Millie was wrapped in a soft yellow blanket as Emmeline listened to her suck loudly on her fingers in the plastic car seat Nicholas had bought at a second-hand store a few weeks before. It was decorated with multicolored balloons and had a small stain on the side, but no one could see the imperfections with the precious baby inside. Nicholas had insisted on paying for everything himself, especially after how his parents had reacted to their joyous news, saying this was the first step in proving that they were ready for this.

That morning, a few days after Emmeline gave birth, while the clouds outside were heavy and gray, the doctor came and congratulated Emmeline, saying she could take Millie home. It was good news, Emmeline said to herself, sick of the bland industrial hospital food and the uncomfortable bed. But, as she started to pack up Millie's presents and the other things she had needed for her stay in the hospital, a crushing apprehension began to take hold of her mind, threatening to squeeze out the tiny amount of confidence she had been trying to round up. In a few hours, if something went wrong, it would be up to her to figure it out. It wasn't like Nicholas could be there for the 4 am feedings, or Millie's midnight screaming fests that she already seemed prone to. The worst part of it all was that she couldn't even admit to anyone that she was nervous. Between her mother wanting to over help, and Nicholas's Mother wanting to take Millie, Emmeline felt like she was suffocating under a microscope that was only going to become more intense. She couldn't escape the knowledge that one wrong move and it was a very real possibility that Millie would be taken away from her. She knew she wasn't the ideal Mom; young, without her own house, her own car, or even a job to support them. She didn't even know what she wanted to do with her life; a torment that weighed heavily on her mind. At least for now, Nicholas had managed to hold his Mother at bay, insisting that she had given them a chance to prove to them what he and Emmeline could do. His father surprisingly backed him up, which came as a welcome shock. When it came to household decisions or anything that came to the children, Nicholas' father never questioned his wife. They had a staunchly traditional household; he brought in the money, she ran the house.

After the nurse dropped off their final release paperwork, Emmeline reached into the car seat, gently pulled Millie out, and sat helplessly on the edge of the bed.

"What am I doing?" she asked Millie, gently stroking her little tuft of brown hair. "I don't know how to do this." She turned the baby around so that she could peer into her alert and inquisitive little eyes. "The only thing I can promise is that I will do the best I can for you, and no matter what. I will never let anyone take you away from me." She wished she felt as upbeat as she sounded. Maybe if it wasn't so gloomy outside, then she'd feel a little better. Ginny's life motto, ' Fake it, 'till you make it', came to her mind. There was going to be a whole lot of faking it going on!

Nicholas walked in the door with an armful of fresh-smelling pink Gerber daisies wrapped in crinkly pink paper, and Emmeline sighed. "You're too good to me."

"Not near good enough," he smiled and handed her the bundle. Emmeline took a deep whiff of their distinctive cherry pie smell and noticed he was still holding one more flower, a perfect pink rose, in a clear cellophane wrapper.

"This is for Millie. I want to be the first man who gives her flowers." The sentiment brought tears brimming to Emmeline's eyes, which Nicholas wiped away and then kissed her on the forehead.

Together they gathered up the bags, flowers, baby presents, and the over-the-top giant big teddy bear that Callum had left for Millie, and headed outside to the car.

"I can't stand to be apart from her," said Nicholas as they slowly walked across the parking lot. "I wish we could all be together all the time."

"Me too," said Emmeline wishfully. "What else can we do? We can't afford our own place." This was not the picture she has in her mind when she was little playing house with her friends in multicolored tutus, fantasizing for when she would have babies of her own. It was gut wrenching. She may be young, but it didn't change the hopes and dreams that she wanted for her baby's life. Millie should have both her parents with her all the time.

"I might have a plan to fix all this," said Nicholas. He looked hopeful, as if he was testing the waters.

"Are you going to share?"

"Not yet, but I just wanted you to know you don't have to worry."

"Not sure that helps," answered Emmeline dryly.

She snapped the car seat into place in the back of Nicholas's sports car. Not exactly a family car, but the whole idea made Emmeline smile. They were doing things on their own terms. That meant a sports car to bring Millie home in.

All through the drive home, Emmeline couldn't help but notice how everything looked different. The trees seemed bigger, the river that cut the town in two seemed wider; the water raced faster. She questioned whether this was the place for her to raise Millie. Really everything was up for debate. But, if she was honest, this was her town. Most of the teenagers she knew always wanted to run away to the city where things were constantly changing, life was more exciting, and there was always something new to try. She felt differently; something about this town spoke to her. Maybe it was the history. She was a Hope, after all. Coming from Port Hope, that meant something - at least to her. Her Great Grandmother had been a force in this town, dominating the social and political scene long before it was fashionable for a woman to do so. I made her not so secretly pleased whenever she thought about it. If only she was that strong. Maybe she could draw on her grandmother's strength to become who Millie needed her to be? She had always been a role model for her. One Emmeline was pretty sure she would never live up to. There was even some sort of inheritance that she was supposed to get at some point, although the details had always been sketchy.

Amy was there waiting for them to come, peering through the lace curtains that adorned the picture window in front of her red brick century home.

"She's seen us now," said Emmeline dryly as they pulled into the driveway. "We have to go in now." The past few days there had definitely been a strain on their mother/daughter relationship, even more so than usual. Amy had become a fountain of unwanted advice.

Emmeline grabbed Millie from the back seat while Nicholas struggled to get the ridiculous teddy bear out of the trunk that had barely fit and muttered, "Remind me to return the favor to Callum if he ever has kids."

Amy ran out the door and greeted them with an overbearingly sweet tone. At least she's trying, thought Emmeline, feeling slightly more generous than normal.

"You have got to see what I have done!" her hands animated with wild excitement, ignoring the life-sized teddy bear Nicholas was now dragging up the front walkway.

Inside, the front hall was practically an entire flower shop worth of flowers that had been sent over to welcome home Millie from school friends and people her parents knew. The black lacquered hall table was layered with presents, wrapped in varying shades of pink.

Emmeline was touched. It was amazing how many people had dropped stuff off. She paused, and ran her fingers over a few of the sparkly bows, and saw Nicholas' eyes light up as he saw them.

"Phew, properly sized presents! This bear is going to need a room of its own." Nicholas plopped the bear down on the ground with a heavy sigh.

Emmeline laughed, "You sound like an old man!"

"What do you expect? I'm a father now!" He playfully winked at her.

"Would you two quit talking and follow me upstairs?" Amy was standing at the top of the stairs, waving at them to follow.

Emmeline took a sleeping Millie out of her carrier and followed Nicholas up the carefully restored wooden staircase that twisted at a stained-glass window up to the second floor. A familiar antique Persian rug greeted them at the top with an intricate design of swirls that faded into each other. The second floor had three bedrooms and a full bath. Emmeline's room was to the right, while the other two rooms sat empty in case of company. Her parents had a massive bedroom in addition at the back of the house. For the most part, Emmeline had the second floor to herself, and she was confused by the new soft pink hew coming out of one of the spare rooms.

Amy presented the room as if it were a car on the Price is Right. "Well, what do you think?"

Emmeline lips drew a tight line. This was completely unexpected, and she wondered how her mother had utterly transformed a doughty spare room, decorated with antique quilts and beige walls into a cacophony of pink frills, shimmer, and lace in the four days that she was gone. Sparkly tiaras and boas hung down from shelves, and a baby modeling magazine was on the dresser. The closet was overflowing with dresses, matching hats, and tights.

"Isn't it just darling?" Amy clasped her hands together at her chest. "You aren't saying anything."

Emmeline boiled under the surface. No one asked her. No one bothered to consult her on what her daughter's room should look like. Shouldn't that be a mother's decision? Nicholas put on a smile and acted the diplomat, thanking Amy for what she had done.

"Emmeline, speak up! You aren't saying anything. Doesn't that fancy school of yours teach you anything?" said her Mother, looking confused.

No matter what Emmeline said at that moment, she would be letting someone down, her mother or herself.