I Will Never Let You Go (A Maxcer Fanfic)

One Step At A Time.

"So where are you off to now?" Max asked over the phone as she gave Willow some breakfast. Spencer had left in a rush that morning and couldn't seem to get her on the phone until now.
"Louisiana. I'm headed to a crime scene now with Tara."
"Alright, well go save a life. Call when you can. I love you."
"I love you too. Put me on speaker."
Max complied and brought the phone closer to Willow.
"Be good for Mommy peanut. I love you."
"Say 'I love you Daddy.'"
"Yuh you." Willow said before putting another piece of fruit in her mouth. She was almost 14 months and was starting to talk a lot more. She didn't always say full words, nor did she say them perfectly, but they could understand what she said well enough.
Max hung up the phone with Spencer and looked at her little girl, who was still chewing on some bananas and strawberries.
"Mommy's got a program at 12 baby, so you gotta be good for Meredith while I'm gone. You take a nice nap okay?"
Willow said something in her own little baby language, but Max knew she understood. Although they didn't talk to her like an adult, they explained certain things to her, hoping it would improve her cognitive skills later in life.
Willow played with some toys on the bathroom floor while Max got ready. She was often very good for anyone who stayed with her while Max and Spencer were away, which they were thankful for. Meredith and her husband John were their neighbors to the left of them and had become close friends with them. They had a nine year old son named Jackson and a six year old daughter named Sophia, so they knew they could trust either of them to watch their child.
As Max was finishing up her makeup, the doorbell rang, which made Max a bit flustered. She quickly tapped her phone to see what the time was, seeing that it was now 11:34. She put all her stuff back into her makeup bag and picked Willow off the floor, making sure to take her little toy with them. She went downstairs and to the front door, opening it to reveal Meredith.
"Hey, hope I didn't come too early." She said cheerfully.
"No, not at all. I'm just running a bit late." Max said as she stepped aside to let her neighbor in.
"I just need to grab a couple things from the office and then I'll be out of here."
Meredith took Willow from her arms, then she went into their office to grab the flashdrive from her desk that had her presentations on it. Grabbing her purse from the couch, Max gave Willow a kiss on the head.
"Naptime at 12:30 right?" Meredith asked.
"Yes, she should be asleep for about an hour and a half, maybe two. You know where all the fruit and snacks are so if she wants any they're there. I should be home around 4, 4:30 the latest."
Max went out the door and to her car door. Just as she opened it, she called "Thanks again Meredith."
"No problem, anytime." She replied, waving her hand. Willow mimicked her as Max pulled out of the driveway and they went back in the house once she was out of sight.

The program had gone very well once again at the Smithsonian. Max's occupation was unique, one she made all her own, and so many people loved it. It wasn't even just those who participated, it was their loved ones that watched and saw how happy they were after sitting in on one of Max's seminars. Today she was working with kids, which she always enjoyed. They weren't like adults, who sometimes had a tough time being creative and expressing themselves. They were like sponges, and absorbed a lot of what Max taught them. Even though some of them were as young as seven, they still put in a lot of effort to execute certain artistic styles that have been shown throughout history.
Now that her program was over, Max wanted to get home to her baby. After cleaning most of the art supplies from the tables, she bolted from the museum and drove straight home. Walking into the house, Max could hear the TV on in the living room and saw the back of Meredith's head from where she sat on the couch. She turned to face Max as she walked further into the house, but didn't get up from her seat.
"She woke up cranky from her nap and hasn't wanted to do much, so I put on some cartoons for her."
Max walked around the couch and saw Willow laying her head on Meredith's lap. She looked up at her mom then sat up, reaching towards her with some tears in her eyes. A small whine came from behind her binky as she held her arms out.
"Aw sweetie, what's the matter?" Max said, picking up Willow and holding her close. She laid her head on her shoulder, her whines slowly disappearing. Max looked to Meredith as she stood and asked "Maybe she's still tired? How long was she asleep for?"
"A little over two hours. She went down just fine, but she woke up crying. Her diaper's clean, I tried to give her some of her puff snacks but she didn't want them. She didn't want to play on the floor so I just sat with her on the couch."
Max nodded and continued to sway with Willow still laying against her. She thanked Meredith for watching her and walked her out, then turned her attention back to Willow, who only briefly picked her head up. It was close to dinner time and it would only be the two of them, so Max decided to just make some spiral pasta with some sauce. She knew she'd have to give Willow a bath afterwards, but at least it would give her something to do.
As she let the pasta cook in the boiling water, she let Willow sit on the floor with her Elmo stuffed toy. She hardly made a sound or moved at all, so much so that Max almost forgot she was there. Once the pasta was ready, she put Willow in her highchair and gave her a small serving in one of her baby bowls. Max noticed how she ate slower than usual and that she didn't babble on nearly as much. She placed a hand to her forehead, feeling the heat radiating from it. She hadn't felt like that when she was holding her earlier.
"You feeling okay baby?"
Willow put another piece of pasta into her mouth and puckered her lips out, and Max smiled at her sudden silliness. Once they were both done eating, she took her upstairs to give her a bath; but first she wanted to take her temperature. With Willow still in her arms, she ran the thermometer over her forehead until it beeped. It was 100.6 degrees fahrenheit. Max grimaced.
"You got a fever Willa. What happened? You didn't feel hot when I got home."
Willow just stared and laid her head back down, prompting Max to start swaying her again. She didn't quite know what was going on; she had a theory that maybe she was starting to teethe again, knowing that babies could get fevers from that. But she showed no other signs of that, like fussiness or trouble sleeping.
All of a sudden, Willow started to gag against Max, which caused her to pull her away. As soon as she started to throw up, Max leaned her over the toilet until she was done. It had gotten all over both of them and on the bathroom rug. Max didn't even let the sight or smell bother her, all she could think about was taking care of her baby.
She was already on her way to give Willow a bath, so she undressed her and put her in the tub, keeping a close eye on her while she cleaned up the floor. She wiped off the bath mat as best she could, then brought it into the hallway, planning on putting it down in the laundry. Then she brought a new shirt into the bathroom and changed in there, seeing as that was the only thing that had been soiled of hers.
Willow splashed with her toys, seeming to be feeling a little better. Max got some water and soap into her hair, rubbing it in gently to soothe her. Once she was rinsed off, Max wrapped her up in her towel and brought her to her room, where she put on a new diaper and her pajamas. Taking her lovie from her crib, Max brought her into their room, where she laid down with Willow against her chest. She turned on the TV and flipped through the channels until she came upon PBS Kids, which seemed to be having a marathon of Pinky Dinky Doo.
Through a couple episodes, Willow seemed to be restless; she kept fidgeting and would give high pitched whines every once in a while, so Max knew her stomach must have been bothering her still. Eventually she got comfortable and became sucked into the cartoon.
Max's phone rang beside her and she picked it up, seeing that it was Spencer facetiming her. Once it connected, she could see him sitting up in his hotel bed with the lamp on next to him. His hair was slightly damp and he had his glasses on.
"Hey, wrapped up for today?" She asked.
"Yeah. I just took a shower, so I thought I'd call you before I either get occupied with files again or I fall asleep. "
"Tough one?"
"So far yeah...anyway, how are things by you? How was your program today? How's Willow?"
"My program was good. Meredith came over to watch her while I was gone, but once I got back she seemed iffy. I fed her some pasta and thought to take her temp; it was 100.6. Then she threw up, so I gave her a bath and cleaned up the bathroom. Now we're just snuggling in our bed watching some Pinky Dinky Doo."
As Max finished explaining the day, she aimed the camera down at Willow, who looked up at the phone.
"Aw hi peanut. How you feeling?" Spencer asked sweetly. Max pulled the pacifier from her mouth, which she immediately didn't like. She whined, then Max gave it back and smoothed her hair over. Aiming the camera back at her again, she made a face and Spencer seemed to get the picture.
"She might be coming down with a stomach bug."
"Yeah, that's what I was thinking too. I haven't given her any medicine, but other than that I don't know what to do for her. She just seems lethargic."
"Give her bland things to eat, like bananas, rice, saltines, applesauce. She's over the age of one, so she can have sips of water, juice, and ginger ale. Nursing her would even be good. Just keep her hydrated and don't give her any dairy. If she seems to get worse, take her to the doctor."
"Yeserooni, positooni." Max quipped.
"We're going to the story box." Spencer continued. They finished the rest of the song together, causing Willow to pick her head up and look at her mother. Max aimed the phone at her again, letting Spencer see the smile that hid behind her binky.
"Hey, there's a smile! You get some rest sweet girl and Daddy will talk to you tomorrow okay? I love you."
"Yuh you." Willow said, taking her binky out of her mouth.
"Night night Willow."
"Na na."
Max put the phone in front of her face so Spencer and her could see each other again. Max still looked pensive, so Spencer said "She's going to be fine."
"I know, it's just she's never really been sick before."
"Well let me know if you need my help, and I'll come running." Spencer said with a tender smile.
"Okay. I love you Spence."
"I love you too Max."
They both said goodnight, then Max hung up the call, turning her attention back to their daughter. She placed a hand on her forehead, which still felt a bit warm. Willow didn't seem dehydrated, but she definitely wasn't feeling well; and all she seemed to want was to cling close to her mom, and so Max let her fall asleep in their bed.