So far her pregnancy had been perfectly normal, and the doctors said their baby girl didn’t seem to have any of the issues they’d picked up on with little G even before he was born. After the nightmare they’d had with him, nearly losing him when he was first born, they’d decided they wouldn’t have any more kids. Neither thought they could go through something like that again, and they’d seen what actually losing a child did to Felix.

So many of the kids in the special needs program at 5th Street that Gio and Bianca, a special needs teacher, were in charge of were in foster care. Bianca began bringing little G in with her to participate in the program early on because they’d been told when their son was born that he may be completely deaf if not severely hearing impaired. Bianca, who’d been teaching school for the hearing impaired, began teaching little G how to sign very young. Fortunately, it turned out one of his ears was fully functional, but Bianca continued to teach him because she wanted him to be able to communicate with her mother.

Maddox, who was G’s age, was one of the kids in the 5th Street special needs program. Legally deaf in both ears, he was able to communicate with little G so well through their signing that they quickly bonded. He was also one of the kids in foster care, and when Bianca found out his parents had relinquished all rights to get him back ever, the wheels in her head started turning. She’d always hated that, like herself, little G wouldn’t get to have any siblings. It took a while and a whole lot of red tape to get through, but they’d finally done it. They were able to adopt Maddox. Of course, just a few months after they did, Bianca found out she was pregnant.

Bianca, who’d always had an overactive thyroid gland, was told when they were trying to conceive little G that the only way she’d ever be able to get pregnant was to get on meds that would slow it. She did and they’d conceived within months. After they’d had G, the doctors had told them she’d need to get back on the meds when she was ready to try again. So Gio and Bianca had decided she never would and they’d be safe as long as she didn’t get back on those meds.

Wrong.

At first, they’d been scared. But then that quickly turned into cautious excitement. As the months went by, unlike her pregnancy with G, everything so far had been normal, and the caution in their excitement was slowly beginning to fade. Bianca even said this pregnancy felt completely different than with G. She was even more excited about the fact that they’d be having a girl because it seemed the 5th Street guys were hell bent on having boys.

Hector jumped from where he was sitting but wasn’t able to catch the syrup his eldest spilled. Gio laughed. “C’mon man!” Gio said to Hector as little Hector stared at his dad, beginning to pout. “You gotta be faster than that.”

Hector frowned, cleaning up the mess, and then glanced up and smiled at his son whose big blue eyes were beginning to well. “It’s okay, pops. It’s just a little syrup.”

Charlee was holding their latest son, who was only a few months old. Both their boys were born with Hector’s dark hair, which was kind of a bummer for everyone who was hoping to see some redheaded Ayala’s. After what Gio and Felix had gone through with their first kids, Hector said his boys could’ve been born with green hair and as long as they were healthy he would’ve been happy. His eldest, however, had been born with his momma’s big blue eyes.

“Is Felix coming down for breakfast?” Abel asked them as he and his brood arrived. “Hey!” he said, turning back to his eldest son, who was already trying to wrestle little Hector out of his chair. “Knock it off. Not in here.”

“I’m assuming he is,” Gio said. “He’s the one who reserved this whole section.

Hector laughed. “They don’t have kids. Of course they’re making the most of their room before they have to come down.” He shook his head. “I don’t know what they were thinking, bringing us all along on their anniversary trip.”

“I think it was very sweet and generous of him,” Nellie said, helping her littlest monster into the high chair. “Our kids will remember this trip forever.”

“Maybe not that one,” Abel said, pointing at the little guy in the high chair. “We’ll have to make a few more trips back.”

“I’m not as dreamy about Disney World as Ella is,” Charlee said, placing the baby back in the baby carrier next to her, “but Ariel, for obvious reasons, was my favorite princess of all when I was growing up. I must’ve watched that movie a hundred times.”

Gio turned when Bianca pulled his hand and placed it on her belly. The baby was kicking away very actively, another difference between this pregnancy and her last.

“She likes waffles,” Bianca said, smiling brightly.

Gio would never tire of seeing those big beautiful eyes of hers sparkle as they did now. While Bianca had been ecstatic that little G had been born with Gio’s green eyes, Gio was secretly hoping his baby girl would have her mom’s big brown doe eyes. He did his best to smile back as brightly as Bianca, but it was tough. Despite how well Bianca’s pregnancy was going so far, he was still worried.

Bianca leaned into kiss Gio. “Every day that passes,” she said between kisses, “I feel more and more certain that she’s gonna be just fine.”

“You really think so?”

“I know so,” she said.

This time Gio leaned in, feeling very relieved, and kissed his beautiful wife.