Alice yawned and stretched, extending her legs out in front of her in the waiting room of Summerland's local hospital. It was nearing midnight, and so far they had heard no news of her mother's progress for the last hour or so. It was raining outside, and for a while Alice watched the weather from the window until Magnus drew her attention by speaking. "I thought after the waters broke the thing was meant to pop out." He muttered from where he was sitting down next to Alice, evidently tired and grumpy. He was slouched in his seat and had his arms folded, legs outstretched too.

"I think it's different for different women." Alice replied softly, turning around in her seat to face the front then trying to lean her elbow on the arm rest and cradle her head in her palm so she could doze off, but the position was too uncomfortable. The hospital waiting room on the maternity floor smelt like disinfectant and old coffee, and it was quiet apart from the soft murmuring of a few other families talking amongst themselves. The pair watched as a father hurried into view from around the corner dressed in scrubs, obviously overjoyed and enthusiastic,

"It's a boy!" He gasped loudly, approaching a small gathering of people in a rush that seemed to swarm him as he got closer, and Alice and Magnus watched quietly as coo's and congratulatory cheers and applause filled room.

"It's a boy!"Magnus mimicked quietly and chuckled to himself as Alice thumped his chest softly.

"Why don't you go find something to eat?" Alice suggested, not wanting to suggest that he could go home since she wanted him to stay with her. She enjoyed his company a lot, and gave in to her greediness with no shame.

"Alright." Magnus agreed with a sigh, aware that his stomach felt empty now that a few hours since their date had passed. "Do you want anything?"

"Just a snack, please." She replied with a smile, and Magnus stood up and dusted off his hands before walking off. Alice watched a female nurse eye him in subtle shock and awe as he passed, and she smiled to herself, feeling pleased and a little giddy as she remembered the sound of his voice as he'd told her he loved her just earlier that afternoon. She could still feel his lips brushing against hers as he spoke, and felt her cheeks warm intently.

She patted her cheek softly as if to calm her blush, before deciding to stand up and stretch her legs. She wandered a few steps away from her chair with her arms folded and let her mind wander further away from her... a few minutes passed before she checked the clock again, noticing the time slip passed whilst bearing no news. Was her mother okay? Was something wrong? She didn't know, and all she could do was wait since there seemed to be no one around she could ask. It was only as she stood in the hall by the open waiting room, that was more like just a space with some chairs and a water machine, that she noticed a man walk up to the reception out the corner of her eye. She looked over, seeing Richard about to be shown the way to where he would probably be able to find Sophie. "Dad?" She asked, causing him to look over. He looked worried and full of regret, and Alice felt guilt wash over her a little as she walked towards him carefully.

He asked the nurse to wait just a moment and turned towards Alice again, closing the distance between them and sighing quietly. "I know you probably don't want me here-"

"It's not about me." Alice replied, as she noticed Magnus round the corner behind Richard, with snacks in his hands, and stop. They made eye contact for a second before she subtly shook her head, since he had made a face as if he was ready for a confrontation. Richard saw and looked over his shoulder, noticing Magnus and visibly tensed before looking back to Alice.

"I know what he thinks." Richard said and sighed again.

"He's protective," Alice muttered, "What took you so long? Mom's been in labour for hours." She continued, feeling judgemental but she felt her consciousness remind her that she was birthing another man's baby. The man who she wanted to leave him for, but was now dead. "And where's Charlotte?"

"I dropped her off at a friends a few hours ago. She was conveniently out of the room when your mother went into labour but she knows what's going on now." Richard explained, avoiding the previous questions. "I said I'd pick her up tomorrow."

"Okay." Alice breathed, reaching up to tuck some hair behind her ear as she noticed Magnus slowly walking over. "You should go see her."

"I will- I am." Richard murmured, and he heard the nurse clear her throat since she had been waiting to show him the way. "I'll keep you updated." He then said, deciding that returning to a parental role would be the best foot to put forward now. "You and Magnus should head home... get some rest." He added just as Magnus neared and Richard turned around. They made eye contact and Magnus didn't smile, he barely had an expression on his face as he stared. Richard looked away first and walked off, following the nurse who took him to where Sophie was.

"Took him a minute." Magnus muttered judgementally as he stood in front of Alice now with chocolate and sandwiches in his arms, they were both watching Richard walk behind the nurse and disappear around the corner.

"He's had a kick to his ego, Mags." Alice reasoned, "I'm sure you wouldn't rush to your wife's side if she was having another mans child and wanted to divorce you."

"You're right, I wouldn't." He replied honestly as they walked to sit back down and Alice thanked him softly for the snacks and took some from his hands so he didn't have to hold them all. "I'd throw her out on her ass, she belongs to the streets now."

"I don't know whose side we're on." Alice sighed heavily as she opened a packet of reese's pieces and nibbled on the edge of the peanut butter snack.

"I'm on the side of chaos." Magnus smiled, glancing at Alice, who glanced back, before they both noticed a doctor approach a family just across the ward. It looked like she was delivering bad news, and the collective disappointed and sad faces that now rippled through the gathering she was talking to confirmed that. "It's more entertaining that way." Magnus added in a lower voice, as if the void was speaking through him whilst they both stared at the collection of sadness, and they watched a few of them cry as others tried to comfort. Magnus imagined what had happened as Alice returned to minding her businesses, now offering her boyfriend a reese's pieces from her open packet. He took it and carefully bit it in half, annoying Alice since that wasn't the correct way, she felt, it should be eaten.

"And no one would cheat on me anyway." Magnus then said after a few moments of silence as Alice ate some more of her snacks.

"Well... Veronica did sleep with that Jasper, Andrew, guy behind your back." Alice reminded him and he chuckled,

"Veronica was not my girlfriend, that doesn't count." He smirked,

"She thought she was. And it didn't hurt you in any way?" Alice asked, genuinely wondering. "Like... that she was like going behind your back?"

"I didn't give one single fuck about Veronica, so why would it?" He smirked, "She belonged-"

"-To the streets, I get it." Alice giggled, opening another reeses pieces and nibbling at the edges... The pair continued to wait as the collection of minutes ticked by and after a while, Alice ended up falling asleep on Magnus's shoulder. He held her head still, by placing his hand on her jaw, and just let his eyes scan and wander the ward to see what was happening to pass the time. He was tired, but could stay awake easily since his mind was too active to shut down because of the environment. There was too much going on, even at such an off peak time... and as he watched an excited gathering of people arrive and hurry down a hallway with balloons and presents to greet a new baby, he wondered if he'd ever be back here or somewhere similar, having people rush with balloons and cards to him and... he didn't want to think her name in case he jinxed it, then smirked at his own thoughts before he glanced down at Alice, unable to really see her face because of the angle, but just stared at her hair as the the rain from outdoors pattered lightly against the window behind him.

She jumped suddenly, and gasped herself awake, now sitting up as Magnus retreated his hand and raised an eyebrow. "Oh my god." She breathed, "I just dreamt I crashed a car."

"You can't even drive," Magnus murmured, as Alice placed her hand on her chest and exhaled deeply.

"That's why I crashed," she replied, releasing a soft laugh as she reached for a bottle of water by her feet to take a sip. Magnus smirked before he noticed movement out the corner of his eye and looked up, noticing a doctor approaching them and looking a little cautious. He sat up a little straighter as Alice looked up too whilst screwing the lid back on the bottle.

"Are you Alice?" The doctor asked and Alice nodded, "Would you like to come meet your new sister?" She asked and smiled happily,

"Oh, it's a girl?" She gasped softly, "Right. Of course," Alice breathed in a rush, feeling a little disconnected from the situation and stood up, dusting her free hand off on her lap as if she had something on it. "Are you coming?" Alice asked, turning to Magnus who had stayed seated.

"You want me to come?" He asked and Alice nodded, smiling now as the doctor waited for them a few metres away. He stood up, not questioning her again because her expression made her look certain. They linked their hands as they walked, following the doctor away from the waiting room and down a hall, making a turn to the left before coming to a door with a number above it. Alice stared at it, feeling a mixture of nerves, excitement and reluctance... she was about to meet the daughter of the man she murdered, who was also her half sister, and Magnus could see what she was thinking all over her face. He nudged her, since she hadn't noticed the doctor open the door and wait for her to walk in.

"Oh." Alice murmured, apologising softly and stepping forward... gripping the water bottle and Magnus's hand tightly... The room smelt clean, and she didn't know why she expected to smell blood. It was bright and pale, and the window beside the bed was covered with a cream curtain. "Is it okay if Magnus..." she began, with her gaze finally landing on her mother who was holding a small mass wrapped in a white blanket. Her gaze then landed on Richard,who was sat on a chair next to the bed with an expression laced with too many emotions to count. There was so much in the room that wasn't being said, and Alice could see the words hanging in the air like a baby's mobile, rotating for them all to see, but no one commented on it.

"Sure." Sophie breathed, looking slightly exhausted. She was pink in the cheeks, her hair a little messy, Alice seemed to forget her mother's hair was long and blonde just like hers, considering she always had it up in a bun, but it was down and laying across her shoulders with whips curling upwards around her face... She was smiling even though her eyes looked watery and tired. Alice felt Magnus nudge the small of her back again and she inhaled deeply, taking a step forward and moving cautiously towards the hospital bed. Sophie watched Alice carefully, and inhaled deeply as she got closer and peered over her mother's arm to look at the new born. She had wisps of faint blonde hair, and Alice raised her eyebrows in slight surprise. "They said it might turn be darker once she grows up a bit." Sophie murmured, "Like Charlotte's hair." She added. Alice's was the only one who's hair had stayed vibrantly blonde, considering both her biological parents were blonde too. Charlotte's was slowly turning brown as the years passed, and was more like a mousy blonde now.

"Oh," Alice breathed, looking down at the baby intently... her cheeks were rosy, and she had such soft looking skin that the little smile couldn't stop itself from appearing on Alice's lips. "She's so small," she said quietly, reaching forward to softly move the blanket away from the baby's face and smiled more as she stirred. "Sorry." She whispered, removing her hand. Her eyes were closed before, but she opened them, revealing the blue irises and looked up at Alice intently.

"It's okay," Sophie replied, speaking softly too as she looked down at her baby. "Her name is Olivia." She continued, looking towards Alice now, and then at Magnus who was waiting by the edge of the room with his hands in his pockets.

"That's a pretty name." Alice smiled, feeling the little beams of happiness break through the worry of meeting her new little sister.

"Come and say hi, Magnus." Sophie said kindly, considering he'd been the one to carry her to the car and drive her to hospital. His actions were surprising, and she was still wary but wanted to maybe, somehow, show him that she wasn't entirely scared of him anymore. He seemed to care for Alice a lot, and she had grown to respect that quickly. She watched as he lent away from the wall and moved over, coming to stand next to Alice and look down at the baby over her shoulder... his expression didn't really change, although he looked curious...

He didn't really feel anything as he looked down at Alice's new baby sister, she made a gurgling noises as she looked at him and then closed her eyes to sleep as they all watched. A nurse politely and quietly knocked on the door, tactfully motioning for Richard to follow her as if something had been organised that Alice and Magnus didn't know about. "What's going on?" Alice asked after Richard had left and the door had closed.

"He asked for a paternity test," Sophie said quietly, knowing that once this day was over she would have to face reality... she would have to face her grief and mourn Peter Green alone, and possibly go through a divorce whilst that's all going on.

"Oh." Alice replied lightly, looking up at Magnus who looked from the baby to her and said nothing. In that moment they both thought the same thing, thinking back to how her mother had said she didn't want the baby just a few hours ago... Alice was aware childbirth could be incredibly painful so maybe it was something that she'd just said because of the emotional and physical pain she was in, but the words and what they could've meant still lingered in the air. But Alice smiled, putting those thoughts to one side and turning back to look at the baby, just as another nurse came in with a friendly smile.

"We'll all have lots of time to coo over baby everyone, but now it's time for mom to rest," she smiled, her friendly happy-go-lucky attitude seeming to irritate Magnus but he kept his face blank, without thinking he placed his hand on Alice's back and she glanced up at him, reading his silence and assuming that he probably wanted to leave.

"You guys head home, we'll call you later." Sophie said as Olivia was gently taken from her arms and placed in a cot to the side of the room, she gurgled and fussed quietly but as the nurse put her down she went silent again.

"Okay," Alice agreed, seeing those unspoken words hanging in the air again but she decided not to acknowledge them. "Congratulations, Mom." She smiled, and they hugged softly before both her and Magnus left the room and made their way out the hospital close to two in the morning. "Are you going to stay over or head home?" Alice asked as Magnus unlocked his car and Alice pulled at the handle of the passenger side door and climbed in.

"Stay over," Magnus murmured, stifling a yawn as he climbed into the drivers side. It was quiet as they drove back to Alice's house, the radio wasn't on and it was lightly raining still. The wipers only occasionally waved themselves across the windscreen as Magnus's headlights illuminated the roads as they drove a little out of the centre of town and towards Alice's small little country road neighbourhood. He closed the gate at the end of their drive behind them, and climbed back into the car to drive the rest of the way as Alice sat quietly.

They unlocked the front door, ignored the sound of the security system alerting them to it opening and kicked off their shoes before heading upstairs without turning any lights on. "What a night." Alice sighed, running a hand through her hair as she turned her bedside lamp on and sat down on the edge of her bed to take her socks off and fold them. Magnus wandered into the bathroom to brush his teeth as Alice undressed and got dressed into her pyjamas then joined him to take off her make up.

Magnus watched her in the reflection of the mirror as she sleepily used some kind of wax make up remover that came from a tub, and rubbed it across her skin with her fingertips after washing her hands. Her make up seemed to melt off, then she washed her face with a cream cleanser to make sure it was all gone. He'd finished brushing his teeth and ended up leaning against the counter to witness Alice get un-ready. "Stop staring at me," Alice mumbled, aware she looked slightly like a clown in the midst of a make up malfunction during the process but it was necessary for her to complete skin care routine every night.

"Why?" Magnus smirked, his arms folded now as Alice started wiping her face with a wet wipe.

"You're making me self conscious," Alice replied and pushed him away softly with her left hand. He didn't budge, and instead smiled more. "Do you not have a skin care routine?"

"I do, but I just forget to do it sometimes." Magnus's shrugged, and Alice smirked a little. She threw away her own wet wipe before taking another, and she climbed up onto the counter and motioned Magnus to stand in front of her. He sighed but did what she wanted, placing his hands on the counter either side of her knees and letting her cleanse his face.

"You have such nice skin." Alice murmured softly, "I hate you." She added, since it was soft too with barely any blemishes. Magnus chuckled quietly, enjoying the praise as Alice wiped the wet wipe across his cheeks and forehead then down across his jaw in gentle sweeping movements. He closed his eyes, finding it strangely relaxing as she cupped his jaw then repeated the gentle sweeping movements. She stopped after a few seconds, and quietly whispered for him not to move so he stayed still, moving to place his hands on her thighs this time. Her skin was warm under his palms and he sighed quietly, only to feel like Alice was wiping a wet cotton pad across his face now.

"What is that?" He asked in a low voice.

"Toner." She whispered, and he hummed softly and let her carry on. He kept his eyes closed, following her movements with his mind since all his thoughts had almost quietened down to pay attention to her. She stopped again, and he stayed still until he felt her smoothing a cream across his cheeks... he didn't need to ask what it was since it was obvious, and simply enjoyed the circular motions Alice was using with her fingertips to rub it in. "All done." She said softly, and he could hear the smile in her voice before he opened his eyes.

"Am I glowing?" He asked as they made eye contact and Alice laughed and cupped his cheeks affectionately.