Notes: This is a fanfiction based on characters from the TV show, Private Practice. This fanfiction looks at Jake and Addison’s story (as well as the other doctors at Seaside Wellness Group) after Private Practice ends. They’re married and take care of baby Henry together. This story and chapter were originally posted on April 28th, 2022 on Archive of Our Own. This is chapter seven so it is necessary to read the sixth chapter before moving on. This has been edited to include headings and images.
Begin Again: Chapter 7
“What are we looking at?” Cooper walked up beside them as he took a bite out of his apple.
“Henry and Angela,” Charlotte said as she took the apple out of Cooper’s hand and took a bite.
After another minute of watching them, Addison went in to visit with both of them, signaling to the watching doctors that it probably meant it was time to leave them alone. After a while longer, Addison and Angela let Henry go back to playing with Lucas and they walked out together, with Addison’s arm around her shoulder. Eventually, they made their way to the kitchen where everyone was chatting and having lunch.
“Hey Ange,” Jake said as he got his lunch out of the fridge. “You joining us for lunch?”
“I guess so,” Angela said back, half-excited, half-sheepishly. She had no problem having lunch with Jake and Addison. But she barely knew the rest of the doctors. She didn’t want to impose.
“Well, it’s nice to have you here,” Cooper said as he continued eating his sandwich.
“So, Angela,” Violet started. “Jake and Addison tell me you’re pre-med,”
“Really?” Naomi asked. She was surprised. Addison hadn’t really told her much about the girl thus far. Then again, their friendship was in a weird place for a while. Addison dated her ex-husband (now husband again), she left for New York, Addison turned down Sam’s proposal, and then Naomi came back and got pregnant with Sam’s baby. They were in a good place now, but they hadn’t really caught each other up on everything the other missed.
“Yeah,” Angela said, accepting the salad container Addison handed her, which she grabbed from the fridge.
Cooper Gets Excited
“Do you know what kind of doctor you wanna be?” Violet asked.
“Not really,” Angela answered, honestly. “But I think I might be interested in pediatrics,”
At this, Cooper looked up from his lunch, excited, and pointed her out from the other side of the kitchen island.
“Yes!” Cooper cheered. “I’ll teach you anything and everything you wanna know,”
Everyone just chuckled in response.
“What?” Cooper defended himself.
“Oh come on,” Violet chuckled back at her friend. “Everyone’s interested in peds at first.
When Cooper looked around at the other doctors, they all nodded in agreement.
“Yeah, you wanna know what no one’s interested in?” Charlotte started. “Urology. Find me a pre-med student who wants to be a urologist like me. Then I’ll get excited,”
Again, everyone nodded as they continued eating their lunch and their chuckles slowed to a gradual stop.
“Actually, I want to go into pediatric surgery,” Angela finally clarified as she continued eating her lunch.
“I didn’t know you wanted to be a surgeon,” Jake commented. He was surprised but pleasantly so.
He knew how common pediatrics was as a specialty for pre-med students, and even Jake thought of pursuing it for a brief time. But Angela truly had always been interested in pediatrics, even when she was a little girl. Every time Lily relapsed, Jake would take Angela with him to his office, just trying to spare the girl from Lily’s addiction. He knew she’d probably seen her fair share of it, but now that he was her father, he wanted to shield her from the pain he knew would come from it. The pain he’d feel every time she’d relapse.
Jake and Angela’s Past
When Angela hung out at his office, she always had a blast. At first, she’d draw in her notebook quietly while she sat at his desk. Then, she’d ask questions both during and after Jake’s appointments and he’d teach her the little things. After a while, his patients knew her by name and would ask her about how school was going while she listened to their heartbeats with the little stethoscope Jake got her.
But Angela was particularly great with the kids Jake’s patients would bring with them. The kids that came in were generally young and scared but Angela was great at calming them. She’d talk about how great of a doctor Jake was and that he was going to help their mommy have another baby. It warmed Jake’s heart to watch Angela with his patients and their kids. And he knew it was part of why Angela was pre-med now. However, he never expected she’d want to become a surgeon too.
“Yeah,” Angela confirmed. “I know it’s not really what we talked about, but surgery sounds exciting and challenging. And I still wanna work with little kids, so this seemed like the best compromise,”
“That’s great,” Addison commented. “You know, I actually know a couple of great peds surgeons,”
“Yeah, some more than others,” Violet giggled. Addison may have mentioned how she slept with Alex back in Seattle right before she came to LA. They’d been talking about Violet’s current non-existent love life and how she wasn’t really looking for anything serious. To which Addison told her to just get it over with. Things with Alex hadn’t been purely physical at the time, but it definitely felt that way after it all ended.
Addison Remembers Karev
Addison glared back at Violet but couldn’t help but laugh along.
“What does she mean by that?” Naomi asked, suspiciously.
“Nothing,” Addison tried to brush it off nonchalantly.
When Naomi gave her a look back, Addison could tell she was unsuccessful in convincing her otherwise.
“I’ll tell you later,” Addison finally muttered quietly.
The rest of the doctors as well as Angela looked back at Addison, who finally had to admit defeat.
“I slept with one of them,” Addison finally revealed, giggling slightly to relieve some of the tension. “It was a long time ago and it was nothing,”
“Yeah, just getting over the post-divorce hump,” Violet added, giggling.
Instead of garnering her another response, Addison just laughed along. And before long, they all joined her. Alex and working at what was now called Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital was forever ago. It felt like a whole other life now. There was a time when she thought she’d be that lonely forever. Alex felt like he could’ve been a bright light in the abyss. That is, until she realized she was just holding onto him because it was a nice reminder of what it felt like to feel wanted again. From someone other than Mark, who, as much as she loved him, was too messy to go back to.
Sam and Addison’s Case
After their lunch break, everyone went their separate ways. The doctors went back to their respective offices and Angela went back to manning the front desk. The next two weeks passed and Angela settled into Seaside Wellness quite nicely. Everyone got to know her a little better and Addison welcomed Angela into some of her appointments to assist.
Then came a particularly rough case. A heart patient of Sam’s and Addison’s, Peyton, was pregnant with a 30-week baby. They both worked together and monitored her closely because they wanted to make sure she wouldn’t deliver early. Either way, this baby also came with its own complications. But they wanted to give that baby as much time in the womb as possible before doing surgery on him.
“Addison,” Angela opened Addison’s office door after a brief knock.
“It’s Peyton, her water broke and Scott’s rushing her to the hospital,” Angela informed her after seeing Addison look up from her paperwork.
Shortly afterward, Angela barged into Sam’s office to find him and Naomi having lunch together. As sweet as seeing the two of them spend more time together was, it would have to wait.
“Sam, Peyton’s water broke,” Angela, again, wasted no time getting to the point. “They’re gonna meet you and Addison at St. Ambrose,”
Sam immediately got up after giving his wife an apologetic look. Naomi waved him off, insisting he rush off. After putting down his lunch and grabbing his jacket, he gave Naomi a quick peck on the lips before leaving. When Sam got to the lobby, Addison was talking to Angela, who was standing in front of the reception desk holding Addison’s purse as she put on her jacket.
Angela Goes With Addison
“You ever observe a surgery before?” Addison asked as she pulled her hair out from under her coat.
“No,” Angela said, somewhat suspiciously.
“Then, today’s your lucky day,” Addison said, grabbing her purse out of Angela’s hand and wrapping her other arm around her shoulder.
“But what about the front desk?” Angela said as the three of them walked to the elevators, where Sam pushed the down button.
“Stephen’s got it from here,” Addison said, referring to one of their lab techs, who they saw walk out of an exam room and walk behind the desk. Apparently, Addison asked him to cover for Angela while she went to get Sam.
In the car ride to St. Ambrose, Angela sat in the back, her leg shaking. It was a bad habit, she knew, but she couldn’t help it. It was like a nervous tick. This was going to be the first surgery she’d see firsthand. She’d watched a few old educational videos before, but this was different. And she’d get to see Addison, her stepmother, do surgery. She knew of her reputation and getting to see it up-close excited her.
When they got to the hospital, Charlotte met them and guided them to where Scott and Peyton were in the ER. With an OB resident, no less.
“Dr. Montgomery, thank God you’re here,” Scott, the husband, said, relieved.
Addison immediately went to work as she brushed the OB resident to the side to check on how fast Peyton’s labor was progressing. Sam went over to her side to check on her heart. It was beating rapidly and he knew they had their work cut out for them.
Angela Watches Addison
“Addison, her heart’s racing,” Sam informed her.
“Alright Peyton,” Addison started. “You’re not crowning yet but we need to get you into surgery. Scott, Dr. King’s gonna get you all set up to go in with her,”
While this situation wasn’t ideal, Sam and Addison were prepared. They knew there was a high chance that Peyton would deliver early. And they knew a c-section would help prevent at least some complications. Everything moved quickly from there and Angela was impressed by how quickly Addison took charge and how calm she seemed.
After getting Charlotte’s permission (after all, she was still the Chief of Staff), Angela watched the c-section from the gallery. And again, she was impressed by her new stepmother. No wonder Jake fell so hard for her, she thought. After delivering the baby, she watched as some other doctors worked on the baby as Addison closed the incision. After about 20 seconds, they all heard the baby cry and sighed a breath of relief. The baby still needed surgery, but for now, he was okay.
As Addison was closing Peyton up, she started passing out. From there, Sam stepped in and as they worked together, they maintained a stable heartbeat and Addison eventually closed her up. It all felt like it was happening so fast, and Angela was surprised to see it’d been over an hour. She wasn’t even the one operating, but Angela felt a rush of adrenaline like no other. And it only confirmed her desire to become a surgeon. And not just a surgeon, but a great one, just like Addison.
A Complication
After that, Addison and Sam went to talk to Scott as Peyton recovered from her c-section. The baby had a tumor so Addison wanted to go in to get it out as soon as she could. After explaining the procedure and the risks, Scott agreed and Addison went back into the OR. Angela, once again, watched Addison do surgery on a tiny baby and wondered how she did it with so much precision and focus.
Later, the surgery on the baby proved to be successful and the sun was starting to set. So, instead of going back to the practice, Addison texted Jake to pick up Henry from the daycare and the whole Montgomery-Reilly family met back at home. When Addison and Angela got back, Jake and Henry were in the living room playing with a bag of takeout on the kitchen counter.
“Mama?” Henry spotted his mother when she and Angela came into view.
“Hi, baby!” Addison said back, excitedly as Henry walked over to her. In response, Addison picked him, held him close to her chest, and gave him a kiss on his cheek.
“Hey, honey,” Jake greeted Addison with a quick peck on the lips after she settled Henry in her arms.
“Where’d you guys go today?” Jake asked as he stood up off the ground.
“St. Ambrose,” Addison said, simply as she briefly looked away from an excited Henry in her arms. “I had a c-section and a tumor resection,”
“And you went with her?” Jake looked over at Angela, who nodded to confirm.
Angela Raves About the Surgery
“It was amazing!” Angela raved about her stepmother.
“Oh, thank you,” Addison said, appreciatively, turning to face her with Henry still in her arms.
“Yeah, she’s an incredible surgeon,” Jake commented as he looked lovingly back at Addison, who smiled back appreciatively.
“Yeah, more like a badass surgeon,” Angela commented as she started getting plates and utensils from the cupboard and drawers in the kitchen. Addison just chuckled back in response.
“How do you have so much focus and precision?” Angela finally asked as they sat down for dinner, with Henry in his high chair.
“A lot of practice,” Addison said, honestly.
“I guess I should start practicing,” Angela chuckled, nervously.
“Well, I also got lucky,” Addison commented as she opened the takeout boxes and placed some sharing utensils in each box as Jake secured the bib around Henry’s neck.
“How so?” Angela asked as she started distributing food onto everyone’s plates.
“Well, I used to go with The Captain when he taught classes at Yale,” Addison responded. “His students got to use cadavers, I had a hot dog,”
“You practiced on a hot dog?” Jake asked, finding it hard to picture Addison operating on a hot dog of all things.
“Yes,” Addison said.
“Have you met him?” Angela asked.
“The Captain, I mean,” Angela directed her question to Jake, who leaned back in his chair as he chewed his food.
“I did,” Jake answered as he swallowed some of his food. “About a week before the wedding,”
Flashback to Before the Wedding
“Captain,” Addison said with a neutral expression as she saw her father at her front door.
“Hi, Kitten,” The Captain leaned down and kissed her cheek.
After he made his way inside her house, Addison was surprised to find Archer standing back. The Captain never mentioned Archer would be visiting as well.
“Archie!” Addison exclaimed after seeing him smile and come up to hug her. Their relationship had been complicated in the past, but they were finally in a good place again.
“What are you doing here?” Addison squeezed him tighter just slightly before they pulled away.
“You’re getting married,” Archer said, matter-of-factly. “And I still haven’t met your little rugrat,”
Addison couldn’t help but giggle at least slightly. After leading Archer inside, they found the Captain and Jake shaking hands as Henry watched curiously from his high chair.
“Jake,” Addison started. “This is Archer, my brother,”
“Hi, it’s nice to meet you,” Jake said as he shook Archer’s hand.
“So, you’re the guy Addie’s shacking up with,” Archer joked.
“What?” Archer chuckled, pretending to act innocent in the face of Addison’s glare. Jake couldn’t help but also chuckle as well. This wasn’t exactly a traditional meeting of the family, but Jake didn’t quite know what to expect. When Addison talked about her family, it felt more like a warning. Talks of a WASP-y family was all brand new concepts for him. He’d heard of WASPs but didn’t really know much other than the meaning of the acronym.
“And you’ve already met the Captain,” Addison added. After hearing his name, the Captain turned and looked from previously watching Henry play with his plastic spoon.
The Captain and Archer Meet Henry
“And you must be the rugrat!” Archer joked, looking at Henry. After smiling at him, Henry gave him a toothy smile back.
“Oh, he’s even growing teeth now,” The Captain commented, surprised at how fast Henry was growing.
“Yes, he is,” Addison couldn’t help but smile. As much as her family infuriated her at times, Henry had a way of making her happy regardless. But then again, neither The Captain nor Archer said all that much yet.
“Henry,” Addison started as she looked at the boy, still sitting in his highchair. Henry stared back at her, giving her a small smile back.
“This is your Uncle Archer and the Captain,” Addison introduced them and watched as Henry looked at both of them.
“Hi Henry,” The Captain nodded his head slightly as he greeted the boy. Archer gave him a playful wave, which made Henry smile again.
Addison pulled him out of his highchair to give both The Captain and Archer a closer look. Archer admired him as Addison held him in her arms. Even The Captain looked a little amused. At the sight of it, Addison was surprised. Seeing The Captain smile, genuinely smile that is, was a rarity. But it touched her that her new status as a mother seemed to be bringing it out of him now.
The Captain and Archer Meet Jake
“And you must be the guy getting hitched to my sister,” Archer joked, turning his attention to Jake.
“Jake Reilly,” Jake held out his hand to introduce himself. After Archer shifted Henry in his arms, he shook his hand. Addison warned him about her brother, that he was sarcastic, arrogant, and a definitive product of their parents. It was sweet to see how distracted he and The Captain were by Henry. But he also knew that he still had to impress them. If anything, Henry was just the opening act.
“Addison tells us you’re also a doctor,” The Captain commented.
“Yes, I’m a fertility specialist and a general surgeon,” Jake said.
“Double-board certified,” The Captain commented. He was stoic, giving no indication of how he felt about the matter.
“Yes,” Jake confirmed.
“Looks like you finally found your match,” Archer joked.
“So, what are your intentions with my daughter, anyhow?” The Captain asked. Jake swallowed hard. He didn’t want to admit he was nervous, but he was. How could he not be after everything Addison told him about her family?
Addison told him that her family was cold but polite. Your classic WASPs, as she put it. And it didn’t help that she added the fact that her family never liked Derek, who, much like Jake, wasn’t from her world. But she did add that it was probably better that her mother was no longer with them to judge him.
Comparing the Montgomery’s to the Reilly’s
She insisted that Bizzy would’ve been harder on him if she were still alive. And Jake was in no position to argue with that point. But hearing Addison talk about her mother like this saddened him. He felt fortunate that he grew up with a great family. Even though his parents died when he was younger, he remembers them both fondly. His dad was an army man, your typical tough guy. But he was also an old soul and a true romantic. Jake was only nine years old when he died, but seeing how he was with his mother taught him how a man should treat a woman.
When he lost his mother at 18, he was devastated. She was the true matriarch of the family and was a social worker, specifically with kids in the foster system. At the dinner table, she used to tell them all stories of the kids she worked with, and sometimes, she brought some home to stay with them when they didn’t have anywhere else to go for the night. Or for the week. Madeline Reilly was the purest soul to ever live, as far as Jake was concerned, and her giving nature was what made him want to be a doctor someday. Well, actually, it’s why he wanted his job to involve helping people one way or another.
Jake and The Captain
When she passed, he became the provider. He worked three jobs to make ends meet, to make sure his three sisters had food on the table. When he finally went up for air, he took his chance at med school and gave it his all. He wanted to choose a specialty that would help people but he also found the prospect of surgery exciting and intriguing. He toyed with the idea of specializing in addiction, but after meeting and falling for Lily, it felt a little too close to home. So, he picked obstetrics and went into general surgery as well, thinking it could come in handy with his specialty. And he believes wholeheartedly that it has.
“I love your daughter, sir,” Jake started, still feeling intimidated by The Captain.
“And I want to be the best husband and father I can possibly be to her and Henry,” Jake continued. “I just hope that that’s enough for you,”
The Captain looked back at both Jake and Addison. At some point, while he was talking, Jake felt Addison’s hand slide into his and grip it tightly. Instead of saying anything more, however, The Captain just nodded and moved on. It was a classic Forbes Montgomery move to just brush over anything and everything remotely sentimental. But this felt like a good thing. Was it? It was hard to tell, but it was enough for now for both Jake and Addison.
Addison Apologizes for Her Family
“Actually,” Addison started, clearing her throat. “Archer and the Captain are coming for Henry’s birthday party so, you’ll see them again. Soon,”
“Am I gonna meet them?” Angela asked as she took another bite of her dinner.
“Of course!” Addison said without hesitation. “But I am going to apologize ahead of time,”
“For what?” Jake asked.
“For anything and everything offensive they might say,” Addison said as she wiped some baby food from Henry’s mouth.
“They weren’t that bad,” Jake insisted. Though, if he were truly honest with himself, they focused most of their attention on Henry on their last visit.
“Yeah, well I guess we’re lucky we’ve got Henry here to distract them,” Addison turned her attention to the boy, who giggled at the sound of his name.
“Does that mean all your sisters are coming too?” Angela asked.
“Yup,” Jake said as he swallowed some of his food.
“Wow, I haven’t seen any of them since the wedding,” Angela said in between bites.
“Us either,” Addison added.
Flashback to the Rehearsal Dinner
Addison met all three of Jake’s sisters at the rehearsal dinner. Jake didn’t really tell her much beforehand, but she could tell they were all close. Every once in a while, she’d catch Jake speaking Spanish on the phone, and she knew it had to be one of his sisters. She did wish, however, she knew more Spanish. But she took French in high school, not Spanish. Seeing how Jake was with his family was sweet, and it reminded Addison of how much she loved the Shepherds when she was one. The Shepherd family was a big reason why she said yes to marrying Derek. And despite the divorce, Amelia was still like the little sister she never had growing up.
At the rehearsal dinner, Jake’s sisters spotted him from across the room and ran up to him. When he heard all of them squealing, he let go of Addison’s waist and walked over while they all ran to him. Watching them all embrace in a big group hug made Addison smile at them fondly as she held Henry in her arms.
“Those are some of your other aunties,” Addison told the boy softly. He stared back at her curiously.
“I can’t believe you’re getting married again!” Sofia, the oldest of the three, said.
“I know! Who do you think you are, anyway?” Grace, the youngest, joked.
“Alright, alright,” Jake chuckled. “It’s good to see you guys too,”
Addison Meets Jake’s Sisters
“Is that her?” Luna gasped as she saw Addison holding and talking softly to a baby Henry in her arms.
“Yeah,” Jake said, somewhat nervous. His family meant the world to him, and Addison and Henry were his family now too. He felt weird about feeling nervous. He loved all of them, but this felt like a pivotal moment. I mean, it was. But he suddenly felt like there was all this pressure for everything to work out well.
Before everyone met in the middle of the hotel ballroom, Jake heard Luna whisper “she’s pretty” in Spanish, and hearing it helped curb his nerves a bit. As he looked at Addison, he could tell she felt the same. Nervous, but excited. She was smiling, a genuine one, but he could see it in her eyes that she was also nervous as hell. As was he.
“You must be Addison,” Sofia started, extending a hand out to her.
“Yes,” Addison confirmed, using her free hand to shake Sofia’s.
“Sofia, Grace, and Luna,” Jake introduced each sister as they also went up one at a time to shake Addison’s free hand.
“And this is Henry,” Jake said, averting everyone’s attention to the baby, who looked at all of them confused.
“Henry, can you say hi?” Addison asked sweetly. Henry looked up at Addison and babbled some gibberish in response, still confused.
“Well, at least you tried,” Grace laughed as everyone cooed over the baby.
More About Jake’s Sisters
As the evening progressed, Addison learned a little more about Jake and his family. His sisters were all great, all unique in their own way. Sofia was the oldest after Jake, and went into nursing, after being inspired by her big brother. Luna was, what she called, the black sheep of the family. A painter working as a tattoo artist, hoping to get her work displayed in LACMA someday. Then, there was Grace, the youngest of the siblings. She followed their mother’s footsteps, working with foster kids and helping to make sure they’d match with great families in a safe environment.
Jake and his family told sweet childhood stories and Addison only fell in love with him more as she watched them all interact. They all radiated such warm energy. And it reminded her how much she missed this. A family. LA became her home, but it wasn’t because of the warm weather or the job she loved so much. It was the people. The people at the practice were what made her want to stay here. To take root here. And it was great. It still was great. But meeting Jake’s family just enforced the feeling. She finally felt like she was home like she was exactly where she belonged.
“You know,” Sofia started after there was a lull in the conversation. “We never thought you’d get married again, hermano,”
“Yeah,” Luna chimed in. “After Lily? We thought you were done,”
They all stayed quiet as the chatter continued from the other guests sitting at scattered tables around the hotel ballroom.
“But we’re glad you weren’t,” Grace finally said. “Done, I mean,”
“Seeing you like this,” Grace gestured to Jake. “It’s good, to see you happy again,”
Remembering Lily
“Even when you were with Lily,” Luna started. “You were always so tense. I know she made you happy but, this isn’t the same, you know?”
Jake’s other sisters nodded in agreement. Addison, not knowing what to say, just smiled slightly. And Jake did the same, slightly bowing his head down, knowing that his sisters were right. He loved Lily with everything he had. But she wasn’t an easy woman to love. She never was. But it didn’t stop him from falling completely over heels for her.
“What was she like?” Addison asked. She knew she probably should’ve just kept her mouth shut, but she couldn’t help herself.
“Beautiful,” Sofia started. “But she had her problems. We all do, but we could see how it was weighing on Jake,”
Toasting Jake and Addison
Jake kept quiet. During his and Lily’s entire relationship, his sisters tried to convince him to leave. They knew she made him happy, but they saw what it did to him. When she was clean, everything was right with the world. When she wasn’t, it was like the end of the world. Despite his sisters’ concerns and warnings, Jake stayed. He stayed and fought, for their marriage, for their daughter. He told Addison that that was the kind of guy he was, and he wasn’t lying. When Lily died, he was devastated. But not necessarily surprised. It’d been the day he’d been dreading since he first found out about her addiction.
“We’re just glad he has you now,” Grace said, smiling as she gently placed her hand on top of Addison’s.
After a brief pause, Sofia stood up and tapped on her glass with a spoon. At the sound of that, everyone was prompted to raise their glasses as well.
“To Jake and Addison!” Sofia exclaimed. Everyone repeated the phrase, clinked glasses, and took a sip.
Additional Notes
So, this ended up having a lot of family stuff from both sides, but hopefully, you guys enjoy that. And we never really learned all that much about Jake or Angela so I thought it’d be interesting to build her character out more. As for the medical staff in this chapter, I just based it on a past case from Private Practice and some basic Google searching so I’m sorry if any of it was inaccurate.
I also tried to keep it pretty vague to try to keep it from being super inaccurate because I am once again going to say that I am not a medical expert. Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and I’ll try not to make you guys wait too long for the next chapter. The next chapter will have Henry’s first birthday and will feature more of The Captain and Archer, who we never saw meet baby Henry or Jake on the show, so this is my way of making up for it.
It’ll also feature more of Jake’s sisters, so hopefully, you guys like where I took those characters. Again, we never learn anything about them other than the fact that Jake has three sisters so I just had to create my own story for them. Also, to all the commenters on my previous chapters, I love and appreciate you always <3
