I Will Never Let You Go (A Maxcer Fanfic)

Two Cute.

Spencer sat on the couch as he arranged the wrapped gifts on the coffee table and took a picture of it all before Willow ripped open her presents. Her birthday had rolled around again and she was turning two today; although he liked to remind himself that she wasn't exactly two yet. Spencer's jobs that morning were to make breakfast and finish wrapping presents. They had completely forgotten that a few of the last minute presents still needed to be wrapped or put into a bag, so Spencer took care of that while Max got Willow dressed in her birthday outfit.
The team was all off duty for the next few days, which was perfect so they could have her party on her actual birthday again. This year however, they decided to have her party outside the house at a local playhouse, where there were bounce houses and jungle gyms and different activities. Max had been there before when Sammy was younger, and it wasn't a bad place; she did have to talk Spencer into it a little, since he still had a slight germ problem. After scoping it out one day though, he saw that mostly everything was spaced out, so it wasn't cramped like Chuck E Cheese or something.
Spencer heard the soft creaks of the stairs behind him, and he turned around to see Max and Willow coming down them. Willow was wearing a black tank top that said "Two Cute" in gold and pink lettering. She also wore a skirt that had vertical white and black stripes and gold polka dots, which had a pink bow at the waist. Max had slightly curled her hair, and she had a pink and black bow that said "Birthday Princess" with white lettering to hold her hair back.
"You are too cute, that's for sure." He said, wrapping his arms around her. Max sat next to him and grabbed one of Willow's hands while Spencer grabbed the other.
"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Willow, happy birthday to you." They both sang, swinging her arms. She tilted her head to the side with a smile, making a bashful face. They both gave her a kiss before turning her around to the coffee table.
"These are from Mommy and Daddy. You can open them before we go to your party okay?" Max said.
Willow seemed excited about everything she opened, from her Disney princess Little People to her Rapunzel toothbrush. She urged them to let her open the packaging, but they reminded her that they'd all be there when they got home; for now, they were gonna have fun with their friends and family.

When they arrived, Emily, Andrew, Matt, Kristy and their kids were already there. They were waiting in the table area that was reserved for the party. Gift bags were sitting on one of the tables with balloons attached to them. When they spotted the three of them come through the doors, they waved and stood from their seats.
"Heyy, happy birthday Willow!" Emily said, crouching down to give her a hug. Everyone else followed suit while Spencer put down the cake. They had picked it up on their way there, and Spencer could tell that Garcia was starting to rub off on Willow. They let her pick out a unicorn cake, which had frosting, sprinkles, and marshmallows for a mane. In the front, there was a star shaped cookie that said "Happy Birthday Willow."
At first, Willow seemed a bit overwhelmed by the atmosphere and all the hugs, but soon enough she warmed up and was itching to run off and play.
"Uncle Spencer, can we take Willow to the bounce house?" Chloe, one of Matt's twins, asked.
"Of course, just make sure you guys leave your shoes here first."
"And be careful, she's still little. Keep an eye on her." Matt said to his kids. They nodded and the twins each grabbed one of Willow's hands, leading her to the different attractions.
"So how far along are you Max?" Kristy asked.
"32 weeks."
"33 tomorrow." Spencer said, wrapping an arm around her waist. Max smiled and shook her head, glancing down at her bump.
"Yeah, soon you're gonna have to give us pointers on how to corral more than one kid." Max quipped. They continued to stay in the reserved area, waiting for everyone else while also keeping an eye on the kids. Pretty soon, the whole team, Derek and his family, Max's family and Spencer's dad were all there, and they dispersed into different areas of the playhouse.

"Ready? Hold on tight. One...two...three!" Spencer hollered, sliding down one of the bounce slides with Willow in his lap. Henry, Sammy, and Rose were on either side of them, and they landed just seconds after Spencer did.
"Was that fun?" Spencer asked Willow.
"Again." She said, maneuvering herself off of him and crawling towards the exit. Spencer chuckled and followed after her. Once he was out of the bounce house and on the solid ground again, he could see Luke and Derek slipping from a different one; one that enticed people to go two at a time and race to the end. By 2.4 seconds, Derek lost the race.
"Noooo." He cried, followed by laughter as he was mocked by Garcia and Tara.
"You just got beat by Luke Alvez. That has to hurt."
"And I was rooting for you too!" Garcia exclaimed.
"Oh, wow, I'm wounded." Luke teased, holding his hand over his heart. Garcia pulled him closer and whispered something in his ear, then Luke placed a chaste kiss to her lips.
"Hey pretty boy, wanna race?" Derek said, making eye contact with Spencer and nodding towards the bounce house. He nodded but turned around to see if he could spot Willow. She was probably making her way up the same slide that she'd been insisting to go down several times already, but she should've made her way up to the top by now. Glancing up at it, he could see Micheal and Hank at the top getting ready to slide down. Before they did, Spencer got their attention and called up to them.
"Boys, is Willow in there?"
"No." Micheal responded, sliding down. Hank followed after him, and both boys exited and ran around the side of the bounce slide. The playhouse mainly consisted of their party, but there were some other people that brought their kids for a fun outing. Spencer felt panic start to build in his chest and glanced around.
"Did you lose track of her?" Derek asked, coming up behind him. He knew that face because he's made it himself before.
"She wanted to go on this slide again but she's not there." Spencer said, gesturing up at it. They had Tara, Luke, and Garcia go further into the playhouse while Spencer and Derek went towards the front, where Max, her sisters, their parents, Rossi and Krystall were. Max saw them walking towards them and smiled, then it dropped off her face when she realized that Spencer looked worried.
"Did Willow run up this way?"
"No, why? I saw you guys going down the slide a couple times; is she not over there?"
Spencer shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. He was with her, then turned away for just a minute, and then she was gone. They would search every inch of this place if they had too, but he had to hope that nothing bad had happened to her.
"Reid." Luke shouted, causing them to look in the other direction. There wasn't any indication in his voice that they'd found Willow, but he didn't sound concerned either. Luckily there was no reason for him to be, because when they caught sight of him, Willow was in his arms.
Spencer sighed in relief and crouched down with his arms open wide, hugging Willow tighter than he normally did.
"She was with Lily, Chloe and David in one of the jungle gyms." Luke explained.
"You scared me there Wils, I didn't know where you were. You gotta tell me where you're going next time okay?"
"Okay." Willow said, pulling away from him so she could run towards a bounce house in the immediate area, where Rose and Delanie were playing.
They all continued to talk and run around with the kids; Derek and Spencer did have their race, which Derek gleefully won. Around 1:00, everyone gathered in the reserved seating area for cake. They placed a pink glittery #2 candle right in front of the unicorn's horn and lit it, then placed the cake in front of Willow. They sang in unison and cheered for her as she blew the flame out herself this year.

"And then I'll look at you, and you'll look at me; and I'll love you, whoever you've grown up to be." Spencer said, reading the book in his hands aloud. After reading the last page, he flipped the back cover over and said "The end."
"Again." Willow said.
"Again? He's read it three times already." Max said.
"Again." Willow repeated with a cheeky smile.
"I think you like saying that word just a little bit too much."
"Again."
Spencer tickled her sides and made her giggle uncontrollably, before slipping from her bed. They had transitioned her to a twin bed a week before as an early birthday present and so far Willow was content with the change. Max and Spencer did find it strange to not have to put her down in a crib for naps, but they both did like that they could lay next to her during storytime.
"It's time for night night, okay? Give Mama and Daddy a kiss." He said, leaning down to her level. She pecked his lips, then Max's, then hugged her bump before she stood as well. They tucked her in with her Valentine's day puppy that she named Pinky and she snuggled her head into her new Strawberry Cow Pillow Pet that the LaMontagnes got her.
"Sweet dreams Willow, we love you." Max said, brushing some hair from her face.
"Love you."
Max and Spencer both gave her one last kiss on the head before turning on her nightlight and leaving the room.
Spencer flopped face down on his side of their bed and grumbled, making Max laugh as she sat in her spot.
"It's her birthday. She's supposed to have us wrapped around her little finger."
"I know, but reading the same book three times in one sitting is exhausting."
"Like you haven't done that before."
"I actually haven't. I've read more than three books in one sitting, but never the same one." Spencer debunked. Max ran a hand through his hair, straightening it out with her fingers.
"Your hair's getting really long."
"Yeah I know. I'll probably get it cut before the baby's born.
"Willow's hair is getting really long too, have you noticed that?"
"Babe, she turned two today. Let us grieve one milestone before taking on another." Spencer joked.