Never my love

It's a quiet rainy Sunday. The smell of freshly-baked biscotti fills the apartment. The sound of the rain and soft music playing in the background. They're reading on the couch. A feeling of endless peace is shared by the DeLuca-Bishops. Carina is laying on her side, reading a new medical article, her head on Maya's lap. The firefighter gently strokes her wife's hair, her eyes glued to her phone as she scrolls through her baby essentials checklist and looks at online shops. 

They had spent most of the morning putting together the crib. The baby's room is almost ready. They just need a nice, comfy chair. The plan is to buy it on their next day off. A few weeks ago, Maya enlisted Vic and Travis to help with the painting of the room. It took much longer than they imagined - the many beer breaks were to blame, for sure. The walls are now a light yellow. Carina wanted something bright to break from cloudy Seattle. Even after all this time, she still missed the Italian sun. 

Every once in a while, Maya interrupts the OB to show her something - a fancy stroller (even though they already bought one), a new onesie, a night light. Carina giggles and gives her opinion on the items. Since they found out Carina was pregnant, Maya has been in her full queen of the clipboard mode. She researched every crib and car seat, analyzing and comparing each until she could be sure to buy the best and safest option available. The Italian can't help but find it absolutely adorable - even though it can be a little annoying sometimes. 

Maya moves from online shopping to looking at child-proofing articles. Carina can tell something is wrong as the blonde stops stroking her hair and her breathing changes. 

She moves her head to get a better look at her wife. She finds wide eyes staring at the phone. "You okay, bambina?"

Maya blinks, in disbelief. "I forgot about the blinds."

"Che cosa?"

The firefighter starts standing up, softly moving Carina's head away from her lap. She paces around the room. "The blinds. They need to be cordless. The baby could get strangled. I need to measure the window and go out to buy cordless blinds. How did I forget about that? It's a serious risk to our baby."

Carina slowly stands up, her 7-month belly making it a bit harder than usual. She smiles softly at her wife, her hands finding Maya's, holding her in place. This is not the first time Maya low-key panics about something related to their child. 

"My love, it's okay. We have time. We can buy the blinds when we go out to buy the chair. Don't worry. Come here."

Carina opens her arms, giving Maya the choice of a hug. There was a time when Maya would have refused. A time when she would let her rage and anxiety move her, ignoring her wife. Those painful days were long gone now, luckily. 

The blonde steps into her wife's embrace, her face snuggling against Carina's neck. The Italian smells like vanilla and Maya let her warmth calm her. She can slowly feel her breathing evening out, her heart getting back to its normal rhythm from minutes earlier. 

She looks at Carina, guilty eyes finding loving brown orbs. "I'm sorry."

Carina shakes her head, placing a soft kiss on Maya's lips. "No need to apologize, bella. I know you are worried about piccola, but we still have time. We will have everything ready for her."

Maya nods, smiling back at her wife. "We will, we have time." She repeats, trying to reassure herself. 

They stand there, holding each other for a while until the song "Never My Love" by The Association starts playing. It's one of their favourite songs.

Carina looks at the blonde with a shy smile. "Dance with me, bella?"

A toothy grin sparks on Maya's face, her eyes soft and happy. "Always, my love."

Maya takes Carina in her arms and they start slow dancing to the tune. 

You ask me if there'll come a time

When I grow tired of you

Never, my love

Never, my love

You wonder if this heart of mine

Will lose its desire for you

Never, my love

Never, my love

The blonde spins the Italian around, catching her and kissing her neck. The unexpected move has Carina's laughter filling the room. 

The doctor whispers in her wife's ears. "Ti amo, tesoro."

Maya closes her eyes, letting herself be swept away by her wife's love and warmth. "I love you, Carina. More than you'll ever know."

They continue swaying to the song, lost in each other's arms when Maya hears a distant shout.

"Bishop! Do you copy? Bishop!"

You say you fear I'll change my mind

I won't require you

Never, my love

Never, my love

"Come on Bishop! Do you copy?"

How can you think love will end

When I've asked you to spend your whole life

With me?

Maya frowns and looks at Carina, her wife's face suddenly serious. "Come back to me, bambina."

The firefighter wakes up startled. Her eyes move around, searching for Carina. Smoke and fire surround her. She then remembers she is in a factory. She was evacuating the place when part of the floor collapsed below her feet. Maya crashed down hard. 

She lets out a shaky breath in relief when she notices her wife and baby were nowhere near this hell. It was only a memory. She grunts in pain and tries to stand up.

Surprisingly, she does it without much difficulty. She looks around and does not see a way out. There are no windows and the door is blocked by metal bars. "Fuck!"

"Bishop! Do you copy?"

She can hear Andy's desperate voice over the radio. She sighs as she answers. "This is Bishop. The floor collapsed. There is no visible way out. I'm trapped."

"We're on our way. Hang on tight, Maya."

Maya looks around her, the fiery hell she is trapped in. All she can think about is her wife and daughter. She needs to find her way back to them.