a family.
Toby seemed to enjoy the attention that was on him as Maya was playing peek-a-boo with her young nephew who just giggled a lot and reached his hands towards her.
"Wow, dinner was great. Thanks, Mom!" Mason said gratefully.
"Yeah. It was really good, thanks, Mom!" Maya smiled at the older woman.
"Thank you, Katherine," Carina told the older woman.
"No problem. It was nice to be able to cook for you all," Katherine said as she smiled and glanced around the table.
"Well, it was certainly good. Thank you," Chloe said gratefully.
"Thanks, Grandma!" Maddie said.
"Do you want any help clearing up?" Mason questioned, standing up from the table.
"No, no, I've got it sorted. Why don't you all go and sit down," Katherine suggested.
"Are you sure, Mom?" Maya questioned.
Katherine nodded her head and smiled.
"Of course, I insist. Go ahead," The women told them all.
"Okay," Mason agreed, leaning to pick Toby up into his arms and go into the lounge.
It wasn't long before the whole family sat in the lounge, exchanging gifts between them all. It was safe to say that Maddie had been truly spoilt by them all, Katherine had a massive beam on her face as she watched her family open presents and she was happy that they were all once again together.
The whole ride back, Maddie sat in the back seat of the car completely quiet and staring out of the window. The anxious feeling came back in the pit of her stomach.
Once the small family were home, Maddie slumped into the apartment behind her mom's and was slowly making her way towards her bedroom.
"Well after Christmas dinner, I'm completely stuffed," The older blonde admitted, flopping down onto the couch.
"I agree. Your Mom cooked a wonderful dinner," Carina smiled, joining her wife on the couch.
Maya nodded in agreement, huffing out loud as Lizzie excitedly came and sat in between the two of them.
The blonde turned her attention to her daughter and frowned slightly.
"You alright, kiddo? You were quiet in the car on the way back," She noted.
"I guess... I think that I'm just tired. It's been a long day," Maddie said quietly.
"It's not surprising since you were up early, bet you're not used to that," Maya teased her daughter slightly.
"Why don't you go have a lie-down and try to sleep, Bambina?" Carina suggested.
The tiredness was visible on the teenager's face. Both women could tell she was exhausted.
"I think I might do that," Maddie said in agreement.
"Alright, kiddo. Just shout us if you need anything at all," Maya smiled reassuringly.
"Sure," Maddie replied, wandering off into her bedroom and leaving the two women alone.
"Today has been... a lot," Maya chuckled.
"Si. I know that you probably felt overwhelmed but it was nice to spend it with your family," Carina told her wife, wrapping her arm around her.
"And just think that next year, we'll have another little one to add to the craziness," The brunette added.
Maya smiled and nodded, leaning in to kiss her wife on the lips.
"I can't wait," The blonde stated.
Maddie lay on her bed as she stared up at the ceiling with tears trickling down her face. The feeling of anxiety was horrible, several thoughts racing around in her head.
There was no way that she would be able to keep this secret hidden for too much longer.
It wasn't possible at all.
Not even thinking about it, the teenager bolted up from her bed and dug through her drawers for the forsaken blade that she kept hidden.
Sitting back on her bed, she pulled her sleeves up to show her bare wrists with a mixture of cuts, some of them were fresh and some of them were healed.
Dragging the blade across her arm, she pressed it deep into her skin as blood poured out. Opening the wounds again once again.
Cut after cut. Digging in deeper and deeper.
Until it was too late, there was a wave of dizziness that the teenager experienced as she began to feel weaker and weaker, and she fell to the floor.
"I think I'm going to check on Maddie. Just make sure that she is okay," Maya said, standing up from the couch.
It had been an hour later and they were yet to hear anything from the teenager.
"Okay, Bambina. How about I pour us a drink? We can finally relax now the day is almost over," Carina chuckled.
"That sounds good," Maya agreed.
Maya stood up from the couch and started to head towards her daughters bedroom.
"Oooh, we can open that bottle of red that my brother brought for us," She suggested.
"Si, and the chocolates!" Carina smiled.
"Yes. I'll be back," Maya said in agreement before she walked down the hallway to her daughter's bedroom.
The teenager's bedroom door was shut as Maya started to knock.
"Hey, kiddo... I just wanted to check on you, and see if you're okay?" The blonde questioned, hand on the door handle ready to open.
The room was silent on the other side.
"Mads?" Maya asked softly.
"Maybe you're asleep already," She added as she chuckled.
Something in the back of her mind made her not walk away from the door but instead open it and check on her daughter in person.
However, the scene in front of her made her let out a blood-curdling scream, which alarmed Carina straight away.
"Maya?" Carina called out confused.
Maya stared at the blonde teenager, who was lying unconscious on the floor, covered in her own blood with her wrists split open.
"O- Oh, my god!" The blonde cried aloud.
Bending down to sit beside her daughter, she took a gentle hold of her wrists as she felt for a pulse.
It was there but it was weak.
"C- Carina!" She continued to shout in a panic.
The brunette was quick to run to her daughters' bedroom and gasped, horrified when she saw what she did.
"O- Oh, my god, Bambina!"Carina exclaimed, her eyes wide in shock.
"Call... Call Andy, and get her to bring the aid car!" Maya exclaimed, panicked.
"What happened?" Carina asked horrified and scared.
"Call Andy! Call her, and tell her to come quick!" Maya pleaded as she burst into tears.
The brunette woman was quick to pull her phone out of her pocket and dial Andy's number while Maya still continued to hold her daughter in her arms.
"Come on, Mads. You're alright. You're gonna be fine, okay?" Maya told her daughter, rocking her slightly in her arms.
"I've got you! Mommy has got you, I'm right here... I'm not going anywhere!" The blonde continued to speak, the panic was evident in her voice.
"Come on baby, come on, wake up!" She continued to plead with the unconscious girl.