Approved

Natalie Grossman had it all.

She was the top agent at the CIA, a part of an elite task force that everyone wanted to be a part of. She had great relationships with her teammates, many of them had become a second family of sorts, but most of all, she had found the woman she wanted to spend her life with.

Genevieve, 'Genie', Barton was the daughter of Lucas Barton, Natalie's very own partner, and the woman who decided to stay.

Genie stayed despite all the long nights Natalie pulled, the days she'd come home covered in bruises and emotionally drained, and she stayed even on the days Natalie forgot she was a person.

Natalie couldn't be more grateful for Genevieve being in her life.

"Have you left this room since this morning?” Lucas asked, entering the room with a tray of coffees.

"I left to use the bathroom," Natalie answered, not looking up as she continued scouring through the papers in front of her.

"Nat, the bathroom is right across the hall." Lucas sighed before handing her a large, intensely strengthed coffee.

"Still counts as leaving the room." She shrugged, gulping down half of the large takeaway cup. "Has Nick got anything new for me?"

"If he did, he would have called," Lucas told her.

"Bullshit." Natalie laughed. "He hasn't answered a single one of my calls for the last twenty-four hours.

"Nat, you know I'm pushing him for everything I can.

"Are you? Are you pushing as hard as you can?" Natalie snapped without thinking. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean that.

"Yeah, you did. And you're not going to take it back because you did mean it." Lucas shook his head as he took a seat. "You're worried, and you're allowed to be, but you are not allowed to cut us out. Especially not me.

"I'm not trying to cut anyone out." Natalie denied.

“I thought we agreed long ago that we don’t lie to each other.” Lucas rose a brow. “You’re trying to cut me out, Nat, but you gotta remember that she's not just your partner. She's my daughter. And so are you.”

"Daughter-in-law, old man." Natalie gently corrected as Lucas took her hand.

"Still counts. But you were my friend long before you married my kid. And you have to let me help you. Let our team help you."

"I am letting you help," Natalie said.

"Coffee runs isn't helping me find my daughter, Nat. You have holed yourself up in this room, and you haven't let any of us help you. I want to find Gen as much as you do." Lucas said, squeezing her hand.

"I know. I know that." Natalie sighed, letting go of Lucas's hand to press hers against her face.

"I'm going to say something, and I don't want you to shoot me for it." Lucas began. "I think you're trying to make up for her being taken. I think you're working yourself to death and shutting us out because you think this is your fault."

"It is my fault, Lucas," Natalie said, looking up at him with tired eyes. "I am the one who convinced her to move into our house. I am the one who forgot to turn the security system back on. It's my fault she was taken."

"God, we need to work on your guilt complex." Lucas sighed. "Nat, the two of you moved into that house together. You made that decision together. And everyone forgets to turn on the security system."

"Not people like us." Natalie shook her head.

"Natalie, this is not your fault. You are in no way the cause of this. Hell knows you would never be able to force Genie into something she didn't want." Lucas firmly told her.

"She's as stubborn as you are." Natalie cracked a smile.

"Exactly!" Lucas laughed before the two fell into silence. "We're gonna get her back, Nat."

"Yeah. Yeah, we will." Natalie. nodded before sliding over a pile of papers. "Get to it, partner."

"Just like old times, hey, Nat?"

Natalie smiled at his comment briefly before turning back to her pile of work.

She was glad she never lost this relationship.

"Nat, he deserves to know."

"Yes, he does, but why do we have to tell him?"

"Because he's your friend and my father." Genevieve reasoned. "Nat, he loves me, and he loves you. I think he's going to be okay with this."

"He'd be okay with me sleeping with his daughter?" Natalie rose a brow.

"Well, maybe not that point specifically, but he'd be okay with us being together," Genevive said, taking Natalie's hands into hers. "I love you, and dad loves you too. He'd never do anything to hurt either of us or ruin this."

"I can't believe you talked me into this," Natalie grumbled as the two of them made their way up the driveway.

"Everything's going to be fine, Natty," Gen promised, squeezing the other woman's hand tightly.

"Just remember he keeps all his guns in the house," Natalie mumbled as her partner opened the door.

"Dad! We're here!" Genevive called out.

"Hey, sweetheart." Lucas greeted, walking into the living room and pulling his daughter into an embrace. "I thought you'd be another hour."

"She drove," Natalie told the man as he pulled her into a quick hug.

"I probably should have let your mother teach you to drive," Lucas said.

"You were a good teacher, dad."

"Yeah, at making me lose my lunch," Natalie said, causing Lucas to laugh as Genevive elbowed Natalie in the ribs.

"Well, it's just the three of us for now," Lucas said, leading the woman into the kitchen. "Emma went to pick up the kids, and they're going to run some errands. So, you're stuck with me for now."

"That's fine. I actually had something to tell you." Genevive spoke up.

"Okay, should I be scared?" Lucas asked, pouring himself a coffee.

"No, this is good news," Gen promised. "Dad, I'm dating Nat."

"I know."

"What?"

"I've known for about three months now," Lucas told the two.

"You do realize I am a master of espionage and have been for years. There's not a lot that slips by me."

"If you've known this long, why haven't you said anything?" Natalie asked, raising a brow.

"Because I know you two. If I said anything before either of you admitted it, you would have shut it down and denied the whole thing." Lucas shrugged. “You know I have enough emotional maturity to know when people aren’t ready to admit they’re together.”

“So, you’re not mad?” Natalie asked, still watching the man warily.

“Nope!” Lucas chirped. “I like my kids being happy, and I also like to make my friends happy. So if the three of you are happy, I am.”

“Your phone keeps ringing,” Natalie said, not looking up.

“It’s on silent,” Lucas responded, pulling his phone out of pocket.

“I can see it glowing through your pocket.” She told him. “And it shouldn’t be on silent in the first place.”

“It’s Emma. I’ll call her back later.” Lucas said, putting it on the table.

“That’s going to make her worry more,” Natalie said.

“She’s not going to stop worrying until we bring Gen home.” Lucas pointed out.

“How are the little ones?” Natalie asked. “Have either of you told them what’s going on?”

“I didn’t want to, but Emma insisted we tell them.” Lucas sighed. “Lisa and Cooper are old enough to understand and worry, but Nathaniel doesn’t understand.”

“Next time she calls, answer her,” Natalie demanded. “Not answering is going to make her panic."

"Yeah, that’s probably a good idea.” Lucas reluctantly sighed.

“And talk to the kids. Let them know we’re doing all we can.” Natalie added.

“Okay, okay, I will,” Lucas promised. “You’re going to be a good mother one day, Nat. You’ve already got guilt-tripping down.”

For their second wedding anniversary, Natalie had surprised Genevive with a trip to Australia. For the most part, their days had been filled with many touristy activities and attractions. Today, however, the two were enjoying their time lounging around their Airbnb.

“I want kids,” Gen announced to Natalie's shock.

“I’m sorry, can you repeat that? I think I went deaf for a second there.” Natalie asked her wife.

“I want to have kids,” Gen repeated slowly. "I want to have kids with you."

“Okay, where is this coming from?” Natalie asked. “You’ve never mentioned wanting kids before.”

“I’ve been thinking about this for a while. I love you. As I said in my vows, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want a house, a dog, a hamster, and I want kids too.” Genevive told the woman. “Please say something,” She begged when her wife remained silent.

“I can’t have kids,” Natalie said, staring blankly at the wall.

"I know, you got hurt in the field." Genevive nodded, barely holding back a shudder at the memory.

"At the time, I thought it was punishment. For disobeying orders, and not sticking to the plan." Natalie shook her head.

“Nat, you're not being punished," Genevive promised, taking the other woman's hands. "It was an accident. If you want kids, we can have them. We’ll adopt or find a donor. The world isn’t going to take that from us. From you.” Gen promised the woman.

“Are you sure?”

“Positive.”

“Well, I guess we better start looking into something a bit bigger,” Natalie said, smiling waterily at her wife.

“We’re going to have a family!” Gen cheered, pulling the woman into an embrace. “I love you. I love you so much.”

“I love you too, Genie."

Neither Lucas nor Natalie had been the ones to find Gen. It had been one of their teammates, Anthony, who rushed in gleefully exclaiming he'd found her.

When Anthony had told the two the news, the entire team was ready to storm the location with the two.

This team had always been Natalie's family, and when this was over, she'd thank them.

The entirety of Natalie's team had been crammed onto the stealthiest copter they could find for six hours now, and every second that passed pulled Nat's heart further into her throat.

"Nat, Luc, we've been talking." Samuel, the team's leader, began, walking over with Anthony at his side.

"You've been talking. Leave me out of this." Anthony shook his head.

"And we were thinking that, maybe, the two of you should stay behind," Sam suggested.

"No." Both agents immediately replied.

"Told you they'd say that." Anthony snorted.

"Both your emotions are comprised. It might be for the best if you just let us do this." Sam pushed.

“Sam, nothing and no one is going to stop me from going in there,” Natalie said, rising to a stand. “I will take out anyone I have to to get my wife back. Foe or friend.”

“The same goes for me.” Lucas agreed, standing with his gun in hand. “I will kill you if you keep me from my daughter."

“Duly noted.” Anthony nodded, putting his hands on Sam's shoulders. “I'll make sure Sam keeps his ideas to himself.” He promised, "Just so you know, we're an hour out." Anthony said before leading Sam away.

An hour later, Natalie was soaked in blood. The second the copter touched down Natalie and Lucas were on the move. They had killed anyone who came close before leaving their team to take care of the men and rushing inside.

The base was enormous, with men and women streaming out of the many doors every second. But Natalie and Lucas killed them all. No one was going to stop them from searching every inch of the base.

The two had finally made it to the back of the base when they encountered a locked door.

“Move!” Natalie demanded, pushing Lucas out of the way before kicking the door open.

The room was as covered in blood as Natalie was. The smell was so intense it burned Natalie’s nose and made her eyes water. But none of that mattered.

Not when she saw Genevive on the ground.

“No!” Natalie gasped, rushing forward and dropping to her knees, Lucas right behind her. “Sweetheart, Gen, wake up,” Natalie begged as she pulled the woman into her arms.

“C'mon, Genie, I need you to open your eyes.”

“Daddy?” Gen murmured weakly, struggling to force her eyes open.

“Yeah, baby, I’m here. Nat is here too.” Lucas cooed, taking his daughter's hand with his.

“Natty?” Gen mumbled, rolling her head to the side.

“Yeah, I’m right here, darling. I’m right here.” Natalie promised, brushing hair from her wife's face.

“No. Shouldn’t be here. Go.” She demanded, weakly lifting her hand to bat Natalie's away.

“We’re going to get you out of here." Natalie nodded.

“No. There’s a bomb. When you open the door.” Genevive told her. Both Natalie and Lucas's heads snapped to the door to see Genevive was indeed correct. There was a ticking bomb attached to the door, now at three minutes.

“That’s okay. We can work with this. We’ll carry you out." Natalie told the woman.

"I'm not going to make it." Gen shook her head. "There's too much blood."

"Blood?"

"Nat," Lucas said, causing the woman to look at him. Lucas didn't meet her eyes just continued to stare at the blood pouring out of his daughter's stomach.

“You both need to go,” Gen announced. “Get out.”

“Not without you.” Natalie shook her head.

“I’m dying, Natty," Gen said, tears sliding down her cheeks. "I'm not stupid."

"Right now, you're being stupid. We can fix this. I can fix this." Natalie promised.

“You can’t,” Genevive shook her head before turning to her father and taking his hand. “Daddy, get out. And take Natty too.” She begged. "For me. You need to live."

“No. No, Lucas!” Natalie screamed as her partner reluctantly picked her up. “Put me down!”

"I love you. I love you." Genevive cried as Lucas moved towards the door. "Take care of each other."

"Love you too, sweetheart,” Lucas murmured, staring at her for a second before beginning to run to an exit.

“Lucas! You put me down right now! You son of a bitch!” Natalie screeched, kicking and punching any inch of him she could.

But Lucas merely held onto her tighter and pushed himself to run faster.

“Luc, what’s going on?” Sam asked when he nearly ran into the man. The team right behind him.

“The building’s going to blow. Run.” Lucas demanded.

“Where's Gen?” Anthony asked him.

“Run!” Was the only thing Lucas said.

The team followed the man’s orders, and everyone dashed from the building. Natalie, still screaming the entire time.

Everyone had just made it away when the building exploded in a rain of fire and debris.

Lucas seemed to sag as the building erupted, and while he was distracted, Natalie broke out of his grip.

Natalie began to run towards the remains of the building, only to be tackled by Lucas.

“There’s nothing left, Nat.” He whispered brokenly. Natalie stared up at the man in fury before letting out a violent shriek.

“You son of a bitch! Fuck you! Fuck you!” She screamed, flipping the man onto his back and beginning to beat him. “You left her! You made me leave her! We could have saved her! You made me leave! Why! Why did you do it!” She cried before Sam pulled her off her father-in-law.

“Because it was her last wish, Nat,” Lucas said, sitting up with Anthony's help. “I had to give it to her.”

“I was supposed to save her! I was supposed to bring her home!” Natalie yelled before shocking the entire team as she broke into sobs. “I didn’t even get to say it back.” Natalie sobbed, collapsing to the ground.

“Why didn’t I say it back?”

“I can stay on the couch if you want, Nat.” Sam offered, standing in the living room of her empty home.

“No thanks, Samuel.” Natalie denied not looking at the man as she flipped through her mail.

“Are you sure? Because it's no bother."

“I’m not going to kill myself, Samuel,” Natalie said, looking up and staring blankly at the man. “I’m going to go through my mail, eat something greasy and sleep.”

“Nat, you shouldn’t be alone,” Sam gently told her.

“Sam, I’m tired,” Natalie said, finally looking up. “It has been a very long three weeks. Three weeks in which I have not slept. All I want is to sleep.”

“Okay. I’ll leave you to it.” Sam said, picking up his jacket.

“Thank you,” Natalie responded, tearing open one of the many envelopes.

Natalie didn’t look up as Sam left or after her front door shut.

She didn’t even react when her new security system beeped, signalling it was on.

She continued to sit on her couch, staring at the letter in her hand before she stood. Her body was on autopilot as she walked into the guest room and curled up on the guest’s bed.

Natalie stared at the letter in her hands before clutching it to her chest. The words were seared into her brain no matter how cloudy her eyes got.

Alliance for Children. Approved. Child.

They’d been approved to adopt. To have a child of their own. All they had to do was call and set a date.

What a vindictive world.

“Nat, are you sure you don’t want to stay with us?” Emma asked.

Genevive's funeral had just let out. Natalie wasn’t sure who had attended because it was all a blur.

It was only when Emma and Lucas approached to say they were leaving she snapped out of it.

“There’s more than enough room for you at the house, and we want you there.” Emma offered, holding the woman's hands in hers.

“No, I’m, I’m good. But thank you for the offer.” Natalie smiled kindly at her mother-in-law.

“Are you sure?” Lucas asked, his face still bruised. “Because it’s no trouble.”

“I know it’s not, but I have a home visit next week, and I want to make sure the place is in good condition,” Natalie explained.

“A home visit?”

“The adoption agency got in contact. They approved our request.” Natalie told them.

“Are you sure that’s best for you right now?” Emma asked, looking at the woman in concern.

“No. I’m not sure of anything, but I know she wanted a child. It was all she could talk about before, this. I'm doing this for her." Natalie explained. "I'm doing this for me."

“Well, call us when everything’s settled,” Emma said, pulling Natalie into an embrace. “I can't wait to meet my grandchild.”

“I will.” Natalie nodded, hugging the woman tightly.

“And, just call us in general,” Lucas added, hugging his friend. “I always want to hear from you.

“I will. I promise, Lucas.”

And she did. Natalie called Lucas or Emma at least twice a week.

Sometimes to talk, sometimes to let her son talk to them, and sometimes just to fill the silence.

Natalie lost the woman she loved. She lost her wife and her son's mother. Natalie lost the life she and Genevive always dreamed about sharing, but she had their son.

A child who she loved, who always asked about the mother he never met and if she'd be proud of him.

Gen would be proud of their son. Natalie could only hope that Genevive would be proud of her too.