the past three months had gone by quickly, too quickly for rosa and gina's liking. isla could already roll over and iggy had become more independent, so independent that rosa and gina weren't even allowed to touch her clothes when she was getting dressed because 'iggy can do it by myself.'

isla was asleep in her room and iggy was riding around her room on the motorcycle she got for her second birthday. she'd seen rosa ride hers twice in the past few weeks and was becoming more and more fascinated by them.

'hey ro, i know there's been a lot going on and i don't know if you remember and i won't be bothered if you didn't remember,' gina broke the peaceful silence between the pair. 'but happy anniversary. a year ago i was crying and you kissed me and you stayed with me through everything. i love you so much rosie and i got you something,' gina pulled out a box from under a cushion

'wait a sec before i open that. of course i remembered babe, i just didn't wanna say anything incase you didn't remember. in a year we've moved in together, had a baby, gotten engaged, so much has happened but i wouldn't change any of it. i love you gines, i got you something too.' rosa leaned forward and kissed gina before getting up and going to their bedroom, returning a minute later holding a box. 'happy anniversary.' she smiled

the two traded boxes. 'same time?' gina asked and rosa nodded, they opened the boxes and pulled out their necklaces. 'don't tell me we got the same thing.'

'there's no wa- really?' rosa inspected the necklace further. 'you even put the stupid date on it, i thought that was the best idea i'd ever had.' rosa whacked her fiancé playfully

'that was my idea ro!'

the pair now had matching necklaces: a little heart shape, rosa's with an 'R' and gina's with a 'G', both with 04/17 on the back of them.

'is it just me or should i have yours and you have mine?' rosa asked, slightly unsure

'that would make sense, i mean yes i do love myself enough to have a necklace with my name in a heart, but i'd rather have an R in a heart.' gina said, making rosa laugh

'so you get the R and i get the G, right?'

'mhm,' gina nodded. 'only we could manage to mix this up.'

rosa smiled, 'but i love you, so it's fine.' she kissed her. 'happy anniversary.'

'happy anniversary,' gina smiled before isla interrupted the moment.

'i'll go get her, you stay here.'

isla had stopped crying and was rolling around on her mattress when rosa walked in, flipping from her front to her back. 'you're getting good at that now sweetie,' rosa said as she lifted the girl out of her crib. 'you could be a little gymnast.'

'momma, iggy and duckie go to the park?' iggy asked from the doorway of her sister's room. iggy usually called her sister duckie, sometimes it was eyes-la (that's how she spelt it once too) but she usually called her duckie because when rosa told her that maybe it could be her sister's middle name she decided it was her sister's new name.

'let's go ask mommy, see what she says.' iggy raced ahead of rosa and isla down the hallway.

'MOMMYYY,' she shouted. 'iggy and duckie go to the park?'

'we can if you go put a hoodie on and get a jumper for isla.'

iggy ran back to her bedroom, presumably to do what gina had asked her.

'i guess we're going to the park.' gina smiled, getting up from the couch

'can i put your necklace on you first?' rosa asked as she handed gina their baby. the redhead just smiled and turned around so that rosa could put it around on her.

—————

'duckie want ice cream,' iggy announced as she ran over to rosa and isla who were sitting on a bench... well rosa was on a bench, isla was in her pram. gina followed the two year old over to the bench, mildly out of breath

'she said isla wants ice cream.'

'does isla want ice cream or does iggy want ice cream?' rosa laughed as she helped iggy up
onto the bench

'eyes-la.' iggy said before giggling

'what flavour should isla have?' gina asked

'chocolate.'

'what flavour do you want roro? i'll go get us some ice cream.'

'surprise me,' she smiled

'okayyy,' gina beamed as she walked away

when gina returned a few minutes later, both of her girls were crying; iggy because the banged her head trying to get down off the bench and isla because... rosa didn't actually know why, she just assumed she was hungry or tired.

the redhead put the ice cream down and picked iggy up, 'what happened ig?'

'she banged her head on the bench when she was tryna get down,' rosa replied for her, holding isla over one of her shoulders and rubbing her back

'where does it hurt?' gina asked the two year old. she was met with a point to her forehead as a reply. 'you think some magic ice cream will make it better?' iggy nodded and smiled, sitting on the bench right next to rosa so she was virtually on her knee.

isla had fallen asleep on rosa's shoulder after a few minutes and was now back in her pram, so the three could eat their ice cream.

'i got iggy chocolate,' she said as she passed iggy a little tub of chocolate ice cream. 'and i got us a bigger tub to share, cookies and cream and rocky road.' rosa smiled. 'i was gonna get mint choc chip too but they didn't have any.' rocky road and mint choc chip were rosa's favourites and cookies and cream was gina's favourite, even though she hadn't had it in over nine months because isla didn't like it so it made her feel sick.

'thanks babe,' the latina placed iggy on her knee so that gina could sit right next to her and it would be easier for them to share.

'i only got one spoon-' gina realised as she gave rosa the only spoon in their ice cream.

'i'd say we could wait til ig's done but she's the world's slowest eater.' rosa laughed, 'i guess we're sharing.' she said before gina tried to give her some ice cream but 'accidentally' missed, meaning it went onto rosa's nose instead

'it's a good job i love you, linetti.'

—————

'looks like ig and mommy fell asleep, huh? maybe they don't like Thomas and Friends as much as us.' rosa laughed as the baby in her arms began to fidget. 'is it bedtime now?' isla began to cry and the sergeant took it as a sign to take her to get ready for bed, so she did.

just as she'd finished getting the infant ready for bed, rosa heard the unmistakable footsteps of iggy running down the hall and into isla's bedroom. 'you gonna say goodnight to isla, ig?' rosa asked

'night night duckie,' the child kissed her sister's head gently, just as her moms had shown her to do.

'now you go get your pyjamas on and i'll come and read you a story okay?' the ravenette smiled as her daughter nodded and ran off into her own room. 'night night isla, i love you,' she leaned down and kissed the sleepy three month old's cheek. the latina began to rock the baby to sleep, not noticing her fiancé standing at the bedroom door.

'you're cute you know,' gina said as she walked in.

'thought you were still asleep, you scared me.' rosa said before she leaned down and kissed the redhead

'ig said i'm not allowed to read her a story and you have to do it,' gina took the baby out of rosa's arms. 'i'll take care of her.'

'love you,' rosa said as she left the room, going into iggy's to read her a story.

—————

iggy wasn't sleeping, she kept telling rosa she 'doesn't need sleep because she ate magic ice cream'. isla also wasn't sleeping, gina had no idea why. she wasn't crying, she just wouldn't sleep and it was 10.37 pm so the two of them definitely should have been asleep. both rosa and gina didn't know what else to do.

'how about we just put them in our bed with us?' gina suggested as she walked into their toddler's room with isla on her hip

'that could work,' rosa agreed before the four made their way to the couple's room.

they were now all in the same bed, iggy in between the couple and isla settled on rosa's stomach.

'i love you,' gina kissed rosa's cheek because it was all she could reach. 'happy anniversary baby.'

'happy anniversary babe,' rosa smiled as isla unintentionally put her hands all over the latina's face and iggy played with the raven curls sprawled out next to her. 'i love you.'

written: july 2021
published: august 2021

a/n: i actually kinda like this chapter, i literally had no idea what babies do and i have a little sister lmao