A/N: What's said in Spanish will be in italics and what's said in Italian will have a (*)

Mariana was up and ready the next morning. She was dressed for work in a black pencil skirt, a white shirt, and a black blazer 1and tied her hair into a neat bun. She picked up her heart necklace, which rested on her chest, and gave it a little kiss, just like she did every morning.

She did her makeup, a wing eyeliner like she wanted to sail through the skies as a free bird, and red lipstick that she was starting to like the past few weeks.

Since Axel was with Micah, she went to Elisa's room to wake her up.

She opened her door, which had flower stickers. She peeked inside, and Elisa was sprawled out across her bed like a starfish, snoozing away with her tiny tummy like a balloon.

She quietly crept in and then shook her gently to wake her up. Elisa let out a low groan that resembled a growl. Her eyes slowly opened, and her limbs shook and vibrated, waking up themselves. She rubbed one eye as she stared in confusion at Mariana.

"*Hello my baby, are you okay now?" She asked in Italian. She would usually speak this to their kids while Micah spoke Spanish and when they were together, English.

"*Yeah..." Elisa yawned in response and got off the bed.

"*Aw I'm glad. I know you didn't want to go bed last night. You just wanted to play with mommy and daddy right?"

"Mhm." She nodded and sulked a little.

"*Aw I understand." Mariana bent down and planted a kiss on her forehead. "*If you want to play a little more, then you're free to ask without yelling. Mommy and daddy don't like it when you start yelling, it's not a good way to talk to us."

"*Sorry for yelling mama," Elisa said.

"*I forgive you my baby, I love you." Mariana opened her arms out like wings. "Can Mommy give you a hug?"

Elisa fell into those warm, welcoming arms. Mariana slowly enclosed her in and hugged her tight. She loved being a mother, even though it came with hardships, like dealing with temper tantrums, but when the fire is gone, and things became sweet again, that was what she loved the most.

"*Come, let's get you ready." Mariana stood up and drew out her hand for her girl to take.

"*Okay!" Elisa slapped her hand in, and Mariana lifted her to her table. Mariana examined her twists and they still looked well- intact, but she still got the refresher spray and spritzed it all over to give it a little shine and moisture.

Elisa just stared bored at the mirror. Tiredness soaked into her eyes as she rested her head against her knuckles. She let out a yawn as Mariana got one twist, pulled it down, and released it.

She watched it bounce back like it was spring. Her curls were so much tighter than her own and thicker. But with help from Micah, some YouTube videos, and advice from Crystal and his sisters, she soon got the hang of it. After a bunch of trial and error.

Mariana put a gold headband on her head and kissed her forehead. "*You know mommy loves you right?"

"*Love you too." Elisa mumbled, her head slipping down her arms as she almost fell asleep.

"*But I love you more."

"*No! Love you more!" Elisa said with determination and thumped her knuckle down like she was a judge.

Mariana chuckled as she finished touching up her hair. She squeezed her face and kissed it affectionately, making her squeal. "*I love you more."

Elisa jumped down and Mariana went and gave her a bubble bath. Elisa squealed and played with the bubbles as Mariana scrubbed her face.

"*So Elisa, I just want to remind you of a few things," Mariana said.

Elisa nodded while popping the bubbles.

"*If your out with Ita and someone tries touching you anywhere which makes you feel uncomfortable, what do you do?" She wanted to double check that her baby knows what to do when she was not with her or Micah.

"*My body and I don't like that!"

"*That's right my baby girl! And if they don't leave you alone, then you scream as loud as you can and try and get away from them."

"*Yes Mommy!"

"*Thats my girl. My very clever girl." She finished washing her and wrapped her with a towel while lifting her out of the bath. "*Your smart, your beautiful, and you can achieve anything you want." She kissed her nose and then dried her off.

Mariana let her choose a pink hoodie and black pants. They then held hands and went downstairs together to where they could smell bacon, toast, and eggs mixing well into the air.

Micah and Axel were seated at the dining room table. Axel had an empty plate and was trying to take some of Micah's bacon.

"Mine bacon!" Axel exclaimed.

"No it's mine," Micah said in Spanish and chopped down on his meaty strips.

"It's mine!" Axel persisted with confidence.

"You already finished yours so you're not gonna take mine."

"No! More bacon!"

"Go get it if you want more bacon," Micah said, pointing to the kitchen.

Axel shook his head and pointed to the bacon on Micah's plate. He just wanted that one and that one only.

"No you can't have it." Micah shook his head and dangled one in the air. "You see this? Mine," he said and ate it, making Axel agitated.

"No!" Axel whined in a baby voice and started punching his arm. But they just felt soft, like he was getting hit with a pillow.

Micah chuckled and eventually gave him a bit of his. Then Mariana and Elisa came in with their own food.

"Hey guys," Mariana said.

"Hey honey, did you sleep well?" Micah asked as he switched to English.

"Yeah, what about you? I thought I was going to make breakfast this morning?"

"Well yeah, but I woke up before you so you wouldn't have to do it. I wanted to let you have a bit of a lie-in, since last night was a bit of a hassle."

"Aw, thank you." She appreciated the thought of her. She did manage to have a good night's sleep, snuggled in Micah's arms with one keeping her close and his warm body pressed against hers. Sometimes, he trailed kisses down her neck as she fell asleep while caressing down her body, letting her know that he was right there beside her, never leaving her side.

They ate their breakfast together, and Rio came purring and rubbed everyone's legs as he went under the table. He was a little fatter by was still his same, cute self.

"Hi uncle Rio, want bacon?" Elisa said as his eyes spied on her from beneath the tablecloth. Rio just licked his lips, so Elisa took a piece with her fork.

"Just a little bit, don't give him the whole thing," Mariana said as she planned to feed him before leaving.

Elisa managed to cut a small piece off and fed him with her hand as his plate. Rio licked it off and tickled Elisa because of his dry tongue that felt like the bristles of a brush.

When everyone was done, Micah got his coat and shoes on.

"Bye baby, good luck!" Mariana kissed him goodbye.

"Bye, I love you," he said, as Elisa and Axel pulled faces, gagged, and stuck their tongues out in disgust.

"Bye my kiddies." Micah hugged their children goodbye and went on his way.

He was going to prepare what will be his new restaurant in a couple of weeks. All his hard work was finally going to pay off, and Mariana couldn't wait to see it officially open. She was so proud of him and how far he had come.

Since Mariana was the one that started work later, she usually took them to Crystal for babysitting while they were at work. She didn't want to put them in daycare or have a babysitter because she couldn't trust just anyone with her kids.

Mariana poured some food and water for Rio and then walked out of their humble house with her kids attached to her hands. She unlocked her car and strapped them in.

"Mama, we going Ita?" Elisa asked.

"Yes, we going to see Abuelita now."

"Yay!" Elisa cheered and clapped her hands. Meanwhile, Axel was busy driving a car up the steep hill of the seat in front of him, making engine noises.

Suddenly, Survivor by Destiny's Child started playing through the radio.

"Oh I love this song!" Mariana increased the volume as the middle of the chorus blasted through the speakers. "I'm a survivor, I'm not gon' give up— Come on Elisa sing with me!"

Mariana excitedly swerved her body to the music as Elisa joined in.

I'm a survivor.
I'm not gon' give up.
I'm not gon' stop.
I'm gon' work harder.
I'm a survivor,
I'm gonna make it.
I will survive,

"Keep sur'iving!" Elisa screamed, slightly out of tune, but Mariana cheered her on.

"Yes my bambina, hit those high notes!" Mariana said but couldn't stop herself from laughing a little. She looked over at Axel, who just looked at his sister with a stunned face.

"I don't think your brother is a fan," Mariana chuckled.

Elisa started laughing as she looked at Axel whose attention was now on his toy car, which he seemed to have dropped. He was pouting and now looked gloomy.

Mariana glanced at him with a pitiful sigh. "Aw it's okay, we are nearly there anyway."

She continued driving, muttering along with the lyrics, although her voice was bold and full of passion.

"Thought that I would fail without you, but I'm on top," she sang along, "though that it would be over by now, but it won't stop."

"Thought that I would self-destruct, but I'm still here," she said this part more slowly, tasting and savoring every bit of the lyrics as they entered her ears and exited her mouth. It felt so good to be free from her enemies. She honestly didn't think she would know how freedom tasted, but she loved it.

"Even in my years to come, I'm still gon' be here!" She sang the rest of the song, full of glee as her morning started up in bright spirits.

When they arrived at the mansion, Mariana got her babies out and walked them over to the entrance. Everything still looked the same; the pool was still there, the garden flourished and produced pretty rosy flowers and fruits with the fountain spurting out droplets of glistening water.

"Ita!" Elisa let of Mariana's hand and ran towards Crystal who came walking out in wavy black leggings and a dark purple top. Elisa sprinted, her twists flapping everywhere, and jumped straight into her arms.

"Hello my special girl!" Crystal lifted her and spun her around, kissing her cheeks, "I missed you so much!"

"I missed you too!" Elisa giggled, showing off her teeth.

"Hi Mom!" Mariana said as she approached her with Axel. She was getting used to calling Crystal that ever since she and Micah got married.

"Hi!" Crystal waved as Mariana released Axel, who waddled like a penguin toward her.

"Hello my little man!" Crystal put Elisa down and let Axel wander into her arms. She suffocated him as his head disappeared into the folds of her arms.

"Thank you for looking after them," Mariana said.

"Oh it's no problem, I'm happy to have them here." Crystal then stood up from crouching, while Elisa and Axel swung her hands around, a big smile plastered on their faces.

Mariana looked at their cheery, little faces. They were her little blessings, and seeing them so happy made her want to shed a year of happiness.

"How are you this morning?" Mariana asked politely.

"I'm okay. I just had breakfast, so I'll just give the kids something to eat and then we can go out for a little bit." Crystal smiled at the little toddlers who grinned back at her like little suns.

"Aw I hope you have fun, and I wish I could stay, but I better be going now before I'm late," she nervously said because she didn't like leaving them like this.

"Okay, see you later Mariana," Crystal said.

"Bye Mommy!" Elisa and Axel said in unison.

"Bye my babies and be good!" She blew several kisses at them before walking away. She got back inside her car, and when she turned the engine on, she took one last look back. She saw them walk away into the mansion, and she was missing them already. So she stepped on it and drove to her workplace.

When she got accepted by the newspaper company, she quit her job at the cafe and became a junior reporter. She liked her job so far, even though it was a busy work environment and became stressful at times, she liked the challenge.

When she arrived, she parked in the company's parking lot and got out. She fixed her bun and brushed down her outfit. She then walked to the glass entrance of the building. It looked mighty, with furthest floor reaching the heavens and punching a hole through the clouds that puffed out a halo. Working here made her feel like an important businesswoman.

When she got inside, she went to her desk, which was scattered with papers. They were on each side of the computer that had a headset attached, and a telephone on the desk. She stacked the papers, put them away, and sat down.

Two of her colleagues were seated beside her. One chatted on the phone with a cup of coffee, and the other rapidly typed across his keyboard.

She fired her computer up, and today she was going through the archives and researching facts about them to include in the current newspaper. Usually, she would write about publications about the pharmaceutical industry, but this was her task today.

She went onto Google and started typing away.

A/N: Hey I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I'm gonna take the challenge and make this into a trilingual family 😁❤️Let me know if this chap was alright in identifying the language switch.

I honestly love writing families, especially when they have young kids cuz they always bring such joy to the story☺️.