Lia never wanted to go back to New York. Well, that was a bit of a lie. She did miss her mom, and was still convinced there was no greater city than New York, but she'd make the argument for Los Angeles coming in a close second. She was also finding having a dad who was a celebrity in a city that loved celebrities also included perks. Lin had been off at the studio and meetings the majority of their second day, which left Lia to a day filled with room service galore, an appointment at the spa for a massage, with a mani and pedi, and scavenging through a gift basket left by Disney filled to the brim with chocolates and merchandise. Although she had to work in submitting her assignments, she didn't care. Lia had never felt this relaxed in her life.

When Vanessa spoke to her daughter that night on FaceTime, she could barely keep up with how fast she was speaking.

"How does it feel to be returned to hero status?" Vanessa inquired when Lin's face appeared on the screen.

"Amazing," Lin said as he stepped onto the hotel room's balcony, shutting the glass door behind him. "I thought it was great when she first really liked me, but having her act like after a few weeks of hatred? I'll take this."

Vanessa laughed lightly, "I'm glad you guys are having such a great time. You both needed it."

"Yeah,"He agreed, as he sat back into the chair as the California sun started to set, "How's Thing 1 and Thing 2 doing?"

"I already told you we're not referring to my babies as 'things.'"

"It's a Dr.Seuss classic, V! What suggestion do you have, then?"

"The twins?" Vanessa stated bluntly.

Lin shook his head, "That's too basic for our kids."

Vanessa rolled her eyes at her boyfriend, "You're ridiculous,"

"Will you please just tell me how they are doing?"

"They were front row to their mommy kicking opposing counsel's ass today in a hearing, which we were all rewarded with a slice of chocolate cake,"

Lin smiled, "They're learning early that mommy's a badass,"

"That they are," Vanessa replied as she rubbed her belly, "We all agreed though that we sleep much better when daddy is next to us."

Lin loved the way that sounded. Daddy. "And he is in absolute agreement. Your next appointment is next Thursday, right?"

"At one. And we still have to decide if we want to find out the sex,"

"Your call; I'm good either way. You found out with Lia; right?"

Vanessa nodded, "Yeah.  I was too much of a control freak to wait. But, it also might be fun to keep everything a surprise. Everything else about this pregnancy has been a surprise, why break tradition?"

Lin laughed, "Fair point. Well, whatever you decide, I'm good with,"

"Are you going to be this easy when it comes to the names?" Vanessa asked with a raised eyebrow.

In the most straightforward voice he could pull, Lin replied, "I will absolutely be fighting for Luke,"

"Is that for the sole reason so that you can say, 'Luke, I am your father?'"

"You say that like it's a bad thing,"
—-

"You're welcome... and thank you!"

Lia had obviously been a fan of Lin's before she knew he was her dad. Seeing him on stage though after she found out was a different feel. She was, innately, more proud of him and would always watch with such admiration that someone she loved had created an incredible piece of art. She felt a similar feeling that day, watching Lin in the recording studio with Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson as he sang a song that Lin wrote for an upcoming Disney movie. Based on his high energy, even at 8:30 in the morning, Lia could tell Lin was completely in his element.

"What do you think?" Lin asked, still beaming, as he came out of the studio during the five minute break.

"That was incredible!" Lia squealed out.

"Really?"

Lia couldn't stop smiling, "Lin, are you kidding? You wrote a freaking Disney song! That The Rock is singing!! It doesn't get much more incredible than that!"

That was the only opinion that Lin truly needed, "Thanks, Lia,"

"I mean, people are going to leave the movies literally singing your words!" Lia continued at a fast pace, "And yeah, they do that with Hamilton, but this is Disney!"

Lin felt like he was radiating with pride at his daughter's admiration, "It has been a really fun project to work on. Which reminds me again,"

"Whatever I did or did not hear is top secret and I will be grounded for life if I repeat any of it," Lia finished off the warning she had been told countless times surrounding nearly anything Lin was working on.

Lin smiled at the typical sarcastic response from his teenager, "Good girl,"

"So, how much longer do you got?"

Lin pulled his phone, Lia presumed to look at his schedule for the day, "We're almost finished up with 'You're Welcome', a few more songs to tweak, and then back to back meetings."

Lia nodded, knowing before she left that his days would be pretty filled, "I'll probably just chill by the pool then. It's not everyday you get to wear a bathing suit in February, and I want to take full advantage,"

Lin chuckled and was about to comment back when the door behind them opened up, "Kylie!"

"Kylie?" Lia repeated the name Lin exclaimed as he walked around to her to give the teenage girl with auburn hair who had walked into the room a hug.

"Ah, perfect timing," Lin said with a clap of his hands as he refaced Lia, "So, you need a friend, and Kylie's good people. Kylie is the daughter of one of our sound engineers, Greg, and Lia is my spawn. Take this for the day, become friends!" Lin said as he handed Lia his credit card out of his pocket, left her with a kiss to her forehead and headed back into the studio before Lia could say anything.

Lia felt the heat rise in her cheeks as she was sending daggers to the back of Lin's head. She forced a strained smile on her face before turning back to the redhead girl in front of her, "I'm sorry about that. I think all the sun has gotten to him and turned him into an incredibly embarrassing dad," Lia was mortified at the thought of this stranger thinking she needed her father to find her friends.

"My dad's the same way. It's totally fine," Kylie, who Lia could tell how a bubbly personality, brushed it off, "I've known Lin for years. Our dads have worked on a few projects together. When I found out you were here, I was psyched!"

"Sorry, Lin apparently tells me nothing,"

Kylie laughed, but rather than in the demeaning way that Lia had become accustomed to at school it was moreso in a friendly tone, "I just moved here from New York. I have zero social life, other than when I get bored enough to hang out with my younger brother. Having someone in town who I'm assuming won't talk about video games all day is a breath of fresh air,"

Lia laughed and shook her head, "That you definitely don't have to worry about with me,"

"So this could be weird, considering I'm pretty much a virtual stranger to you, but one of the perks of having parents who work for Disney is you get free tickets," Kylie said, pulling said tickets out of her pocket, to Lia's shock.

Lia's eyes widened a bit, as she  a nervous laugh "I'd just have to ask Lin,"

"Oh, he knows," Kylie said, " I think it's a dad thing, where they try to pull off these surprises because they think it somehow makes them seem cooler than they are? At least that's how my dad is,"

Lia loved having a conversation with someone that wasn't a declaration of love towards her dad, but rather just a normal conversation. She didn't realize how long it had been since she had one of those.

She looked back into the studio, her mouth gaped open, and caught Lin's eye briefly as he was talking to one of the producers. He flashed her a smile with a quick wink before returning to his conversation, confirming Kylie's response that this was a total set-up.

"Looks like going to Disneyland with a virtual stranger is going to be my breath of fresh air!" Lia replied, embracing the whirlwind of events, as she turned back towards Kylie and the girls headed off to a car that was already waiting to take them to the 'Happiest Place on Earth.'

Kylie and Lia were fast friends. Kylie knew all the best snacks so they spent much of the afternoon taste testing and posing for goofy photos. It wasn't until it was getting dark before they decided it was time to head back. They exchanged phone numbers and hoped to meet up the next day.

"But my favorite was definitely Space Mountain," she told her father over Chinese that night. "It's like you have no idea where you're going because it's so dark and just out of nowhere you go into a drop or a turn."

She'd been talking a mile a minute, barely haven eaten because she'd had so much to tell Lin.

"Look at our photo," she said with her mouth full of noodles. She thrust out her phone to show the ride picture they'd downloaded. Their faces were contorted in an amused surprise.

"Looks like a lot of fun," he told her, glad she'd made a friend.

"We might go back tomorrow," she informed him. "After I do my homework of course. Hey, do you think I could invite Kylie to my quinceanera?"

"I don't see why not," he answered. "The more the merrier."

"But I don't want too many people you know," she reasoned. "I don't have that many friends anyway so it would be weird."

They finished off their meals and reached for the fortune cookies in the bottom of the take out bag.

Lin opened his first. "Don't worry," he said in a bit of a silly voice. "Prosperity will soon come your way."

"Ha!" Lia guffawed. "I think the prosperity has already come for you."

"I've been pretty fortunate," he agreed, stuffing the whole cookie in his mouth. "What does yours say?"

Lia opened hers. "A fresh start will put you on your way. Huh. Maybe that means I should change schools? Since no one really likes me."

"Don't say that," Lin told her as she crunched her cookie. "Are you really that unhappy?"

She shrugged her shoulders and reached for her water.

"Listen," he said, leaning forward. "Your mom and I have been wanting to talk to you about something and we weren't sure of the right time."

Lia sat up, sensing this would be a serious conversation. "With all my Hamilton success I've been getting more offers for work. I got an offer last week that would require me to work in London."

"England?"

Lin nodded. "It would be a couple months this Fall. And I asked your mom if you'd like to come with me."

Lia was silent for several long moments. She stared at the table, then at Lin. "London, England?" She clarified again.

Lin chuckled. "Correct. Do you think that's something you'd be interested in? You could do online school."

She wasn't saying anything so Lin feared she didn't like the idea. He'd have to turn it down. A huge opportunity. But his newfound family was his top priority.

"If you don't want to, that's fine. I'll find work here."

"Are you kidding?!" She suddenly burst out, standing up. She knocked her chair over in the process. "I've always wanted to go to England!! Be a Brit! Eat scones and real fish and chips!!"

Her face lit up and Lin felt a sense of relief and pure joy. He loved that he was able to give his family this kind of opportunity.

"I haven't been for years," Lin told her. "Not since FLS toured. The fish and chips are to die for."

Lia began jumping around like a little kid, squealing. Lin laughed and took a photo on his phone. He sent it to Vanessa, stating she was "all in" for an England stay. The rest of the evening was spent looking up things to do and places to eat in London.