A place in this world
The loud sound of Hope's cell phone broke the stillness of the night and she blindly looked for it, falling out of bed.
"Are the babies?" She asks quickly.
Since Josie had started the third trimester, Hope had been terrified that Josie would go into labour one of the nights she slept in her room with Lizzie
"Fido, my sister isn’t here!" almost screamed Lizzie
Alarmed, Hope glanced at the time on the clock on her nightstand.
"Lizzie it's five in the morning, are you sure she's not in the bathroom or something?"
"I don't know, I woke up for a glass of water and saw that her bed was empty"
Seconds later Hope was opening the door of Lizzie's room.
"Did you call to her cell phone?
"it’s turned off"
"Well, we'll do a location spell ..." her voice was cut off when her cell phone started ringing and she saw Josie's name, her chest filled with relief "Josie, where are you?"
"You know, you sneak out to surprise your girlfriend in the middle of the night and all you find is an empty bed, where are you, Hope?" Josie demanded, looking down at the unmade bed that should have an auburn haired girl.
"I was looking for you, Lizzie woke up and you weren’t there," she explained.
"Damn, the only time I do this and she wakes up"
"Okay, Jo. I'll tell Lizzie and I'm come back” she hung up the call.
"is she in the hospital? Are the babies coming? " Lizzie asked worriedly.
"Lizzie, she's okay" Hope tries to reassure the girl "she's in my room, apparently she wanted to surprise me"
Relief tore through the blonde followed by anger.
"I’m going to kill her! How could she let me worry like this? Why didn’t she leave a note? "
As Lizzie complained, Hope noticed a piece of paper lying on the floor with Josie's family handwriting.
"something like this?"
Lizzie looked at the note and rolled her eyes.
"I'm going to bed, take care of my sister, mutt"
Hope smiled.
"Always" promised leaving the room and returning to hers.
Josie was lying in the middle of the bed, already asleep. For a long moment, the tribrid just watched her, a soft smile on her lips. She looked beautiful, her hair on her face as she snuggled closer against the pillow. Sigh, satisfaction filled her. She slid between the sheets, wrapping her arms around Josie.
"You're finally home," Josie said sleepily.
Hope let exhaustion pull her in, closing her eyes. Her hand rested on Josie's belly and she felt a light kick under her palm.
"Yes, Jo. I'm finally home "
The next time Hope woke up she was alone again.
"Josie?"
She didn't answer, Hope's keen hearing caught her in the bathroom. The tribrid got out of bed and went to the bathroom, knocking on the door.
"Hey, everything’s alright?"
"Yes" Josie said opening the door for her to enter.
Hope walked into the bathroom, looking at Josie holding a pair of headphones, as she read the book Lizzie gave her about pregnancy.
"What's going on, Josie?"
Josie smiled, trying to hide her nervousness. Last week when she first came up with the idea, it had sounded great, but now, inside Hope's bathroom, she was afraid that Hope would think it was ridiculous.
“Well, according to the pregnancy book, babies' ears are developing right now and that means they are starting to listen. That's why I came here this morning "she explained when the auburn girl was still looking at her puzzled" I just wanted the first thing the babies to hear was us. "
Hope was looking at her in amazement. Every time she thought Josie couldn't bury herself deeper into her heart, she would go and do something like this.
When the tribrid said nothing, the brunette's nervousness increased, as did the speed of their conversation.
"Besides, you're not always with me and I just wanted to make sure these little ones knew what their other mother sounded like."
"I think that's a great idea, Jo" she smiled, holding her hands as she looked around "but why are we in the bathroom?"
"The acoustics is better here" Josie said as if it was the most obvious thing "now, go find your favourite music"
“I will, but first things first. I think we have to do a couple of presentations, right? " she said raising an eyebrow.
Josie nodded happy that Hope was following her plan instead of calling her crazy. Her heart swelled as the tribrid knelt down and began to speak to her belly. She wondered how many people would have agreed to spend the day in the bathroom listening to music with her pregnant girlfriend and she was glad once again that Hope Mikaelson was no ordinary person.
She lifted her hands, gently cupping the brunette's belly as she began to speak in a low voice.
“Hi, it's me, your mom. You know, my mother's voice is the one that always comes with me. She was my conscience, my guide and I just hope that I can do the same for you, and I promise that when you need me, I will always do my best to be there for you. "
Hope felt a slight bump under her palm and shared a smile with Josie. She stood up and unbuttoned Josie's pyjamas to reveal her rounded belly by gently tracing her hands over her skin.
"Now I want to introduce you to the most important person in our world: your other mother, Josie"
Josie reached out a hand to Hope and pressed a kiss to her cheek.
"Thank you" She whispers.
Clearing her throat, she looked at her swollen stomach, trying to imagine what the babies inside her would be like, what qualities of them combined to form their children.
"Hi, my babies. I’m your mommy. My voice is probably the one you gonna hear the most because you’re inside me. And I'll probably be the bad guy too because your mom will so soft on you. But I promise that you will never, never have to feel alone, because you will always know that you’re loved "
Hope felt the pain in her chest from the tacit sadness she was talking to and from the girl who had been pushed aside to fend for herself too soon when her parents were too busy to pay attention to Lizzie's problems and the children in this school. And yet she had still turned into this girl who continued to amaze her.
"And now that we introduced you to the two people who will always love you more than anything in this world" said Hope with joy in her voice "it's time to introduce you to the best music in the world and whatever your other mother listens to"
Josie rubbed a hand over her stomach.
"Please, my musical tastes are great" she complained
"She doesn’t know what she is talking about, little ones, there is only one word to remember: Jazz"
"Don't start corrupting my children, Hope Mikaelson" she gave a small slap to the hand that Hope was holding on the belly where the babies were, the tribrid smiled as she left the bathroom.
"The only corrupt thing would be to make them listen to your Broadway musicals!" Hope yelled from outside the bathroom.
The tribrid returned with a blanket, some pillows, and a small speaker.
"The acoustics can be excellent, but I don't think you like sitting on the cold floor, come here"
She helped Josie to sit on the floor and then turned on the speaker. They spent most of the day there, listening to their favourite music.
Sometimes they turned off the music and just talked, with each other or with the babies. Hope was lying with her head resting on Josie's thigh, talking to the babies about painting techniques. Then they would switch and Josie would put her head on Hope's lap, her hands tracing her belly as she explained to the babies how to play the ukulele.
Sometime in the afternoon, while Jazz music played softly in the background. Josie looked at the rainbows dancing on the ceiling, reflections thrown from a glass container sitting on the sill of the small bathroom window.
"Do you ever think about what they will look like?"
"I do"
Josie turned her head that was resting against Hope's lap.
"seriously?"
Hope nodded.
"a lot"
"Me too" one of Josie's hands was holding hers and the other was stroking her belly "sometimes they look a lot like you and sometimes they look more like me"
"Oh, really?" Hope asked
"You also know how they look more to me?" Josie said as she looked at the bright colours decorating the ceiling.
"how?" Hope asked softly.
"Happy and carefree, as if nothing could touch them" she turns her head to Hope "Do you think we can give them that?"
The tribrid raised the hand that was intertwined with the brunette and kissed her knuckles.
"I promise we’ll try"
Josie smiled gratefully that she hadn't lied to her and even knowing the overwhelming chances that something would go wrong, she still believed her. Then she knew more than anything that she wanted her children to have that innate sense of hope that the auburn girl possessed. That despite everything that has happened in her life, she still showed small traces of it inside her.
Once the sun started to set. Josie decided they had talked enough. She took the hand that Hope held out and got up slowly with a grimace.
"Let's get something to eat and then I'll give you a back massage" Hope promised.
Josie smiled at her.
"You have a deal; I'll make the food"
"Don't worry Jo, I can do it," Hope offered.
"Poor kids, we destroyed their ears the first day they could use them"
"They’re lucky" Hope said while heating the leftover lasagne that she found in the refrigerator "to have you as a mother"
Josie looked down, concentrating on cutting the vegetables for the salad.
"Then they will always be lucky, because you will be a great mother too, Hope"
"Josie why don't you move into my room?" the words were out of Hope's mouth before she could stop them and she winced sharply. She hadn't wanted to ask her like that, it wasn't even what she wanted until she said it, but now that she had, the certainty rise within her. She never wanted to spend another night without Josie by her side.
"what? Why?" the brunette could barely say.
"There are many reasons. It would be easier to take care of the babies that way, to help you with whatever you need, but” she stopped, shaking her head.
"but?" Josie asked looking at the auburn girl.
“But, the real reason is that I'm never happier than when I'm with you. And the only times I feel at home is when you are there” She confesses.
"It's okay," Josie agreed, smiling as she felt the little kick inside her. Her children agreed "I'll move in with you"
Hope smiled as she served the food.
"You know, we could have let MG pack everything up with his vampire speed and we could have spent our day doing… other things," Hope complained.
When they told Lizzie and MG they would be moving in together they were both eager to help, when MG offered to do it faster, Lizzie said something about helping also, making something would take only a few hours, an all-day event.
Josie laughed at her sullen tone.
"Don't spoil their fun, Hope"
"their fun?" she growled, stretching out on her bed "what about my fun?"
Josie lay down beside her, promising while biting her lip.
"Your fun will come later tonight"
Hope's eyes gleamed gold for a second.
"Oh yeah?"
"Yes" Josie kissed her, she moaned trying to get closer, but her pregnancy belly wouldn't allow it.
Hope rolled them over until Josie was on her back and leaned over her.
"better?"
“A lot” Josie rolled her arms around her neck and brought their lips back together. she sigh, deepening the kiss. Hope felt Josie's hand slide under her T-shirt and hers slide under an old Henley that belonged to her father that Josie stole from her closet that morning, lightly running down her sides.
"Hell, Wolfie. Now I will have to wash my eyes with acid "complained Lizzie, who was coming after MG" you should hang something on the door "
Hope got up from the bed and shook her head.
"I'm sorry" said the vampire
Hope looked at him seriously.
"Stop scaring my boyfriend, Fido"
"Okay, I won't kill him, but I want this to end today," Hope said as she helped Josie out of bed.
"Tonight" the brunette promised her gently as she gave her a small kiss on the lips.
Hope took one of the heavier boxes from Lizzie’s room.
"Don't you dare lift anything, you know what your Aunt Elena said," she warned Josie.
"Relax Hope, you’ll do all the loading, I'll just pack"
"I don't know Josie, some of those things look heavy," she said when she saw her lift a pile of clothes.
“Hope, I know you have this whole hero complex, but I don't need you to save me from some blouses. Get out or there won't be fun tonight” she warned.
Hope reluctantly left, walking past Lizzie, muttering something to the blonde. Who continued on her way to her room.
"I have received instructions to avoid you packing more than one garment at a time," she announced to her sister.
Josie rolled her eyes.
"You wouldn't know, there was so much worry in such a small body" Josie complained as she paused for a minute looking at her old room.
"What happens?" asked the blonde.
“Hormones, nostalgia. Choose one. It's just that I grew up in this place and it's harder to leave than I thought it would be "
Lizzie smiled at her sister's melancholy expression.
"I know"
"It's stupid right?"
"It's not stupid, Josie" replied Lizzie "I have to admit I will miss you"
Josie hugged her sister, blinking the stupid tears that seemed to be filling her eyes lately "I'll miss you too Lizzie"
They let go as they listened to Hope speak near the room. Lizzie winked at her sister.
"Josie, I told you not to lift that box by yourself."
So fast, they could swear that the vampire was Hope and not MG. The auburn girl was in the middle of the room, looking around. When she saw the twins sitting on the bed and laughing, she pouted.
"That was not funny"
"Yes it was, Hope" Josie gasped, trying to control her laughter.
"Is everything okay, Hope?" asked MG upon entering.
"Yeah come on, we'll leave the girls with their jokes" she said angrily, making the twins laugh more.
Later that night Josie stayed awake, looking around the dark room. The day had been spent laughing and joking as the cardboard boxes were filled and moved into Hope's room. Now she was officially living in Hope's room. She was supposed to be fast asleep like the girl who lay dead to the world next to her, but she wasn't. She should be exhausted, between moving everything and then the fun she and Hope had, twice, earlier that night, but somehow the dream eluded her.
Her eyes moved over the now familiar walls, this place had slowly become her sanctuary. She belonged there now.
She sighed, the tension leaving her body.
"Hey, are you okay?" Hope muttered half asleep.
"Yes, I'm fine" when Hope didn't answer, she looked to her side to find her asleep again. Smiling, she let her thumb slide down the tribrid's cheek. this was her place; this is where she belonged.
“mine”
The dream came and the smile remained on her face.