Happy sequel everyone! Most likely, this will be the last official sequel in my Sunshine series, so let's make the most of it and enjoy it while it lasts.
I don't own Austin & Ally
June 12, 2025 (Present)
"Ella, are you awake?"
Ella groaned into the pillow at the sound of Jazzy's voice. This was a constant thing now, ever since the baby had been born in April. Jazzy didn't know the first thing about being a mother, and she needed help all the time.
"No, go away."
"Ella, I know you're up." Jazzy sounded irritated.
"Well I am now." Ella turned over and glared at the intruder. "What are you wearing?"
Jazzy had on a skin tight tank top that didn't even hint at the baby fat she might have gained since she'd been pregnant with little April. On her tan legs (obviously she'd gone to the tanning bed since Ella had last seen her) were frayed black jean shorts that almost showed her butt. She was very obviously wearing a pushup bra. Also, Jazzy was wearing four inch red stilettos, and her makeup was bold: bright red lipstick completed with the smokey eye look.
It all spoke of the one word Ella dreaded to hear again.
"What?" Jazzy pouted and looked down at her clothes. "These are my party clothes!"
Party. She said it. Ella wanted to slap her for it, but she was just so tired. She had been up for hours that night, babysitting April, Mia and all three of Maddie's kids. At the same time.
"I'm guessing you want me to babysit?" Ella asked as she laid back down on her pillow.
"Don't be silly! I was going to see if you wanted to come with me!"
Ella scoffed inwardly. "Will there be alcohol at this party?"
"Well yeah, but-"
"Will there be parental supervision?"
"Not exactly-"
Ella cut her off again. "Do my parents know you're going, or that you're trying to get me to go"
"No, but come on-"
"Then no," Ella said firmly.
"Ella-"
"I said no," Ella repeated, "I'm not going to some stupid party at...what time is it?"
"Midnight," Jazzy shrugged.
Ella closed her eyes and counted to ten. "I'm not going to some stupid party with you at midnight."
"Okay…" Jazzy trailed off. "Well, in that case, will you babysit?"
"As long as it gets you to shut up," Ella said, reaching for the baby monitor without even opening her eyes. She knew Jazzy didn't actually want her going to the party; she wanted a babysitter, but didn't want to appear selfish and needy like the brat she often was. Ella briefly wondered what Jazzy would've done if she'd said she wanted to go, but dismissed the thought immediately.
"Thanks Ella, you're the best!"
"If I beg you not to drink, will it even make a difference?" Ella sighed.
"Probably not." And with that, Jazzy flounced out the door without another word.
Seconds later, Ella was asleep once more, unaware of the crash that sounded when the baby monitor fell to the floor and the batteries fell out.
"Why?" Emma complained loudly as she stepped out of her bedroom, just in time to see Eli and Evan stepping out of their room, looking grouchy. So the crying had woken them up too. Where was Jazzy?
"Is someone gonna shut that stupid kid up?" Evan demanded, glaring at Eli and Emma as if all of this was their fault.
"I'll get her," Eli sighed and took off towards the attic stairs where Jazzy and April currently lived. He returned moments later, holding the screaming baby girl. "She was up there all alone. Where the h-heck is Jazzy and who had the baby monitor?"
Eli sounded livid. Wordlessly, Emma stepped forward and took the baby from him. April was sensitive to moods, like most babies, and hated to be held by angry people, even if they were angry on her behalf, which Eli obviously was. He was practically fuming.
"Where's Ella?" Evan asked, wiping his tired eyes.
"She's still sleeping," Emma said as she bounced April up and down. The baby had started to quiet down a little bit, and was now sniffling miserably. "I know baby," Emma whispered, kissing the top of her head. "I'm sorry, I don't know where Mommy is."
It was getting about ridiculous how many times Emma found herself, or one of the other members of the household, saying this to April. Jazzy was a flat-out irresponsible mother, and kept pushing her baby off on other people. They were understanding enough the first couple of weeks, but the baby was now two months old and it was getting ridiculous. They all had to go to school or work, just like Jazzy. It didn't matter that school had recently let out for the summer. Everyone needed their rest.
"She can't keep putting her baby off on Ella and the rest of us," Eli growled. "She takes no responsibility for herself or her kid. And like my mom always said, that's the first step to abandonment. My dad-"
Eli stopped. He never talked about Uncle Elliot if he could help it, and he never talked about how he had left Eli and his mother before he'd even been born.
"Where's Ally?" Eli asked abruptly. "She and Austin need to deal with this. We can't keep living like this forever."
"What are you kids doing up so early?"
"Speak of the devil," Evan muttered as their dad walked into the hallway wearing flannel pajama pants. He'd started wearing pajamas instead of a t-shirt and boxers when Jazzy and Eli moved in.
"I can't deal with her crap anymore Austin!" Eli practically shouted. April started whimpering again, so Emma started humming a slow pop song that she loved. It had her quiet again, and she laid her little head on Emma's shoulder.
"Who?" Austin asked in bewilderment. He glanced at Emma, but she just shook her head. She wanted no part of this.
"Jazzy!" Eli exclaimed. "April was screaming her head off and no one was up there watching her. We don't even know who has the baby monitor! We can't keep waking up like this at the crack of dawn because no one's taking care of the baby."
April started crying again. Emma could relate. She felt a bit like crying herself.
"Oh my gosh!" Evan threw his hands in the air and stalked off to his room. "Shut her up or I will!" And he slammed the door.
"Evan!" Emma exclaimed, aghast. She thrust the baby into her cousin's arms and took off after her twin.
Eli turned to Austin with a hard glare as he held the squalling baby once again. "Ella's exhausted, Austin. She's seventeen. This is not her baby. She's so tired she didn't even hear the crying. Fix this."
And he passed the baby to Austin, stalking off after the twins to the bedroom he and Evan now shared.
Austin glanced down at the screaming baby and sighed. This was something he really didn't feel like doing all over again.
"Ally!" He called. "Als, we need to talk!"
Ella jumped up in bed with a start. "What the-"
Toby smiled across the room at her. He was sitting in her beanbag chair with April sleeping in his arms. Ella's heart melted. She could never get enough of seeing a big, strong guy like Toby holding a little baby in his arms like she was the most precious thing in the world.
"You're staring at me." Toby laughed. "I know I'm stunningly attractive, but…"
"Oh shut up." Ella rolled her eyes. She would've thrown her pillow at him if he hadn't been holding the baby. "Where's Jazzy?"
"You don't remember her asking you to babysit?" Toby frowned. "We found the baby monitor on your floor. The batteries had fallen out and we figured you didn't know you dropped it."
Ella gasped. "Oh no! What time is it? Did Jazzy come home yet? Did the baby wake everyone up? What-"
"Ella," Toby cut her off with a laugh, "one question at a time. But yes, the baby woke everyone except you up, and no, Jazzy's not back yet. It's about noon."
"NOON?"
"Calm down Ells. There were plenty of people here to make sure April was fine, and I'm sure Jazzy will be home soon. Where did she go this morning, anyway?"
"She went to a party last night," Ella stressed. "I was so tired! I didn't really get to talk her out of it. She said….oh no, I think she said there would be alcohol and no parental supervision. Oh my gosh, how could I be so stupid?"
Toby laid the baby down on one of Ella's blankets he'd spread across the floor and came to sit beside her. "Ells, you are not stupid. I know you love April, honey, but she's not our daughter. We are not responsible for raising her. Jazzy is April's mother. You're working yourself to death, trying to handle everything around here by yourself. But you shouldn't have to. You need to live your own life. Let your parents take care of your brothers and Emma, unless they're out of town, and don't let Jazzy push you around anymore. She has to be the one to raise her baby. And you know it."
Ella glanced over at the baby on the floor. "But what if she needs me?" She searched her boyfriend's face. "April's so small and innocent. She can't help it that her mother would rather go off partying than stay here and raise her."
"No, but Austin already told me he and Ally are talking to Jazzy as soon as she gets home. Just because you're not April's mom doesn't mean you can't love her….Aunt Ella." He bumped her shoulder when he said that.
Ella smiled faintly and laid her head on his chest. "It's hard to let go."
"Yet you still want to be a foster mom." It wasn't a question, but Toby's voice held a tone of amazement in it.
"Yes." Ella didn't even hesitate. "I'm not going to be a foster mom for me. I'm doing it for God, and for the kids. They need me. They need someone to love them, even if only for a little while. Even if my heart breaks everytime I watch one of them leave."
Toby smiled. He was looking at April now too. "Then I guess I should be a foster dad, too. We're in this together." Toby lifted their joined hands and kissed hers.
"Are you sure?" Ella looked concerned. "Because I'm positive I was called to do this. But if you don't feel-"
"Ella," Toby cut in, softly this time, "can't you see how I look at April? Baby, it's not just hurting you, this situation with Jazzy. I've helped take care of her just as long as you have and it'll kill me if Jazzy ever takes her away. She may not be our daughter but….it sure feels that way."
Ella smiled slightly. "I did notice, yes. I noticed that in you from the moment you first held Bri, the day the twins were born. You'll make a great Daddy someday."
"And you'll make an incredible Mommy." Just as Toby bent down to kiss her, a cry sounded. He pulled back reluctantly. "But not yet. I want to keep kissing you any time I want to right now, without having a little cutie screaming for our attention."
Ella grinned and stood up. "I'll get her. Stay here."
Austin and Ally were sitting on the couch, waiting, when Jazzy staggered through the front door. Five pairs of curious eyes watched from their perspective hiding spots.
"Is she drunk?" Emma whispered, glancing at her brother and her cousin from their hiding spot in the kitchen. Evan shushed her, causing Emma to thwack him upside the head.
"Can't tell," Eli said. "She could be buzzed and just can't walk straight in those heels."
"It's freaky you know all that," Evan muttered.
"Shut up," Eli hissed. They all turned their attention back to the living room.
Jazzy was blinking in confusion at the sight of Ella's parents staring at her from where they were sitting, a little too straight up on the couch.
"We need to talk," Ally said, right off the bat.
"Uh oh," Ella whispered to Toby from the top of the stairs where they were listening. Toby said nothing, only nodded.
"Okay." Jazzy shrugged and dropped into the loveseat, taking her shoes off as she did so. "They're hurting my feet," she said, by way of explanation.
"Jazzy," Ally sighed, "where have you been?"
"At a party. Ella said-"
"Ella is not the owner of this house, and she is not your baby's mother," Austin cut in.
"I know that." Jazzy was suddenly sitting straight up. "What would you say something like that for?"
"When was the last time you actually spent the entire weekend with April?" Ally asked.
"Last week!" Jazzy said in indignation. "I'm always here with my daughter!"
Austin snorted. "Really? Then why was Ella watching her all yesterday before you got home and for the thirteen hours you were gone last night?"
"I don't do that all the time!"
"No," Ally shot back, her voice growing louder, "just when there's a party, right? Just when there's better things to do than lay around here all day, watching TV?"
"It's not like a baby does anything more than eat, sleep and use the bathroom!"
"She needs love!" Ally stood up, her face bright red. All the onlookers leaned forward intently. "She needs you to be with her! Jazzy, I'm sorry to say this, but lately you've been behaving very irresponsibly and I won't stand for it."
Jazzy clamped her jaw shut. "You think I'm a bad mother?"
"We never said that." Austin stepped forward and placed a hand on Jazzy's shoulder, like a father might do, but she shook it off. "Sweetie, we're trying to help you and April here, but we can only do that if you want to help yourself. Nothing can change for someone whose not willing to let the change occur."
Jazzy turned her head. "I'm going upstairs to see my baby."
"Not until you sleep off that hangover," Ally said, arms folded. Jazzy turned, looking incredulous. Ally didn't back down. "Sorry, but we're not taking any risks. You're lucky we let you in the house when you're not sober. We won't do it again. I won't have you endangering my kids and that little baby with your carelessness. Now, go take a shower and get in the bed. I'll bring you up some water and something to help ease the headache I'm sure you'll have in a few hours."
Toby and Ella jumped back and darted for the nearest bedroom, that happened to be Ella's parents, as Jazzy stamped up the stairs.
"That was intense," Toby whispered, once she'd passed and they heard the water running in the bathroom.
"I know," Ella whispered back. "I've never heard my mom sound so angry."
The door opened. Ella's eyes widened, and she instinctively backed up a step, right into Toby. She'd stepped on his foot and caused him to hiss in pain.
"Great," Ella's mom laughed, without any mirth in her tone, "the kids were 's the younger ones Ella? Hiding in the bathroom?"
Ella blinked. "Mom, are you mad at me too?"
Ally sighed. "Not really, but you should've woken us up as soon as Jazzy told you she was going to a party."
"I'm sorry Mom," Ella said immediately, stepping forward. "I was so tired, I couldn't think straight! I know I should've told you, and I know I should've tried to stop her-"
"Sunshine, stop," Austin had walked in the room and wrapped an arm around Ally's waist. "It's okay. We don't blame you. Your mom's just upset right now."
Ally looked down. "I hate what she's doing to you. All those tests you kids had at the end of the year, and she was having you watch her baby so she could go party.."
"She was in school too, Mom," Ella reminded her mother.
Ally sighed. "But she doesn't care about her grades. You do."
"I'm fine." Ella moved forward to hug both her parents. "And by the way, the kids weren't watching from up here. I think they were downstairs in the kitchen."
Ally closed her eyes. She looked as if she were trying hard not to smile. "Of course they were."
January 5, 2025
Jazzy was at the hospital for one of her routine visits. She hated these things. She hated the pitying look on her doctor's face, and the scandalized ones of the random strangers she passed in the halls.
But most of all, Jazzy especially hated the doctor's granddaughter, Merilee Ingram. The kid was way too perky.
"Are you going to raise your baby all by yourself?" The girl asked now.
Jazzy nodded. "Yep."
"That sounds a bit hard, don't you think? I mean, I know you live with the Moons and all, but you've got school and you're still a teenager…"
What did this kid have against her? Why did she keep following her? Did Jazzy do something that caused the universe to hate her, or was the God Ella always talked about suddenly interested in her life and decided to punish her for being pregnant?
"It does sound kind of hard," Jazzy agreed.
"But you're going to do it anyway?" Jazzy nodded again. "Wow, that is so cool. You're braver than I ever could be. I mean, I'd never get an abortion, but I don't think I could handle raising a baby. My mom would probably do it for me, since she's a foster mom and all."
Jazzy knew this. Merilee had told her all about her family in the past few visits. She knew Merilee was her mother's only biological child, and that her father was not in the picture. She knew Merilee's mom was the oldest Murphy child, and that the youngest was a senior in high school. She knew Merilee's mother had two younger brothers and two younger sisters. She knew Merilee had three foster siblings living in her house. She also knew that if this child didn't stop talking soon, she was going to have a fit.
"Merilee, leave the girl alone."
Jazzy looked up. A boy around her own age had entered the room. He was very handsome, with long-ish, sandy blond hair that fell into his eyes, so Jazzy was unable to see what color they were, and he was most likely taller than her, but not by much if he was. He wasn't looking at her, and Jazzy was sort of glad. She was wearing a hospital gown and her hair was thrown into a messy ponytail. She hadn't expected any men to walk in the room.
"Terribly sorry," the boy murmured. "I'll take her out."
And suddenly the handsome boy was her saving grace.
"That's quite alright." Jazzy was using her best flirty voice. "What's your name?"
The boy still wasn't looking at her. "Logan Murphy."
"He's my uncle," piped up the mini-teen that Jazzy had recently been so annoyed with.
"I'm Jazzy Davis."
This made the boy look up. "Davis, did you say?"
Jazzy nodded. She didn't like how his eyes (which were green, she noticed) flashed at the sound of her name. "Murphy, did you say?" She retorted.
He nodded slowly in reply. "Yup. My mom's your doctor, it would seem."
Jazzy let a small smile form on her face. "Well, I guess we'll be seeing a lot of each other, then, won't we?"
June 14, 2025 (Present)
"Can you believe them?" Jazzy vented, the baby on her shoulder. She was at the hospital, a place she'd come to find herself at a lot lately when she needed to calm down or to vent.
It had been two days since Austin and Ally had gotten so angry with her, and Jazzy had been able to feel all the angry gazes on her back every time she left the attic to use the bathroom or get something to eat. Austin and Ally didn't like the fact that she was "using" Ella to take care of her baby, and the kids didn't like being woken up by April's screaming (which couldn't be helped). And it wasn't like Jazzy could help it that Ella liked taking care of her baby so much.
Merilee Ingram, still only thirteen years old, blinked up at Jazzy. As annoying as she seemed, Merilee had become something of a friend to Jazzy in her trips up to the hospital. "I think that's the most you've ever said to me," Merilee said, once Jazzy had finished her story.
Jazzy sighed. "I just don't understand what they expect me to do. Should I just stop living a normal life because I have a baby? It's not like I'm ignoring she exists!"
Merilee hesitated. "Jazzy…"
"What?" Jazzy frowned. "Spit it out, you're always saying whatever's on your mind anyway."
"Jaz, you aren't acting responsible," Merilee sighed. "When you have a kid, there's certain things you have to give up. Make sacrifices, you know? You don't have to give up everything, but you're supposed to re-prioritize your life around your baby. April should be the most important thing in your life."
"She is!" Jazzy protested.
"Then act like it," Merilee snapped. "Parents shouldn't leave their kids with other people all the time. I get you have school and work, but you shouldn't be away from your daughter more than you have to be. A party, Jazzy? Really? That's inappropriate to begin with, but as a parent, it's downright ridiculous. You may not be pregnant anymore, but your decisions still affect your baby."
Jazzy stared at her. Merilee always talked a lot, about whatever was on her mind...but never like this. She'd never purposely judged Jazzy for getting pregnant as a teenager, or being on drugs before she'd gotten pregnant.
But she was judging her now, and Jazzy felt awful.
"I'm not doing anything that would hurt her," Jazzy said, placing a hand over her baby's head, feeling her thin, wispy black hair beneath her fingers.
"Actually, you are."
Jazzy turned. Logan was standing behind them, aloof as always.
"What do you mean?" Jazzy pouted.
"Your baby needs your company most of all in the first few months of her life. She needs you to attach to, or she'll attach to someone else, someone who's around her most. It's a proven fact. In the long run, she'll be hurt more. She won't obey you, and she'll use your past mistakes against you, saying she should be able to do something because you'd done it before."
Jazzy frowned. Merilee leaned forward and grabbed her hand. "April needs to see you as someone who knows everything. Kids are in awe of their parents when they're little. If they see their parents making mistake after mistake, they'll be really messed up."
Logan gave his niece a hard look. "Mer…"
Merilee stood up. "I'm going to go find Nana. Be there for your daughter, Jazzy. She needs you."
Jazzy watched her walk away. Logan took the seat Merilee vacated. "Her dad left when she was little," he said softly. "It's bugged her ever since, when people don't pay enough attention to their kids."
"What about her mom?" Jazzy asked, moving April to her left arm so she could feed her a bottle.
Logan grimaced. "Merilee understands why Jenna can't be with her all the time. She's a single mom, she works, she's constantly got a house full of foster kids… But Jenna loves Merilee more than life itself. Her dad didn't. He chose to leave. Jenna never chose to be away from Merilee. You see, the choice….that's what makes a difference."
Jazzy sighed. "I don't know how to be a good parent. My mom's dead and my dad was a sucky father. I was….a horrible teenager. I did awful things, and I never really got the feeling I was doing anything that wrong until I moved in with the Moons. Now, that's all I feel like I do."
Logan nodded sympathetically. "It's not easy to change who you are, especially if you don't want to."
"But I do want to."
Logan gave her a considering look. "If I could pull some strings...get you a place to live, just for you and the baby, do you think you'd be able to get a job to pay for rent and maybe a car?"
Jazzy blinked. She'd lived with the Moons for over half the year, and though it was cramped, it was the first place she'd ever truly felt welcomed in, even if she knew none of the kids liked her very much. She and Ella had become something close to friends, once Jazzy had let her know she had no desire to steal Toby from her. And all of them liked her baby, most of the time. It felt almost wrong to leave the safety of the Moons'...and yet.
If Jazzy moved out, she wouldn't be yelled at all the time. And it wasn't like the family wouldn't still be in her life. Ally had already told her that they'd continue helping her with April and her financial difficulties if she ever decided to move out.
Jazzy turned to face Logan with renewed interest. "What kind of deal are we talking about here?"
Hey guys! I hope you like this highly anticipated (at least for me) next sequel in my Sunshine series! This chapter was,for the most part, written at 4:30 AM in March, (and technically all the scenes were fragments from my notebook way before that) but I knew a good bit of the story wouldn't be ready until now, so I waited to post it. Hope the wait was worth it for you guys! I'm really excited for this sequel and to see what you guys think. Plus, I understand grammar and punctuation now so I won't change it up in the middle of this story like I kept doing with the others. :)
*I don't own anything you might recognize.
God bless you all!
-Daddysgirl11
