A/N: Hi everyone! This is my first (recent) attempt at a longer, drabble-ish fic. AU, set sometime post-season 5. A little bit inspired by "Normal," written by VioletHills. Hope you enjoy! :)

Disclaimer: I still don't own The Good Wife. Darn.

She's dressed in dark-wash jeans and one of his old Georgetown t-shirts. Her dark hair is pulled up in a ponytail, small beads of sweat forming at her hairline. She pushes her bangs out of her face and smiles at Will, never having imagined he would be the one here for this moment in her life.

Zach. Her baby boy. All grown up and ready for college. They're taking boxes and bins down to the car, elevator trip by elevator trip. As Alicia watches his room grow emptier, she starts feeling nostalgic, thinking of everything they've been through together in this apartment. When they moved here after the scandal broke, none of them ever imagined it would become home. But it had, slowly but surely, feeling even more so now that she was the happiest she'd ever been. A happy mom certainly makes for a happy home.

Grace came in, her long ponytail swishing behind her. "Will said there were only a couple heavy things left, so he and Zach would get them," she said breathlessly, winded from both the work and the August heat.

Alicia put her arm around her daughter, looking around at Zach's empty room. "It's going to be weird without your brother here."

"Less noisy, though?" Grace supplied, looking up and smiling. "Maybe less messy?"

Alicia chuckled. "Maybe so."

Zach was glad it was just the two of them finishing the loading; there was something on his mind he wanted to discuss.

"Hey, Will?"

"What's up?" Will asked, removing his head from inside the car. He shut the door and wiped his hands on his jeans.

"You'll take care of my mom, right?" Zach looked deeply concerned. "I mean..."

His pause said everything he couldn't, and it stirred an ache in Will's heart, knowing exactly what Zach meant. That he'd seen his mom hurt and broken and he couldn't bear to see her go through it again, especially without being around to take care of her.

"I mean...I know she loved my dad. And I think he still loved her, too. But I see her with you, and she's happy. She smiles every day. And it's not like the pretend smile she used to give when she was with him. It's different. And I don't want that to go away."

It was a maturity and understanding far beyond Zach's eighteen years.

Will put his hand on Zach's shoulder and smiled. "Your mom is the most important person in the world to me. We've been through a lot together. And I promise I'll keep her from getting hurt as much as humanly possible."

Zach pulled Will in for a hug; a true, both-arms-around-each-other-not-holding-back kind of hug. "Thank you," he said quietly.

Alicia and Grace came outside soon after. Will and Zach were leaning against the back of the car, talking and laughing. It made Alicia's heart burst to see them together like that, knowing how much Will loved her kids.

It hadn't been easy at first, especially not with Grace-she had always held on to the small hope that her parents would get back together. But that changed, eventually, likely with a little encouragement from Zach. And it certainly didn't hurt that Will was easy to be around; he'd help them with their homework (sometimes failing miserably), sit with them on the couch and watch the scary movies Alicia hated, take them to Cubs games, help teach Grace how to drive. He was getting the hang of this parent thing pretty well.

When Alicia reached Zach, she wrapped him tight in her arms, knowing this was the moment, the moment when he was officially leaving home and would likely never return as a permanent resident.

As his mom held him and kissed the top of his head, Zach smiled over her shoulder at Will.