TWENTY | MY LOVE, YOU'VE CHANGED

"Papi's home," Diego called out to his kids as he slipped off his shoes. "Come here! Get in here!" Diego called out to his sister and brother as they awkwardly stepped inside Diego's house.

"Hi!" Diego greeted his kids as his two daughters ran towards him excitedly. "You guys been good, huh? I missed you guys so much," Diego kissed his oldest on the forehead lovingly while Luther and Tate watched the heartwarming reunion with a soft smile.

Luther and Tate turned to each other, their glances spoke the unspoken the jealous feeling they had. The feeling of having a stable family, a settled down life surrounded by people that love them for who they are. Luther wrapped his arm around Tate's shoulder before Tate stared back at Diego and his kids.

"Look what I got you, take your shoes off," Diego instructed before Tate snapped out of her thoughts. "Huh?" Tate spoke up, unaware of Diego's request. "Take your shoes off," Diego repeated before Tate unzipped her boots and placed them to the side.

"Oh... it's got a little bit of blood, don't worry about that," Diego wavered at the small stains of blood on the stuffed toys he gave his kids. "Yeah, peep that, huh?" Diego smiled before he carried his girls in his arms.

One of Lila's relatives spoke up, pointing to Luther's bare bottom. "Hey, where's Lila?" Diego asked before Lila's Mom spoke up. "Who knows? Like you, she doesn't tell us anything," Lila's Mom answered, a sarcastic tone lacing her words.

"She hasn't come back?" Tate spoke up, realizing Five wasn't there to greet her either. "No," Lila's Mom answered before Tate stepped onto the carpet, crossing her arms awkwardly.

"And what are you standing there for? Come, you must be hungry," Lila's Mom insisted to welcome Luther and Tate inside the room.

"Yes, we are starving, aren't we?" Diego asked, glancing at his daughter before walking to the dining room. "Oh, uh, could I please, borrow some clothes?" Luther spoke up before Tate took a seat on the couch.

"Of course!" Lila's Mom grinned before bringing Luther over to the group. "You can take from  Cousin Ronnie's closet," She pointed to him before he denied the option, cursing Luther out. Lila's Mom retorted another curse, causing Tate to hold back a chuckle.

"You come, come with me," Lila's Mom led Luther to the empty bedroom, leaving Tate and Lila's relatives in the room. "Do you need a glass of water?" She asked before Tate shook her head, declining the offer.

The woman stared at Tate's suit, noticing the maroon stain on her shirt. Tate quickly tried wiping away before Tate spoke up.

"It's not blood, it's ketchup, I ate a really good sandwich today," Tate lied, keeping her grin before the woman stepped away.

Tate's ears perked up at the sound of someone knocking on the door. "Tate! Get that, would you?" Diego called out to his sister as he ate in the dining room. "Twist and pull?" Tate asked, wondering how to work the door.

"Like every door, yes!" Diego said before Tate got up from the couch. Tate twisted the door knob, pulling the door from her to see Julia standing in the doorway, holding a pregnancy test kit in her hand.

Tate's face went pale, forgetting about the test she stashed in the car a while ago. Tate put her finger to her lips, signaling her assistant to stay quiet as she pulled Julia into the house. "Diego! Can Julia come in?" Tate yelled across the room, hoping Diego could hear her.

"Go ahead!" Diego allowed it before Julia sneaked inside the house. "Take your shoes off, and we'll go into the bathroom..." Tate whispered as Julia slipped off her heels. "Diego! Where's the bathroom?" Tate asked her brother.

"Down the hall, turn right," Little Grace answered, surprising Tate with the sudden change of voice. 'Thank you, Grace!" Tate smiled before she pulled onto Julia's arm and sneaked into the bathroom.

"So?" Tate asked, pacing around the bathroom as Julia held up the pee-stained test. "It's positive," Julia announced before Tate's eyes widened. "No, no, no. I can't have the child, I can't do it," Tate felt a panic attack coming on.

"Hey, hey, hey" Julia gripped Tate's arms, bringing her onto the bathroom ground. "Breathe," Julia instructed before Tate sighed deeply. "Now, is it Five's?" Julia asked the obvious question before Tate scoffed.

"Yeah..." Tate answered, trying to catch her breath. "So... what's gonna happen now?" Julia asked in a gentle tone. "I..." Tate avoided eye contact with her, the two shared an unspoken acknowledgment.

Tate and Five's relationship was on thin ice, Julia remembered Tate would come to work with puffy eyes or a scowl from a previous argument with Five the day before. Tate only ever cried twice in front of her but from those two times, Julia understood the relationship was struggling.

"You're not gonna tell him, are you?" Julia asked rhetorically before Tate nodded sorrowfully. "I can't... I really don't want to..." Tate shook her head, a frown appearing on her face.

"Then don't. You don't owe him shit, Tate," Julia reassured before patting her back, however, Tate's face didn't agree with the idea.

"I know you're scared of his reaction, but if he's going to freak out about you not wanting a kid, how do you think he'll react if you come out and say you aborted his kid?" Julia said before Tate stayed silent, she didn't consider the other reactions.

"I'm scared, Julia..." Tate admitted before Julia sighed seeing the fear in her eyes. "I know you're scared and you'd give anything to avoid this moment. But it's better telling him now than hiding it and him finding out later and making the situation a thousand times worse,"

"Mhm..." Tate nodded before Julia hugged her, comforting her as Tate started crying into her shoulder.

"Hey, hey. What is your biggest fear?" Julia asked before Tate answered. "I'll be a bad parent, exactly like my dad. The child will grow up with two cold parents,"

"You're anything but stone cold, Five could be. But you? Forget about it?" Julia smiled as Tate tried patting her tears dry.

"Mommy's home!" Grace called out as Tate spun her wedding ring around her finger, wary of what to do next.

"Oh my god..." Lila raced towards her daughter, pulling her into a tight hug. "You can let go of me now, Mommy," Grace said as Lila sobbed softly into her daughter's shoulder.

"Just a little longer," Lila pulled the girl tighter to her chest. Five looked into the living room to see Tate lost in thought before Grace spoke up. "But you're squishing my face," Grace complained before Lila pulled away.

"Why are you crying?" Grace asked her Mom, noticing the tear stains on her face. "I'm just so happy to see you," Lila lied, masking her feelings. "You okay?" Diego asked, causing Tate to snap out of her train of thought.

"Mhm?" Tate turned to Diego, assuming he was calling to her before her eyes landed on Five staring at her. "Oh..." Tate trailed off, realizing Five and Lila had returned. "Yeah," Lila turned to her husband before Grace ran to Diego.

Klaus knocked on the door before entering the house with Allison and Claire following behind. "It smells so nice, here," Klaus said as he stumbled into the living room.

"Oh! Yo, yo, yo! Shoes!" Diego ordered while Grace stuck some stickers on his face. "Oh, sorry," Klaus apologized before slipping off his boots. "Wait, what's with the dirt?" Diego asked as Tate got up from the couch, joining the group.

"Oh, yeah, Allison and Claire Bear had to dig me out of a dead greyhound," Klaus explained.

"Is anyone hungry?" Klaus asked as he walked into the living room. Lila cupped his cheeks with a smile before Klaus greeted Lila's family happily. "Hey, family,"

Diego stared at Allison in confusion, wondering what Klaus went through. "Long story," Allison stopped him, not wanting to explain the situation. Lila smiled at Allison with tears in her eyes before hugging her.

"Hello. Oh, hi. Uh..." Allison was confused by the sudden hug but accepted it nonetheless, wrapping her arms around Lila. "I'm famished if I can get a little sandwich," Klaus started finding food.

"It's so good to see you," Lila smiled before she turned to Claire, beaming widely. Allison and Claire shared a confused look before the two took off their shoes. "And you..." Lila smiled at Tate before Tate pulled her into a hug.

"I know the drill," Tate sighed softly as the two shared an embrace. "Five missed you too, you know," Lila whispered before pulling away. Tate turned to see Five's indifferent expression before smiling softly at him.

"Hi," Lila chuckled, hugging her relatives as Klaus started snacking on the food. "Cinco, you coming?" Diego asked before Tate walked closer to Five. "Yeah, I'm right behind you," Five said indifferently.

Tate sensed the uneasiness in his voice as she glanced at his lifeless expression. "All right, take your shoes off," Diego reminded before joining everyone else in the dining room.

Five unzipped his leather shoes before looking up at Tate who stayed behind, waiting for him.

"Come on," Tate smiled softly, lending out her hand. Five stared at her with a sense of longingness and a hopeful look in his eyes before he wrapped his arms around her waist.

💌
next up, another angst scene between Five and Tate because Five, Diego, and Lila didn't deserve the character assassination they had

also I noticed even when five was in love with Lila *red flag* *red flag* he still didn't have the intimacy or i guess loving need to call her pet names or anyone nicknames in a kind manner, nicknames were pretty given as an insult to people in his eyes

so even in the worst case or "loving case" Five would call Tate, my love, Tate, or any other nickname he had 😃

bro also wdym Lila's parents were here but the breillies parents were not?? Like make it make sense. also why the fuck is klaus like himself a bit more in this one scene than he was the whole damn season??

also this is one of my icks, well its a personal preference thing, I feel like the pregnancy trope is kinda weird... BUT I'm using it bc rn it's all I can think about so I apologize in advance for bad writing about having a baby and shit.