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Chapter Text

I feel my hands shaking more and more while i walk through my bathroom, waiting for a response.

It all started this afternoon. I was at the precinct, working few small cases with Charles while Jake and Rosa went for a stakeout, Hitchcock and Scully sleeping at their usual on their chairs and Holt and sergeant Jeffords out of the town for some NYPD dirigents' convention.

We were doing dome paaperworks for a public intoxication when Charles stopped looking at the folder and started telling me about his plans for Nikolaj's ninth birthday party.

"No way! So you're really planning to bring a fake spider-man and a fake iron man! I'm sure he's going to love it, and Jake will probably cry too" i simile, realising that I feel nothing but extremely happy and proud for one of my best friends. he's a wonderful dad and he does his best to make his son happy. Also, i'm thinking about how excited will my husband feel when he's going to find out that he will be able to take pictures with superheroes. He's a 36-year-old, still he manages to get excited with little things and i'm totally in love with this part of him. i love how his eyes bright up and his smile opens wide everytime he gets excited.

"But there's something else i should ask you. i need you to babysit him for the whole day. its a surprise party, so we need time to organise things. is that okay with you?" he asks, looking at me, "like, i totally get if you don't want to".

"Sure thing, bud! You know we love to spend time with Niko, also he's a big boy now so we may bring him to the rides? if you and Genevieve agree".

"He'd definitely love it! I just discovered a new drug..."

I Interrupt him. "Boyle, Jake and I have been together for almost four years now, so you can't say 'your relationship and i'm high on it'".

"No, Amy. I was going to say 'it's called your relationship with kids and i'm super high on it!' If you and Jake had a kid, i would definitely lose my mind!".

I smile, trying to imagine my life with a kid in it. i'm sure Jake would be a wonderful dad to our kids, he would dedicate all the time he has to them, he would probably teach them how to be good cops, he'd be their best friend, would make them always have ice cream and would love to bring them to playground and play in it with them.

"You're thinking about having kids. I know you are, don't lie to me Santiago!".

"Yes, I am. But we've never really talked about babies, you know. Like, we discussed about how many kids we wanted, and he said five like die hard movies" I explain, resting my head on my hands and starting laughing. "I love that dork".

"Such a Jake thing. But why don't you tell him and you start trying, maybe? When are you expecting your period?".

"Charles, im not telling you when I... oh heck" I whisper, realising that i haven't got my period in a month and a half.

"Yes! I'm going to be an uncle!" Charles yells, but fortunately nobody pays attention to him, due to the fact that apart from Hitchcock and Scully, nobody here really cares about us.

"We don't know yet. Oh no. How am I supposed to tell Jake? What if it's just the fact that i worked too much on this month and my period is late for this? what if too much work affected the baby?" I panic, bringing my hands to my hair and starting breathing heavily.

"Hey, calm down. You're going to be okay. You worked as much as you did the last months. You didn't affect anyone, also just tell Jake like you're telling me".

"What if he freaks out? What if he feels like he can't be a dad right now? what if he leaves me? if he doesn't think this is the right time and runs away with some beautiful Russian super model?"

"Amy, we both know this is some dumb shit you're saying just because you're panicking. Jake isn't going to run away, he's going to stay here because he loves you more than anything and i know for sure that there's nothing more than he'd want than to be a dad. You two are totally going to rock it. Your children will have the best parents in this world" he says, hugging me. Suddenly, the elevator doors open, revealing my husband and my best friend with giants smiles on their face.

"Guess who after six hours of stakeout took the drug dealers? US! Team Diaz-Peralta for life!" Jake screams, running towards me.

"You did it? I'm so proud of you baby!" i exclaim, placing a kiss on his lips. He holds me tight as his hands run through my back.

"Were you waiting for me to go home?" he asks, still holding me tight. "I've got some paperworks to do and then we can go home. Also, we can stop by Tony and take some pizza. No, no. I'll cook. I'll make you my carbonara. Or we could go out".

I stop him, kissing him again. "I'm going home right now. I have to do something before you come home. I have to buy a present for Nikolaj".

"But his birthday is next week. We can go buy his present together" he answers, rising his left eyebrow.

"Yeah... but Charles told me he did very well in school today. As his favourite aunt i must tell him i'm proud of him. Also, you did great at work today so maybe i can buy you a present too".

"But you can thank me later" he smirks, a grin on his face.

"You're such a dork, detective Peralta. Whatever, I love that cute face so much, so I'll wait for you. But hurry up!".

He lets me go, sitting on his desk and starting working, and I sit again next to Charles.

"I wanted to go to a pharmacy and buy some pregnancy tests. But I want to wait for him. But I also want to buy tests before telling him. Help".

"let's just tell him to stop at the pharmacy to buy some aspirin and instead buy tests. so when you decide to tell him you've already got them".

Half an hour later me and Jake are heading back home, his hand on my lap and mine over it, while some Green Day's song is on the radio and I'm trying to not freak out at the thought of the pregnancy tests on my bag.

I take a huge breath as he parks in the garage of our home. "Baby?" i call him.

"Yes, Ames?".

"Charles asked me if we could babysit Niko on his birthday. They're planning to organise a surprise party and they can't if he's with them. I told him that maybe we could bring him to the rides" I tell once we're out of the car, him trying to unlock the door.

"I love it, baby! It's gonna be awesome! You've got the best ideas in the whole world. That's why I love you, you're so smart!" He explain, leaning towards me to kiss me. I put my hands on his shoulder and he puts his on my face, opening the door with a kick and closing it in the same way while we head to the couch, deepening the kiss. But as our breaths get heavier, he pulls away, looking at me.

"Baby, what's wrong?" He asks. "And don't tell me nothing, because I want you to remember that I know you like the back of my hand, that I'm your husband, your best friend and last but not least I'm a detective. Not the best in the town but I'm like Spider-Man here so I'm for sure the coolest one. You can't hide anything from me, but if you don't want to talk about it, that's okay. I'm here just to let you know that whatever happens you can always talk to me, alright?"

"When I said that we could bring Nikolaj to the rides... you know I was thinking... One day we'll bring there our kids, maybe?" I say, as fast as I can, trying to elaborate Jake's facial expressions.

"Sure! I'd bring them on each roller coaster, they would hate me at first, but then they'd get the happiest! That's been my dream since I was seven. I've always wanted my dad to bring me there".

"Jake, what I meant was..."

He interrupts me. "Yes, I know what you meant. Amy Santiago Peralta, I'd love to have babies with you. You'd make me the happiest and luckiest man alive. I've been waiting for this moment since we babysat Cagney and Lacey. And yes, I can't wait to bring them to the rides".

Few tears drop out of my face. "Jake, I love you so much. What did I do to deserve you?".

"You're smart, amazing, caring, kind, funny and talented. What I mean, Ames, is that everyone loves you because it's impossible to do not. And I'm the luckiest man on this planet to have someone as brave and supportive as you by my side" he says, with a huge smile on his face. I kiss him, inhaling and exhaling before telling him the news.

"Also... maybe we don't need to try. My period is late, like really really late" I say, and he opens his eyes wide.

"So you may be pregnant?" he asks, taking a step back to look in my eyes.

"Yeah. Is it too soon? Is it too late? I don't know. Oh gosh i'm about to cry".

"Hey hey hey hey" he whispers, placing his hands on my shoulder, "that's the perfect timing. Everything's going to be okay. If you're not pregnant, we have time to try. If you're, we have time to search for a Die Hard family friendly version. I'm here, and i'm going to stay by your side forever, no matter what. Now, let's take this pregnancy tests. I know you bought them instead of buying aspirin".

I smile, leaving a kiss on his lips before heading to the few shop bags I left on the floor, picking the tests and showing them to Jake. "Let's do it. I love you so much, baby".

And so here I am, waiting for a response. Jake is staring at the test, turned upside down on the sink as I can't stop going in and out the bathroom, playing with my hands. Five minutes had passed by, so the results may already be visible. Jake takes my hand, making me approach him, as he leaves a kiss on my lips, hugging me.

"You ready?" he asks as we pull away. "I'm with you Ames, okay?".

"Okay".

He place his hand in mine, giving me a little smile before taking the test and turning it. I look at the result, and I immediately turn my head towards my husband, noticing his confused's expression as he shrugs his shoulders and shakes his head. "Why they can't just put the results? I'm terrible at math. What does this even mean?".

I start crying while a huge smile grows on my face. "We made it, baby. We're pregnant. Baby Peraltiago is on its way".

"Ames" some tears drop out of his eyes as he place his hands on my face, kissing me, "we're going to be parents?".

"Yes, baby. We are".

"I love you. So so much. I'm going to be a dad" he screams, both of us crying and smiling, forehead to forehead. "I'm going to be a dad. Can you imagine that?"

As I'm about to answer him, he stops smiling, pulling away from me, as a worried look stands in his face. "But what if I'm going to be a terrible father. What if they're going to hate me? What if I'm not good enough to be a parent, to teach them things, to make them do their homework... What if they hate me, like I hated my father?".

I wipe tears from his cheeks. "Jake, what your father is is not what you are now. You're an amazing detective slash genious, an amazing husband, an amazing best friend, an amazing lover, and so much more. I know for sure you're going to be the best daddy ever. You'll be wonderful. And you're not alone, remember? We'll go through it together. Sure, we'll teach them how to ride a bike, how to tie their shoes and we'll be there while they paints their first drawings, but most important, we're going to teach them how to love people and be kind, alright? Even if sometimes you'll give them ice-cream after dinner or for dinner, and I'll probably get mad at you, you're going to be a wonderful dad. I'm proud of you, baby".

As he's about to kiss me, I place a finger on his lips. "But they must not watch Die Hard until they're eighteen, Jacob Peralta. Did you hear me?".

"But Ames, eighteen is a lot of years! I can't wait this long!" he screams, genuinely shocked, and I try my best to not laugh.

"The best I can give you is sixteen years. Now kiss me, you fool".

Chapter Text

I rest my head on my hands as I close my eyes, trying not to fall asleep. I haven't had a cup of coffee in four months, since i discovered i was pregnant, and although i don't miss it so much 'cause I know why I'm paying this price, there are days like these when i wish i just could have coffee in my veins instead of blood.

I've been working on this case for a whole week now, every single hour i had free, trying to give it a solution. In the last two weeks there have been three robberies, each one in an important bank, but the robbers have somehow been able to run away before we could even get there. they didn't take any money, just accessed to all the datas in the computers, opened a few lockers and stole some papers. what we are trying to figure out is why they did not actually steal anything, even if they could.

I caress my belly. "Hey baby. How are you doing in there? Hope you're feeling alright. Mommy misses daddy and is also freaking out with this case. What do you think? Am I going to solve it?".

I smile when I hear the door opening, and few seconds later my husband appear in the living room, two boxes of pizza in his hands.

"May I say I love you so much. You're my dream boy" I exclaim, standing up and leaning towards Jake to hug and kiss him.

"I know I'm your dream boy. You married me" he grins, leaving another kiss on my lips, "and I know you and little carrot would be hungry. So here there are pizzas, all for you".

Since we discovered we were having a baby, Jake had already found more than fifty nicknames to give our kids. The ones he uses the most are little carrot and little bean, but still he manages to pick every single things and create a nickname by it. This, however, melts my heart every single time.

"Thanks, daddy. Baby Peraltiago and me are really thankful for you" I say, picking the files and highliters from the counter and bringing them in our office as Jake lays the table.

"So, have you done some progress for that robbery case?" he asks once we're eating, one hand holding a slice of pizza and the other one on my lap. When Jake and I were almost enemies, I hated when we accidentally touched, but as time went by and we started getting closer and closer, he always make sure to reach my hand or place his on my lap, just as he want somehow to be sure that I'm there with him, but does he know there's no other place in the world I'd rather be than by his side.

"Not really, I highlited someone suspicious but I have to check their ID, the security cameras and also I should interrogate them. I'm going to check better after we finish eati..."

He interrupts me. "No more work for today. We can just chill on the couch, huh? I don't want you to stress out, Ames".

Something we both have in common is the stubborness when it comes to work. We both don't go to sleep if we haven't solved a case that has kept our mind off all the day, and sometimes we both stayed up until 4 am and ended up watching the dusk togerher, but this time I was just too tired, and also I had been throwing up all the morning, due to the pregnancy. "Okay, babe. What if you put on Die Hard and I clean the table?".

"Let me help you, alright?" he asks, giving me a smile before throwing the nipkins in the garbage.

Thirty minutes later I'm sitting on the couch, my head on Jake's chest as my arms are surrounding his waist. "This is definetely one of the best scene of the whole franchise. Bruce Willis was amazing" I say, pointing at the screen with my index finger.

"Mh-mh" he just says, nodding.

I pause the film, looking at him. "Hey hey hey... what's wrong with you? I literally complimented Die Hard and you just nodded your head. You okay, baby?".

"Sure... I was just thinking about something, you know... Nevermind. Let's just go back to the tv" he says, leaving a kiss on my lips.

"Jake? What were you thinking about? Is it some kind of paranoia? Jake, I know you're terrified, but we're going through it together, okay? You're going to be an amazing dad. Actually, you already are. The best of fathers".

He smiles at me. "No, it wasn't like that. I was just thinking about the kid's name. We've never really talked about it properly. We're going to find out the gender in a month, so...".

I start crying, and a worried look appears on Jake's face. "Oh no, sweetie, I'm so sorry. I didn't want to make you cry".

"Okay, what I'm going to say might sound really immature but... I've been waiting my whole life for this moment, you know? I've always wished that this day would come,and now it's finally here and I'm crying. It's pregnancy hormones fault, and I know this is silly but..."

"No it's not, Ames. This is amazing. All of this" he answers, gesturing with his hands as he points at the three of us. "You're making me the happiest, luckiest and most grateful man in the earth. How about I take paper and pens so we can make a list of names we like?".

I can't help but smile when I see him coming back with all the stuff we need. "So, Mrs Peralta, what are your suggestions for our babygirl's name?" he says as he lays down on the couch next to me, giving me my notebook and opening his just to write 'little Ames' in coursive as the title.

"Oh gosh babe I just got the best idea of all times! So, you know how i call them little carrot huh? What is the short version of carrots?" he almost screams, his eyes are brighting and he has a huge smile on his face. Seeing him happy gives me butterflies and a feeling of warmth that I could never explain. His smile just makes me feel like nothing bad can happens. Like the world is a better place with him on it.

"Mhmmm, I don't know. Maybe Carry?" I ask, raising my eyebrow.

"Exactly! We could call her Carrie, like Carrie from Sex And The City, and like the nickname we used to call her when she was in your belly!".

"Carrie Peralta-Santiago sounds like fire, honestly. Baby, you're so good at choosing names that you make me want to have a thousand of babies with you" I say, leaving a kiss on his lips, "and maybe we could save Emma for another kid, since I really like it".

"Hear me out: Carrie Emma Peralta-Santiago. Our kids are completely going to rock it!".

I run my hand through Jake's hair as he turns the page. "What? That's all? We're only picking two names?".

"So, here's the thing. I know it's going to be a boy. I just can feel it. Not that I care anyway, them being healthy it's the only thing that matters. But, it's going to be a boy. I'm sure" he exclaims, biting his lower lip, sign he's getting excited.

We both know we want our kids' health in the first place, but I know he wants a boy so hard and there's honestly nothing I'd love more than having two Jakes running across the house.

"What about Harry?" I propose, writing it down on the notebook page, "yeah, like Harry Potter".

"I really, really love it. And if we find something that we like more, we can always keep it for the next Peraltiago babies. We'll have a bunch of Ames and Jakes running across our home. Isn't this the cutest thing you've ever heard, baby?".

"Yes, it is. I literally can't wait. It makes me so happy that we're growing our family, Jake. And the most beautiful thing is that we'll stay together every day. I just love you so much. And I know you want a whole soccer team, but there's no chance we're going to have eleven kids. We're not Richie Rich or Scrooge McDuck".

"I love you too, baby, but yup.. We'll think about numbers later. We can negotiate".

"Sure, but I can bet I'll win. We're not going to have more than three kids. We could go for adoption, you know. Two and adoption" I suggest.

"I bet I can make you go for four. I'd say five, but there's always time for another baby. And the adoption idea is just amazing".

"That's awesome. But I'm for sure going to win".

"I don't think you will, Peralta" he says.

"Oh, we'll see, Santiago".

Using the other's surname is just a thing we started to do to compliment each other when we were eating our wedding cake, but it quickly scaled into a way to tease each other. This will forever be one of my favourite parts in being with Jake: we can act like grownups if we want to, still we manage to be flirty like teenagers and always challenge the other when we're just goofing around. Being with him has surely been the best choice of my life and now, as another human is taking part of our family, I couldn't be happier.

"I'd lie if I didn't say that this has turned me on a bit, but we have to keep doing this. Peraltiago five babies must have the coolest names in town because they have the best parents/genius".

I start laughing. "I knew for sure that this was going to get you turned on. But, anyway, you're right. So Harry is on the list for Peraltiago three babies' coolest names".

He rolls his eyes, turning his head to the television, He watches the screen, stopped on a John McLane frame, for few seconds before turning his head again towards me, and before he can even say anything, I've already figured out what he's about to say.

"McClane Peralta. So we can call him Mac, Like Mac and cheese" he exclaims, getting on his knees in front of me and smiling at me, "please, baby?".

I don't even try to hide the huge smile on my face as I lean towards him and kiss him. He holds me tight, trying to be careful with my baby belly, as his hands run all over my body, eventually stopping on my face. "This means yes, Ames? McClane Peralta-Santiago is it?".

"Yes, baby. Mac Peralta-Santiago, I love it".

Then, he leans towards my belly, placing kisses on it. "Hey, bud. This is daddy talking to you. How are you doing? I'm sure you're enjoying your best life. So yes, we planned some names for you, but I know for sure you're going to be a boy. Like, you're going to be whatever you want to, we'll support you no matter what - unless you decide to become a firefighter, we'd still love you but just don't do it, please - anyway, McClane Peralta is hands down my favourite one. What do you think, bud?" He asks waiting for an actual response, and it's just few seconds until I feel some pain on my stomach.

I hold onto Jake's arm as the movements repeats. "Babe, I think he just kicked. He's totally okay with being McClane Peralta".

Both mine and Jake's eyes are now full of happy tears, as we both place our hands on my belly and he keeps talking to it. "Hey Mac. It's daddy here - again. So it seems like you're enjoying your name, huh. I chose it. You're going to be an hero! but please do not hurt mummy, alright? also, we love you so much, we can't wait to hold you in our arms!"

My eyes begin to close as Jake keep talking to baby Mac, and in few minutes I'm almost asleep, still feeling Jake's right hand on mine, and the left one on my belly. And once again, I'm feeling the luckiest woman on the earth. I love this man with every single piece of me.

Chapter Text

I open my eyes slowly, yawning, and I immediately smile when I realise that Jake's sitting next to me on the little hospital bed. I look at him. My head is resting on his chest, his legs are dangling a bit out of the bed and our hands are placed one above the other.

I start overpanicking when I realise that Mac isn't with us. "Oh gosh. Where is Mac? Did they take him away? We're never going to see our baby again?".

I hear my husband's body moving, and few seconds later he's awake. "Goodmorning, mommy. They took Mac to check if he's okay. You know, the usual checkings they do when a baby is born".

I breathe, leaving a kiss on his lips. "Sorry babe. I didn't want to wake you up, but i was too worried".

"Ames, you just gave birth. You needed to rest, alright? Don't worry about anything".

"I know but..."

"It's okay. You fell asleep few minutes after they took Mac to give him a bath. They took him here for two minutes and I had just the time to kiss his forehead. I haven't held him yet".

"Aren't you tired? You did a full shift and twenty minutes later you had to bring us here. Want to sleep?"

"A bit. But I don't want to sleep. I want to be here when they bring Mac. It's worth it anyway".

"Are you sure? I can wake you up when they bring him here" I ask, but he just shakes his head. "Also, I want to spend some time with you. How are you feeling? Does it hurt?".

"When I was giving birth and I needed to push I said some really bad things about you. I also said that I wanted to cut your... you know, so you couldn't make me pregnant again. I didn't really mean it, but in that moment if I had the chance I would've killed you without thinking twice. Birth pains are the worsts".

He gasps. "Wow. I'm scared of you now. But I admire your strength. Women are so strong, and I wish everyone could understand it. I'm thankful for you all".

I smile. "I love you, detective Peralta. Thank you for taking time to find out more about women and femminism. I'm thankful for you too".

He leaves a kiss on my lips. "That's the bare minimum. My mum and you - and now Mac - are the most important people in my life. It would be such a shame for me not knowing and not learning more about the topic. Also, in our lives there are tons of women, like Rosa, Gina and Sharon, and one day maybe we'll have a daughter, and I would love to let her know that her dada's her first supporter. And we must teach Mac - and our future boys - how to love and respect women as much as we can".

"You're making me cry, again. You make me every day the luckiest person on earth. Thank you. That really means a lot to me, and I really hope our kids will look after you because you already are an amazing parent".

He rests his head on my shoulder. "I love you, Ames".

"I love you too, Jake. Oh, and I think I'm going to miss having a baby in my belly, you know. Just talking to him or feeling him kicking was just amazing. It made me feel so happier".

"We can already work on baby two if you want to. For the first months we can't, but we can practice. We can have a lot of babies. I'm not going to complain, I swear".

"We have to wait Mac to be at least one year old. Trust me, we don't want to have two infants with few months age gap running around the house".

"You're probably right, But you know what's the best? The sex is back!" he smiles, excited, "I'm never letting you go again!".

I shake my head, laughing a bit. "We must be quiet from now. Like, really, really quiet".

"Do you remember that time we were with the whole crew out of the town for a seminary? The walls were so thin that we could hear Boyle's sneezing and Terry whispering while he was talking to Sharon. Still I remember that we had six times of real fun" he smirks, "And nobody noticed".

"Well, Charles actually did. Oh, and Rosa did too. She said that she would've hated us for the rest of our lives, and she actually didn't speak to us for a week or so".

"Yeah, but that was because you said that you were really tired and that you went to bed late because you were 'training' and then you blushed. We are detectives, but even if we weren't, it wouldn't be hard to find out".

Suddenly, we hear the door opening, and a nurse comes in, holding Mac in her arms. "Look who's back" she whispers, heading him to us, "he's a very strong little boy. Every paramater is perfect. Also, some of your friends are here, so when you want you can let them come in".

"Thank you" jake answered, taking our newborn and palcing him on his arms holding him as clos as possible, while she leaves the room, closing quietly the door.

"Hey, Mac. I'm daddy. Do you remember me? I used to talk a lot to you when you were in mommy's belly, and you used to kick. Now you can't kick anymore so I just hope you'll answer me at least. So, my name is Jake Peralta. I'm an handsmone, smart and cute detective. Actually, Brooklyn would be taken by a ship of pirates if it wasn't for me. I'm going to cuddle you a lot, and we'll do all the things fathers and sons do. I don't know how it works, but I can promise you I'm going to do my best. Mommy and you are the most beautiful thing that happened in my life. I'm so lucky to have you both. I love you" he whispers to the half-asleep baby.

I can't help but smile at that beautiful scenario. Jake's hand is holding his little head, some happy tears falling down his cheeks whilst he softly speaks to him. For my whole life I planned to marry, grow a family and live forever happily, and before I dated Jake I even thought that I would be alone forever, but little did I know that five years later I'd be staring at the man who once was my enemy and our son feeling the happiest I had ever been in my whole life.

"We made it, Ames. We made the world hottest baby.I'm not surprised, though. We are his parents, he had to be this amazing! Look at his beautiful eyes, and his cheeks" he whispers, caressing his right one with his finger, "His little hands" he takes Mac's in his, placing a kiss on them, "and his feet. Look, they both can fit in my hand".

"I think I need to call a lawyer" I exclaim after looking at Mac for some minutes. Jake suddenly stops making silly faces at our son, looking at me with a scared look on his face as he pales. "I have to sue you. This baby looks exactly like you. It's not fair. I'm not even sure that I gave birth to him!".

He breathes a sigh of relief. "Okay, first of all, never do that again. You scared me so much. Second, he's a newborn. Most of newborns look like hams with eyes and hands".

I start laughing, shaking my head. "Yes, but he does really look like you. Look, he has your traits. We'll see it as days pass, but I can bet that he'll be a mini Jake".

"Deal. We'll see. Since we'll have a lot of babies, at least one of them will look more like me or you. What I mean is that they're going to be beautiful and kind and will help people when they need it because we're going to teach them to be kind".

"I love you. So much. We've really come a long way since that fake date, aren't we?".

"Best journey of my life. That's all I could ever ask for, even though we're going to have several months of changing diapeses and waking up in the middle of the night. I can't believe we made such a perfect baby. He came from us! That's amazing!".

"I know right! It's so beautiful to think that we gave life to another human".

I leave a kiss on Mac's forehead. "What do you think, can we let the others come in?".

"Yeah, I think Charles is probably freaking out, and Rosa will start punching him soon. Terry is crying and captain Holt is searching on google what kind of philosofical advice he can give to a newborn. Gina is tweeting something about being the coolest aunt of all the times and if Hitchhcok and Scully are here they're probably sleeping".

"Wow. We really know them well. They're our family".

"They really are, Ames. Oh, and probably Hitchock still thinks that he will get to date you one day".

"Yup. But wasn't he married? Or had a girlfriend?".

"I can never figure it out. But he'll be in love with you forever".

Our talking is interrupted by some knocks on the door, followed by Rosa's voice. "Hey, parents. It' us. Mind if we come in?".

"Sure! Meet the most beautiful baby in the world".

As Jake says that, the whole Nine-Nine is in the room, surrounding us, Charles crying while he holds three shop bags full of dresses and toys.

"So, guys, we need to know now. What's his name?" Rosa speaks after everyone had congratuleted and hugged us. When we decided what the names would be, even before finsing out the gender, we decided to keep it a secret. It was one of the funniest things ever seeing our friends freaking out because they wanted to know it, and what was even funnier was that they even bet on which name we would've chosen. Charles and Gina went for their names, Terry and Rosa went for John - they were close - or Hermione, Holt and Kevin went for Friedrich - like Nietzche - and Hitchcok and Scully chose Chair.

"Let me introduce you Mac Peralta-Santiago. Short for McClane, like John McClane".

Terry and Rosa screams in excitment before hugging each other. "We won!" Our eyes widen. "If you tell anyone that I hugged Terry I'll hurt you. I'm not going to say how, though. My favourtie nephew is here and I don't want to scare him".

As that being said, everyone laughed. And I know for sure that this moment is going to be one of my best memories ever, because I'm surrounded by all the people I love.

Chapter Text

I breathe a sight of relief. Today was a really tough day at work, and even when I finished my shift I had so much left to do that I decided to bring home some folders and complete some paperwork. Luckly, Jake went to take Mac from daycare, and they've been playing for all the afternoon now. They went out to take ice-cream at first, so that I could have the house all for me, then they played soccer in the garden, and then again they decided they were too tired, so now they were playing in Mac's room.

After I put all the files away, I decide to get up and reach my favourites boys ever. I stand on the doorstep, watching them playing. Mac and Jake are sitting on the floor, my husband's hand on Mac's back to keep him from falling, and they're both holding two figures who run around a lego building, which probably is a police precinct.

"Detective Peralta, did you take the perps?" Mac asks in a fake low voice, moving his figure with his little hands.

"Yes, Captain Peralta. We took all of them. We are the greatest team in the town, aren't we?" Jake answered, placing the mini police detective on the ground before giving our three-year old a high five.

When we found out that I was pregnant, Jake started panicking a little too much. He was afraid that he wouldn't be able to be a father, and I often found him awake in the early mornings thinking about it. Instead, since the day Mac was born, he had been the best of fathers. Mac was definitely a mommy's boy, but he would always look up to his dad, who -according to him- was the coolest superhero in town. Mac is Jake's exact copy, from his facial traits and his curls to the kindness and pureness that there is in him, and everytime that Jake isn't around each of Mac's attitude remind me of him.

"I'm so proud of you that I'm going to give you a promotion, Detective. You've now made it to sergeant" Mac exclaims proudly, looking at his father with heart eyes.

Before he could even respond, I sneeze, and both of them turn to me, immediately smiling. Mac runs towards me, and I get down to take him. "Mommy! I've missed you so much! Are you done with your work? Can we play all together?".

"Sure thing, bud. Let me see what you and daddy were doing".

I leave him down. "Here, come with me. That is our precinct, this is daddy, this is me... and look, that could be you!" he points a female figure, taking it from a low shelf and giving it to me.

"Thank you, honey" I leave a kiss on his forehead, reaching Jake on the floor. He gives me a soft look before placing his hands on my belly.

"How are my girls doing? Did Emma kick today?" he asks, as Mac sits again on his lap.

"Just once. She has been sleeping all day. Just as her dad does when he can".

"Hey, that's not true! I barely get seven hours of sleep!".

"You're unbelievable. You even fell asleep on Mac's little chair once!".

"Mommy is right. And when I woke you up you were disappointed".

"Honey, doesn't daddy look like Sleepy from Snow-white?".

"Yup! He really does. He just needs a hat".

"Ah ah ah. You're both so funny".

Mac laughs. "Mommy, daddy, can i ask you something? Are we going to play even with Emma when she will be here?".

"You don't even have to worry about that. You know, Mac, newborns need some more attentions, just as you did when you were one of them, but we will always have time to play with you" I say, and Jake places a kiss on his cheek, saying something else, "plus, you're a big boy now. You can help us if you want to, and Emma will love you so much that will always want to play with you".

"I can't wait to play with her neither. I'm going to show her all my toys, so we can play with both mine and hers" he says, then he comes near to me, sitting on the floor to face my belly. "Hey little sister, come soon, please. We can't wait to meet you".

Then, he places a kiss on it, smiling at me and Jake and then hugging the two of us. "You're the best parents ever".

And not gonna lie, i know that this is a moment none of us will ever forget. I look at my husband, and happy tears are in our eyes as we keep hugging our son, holding him as close as we can.

Jake wipes away the tears from his face and mine, and then starts talking. Mac sits again on his lap.

"What about we keep playing? We have to take some perps and mummy is the best at it".

"You're right, daddy. Lieutenant Santiago, we're looking for two men with long beards. They stole some jewellery from a shop, and we have to catch them. I know you can help us. I trust you" he says, moving his figure.

"I won't let you down, captain. I promise. First of all, let's check all the security cameras in that zone".

Suddenly, all the memories come back to my mind. To the day when it all started, when Jake took the secret camera from that teddy bear and solved the case, earning an extra point that made him a little bit closer to winning the bet.
We've come a long way from the beginning, and thinking about everything that has happened between Jake and me since then makes me want to cry. We went from always teasing each other up to being secretly jealous, from admitting our feelings to our friends to having heart eyes, and from that fake Johnny and Dora whole thing to being married, having a son and waiting for our second one. None of us thought that we would end up together, but now here we are, and I could never be thankful enough for Jake. This man is the truly blessing of my life. He's my soulmate, my best friend, my lover, my husband, my first supporter and someone I incredibly look up to, and there aren't enough words in this world that can make me explain how much I love him – and yes, I counted them.

"Whatever you'll say. You'll have everything you need before this evening, Santiago. Peralta, go and talk to Mrs Tiffany, the owner of the shop. You are now dismissed" he stops talking, looking at us, "did my voice sound at least a tiny tiny bit like grandpa's Holt one?".

"Yes, honey. Hear me out: we can go visit grandpa Holt and grandpa Kevin on the weekend, so you can make them hear how amazing you are at sounding like him".

"That would be amazing, daddy! Thank you. But now, we have to go back to work".

***

When Jake and I are waken up by a loud crying, the clock on my nightstand signals two in the morning, meaning that we had been sleeping for four hours now after we made Mac go to sleep. We both immediately run into his room, just to find him crying and shaking on the edge of his bed. I immediately take him on my arms, leaving soft kisses on his head.

Jake rubs his back, wiping away some tears from his face in an effort to calm him down. "Hey hey hey, it's okay. Don't worry. We are here now. Mommy and daddy are here now, and we won't leave you alone".

Jake takes Mac into his arms, and I go to the kitchen to bring him a glass of water. When I come back I carefully hand it to him, and after he drinks it slowly, Jake and I exchange a quick look before we both head to our bedroom. Some nights Mac kicked so hard that Jake used to talk to him just to make him calm down, and when those moments happened we mostly stayed up and talked about futures inconveniences. One of those were - obviously - nightmares. We had both decided that whenever our kids would be getting nightmares, we would have let them sleep with us. Surely, as time will pass by and they will get taller and bigger, we will both regret this decision, but for now everytime we have the possibilities to be all together, they're just the best nights ever.

"I had a nightmare" he whispers, hiding his face on my husband's neck, "I'm afraid".

He starts sobbing again. I leave a kiss on his forehead. "Oh, honey. You don't have to worry about anything. We are here, alright? It's all just a bad memory".

"Mac", Jake calls in a soft voice, and the three years old boy immediately look at his dad, "Would you like to tell mommy and daddy what happened in the nightmare? We can go through it together".

He nods in response. "I dreamt that Emma was born. She was beautiful. Everyone came to see her. Uncle Charles, auntie Ro, grandpa Holt and grandpa Kevin. Oh, even that weird perp daddy and aunt Ro always talk about. The one who likes cars".

"Doug Joudy" we both exclaim before laughing. "Go on, sweetiee".

"They were so happy, and so did you. You held her very tight. But you forgot about me. I was in the room, and I called for you, but you never answered nor looked at me. Then I came closer to you" he stops, large tears falling from his eyes as sad noises come from his mouth. I can see Jake's sadness in his face, while we both are hugging him as tight as ever.

"I... I hugged daddy... but he said that he would never love me as much as he loved her and that I had to stop wanting to play with him" he struggles to find the right words in between the sobs, leaving both me and Jake are speachless.

"Baby, are you jealous of your sister?" I ask, afraid of what I might get in response. What if he doesn't want siblings anymore? What if he hates us now?

"No, I'm not. I can't wait to meet her".

"There's something else you afraid of, maybe?".

"A bit. I'm afraid that you won't have time for me once she's here".

"We could never not have time for you. There won't be a favourite child. We will love you equally, and if one day our family should grow even bigger, we would still have time for each of you. We love you, Mac. And we will love you forever".

"Is it too bad to be scared of something?".

"No honey, of course it's not. People have some fears, and it's totally normal. Fearing something doesn't mean that you're braveless or that we will love you less".

"Mommy, do you and daddy also have fears?".

"Sure we do, champ. Everyone does. But when we're scared of something, we always talk to each other about it. Telling people how you feel makes you also feel better. Isn't mommy the strongest person you know?"" Jake exclaims, running his fingers through our kid's brown curls - not that we had any doubts, but he's definitely his son .

"Yup, she is, and you are too, daddy. You both are superheroes!".

He gives Mac a soft smile. "But we have fears too. Mommy is afraid of darknes and spiders, and I'm afraid of not being able to protect the people I care about. But don't you still love us a lot? Mommy is a wonderful lieutenant and I'm a pretty good cop, even if we have fears".

"Thank you, daddy. I love you. Oh, and mommy is right. Spiders are terrifying".

Jake rolls his eyes. "Sure. Now, what if you try to sleep again? You can stay here with mum and dad. We'll hug you until you fall asleep, and tomorrow i'll make pancakes. Sounds good?".

"Yup. Thank you".

Both me and Jake lay on our hips, Mac slowly falling asleep in between us, holding our hands. I leave a kiss on his forehead.

When I thought about having a family, i would never have imagined the amount of joy and happiness i would have felt. It's a feeling that I could never explain, and that nobody can understand if they haven't been through the same thing. But now here we are, all together, and blame it on pregnancy hormones, i feel like i'm going to a start crying like a fool.

"You okay, Ames?".

"Yes, baby. I'm just overwhelmed by the love I receive everyday. Thanks for being part of my life" I whisper, careful to not wake Mac up.

"I love you. And you deserve all the love in the world".

"Oh please stop or I'm going to cry".

"I got it. Can you believe Mac's afraid of spiders?".

"Well, spiders are, as a matter of fact, terryfing".

Jake scoffs. "Yup. Such your genes, Santiago".

I can't help but smile. "Shut up, Peralta. He looks exactly like you. Let me have this one. Sure, I'd prefer that he had gotten something else from me, but whatever".

"Luckily he has your nose. Oh, and he's as smart as you are. And he's super organised. Just like you are. So yeah, you can't really complain".

"We both know well he's a mini Jake. At least, he's going to be a beautiful and kind man".

He smiles, looking at me. "I love you, Ames. But now you should really try to sleep, huh? You worked a lot today, and I guess you're really tired".

I yawn. "Just a bit. But I can stay awake, if you can't fall asleep".

"It's okay, honey. Goodnight, baby. Sleep well".

"Goodnight, love". I close my eyes, feeling Jake's hands playing with my hair.

Chapter Text

That warm morning of October, Jake and Amy were even happier than the usual. That day had left a mark on their hearts each year they had lived together, and especially since it remembered them of the night Jake had proposed to Amy.

Both of them smiled widely at the mention of it and how at that time they didn't know yet how much their life would have changed in the span of two years. To that day, Terry was captain, Rosa was sergeant – Amy still remembers how shocked she was when she read that her best friend had succeeded in an exam no one know she was going to make – , but most important of all, the Peraltiagos had had a baby boy,

His name was Mac Peralta – short for McClane, of course – and Amy had given birth to him earlier that April, regardless those weirds events of that day. Jake didn’t know how it was possible to love a little human that much, and although he was still scared of dropping him out when the baby was in his arms, Amy spent every minute of her day acknowledging how amazing of a father her husband was.

Jake was a ray of sunshine walking on earth since Mac’s arrive. He sang him to sleep, he read him bed time stories – not that Mac understood very much, though – he even told him the plot of Die Hard to make him sleep, and he succeeded, very much to Amy’s dismiss.

McClane was only seven months old, and that meant that the new parents had given up on a lot of sleep, but they had been together through the whole journey. When Mac made them stay awake all the night, when he started crying whenever someone would put him to bed and not hold him into their arms, when Jake was too scared that he would’ve become just like his dad and stared at the ceiling while Amy reassured him, the two detectives were always by each other’s side.

And that morning, the 31st October, marked McClane Peralta’s first Halloween. Amy had bought him a ghost costume – which was more like a white trench coat – and Jake had asked a friend of his to make a little belt with the ‘best son / genius in the world’ incision on it, and both of them were really proud of their purchases.

However, the happiness didn’t last long, because they soon remembered how one of them would’ve been forced to skip the Halloween Heist to look after Mac. Amy’s parents were away on holiday with her older brother, Jake’s parents were invited to a wedding, and all of their friends were busy with the Heist. So that left just the two of them.

“Amy, you can go. I’ll stay with Mac, it doesn’t matter. I’m thrilled to show him pumpkins and see his costume, I couldn’t ask for anything better,” Jake exclaimed, gesturing with his hand while his wife fed their baby, “Plus, we don’t know if next year you’ll be able to take part on the Heist”.

A frown appeared on Amy’s face, “What do you mean?”.

“Don’t get me wrong, but I thought that maybe, if you want, but really don’t pay attention to my words, another baby could be in the way for next year Halloween Heist, and alright I really need to stop”, her husband answered, uncomfortably stretching the back of his neck when he saw Amy’s surprised gaze.

“Jake, calm down,” Amy said, stopping his flow of words with a kiss, “I never thought that you’d want a second child, that’s it”.

“Yeah, I know we’ve spent the last time changing diapers and barely getting two hours of sleep so we didn’t really think about doing it all over again, but I’ve been thinking of it for a while. I really like the process to make babies,” he giggled, his hands firmly on Amy’s waist while he waits for a response.

Amy’s smile grew wider, and she placed kisses pretty everywhere on Jake’s face. “Yes, I’m so into it. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with me”.

“I want to share every single thought in my head with you for the rest of our lives. I love you”.

“I do too, but really, Jake we have to talk about tonight. I don’t want to go either; we can just spend the evening watching scary movies on the couch and call it a night”.

“Are you sure?”.

“Yes, baby. Don’t worry. I’m too tired to run around and make enormous plans, Let’s just call Rosa and tell her we’re not coming, shall we?”.

Five minutes later, after cleaning the table where Mac had thrown a small part of his food, the woman was waiting for her best friend to pick up the phone. She watched from afar Jake playing with their baby on the floor, memories running through her head that she almost didn’t notice when Rosa answered the call.

“Hello, Santiago. You ready to be defeated?”, she asked, and Amy could swear she was holding a giggle, “poor thing, you’re not going to win this year either”.

“None of this, Rosa. We’re not coming, we both want to stay with Mac on his first Halloween. I called to inform you. Can you tell Captain Holt?”.

“Oh, alright. Don’t worry, he will know as soon as he gets here. Give my godson a kiss from me, will you?”.

“Rosa, we still haven’t decided if…”

“Ops, Santiago. They’re calling me. Too bad I couldn’t hear what you just said. I’ll see you later!”.

***

It was around six in the afternoon when Jake and Amy had an idea. It crossed their minds while they were watching reruns of Sam the firefighter – to Jake’s dismiss – that maybe they could go to the precinct and support their friends’ race whether they participated or not.

And exactly a hour later, they were inside the briefing room, surprise by their friends’ action. Everyone ran all over the place because apparently the crown had gotten lost, and the room was filled with chaos and muttering.

“Jake, Amy, my favourite couple!” Charles shouted, making quite an entrance. "I thought you weren't going to come today?".

"We weren't but Mac," Jake said, pointing at his son who was now crawling around the room, "wanted to see his uncles and aunts. So, what's going on? How are the teams settled?".

"We have me, Terry and Gina in one and Diaz, Holt, Hitchcock and Scully on the other, but no one seems to find the prize, so the whole thing is kinda paused for the moment. Scully had it bu the fell asleep out of nowhere and we are trying to connect the dots".

"Wow, captain dad must be really hopeless to choose Hitchcock and Scully on his team. I'm impressed" Jake stated, observing how Mac was trying to catch something.

"He is, with both of you out of the business. He had no choice".

Everyone gasped when they heard a loud noise, and it took Amy and Jake few seconds to understsnd that it came from their son.

Indeed, McClane was wearing the fake golden crown on his head, who fell a tiny bit on one of his head's side, making him adjust it with his little hands, laughin whenever it obstructed his view.

That wasn't only Jake and Amy's proposal day, because from that day on, it would have been Mac's first Heist, marking him as a winner, and each year the boy would've loved more and morre taking part in it, challenging the people he loved the most in the world, and later in the years, both his brother and sister, who would enjoy that day as much as him.